BrickCon 2024

[00:00:00] This is the Battlegorilla LEGO Podcast, Episode 41, BrickCon 2024.

[00:00:08] The secret title of today's episode is Four Days of Hell in Bellevue, Washington.

[00:00:16] Today we're going to be talking about BrickCon 2024, which took place back in September at the Maidenbauer Center in Bellevue, Washington.

[00:00:26] It had been quite a while since the last time I was at an actual in-real-life LEGO convention.

[00:00:34] The 2023 BrickCon I had attended virtually from the comfort of my computer chair, which is fine.

[00:00:42] It's a lot cheaper.

[00:00:44] You don't need to spend money on gas to get there or the hotel room or any of that.

[00:00:51] But you also don't get any face-to-face contact with your fellow adult fans of LEGO.

[00:00:56] You don't get to walk around and look at the mocks on display.

[00:01:00] It's just not the same.

[00:01:04] And earlier this year, I was unable to attend Brick's Cascade.

[00:01:09] So, it had been over a year since my last physical appearance at a LEGO convention.

[00:01:16] I was more than ready to go back.

[00:01:18] The disclaimer.

[00:01:22] LEGO is a trademark of the LEGO Group of Companies, which does not sponsor, authorize, or endorse this podcast.

[00:01:31] Are you ready to listen to the world's number one LEGO podcast?

[00:01:37] Recorded in my apartment.

[00:01:46] Podcasting is awesome.

[00:01:49] That's what you and it's about the LEGO fan scene.

[00:01:52] Podcasting is awesome.

[00:02:06] Welcome to the BattleGorilla LEGO podcast.

[00:02:09] My name is Mike Sneethan.

[00:02:10] I'm your host.

[00:02:10] Let's get right into it.

[00:02:13] This con felt different than previous Brick cons, even before the event began.

[00:02:20] Unlike most LEGO conventions, I wasn't frantically building mocks right up until the last possible moment.

[00:02:27] A couple of LEGO haiku I brought with me were built during the week before the con, but that was much easier than trying to assemble a full-size mock or two at the 11th hour.

[00:02:37] As always, food would be required.

[00:02:42] As always, food would be required.

[00:02:42] But my traditional convention staples, pop-tarts, granola bars, and the infamous convention sandwich, peanut butter and crushed Doritos on sourdough bread,

[00:02:53] I could have none of that following the still recent oral surgery.

[00:02:58] 90% of the food that I brought was yogurt.

[00:03:04] I completely rebuilt and updated my brick badge bandolier, adding in the last several years' worth of badge bricks and removing some of the older badge bricks that had become obsolete over time.

[00:03:17] I bought a gift so that I could participate in Dirty Brickster.

[00:03:23] Brick con was taking place in a brand new venue.

[00:03:26] Well, new to me.

[00:03:28] They had actually been in this venue last year as well, but like I said, virtual.

[00:03:34] Not the same thing.

[00:03:36] And with Brick con having recently formed a non-profit foundation, foundations was the theme of this year's convention.

[00:03:45] So, on Brick con Thursday, our little Brick con adventuring party set off for Bellevue.

[00:03:52] Who did this adventuring party consist of?

[00:03:55] That would be me, my friend Kyle, and a person who, up until that point, I had always thought of as Kyle's friend Andy.

[00:04:07] During Brick con, Kyle's friend Andy underwent a startling metamorphosis and emerged as my friend Andy.

[00:04:17] I'd hung out with Andy a few times before, but I didn't know him that well.

[00:04:21] He was an acquaintance.

[00:04:23] Not yet a close friend.

[00:04:26] Brick con changed that.

[00:04:28] Andy is quite definitely my friend now.

[00:04:31] Oh, he's still Kyle's friend too.

[00:04:33] It isn't an either-or situation.

[00:04:37] Kyle and I aren't planning to do battle over custody of him.

[00:04:41] As far as I know anyway.

[00:04:43] But yeah.

[00:04:44] Me, my friend Kyle, and my friend Andy.

[00:04:49] I brought three things with me to display at Brick con.

[00:04:53] And when I say three things, I mean 31 mocks.

[00:04:58] I brought the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle necks that had been displayed at Brick's Cascade earlier in the year.

[00:05:04] I brought a very small mock called Denizens of the Ice Flow,

[00:05:09] which was a brick-built mass of ice in the middle of a single blue base plate of ocean.

[00:05:15] And that ice was covered in teeny tiny little brick-built walruses.

[00:05:21] The other thing that I brought, I had originally intended to register as a single mock entitled The Lego Haiku Project.

[00:05:31] But before I just arbitrarily did that, I contacted one of the theme coordinators for art and said,

[00:05:38] Hey, do you mind if I register this whole thing as just one single mock?

[00:05:44] And I was told they would rather that I register each Lego Haiku individually for a variety of reasons.

[00:05:52] So, that's what I did.

[00:05:54] Instead of taking a few minutes and registering it as one mock,

[00:05:58] I spent a great deal of time registering the 29 individual haiku that, at that time, made up the Lego Haiku Project.

[00:06:08] I had also finally gotten a sign put together to explain the Lego Haiku Project to any interested parties.

[00:06:16] Eight and a half by eleven clear acrylic sign holder, within which was a document proclaiming,

[00:06:22] Lego Haiku Project.

[00:06:25] A Lego Haiku is defined as a complete mock in three sections, usually lined up in a row,

[00:06:31] where the first section is built out of exactly five pieces,

[00:06:35] the middle section is built out of exactly seven pieces,

[00:06:39] and the last section is built out of exactly five pieces,

[00:06:43] just like the syllable count of the traditional short-form Japanese poetry called haiku.

[00:06:50] I felt that a sign was necessary because having a large quantity of mocks,

[00:06:55] each of which was made from only seventeen pieces,

[00:06:59] doesn't really look like much, unless you understand the artistic intent behind it.

[00:07:06] At previous conventions, I've seen people walk past some of the Lego Haiku on display,

[00:07:11] glance at it, and then automatically dismiss it and keep on walking.

[00:07:16] So, I felt much better about people actually understanding these little mocks,

[00:07:21] with the sign there.

[00:07:24] The space that the art theme coordinators had set aside for the Lego Haiku Project

[00:07:28] was prime real estate, as that table was the one immediately facing the entryway doors.

[00:07:34] So, pretty much the first thing you were going to see upon entering the exhibition hall

[00:07:39] were the haiku mocks.

[00:07:41] Made them kind of hard to miss.

[00:07:45] We arrived at the Maidenbauer Center Thursday afternoon,

[00:07:48] and went through check-in.

[00:07:50] Picked up our badges and swag bags.

[00:07:53] Some guy named Mike discovered that my name was also Mike,

[00:07:56] and handed me a badge brick which read,

[00:07:59] Mike Lug.

[00:08:01] Unexpected bonus badge brick right after arrival?

[00:08:04] Yes, please.

[00:08:06] By the time I was finished at the registration desk,

[00:08:10] Kyle and Andy had unloaded the containers with my mocks over by the art section.

[00:08:15] I pulled the lid off of the container holding my Lego Haiku,

[00:08:18] and stared despondently at it for a few moments.

[00:08:22] The table was set up with three risers,

[00:08:25] so that the haiku could be easily displayed on four levels.

[00:08:28] The risers plus the tabletop itself.

[00:08:32] And as I sat there, picturing myself awkwardly and painfully limping around,

[00:08:37] trying to get everything set up,

[00:08:39] Andy walks up behind me and asks,

[00:08:41] Need any help?

[00:08:43] Indeed I did.

[00:08:45] So, I started pulling out the individual haiku,

[00:08:48] setting them up in their correct configuration,

[00:08:51] and pairing them with their mock cards.

[00:08:54] And while I was doing that,

[00:08:56] Andy was taking the completed ones,

[00:08:58] and situating them on the risers or the table.

[00:09:01] It quickly went from an ordeal I was dreading,

[00:09:04] to one of the easiest mock setups I've been involved with.

[00:09:09] We set up 28 and a half of the 29 haiku.

[00:09:13] One of them would still need parts until the next day.

[00:09:17] And then moved on to set up the rest of my stuff.

[00:09:21] Could not have done it without Andy's help.

