This is f-locked because I’m exasperated with the con I’m going to next week and I presume none of the eighty or ninety of you on the flist are the guy running it.
I’m supposed to be Guest of Honor at Pi-Con next weekend. Eight days from now. And yet I don’t have plane tickets–which they’re supposed to be buying me–to the event. I emailed two weeks ago to say, “What’s up with tickets?” and they said they’d be buying them any minute now. Time went by. No tickets.
So yesterday I emailed the guy in charge again and said, hey, look, when am I coming in, I’m trying to arrange meeting people etc, it’d be helpful to know when I’m coming and going.
He emailed back and said, “Gosh, I haven’t bought tickets yet, you can have your choice: fly into NY at 11:40 or Hartford at 2:25, we can buy you a ticket to fly in as early as Wednesday and you can leave either Sunday or Monday, your choice, you’ll have to pay for any extra nights you stay because the con can’t afford to pay for them (which is fair enough), just let me know what you want to do.”
…
Ok, first, I have no idea at all which airport is closer to the con. Second, how am I supposed to get from whatever airport I fly into *to* the con hotel? Third, uh, just how many nights /is/ the con putting me up, because I’d kind of assumed Friday-Sunday, but that’s not the impression I’ve just been left with. Fourth, what airport in *Ireland* am I leaving from, and at what time, because it’s probably *not* Cork airport, which means the leaving-time is fairly important, because if it’s early, I’m going to have to go up to Ennis and overnight at a hotel there because the trains don’t run early enough to get me to Shannon airport for an early-morning flight, and that’s an additional expense that’ll help determine when I’m flying in anywhere.
I have not, since they invited me to be GoH, actually believed this was going to happen. I posted the schedule last week as an act of faith, but I really can’t quite believe it’s going to come off, and this does not, for God’s sake, fill me with confidence.
Oh hugs
That doesn’t fill you with confidence does it. I’m wondering if they know you are in Ireland? The fact that he gives times of arrivals suggests he has specific flights in mind.
Shannon has flights to Boston and NY. Dublin I think has flights to New Jersey as well. I don’t know of flights from Ireland to Hartford. I think you’ll have to get him on the phone…
I’m going to say this and others may disagree, but… running a con isn’t hard. It’s a lot of work, it requires dedication, attention to detail and a bunch of other things, but it isn’t actually hard. It isn’t rocket science.
So I weep when I see people screw things up this badly, especially with their guests.
Muppets.
They do know I’m in Ireland. I’m imagining that the flight would be to NY and then there’d be another flight from NY to Hartford. But I don’t actually *know*, because he didn’t give me any really useful information. *crossed eyes*
It’s a second-year con and I get the idea from someone who was there last year that it, while fun, was held together with baling wire and sealing wax. Which is why, in fact, I have had very little faith that this was actually going to come off successfully.
I’ve never run cons, but I’ve watched a lot of people do so, and there is a visible difference between well-run and not-well-run, even from the outside. The former mostly seems to be determined by making decisions and following through on them, and the latter, by not. So, as you say, not rocket science.
Ok, year two, they get some slack, but really, before starting up your own con you should get experience elsewhere, just to see what the possible pitfalls are.
I’ve never run cons, but I’ve watched a lot of people do so, and there is a visible difference between well-run and not-well-run, even from the outside. The former mostly seems to be determined by making decisions and following through on them, and the latter, by not. So, as you say, not rocket science.
Yup, exactly. Making a decision and sticking with it is a huge part of it. Giving the whole thing a sense of direction and assuring the guests, staff and attendees that someone knows exactly what’s going on. I think you should turn up and stage a coup. :)
Why on earth would I want to show up and run somebody else’s con? :)
http://wyvernfriend.livejournal.com/917174.html
If you can get a connecting flight into Bradley Airport (that’s Hartford / Springfield), that’d be easier for you. It’s only about 20-30 minutes from the hotel.
I doubt the hotel has a shuttle service, but you can check out this link and see if anything works: http://www.bradleyairport.com/Transport/limo.aspx — honestly, they should send someone to get you. It’s not that far.
Well, I’ve asked how I’m supposed to get from the airport to the hotel (as well as all the other things mentioned in this post), so hopefully sometime this afternoon I’ll get an answer to those questions. *crossed eyes more*
Here’s one solution to one of your problems– if you fly into Hartford at a reasonable time of day, I’ll drive up there, pick you up, and take you to the hotel. And if you want to come in Weds or Thurs and stay around here until the con (which I can drive you to), you can stay with us. Email me!
*blink*
Wow.
Bit of a clusterfuck by the sounds of it, innit?
*sigh* So frustrating. Good luck with it all–I hope they get their shit straightened out pronto.
The power! Muhahahahahaha.
Oh, er, well, you could just lead the coup and then go back to being a guest?
Or… you might get booze? :)
Like someone else mentioned, Bradley’s probably not all that far from your end location. I have a doctor’s appointment at 11 on Friday the 10th, but if you came in at some point on that friday afternoon, I could stop at Bradley to pick you up and get you to the hotel. Since it’d sort of be on the way of me going to visit you anyway!
I’d offer crash space, but I live in the wrong direction and it wouldn’t be particularly interesting for you. :)
*hugs*
Ugh. That sounds like a pain, really. I believe it is time for the “I need all of the answers to these questions now’ smackdown.
I think there’s something about running a con which steals the brains from otherwise competent people.
When I was GoH Liaison for Orycon, I was exceptionally frustrated in trying to get things organized for my GoH. I couldn’t get any information from the ‘People in Charge’. I couldn’t buy plane tickets until two weeks before the event, despite pestering about it on a consistent basis starting 4 months before, and daily when we were a month away.
So, while I commiserate, and have a firm belief that better planning and organization should not be difficult…
I’m also not surprised by it.
Pob Lwc!
My honest opinion? Don’t go.
If they’ve not managed to organise their GoH’s flights, imagine what else they might not have done. Like hire a hotel, hire a bedroom for said GoH, sell memberships, and so on.
And, whatever happens, do not let them convince you to pay for the flights, with them promising to reimburse you afterwards…
Really, you’ll probably be saving yourself a lot of hurt, a wasted weekend, and a load of cash I’m guessing you don’t really have hanging around to fritter away on Transatlantic flights you didn’t really need to take.
Make a polite excuse, and bail out. Really.
(And I obviously agree with everything says, too! We’ll all see you at the weekend, and discuss this further.)
Luckily (?) they just came through with the ticket. Believe me, I would not have bought one myself. I was wondering what the diplomatic way to back out was going to be, and I have learned a valuable lesson, which is that in the future if anybody invites me to be GoH to insist I get my travel arrangements done at least two weeks in advance or I will be unable to attend. Because what a pain in the ass.
I’m still largely of the opinion you might be better off not going. Still, I don’t doubt you’ll make the best of it, regardless.
What you need is an agent for these things. Make them go through me, and I’ll put the fear of god into them!
I’m inclined to agree, but I wasn’t wise enough to have a drop-dead time frame this time around, so I shall, indeed, go and make the best of it, and next time, I’ll send ’em through you. :)
Oi! Dont be giving her ideas, remember she is GoH for P-Con V. :-)
I promise to treat you much better than that for P-Con V. In fact your room (a double) is already booked for the nights.
And we’ll sort out you getting to Dublin well in advance.
I have utter faith that you will. :)