I spent last week in the fair midwestern metropolis of Minneapolis at the Public Library Association (PLA for short) Convention. Now, having made my home in that fine city for some years in the past, I fully expected that the weather would be disagreeable, as winter has a tendency to linger on in Minnesota until oh... say, mid-May or so. Therefore, I was amazed to find that it was temperate and spring-like in Minneapolis while Missoula was cold and getting several inches of snow. But that delightful surprise was nothing to the wonders in store for me as a first-time library convention attendee. In recognition of that extraordinary experience, I offer the following for your edification:
THE PROS AND CONS OF GOING TO A LIBRARY CONVENTION
Con: No sleep. Ever.
Pro: Awesome coffee shops to get you through it.
Con: Inevitably, at some point, you will get completely lost.
Pro: Neat signage to help you find your way.
Con: Two sessions you want to go to both scheduled at the same time. Decisions, decisions...
Pro: Local culture and cuisine aplenty.
Con: No time to read.
Pro: Free books!!!
Con: Paying $2.50 for a Snickers bar out of a vending machine between sessions ($$$!).
Pro: Great authors luncheons with writers you've always wanted to meet like Louise Erdrich.
Con: Sales tax (yet another reason to live in MT).
Pro: Free books! Did I say that already? How about free audiobooks?
Con: There's never enough time to see and do everything you want to see and do.
Pro: Being the nerdliest employee @ your library -- bummer.
Discovering that you're not the nerdliest attendee @ the Con -- priceless.
Con: Trying to learn the public transit system in a new city.
Pro: Librarians really are nicest, friendliest people you'll ever go to a convention with!
Con: There's no getting around it - at some point, you will be unavoidably late for your session.
Pro: It's ok -- it happens to everyone.
Con: What do you mean it's all over and it's time to go home?
Pro: Did I mention free books? How about free DVDs?
1 comment:
I agree! Yay for free books! It was great to see some friendly faces from home (including my mom) and to hang out at my first library convention. Hopefully, it was merely the first of many.
Anna
Post a Comment