Early to Late

Tuesday has been a busy day at the convention now that it is in full political swing. It was so busy in fact that it began with Amy, Penny and I attending the premiere women's event at the convention past midnight. The event titled, "Political Chicks A Go Go" was sponsored by the Lifetime Television Network and Rock the Vote. It was also hosted by the Executive Director of everywomancounts and several Republican Congresswomen.

We got the chance to enjoy music from John Rich of Big & Rich fame and network with many young convention attendees. The event was turned into a Red Cross Hurricane Relief fundraiser at the last minute and we all made a contribution to the cause. John Rich played a song he wrote about McCain that is a free download from his website. It was a great song and even if you don't want to vote for him, it certainly recognizes his service and personality.

The next morning Penny and I attended a breakfast with Representatives Wally Herger (R-CA) who is a member of the House Ways & Means Committee and Virginia Foxx (R-NC) who sits on the Education & Labor Committee. Penny had her picture taken with each and Rep. Foxx offered to post the picture on her Congressional website to promote occupational therapy.

In the afternoon we connected with Amy and the three of us attended a Health Information Technology event at the James J. Hill House in St. Paul. The event was great and we had an opportunity to discuss the inclusion of OT measures in health IT systems. The building was also beautiful and you can take a look at: www.mnhs.org/hillhouse.

This evening we are attending a fundraising dinner for Senator Grassley (R-IA) who is the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction over health care legislation in the Senate. The menu is a traditional Minnesota Dinner and there has been significant speculation over exactly what that might be; my guess was walleye.

Afterwards we are attending a health care reception to network with Members of Congress and attendees with an interest in healthcare like ourselves. We are hoping for an earlier evening because the day starts early tomorrow at 8am and we will be on site at the Xcel Center until the end of the convention tomorrow night.

We'll keep you up to date about the event details and also end the mystery of the "Traditional Minnesota Dinner" on tomorrow's blog.