convention

There seems to be a convention every week here and it’s interesting to watch people discover the downtown area. Sometimes I worry they don’t watch the traffic signals closely enough and yet there are no real city drivers downtown. Most people who live here don’t drive here very much. So it becomes a slow motion polite free for all with people wandering across streets and drivers driving slowly to view the sights while someone in the back seat makes a dining decision or parking selection. Parking valets sprint to the lots without seeming to look before crossing the streets.

Tonight, the convention people looked to travel in threes and fours, some still with their ID badges, Hi My Name Is stickers on suit jackets. Conventions must be fun for some. These days, a convention must be such a cool perk. Time away from the office in a new place. Conventions are work, serious work for the people who host them, cater them, welcome them, and lead them. But it’s all good work, I think. In America, we take the convention for granted. But it’s an American phenomenon I believe.

People looked really happy tonight. Big convention in town! Restaurants full. Cafes buzzin’…some of the convetioneers invaded JP Wine Bar across the street much to the dismay of the regulars but definitely to the delight of “JP”. Great energy out there tonight, really.