Omaha, Day 1, 2, and 3

Greetings from Omaha! Let's jump right into stories...(there will be no cardmaking until probably Friday, so the next couple of entries will be more of a journaling of my time in Omaha. Feel free to follow along!)

First off, I'm not one of those chatty people that you sit next to on the plane. I'm one of those types that falls right asleep and then if I wake up, I just pretend that I'm asleep to avoid awkward conversation. And yes, perhaps that sounds anti-social. Anyway, I sat next to a young man, and we had both passed out for the majority of the flight. We both woke up with 30 minutes left in the flight, and he made some comment about how it was cold on the plane. "What brings you to Omaha?" "Work. What about you?" "I'm visiting family. I just graduated, and I'm going off to basic training soon, so I wanted to spend as much time with them as I could." Oh, this is interesting. We ended up talking about basic training and the lack of options in terms of a social life in Omaha. The lesson here is that not all conversations with strangers on planes are awkward.

When I got to the hotel, I wandered outside to find something to eat. I ended up wandering around Omaha and getting some lasagna at an Italian place. I was so sweaty by the time I got back to the hotel. I made a game plan to walk straight into the hotel, trying to avoid any eye contact with anyone so that they would not have to see me in such a gross condition. "HI TINA!" ::waves me over:: Oh great. Thankfully it was a co-worker and not a member. Otherwise, I would have been super embarrassed.

I was in an all-day meeting on Saturday, which was productive, and then today was the official start of the conference. I spent most of the time at the registration desk, a good spot to be when you want to see a lot of the members. The day was not without its embarrassing moments.

• I had a bottle of water at the registration desk. I hear "That's not being very green." We try to encourage people to use water bottles instead of bottles of water. I looked around to see who the voice was referring to. "You, Tina." Oh, heh. Erg.
• At the closing reception, I got caught with my mouth full and my hands foody. "Ohh, you're the guy that I met in New Hampshire. Hi, how are you? I'd shake your hand but..." "That's ok, Tina."
  
• After the closing session, I went to get a drink with a co-worker and then I went up to the Hilton Honors suite to get some snacks. I came back with 2 cookies, a ginger ale, and a bottle of water. I got back in the elevator and sure enough, another member saw me with my hands full of food. He looked like he was going to the gym. I tried to make a joke, "Wow, you're dedicated!" And then we both laughed.

Food report:
I haven't had much of the meat that Omaha is known for, but I'm determined to get some pulled pork at a BBQ place that people have been raving about. The meeting food so far has been good. At yesterday's reception, I had some macaroni and cheese that was good, as well as some risotto. Tonight's reception food was even better: mini cheeseburgers, veggies and hummus, crab ragoon, and pot stickers. Yum! The drink that I had at the end of the day was a James and the Giant Peach martini. I asked the bartender about a cherry limeade drink, but she made a face and told me that it was no good. I appreciated her candor.