[00:09:25] Then, I just cruised around the space in my wheelchair,

[00:09:28] checking out the other mocks that were either set up or in the process of becoming so.

[00:09:34] I took a look at some of the vendors' tables being set up,

[00:09:37] talked to a few people trying to be social and whatnot,

[00:09:40] talked about getting the podcast ready to come off of hiatus.

[00:09:45] At this point, you might be saying,

[00:09:48] well, so far,

[00:09:50] all of this seems,

[00:09:52] at the very least,

[00:09:53] pleasant,

[00:09:54] if not actually fun.

[00:09:56] So, why is the secret title of this episode

[00:09:59] Four Days of Hell in Bellevue, Washington?

[00:10:04] Four Days of Hell in Bellevue, Washington

[00:10:07] refers to the entirety of the adventure,

[00:10:09] not just the convention.

[00:10:12] Oh, BrickCon did contribute to that description somewhat,

[00:10:15] which I'll get to later on.

[00:10:16] But overall,

[00:10:18] it was non-BrickCon-specific factors

[00:10:21] that were seemingly cursing our journey.

[00:10:24] For me, personally,

[00:10:26] being in constant dental pain was kind of a downer.

[00:10:30] As I mentioned in last week's episode,

[00:10:33] I had rogue bone structure elements in my mouth

[00:10:36] causing me difficulties during the convention weekend,

[00:10:39] including a very sharp piece of bone

[00:10:41] that was relentlessly slicing up my poor tongue.

[00:10:44] The entire Bellevue area is also very expensive.

[00:10:49] Apparently, even more expensive than Seattle.

[00:10:53] When I first heard that BrickCon was moving

[00:10:56] from Seattle to Bellevue,

[00:10:57] I naively thought that attending the convention

[00:11:00] would be less expensive now.

[00:11:02] But for those four days,

[00:11:04] I was scared to take a deep breath

[00:11:07] for fear that the city of Bellevue

[00:11:09] would send me a bill for oxygen consumption.

[00:11:14] We'd been told that both of the main hotels

[00:11:16] were within walking distance

[00:11:17] of the Maidenbauer Center.

[00:11:19] So, we were a little surprised to discover that

[00:11:23] directly in between our hotel and the convention center

[00:11:26] was an actual eight-lane freeway.

[00:11:29] Huh.

[00:11:32] But the granddaddy of all the four-day weekend's problems

[00:11:36] was our hotel room.

[00:11:40] When we were arranging this trip,

[00:11:42] we had two basic choices as far as where to stay.

[00:11:46] And with all of us being various degrees

[00:11:49] of financially challenged at the time,

[00:11:51] we selected the less expensive hotel.

[00:11:55] That was apparently a huge mistake on our part.

[00:12:00] Our room was an ADA-compliant room

[00:12:03] to make things easier for me and the wheelchair.

[00:12:07] When Kyle booked the room,

[00:12:09] the credit card number he gave them was his mom's.

[00:12:12] He explained all of that to them at the time,

[00:12:15] and they assured him that

[00:12:16] him not having the card with him at the hotel

[00:12:19] wouldn't be a problem.

[00:12:21] They could charge the card number,

[00:12:23] and all would be fine.

[00:12:25] When we arrived at the hotel's check-in desk,

[00:12:28] they informed him that

[00:12:30] they also needed a second credit card

[00:12:32] to cover incidentals.

[00:12:35] Kyle reluctantly pulled out his debit card

[00:12:38] and made sure that

[00:12:39] unless we actually racked up some incidental charges,

[00:12:43] nothing would be charged to the card

[00:12:45] because that account had very little money in it at the time.

[00:12:49] They assured him that

[00:12:51] nothing would be done with the card

[00:12:52] unless we ordered room service,

[00:12:54] ran up a phone bill,

[00:12:55] or trashed the room.

[00:12:56] All things we weren't planning on doing.

[00:13:01] Then, apparently,

[00:13:02] the moment we turned our backs

[00:13:03] to head to the room,

[00:13:04] they immediately placed a $150 hold

[00:13:08] on the account that they'd just told us

[00:13:09] they wouldn't do anything with,

[00:13:11] over-drying it.

[00:13:14] And then there was the room itself.

[00:13:17] We had some concerns about this room.

[00:13:20] The first question was about the red stain on the lampshade.

[00:13:25] Was it wine?

[00:13:27] Or was it blood?

[00:13:29] We couldn't tell

[00:13:31] and were kind of scared to ask.

[00:13:34] The much larger stain on the carpet

[00:13:37] was completely unidentifiable

[00:13:39] and we figured was better left alone.

[00:13:42] The cigarette burns on the toilet seat

[00:13:46] were another cause for concern.

[00:13:49] These weren't mere surface wounds.

[00:13:51] No, these were holes that went down

[00:13:54] into the interior of the toilet seat,

[00:13:57] causing the material inside said toilet seat

[00:13:59] to begin creeping upward

[00:14:01] on its way out from inside.

[00:14:05] How hygienic was this?

[00:14:07] Was our question.

[00:14:09] Were we secure in the notion

[00:14:10] of putting our bare flesh

[00:14:12] against these cigarette-induced burn holes,

[00:14:14] not knowing how much other bare flesh

[00:14:16] had sat there?

[00:14:18] Not really.

[00:14:19] No.

[00:14:21] The knob to turn the shower on

[00:14:23] was broken

[00:14:24] in this, the ADA-compliant room.

[00:14:28] But what the French would call

[00:14:30] the piece de resistance

[00:14:32] was what became known to us

[00:14:34] as the outlet of doom.

[00:14:38] There was one area in the room

[00:14:41] that had sufficient space

[00:14:42] to park the wheelchair

[00:14:43] and was close enough

[00:14:45] to an electrical outlet

[00:14:46] so we could recharge it.

[00:14:48] But plugging anything

[00:14:50] into that outlet,

[00:14:52] or unplugging anything

[00:14:53] from that outlet,

[00:14:55] or even touching

[00:14:57] the power cord

[00:14:58] of something plugged

[00:14:59] into that outlet,

[00:15:01] caused it to literally spark.

[00:15:05] The outlet sparked

[00:15:06] and the television, microwave,

[00:15:08] and bathroom lights flickered

[00:15:10] with any contact

[00:15:12] to that outlet

[00:15:13] or its attached power cords.

[00:15:15] There was also an issue

[00:15:17] with the bed,

[00:15:18] but I sleep sitting up

[00:15:19] in a chair

[00:15:20] because of respiratory issues,

[00:15:21] so that didn't actually affect me.

[00:15:25] Anyway,

[00:15:26] that was our BritCon Thursday.

[00:15:31] The next morning,

[00:15:32] we got up,

[00:15:33] showered,

[00:15:34] got dressed,

[00:15:35] grabbed some breakfast,

[00:15:36] and the hotel

[00:15:37] Kyler received notification

[00:15:38] that his account

[00:15:39] was overdrawn

[00:15:39] and had to spend some time

[00:15:41] explaining to his bank

[00:15:42] that it was a hold

[00:15:43] from the hotel

[00:15:44] and not an actual overdraft.

[00:15:47] Then we all headed down

[00:15:48] to the lobby

[00:15:49] to have our first experience

[00:15:50] with Bellhop.

[00:15:54] Bellhop is an electric

[00:15:56] free shuttle service

[00:15:57] that operates

[00:15:58] in an area of Bellevue

[00:16:00] with a six-mile perimeter.

[00:16:02] The theory

[00:16:03] is that you download the app,

[00:16:05] request a ride,

[00:16:06] and within 10 minutes,

[00:16:08] they'll pick you up

[00:16:09] and drop you off

[00:16:10] anywhere within

[00:16:11] their area of operation.

[00:16:14] And I'm sure

[00:16:15] that it works just fine

[00:16:16] if you're a person

[00:16:18] or maybe two people,

[00:16:21] but if you are three people

[00:16:23] and a wheelchair,

[00:16:24] it's a little more difficult

[00:16:26] to find a driver

[00:16:27] both able

[00:16:27] and willing

[00:16:28] to accommodate you.

[00:16:30] There were also

[00:16:31] some issues

[00:16:32] with things going on

[00:16:33] at BritCon

[00:16:34] before Bellhop

[00:16:35] started running

[00:16:36] in the morning.

