Not dead yet (but I did take a night of rest)

Okay– so, per usual, RWA is a whirlwind of amazing people to talk to, workshops to attend, and appointments to make.  If I tried to put it altogether for you, I’d fail miserably.  When I go home and try to tell stories about cons like this, mostly what my family gets is numb silence, followed by random non sequiturs through most of the next month. I’ll be toodling along, and then I’ll go, “Oh, hey, when I was with Karen Rose at RWA we went to this great African restaurant at the Disney resort, and I had the most  AMAZING wine. I mean, I actually drank alcohol. I was stunned.”

Or, “Okay, so I was at RWA when I got kidnapped by my boss and I went out to dinner with the lovely ladies at DSP, and I love going places with them and I want to go out with them forever and ever and ever!”

Or, “Oh yeah– Karen and I copped a knit– that was fun. I also knit during a couple of panels, but I did not, alas, finish Lynn’s fingerless mitts.”

There’s always, “Geoffrey Symon made my day about six-thousand times this trip–and I finally got his number in my phone. I’m like, ‘Yay! We’re friends!”

Same with Cathy Tully, who is about the fiercest most awesome broad at the con.

Oh–here’s one that just popped out in convo with the fam tonight: “I got to tell Sylvia Day that Chicken was a huge fan!”  (I told Chicken this, and she said, “Yeah, that’s fair.” Which is practically gushing high praise from Chicken.)

And then there was this moment–“So, did I tell you that Suzanne Brockmann told me her son, Jason T. Gaffney who writes too, is a fan of mine? SHE TOTALLY INSPIRED ME!!!”

Or, “Sue Brown-Moore and I had lunch with Lynn West, and there wasn’t a lot of work but I did enjoy the company of two lovely women. Oh–also, Sue and I got to tell about the amazing thunderstorm we watched from her balcony. Because those things will bond you.”

Of course, I led with, “Oh! Hey! Elisabeth Staab and I are rooming together again this trip! I’m so excited–we make good roomies!”

And I’ve been telling everybody that, “Did you know Andrew Grey got the centurion award this trip? We’re all so proud for him!”

Oh– and, “I gave Rayna her shawl– she seemed to really like it, but of course it’s hotter than the sphincter of hell here in Florida, so I’m not sure she’ll get a chance to wear it.”

And so on.

So it’s been an eventful trip–and tomorrow is the book signing, and I’m sure it will be even more eventful!

But tonight, I admit, I wasn’t quite feeling up to the noise and excitement, so I spent some time sleeping and eating and, well, finally, blogging.

Tomorrow I’ll be up and about and ready to collect more stories, more moments with friends, more knowledge, more memories.

It’s always worth the trip.