Remembering GenCon 2005
"I want to live where soul meets body
and let the sun wrap its arms around me
and bathe my skin in water, cool and cleansing
and feel what its like to be new.
'Cause in my head, there’s a greyhound station
where I send my thoughts to far off destinations,
so they may have a chance of finding a place
where they’re far more suited than here..."
- Death Cab For Cutie, "Soul Meets Body"
It happens rarely, but once in a long while there comes time when everything seems magic. The Sea of Possibility reveals itself in a wondrous manner, if for a short time. During conventions such as GenCon, this happens for me, making it completely worth the cost. It's a time when I can remove the mask I wear for society's purpose. It's a place where I feel truly in my element. An air of excitement and awe pervades, granting a particular euphoria very much akin to that of a drug.
This year wasn't quite the same as last, due to litasabadkitty's inability to attend, but it still remained quite excellent. Last year, I discovered a particular interest in Looney Labs games, primarily those involving the Icehouse pyramids after having purchased the Zendo boxed set. Looney Labs maintains a room during the convention solely for learning and playing their games, where I found myself much of the time this year. After learning many of their other games, I finally purchased the remaining Icehouse pyramids, including the IceTowers boxed set. My next goal will be to learn the original game of Icehouse, which appears fairly complicated but a lot of fun.
Where last year Kip, Lita, and I played Zendo for quite some time into the evening on the final day, this year held no such luck as many people chose to leave the convention rather early. My search for others with whom to play games proved fruitless, so after walking through much of the convention and hotel space twice I meandered once again to Corner Coffee, beginning the transition back to "real life". I actually felt "withdrawal symtoms" as some part of my brain refused to accept that it was ending, but capitulate I did as a strange sense of sadness began to overtake me. It still took a day or so to recover into my usual routine...
and let the sun wrap its arms around me
and bathe my skin in water, cool and cleansing
and feel what its like to be new.
'Cause in my head, there’s a greyhound station
where I send my thoughts to far off destinations,
so they may have a chance of finding a place
where they’re far more suited than here..."
- Death Cab For Cutie, "Soul Meets Body"
It happens rarely, but once in a long while there comes time when everything seems magic. The Sea of Possibility reveals itself in a wondrous manner, if for a short time. During conventions such as GenCon, this happens for me, making it completely worth the cost. It's a time when I can remove the mask I wear for society's purpose. It's a place where I feel truly in my element. An air of excitement and awe pervades, granting a particular euphoria very much akin to that of a drug.
This year wasn't quite the same as last, due to litasabadkitty's inability to attend, but it still remained quite excellent. Last year, I discovered a particular interest in Looney Labs games, primarily those involving the Icehouse pyramids after having purchased the Zendo boxed set. Looney Labs maintains a room during the convention solely for learning and playing their games, where I found myself much of the time this year. After learning many of their other games, I finally purchased the remaining Icehouse pyramids, including the IceTowers boxed set. My next goal will be to learn the original game of Icehouse, which appears fairly complicated but a lot of fun.
Where last year Kip, Lita, and I played Zendo for quite some time into the evening on the final day, this year held no such luck as many people chose to leave the convention rather early. My search for others with whom to play games proved fruitless, so after walking through much of the convention and hotel space twice I meandered once again to Corner Coffee, beginning the transition back to "real life". I actually felt "withdrawal symtoms" as some part of my brain refused to accept that it was ending, but capitulate I did as a strange sense of sadness began to overtake me. It still took a day or so to recover into my usual routine...