Last night, right after I posted about Day 1, I started sneezing, my nose started running, and I felt weak.  Even though the night was still young, I felt like going to the parties would be a bad idea.  Melissa and I stayed in and tucked in early.

Because we went to bed early, we woke up a little bit early.  Looking at the schedule, the earliest thing I wanted to attend wasn’t until 2PM, so we set off to walk around, play some Pokemon, and get breakfast.  We ran into Michael and David right outside and joined them in walking over to Peet’s Coffee.

After breakfast, we headed back to the hotel, found a table out on the patio, and I did some writing while Melissa read her book.  It was time well spent.

That pretty much sums up what the whole day was like.  Melissa and I floated around the convention, our meanderings interrupted by interesting conversation and occasional panels or workshops.

The first panel we attended was about Quantum Computing, presented by Kevin Roche.  Kevin did a great job presenting the material.  He kept it entertaining.  He made sure to avoid dry math, and he used some good analogies and anecdotes to keep it interesting throughout.  I must confess that I knew much the subject material before doing in since I already had an interest in quantum computing.  Hunched down so that people sitting behind me could see, I started to get a little drowsy.  But Kevin did such a good job that I did not fall asleep and embarrass myself.

The next panel was a workshop about jump starting the creative spark, and then applying different techniques to keep the working.  Mark Gelineua and Marjorie Hazeltine were the presenters, and they gave me some techniques I hadn’t thought of or used before.  I had fun with the writing exercises, and I took some good notes.

The last panel was another workshop, again lead by Michael.  This one was about four steps for immersing readers.  This was also a fun exercise.  I especially enjoyed Melissa’s participation, because she overcame her fears about other people reading her work.  She demonstrated that she can engage in creative writing and hold her own.

After the panel, I stayed behind and talked with a couple of the people that participated in the workshop.  This is what these conventions are really about.  Meeting new people with this special common interest, and sharing our enjoyment and enthusiasm for the subject.

There isn’t too much more I can say about the convention today.  In terms of quantity, I don’t believe the program is as strong as it has been previous years.  On the other hand, the programming I’ve participated in has been more engaging, and I really like the focus on participation.

If this is a new starting place, then I would love to see how the convention grows from here.  I like the venue.  I like what programming there is.  I just wish there was a little bit more of it.

Tomorrow, Melissa and I will have to leave a little bit early.  I have too much real life to get back to and contend with before Monday.  We’ll get breakfast with a friend, attend a panel at 10AM, then probably head out.  If I don’t write about Con-Volution tomorrow, I will say now that I’m glad Melissa and I came this year.