What's a little startup to do when it's invited to two schmoozetastic parties in one night? Send the CEO to one and the marketing director to the other, natch. Yes, more than one startup actually did this (and several others hit both parties despite the hour commute) last night with Palo Alto's Stirr Mixer and Om Malik's GigaOM party.

First up, Stirr, the monthly show-and-tell for startups (photos by Hot From Silicon Valley):

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"Hey, you know the organizer Sean Ness? I hear he isn't wearing any panties."

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"Guys, I know the party around us is loud, but if we keep our heads down, we can still finish this business proposal tonight."

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Caught in the holy light, this man converted to the Holy Church of Web 2.0. He was later seen handing out poppies at the Oakland Airport.

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"Please God, just one more button."

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"Hmm, who on the balcony looks pitchable?"

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"Look at me, I'm a woman at Stirr! How did I even get in here?"

Meanwhile, at San Francisco's Mighty club, blogger Om Malik held the second re-launch party for his blog GigaOM, sponsored by Sharpcast. Four people asked me that night, "What does Sharpcast do?" Who knows, and who cares? They bought the drinks, and they were hiring. They supplied the band too, for which we hate them. Zooomr evangelist Thomas Hawk snapped shots:

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In the center, Thor Muller of Rubyred Labs and Valleyschwag, the man who will one day make millions selling elixir from a brightly painted wagon.

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GigaOM blogger Jackson West eschewed collar and sleeves, instantly becoming the best-dressed gent at the party.

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Note the white rabbit, a nod to the party's Alice in Wonderland theme. The heavy references to a magical world where things grow big when they shouldn't, words mean whatever one wants them to mean, and impossible creatures give drug-induced speeches while celebrating nonexistent holidays, made a better point about the tech boom than I ever could.

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The man of the hour, getting some affection from Citizen Agency consultant Tara Hunt. Further photo series analysis reveals: Om only posed with women (who were, as all women, gorgeous).

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Technorati engineer Kevin Marks makes a "help me" face.

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Little known fact: Laughing Squid founder Scott Beale is rarely seen in photos not because he is usually behind the camera, but because he stands at a 60-degree angle.

STIRR Mixer 5 [Hot From Silicon Valley on Flickr]
Go GigaOm Go [Thomas Hawk]