GABIT attendees thread

[Celandine]

Careful, I see your socio-economic status' showing.


AT3 was my first major con and I only decided to go to that one within weeks of it happening. Splurged and bought tickets for myself and a friend and it was a blast. I don't usually do things like that so when I came home, I had to be *very* good for many months and not spend any money other than paying bills, etc.

My usual norm is to work hard to earn money, quietly plot and save for fun things (albeit conventions, trips, or gadgets) and never be in a position where I have to be in panic mode when I realize how depleted my bank account is. Life does go on. Things still need to be paid. Cushioning that account with extra padding and tucking a bit away in a separate account never hurts either.

My moto is to enjoy life and the people around you...no matter where you are.

[Chelle DB]

Great motto Cel.

[SWMBOTGSG]

I fully understand those whose families have issues about their attendance at cons. Apart from my late husband and kids, my only remaining relative is my older sister (and her husband). Our mother was heavily involved in a fan club when we were young and sis resented the fact. Mum never let things get in the way of her running of the house and apart from becoming very familiar with operatic arias (her fascination was with Mario Lanza), I had no problems. In fact I gained a valued American penfriend from one of her contacts - a friendship which has lasted more than 40 years. Mum passed away in 1977 and she never saw domestic video recorders or the internet. She would have loved both. Sis is scared to death of the internet. She resented my involvement with Stargate fandom right from the beginning and once we started organising events she really started giving me a hard time. Fortunately, since I resisted her efforts and we became successful, she is beginning to come around. I even heard her telling a neighbour about our charity raising successes. I'll not repeat the one thing that she will never forgive me for. I missed her 40th anniversary because of a Gatecon and the holiday that went with it. Her 50th is next September...

Our foreign conventions always came as part of our annual family holidays. British ones were just taken as weekends. They were always saved for. In fact I even went back to work after retiring to get the necessary funds. I have gained an education whilst travelling, and some wonderful friends all over the globe - and most of all, a new 'family' in GABIT. My sister only has her husband, me and my kids. Since she retired her circle of friends has diminished and she doesn't get to associate with others outside the family.

So I can sympathise with those whose families have something to say about their travels to cons. But you have to live your lives for you not them. As long as you don't put yourself in serious debt, they have nothing to say in the matter. JMHO

Mumsey

[SamJackShipLover]

Going to gabit makes me happy, luckily that's enough for my hubby He doesn't get it, but is fine with it.
Though he is 'saving up' all the days I have been away from home (and left him alone with Milou) and keeps annoying me that he'll be taking a 2 week holiday any day now ... hehe (next to gabit, I also have some music stuff that takes me away from home now and then, luckily he doesn't count work related trips ...).

[ames]

Trindaje is prepared for the zombie apcalypse, I am prepared for a safari in Heathrow.
I think there is a short story by Bradbury," Lions in the bedroom" (?), gotta be prepared, I tell you.

Wow, Ames as the voice of reason! That's quite a shock. ;-)
No explanation needed besides: "It's going to happen. ...I go to these events..." Way to go, girl!

Alright! You know what my favorite part about the con is? It's watching those that meet AT for the first time in the photo session. The way they practically float a foot above the ground, they don't hear you, they don't see you, they just float out the door...and then you have to chase them to return their backpack to them.
Some are in tears but with a smile on their face.

I love that!

Our highschool's motto is "semper paratus" ('always prepared') ... because let's face it, you never know ;P

Hey, I can be the reasonable one every once in a while (keeps everyone else on their toes) ... although I'm not sure if that says more about myself or my family (in that by comparison, my logic seems reasonable )!

Oh my - I definitely love that moment! I remember my first time meeting AT, and then my first GABIT meeting (which seemed much less rushed, although I'm sure that has more to do with the general atmosphere and skills of the stewarding staff than with the actual time allottment given!)

At AT4/5 I spent some time in the queue calming mates down who were about to meet her for the first time... ('Hyperventilating and fainting *before* you get in there is bad...just keep breathing! Slowly! See, we're good now! Ah, crying is alright, they'll have tissues inside. No, I'm not kidding you. Okay, so when you get in, and hand in your stuff, DON'T lose your claim ticket! Don't look at me like that, I seem to be able to do it everytime without fail. Yes, I know you're only moving like 20 feet. This is me, remember? I think I have a mini-blackhole in my jean pocket... It's okay, apparently I'm memorable or something. *eye slits* In a *good* way. Moving on... don't look at your neighbour while bouncing to the next seat in the line unless you're absolutely positive there's another empty chair waiting for you, because the drop to the floor is a definite shock to the system. Personal experience? Erm.... well, this is me we're talking about, so ...yeah. But be nice to the stewards when you're in there, and they'll forgive a lot. Are you still breathing? Excellent! ...and we're almost to the door - no, breathing slowly! Let's see, hugging is good - Amanda is a wonderful hugger - but do remember to let go again. They frown on you trying to take her with you. Yes, really. You'll be fine! Just listen to the nice ladies in blue, and remember to breathe, it'll be all good!' ) Apparently I'm a good distraction for nervous newbies (and entertainment for the amused door-guarding stewards? LOL)

Going to gabit makes me happy, luckily that's enough for my hubby He doesn't get it, but is fine with it.

