Another year, and another ARISIA.....

[lensman]

I'm exhausted....

I had my second go round as Operations Division Head, and had just too much life interfere this year to compleatly consider that I did a GOOD job at it (And that seems to have been a theme that ran through-out for a lot of people in the Convention Commitee this year as well...)
I think I over all made less mistakes than last year, but I think the dept ran more on auto-pilot last year than this... Although I didn't get everything I wanted to done correctly (mostly in not gettning enough help, You know I not really sure if there ever could be ENOUGH HELP), but this time around I knew enough that at least hidding the bodies so that the attendees wouldn't notice seemed easier... :-) That and the amazing help that c1 provided by taking the horrid job of Logistics ("There and back again, a logistics nightmare") after the person who he also originaly helped recruit had an attack of life... and then helping to arrange for someone to take the at con sign shop on at the last minute, when I dropped the ball on finding someone for it....

This year's Arisia also had the distinction of having the most version's depending on how you look at it...

A '04.5 (Mini-con held at the last WorldCon here in Boston)
A '05 (What we had actully scheduled)
A '05.1 (Arisia the Extended Edition....)

Some things went off without a hitch... Some did not...

I think the two worst examples were:

• Our Artist Guest of Honor, made the mistake of shipping a 3D-piece that through Fed-Ex, and it arrived smashed...
  
  • Now I can't entirely blame Fed-Ex, for this because:
    
  • They ship everything by plane, whcih means it gets scanned by x-ray
    
  • The piece (being a memorial to Vietnam Vets) had a dummy grenade, as part of the peice....
    
  • Upon seeing what appears to be a grenade come through their scanner for shipment on a plane, I can hardly blame Fed-Ex for dealing with the package as a threat....
    
  • Opppss
  
  
• A parent let their young kid (<=13) come to the convention with a couple of his young friends (also<=13), un-supervised...
  
  • His friends lost track of him for over 5 hours before reporting him to us as missing...
    
  • This of course happend right in the middle of the Guest of Honor Dinner...
    
  • He was found okay after about an hour of searching by the Arisia Operations and Secuirty Staff...
    
  
  

dancer and tk7602 arranged to get about 15 members of the 501st New England Garrison to come and run a charity raffle.... That seemed to go off nicely. They raised nearly $500.00, and there were a lot of people who seemed to like getting their pictures taken with the guys in plastic suits... Now I need to finish mine....

I missed out on a lot of things at con... I just didn't seem to have the time/energy for....

I hope everyone had fun.....

Comments

[gingicat]

I'm sorry I missed you. I thought about poking my nose into Operations to say hi, but I think Kim is right that I tend to inadvertently bring crises, so I didn't.

Hope you've gotten a chance to decompress.

You should have stopped by anyway....

[lensman.livejournal.com]

Nobody brings crises' into ops..... All anybody ever does is point out the already pre-existing crises' when they come by... Well Okay thats not enirely true, some people are walking crises' looking for a place to happen, and they can happen anywhere.... (Did you see the one that happened to chaiya?) But you are certainly not one of those.... I could make a list of those but I'd have to friend list lock it just in case the guilty are out there reading my LJ :-)

As to de-compressing... Yeah Ive needed to do that for a while now.... I just need to find a good loss-less algorithm, that will involve much alcohol, a jaccuzzi, lots of sleep, no stress, no work contact.... Hmmm this is sounding like a vacation.... I'll have to look into one of those soon....

Re: You should have stopped by anyway....

[grovegoddess.livejournal.com]

Maybe a "Things we are working on" board outside of ops. I noticed this too. Every other person coming in trying to tell somebody about something that three other people told them. I guess its everyone's version of "helping" but it hardly helps. There could be a warning "those coming to mention these items again will be [insert lensman approved pun here]".

Wished I could have seen more of you and I do mean that in all the dirty ways your mind may have jumped to.

[zarhooie.livejournal.com]

I have to say that it was an excellent con. Of course, this doesn't mean much because it was the first one I'd ever gone to, but.... I loved it and thank you for your time and energy.

If you need someone to run around pre-con and do stuff, PLEASE let me know. I'll be at school by that point, but I can definately help over the summer and over breaks, and I've already started my "help Kat afford plane ticket money for next year" fund. I'm particularly good at using the Evil Powers bestowed on chicks who have large chests to get people to do things for me.

[lensman.livejournal.com]

Of course, this doesn't mean much because it was the first one I'd ever gone to
Actually that means a lot really... Being able to pass along enjoyment to new people is a really nice thing....

I loved it and thank you for your time and energy. You're welcome... Glad you enjoyed it, and pitching in and helping us oput the way you did is one of the best ways to show your gratitude....

If you need someone to run around pre-con and do stuff, PLEASE let me know.

Muwahahaha..... Oh we will.... We will.... Now you know the true power of the dark side....

I'm particularly good at using the Evil Powers bestowed on chicks who have large chests to get people to do things for me.

Hmmm, The force is strong in this one..... :-)

Heh...

[happypete.livejournal.com]

Ya know, for someone who didn't see a lot of the con, lensman, I think you're the person I saw the most...everywhere I turned, there you were. Not a bad thing, I like to see ya'...

Next time let's take out 30 minutes for a beer or somesuch...

Oh, and yeah, someonecatchme has a lot of those mela-bogon-thingies in her...

Re: Heh...

[zeyr.livejournal.com]

He IS hard to miss...and shreds Catlats like nobody's business.

Very impressively on top of the job, for all he seems to think he wasn't. And this first timer had a grand time, for all that he managed to work 90% of the convention.

Kelyn

Re: Heh...

[lensman.livejournal.com]

for someone who didn't see a lot of the con, lensman, I think you're the person I saw the most...everywhere I turned, there you were.

Yeah I was pretty much everywhere... and yet I saw nothing... Sort of in that Sgt Shultz kinda way.... "I see nothing, I see NOTHNING!!!" :-)

Must remember to delegate more...

I got to only one panel this year, which I had to leave to take care of something... and the panelists outnumbered the audience....

"Oh, and yeah, someonecatchme has a lot of those mela-bogon-thingies in her..."
I'll leave the question of how you know what she's got in her alone.. As that would take us down the "dirty old men" path to places we shouldn't go....

Re: Heh...

[grovegoddess.livejournal.com]

who says you shouldn't?

[zarhooie.livejournal.com]

I'm particularly good at using the Evil Powers bestowed on chicks who have large chests to get people to do things for me.

Hmmm, The force is strong in this one..... :-)

And the worst (or best, depending on your viewpoint) part is, that I don't look like I know how to use it, so when I do, it comes as a complete surprise. That's why it's good to look innocent. ^_^