In hilarious fashion, R. Eric Thomas shares the story of his journey from Baltimore to Philadelphia, finding creative purpose and a sense of belonging in the city. Eric reflects on his early perception of the City of Brotherly Love (somewhere inbetween the Fresh Prince of BelAir and Philadelphia, the movie) and how he developed a "New Attitude" thanks to idol Patti LaBelle.

R. Eric Thomas is a playwright, storyteller and teaching artist. He's a frequent storyteller and host of Philadelphia's First Person Arts' StorySlams series. His play, Will You Accept This Friend Request?, about making connections and mistakes in the age of Facebook, premiered to rave reviews in 2011.

http://enormouslyawkward.blogspot.com

The 2011 TEDxPhilly conference examined vast interpretations of the theme "The City" on Tuesday, November 8. TEDxPhilly brought together engaging speakers, performers, participants and exhibitors to deconstruct, decipher and explore some of the greatest challenges, innovations, concepts and realities that shape and are shaped by cities and their inhabitants. Philadelphia was the point of departure, but the conversation traveled beyond its borders. The event took place at Temple Performing Arts Center in North Philadelphia.

http://www.tedxphilly.com

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, selforganized events that bring people together to share a TEDlike experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, selforganized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are selforganized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)