EFNW 2019: Day 1 - Friday: On Psychopaths · 4:40pm Jun 16th, 2019
Cover Art by Dawnfire!
For me, every day of EFNW at 7 AM. I’d hop in the shower, get dressed, make sure Bee was snug while sticking out of my backpack and head out. And yes, Bee was with me for the entire convention. I had hesitated on bringing her, but I’m glad I did. For a few reasons, but most of all because she was just fun to have.
The other thing I did was ping everyone awake! Because I’m evil like that. We’d see who’d be joining us for breakfast that morning as we all headed over to Denny’s. I know, not the fanciest, but still, it was mainly what we had.
The real question was… who would wear the Pika Hat?
The Breakfast of the Everchanging Pika Hat
See, Mono had the adorable Pikachu hat you can see above and below. It even had little things in the… what are those long parts called? Dangling bits? I dunno. Anyway! They made the little ears pop up! Mono kept doing the Pika :O face meme like… all weekend. Yes, it was adorable.
This morning, several of us had a turn getting to don the Pika Hat. Including myself!
Not to be outdone, Mono snagged my con art badge and proceeded to be me!
She did for a good ten minutes or so. It was… a little unnerving how well she could do that. And for the record, I don’t just say “Ship, SunLight, Deer,” for those of you who weren’t there (why would you even think that?). Mono knows me better.
Also, I got way too self-conscious to do a decent Mono. Sorry, no one can Mono as well as Mono. >.>
I eventually gave it back because it was making me too damn hot! I have no idea how she managed to wear that most of the con! But it does explain why many other people ended up wearing it. Hmmm… makes you think.
I got to sit next to Sammi and Corejo, with Mono and Nat next closest. However, the table was so dang long, it was hard to have a conversation when you were at the end! Pretty much you only had the people directly around you!
We crammed a total of 15 people around that table. Those poor waitresses never knew what hit them. Now, I’m sure we weren’t the only really big group, but sometimes, it felt like that! We’d often have latecomers join us or occasionally sit in tables off to the side.
Mono was very excited when she found out Sammi didn’t know about something.
And while the food was meh, the company more than made up for it.
I also learned I’m very jealous of Sammi and Corejo for getting to go to EFNW together and geek out about pony stuff. They’re awesome people. Well, Sammi’s definitely awesome. Corejo is slightly less awesome than Sammi. Because Sammi’s Sammi. Duh.
EFNW Opening Ceremonies
A lot of folks don’t want to hit opening ceremonies. They prefer to crash into the Vendor Hall right when they open their doors, probably to get in commissions and other such things.
I never got that. I want to get formally inducted into the weekend of fun. I want to see the crazy stunts and the guests. Hell, I was in the Opening Ceremonies last year alongside Mono, Albi (and, you know, other crazy important people). So, to me, the least I could do is show up and cheer right along with everyone else.
...even if this year got a little weird.
Thankfully, Bookish and his friend Shaxx were there, too! There were actually a bunch of us, I found out later, but we were all scattered all over the room. This happened again for the next panel, too, but that’s okay!
Full Opening Ceremonies for Everfree Northwest 2019!
There are a few opening ceremonies videos on YouTube, so if that one doesn’t work for you, try another! Still, it was great and fun, because EFNW this year had all of the Student Six VAs, in addition to the VAs for Starlight Glimmer, Tirek, Spike/Coco Pommel and Cozy Glow. Plus the MLP Voice Director, tons of community guests, and so much more. So EFNW went with this uber classy-looking “School of Friendship” theme.
EFNW Opening Ceremonies - Special Guest Introduction Only
In fact, if you didn’t go through the YouTube video up there, here are some highlights. The “stick pony” art is by Round Trip, the pony behind the “In a Nutshell” series. He even did the shirts this year! I admit being a writer who is a little obsessed with my words being perfect, the material irked me a tiny bit at first…
Then I got over myself and had fun.
