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From Penguicon 2014, taken by a kind bystander with the other unicorn's phone camera:
No, I am not naming a unicorn 'Later'.
This past weekend was another Penguicon, sensibly called Penguicon 2014 (which happened to be the 11th one). Orvan was out only a few times, partly as he had only a couple ACME Deliveries to make, and I cut back on the amount of Cow Tales candy to give away. I think I have the amount about right, now. The other part of that is that I still have a weight issue I am dealing with.
Some things went well. The 'Chitty Chitty' ribbon seemed to go over well with the folks who were going to the Geeks with Guns outing at a local range. Why that text? To go ahead of the event's 'Bang! Bang!' ribbon, of course. ACME was popular, as usual, though with fewer ACME deliveries explaining things, there were more questions about it. 'Moo' was a bit more self-explanatory and there was 'Houyhnhnm' as well.
Unfortunately one side-effect of the first ACME delivery, at Opening Ceremonies, was that Jay missed something set up for him as he helped Orvan back to the room. It was 10 years ago that he debuted his Tron costume there and more than a few folks are of the opinion that he (and it?) are rather representative of Penguicon and the do-your-own-thing and ignore-the-naysayers attitude of it all. To mark that, the Open Soda folks were commissioned with making up a PENGUITRON soda, a 2 liter bottle of which was to be presented at Opening Ceremonies. Alas, nobody even hinted he should be or stay around for anything. They wanted it to be a surprise, but kept it just a bit too secret.
As I was packing I was debating taking a certain shirt and a latex prop unicorn mask. I very nearly didn't, as I have an idea of what I want to do to finish the look of the thing and I'm not there yet. The unicorn needs hooves, a bit of a cooling system, and ideally a thinner me, at the very least. However, I decided on a whim to bring it anyway and see what might happen. I am so glad I did.
The shirt was a long sleeved t-shirt with text reading, "Always be yourself, unless you can be a unicorn, then always be a unicorn." Naturally that simply had to be paired with the unicorn mask. That was worth a few comments and laughs right there. A unicorn also gets attention simply from being a unicorn out and about. Mostly the unicorn was popular - and with one little girl very much so (I suspect it was the same girl who all but Elmyra-glomped Orvan for a couple minutes). There was another little girl who was a bit scared of the unicorn and I can't say I blame her - that mask is a bit on the creepy side, unicorn or not.
The unicorn mask is not fur, is light and thin, and allows me to wear my glasses under it. The result is that even without a fan (which is still a Good Idea) that it's much cooler (thermally) than Orvan and I felt like I could be out longer, or at least not feel as drained for the amount of time. Of course, the unicorn has no particular mission - he's not employed by ACME - beyond simply existing. At the end of one outing, the unicorn was told, "Wait right here!" and someone ran off in quite a hurry... and returned as unicorn himself. I have a copy of the resulting photo. I later heard that he and another had been around and this Penguicon had not one, not two, but three unicorns (make your own joke) - but I never encountered the third.
I do plan on bringing the unicorn back, and I am debating if he should be named. Also, if he should hand (hoof?) out ribbons and what text such ribbons ought to have. Long term, I might want to see about a less horrifying head and perhaps get fancy with the horn - though sparkling would be a bit much. That, however, is decidedly long term. It might never happen.
Penguicon 2012 may be history or nearly so, but Penguicon 2013 is another matter. This time I'm not waiting around and doing things at the last minute. No, this time I am giving myself, and you, nearly a year to ponder, think, consider, scheme, or conspire as the case may be.
I'd like to avoid repeat recipients if possible, so that it isn't "Oh, ACME only delivers to that group." That's at an individual level. It certainly makes sense for, say, a Guest of Honor to get something, but "So & so gets something every year" is what I am concerned about.
