myurbandream (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
myurbandream) wrote2009-05-30 08:18 pm
myurbandream) wrote2009-05-30 08:18 pm
Entry tags:
...if someone said three years from now, you'd be long gone...
so much fun at akon this year!!! unlike last year, we actually planned to go to specific panels and events, rather than wandering in and out of the dealer room and artist alley all day like lost con virgins, which we haven't been for years. (you can also tell a con veteran if you mention the long lines waiting for the elevator and the other person replies with "really? i didn't notice any lines." because a veteran knows how to work around them. ^___^)
things we've learned through our years of cons:
-budget in cash. decide in advance how much you can afford to spend on what, and bring only that much with you. paying with cash makes everything go faster, and it's also a lot easier to limit your spending when you can actually run out of money. the sight of that wad of bills slowly dwindling in your wallet is a good motivator to minimize superfluous purchases. you will be grateful when you can go fast through lines and pay quickly for everything, and even more grateful when that tshirt/necklace/hat/figurine that you absolutely adore is being sold by someone in artist alley that doesn't have a credit card machine. even more importantly, get your cash a few days in advance, rather than trying to get it at the con. the line at the hotel's atm will be around the corner, out the door, and down the block, and that's assuming you get there before all the cash is gone from the machine. (not to mention the withdrawal fees!)
-pre-register for your dealer-room badge. it costs the same as the one-day pass that you buy the day of the con, and it lasts all three days to boot. what a bargain! (plus, you get a shiny laminated badge with your name on it; they're a fun mark of experience to collect every year.)
-pack like you're camping: bring pillows, bring non-perishable food, bring drinks, bring over-the-counter drugs. just because there are four bed spots in a room does not mean you will be one of the six people who are privileged with sleeping on the beds. just because food is sold at the con does not mean you'll want to spend your painfully-budgeted cash on it. prepare accordingly. and you do not want to get a headache or squitters or a sore throat the very day that con begins and not have any way to counteract the symptoms. and please, please bring deodorant and soap. in this respect, you are not camping: a hotel has showers, so please use them.
-check out your transportation in advance. we learned that one the hard way this year, when the 'check engine' light came on in![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
wuffielover's car on friday morning, as we were leaving. doom. DOOM. it set us an hour behind schedule, and we ended up having to take her mom's car while hers was in the dealer because just diagnosing what the problem was would take upwards of 45 minutes. and for gods' sakes, get the oil changed if it's due soon.
-if you're cosplaying.... (this one has several parts) a- make your costume yourself: the store-made complete costumes are cheating, and buying a store-made prop and calling yourself a cosplayer does not count. really. you will just look lame and stupid and half-assed, and you won't be able to take pictures because everyone who actually went to the effort of making a complete costume will shame you to death. even more, the details make the costume more impressive, so the more accurate to the original you can be, the better off you are. b- bring a sewing kit. also bring hair pins, hair spray, liquid-stitch, safety pins, and extra velcro and snaps. and any other random accoutrements that you may need. c- cosplay with a group: it's cooler and more memorable and you'll probably be hanging with the same group of friends anyway. even better, if you have a unique and obscure costume, or one that isn't very elaborate or can pass for street-normal, then as a group you will be much more identifiable than as an individual. d- pockets. for the love of god, hide some pockets in your costume when you make it. you need space for your wallet and your cell phone, if nothing else.
-you know that tiny little coin purse you bought a few years ago, that cute one with the adjustible strap that hides really well and is bigger on the inside than it looks? bring it. if you lack pockets for some reason (like, for example, if your costume consists entirely of skin-tight skimpy material), you will need somewhere to keep your wallet and cell phone.
-attend the scheduled events. they are actually pretty interesting, and also free. they will quickly fill up your day, and while you are learning about art styles or watching a new show or listening to a funny speaker, you are not spending money in the dealer room. it's a win-win situation.
-learn how to navigate the hotel. i won't say any details on this one, because i want to keep my hard-earned secrets to myself, but it makes life so much easier when you don't have to wait twenty minutes to catch the elevator up to your room. (similarly, be sure to take down non-essentials the night before your check out on the last day of the con, because everyone else will be checking out at the same time, and despite the fact that it's much faster to take the stairs than the elevator in those situations, you won't really want to when your room is on the 42nd floor.)
-know where to park. we need to remember, next year, to park in the garage one block down on olive, where the amount you pay maxes out after a certain time limit, rather than in the lot right next to the hotel, where you have to pay $5 every twelve hours or you get towed out.
-keep your camera and extra batteries with you at all times. it will always be the moment your batteries die, or the one time you go to the conference room and leave your camera in your hotel room, that you see the best cosplayers or the coolest gadgets or the one celebrity that you've been looking forward to meeting all weekend. don't let that happen to you!