Now, I will confess I almost always find the EFNW Skits a little cringy, but I felt the same way about Babs! (I can’t remember if BC or EQLA had them). However, they’re not for me, they’re for the kids and I’ve seen how my kids react to cosplayers so I think they’re awesome for doing what they do. The kids love them and that’s what matters!
Also, another highlight? Cathy Weseluck came out wearing Spike wings. That was awesome. Totally awesome. I have to admire her. Spike’s often gotten the shaft in the show in various ways, but she still seemed to love all of this.
Plus, I have to admit, getting to see Kelly Sheridan interact with fans, be on VA panels and just… be a person was the thing that finally forced me to let go of my Starlight Glimmer grudge. Yup. Happened a couple years ago. But between her and the pony, I couldn’t stay mad forever (though StarTrix helped a TON!).
Finally, opening ceremonies wound down, but I wasn’t going anywhere. Because in just twenty minutes or so, we were about to get something that had caught my eye since I first saw it.
Still… I did want to at least check out the Vendor Hall first…
For those of you who’s never been in a Vendor Hall, this is pretty damn close.
Experiments with Vendor Anxiety
So, this is the point where I screw up! Yay! In this part, I decided I wanted to check out the vendor hall. However, this proved to be a mistake, as everyone else tried to get into the vendor hall around this time!
...I lasted about 4 minutes, got maybe halfway in before I literally nearly ran out of the room. Yeah. Not fun. It took 20 minutes for my heart rate to drop back to normal. Hell, I had to head up to my bedroom and collapse onto my bed, reading Crystal’s Wishes for a bit.
It took some time to get my head back on straight, but still, it worked. While I wasn’t at 100% when I came down to the next panel, I was probably at 80%. And thankfully, the next panel charged me right up!
Voicing a Villain
(or “Why I sorta ship Cozy Glow with Tirek now don’t judge me”
OKAY!
Okay. Listen. LISTEN! You listening? I mean, reading? Whatever!
Sunni Westbrook, the voice behind Cozy Glow, is amazing. She’s a little bit crazy, a whole hell of a lot of fun and just a tad adorable.
Mark Acheson… well, he looked totally scary to me. The perfect voice for Tirek! I know, I’m a terrible, horrible person, but still! That’s what I first thought when I saw him!
But the two of them? THE TWO OF THEM?
They’re EPIC. For those who’ve seen Season 9, you know what I mean. They’re even better with improv! And their characters? Amazing? Especially when Sunni dropped into her Cozy Glow voice, which is essentially demonic Shirley Temple… damn, I got goosebumps. She can be creepy as hell while still being adorable. HOW DO YOU DO THAT?!
Witchcraft. Has to be witchcraft.
You know what? I can’t do this panel justice. At all. Nope. Can’t be done.
However, I will quote one thing in particular.
DustyKatt played moderator, and he asked each of the panelists, Terry Klassen (Vocal Director), Kelly Sheridan (Starlight), Sunny Westbrook (Cozy) and Mark Acheson (Tirek) what their first impressions on the motivation of these characters were when they first were presented with them.
Sunni’s answer regarding Cozy Glow?
“I always thought she was just a psychopath.”
The entire room exploded with laughter. I almost fell out of my chair. I instantly fell in love with her and her character. Cozy had never really done anything for me (except make me think she was Chrysalis). In fact, when it was revealed she was not the Changeling Queen, I didn’t know what to make of her. But now? Love her.
I think this is when Sunni and Mark tried to figure out if Cozy and Tirek really did have a husband/wife relationship (though definitely not a healthy one). Sunni killed it. And him.
And Tstira, who was sitting with me? Totally loved her, too.
Still, can’t do this one justice. Seriously, if you watch one video in this whole blog series, watch this. And then you’ll get why I sorta kinda ship Tirek and Cozy Glow now. (I can just do friendshipping you know! Or just go 20 years in the future…).
