I remember the last meeting I had before the pandemic. We met at some bar/restaurant to discuss a project that never materialized. But it was in that vibe, where I was meeting with different people involved in different roles. The part where you get to talk to everyone and hear what they have to say. I love that part.

The Capital Factory guys host this coffee thing every month in Dallas, and I thought, why not? Right? Let me be very honest, my anxiety hit hard. All of a sudden I was thinking of excuses to not go. I didn’t want to leave. Of course, this made me realize how important it is to go. It wasn’t an optional thing, it was an absolutely essential step in the recovery from the pandemic’s lockdown.

I needed to see people. Human persons, not Panda (the dog). As with those things, you meet people new people and learn about what they’re working on. I love that shit. This guy was telling me about the drones they’re working on to survey tight urban spaces. I just love hearing what people are doing and seeing the passion just flow as they talk. It’s absolutely intoxicating.

But, I couldn’t take a lot of it. I quickly started to feel uncomfortable and not in control. I wrapped up the last few conversations and quietly headed to my car. My anxiety took over, I must confess. This is a lot harder than I thought it would be.

The guy at the parking lot hurried towards me as I started my car. Smiles, revealing his grills and tells me that he’s been waiting for me (owner of my car). He then hands me a QR card to check out his music. I asked, what kind of music? I knew what it was going to be. He’s got grills!

I feel obligated to share this with you: rando’s music. It’s all terrible music, but I appreciate the hustle. And it made me realize that, if the rando with the grills and music on a QR card can put himself out there to a stranger like me, I can make it to more of those networking events.

And yeah I wore my “where the hose at?” shirt. And yes, it was a definite conversation starter.