-jewelry: leave it at home. unless it is part of your costume or something that you can wear all the time and never take off, you will lose it.
note to self: next year, check rates at the westin across the skyway. cheaper to get a normal room there than an executive suite at theadam's mark sheraton. also is close to the food.
cosplay as slayers next year? or marvel, like we said we would?
things we've learned through our years of cons:
-budget in cash. decide in advance how much you can afford to spend on what, and bring only that much with you. paying with cash makes everything go faster, and it's also a lot easier to limit your spending when you can actually run out of money. the sight of that wad of bills slowly dwindling in your wallet is a good motivator to minimize superfluous purchases. you will be grateful when you can go fast through lines and pay quickly for everything, and even more grateful when that tshirt/necklace/hat/figurine that you absolutely adore is being sold by someone in artist alley that doesn't have a credit card machine. even more importantly, get your cash a few days in advance, rather than trying to get it at the con. the line at the hotel's atm will be around the corner, out the door, and down the block, and that's assuming you get there before all the cash is gone from the machine. (not to mention the withdrawal fees!)
-pre-register for your dealer-room badge. it costs the same as the one-day pass that you buy the day of the con, and it lasts all three days to boot. what a bargain! (plus, you get a shiny laminated badge with your name on it; they're a fun mark of experience to collect every year.)
-pack like you're camping: bring pillows, bring non-perishable food, bring drinks, bring over-the-counter drugs. just because there are four bed spots in a room does not mean you will be one of the six people who are privileged with sleeping on the beds. just because food is sold at the con does not mean you'll want to spend your painfully-budgeted cash on it. prepare accordingly. and you do not want to get a headache or squitters or a sore throat the very day that con begins and not have any way to counteract the symptoms. and please, please bring deodorant and soap. in this respect, you are not camping: a hotel has showers, so please use them.
-check out your transportation in advance. we learned that one the hard way this year, when the 'check engine' light came on in
wuffielover's car on friday morning, as we were leaving. doom. DOOM. it set us an hour behind schedule, and we ended up having to take her mom's car while hers was in the dealer because just diagnosing what the problem was would take upwards of 45 minutes. and for gods' sakes, get the oil changed if it's due soon.-if you're cosplaying.... (this one has several parts) a- make your costume yourself: the store-made complete costumes are cheating, and buying a store-made prop and calling yourself a cosplayer does not count. really. you will just look lame and stupid and half-assed, and you won't be able to take pictures because everyone who actually went to the effort of making a complete costume will shame you to death. even more, the details make the costume more impressive, so the more accurate to the original you can be, the better off you are. b- bring a sewing kit. also bring hair pins, hair spray, liquid-stitch, safety pins, and extra velcro and snaps. and any other random accoutrements that you may need. c- cosplay with a group: it's cooler and more memorable and you'll probably be hanging with the same group of friends anyway. even better, if you have a unique and obscure costume, or one that isn't very elaborate or can pass for street-normal, then as a group you will be much more identifiable than as an individual. d- pockets. for the love of god, hide some pockets in your costume when you make it. you need space for your wallet and your cell phone, if nothing else.
-you know that tiny little coin purse you bought a few years ago, that cute one with the adjustible strap that hides really well and is bigger on the inside than it looks? bring it. if you lack pockets for some reason (like, for example, if your costume consists entirely of skin-tight skimpy material), you will need somewhere to keep your wallet and cell phone.
-attend the scheduled events. they are actually pretty interesting, and also free. they will quickly fill up your day, and while you are learning about art styles or watching a new show or listening to a funny speaker, you are not spending money in the dealer room. it's a win-win situation.
-learn how to navigate the hotel. i won't say any details on this one, because i want to keep my hard-earned secrets to myself, but it makes life so much easier when you don't have to wait twenty minutes to catch the elevator up to your room. (similarly, be sure to take down non-essentials the night before your check out on the last day of the con, because everyone else will be checking out at the same time, and despite the fact that it's much faster to take the stairs than the elevator in those situations, you won't really want to when your room is on the 42nd floor.)
-know where to park. we need to remember, next year, to park in the garage one block down on olive, where the amount you pay maxes out after a certain time limit, rather than in the lot right next to the hotel, where you have to pay $5 every twelve hours or you get towed out.
-keep your camera and extra batteries with you at all times. it will always be the moment your batteries die, or the one time you go to the conference room and leave your camera in your hotel room, that you see the best cosplayers or the coolest gadgets or the one celebrity that you've been looking forward to meeting all weekend. don't let that happen to you!
-jewelry: leave it at home. unless it is part of your costume or something that you can wear all the time and never take off, you will lose it.
note to self: next year, check rates at the westin across the skyway. cheaper to get a normal room there than an executive suite at the
cosplay as slayers next year? or marvel, like we said we would?