BlogHer07: I can't believe I wasted $200 on this. Updated.

OK, that's kind of a misleading headline, because that kind of behavior is exactly what I do best.

You know how social networking sites like MySpace and Friendster are always asking what your interests are? If I took them seriously, I'd type in different answers. I'd answer "blogging, deciding whether I have more of a crush on Jack Aubrey or Stephen Maturin, putting on makeup, and wasting money." Instead of that crap I'm always spouting about reading and listening to classical music.

So I'm actually not opposed to wasting money. Not on principal, anyway. It's something of a hobby of mine. But BlogHer07 was definitely a waste of money.

The best thing about it has been meeting and talking with other bloggers. Not the famous ones, so much, although I was introduced to a few famous ones by Blackbird and Schmoozie Sunshine,* and they were all very nice. And their business cards were so cool that I'd love to go back and get more. Talk about imaginative. These girls are business card geniuses. Some of them weren't even cards. Kristen at Mommy Needs a Cocktail was handing out shotglasses. The Sarcastic Journalist was handing out tampons. (All we needed was someone brilliant enough to give away chocolate. Or Brad Pitt.)

But the panels? Sucked. I sat through three, and came to the reluctant conclusion that the people leading them didn't know what they were talking about.

Or the "writers panel" one panelist wrote books first, and then took to blogging in order to promote her book. One blogger blogs short stories. One blogs every day. I am not impressed. BlogHer executives: this is not the equivalent of having Janet Evanovich, Anna Quindlan, and Norah Ephron up there. On the branding yourself panel (whose title had already set off a loud "WTF" response in my head) Penelope Trunk declared that there was no such thing as going from blogging to book-writing. (Jen Lancaster, anyone? Who's on book number three? Hello?)

No wonder we were all live-blogging or twittering or checking our email or web-surfing or checking out each others' blogs. Give us a place to plug in our laptops and free wireless and guess what happens? We tune out the stupid stuff and do what we want.

But I didn't need BlogHer to do that.

So the $200 I paid appears to have covered the meeting space, the hotel shuttle, breakfast and lunch the first day, the printed program, one cocktail at the first evening's cocktail party, free wireless, those dreary panels ... not much else.

Seems a bit steep.

* * * * *

Update: If you want to save $200 and maybe a bunch of travel costs, read Schmutzie's 769th post. You'll have to scroll down, but it's worth it.

To Schmutzie's advice, I will add that you should have clickable links to each post.

*hee hee hee.