We packed the kids and our stuff in my neighbor Jen's Mazda and began the trek down to Baltimore. The kids were adequately equipped with books, comics, and snacks and my neighbor Josh made an awesome playlist which we sang along to on the long way down. I was buzzing with excitement and looking forward to escaping reality for three days.
Balticon Schedules
I had been stalking the Balticon website for schedules for weeks prior to the convention. For the longest time, only the Anime program schedule was up and while I enjoy Anime, this was a big "who cares" for me. I wasn't going to Balticon to watch Anime all day and wanted a full schedule to plan my experience. A day or two before the convention, the Guest of Honor schedule was finally posted. At least I would know where to find George R.R Martin but a more timely schedule would have been nice. This was the only real gripe I had and it was pretty minor. I don't think I could have enjoyed the convention more.
The Guests
I had the highest expectations for Balticon50. In addition to George R.R. Martin being the Guest of Honor, a slew of incredible authors (and previous GoH themselves) would also be returning. Some authors I knew, some I didn't. There was a pretty great range of authors on the roster. I even got the opportunity to have a few awkward conversations and shake some hands, including the hand of the great Peter S. Beagle, who was just the best. He was soft spoken, engaging, and friendly. I asked him to recommend one of his books and he suggested his first novel, 'A Fine and Private Place' which was his own mother's favorite. I bought a copy of the book and he graciously signed it and personalized it to both me and my son, Jonas.
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| Guests of Honor from Balticons past returning for Balticon50 |
We all planned to engage in some CosPlay because escaping reality seems so much more fun dressed up as someone else. Jer and I settled on our Animal Crossing Mayor costumes for Saturday and Jonas, always ambitious, settled on Marvel's Falcon (Friday) AND his Animal Crossing Mayor costume (Saturday). Our neighbor's daughter was Marvel's Black Widow. The dynamic superhero kids kept the streets of Baltimore safer than ever. Jonas didn't kick anyone's butt for misidentifying his costume as Batman but it came close...Thankfully Josh and I downplayed this atrocity when reiterating the tale to Jonas and defused the situation a little. Jonas is not a fan of anyone making a debauchery of his interests so we were grateful for his restraint. At one point Jonas and his friend took it upon themselves to man a Furry Convention table and while I can only imagine what goes on at FurCon, it must have been a funny sight seeing two kids passing out flyers and promoting the event.
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The Tone is Set
After registration, I went to pick up my pre-ordered copy of a short story called 'In the House of the Worm' by GRRM. It was one of only 500 copies specifically published for Balticon50 and it was signed by George as well as by the cover artist (and Balticon50 Artist GOH), John Picacio. It set the tone for the convention when the volunteer handed me my copy and said, "Nice, you got the 50th copy at Balticon50." I knew things were destined to just get better from there.
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