ALTERNATE DELEGATE VIEWS LIFE AT SAN DIEGO CONVENTION

Donna Lichtenegger of Jackson wanted to win the sand castle competition at the Republican National Convention in San Diego. So did the other nine members of the Missouri team.

But it was Tennessee that topped the competition Sunday.

Tennessee's team won with its sandy version of an elephant sitting on top of President Bill Clinton.

The Missouri team's sand castle was an outhouse that sported the saying, "From the White House to the Outhouse."

"We all think it was fixed," said Lichtenegger, an alternate at the convention. "They had a ringer from San Diego that helped build their thing."

Lichtenegger said security was tight at the convention center Monday, which marked the official opening of the GOP gathering.

"I have never felt safer in my entire life," she reported Monday afternoon. "Every woman had to open a bag or purse. Buttons and watches are setting off the metal detectors."

The convention center's bathrooms get Lichtenegger's vote.

"These are the cleanest bathrooms I have ever used in my life." She said workers continually cleaned them.

"Upstairs, it is really neat. There is a whole area where you can buy stuff."

Among the items: rolled cigars from San Diego. "Of course, there is no smoking in the building," she said.

Food is expensive in the convention center: $2.50 for a bottle of water or a soft drink; a sandwich, cookie and soft drink costs $10.

Not everyone was happy at the convention. "A lot of the Buchanan people were upset," said Lichtenegger, a Dole supporter.

Some members of the Missouri delegation wanted Buchanan to run for president as an independent, she said.