Where did the day go???

One thing about these conferences..the days just fly by. The weather today was picture perfect and I tried to walk outside as much as possible..which regrettably was not enough. Started the day with Keith Curry Lance and his report of the data he has collected in a longitudinal study which AASL has sponsored. This type of data is always difficult to collect, especially if trying to get a random sampling. Since AASL members were involved, the response was excellent, about 4500 completed surveys, although they were more concentrated into particular areas. I will be reporting back on our listserv on the details about median expenditures and staffing that was determined for school libraries across the country.

Gale is great about providing bus transportation between venues but it sure does get confusing because there are, for example, 3 different Marriotts, 2 Renaissance hotels, etc...last night Kathy and I spent $10 on a cab to get to McCormick and Schmick's only to find out we went to the wrong one and ended up almost back across the street from where we started!! You've definitely got to have a sense of humor!!

Spent a good deal of time in the vendor hall today and collected all sorts of goodies and books to give away at our conference. Saw Jack Gantos, Mitali Perkins, Nancy Garden, Joseph Bruchac among others... Once again Google has a great booth but looks like if you won a Google tee shirt last year it is a "collector's item." The only prizes this year are collector pins. This year's big treats will be the commemorative Harry Potter bags that Scholastic gave out at their Harry Potter party, along with Harry Potter cake and "butter beer".

Another highlight of the day was the President's Opening Session. Speakers were Vartan Gregorian and Senator Bill Bradley. Both gave a good talk. Next thing we were swept away by a caravan of buses to the Hilton in Georgetown where we attended the Proquest Scholarship Bash and saw Mark Russell and the Capitol Steps. A great time was had by all...and now it is 11:30 PM and I really wish I could take a walk around town. The buildings look beautiful at night, all lit up...oh well, maybe tomorrow! Off to the Scholastic Breakfast at 7:30 and then the Affiliate Assembly where I will be on a panel with other reps from P21 states. More later. :-)