Pre-Convention Report
Apr. 18th, 2025 12:12 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lydamorehouse I'm hoping to do an old-fashioned, LJ-era type con report for Minicon, which starts today.
I'm obviously not there yet. My first panel is tonight at 5:30 pm, which is an awkward time for me. I was shown my schedule several months ago, of course, but I didn't really fully consider the time slots. You maybe know how it is? I was more focused, at the time, on the subject matters and whether or not I thought I would be a good fit. I don't remember being asked if there were times and dates I couldn't do, but I also missed the first email that went out--it ended up in my spam box somehow. So, that's probably also on me.
At any rate, I could not have predicted that Shawn would be in the middle of performance review crunch time at work. She really wanted to be able to stay late and finish things up as today is her deadline for the last of them. And, since we are a one car family, I need to get her home and be on the road at LEAST by 5:00 pm and even that feels a little risky. (Highway 494 is under construction and 5:00 is rush hour.) So, I am already anxious about everything and wondering when the heck I'm going to get a chance to even eat. Again, Shawn and I are old ladies and so we eat at 4:30-5:00 pm most days. There's just not going to be time for that.
Currently, the plan for food involves stopping at Breadsmiths on the way to pick her up and eating a sandwich in the car on the way to the con. Shawn, at least, has leftover homemade pasties in the fridge. Maybe those would be okay cold? I think there is enough for both of us to have one. Maybe I'm saved. We'll see.
Anyway, tonight will be kind of a stressful mess (at least partly of my own making) even before I actually sit down to try to moderate the panel. At least we were able to shift our date night to Thursday (last night) thanks to my writers' group Pendragons canceling. So, this was fun. We always do dinner and a movie or if you prefer, Netflix and chill (wink, wink.) Last night, Shawn and I ended up watching The Electric State. I have a lot of mixed feelings about this one. Did anyone else see it? It's brand new, a 2025 release, and has that annoying dude, Star Lord, in it--one of the Marvel Chris-es. (I think this is the one that's actually Minnesotan, originally from Virginia. Yes, Chris Pratt.) Shawn and I talked about it afterwards, like you do, and for us the problem was that it was absolutely 100% NOT a "feel good" movie. A lot of people that you get very invested in die. And, seriously, the solution to the the plot is assisted suicide. So, I mean.... it's kind of hard to cheer at the end? There were a lot of other things we both liked about it, but you get to the end feeling very "..." which is not the stuff blockbuster movies are made of, you know? Not ones starring Chris Pratt and which have a lot of jocular humor in them. The tone just wasn't right at the beginning for that downer of an ending. At last not for us. I'd love to hear what you thought of it, if you've seen it.
But, back to tonight, I really can't be late to the con tonight because not only am I the moderator, but also one of the guests of honor, Wesley Chu, is going to be on the panel. I absolutely do not want to start out with my foot in it, you know? Especially since I have a panel later, on Saturday, with him as well.
The subject matter of tonight's panel should be easy to moderate, I hope. It's "On Learning How to Write." The panel description itself gives a basic set of questions to start with and I have found that it's often not difficult to get writers to talk about their process and/or writing, in general. Of couse, now that I've said this, the panelists will all be taciturn and closed-mouthed and I'll have to break out a song and dance routine just to get through the hour or however long we have.
I think that's everything I'm pre-thinking about. I had a chance to look through the programming book, which is online as a .pdf at Minicon's main site: https://mnstf.org/minicon58/ There is a movie showing tonight in the Film Obscura room that actually interests me: "The New Mutants." I've long been a Marvel fan and I never made it to the theater to see this one, so I am vaguely tempted to hang around long enough tonight to catch it.
Oh, that's the other thing I failed to pay attention to in terms of my schedule, I am the OPPOSITE of a night owl (a morning lark!) and all my panels tomorrow go WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY past my bedtime. Like, I have one that starts at 10 pm. With my CoCoRaHS volunteering, too, I am actually required to be up before 7 am every single day of the week. I'm usually up by 5:30-6:00 am so that's not a huge problem, but it is more difficult when I don't get to bed until after 11 pm. And, I will be honest with you, my friends, I am in bed, sound asleep many nights by 8:30 pm. So, even having a panel that starts at 7 pm feels really LATE to me.
I'm also likely going to one of very few people masking the entire time so that ought to be... interesting, as we say here in Minnesota. I know this makes me a Dolly Downer. But, y'all, no offense. It's not about your health status. I'm not judging you. My wife is immunocompromised. I'm sure you're bummed not to see my smiling face, but your momentary pleasure is not worth her life. Full stop. Sorry/not sorry. I had a very telling back and forth with someone in MNstF via text not that long ago, wherein it was patently clear that if I wanted to show up to the business meeting/party with a mask on, I wasn't welcome. So... that's extra fun.
