4th July, Origins 2007: my week off
Firstly let me begin by saying that I have been looking forward to this for months. (Well. Would have if I'd been paying attention, so weeks. But lots of weeks that could probably be counted up into more than one month.) Getting out of work that Friday was more difficult than usual, seeing as everyone over me wanted a lot of things done rightnowcan'twaithurryupbeforeshutdown, which is silly because all of our plants shut down at the same time. It's a production thing, which shouldn't affect the corporate office (as we don't actually produce anything), but the higher-ups decided that since most people in corporate take the week off anyway, the few people who are left can't get much work done because everyone is out. (They obviously underestimate how much paperwork and random filing crap we have backed up.)
So, I ended up spending an hour and a half getting forms turned in and t's crossed and i's dotted on things that would not matter at all and could definitely wait until next week. The only purpose in getting these things done ahead of time is that my management could shuffle things off to other departments after everyone had left, and then when it wasn't done in time they could make the other department take the blame for not responding to our requests for over a week. It's dumb, it's political, it's petty, but they are my bosses and I am being paid to do what they tell me to do.
I have no idea what we did that Friday night of the 29th. I think we stayed home and watched tv and did nothing at all. And I think it was glorious. Saturday the 1st, there was more staying at home and not doing much, and perhaps there was some movie-watching (Ratatouille) and some bookstore, where I bought a bunch of recommended books. (Specifically, What to Expect When You're Expecting, Atkins' NEW Diabetic Revolution, Dr. Atkins' NEW Carbohydrate Gram Counter (did they re-do everything after he died?), Girlfriend's Guide To Pregnancy (doc's recommendation), Low-Carb Cookbook, and one I picked out on my own, Pregnancy Sucks. Guess which of those is the only one I have read?)
Then there was sleeping in and moseying to the store and me taking way too long to get ready and not actually doing any housework, and a gaming session to which Brent (our new player) did not show up (again). This happens with Brents in general, and I suspect we may see him one more time, and then he will disappear into the ether (again). I I have no idea what I knitted on. Maybe the OSSP(2).
Monday the second we lazed about (after taking Nyte's car to the mechanic for tires and maintenance), and I again did lots of tv-watching and napping and a bit of knitting maybe, but nothing significant. Definitely no housework. Definitely no writing. Might have finished Blood Price by Tanya Huff. Maybe.
Tuesday we lolled more (not to be confused with LOL-ing), then finally got ourselves together (well, I did...Nyte had been ready to go since morning) and I went with our regular group of friends to watch Red, White and Boom from the 9th street OSU Medical Center parking garage. Nyte went to a party across town with his old college buddies, only to find out when he got there that the party had been cancelled, but the host only called some people to let them know. The fireworks were pretty, but far away and the top of the parking garage is very lighted, so the really cool effects were pretty much lost. Nyte managed to make it there while the show was going on, and that was nice. I like having the big lug around, dontchaknow. All in all, it was kind of a big rush and a big to-do for nothing. We were going to hang out with people more after, but some people were flying out early the next morning and some people needed to drive them, and also it was very late and I was tired.
Wednesday we didn't do a heck of lot either (sensing a theme? It's a good theme) until around six or so, when we headed downtown to the convention center to buy our badges and get a con schedule book. After that we trekked back to the Arena Grand movie theater and saw Transformers with some of Nyte's con buddies, which was very good times and I liked it very much. (Even if Mr. Bay likes to disorient people with too-tight shots of action, perhaps saving money on special effects and graphics.) I seal-clapped a good bit and actually managed to last through the whole thing without running to the bathroom (too much spinny-jostly makes Chenn a wee dizzy), and everyone applauded at the end. There should have been more stuff during the credits.
Thursday, bright and early (12) we headed over to the convention center. While perusing the schedule, we discovered that they have given up saying it's a Thurs-Sun thing, and actually scheduled some games for Wednesday night, since the hardcores are already there whipping up impromptu pick-up games and what-not. We played some ADGNPEF555 (that is so not spelled right, but whatever...the closest I can remember is the Advanced Dimensional Green Ninja Preparatory Elementary Fortress 555, hereafter referred to as the 555 game), where Nyte was Winken, Blinken and Nod, the kindergarten superheros, and I was Princess Emma, an actual princess and avid scientist, and part of the Teslatron Team.
Monaneron joined us just after we started the game, and we pretty much hung out with her the whole time. Kamesama was one of the ones who'd flown to...uh...Arizona? New Mexico? I don't remember, somewhere very hot where there is rock climbing. Anyway, she had time on her hands and teachers get into Origins free, not to mention a teacher discount in the dealer's room, so.
