WHCA: A Night Out Among the "Prom" Nerds

SPOTTED OUTSIDE THE W HOTEL: BILL PLANTE, CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, SALLY QUINN AND WALTER ISAACSON

At the extraordinarily crowded Google party, Google founder Eric Schmidt stood against the wall near the entrance. "Do you like crowds?" I asked. "No," he said, emphatically. I'm with Eric. It was too crowded. Almost impossible to move through the rooms in the basement of the W Hotel. But guests were smiling, laughing, shouting to be heard, and apparently having fun. Like any prom, these events are best for catching up with friends. Read my preview story on washingtonian.com

INSIDE: THE DINNER AT THE HOME OF DAVID AND KATHERINE BRADLEY

I saw some dear friends from across the years, friends I don't see often enough, so foraging into the mosh was worthwhile. Heidi Berenson, who worked with me at CBS News and now has her own media company; Britt Kahn, who worked with me at Larry King Live and is now one of Conan O'Brien's producers, and Stephanie Ruhle, with whom I go way back, to when she was working on Wall Street, and now covers Wall Street for Bloomberg. (And her handsome husband, Andy Hubbard, who still works on Wall Street). Crushed in with us was Dave Grimaldi of the FCC, who have their own issues with Google.

SETTING UP AT THE BRADLEY DINNER

Up on the W's rooftop, The New Yorker party was less crowded, and of course there is that spectacular view, and they had food. I spent most of my time sitting with Lloyd Grove of The Daily Beast, catching up and talking about our children. His daughter, Camilla, went to high school with my son, and his son, Julian, worked summers in the office at Nathans. Also joining us was another good friend, Francesca Craig, social secretary at the French Embassy, meaning everyone wanted to lobby her to get on the list for the Vanity Fair party at the ambassador's residence tonight. She was handed enough cards to fill a rolodex. 

THE VIEW FROM THE W HOTEL'S ROOFTOP BAR

The most civilized event of the evening, and reliably so, was the dinner party earlier at the home of Atlantic Media founder David Bradley and his wife, Katherine Bradley. It was just right, featuring an African-themed menu with steak and sweet potatoes and spices. If the whole weekend could be like that! 

AT THE NEW YORKER PARTY: CHAMPAGNE AND FOOD!

Yes, there were movie stars all over the place, but spotting them is not the reason to dive into this weekend's events. I like to see old friends. 

I don't do brunches, so I'll skip those today. Besides, I wouldn't want anyone to see me in the daylight. Too scary. Gotta get more sleep and then go out and haunt the night.