Return To 'The Real World'.

.....It was a tough thing to get up this morning as I couldn't believe the weekend was already over! The first three days of NORWESCON had absolutely flown by and here it was time to pack out the hotel room. I was not ready to go.

.....Spent a couple of hours last night listening to music in the Evergreen Rooms. 'The Heather Dale Band' did a pretty outstanding performance of Neo-Celtic and Modern Folk, and a few other traditional songs thrown into the mix. I was absolutely transported to a different time and place. Voice, guitar, violin, cello, and even a little tin whistle thrown in for good measure. The hour and a half or so that they played I was in heaven. The room was packed as well. I think the bardic emphasis the NORWESCON staff had this year paid off. I hope that it means even more music for next year.

.....Ran through the dance areas in the Ballrooms downstairs. But after some good folk music I could not find the modern dance very satisfying. It was like drinking a cheap tequila after several shots of Don Julio. Not a good thing, so I headed back to the room for the evening. And was out pretty quickly.

.....Slept in a little this morning and didn't hit the shower until around 7AM. After the shower I went in to take a look at my e-mail. I wish that I had spent some time actually reading it then, but there was rather quite a lot of it and I decided that I would deal with it when I made it home. So I just skimmed through it and answered the ones that sort of tugged directly at myself and / or TBT. After that I started gathering my stuff from where it lay scattered in various locations of the room.

.....TBT awakened a short time later and we started packing in earnest. When the majority of it was packed away we decided to go out for our Starbucks run and make a final circuit of the convention. Picked up some souvenir T-Shirts and ran through the Marketplace. We especially looked through the Dr. Who offerings for Angharad, but there was actually less than I thought there would be. I think she can find better offerings and better prices online.

.....Checked out the Paranormal Fair. It was definitely an eclectic selection of offerings. Everything from 'Ghost Hunters' to ESP testing to healing advice to readings through different spiritual guidances. I think it really could have been helped if it had had some focus to what it wanted to do. It would be interesting to talk to the organizer of the Fair to see what their intended purpose for the Fair actually was. It could benefit from a couple of years to find its footing and some focus. But the NORWESCON staff may not give it enough space to do that. But we'll see where it goes.

.....Took a last look at the Art Show. Saw a couple of interesting mediums and styles that were rather new to this year. One artist did a set of block prints that were interesting. Another had a series of pictures in tooled and carved leather. A lot of the 'regulars' were back. I'm trying to work on TBT to show something again. I've seen some of the artwork she drew back in her college years. And as with anything TBT touches, I thought it looked pretty damned cool. I'm hoping to convince her to pull it out of storage and put it up for display.

.....After that we went back to the room to finish packing and loading the truck. TBT and I checked our e-mail one last time. Wished then that I hadn't. Received e-mail traffic that depressed me greatly. There are times when I wonder if I'm going to make it through three years as a Baron. I promised myself that I would do it when that Coronet landed on my head! But for a while there this morning I had to keep repeating to myself, '...only thirty months, twenty-three days left to go. I can make it for thirty months, twenty-three days. I know I can.' Sigh. Thankfully, things improved later in the day as we sifted through the information and gained some greater understanding of the entire picture. I need to work on keeping the positive attitude intact and concentrating on the things I can actually affect for the good. Always a hard thing on which to focus, especially when there are so many different things on which to focus.

.....Went to Zoopa's in Tukwilla for lunch after checking out of our rooms (and reserving rooms for next year. Huzzah! :-)). The drive home and exchange of cars with Richard and Gwen were pretty uneventful. They gave us lots to think about though concerning the summer schedule and An Tir - West War. Summer is just around the corner and plans need to be finalized as soon as possible.

.....The next six weeks are going to be a zip line ride straight to June Faire (with a side loop-de-loop through May Crown). The 'to-do' list is in the preliminary stages and will be something I need to finalize tomorrow and is epic in size. I'm glad I took tomorrow off from work! :-)

.....Ups-And-Downs From NORWESCON:

* Up: All the inspirational writing advice. I've really approached the writing thing from the wrong angle for years. It's less about form and structure and more about the actual doing of the writing. Definitely some inspiration to write something on a more regular basis.

* Down: Didn't get to spend a whole lot of time talking with friends at NORWESCON. Buzzed by Bjorn and Alys several times and said 'Hi' briefly. But never connected for any real conversation.

* Up: The music! It was absolutely fantastic this year. Need to pull out my recorder and gemshorn and practice some music for June Faire. I was inspired. Will definitely be busy during the day with the Baron gig, but can sit down and play a little in the evening. Maybe even have TBT sing with accompaniment? Hmmm, will have to think that through some more and implement a plan.

* Down: The return home. I wonder if there is some way to mentally prepare yourself to transition from NORWESCON back to 'reality'? :-).

.....I think it is time for bed. I'm falling asleep at the computer. I think I've caught up with the e-mail, but I'll double-check real fast and make sure.

.....Aaron / Arontius.