The Full “Voicing a Villain” Panel
Aren’t they GREAT?
I Have a Weakness for Plushies
But who doesn’t?
After the “Voicing a Villain” panel, I met up with Hap, Dave, Loofa, Bright Idea, Carabas, Cursori, Nat, Mono and Sun Sage.
After some chatting (AKA geeking out) about the panel, I decided to try a much safer store: the con store, just to see if the line was short. I asked Mono to watch my bag and scampered over.
Mono, it should be noted, is a wonderful person, because the con store line took longer than I expected and somehow she ended up wearing my bag in front and hers in back (no pictures, so very sorry) when they decided to move on.
While you can see the final collection of items later—and I have a terrible habit of coming back on the last day for the 50% sale—the main thing I got was this adorable Seapony Plush of Mocha Sunrise, the last of the three adult EFNW mascot ponies.
I may not like coffee, but she’s still crazy cute.
Meet the Student Six Panel
I ended up going to the “Meet the Student Six” panel next. They started with an awesome reading of the “Halloween” Student Six comic by IDW. I love it when they do these readings. They’re fantastic. Pretty much all VA panels are amazing and you should go to every single one you can if you ever get the chance.
Don’t believe me? See for yourself!
The Complete “Meet the Student Six!” Panel
As I saw these folks, I have to admit that both Yona and Silverstream are adorable. And damn you, Vincent Tong (the voice of Sandbar), for finally playing a character I don’t hate!
Okay, brief aside: I’ve seen Vincent Tong at multiple cons now. He is always full of positive energy. He comes out doing dance moves, huge jumps and all sorts of crazy stuff. He has some of the best quips of any VA, but he also plays so well with others he doesn’t come across as grandstanding or anything like that.
However, he did voice Flash Sentry and Garble! As a SunLight Shipper, it’s in my contract to dislike (not hate) Flash. And Garble’s just a total jerk most of the time. Kinda reminds me how Kelly Sheridan worked me over on Starlight Glimmer.
I swear. If I don’t like the pony, I end up liking the person which makes me like the pony (though I’m never gonna like Garble).
I don’t think I got to stay for the Q&A for this one. I did for some of it, but not all. I honestly don’t remember. But I do remember having fun with it. They were amazing. You should totally take the time out to actually watch that video up there!
TWI Talks - Xephyr, Rose & Somber
So, I hooked up with most of the group again and we did a run through the vendor hall. Since it was far less crowded, I didn’t have any trouble. Personally, I was looking for Coco Pommel prints to have Cathy Weseluck sign, in addition to Silverstreak prints for Lauren Jackson. My first time through I didn’t see anything, but I saw a ton of stuff I wanted.
...you know, like any vendor hall ever.
Afterward, Tsitra and I snagged lunch and scampered off to the TWI Talks. As we were heading in, I suddenly heard someone exclaim “BEE!” behind me. And it was the sound of happiness and excitement.
I turned to see a petite girl in a pink 80s Sunset Shimmer t-shirt… the same t-shirt I happened to be wearing in heather blue. That was… surreal. Also meant she had lovely taste. And I quickly found out that this was none other than BlackWater, the creator of Blue “Bee” Venture that had been a surprise gift from BlackWater, Rose and delivered by Tsitra some time ago! Pretty good thing I had her sticking out of my backpack.
We geeked out a little bit about Bee, but we didn’t have a lot of time, as we were already running a little late to the TWI talk.
If you’re wondering, Xephyr came up with a new concept this year at EFNW. Namely, that they would have Writing Staff and Community Guests do TED-style talks about certain topics in writing. Xephyr, for example, hit up the concepts of Archetypes and Tropes.
I ended up standing in the back and bugging everyone when Rose’s TWI talk was about to happen and I think we ended up filling a good quarter of the room! Hell, it was standing room only for some of the talk! Honestly, I can’t even remember all the folks who ended up turning out, but most of us know one another.
