February 8, 2011
In nearly ten years of attending Comic Con, I’ve always been a budget traveler.
I was lucky that it was a relatively local event, because it was easier to keep costs down. I started out volunteering in order to get free admission to the first few conventions, and rarely ever bought anything unless it was a gift. Even then I was on a strict budget. The experience was souvenir enough for me.
The biggest expenses were lodgings, parking and food with lodgings ranging from $100 per night to an insane $500 per night at some of the premium hotels. If my friend’s family hadn’t generously hosted me every year in San Diego, six or seven years running, I could never have justified those early years as a broke college student. To avoid paying ten dollars parking every day, sometimes I would park way out on a dusty road, near the railroad crossing and just off the highway to trek almost a mile in.
At first it was just me geeking out alone, save for friend’s younger sibling who was entrusted to my care a couple days of the convention. A few years later, my friend C eventually started attending too, then other siblings, the odd cousin and friend joined the stream toward the Convention Center and suddenly we were a proper group with schedules and everything.
Every year I’d drive down and spend a couple hours in the early afternoon with C’s parents, then I’d be off to pick up my badge from the convention center for Preview Night, sometimes with C’s sib, sometimes without. C would show up with his SO whenever he pleased, and we’d convene on the Con floor. That night, we’d have a post-Preview Night rehash over dinner at the house.
Every morning we’d pack our lunches from the supplies that C’s parents had more than generously laid in for us, and every night we’d meet back for dinner and banter.
Even when I started bringing PiC and a friend or two of my own, and there wasn’t enough room for everyone even to camp out so we branched out into another set of lodgings, also generously loaned to us for a stay, we always came back after a long day at Con. Not for us the after parties, the Gaslamp gatherings, home was where we headed. It’s what you do. It’s what we did.
It’s not quite the same now, C’s dad is gone and we miss him terribly. He was never a demonstrative man but he had a hug, hello or goodbye, for me in the later years; a sign, I think, that we’d become more than just kids who showed up to invade his house once a season.
This year’s going to be even more different.
We have to fly, now, of course. That’s kind of a pain – I can’t linger for the last gasps of Con anymore as I have to join the sad departing hordes to the airport.
A friend of the heart from the ‘nets will be coming out to join our group and I really hope she feels just as comfortable with the group as the other additions have become. And we don’t have our lovely loan of a condo this year so I’m scrambling a bit to find ourselves a new set of lodgings.
This last, while I never take the loan of the lodgings for granted, caught me by surprise and PiC and I have to figure out how to lodge our newly formed group. Wish me luck, I’ve run out of any decent number of hotel points, and paying for hotels in San Diego around one of the biggest comic conventions ever is rather intimidatingly expensive.
August 4, 2008
The budget: $300, plus $150 in gas cards
Spent: $142 cash, $41 gas
Bought: 7 trade paperbacks (gifts), 1 tshirt (gift), 1 super cool toy for BF (gift)
Free: Sketch from Jeph Jacques of Questionable Content (gift), sketch from Lars Brown of me with a Viking hat, sketch from the Penny Arcade guys of Tycho and Gabe doing a fastball special. Bonus points to whoever recognizes that move! 🙂
Still to spend: flowers for the friend who let me stay in his condo (40, to split with BF), shipping fee to send his keys back (5, USPS Priority Mail), ticket for next year
Favorite quote (financially related, of course): Grant Morrison, answering a question from a fan
“You just have to try to learn to let go of your desires. You have to detach yourself from materials, sort of be separate from it, so that you can enjoy life. It’s really difficult, I know, because we’re surrounded by really cool things …. I want to go see Dark Knight again! But you have to remember that things just make you miserable. You see, there’s always going to be some cool thing you want, and then when you get that, you’re going to want another cool thing. In the end, you’re just going to be miserable because you can’t have all the cool things in the world. ”
I love that. I felt like I practiced that philosophy of enjoying being there at Con, and being selective about the things I picked up. Actually, I only bought gifts for other people this year, I didn’t buy a thing for myself, and I came out of there utterly content. Grant Morrison is crazy awesome. And his super Scottish brogue made him that much more lovable. Well, that and his very mellow demeanor with fans. And the fact that he’s always spiffed out in a suit and crazy tie. Speaking of Dark Knight: AWESOME!
