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Well, another event has come and gone for our community. This was my first time finally making it out to San Diego and i absolutely have to agree with all the buzz that people love to share concerning how great ToorCon is. The Shmoo who decided to start up an east coast con have said they used ToorCon as their model (small size, high signal-to-noise ratio, fewer posers, more fu, etc) and those who have seen both can attest to the fact that they succeeded.
so the biggest uber-props certainly go to Hikari, Tim, Geo, PhilB, M, and all the rest of the organizers and staff who make it happen each year. thank you so very much for the invite, i hope what i brought to the table was worthwhile.
Woots...
my room crew - ck3k, Z, and voltage spike... you guys all kick ass. so many people shell out loads of cash for a room at a con then don't split it with anyone, either because they think they need all that space to stretch out or because they smell bad and have no friends. fortunately i am not afflicted by such concerns and therefore had the great joy of sharing the space (and the room bill) with you folk. while it didn't hurt that our place was a palace (i think that they balcony alone was enough for a whole person) everyone really went above and beyond when it came to managing space, etc.
my apologies if i woke any of you with loud snoring or drunken stumbles to the bathroom around 3 AM. my awesomeness doesn't compare to yours because you all kick serious ass. top-notch roommates in perfect condition. exactly as advertised. very fast shipper. would buy again. A+++ :-)
freshman - what can i say, man... you consistently bring an element of fun to any event that never goes awry. you always have your head on straight but manage to be doing something fun with a dozen people all while working. you introduced me to lots of good folk and are integral in events like this... where people learn new things and meet new friends. hugs and kisses to freshwoman, as well.
æther - looking forward to getting one of those RFID-shielding pouches as soon as i decide what beer can metal it should contain.
seriously, you're stunning and cunning and wise. i hope to see you again soon.
siviak - heh, you sir are the definition of an indirect enabler... no matter how hard i may party, should i ever question the sanity of my actions there's always someone in the vicinity to whom a person can turn and say "well, geez... i guess i really haven't had more to drink than everyone else here." thank you for filling that need and allowing me to always reach for at least one more before calling it a night.
kaminsky - thank you for the wicked talk and the illicit jagermeister... not necessarily in that order.
beetle - best. talk. of. con. i am immediately going to dedicate time to reading DMZ. why do i wonder that there may be a time in the distant future when we're living in nearby log cabins, using encrypted radio to chit-chat about where various divisions of federal mercenaries were seen doing battle or asking if either of us has spare ammo? by the way... it's totally "free whiffy" now. that's etched in stone.
noid - didn't get to spend a lot of time with you this trip, but even in brief moments the stories you manage to share make it all worth it. keep feeling better, brother.
sorrys...
flea - while i still feel that i could have legitimate grounds to use the "hey, man, she came on to me!" defense, i am more satisfied with leaving things they way we did. you were big enough to talk to me directly and squarely about the situation, and man enough to let it go in the end. i'm always happiest to resolve conflicts with fists raised... as long as they're holding glasses.
freaky and the IVU crew - i didn't mean to tread on your territory a bit when i was offering some bump keys to folk who had gathered around my lockpick demo area. while our kits were different from one another, i was still more than happy to put mine away entirely. it was the right thing to do and i hope you don't harbor any ill feelings about the matter... i certainly don't.
people i'm forgetting - standard disclaimer applies to this whole post, of course. i'm certain that i'm forgetting people and therefore will try to edit this later when other things come to mind.
thank-yous...
abby and tre - you two are always so sweet to anyone who stops by. always a good time at your parties (where the pinball machines go topless and the women do, too) and you show nothing but love and kindness to those around you. that energy is the sort of thing that you feel even while driving to a place and which stays with you after you leave.
