w00t w00t booyah

Whoa. Another one under the bridge. There's probably something to be said about working Anime-Expo in a different department, in a recession year, with a leadership that can easily be called inexperienced at best, malicious and selfish at worst...and it would all be true, sadly...and come out of it less stressed than I went in.

And that includes working masquerade. LESS stressed, folks.

Yup, I staffed with cosplay this year, as opposed to karaoke. Jim got tagged to crew karaoke, and both he and Xander spent many happy hours in complete bedlam over the weekend. Me? I got to sit the cosplay info desk, which sat in the dark near South Hall, across the aisle from first-aid and next to the peace-bonding station.

Yes, they were still 'peace-bonding' sticks, folks. They also thought I was mental when I protested the purpose of zipping a tie acround a broomstick and sending them on their way.

In the cool, quiet, peaceful dark. The con had provided the cosplay department with one large room to do all their work in - and had assumed that they could have handled signups at this desk. Um. Not with legal documents to manage, you can't. To make it even more apparent this wasn't going to happen, they had loaded all the extra stantions and ropes (still in boxes) behind the desk. So, essentially there was NO room for anything cosplay would have needed to um, DO the work assumed at that desk. So the weekend was one of three things:

1. Direct people to the cosplay office.
2. Point at the peace bonding station next to me.
3. Other, which often included directing people to the Real info desks.

The unofficial fourth was playing Pokemon and holy chrome I made some AWESOME trades over the weekend.

People don't understand how I could sit in the dark alone all weekend. Welp, I had work to do both Thursday and Friday (real work, I did it remotely) and the others? I'd just gotten back from people-on-top-on-people KY - the lack of related was soothing in ways I hadn't realized until Sunday.

How was the con? Light, both in attendence and content. I'm curious about the numbers and finances - because the working word for operations was 'shorted.' We were shorted parking. We were shorted staff. We were shorted resoures across the board, name it - it was insufficient to the task. Now, if you can cope with that? (Seriously. Meals were better - if you consider one type of meal better. I can't look a turkey sandwich, even if awesome and made on ciabatta, in the face anymore. Twice a day, four days. No. More. SANDWICHES.) Problem is, there were people working who wanted to do a Good Job and were simply thwarted by the Short. Guys, the next day? It's over and nobody will know you were doing it on a wing and a prayer. Believe it. Next year? Different story. Promise.

I also know far more about the Nokia Theater than I ever thought I would, and exercised my stage chops in the process. "THANK YOU. NEXXXXXXT!"

Kid came with us on Saturday and Sunday, and as wee as he is? He just piggybacked on our existing badges, so that was a plus. Last year this would not have been a go at all - but this year? LOOK AT THAT MOMMEEEEE! What a difference a year makes, and having both AOD and Fanime under our belts. Sunday he walked in with a paper crown from Burger King on his head and got complimented on his cosplay as soon as he hit the door.

Costumes this year also had gotten a lift from so many folks learning what 'fit' meant - instead of making everything big enough to wear, many had spent additional time making sure the clothing was adequately tailored as well. Very nice year, and I don't think it was working cosplay that tightened up my eye...walking the hallways, it seemed to be an overall better year in that regard. The demographic remains fluid for this con - the first years were very male, Asian and college-locked...last year was VERY female and teenish. This year? Still very female, but growing a bit older and now bringing very young children with. I also saw my first family group of women (mothers and daughters) completely in costume (goth lolly, but) and most of my age group was found in groupings like them. Looking forward, it would be safe to say the gender is going to keep moving back to center as the focus moves away from OAVs and releases of licensed works and back to gaming sources as the source for content.

The weather also cooperated - this was easily the coolest fourth of July weekend I can recall in recent memory - the California 'June Gloom' hung in there for all the days of con, and the temps outside never hit 80 degrees. Inside, you were nicely chilled. Still, those lovely BLEACH-inspired costumes, you know the ones? Black and red? Right. FUNKFUNKFUNK by Sunday. Just a thought. Febreeze, anyone?

Monday night dinner was steak, wine and beer. Oh, and cupcakes fresh out of the oven.

How was your weekend?

Whoa. Another one under the bridge. There's probably something to be said about working Anime-Expo in a different department, in a recession year, with a leadership that can easily be called inexperienced at best, malicious and selfish at worst...and it would all be true, sadly...and come out of it less stressed than I went in.

And that includes working masquerade. LESS stressed, folks.

