Recently there seems to be a spate of grumpy Arisia posts. I'd like to offer a counter-view.
Most folks know me as the guy who wrote the
registration and badging system. For the last couple years, that's all I did at Arisia - either ran registration or was a co-manager. That meant spending 12 hours a day at the reg desk, all weekend - not to mention the hundreds of hours leading up to the event. My only experience outside of reg was walking to or from my room, usually in a zombie-like shamble.
This year, I was merely a tech support consultant for registration. While there was a lot of technical work in the leadup, registration was run directly by
jiapa,
jasra, and
fibro_witch, plus an awesome cast of assistants and helpers. My job was equipment maintenance, troubleshooting, supplies, and logistics - the folks just mentioned were the real Masters o Reg.
What this meant was that, for the first time in probably 8 years, I was free to do as I wanted at Arisia, for 4 days. I did not have to get up at ungodly hours each day, and stay at reg until closing time, and I could, on a whim, stop into a panel or movie and hang for a while.
Sure I was called away on occasion for help, but mostly, the reg staff did a fantastic job of... not needing me.
So I attended this con, it's called Arisia. What did I find?
I found the fen. En masse, enjoying themselves, socializing, connecting, chatting, selling, buying, and just enjoying being around each other. I saw wonderful interractions between old and new friends. I saw many of my old tribe, but I also met some new ones. I in fact did not attend a panel, because in general I don't like them - it's not why I go to conventions. I don't go to listen to someone else talk, I go to interact.
I found the staff. By and large, committed, 100%, to the running of this convention. The staff are not this elite mysterious band of mountain gnomes that appear once a year on a special weekend in January. They're fen like us. They're people who are willing to put in the time and effort to make the con enjoyable for everyone else. I'm one of those. I went from 'attendee' to 'staff' about 8 years ago, attending another northeast convention, and seeing how they ran registration. "I can do that better." - and rather than whine and complain about how it was being done, I worked my ass off and built a better system.
This year I was still staff, but in a different bent. I was primarily at the con as an attendee. I spent a lot of time in gaming, reaquainting myself with some long lost games. I went to fast track, which I've never been to before, and saw an amazing group of people giving 60-80 kids (not all at once :) - a fantastic experience with the con. I went to the staff den, where other staff worked their tuchas' off making the con tolerable for those who were working like crazy. I went to dealers row, and talked with, shopped, and met the dealers. I went to parties, where I saw all my friends, and again, made new ones. I went to the video room(s), and saw a movie I had missed, and saw several shorts I would have NEVER seen outside of a con. I came away with some new titles to look to add to my collection. I saw a masquerade - where the TF crew puts on an amazing job of coordinating dozens of volunteers to build a stage, lighting, and sound system, run a show, and tear it all down again.
So what is this 'get back to our roots' thing I keep hearing about? This must have been it. A weekend of hanging with my tribe - people I don't have to worry about as coming across "too geeky" or "too weird". Folks who accept me for who I am, who I know share an interest, and in some, an obsession with the SF genre, in print, film, and audio. A group that I can apply my skills, my talents to, and help run an event a little better.
Was there a kink / poly bent? I guess. Arisia is not a golden bastion to Written SF Publishing. It is a social event thrown by the fen, for the fen. It's a big weekend getaway. Some of the fen are kink / poly. Should that be ignored? Hardly, but neither is it the focus of the weekend. It's noted, a panel or two is talking about it, and life moves on. If folks are more interested in the purist aspect of a traditional 'sf convention', that is why
Boskone and Arisia split. Try
Boskone.
To all the staff that work untold hours to make it all work, thank you. To all the fen that attended, making Arisia what it is, I thank you as well. I had forgotten what the con was like when I wasn't behind the reg desk for 3 days.
And I'll be back next year.