Rose’s topic was ”Finding Inspirations at the Keyboard.” She did a really thorough job of dealing with the concept. Though with only twenty minutes, there’s only so much you can cover, especially on a topic like that.
I may not be the biggest fan of Fallout: Equestria - Project Horizons, but there is no doubt in my mind that Somber knows his craft and knows it well. Also, you could tell he once was a teacher from just how he projected his voice while talking about “Creating Original Characters, Inside and Out.”
However, despite me being interested in all the topics, about halfway through Somber’s talk, my anxiety was seriously spiking again and I had to get out of there. Too many people, too much going on. Sadly, I couldn’t spend any more time with Rose, BlackWater or anyone else.
I had to retreat back to my room.
Musical Roads Not Taken
It took me quite a while to relax and finally get myself back under control. I was surprised at how hard I was taking these attacks since they had never happened to me in any past con. It may be I’m just far more aware of my own emotional/mental states after the events of The Quiet War than I was in the past. Maybe I just knew that sometimes I needed a break.
That being said… I really wanted to see BlackGryp0n teamed up with Daniel Ingram and EllieMonty.
So, I headed back to the Mane Stage to catch the “Music of My Little Pony Panel.” I came in while they were singing something I sadly can’t remember. And while I know folks joined me after I arrived, I don’t know if anyone was already there in the audience.
However, one the first things I got to listen to was Cathy Weseluck do a live performance of “A Changeling Can Change.”
“A Changeling Can Change” from “The Times They Are A Changeling”
Seriously, Cathy’s vocal range is incredible. Cathy is in her late 40s and she does the voices of Mayor Mare, Coco Pommel (just think about how different those two voices are alone), and then does Spike, a male “baby dragon.” Now, think about singing in that voice! Anyone who’s a VA out there might go “yeah, that’s normal,” but I think it’s pretty freaking amazing.
Cathy departed after a resounding round of applause, leaving us with those silly musician-types who are… brilliant.
They did the “Flim Flam Brothers” song, which is the “Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000” tune (which was then randomly playing through my head for the rest of the con). Daniel also did it on acoustic guitar while EllieMonty and BlackGryp0n performed the lyrics.
But then, Daniel pulled out something truly amazing.
He announced that in My Little Pony: The Movie, the song that eventually became One Small Thing (so a song I love because it gave birth to my purest of ships: SkyPie) was quite different.
Originally, it was set in a similar place and time: Seaquestria as the seaponies were still hiding underwater. Pinkie’s singing not only to Skystar, but to the rest of the seaponies as well, a song about the world above being scary, but it’s still possible to have fun. Unlike the big band number we got with “One Small Thing,” this one was a straight-up ballad.
Even as I’m writing this, I’m getting goosebumps, because I got full-blown shivers (and goosebumps from hearing this beautiful song).
There’s a picture in the MLP: Movie Art Book, showing a small army of hippogriffs rising into the air to assist the Mane 6 in saving Twilight and taking back Canterlot from the Storm King. Of course, this vision of the storyline never happened, but the song definitely felt like it fit with that version. In fact, at one point, Skystar is called by her original name: Coral. But
The Hippogriff Flock Ascends in this early concept art, featured in “The Art of My Little Pony: The Movie”
The entire thing was astounding. Pinkie Pie singing a ballad that becomes a call to arms to take back their freedom and to defy the fear them kept them locked in a watery cage.
Originally done by Shannon Chan-Kent, they did a full recording of it. I can only hope they one day release that song as they did with “What’s More That’s Out There” for Friendship Games. It was truly gorgeous.
Sadly, we were instructed very clearly not to record it, though I wish I had, even if only for myself. But that’s okay. One day.
Eventually, they wound down and got to Q&A. I decided it was time to do the Vendor Hall for real.
Vendor Hall Surprises
This time, I could handle the vendor hall. Now, there’s one big thing that someone got me this year that I can’t wait to show you, but I want to save until the very end.