Favorite Con Man: David Mack!
I love that he totally humors me. I took a hiatus from comics for a while, jaded by all the Marvel crossovers in the late 90s and his books (Kabuki) were what brought me back to the creativity and sheer artistry that I loved. Thus, I completely fangirl out when I see him, and visit him at every Con I attend. For his part, he’s all smiles, and totally gracious and friendly to every Con attendee, and considering how rough Con can be for these creators, it’s amazing. I know that it’s all fun and games for us, but Con is business for those in the industry and you can tell that some of them aren’t into socializing with their public AT ALL. Not this guy, he’s never having a bad day. Six years I’ve been seeing him at Cons now, and never anything but a smile on him. Luckily, real BF is ok with my Con BF. 😉
August 2, 2008
Con was excellent. I was concerned about an unresolved idiopathic arthritis flare-up, idiopathic in this case meaning I hadn’t done anything to cause it like overexerting myself, or lifting/carrying heavy items. It wasn’t just the run of the mill aching either, it was the alternately dull and sharp throbbing pains that would either keep me from sleeping or wake me in the night. Of course, lack of sleep is a trigger so I feared a vicious cycle that would ruin Con. I made myself rest for a solid 12 hours from Tuesday night through Wednesday; believe me, it’s hard to do on the eve of 8 days of travel with some packing and cleaning left to do. Still and all, rest was the only thing I could do for myself and by Wednesday morning the pain receded to a manageable level.
Vacation! After a semi-leisurely start, interrupted by spates of panic from colleagues, I was on my way. The calls continued well into the afternoon, but it wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle via phone or email. Annoying, but there it is.
It cost $41 to fill up my tank. And I’d still had a quarter tank when I stopped at the gas station. Thank goodness for the gas cards. Arrival in San Diego at 12:30 pm was thrilling: I was back! It’s the sole pleasure and luxury I’ve allowed myself since college, a yearly pilgrimage of sorts. I stay at a friend’s parent’s house, and for four solid days, we are spoiled terribly. Good food, good beds, good company. His parents provided a bounty of sandwich fixings, fruit, and snacks for our lunches, his mama cooked breakfast foods every morning and dinners as well. Absolute heaven for a piggy at table like me.
It balanced the intense days we spend backpacking our lunches and comics through the San Diego Convention Center, walking miles upon miles through the throngs of fellow geeks and nerds, scouting the booths and deals. And my, there were deals to be had!
The news outlets were putting the attendance count at 125,000. My Con has become so much more mainstream, that on my drive back home, I felt a wee bit possessive. I could almost wish it weren’t so enormous now, but I think that that kind of attention, attendance, and interest should be good for the industry. Obviously, the money flowing in stimulates that economy, but more than that, the level of quality has been increasing, the bar has been raised. For example, who’s seen Sin City? Or the Dark Knight? Those films were built on the backs of truly terrible films like Batman and Robin or X3. (I’m sorry, I’m a X-fan and the last of the X movies was a sore disappointment.) But out of those beginning struggles comes a push for better storytelling, stronger plotting, pacing and creativity. Sure there’ll still be money-motivated flops but we’re already seeing that the filmmakers with a passion for the original medium are able to bring their skills into the film medium.
Anyway, not to rant. It was truly an impressive crowd there. A Comic Con staple is waiting in line. There are lines to get your badge, lines to get into the convention hall before it opens, lines to have your books signed and get sketches, lines to get vouchers to get into other lines. Lines, lines, everywhere! 
