Of Discworld and Twins
My trip to Arizona was a lovely one - it was hot, but dry despite being in "monsoon" season. My family are doing well and happy, my father is now 61 and his new year was happily kicked off - even if Mom wouldn't let the poor people at Red Lobster sing to him - and we were very happy to get an opportunity to spend time together, ignoring the fact that I was sitting at a computer or with my Blackberry to my ear most of the time.
The convention, however - NADWCON, or North American DiscWorld CONvention - was unconventional and truly a wonderful time! It started, for me at least, on Friday after Daddy's birthday lunch.
My dear friend Will and his beautiful girlfriend Sharlot came by the house to pick me up for the con. They spent some time talking with my parents and fit in better than imagined - my parents have two more children, just what they need. After the chat, we were off to Tempe, Mission Palms, and Ankh-Morpork!
Upon checking in, comparing con buttons, and soaking in the cultured atmosphere, we went to our first panel - a punning panel entitled "Born to Pune". Naturally, a groaning good time was had by all three of us, along with everyone else in the room. We then took a good long look at the art show - where I bought four lovely pictures that will have happy hanging places of honor on my wall - and giggled over some of the pieces. From there we were merchant room bound! There was money to be spent, by gum, and we were just the people to do it!
As always, the room was awashed with color and sounds and people. It was wonderful! I fell in love with a wonderful corset - made by this lovely lady - but fought off the urge to pick it up. Instead, we were stopped by a vendor with some lovely hats to sell. It turned out that Will owed Sharlot a hat - don't deny it, dear, we all know it was true - so they examined the wares while I spoke with the Dibbler. It turns out that he was once a member of the Society for Creative Anacronism and knew some of the same people that I did. Definitely a sign that it is a small but wonderful world.
Will paid for Sharlot's hat and we continued around the room. There was a booth with stuffed animals in chainmail - and chainmail bikinis - that attracted my interest, but they did not take cards and I, wisely, had chosen to take no cash with me. The etched glass booth was lots of fun too and I almost talked Will and Sharlot into buying a Jolly Rogerina glass. There were books aplenty, over-priced jewelry that was lovely to look at, normally priced jewelry that almost twisted my arm, and so much other STUFF!
Which brought us full circle and back to the corsets. I allowed myself to be talked into trying one on and it was genuinely the most comfortable undergarment that I have worn in, well, my lifetime. I relaxed into it and let it hold me straight. I honestly could have simply walked around like that all day and been perfectly happy to do so. But the price made me realize I would have to think twice and - likely - make payments - which of course they offered me, tricksy wonderful women that they were! It was time to grab a bite to eat, however, so I gave them back my new love and off we went.
We wandered Mill for a bit - enjoying the sights and sounds of the college students and con-goers mingling - and choose My Big Fat Greek Restaurant as our dinner place, for the promise of Greek food, not the name. And it was well worth it! Tasty food all the way round and far too much of it for me to finish. I got the leftovers boxed and found a homeless gentleman in the street to give them to. I hope he enjoyed it as much as I did!
We headed back to the convention, just in time for the Seamstress Guild Reception - Yay! It was wonderfully well done and we felt rather silly for having had dinner as they had a lovely spread of fruits and cheeses and all kinds of other things to eat. We partook because it looked so good, but there was really very little room available.
Sadly, I did not have my camera that first day, so the following picture is for effect only.
This is Sir Terry Pratchett. He looks remarkably like my father. Almost disturbingly so, as you will later see. The reception was a hit, the ladies of the Guild - as well as the representative of the Men's Auxilary - were beautifully dressed, and Sir Pterry was charming and eloquent and generous. He paid for everyone to have a picture taken by a professional photographer to remember the event. Such a generous gesture!
Will and Sharlot dropped me back at my parents' house and I told them all about what a very fun day I had. I told them about the remarkable resemblance between my father and Sir PTerry - not to mention the fact that the good knight is a mere five months older than Daddy. A plan was conceived, the results of which you will see later on. The bed and I became reacquainted and Friday was over.
Saturday morning dawned, and it was time to get back to the con! This was the morning that we were going to be able to get Sir PTerry's autograph - the sessions were wisely assigned - and so we couldn't help but be bouncy. We got our tickets and - through magic or luck - I ended up with 42. As a huge DNA fan, this seemed to promise a great day. I had to dash to the merchant room again - there was a plan to find a DW postcard to frame and hang on my wall which didn't pan out so I ended up with a lovely hardback copy of The Fifth Elephant - and then we were back in line.
