To the actual convention

Diana Cihak, Corey Ellis (an up and coming City Councilor from Albany), and I went together to get one of the shuttles to the convention center at around 3pm. The gavel on the convention is at 4pm local time, but we were told to get there early if we wanted decent seats. The shuttle ride there could not have been more than a mile, but it took almost a full hour - we are definitely walking tomorrow. When I watched convention coverage in the past, I always wondered why people in the hall always seemed to be kibbitzing and not paying attention. Now, I get it.

Diana, Corey and I sat in seats set aside for the New York delegation. Throughout the evening, people would stand up and turn around as one famous politician after another took a leisurely stroll down our aisle, soaking up attention and shaking hands as they went. First, Governor Richardson of New Mexico came through, then John Kerry, Chris Dodd, etc.

Also, as various people would speak handlers would come through the aisles and pass out message-specific signs to wave at the appropriate time. When the Republican Congressman (Jim Leech) spoke and edorsed Senator Obama, we got signs that said "One Nation" in large letters. When Senator Kennedy spoke, we got plackards that said "Kennedy." When Michelle Obama spoke we first got tall vertical signs that said "Michelle," then placards that said "common values, common purpose."



People started to pay better attention as we got nearer to prime time though. The tribute to Senator Kennedy moved many delegates to tears, and Michelle Obama's speech did as well as she spoke about her father, how hard he had worked to give her the opportunities she had been given, and about the values he had instilled in her, which she hoped to pass on to her daughters.