Con report, day two: the actual con
Aug. 18th, 2010 11:27 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
marinessNotes: We began encountering major, but major, disability access problems right after our arrival, most of which I may be covering in a separate post. Assume that many of the time gaps are filled by my irritated realizations that I can't actually get where I am trying to get, thanks to stairs, holes, lack of elevators, or other issues. (The others are filled with resting at the hotel or lounge or gaming.)
Also, certain incidents have been removed to protect the guilty. For instance, it's entirely possible that a pillow fight occurred at some point during the con, but I can neither confirm nor deny whether or not said incident actually took place.
Also, I took far more pictures than this, but as it turns out, my camera hates, but hates, indoor shots - as the following pictures will amply demonstrate.
Wednesday Evening:
8:15 pm Agree that we should probably find something to eat. Given that it isn't even exactly day one, agree that we should find some cheap place to eat. Like, say, at the Food Court of a local mall.
8:28 pm Realize that we have not exactly accounted for the multiple accessibility issues of Indianapolis in this brilliant plan, including the fact that the disabled skywalk recommended for wheelchair users leads to...escalators, not elevators; wheelchair users must use the skywalk, exit into a parking garage, make their way through the garage to another elevator, and then slowly manage to eek their way back over to the mall. Realize I will be spending even less time at the mall than I had originally planned.
8:29 On the other hand, we have been loomed at by a giant beholder. It is oddly cheering. Even if it is, well, a giant beholder.
8:30 It is just possible, although unlikely, that we are whistling Muppet songs too loudly.
8:45 FOOD!
8:46 This means more Muppet singing.
Perhaps you had to be there.
10:15 pm (approximate) Return to hotel to find groups of people setting out or already involved in a series of tempting games.
Thursday
8:24 am Woken up too early for a vacation. Compensate by singing Muppet songs while looking for coffee. More people should appreciate my singing.
9:50 am Encounter single most awesome thing at the con: Lego Robot Chess Wars:
The picture is actually from Saturday, since I'd forgotten my camera at this point.
2:00 pm Find a board game that involves cake. Yes.
2:06 pm Encounter people playing three dimensional chess, which looks awesome, but is generally beyond me.
2:08 pm Moderately surprised to realize just how much of this con, so far, has involved chess related activities, given that I'm not exactly much of a chess player.
Card houses, Thursday
3:45 pm Finally get around to entering Exhibit Hall.
3:46 pm I so should not allow my wallet to enter these sorts of places.
3:47 pm Firmly explain to wallet that however tempting these things might look, we are both bound by the fierce limitations of the current checking account and Chase Bank's inexplicable refusal to just add random amounts of money to it.
4:15 or so: Find artists! Find writers!
5:00 pm: Finally meet the lovely, cheerfuljennifer_brozek, who most of you know as an editor at Apex Books and Edge of Propinquity, which once published a story of mine and her husband. Also meet various other people, in a process where I appear to have gained more books. (Ok. So I have a very bad addiction to book sorts of things. You honestly think I'm going to break it now?) Saddened to find that I cannot buy a copy of Grant's Pass since it's not available.
approx 6:30 pm: Enter line at noodle place. Realize that as long as we are just standing here, can presumably call ahead and order and pick up food by the time we would ordinarily reach the end of the line to start ordering. Brilliant plan halted when we realize sign at front of door only has a local number and none of us know the Indianapolis area code. Brilliant plane revived when we realize that We Are Geeks and have assorted Electronic Methods for Determining Appropriate Area Codes. Realize that by now we are close to the end of the line and therefore all of this is now kinda pointless.
7:14 pm: Am sucked in by the Evil Wiles of Mayfair Games (U.S. translators/developers of Settlers of Catan and related games) over in the Board Game Mecca area. Do not emerge for some time.
10:33 pm: Realize, with some sadness, that I am addicted to yet another Catan game, however unnecessary said new addiction may be in my life.
(New game is Settlers of America, Trails to Rails, in which instead of collecting victory points, the object is to lose them as soon as possible, a concept that threw me and the other Catan players for a bit of a loop but which proved to be highly entertaining.)
Friday
9:30 am Determine that I am not exactly feeling 100 percent. Consider heading back to bed. Decide to try for coffee first.
9:53 am Listen to surprisingly intense conversation regarding various card games. Feel remarkably at home.
10 am Decide optimistically that the caffeine is working and I should try to return to the Exhibitor's Hall and see the parts that do not include interesting writers and artists.
