Another benefit of traveling with a beautiful woman is that it’s really easy to talk Lon into picking you up at the airport. [To his credit, Lon has absolutely no qualms about expressing this state of mind either.] In past years, when I’ve flown in by myself, Lon has sometimes had other things to take care of at the time I was arriving. This year, his schedule was clear all afternoon. We had time for a quick lunch before Mav arrived, so for a short time Lon and I had Shayla all to ourselves. We knew we wouldn’t get that lucky again all week. [Imagine being Lucky all the time. It can get tiring.]
With Mav in tow, we headed for the Riv, where we first met Cytherea. Of course, I knew she was gorgeous from her pictures, but in person her beauty was at least another notch higher. [Physical beauty and inner beauty represent different concepts, naturally, but to find them both in one person can really brighten your day.] Really special. Add in a fascinating personality that’s both sassy and sweet and I knew the week was going to be something special with her around. [True. Special and on occasion quite wet.]
So the gang was assembled, except for the big man, Uncle Gibby. He’d made his flight reservation months in advance and confirmed it several times, but somehow missed the fact that his plane was leaving at 8:00 PM instead of 8:00 AM as he’d thought. [Being the mature adult that he happens to be, Gibby spent so much time beating himself up about this mistake that none of the rest of us had the chance to. He took all the fun out of it really.] So he finally dragged himself in around midnight. Several of us stayed up to greet him, but after a quick hello most were off to bed. Yeah, I know, we’re old. [We’ve covered this part, right?]
We also had surprise guest join the group the next day. Cheyenne Silver decided to check things out and do a little networking at the convention. [Well, if you’re going to network, the Consumer Electronic Show seems like a darned good place to do so. She’s no slouch in the mental department either, that Ms. Silver.] Needless to say, she is spectacular, both physically and personality-wise. Add in the fact that she’s living in Colorado these days, and she was the perfect addition to complete the group. We all tend to get along well with Colorado girls. [Also, we sing that old Beach Boys song about California Girls completely differently.]
Thursday we got our first taste of the convention itself, and it was immediately apparent things had changed a lot from last year. They basically spun the whole configuration 90 degrees inside the convention hall, then cordoned off big sections at each end. So we entered from the side, after going through a much-reduced B2B area. I’d say it was maybe half the size of previous years. [Ah. Then the organizers did an excellent job with the layout. Gauging from the stats I saw, I’d put the percentage at much closer to twenty.]
The big companies that always dominate the front entrance area were missing a couple names. Vivid and Adam & Eve didn’t bother with booths this year, opting instead to do their business in small suites in another part of the hall. [I don’t know what Vivid’s excuse was, but Adam & Eve had to save all their money for Michael and The Four.] It seemed really strange at first, but as the crowd grew and more girls arrived to sign, we fell into the same pattern we always do – walking for miles in a circle, with frequent stops to stand in long lines. I guess no matter how much they change it around, some things stay the same. [Personally I prefer it when the industry attendance is too big for one space in the area, but too small for the larger convention area. Then AVN fills up the area with lots of tables and chairs – good for reading. I’ve asked about a special booth location just for me to sit and read, but they keep wanting us to pay money for it. … Silly AVN.]
