UP!

In my previous travels, I have gone west and east. This time I went UP! I boarded an American Airlines plane bound for Orlando, FL and the American Library Association.

The ALA is the oldest and largest library association in the world. Founded on October 6, 1876 during the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, the mission of ALA is “to provide leadership for the development, promotion and improvement of library and information services and the profession of librarianship in order to enhance learning and ensure access to information for all.”

Imagine 25,000 librarians and 6,000 vendors in the Orange County Convention Center!

My partner in crime at the convention was a robot named Oscar T. Robot. Oscar and his handler, Jack Prather, made the event both fun and valuable in helping librarians get the books they need.

While there, I stayed at the Sheraton Vistana Villages. It was only a few minutes from the convention and was the lap of luxury. It was, however, a very short trip. The city of Orlando has had some difficult days prior to my arrival. The people there had experienced three significant tragedies in a few short days. Two were acts of violence by people and one by a wild animal. Whenever our peace is disturbed like that, we seek solace in each other. The gathering of people interested in books provided just such a salve.