The Pros at Cons A Review of Convolution 2014: Halfway Home Part 1
By Jae Gibbs
September 25-28, at the SFO Hyatt Regency in Burlingame, CA
Day One: “What the Heck is Convolution?”
I had heard about Convolution when I attended Kubla-Con, a gaming convention which was also held at the Burlingame Hyatt a few months ago. The thing is when I heard about it, I didn’t hear much. What is Convolution? I was told it was just a general pop-culture convention, then a sci-fi and fantasy specific convention, then that it was about writers and finally that it was supposed to be focusing on sci-fi and the ways that fans of science fiction communicate and interact with one another. That still seemed very nonspecific to me, but I liked the concept and the location and I had heard something about a lot of the proceeds from the Con going to local charities, so why not, right?
As time went on I periodically would check the site to see if any more specific updates were added, but I was disappointed by the lack of user-friendly data on the site. I had a nearly impossible time finding usable links to the named guests’ websites, the accurate schedule for each of the days, or even a clear mission statement for the theme and reason for holding the convention this year (or how it related to charity, or how long this specific Con had been held at said location… ) so it was all rather frustrating, especially for Dave, who didn’t know if it was worth paying for a badge to go for just me or if he should (and would be able to) attend himself, or if we should try setting up a booth there this or next year. “I have no patience for bad marketing or poor web design,” he told me, and I was sad to agree. Things looked grim.
Due to all this plus unforeseen schedule conflicts, neither David nor myself were able to attend day one of Convolution, and that’s a shame. A friend of mine, author Fred Wiehe, was giving a lecture that day on something he knows a great deal about: Witches, Vampires and the Walking Dead 
(The Walking Dead image of The Walking Dead category.)
You can check out His book, “Alreric: Monster Hunter” on Amazon. This is how and when I realized that’s what this convention was all about: authors and artists and craftspeople taking their wares straight to the people and teaching them how to do these things themselves for fun and profit. It’s not just about going to Con to show off and argue and prove your fandom is better or your geek cred more true, it’s about community and education. That’s a worthy cause which feels very close to my heart.
15 Fictional Characters I wish were real life friends of mine: 12 of 15
4. Daryl Dixon from the Walking Dead
I’ll let you in on a little secret. I am a fan of white trash culture. Well, maybe not the music but I have any number of relatives who live in trailer parks and have eaten squirrel. It’s not something I broadcast but I do get along with all kinds of people if you know what I mean. I think Daryl would be very cool to hang out with, zombie apocalypse or no. He’s just got that good ole boy vibe that I dig. You can sum up why he is cool in one word: crossbow. He’s also tough as hell, something I truly respect.
Why would Daryl want to be my friend? Well, if this were a zombie apocalypse (fingers crossed) anyone with a pulse who is not trying to steal all your guns would be cool. If I were on the show I think I would be the guy who always sleeps in the car in case of a quick getaway and I would definitely stop for Daryl, Glenn, Maggie, Michonne, and Rick (sorry Carl. I hope there’s room in the next car. The rest of you post Gov adds can hoof it too).
Daryl image courtesy of the Walking Dead t shirt category.
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Star Trek Retrospective: Episode 29 Operation: Annihilate!
This is the fried egg on the back episode. I remember thinking he flying creatures looked very gross, like flattened fake vomit bleached to a sickening pale. This is one of those stories that always left me with a lot of questions and since I have a lot to do today why don’t I just ask a few of them?
First off how do these things fly? I mean, obviously with cheesy strings on the show but what was their theoretical motive power? They clearly can’t flap enough to generate lift. Telekinesis? If so why do they have to swoop around like a bat? Couldn’t they just float around? Or use their collective power to hold humans in place long enough to give them the wet back slap? For that matter if their means of attacking humans is attaching themselves to the back of the humans why didn’t anyone think to just wear a breast plate? It’s always aggravating when you suddenly realize that the entire problem could be solved with the application of some 8th century technology 
(don’t get me started about what a couple suits of chain mail would do for the zombie fighting capabilities of the Walking Dead cast. Rick and Michonne (armed with a sword BTW) image from the Walking Dead t shirt collection). They don’t even have to go full metal. Seems like you could defeat “them” with some plastic armor, a few big butterfly nets, and a tree shredder to feed them into.
Also can someone tell me what the title was about? Were the flying fried egg monsters out to annihilate the human race, or were the humans going to annihilate them? Not a really Federation approach. This title always seemed at odds with all the other really good Trek titles (Dagger of the Mind, City on the Edge of Forever, the Devil in the Dark).
I guess this episode shows that the only thing worse than being a red shirt under Kirks command is to be related to him. Poor Sam Kirk died in agony while his nephew and sister-in-law spent some time in a lot of pain. Also let us not forget how Kirks son David Marcus died on the edge of a Klingon dagger in the Search for Spock. Also didn’t Kirk let the one true love of his life get run over by a truck in City on the Edge of Forever. Don’t know if I would be inviting him to the family reunion.
Anyway, cool episode all that aside. It was later ripped off by Stargate SG1 and a few other shows. The only thing dumb was the devastation Kirk and McCoy felt when Spock was blinded. I really don’t think blindness was as debilitating in the Federation as it would be today. Geordi had that cool wrap around muffler face thing to help him see, and even in TOS they showed that blind people could see with technology in Is There No Truth in Beauty? I don’t think Spock had the emotional attachment to color as we would.
the Infamous Dave Inman
@Nerdkungfu
Another bad night of WOW
Another bad night for WOW. My DPS keeps improving, but everyone else is increasing more. I am behind the curve, and will not catch up doing our regular raids. I need to do some work on my own, and really don’t have the time. I think I will have to put raiding on the back burner for a while.
The fact is I don’t really have time for much at all besides this site. I really need to get my Skaven army fixed and painted by June and I have not picked up a brush in weeks. I think I have the list I like but have to work on the actual models.
The thing I love about painting is I can just throw a whole season of a TV show on the DvD player and sort of not listen. I still enjoy it immensely, and find it really relaxing. I have been looking at Stargate SG1 again, but think I will switch it up for the Walking Dead. I wish the SG1 shirts did better, as think they are really cool, but they kind of languish in the tv t shirt section getting very little love. This Walking Dead t shirt is very cool.
