Katsucon....or all's well that ended well
Yesterday I came back home from Katsucon with mixed feelings, but there were many factors involved for this:
1. The last snowstorm. I had to leave on Friday by 10AM to avoid the AM rush hour. I usually arrive Thursday night to get a head start on my volunteering hours, but being that there was no Thursday Night pre-reg and NO gopher crash-space was available this year, I had to drop that idea because I didn't want to drop cash for another hotel night.
2. A sense of overwhelming. Katsucon was in a new facility at the Gaylord. It seems many attendees and even some staffers felt a bit of overwhelm-ness and sometimes confusion because it was a first time at the Gaylord and some just were prepared to what they were expecting. (i.e. - a lot of walking, confusion to where certain events are). But, no con is perfect. You always got to have bumps in the road.
3. Communication. There were times that I was sent to either Live 1 for Line Wrangling, only to find out that there was NO crowded line for me to wrangle, or being sent to another room and then being told they only needed me for an hour. Again, I do not fault the Volunteering staff! After letting rational thought sink in, I knew that the Volunteer staff was put in a very tough position with being in a new facility and all. They really stand out through great adversity.
4. Attitude of a few staffers. Some of them really need to check their dis-illusions of grandeur at the door. When I was stationed to check badges outside the Artists Alley/Game Room, I thought I left my camera in the Security Office, so with me having no radio, I ran real quick to check if it was there, only to be berated and humiliated by one of the male security staffers (the one who wore a t-shirt with a piece of cake on it). Instead on speaking to me in a normal tone, he said it in a raised and condescending voice, further adding to the humiliation. After my 2 hour shift was over, one security staffer said they didn't want me to work security anyone. I was floored!! As was a few other security staffers, so Daphne, the head of Security, pulled me aside and said that there was no where to put me. Which I understood. She was extremely kind to give me a nice recommendation. It's not easy to check badges when you got TWO OPEN DOORS with attendees going in & out. Also, I figured you must have REALLY thick skin to work security, which have the toughest tasks at any con. I CAN'T HELP IF I'M JUST TOO FRIGGIN' NICE!! I JUST DON'T BELIEVE IN CONFRONTATION! CAN I HELP IT IF I'M NOT A HARD-ASS?? IS IT MY FUCKING PROBLEM I DON'T HAVE A "I'M BETTER THAN YOU" ATTITUDE TOWARD MY FELLOW STAFFERS/ATTENDEES/GOPHERS?? (Whew! That being said...)
5. The Saturday Night Cosplay. I thought the acts were awesome (I had to leave before the skits ended because I needed to get food) and well put together, but the hosts were a different story. I just felt an uneasy vibe. All the hosts did was elicit groans from their bad puns (I mean..."bear bottom"). It just killed the mood altogether, which nearly made it grueling to appreciate and enjoy the cosplay. It kinda looked like Paris Hilton & Leighton Meester onstage hosting the Grammys. Kara Dennison, one of the co-hosts and a very accomplished cosplayer, would have been better off with these 3 suggestions; (1) carry the hosting duties solo (I don't even WANT to know her co-host's credentials, but hosting ain't her high point); (2) have fellow accomplished cosplayer Stephanie "Tiki" Brown (famous for cosplaying as Naga The Serpent, Fujiko Mine, & Iczer-2 among others) to co-host, for it's time for her to step out from the Judges' table and shine brightly on the stage and help carry the cosplay with her no-nonsense approach; or (3) even have a male counterpart as her co-host, namely Mr. Arsene Lupin/Captain Jack Sparrow/DJ extraordinare Rob Lantz, whom carried to cosplay hosting duties for Katsucons past.
But there silver linings at the end of those clouds:
1. Registration were awesomely kind to the handicapped. They let me ahead of the line to pre-reg.
2. The Hampton Inn across the street from the Gaylord. I gotten an upgrade for almost $20 more, but the room was very specious and nice! There was a refrigerator, a microwave oven, & a complimentary breakfast every morning! Saturday morning, there were mini-cheese omelettes, different kinds of cereal, and 2 waffle irons with which you make your own waffles! Sunday morning there were sliced kielbasa sausages & 2 kinds of scrambled eggs; 1 plain and 1 with cheese. There were also Tortillas with which you can make your own breakfast burritos.
3. The return of the Maid Cafe!! Kudos to all the maids for their hard work!
4. Unicorn Table!! They put on a fabulous, exciting concert. Lead by the guitar work of Shin-Go and the powerful vocals of singer Salia, and backed by the pounding bass of Ken, thesilky-smooth keyboard of Atsushi, and the powerhouse drumming of Junko (yes, girls can ROCK!!!) work they performed songs from their new full-length CD, "Into The Future", plus "Fly Away" from Jinki:Extend, "Trust" from Vandread", and "Amai Yume" from School Rumble. After the concert, I got my Peavey electric guitar autographed by the band, and I didn't even have to buy anything from their booth because I got clearance. Since I presented Salia with a cute bear. Salia also made an appearance at Katsucon 2006.
5. Yunmao Ayakawa, extraodinary cosplayer and leader of the Nihon Maid Association Workshop.
6. By Sunday, I was 1 hour SHORT of free pre-reg for next year's Katsu, so the Volunteer staff played a little game called Name That Tune. They played a snipped of an 80's song, and I knew the answer in 2 seconds; "Surrender" by Cheap Trick. That correct answer helped me get free pre-reg for Katsucon 2011.
7. Awesome roomies! All from DAS!!
I will likely return to Katsucon next year, and I'm sure any chinks in the iron from this year will be smoothed out to make Katsu 2011 run smoother.
