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<\/a>Some of the crowd during the morning pre-event mingle. Photo by Karen Salkin, as is the big one at the top of the page.<\/p><\/div>\n
It was an all-day affair, but sadly for me, I had to leave after about five hours because, as usual, I was triple-booked for the day and night. But I got as much out of those few hours as anybody possibly could.<\/p>\n
It was held at a place that I never even heard<\/em> of, let alone been<\/em> to\u2014Playa Studios in Culver City. A few years back, I was the restaurant critic for The Culver City News, and, as an actress, I\u2019ve worked at just about every studio in town, but this was a whole new experience to me.\u00a0 I never even knew the street<\/em> it\u2019s on existed! I love learning something new, especially about Los Angeles, so this location was a revelation to me.<\/p>\n Morning pastries. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n As we entered, there were two kinds of pastries and several beverages to greet us, in case we hadn\u2019t had time for breakfast at that super-early (for me) time. I don\u2019t eat stuff like that, but I really appreciated that they had bottles (of a sort) of water at each place setting at the tables.<\/p>\n And then the biggest surprise came as we entered, with a brilliant move I\u2019ve never seen done before.\u00a0 Instead of each seat having a gift bag that\u2019s the same for everyone, each table of ten had something different. You didn\u2019t know what it was in most instances, (because the gifts were contained in a bag or box,) so what you wound-up with was just sort-of pot luck. Because I wanted to tell you about\u00a0several<\/em>\u00a0of the gifts, (as opposed to just the one I<\/em> received,) I went around to some of the tables to find-out what the choices were, which was sort-of embarrassing because I\u2019m sure that some of the other guests thought I was just trying to choose the best one. (Actually, there\u2019s precious little in life that I need, knock on wood, so I would have been fine with any<\/em> of the gifts.)<\/p>\n My table, whose bags contained jewelry and a notebook. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n Here are a few of the hidden treasures I discovered:\u00a0fashionable blankets(!), restaurant gift certificates, designer sunglasses, skin care, stationery, and…a box of cupcakes (which trust me\u2014even though I\u2019m not supposed to eat sugar, I considered for a long moment.) And what did I<\/em> get? Probably the one thing I really wanted\u2014silver jewelry! Pieces that I loved! Each person at my table had different items in her bag, and I wasn\u2019t a fan of any of it, (mainly because they were gold, as opposed to silver, which is all I wear,) except for mine<\/em>! How amazing is that?! It was kismet! My box had several beautiful little silver rings in it, which I put on right away, (even though I never use a gift immediately like that,) and I\u2019ve barely taken them off since then.<\/p>\n The blankets on another table. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n Before I go any further, I must tell you that I liked everyone I met there! Most of the attendees were under thirty, and in life, I\u2019ve found that people in their twenties (outside of my own friends in that demographic) often act like they know it all, and like anyone over that age is a moron.\u00a0 But these<\/em> people were all darling, respectful, and willing to learn. And thank goodness, they all got, and laughed at, everything I said! It was a really nice group of about two hundred; mostly ladies, with a few guys sprinkled in for fun.<\/p>\n Yet another table’s goodies. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n After all the excitement of choosing our tables and discovering our gifts, we got down to business. There were opening remarks, and then something happened that I\u2019ve also never experienced at a conference before\u2014we were guided through some very simple morning mediations. That was brilliant! It calmed us all down, and put us in the frame of mind to receive the knowledge about the business that we were about to. I feel that the practice also connected us all a bit. And I was happy to finally learn how to do it! I\u2019ve tried mediation tons of times, (especially in the last two years since my mini-stroke,) but I\u2019m never able to clear my mind enough. So I really appreciated learning these tricks that should help with all that.<\/p>\n Then we got to the first panel, on which there was a good balance of speakers. They were very informative,\u00a0there were no\u00a0blowhards in the group, and they all had real knowledge. These women weren\u2019t up there to just impress themselves, like what I\u2019ve run into at similar events.\u00a0 So, big props to them.<\/p>\n The buffet before it was open. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n After just the right amount of time, we were treated to a lunch buffet from Sharkey\u2019s, which had something for everyone–carnivores, vegetarians, and vegans alike.\u00a0 I was chatting with so many of my fellow conference-ites during that break that I don\u2019t really remember what I ate or how it tasted, but I\u2019m sure it was good because everyone looked happy.<\/p>\n We began the afternoon with some more mediation, which once again calmed the room down.\u00a0 The space featured beautiful bright light, which was conducive to socializing, so this practice at that time helped us focus in on learning again.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>