Ninja Party organizers - you always manage to pull off a great time where no one gets in serious trouble or causes a major ruckus... yet the affairs are always really kicking and fun. don't know how you walk that line but you do it brilliantly. thank you for everything there.
gracious people - by this i mean, thank you to so many folk whom i've met before but don't always recognize right away. maybe it's because i associate so many of you only with las vegas, or maybe it's because i've just got a terrible memory for names. either way, thank you for not making me feel like a stunad when i say "pleased to meet you" and you respond with something like "uh, yeah... i actually drove you to the airport last year so you wouldn't miss your plane" or something similar.
fuck-yous...
only one major fuck-you from me on this trip... and it doesn't even get directed to anyone at the con itself. some of you have heard this already... on my flight from PHL to SAN one of my large metal boxes was broken into (not by TSA, who inspected another one, left their customary note inside, and re-secured the box... this was an act of baggage throwers since the box was ripped apart and hanging open when i got it on the other end) and parties unknown stole most of my tools.
most of my pick sets, my entire assortment of personal tools (much of which i crafted and built on my own), a few really nice knives, etc. were all jacked. the airline claims that one can be reimbursed for pilferage... but lord only knows how long that will take.
i've been attempting to recover some of the costs with the handful of bump key sets i had for sale at the con. while they were a bit more spendy than some of the cheap-o ones you see online, they still cost less than a lot of what's out there and tend to work better, too, since these are my own hand-fabricated design patterns and not simply based off machine pre-cut notches. i still have maybe 20 sets left if anyone's interested. could arrange for a paypal or cash transaction if you want to grab one. or perhaps have a friend find me at pumpcon if you know people who will be there this weekend. the sets are very basic... just a Kwikset KW1 and a Schlage SC1 (and also, of course, a handcuff key... because everyone should have at least one and i love throwing them into all my kits, hehe) but those two keyways are about 75% to 85% of the locks on the doors in this crazy country of ours.
these were going for $20 at the con. i'd keep them at that price even if i have to slap some stamps on an envelope to get them to you. shoot me a PM if you're interested... i won't go into it more here because i don't want to contravene any forum rules about commercial posts. also i don't want to end on a sour note.
all in all, ToorCon rules. those who haven't gone should take our word for it... and once you do attend you'll kick yourself for not getting there sooner. see you all next year. maybe a quick stop across the border to Tiajuana will happen. perhaps i'll whip up some Donkey Con shirts.
so the biggest uber-props certainly go to Hikari, Tim, Geo, PhilB, M, and all the rest of the organizers and staff who make it happen each year. thank you so very much for the invite, i hope what i brought to the table was worthwhile.
Woots...
my room crew - ck3k, Z, and voltage spike... you guys all kick ass. so many people shell out loads of cash for a room at a con then don't split it with anyone, either because they think they need all that space to stretch out or because they smell bad and have no friends. fortunately i am not afflicted by such concerns and therefore had the great joy of sharing the space (and the room bill) with you folk. while it didn't hurt that our place was a palace (i think that they balcony alone was enough for a whole person) everyone really went above and beyond when it came to managing space, etc.
my apologies if i woke any of you with loud snoring or drunken stumbles to the bathroom around 3 AM. my awesomeness doesn't compare to yours because you all kick serious ass. top-notch roommates in perfect condition. exactly as advertised. very fast shipper. would buy again. A+++ :-)
freshman - what can i say, man... you consistently bring an element of fun to any event that never goes awry. you always have your head on straight but manage to be doing something fun with a dozen people all while working. you introduced me to lots of good folk and are integral in events like this... where people learn new things and meet new friends. hugs and kisses to freshwoman, as well.
