Saturday, June 24, 2006

ALA in full swing

It's been another rich, full day in the Crescent City, and I'm at the point I get to in all conventions when I don't really know what day it is anymore. I haven't paid much attention to news from the rest of the world, and I feel like I wrapped inside a very hot and humid bubble.

I spent the better part of this afternoon wandering through the exhibit hall. I haven't seen a count, but it seemed to me that there were more exhibitors this year than at the last ALA I attended. I happened upon an Alabama author, Watt Key, and picked up a signed copy of his book, Alabama Moon. He has a brother in Montevallo, so it was like finding a member of the family in the midst of the exhibits. And speaking of family, I ran into Kathy Lowe at the Lexis Nexis booth. She's catching a lot of the information literacy programs, and she and Bill seem to be having a great time here, too.

The mood in New Orleans seems to be very up-beat. Some of that is the unquenchable spirit of this great city, but I hope some of it also is the influence of having several thousand librarians wandering around and spending money. While the evidence of what New Orleans has suffered still abounds, there are also many signs of a city that is rebuilding and determined to be stronger than ever, without giving up its unique flare.

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