[00:16:38] Our journeys

[00:16:39] from the hotel

[00:16:40] to the Maidenbauer

[00:16:41] or vice versa

[00:16:42] over the weekend

[00:16:44] were usually accomplished

[00:16:45] via Bellhop.

[00:16:46] But there were times

[00:16:48] when we had to

[00:16:48] simply give up

[00:16:49] on Bellhop,

[00:16:50] cancel the ride,

[00:16:52] and spend money

[00:16:53] on either Uber

[00:16:54] or Lyft.

[00:16:56] Once Bellhop

[00:16:57] got us to the Maidenbauer

[00:16:58] on Friday morning,

[00:16:59] my first order

[00:17:00] of business

[00:17:01] was finishing

[00:17:01] that last Lego haiku

[00:17:03] I'd mentioned earlier.

[00:17:05] Several days

[00:17:06] before BritCon,

[00:17:07] I'd put out a call

[00:17:08] to the local

[00:17:09] Lego community

[00:17:09] on social media

[00:17:10] begging for

[00:17:12] a few key parts,

[00:17:13] but nobody around

[00:17:14] here had them.

[00:17:17] Then it suddenly

[00:17:18] dawned on me

[00:17:19] that if anyone

[00:17:21] was going to have

[00:17:22] these specific parts,

[00:17:23] it was going to be

[00:17:24] Marianne Asanuma.

[00:17:26] And,

[00:17:27] according to her

[00:17:28] recent Facebook posts,

[00:17:29] she was going

[00:17:31] to be at BritCon.

[00:17:32] So,

[00:17:33] I contacted her

[00:17:34] and she agreed

[00:17:35] to bring my

[00:17:35] desperately needed

[00:17:36] parts along with her.

[00:17:40] This would be

[00:17:40] my first time

[00:17:41] seeing Marianne

[00:17:42] since before

[00:17:43] her cancer diagnosis

[00:17:44] last year.

[00:17:45] I went to her booth

[00:17:46] in the vendors area

[00:17:47] and waited

[00:17:48] until she had a moment.

[00:17:50] She looked good,

[00:17:52] healthy.

[00:17:53] One of my first questions

[00:17:54] once she got to me

[00:17:55] was how she was doing

[00:17:56] and she informed me

[00:17:58] that while she wasn't

[00:17:59] yet cancer-free,

[00:18:01] it was no longer

[00:18:02] actively killing her.

[00:18:04] She handed over

[00:18:05] the parts I'd requested

[00:18:06] and then said

[00:18:07] that she needed

[00:18:08] to bring a mock

[00:18:08] over to the exhibition area,

[00:18:10] so I traveled

[00:18:11] along with her

[00:18:12] in that direction

[00:18:12] conversing as we went.

[00:18:15] Throughout the convention,

[00:18:17] I'd managed to grab

[00:18:18] several short chunks

[00:18:19] of time with Marianne,

[00:18:20] five or ten minutes

[00:18:21] here or there.

[00:18:23] She's always a blast

[00:18:24] to talk to

[00:18:25] and she's always missed

[00:18:26] when I'm at a convention

[00:18:27] that she isn't.

[00:18:30] Later on that day,

[00:18:32] I had my first

[00:18:33] Simon Lou sighting.

[00:18:35] When I had heard

[00:18:36] that he was going

[00:18:37] to be appearing

[00:18:38] at BritCon,

[00:18:39] I was very excited

[00:18:40] because of the possibility

[00:18:41] of getting to chat

[00:18:42] with the man.

[00:18:43] And now,

[00:18:45] there he was,

[00:18:46] standing in the exhibition

[00:18:48] hall surrounded

[00:18:49] by a small crowd

[00:18:50] of aphols

[00:18:50] with whom he was conversing.

[00:18:54] I drove the wheelchair up

[00:18:56] and parked it

[00:18:57] what I felt

[00:18:57] was a respectful distance away,

[00:19:00] patiently waiting

[00:19:01] for the crowd to dissipate

[00:19:02] so that I could roll up

[00:19:03] and introduce myself.

[00:19:06] At some point,

[00:19:07] while waiting,

[00:19:09] Simon glanced over at me

[00:19:10] and I could tell

[00:19:12] by the look on his face

[00:19:13] that he recognized me

[00:19:15] as somebody

[00:19:16] who had stalked him

[00:19:17] to this location

[00:19:18] with the intent

[00:19:19] of stealing

[00:19:20] at least one,

[00:19:21] if not both,

[00:19:22] of his kidneys.

[00:19:24] This was not at all

[00:19:25] why I was there,

[00:19:26] but I could still tell

[00:19:28] he was worried about it.

[00:19:30] I waited for a little bit,

[00:19:32] but then,

[00:19:33] instead of the crowd

[00:19:34] dissipating,

[00:19:35] the crowd,

[00:19:36] Simon included,

[00:19:37] simply wandered off

[00:19:40] as a crowd,

[00:19:42] continuing their conversation

[00:19:43] as they traveled

[00:19:44] across the exhibition hall.

[00:19:47] I briefly thought

[00:19:48] about maintaining

[00:19:49] my respectful distance

[00:19:51] and simply following along,

[00:19:54] but then,

[00:19:55] reflecting on the look

[00:19:56] Simon had given me,

[00:19:57] I decided

[00:19:57] that probably

[00:19:59] was not the best idea.

[00:20:00] I didn't want to panic

[00:20:02] the poor man.

[00:20:04] I decided

[00:20:05] I would introduce myself

[00:20:06] to Simon

[00:20:06] at some other point

[00:20:07] during the convention.

[00:20:10] Later that evening,

[00:20:12] volunteers would start

[00:20:13] setting up the stanchions

[00:20:14] that would keep the public

[00:20:15] from getting too close

[00:20:16] to the mocks on display.

[00:20:18] Those same stanchions

[00:20:19] would also cause

[00:20:20] the convention attendees

[00:20:21] some difficulty

[00:20:22] in getting to those same mocks,

[00:20:24] so before that happened,

[00:20:26] I made another pass

[00:20:27] of the exhibition hall,

[00:20:29] this time to place tokens

[00:20:30] by the mocks

[00:20:31] that had really spoken to me.

[00:20:34] Once again,

[00:20:35] Andy was only too happy

[00:20:36] to help me out with this.

[00:20:39] In the very first episode

[00:20:41] of this podcast,

[00:20:42] I described a little Lego robot

[00:20:44] that I'd repeatedly built

[00:20:46] out of parts

[00:20:47] from one of my space sets.

[00:20:49] Prior to BritCon,

[00:20:51] I'd ordered parts

[00:20:52] to mass-produce

[00:20:53] this little guy,

[00:20:53] and I'd built 99 of them

[00:20:56] to bring along with me.

[00:20:58] One of the parts

[00:20:59] I'd ordered

[00:20:59] came one unit short,

[00:21:01] so I missed my goal

[00:21:02] of an even hundred.

[00:21:05] Due to the exhibition

[00:21:06] being smaller

[00:21:07] than I was assuming

[00:21:08] it would be,

[00:21:09] I didn't need

[00:21:10] that extra token.

[00:21:11] Or, in fact,

[00:21:13] many of the tokens

[00:21:14] that I did bring.

[00:21:16] All in all,

[00:21:16] I awarded 25

[00:21:18] of these little robot tokens

[00:21:19] to what I felt

[00:21:20] were deserving mocks.

[00:21:23] I'll need to order

[00:21:24] more parts

[00:21:25] to bolster the ranks

[00:21:26] of the remaining token bots

[00:21:27] sometime before

[00:21:28] I go to Bricks Cascade

[00:21:29] next May.

[00:21:31] That evening

[00:21:32] was the keynote address

[00:21:33] given this year

[00:21:35] by the Battle Gorilla

[00:21:36] Lego podcast's

[00:21:37] favorite notable

[00:21:38] a-ful,

[00:21:40] Simon Liu.

[00:21:41] Simon's presentation

[00:21:43] tied into the convention's

[00:21:44] 2024 theme

[00:21:46] of foundations

[00:21:46] by talking about

[00:21:48] community,

[00:21:49] arguably the very

[00:21:50] foundation of Lego fandom.