The first thing, of course, was checking with my friends at Shipping & Handling, the folks still running the cards for Twilight Sparkle’s Secret Shipfic Folder. I got every new card, because I’m weak.
Totally weak.
Two cards from the “Magical Mares” Expansion!
Next, I inspected the various prints and to my utter delight, found a singlegorgeous Coco Pommel print that was being handled by the Traveling Pony Museum. They had an awesome setup where they had a really snazzy printer right there behind the booth so they could actually do the prints on demand. They had teamed up with various artists to do this, though I don’t remember the cut. I ended up getting two, my Coco Pommel Print and my Silverstream Print!
Cutie Saturday Silverstream by Shibaroll
Coco Pommel by LA-ndy
I also tried to get something for my wife, Painted. I found an adorable two-sided Rarity bag that I sent her a picture of and came back the next day to buy.
I wandered around quite a bit, looking at all the things I wanted and all the things I couldn’t have. Now, for some reason, Dave—the one with the enormous, life-sized Ember, not to mention a Sunny and a Twi—did something crazy. I think I was talking to him about his plushies and said something along the lines of being jealous for being able to get such cool stuff.
I’ve recently realized that a lot of my phrases can be interpreted in ways they don’t mean. “I’m jealous.” can be seen as “I’m angry that you got that instead of me!” instead of what I normally mean, which is “That is freaking awesome and I really wish I could do something like that!”
Ever notice that communication is hard?
However, Dave didn’t think anything of the sort. He declared he was going to buy me a plushie. I said no. He said yes. This went in circles for a minutes or so before I threw up my hands and went “Whatever!”
...I won’t lie, I really wanted a new plushie. A custom one.
And then I turned a corner in the Vendor Hall and came across the booth of someone who is listed in the con book as “kemonokapi.” And I saw her friggin’ adorable Moon Dancer plushie. She was smol, big enough to happily sit on my shoulder or fit in my pocket.
I sighed, marched back around the corner to told Dave, “Look, if you’re actually serious, there’s a Moon Dancer plushie around the corner.” Then left! I had no idea if he was actually serious or not.
...he was.
And when he tapped me on my shoulder and handed her to me, I sputtered for a good minute and a half before going SQUEE and literally booped this adorable Moonie with my own nose. Seriously, I was clutching that beautiful filly like my kids… well, like they clutch their favorite plushies.
Don’t judge me. You would do the same!
She’s so snuggly I could die!
I thanked Dave profusely over the rest of the weekend. Endlessly. Nonstop. Like, wouldn’t shut up. I also carried Moonie in my jacket pocket for every minute of the con after that point. She would constantly sit on Bee’s back when I sat down somewhere. Or between Bee’s hooves. You’ll see her plenty of times in coming pictures. In fact, as I’m writing this right now, she’s draped over my monitor being adorable.
Best part? I now have plushies of best three bookhorses: Sunny, Moonie and Twi! SQUEE!
Mango Thai
After squeeing more, several of us (Corejo, Sammi, Sun Sage, Arcshod (yay! He made it!), Bookish Delight, Shaxx and Tsitra headed out to have dinner at the Mango Thai place across the street (for the record, there are a few places across the street).
This was a normal hangout, too! We told stories, talked about all sorts of things. You know, the things friends do? I may have also cuddled Moonie at several ponies during dinner. I’m just gonna say.
I had an excellent Honey Cashew Chicken there. But the best part?
...our server’s name was Bee. Don’t believe me?
She was a little grumpy, I think. So yeah, definitely a Bee.
Then we headed back as we continued to juggle social groups (seriously connections were crazy).
The Fallout Connection
When we got back to the hotel, Tsitra and I ended up meeting up with Heartshine and Bubbles, and a couple other members of the Fallout: Equestria group. We joked around and I’m fairly sure got Heartshine flustered a good half-dozen times because that’s really what Heartshine does best: making flustered bat noises. It’s adorable. I’d try to record it, but she’d kill me so very dead.