Yup, I staffed with cosplay this year, as opposed to karaoke. Jim got tagged to crew karaoke, and both he and Xander spent many happy hours in complete bedlam over the weekend. Me? I got to sit the cosplay info desk, which sat in the dark near South Hall, across the aisle from first-aid and next to the peace-bonding station.

Yes, they were still 'peace-bonding' sticks, folks. They also thought I was mental when I protested the purpose of zipping a tie acround a broomstick and sending them on their way.

In the cool, quiet, peaceful dark. The con had provided the cosplay department with one large room to do all their work in - and had assumed that they could have handled signups at this desk. Um. Not with legal documents to manage, you can't. To make it even more apparent this wasn't going to happen, they had loaded all the extra stantions and ropes (still in boxes) behind the desk. So, essentially there was NO room for anything cosplay would have needed to um, DO the work assumed at that desk. So the weekend was one of three things:

1. Direct people to the cosplay office.
2. Point at the peace bonding station next to me.
3. Other, which often included directing people to the Real info desks.

The unofficial fourth was playing Pokemon and holy chrome I made some AWESOME trades over the weekend.

People don't understand how I could sit in the dark alone all weekend. Welp, I had work to do both Thursday and Friday (real work, I did it remotely) and the others? I'd just gotten back from people-on-top-on-people KY - the lack of related was soothing in ways I hadn't realized until Sunday.

How was the con? Light, both in attendence and content. I'm curious about the numbers and finances - because the working word for operations was 'shorted.' We were shorted parking. We were shorted staff. We were shorted resoures across the board, name it - it was insufficient to the task. Now, if you can cope with that? (Seriously. Meals were better - if you consider one type of meal better. I can't look a turkey sandwich, even if awesome and made on ciabatta, in the face anymore. Twice a day, four days. No. More. SANDWICHES.) Problem is, there were people working who wanted to do a Good Job and were simply thwarted by the Short. Guys, the next day? It's over and nobody will know you were doing it on a wing and a prayer. Believe it. Next year? Different story. Promise.

I also know far more about the Nokia Theater than I ever thought I would, and exercised my stage chops in the process. "THANK YOU. NEXXXXXXT!"

Kid came with us on Saturday and Sunday, and as wee as he is? He just piggybacked on our existing badges, so that was a plus. Last year this would not have been a go at all - but this year? LOOK AT THAT MOMMEEEEE! What a difference a year makes, and having both AOD and Fanime under our belts. Sunday he walked in with a paper crown from Burger King on his head and got complimented on his cosplay as soon as he hit the door.

Costumes this year also had gotten a lift from so many folks learning what 'fit' meant - instead of making everything big enough to wear, many had spent additional time making sure the clothing was adequately tailored as well. Very nice year, and I don't think it was working cosplay that tightened up my eye...walking the hallways, it seemed to be an overall better year in that regard. The demographic remains fluid for this con - the first years were very male, Asian and college-locked...last year was VERY female and teenish. This year? Still very female, but growing a bit older and now bringing very young children with. I also saw my first family group of women (mothers and daughters) completely in costume (goth lolly, but) and most of my age group was found in groupings like them. Looking forward, it would be safe to say the gender is going to keep moving back to center as the focus moves away from OAVs and releases of licensed works and back to gaming sources as the source for content.

The weather also cooperated - this was easily the coolest fourth of July weekend I can recall in recent memory - the California 'June Gloom' hung in there for all the days of con, and the temps outside never hit 80 degrees. Inside, you were nicely chilled. Still, those lovely BLEACH-inspired costumes, you know the ones? Black and red? Right. FUNKFUNKFUNK by Sunday. Just a thought. Febreeze, anyone?

Monday night dinner was steak, wine and beer. Oh, and cupcakes fresh out of the oven.

How was your weekend?

I am up, vertical and functional this morning - kid is at preschool, Jim is at work and we're not falling over exhausted.

But we just finished doing a con in San Francisco that required a little over six hours of driving each way to attend. (Three hundred dollars is three hundred dollars, and I packed pocketknives, toothpaste, shampoo and didn't have to show my ID neither. Pthwwpt!)

Taking advantage of the company's rental junket club, I rented a hybrid to do the drive. Getting to the lot, we were shown all of the choices available - which included a Ford Escape.

It was bigger than the Prius. We were doing a con. We scratched our heads and said 'why not?'

Oh baby. I can see why Ford is still in business. Let's just say - it worked. Worked WELL. It was one thing we didn't have to worry about.

Something you don't expect to find in a car, but the hybrids probably take for granted - electric ports of all kinds. Like - a 110 plug. Baby, I plugged in a power strip and the kid and I both had tech all the way up and back. I played Sims on my laptop, and he watched all the DVDs we could play. Effortless.

