Three days in Vegas for Surfaces and two-and-a-half in Washington, D.C., for Mohawk ColorCenter . I’m talked out. I heard a lot, learned a lot. Through it all, I stumbled on a number of positives. It’s like I wrote a few months ago; it’s not all doom and gloom.

First, I’m tired of hearing about declining attendance numbers (by the way, ColorCenter had virtually the same attendance as it did two years ago). Every show and conference across all industries is down. Fact of life. A better indication of a show’s vitality is— now here’s a shocker for you— how the exhibitors viewed the event.

And you may be surprised to learn just about everyone we spoke to was satisfied, if not with the numbers then certainly the quality. We constantly heard, “We’ve been steady throughout.” Or, “I’ve been talking to people since the show opened.” Or, “Much better than we expected.”

Frank Ready told me Armstrong sold its three-day quota of laminate flooring by 3 p.m. on the first day. He was pleased with the decision to set up shop in a Venetian ballroom as opposed to the Wynn. So was Mannington, which traded its traditional center stage on the showroom floor for a ballroom less than 20 steps from the show doors. Ed Duncan, vice president of marketing, thought the company did not miss a beat by the money-conserving move, particularly citing the crowd in the Jay’s Bargain Basement section. The only question is how many companies will seek to take advantage of this option next year.

Michael Goldberg, owner of top 10 retailer Rite Rug in Columbus, Ohio, said he more than covered the expense of attending the show by taking advantage of some “specials.” In fact, he said he made money by making the trip. He put things in perspective better than anyone: “Who cares if the show is off 35%. Let’s talk about the 65% who are here.”

Feel-good story: I coaxed National Floorcovering Alliance member Sam Roberts, Roberts Carpet and Fine Floors, Houston, into filling out an Award of Excellence ballot and, with that, taking a shot at winning some cash with our slot machine promotion. Roberts walked away with a $25 VISA gift card. But the walk was only about five steps. He turned around, came back to our booth and handed me the gift card. “I want you to give this to someone who can really use it.” Within minutes we handed it to one of the Sands maintenance workers who was cleaning a trash can.

Then we spent about 30 minutes at the Centiva party. Ask John Bonney, director of sales, how he’s doing, and he will tell you “fabulous.” He wasn’t joking, and he was completely sober. Centiva was up last year. Hmmm. Centiva. Metroflor. Congoleum’s DuraCeramic. Mannington’s Adura. See a common thread here?