I’m waiting near my gate at Indianapolis International Airport, heading to Austin, TX, for my first ever experience with anything SXSW. I spent a good portion of my twenties thinking every spring I could justify the expense of a visit to the film, music, or interactive portions of the event, but now, in my mid-thirties, I am evidently all the wiser.

I’ve cajoled the powers that be to send me and a colleague to the EDU track (SXSWedu) and do it on the company dime. Therefore, it being my first trip to Austin, first to SXSW, and first to SXSWedu, specifically, I’m a bit more anticipatory than I have on the eve of other business trips in my previous career as a writer/producer.

See Also: 5 Things To Know About SXSWedu

In fact, I have fairly high expectations that I’m keeping in check with experience attending education conferences and events. Education events are full of a lot of navel-gazing. They are full of concurrent sessions declaring the present without much alacrity, but dolefully misappropriating that same alacrity with regard to the future of the profession.

Can you tell I’ve been at the gate for a while? Can you also tell I’ve been working on my grad school assignments?

Here’s the goal. I want to see something truly innovative at SXSWedu. And not just a “really neat app”. I can save the airfare and discover that on my own back in Indy. What I mean is through the chemistry of those attending and presenting, I want to experience a truly innovative conversation on the subject of best practices in education that otherwise wouldn’t have occurred as easily.

With such great watering holes as the Dueling Piano’s bar and the pulled pork waffle fry nachos at El Chupacabra, I’m hopeful these meetings can occur. The setting is right.

So. In the pursuit of that, I will post a review of the day here at Edudemic, and hopefully report back positively. Will you join me in the pursuit at SXSWedu 2013?