"storylines is cool"

Well the Storylines Festival is over for another year. We didn’t crack 3000 but we got closer to it than other years with 2700.

I was in the middle of the swirling crowd being the human sign post, directing people, answering questions, calling out announcements, looking for lost parents, etc etc.

Funny things that stand out for me....
The looks on little kids faces as they saw Hairy Mclairy and the usual mob that appears wherever he goes.
Martin doing a great King Bubbles as he looked after Babette Cole....
Ruth Paul not being able to get into the performance of the Animal Undie Ball which was based on the picture book she wrote and illustrated, because of the crowd of people already in there.
Babette Cole...being Babette Cole. Listen to Radio NZs podcast for today, Wednesday 11th, 10am
http://www.radionz.co.nz/ to find out what I mean.
The three little girls who were so thrilled with their stars and that they saw planets and they saw stars and they saw planets and they saw stars and.....(it made me feel good anyway considering the work that went into the planetarium.)
The huge hum around the craft tables and illustrators gallery. The illustrators were closer to the crowd and I think that made the kids at the craft activities feel like proper illustrators.
The gelato and the 20 minute wait for a coffee.
The fact that I couldn’t find my middle child for most of the day because she was in the most popular room and I couldn’t get in there because of the people crush.
The babies faces when I shook my head because I was wearing a jesters hat and all the bells rang.
The kids that dressed up- there was so many of them. The best was the tin man.
The manic set up starting at 7am and 10 was when the doors opened. All the things you can do with duct tape! (the break down also was done in record time.)
“Storylines is really cool especially when you’re in there,” quote from middle child. “You need to come next year”
There will be photo’s up at the storylines website
http://www.storylines.org.nz/
There are some up on the national library blog see link in sidebar.
We all had a great time that the committee has committed for another year (a first) and the convenor wants to do it again (another first)
We’re all nuts or drunk on storylines energy...It is all about the kids and the way they make you feel it is all worthwhile.
Onto the last event in the festival- tomorrow night the seminar is on with Babette and Carole.

maureen