25 September 2006

ACFW Conference

"You're funny." Yes. I'm in. With the cool group. I use the word cool loosely, as in gangs of New York.
So the "you're funny" guy and the nail polish girl are going to visit my blog. Lil ole me. Or at least they said they would. Tommy, can you hear me?
And now I have to be funny.
Krike!
Good thing I took the "Art of Writing Comedy" class.
A priest walks into a bar. No, wait, a horse. Yes, it was definitely a horse. A horse walks into a bar, and the bartender says, "Why the long face?" Get it? Long face? Sigh.
Why do people sigh after they laugh?
The best thing about the ACFW conference was the orange ginger shampoo and lotion. Can I get a witness? Bam! That'll wake you up in the morning.
Just kidding.
In all seriousness, the best thing were the people that made a rookie feel accepted. Like Marilyn. I met Marilyn once when she offered to let me stay in her hotel room free of charge. And Jennifer. Jennifer saw me standing in the back of the main room biting my nails (well, I would have been biting my nails if I bite my nails, which I don't) with my eyes "biggish and whitish" from fright. She got up from her table, came back to me, and took me by the hand to a seat at her table.
Then there's the toad-lickin' warped crew. Finally, I found my family.


And meeting blogging buddies for the first time, like Michelle, Dineen, and Gina. Love it.
And getting encouragement to keep writing when I felt like blubbering my lips with my finger. Uh, which way did he go, George? Which way did he go?
And, drum roll please, I am an ACFW winner. Yes, folks, because I shot my hand up first at a late night chat, I won a free bottle of OPI nail polish. Thank you, thank you.
Today feels odd and normal. It feels odd because it is normal. Back to life, back to reality.

16 comments:

~michelle pendergrass said...

I'm stealing the picture, I was waiting for the email with all the pictures before I went further...

I wrote on the plane last night in my journal that for the first time I finally felt like I belonged. You and Jennifer, Mike, Greg, and Jenny felt like home. Know what I mean?

It was indeed a good conference.

Mirtika said...

I'm assuming you're the gorgeous, big smiler in white? :)

And OPI is not nuthin. I'm an OPI ADDICT. No better nail polish on Earth.

What color?

Mir

Heather said...

chicklit cherry. i love it.
yes, i'm the one in white. thanks for the kind descriptor!

Unknown said...

Thanks for the report. Sounds fun and quite encouraging.

Don't worry about being funny. It happens when we aren't worrying. I'm way funnier in real life than in blog life, and sometimes when I try, it just flops. I wish I could be funny, wise, and deep, all at once.

Unknown said...

Thanks for the report. Sounds fun and quite encouraging.

Don't worry about being funny. It happens when we aren't worrying. I'm way funnier in real life than in blog life, and sometimes when I try, it just flops. I wish I could be funny, wise, and deep, all at once.

willowtree said...

You could be funny if you wanted too, but it's best that you don't. You need to leave a niche for us people who don't have writing talent.

The funny stuff doesn't need all the thought and sentence structure that you employ, that's where we come in.

Well done on the nail polish. I just realised that polish and Polish are spelled the same.

willowtree said...

That's not you in the picture! That's Kylie Minogue.

michael snyder said...

Ahh, but you are funny.

And be still my beating heart...I was quoted (didn't know we were on the record, so you'll probably be hearing from my lawyers).

I'm on a borrowed computer so this is the only post-ACFW comment I'm making until I get home. So there!

It really was great to meet you and hang out. And yes, you really are funny. And no, I do not really smoke toad venom.

Mike

Anonymous said...

So glad you had a great time. Can't wait to hear more about it! ABS

Ms. Kathleen said...

I am enjoying your book reviews and congrats on winning nail polish. It is always nice to win something. Thanks!

Unknown said...

Yeah, I'm stealing that pic too. And I want the other "back of the body" shots you took too. Please?

And yes, we're kindred spirits because I had no idea anyone would like receiving OPI as much as I liked giving it.

So, what are we doing this weekend? I feel like half my family has left me.

Claudia said...

what is it that the zen masters say? Before enlightenment? The laundry. After enlightenment? the laundry. Which reminds me...I have to do my laundry!!!

Pamela said...

Hey... nice to see you facing the camera.

Robin said...

1) "Whenever I see your smiling face, I have to smile right back..." Are you old enough to know that song?? Love seeing the "front" that goes with the "back".

2) YIPPEEE on OPI prizes!! I woulda tackled you to get it if I was there.

3) I thought this post WAS hilarious! I totally hear your humor AND your depth!

4) Heather.......I might be getting a writing bug (and NO MEAN comments from anybody who reads you and me). There's a teeny tiny part of me that's....well...curious for now.

I loved seeing Michelle, too :). Sounds like a GREAT conference; the sense of community was...is...beautiful.

Dineen A. Miller said...

It was great to meet you, Heather! What a great conference. I hope you were truly blessed by it. Hugs!

Jeanne Damoff said...

Heather, you're so cute. You look fifteen. I walked around in a bit of a fog at ACFW after hearing Friday evening that my mother-in-law had died, so I regret that I didn't spend some good hanging out time with you. But I'm glad you got to know my schizo-sibs. Mike and I discovered last year that we're twins separated at conception, and Jennifer T. and I recently realized we would be sisters, if only we'd had the same parents. Since they said you were funny and gave you nail polish, then I guess that means you and I must be related.

Thanks for your comment on my last post at Master's Artist. Glad to have found your blog.