Blogger Meet-up

I had a late client on Fri, so after finally getting home I called the Breens and arranged to pick them

up at their hotel.  It was like greeting an old friend I hadn't seen in years, when in reality we'd never met in person.

We went to Saketumi and Sean & I ordered Cosmos, of course, while Spouse & Jeffrey ordered less glamorous cocktails.  We talked and talked, finally forcing ourselves to stop and review the menu so we could eat!  We had an absolutely fabulous time together and I can see us spending more time together in the future.

Sat morning I had to show homes to a client, but then Spouse & I joined a good sized group of bloggers for a late lunch at Dos Locos.  I was able to meet everyone who'd arrived before we ate lunch and get to know those sitting near me as we ate.

After lunch many of us went back to the host hotel (Inn at Canal Square) and visited with each other in the hospitality suite.  Before we knew it it was time for the main event to start, so I ran home to change clothes, pick up Spouse and return for the cocktail hour.  We had drinks and light hors d'ouevres as we talked and laughed with our fellow bloggers, followed by a tasty buffet dinner catered by Nage.  As we finished dinner there were a few door prizes awarded and our host Ron presented some gifts to Michael. 

What a joy it was to meet everyone!  I've been reading Java's blog and The Cajun's blog (off and on) for years.  I will be reading several others going forward, such as Jay in VA, Our Simple Lives, David & Barry, Michael and David.  At one point Anne Marie voiced what I believe everyone was thinking and feeling when she said "There sure is a lot of LOVE in this room."  I couldn't have agreed more.  Check out some fab photos here. 

The event seemed to end all to quickly, so I was happy to find out that the party was basically moving from the banquet room of the Inn to the hospitality suite.  Many of us continued to enjoy cocktails, talk and laugh well into the night.  It was truly a wonderful time!

Sun I was scheduled to work 10am-4pm.  Most of the bloggers had breakfast together and then eventually left, one by one, except the Breens and Anne Marie and her husband.  We tentatively planned for the 4 of them to have dinner with Spouse & me Sun evening, but it began to snow.  The forecast was worse up north where Anne Marie and her husband were going, so they opted to leave Sun evening rather than drive into it Mon morning. 

So the Breens came over to our house to meet and play with Marvin Parker for a while, and then we went to dinner at Pickled Pig Pub as it snowed like crazy.  It was too warm for the snow to stick but it provided a beautiful 'Normal Rockwell' backdrop as it fell.  The 4 of us eat, drank, talked, laughed, and enjoyed a second lovely night together.

To those who do not blog, it often sounds strange that us bloggers would reserve a weekend of our lives and pay money to travel to another state and stay in a hotel in order to meet and visit with "strangers".  But that's the point of blogging: to share our lives in words and photos online so that we connect with others and don't feel like strangers.