It was an extremely busy day and just jammed packed with people as the Meet Market kicked off the Affiliate Summit East event. Vendors and Affiliates from all over the world meeting in one big room with so much chatter you could hardly hear yourself speak. So much energy and excitement!

Tissa and Trish were busy working the main table while Gary, Mike Oyama and I hustled from class to class for 3 solid hours of learning. 

It’s amazing how much information can be crammed into a 1 hour class. I found myself  trying to take notes as fast as I could to keep up with the speakers. They know there is a short amount of time to cover the material so they move through the subject matter quickly.  With only a 30 minute break before the next class I was getting worried I wouldn’t be able to retain everything unless I wrote as much of it down as I could. Let me tell you, I was a lot better at this when I was in college and 20 years younger so it took a little getting used to again.  

After the classes were done we were able to join the Meet Market and help Tissa and Trish network to spread the word about ACME People Search and it’s excellent business opportunity. I have to say it was fun to greet people and explain the concept of how the Search Engine works.  I know now that whenever I get the feeling that maybe everyone in the world has heard of this program, all I have to do is remember how many affiliates were there and didn’t have a clue it existed. It’s just too big of a world and we’re a long, long way from even uttering the word saturation.

By 6pm it was all over. The buzz had died down and we headed back to our rooms to freshen up.  Tissa asked me to pick a place for us to have some dinner so I did some research. Let’s see, we’re in the Theatre District and we need something fun I thought.  I checked some local listings for eating out and there it was….Benihana’s

“Prepare for a dining experience unlike any other. Watch as your personal
chef performs the ancient art of Teppanyaki, preparing a meal that will dazzle
your eyes as well as your taste buds. Listen as razor-sharp blades slice and
dice through tender steak and juicy chicken. Take in the aroma as savory…

That sounds like fun! Sake here we come!

We met in the Lobby and I got to finally meet Gary’s wife Debbie. She is so nice, now I know where Gary gets his manners from (sorry Gary I couldn’t resist). Anyway, we headed out to the streets and our second night in Manhattan began.

We walked up 6th Avenue (Avenue of the Americas) North towards Central Park. On the way we had this ingenious idea to SPAM Manhattan with the infamous ACME Pizza Magnet. Trying to find the right spots to put them was not as easy as one would expect. We did find a banner that led to the subway and a light post and Tissa took some pictures. Gary pointed out that the magnet was like that doll in the Flat Stanley movie. It was becoming part of our trip everywhere we went!

I led the pack and we made a left on 56th street. I wasn’t really paying attention because we were having too much fun laughing and joking with the magnets. We hit 7th avenue and I pointed out Carnegie Hall.  Everyone took pictures and then I realized we went the wrong way.  Oops I said, it’s between 6th and 5th so we need to head back the way we came.  What a great guide I turned out to be!  Now you may not know this but in Manhattan the blocks are somewhat long between avenues. Sorry…..worst thing is that by now I know everyone is hungry since we had no lunch. But it’s all good, we’re all having fun seeing the sites.

So we head past 6th street (where we started) and go all the way to 5th street. Still no Benihana’s!  Okay, this is getting embarrassing. I called the place before we left and got directions I have the address and some how we didn’t see it.

 Tissa says “hold on I have my GPS, it’s back the way we just came from towards 6th Avenue”.  This is too funny we’re walking in circles and now Tissa is using the GPS to get us there.

Finally as we get about 50 feet from 6th Avenue there it is…BENIHANA’S as clear as day.  How the heck did we miss this twice is beyond all of us.  I guess we were just having too much fun and nobody looked on that side of the road where the Big Sign was!  Too funny!

Well the food was great, the Sake was great, Trish and I agreed that the cook was a little slow but it was all good in the end. Afterward when we headed back it took us all of about 5 minutes to get to the hotel. It was hilarious how close we were the whole time and yet it took us so long to get there. Only 3 streets away and in Manhattan the distance between streets are short. LOL!

As we approached the hotel there were dozens of cabbies waiting out front as they always do, so where do you think the magnet ended up?  You guessed it, on the back of a Taxi Cab courtesy of Debbie. I bet Flat Stanley had the ride of his life that night

Gary and Mike at Ellen's Stardust Diner - NJ

I Arrived safely in New York today. The flight got in 30 minutes early (only 4 hours total in the air) so we made excellent time. Jet Blue rocks and I recommend them highly if they have flights in your area. I’ve flown them at least a dozen times and they have always been on time!

Luckily the Shuttle took me straight to the Hotel without any stops. It could have been a brutal long drive because there were 6 other passengers with hotel stops spread out all over the city. Since the Hilton is located in upper Manhattan close to Central Park and we came from Brooklyn by way of the Queensboro Bridge I was the first stop. Yeah, big tip for the driver, well deserved!

After I checked into the room, which went incredible fast and smooth, I quickly plugged in my computer. I went straight to the forum and made a post that I had arrived safely. I then started writing Tissa a PM since I didn’t have his phone number and I figured that would be the best way to let him know I was here. Just as I was about to hit the Send button the phone rang…It was Tissa! Now I thought, what is he psychic too?

He said “Mike, go get your pass and meet me on the second floor there are some boxes we’re bringing up to the booth”.

I said “cool, I’ll be right there”.

Yeah right cool….I’m finally going to meet Tissa for the first time and I have no idea what to say when I see him.

Hi Tissa, You Rock! (no that’s awkward)….At this point I’m not even sure if I’ll recognize him since I’m so bad with faces! Embarrassing but true.

Thankfully he walked up to me and said the first words. Well, you know what the first thing I said was?
“Wow you’re a lot taller than I thought you would be”

…and without missing a beat in true Tissa form he replied…”well your a lot shorter than I thought you would be”.

LOL, I guess I deserved that! I mean come on, it’s just that all we ever see is that headshot photo with the Google Sign behind him and the video of him sitting down. I’m 5’8″ and he towers over me so naturally that was my first reaction I guess it just didn’t come out right. Either way it was too funny and a great way to laugh and break the ice.

Shortly after that I got to meet Gary and I made sure I didn’t say anything dumb to him. What a great guy too, just a real gentlemen. We went up to see the booth, dropped off the boxes and decided to get some dinner on the streets of NY City..

Well, that’s when Gary and I took a wrong turn, lost Tissa in the Subway, and wound up at Ellen’s Stardust Lounge (with the singing wait staff) in New Jersey!

Of course Tissa sent the NYPD hot on our trail to come and save us! Thanks Tissa!
What a night….