Lots of heavy-hitters hit the stage Wednesday night for Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention, and there were lots of big names around the Wells Fargo Center to see them.

So far tonight, I've run into U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julian Castro, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill, Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, actress Sigourney Weaver and rapper MC Hammer (who is back for another night). Some of our team members saw Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Reporter Troy Kinsey was out on the floor when singer Lenny Kravitz practiced his set, and I spied the group of performers who sang "What the World Needs Now is Love" on stage practicing when I wandered close to the floor.

There are lots of other celebrities around, but it's not always easy to spot them.

Who I did recognize were Susan Sarandon, Danny Glover, Rosario Dawson and Shailene Woodley, at a rally to support Nina Turner. Turner, a prominent Bernie Sanders delegate and former Ohio state senator, was barred from speaking on the convention floor in Sanders' favor, as planned. It's not entirely clear what the reason was; however, relations between the Clinton campaign and Turner had grown increasingly strained, sources say.

The crush of media was so strong that it was impossible to get near any of the actors, or Turner herself when she showed up. In fact, there were a few times where I was almost knocked down trying to get out of the way.

Passions are still running high around Philadelphia, especially among the Sanders supporters.

I spoke to former NAACP chairman and Sanders delegate Ben Jealous. He said he thinks it's just been a long campaign and the delegates are mourning. He thinks most will turn to help stop Donald Trump from getting into the White House.

Passionate Lake-Sumter students

I ran into some young people from Lake-Sumter State College today at the PA Convention Center. Anjula, Laura and Mark are College Democrats, not delegates. They held car washes, ran GoFundMes and won a grant to pay for the trip to Philadelphia. They say the significance of such an event cannot be understated.

"It's history in the making," Anjula said.

Lake and Sumter counties, however, are not known for being big Democratic enclaves. They say being a Democrat in a Republican area is not easy.

"I feel like I'm the blueberry in a strawberry pudding," Mark said.

"It's motivating," Anjula said. "If I were in a blue city, I would not be the president of the College Democrats."

"You learn very quickly to back up your opinions, because you have to defend yourself," Laura said.

"You have to know your facts, and you have to know your opposition's rumors that they're going to spin at you," Mark said.

"And you have to not be afraid of people hating you," Anjula added.

Crazy hat day?

It must be crazy hat day at the DNC. Every where I turned, I ran into a lady (or gentleman) with a huge, crazy hat. 

One lady I ran into was a Miami delegate wearing a beautiful handmade hat by her friend, a hat maker in Orlando. Another lady told me she cobbled hers together from a Walmart straw hat, her old Hillary visor from 2008 and some dollar-store accessories.