Off to a slow start (Sean)

For the first time ever, we arrived at GA without having pre-registered, and so we found ourselves having to wait in the on-site registration line. Things moved quickly, though, and we were registered within about 15 minutes. While we stood in line we caught a glimpse of loyal reader Lance Brown, who has been reading not only this blog, but also our travelogue for quite some time. He seemed quite busy, so we did not get a chance to say hello.

After collecting our APF ribbon, we breezed into the exhibit hall to pick up our delagate authorizations from the CLF booth, where it was great to reconnect with Iris, Beth, Patty, and Linda. As always, we hung around the booth for a good 20 minutes or so, just catching up. Transubstantiating the delegate authorization into actual credentials, of course, being the holy miracle that it is, required standing in a much, much longer line, but after another half hour or so we were official.

That was just in the nick of time for Louise to make choir registration and practice -- the only real and practical reason why we needed to be fully registered by yesterday afternoon. After choir we both rendezvoused at home for what was planned to be a quick dinner of leftovers before returning for opening ceremonies.

You know what they say about best laid plans... we had a visitor show up at the bus just as we arrived home for dinner. Not exactly unexpected, but we ended up spending more time visiting than we had anticipated, and ultimately decided that trying to make it back to the Salt Palace in time for opening ceremonies was logistically difficult at best. We opted to skip them, after a quick check of the agenda revealed that no actual business would be conducted. I am sorry we missed the banner parade, as well as the introductions and president's address, but we've been through this before, and I know we can circle back at pick up the details later.

In-gathering this year was too late in the evening for us. I suppose if we were in a downtown hotel where we could just stagger across the street, we might have attempted it. I suspect we'll not make any of the post-10pm events on the schedule this year.

We did get up bright and early this morning to make Plenary-II, wherein, again, no business was conducted. Of course, there was no line at all this morning for delegate credentialling, making us wonder why we waited in line so long last night. I suppose so that we could have our delegate ribbons on in time for the first wave of candidate politicing -- I've been acosted in the halls half a dozen times already.

This afternoon's agenda is UU University, where we are in the Theology track. And I am desperately trying to find time on the schedule to do booth duty -- delegates, it turns out, have no free time at all.