It doesn’t help that Bubbles, Tsitra and myself take such enormous glee in causing this eventuality.
I also got to meet BatwingCandlewaxxe, though my brain was trying to do about a thousand other things and it was one of those intensely awkward conversations where neither of us actually knew what to talk about for the brief few moments we had! You all know those conversations! Still, a great guy who I saw numerous times soaking up all the wisdom coming out of the Writer’s Room.
Not only that but this the moment where I got hit with one of those “You never know who you’re impacting just by being you” moments.
And, to me, it was a whopper.
Sitting at the table across from Heartshine was a guy named Kaipony. It took me a few moments to recognize the name (I’d had so many named thrown at me over the last two days, I was having trouble keeping them all straight). In this context, he told me something astounding.
As I said in the Prologue, After EFNW 2018, I did a massive series of blog posts about the events of the con. It had been such a radically life-changing experience for me, to truly embrace the best parts of the fandom. Well, Kaipony actually read through that entire blog (I know, shocking). And this is what he wrote at the end of it.
Wow. I feel like I've just been to the con myself, which is perfect as I've had to miss attending it for the last two years. This retrospective was excellent and I feel it captured all the glorious insanity and heartfelt connections that truly represent the experience...
Apparently, he did feel like he’d gone to a con, because he told me that the EFNW 2018 blog series actually re-inspired him to write for the first time in 6 years!
I asked him for a bit more information and this was his reply:
...your blog reignited an old project that became my most recent story, ”With the Best of Intention.” While working on that one, I wrote ”The Shepherd” as an exercise piece to get back into the old groove. And ”The Substitute Teacher” happened in-between those two.
Currently, I'll be releasing an altered version of my Iron Author submission this weekend and, if I can find an editor willing to work with my Navy schedule, I have a multichapter story about Spike rescuing his parents that's almost ready for the first chapter to go up.
Finally, in the background I have five more short stories in various stages of planning; one experimental fic in which the main character can only communicate vis nonverbal means; a lengthy horror piece that explores G1 settings, with an accompanying prequel; and an old Fallout Equestria idea that's being looked at to be converted into an original AU.So....yeah. You could say that you sparked something, for sure.
Now, I was floored by this. Simply shocked to the point of sputtering. Still, I thanked him for telling me and told him I was honored, and I still am. And this is one of those things I’m going to remember for years and years. I have several moments like this in my life, as I’m sure many of you do! And each one of them is more precious than gold.
There’s a lesson here: we can inspire one another just by being who we are. Sometimes that’s an act of kindness, sometimes that’s an act of leadership, sometimes that’s writing a 23,297-word blog about a pony convention in Seattle.
But it’s always worth it.
Kaipony and his beautiful wife, who’s name I sadly did not get before he went on deployment.
Stop. Cursori Time.
Looking at my journals, the next couple of hours was spent in a whirlwind of— wait, really?
Okay, no. Actually. I just met up with Mono, Swan, Jyki, Autumn, Cursori, Hap (and I suspect Carabas was lurking around there, too) and then promptly stole Cursori and hauled him right up to my room to—
What? What did you think was going to happen next? The guy’s like a foot taller than me! You think I could actually steal Cursori anywhere? Jeepers people.
Cursori himself in pony form by Silfoe
No, in reality, I knew that Cursori was dealing with similar levels of anxiety as I was during EFNW. I knew I needed some time to chill out away from everyone and I knew Cursori did too.
Tsitra was already up in the room, resting, but he was fine with the company. Cursori, Tsitra and I spent the next two hours talking about our anxiety. I was checking up on him and he was checking up on me. We talked about Wavelengths, including the grand finale of the entire series, about how difficult Teahouses has been for everyone, about my Sunset and what she was going through. We talked about plenty of other things, too, including height differences. But more than anything, we just needed a break and to relax.
