DragonCon 2009 - After Action Summary, Thursday and Friday

DragonCon ruled, as always. And here I am, a few weeks later, trying to go back and blog about it. But, ah ha! I have PICTURES! (If you don't know what DragonCon is or why I care about it, look at older entries. Or hell, just read this stuff and look at the pictures, it ought to sell itself. Or, ya know, google it.

I liked the format I came up with last year, so I'm going to stick with it. This post is the root, and everything will (eventually) grow off of it. As these other pages are finished, this set of links will go live. I just with I'd taken better notes....

DragonCon 2009 Posts:
DragonCon 2009 - After Action Summary, Thrusday and Friday
DragonCon 2009 - After Action Summary, Saturday
DragonCon 2009 - After Action Summary, Sunday and Monday
DragonCon 2009 Costumes: Super Heroes
DragonCon 2009 Costumes: Star Wars
DragonCon 2009 Costumes: misc.
DragonCon 2009 Costumes: SteamPunk
DragonCon 2009 Gun Babes
DragonCon 2009 - The Ladies of DragonCon

A Note On Picture Size -- Photobucket doesn't make it as convenient to make the pictures links as they used to. It can still be done, but I don't feel like going back through and making all these pics links. That said, the images as posted are full resolution, the size is just reduced in the HTML. What that means to you is, if you want the pic full-size just Right-Click and Save or View Image. Either way, you'll get it full-size.

I'm not even going to try and blog every single picture I took, so here's a link to the big photobucket with all my DragonCon 2009 photos.


Actually, I should just state right up front that my own memories will be suplemented by the far more accurate and verbose recolections of my Estemed Colleague, Partner in Mayhem, and Personal Chronicler, Luggagemonkeys. If he wants his real name up here, he'll tell me and I'll change it. Until then, just know that I'll be leaning on his version of events whenever my own memory dims, which is going to be pretty much any fact espoused here not corroborated by photographic evidence. But I strongly encourage you to check out his writings on the matter, he being a far more potent wordsmith than myself.


Thursday

At some point we decided that we'd played with enough epoxy glue and repainted enough toy guns, and we might as well get up and go over to DragonCon. Ya know, what the hell, right? After a pleasantly uneventful drive over to Atlanta we shacked up with Mrs. Utini's cousin, his wife, and their daughter, the same family we introduced to Dragon last year but with Dad not doing stuff for the Army this time. We all figured the sooner we could get our registration shit out of the way the better, and we knew we'd need to print out our TicketMaster paperwork and take IDs with us to pick them up.

This is where we hit our first little snag.
I'd forgotten to buy tickets.

I had forgotten to buy tickets to fucking DragonCon!

Now, its not like I forgot to get a room at the hotel. You can just waive cash around and get in the door to this thing, but that just isn't going to cut it for the hotel rooms. So really, this just meant that I got the gouge-you-at-the-door price, instead of the properly-planned-ahead price. Live and learn, I guess. It sure as hell coulda been worse. Again, with the hotel room.

We didn't really do anything exciting that night, but I did hit a book store and finally picked up trade paperbacks of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, which I'd never bothered to read. I tell you what, within the first fifty pages I was already annoyed at the movies for all the stuff they changed, left out, or just handled in as cheap and meaningless a manner as possible.


Friday

After the typical meat-grinder of getting all our crap up to the room (made far more difficult this year by our new-found interest in playing dress up, and my insistence to bring an entire foot locker of new toy guns) we inserted ourselves into the rat race of DragonCon registration, jumping lines at some point for the much-faster "cash only," line. Sure, I'd have rather hung onto that cash for the Dealer's Room, but the hell with waiting in line! I would be remiss if I didn't mention the minor little fit I pitched about the badges -- see, we got kid-size con badges. Seems you only get the "normal" size badges if you pre-register, which I'd forgotten to do. Being as how I sure as hell didn't pay the small entry fee, why the hell do I get stuck with the mini badge? Anyway, it worked just fine, it just pissed me off... and it doesn't match the rest of the con-badge collection...

It was at some vague and inspecific point in around here that Mr. Clerx and our mutual accomplice Jacob humped all his crap up to our room, as he was to be joining us in our room, in an unofficial capacity. Meanwhile Mrs. Utini and I had gotten registered and were doing our first bit of walk-about before going back up to the room to dress out. I'd like to take a moment and quote directly from my Chronicler, and if he minds he can just punch me in the face over it next time we're punching each other in the face.

