I had a fine Minicon. I accomplished all my goals (or came close enough), had no great disasters, and had some unexpected moments of magical connection with other people. I came home utterly exhausted, both mentally and physically. I logged 8000-12000 steps per day, most of it stairs. For some people that may not be a lot, but let's just say it's been a long time since I came close to that and I was TIRED. I was so mentally fried that at one point I tried to introduce somebody to Emily and couldn't remember her name, which was a little scary. At least it came back to me fairly quickly (but not instantaneously). And I was able to retain the names of my immediate family throughout the weekend, so that's something.
I was running Volunteers, and I think it went pretty well, although there was much room for improvement. Everybody seemed to agree that it was a step up from last year (when nobody was running it) which is a good first step. The first rule of running a department, IMHO, should be like the Hippocratic Oath: "Do No Harm." Unsurprisingly, I spent almost the entire weekend at the Volunteers Desk, but I knew that was going to happen. A huge amount of work, but it was mostly fun. I got to meet new people, do a little trouble-shooting, and generally stick my nose in everybody's business. Having that room right next to the Volunteers Desk was a lifesaver (Thanks, Aaron!!). I recruited 4 enthusiastic teen volunteers, all of whom are likely to be back next year. Met some new adult volunteers as well, and welcomed back some old ones for new jobs. Connected with the latest generation of PFRC, still pitching in at the Consuite and Logistics. Thanks to everyone that volunteered!
The Discord experiment was a success, although not everybody participated in it. My teenage volunteers loved the Virtual Gopher Hole (although I'm not sure I ever told them that's what it was called). Most of the older volunteers weren't interested in trying it, but we had just enough concom actively participating that we were able to relay information back and forth more effectively than in the past. There were some miscommunications, of course, but often it was the face-to-face part of the communication chain that glitched. Because humans. I'd like to continue and extend Discord use next year and hopefully recruit more Virtual Gophers.
I didn't see any panels except the two that I moderated but they worked out quite well. I followed every step in the
Moderator Tipsheet, including contacting panelists before the con, meeting in the Green Room prior to the panel, and even the part where the whole panel enters together to impress the audience. And I'm telling you, moderators, it really does work! I chose "Participating Moderator" as my moderator style. This is the hardest one to pull off, but I think I succeeded in both. I was concerned that maybe I talked too much in the AI panel, but one of the panelists I was afraid I was overshadowing made a point of telling me that I had done a good job moderating, which made me feel really good, because she has a lot of panel experience and I respect her opinion (thanks, Eleanor!). Best of all, both panels turned into conversation engines for the rest of the weekend as audience members buttonholed me to add their thoughts on AI or the social implications of genetic testing. Even got some email afterwards. Fun.
Didn't get to much music, but greatly enjoyed what I saw. I just happened into the last 3 songs of the "Last Saturday Filkers" and they sounded terrific. Normally they meet in my living room while I hide out upstairs, and they sound like a bunch of filk singers (which is fine, but is what it is). But with a practiced song list and the excellent sound system in this year's music room, they sounded truly polished. They had a decent audience, but I hope that next year more people will give them a try. I also happened in to a late night music circle somewhere with a small number of musicians still going, and it was beautiful and fun and moving in so many ways. As if I didn't need another exhausting workout, I turned out to be one of the few people in the room willing to join in dancing to the Hockey Monkey Song, so of course I did and it was a blast. Then I got to do it again at another music circle the next night, and damned if Chas didn't throw in an extra chorus that just about finished me off.
I didn't really spend a lot of time with close friends, many of whom seemed out of sorts or just cranky because they were concom and .. y'know. So I hung out after hours with people working in the bar and consuite that I like a lot but don't see enough of, so that was good and mellow and fun. Enjoyed meeting Stacy's delightful mother chopping veggies in the consuite, although I accidentally introduced a conversational topic that she decided to run with rather loudly but I would have been more comfortable discussing in private. Not that I wasn't pretty much on the same page, but generational shit is kinda funny right now and I was getting a little weary of being scowled at for saying politically incorrect things around younger people. The deepest conversation I had was with a surprising individual that I didn't expect to connect with at all - just the kind of thing that unfolds itself when you both happen to be leaning on the balcony rail late at night staring into space. In other people news, I met 3 different women throughout the weekend of varying ages and backgrounds who all showed some interest in joining Minnstf. I think that Lenore (Nora), the PFRC ex-pat currently living in St. Paul, really will do it. I have contact info for the other two and will follow up. So keep your eyes out for new people at the early Minnstf meetings - stranger things have happened.
Closing Ceremonies was unusually exciting for me, as we received the horrifying news that the current Minnstf President For Life had, well, there's no easy way to say this... died offstage. Quite possibly by assassination, as that has been a continuing problem for Minnstf through the years. So I found myself suddenly addressing the crowd as the new Minnstf President, and inviting them all to the first Minnstf meeting of the year (thanks to Emily and Aaron for hosting - see you all there!).
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