Flatline...

As predicted, I guess the cable has shifted over to digital.

At 00:10 on Tuesday morning the cable channel I was watching went blank. They were all blank.

Guess we have to install the new boxes we got the other day. Lord, I hope we can program our old remotes, because the new Charter ones look stupider that my folks Time-Warner ones.

Last time we had to use a cable box, the first one has twelve pushbuttons for channels 2-13. The second one had a simple up-down buttons on the remote. Channels 2-35, I believe. Since then our TVs and VCRs have been cable ready.

And we didn't have to put up with crap.

Dr. Phil

The Duel Goes On...

Al Bogdan is still posting pictures from Detcon.


A nice portrait sans Nikon in face, though thankfully the Nikon logo on the neckstrap is still visible.
©2014 Al Bogdan (All Rights Reserved)

The duel is still on, then.


My first view of Al came on the big screens, as they were showing Al's promo video about time traveling between Detention 1959 and 55 years later to Detcon1 2014. Al played the part of the stern white lab coated scientist. Reverse the polarity! (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


As photographers, we tend to spend some of our time as wallflowers. It's not just to be out of the audience's way -- we don't care all that much about them -- but to get profile shots with long lenses. (grin) (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


Shooting... (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


I've seen that satisfied Job Well Done look before. (grin) (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)

You can see the poor sorry crippled old Dr. Phil's rental wheelchair folded up out of the way on the side. If I can't get in people's way shooting, I can use my hardware to block their path anyway!

At least Larc will be happy to see more pictures of Al. Pro photographers crave not images of self. (double-exposed-grin)

Dr. Phil

Detcon 1 Opening Ceremonies

Thursday 17 July 2014

8pm Ambassador Salon 1

I like Opening Ceremonies because, (1) they introduce the major players in this cast of characters, some of whom I know and some of them I've never met or even seen before, and (2) I almost never get to Closing Ceremonies and have yet to make it to a Dead Dog Party at a con.

But that's me. My first impression is why don't more people attend, but of course that's the case and anyway, they usually put the Opening Ceremonies in a big space.


Our intrepid Toastmaster, Michigan author Jim C. Hines. Complete with his Impressive Author Leather Jacket and Magnificent Pimp Jim Hines purple hat with Flamboyant Feather action feature. (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)

No pictures of Jim's nemesis, Tom Smith. The angles were all wrong and all I could get in the viewfinder was the top hat...


Detcon1 Con Chair Tammy Coxen who is either relieved that it's all going to happen Right Now or is resigned to dealing with a train wreck. (grin) No, Tammy did an awesome job and helped me out with several matters. I think she's happy we're happy to be there. (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


Revealing the first ever Detcon1 Award for YA and Middle Grade Speculative Fiction. While WorldCon in London gets the Hugos and the Hugos debate whether YA is worthy of having an award. So there, ph-bbbbt! (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


Jim graciously offering to hold and safeguard the YA Award. Funny, John Scalzi tried the same trick as Toastmaster at Chicon 7 with the Hugo two years ago... Not sure Tammy is buying it. (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


Guest of Honor Nnedi Okarafor. (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


Author GoH Steven Barnes channeling a Rodney Dangerfield joke -- no really! (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


A moment of levity with Science GoH Helen Greiner. I really like this picture, but worry that it's too demure, so... (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


...if you think that's not properly respectful for the CEO of iRobot, makers of the Roomba and many more exciting Real Life Robots, here's a more serious, more traditional and (sigh) more boring shot. (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


Video Game Special Guest Jon Davis, who hasn't burned out in the industry and has one helluva resume -- and I don't even play video games! (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


Musical Guests of Honor Brenda Sutton... (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


... and Bill Sutton. Because each needs to be featured in a good light. (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


A perfectly dreadful picture of Artist GoH John Picacio, who was talking so passionately about his expansive new work Loteria. (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)

There were several other Guests of Honor of note, but they were all presented on the main floor and were frankly not high enough for me to get anything decent. So soon to the start of Detcon and after a drive across the state and a "long" walk to get the wheelchair, I resisted the urge to stand up and get better angles. For the good of my foot.

So I leave you with:

Toastmaster Jim C. Hines shooting a selfie with Detcon1. See? We're all waving. (Click on photo for larger.)
©2014 Dr. Philip Edward Kaldon (All Rights Reserved)


We're over there on the right, about an inch or so to the right of the border. See, I told you that awesome hat was purple.
©2014 Jim C. Hines (All Rights Reserved)

And now I had to head back up to 3814 to start writing my story for my Friday noon reading.

Dr. Phil