We even talked about “Codename: Serenade.” Yes, it’s actually a plot to take over Amazon so I can get Crown Books back in business.
...what?
Red Flag!
After we were both doing okay and had talked ourselves out for a bit, we headed down to Cursori and Carabas’s room where the rest of the Enchanticon group was playing a “dating game” called Red Flag.
This crazy game is all about creating the perfect date for someone… at least until the red flag comes in that’s something truly horrific. They may always be perfectly in tune with your emotions, be the CEO of a multibillion-dollar company, but they may also be unable to stop themselves from kicking every single puppy they ever see.
...yeah. Why are all of our card games so damn weird? Like, in general? Wait, wait, don’t answer that.
Anyway, I jumped on the bed, put Moonie out to hover over Nat’s head and we played a few rounds until we were sure everyone got a turn. I think I had to give up something that was far too perfect for me because of one thing I couldn’t get over. I was emotionally traumatized. Especially by Derpy. Damn you, Derpy! I would have won a round if it hadn’t been for your shenanigans!
However, at this point, people were really started to fade. I think we were either approaching or past midnight, but hey, I wasn’t done. I was going to go all the freaking way until everyone had passed out!
But we did move rooms!
TSSSF II - The Revenge of Cadence
Seriously, why didn’t we get an expansion named that?
So, I played an even more heavily modified version of the game tonight, designed for a large group of people who had never played the game before at all, as opposed to just two (though I think Albi played it with me last year…).
Our shippers for the evening were Derpy, Cursori, Dave, Carabas and myself. Loofa guest-starred as a pre-reader (IE, he was watching). And we created a crazy combination of things that was total mayhem and chaos.
I intentionally kept the winning point value low so we wouldn’t be playing for like two hours and instead focused on having fun. And they did! Everyone had a great time!
Finally, Cursori himself stole the game, with Derpy as a close second. I didn’t score a single goal, but I couldn’t be happier. Folks really enjoyed themselves. And that’s what mattered. I gave out a small prize for everyone who played (since there are cards in my deck that no one will ever see unless you’re playing me in person).
And our winning goals were…
Passing Out Is Hard To Do
And with that, all of us headed up to our rooms to get some sleep or at least try to. I think I got in around 2 or 3? And I did some reading, too? I say, I’m just totally out of control. Drinking water, playing shipping games? What would my parents think?
Oh right, they wouldn’t care. I’m long past that age.
Another key thing I want to mention is that Mono and I were checking on each other progressively throughout the day. Cons like this are chaotic and both of us were dealing with our own kinds of stress. It’s overwhelming! But it’s great to have a friend in your corner who’s willing to just check to see if you’re doing okay.
And that’s it for Friday night (well, Saturday morning, really).
Tomorrow will have some of the best moments I had at EFNW 2019. Some involve VAs, but most involve my friends. And just how awesome my friends are at being there for me when I need them!
| Prologue: Welcome Home |
| Thursday: Socialization on an Epic Scale |
| Friday: On Psychopaths |
| Saturday: Perfect Friendships |
| Sunday: A Bright Future |
| Monday: Painters, Packing, Piers & Planes |
| Epilogue: Why It’s Worth It |
A longtime friend of Front Page, this energetic pony is a barista in the bustling city of Seaddle! As her name implies, she loves waking up early. Mocha is always energetic and full of surprises! She loves keeping active and making friends. In her off time, Mocha enjoys camping in the mountains and hanging out with Front Page and kids. Her cutie mark is an espresso bean, surrounded by bright rays.
Red Flags was superb fun, especially when it came to sabotaging Mono's attempts at match-making. I don't think I've heard the phrase, "Oh, screw you, Cara," so often before in my life.
Much obliged to you for introducing me to Shipfic Folder as well. Mayhem and chaos were promised and entirely delivered upon.
