Cooperstown

As most of you know, Cooperstown, NY is the home of the Baseball Hall of Fame. It is also the home of the Farmer's Museum, and the Otesaga Resort Hotel.

Thanks to the Life Insurance Council of NY, many representatives of NY insurance companies are afforded the opportunity to gather in Cooperstown at the Otesaga for a three-day conference that brings together the industry representatives, state regulators, and state politicians. It is always a very enjoyable and informative conference.

This year was extra-special because of the wonderful weather we enjoyed. Sitting on the wide back veranda overlooking Lake Otsego was ALMOST like being on the boat! Of course, I didn't have a camera, so I am sorry there are no photos.

By day, we listen to the state legislators and regulators speak about current issues, challenges and trends in the life insurance industry, network with our peers, and swap horror stories of what the regulators have done lately to make our lives miserable, and by night we usually have at least one reference to baseball. This year one of our speakers was "Mudcat" Jim Grant, who was a major league pitcher for teams that were not the Yankees, so he wouldn't have been appreciated in my mother's household! Mudcat was one of the first black players to move from the Negro League into the white teams of major league baseball, and he spoke about his experiences. Later, at the after dessert late-night gathering, the few of us still appreciating the band around midnight were also treated to Mudcat singing the blues. It seems he turned his hand to music after leaving baseball, and has a blues band back at his home in California. Someone said he calls it "Mudcat & the Kittens". I didn't really believe that name, but I just Googled it and it's true.

One afternoon of this conference is slated as "free time" and a choice of activities is offered, although some of the conference attendees prefer to shop. The Otesaga has a very fine golf course on its grounds, so a golf tournament is traditionally offered as one of the activities. It has also become a tradition for a group of volunteers to go and work on a Habitat for Humanity building site. I have done that the past two years, but this year my boss and I invited our spouses to join us for the free afternoon and the dinner that night, so we chose to spend our afternoon exploring the Farmer's Museum. Their central display featured the history of ice cream, although we were disappointed to find they were not giving away any samples. As this museum is actually a small working village circa 1845, we saw people hard at work hand-crafting dining room chairs, weaving, (and we helped fix a broken thread on the huge loom), making brooms, and caring for the livestock among other chores. Being there in the fall on a weekday was perfect, because there were no crowds, and the artisans were happy to take the time to talk about what they were making.

Definitely a great way to mix business and pleasure.