This was the sea of bodies in which I was adrift, vaguely in search of someone I knew. The crowd musters on Friday afternoon, most attendees shuffling tensely through sorting and registration. Then luggage is cracked open, friends are found, and everyone delights in swapping their “people suits” for more expressive personae. The place is fucking awash in esprit de corps. Facepaint and fresh corsets are everywhere; the place even has that “new Con smell” of leather, perfume, fine tobacco smoke and fresh-peeled latex, with flecks of newly dried spray paint drifting at the periphery. Squeals and flashbulbs flicker constantly at the edge of your senses, like the chariots all pulled in to Valhalla at the same time, wheels a-smokin’.
-- Luggagemonkeys

Meanwhile the little lady and myself were parusing the various offerings to be had in the dealer's rooms. There were a few items we both wanted to pick up, or at least keep an eye out for, and we gave the whole spread a good, quick once-over. After popping back to the room for a quick snack and re-group with Jacob it was time to play dress-up, because the way things were looking to play out Friday night was going to be Steampunk Day at DragonCon. Being new to the costuming thing, I was pretty excited about it. These were our Friday night get-ups:


Note the vintage spats, hand-made holster, and classic Nintendo light gun (with a new coat of paint).


Cowboy hats, yo. Cowboy hats.



Anyway, we got all gussied up and headed down from the room and out to the party. My eventual goal was to make it to the Brass Goggles meet-up in the Hyatt bar. It was amusing to watch the faces of folks around the bar, a normally safe ground for the more "normal" folks at the con, as they slowly realized they were surrounded by brown leather, brass, and plasma disks. The meet-up was a high-light of the con for me, meeting folks (if rather briefly) whom I've spoken with online, and generally being part of a big ass batch of like minded freakery.

Just a few pics from the meet-up for now. I'm saving the rest for the Costumes: Steampunk post.




I had tried to get a group shot organized on the forum before the con, but it became clear that to successfully pre-plan something like that I was going to have get pretty damn pushy, so I said the hell with it. Well, after the third lady said something to me about getting a group shot organized I took matters into my own hands. Climbing up on my own hind legs I drew a might breath and called out, thrice, "All steampunks, group photo, main lobby, right now!" And I only had to do it three times! Just three good shouts got everyone moving, those lovely motivated Victorians.

Now, being a part of the group, I didn't take these next shots myself, and I don't remember where I downloaded them from -- if they are yours, let me know.


I'm waaaaaay in the back on this one, holding my rifle aloft.





These next two, however, I did take. These were the "all girls," line up:




Show a little leg, ladies!

The meet up was a lot of fun. As it broke up I went back to trolling the con. That's pretty much what I do at con --- get dressed up, fire up the camera, and just start walkin' and talkin'. Looking for friends, dodging nemesises, and generally just takin' it all in. In these travels I was witness to a spectacle more fit for Mardi Gras than DragonCon. The Atlanta Police objected to this spectacle, and Photobucket does not approve of the evidence, but one lady decided who needs a costume, when you've got tits!

Mr. Roboto approves of this decision.

I had a nipple shot, but photobucket, well, they didn't like it. :-(

I spent a lot of time Friday night just screwing around. There were things going on that I wanted to go to, like the Steampunk Time Travelers Ball, but the line went out the door, around the corner and out of LOS, and Charlie don't wait in line. I had Mrs. Utini with me for most of this phase, between her power naps. Here are a few pictures of her with various costumed types.

Cruxshadows Faeries






We also found Dave and Cooper, plus Will, at some vague and unspecified point in the weekend. I would hook up with these folks on and off throught the con, and here's a picture of Cooper plus ears:



After a bit of wandering my lovely bride went back to the room for another power nap. We had a lot of time to kill (they didn't go on until almost 2:00, I totally could have played a game or something at this point, but just kept wandering) before the Big Show for Friday night -- Abney Park. I didn't take any pics of the actual show, but I did get a few fun shots of Nathan (their bass player) over the course of the weekend.



The show was good. I've seen them play better, they were a bit scattered and unfocused, but under the circumstances they did a damn fine job (even with the shit sound mix). Finn had left the band about 2 weeks before the convention, and the new girl who was filling in was... OK. Given how long she had to get ready she hit it out of the park, no doubt about it. And with time she may fit into the band better. On the day, though, her voice was a bit too "strong," given the ethereal quality I'm used to. That might be part of it, too, I'm just very used to Finn as background, but where Finn sounds exotic and steampunk, the new girl sounded brash and dieselpunk. The image I kept getting from her voice was Willy Scott singing in Temple of Doom.



You'd think I'd have just gone to bed after the show, but no, I had to wander around until like 5 in the morning or something. I took more pics (of course) which will show up in their theme-appropriate galleries.


On to Saturday...

LeVar Burton is gettin' the bump!

I've finally got all the pics I took at DragonCon cleaned up, so I'll be posting them over the next chunk of linear time. And that means instead of looking at LeVar Burton with a bunch of kids, you can look at me with a pair of slave Leias. Now you tell me, which is better?