Settlers of Catan, on a Microsoft Surface computer.
10:23 am Find Mayfair Games again. This could get problematic.
11 am (approximate) Realize that my optimistic feeling was decidedly overoptimistic. Head back to hotel.
4:30 pm Decide to see if I can manage soup from the hotel.
4:45 pm I don't exactly mean to be critical, hotel, but when I'm paying $7 for a bowl of soup, I am hoping for something of a higher quality than Campbell's.
4:50 pm S tells me about a Geeky Event to be occurring later, if I'm up for it. We agree that it sounds considerably more tasty than the soup.
9 pm Decide that I am well enough to head out for Geeky Event thing.
9:50 pm Finally reach Geeky Event thing, which is not as far away as this timeline would imply.
10 pm Feelings of hatred towards Indianapolis somewhat dimmed by said Event, which combines A Midsummer's Night Dream with Nightmare on Elm Street. I thoroughly approve.
Card houses, Friday
Saturday, 12:45 am If a pillow fight did take place, and I am not saying that it did, this would have been the approximate moment of said pillow fighting.
11:45 am Burger/steak joint has changed its menu to gaming style names and lined its walls with gaming banners. I thoroughly approve.
3 pm Learn five more variations of Settlers of Catan! This is not, repeat, not, an illness.
Card houses, Saturday
6:00 So, as many of you have already heard,bijili attracted the attention of no one less than the fabulous Felicia Day, and won the costume contest with this creation:
(Felicia Day turns out to be not only considerably more talented than I, but also a better photographer. In an interesting twist, I heard about the whole Felicia Day thing andbijili"s sudden fame from someone in Gainesville, which just goes to show the marvels of the internet.)
Alas, the wheelchair then encountered my Stitch backback. Being Stitch, he naturally had to commandeer it:
Stitch firmly removed, we bask in her fame as we make our way over to dinner.
9:00 If there had been any carousing in bars, combined with chocolate martinis, something that I am not, repeat not, actually admitting to, said carousing might possibly have happened at this time.
Sunday, approx 12:15 am The Macarena starts up. I look at Stitch. Stitch looks at me.
12:16 am Stitch and I work out how to do the Macarena in a scooter. This is more wrong than I have made it sound.
Sunday, 8:30 am Sniffle. I have to leave.
9:30 am ...assuming I can get through the airport.
Also, certain incidents have been removed to protect the guilty. For instance, it's entirely possible that a pillow fight occurred at some point during the con, but I can neither confirm nor deny whether or not said incident actually took place.
Also, I took far more pictures than this, but as it turns out, my camera hates, but hates, indoor shots - as the following pictures will amply demonstrate.
Wednesday Evening:
8:15 pm Agree that we should probably find something to eat. Given that it isn't even exactly day one, agree that we should find some cheap place to eat. Like, say, at the Food Court of a local mall.
8:28 pm Realize that we have not exactly accounted for the multiple accessibility issues of Indianapolis in this brilliant plan, including the fact that the disabled skywalk recommended for wheelchair users leads to...escalators, not elevators; wheelchair users must use the skywalk, exit into a parking garage, make their way through the garage to another elevator, and then slowly manage to eek their way back over to the mall. Realize I will be spending even less time at the mall than I had originally planned.
8:29 On the other hand, we have been loomed at by a giant beholder. It is oddly cheering. Even if it is, well, a giant beholder.
8:30 It is just possible, although unlikely, that we are whistling Muppet songs too loudly.
8:45 FOOD!
8:46 This means more Muppet singing.
Perhaps you had to be there.
10:15 pm (approximate) Return to hotel to find groups of people setting out or already involved in a series of tempting games.
Thursday
8:24 am Woken up too early for a vacation. Compensate by singing Muppet songs while looking for coffee. More people should appreciate my singing.
9:50 am Encounter single most awesome thing at the con: Lego Robot Chess Wars:
The picture is actually from Saturday, since I'd forgotten my camera at this point.
2:00 pm Find a board game that involves cake. Yes.
2:06 pm Encounter people playing three dimensional chess, which looks awesome, but is generally beyond me.
2:08 pm Moderately surprised to realize just how much of this con, so far, has involved chess related activities, given that I'm not exactly much of a chess player.
Card houses, Thursday
3:45 pm Finally get around to entering Exhibit Hall.