( Advise ACME )
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1. Shed weight for real. Sure, I said that last year. Got a little ways and screwed it up. So badly that I was no better and possibly worse off this time around. The negatives show up a few ways. Sore back from the belt/pants seeming a bit tight at the lower back, even on the trip there & back. Limited time in-suit as Orvan. Simply feeling fat. Sore feet & joints. And that's the stuff I feel and notice. I don't measure blood pressure or blood sugars and a host of other things that are probably not what they really should be. I should be at least a few dozen pounds lighter.
1.a. Exercise. Yeah, reducing Calories is key, but being able to bend and breathe right will help, too.
2. That Renaissance Faire advice about drinking water or at least something without caffeine or alcohol between anything containing caffeine or alcohol? It applies outside of faire, too. Do things for taste, have just a taste, and it's okkay to say no. Drink more water. Lots more water. My liver should love me, though my bladder might be a bit annoyed.
3. Follow my own advice & limits for ACME Delivery stuff. Big bulky and heavy items are best avoided. They're hard enough to deal with out of suit. In suit they're much worse.
4. Get started MUCH earlier on ACME stuff. Any last minute scrambling should not be my own fault. My last minute prep. should be printing the final version of delivery list and packing up any last minute items suggested by others. My stuff should be ready to load in March, ideally.
5. See #1. Get out as Orvan more, even if just at con. People like him. Don't deprive them of the big ox. Besides, Orvan should have some fun, too.
5.a. Even if I don't leave the house, or even the room, put on the suit a few times years. It's a potent indicator and while the scale doesn't lie, the suit is a very powerful indicator of the state of things. Besides, it's fun - or damn well should be.
6. Don't screw this all up yet again. Use the rest of 2012 to make a better 2013.
I'm sure I forgot some things, but I think I hit the major ones.
I may have been a bit late posting the ACME Delivery poll for Penguicon, but it was still over a month ago (27 January) and so far there have zero Penguicon responses. I clicked on the submit button so I could see any results and one fellow who isn't going submitted joke responses (that I do not mind) and that has been it. Right now, no suggestions of anything. And worse, I don't have ideas of my own. Correction, I have one. One. I could blame it on the Penguicon folks not having their Guests of Honor lined up and ready and listed on the web site - they claim they tend to have five or six but so far I see only two. But that isn't a solid reason. Even aside from Guests of Honor and Nifties I usually have at least a few ideas of my own.
And time is running out. While Penguicon is at the end of April, what that really means is that I need to be ready by the end of March if at all possible. I might be able to swing one or two things in April, but I'll be busy getting everything ready. And things that take time (paints, glues, shipping) can mean a project simply won't have the time to get finished - and then hauled on a 12 or so hour drive.
So right now, I have one idea. And I did just order a bunch of Cow Tales. Oh, and I recall being asked to make & bring some butterscotch fudge, so there's another little project to take up time near the last minute.
I know I haven't done as well last year. I was (and still am, dangit) way overweight and that kept my in-suit time way down and made dressing Orvan (or as Orvan) more problematic. Working on that. And then I used to post photos of Orvan's deliveries. A few years ago I wanted to included Jer's wedding photos and the tools I used didn't work well to add things, so I kept waiting and delaying and by the time I got things (and not just Jer's, someone else had something as well) I had forgotten so much I just let it go. And I didn't really get to things after that. I'm not sure I even sure I even have any of the photos from 2011.
I am starting to wonder if maybe I should let Orvan rest a while - though he really only shows up at Penguicon now. I haven't been able to afford, in time or money, RCFM or MFF or much of anything else for some time. I really only have two events a year now: Penguicon and the Siouxland Renaissance Festival, so I don't want to idle back any more.
Penguicon may be a few months away, but that doesn't mean it can be ignored. Better to be ready early than rush at the last minute.
I'd like to avoid repeat recipients if possible, so that it isn't "Oh, ACME only delivers to that group." That's at an individual level. It certainly makes sense for the Guests of Honor to get something, but "So & so gets something every year" is what I am concerned about.
( Advise ACME )
NOTE: Friends replies are NOT screened and will be visible.
