(This has also been posted at ahem, big orange.  No link, but take my word for it.)

This journey actually began some time ago when I found my way here in early 2005.  One day I was googling and found a link to dkos.  I knew nothing of blogging at that time.  The diary posting  that brought me here is lost to middle-aged memory and the mists of time.  Shortly thereafter, I found my way here.  I’ve been here ever since, commenting and posting diaries.

 
When ykos was first announced, I was very interested but reluctant.  Not being the most gregarious person, I was concerned about travelling to Las Vegas alone.  It’s sometimes difficult for me to meet people, especially in new surroundings.  But with some encouragement from Mrs.boran2, I made the decision to register, becoming one of the fairly early adapters.  (An unusual position for me.)  Later on, when the ykos auctions were announced, I was happy to donate one of my own acrylic paintings to assist in fundraising.  Although it did not yield what I had hoped, I was glad to provide some small assistance.

After a miserable flight from New York, with an extended 3 hour layover in Chicago, I finally found my way to the Riviera Hotel.  (American Airlines finally “borrowed” a plane from the St.Louis run leaving those individuals planeless.)  As it turned out, I need not have worried about travelling alone.  There were more than a few others like myself.  And there were many more warm and very friendly individuals.  I pushed myself to meet a number of new people, and found many others that I had previous contact with on line.  I did not feel lonely and had many very interesting discussions.

As to Las Vegas, the most amazing/entertaining thing about the place was not the gambling or the shows.  It’s the general spectacle of the place.  Everything is done on a huge scale.  With clear, straight sightlines, one loses a sense of space amongst the oversized architecture.  Things that appear to be an easy walk may take more effort, especially in the intense heat.  (Unfortunately, rising from the desert, it draws considerable precious resources to survive.)  Not that there was all that much time to explore.  I spent most of my time at the panel discussions and planned events.      

I found that I was completely comfortable during the four days.  And I would be happy to do it all over again.

Some photos are seen below.

Vegas sunrise. (again)

MSOC hypnotizing fellow bloggers at the MLW/BT party.

Yet another version of this photo: Janet Strange, BooMan23, SanDiegoDem, Shemanesque and (me) boran2