So. I have survived Chicago and am safe back at my dear Mr. Lynch’s place in western Wisconsin. And as you may have heard by now, the SF Squeecast both did a live recording (with Sarah Monette and Jay Lake as guests) and won a Hugo.

I had an amazing con, despite some adventures getting there (There was a small issue with a water pump, which was rather miraculously resolved by a bored mechanic in a mere four hours), and was pleased to see so many old friends and new, and participate in some awesome panels–and witness some even better ones. (The Disaster Response in SFF panel was a standout. I will probably be using the phrase, “How do you even GET a tourniquet on that?!” randomly in conversation for years. Thank you, Myke Cole.)

Other highlights included dinners at Goose Island Brewery and Chicago Cuts. And, you know, the nerve wracking tension of the Hugos, where beforehand we all stand around and pretend we don’t know why we’re at this cocktail party, too nervous to eat the bacon-wrapped scallops, and afterwards we stand around to drained to support conversations. (Kudos to San Antonio for the Hugo Losers party, where there were pies on a stick. No really, Pies. On Sticks. Peach pies and pecan pies, to be precise.)

This was my first time in Chicago, and I was amazed by the architectural beauty of the city. Scott and I had a fabulous view of the Hancock Tower (or as I kept referring to it, the not-Sears-tower–I finally got to see the *actual* Sears Willis Tower on Monday, when we went around to the back side of the hotel.) Also, the Hyatt Regency Chicago is a lovely hotel, overall, though I was perpetually late to everything because of getting constantly lost and underestimating elevator wait times.

It is also habitat to a seemingly endless parade of giant orb-weaving type spiders. Seriously, we counted 23 in one window. Dave Keck did a little back of the envelope math and estimated that there were at least 18kg/45lb of spiders on the exterior of the building.

I think he was underselling.

Monday afternoon, we absconded to the Field Museum. Sadly, I was a bit footsore and exhausted, but I managed to make it through the dinosaurs and the Genghis Khan exhibit and the megafauna, and have pages of scribbled notes for Steles of the Sky. Then we were off to the house of friends near Madison for a couple of days, including visits to the Henry Vilas zoo and the New Glarus brewery. (We need to go back on a Friday and take the hard hat tour.)

The Belgian Red, if you can find it, is AMAZING. It’s a tart cherry lambic, and yum. So is the Chocolate Cherry Stout.

And that was Worldcon. I slept ten hours last night, and feel like I could do it again, but now it’s back on the diet and exercise hamster wheel of health.

Posted: Thursday, September 6th, 2012 @ 8:03 pm
Categories: Awards, Blog, Convention reports.
Tags: chicon 7, squeecast.
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