(no subject)
Had a good couple of weeks, saw a few people I hadn't seen in awhile ...
Spork came down from Binghamton to go to Icon the last weekend in March. It was just the two of us (occasionally joined by my mom) this year, and we had a pretty good con all in all. Saw a pretty decent run of panels - lots of good science ones, a few history ones (one amounted to a super-condensed version of a "history of comics" class I took at SVA), and some fannish stuff. Next year I'm definitely doing a panel (my mom's already planning several). Some stuff I noticed/learned ...
- Science panels run by people with an actual background in the sciences are always a plus.
- For me, anyway. I went to a panel like that once, and spent the whole time listening to a friend who maybe completed a year of college-level science scoffing and insisting that she knew more about science than the physicist giving the lecture, so I guess that doesn't appeal to everyone
- Be prepared, with visual aids if possible. I went to several panels run by the same group of people who seemed to have thought up the clever title for their panel, and nothing else, and it resulted in a lot of awkward silences all around. The panels are an hour long, so I think being prepared to talk for at least 30-45 minutes about the topic is the way to go.
- The Doctor Who panels were crammed with people, and there was a lot more Who merchandise this year than last. At one of the panels, there was talk about pursuing Dr Who celebs to come, which would be cool (uh ... depending on who).
- I'd never heard of Samuel Delany, but his panel on "Queer Politics in Sci-Fi" has made me curious about his books, need to check the library
- LOTS of anime fans this year, and anime merchandise. Some people were talking about splitting the con into an anime con, and a sci-fi/fantasy one, but a) there are plenty of fans who like both, and b) the sci-fi fantasy con will get completed shafted if they do that, I think the bulk of con-goers would opt for the anime con.
- The furries are getting bold! There's been furry activites at Icon for awhile, but before this year, I never saw them (or at least not suited up) out and about on campus (they tend to keep the furry stuff to itself in one building).
- Way too many of those "free hugs!" guys. Maybe I'm overly uncomfortable with being hugged/touched by people I don't know, but it just creeps me out. They don't seem to inflict their hugs on people who don't want them, though, so that's ok. I am just super not into the idea of being "glomped".
- Lots and lots of steampunk stuff/activities. I love the aesthetic, am this way and that about the concept itself (too much romanticizing of the Victorian era is problematic, but you could do interesting things subverting some of that stuff. Basically, the kind of steampunk that would appeal to me would be the nerdiest kind possible).
- They never ever ever have the ticket line situation figured out in a way that keeps you from getting stuck on there for at least an hour. At least for once it didn't rain Friday, I can't remember a con where it didn't.
Costumes (pictures if Spork has any)
Friday - me: the Fourth Doctor, Spork: Harley Quinn
Saturday - me: TOS medical officer, Spork: TNG Vulcan, mom: 18th century naturalist lady
Sunday - me: 18th century naturalist dude/lady in drag (using the same coat as my mom - I really need to take some pictures of it, it's gorgeous. I keep trying to talk her into selling costumes she's sewn up at the con), Spork: Vulcan again
The week after that was my spring break, which was nice but not terribly productive, and I got to see my cousin Andrea at the end of it (she'd been living in Detroit, but just moved back to Queens). Saw Spork again today and yesterday - we watched the ludicrously bad William Shatner movie Incubus (all in Esperanto! ... does anyone still care about Esperanto, by the way? Is that still a thing?), and loafed around the beach (it was stupid nice out today).
I've been using my Facebook a but more than usual - it's here, if you're into the Facebook.
Isn't Pandora cool? I think everyone but me already knew that, but yes, it is.
Caligula icon apropos of nothing besides not getting to use it very often. Somehow there are very few times where Caligula is appropriate.
Spork came down from Binghamton to go to Icon the last weekend in March. It was just the two of us (occasionally joined by my mom) this year, and we had a pretty good con all in all. Saw a pretty decent run of panels - lots of good science ones, a few history ones (one amounted to a super-condensed version of a "history of comics" class I took at SVA), and some fannish stuff. Next year I'm definitely doing a panel (my mom's already planning several). Some stuff I noticed/learned ...
- Science panels run by people with an actual background in the sciences are always a plus.
- For me, anyway. I went to a panel like that once, and spent the whole time listening to a friend who maybe completed a year of college-level science scoffing and insisting that she knew more about science than the physicist giving the lecture, so I guess that doesn't appeal to everyone
- Be prepared, with visual aids if possible. I went to several panels run by the same group of people who seemed to have thought up the clever title for their panel, and nothing else, and it resulted in a lot of awkward silences all around. The panels are an hour long, so I think being prepared to talk for at least 30-45 minutes about the topic is the way to go.
- The Doctor Who panels were crammed with people, and there was a lot more Who merchandise this year than last. At one of the panels, there was talk about pursuing Dr Who celebs to come, which would be cool (uh ... depending on who).
- I'd never heard of Samuel Delany, but his panel on "Queer Politics in Sci-Fi" has made me curious about his books, need to check the library
- LOTS of anime fans this year, and anime merchandise. Some people were talking about splitting the con into an anime con, and a sci-fi/fantasy one, but a) there are plenty of fans who like both, and b) the sci-fi fantasy con will get completed shafted if they do that, I think the bulk of con-goers would opt for the anime con.
- The furries are getting bold! There's been furry activites at Icon for awhile, but before this year, I never saw them (or at least not suited up) out and about on campus (they tend to keep the furry stuff to itself in one building).
- Way too many of those "free hugs!" guys. Maybe I'm overly uncomfortable with being hugged/touched by people I don't know, but it just creeps me out. They don't seem to inflict their hugs on people who don't want them, though, so that's ok. I am just super not into the idea of being "glomped".
- Lots and lots of steampunk stuff/activities. I love the aesthetic, am this way and that about the concept itself (too much romanticizing of the Victorian era is problematic, but you could do interesting things subverting some of that stuff. Basically, the kind of steampunk that would appeal to me would be the nerdiest kind possible).
- They never ever ever have the ticket line situation figured out in a way that keeps you from getting stuck on there for at least an hour. At least for once it didn't rain Friday, I can't remember a con where it didn't.
Costumes (pictures if Spork has any)
Friday - me: the Fourth Doctor, Spork: Harley Quinn
Saturday - me: TOS medical officer, Spork: TNG Vulcan, mom: 18th century naturalist lady
Sunday - me: 18th century naturalist dude/lady in drag (using the same coat as my mom - I really need to take some pictures of it, it's gorgeous. I keep trying to talk her into selling costumes she's sewn up at the con), Spork: Vulcan again
The week after that was my spring break, which was nice but not terribly productive, and I got to see my cousin Andrea at the end of it (she'd been living in Detroit, but just moved back to Queens). Saw Spork again today and yesterday - we watched the ludicrously bad William Shatner movie Incubus (all in Esperanto! ... does anyone still care about Esperanto, by the way? Is that still a thing?), and loafed around the beach (it was stupid nice out today).
I've been using my Facebook a but more than usual - it's here, if you're into the Facebook.
Isn't Pandora cool? I think everyone but me already knew that, but yes, it is.
Caligula icon apropos of nothing besides not getting to use it very often. Somehow there are very few times where Caligula is appropriate.