Thursday at Hershey!

Today has exceeded my expectations! I returned to my room with so much stuff... and I've only spent $10!

Let's start from the beginning. I kept waking up at three-hour intervals last night because I was too excited to sleep. Hey, you would be too! Anyway, I arrived at the Convention Center at 9 AM and headed down to the VIP area to sign in. The lady at the desk handed me my badge, a Groomer to Groomer bag, a coupon for the Groomer's Club, and a tin of chocolates. Good deal!

I decided to cruise around and watch everyone set up their booths for tomorrow's trade show. There's even more vendors here this year!

I waited outside of the Bear's Den restaurant so I could get some lunch before my first seminar. I got to talk with a few other pet care pros, then I headed inside. And none other than Chuck Simons, inventor of the Groomer's Helper, was already at a table with some friends. They invited me to sit with them. We talked, ate, and then Chuck bought my lunch!

So, on to the seminar, Grooming Secrets of the Pros. This was Eric Salas's last seminar with Chris Systems. Too bad, he's informative and hilarious! That being said, I was surprised that he recommended the use of a choke chain to help train a dog. The rest of the handling bits were pretty good though. Overall, it was a good presentation. There was quite a bit of Chris Christensen product promos thrown in, but hey, he sponsored the seminar, right? We all got a gift card for $25 off any product as well as a sample of some Chris products - can't wait to try them out!

Outside, I ran into Jorge! I gave him a hug and he gave me a kiss! We started talking about how I got my feet in the water working with shelter dogs and starting at Nash. He invited me to see him at the Forever Stainless Steel booth tomorrow - I need to go say hi!

At dinner, I went back to Bear's Den where I met a lady named Margaret who is a home groomer, as well as big into positive reinforcement and gentle handling. We talked about how much we prefer positive handling to whacking away at a poor dog, and who we'd like to see speak here next year. I tell you, I can get used to this environment fast!

Right, time for the really big event of the evening: the Internet Social! I met my friend and classmate, Dawn Omboy, the Queen of Color. She's great! I also met her bather, RC, Toomie, Wet Noze, and several others from the PG message boards. Everyone received a generous sample from one of our sponsors, Espree, celebrating 20 years to be exact! I got a bag with Simple Shed in it - just perfect for Xavier! There was food, beer, and lots of Kahluas with cream!

A large group all wearing fuzzy hats walked in. One of them wore one shaped like an elephant in addition to a "Bride to Be" sign... OK then! Certainly entertaining!

After a while of schmoozing and showing off my portfolio, they began selling raffle tickets. I had no idea what would be up for grabs, but decided "Why not?" and bought $10 worth. Best decision ever! Not only did I win a scissoring DVD featuring Sue Zecco and Jay Scruggs (an area I need to work on for sure), I won a GERMAN RED CLIPPER, retailing over $400!! AND, if I stop at their booth tomorrow, I get 2 FREE blades for it! EPIC WIN BABY!!

After the Social ended, I got to meet Bill from GHI 2. Nice fella, gave me a hug and said he saw me in the Bear's Den earlier. Can't wait to talk to him some more - I want to ask him about his experiences at Nash!

There were some extra bags left over, so they let me take another Simple Shed as well as a Medicated shampoo to take to the shelter. Awesome, they'll appreciate it. I helped Dawn and co. carry the leftover cake to the VIP lounge. Even though Judge Joey was standing outside, all I could do was give a passing smile. I had to follow Dawn back to her room where she had something for me. Turns out it was Grooming in a Box, from Stephen from PG! It's official, I've got a real leg-up in the industry!

I also got to meet Dawn's dogs at their camper: several Standards, a Miniature, and a cute little fluffy white mix. I can't wait to see how they will fare in the competitions! Did I mention on the way there we ran into Lisa Leady? I didn't get to introduce myself, but that's OK, seieng as how I was a little star-struck, haha!

All this going on and there's NO WAY I'll be able to sleep easy tonight - I'm waaaay too excited for tomorrow!

http://s168.photobucket.com/albums/u178/lightningyoshi/GROOM%20EXPO%202009/