In said line, I noticed that they were taking the number back. Now, I had already decided that I wanted to get IT autographed, so I asked if this was possible. There was some question, until everyone saw what the number was. Suddenly it was all no problem at all. And when I got to Sir PTerry and explained why I wanted it signed, I got my first story of the day. You see, it turns out that
the man himself was a Douglas Adams fan too. He was alone in a hotel room when he heard DNA had died, and so had sung a memorial based on one written into the radio shows. Sir PTerry also stated that, since DNA had died in a gym, he had sworn off gyms instantly at that moment. And then he told of buying one of the first official H2G2 towels offered. You had to go up the back stairs and around a corner somewhere deep in SoHo, and when he chose his towel, he was told he would have to wait to get the instructions. He stood there, running through all of the various instructions in the Hitchhiker's books wondering which he would be presented with and then was handed... Washing instructions for the towel itself.
There were more panels - Publishers, Agents, and Editors for Will; Myth in the Discworld for Sharlot and me - and then it was lunch time. We headed for the sushi place across the way that had been spotted the day before and had a lovely light lunch - just hitting the spot. Going back to the con, we got to listen to Sir PTerry tell more stories and answer questions sent in by fans - which is where the already displayed picture above came from. One of the questions he answered was actually mine, making for a second story for me that day! I had asked if the major feline character in his book - an antagonistic protagonist if every there was one - named Greebo was based on an actual cat of his acquaintance. The answer was yes. He was based on a giant, dour marmalade tom by the name of Oscar. Oscar tormented all of the cats around them, but seemed to pick especially on the little lady cat who owned Sir PTerry at the time. One day he was sitting on the porch and saw the lady cat sprinting across the yard and onto the - thankfully covered - water barrel. "That dreadful Oscar" - said with contempt - was chasing her, but when he attempted to jump up, he was met with a feline roundhouse that hurt him badly enough to send him off, muttering under his breath.
From there, we had to leave the con to return Sharlot to her vehicle - as she had to work the next day, there was little choice. I was introduced to her two happy kitties as well as her mother. Then we went to a little Mexican restaurant about two blocks away and enjoyed a friendly dinner. Sadly, we left Sharlot to head back to her federal housing, and Will and I picked up beer and wine and headed back to my parents' place to hang out.
****
I think that I will leave this here for now. Otherwise, it will gobble up Friends' Pages all over this site.
More to follow tomorrow, including the promised results of the plan hatched above and some self-pampering.
The convention, however - NADWCON, or North American DiscWorld CONvention - was unconventional and truly a wonderful time! It started, for me at least, on Friday after Daddy's birthday lunch.
My dear friend Will and his beautiful girlfriend Sharlot came by the house to pick me up for the con. They spent some time talking with my parents and fit in better than imagined - my parents have two more children, just what they need. After the chat, we were off to Tempe, Mission Palms, and Ankh-Morpork!
Upon checking in, comparing con buttons, and soaking in the cultured atmosphere, we went to our first panel - a punning panel entitled "Born to Pune". Naturally, a groaning good time was had by all three of us, along with everyone else in the room. We then took a good long look at the art show - where I bought four lovely pictures that will have happy hanging places of honor on my wall - and giggled over some of the pieces. From there we were merchant room bound! There was money to be spent, by gum, and we were just the people to do it!
As always, the room was awashed with color and sounds and people. It was wonderful! I fell in love with a wonderful corset - made by this lovely lady - but fought off the urge to pick it up. Instead, we were stopped by a vendor with some lovely hats to sell. It turned out that Will owed Sharlot a hat - don't deny it, dear, we all know it was true - so they examined the wares while I spoke with the Dibbler. It turns out that he was once a member of the Society for Creative Anacronism and knew some of the same people that I did. Definitely a sign that it is a small but wonderful world.
Will paid for Sharlot's hat and we continued around the room. There was a booth with stuffed animals in chainmail - and chainmail bikinis - that attracted my interest, but they did not take cards and I, wisely, had chosen to take no cash with me. The etched glass booth was lots of fun too and I almost talked Will and Sharlot into buying a Jolly Rogerina glass. There were books aplenty, over-priced jewelry that was lovely to look at, normally priced jewelry that almost twisted my arm, and so much other STUFF!
Which brought us full circle and back to the corsets. I allowed myself to be talked into trying one on and it was genuinely the most comfortable undergarment that I have worn in, well, my lifetime. I relaxed into it and let it hold me straight. I honestly could have simply walked around like that all day and been perfectly happy to do so. But the price made me realize I would have to think twice and - likely - make payments - which of course they offered me, tricksy wonderful women that they were! It was time to grab a bite to eat, however, so I gave them back my new love and off we went.
