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Life Is Too Damn Short
Aug. 12th, 2009 09:24 pmIt took a lot of poking and prodding from Balticon gamemaster and 2010 Fan Guest of Honor Hal Haag to finally get me to go to an open games session at the Baltimore SciFi Society's clubhouse. I went Sunday. Had fun. Hal groused about whether he might wind up as the con chair for the 2010 con. We swapped more e-mails Monday and Tuesday. He promised to teach my mother to play Dominion. Appropriate, since he taught me to play.
This morning, Hal died, apparently of a heart attack. He was a great guy, patient with newbies and enthusiastic for all things scifi and gaming, and integral to all the local conventions; I cannot fathom the idea of a con without Hal. I'm really...I don't know what else to say.
This morning, Hal died, apparently of a heart attack. He was a great guy, patient with newbies and enthusiastic for all things scifi and gaming, and integral to all the local conventions; I cannot fathom the idea of a con without Hal. I'm really...I don't know what else to say.
It Figures
Jun. 28th, 2009 02:35 pmFor the first time in years, the Balticon cookout was not rained upon. So it was also greatly underattended. Nuts. Those of us who did go had a grand time talking, eating (some serious steaks were grilled, yes Hal, I'm looking at yours), gaming and watching videos from the con. It's taken them years, but the gaming gang finally got me to play one. A card game called 'Dominion'. Bad move for them, though, although I finished next-to-last with 3 points the first game, I won the second game with 40 points. Not a bad turnaround if I dare say so myself. Capped it off with a showing of Dr Horrible - I liked it much more this time, with a dozen like-minded folks. 'twas silliness. And fun.
Freaks & Geeks
Jun. 27th, 2009 11:19 amHeaded off to the Balticon post-con party later today, after a rare and miraculous instance of me cooking (banana bread, mine specialty) but I had promised some thoughts on 'Freaks & Geeks' after I finished the series, so here goes.
( Freaks & Geeks, thoughts )
( Freaks & Geeks, thoughts )
Balticon Again
May. 25th, 2009 04:17 pmHome now. Had to go back today to pick up a hard drive, and I kinda have to wonder about why the con goes to Monday. There wasn't anyone there - no tables, next to no dealers, empty hallways, etc. Might as well end the thing Sunday, it seems to me.
Anyway, after a crisis Saturday night during which the con hadn't filled their hotel room block, the con went allright. About the same attendance as last year, fewer people volunteering unfortunately, which left the art show shorthanded and mostly unguarded though. There was also a lacrosse event going on and the players wandered around the con as we didn't have the security available to badge check. Conversely, the hotel decided it needed a uniformed cop patrolling the convention area. Uh, hotel? We're geeks. Geeks are weird, not criminal.
There were twice as many pieces of art in the auction as last year, which was a little odd considering how much was sold quick sale (and I handled most of those sales, so I can say with confidence, there were a lot of them.) Usually I'm working with the artists rather than the buyers, and it was a different experience; strangely enough, the buyers were easier to deal with than the artists. Except for the buyer who asked me conversationally what I had bid on, then proceeded to each of those pieces and doubled my bid to a price out of my range. But only the pieces I had bid on. )$*(@&% Moved an original drawing and a couple wood plaques of my own, in addition to some prints.
Most popular costume: the Tenth Doctor. I saw four of them Saturday. Some teenagers who came as a group dressed as the cast of Dr Horrible. Lots of 'steampunk' themes going on as well, I'd never heard of it before. But honestly, I almost never left the art show, so I don't know much about what else went on. So, there's a short report.
Anyway, after a crisis Saturday night during which the con hadn't filled their hotel room block, the con went allright. About the same attendance as last year, fewer people volunteering unfortunately, which left the art show shorthanded and mostly unguarded though. There was also a lacrosse event going on and the players wandered around the con as we didn't have the security available to badge check. Conversely, the hotel decided it needed a uniformed cop patrolling the convention area. Uh, hotel? We're geeks. Geeks are weird, not criminal.
There were twice as many pieces of art in the auction as last year, which was a little odd considering how much was sold quick sale (and I handled most of those sales, so I can say with confidence, there were a lot of them.) Usually I'm working with the artists rather than the buyers, and it was a different experience; strangely enough, the buyers were easier to deal with than the artists. Except for the buyer who asked me conversationally what I had bid on, then proceeded to each of those pieces and doubled my bid to a price out of my range. But only the pieces I had bid on. )$*(@&% Moved an original drawing and a couple wood plaques of my own, in addition to some prints.
Most popular costume: the Tenth Doctor. I saw four of them Saturday. Some teenagers who came as a group dressed as the cast of Dr Horrible. Lots of 'steampunk' themes going on as well, I'd never heard of it before. But honestly, I almost never left the art show, so I don't know much about what else went on. So, there's a short report.
Balticon - Almost Done
May. 24th, 2009 09:38 pmIn the last three days, I have officially put in 33 hours of volunteer time. (Setup and tear down count double, so it's actually 27, but big whoop.) The art show has been so woefully shorthanded I've felt bad about leaving for anything beyond a bathroom break. They put me on desk duty, which means I deal with buyers instead of artists, and handle bidder registration and quick sales. Sunday I was artist checkout. But my shoulders and back are still screaming bloody murder at me anyway, mostly because limited as I am, I still can't help but try to do things. Bad Gonzai.