I'm not really made for conventions any more, I am realizing. I used to be? But I was also thirty years younger back then.
Oh well. Bonus, just in time for people to be pulling back on all their virtual programming, too. Alack, alas, what do you do. I'm still expecting to have a great deal of fun this weekend. Maybe I'll see some of you all there!
I'm obviously not there yet. My first panel is tonight at 5:30 pm, which is an awkward time for me. I was shown my schedule several months ago, of course, but I didn't really fully consider the time slots. You maybe know how it is? I was more focused, at the time, on the subject matters and whether or not I thought I would be a good fit. I don't remember being asked if there were times and dates I couldn't do, but I also missed the first email that went out--it ended up in my spam box somehow. So, that's probably also on me.
At any rate, I could not have predicted that Shawn would be in the middle of performance review crunch time at work. She really wanted to be able to stay late and finish things up as today is her deadline for the last of them. And, since we are a one car family, I need to get her home and be on the road at LEAST by 5:00 pm and even that feels a little risky. (Highway 494 is under construction and 5:00 is rush hour.) So, I am already anxious about everything and wondering when the heck I'm going to get a chance to even eat. Again, Shawn and I are old ladies and so we eat at 4:30-5:00 pm most days. There's just not going to be time for that.
Currently, the plan for food involves stopping at Breadsmiths on the way to pick her up and eating a sandwich in the car on the way to the con. Shawn, at least, has leftover homemade pasties in the fridge. Maybe those would be okay cold? I think there is enough for both of us to have one. Maybe I'm saved. We'll see.
Anyway, tonight will be kind of a stressful mess (at least partly of my own making) even before I actually sit down to try to moderate the panel. At least we were able to shift our date night to Thursday (last night) thanks to my writers' group Pendragons canceling. So, this was fun. We always do dinner and a movie or if you prefer, Netflix and chill (wink, wink.) Last night, Shawn and I ended up watching The Electric State. I have a lot of mixed feelings about this one. Did anyone else see it? It's brand new, a 2025 release, and has that annoying dude, Star Lord, in it--one of the Marvel Chris-es. (I think this is the one that's actually Minnesotan, originally from Virginia. Yes, Chris Pratt.) Shawn and I talked about it afterwards, like you do, and for us the problem was that it was absolutely 100% NOT a "feel good" movie. A lot of people that you get very invested in die. And, seriously, the solution to the the plot is assisted suicide. So, I mean.... it's kind of hard to cheer at the end? There were a lot of other things we both liked about it, but you get to the end feeling very "..." which is not the stuff blockbuster movies are made of, you know? Not ones starring Chris Pratt and which have a lot of jocular humor in them. The tone just wasn't right at the beginning for that downer of an ending. At last not for us. I'd love to hear what you thought of it, if you've seen it.
But, back to tonight, I really can't be late to the con tonight because not only am I the moderator, but also one of the guests of honor, Wesley Chu, is going to be on the panel. I absolutely do not want to start out with my foot in it, you know? Especially since I have a panel later, on Saturday, with him as well.
The subject matter of tonight's panel should be easy to moderate, I hope. It's "On Learning How to Write." The panel description itself gives a basic set of questions to start with and I have found that it's often not difficult to get writers to talk about their process and/or writing, in general. Of couse, now that I've said this, the panelists will all be taciturn and closed-mouthed and I'll have to break out a song and dance routine just to get through the hour or however long we have.
I think that's everything I'm pre-thinking about. I had a chance to look through the programming book, which is online as a .pdf at Minicon's main site: https://mnstf.org/minicon58/ There is a movie showing tonight in the Film Obscura room that actually interests me: "The New Mutants." I've long been a Marvel fan and I never made it to the theater to see this one, so I am vaguely tempted to hang around long enough tonight to catch it.
Oh, that's the other thing I failed to pay attention to in terms of my schedule, I am the OPPOSITE of a night owl (a morning lark!) and all my panels tomorrow go WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY past my bedtime. Like, I have one that starts at 10 pm. With my CoCoRaHS volunteering, too, I am actually required to be up before 7 am every single day of the week. I'm usually up by 5:30-6:00 am so that's not a huge problem, but it is more difficult when I don't get to bed until after 11 pm. And, I will be honest with you, my friends, I am in bed, sound asleep many nights by 8:30 pm. So, even having a panel that starts at 7 pm feels really LATE to me.