[00:21:52] Specifically,

[00:21:53] about the sort

[00:21:54] of family tree

[00:21:55] that longtime

[00:21:56] a-ful develops

[00:21:57] with the people

[00:21:58] that inspired you

[00:22:00] on the chart above you

[00:22:01] taking the position

[00:22:02] of parents

[00:22:03] and eventually

[00:22:04] people that you

[00:22:05] yourself have inspired

[00:22:07] below you on the chart,

[00:22:09] essentially,

[00:22:09] your Lego fandom children.

[00:22:12] It was a very

[00:22:13] entertaining half hour

[00:22:14] and is currently

[00:22:15] available for viewing

[00:22:16] on the official

[00:22:17] BrickCon YouTube channel.

[00:22:19] You should definitely

[00:22:20] check it out.

[00:22:22] Following the keynote,

[00:22:23] the exhibition hall

[00:22:24] opened up for

[00:22:25] Friends and Family Night,

[00:22:27] where the convention

[00:22:28] attendees could bring in

[00:22:29] a limited number

[00:22:30] of friends

[00:22:31] and or family members

[00:22:32] to check out

[00:22:33] the mocks on display.

[00:22:35] We hung around

[00:22:36] for a little while

[00:22:37] but eventually

[00:22:37] headed back

[00:22:38] to the hotel,

[00:22:40] where,

[00:22:41] as far as anyone knew,

[00:22:43] once it got late,

[00:22:44] we'd go to bed

[00:22:45] and sleep, right?

[00:22:47] I mean,

[00:22:48] that's what you'd think,

[00:22:49] wouldn't you?

[00:22:51] Yet,

[00:22:52] right about a half hour

[00:22:53] after midnight,

[00:22:55] the hotel room phone

[00:22:57] started ringing.

[00:22:59] The front desk

[00:23:00] wanted to let us know

[00:23:01] that it had been determined

[00:23:04] that they would not

[00:23:05] be able to charge

[00:23:06] the room

[00:23:06] to Kyle's mom's

[00:23:07] credit card

[00:23:08] without Kyle

[00:23:09] actually having

[00:23:10] the physical card

[00:23:11] in hand.

[00:23:13] So,

[00:23:14] their plan

[00:23:15] was to simply

[00:23:15] charge the room

[00:23:16] to Kyle's debit card,

[00:23:17] which they had

[00:23:19] already overdrawn

[00:23:20] by placing the hold

[00:23:21] on it that they said

[00:23:22] they wouldn't do.

[00:23:24] But this once again

[00:23:25] left them

[00:23:26] without that needed

[00:23:27] second credit card

[00:23:28] for incidentals.

[00:23:30] And,

[00:23:31] that if we didn't

[00:23:32] provide them

[00:23:33] with that extra card

[00:23:34] by time the manager

[00:23:35] arrived at 9 a.m.

[00:23:36] that morning,

[00:23:37] she would be

[00:23:38] legally obligated

[00:23:39] to lock us

[00:23:40] out of our room.

[00:23:42] So,

[00:23:43] that all seemed

[00:23:44] like it was

[00:23:44] going to be fun.

[00:23:47] We discussed

[00:23:48] contingency plans

[00:23:49] in case the meeting

[00:23:49] with the manager

[00:23:50] in the morning

[00:23:51] didn't go our way.

[00:23:52] We packed everything up,

[00:23:54] making plans

[00:23:55] to reload the vehicle

[00:23:56] before 9 a.m.

[00:23:57] in case we did

[00:23:58] end up getting

[00:23:58] locked out.

[00:24:01] Kyle also took

[00:24:02] photos and videos

[00:24:03] of the room's

[00:24:03] more problematic

[00:24:05] elements in case

[00:24:06] they would become

[00:24:06] necessary at some point.

[00:24:09] The 9 a.m.

[00:24:10] showdown was

[00:24:11] largely anticlimactic.

[00:24:14] Kyle's mom

[00:24:14] transferred some money

[00:24:15] to his account

[00:24:16] to cover the cost

[00:24:17] of the hotel room.

[00:24:18] The hotel managed

[00:24:20] to survive

[00:24:20] without the second

[00:24:21] credit card

[00:24:22] for incidentals.

[00:24:23] We were assured

[00:24:24] there would be

[00:24:25] no lockout.

[00:24:28] By time we arrived

[00:24:29] at the Maidenbauer

[00:24:30] on Saturday,

[00:24:31] it had already

[00:24:32] been a long day

[00:24:33] for us thanks

[00:24:33] to the midnight

[00:24:34] hour weirdness

[00:24:35] at the hotel.

[00:24:37] I took the morning

[00:24:38] slowly,

[00:24:39] skipping some of

[00:24:40] the stuff

[00:24:40] I'd been planning

[00:24:41] to do simply

[00:24:41] for conservation

[00:24:42] of energy.

[00:24:45] At 3.30,

[00:24:46] I attended a

[00:24:47] presentation on

[00:24:48] Lego and social

[00:24:48] media.

[00:24:49] There was some

[00:24:50] useful information

[00:24:51] there for me,

[00:24:52] but honestly,

[00:24:52] the main thing

[00:24:53] I remember

[00:24:54] from that hour

[00:24:54] was how much

[00:24:55] my headache

[00:24:56] was bothering me.

[00:24:57] That was more

[00:24:58] a me thing

[00:24:59] than any fault

[00:25:00] of the presenter,

[00:25:01] however.

[00:25:03] At 4.30,

[00:25:04] there was a

[00:25:05] panel called

[00:25:05] Elements and

[00:25:06] Principles of

[00:25:07] Design by

[00:25:08] Deneen McDermott,

[00:25:09] one of the

[00:25:09] art theme

[00:25:10] coordinators.

[00:25:12] Elements of

[00:25:13] Design being

[00:25:13] one of the

[00:25:14] foundations of

[00:25:15] art made it

[00:25:16] an ideal

[00:25:16] presentation

[00:25:17] for the

[00:25:17] 2024

[00:25:18] BritCon.

[00:25:21] Deneen

[00:25:21] proceeded to

[00:25:22] give us a

[00:25:22] semester of

[00:25:23] art school

[00:25:24] boiled down

[00:25:25] to a 50-minute

[00:25:25] presentation

[00:25:26] that just

[00:25:28] barely scraped

[00:25:28] the surface

[00:25:29] of the enormity

[00:25:30] of the topic,

[00:25:31] but gave us

[00:25:32] a place to

[00:25:32] start.

[00:25:34] Very useful

[00:25:34] for those of

[00:25:35] us interested

[00:25:36] in using

[00:25:36] Lego,

[00:25:37] which she

[00:25:38] had referred

[00:25:38] to as

[00:25:39] the best

[00:25:40] art supplies

[00:25:41] in the

[00:25:41] world.

[00:25:43] That

[00:25:43] presentation

[00:25:44] I did

[00:25:45] get a lot

[00:25:45] out of.

[00:25:48] Eventually,

[00:25:49] 7.30 rolled

[00:25:50] around,

[00:25:51] which meant

[00:25:51] it was time

[00:25:52] for the

[00:25:52] awards ceremony.

[00:25:54] This year's

[00:25:55] awards ceremony

[00:25:56] was personally

[00:25:57] meaningful to me

[00:25:58] because they

[00:25:59] said my name

[00:26:00] when they were

[00:26:00] announcing the

[00:26:01] award winners

[00:26:02] for art.

[00:26:03] My beloved

[00:26:04] Lego Haiku

[00:26:04] project took

[00:26:05] home an

[00:26:06] award.

[00:26:07] The awards

[00:26:08] ceremony was

[00:26:09] followed by

[00:26:10] Dirty

[00:26:10] Brickster,

[00:26:11] which is the

[00:26:12] A-fold version

[00:26:13] of the

[00:26:13] White Elephant

[00:26:14] game.

[00:26:15] Everyone brings

[00:26:16] a wrapped gift

[00:26:17] and sits in a

[00:26:18] big circle.

[00:26:19] One by one,

[00:26:20] you take your

[00:26:21] turn,

[00:26:21] either opening

[00:26:22] a wrapped gift

[00:26:23] from the table

[00:26:24] or stealing a

[00:26:25] previously opened

[00:26:26] gift from another

[00:26:27] player.