We wandered Mill for a bit - enjoying the sights and sounds of the college students and con-goers mingling - and choose My Big Fat Greek Restaurant as our dinner place, for the promise of Greek food, not the name. And it was well worth it! Tasty food all the way round and far too much of it for me to finish. I got the leftovers boxed and found a homeless gentleman in the street to give them to. I hope he enjoyed it as much as I did!
We headed back to the convention, just in time for the Seamstress Guild Reception - Yay! It was wonderfully well done and we felt rather silly for having had dinner as they had a lovely spread of fruits and cheeses and all kinds of other things to eat. We partook because it looked so good, but there was really very little room available.
Sadly, I did not have my camera that first day, so the following picture is for effect only.
This is Sir Terry Pratchett. He looks remarkably like my father. Almost disturbingly so, as you will later see. The reception was a hit, the ladies of the Guild - as well as the representative of the Men's Auxilary - were beautifully dressed, and Sir Pterry was charming and eloquent and generous. He paid for everyone to have a picture taken by a professional photographer to remember the event. Such a generous gesture!
Will and Sharlot dropped me back at my parents' house and I told them all about what a very fun day I had. I told them about the remarkable resemblance between my father and Sir PTerry - not to mention the fact that the good knight is a mere five months older than Daddy. A plan was conceived, the results of which you will see later on. The bed and I became reacquainted and Friday was over.
Saturday morning dawned, and it was time to get back to the con! This was the morning that we were going to be able to get Sir PTerry's autograph - the sessions were wisely assigned - and so we couldn't help but be bouncy. We got our tickets and - through magic or luck - I ended up with 42. As a huge DNA fan, this seemed to promise a great day. I had to dash to the merchant room again - there was a plan to find a DW postcard to frame and hang on my wall which didn't pan out so I ended up with a lovely hardback copy of The Fifth Elephant - and then we were back in line.
In said line, I noticed that they were taking the number back. Now, I had already decided that I wanted to get IT autographed, so I asked if this was possible. There was some question, until everyone saw what the number was. Suddenly it was all no problem at all. And when I got to Sir PTerry and explained why I wanted it signed, I got my first story of the day. You see, it turns out that
the man himself was a Douglas Adams fan too. He was alone in a hotel room when he heard DNA had died, and so had sung a memorial based on one written into the radio shows. Sir PTerry also stated that, since DNA had died in a gym, he had sworn off gyms instantly at that moment. And then he told of buying one of the first official H2G2 towels offered. You had to go up the back stairs and around a corner somewhere deep in SoHo, and when he chose his towel, he was told he would have to wait to get the instructions. He stood there, running through all of the various instructions in the Hitchhiker's books wondering which he would be presented with and then was handed... Washing instructions for the towel itself.
There were more panels - Publishers, Agents, and Editors for Will; Myth in the Discworld for Sharlot and me - and then it was lunch time. We headed for the sushi place across the way that had been spotted the day before and had a lovely light lunch - just hitting the spot. Going back to the con, we got to listen to Sir PTerry tell more stories and answer questions sent in by fans - which is where the already displayed picture above came from. One of the questions he answered was actually mine, making for a second story for me that day! I had asked if the major feline character in his book - an antagonistic protagonist if every there was one - named Greebo was based on an actual cat of his acquaintance. The answer was yes. He was based on a giant, dour marmalade tom by the name of Oscar. Oscar tormented all of the cats around them, but seemed to pick especially on the little lady cat who owned Sir PTerry at the time. One day he was sitting on the porch and saw the lady cat sprinting across the yard and onto the - thankfully covered - water barrel. "That dreadful Oscar" - said with contempt - was chasing her, but when he attempted to jump up, he was met with a feline roundhouse that hurt him badly enough to send him off, muttering under his breath.
From there, we had to leave the con to return Sharlot to her vehicle - as she had to work the next day, there was little choice. I was introduced to her two happy kitties as well as her mother. Then we went to a little Mexican restaurant about two blocks away and enjoyed a friendly dinner. Sadly, we left Sharlot to head back to her federal housing, and Will and I picked up beer and wine and headed back to my parents' place to hang out.
****
I think that I will leave this here for now. Otherwise, it will gobble up Friends' Pages all over this site.
More to follow tomorrow, including the promised results of the plan hatched above and some self-pampering.