NCTE, Philly, and Me

And so, at the ripe old age of 47, I embark on a journey to parts unknown...at least, by me. Tuesday, at noon, I'll head to Austin to stay the night with Alana, Branyon, and Branna. Then, Wednesday morning, they'll take me to the airport where I'll board a plane to Dallas, then to Philadelphia. The reason? The National Council of Teachers of English conference!

So many firsts in one trip!

1. First plane trip alone out of state;
2. First trip to the northeast;
3. First time to go to the NCTE conference.

Outside of the great things at the NCTE conference, I want to walk around the corner from the hotel to see St. John's Catholic Church, Chinatown, and Independence Hall. Also, I have a Book Jam invitation for Saturday night which means that I'd miss Tracy Kidder at NCTE, but I REALLY want to hear Alan Sitomer and Sharon Flake.

I have a feeling that this trip will be riddled with decisions. I'll probably end up doing the flotsam and jetsam thing which usually works fairly well for me.

Lastly, I'm hoping I get to hear and maybe (fingers crossed) meet my new favorite YA author Maggie Stievater, author of Shiver! How cool would that be?