The Rev. Lenwood Long Sr., a first-time delegate, runs out of superlatives in describing his experience in Denver.

In telephone call today just as he was getting ready to catch the light rail train for downtown, he called former President Bill Clinton’s speech last night "great," "fantastic" and "just magnificent."

Long, the pastor of New Bethel Baptist Church in Rolesville, was a Hillary Clinton supporter before he switched during the South Carolina primary to Barack Obama.

But it was the Clintons who provided most of yesterday’s excitement.

The highlight was "the drama around the roll call vote," Long said. Anticipation built for about 30 minutes before Hillary Clinton came in "with an entourage of cameras and Secret Service," he said.

When she cast all New York delegate votes for Obama and called for his nomination by acclimation, "it was a frenzy," Long said. "People were so excited."

Looking forward to Obama's speech, Long wants him to talk tonight about how he proposes to handle the challenges America faces — economic challenges in particular — and to establish an emotional connection with the audience.

"It's more important for people not to connect to his intellect, but to his heart," Long said.

Long is 63 and lives in Wake Forest. He was chief of staff to former U.S. Rep. Eva Clayton during her first term in Congress, and worked on all her campaigns.

Not all convention experiences are the same, says Rob Black, a Democratic delegate from Apex.

State delegates and Washington D.C. insiders can share a city for a week, but their activities beyond the convention floor vary greatly, he said.

“It’s apples and oranges,” said Black, 39.

Black should know. This is his fifth convention, but his first as a delegate.

Black spent years working in Washington and had attended conventions since 1992 because they had something to do with his job.

“If you come from D.C. as a Beltway politico, you are much more plugged in to the parties,” he said. “They are the coin of the realm for D.C. politicos. If you come from the states, you’re not as plugged in to the social circuit or the buzz as to what the hottest party is.”

Black, who owns a political communications and lobbying firm that specializes in labor union work, called Dome this afternoon from a light rail station.

The North Carolina delegation was put in a hotel some miles from downtown Denver, but close to the rail line.

That’s what the delegation is using most to get around, he said.

Delegates cast their votes for their preferred Democrat on paper ballots this morning, said Anita Earls of Durham.

Whether those votes end up meaning anything come roll-call time is uncertain.

“What they’re going to do for the camera, I don’t know,” she said.

Earls, a civil rights lawyer, went to Denver hoping to find substance in a convention city full of parties and fundraisiers. And she found it.

Among other things, The Nation is holding panel discussions every day, and Barack Obama's campaign sent a surrogate to the North Carolina delegate breakfast to talk about energy policy, she said.

And even the parties can be good for exchanging ideas. Earls met a lawyer from Georgia who does the same kind of work as she does at a party Tuesday night sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus.

“You can go to the parties and just drink, or you can talk to people,” said Earls, 48, an Obama delegate.

Plenty of delegates attend conventions over and over, but Earls sees Denver as her one shot. She wants to figure out how to get more first-timers at the next convention to, as she says, “pass the torch around.”

“You can bring more people into politics if we try to open it up more,” she said.

My, what a difference an election cycle can make.

The North Carolina delegation was treated to prime real estate on the convention floor at the 2004 party shindig in Boston.

John Edwards was the VP candidate then, which guaranteed Tar Heel Dems seats close to the stage and within easy range of television cameras.

This year, to get those kinds of close-up views of the stage, delegates would need to break out the binoculars. They are sitting way, way in back.

"There are advantages to being in the back," said delegate R. Bruce Thompson II. "We have plenty of room to spread out."

Kay Hagan and Beverly Perdue didn’t make it out to Denver, but their campaigns were chatted up at a fundraiser for EMILY’s List, a group that supports Democratic women candidates.

R. Bruce Thompson II a delegate from Raleigh, paid so much to attend the Tuesday fundraiser that he didn’t want give the figure because his wife didn't know how much it cost him.

(Hint to Mrs. Thompson: It was at a 'sponsorship' level, and more than $50.)

Hagan, who is running for U.S. Senate, and Perdue, who is running for governor, is on the group’s list of “rising stars.”

“It’s kind of nice to be from North Carolina when they’re talking about all these North Carolinians,” said Thompson, who is attending his first convention as a delegate.

More after the jump.

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The party hopes to emerge from this week's convention united after a long, hard-fought primary. And they hope to better introduce Obama to the American voters.

North Carolina will not play nearly as important a role as it did at the 2004 convention in Boston, when John Edwards, then a North Carolina senator, was nominated as the party's vice presidential running mate. Edwards is not expected at this year's convention.

Scheduled primetime speakers include Michelle Obama (tonight), Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner (Tuesday), Bill Clinton and vice president pick Sen. Joe Biden (Wednesday) and Obama (Thursday). (N&O)