Good Morning, World

It’s four in the morning here in California as I write to you for the first time in weeks. I have a good reason – for not writing, that is.

“Really? What possible reason could be good enough for not writing to your friends?” asks the little voice in my head.

One thing I learned about writing good dialogue – and writing in general is that you leave the boring parts out.

“So what made you think you should even write anything?”

What a pesky little voice you are. there are maybe five or ten people in the world that are still interested in even the boring little details of my life. Maybe they miss me.

“Well get on with it then, and write what you’re going to say, and quit talking to me.”

OK OK, the truth is that I have a new job, and I was sort of waiting  until the Board President announced to the public before I wrote about it, and I’ve been extremely busy doing exciting things like filing and trying to balance the books.  I am the new Executive Director of the California Council for the Social Studies, and it’s not entirely clear what that job will be, but for me it starts with filing and organizing.

“Boring.”

Maybe, but necessary. Today I will attend the Executive Planning Meeting in Los Angeles, so I stayed the night in the hotel where our conference will be next March, and took a tour of the facilities.

2015 Hilton OC209

Most important to me is establishing face to face contact. I met Deb, Ryan, Tim and Carmita. Ryan will be our main contact person as we prepare for our biggest event, a conference for about 700-800 social studies teachers, professors, and administrators in California.

2015 Hilton OC109Seeing the rooms gives our planning committee and me an idea of which rooms will be best for the presentations, and where the exhibits and ticketed meals and social events will be.  You can see about one-third of what will be the exhibit hall in this picture above.

2015 Hilton OC114Session rooms are huge, but they can be divided into thirds. Left open they seat almost 200 guests. The hotel has recently been remodeled, and is quite lovely. Most importantly it has good internet access for everyone – in public places and in the rooms, and I will soon learn the cost to make it available during sessions.

2015 Hilton OC202I can visualize two history teachers networking here with computers open and a cup of coffee, discussing how they will use what they learned in a session in their class .

2015 Hilton OC201I expressed surprise over how pretty the tables looked, and Ryan told me that the facility is linenless. That’s a new term for me. Normally when you see tables at a hotel without their linens on, they are rough pieces of wood, that sneaks up and snags your nylons when you cross your legs under the table.

“No one wears nylons anymore.”

Be quiet. I do sometimes. It’s cold in hotels.

“That’s not why YOU wear them.”

2015 Hilton OC207There’s a perfect little office right outside the registration area where we can set up shop so everything will be close by. It is linenless, too. I never realized how pervasive linen was.

2015 Hilton OC206This is a small part of the foyer outside the exhibit hall. One year we had Mexican folklorico dancers in the foyer it was so big. Another year we had extra exhibits. Our conference planners will have all kinds of decisions to make about the space, but at least now I know how the space looks, so I can picture it when they ask me questions.

2015 Hilton OC127A beachy place wouldn’t be complete without swallows. It was nice to have the time to enjoy the scenery. I’m sure I’ll be very busy the next time I see this place. 🙂

Now you know I haven’t disappeared or died. In fact I just renewed my domain, so I’m here for another year, starting my fourth year of blogging.  Thanks for reading and chatting, and being my friend.

Author: Marsha

Hi, I'm Marsha Ingrao, author, blogger and retired teacher/consultant. Read more about me here. http://wp.me/P7tP3I-2

32 thoughts on “Good Morning, World”

  2. Congrats on the new job! Nice to know us “old” gals still have a some clout in the workforce. I’m in the process of interviewing for teaching job– creative writing– will let you know. I’ve been blogless too for the month of April– comes and goes sometimes. Keep my cowboy book in mind as you help with curriculum!

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    1. Thanks so much for the kind comments Mama! I agree. I remember when I was young, though, some retired friends that had more work than most working people because they were know for the skills that they had worked to develop over the years. I feel good that I can contribute some of the knowledge I’ve accumulated over the years, and still stay sharp by increasing my skills. Learning I my thing. 🙂

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    1. Thanks Cotton! I think it’s a good fit for me and the council. Lots of secretarial work at first, so I’ve reverted to my former self before I was a teacher. I used to be an office manager and bookkeeper. I thought I’d keep that a secret, but it oozed out of me, I guess. 🙂

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    1. You know me, MFR. I’m always busy! Vince worked at least 4 hours today on the books. He’s my assistant. I love it! 🙂 He’s also remodeling the bathroom, and taking care of the house in general. He sleeps well at night. 🙂

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          1. I’m also a night owl usually go to bed about 3am, but no free internet. I pay about $50pm for unlimited 3mb + home phone with free local calls ….. well that’s free 😀 xox

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          4. I could, but then what would I do with a country? They’d all be talking Greek to me. 🙂 It’s taken me so long to write back, you won’t remember what you even said. 🙂 hehehehe. Hope you are well, my friend. 🙂 xox

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    1. Leanne, it’s been so long since I’ve heard from you or written to you. I miss you!!! Can’t wait until January. The job is keeping me busy, but I have to pull over and shoot a quick picture from time to time. 🙂

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    1. Thanks, Sylvia. I love the people in the organization. They are my long-time friends. I’ve been around so long that I know so many people all over the country, so I might as well put that knowledge to good use! 🙂

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    1. No kidding! I hadn’t even thought about laundry!! Yeah! I am looking forward to the time when organizing is just routine, and not a brain task, so that I can use my brain for more interesting tasks! 🙂 We had a productive planning meeting, though. 🙂

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