NSA Convention in San Diego, CA

This was my third trip to San Diego in one year. I attended National Society of Accountants Annual Conference on August 12-16. I did not know may people there, but I was immediately greeted with friendly smiles everywhere! The IRS Forum I attended in July was at the same Town & Country Resort, but the same resort looked so different when you had such a totally pleasant experience with a wonderful bunch of people (AKA, accountants). Participating in the business meetings on by-law changes and the officer elections was a great learning experience. I liked that we had ample time for networking and also meeting with the vendors at Expo. We also had 12 hours worth of professional seminars during the convention. Most of the meals were included in the convention, so we ate & ate & ate while we enjoyed our company. Early morning walk in the compound with the fellow accountants for "Walk for Scholars" was a lot of fun. But the real highlight of the convention was to witness Jo Ann, Nina, Chris and Mary accepting Affiliated State Organization of the Year Award (we are ASPA - Arizona Society of Practicing Accountatns)!!! I was so proud to be a prt of the organization.

Sumiko in Philadelphia

IRS Tax Forum in San Diego, CA.

My highlight in July was attending the IRS Tax Forum in San Diego, California. This was my first tax forum and I stayed in a lovely courtyard cottage surrounded by rose bushes at Town & Country Resort & Convention Center. For three days, there were non-stop tax seminars going on from 8 AM and I earned 18 CPE credit hours after so much fun learning the tax laws! I love out of town conferences because I have the time to exercise and time to think without distractions. I walked half an hour every morning and exercised every night. We had a long lunch break in Expo room so we could visit exhibitors and have networking opportunities with 1500 other tax professionals. On the second night, I became gutsy and took a train near the convention center to Old Town. I strolled around the town and accidentally bumped into a Sushi bar!!! And you guessed what happened. I changed my plan and ate there. San Diego is my husband’s favorite city and I actually missed Japan when I felt nice sea breeze on my cheek. The whole convention was such a great learning experience for me but I didn’t even have enough time to experience all that they offered. I would love to attend one of the IRS focus groups, where they discuss various tax issues, and would love to go to the IRS Resolution Room, where they challenge that they will solve our toughest tax case for us. Well, there is always the next year!

http://www.epltax.com/