Sigh

Can it really be over? Somewhere I must have missed a day. Surely someone stole Friday. Really? WorldCon is -gasp- done? Well, that was fast.

Let me try and catch you up on everything I was too tired for....

I have no pic to prove it, but the true highlight of the con for me was getting in a nice long chat with Kathryn. Go over and check out the cool Mill Hill she's working on. I also got a hug from Dani... via Kathryn -- Dani was visiting while I was watching Coraline. Thanks for the hug Dani!

I took my traditional picture of The Banner:

and of the "welcome sign" (usually this is a marquis outside, but the Palias does not do marquis so we got multiple tv screens instead)--

For those of you who might have experienced hideous confernece registration lines at your own conventions, allow me to show you how a well-handled reg area looks:

Good show, guys!

The Opening Ceremonies included a Cirque-training acrobat:


I went to reading by Nancy Kress:

(For the record neither Nancy nor any of the other folks are demons, it's just I'm not dealing with red-eye yet.)
and Walter Jon Williams

Jo Walton:

(who I think is my "find of the convention" -- I'd never read her before or gone to a reading, but after this reading I went trotting right off to pick up her book Farthing. She didn't read from it, but what she did read thoroughly captured me. Can't wait til that book comes out!)
and James Morrow:

Connie Willis:

who read from a new historians novel... back to the Blitz-- oh goodie!
Cory Doctorow:


I also went to a reading and a number of panels including S.M.Stirling and Charles Stross, but somehow those pictures are avoiding me right now. And I went to a reading By George R.R. Martin too. When asked by an audience member what he likes doing for fun, Martin replied: "Uhh, drinking and chasing women, but years ago I caught one."

There were the panels including the likes of:
Michelle (Sagara) West, Robert Silverberg, and Nick DiChario

Sean McMullen:

Nobel Prize economist, Paul Krugman:

Publisher Guest of Honor, Tom Doherty and fellow Tor editor, Beth Meacham:


I went to talks by Editor Guest of Honor, David G. Hartwell

and checked out his tie exhibit:

These two "cubes" are only 30-40% of his tie collection.

Missy and I fawned over the Hugo for this year-- it's absolutely beautiful!!!

Check out the cool base:


There were more Neil panels including this one where he was semi-camoflagued for a bit:

I'd like to share some Neil wisdom from his interview on "Finding Fandom"--
"The scifi book fairy always looked after me."
"People here know shit. People here know cool shit, and they know cool shit I don't know."

A panel of "elders" who didn't really discuss being a long-time sf author

That's Joe Haldeman, Elisabeth Vonarburg. Robert Charles Wilson, Connie Willis, and Pat Cadigan. [I did especially like Pat Cadigan on this panel who as she arrived huffed: "What's this?! You got me out of bed to tell me I'm old? Get off my lawn!!!"

I spent an evening with a significant number of fellow fen on the 7th floor balcony of the Palais watching the South African entry in the Montreal international fireworks contest:

The South African show is to be commended --

My favorites were the yellow and purple ones:

But then again I liked the close ups of these that make me think of galaxies far, far away:


I tried to experience the "alleged" flame show that the Palais fountain was supposed to provide hourly after 9pm. Here's what over an hour of waiting got me:





Yup, cool night-time fountain shots and smoke. No flames. I think that it's a trick by Canadians on tourists .... that picture of it I saw with its fire was probably just Photoshopped.
I did enjoy the beauty of the windows some more though:


I checked out the art inside the Palias too --
There's the pink forest:

and this really, really cool hanging piece:



The final pic of the con is, well, truly the final pic of the con. I made it back to my hotel today, turned the corner on my floor for my room and spotted this littel guy in the hall.

Ya gotta smile, right?

More, tomorrow, err later today on the continuing adventures in Montreal and, if we're both lucky, updates on my Con stitching.

Bonne nuit!