Last week I attended Balticon for the sixth year in a row and was a guest for the second year in a row. Balticon is always an amazing experience for me, it fills me with creative energy and the desire to do a million projects. Balticon is a time that I get to meet up with my podcasting family, and that is always great. I never have enough time for everyone, or anyone. Never enough pictures, and never enough sleep, not even close. This year I even violated the 3-2-1 rule (don’t worry, I violated the 2), which is normally a hard and fast rule for me.
I realize after this Balticon, instead of jumping to do all of those new project ideas I have that I need to finish the ones I haven’t finished yet. That is my first priority.
I also come home to the crunch of just a little more than a month in this location. Tek and I will be moving to Ontario this year which brings the highlight of being closer to some of the Balticon family, but further from the friends and community we built here, also, moving away from the radio station is going to be a big adjustment too. So I have less time to jump on this creative energy.
This year Tek wasn’t able to come to Balticon, as Pip said, the Queen needed him more. So the drive down and back was much more difficult. We got in 11am Thursday, and after a nice nap got to see all of the other early birds. Every year Balticon has more and more people arriving on Thursday. Thursday is a day with no programing and a moment to get ready for the con.
Friday brought a nice ease into the con, programing doesn’t start till the afternoon and it’s time that you get registered and set up, also, this year it was the day we had the new media cookout, titled the new media Meat and Great :) That was a blast as always, I LOVED not having to plan or do anything for it this year. This year we must have had 100 people there, and it was a blast as always.
Saturday was full swing con, I was dressed as a TARDIS and part of a time war photoshoot, I regret not having someone take my camera and snap pictures, but based on some of the pictures I have from handing off my camera from the weekend, I’m not sure I would have gotten much. More highlights are the concert by Kim the Comic Book Goodess (She has an album out, go buy it!!!), Podcasters Against Humanity, and of course, Balticon Beats! The New Media Party (Rave), which was awesome. I haven’t danced that hard since I was in my twenties.
Sunday was a blur for me, so many panels, so little food. I had fun though, even for the two panels I was on that only had 4 people in the audience, everything was worthwhile and fun. Beyond the Wall Live was that night as was Nutty Bites Live.
Monday is the day we all say goodbye and just don’t want to.
Every night I was out late and not wanting to go to bed no matter what my body was telling me, I knew I only had these brief moments to see these people.
All in all, a great Balticon, I can’t wait for next year, and next year Tek will be back.
