WorldCon 2011 -- Transition Day

WorldCon starts today!

I will be leaving soon to pick up my membership badge and begin acclimating myself to the services provided by the Con. I'm hoping that the convention center won't be too difficult to navigate, but I'm going to get there early just in case.

Before I do that, though, just a few quick words about yesterday.



Yesterday was a travel day as we relocated from San Francisco back to Reno to prepare for the Convention. On the way, we stopped at Mumm Napa Winery, in Napa Valley (obviously), for a tour and some wine tasting.

The tour was really interesting. I learned a lot about blended wines and sparkling wines and a little bit about wine history as well. It was definitely a different experience from Stone Hill Winery, in Missouri, where I've toured before.

The tasting though...

Well, a caveat. I like wine. In the year since I turned 21 I've developed quite an appreciation for the many different varieties of wine. So a wine tasting is always something I'm excited about.

However, I've never tried champagne. I've served champagne. Dozens of times. But drinking on the job is a surefire way to get you sent home. Permanently. So I've never tasted the stuff.

Now, Mumm Napa focuses exclusively on sparkling wine -- which, for those of you who don't know, is exactly what champagne is. They aren't technically allowed to call it champagne, because the grapes didn't come from the champagne valley in France, but it's basically the same thing.

So, all that is to show that my lack of appreciation for the tasting part of the wine tour is more due to a lack of appreciation for champagne and sparkling wines. There you go.

*ta-da!*

That about sums up yesterday. The rest of it was driving, visiting a family friend, and more driving.

Now it's off to the convention. (I know, I know. I've been talking about it all week. When is the stupid thing going to actually start!?!)

For those who are curious, here's a schedule of the sessions I'm planning to attend. With any luck and a little navigational skill, I'll make it to all of them and then you'll have to hear me rave about them in my next post.

(Note: All convention times are listed in Pacific time.)

Wednesday Convention Schedule
13:00 -- Tourists: Creating Characters and Stories in an Existing World
14:00 -- Adventures in Gaming: The Business of Game Design
15:00 -- Opening Ceremony
16:00 -- The Real Revenge of the Nerds: Geek as Hero
17:00 -- Our Journeys Through the Twisty, Curvy Mazes of Game Development
   with Steve Jackson of Steve Jackson Games and Jon Schindehette of Wizards of the Coast
18:00 -- Nevada as a Setting for SF & Fantasy

A bit of a short day today, but that's good. It'll be a nice, easy introduction, and should give me time to figure out where everything is.