æther - looking forward to getting one of those RFID-shielding pouches as soon as i decide what beer can metal it should contain.
seriously, you're stunning and cunning and wise. i hope to see you again soon.siviak - heh, you sir are the definition of an indirect enabler... no matter how hard i may party, should i ever question the sanity of my actions there's always someone in the vicinity to whom a person can turn and say "well, geez... i guess i really haven't had more to drink than everyone else here." thank you for filling that need and allowing me to always reach for at least one more before calling it a night.
kaminsky - thank you for the wicked talk and the illicit jagermeister... not necessarily in that order.
beetle - best. talk. of. con. i am immediately going to dedicate time to reading DMZ. why do i wonder that there may be a time in the distant future when we're living in nearby log cabins, using encrypted radio to chit-chat about where various divisions of federal mercenaries were seen doing battle or asking if either of us has spare ammo? by the way... it's totally "free whiffy" now. that's etched in stone.
noid - didn't get to spend a lot of time with you this trip, but even in brief moments the stories you manage to share make it all worth it. keep feeling better, brother.
sorrys...
flea - while i still feel that i could have legitimate grounds to use the "hey, man, she came on to me!" defense, i am more satisfied with leaving things they way we did. you were big enough to talk to me directly and squarely about the situation, and man enough to let it go in the end. i'm always happiest to resolve conflicts with fists raised... as long as they're holding glasses.
freaky and the IVU crew - i didn't mean to tread on your territory a bit when i was offering some bump keys to folk who had gathered around my lockpick demo area. while our kits were different from one another, i was still more than happy to put mine away entirely. it was the right thing to do and i hope you don't harbor any ill feelings about the matter... i certainly don't.
people i'm forgetting - standard disclaimer applies to this whole post, of course. i'm certain that i'm forgetting people and therefore will try to edit this later when other things come to mind.
thank-yous...
abby and tre - you two are always so sweet to anyone who stops by. always a good time at your parties (where the pinball machines go topless and the women do, too) and you show nothing but love and kindness to those around you. that energy is the sort of thing that you feel even while driving to a place and which stays with you after you leave.
Ninja Party organizers - you always manage to pull off a great time where no one gets in serious trouble or causes a major ruckus... yet the affairs are always really kicking and fun. don't know how you walk that line but you do it brilliantly. thank you for everything there.
gracious people - by this i mean, thank you to so many folk whom i've met before but don't always recognize right away. maybe it's because i associate so many of you only with las vegas, or maybe it's because i've just got a terrible memory for names. either way, thank you for not making me feel like a stunad when i say "pleased to meet you" and you respond with something like "uh, yeah... i actually drove you to the airport last year so you wouldn't miss your plane" or something similar.
fuck-yous...
only one major fuck-you from me on this trip... and it doesn't even get directed to anyone at the con itself. some of you have heard this already... on my flight from PHL to SAN one of my large metal boxes was broken into (not by TSA, who inspected another one, left their customary note inside, and re-secured the box... this was an act of baggage throwers since the box was ripped apart and hanging open when i got it on the other end) and parties unknown stole most of my tools.
most of my pick sets, my entire assortment of personal tools (much of which i crafted and built on my own), a few really nice knives, etc. were all jacked. the airline claims that one can be reimbursed for pilferage... but lord only knows how long that will take.
i've been attempting to recover some of the costs with the handful of bump key sets i had for sale at the con. while they were a bit more spendy than some of the cheap-o ones you see online, they still cost less than a lot of what's out there and tend to work better, too, since these are my own hand-fabricated design patterns and not simply based off machine pre-cut notches. i still have maybe 20 sets left if anyone's interested. could arrange for a paypal or cash transaction if you want to grab one. or perhaps have a friend find me at pumpcon if you know people who will be there this weekend. the sets are very basic... just a Kwikset KW1 and a Schlage SC1 (and also, of course, a handcuff key... because everyone should have at least one and i love throwing them into all my kits, hehe) but those two keyways are about 75% to 85% of the locks on the doors in this crazy country of ours.
these were going for $20 at the con. i'd keep them at that price even if i have to slap some stamps on an envelope to get them to you. shoot me a PM if you're interested... i won't go into it more here because i don't want to contravene any forum rules about commercial posts. also i don't want to end on a sour note.
all in all, ToorCon rules. those who haven't gone should take our word for it... and once you do attend you'll kick yourself for not getting there sooner. see you all next year. maybe a quick stop across the border to Tiajuana will happen. perhaps i'll whip up some Donkey Con shirts.
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