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The 113th
THIS IS MY ACCOUNT of the NAPA Convention held in Macon, Georgia. I hope the readers will be treated to additional impressions of the convention from the others who were there.
Upon arriving at the Hilton we first made our way to the hospitality suite on the top floor, the 16th. We were efficiently registered by Lucy Douglas, to whom we owe a great big ‘Thank You!’ along with Richard George and Will Douglas. Their efforts were untiring as they saw to our every need and comfort. ‘Pearl’ and the type cases were set up in a little alcove just waiting for some willing hands. This pleasant room also had a tiny balcony where a number of us spent talking ‘good-times’ while looking out over the night lights of the city.
But, there was another great feature – a rather large six-sided coffee table ladened down with several kinds of scrumptious cookies, lots of apples, bananas, Georgia peaches, nectarines, grapes, plus two kinds of nuts, tiny cheesey crackers, blueberry loaf, and the most luscious muffins to be found in the South. As time went on, we found that it was a magical table in that it was never without goodies. No matter what foodstuffs we partook of during the day, we always ended up at that ‘magic’ table.
On Friday several of us opted to take a walking tour and visited the Macon Historical Society where we saw a film depicting the architectures of the ante-bellum period, took in an antique shop, toured two lovely churches and thoroughly enjoyed the beauty of the stained glass windows and a little music by a practicing organist. In the afternoon about 35 of the conventioneers were treated to a bus tour of the city under the care of ‘Sidney’ who had unlimited stories to tell about early Macon. We stopped to tour the poet Sidney Lanier’s birthplace and the elegant Hay house. The bus then deposited us at the home of Dick and Rusty George where we all enjoyed a sumptious Bar-B-Que picnic after the bus returned to the hotel for those who did not take the tour.
The George’s large front porch provided a great stage for the NAPA Thespians’ production of ‘1,000 Nights in the Cellar, or She Was Only a Printer’s Daughter & No Type for the City Slicker.’ We sat in the yard and cheered the hero and hissed the villain. Later on we trooped back to the hospitality suite for type setting, printing, and a visit [or two] to the ‘magic’ table. Parts of Saturday & Sunday were spent at the business sessions. I wanted to be there when the convention city for 1989 was chosen and was happy when Wichita was selected.
Lucy’s paper-making demonstration was most interesting, would liked to have seen some printed impressions on same. And the linoleum block cutting was just terrific, albeit a little dangerous – that’s a sharp little tool. My block would not win any prizes, but I am very pleased with it and hope to do another soon. Saturday evening was the auction & with the help of little Alice Warner we had some laughs and even made a little money for the NAPA treasury.
The Sunday evening banquet wound up the convention. Brig. Gen. Robert L. Scott, Jr., USAF Ret., author of the book God is My Co-pilot was a dynamic and interesting speaker. Printing continued in the hospitality suite and the conversation was lively. These people are the only group I know who have as much to say at the end of three days together as they did at the very beginning. An unofficial super breakfast in the hotel coffee shop on Monday morning ended our activities. In attendance were Gussie and Harold Segal, Rowena and Vic Moitoret, Roy Lindberg, Gale Sheldon, Fred Gage, Pat and Jeff Jennings, Elaine Peck, Georgie Gray, Tom Whitbread, and Clarence and I. We then left for Orlando in a heavy rainstorm. About half way home snack time came and we had two of Lucy’s date & nut muffins filched from – you guessed it – the ‘magic’ table. –MWP
Colophon
Hand set and printed on a 7 x 11 motorized Improved Pearl treadle press at The Claricent Press of Clarence and Millicent Prowell at Orlando, Florida, 32822 for members of The National Amateur Press Association.