One reason we're not exhausted.

Animation On Display (AOD) moved its digs from the old Cathedral Hill Hotel to the Kabuki Hotel in J-Town, due to imminent demise of the Cat Hill - it's going to see a wrecking ball Real Soon Now and I still think someone ought to dart in there and steal random objects. We really loved that old place - but.

Let's get one thing straight. The Kabuki is POSH. After spending many happy, happy years at the Cat Hill, with its bare (but dressed) cement walls, institutional-style flush toliets, leaky ceilings, elevators that refused to work with more than eight people in them (but had the cheery 'Help Is On The Way' buttons in them) and beds that resembled blocks of stone - stepping into the Kabuki must have seemed like a sweet, sweet reward.

(For instance - Con Ops had been held on the third floor of the Cat Hill in a little room with no windows and little change in color from floor to ceiling - not even pictures on the walls. We checked into our room, decided the Con Chair loved me because our room? OH BABY. And then word reached us in reverent tones. "Con Ops - has a sauna!")

No shit.

Our room? Soft, welcoming beds with feather duvets so thick the kid almost disappeared into them at naptime. On the 9th floor, well out of range of any loud attendees or other possible noise issues. At the end of the hall. The short end. The bathroom had a furo tub in it that must have been 3 - 4' deep - Jim and the kid took a bath together in it, that big. (It took a while to fill up. Oh well. There was a place to shower off first anyway.) And the hotel tolietries were wonderful and plentiful.

The mini-bar was expensive, but had Pocky.

Reason number two we're not exhausted.

First day of the con, Jim is drafted to a Costco run - so he takes kid, hybrid and con staffer and is gone most of the morning. Me, I get to help out at Registration - and quickly find out I can bellow 'NEEEEXT' to pitch. Two hours into the con, and the lines are CLEARED.

But now it's time for me to take kid, feed him lunch and put down for nap for I have a panel at two. Cupcakes are arriving at 1:30, and I've got joseph_palmer coming in to help me out with the panel.

One, two, three, four. We eat, the kid goes down to sleep, cupcakes arrive, so does Joe - and the panel goes off beautifully.

Celebrations are had after, and much sake is consumed by both me and silverkun - who steps in to be me/Jim at need when kid stuff takes over the schedule. This works amazingly well. The fact I have three of Xander's 'committee' on site during this con makes me a very happy panda - the fact that they are all getting to know each other better makes me ecstatic. The fact that I'm having to do NOTHING for this to happen organically is beyond words.

Reason three I'm not exhausted.

I spend very little time in Ops, when last year I lived there. I found I was doing one of four things - sleeping (which having kid onboard made mandatory), eating something with him prior to putting to bed (either a nap or sleep), doing a panel or something related to con, but not in Ops. And Ops had a sauna! *pouts* Well, not very much. I got two of the best hot soaks in years, and I didn't even have to leave my room!

Sunday comes off like clockwork, as I take kid shopping in the morning (scoring FIVE Pokemon bath fizzies, hooray!), feeding him lunch and getting him back to the room for his nap before I grab laptop, DVDs and my ass as I find myself doing a 'the 60's were a great time to be a kid' panel. I'm certain I'm going to be facing an empty room twenty minutes into the panel and fold. I am surprised to find a similar result to the fan fic panel - people came in to the room and stayed to the end. I played a bunch of DVD clips, nattered and gromished my way through an hour and decided this is actually a pretty good idea, but needs better prep. (I thought they'd cancelled it when I asked for a schedule change for the fan fic panel. Uh, no. They flipped them.)

I come to my senses after the panel - we really should pack up and start driving to get home anytime at a reasonable hour for all of us. So we say our goodbyes, hit the road and get home before 9:30 PM.

I really wanted another hour for shopping. That's my only regret. I can get the california roll bento anytime.

AOD 2010 - assignment complete. And I can't wait for next year.

Boy, they are a LOT of conventions this weekend. Including mine, but whoa.

You want me, I'm in SFO (driving up there as we speak) - http://www.aodsf.org

I'll be the one in motion. Promise.

Boy, they are a LOT of conventions this weekend. Including mine, but whoa.

You want me, I'm in SFO (driving up there as we speak) - http://www.aodsf.org

I'll be the one in motion. Promise.

Gaming and food. Two great things that go great together!

(Certainly puts a spin on 'what's for dinner' doesn't it?)

Got an alert from Ops at AOD this AM:



Heads up.

