Con-clueless
May. 29th, 2004 01:16 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jayI've been to exactly two SF cons ever -- a Worldcon (Noreascon II, in Boston in 1981) and a local one (Baycon, in 1991). I've never really gotten the impetus... both times I went for just a day membership, didn't know anyone there, sat in on some panels, walked around the dealers' room and bought stuff, and watched people dressed up in costume walk around. It was okay, but I felt very much like an observer at some other community's event, missing the signals and important cues. I didn't stay around in the evenings, since I knew no one and wasn't staying there overnight.
This weekend, many local friends are going to this years' Baycon, which reminds me of the difference in my perception of such events compared to theirs. There must be *something* which draws them back, year after year... I understand intuitively an attraction to Burning Man, say, even having never been there, because of the parallels with camping during field work. But I'm still mostly con-clueless.
That said, I did visit Baycon briefly yesterday, going over to givequestioner a hair-check in her room before the festivities. I wasn't thinking and wore a NASA shirt -- actually, my "SETI Signal Detection Team -- Arecibo'92" polo shirt. Which then resulted in my being stopped and queried twice just between the elevators and parking lot, once by two attractive women with "guest" badges ("I'd like to work there, too!") and another time by some older guy with a mustache and about ten ribbons on his badge -- an organizer of some sort. I suppose that wearing work-related stuff is actually a button-pushing kind of display, in that environment. LOL... I guess that my project-patch-covered NASA flight jacket would be practically fetish-wear, over there. Or maybe not... I still don't really understand the con-cultural values. Anyway, hopefully my friends will enjoy themselves while I'm out at Costco or weeding this weekend. ;-)
This weekend, many local friends are going to this years' Baycon, which reminds me of the difference in my perception of such events compared to theirs. There must be *something* which draws them back, year after year... I understand intuitively an attraction to Burning Man, say, even having never been there, because of the parallels with camping during field work. But I'm still mostly con-clueless.
That said, I did visit Baycon briefly yesterday, going over to give
questioner a hair-check in her room before the festivities. I wasn't thinking and wore a NASA shirt -- actually, my "SETI Signal Detection Team -- Arecibo'92" polo shirt. Which then resulted in my being stopped and queried twice just between the elevators and parking lot, once by two attractive women with "guest" badges ("I'd like to work there, too!") and another time by some older guy with a mustache and about ten ribbons on his badge -- an organizer of some sort. I suppose that wearing work-related stuff is actually a button-pushing kind of display, in that environment. LOL... I guess that my project-patch-covered NASA flight jacket would be practically fetish-wear, over there. Or maybe not... I still don't really understand the con-cultural values. Anyway, hopefully my friends will enjoy themselves while I'm out at Costco or weeding this weekend. ;-)
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Date: 2004-05-30 07:25 am (UTC)And yes, wearing the jacket would be a fashion high point at Baycon. In fact, you could probably get on a number of panels without any problem.
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Date: 2004-05-30 04:20 pm (UTC)In any case, hope that the algae disappears... the fish would be easier to see, too :).
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Date: 2004-05-30 05:14 pm (UTC)You'd probably be mistaken on that. Take a look at the Balticon schedule, ferinstance. Just at a glance, there are panels on "Hubble Space Telescope Update", "Today's Case for Mars. The impact of recent observations with MER data","My heroes have always been scientists and engineers", "Limitations and effects of different FTL systems on SF stories?" Programming will obviously be different between cons, but I think you'd in general find a fair amount of interest in those sorts of topics.
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Date: 2004-06-03 07:31 am (UTC)Actually, I could give a panel talk as well as those guys... except for something like the FTL impacts on stories. But how does one get invited to a panel?
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Date: 2004-06-04 03:37 am (UTC)Er, I haven't done a panel myself, so I don't know. I suspect the answer, as it is so often, is "it depends". =)
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Date: 2004-05-30 05:27 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-06-03 07:32 am (UTC)