Today was…long. The fun started when I got a call at 7:20 AM reminding me that my car was coming at 8. For some reason, I’d had in my head it was coming at nine, and so decided that I’d wake up at about 7:30, spend 45 minutes packing, take a quick shower, and be ready to go. Instead, I pretty much literally just dumped a wad of clothes into a suitcase, jumped into the shower, and proved that you can easily run with a 35-pound suitcase if you have enough adrenaline and don’t really care about who you hit.

On the bright side, first-class transcontinental is just…awesome. The meal they served for lunch was vastly superior to any dinner I’ve had recently, the seats had plenty of legroom, and for the first time in my life, I actually didn’t mind a long flight all that much (although for true comfort, I eagerly await the day that hard liquor counts as a business expense). By 6 PM EST, I arrived, grabbed a cab whose driver was trying to impersonate Shaft in dress, behavior, and music selection, quickly verified I hadn’t accidentally time-warped back to the 70s by counting the number of tie-die shirts (12), and then rode into the city.

Once I was checked into the hotel, who helpfully verified the credit limit on my MasterCard, I went to register for the conference. As you may or may not know, Jobs’ keynotes are generally very well-attended, by which I mean that Mecca got nothing on developers trying to bump and grind their laptops into the Presidio at Moscone so that they can see His stubble and sweat in person. This year, the keynote is supposed to start at 10 AM PDT. I’d like to share my conversation with the woman who helped me register:

Me: So, the keynote’s at 10, right?

Woman: Yeah.

Me: So when should I be here?

Woman: Well, the doors open at 7, so you probably want to get here before then.

Me: …

So, I am now diligently going to bed early. I’ve got my alarm set, I’ve got my clothes laid out, and I am ready to run out and wait.