What I like about the SAA

In all fairness, I should provide the obverse to my previous post:

1. I'm surprised, a a geoscientist and as only a moderately social person, how many people I know at this meeting. I could feel the warmth of a career's worth of professional and personal associations at this meeting. I saw people I have known for 25 years, and a student I had in my class just two years ago. 2. There have been interesting talks and posters! The Clovis session yesterday had some controversy, different approaches, presented by veterans as well as newcomers. 3. The observation that the SAS, the main reason I am here, is still on solid ground. We have changed with the times, and grown in may ways. 4. Books. The exhibition hall was fun to wander through. I bought a book in archaeological theory, andfound out I was anthologized in an SAA book on chronometric methods (and got a free copy of that one). 5. Sacramento is a very pleasant city. The grounds of the capitol are lovely. I have been in Old Sacramento, and found a decent used book store (Time Tested Books). 6. I have been able to stay and spend some time with an old and dear friend. So, it's been a pretty good couple of days!