The Con:\u00a0 Westercon 69<\/p>\n
The Place:\u00a0 Lloyd\u2019s Center Doubletree Inn<\/p>\n
The Dates:\u00a0 1st<\/sup> \u2013 4th<\/sup> July\u00a0 2016<\/p>\n Westercon is\u00a0 a roving \/ regional Science Fiction and Fantasy\u00a0 Convention. In 2016 Portland Oregon won the\u00a0 bid to host\u00a0 the convention. \u00a0This year, Gearcon, Portland Steampunk Convention. co-hosted . \u00a0I was very excited to attend a Science Fiction Convection in addition to Orycon.\u00a0\u00a0 Westercom\u00a0 puts a different face on Science Fiction cons for me.\u00a0 Both \u00a0my Hello Kitty plushies and Chococat were my Companions.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Friday:\u00a0 Originally I was going\u00a0 to commute to the \u00a0con hotel first thing in the morning, I was thinking\u00a0 of long lines a la Kumoricon, but a few day earlier I got a request for a job interview.\u00a0 I did the interview rushed hone, ate lunch and grabbed my Kiju Hello Kitty and headed for the bus and Max ride to\u00a0 Westercon. We had 1700 attendees, not the 3000+ I was thinking of. I got to the site around\u00a0 3:30 and was still enough\u00a0 time to register and attend the\u00a0 What the Furry panel to provide morale support. I also went to the\u00a0 Ham Radio meet up and get some dinner before\u00a0 dogging in and out of the viewing room and checked out some room parties before running out to the max train and making my bus connection home.<\/p>\n Saturday:\u00a0 After a breakfast at Home Town Buffet, I returned to the hotel.\u00a0 I caught the last of the fan film showing then went to the Good, the bad\u00a0 and the Ugly Costuming\u00a0 in Hollywood but was\u00a0 disappointed that \u00a0they\u00a0 stuck \u00a0to modern fantasy. \u00a0I loafed around until the Super Powered Television panel. \u00a0\u00a0I checked out the video room and\u00a0 got some dinner then did a Saturday Night room party crawl before hedging home by trimet.<\/p>\n Sunday: I headed\u00a0 back to Westercon\u00a0 after church, I had \u00a0lunch then\u00a0 I went to Evolution of Fandom.\u00a0 Again I felt\u00a0 something was amiss; \u00a0that what should be an interesting panel seemed to go off track.\u00a0 Then I finally\u00a0 got to see Alexander Jams in concert; other times I ether forgot or was distracted by a panel.\u00a0 Next up was Steampunk Author Readings 2 and The End is Now: Images of the World After in Popular Media before heading up to dinner\u00a0 then returning\u00a0 to prove moral support for the Furry Terminology panel\u00a0 then \u00a0room\u00a0 party crawl part two\u00a0 to around 11:21pm before I took max and Uber back home.<\/p>\n Monday: Went back to the con Monday morning. \u00a0First up was watching the Mer Folks frolic\u00a0 in the pool\u00a0 during\u00a0 the Mer Folk meet and greet.\u00a0 Next up was the Spaceflight and Religion panel. I just eat lunch and lounged around until\u00a0 7:00pm\u00a0 when Science GOH Bobak Ferdowsi hosted the Juno mission view party.\u00a0 Originally I was going to\u00a0 stay only the\u00a0 introduction but I stayed \u00a0to watch \u00a0successful\u00a0 orbiting burn and\u00a0 end broadcast at 9:00pm.\u00a0 The viewing\u00a0 party was\u00a0 the last\u00a0 and fitting end of a Successful Westercon 69.<\/p>\n The good : Mer Folk meet and greet and\u00a0 being a four\u00a0 day convention.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The bad :\u00a0 the panels. some of the panels \u00a0were good, but my problem is how their were organized\u00a0 at Westercon and\u00a0 Orycon. \u00a0The\u00a0 panels were organized \u00a0\u00a0by programming unlike fan volunteering to do panels at Kumoricon and Newcon. The problem is I heard the panelist, with a puzzled face, ask why are they on the panel \u00a0too often. \u00a0Such mismatch, leading to a lack of motivation, \u00a0drags down the quality of the panel.<\/p>\n The Ugly: Lloyd\u2019s Center Doubletree Inn\u2019s \u00a0ever expanding no mask rules.\u00a0 There been\u00a0 a change of management . At\u00a0 first they expanded\u00a0 the no mask\u00a0 without \u00a0telling Newcon two years ago. Last year attendees at Newcon only wear their mask in the meeting areas.\u00a0 Now at Westercon 69\u00a0 no maks could be worn except to\u00a0 the masquerade. That means \u00a0fursuits and\u00a0 Ryan Wells work would be out of the question. Good Job Doubletree! With that\u00a0 and\u00a0 jacking up the rates, Orycon and Newcon moved to the Marriot and turned the most friendly\u00a0 fan con hotel to one of the most unfriendly.\u00a0 At least the the Doubletree was not as bad is the down town Hilton.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In spite of the issues I enjoyed Westercon 69.\u00a0 After attending\u00a0 the writer heavy Orycon,\u00a0 Westercon was a refreshing take on Science Fiction conventions.<\/p>\n Click for\u00a0larger pictures.<\/p>\n\n\t\t