February 9, 2008 by Chris Harrower, CTIS.

Last year, when Virginia Motorcoach was in Pigeon Forge, we saw a ton of shows, and nearly every show in town featured the same three elements at the end of the show…country music, gospel music, and patriotic music. Many of us ended up holding up 1 finger when they started the country segment, 2 fingers when the gospel began, and three fingers for the final element that ended every show (except one). It was something that continues to this day, like any good running joke (happened again during a show we enjoyed during North Carolina Motorcoach a week ago, in fact).

But these three fingers were well deserved, as ABA “officially” opened the convention Sunday morning with a salute to the military. If you’ve never been to Virginia Beach, or Hampton Roads as a whole, the presence of our military is very powerful there. You’ve got Naval repair facilities in Norfolk and surrounding, and the jets taking off and landing from NAS Oceana (2 miles from the Convention Center) were a constant background to everything we did.

No politics here…you can agree or disagree with our presence in (name your favorite foreign country). I don’t care if you think we should or should not be there. I DO care about those men and women that are out there..it wasn’t their choice where to go, only to serve, protect and defend the country they love so much. For that, no matter the reasons, we owe them so much more than we could ever repay.

A representative of each branch of the military spoke to us about their service, their experience, and why they serve. It was at times very funny, and frequently heart wrenching, with very few dry eyes in the house. When one told about losing a friend to an IED, all I could think of was my brother-in-law Carl, who is in Iraq right now, and who lost his roommate to a similar device. And Roni couldn’t take it at all, and left the room very quickly…two of her sons ship out to Afghanistan very soon, so she didn’t need to hear any of this right now.

Thanks, ABA/Virginia Beach, for reminding us that it’s not a political issue after all. It’s men and women doing what they are told, who need our support more and more each day. To Marine Captain John Sand, Air Force Technical Sergeant Paralyn McClain, Navy Petty Officer Emily Klinefelter, and Army Staff Sergeant Gary Heffernan, thank you very VERY much for bringing it all home for us all. May God richly bless you for your service and dedication.

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February 9, 2008 by Chris Harrower, CTIS.

Saturday evening of ABA, we went to the opening event at the Cavalier Beach Club. It was a blast…two bands cranking up in two different parts of the area, and fire pits blazing outside (in a fairly stiff wind…about the only really cold evening we had to endure the entire time we were in Virginia Beach!).

But the highlight for us? It had to be the gentleman making balloon animals. It led to a great new ongoing joke, and an even better new ongoing friendship. The guy (never did get his name) was amazing…I used to tie poodles out of balloons when I was a teenager, but the creations this man crafted were lightyears beyond anything I used to attempt. Turtles in a bubblebath, butterfly hats, and wings for people to wear on their backs– it’s balloon art taken to the highest level!

We stood in line, marvelling at his work, and waiting our turn. When he turned towards us, I let him know how crazy Emi is about whales. He got a mischievious look in his eye, winked at her, and set to work with a black and a white balloon. A neat looking Orca quickly emerged, but he wasn’t finished. What good is the whale without the sea? Soon, he measured Emi’s head, and started on the sea…a 2-3 foot high column of intertwined light and dark blue balloons that rose from her head to support her nameless Orca. When it was all done, a round of applause from us all, and Emi had to duck to get through doorways the rest of the evening!

Then it happened…we were standing there during all this time with a couple of Operators (names withheld to protect the innocent), and making comments about the animals he was making. One of the Operators very innocently spoke up at one point and said, “I can do snakes”, and everyone standing around lost it! She, of course, meant nothing by it, attempting a joke about making simple balloon animals, but everyone took it to the extreme, and a running joke was born! More on that later…

The evening was capped by fireworks shot from the edge of the water over the beach. We went and sat on the wall above the sand, and had a great view (especially when some of the embers came down fairly close). A little more dancing, and then back on the buses, with everyone receiving a small Dolphin as a gift from our hosts. A perfect ending to a great evening, opening a great show!

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February 9, 2008 by Chris Harrower, CTIS.

So, let’s get started with the ABA In Review. I arrived in Virginia Beach around 9:00 Friday evening, after a very long drive (made long by plenty of stops along the way to get last minute supplies and items needed for the next week). Went to the Convention Center the next morning to register, and get to work.

I wanted to start giving back right away, so I signed up to work in Orientation. I guess it only makes sense, given all the teaching I do. But I never expected to have so much fun there! I sat as an ambassador for a while, answering questions, but the real fun was giving the floor tours. If you’ve never taken one (or if it’s been a while), the tour guides wear a microphone (the “Madonna setup” as Chris Shepler calls it), while the people taking the tour wear headphones. It’s a great way to do this, as it lets the guide talk without having to raise their voice, or disrupt anything around them.

Of course, I ended up going off script frequently, but never got a complaint. I tried hard to answer (and encourage) questions throughout the tours, and had one 30 minute tour take 55 minutes! Chris even came out looking for us, and Lois told me later that they were all in the Orientation Center saying “Where’d he go with that tour?”. Hey, when they’re asking good questions, I’m not going to cut them off, or make them stop!

It was also funny how many friends would come up during the tours for a hug, a quick “Hiya!”, or just to be disruptive. Guess I learned what kind of friends I really do have…the best kind! And people really enjoyed having the tour stop near them…we always got plenty of cheers from the Hard Rock booth, greetings to the group from the CTIS booth, and I loved it on the one tour I gave Monday when Chef Clayton Sherrod from Birmingham gave us a quickie cooking show in his booth!

I can’t encourage everyone enough to get involved! Working in Orientation is great, as is working in Resource Central, Registration, Education, CTIS, and other areas. The ONLY way ABA works every year is the amazing number of volunteers from all parts of the industry who band together to make the convention work. It doesn’t take away from your networking time…if anything, I did MORE networking either while on tour, or as a result of doing a tour, than I did last year when I just attended the show. So when the opportunity arises next year, sign up and help out in an area of need. You will be so very glad you did!

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February 9, 2008 by Chris Harrower, CTIS.

Got home this afternoon from an astounding, amazing, colossal ABA convention. I was shocked how many people said they can’t wait to see what I write about it here! Thanks for your support, and for letting me know people actually read my inane rantings!

I do have plenty to talk about, and will do so over the next week or so. There are stories to tell, observations to make, experiences to relate, answers to questions asked at the convention, and much more. But it’s after midnight, and I’m several miles past exhausted, so it’ll have to wait for tomorrow.

But before heading off to bed, I have to express some undying thanks…first, to our hosts in Virginia Beach, and all of Virginia. No offense to Grapevine’s efforts, but this was head and shoulders above last year. From the opening celebration at the Cavalier Beach Club (loved the fireworks), to the hand-off to next year in Charlotte, NC, the VBCVB had it in the bag. Sure, there were some small things, but overall, an A+++ effort.

Next, to the ABA Staff, for all their hard work. Watching them at work (everyone with a clipboard and radio…everyone except Pete, that is!), dancing the coordination dance was fascinating. Lynn and Vicki, you are always impressive!

And to all my new old friends…there are so many stories to tell, from snakes and whale tails, to the Super Bowl, to that weird indian at the party the last night, thank you for sharing your hearts, your lives, your senses of humor, and your week with me, and for allowing me to share right back atcha! Kim, Danielle, Chris, Susan, Kelly, Judy, Bob, Marc, and far too many more to list right here right now (along with the usual suspects — Lois, Roni, Jim, Terri, and of course Emi)…what a week it was!!

Stand by for the stories…I hope to start working on them tomorrow. I think I’ll do it all in chronological order, so you’ll just have to wait until last for an explanation about those Village People! <grin>

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