Just a quick thing before I head off to the panels. Confidential to the lovely German-speaking (mostly) lady next to me on the plane who was going to a funeral: I hope you and yours are safe and well today. It wasn’t the worst flight I’ve ever been on out of O’Hare, but it was close. Chicago was like, “You leaving us? Fine. We’ll make it WORTH IT.”

And it has been.

I’m never not inspired by meeting people I’ve met here on the blogs, but last night, having talked to people who come from all over, who are here to talk about what the unholy hell we’re gonna donow to unfuck this country (and to drink and sing and talk about the thing you stick in a hot dog to cook it which plugs into a wall), I’m reminded, like I was here two years ago and New York a year ago and New Orleans last spring, why it is this way of doing things matters to people. We talk to each other and tell each other our stories, and it isn’t rocket science, okay, it isn’t something entirely new; in fact it’s very old. But it’s also very important.

And thiscity. Girl behind me on the plane, to her boyfriend/fratskank/whatever, “I hear there’s, like, lots of historical stuff here.” Having spent the past week mainlining John Adams on HBO like a good littleaddict student, then walking past Independence Hall last night … I believe in experiencing history, in learning the stories where the stories began, andman, is all.

Today, there are panels, on impact and journalism (at which I’ll be offering some thoughts) and congressional accountability, so check back later for reports because I want you to feel like you’re here too. You know how you come home from a gathering and say to people who weren’t there, “Everybody says hi?”

Everybody says hi.

A.