3:46 pm I so should not allow my wallet to enter these sorts of places.
3:47 pm Firmly explain to wallet that however tempting these things might look, we are both bound by the fierce limitations of the current checking account and Chase Bank's inexplicable refusal to just add random amounts of money to it.
4:15 or so: Find artists! Find writers!
5:00 pm: Finally meet the lovely, cheerful
jennifer_brozek, who most of you know as an editor at Apex Books and Edge of Propinquity, which once published a story of mine and her husband. Also meet various other people, in a process where I appear to have gained more books. (Ok. So I have a very bad addiction to book sorts of things. You honestly think I'm going to break it now?) Saddened to find that I cannot buy a copy of Grant's Pass since it's not available.approx 6:30 pm: Enter line at noodle place. Realize that as long as we are just standing here, can presumably call ahead and order and pick up food by the time we would ordinarily reach the end of the line to start ordering. Brilliant plan halted when we realize sign at front of door only has a local number and none of us know the Indianapolis area code. Brilliant plane revived when we realize that We Are Geeks and have assorted Electronic Methods for Determining Appropriate Area Codes. Realize that by now we are close to the end of the line and therefore all of this is now kinda pointless.
7:14 pm: Am sucked in by the Evil Wiles of Mayfair Games (U.S. translators/developers of Settlers of Catan and related games) over in the Board Game Mecca area. Do not emerge for some time.
10:33 pm: Realize, with some sadness, that I am addicted to yet another Catan game, however unnecessary said new addiction may be in my life.
(New game is Settlers of America, Trails to Rails, in which instead of collecting victory points, the object is to lose them as soon as possible, a concept that threw me and the other Catan players for a bit of a loop but which proved to be highly entertaining.)
Friday
9:30 am Determine that I am not exactly feeling 100 percent. Consider heading back to bed. Decide to try for coffee first.
9:53 am Listen to surprisingly intense conversation regarding various card games. Feel remarkably at home.
10 am Decide optimistically that the caffeine is working and I should try to return to the Exhibitor's Hall and see the parts that do not include interesting writers and artists.
Settlers of Catan, on a Microsoft Surface computer.
10:23 am Find Mayfair Games again. This could get problematic.
11 am (approximate) Realize that my optimistic feeling was decidedly overoptimistic. Head back to hotel.
4:30 pm Decide to see if I can manage soup from the hotel.
4:45 pm I don't exactly mean to be critical, hotel, but when I'm paying $7 for a bowl of soup, I am hoping for something of a higher quality than Campbell's.
4:50 pm S tells me about a Geeky Event to be occurring later, if I'm up for it. We agree that it sounds considerably more tasty than the soup.
9 pm Decide that I am well enough to head out for Geeky Event thing.
9:50 pm Finally reach Geeky Event thing, which is not as far away as this timeline would imply.
10 pm Feelings of hatred towards Indianapolis somewhat dimmed by said Event, which combines A Midsummer's Night Dream with Nightmare on Elm Street. I thoroughly approve.
Card houses, Friday
Saturday, 12:45 am If a pillow fight did take place, and I am not saying that it did, this would have been the approximate moment of said pillow fighting.
11:45 am Burger/steak joint has changed its menu to gaming style names and lined its walls with gaming banners. I thoroughly approve.
3 pm Learn five more variations of Settlers of Catan! This is not, repeat, not, an illness.
Card houses, Saturday
6:00 So, as many of you have already heard,
bijili attracted the attention of no one less than the fabulous Felicia Day, and won the costume contest with this creation:
(Felicia Day turns out to be not only considerably more talented than I, but also a better photographer. In an interesting twist, I heard about the whole Felicia Day thing and
bijili"s sudden fame from someone in Gainesville, which just goes to show the marvels of the internet.)Alas, the wheelchair then encountered my Stitch backback. Being Stitch, he naturally had to commandeer it:
Stitch firmly removed, we bask in her fame as we make our way over to dinner.
9:00 If there had been any carousing in bars, combined with chocolate martinis, something that I am not, repeat not, actually admitting to, said carousing might possibly have happened at this time.
Sunday, approx 12:15 am The Macarena starts up. I look at Stitch. Stitch looks at me.
12:16 am Stitch and I work out how to do the Macarena in a scooter. This is more wrong than I have made it sound.
Sunday, 8:30 am Sniffle. I have to leave.
9:30 am ...assuming I can get through the airport.