ICRS

So, this week is the ICRS (the International Christian Retail Show) sponsored by CBA (the Christian Booksellers Association, or something like that) and because I am a book-buyer at the Christian book store where I work, I got to go to a bunch of stuff. (I'm a book-buyer, who knew???)

So, Sunday night was the first night and there was this "thing" sponsored by INO Records and Provident-Integrity Distribution (another record company) called "An Evening with MercyMe." And I got to go. I got to hang out with MercyMe and, maybe, 30 other people. Stinkin awesome.

I am totally one of those fans who has a story about a song (which is part of the reason I got to go). If you know me well at all, you know that from the day I was born until the day she died, my grandmother was my very best friend in the ENTIRE world. The day she died was the first time I heard 'I Can Only Imagine.' (Christy and Leese, if you read this, ya'll were there!) Six weeks later, I left for my year at the BI. I bought the MercyMe CD shortly after and there were days, literally, where I would leave campus and just drive around listening to that song 8 or 10 times in a row just to get through the day. So, to get to hang with the band and talk to Bart Millard...and hear them sing some of the stuff from their new album (All That is Within Me, due out November 20) was incredible.

The actual retail show started on Monday and I got to go down and do book-buyer type stuff. Actually, we had recently met with most of our publisher reps so we didn't order a whole lot of books and I'm not really sure why I was there...but I had a lot of fun! I got to meet a lot of people, too...Mandisa from American Idol, Karen Kingsbury, Monk and Neagle (they sang at my church a couple years ago so it was cool to see them again).

There was a seminar yesterday for a new service I'm in the process of signing the store up for so I got to go back. The seminar was LAME...mostly because it was a users meeting to discuss the service and since we don't have it yet, I really had no idea what they were talking about...I'm sure it was profitable for people who did know. I did get to meet more people, though...Randy Alcorn, Norm Geisler.

Last night Erwin McManus did an event where he spoke on the stuff from his latest book Soul Cravings. He was amazing...I'm excited about getting my hands on some of his podcasts and DVDs.

All in all...a fun week...but I'm exhausted!