She's 14. Headed for Ikkicon, at last report and is expected to do the anime con circuit until she lands in California.

He's 40, work(ed) at a convenience store and sent LOTS of sexts to her. Mom had the phone after kid was grounded...oops.

They are probably traveling together. You guys know the drill - if you see 'em, find the 911 button and do not engage. (But keep 'em in sight.)

Happy Friday - and all that.

Probably one of the best AX weekends in recent memory - no kidding. The Los Angeles Convention Center is a perfect fit for this event. With a couple of caveats, and man - those are HUGE.

They closed all of the food concessions every night at 6:00 PM. No, I am not kidding. You wanna eat dinner? Not going to do at the convention center, bub. Hop a shuttle to a hotel and eat in their restaurant - and suck it up, cost-wise. Anyone who had known ahead of time, could have made a killing with a ramen cart or some such. TRY getting pizza delivery there, BTW. I saw them delivering to the bus stop outside South Hall.

Across the street is not much to write home about. Certainly nothing to eat. Open after 6, and on a holiday weekend? Pfft.

I haven't pounded candy bars for dinner like that since college. Do not even wish to entertain the excuses of 'this is the first year for the venue' arguments. Not even. And the stories I heard about the vegetarian 'offerings' for staff chow? EPIC FAIL.

Guys, you don't tell someone who fed a Type I diabetic for 15 years that there's NO FOOD UNTIL THE NEXT DAY at the dinner hour. Ghad, this is basic. My head is still spinning.

And then there was the parking. That closed after dark - no, you can't get back in even if you DO wish to pay another $12. Went out for dinner...and then had to go home. THANKS.

I already mentioned the lack of intelligent design when it came to designing queues. HINT: do not cross the streams, thank you.

Next year - they'll be back to LACC - and I'll be bringing a microwave and a couple of cases of ramen.

The real dilemma now is if I have time to do more than complain - and if that's cryptic, good. It's meant to be.

Today? I'm about 60% - being away for four days really helped flush the RAM of everything I was doing last week before showing up there.

UM.

Not enough alcohol this weekend. Not by half. But I had a really good time and wished the days were 12 hours longer to allow for more sleep.

Probably one of the best AX weekends in recent memory - no kidding. The Los Angeles Convention Center is a perfect fit for this event. With a couple of caveats, and man - those are HUGE.

They closed all of the food concessions every night at 6:00 PM. No, I am not kidding. You wanna eat dinner? Not going to do at the convention center, bub. Hop a shuttle to a hotel and eat in their restaurant - and suck it up, cost-wise. Anyone who had known ahead of time, could have made a killing with a ramen cart or some such. TRY getting pizza delivery there, BTW. I saw them delivering to the bus stop outside South Hall.

Across the street is not much to write home about. Certainly nothing to eat. Open after 6, and on a holiday weekend? Pfft.

I haven't pounded candy bars for dinner like that since college. Do not even wish to entertain the excuses of 'this is the first year for the venue' arguments. Not even. And the stories I heard about the vegetarian 'offerings' for staff chow? EPIC FAIL.

Guys, you don't tell someone who fed a Type I diabetic for 15 years that there's NO FOOD UNTIL THE NEXT DAY at the dinner hour. Ghad, this is basic. My head is still spinning.

And then there was the parking. That closed after dark - no, you can't get back in even if you DO wish to pay another $12. Went out for dinner...and then had to go home. THANKS.

I already mentioned the lack of intelligent design when it came to designing queues. HINT: do not cross the streams, thank you.

Next year - they'll be back to LACC - and I'll be bringing a microwave and a couple of cases of ramen.

The real dilemma now is if I have time to do more than complain - and if that's cryptic, good. It's meant to be.

Today? I'm about 60% - being away for four days really helped flush the RAM of everything I was doing last week before showing up there.

UM.

Not enough alcohol this weekend. Not by half. But I had a really good time and wished the days were 12 hours longer to allow for more sleep.

And I've already gone to full voice over line control for the exhibit hall.

Man. Less than six hours into the first day - way to go for a new record, AX!

And it can be yours too, for $55 each way - that's like, fifty cents a mile. I'm talking about taking Amtrak from LA Union Station to San Jose, of course.

Now, I expected the smooth ride, the station stops and so on - but I'd been warned about spotty foodservice, so I packed enough to tide us over and ran through the bakery in Little Tokyo on the way out on Friday. There really isn't anything like munching warm-from-the-oven anpan standing in line to get on the train, yanno.