We may have grabbed something to eat then, and gone to the dealer room, and then hit the tabletops room where the boardgames library was. We rented game after game, played until we got hungry again, and went home. Monaneron discovered just how much her discount was at some of the booths (Out of the Box, I'm looking at you) and how useful some of the games could be in her tutoring and ESL classes, and thanks to the library, we could try them out first.
So we played 10 Days In Asia, 10 Days In Europe, Carcassonne and Snorta, and some random strangers joined us for the last two, and also for Squint and Pepper. I liked Snorta so much that I bought it, and Monaneron did too, along with the 10 Days series (there's also Africa and USA), and she bought Apples to Apples along with expansion packs for younger kids.
Friday was much of the same, and we met people and tried to get in on a few games but they were already full up. We wandered around the dealer room some more and I bought a pitcherful of dice, and Snorta. Nyte bought some rpg books and Monaneron did more research on what games she should buy, and rationalized spending money she'd earlier been worried about not having. We ended up in the tabletop room again, played more of the games we'd tried earlier, as well as Ninjaburger, Chez Dork, and Give Me The Brain. (That last with Nyte's buddies who'd played it before.) We almost went out with them for more fun and frivolity, but as none of us could drink and had to drive home (they were staying at the hotel attached to the con center), we decided to call it a night.
Saturday we managed to get into a game of Call of Cthulu. It was an organized 4-hour game, but it was a lot of fun. The GM had done his homework, as evidenced when we looked for some books on the subject we were investigating and he pulled out an actual book called Dark Shamans, about a spiritual practice from Guyana that involves killing people, burying them covered in and full of spices and such, and going back a few days later to nosh on them. You know, fun stuff. The game itself was really good though, and only two people failed their sanity checks so severely that they ran screaming out of the house, and one guy (our CSI specialist) failed his sanity check and actually jumped INTO the portal the main bad guys had left, and was never heard from again. All in all, pretty good.
After that we rounded up people to go with us to Buca di Beppo's, since the person in whose birthday honor we had earlier planned to take there was not able to make it, and everyone else stopped answering their phones. There was much happy food, and Nyte and I went off our diet (we had planned to, and that helped motivate us to be as good as possible the rest of the week, given what we had to work with), and Monaneron bought a big piece of chocolate cake for later.
I was very tired by this point (walking around the con for several days, plus walking to the restaurant and back, etc.), so while they played Morton's List, I sat and knitted on the OSSP(2) (it's coming along, actually...I might finish it by Saturday after all). They had to go make money, so they went out and held up signs that they would accept money (to go to charity) to stop singing. That kept them occupied for a good 45 minutes.
We eventually persuaded Rob to come out too, and smuggled him into the tabletop room (you're supposed to have a badge to go into the game rooms, but someone left a 7-year-old to guard the door and he was very busy lying on his back across two chairs and bouncing his inflatable Pokemon ball on his feet). We wanted to play Snorta and Ninjaburger, but those were checked out, so we played 10 Days In Europe a few times. Then we got Ticket To Ride, which Nyte and I played a few months ago at CABS (a boardgame club), and some random teenager decided to hang over us and be very, very, very annoying and condescending and pass judgement on us and our various tastes and behaviors. It did not end well, and he eventually had to be told flat-out to go away, because hints, prods, and frank explanations as to why his behavior and statements were offensive did not have any effect. The game is a good bit of fun, (more geography!) but the peanut gallery rather soured the rest of the evening. Which, by that point, was well after 11.
Sunday we got there late, poked around the dealer room more, and that was all she wrote for the con. Nyte bought me a pretty metal rose to replace the glass one Isosceles tried to kill me with, and it has an added bonus of being a hairstick, so I can wear it. I then bought two more hair sticks, one twisted into a tri-knot of some vaguely Celtic design, the other a simple loop and twist, all sturdy metal. Normally the stuff you get at conventions and fairs and what-not are crap, but this guy isn't twisting aluminum with a pair of pliers and a heavy-duty lighter; he's an artisan and had a number of lovely Celtic-inspired brooches and cloak clasps and such things on display, as well as tiaras with a center-drop crystal, and some earrings. I would have gotten a shawl-pin from him if he worked with silver, but he seemed to favor copper and bronze. I don't at all mind buying things from a genuine artisan, and despite the little bargain-hunter in the back of my brain telling me I could get this stuff cheaper somewhere else, it wasn't overpriced. Not all of it was super-detailed either, and the two $5 hair sticks I got have rough edges on some of the joins, and they're not made of copper, and the designs are very simplistic. But then, they're $5. They probably only took him 15-30 minutes each to make, and I bet he sells more of those than anything else (barring the tiara; those things were popular) because that's what your average gamer can easily afford after stocking up on books and plushes and pizza and a gazillion dice.