[00:26:28] That player then

[00:26:30] gets another turn

[00:26:30] to either open a

[00:26:31] new gift or

[00:26:32] steal something else

[00:26:33] to replace their

[00:26:34] stolen gift with.

[00:26:35] You cannot

[00:26:36] immediately steal

[00:26:37] back a gift

[00:26:38] stolen from you.

[00:26:40] And each gift

[00:26:41] can only be

[00:26:42] stolen three times

[00:26:43] before it is

[00:26:44] locked and

[00:26:45] thereafter

[00:26:46] unstealable.

[00:26:47] The game

[00:26:48] continues until

[00:26:49] everyone in the

[00:26:50] circle has had

[00:26:51] their turn.

[00:26:53] This year,

[00:26:54] it was stipulated

[00:26:55] that the minimum

[00:26:56] value of the

[00:26:57] gift you bring

[00:26:57] has to be

[00:26:58] $30.

[00:27:00] Also,

[00:27:01] no gag gifts

[00:27:02] as everyone

[00:27:03] deserves to bring

[00:27:04] home a gift

[00:27:04] that doesn't make

[00:27:05] them feel like

[00:27:06] they lost.

[00:27:08] Unfortunately,

[00:27:10] even if you

[00:27:11] stick to the

[00:27:11] rules as written

[00:27:12] and bring a

[00:27:14] gift with an

[00:27:14] MSRP of $30

[00:27:16] plus or minus,

[00:27:18] if these are

[00:27:19] sets that notably

[00:27:21] spent forever

[00:27:22] on clearance because

[00:27:23] nobody wanted them

[00:27:24] in the first place,

[00:27:25] they don't make

[00:27:26] great dirty

[00:27:27] brickster gifts.

[00:27:30] I was happy

[00:27:31] with what I went

[00:27:32] home with.

[00:27:33] Not as happy

[00:27:34] as I would have

[00:27:34] been if I could

[00:27:36] have kept a couple

[00:27:36] different gifts

[00:27:37] that people stole

[00:27:38] from me,

[00:27:39] but still,

[00:27:40] fairly happy.

[00:27:42] Andy,

[00:27:43] on the other

[00:27:43] hand,

[00:27:44] took home a

[00:27:44] dirty brickster

[00:27:45] gift that

[00:27:46] signified that

[00:27:47] he had definitely

[00:27:48] lost the game.

[00:27:52] After landing

[00:27:53] back at our

[00:27:54] cursed hotel room

[00:27:55] to drop off

[00:27:55] stuff and grab

[00:27:56] some food,

[00:27:57] we made the

[00:27:58] decision to go

[00:27:59] to the other

[00:27:59] hotel to hang

[00:28:00] out with our

[00:28:01] fellow A-Fols

[00:28:02] and possibly watch

[00:28:03] the infamous

[00:28:03] unsanctioned

[00:28:04] event,

[00:28:05] more commonly

[00:28:06] known as the

[00:28:07] drunken speed

[00:28:08] build.

[00:28:09] Once we

[00:28:10] arrived there,

[00:28:11] I started asking

[00:28:12] if anyone

[00:28:13] had seen

[00:28:13] Simon Liu.

[00:28:15] I was told

[00:28:16] he had not

[00:28:16] yet arrived

[00:28:17] back here

[00:28:17] from the

[00:28:18] Maidenbauer,

[00:28:19] but was

[00:28:19] expected any

[00:28:20] minute.

[00:28:21] So,

[00:28:22] while Kyle,

[00:28:23] Andy,

[00:28:23] and I hung

[00:28:24] out and

[00:28:24] socialized

[00:28:25] with friends

[00:28:25] in the

[00:28:25] open dining

[00:28:26] area,

[00:28:27] I kept my

[00:28:28] eyes focused

[00:28:28] on the

[00:28:29] front entryway

[00:28:29] of the

[00:28:30] hotel.

[00:28:31] And it

[00:28:32] didn't take

[00:28:32] long before

[00:28:33] Simon appeared,

[00:28:34] once again

[00:28:35] engaged in

[00:28:36] conversation

[00:28:36] with several

[00:28:37] people.

[00:28:38] I drove

[00:28:39] the wheelchair

[00:28:40] over and

[00:28:40] once again

[00:28:41] parked a

[00:28:41] respectful

[00:28:42] distance away

[00:28:43] so as not

[00:28:43] to simply

[00:28:44] barge into

[00:28:44] the ongoing

[00:28:45] conversations.

[00:28:48] Once again,

[00:28:49] Simon noticed

[00:28:50] me looming

[00:28:50] and gave me

[00:28:51] a nervous

[00:28:51] look,

[00:28:52] like he

[00:28:53] wasn't

[00:28:53] entirely

[00:28:53] certain that

[00:28:54] he'd escape

[00:28:55] an encounter

[00:28:56] with me

[00:28:56] intact.

[00:28:58] It didn't

[00:28:59] take long

[00:28:59] for the

[00:29:00] people he

[00:29:00] was talking

[00:29:01] with to

[00:29:01] say their

[00:29:01] goodbyes

[00:29:02] and go

[00:29:02] on their

[00:29:02] way.

[00:29:03] I

[00:29:04] abandoned

[00:29:04] the respectful

[00:29:05] distance

[00:29:05] and quickly

[00:29:06] closed the

[00:29:06] gap between

[00:29:07] us.

[00:29:09] Simon looked

[00:29:10] down at me

[00:29:10] in the

[00:29:10] wheelchair

[00:29:11] and tentatively

[00:29:11] asked,

[00:29:12] Can I help

[00:29:14] you with

[00:29:14] something?

[00:29:16] My response

[00:29:17] was to silently

[00:29:18] appraise him

[00:29:19] for a brief

[00:29:19] moment before

[00:29:20] commenting,

[00:29:21] Well,

[00:29:22] well,

[00:29:23] the ubiquitous

[00:29:24] Simon Lou.

[00:29:27] That's all

[00:29:27] it took.

[00:29:28] I could see

[00:29:29] the recognition

[00:29:30] and relief

[00:29:32] flood into

[00:29:33] his eyes,

[00:29:33] and he

[00:29:34] relaxed

[00:29:34] and proclaimed,

[00:29:36] Mike!

[00:29:37] He extended

[00:29:38] his hand-shaking

[00:29:39] appendage to

[00:29:40] me,

[00:29:40] and I

[00:29:41] responded in

[00:29:41] kind.

[00:29:42] We attached

[00:29:43] both hand-shaking

[00:29:44] appendages

[00:29:44] together and

[00:29:45] bobbled them

[00:29:46] up and down,

[00:29:47] as is the

[00:29:47] custom here

[00:29:48] on this

[00:29:48] planet,

[00:29:48] and then

[00:29:49] immediately

[00:29:50] went into

[00:29:50] chat mode.

[00:29:52] We talked

[00:29:53] mainly about

[00:29:54] this podcast

[00:29:54] and the

[00:29:55] frequency with

[00:29:56] which Simon's

[00:29:57] name is

[00:29:57] mentioned

[00:29:57] herein,

[00:29:58] along with

[00:29:59] his thoughts

[00:30:00] on being the

[00:30:00] subject of

[00:30:01] those recurring

[00:30:02] references.

[00:30:03] He said he

[00:30:04] was fine

[00:30:04] with it,

[00:30:05] at which

[00:30:05] point I'm

[00:30:06] sure relief

[00:30:06] flooded into

[00:30:07] my eyes

[00:30:08] as well.

[00:30:10] Sadly,

[00:30:10] it didn't

[00:30:11] take long

[00:30:11] for Simon

[00:30:12] to indicate

[00:30:12] his backpack,

[00:30:13] which looked

[00:30:14] like it might

[00:30:15] have been

[00:30:15] filled with

[00:30:15] bricks.

[00:30:17] Not our

[00:30:17] beloved Lego

[00:30:18] bricks,

[00:30:18] but the

[00:30:19] larger,

[00:30:20] heavier

[00:30:20] masonry

[00:30:21] bricks that

[00:30:21] inspired them.

