Back to the Grind!

Well, I got back in one piece yesterday - 10 pounds! heavier (eeek), money shorter (lots), more packages to unpack and put away, and a lot of beadwork, hugs and projects completed.  It was absolutely wonderful to see so many friends again.  Hugs are wonderful and I collected them wherever I could.  I arrived shortly after noon on Wednesday and, since the room was not ready yet, I perched in the bar to wait.  The bartenders, who have become friends over the years, welcomed me "home", gave me munchies and two free breakfast coupons.  Thanks Andy - those really came in handy!  After 90 minutes or so, my room was ready and they gave me an east-facing room on the 12th floor - GREAT VIEW!  Aliens out of my window (inside joke for some of my friends).  Wednesday night was my solo night - Dawn wasn't scheduled to arrive until the next day.  I went across the street to Thai Palace for dinner (Volcano Duck - SO good!!!), then went back to the hotel, dressed for the evening, and left for the convention center.  I attended Meet The Teachers from 8-11 pm, taking my friend Randy and her husband Tom around the room introducing her to many of my teaching friends.  I then wandered back to the hotel around 11pm and called it a night around midnight, allowing myself to sleep in until 7am or so.  Luxury.  (Here's the Bistro 333 bar before it gets busy.)

Thursday was laid back.  Shopping was due to open at 4pm for preview so I took my BFAC project with me and beaded while waiting for the doors to open.  The lines to rush in were large, but I wasn't in any rush - I didn't think that the vendors would sell out of anything I wanted within the first five minutes of having the doors open.  It was my first chance to say "Hi" to many of my vendor friends, though.  I did buy, even though I had not intended to.  Mardel at Cool Tools had several things that interested me, and there were other things here and there that got me to part with my cash.  Mardel was the major chunk of it though.  I finally dropped my packages off at the room.  Dawn had still not arrived so I went downstairs and grabbed a salad, ending up going to bed at 10:15pm.  Dawn called at 11:15 pm saying that she had arrived, she got her room key and came up.  We talked until 2:15 am and I had a 7am breakfast meeting and a class to go to.  Obviously sleep was short - seriously short!  (This is Blue Buddah's booth from the 2009 show.)

TBC - Friday, Saturday and Sunday will be reviewed in tomorrow's post.