Monaneron bought a crapload of games, so we'll be able to enjoy a lot of the games we liked whenever we get together. Nyte bought more rpg books, since it was 4 for $30. I agonized and whined and waffled over what pretty dice to buy, and finally settled on a set made of lapis with gold numbers. Real gold (they spattered on one corner of one of the dice), and some of it leaked from the numbers into the cracks of the lapis, and so it's sort of gold-veined lapis. Very pretty, comes with a kid leather pouch of its very own, and I can't believe I spent that much money on gamer bling.
The rest of Sunday we spent on the couch, Nyte reading his new books, me semi-watching the HP marathon and semi-napping or semi-knitting. Nyte made us quesapizzas (or pizzadillas, if you prefer) on the low-carb tortillas he got a while ago, and I for one loved it. The mushrooms and green peppers made things a little watery and leaky, but it was still delish. One of the few things thus far that I will happily eat.
And of course, I stayed up way too late and thus today is even more of the suck. However, since I've spent nearly all my time online like a very bad employee, it hasn't been all that bad. I shall have to work double-time tomorrow, but this is not unusual for me and I'm not too worried about it. Also, am super-glad my immediate supervisor is not keen on browsing blogs, or even the internet at all. Wouldn't THAT be awkward.
Things I learned:
- rolling luggage bags were invented by God for our comfort and well-being
- I still love carbs and want all of them right now
- Buca seems to be putting artificial sweetners into some of their desserts
- red meat holds no glory in my eyes, not even grilled
- red and pink are NOT a good look, especially in spandex on a woman shorter and lumpier than even I
- plush microbes are still adorable
- Nyte narrowly avoided death by deciding NOT to purchase the chestburster alien plushie for me
- board games really can be fun, especially if they involve barnyard animals
- my geographical knowledge is crap
- hair ties can work as stitch markers in a pinch, even the thick ones
- I sleep a lot if I'm allowed
- coffee still tastes good and yet I cannot drink more than 6 ounces at a time
- I can walk way more than I ever thought I could
- well-padded flip-flops are superior to tight, supportive sneakers
- there are right and wrong ways to wear a corset
- if you're going to dress up for a con, go all-out; attention to details and proper makeup make all the difference. Sloppy or half-hearted costuming looks even worse than you'd think. (T-shirt, jeans, sneakers and 14th-century hat girl, I mean you. You too, guy who threw on hakima pants over his jeans and heather-gray tee.)
- I need the brain. My area is moist.
So, I ended up spending an hour and a half getting forms turned in and t's crossed and i's dotted on things that would not matter at all and could definitely wait until next week. The only purpose in getting these things done ahead of time is that my management could shuffle things off to other departments after everyone had left, and then when it wasn't done in time they could make the other department take the blame for not responding to our requests for over a week. It's dumb, it's political, it's petty, but they are my bosses and I am being paid to do what they tell me to do.
I have no idea what we did that Friday night of the 29th. I think we stayed home and watched tv and did nothing at all. And I think it was glorious. Saturday the 1st, there was more staying at home and not doing much, and perhaps there was some movie-watching (Ratatouille) and some bookstore, where I bought a bunch of recommended books. (Specifically, What to Expect When You're Expecting, Atkins' NEW Diabetic Revolution, Dr. Atkins' NEW Carbohydrate Gram Counter (did they re-do everything after he died?), Girlfriend's Guide To Pregnancy (doc's recommendation), Low-Carb Cookbook, and one I picked out on my own, Pregnancy Sucks. Guess which of those is the only one I have read?)
Then there was sleeping in and moseying to the store and me taking way too long to get ready and not actually doing any housework, and a gaming session to which Brent (our new player) did not show up (again). This happens with Brents in general, and I suspect we may see him one more time, and then he will disappear into the ether (again). I I have no idea what I knitted on. Maybe the OSSP(2).
Monday the second we lazed about (after taking Nyte's car to the mechanic for tires and maintenance), and I again did lots of tv-watching and napping and a bit of knitting maybe, but nothing significant. Definitely no housework. Definitely no writing. Might have finished Blood Price by Tanya Huff. Maybe.
