Countdown to lift-off

[randy_byers]

I'm slowly checking things off the long To Do List in preparation for the big trip. Next Saturday I'm flying to Amsterdam, where I'll meet my sister and mom. We'll spend a couple of days in Amsterdam, then with the help of a friend of my sister's who's acting as our guide and sherpa, we're driving to eastern France, just outside of Nancy. This is an ancestral homeland, and we've been there once before, although I don't think my sister was with us that time. Not that I feel a particular sense of connection with the area myself, but Mom does, and we're taking her there for her 80th birthday.

We'll spend a few days wandering around the French countryside, then I'm taking the Eurostar to London while the rest of them head to Switzerland (which is another ancestral, i.e. Mennonite, homeland). I'll be staying chez Fishlifter for three nights, exploring cutting edge London pubs with the Reverend Jim and Pingopark. Then, of course, it's off to the Docklands for the crawling chaos that is Worldcon. This looks to be a huge one, too. Because it's in fricking London! Woohoo!

I return to Seattle on Monday the 18th.

I'm getting excited. I'll be even more excited once I've whittled this List down to size.

Comments

[del-c.livejournal.com]

I love that people get excited about visiting my home town. It's like being born in Florence.

[randy-byers.livejournal.com]

I'll be very curious to see what a London Worldcon is like.

[surliminal.livejournal.com]

funny - it never occurred to me itd be very different from a Glasgow Worldcon. This is a very small country after all - if you can afford to get to London you can afford to get to Glasgow. Or vice versa. But going by the numbers I guess Im wrong.

[scarlettina.livejournal.com]

Sounds like it's going to be a fabulous trip, Randy! No idea if you have any interest in Van Gogh whatsoever, but the Van Gogh Museum was one of the highlights of my visit when I was in Amsterdam. I recommend it. Also? The Rijksmuseum. Wonderful both for the art and for the history of the city. I look forward to reading reports. Hope you have a wonderful time!

[randy-byers.livejournal.com]

Yep, both of those museums are on the agenda. My brother and I were in Amsterdam in 1980, and the Van Gogh Museum in particular completely blew my 19-year-old mind.

[scarlettina.livejournal.com]

Both the Van Gogh Museum and the Rijksmuseum have been renovated since you've visited. You'll be in for a fresh experience. I have to admit; I'm envious. Have a marvelous trip!

[gerisullivan.livejournal.com]

In terms of total membership, it's already the largest Worldcon ever with 9,407 members listed as I type. However, 2,882 of those are supporting members -- a staggering number. A year ago at this time, there were under 600 supporting members. I'm expecting the Hugo statistics to be especially interesting and hope there aren't any categories dropped because the total number of valid ballots cast in that category turns out to be less than 25% of the total number of final Award ballots received. ("No Award" neepery omitted. For the complete rules, see Article 3 of the WSFS Constitution.) In short, I hope large participation contributes to the health of the Hugos rather than breaking them even as I, myself, followed my usual practice of only voting in categories I felt qualified to judge and that turned out to be even fewer than usual.

It sounds like a grand trip. I look forward to reading everything you write about it! Much as I can't wrap my head around the fact that I'm missing a London Worldcon, I'm greatly looking forward to returning to the UK next spring thanks to the Corflu 50. Until 2 weeks ago, I didn't know if I'd ever get back.

25% rule follow-up

[gerisullivan.livejournal.com]

Increases in Hugo voting in recent years suggest that I'm being a worrywort about the 25% rule. Last year, there were 1848 ballots cast, which meant that each category had to have at least 462 ballots in each category. Even the fan categories had 800+ballots. The proportions were similar in 2012, when there were 1922 ballots cast, and in 2011, when the Hugos hit what I believe is the previous all-time high with 2100 ballots cast. Still, it will be interesting, especially if the number of ballots cast jumps as much as I think it will.

Re: 25% rule follow-up

[randy-byers.livejournal.com]

Okay, the pseudo-punk in me hopes one of the categories gets broken in that way, just to see what happens. Ideally it would be Best Fanzine, for maximum effect. Ahahahahaha.

And I'm so glad we're sending you to Newcastle for Corflu next year. We rock!

Meanwhile, I have more fanzine lounge questions for you once I get back from London.