Have to go back again tomorrow, hopefully briefly, to retrieve a hard drive which with any luck is having requested files added to it as we speak. And then hunkering down at home with the computer and the DVD player; I don't think I'll be up to anything else, not even the previously hoped for movie. (Already talked myself out of a baseball game; was hoping for at least a film but I'll likely be too tired.)
Did sell almost $300 of art, would have cleared that threshold but for an *&^#% who put fake bids on pieces. So I'll have a little more lucre this summer.
Have to go back again tomorrow, hopefully briefly, to retrieve a hard drive which with any luck is having requested files added to it as we speak. And then hunkering down at home with the computer and the DVD player; I don't think I'll be up to anything else, not even the previously hoped for movie. (Already talked myself out of a baseball game; was hoping for at least a film but I'll likely be too tired.)
Did sell almost $300 of art, would have cleared that threshold but for an *&^#% who put fake bids on pieces. So I'll have a little more lucre this summer.
Health Update/Balticon
May. 19th, 2009 11:30 amSaw the orthopedist this morning about my increasingly painful left shoulder. Pending an MRI, which is scheduled for next week, he thinks I've torn a tendon in the vicinity of my shoulder blade, and possibly one in/near the socket. I get pain meds and another cortisone shot for now, the MRI next week, and based on what he finds in the MRI, on to either heavy duty PT or possibly surgery. In any event, I am not to do things like, say, hang art. Three days before Balticon - no hanging art. I haven't figured out yet how I'm getting my stuff down to the ballroom, much less how to hang it. And they'll have to find a different volunteer to hang the mail-in art, that's my usual Friday gig. But at least I have some idea what the heck is wrong now.
Post-Balticon Stuff
May. 28th, 2008 12:18 pmBlog entry, take two. I wrote a lengthy essay about my adventures the last two days and when I tried to post it, the whole computer crashed. (Expletive deleted)
Balticon remarks to follow later this week; meanwhile, some post-thoughts under the cut:
Balticon remarks to follow later this week; meanwhile, some post-thoughts under the cut:
( Various Thoughts )
Getting Ready for Balticon
May. 22nd, 2008 12:45 pmIt feels like I've been doing that for ages, although it's only been since Sunday. Not like that isn't long enough. Scanning and cleaning up artwork, making prints (a new chore itself, now that I have to learn a new program that works with Vista, unlike my old XP programs), making labels (another new one, with a new printer), matting, framing, packing, and of course the biggie - art show paperwork. Balticon is old-fashioned - the paperwork has to be handwritten. Not fun if you have arthritic hands. I made some creative use of the office copier, but it still hurt. Tonight I layout some sketches to work on at the con, and pack all of the things I think or know I'll need all weekend (cell, watch, MP3 player, pencils & sketch pads, business cards, food, etc). Then tomorrow morning the whole shebang gets hauled up to Hunt Valley and the work begins.
I'm on staff at the art show, which means good=no admission fee, free t-shirt, admission to the artist reception (although being an artist would also get me into that), free lunches, and free rein to help myself to Shirley's food & soda stash...many, many pistachios, mmm. Bad=spending almost the whole weekend in the art show, manual labor Friday and Sunday, can't get to the other things I'd like to do and probably very sore knees. Art show staffing is pretty liberal Friday night and all day Saturday, so naturally there's nothing else I want to do. Sunday - yeesh. The art show needs me pretty much every minute from 10am to 6-7pm or so. Also during that time: panel on art marketing, panel on art shows, panel on Douglas Adams, Peter Beagle's autograph session, a free showing of 'Stardust' (which my boss has been nagging me to see), and the biggie, the play - Battlestar: Gargleblaster. I wanna go! And it's against the art auction. Why the heck can't the play be on Saturday, just once? To round it out, I'm usually to pooped to stay after 7 or come on Monday - so Sunday night is a Torchwood panel, and Monday they're showing 'Pan's Labyrinth', a Dr Who ep I haven't seen, and a Torchwood ep I haven't seen. I'll probably wind up passing on Monday regardless, this is the first good weather weekend all spring and I can't let a day of sunny & 80 degrees go by without seeing a baseball game. Esp not after spending three beautiful days in a hotel ballroom.
I'm on staff at the art show, which means good=no admission fee, free t-shirt, admission to the artist reception (although being an artist would also get me into that), free lunches, and free rein to help myself to Shirley's food & soda stash...many, many pistachios, mmm. Bad=spending almost the whole weekend in the art show, manual labor Friday and Sunday, can't get to the other things I'd like to do and probably very sore knees. Art show staffing is pretty liberal Friday night and all day Saturday, so naturally there's nothing else I want to do. Sunday - yeesh. The art show needs me pretty much every minute from 10am to 6-7pm or so. Also during that time: panel on art marketing, panel on art shows, panel on Douglas Adams, Peter Beagle's autograph session, a free showing of 'Stardust' (which my boss has been nagging me to see), and the biggie, the play - Battlestar: Gargleblaster. I wanna go! And it's against the art auction. Why the heck can't the play be on Saturday, just once? To round it out, I'm usually to pooped to stay after 7 or come on Monday - so Sunday night is a Torchwood panel, and Monday they're showing 'Pan's Labyrinth', a Dr Who ep I haven't seen, and a Torchwood ep I haven't seen. I'll probably wind up passing on Monday regardless, this is the first good weather weekend all spring and I can't let a day of sunny & 80 degrees go by without seeing a baseball game. Esp not after spending three beautiful days in a hotel ballroom.
