Gary Con Day 0: Gaining An Hour And Drinking A Buncha Cows

Just got back to my room and I'm calling it a day. I only got 3 hours of sleep last night, drove 7 hours to get here, and have been running around and meeting folks up until this moment. Plus the fact I lost an hour (see entry below) all makes for one very tired and sleepy Sniderman.

Here are some thoughts and observations regarding the trip out, the lodge, and the as-of-yet-unstarted con:

• Toll roads from Ohio to Wisconsin are an absolute bitch. By my calcs, I paid $17 just for the privilege of driving on roads identical to the free ones I drive on. I'm reminded of the Bugs Bunny 'toon when he has a sailboat in the Panama Canal: "Twenty-five cents to go through this thing? Ehhh, I'll walk foist!"
• As I pulled into Lake Geneva, I got behind a car with the license plate: 688-TSR. Not sure if they're gamers or if it's just an incredible coincidence. Wish I had grabbed a photo.
• Sorry for the lousy resolution on my previous post's pix. All I had was my phone camera.
• I stopped at Burger King at 11:30 a.m. when I got to Wisconsin because I was starving. I walked in and they were still serving breakfast. Confused, I ordered a breakfast sandwich and went to my car. It wasn't until I sat down that I realized I had crossed from Eastern to Central Time Zone, losing an hour. It was only 10:30 a.m.! One positive note, I just got an extra hour of gamin' because of it!
• The lodge is very nice, very comfortable, with a great staff thus far. I really like the small, intimate feel of the area, so the convention will be small, but bustling once underway. But all of the signage is high quality with a big-con feel. The screens in the lobby running constant Gary Con daily updates is also nice and appreciated.
• However, my room is the second-most-furtherest from the lobby/gaming area. I literally must walk the entire length of the building each time.
• Picked up my pre-registration materials. because I'm running games, my Gary Con lanyard is black with "DUNGEON MASTER" on it. Tres cool.
• I met Michael, Colin, and Chad of the Dead Games Society in the hotel bar for a DGS Meet-n-Greet. Great to finally put faces to their online personas. Great guys too. Looking forward to gaming with them this weekend. If you're interested in playing and running out-of-print RPGs, this is the organization to join!
• Gary's favorite beer was Spotted Cow, and it's on tap and flowing freely at Gary Con. Had one this afternoon. It was followed by 3 of its brothers. Damn is it good. During Gary Con Happy Hour, when Spotted Cow will only be a buck a glass (or free if you bought one of the special cups, like I did), I will be in soooo much trouble.
• The Gary Con motto is "A Celebration of a Life Well Played!" It works as a great memorial to Gary, but it also reminds us all to go out and enjoy ourselves.

Not a lot of activity tonight, except for a handful of pickup games in the lobby. My guess is that most folks are getting reacquainted or just resting up for the big day tomorrow. I did grab a few "environmental shots" while things are quiet though. Here you go:

Entrance to the lodge.

Signage at the restaurant check-in.

Cool to see this poster-sized blow-up of the Keep on the Borderlands module!

Registration desk is quiet...for now...