August 21st, 2024
I had to take two flights back-to-back, spending a grand total of 12 hours in airports and airplanes each way, to get to XOXO Fest 2024. But it was worth it.
I last went to XOXO in 2019, when my spouse, mb, introduced me to it. It’s “an experimental festival for independent artists who live and work online” – hey, that’s me! – and brings together writers, podcasters, designers, musicians, and filmmakers (among many others) from around the world. It involves social meetups, conference talks from smart people about the wisdom they’ve accrued on the internet, demos of cool games and art projects, and (famously) raucous karaoke parties.
The pandemic was not kind to the events industry, however, so there hasn’t been an XO for five years. This latest one, in 2024, was the final one, equal parts reunion and last hurrah. I knew I had to be there, and was really blessed that both mb and I were able to get tickets.
I wore this out for dinner at Canard (always good, highly recommend) after arriving in Portland late on Wednesday night. Lately when I travel, I’ve enjoyed packing clothes that all match each other and go together, for the maximum number of viable outfit combos – so you’ll see throughout this post that I’m decked out in blues and greens, which incidentally matched the decor of our hotel beautifully!
What I’m wearing:
• Green polka-dotted dress – thrifted in 2015
• Blue cashmere cardigan – J. Crew
• Black leggings – Gap
• Black leather Frye harness boots
• Black leather Coach Willis bag – vintage on eBay
• Rainbow earrings – an Etsy store called 3DelightfulShop
August 22nd, 2024
On this day, we got a delicious brunch with our pal DJ Pynchon from the hypnokink community, who is lovely. Then I spent a good portion of the afternoon soaking in a tub in our hotel room, letting my fibro-ridden body recover a bit after all that travel.
In the evening, we had dinner with my friend Epiphora, one of the people who initially inspired me to become a sex toy reviewer many years ago. She is, as ever, brilliant and funny.
Then we went to the XOXO opening party for a while, before I ducked out to go play some songs at an open mic at Haymaker Bar, thanks to my very talented and sweet friend Eric who had invited me. Definitely an unusually packed day for me, but such is the nature of travel sometimes!
What I’m wearing (you’ll have to ask mb yourself if you want to know the deets of her fabulous outfit here):
• Green tri-blend tank top – American Apparel
• Turquoise pleated skirt – Zhanchtong
• Black leather jacket – Danier Leather
• Navy knee-high socks – gift from my mom
• Black leather Frye harness boots
• Black leather Coach Willis bag
• Magic Wand earrings – an Etsy shop called FUELifestyle
August 23rd, 2024 (morning)
The first full day of XO started with a welcome address from “the Andys,” Andy Baio and Andy McMillan, who organize the conference. (All hail!)
After checking in with the delightful pen-and-paper nerds at the #stationery meetup, we attended a few sessions from the Indie Media Circus lineup, hearing from creators and founders about how they’ve built reader-supported projects that seem more sustainable than the current (dying) mainstream media apparatus.
My love had just gifted me this shirt, a souvenir from WWDC. I love the vintage Apple logo – and the rainbow, of course, which matched my earrings perfectly!
What I’m wearing:
• Apple T-shirt – gift from my spouse
• Black modal nightgown – Calvin Klein Sleepwear
• Blue cashmere cardigan – J. Crew
• Black leggings – Gap
• Black leather Frye harness boots
• Black leather Coach Willis bag
• Turquoise leather collar – Tiffany’s, a gift from my love
• The ever-stylish and ever-present XOXO badge/lanyard
August 23rd, 2024 (evening)
After the Indie Media Circus, I went back to the hotel for another bath, so I’d be refreshed for the rest of the day, which was mostly social meetups. I didn’t attend as many this year as I did in 2019, because I was trying to pace myself, energy-wise – but I caught up with mb at the #queer meetup, where we chatted with some cuties, and then we walked over to Rum Club for the #cocktails meetup, where we chatted with yet more cuties. (The piña colada I had was quite possibly my favorite drink of the whole trip.)
Then we grabbed a quick dinner at Mucca Osteria before heading back to the beautiful Revolution Hall to catch the evening’s “Sideshow” programming, which was a series of live podcast recordings. I think my favorite was Never Post, although Depths of Wikipedia was hysterically funny as well.
What I’m wearing:
• Floral-print skater dress – American Apparel
• Apple Watch with Hermès watch band – both from my spouse
• Same cardigan, leggings, bag, boots, earrings, and badge as above
August 24th, 2024 (morning)
A slightly more subdued outfit for the final day of XOXO! This was the actual conference day, so there were a ton of fascinating talks given by total geniuses.
My favorite talks included Gita Jackson on worker-owned and subscriber-funded media, Erin Kissane on the COVID Tracking Project, Ed Yong on compassionate health & science coverage, and Cabel Sasser telling a wacky story about a mural on the wall of a McDonald’s that left me laughing, sobbing, and wanting to make more art. XOXO really is a magical place.
During our lunch break, mb and I went to Dimo’s Apizza for a wonderful pepperoni pie and a couple of Negronis in the sunshine. A perfect day.
What I’m wearing:
• Pale blue T-shirt – gift from my friend Sarah
• Blue cashmere cardigan – J. Crew
• Navy high-waisted skirt – Old Navy
• Black leggings – Gap
• Black leather Frye harness boots
• Black leather Coach Willis bag
• Magic Wand earrings – FUELifestyle
August 24th, 2024 (evening)
I managed to squeeze in one more quick bath before heading out to the XOXO closing party. It ended exactly how it should’ve ended: with the two Andys doing karaoke to the Ghostbusters theme. (In 2019, the music podcast Punch Up the Jam did a legendary live show at XOXO where they talked about the Ghostbusters theme for an hour and a half. In my admittedly marijuana-soaked memory, it is the funniest thing that has ever happened, so I was glad to see a callback to it all these years later.)
I danced. I giggled. I sang along. I felt grateful to have gotten to attend XOXO (twice!). I felt inspired to wear more weird outfits, make more weird friends, and post more weird art on the internet. Thank you for that, XO staff & community. 💖
What I’m wearing:
• Blue and green patterned dress – Winners, I think? The label says Maggy London
• Same cardigan, leggings, boots, bag, badge, collar, watch, and rainbow earrings as above