I'm also likely going to one of very few people masking the entire time so that ought to be... interesting, as we say here in Minnesota. I know this makes me a Dolly Downer. But, y'all, no offense. It's not about your health status. I'm not judging you. My wife is immunocompromised. I'm sure you're bummed not to see my smiling face, but your momentary pleasure is not worth her life. Full stop. Sorry/not sorry. I had a very telling back and forth with someone in MNstF via text not that long ago, wherein it was patently clear that if I wanted to show up to the business meeting/party with a mask on, I wasn't welcome. So... that's extra fun.
I'm not really made for conventions any more, I am realizing. I used to be? But I was also thirty years younger back then.
Oh well. Bonus, just in time for people to be pulling back on all their virtual programming, too. Alack, alas, what do you do. I'm still expecting to have a great deal of fun this weekend. Maybe I'll see some of you all there!
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Date: 2025-04-18 06:47 pm (UTC)Did you get my comment about Monkey King? Any questions?
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Date: 2025-04-18 07:08 pm (UTC)So, yeah, taxi was just suggested to me privately also (as was light rail), but taxis are an expense (and ubers are an app) that we COULD fork out, but I mean, I think I'm just going to have to drop and run and hope for the best.
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Date: 2025-04-18 07:24 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-04-18 07:50 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-04-18 08:04 pm (UTC)https://lydamorehouse.dreamwidth.org/712720.html?thread=3781648#cmt3781648
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Date: 2025-04-18 08:30 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-04-18 08:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-04-19 02:36 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-04-18 08:14 pm (UTC)I'm not going to Minicon because masking all the time and not going to dinner with friends simply overwhelms such executive function as I still possess after the rigors of the pandemic (and possibly after making it to being 72 years old, I don't know). I am sure I'd have a better time than I think I would, but it's just hard to even contemplate.
I would like to know who that MinnStf host was; such a reaction is utterly unconscionable. I myself don't go to indoor meetings, only to the picnics or meetings with a good outdoor component, but I absolutely put on a mask if I have to use the bathroom or want to get some food from inside. I'd like to see anybody make a fuss at me about it; fuck them. I also don't like all the hosts and don't go to all meetings, so I hope it's one of those people. ARGH.
I understand if you really just don't want to tell me who it was, either here or in private messages.
Have a great time, I'm sorry to be missing a chance to see you in person.
P.
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Date: 2025-04-18 10:24 pm (UTC)K.
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Date: 2025-04-19 02:38 pm (UTC)If people are DYING to know, I will see what I can do.
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Date: 2025-04-21 07:43 pm (UTC)P.
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Date: 2025-04-19 02:40 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-04-20 12:04 am (UTC)P
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Date: 2025-04-18 09:59 pm (UTC)I feel like my willingness to wrangle logistics has dropped off as I've gotten older. I can do it if I have to but I like either a routine or a gentle meander where no one is expecting me at a particular time and I can adjust based on what's feeling best at the time. So I am very sympathetic to the feeling that you're not made for conventions any more. I stopped going to them a while back (but I'm an introvert, so I don't miss them as much).
Solidarity with masking. For me, it's not even that I'm protecting someone else, although if that were the case it would add more urgency. I just don't mind masking and now I don't get sick any more and it's rather nice.
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Date: 2025-04-19 02:45 pm (UTC)I have LOVED not being sick. I can't actually remember the last time I had even a cold. That is definitely a plus!!
As I note in a comment above, I've discovered that (as I age? post-isolation pandemic times?) I am much less willing to spend as much time as I used to be able to in large crowds. I still, like any good extrovert, get a lot of energy just being around other humans, but I find that I simply prefer smaller gatherings these days.
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Date: 2025-04-18 10:25 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-04-19 02:45 pm (UTC)Good to know!
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Date: 2025-04-19 09:50 am (UTC)what the ever-loving-blue-eyed fuck?!?!?!? i can understand not masking--i have to pick and choose my times because for me it's a battle between trying to protect myself vs possibly passing out due to my difficulties breathing, but what possible reason would there be for not letting someone else mask? how could that affect them? i can't even.....
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Date: 2025-04-19 02:48 pm (UTC)Them: you could come to the party/meeeting [to pick up the thing!]
Me: Sounds great! Is it okay if I'm masking?
Them: [long silence before next text]
Me: [wondering if this is just a 'no.' Figuring this is probably a no.]
Them: [many minutes later] We should probably figure out a different way to do this.
Me: Sure!
Them: [No other reply has been forthcoming.}
So, I mean, it was subtle-ish??
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Date: 2025-04-21 07:44 pm (UTC)P.
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Date: 2025-04-22 08:45 pm (UTC)Speaking as a board member (but this is not an official statement of the board, because it's just me reading this just now, but I'm sure I can make it an official statement of the board next time we have a meeting), that is emphatically NOT our policy. The club welcomes you with a mask on, and anyone who gives you crap for it is not speaking for the club.