Penguicon 2011
4 May 2011 10:31
Penguicon 2011 was a bit different for me compared to other years and I can't quite place what happened or why, exactly. A couple things are obvious, and I am not blaming the con staff (who worked their butts off putting on the event) for any of it.
I seemed to get a late start on anything ACME, which didn't help, and there wasn't all that much of that, which was both good and bad. It's easy to (try to) do too much but it's nice to be able to more than just a couple outings. It became rather painfully obvious that I lost proper control of my weight and it's like it's January 2006 for me again. This is Not Good. It is being worked on. Again. It also became obvious that one 100-count box of Cow Tales (per flavor) is plenty. It's also probably most cost effective and reliable to order the 100-count boxes rather than deal with the supply the way(s) I have been. And I should probably rule out late night deliveries - I end up preparing for them rather than doing anything else and, hey, I'd like to see/do some of the convention too. For various reasons, the BarFleet party is best avoided: too dark, too loud, too many people who seem to lack clue sober, and they aren't.
Sal Sanfratello was not there (evidently he was not feeling well) and thus the usual Sunday evening gathering didn't happen. On the good side, I had time for a much needed nap and I saw the post-Penguicon stuff I usually don't. On the bad side, I didn't do the stuff or see the people I usually did each year.
Even with the limited ACME/Orvan outings I still only really made one panel if it can be called that. I had too much of a headache to deal with the loudness of a Tom Smith performance, but I could handle the slightly quieter Frank Hayes.
I didn't hear anything of badge ribbons before Penguicon this year, but then I didn't go out of my way to ask either. Perhaps I need to be on some mailing list I'm not on. I don't know. Just as well, I doubt I'd have ordered any more anyway. I had plenty of leftover ribbons from last year. The most popular or sought after (or at least the one that I heard "Ooh, I was looking for this one!" about) was the 'NOT WIL WHEATON' ribbon. I suspect I will not be able to stop doing that one whether I want to or not. I will need to order more ribbons (and not just the Wil Wheaton one) for 2012, but there's time for that.
It was good to see Howard Tayler, Eric & Cathy Raymond, and a bunch of PenguiPeople I see only about once a year. It also was amusing to hear Eric tell about a rare instance of pulling geek rank before he posted about it.
Other than the obvious less time as Orvan and no Sunday evening gathering I can't really point to anything that made this Penguicon seem sort of... well, "almost" compared to the last few years. That doesn't mean it wasn't good. An "almost" Penguicon is still quite good.
Penguicon is coming up rather rapidly now, so there is not all that much time to plan and prepare. Still, some preparation can be done:
I'd like to avoid repeat recipients if possible, so that it isn't "Oh, ACME only delivers to that group." That's at an individual level. It certainly makes sense for the Guests of Honor to get something, but "So & so gets something every year" is what I am concerned about.
( Advise ACME )
NOTE: Friends replies are NOT screened and will be visible.
Penguicon may be in months away, but that doesn't mean it can be ignored. Better to be ready early than rush at the last minute. Hopefully things will work out well enough that I (and therefore Orvan) will be there again in 2010. I am planning on that. Thus I am again asking for suggestions of vict... recipients and items to be delivered to these folks.
Due to some timing issues, deliveries at opening and closing ceremonies are unlikely to happen in 2010.
I'd like to avoid repeat recipients if possible, so that it isn't "Oh, ACME only delivers to that group." That's at an individual level. It certainly makes sense for the Guests of Honor to get something, but "So & so gets something every year" is what I am concerned about.
( Advise ACME )
NOTE: Friends replies are NOT screened and will be visible.
Returned from Penguicon
4 May 2009 22:13
That's pretty much it right now. Made it home. Con report and such to follow. The following might not be all that immediate. There are photos to process (and to collect before that!) for ACME and such.
Now I get to start in on RCFM stuff and that's less than amonth a way. Eep!
I'm getting a bit of a head start on things for ACME at Penguicon.
I'm looking for suggestions of what ACME should deliver at Penguicon 7 (2009), and who things should be delivered to.
