I’m in Chicago for BlogHer 2013

Yesterday, I finished packing my bags and headed out to the airport to travel to Chicago for BlogHer. This is only my second blog conference and the first Really Big one. When I left home it was raining. The humidity was set to stun level. Or maybe infinity. My hair immediately turned into a frizzy mess. Airport parking was difficult. I was terrified that I’d miss my flight.

I checked my bag and hurried to the gate because it was past time for boarding to start and…

Waited.

And waited some more.

Boarded the flight, but that thunderstorm outside was right over the airport so we…

Waited.

Longer.

The upshot of the deal is that the flight left around the time it was scheduled to ARRIVE in Chicago. Ah, the joys of travel! Fortunately, I did not have any place to be until 4:00 pm, so it was not a big deal.

I love Chicago. I don’t think I’d want to live here, but I think it’s a wonderful place to visit. Of course, there is a language barrier to deal with. The people here talk faster than I can listen. I have to tell them to slow down. I think they can understand me, but I can’t understand them. I also suspect they think my accent is, um, interesting?

View From My Window

Since one of my goals these days is to step outside of my comfort zone and find The Magic, I signed up for every event I could find. Last night, I went to a pre-conference event called Windy City Soiree. It was held at Water Tower Place and had a long, long list of sponsors. Bloggers and other media types who had signed up received magic pink wristbands that allowed admittance inside The Velvet Rope.

Magic Pink Wristband

I met up with some of the delightful ladies of Generation Fabulous and Boombox Network. They took me under their wing since I am a total newbie to The Big Blog Conference. Thanks, Ladies!

You know, I knew on an intellectual level that companies give stuff to bloggers so that bloggers will write positive things about them online. I got a couple of items at my first blog conference, but it wasn’t much and it didn’t seem like a big deal. My blogging at the time was very hit or miss. Now, I’m trying to write regularly. I guess the fact that I was willing to travel to BlogHer makes me seem like a Real Blogger™ all of a sudden. So at this event I went to, I got a big bag of swag and a free dinner.  Just for showing up and claiming to be a writer. Weird.

Now that I’m a Real Blogger™ brands want to give me stuff. I’m still assimilating how all this works. I suspect that I’ll need to write it all out. Next week. This week I’ll be experiencing it.

I also need to learn more about disclosure. For instance, somewhere on here, I’m supposed to tell my readers what I got for free. Of course, that’s why I’m here in Chicago. To learn.* I’ll figure it out.

*I’m really not here for the free stuff. I’m not even sure if I’ll be able to take it all home.