[00:30:23] He told me

[00:30:24] that he needed

[00:30:25] to go ditch

[00:30:25] the pack

[00:30:26] and asked

[00:30:27] if I'd be

[00:30:27] around for a

[00:30:28] while.

[00:30:28] I told him

[00:30:29] I planned

[00:30:29] to be,

[00:30:30] and he said

[00:30:31] that we'd

[00:30:35] turn to

[00:30:35] Kyle,

[00:30:36] Andy,

[00:30:36] and the

[00:30:36] rest,

[00:30:37] and we

[00:30:37] continued

[00:30:37] to hang

[00:30:38] out there

[00:30:38] until the

[00:30:39] hotel's

[00:30:40] kitchen

[00:30:40] officially

[00:30:40] closed,

[00:30:41] and we

[00:30:42] were semi-politely

[00:30:44] told to go

[00:30:45] away.

[00:30:47] We went to

[00:30:48] the large room

[00:30:49] where the majority

[00:30:49] of people

[00:30:50] were gathered

[00:30:50] to hang

[00:30:51] out,

[00:30:52] play games,

[00:30:52] and apparently

[00:30:53] make as much

[00:30:54] noise as was

[00:30:55] humanly possible.

[00:30:57] There were

[00:30:58] several unsuccessful

[00:30:59] attempts made

[00:31:00] at conversation

[00:31:01] just between

[00:31:03] Kyle,

[00:31:03] Andy,

[00:31:04] and I,

[00:31:05] but without

[00:31:05] subtitles to

[00:31:07] bypass the

[00:31:07] background

[00:31:08] cacophony,

[00:31:09] it proved

[00:31:10] impossible.

[00:31:11] I indicated

[00:31:12] I was leaving

[00:31:13] the room

[00:31:13] before my

[00:31:14] headache could

[00:31:14] spike,

[00:31:15] and we

[00:31:15] agreed to

[00:31:16] abandon the

[00:31:17] noise in

[00:31:17] unison.

[00:31:19] We found

[00:31:20] seating in an

[00:31:20] abandoned corner

[00:31:21] of the hotel's

[00:31:22] restaurant-slash-bar

[00:31:23] area,

[00:31:24] and hung out

[00:31:25] for a time

[00:31:25] conversing with

[00:31:26] fellow A-fols,

[00:31:27] but then

[00:31:28] apparently

[00:31:29] exhaustion-hit

[00:31:30] Andy.

[00:31:31] He caught

[00:31:32] my eye

[00:31:32] and mimed

[00:31:33] dozing off

[00:31:34] and plummeting

[00:31:35] off of the

[00:31:35] tall barstool.

[00:31:36] I nodded my

[00:31:37] understanding

[00:31:38] and went to

[00:31:38] inform Kyle

[00:31:39] that Andy

[00:31:40] was done

[00:31:41] for the night

[00:31:41] and we

[00:31:42] should probably

[00:31:43] head back

[00:31:43] to the hotel

[00:31:44] room of doom.

[00:31:46] This closed

[00:31:46] out day three

[00:31:47] of the convention

[00:31:48] for us.

[00:31:50] BrickCon Sunday

[00:31:51] was especially

[00:31:52] good to me.

[00:31:55] The Lego store

[00:31:56] at the Bellevue

[00:31:56] Square Mall

[00:31:57] was opening

[00:31:58] an hour early

[00:31:59] just for

[00:32:00] convention

[00:32:01] attendees,

[00:32:02] giving us

[00:32:02] the run

[00:32:03] of the store

[00:32:03] without having

[00:32:04] to deal

[00:32:05] with non-afol

[00:32:06] shoppers

[00:32:07] and mall rats.

[00:32:09] I picked

[00:32:09] up some

[00:32:10] needed parts

[00:32:11] from the

[00:32:11] Build a

[00:32:11] Minifigure

[00:32:12] bar,

[00:32:12] along with

[00:32:13] four of

[00:32:14] the Dungeons

[00:32:15] and Dragons

[00:32:15] collectible

[00:32:16] minifigure boxes.

[00:32:17] I needed

[00:32:18] several extra

[00:32:19] mind flayer

[00:32:20] figures,

[00:32:21] some of whom

[00:32:22] will be serving

[00:32:22] as members

[00:32:23] of the Ood

[00:32:24] for an

[00:32:25] upcoming

[00:32:25] Doctor Who

[00:32:26] mock.

[00:32:27] And thanks

[00:32:28] to the

[00:32:28] prognosticatory

[00:32:29] abilities of

[00:32:30] the BrickSearch

[00:32:31] app,

[00:32:31] I was able

[00:32:32] to get

[00:32:33] them.

[00:32:35] I normally

[00:32:36] tend to avoid

[00:32:36] the exhibition

[00:32:37] hall during

[00:32:38] the public

[00:32:38] hours,

[00:32:39] as it always

[00:32:40] threatens to

[00:32:40] augment my

[00:32:41] ever-present

[00:32:42] headache.

[00:32:43] I'll usually

[00:32:44] duck in and

[00:32:45] out a few

[00:32:45] times just to

[00:32:46] gauge the

[00:32:47] crowd size.

[00:32:49] The first

[00:32:50] time I

[00:32:50] entered the

[00:32:51] exhibition

[00:32:51] hall on

[00:32:52] Sunday,

[00:32:52] I found

[00:32:53] someone

[00:32:53] explaining to

[00:32:54] a group

[00:32:55] of his

[00:32:55] friends what

[00:32:56] a haiku

[00:32:57] was and,

[00:32:58] by extension,

[00:32:59] how amazing

[00:33:00] the Lego

[00:33:01] haiku were.

[00:33:03] I stopped

[00:33:04] the wheelchair

[00:33:04] and listened

[00:33:05] in on what

[00:33:05] he was saying.

[00:33:07] After a

[00:33:07] minute or so,

[00:33:08] he noticed

[00:33:08] me and asked

[00:33:10] if they were

[00:33:10] in my way.

[00:33:11] I told him

[00:33:12] they weren't

[00:33:13] and that I

[00:33:13] was just

[00:33:14] listening to

[00:33:14] him talk

[00:33:15] about the

[00:33:15] haiku.

[00:33:16] He asked

[00:33:17] if I was

[00:33:18] familiar with

[00:33:18] haiku,

[00:33:19] and I tried

[00:33:20] not to laugh

[00:33:21] as I told

[00:33:21] him I was.

[00:33:22] He then

[00:33:23] gestured to

[00:33:24] the display

[00:33:24] and asked

[00:33:25] if I'd

[00:33:26] seen these

[00:33:26] Lego haiku

[00:33:27] and began

[00:33:28] to explain

[00:33:29] the design

[00:33:30] methodology

[00:33:31] behind them.

[00:33:33] I told him

[00:33:34] that yes,

[00:33:35] I'd actually

[00:33:35] been the one

[00:33:36] that built

[00:33:37] all of those.

[00:33:39] His reaction

[00:33:40] to that was

[00:33:41] incredibly good

[00:33:42] for my ego.

[00:33:43] I sat there

[00:33:44] and accepted

[00:33:45] some praise

[00:33:46] and answered

[00:33:46] questions

[00:33:46] for a few

[00:33:47] minutes.

[00:33:48] It was

[00:33:48] very nice.

[00:33:51] I spent

[00:33:52] the entire

[00:33:52] convention

[00:33:53] with the

[00:33:53] podcast logo

[00:33:54] on the back

[00:33:55] of the

[00:33:55] wheelchair,

[00:33:56] and at

[00:33:57] one point

[00:33:57] someone stopped

[00:33:58] me and asked

[00:33:59] if I was

[00:34:00] Mike Sneathen.

[00:34:01] I responded

[00:34:02] with my

[00:34:03] customary,

[00:34:04] semi-hesitant

[00:34:04] sometimes,

[00:34:06] and he

[00:34:07] handed me

[00:34:07] an open

[00:34:08] autograph book

[00:34:09] and asked

[00:34:09] if he could

[00:34:10] have my

[00:34:10] signature.

[00:34:12] So now

[00:34:13] my ego

[00:34:14] is convinced

[00:34:15] I'm a

[00:34:15] celebrity.

[00:34:17] Sure,

[00:34:18] the absolute

[00:34:19] minor-most

[00:34:20] celebrity

[00:34:20] possible,

[00:34:21] but celebrity

[00:34:22] nonetheless.