Katsucon photos on now on my DeviantArt gallery. Go to: http://jpop52.deviantart.com/gallery
1. The last snowstorm. I had to leave on Friday by 10AM to avoid the AM rush hour. I usually arrive Thursday night to get a head start on my volunteering hours, but being that there was no Thursday Night pre-reg and NO gopher crash-space was available this year, I had to drop that idea because I didn't want to drop cash for another hotel night.
2. A sense of overwhelming. Katsucon was in a new facility at the Gaylord. It seems many attendees and even some staffers felt a bit of overwhelm-ness and sometimes confusion because it was a first time at the Gaylord and some just were prepared to what they were expecting. (i.e. - a lot of walking, confusion to where certain events are). But, no con is perfect. You always got to have bumps in the road.
3. Communication. There were times that I was sent to either Live 1 for Line Wrangling, only to find out that there was NO crowded line for me to wrangle, or being sent to another room and then being told they only needed me for an hour. Again, I do not fault the Volunteering staff! After letting rational thought sink in, I knew that the Volunteer staff was put in a very tough position with being in a new facility and all. They really stand out through great adversity.
4. Attitude of a few staffers. Some of them really need to check their dis-illusions of grandeur at the door. When I was stationed to check badges outside the Artists Alley/Game Room, I thought I left my camera in the Security Office, so with me having no radio, I ran real quick to check if it was there, only to be berated and humiliated by one of the male security staffers (the one who wore a t-shirt with a piece of cake on it). Instead on speaking to me in a normal tone, he said it in a raised and condescending voice, further adding to the humiliation. After my 2 hour shift was over, one security staffer said they didn't want me to work security anyone. I was floored!! As was a few other security staffers, so Daphne, the head of Security, pulled me aside and said that there was no where to put me. Which I understood. She was extremely kind to give me a nice recommendation. It's not easy to check badges when you got TWO OPEN DOORS with attendees going in & out. Also, I figured you must have REALLY thick skin to work security, which have the toughest tasks at any con. I CAN'T HELP IF I'M JUST TOO FRIGGIN' NICE!! I JUST DON'T BELIEVE IN CONFRONTATION! CAN I HELP IT IF I'M NOT A HARD-ASS?? IS IT MY FUCKING PROBLEM I DON'T HAVE A "I'M BETTER THAN YOU" ATTITUDE TOWARD MY FELLOW STAFFERS/ATTENDEES/GOPHERS?? (Whew! That being said...)
5. The Saturday Night Cosplay. I thought the acts were awesome (I had to leave before the skits ended because I needed to get food) and well put together, but the hosts were a different story. I just felt an uneasy vibe. All the hosts did was elicit groans from their bad puns (I mean..."bear bottom"). It just killed the mood altogether, which nearly made it grueling to appreciate and enjoy the cosplay. It kinda looked like Paris Hilton & Leighton Meester onstage hosting the Grammys. Kara Dennison, one of the co-hosts and a very accomplished cosplayer, would have been better off with these 3 suggestions; (1) carry the hosting duties solo (I don't even WANT to know her co-host's credentials, but hosting ain't her high point); (2) have fellow accomplished cosplayer Stephanie "Tiki" Brown (famous for cosplaying as Naga The Serpent, Fujiko Mine, & Iczer-2 among others) to co-host, for it's time for her to step out from the Judges' table and shine brightly on the stage and help carry the cosplay with her no-nonsense approach; or (3) even have a male counterpart as her co-host, namely Mr. Arsene Lupin/Captain Jack Sparrow/DJ extraordinare Rob Lantz, whom carried to cosplay hosting duties for Katsucons past.
But there silver linings at the end of those clouds:
1. Registration were awesomely kind to the handicapped. They let me ahead of the line to pre-reg.
2. The Hampton Inn across the street from the Gaylord. I gotten an upgrade for almost $20 more, but the room was very specious and nice! There was a refrigerator, a microwave oven, & a complimentary breakfast every morning! Saturday morning, there were mini-cheese omelettes, different kinds of cereal, and 2 waffle irons with which you make your own waffles! Sunday morning there were sliced kielbasa sausages & 2 kinds of scrambled eggs; 1 plain and 1 with cheese. There were also Tortillas with which you can make your own breakfast burritos.
3. The return of the Maid Cafe!! Kudos to all the maids for their hard work!
4. Unicorn Table!! They put on a fabulous, exciting concert. Lead by the guitar work of Shin-Go and the powerful vocals of singer Salia, and backed by the pounding bass of Ken, thesilky-smooth keyboard of Atsushi, and the powerhouse drumming of Junko (yes, girls can ROCK!!!) work they performed songs from their new full-length CD, "Into The Future", plus "Fly Away" from Jinki:Extend, "Trust" from Vandread", and "Amai Yume" from School Rumble. After the concert, I got my Peavey electric guitar autographed by the band, and I didn't even have to buy anything from their booth because I got clearance. Since I presented Salia with a cute bear. Salia also made an appearance at Katsucon 2006.
5. Yunmao Ayakawa, extraodinary cosplayer and leader of the Nihon Maid Association Workshop.
6. By Sunday, I was 1 hour SHORT of free pre-reg for next year's Katsu, so the Volunteer staff played a little game called Name That Tune. They played a snipped of an 80's song, and I knew the answer in 2 seconds; "Surrender" by Cheap Trick. That correct answer helped me get free pre-reg for Katsucon 2011.
7. Awesome roomies! All from DAS!!
I will likely return to Katsucon next year, and I'm sure any chinks in the iron from this year will be smoothed out to make Katsu 2011 run smoother.
Katsucon photos on now on my DeviantArt gallery. Go to: http://jpop52.deviantart.com/gallery