Genericon March 3 to 5 2017

Since I went to SUNY Adirondack and attended the anime club there, my friends and I have committed to attending a local convention together. We may have been going for over five years, but this convention has been on the circuit for thirty this past March third to the fifth (3/3/17--3/5/17). I'm talking about Genericon, held at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, New York.

Genericon Thirty (or Triple XXX, according to the conbook and site. And yes, your dirty mind is screaming to make a joke about it. Many have already lined up to kick that horse dead, I bet. So please control yourselves lol) was pretty great. I was certainly more tired this year, going to bed late and getting up early to make it to panels on time. But that's the con life, babies. You go hard for the good stuff. lol

Last year, Gencon really kicked it up. They expanded to the Armory building across the street (and bridge) from the main building (to be specific, the Darrens Communications Center. Look at me, I know how to read teehee) where panels are held, and had the artist alley and vendors relocate there. Even with so much space, it was still hard to get through the crowds but much less compared to the classrooms of the Low Building in the first year I was there to another at the top of one of the Sage Dining Hall building. Also, the staff of Gencon added another feature to their menu, and by that I actually mean a menu. Menus. FOOD VENDORS.

It was a sweet bunch of set ups by a couple of different clubs. I recall their Japanese club, officially known as the Japanese Culture Association served, curry and rice balls (onigiri for the weebs). They were busy much of the time they were open and out of rice most of that time too. I was happy that they were so successful though. I tried the combo plate that the Philippines American League had and it was super good too. My friend Kaci tried the samosas and mango juice the Indian Students Association served and she was in love with the juice. The CASA (a group for Chinese Americans and other students that promotes friendship and community) had a bubble tea stand. The tea was decent, but I'm not a perfect judge since I don't like tea, but my friend Ebi was into it.

A non-club stand was open in spirit of the new Pokemon game Sun and Moon, Hau's Masaladas. Unfortunately, I don't remember even seeing them open, otherwise I would've tried their food too. If someone did, please comment below and let me know if it was good? Thanks!

Food aside, my main reason for going to conventions, other than enjoying a weekend of hanging out with my friends among like-minded weirdos, is the vendor room. Specifically, the plushies.
You guys may or may not recall- Wait, I gotta stop here for a second. Seriously. My last post was in 2012, it's been too long and no older readers are going to possibly be here (but if you are, holy crap thank you for even giving me any though! <3) to RECALL anything. Anyone can go back and look at my blossoming obsession with nemuneko, but they don't really know. You guys have no idea how I've evolved. My room is nothing but squishy now and I love it. I'm a complete dragon for plushies and I can't be stopped. This is one of the very few times in a year I can go and actually shop in person for cuddlies. Honestly, I brought a huge duffle bag big enough for at least four decent size plushies and saved up the dough. I came PREPARED man. I bought so many this year and I'm not ashamed.

I bought FOUR nemuneko, two tsuchinekos, a big mochi cat who name I do not know but will soon find out and also it's by AMUSE, a big Munchkin cat, a bananyan and two rilakkumas.

Literally crazy. I told you.

So my big highlight was the vendor's room. You get it. But this year was also very different from any year as well...

There's this nerdy comedian that goes by Uncle Yo. He had been around the country to different cons for a full decade, and he chose our con -his first on the circuit- to tell us that he was retiring. We were all heartbroken about it. Someone we considered an idol, someone who had made a living being a nerd... having to hear him admit he was retiring was rough. It brought a lot of my insecurities back up to the surface too and I worried about my nerd future. Is it only a matter of time? But it's not. It's when I chose to give it up and I never will. And he didn't either. The fella probably wanted to move on to bigger projects and the travelling might have taken from the time to do so. He closed another door, so he could open another. We all wished him happiness and the whole room swallowed him in a HUGE group hug. I kept back since I did not want to be a part of what could possibly turn into also the largest cesspool of con plague, and I sincerely hope Uncle Yo didn't catch a damn thing.

On the last day of con, we got to sit in on a game he was running called Baron Munchhausen. It was incredible and funny as hell. About five people were given tokens and they all had to tell stories based on prompts that Uncle Yo had written out. People could interrupt the stories with weird twists that you could either work with (take a token from person making twist) or not (give a token to them). God, it was so fun and there were so many charismatic people who could really tell great stories. I loved it. Near the end of the game, Kaci made this huge card for him. She and Ebi got many people to sign it and they gave it to him. You could tell Uncle Yo was touched.

It was a great way to end con.

And now I'm tapping my fingers on the table waiting with my ten dollar entry fee for the Albany Toy Show. I know there's a plushie vendor there and goddamn, am I hard with excitement and anticipation.

Kids, don't read this. It might be too late, but fuck. Don't read this.

Um, see ya later.

The Return

Judas Priest, I was peppy back then. http://thediabolicalgeekisin.blogspot.com/ But I'm still a Diabolical Geek. Tighten your bootstraps, babes, because I'm coming back. It's going to be less whine, and more kawaii refined. It's also going to be just as weird, but I can't even blame drugs, considering I've never done them. Nope. My brain is that jumbled. But time to shut up. I'll post another in a bit. Hibye