The fun part about having a posse at Con is having company during those seemingly interminable waits, but you can just chat with the folks you’re in line with. Yep! I’m advocating talking to strangers. It’s best not to give them your number, and every once in a while it’s best they don’t even know your name, but generally we’re all semi-normal and just there for fun. There’s a bit of a high I get walking through Con alone, too – I love hanging out with fellow geek friends and family, I love having BF hang out in my world for a bit, but there’s a time I need to be alone and soak in my surroundings. No matter how bad things have been all year, being alone at Con, in that moment, takes me out of all the pettiness, all the anger and frustration and confusion to a different place. I love it. We’re calling it Condorphins..
My financial overview comes next!
March 27, 2008
BoyDucky and I discovered this weirdly cute toy a few years ago at his first foray into my Mecca (San Diego Comic Convention). He was smitten, and promptly bought hundreds of them as gifts for his family and friends. It was probably his most memorable discovery from that Con and validated my insistence that he should give Con a chance because it was not ALL about comic books, manga and anime.
We’ve been on their mailing list ever since, and still fondly read emails about new colors and characters being introduced to the UglyDoll pantheon as a doting aunt and uncle might read family newsletters.
The UglyDolls have quickly spread from Con to specialty stores, and then to mainstream stores. I felt such sentimental pride when I saw an UglyDoll in a SanRio store: awww … they’re making it in the real world! And a dash of, “I remember when they were just a booth at Con.” Today I read an article about UglyDolls extolling their appeal to boys, and was surprised to realize that it’s an article in the New York Times. How’s that for validation? Good on you, creators of UglyDolls!
I love them because they’re soft and squishy, and practically stuffed animals but they’re not the usual bear or bunny. And real dolls creep me out. Something about their eyes. There’s nothing creepy about the rakish, sewn on, XXs for eyes these dudes have.
November 18, 2007
Confrontations: My brother took the car, seeking permission from my enabling father instead of me, on Thursday. I’ve had it out with both my parents for their enabling behavior and finally got a hold of my brother today to give him a piece of my mind for his selfish, thoughtless behavior. I’m taking away his car keys this time, like I should have last time. I’ve also taken away my parent’s keys. How has my family life come to this??
Discoveries: I can probably bid on a one or two year subscription to the Wall Street Journal on ebay and NOT spend $100 on it. The seller requires at least a 30 day history on ebay and have positive feedback due to “non-payers.” I have no recollection of using ebay to purchase anything, but because I had ordered books on half.com 6 years ago, that history translates to ebay! Turns out I have a 6 year history on ebay and 100% positive feedback. NICE. That’s useful IF I win this auction. In the meantime, the website has a pop-up offering me a two-week free online subscription.
Also, I found a stock-conversations friend. Never had one of those before. It’s all very new, but it was good motivation to finally bite the bullet and start investing a little. It’s not that I’ve done all I can with regards to the “less technical” (as I see it) personal finance, it’s just time to expand my horizons. My eyes did start crossing a bit when the conversation got more technical than I’m accustomed to: dividends, divestitures, equity …. oy! My understanding of how stocks work is still shaky. Time to do some research.
Delivery: My ETS check came in the mail on Saturday! +$98! Will have to put that into the Expense account, though. Projected expenses through the end of the year are higher than I’d originally expected.
Acquisition: All the doomsday predictions about Comic Con selling out their 4-day passes even earlier this year got to me. I bought my pass.
Difficulty: BoyDucky’s father took yet another turn for the worse this weekend.
July 29, 2007
I’ve been home about two and a half hours now, and have only finally finished cleaning up my bags, swag and gifts enough so there’s carpet under my feet again. That includes an exclusive copy of the 300 DVD with a mask and bag that I picked up for my coworker, two tote bags for the coworkers’ birthdays, 4 comic books for BoyDucky (2 are surprise gifts, shhh!), 2 comics for me, some free T-shirts, a Neil Gaiman Neverwear shirt, and a lovely pair of Keds from the ever-gallant BoyDucky.
