Keith Robinson, a local video producer, put together a few videos with highlights from some Idea Festival 2008 presentations. It's a great way to relive some sessions and see what you missed if you didn't make it this year.

BIG: Designs on the Future City
BIG: Designs on the Future City 2
Where's the Big Idea?
Where's the Big Idea? 2

Definitely hope to see you at Idea Festival 2009 next September.

Idea Festival just about wore me out with all the excitement. Lots and lots of interesting presentations, speakers and ideas. And also? Juggling.

I was twittering and photographing a bit during the festival so I didn't liveblog or take a great deal of notes during most of the sessions I attended. But I thought I'd share some of the highlights from my Idea Festival recollections.

First though I've been thinking about the best way to describe Idea Festival for people who tell me they still don't "get" what it is or what it is all about. I've come up with three "elevator pitch" descriptions:

1. It's like SXSWi for grown ups. That sounds kind of condescending though (even though I don't mean it to be at all) so I changed it to SXSWi for nerds of all stripes, not just web nerds.
 
2. 3 days of smart people talking about interesting things on the widest variety of topics and subjects you can imagine.

3.The place you absolutely need to be in September if you enjoy smart people, big ideas and getting lots of new things to think about and discuss.

Any other suggestions?

Recaps after the jump.

Geek Squad, one of the sponsors of IdeaFestival is doing the geeks in the house a solid with their Geek Squad Lounge.

Got a laptop that needs to power up? Check. Need a comfortable couch to plop down on so you can type faster while you blog about that amazing session you just went to? Check. Want to see Twitter in action so you can figure out what the heck it is and get on board with it? Check and double check.

Bloggers, Twitters, FriendFeeders, Flickr-ers, what have you, this is the chill out spot for the technically inclined during IdeaFestival. It's also where I suspect I'll be hanging out between sessions so make sure you say hello.

The Idea Festival blog yesterday announced some cool dining events to get us all in the mindset for Idea Festival come September.

The 2008 IdeaFestival in Louisville, KY is still six months away, but why wait to experience it? A series of unique spring and summer dining events is being planned to remind people that the Festival is about innovation, creativity and taking a few risks.

What are you doing April 17 at 6:30p?

The daring diners who attend the Lights Out Dinner at chef Peng Looi's Asiatique Asian Fusion restaurant on Bardstown Road will be asked to try something more than a little out of the ordinary: enjoying a multi-course meal without seeing it.

Diners will be blindfolded as they enter the darkened room reserved for the dinner, and enjoy a series of imaginative courses paired with wines and other spirits, all without setting eyes on them.

Why would anyone want to eat in the dark?

Ask diners in Paris, Zurich, New York and other cities where the dining in the dark concept has taken off in recent years. There's even a restaurant in Los Angeles that now serves all its meals in utter darkness, its waiters outfitted with night-vision goggles. Another, in Cologne, Germany, employs blind or vision-impaired servers in its subterranean, windowless dining room.

Those who've tried this particular dining experience say canceling out the often-dominant sense of sight heightens the senses of taste and touch.

Chef Looi is not revealing the menu ahead of time, but assures participants he'll personally present each course and explain his approaches to scintillating ingredients, spices, sauces, temperatures, techniques, and the fine balance between sweet and savory.

Seating will be limited to the first 50 people who register. Tickets for the complete meal with wine and other pairings are $100 apiece, which includes gratuities and taxes.

Make your reservations now, and we look forward to not seeing you there!

Upcoming IdeaFestival Lights Out Dinners are planned at the Mayan Café downtown, in June, and the Patron on Frankfort Avenue, in early September. For more information on these unique experiences, phone David Mudd at 502.859.1762 or contact him by email.