Above: Abraham Lincoln, aka Larry Weiss.
Carol and I received an invitation to Linda and Larry Weiss’ home in Sands Point, New York, for a 4th of July party that is second to none. The president of Atlantic Tomorrow’s Office’s house sits on the north shore of Long Island overlooking Long Island Sound.
It was a beautiful setting, beautiful people, and an enjoyable time. The party is an annual event. It closes with Linda and Larry coming out in special celebratory outfits fitting for the 4th of July celebration.
This year, they outdid themselves. Larry was dressed as Abraham Lincoln, and Linda was dressed as a red, white, and blue flag. Larry was carrying this framed document. It turns out it was a copy of the Gettysburg Address, which he then read to the 50 or so guests.
Larry is a born comic who loves a good laugh. Linda is much the same; they are a team that should have their own television show. What makes this so special for Carol and me is the elaborate décor, outstanding food, and alcohol of all types with the top brands.
The best part is the people who love attending this annual event. We have come to know the Weiss family and their friends by attending this event. There were even people from the office technology industry attending, including Jerry Blaine from LDI Connect and his wife Marilyn. Jerry and Larry have become remarkably close. If you have attended our Annual Awards & Charities Galas over the last six or seven years, you would have seen Larry, Linda, and the Blaines sitting with Carol and me.
You may wonder why we are writing about a purely non-industry social event. Carol, Linda, and Marilyn Blaine have become remarkably close. We celebrate special occasions together and always have the best of times.
Larry, Jerry, and I were recently together at the Bob Goldberg retirement celebration at the BTA event in Huntington Beach, California, and you can add one more fun time to the repertoire. Carol said it best on our long drive home. “We have been so fortunate to meet such wonderful people over the years we have been in the business,” she said smiling. “To have formed relationships that have nothing to do with being a dealer or being a journalist that no one would believe it was possible.”
CJ feels the same way, and we echo Carol’s words. We are thankful for the years we have had in the business and the good fortune we have enjoyed in forming wonderful friendships. There is something special about this business, and I thank the Good Lord for granting us such great fortune.
To all our audience, we hope you had a wonderful 4th of July holiday. We look forward to seeing some of you during our travels from August through November.
On our schedule for the rest of the year are visits with two of our dealer friends who have been extending invitations to Carol and me for a while. First is Barry Simon at Datamax in Little Rock, Arkansas, in July, followed by Paul Hanna of Blue Technologies in Cleveland in September.
Add to that PRINTING United Expo in Las Vegas September 11-13. We will return to Vegas for a CDA meeting on October 23-25. Two weeks later, we celebrate our 39th Annual Awards & Charities Gala on November 7th, with notable manufacturers and dealers as our guests. One week later, we will fly to Nashville for an ICDA meeting.
One thing that we can say with certainty is that we will enjoy December in several ways, besides Christmas. We then start the New Year with a trip to Mexico as guests of Frank Cucco and Impact Networking. This will be an incredibly special meeting for us, and we look forward to it.
