The Things You Did For A Con

Viga

Posted By: AprechePosted By: AxelCan't afford multiple cons. Between travel, hotels, admission, and other cool stuff...Yeah...

Walk. Couch surf. Do a panel. Bring ramen and a hot plate in a backpack. How bad do you want it?

Let's talk about how bad we wanted it and stories of others that did want it bad. (That was a weird sentence.)

My personal story is riding a 12 hour bus ride there and back the first couple of times to go to Anime Boston. It was worth it. Sleeping in a room full of seven or more and sharing a bed with two skinny midgets and eating almost nothing one Otakon. Nothing compares to the summer of 08 when I was unemployed and worked as a Craig's List maid to make money to go to Otakon that year. I even won a prize for doing that at Lawrence Eng's panel.

Others stories I heard from friends was sleeping on the skywalk in Balitmore. Some who slept in their cars. Some who slept in the convention center by hiding at night. Just last year at AUSA Jed knew some staffers and slept in their HQ. I volunteer for a room usually.

Aria

Some who slept in the convention center by hiding at night.

Why is that not allowed? It should be.

Viga

Some who slept in the convention center by hiding at night.

Why is that not allowed? It should be.

Security reasons. Otaku terrorists?

Not nine

Nothing. They're thankful for it.

Victor Frost

I drove to PAX. From Los Angeles. With a 4 year old in the back seat. His DVD player broke about 4 hours in.

Neito

Drove from Attleboro to Hartford with four other people.

In the backseat of a Hyundai Accord.

Yuyuke

Hyundai Accord

To elaborate, this car is, in no uncertain terms, a shitbox. I could probably flip the car with my own two hands if given the time. It also rattles between 60-70 MPH AND is missing a rear window.

Keep in mind, this car also made it to Baltimore for Otakon two years ago. That was the TRULY harrowing trip. I thought New Jersey would never end.

Sail

Used to always not eat at AX in order to save money. Thankfully, I've broken that habit.

Luke Burrage

I quit my job working in a supermarket to go to the European Juggling Convention in 2001. I asked for vacation time, and was told I couldn't take it, so I said I'd leave the job. the manager frowned and said "Well, okay, I guess..."

Also, that same year, my sister called me to say "I'm getting married this summer!" and I said "If it is on these dates I might not be able to go!" and she said "Yes, it is on those dates..." so I said "I might go to the European Juggling Convention instead!"

Back story: the year before I wanted to go to the EJC but my brother's marriage clashed with the dates. I didn't go and went to his wedding instead.

Thankfully my sister's proposed wedding date was bad for other people too, and she changed the date.


So I went to the EJC in 2001.

And I'm going to the EJC TODAY!!! WOOOT!!! I take the train down to Munich this afternoon. This will be my 11th EJC in a row. It's 9 days of awesome, 10 years after my first.

Apreche

And I'm going to the EJC TODAY!!! WOOOT!!! I take the train down to Munich this afternoon. This will be my 11th EJC in a row. It's 9 days of awesome, 10 years after my first.

Nine days! And we thought that four day conventions were long.

Luke Burrage

This will be my second 9 convention in 2 months. It's what us jugglers do. And I might go to the Turkish festival again this year, though that is only 8 days long.

To be clear these are more like festivals than conventions, with the vast majority of people camping, so accommodation is included in the ticket price. I normally have a hotel room.

Apreche

This will be my second 9 convention in 2 months. It's what us jugglers do. And I might go to the Turkish festival again this year, though that is only 8 days long.

To be clear these are more like festivals than conventions, with the vast majority of people camping, so accommodation is included in the ticket price. I normally have a hotel room.

Yeah, I guess juggling doesn't require a convention center like a geek convention does.

Rym

I went to my first Otakon having enough money for either:

a. A badge
b. Food


I paid for my first Anime Central room with a check that would have bounced if my previously written rent check to RIT had cleared first. Pro move: took just enough money out at the ATM to ensure that the rent check bounced.

Luke Burrage

This will be my second 9 convention in 2 months. It's what us jugglers do. And I might go to the Turkish festival again this year, though that is only 8 days long.

