What a difference a year makes

Last July I composed a single entry mentioning I couldn't attend the ALPCA Convention in Ontario California. Between my granfather passing away in Feburary and my brother getting married, it was too much to ask my parents to take a four day trip out to the west coast. That trip was supposed to be my third Convention because I knew they wouldn't go down to Huntsville Alabama this year. Who would? The biggest obstacle this year was there isn't a direct flight to Huntsville from any of the three major NYC airports. Second the hotels aren't cheap, so collectors usually split a room, which the agreement usually is renewed every year.
A collector from North Carolina said last year that he was driving to Huntsville and would give me a ride and share a room with me. I presented this to my parents and they still felt there were too many unknowns. First of all we never met the guy and the prospect of going on the road with him was going over like a fart in church.
So I was halfway there. I just needed to figure out a way around the changing planes. In steps in Tim, the editor. Even though he lives in Connecticut he's going to depart from LaGaurdia. Aha! Problem solved.
Alright my mom still isn't totally comforterable with the idea but she is helping me put the finishing touches on the trip. I can tell you one thing, this will be a trip for the record books!!!!!!!!!!