(The actual posted pictures are higher resolution than this preview shot.)

Reading Rainbow cancelled

Man, did y'all know they canceled Reading Rainbow today? I can trace my love (not only of books) of gluing together mismatched model kits directly to the Reading Rainbow ep. that was basically a behind the scenes of Star Trek The Next Generation, where in they showed a small shuttle pod to be old model car parts with Gilette razors on the sides. And I've been sniffin' glue ever since.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112312561

I gotta question their motives for cancellation, the how/why bit. If true (doubt it, personally) that's pretty crap logic, as I can't think of anything less useful for most kids than Hooked on Phonics the Series. If false (more likely) that's some pretty cheep spin on, "We're done because we're broke." Thanks for all the No Child Gets Ahead money.

Here's that old ep on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCsD5PRoX7I

DragonCon tactical planning

FaeriesHell Batteries

Fueled by the living essence of the fae creatures trapped inside, these handy devices will power any infernal contraption to which the intrepid (and morally flexible) inventor sees fit to attach them. Each Faerie was captured fresh in the wild (efforts continue to achieve breeding of captive specimens) before being inserted into our patented life support and energy extraction system.

Each battery is a hand crafted work of delicately balanced engineering and magick, the details of which are too sensitive to discuss here. Our legal council has also advised us not to disclose any particulars of the life support or essential extraction aparatus, and details of our faerie acquisition practices are similarly not open to external review.

What we can tell you about these lovely and effective little power sources is that the energy generated by each is far more potent than that contained within a simple chemical reaction batter of even 10 times the size. (Note: extended high-energy use will significantly shorten the enclosed faerie's anticipated life span.) The energy is also very easy to work with, being convertible to all common power standards including (but not limited to) AC, DC, photonic, Aetheric, and biomechanoid by any competent quantum mechanic or dedicated home enthusiast.



Their small size allows for easy storage and convenient carry, and their rigid shells both protect their contents and make the mounting of individual FaeriesHell power sources to other devices as simple as mounting a basic metal bracket.



Connections are also standardized, for the convenience of your tinkering. Outside the box thinking may still benefit from standardized parts.


ABOUT THIS PROP:
This fun little set of knik knacks started life as glass seasoning shakers. I took tea lights and cut them down to fit inside the caps, making room for stereo jacks along the way. I added a simple flap of plastic to act as a lever so you could still turn them on and off without taking them apart (it kinda works...). I'd hoped to make the power switch directly accessible though the wide open part of the shaker top, but it just didn't work out that way.







The stereo cable adapter in this picture just shows how the jacks would work, and it was easier to use than a full length cable.



The raised text around the copper tops was achieved with small embossed letter stickers. I played around with doing them over and under the paint; I think I like under better.

The tea lights don't really make them act like light bulbs, but it does impart a certain odd glow, and in the dark they stand out nicely.







The faeries themselves are collectable Japanese figurines.



Their poses were altered slightly to fit the jars, mostly a matter of boiling them so I could cram them throught he jar mouths. The wings were fun. Some are plastic Disney toy fairie wings, some are fishing loures, and there's a plastic dragon fly wing in there, too. I've got some strange stuff to try if I make more of them, like metal meshes and stuff.



The cabling was the fun part. The cables are a mix of guitar, banjo, and cello strings. I drilled holes in the girls where I wanted the cables attached, held them in palce with super glue, and crammed them into the jars. Easy peasy. The ends of the cables don't attach to anything, but you can't tell that inside the caps.




I guess I should also explain the joke (because that always make things more funny...). FaeriesHell is supposed to be a play on the brand name, Duracell. Say it like they used to in the old commercials, it'll make sense.



I haven't decided yet if these (or others like them) are for sale or not...

God damn it, Photobucket!

Fuck you, Photobucket, you god damned piece of shit!

My pics are all fucked up (bandwidth limit exceded) until the 22nd. Which I guess is one way to find out the people are actually looking at them...

Peacekeeper Pulse Pistol

Since I've had so much fun playing with toy guns lately, I went ahead and finished this:



It's a Peacekeeper Pulse Pistol from Farscape. Gods, I loved that show... Anyway, I picked the resin kit up at DragonCon last year and only now got around to assembling and painting it. Its a butt-simple kit, just clean and fill casting problems (none were major, just a few burrs and bubbles) and glue on the laser targeter.

That picture sucks, but I wanted something quick. It doesn't show the nice, subtle finish at all, so I should take a better pic at some point. But the gun isn't just plane old black, I used a metallic dark gray spray paint with brass flecks in it, the label calls it "Oil Rubbed Bronze." Then I inked it black, then lightly resprayed it lightly from above as a highlight. It looks black in anything short of direct light, but when the light catches it you get a subtle brass effect. Its just slightly cheesy -- just like Farscape.