[nabs-l] National convention roommate please help

Cricket X. Bidleman cricketbidleman at gmail.com
Wed May 10 02:37:46 UTC 2017


Hi Shikha,

I'm Cricket Bidleman. I had the honor and pleasure of speaking at
Convention last year. Do feel free to message me off-list.

Convention is a wonderfully fun, slightly crazy place. Since there are
generally more than two thousand people in attendance, not taking into
account hotel staff, it can be incredibly crowded. Canes and guide
dogs are everywhere. There is no reason to be scared, however.
Everyone is so accommodating and helpful. If you need an arm, someone
will undoubtedly provide one. That's one of the things I love about
the NFB--it's a huge, welcoming family. Don't be scared! It's truly a
wonderful experience.

The hotel we are going to has a lot of escalators. I don't know how
much O&M training you've had in relation to those. I try not to assume
such things, since my entire county only has one escalator that goes
up... And none that go down. I'm being entirely serious. Welcome to
farm country in California, folks! i imagine that you may have had
some training, as even I have had a little exposure. Whether you have
or not, I'm definitely going to recommend that you be really careful
around escalators, especially if you're dressed up and in heels or
whatever else. Always hold the banister thing on the side. You never
know what might happen. You might get a cane tip in your shoe. I did
last year on multiple occasions... Remind me not to wear sandals
again.

The hotel is kind of overwhelming... AT FIRST. note that I said "at
first". It's sort of a maze. Read the document that Mrs. Jernigan
wrote about navigating the hotel. It's a tad bit confusing, but you'll
figure it out. I took the liberty of deliberately getting lost the
first night I was at convention. This was technically the day before
convention started, so there weren't as many people around. I don't
recommend this technique for everyone, but it certainly helped me...
Taking a solution-oriented approach as opposed to just focusing on
each task as I had to do it was incredibly helpful.

A note on the upstairs hallway in the convention center... It has
pillars here and there. You want to be super careful of those. They do
hurt. Also, there are lots of people shouting "(insert meeting name
here) this way!" It's very helpful.

What else? What else? ... ... The convention agenda will be coming out
soon! I'm so excited for that. Last year, I opened it on the day it
came out and read through it five times in the middle of AP Physics.
Don't tell anyone. I was supposed to be working on a project. There
are so many meetings, activities, etc. on that list. it's phenomenal.
You're going to want to read all of it thoroughly. Don't plan to just
go to one meeting in each time slot. Sometimes you'll run into a
packed room or whatever else. When you go through the agenda, take
note of all of the meetings that catch your attention. Try to go to
them all if you can. I did... But then again, I was running around
like a crazy person last year.

You're definitely going to want to attend all of the general sessions,
partially since nothing else is really open at that time, but mostly
because it's fun. Try to attend the NFB board meeting too. I hear that
it's going to be a great one. I don't remember how the room was set up
for the board meeting, but for general sessions the room is divided
into states. For example, the two or three rows in the very back will
be for Wyoming, and the rows closer to the front will be California,
Alaska, and Alabama etc. There are poles with signs on the left, as
you walk up the center aisle. The state affiliate presidents will be
sitting directly to the left of each of the signs. There are also
microphones placed strategically throughout the room if you want to
talk at the points that are appropriate. For example, when resolutions
are being discussed on the afternoon of one of the days, you may wish
to speak about one or more. In that case, you would walk up to the
microphone nearest you... You might have to wait in a line though.

Overall, Convention is hectic, busy, slightly crazy, but very
wonderful. Try to do as much networking as you possibly can. You never
know where your connections might take you. I got a job as a direct
result of Convention last year, and I've become friends with
phenomenal people. Make sure you can write down phone numbers and
names and stuff like that. This year, I will have my BrailleNote Touch
to take notes during presentations, when appropriate. Feel free to try
and find me at convention. I'd love to chat with you.

Best,
Cricket X. Bidleman
NCS Pearson, Associate Quality Assurance Engineer

On 5/9/17, Shikha via NABS-L <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
>
> Hello,
> I will be working at BISM this summer from june to August. I booked a room
> before i got the call from BISM. I am looking for one more female room mate.
> Please help so the room price will be less.
> Also i got all A this summer. Also if anyone has worked at BISM during the
> summer can you please share your experience because i am excited and
> scared.
>
>
> Thanks,
> Shikha.
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