The logistics and planning for this year’s Con were more unwieldy than I expected and in the furor to get to San Diego before 6 pm, I managed to forget my tennis shoes at home. Yep. The second most important thing to bring to a Con, and I walked out without even giving them a second look. Oh, and I also left the most important thing on my bed as well: my ticket! Luckily, they don’t mind printing badges using ID, though it does waste time, and later on, we happened to be in Horton Plaza in a futile attempt to catch a free screening of Neil Gaiman’s Stardust, so BoyDucky and I conducted lightning shopping attacks to find me a cheap pair of comfortable shoes. We struck gold at Macy’s: white slip-on Keds, on sale, and an additional 10% discount because they were the floor models.
My goof cost $26 and a few Band-Aids, and the rest of the weekend was well under budget largely thanks to my friend’s wonderful and accommodating mother. His parents put up six of us “kids” and fed us generously, all for free. They put in stores of food for breakfasts and dinners, and tons of food for us to pack our lunches. His mother even made sure that I packed three times the usual amount to make sure that BoyDucky and his cousin, who weren’t staying with us, were provided for. The woman is a saint.
I set out to have a more experience-oriented Con this year instead of a comic-buying spree. Spending time with BoyDucky in my element rather than his sportsy element was hilarious. He’d never truly understood the hordes we’d face, or the sheer size of the convention. After walking the floor for a couple days, he finally understood why I normally spend all 4 days there.
We brought David Mack cookies and Pocky, and in return he gave us free posters and copies of his single issue comics; visited Sam Logan of Sam & Fuzzy who was nice enough to sketch his characters as ninjas for me and Jeph Jacques of Questionable Content; and were royally entertained by Neil Gaiman “burbling” as he put it when he showed up to his “Spotlight on Neil Gaiman” panel utterly unprepared to … well, anything but burble. No, we didn’t mind. He’s a funny, funny man.
I was disappointed that we couldn’t get into the 9 pm screening of Stardust, but I’ve heard rumors that people’d lined up starting at 2:30 pm, which is just crazy. Ok, I admire their fiery hot dedication to seeing the movie that day, but I simply wasn’t prepared to give up more than half my day at the convention for a free screening. I expect to Love Stardust, as I love most everything Neil Gaiman puts out, but honestly, I’m there for the whole convention. So with my disappointment I shall live.
The convention center holds thousands upon thousands of people and for the first time ever the entire convention was sold out this year. Usually, there is a variety of passes available: 4-day passes (the whole convention), 3-day passes (all but Saturday), and 1 day passes. Your best value, if room, board, and work aren’t considerations, is the 4-day pass, bought three months in advance. BoyDucky’s 3-day pass made the most sense for him since he was only going to be there two full days, and it also granted him entrance to Preview Night on Wednesday evening. Many con-goers who failed to plan ahead were not just hit with a much pricer ticket this time, some of them weren’t even able to get in for any price because even the 1-day passes were sold out.
After 5 days of Con, I’m sleep-deprived and walked out, so I went ahead and splurged on one other item: Airborne! It’s time for a nap. A three hour nap. 🙂
July 23, 2007
It won’t be the toys, gifts, comics, parking, or even the food. Especially not the food because my friend’s unspeakably awesome mother has not only offered to put us up, a veritable swarm of her children and their associates, she’s even planning to cook breakfasts and dinners, and provide lunch fixings so that we don’t have to spend any of our money on food. Seriously. She’s awesome. And not a little crazy, because there will be 6-8 of us, on any given day.
It’ll be the gas. I’m going to have to drive to work (90 miles, round trip), and then come home in time, just after noon, to go pick up BoyDucky for our long haul down to San Diego (+120 miles). Then of course, I have to come home on Sunday (+120). Or I could leave Sunday morning, drive up to Long Beach for BoyDucky’s tournament, and drive back from that (+170, +50 miles).
All told, I could be driving about 330-440 miles this coming week. That’ll be a nice chunk of change.
