Keyes is from Maryland. I'm always glad to see him out of state, but I feel badly about inflicting him on others.

I had never heard of Obama until his convention speech, but I certainly paid attention to him after that.

And I never heard of Palin until she was picked by the McCain campaign. However, if I had gone to the Anchorage Bouchercon in 2007 instead of deciding very late to pass on it, I'd have seen her deliver a welcome speech there. The attendees liked her -- even in her pre-Caribou Barbie clothes.