SAA, 2008 - coming soon!

so i am heading to San Francisco in august, for "ARCHIVES 2008: Archival R/Evolution & Identities" - the 72nd annual meeting of the society of american archivists. san francisco! yahoo!

this is my 3rd time going to SAA - my first was shortly after graduating from library school. it was held here in DC which, as i am starting to learn, really sucked. the weather is always terribly hot and humid, as the meeting is held the last week of august. since the meeting was held locally, i didn't get the luxury of a hotel room. doesn't sound so bad, huh? until you've been schlepping around dupont circle all day in the blazing sun and need a nap between sessions... and you have no place to crash except the couches in the lobby. or the floor, behind a potted plant. it's no way to live. plus, since i was near home, i felt the need to run some quick errands here and htere - just to crowd my day a bit more. it was my first meeting, and no one told me that the session abstracts in the programs were ALL LIES so i attended some real dudders.

last year was in chicago - oh, how i love chicago. i think it is the most beautiful city. and in late august, the weather there is just starting to get that crispy edge of fall - cool evenings, clear blue skies. i had a grand time. i was slightly more clever at picking sessions to attend, and i learned some new things and met some interesting folks. i attended my first roundtable and section meetings. i felt good about it all, but mostly i was just happy to be in chicago for a few days.

this year, i am excited almost equally about both the meeting events AND the great host city. i am going for the entire week - 3 days of a workshop on archivists' toolkit (a free all-in-one tool that is the work of the devil, as far as i am concerned. i hope to be enlightened.), followed be 3 days of information sessions and talks. i am not presenting this year (thank god) but i might try and edge my way into some minimal involvement. to test the waters a bit. plus it's always fun to see some of my old grad school mates. AND. i get to stay in a fancy-pants hotel - the Mark Hopkins Intercontinental.


(photo from flickr)

i love staying in hotels. i also love traveling alone. i especially love having my whole trip dictated by some kind of omnipotent schedule - airline departures and arrivals, meeting times, happy hours and mixers. i enjoy surrendering to routine sometimes, mostly because my real life flows along without much routine our schedule. i like that moment of arriving at the airport, knowing that it's too late for me to change anything - too late to stress about what clothes to bring; too late to throw one more book into my carry-on; too late to worry. i like just showing up at the airport early, drifting around in a haze of buying coffee, buying overpriced books at the shop, waiting like a patient lamb in lines and on planes. taking silent cab rides along unfamiliar freeways to anonymous hotels, where i have white sheets, white towels, miniature soaps and snacks, where the phone never rings and the TV is silent. i can wander around in the evenings if i want to, but if i want to stay in the hotel and read - there is no one there to make me feel guilty about wasting a precious moment as a tourist. it is so relaxing.

now comes the hard part - waiting another 2 months before i can go!

in the meantime, i've got lots to look forward to:

- 4th of july barbeque at the house on friday! i love summer parties - great food, we can hang out outside on the deck and in the yard, the smell of charcoal and bug spray and burning fireworks. yay!

- camping trip next weekend! oh, i can't wait. we've had to bump back this trip countless times because of scheduling problems at scott's work - but we are ON for next weekend. either beach or mountains - we'll decide next week, based on weather forecasts. options are assateague national seashore (backcountry) or george washington and jefferson national forest (backcountry). stay tuned for updates.

- swimming at the university of maryland pool! we rediscovered the outdoor pool at the UMd rec center last weekend, in a fit of inspiration following the hot and humid caribbean parade. man, that water was so cool and chlorine-y, and the deep end is huge and not crowded. plus we are "old," and thus rendered invisible to all the svelte and obnoxious college kids. we have made a solemn vow to go every saturday afternoon.

- i can't think of anything else at the moment, but i'm sure there's more.