Where and how do I gather more knowledge?

I have always believed that when one stops learning then you might as well put me in a box. Or as Ray Kroc founder of McDonalds said, "When you're green your growing, when you're not you rot."  Just like a tomato.
I have never been to a Regional or National genealogy conference.  But I would love to go.  So, where do I learn about new and exciting things in the world of genealogy?  I love the social media, whether Facebook, or twitter.  The exchange of ideas and knowledge is so free flowing I am like a sponge just soaking it all up.  Or the webinar's that are offered by Ancestry.com, or like minded people and their blogs.  Google is my friends.  And for history,  I still have a lot of history books, since that was my major in college.  And one of my favorite things to do, is to visit the local community college or 4 year college/university to stroll through their bookstore and to  pick up new text books.  But I would have to say one of my favorites and most enjoyable way to learn, is to talk to people.  You would be surprised how much one can learn by just chatting with average, everyday people.  For example, today at work, I sold a refridge to a man whos last name was Milner,  so I said to him, " your family must have been from England and they must have been hat makers."  He could not believe what I said, his response to me was, " you are the first person to ever get it right, most think its German and none have a clue that it means hat maker, how did you know?"  Well, one thing lead  to another and we spent about 20 minutes, talking genealogy and history.
Observe, Chat, Listen, Share and Enjoy.