DNCC - Monday (part 2)

Well, I finally have a few minutes to blog about yesterday's events. The Texas delegation breakfast was a great kickstart to the day with featured speakers Leticia Van de Putte, Kathleen Sebelius, and Chet Edwards. Their speeches were motivating and helped us get ready for a long day of convention business. After the morning meeting we had just a few minutes before we loaded buses to head into Denver (the Texas delegation got a bad draw on hotels, so we're out in Aurora!). The bus took us through some beautiful neighborhoods in the city - the architecture of the homes and the gardens were amazing. Our destination the Texans in the Rockies reception featuring Congressman Charlie Wilson! Former Speaker Jim Wright was also in attendance for the event. It seems like everywhere I turn I am meeting amazing people who have done their part to make a difference for the people of America!
In the afternoon I spent some time on 16th street downtown and stopped by a Clinton group headquarters to take some time out for meeting more people and talking with the press. I made sure to make my way to the Pepsi Center in time for the opening gavel of the Convention. While many people decided not to come until later, I didn't want to miss the opening of my first National Convention! There are national and international press everywhere! The Texas delegation is seated right by BBC and ABC. It's somewhat odd to see people like Dan Rather and Diane Sawyer up close and personal.
Howard Dean and Nancy Pelosi spoke to take care of the business of opening the Convention and President Jimmy Carter stopped by for a tribute, but the real treat came with the featured speakers of the night: Ted Kennedy and Michelle Obama. They both gave moving and emotionally driven speeches that really helped to unite the DNCC. There were smiles, cheers, and tears in the audience. It's a sign of the great things to come the rest of the week and I'm certainly looking forward to continuing this amazing experience.
One day down, three to go!

First night in Denver!

Well, I have survived my first night in Denver (I came back early compared to most!) and I'm exhausted! Everywhere I go I'm meeting new people: from Texas, Hawaii, California, Wisconsin, and even Americans who came from their overseas homes to be a part of the convention. I met a new friend who is an campaign activist on the Texas delegation bus and we traveled into the city for the Friends of New Orleans welcome reception - featuring some jazz and cajun food (gumbo and red beans and rice - delicious!). I finally got to put some faces to names and formally meet people who I have spoken to on the phone and via e-mail getting ready for the convention. After Friends of New Orleans, I walked down the famous 16th Street with some new friends and headed up to the Young Democrats of America reception where we did an interview with some reporters/bloggers and waved to the camera for a television network. It's all about the networking and meeting as many people as you can! I had thought about making some "business cards" with contact info, and now I know I should have!