As some of you might know, I won the New Century Scholar award for Wyoming several weeks ago. With that comes a free trip to Long Beach, where I’m staying in the Westin Hotel…a very nice, 4 star, and extremely expensive place to spend a couple of nights.

I’m here for the awards ceremony, as well as the opening night of the American Associaton of Community Colleges, being held at the Long Beach Convention Center. Tomorrow night I get to pick up my scholarship winnings at the official New Century Scholar reception. Hint…look at the very BOTTOM of this page for my picture.

From http://www.ptk.org/knb/apr06/h0421064.html

“Fifty outstanding community college students will be honored as 2006 New Century Scholars during this week’s American Association of Community Colleges Annual Convention in Long Beach, California. New Century Scholars are the highest-scoring nominees for the All-USA Academic Team in each state. They each receive $2,000 scholarships from the Coca-Cola Foundation and the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation. Learn more about the 2006 New Century Scholars online.”

Just finished the rehearsal phase of the presentation for tonight. Very interesting. The Grand Ballroom here in the convention center is HUGE. Two giant screens on either side of the stage. Looks like a couple thousands chairs as well.

The New Century Scholar part is the middle part of the presentation, after the opening remarks by the PTK CEO and so forth. We march on (of course I’m the very last one on stage), and then they present us, and then people cheer (think Monty Python and the Holy Grail where the minstrels rejoice)…and then Coke is given the Truman award (they’re the money for the New Century Scholar), and then Coke goes away, the lights go down, and we all march off stage back to our front row seats.

Sometime after this event, PTK will be shipping all participants a DVD of the event, so all will be able to see the whole thing.

Fun.

After the presentation tonight, the ballroom at the Westin has live video feeds, where us PTKers, er, um…Scholars…will get to watch the Hallmark awards, which I think is the international convention for PTK…going on this very same weekend in Seattle (you’d think they plan better!).

That’s the place for free pizza and soda…yum.

Around lunchtime, I did walk uptown on Long Beach Blvd. to “Acres of Books“, and found three VERY good used books for $20.03…all pertain to production stuff for our business, and future plans…film making, screenwriting, and online community planning.

You would love AOB. Think Half Price Books, when they were in that old store off Northwest Highway in Dallas…the one that had the Ship looking thing in the middle of the ground floor…but with stacks stacked HIGHER, and rows much narrower. I could stand in the aisle and both shoulders touched bookshelves across from each other. There must have been MILLIONS of books!

Weather is still cool here…and very breezy. Got some video last night before sunset of the bay, the Queen Mary, and ALMOST got video of a seal swimming around the giant boats…kept going underwater before I could grab him on video.

I can’t believe the prices here….haven’t found a 7/11…or even seen a gas station in this neck of the woods. Spent $14 at Borders…got the one PODCASTING book , and 4 alkaline batteries for the digital camera. Breakfast via room service was over $30. 2 eggs, sausage, coffee, OJ, a small basket with 3 danishes, and hash browns….jiminy christmas!

My lunch here at the events center, a piece of roasted chicken, mashed taters, brocolli, bottle of coke, and bottle of water, and a tiny bowl of salad … $17! On Jo Anne’s (the college president, who is also here for this convention) credit card of course…

Tomorrow evening is the “official reception” for the NCSers…I think that’s when I get the check (which I hope isn’t a gift certificate for $2,000 worth of Coke products!

Anyway…that’s about it for now. Gonna go snoop around this floor and find any freebie stuff that have…and fill my pockets!!!!

More later…!

Rich