Home from CKU

I Just got home from an exhausting 5-hour drive to Portland to attend Portland CKU with Michelle Rollens.  It I was a nice visit, if short one with Michelle, and a rather disappointing CKU.  Last CKU I attended was 2002 or so and the convention center was a sea of women and vendors, excitement was in the air to see the latest and greatest.  Women waited patiently to do make and takes (which were all free then) and there were row after row of vendors, strollers and Cop N Styles vying for room at all the booths.  You could sense the anticipation for the many, many classes offered and tickets to those classes were being scalped to the highest bidder, heck  the line to the ladies restroom was 10-deep.  I remember Die Cuts being sold 10- for a buck.  I must have spent $1000.00 in my frenzy to get my “stuff”.  I did not sense that excitement this year.  I saw tired women with very few purchases.  The make and takes all cost money, I was shocked by that.  Even more shocked to learn Rusty Pickle, a favorite of mine, and like so many of the other great ones are now long gone.  I paid $3.75 for a diet Pepsi!  I took some Scrappy Chick flyers to pass out and I was busted for trespassing!  I couldn’t believe it.  Apparently because I did not pay $5,000 for a booth, I was not entitled to let ladies know about the retreats, where in the heck did the spirit of the hobby go? I certainly did not mean to trample on anyone’s parade, I just wanted to share, and this was not to be tolerated.  My brochures were confiscated and thrown away.  Thought that was mean-spirited!  I saw, Hazel Stratton and Amanda Smith at the convention center and it was really nice to Michelle.  I feel sad that our industry is falling apart, or perhaps it’s just changing course, either way I kind of miss the old days.

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