[00:34:25] And later

[00:34:26] on,

[00:34:26] as I was

[00:34:27] traveling from

[00:34:28] point A

[00:34:28] to point B,

[00:34:30] somewhere around

[00:34:31] A.5,

[00:34:32] I heard

[00:34:33] someone proclaim

[00:34:34] badge

[00:34:34] bricks,

[00:34:35] badge

[00:34:35] bricks,

[00:34:36] badge

[00:34:36] bricks.

[00:34:37] My initial

[00:34:38] thought was,

[00:34:39] of course,

[00:34:40] Benny?

[00:34:41] But no,

[00:34:42] it had been

[00:34:43] a woman's

[00:34:44] voice.

[00:34:44] I stopped

[00:34:45] the wheelchair

[00:34:46] and spun it

[00:34:46] around,

[00:34:47] and sure

[00:34:47] enough,

[00:34:48] I saw

[00:34:49] a young

[00:34:49] lady trying

[00:34:50] to get

[00:34:50] the attention

[00:34:50] of her

[00:34:51] friend while

[00:34:52] gesturing

[00:34:52] wildly toward

[00:34:53] me.

[00:34:54] More

[00:34:55] specifically,

[00:34:56] to the

[00:34:56] bandolier of

[00:34:57] badge

[00:34:57] bricks I'd

[00:34:58] been wearing

[00:34:58] for most

[00:34:59] of the

[00:34:59] convention.

[00:35:01] I rolled

[00:35:02] up to

[00:35:02] them,

[00:35:02] and the

[00:35:03] Benny-like

[00:35:03] lady started

[00:35:04] talking to

[00:35:05] both her

[00:35:05] friend and me

[00:35:06] about how

[00:35:06] cool the

[00:35:07] bandolier

[00:35:08] was.

[00:35:09] It is

[00:35:10] kind of

[00:35:10] impressive,

[00:35:11] also cumbersome

[00:35:12] and awkward,

[00:35:14] but still

[00:35:14] worth wearing

[00:35:15] for the

[00:35:15] amount of

[00:35:16] attention it

[00:35:16] gets.

[00:35:18] I was

[00:35:18] asked if

[00:35:19] it was

[00:35:19] heavy,

[00:35:20] as I was

[00:35:20] told it

[00:35:21] looked heavy,

[00:35:22] and I

[00:35:22] told her

[00:35:23] to hold

[00:35:23] out her

[00:35:23] hands.

[00:35:24] I took

[00:35:25] it off

[00:35:25] and laid

[00:35:26] it across

[00:35:26] her outstretched

[00:35:27] hands to

[00:35:27] let her know

[00:35:28] that,

[00:35:28] yes,

[00:35:29] it was

[00:35:30] heavy.

[00:35:32] Ninety

[00:35:32] engraved

[00:35:33] or printed

[00:35:34] badge

[00:35:34] bricks,

[00:35:35] another

[00:35:36] ninety

[00:35:36] blank

[00:35:36] bricks,

[00:35:37] and a

[00:35:38] hundred

[00:35:38] eighty

[00:35:38] two-by-eight

[00:35:39] plates,

[00:35:41] forty

[00:35:41] long

[00:35:42] Technic

[00:35:42] lift

[00:35:42] arms,

[00:35:43] who knows

[00:35:44] how many

[00:35:44] Technic

[00:35:45] pins,

[00:35:45] and a

[00:35:46] number of

[00:35:47] other

[00:35:47] necessary

[00:35:47] Lego

[00:35:48] pieces,

[00:35:49] plus

[00:35:50] twenty

[00:35:51] short

[00:35:51] lengths

[00:35:51] of

[00:35:52] fairly

[00:35:52] strong

[00:35:52] cord

[00:35:53] to

[00:35:53] connect

[00:35:54] each

[00:35:54] individual

[00:35:55] section

[00:35:55] of

[00:35:55] bricks

[00:35:55] together.

[00:35:57] Those

[00:35:58] parts

[00:35:58] all add

[00:35:59] up to

[00:35:59] quite a

[00:36:00] bit

[00:36:00] of

[00:36:08] again.

[00:36:10] A day

[00:36:11] earlier,

[00:36:12] Andy had

[00:36:12] suggested

[00:36:13] that I

[00:36:13] disassemble

[00:36:14] it,

[00:36:15] abandon

[00:36:15] the

[00:36:15] bandolier

[00:36:16] concept,

[00:36:17] and rebuild

[00:36:18] it as a

[00:36:18] single

[00:36:19] solid

[00:36:19] plate

[00:36:20] that could

[00:36:21] be mounted

[00:36:21] on the

[00:36:21] back of

[00:36:22] the

[00:36:22] wheelchair.

[00:36:23] I'd

[00:36:24] almost

[00:36:24] convinced

[00:36:25] myself

[00:36:25] to go

[00:36:26] that

[00:36:26] route.

[00:36:27] But my

[00:36:28] encounter

[00:36:28] with the

[00:36:29] lady

[00:36:29] Benny

[00:36:29] and her

[00:36:30] friend

[00:36:30] told me

[00:36:30] that the

[00:36:31] bandolier

[00:36:32] still had

[00:36:33] some life

[00:36:33] left in

[00:36:33] it.

[00:36:36] At

[00:36:37] one o'clock,

[00:36:38] Deneen

[00:36:38] McDermott

[00:36:38] returned to

[00:36:39] the

[00:36:39] presentation

[00:36:39] stage

[00:36:40] for

[00:36:40] Building

[00:36:41] Confidence

[00:36:42] in

[00:36:42] Building

[00:36:43] Mocks.

[00:36:44] I would

[00:36:45] have been

[00:36:45] in attendance

[00:36:46] anyway,

[00:36:47] but she'd

[00:36:47] told me

[00:36:48] the day

[00:36:48] before that

[00:36:48] she was

[00:36:49] planning on

[00:36:49] mentioning

[00:36:50] the Lego

[00:36:50] Haiku

[00:36:50] project

[00:36:51] during her

[00:36:51] presentation.

[00:36:53] I've

[00:36:54] been asked

[00:36:55] to do

[00:36:55] a podcast

[00:36:56] episode

[00:36:56] on how

[00:36:57] a person

[00:36:58] gets started

[00:36:58] in mock

[00:36:59] building,

[00:36:59] and when

[00:37:00] I finally

[00:37:01] do,

[00:37:01] a lot

[00:37:02] of what

[00:37:02] Deneen

[00:37:03] said here

[00:37:03] is stuff

[00:37:04] that I'll

[00:37:04] be mentioning

[00:37:05] as well.

[00:37:07] After

[00:37:08] the

[00:37:08] presentation,

[00:37:09] Deneen

[00:37:10] suggested

[00:37:10] that I

[00:37:11] contact

[00:37:11] the

[00:37:11] BrickCon

[00:37:12] people

[00:37:12] after they

[00:37:13] put out

[00:37:13] their

[00:37:13] call

[00:37:13] for

[00:37:14] presentations

[00:37:14] for the

[00:37:15] 2025

[00:37:15] event

[00:37:16] and put

[00:37:17] together

[00:37:17] a

[00:37:17] presentation

[00:37:18] on

[00:37:19] the

[00:37:19] Lego

[00:37:19] Haiku

[00:37:19] project,

[00:37:21] which

[00:37:21] has

[00:37:22] definitely

[00:37:22] given me

[00:37:22] some stuff

[00:37:23] to think

[00:37:23] about.

[00:37:23] There

[00:37:26] wasn't

[00:37:26] a lot

[00:37:27] of

[00:37:27] convention

[00:37:27] left

[00:37:28] to go.

[00:37:28] The

[00:37:29] closing

[00:37:29] session

[00:37:30] happened

[00:37:30] not

[00:37:31] long

[00:37:31] after

[00:37:31] the

[00:37:31] end

[00:37:31] of

[00:37:32] Deneen's

[00:37:32] presentation.

[00:37:33] Then it

[00:37:34] was just

[00:37:34] packing up

[00:37:35] the

[00:37:35] mocks

[00:37:35] and

[00:37:36] saying

[00:37:36] a bunch

[00:37:36] of

[00:37:36] farewells.