To be clear these are more like festivals than conventions, with the vast majority of people camping, so accommodation is included in the ticket price. I normally have a hotel room.

Yeah, I guess juggling doesn't require a convention center like a geek convention does.

It actually requires way more space per person than a geek con, but with a lot less in it. This year there will probably be about 7000 or 8000 jugglers, and we've taken over a big chunk of the Munich Olympic venue. I'm running one of the two show venues (about 2000 or 3000 audience in each). On top of that juggling takes up a lot more space than standing in lines and playing games and attending panels. Thankfully if the weather is good you can do a lot of it outside.

Apreche

It actually requires way more space per person than a geek con, but with a lot less in it. This year there will probably be about 7000 or 8000 jugglers, and we've taken over a big chunk of the Munich Olympic venue. I'm running one of the two show venues (about 2000 or 3000 audience in each). On top of that juggling takes up a lot more space than standing in lines and playing games and attending panels. Thankfully if the weather is good you can do a lot of it outside.

Square footage-wise you do need a lot of room. But you can have just a few really big rooms. Us geeks need lots of smaller rooms and also lots of electricity holes and such.

Viga

I forgot about quitting my job just to go to Anime USA one year. I probably will never do that again.

Apreche

I forgot about quitting my job just to go to Anime USA one year. I probably will never do that again.

That's a little extreme. Then again, it depends on the job. If I were working some retail crap job that could be easily replaced, and they didn't give me vacation, I would definitely quit to go to a convention.

Viga

I forgot about quitting my job just to go to Anime USA one year. I probably will never do that again.

That's a little extreme. Then again, it depends on the job. If I were working some retail crap job that could be easily replaced, and they didn't give me vacation, I would definitely quit to go to a convention.

Crap telemarketing, very little paying, no vacation or even more than one day off type of job.

George Patches

I routinely drive over 4 hours to go to all sorts of cons.

Anthony Heman

I also quit a job at a terrible grocery store to go play video games professionally. For a day. Either way though, I was already far past done with that job at the time.

Neito

Hyundai Accord

To elaborate, this car is, in no uncertain terms, a shitbox. I could probably flip the car with my own two hands if given the time. It also rattles between 60-70 MPH AND is missing a rear window.

Keep in mind, this car also made it to Baltimore for Otakon two years ago. That was the TRULY harrowing trip. I thought New Jersey would never end.

The Otakon trip was right after she got a new engine for that car, though, so it wasn't that bad.

Though, after her engine exploded (the factory engine, not the rebuilt one), it only took one guy to push the car about 1000 feet or so.

Churba

Well, there was one time I pretended to be a transexual dutch prostitute, and this rich guy down in Surrey...Wait, you mean convention. Forget I said anything.

Amp

Planning on going to my first UK con in October, working so many jobs. The is an upside to the whole situation is that my Uni might cover some of the costs, if not all of it.

Luke Burrage

The first EJC Open Stage show starts in 5 minutes. You can watch it live at JugglingLive.com:

http://www.jugglinglive.com/

You can see me do what I do for a living. Well, not really. You can see how I spend my "summer holiday".

Not nine

is missing a rear window.

And it was still allowed on the road? Jesus christ you people are lunatics.

Well, there was one time I pretended to be a transexual dutch prostitute

Before you try that again, we'll have to go over your Dutch studies some more first. Lessen the risk you know.

George Patches

And it was still allowed on the road? Jesus christ you people are lunatics.

Legally, no.

Not nine

Legally, no.

There's laws in the US?

George Patches

There's laws in the US?

Just a few.

Not nine

There's laws in the US?

Just a few.

Bullshit. No wait. You're right. I had forgotten that there's laws against smoking weed, fucking whores and marrying someone of the same sex.

KapitänTim

There's laws in the US?

Just a few.

Bullshit. No wait. You're right. I had forgotten that there's laws against smoking weed, fucking whores and marrying someone of the same sex.

Not in every state.

Not nine

Not in every state.

Who cares about states? We're talking about the country, not some silly state. Do you want us to talk about differing guidelines between committees of different towns next?