My family are finally starting to see it that way too - they don't *understand* the compulsion to attend, necessarily, but they do see how much good it does me emotionally/mentally/spiritually, so they don't actively try to talk me out of it anymore - which I'll take as a victory!

Actually, my mom has shown some interest in me taking her to other cons closer to home ... she doesn't get it when I try to explain they won't be anywhere near the same experience, but hey, maybe if we have the fundage next year, I'll take her to something in Chicago or Toronto (ie close enough I don't need to take time from work). I'd love to bring her (or even moreso my Dad) to a GABIT but we can't swing three of us doing 2 weeks in Europe, and my Dad'd shoot me for taking her and not him Maybe we can do a family vacation to Vangroovy for TSE2? *looks hopeful*

[Chelle DB]

I fully understand those whose families have issues about their attendance at cons. Apart from my late husband and kids, my only remaining relative is my older sister (and her husband). Our mother was heavily involved in a fan club when we were young and sis resented the fact. Mum never let things get in the way of her running of the house and apart from becoming very familiar with operatic arias (her fascination was with Mario Lanza), I had no problems.

Spoiler:

In fact I gained a valued American penfriend from one of her contacts - a friendship which has lasted more than 40 years. Mum passed away in 1977 and she never saw domestic video recorders or the internet. She would have loved both. Sis is scared to death of the internet. She resented my involvement with Stargate fandom right from the beginning and once we started organising events she really started giving me a hard time. Fortunately, since I resisted her efforts and we became successful, she is beginning to come around. I even heard her telling a neighbour about our charity raising successes. I'll not repeat the one thing that she will never forgive me for. I missed her 40th anniversary because of a Gatecon and the holiday that went with it. Her 50th is next September...
Our foreign conventions always came as part of our annual family holidays. British ones were just taken as weekends. They were always saved for. In fact I even went back to work after retiring to get the necessary funds. I have gained an education whilst travelling, and some wonderful friends all over the globe - and most of all, a new 'family' in GABIT. My sister only has her husband, me and my kids. Since she retired her circle of friends has diminished and she doesn't get to associate with others outside the family.

So I can sympathise with those whose families have something to say about their travels to cons. But you have to live your lives for you not them. As long as you don't put yourself in serious debt, they have nothing to say in the matter. JMHO
Mumsey

You know I adore you Mumsey. xxxx
My Oma loved Mario Lanza...I think my mum does too...so I've been exposed to the beauty that is ML...though none of my friends have a clue as to who he is...beautiful voice.
I missed Niki's 17th birthday & I'll miss her 19th next year...both to Gabit events...both which she is making sure I will never forget. But I told her I would never miss any of her milestone birthdays & if I could I would never miss any of them. Her birthdays are the only ones I've missed...2 due to AT4 & 6 and 1 due to a camp that she went on in grade 3. I don't think I could ever be without them at Christmas time though....so thankfully AT6 is far enough away from Christmas that I should be home well & truly in time for it.

Going to gabit makes me happy, luckily that's enough for my hubby He doesn't get it, but is fine with it.
Though he is 'saving up' all the days I have been away from home (and left him alone with Milou) and keeps annoying me that he'll be taking a 2 week holiday any day now ... hehe (next to gabit, I also have some music stuff that takes me away from home now and then, luckily he doesn't count work related trips ...).

Hah!! Your hubby & mine think the same way...hubby is always reminding me of the "debt" I'm in when I go away for cons...mind you I always pay it back...in credit too!!
Hubby is the same though...he knows how much it makes me happy & though he pretends to be annoyed, he's supportive...but then he has his own vices that I like to hold over his head from time to time...it all balances out in the end.

[llp]

Tickets for AT6 go on sale January 10, 2012

This was posted on the Gabit Website! So we now have an official date to purchase tickets. No other information was available.

[ames]

I'm hoping everyone in Irene's path stays safe until she dies back down *hugs thread*

Because I've rambled a bit, I'm putting this under a spoiler tag:

Spoiler:

I was reminded when I got jumped on tonight to make sure I made it through Wed's tornado touchdown okay (an F1 went through our neighbourhood while I was at work - lots of power outages, flash flooding and downed trees/flying debris causing property damage, but no deaths have been reported) that we are more than just nicknames on a board, random voices in the ether, chatting about a particular interest in common - we are real people who make lasting connections to various degrees.

Sure, I only manage to chat with this particular group of ladies a couple times a month, but as soon as I came on, I was being checked up on. Once I assured them we were okay, the conversation shifted to asking if any of us had heard from two of the others who are in Virginia (one's apparently been evacuated, the other is far enough inland to have not been). Other topics were discussed, ranging from local politics to weather to Sanctuary (and even future GABIT events LOL), but first things came first - is everyone okay?

