• by Carrie Cummings , October 6, 2011

I'm blaming Richard Blakeley and the entire staff of ShareThis for the reason that I'm writing this article from my couch instead of my office. I was sick of Advertising Week and the fact that it's kind of chilly outside, so I hit up an Internet Week event. I've written about Websdays in the past, but this one was different because ShareThis was sponsoring it, which meant open bar and a night of karaoke at the Ace Hotel. If you know how obnoxious I am, it should come to no surprise that karaoke is my favorite party activity, which naturally lends itself to losing one's voice -- especially when you're already wrestling serious allergies in the first place. So here I am, at home, squeaking and coughing. I was bested by Internet Week during Advertising Week.  

The event was held in the basement of the Ace, where they typically hold private events. It was nice and dark, full of people but not crowded (you guys know how I hate crowds and standing). People started singing right away, and I was impressed how many single singers there were at the beginning (read: people singing before they got drunk). One of the best moments was toward the end, when someone sang Cee Lo's profanity-entitled hit and I looked over and saw ShareThis' CEO Kurt Abrahamson rocking out and shouting the words with his employees.  

ShareThis also had a karaoke booth in the back of the room where you could go in and record yourself singing their jingle and then get a $15 iTunes giftcard. The booth also included boas and hats and stupid glasses to wear. Cheap ploy for free advertising from hundreds of drunken revelers? Totally. Do I care? Not at all. I'm rich in iTunes cards because I sang their jingle like 10 times, dressed as a fool in a boa. 

At one point in the evening, I saw a tall guy that I knew I knew but not from New York. I kept thinking, "I'm pretty sure I spent Mardi Gras with that guy on a balcony in New Orleans and then partied in a mansion somewhere with him... nah, impossible." Then, I find out that I'm not crazy! It was Preston Charles from MTV's "Real World: New Orleans." Yes, I totally weaseled myself into the "Real World" house and spent a particularly rough Mardi Gras signing releases and praying that I'd be on camera, much to the shame of my parents.  

I also saw Natan Edelsburg from SawHorse Media with his girlfriend. I see Natan at so many events, we've emailed extensively AND we share DropBox files on the regular. But every time I see him, I always say, "I'm sorry, I have no idea who you are." Why is my memory failing me? I swear I'm not really that jerky. But Natan always takes it in stride and assures me it's okay.  

My night ended after the sales guys from ShareThis sang a sensual rendition of Boyz II Men's "I'll Make Love to You" that had everyone slow dancing. It made me uncomfortable.  

Some people who were in attendance: Neil Vogel & David-Michel Davies of The Webbies, Rex Sorgatz of VYou, Dan Maccarone of Hard Candy Shell, Lindsay Kaplan of chloe + Isabel, Seth Porges, Features Editor at Maxim, Nick McGlynn of Random Night Out, Les Armour of Linkshare, Justin Johnson of YouTube, Gary Sharma of Gary's Guide, Scott Beale of Laughing Squid 

Thanks to Brand Image Productions for the photos.  

When my voice returns, I want to come to your party and act foolish and drink your liquor, so email carrie@mediapost.com and invite me to things!