No x-ray machines, no taking my shoes off, half a six pack of DDP no worries, only need to check one bag and that was no big deal...the only thing missing was the safety briefing, to be replaced with a card in the pocket in front of you that suggested three methods of exiting the train in order of preference (first, the door you came in, second, another door, third, the window next to you) in case of an emergency. The conductor came through, asked us all to tidy up after ourselves when we used the bathrooms located downstairs, and to have fun!

The next announcement was Debbie from the dining car, advising us of the procedures to obtain lunch or dinner in the dining car. Have a reservation, and the sleeper cars would be polled first - but then she would be through to take our requests, see you in 45 minutes.

And we were off.

I knitted a bit, then got curious. Found the lounge car, with a magnificent observation deck - and docents from the California Parks Service. We would be crossing through a number of California sights - and what would that be if you didn't know where they were?

I have now seen the mission at San Miguel, the Guadalupe jail (room for one only, hence the fact it's a landmark and not a working jail anymore), the clams at Pismo Beach, the missile silos at Vandenburg AFB - and lots and lots of oak woodland. I live in a very pretty state - this was just a reminder.

Weather going up was cold, moist and wet enough to make looking out the windows pretty difficult, and besides - I'd found the electrical outlet downstairs next to the snack bar. Snakes on a plane? I got Geeks on a Train - all I had to do was pull out the power strip and I had many instant friends.

Pulled into San Jose about 9:00 PM, got picked up by silverkun and back to our hotel after returning him to his digs at Baycon.

We fwumped. Resumed activities at a reasonable hour the next day, which was spent divided between Baycon and Fanime. Took some pictures, which I'll get posted soon.

Baycon was sharing space with a charismatic Catholic conference. It was - rather odd, but kinda appropriate to be in the restaurant looking at badges to tell the difference between the hard-core Catholic monks (the ascetic, unused to speaking to anyone, wearing simple robes - dead giveaway) and the random Star Wars/I-like-the-simple-life cosplayer.

Utilikilts everywhere. I kind think I want one for myself - they looked both durable and useful.

Gaming was gaming - and a really nice room to sit in, let alone play in. I have to admit - I'm the Sim with 8 neat points. I tend to cruise rooms, picking up - because I've noted that people are more willing to sit at empty tables and use them for their intended use, but won't normally if - say - there's an empty glass sitting there. Hey, trash can right over there? No? No worries. Wow, look. A table ready to use again.

Got reminded yet AGAIN that Rock Band - while it requires a ton of tech - really is the game of the last year or so, and I predict that will hold for the next five years. It really is as good as advertised - and only gets better with friends.

Noted that they were having a blood drive - and since I'd missed the last Red Cross appointment, I took advantage...and ran into western_slope in the process. That was the easy part of being around - the people I needed to see? Just showed up. Surely, there were more people there that I didn't see - but I got just enough socialization to make me a happy camper. I think we ran into betnoir at breakfast the next morning - and just got reminded again that we need to get together more often. For one thing, my husband needs someone to play with and Steve has things wot go boom. What else could be better?

Got together with murphymom, kshandra and her youngest son - with a long chat on adoption, both from her POV as a reunited adoptee (wow, happy ending deluxe considering the time her adoption happened in, when she did her search and on - proof there is no better time than the one have to do such a thing. You just can't predict the outcome) and mine as a prospective adoptive parent, nevermind having adopted cousins. I cherish my resources found through LJ - yes, I truly do.

Then we packed it in and went over to meet up with the crew in the karaoke room at Fanime. catsonmars, kiyone, hamusutaa, skademonx, desslok - socializesocializesocialize. Beer. Repeat.

Go back to hotel, fall down. Sleep. Wake. Demand breakfast and begin again.

However, Sunday was Gong Show at Fanime. This - was fun. Any time Jim can chase Tommy around a packed house of crazed karaoke nuts demanding the gong that Tommy won't let him use - was worth the price of admission. We need more ad hoc acappella stuff ala Carmen Sandiego.

I was noting that while they didn't think that Gong Show was the best one so far, it certainly was well attended. A somewhat empty room certainly filled up fast enough during the contest...and of course, emptied pretty quickly once the contestants were done. Who wants to see someone else get prizes, right? But at a couple of points, it was standing room only - who noticed?

The weekend was either nonfat lattes or beer. By the time we got home Monday night after an equally FINE ride home on the train, so tired I couldn't crack a book open but to fall asleep reading it.

So goes the con report - commentary, another time. Now? Now I go Sim - today was a beat me up, drag me around day at work. I'm going to go play a bit now.