Tuesday we lolled more (not to be confused with LOL-ing), then finally got ourselves together (well, I did...Nyte had been ready to go since morning) and I went with our regular group of friends to watch Red, White and Boom from the 9th street OSU Medical Center parking garage. Nyte went to a party across town with his old college buddies, only to find out when he got there that the party had been cancelled, but the host only called some people to let them know. The fireworks were pretty, but far away and the top of the parking garage is very lighted, so the really cool effects were pretty much lost. Nyte managed to make it there while the show was going on, and that was nice. I like having the big lug around, dontchaknow. All in all, it was kind of a big rush and a big to-do for nothing. We were going to hang out with people more after, but some people were flying out early the next morning and some people needed to drive them, and also it was very late and I was tired.
Wednesday we didn't do a heck of lot either (sensing a theme? It's a good theme) until around six or so, when we headed downtown to the convention center to buy our badges and get a con schedule book. After that we trekked back to the Arena Grand movie theater and saw Transformers with some of Nyte's con buddies, which was very good times and I liked it very much. (Even if Mr. Bay likes to disorient people with too-tight shots of action, perhaps saving money on special effects and graphics.) I seal-clapped a good bit and actually managed to last through the whole thing without running to the bathroom (too much spinny-jostly makes Chenn a wee dizzy), and everyone applauded at the end. There should have been more stuff during the credits.
Thursday, bright and early (12) we headed over to the convention center. While perusing the schedule, we discovered that they have given up saying it's a Thurs-Sun thing, and actually scheduled some games for Wednesday night, since the hardcores are already there whipping up impromptu pick-up games and what-not. We played some ADGNPEF555 (that is so not spelled right, but whatever...the closest I can remember is the Advanced Dimensional Green Ninja Preparatory Elementary Fortress 555, hereafter referred to as the 555 game), where Nyte was Winken, Blinken and Nod, the kindergarten superheros, and I was Princess Emma, an actual princess and avid scientist, and part of the Teslatron Team.
Monaneron joined us just after we started the game, and we pretty much hung out with her the whole time. Kamesama was one of the ones who'd flown to...uh...Arizona? New Mexico? I don't remember, somewhere very hot where there is rock climbing. Anyway, she had time on her hands and teachers get into Origins free, not to mention a teacher discount in the dealer's room, so.
We may have grabbed something to eat then, and gone to the dealer room, and then hit the tabletops room where the boardgames library was. We rented game after game, played until we got hungry again, and went home. Monaneron discovered just how much her discount was at some of the booths (Out of the Box, I'm looking at you) and how useful some of the games could be in her tutoring and ESL classes, and thanks to the library, we could try them out first.
So we played 10 Days In Asia, 10 Days In Europe, Carcassonne and Snorta, and some random strangers joined us for the last two, and also for Squint and Pepper. I liked Snorta so much that I bought it, and Monaneron did too, along with the 10 Days series (there's also Africa and USA), and she bought Apples to Apples along with expansion packs for younger kids.
Friday was much of the same, and we met people and tried to get in on a few games but they were already full up. We wandered around the dealer room some more and I bought a pitcherful of dice, and Snorta. Nyte bought some rpg books and Monaneron did more research on what games she should buy, and rationalized spending money she'd earlier been worried about not having. We ended up in the tabletop room again, played more of the games we'd tried earlier, as well as Ninjaburger, Chez Dork, and Give Me The Brain. (That last with Nyte's buddies who'd played it before.) We almost went out with them for more fun and frivolity, but as none of us could drink and had to drive home (they were staying at the hotel attached to the con center), we decided to call it a night.
Saturday we managed to get into a game of Call of Cthulu. It was an organized 4-hour game, but it was a lot of fun. The GM had done his homework, as evidenced when we looked for some books on the subject we were investigating and he pulled out an actual book called Dark Shamans, about a spiritual practice from Guyana that involves killing people, burying them covered in and full of spices and such, and going back a few days later to nosh on them. You know, fun stuff. The game itself was really good though, and only two people failed their sanity checks so severely that they ran screaming out of the house, and one guy (our CSI specialist) failed his sanity check and actually jumped INTO the portal the main bad guys had left, and was never heard from again. All in all, pretty good.
After that we rounded up people to go with us to Buca di Beppo's, since the person in whose birthday honor we had earlier planned to take there was not able to make it, and everyone else stopped answering their phones. There was much happy food, and Nyte and I went off our diet (we had planned to, and that helped motivate us to be as good as possible the rest of the week, given what we had to work with), and Monaneron bought a big piece of chocolate cake for later.
I was very tired by this point (walking around the con for several days, plus walking to the restaurant and back, etc.), so while they played Morton's List, I sat and knitted on the OSSP(2) (it's coming along, actually...I might finish it by Saturday after all). They had to go make money, so they went out and held up signs that they would accept money (to go to charity) to stop singing. That kept them occupied for a good 45 minutes.