It also amazes me what people will take for granted, or maybe get used to is a better term. An F1 tornado rolls through my neighbourhood (literally) and we watch the amazing light show until someone reports seeing a funnel, then head for basements. Well this particular time we watched until our lunch break was over, then returned to work. We weren't actually evac'd to the basement at any point. *blinks* But then again, it's only an F1 so basically a step up from a wicked thunderstorm, right? We get those all the time. We even occassionally get thunder-blizzards, which is pretty darn cool, if I do say so myself

I grew up having tornado drills at school. (At elementary we also had fire drills. In secondary we added both armed intruder and bomb drills to the mix. *waits for questions of where the heck I grew up again...*) To this day, when I walk into a new job, one of the first things I find myself doing is figuring out alternate fire/intruder exit paths and the safest place to be in the event of a tornado, regardless of where I am. I don't even think about it - I just note the information and file it away in the back of my brain, just in case. Got me some odd looks when I did it in England - but then they were used to other procedures and natural weather phenomena. I recall at elementary school being hit with impromtu blizzards causing complete white-outs over the lunch hour, or severe thunderstorms dumping enough water to cause flashflooding in the schoolyard - it's just something you dealt with. Not quite 'normal', persay, but respect for the water is an oft-repeated lesson when you live near a floodplain and river that can crest over 20 feet during the Spring. Hurricanes on the other hand, tsunamis, brush fires - these make my blood run cold. I'm getting better with earthquakes but the idea of them used to terrify me as a kid. (I think what scares me more now is the fact that I haven't even noticed three of the last four we've had - I grew up less than 100' from a freight train line. Having the house shake hard enough to have items coming off the walls was a several-times-a-day occurrance. You either learned to sleep with a LOT of noise and vibrations, or you became an insomniac. Granted, we're nowhere near a fault line, but still - finding out you slept through another shockwave is a tad disconcerting, especially when you live near the top of a highrise building!) Anyways, I'm sure there are people on this thread for whom hurricanes or brushfires are a seasonal occurance that you just grew up learning to deal with ... but who are sitting there thinking 'wait - it was an actual tornado touching down, and they didn't... seriously? But ... but ... gah!' ... I'm also fairly certain there are people thinking 'pfffft - it was just an F1!' :rollseye:

We come together because of our admiration of Amanda with her skillful talents and seemingly boundless capacity for loving generosity; we stay connected because we choose to ... likely because we see some of those same qualities also in each other. I didn't realise how much it would mean to have someone hear that a tornado hit my hometown and wonder if I was okay, until it happened. Thank you to the ladies who were concerned - it's appreciated.

And to those who are in the path of the oncoming Irene - please stay safe!

[Chelle DB]

*hugs Ames*

[lame moose (mocha)]

YUP, THAT'S THE DATE THEY GAVE WHEN THEY ANNOUNCED WHEN AT 6 WOULD BE. (sorry about caps)

[penjab]

I do that too. I don't carry a balance. What I put on in June I pay in July. The only times I've carried a balance was when I bought my computers and they had a '90 days same as cash' thing going on. So I paid it off in the 90 days sorta
like in installments.

I sometimes have control issues. Wouldn't be a size 14 if I didn't. One little splurge and it'll be easier to make another and then another and things spiral out of control. So I just don't.

Could it be a Midwestern thing? I have the same issues as you...I am from Nebraska/Missouri as are my parents and grandparents. I can't spend more than I have and never carry a balance on the credit card. Oh well...There could be much worse issues to have.

[Jumble]

Could it be a Midwestern thing? I have the same issues as you...I am from Nebraska/Missouri as are my parents and grandparents. I can't spend more than I have and never carry a balance on the credit card. Oh well...There could be much worse issues to have.

I'm the same with the credit card - mainly because I refuse to ever pay interest

[penjab]

I'm the same with the credit card - mainly because I refuse to ever pay interest

There's that too!!

[llp]

Could it be a Midwestern thing? I have the same issues as you...I am from Nebraska/Missouri as are my parents and grandparents. I can't spend more than I have and never carry a balance on the credit card. Oh well...There could be much worse issues to have.

I'm the same with the credit card - mainly because I refuse to ever pay interest

In today's economy - that sound like plain good COMMON SENSE! The only reason people should get in debt is if they intend to pay it off each month. For instance - just bought a new bed and charged it. I charge everything but only because I just don't want to carry around that much money! I only buy things I know I can pay off each month! It would be a rare exception especially in this economy - but then I also have the privelege of being able to have enough money to do that. If I had children and needed to feed them - life would be a very different thing...I would do whatever it took!

[Skydiver]

that's why I roll my eyes when the credit card companies try to sell me their 'for 2.99 a month we'll cover your balance if you lose your job.....' plan. I'm like 'folks, the main reason i pay by credit card is if i have to or for ease (like using the discover to buy airline tickets and you get some sort of travel insurance gratis), I have the money and if you'd have looked at my account youi'd know I had it....but you just want the extra $3 from me...get it from someone else.

it's like the 'foreign exchange fee'....dude, they ARE the banks that change money. They basically punish you for spending money out of the US and use it to make more off you.

The one time I wanted to use my card at foreign atm's rather than getting money changed they couldn't even tell me exactly how much the fee would be....well i'm not gonna rack up unknown fees so I didn't use it.