( Advise ACME )
NOTE: Friends replies are NOT screened and will be visible.
Contributing factor?
6 May 2008 22:24
From a Penguicon community post:
Chris Genetti signed up to create our first Furry track.
I'm sure Chris was the major force in this and likely Furry Connection North (the FurCon that took place in the area a week before Penguicon) was significant.
But I can't help but wonder if Orvan appearing last year and this year had just a little bit to do with this.
Or maybe, ACME Delivery: Lessons from Penguicon.
I'm not sure that the ACME ale went as well as it could have. It's not that what happened was bad, as I know some folks drank it, as evidenced by the odd empty bottle I saw in the con suite. It's just that... well, it seemed to not quite hit as well is could have. I recall that at MFF I was rather busy and didn't do a proper Orvan delivery but just took some to the gopher area. I think that if I do anything with it again, I might just check out room parties and pick one. I was tempted to write "most deserving" but that's hard to say, and "most in need" doesn't sound very nice. Right now I'm debating if I'll do that bit at all at RCFM - though if I read one comment right, someone might be disappointed if ACME IPA doesn't show up. I don't have any recipient in mind, and I don't recall any room parties last year. But then last year Jay & I went for the "Booster" level and I spent a fair amount of time at the Booster (and GoH) Appreciation Party. Therefore I wasn't checking out any of the rest of the con in that time. As far as I can tell, RCFM doesn't coordinate and try to block together room parties, but I could be wrong.
Orvan needs some sort of ribbon dispenser. It's just too awkward to deal with ribbons in a pocket with those hooves. Though now that I have the gold-on-black "ACME Customer" ribbons, they can be included with the delivered items or be attached to the parcels next Penguicon. Also, I should only need the black-on-yellow ACME ribbons next time, so they should be right. Or so I thought, I have reason to add another ribbon, which could also cause confusion. I should probably order a lot more than I did this year. This year I was really trying to get rid those defective things. I'm not sure how such a dispenser would work, but I have a while to think of something.
I'm debating if Orvan should have a holstered pocket knife or such. Many folks don't have a knife handy and have to ask to borrow from someone in the vicinity. Such a thing would have to be clearly not a weapon so as to avoid getting peace-bonded and thus have its utility removed. I've also noticed that some folks choose to open a parcel from the bottom. Perhaps I need to split the top label to make it easier to see the top of the box and where to cut.
While the big huge ACME sack works well for big things, it's not so good for smaller items. Rather than (just) a smaller version, perhaps I need to make, or have made, a pouch. That would allow for smaller items and give Orvan a place to stow odd little items for those who ask him if he has anything for them. Though he might need lots of whatever that might be, once word gets out. This sort of thing is another item I get to think about and be on the lookout for.
And... I need to shed a bunch of pounds. Again, dagnabbit. While I fit into the fursuit well enough, Orvan's belt is rather tight and that needs to be fixed. That's just one of many reasons for me to shed that weight, but it's added to the list.
Several months before Penguicon I contacted ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif){kind=small}
matt_arnold about possible ACME deliveries. He was kind enough to put me in contact with etain, Penguicon's Talent Coordinator. She suggested or relayed several ideas to me, which was good as I simply didn't know most folks well enough to come up with really good items for them. There were plans or suggestions for a good number of folks, as can be seen by a look at the parcel pile.
( You got a cookie for what?! )
Orvan has a short post about Penguicon, but will say more once he has the photo gallery in place on the ACME Delivery web site. That could be a week or two. I'll likely have a few more things to say when the photos are up as well. In the meantime, here's my text version of things.
( This is for me. You might find it lengthy and dull. )
Penguicon Photos
25 April 2007 20:50Most of the photos jmaynard and I took at Penguicon this past weekend can be seen here. All the photos in which Orvan appears were taken by Jay. These are only most of the photos, and these have been edited and resized. Should anyone want any of the unedited full size images they might appear in, my e-mail isn't hard to find.