[00:37:39] As I'd

[00:37:40] said earlier,

[00:37:41] most of our

[00:37:42] complaints about

[00:37:42] the four-day

[00:37:43] adventure

[00:37:43] weren't

[00:37:44] specifically

[00:37:45] about

[00:37:45] BrickCon

[00:37:45] itself,

[00:37:47] but a few

[00:37:48] of them

[00:37:48] were.

[00:37:50] This was

[00:37:51] Andy's

[00:37:51] first

[00:37:51] BrickCon.

[00:37:52] He'd been

[00:37:53] to a couple

[00:37:54] of Brick's

[00:37:54] Cascades

[00:37:55] back down

[00:37:55] in Portland,

[00:37:56] but this

[00:37:57] was his

[00:37:57] first

[00:37:57] Washington

[00:37:58] Lego

[00:37:58] convention,

[00:37:59] and it

[00:38:00] left a lot

[00:38:01] to be

[00:38:01] desired.

[00:38:03] The

[00:38:04] mocks on

[00:38:04] display were

[00:38:05] all great,

[00:38:06] but there

[00:38:07] were far

[00:38:07] fewer of

[00:38:08] them than

[00:38:08] I'd been

[00:38:08] expecting.

[00:38:10] This was

[00:38:10] actually the

[00:38:11] smallest

[00:38:12] showing of

[00:38:12] mocks of

[00:38:13] any of the

[00:38:13] BrickCon

[00:38:14] events I'd

[00:38:14] been to.

[00:38:16] The actual

[00:38:17] exhibition hall

[00:38:18] had been

[00:38:18] divided in

[00:38:19] half,

[00:38:20] with one

[00:38:20] side taken

[00:38:21] up with

[00:38:21] the vendor's

[00:38:22] area,

[00:38:23] which had

[00:38:23] always

[00:38:24] traditionally

[00:38:24] been set

[00:38:25] up around

[00:38:25] the perimeter

[00:38:26] of the

[00:38:26] hall.

[00:38:28] So there

[00:38:29] was a lot

[00:38:29] less mock

[00:38:30] occupied,

[00:38:31] mockupied?

[00:38:32] A lot less

[00:38:33] mockupied space

[00:38:34] than expected.

[00:38:36] And what

[00:38:37] mocks were

[00:38:38] there didn't

[00:38:39] even seem to

[00:38:40] fully fill that

[00:38:41] available space.

[00:38:44] BrickCon usually

[00:38:45] has a much

[00:38:46] larger contingent

[00:38:47] of members from

[00:38:47] Oregon.

[00:38:49] there's always

[00:38:49] been a large

[00:38:50] presence of

[00:38:51] portlug builders.

[00:38:52] But this

[00:38:53] year,

[00:38:54] BrickCon was

[00:38:55] held on the

[00:38:55] same weekend

[00:38:56] as Portland's

[00:38:57] Rose City

[00:38:58] Comic Con,

[00:38:59] which had an

[00:39:00] official portlug

[00:39:01] presence at it.

[00:39:03] And I'm

[00:39:03] wondering if

[00:39:04] the lack of

[00:39:05] the usual

[00:39:05] portlug builders

[00:39:06] had a lot to

[00:39:07] do with the

[00:39:07] lowered mock

[00:39:08] turnout.

[00:39:10] Dates have

[00:39:11] already been

[00:39:11] announced,

[00:39:12] and next year

[00:39:13] BrickCon and

[00:39:13] Rose City

[00:39:14] Comic Con

[00:39:14] share the

[00:39:15] same weekend

[00:39:16] once again.

[00:39:18] The other

[00:39:19] problem was

[00:39:20] one that Kyle

[00:39:20] and I had

[00:39:21] faced way

[00:39:22] back a decade

[00:39:22] ago when we

[00:39:23] first started

[00:39:24] going up to

[00:39:24] Washington for

[00:39:25] BrickCon,

[00:39:26] and that was

[00:39:27] a very pronounced

[00:39:28] clique-ish

[00:39:29] attitude among

[00:39:30] some of the

[00:39:30] local attendees.

[00:39:32] There were a

[00:39:33] lot of

[00:39:33] Washington people

[00:39:34] that were

[00:39:35] friendly with

[00:39:36] the other

[00:39:38] Washington people

[00:39:39] and the

[00:39:40] big name

[00:39:40] AFOLs that

[00:39:41] were in

[00:39:41] attendance,

[00:39:43] but the rest

[00:39:43] of us

[00:39:45] weren't really

[00:39:45] worth their

[00:39:46] time or energy.

[00:39:48] over the

[00:39:49] years,

[00:39:49] that attitude

[00:39:50] seems to

[00:39:50] have diminished

[00:39:51] substantially,

[00:39:53] but now it

[00:39:54] seems like the

[00:39:54] convention has

[00:39:55] backslid.

[00:39:56] It's certainly

[00:39:57] not everybody,

[00:39:58] but, at least

[00:40:00] in my

[00:40:00] experience,

[00:40:01] it's enough to

[00:40:02] be noticeable.

[00:40:04] Andy has

[00:40:05] already said he

[00:40:06] won't be

[00:40:06] returning to

[00:40:07] BrickCon,

[00:40:08] probably ever,

[00:40:10] and Kyle and

[00:40:11] I are sort of

[00:40:11] thinking we

[00:40:12] might let the

[00:40:13] convention cool

[00:40:13] off for a

[00:40:14] year or two

[00:40:14] before our

[00:40:16] eventual return.

[00:40:17] We've started

[00:40:18] to take a

[00:40:19] closer look at

[00:40:19] Utah's BrickSlopes

[00:40:21] event in August

[00:40:22] as a possibility.

[00:40:24] I will probably

[00:40:25] still do the

[00:40:26] virtual ticket

[00:40:26] version of

[00:40:27] BrickCon from

[00:40:28] my spot in

[00:40:29] front of the

[00:40:29] computer.

[00:40:30] Beyond that,

[00:40:31] who knows?

[00:40:33] Be sure and

[00:40:35] catch next week's

[00:40:36] episode of the

[00:40:36] podcast, where

[00:40:37] I'll be discussing

[00:40:38] the always

[00:40:39] controversial topic

[00:40:40] of using clone

[00:40:41] bricks.

[00:40:43] Links to the

[00:40:44] podcast's social

[00:40:45] media and

[00:40:46] wish lists can

[00:40:46] be found at

[00:40:47] battlegorilla.com

[00:40:49] slash links.

[00:40:50] If you like

[00:40:51] this podcast,

[00:40:52] please tell all

[00:40:53] your friends

[00:40:54] about it.

[00:40:54] Word of mouth

[00:40:55] is a glorious

[00:40:56] thing.

[00:40:57] And, of course,

[00:40:58] if you don't

[00:40:59] like the podcast,

[00:41:01] go ahead and

[00:41:02] tell your enemies.

[00:41:05] The podcast's

[00:41:06] intro and

[00:41:06] outro themes,

[00:41:07] Podcasting is

[00:41:08] Awesome,

[00:41:09] inspired by

[00:41:09] Tegan and Sarah's

[00:41:10] Everything is

[00:41:11] Awesome,

[00:41:11] An Ode to

[00:41:13] Gibberish,

[00:41:13] were created

[00:41:14] by Michael

[00:41:15] Reich.

[00:41:19] I think I

[00:41:20] just closed

[00:41:21] Pandora's box

[00:41:22] and I want

[00:41:23] to know if

[00:41:24] you could

[00:41:24] punch a sucker

[00:41:25] how else

[00:41:26] would you

[00:41:27] know that

[00:41:27] I've done

[00:41:28] everything except

[00:41:29] any of it.

[00:41:31] You can have

[00:41:32] your bald eagle

[00:41:33] afraid of fire

[00:41:34] and you can

[00:41:35] eat it too

[00:41:36] and there

[00:41:37] could be so

[00:41:37] much joy

[00:41:38] and I want

[00:41:39] my libido

[00:41:40] well,

[00:41:40] how else

[00:41:41] I mean

[00:41:42] wish me

[00:41:43] luck

[00:41:43] on the

[00:41:44] prayers

[00:41:45] for junk

[00:41:46] food