InConJunction

I was less than well organized getting ready for the con (sadly typical), so I got a minimal array of art together Friday morning and finally hit the road around 12:30.  I got to the con a little after 3.  I checked in smoothly and they told me at the front desk that my reservation had been properly reset to the convention rate.  I had an inconvenience that was starting to work its way up to being a problem, when I pulled up to the front door and the valet parking dude told me that he'd called a luggage cart for me and it would be there momentarily, so I unloaded stuff from the back of the car and then stood waiting for what seemed like a really long time (mainly because I really needed to pee), but finally a bellman arrived with a cart.  He took my stuff to my room while I parked, and when I got to the room, made a point of showing me the amenities of my room.  Oddly enough, when it seemed like the appropriate moment for me to give him a tip, rather than pausing for me to give him one, he did a very quick exit, and I soon discovered the one thing that was really wrong with the hotel: it has fire trap doors on the stairwells (always locked from the inside, so you can't get out anywhere except at the bottom; if the bottom of the stairs is blocked by fire, you die in the stairwell -- hence "fire trap doors") so I had to spend the whole doggone weekend taking the elevator.  Fortunately, the elevators weren't terribly oversubscribed and I didn't have any really bad elevator experiences -- but it is still a major flaw in the hotel.

( my con events in some detail )

Interspersed between the regular events were several extended conversations with various people.  I did spend some time wandering around looking for something to do, but a fair bit more talking to people, both people I knew (especially filkertom, "Mad" Mike Williams, and Chris Marks) and a couple of people I didn't know (someone whose name badge gave his first name as Christian and his last name as something I forget, and the person manning the Capricon booth that I probably should know, but don't).  Less hugging than I would have liked, but I didn't feel terribly lost.  A decent con experience; I judge it worth both the time and money.

It felt good to be playing and singing, but I felt like a bit of a heel for being so out of practice.  Fortunately, I guess I've managed to absorb enough performance skills that I don't actually merit a rotten tomato barrage even when I feel like I'm fumbling every other chord and ought to go drown myself in a bucket.  I gave my contact info to someone who schedules housefilks in Indy, and I hope I will be able to manage to actually get to some.  (I'm also hoping that once bedlamhouse and ladyat are fully established, they'll let me know sometimes when music is happening at their place, because I'm sure it will be happening a lot.  If I get whacked with this feeling that I owe it to myself and to others to practice more often, maybe I can restore the habit I used to have of practicing regularly.)