...couldn't put Humpty together again. Nope, wrong mixed metaphore.
I'm at TechEd Orlando, 2005, in CommNet, blogging and mailing. I'm checked into my hotel and the conference, and have a moment to catch my breath. This is not the first time I attended a TechEd in Orlando. TechEd 2000 was also here, and the hotel I chose that time was this little rinky dink operation that left much to be desired. So I got inspired to nail down my accomodations early and make sure I was in a good hotel, conveniently located. I looked at some maps and chose one of the two hotels that sit directly adjacent to the conference center.
Er... whoops. The convention center in 2000 consisted of one building approximately 3/4 mile long. This is now referred to as the "West Building." Since then, these eager Floridians built a new building, called the "North/South" building, in which Microsoft has chosen to hold this year's version of TechEd. My conveniently located hotel is north of the West building, and the North/South building is significantly to the east.
Visual example:
[] ( ) . , , , :"; O o o o . """"" x
Legend:
[] - Convention Center, N/S building
( ) - Sun
. - Mercury
, , , - Venus, Earth and Mars
:"; - asteroid belt
O - Jupiter
o o o - Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
. - Pluto
"""" - Oort cloud (theoretical)
x - Rosen Plaza hotel
Why blog if you can't engage in a little hyperbole? If I choose to walk through the West building, my walk to and from the convention center is ~1.7 miles each way. If I cut through the lot behind the Peabody hotel, and make a beeline for the north end of the North/South Building (it looks doable from the overhead satellite pictures on NASA World Wind,) I can cut my commute to a mile each way. Of course I risk donating a limb to the local alligators, or running afoul (this is a joke who's effect is only clear in retrospect) of the caretakers of the ducks over at the Peabody.
Oh well. At least I'm not stuck in some low rent equivalent like my colleague, Tom, who's hotel doesn't even have high speed internet access. Wait. What's this? I have to drop $10/day if I want to get on the net from my hotel room? Gosh, this place is practically neolithic.
My other colleague, John, is in the other Rosen hotel, directly across the street from the North/South building, the lucky bustard (got to be careful, Community Server edits out fowl language. But not bad puns.). He decided that the best way to experience TechEd this year would be to run a half marathon this morning, then cram himself onto an airplane, and fly to Florida. On the latenight flight. Ouch. I wouldn't trade hotels with him for the lactic acid that's building up in his legs right now.
Enjoy the conference, folks! I know I will.