This was my first year at SXSW. Mike and I took a walk at lunch and at one point, he stopped.

“This is where the kickball game usually is.”

He sighed and looked at the empty field.

Anil Dash is the guy who usually sets up the kickball game and this is why there wasn’t one this year.

• Anil Dash: KICKless in Austin

Honestly, the kickball game is where a lot of people find out who’s there and who’s not. Because Anil Dash wasn’t there, a wrench was thrown into the whole works. Sure hope he’s able to attend next year. I never got to experience the joy that is kickball.