5075462 I tried to buy a TSSSF deck at the con, but I waited too long. I had to buy mine mail order, which finally came in last week. Amazing game, particularly when sprung on friends who have no pony experience at all. See those expressions and laugh :)
Huh. We pretty much never crossed paths that day. Well, that means I get to appreciate a side of the con I never experienced. I'll definitely need to attend more VA panels. And yes, Mark Acheson does look like someone who just has a machete on his person at all times.
Delightful origin of the Moony plush.
Hey, not all card games are—
img.scryfall.com/cards/large/front/e/0/e0f31228-0c47-4c51-932d-50fdec965f15.jpg?1549414962
Okay, never mind.
Me at myself.
Of all possible pics you get the one where I apparently notice my hands like I’m tripping.
I am absolutely terrible at conversation, especially small talk. I felt like a complete idiot; but very happy I got to meet you in person finally.
I'm vicariously enjoying the EFNW via your blog recaps, so thank you!
And yes, that's a super-cute small Moondancer!
Awesome blogs, man. It's great getting to read about your experiences!
5075460
A great reason if I ever heard one! (As long as you went back!)
"... before he went on deployment."
Seriously. My eyes look like I'm either being hypnotized or brainwashed. This is why I take pictures of people and not the other way around.
Also, I must correct the record and state that I was simply off to a two week training exercise rather than a deployment. Were I on a deployment, it's likely I wouldn't be reading these blogs for several months. Shame on me for, very likely, not fully explaining myself. When you spend 50% of an ashore week or 95% of an at sea week in a uniform, your brain tends to default to perfecting confusing jargon.
Unexpectedly, the wardroom where I occasionlly ate had a wifi signal pumped in from a shore cable. I was able to load up a retrospective in the evenings to read through during quieter moments. A real treat indeed to see the con events from a different perspective.
5075462
Yup. That was me and Derpy. Though I'm surprised. I can't count the number of times I've said something like that to my editors, but hearing it in person would make the experience far richer, I suspect.
And TSSSF is glorious. I'll be playing it for decades.
5075473
Oh wow, no pony experience? Did they actually enjoy it? I've thought about that, but realized so much of TSSSF is in-jokes for the fandom. Hell, even I didn't get some of them until I asked!
BTW, you can totally make your own sets. That's when things get crazy.
5075474
VA panels are AMAZING. I always recommend them. Especially readings. Because they just riff off of one another and it's... glorious.
I KNOW, RIGHT?!
All card games. ALL. See! SEE?!
5075493
I'm pretty sure you enjoyed wrecking me more.
5075494
No comment? Heheheheeeee?
5075607
Same here. For both, believe it or not!
5075760
You are not the first, my friend. I hope you are not the last.
AND YES SHE'S SO FRIGGIN' CUTE I CAN'T HANDLE IT.
5075804
Glad you're enjoying them, Coffee!!!
5077117
That's hecking lewd
5077230
You're not disagreeing with me.
I remember the seapony song (though mainly the experience, not the actual song) that they played at that panel with Daniel, Gabe, and Eile - it was one of the best songs I've ever heard, and it's unfortunate that I may never hear it again. I did take notes on the song after retiring to my hotel room, using what was left of my rapidly fading memory of it. I was quite disappointed that this wasn't what we got in the movie, as I thought it was at least 100x better than One Small Thing, which I found a bit too childish (but hey, it's not like the movie was made for us adult fans per se.) I wonder if the movie would have gotten better reviews from non-bronies if they had kept this song and the original story to go with it. There are a lot of "what could have beens" with the movie, but I digress. I also kinda wish I had discretely recorded the song for my own listening, but at the same time, I didn't want to dishonor Daniel's wishes.
I considered going to that Mango Thai place, but I was so exhausted from a long day of travel and being always "on" at the convention, that I just retired to my hotel and ordered a pizza.
5077700
I'd actually love to read your notes on the song, either here or through a PM! I can't remember the song more than a few words!