Katrina and I were staying behind, so to return to the NEAF show. Today was my pitch day. Somehow we had to make our was to the campus. I emailed Byron to see if they were going to the show today.
9:30. Had a leisurely breakfast with Katrina in the hotel.
We caught a ride with Janice and Bryon, in the SAAB, before they headed home. Very nice of them. Thank you!
11:00. Back at the show, with Katrina.
I immediately headed to the Opticsmart booth (413) and picked up a red LED light for Stu (a single). $13, the show special 35% off.
11:30. I also gathered info and photos of DiscMount (booth 325) for Stu. Both Phil and I feel that better tripods can be had elsewhere...
12:00 PM. Had a good chat with Tim DeBenedictis, at the Southern Stars booth (210, in the second aisle), about their CubeSat program. Very interesting what they're doing. Maybe RASC can do something?! They were very successful with their crowdfunding. For as little as $1, you can send a message from space!
12:20. Coffee break. Prepared my notes.
Chatted with a Celestron representative. A brief but positive discussion. Exchanged cards.
Received a new demo of the Vixen Polarie. Saw the transparent model.
1:32. Randomly I headed outside, Katrina waved me over. Did some fun solar observing.
1:44. I caught Dietmar out of the corner of my eye. Looked like the crew was back... And my ride home!
2:03. Watched Uncle Al's talk in the Galaxy Theatre, at the end of the gymnasium. Phil joined me for a bit. I went mostly to see Al Nagler up close. He was entertaining, informative (without being too technical), funny, and brutally honest.
Vendors started marking down telescopes. For example, Woodlands cut $100 off a refractor.
3:45. My palmtop alarms started going off. Draw prize time! Phil and I won hats from Astro-Physics (booth 221)!
Phil and I took a quick look in the Kid's Corner. Quiet now... I like the 3-dimension models of the stars in the Big Dipper.
4:15. I helped Millie with screws for her telescope. We found some nylon 4mm pieces.
Larry wondered if she was my Mom!
4:45. I returned to AstroGizmos. It was less busy than yesterday. I took more time in the booth. And I found a very nice clip-on light, with 4 LEDs, that ran off AAA batteries. I bought it, thinking of Stu. $25.
Vendors were packing up.
5:00. The show officially closed. The advertised time of 6 was clearly incorrect.
5:16. There was the big draw in auditorium. I had tickets 230 to 236. No luck. In fact, no one in the posse won anything. Too bad. They had some great stuff though.
And suddenly, NEAF was done. I was tired but happy. It was a great run. Now, looking back, it felt like it flew by. The show surpassed by expectations. I was pleasantly surprised by all the vendors and products that were present. There was more to see and do that I had anticipated.
We had dinner with the tweeters. The Waterwheel Restaurant and Cafe. Between the Dunkin' Donuts and the Tallman Bible Church.
9:00. I did not join the gang in the courtyard after. Needed some quiet time. The television signal was better tonight...
I gave my AP cap to Phil. He won a toque. So he's covered for both seasons now.
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One disappointment was not finding Vixen parts. I had hoped to spot clutches, motor brackets, bolts, etc...
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