Planning Earlier Than I Want To But Later Than I Should

The Libertarian Party of Florida's 2017 state convention is schedule for May 5-7 in Cocoa Beach. I intend to go. It will be my first state convention in Florida. I'm not endorsing any candidates for party office because I'm still a New Guy who doesn't have the lay of the land, but this event is part of getting said lay (no, that's not intended as double entendre).

The nut:

• There's no charge for participating in the business sessions and I am registered as a delegate already. However, the business sessions are spread over two days (Saturday and Sunday) and starting fairly early on Saturday. So at least one, probably two hotel nights. Estimated total cost with taxes, etc., $200 (I plan to talk to my daughter, also a registered LPF voter, about being a delegate, and my wife will be coming to socialize, maybe hit the beach, etc., so the room would not just be fore me).
• I'm not planning to buy any of the full meal/event "packages." When I go to a convention, I almost always find it more productive -- and more fun -- to hang out with people between business sessions. However, since part of my purpose in going is to network and since I'm looking at a Friday hotel stay anyway, I do want to attend the Friday evening reception. Cost is variable. If it's just me, $60. Me and Astel, $120. Me, Astel and Tamara, $180.
• Sundry expenses (gas, possibly car rental if we aren't in something more reliable by then -- hopefully we will be -- and the elevated cost of eating out in Cocoa Beach rather than at home) ... I'm going to ballpark that at $120 just to get a nice round max expense figure of:

!$500!

I don't have $500 lying around so it's time to start figuring out ways to cut costs and/or make the idea of me going worth money to others.

Cost-cutting:

• There's a carpool/roomshare group on Facebook. If it comes down to that, I'll see what I can manage, but I have reasons to not want to. Put simply, I don't know how easygoing or tense things will become vis a vis party business and so forth and I don't want to ride down and/or bunk with someone and then find myself e.g. sleeping in the hallway and hitch-hiking home (or tempting that fate and making all parties tense).
• I've done some hotel research. There are some nearby places but nothing significantly cheaper (hint: The base rate at Motel 6 is more expensive). If I find a way to save $30 a night and not have to walk more than 20 minutes or so between venues, I'll go for it, but that's not looking likely. In extremis I will give up the Friday night reception and only book one hotel night. For that matter, if I end up sleeping in the car or nodding off in a chair in the hotel lobby, it won't be the first time I've done that in order to be somewhere I think I need to be.

Making the idea of me going worth money to others:

• If you're holding any kind of unofficial/side event at the convention and would like a speaker, let's talk. I'm not looking for a huge honorarium, I'm looking for ways to make this trip affordable.
• If you'd like me to advertise your product, service, web site, etc. in some way (wearing a t-shirt, getting a tattoo on my forehead, putting fliers on the convention tables, staffing a table, stripping down to a thong while dancing and yelling about whatever it is you're selling, etc.), maybe we can work something out.

Presumably time is somewhat of the essence when it comes to hotel reservations and all that, so if either of the above interest you please hit the contact form ASAP and we'll get whatever it is going. If you just want to throw money at me on general principle, there are options in the right sidebar for doing so, and thanks in advance.

Naturally I'll plan on blogging and podcasting from the convention as well -- and I do expect there may be some goings-on of interest to non-Floridians. Specifically, some of you will recall the recent incident at the International Students For Liberty Conference, and you might even have noticed that Richard Spencer was actually the second string provocateur -- the entryists' original plan was to bring in Augustus Invictus from Florida. I expect Invictus to attend the convention, and one of his supporters is running for state vice-chair. Developing ...

UPDATE, 03/02

The cost-cutting has begun. My initial estimate of hotel costs, including taxes and so forth, was $200. Two nights at the convention hotel (the rate required payment in advance, but I can cancel if necessary) came to $153.12. So the new, updated total estimated cost of attending the convention is almost 10% less ...

!$453.12!

... and of course I will continue looking for ways to make it cheaper. Now I just have to start moving the needle from the bottom in terms of actually, you know, paying for this thing. I plan to talk to a couple of possible movement-related sponsors/advertisers who might have some work for me to do there. If you're someone who has such work in mind that I probably don't know about, talk to me.