After no sleep on Monday night, I was up at the crack of dawn (actually, before the crack of dawn) and at the airport. There I faced the choice – to be irradiated or groped. I thought I was going to choose to be groped, but at the last minute, I went for the radiation. Path of least resistance is almost always my early morning choice. The flight was uneventful, unless you’re the type who is disturbed by turbulence. I’m not, generally, but a couple of the bumps left me gasping.

We arrived in Orlando in the midst of a torrential downpour with an amazing light show. Do you know what happens in Orlando when it’s raining? The baggage handlers refuse to unload the planes. Picture a couple thousand people, maybe more, standing around waiting for their baggage. We all had the same thought, “At least when they finally get it off the plane, it will be dry.” We were wrong. My bag was only slightly damp, but I saw some bags that looked soaked through. Welcome to Orlando!

While waiting for a shuttle, I had a nice chat with Jim, the Immediate Past District Governor of the district comprised by Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Lovely Irish accent. I got to hear all about how they do things in their district. After talking to several other past District Govs today, it’s interesting to see that every district has its own culture, just like every Toastmasters club has.

The room at the Hilton is lovely. I’m staying with the current District Governor for District 3, Marcia Roberts. She’s just about the nicest and smartest person I know. I don’t say that only because she thinks I’m brilliant, although that is part of her charm. She thinks most people are brilliant – how can you not love her? She’s so busy in training that I haven’t seen much of her.

I had dinner with Dee Dees, The Life Story Lady, practiced my speeches, got unpacked, and had a little chat with Marcia before blacking out. Emi is coming in today. I don’t know where, but we’re cramming her into our room. She’s small, so I’m sure we’ll figure something out.

I registered for conference today, had a lovely lunch out by the pool, and decided that eczema or not, I will be swimming while I’m here. People can stare; I don’t care!

Here’s the best part of the trip so far: I thought I had a 7:30 am briefing this morning. That’s 4:30 am Arizona time. And I hadn’t slept on Monday night. I literally had deep purple bruises under my eyes on Tuesday. I was so stressed out about that early briefing. Then I re-read the email. The briefing isn’t until Thursday! A day to just relax and enjoy. Take a nap. Practice a little. Make some new friends. Phew! So nice.

Tomorrow, I put on the suit, put on the make up, put on the “I’ve Got This” attitude, and I do battle. Today, I’m just another Toastmaster and it feels good.