We eventually persuaded Rob to come out too, and smuggled him into the tabletop room (you're supposed to have a badge to go into the game rooms, but someone left a 7-year-old to guard the door and he was very busy lying on his back across two chairs and bouncing his inflatable Pokemon ball on his feet). We wanted to play Snorta and Ninjaburger, but those were checked out, so we played 10 Days In Europe a few times. Then we got Ticket To Ride, which Nyte and I played a few months ago at CABS (a boardgame club), and some random teenager decided to hang over us and be very, very, very annoying and condescending and pass judgement on us and our various tastes and behaviors. It did not end well, and he eventually had to be told flat-out to go away, because hints, prods, and frank explanations as to why his behavior and statements were offensive did not have any effect. The game is a good bit of fun, (more geography!) but the peanut gallery rather soured the rest of the evening. Which, by that point, was well after 11.
Sunday we got there late, poked around the dealer room more, and that was all she wrote for the con. Nyte bought me a pretty metal rose to replace the glass one Isosceles tried to kill me with, and it has an added bonus of being a hairstick, so I can wear it. I then bought two more hair sticks, one twisted into a tri-knot of some vaguely Celtic design, the other a simple loop and twist, all sturdy metal. Normally the stuff you get at conventions and fairs and what-not are crap, but this guy isn't twisting aluminum with a pair of pliers and a heavy-duty lighter; he's an artisan and had a number of lovely Celtic-inspired brooches and cloak clasps and such things on display, as well as tiaras with a center-drop crystal, and some earrings. I would have gotten a shawl-pin from him if he worked with silver, but he seemed to favor copper and bronze. I don't at all mind buying things from a genuine artisan, and despite the little bargain-hunter in the back of my brain telling me I could get this stuff cheaper somewhere else, it wasn't overpriced. Not all of it was super-detailed either, and the two $5 hair sticks I got have rough edges on some of the joins, and they're not made of copper, and the designs are very simplistic. But then, they're $5. They probably only took him 15-30 minutes each to make, and I bet he sells more of those than anything else (barring the tiara; those things were popular) because that's what your average gamer can easily afford after stocking up on books and plushes and pizza and a gazillion dice.
Monaneron bought a crapload of games, so we'll be able to enjoy a lot of the games we liked whenever we get together. Nyte bought more rpg books, since it was 4 for $30. I agonized and whined and waffled over what pretty dice to buy, and finally settled on a set made of lapis with gold numbers. Real gold (they spattered on one corner of one of the dice), and some of it leaked from the numbers into the cracks of the lapis, and so it's sort of gold-veined lapis. Very pretty, comes with a kid leather pouch of its very own, and I can't believe I spent that much money on gamer bling.
The rest of Sunday we spent on the couch, Nyte reading his new books, me semi-watching the HP marathon and semi-napping or semi-knitting. Nyte made us quesapizzas (or pizzadillas, if you prefer) on the low-carb tortillas he got a while ago, and I for one loved it. The mushrooms and green peppers made things a little watery and leaky, but it was still delish. One of the few things thus far that I will happily eat.
And of course, I stayed up way too late and thus today is even more of the suck. However, since I've spent nearly all my time online like a very bad employee, it hasn't been all that bad. I shall have to work double-time tomorrow, but this is not unusual for me and I'm not too worried about it. Also, am super-glad my immediate supervisor is not keen on browsing blogs, or even the internet at all. Wouldn't THAT be awkward.
Things I learned:
- rolling luggage bags were invented by God for our comfort and well-being
- I still love carbs and want all of them right now
- Buca seems to be putting artificial sweetners into some of their desserts
- red meat holds no glory in my eyes, not even grilled
- red and pink are NOT a good look, especially in spandex on a woman shorter and lumpier than even I
- plush microbes are still adorable
- Nyte narrowly avoided death by deciding NOT to purchase the chestburster alien plushie for me
- board games really can be fun, especially if they involve barnyard animals
- my geographical knowledge is crap
- hair ties can work as stitch markers in a pinch, even the thick ones
- I sleep a lot if I'm allowed
- coffee still tastes good and yet I cannot drink more than 6 ounces at a time
- I can walk way more than I ever thought I could
- well-padded flip-flops are superior to tight, supportive sneakers
- there are right and wrong ways to wear a corset
- if you're going to dress up for a con, go all-out; attention to details and proper makeup make all the difference. Sloppy or half-hearted costuming looks even worse than you'd think. (T-shirt, jeans, sneakers and 14th-century hat girl, I mean you. You too, guy who threw on hakima pants over his jeans and heather-gray tee.)
- I need the brain. My area is moist.