Many thanks to Barbara Snedecor, the Center for Mark Twain Studies, and Elmira College for another incredible conference on the State of Mark Twain Studies. I have been to them all, since 1989, and I am sure this was the best. Excellent and thought-provoking papers and panels, incredible food, Spartan life in the dorm rooms (good for the teacher's soul to live like a student again, even if for a few days), late night fun playing music, and then the capper: our ritual cigar smoking and spiritual singing at the original site of the study at Quarry Farm, this time joined by none other than Hal Holbrook, who smoked a cigar with us and told us stories about Clara. Well done! And I'm ready for 2013... John Bird