And this morning, I received the following from Julio Diaz…
Of course, the flip side of your discussion about the San Diego Con is that Angelenos such as Foster complaining about the struggle of attending sounds like a bunch of sour grapes to those of us who live in other parts of the world and who have dreamed about attending the Con for decades. I've lived my whole life in Florida, and am only planning on attending my first San Diego Con in 2006, having wanted to go for basically my entire life (I'm only 33, so by the time I was aware of such things, San Diego was already legendary). I've never been able to afford the investment involved in attending, including airfare and hotel. In fact, I'd likely not be able to go in '06, either, had I not just sold my house, having transferred to another part of Florida for work. And even then, I'll be rooming with several friends and likely sleeping on a floor for the week. To those of us for whom San Diego has taken on a mythic, Mecca-like quality, who have for years and years dreamed of going and who have thought of the Con as the fandom equivalent of nirvana, well…
We'd be thrilled if it was just a short drive on a crowded freeway.
Just my two cents. I'm sure looking forward to being there in '06!
And you'll enjoy it, I'm sure, but only if you attend all my panels. It's really quite an amazing convergence, though my friend is right: It does require more effort than we might like. I've found over the years that certain kinds of travelling — going to New York, for instance — simply necessitate a fair amount of advance planning and research. You can't just up and go to the San Diego Con. You have to book your room at the earliest opportunity. You have to figure out when you're going and where you're eating and I think it's almost mandatory to make out a little schedule of events you'll catch and where and when you'll meet up with friends. One of the reasons I enjoy moderating so many panels is that I like always knowing where I'm going to be at any given time. I feel very lost in that place when I'm just wandering for any length of time with no particular destination or goal.
I find it helpful, in explaining the con to new attendees, to make the point that it is many conventions in one. You pretty much have to find the part of it that interests you. The great thing is that it's there, somewhere. You just have to get past the freeway and hotel obstacles.