Kissing February Good-Bye

I was guest of honor at Fencon weekend before last, which was amazing; the team put together a fantastic con. Unfortunately I lost my phone in the cab on the way home, which killed my productivity. (long story short, I ended up with a new phone but with a 2022 backup*. It was a mess.) Many of my two factor authentication tools were tied to an app on the phone, so I couldn't log in to post anything until I went through a lengthy gauntlet to prove to sites that I'm me. You appreciate the tight security some sites have until it locks YOU out.

But at Fencon I got to hang out with Maurice Broaddus, a good friend who was Toastmaster, and Lisa Snellings, who is an artist that I adore (I collect a lot of her stuff.) Then I had a very awkward moment when I met the Musical Guests of Honor, Via Bella. They said they were from Buffalo, NY, and I said, "Wow, a lot of funny musicians come from that area, like Worm Quartet and Ookla the Mok!" And Rand leaned forward and said, "That's me, I'm Ookla the Mok."

(Lisa Snellings' Cosmic Cafe Espresso Poppet)

In my defense, we'd just met, I had been late, and both Rand and Erin were wearing masks. And I hadn't heard that Rand had another band. But I was still embarrassed. Rand Bellavia and Adam English are the band Ookla the Mok that I've been a fan of for YEARS, and now Rand also does filk with his wife Erin, under Via Bella. I got to catch one of their shows at the con, and they're great. Check them out ("Fight Like a Girl" is a favorite).

I will be streaming today at 3pm and the back podcasts will be released soon. I hope to record on Thursday, but since it's the day before a trip I may not be able to focus. Because I'm going on the JoCo Cruise!

I still can't believe this, that I will be a performer on this nerd cruise. I have a live podcast scheduled, a reading, a signing, and I'll be running two games of Brindlewood Bay! If you'll be there, please come say hi!

I have purchased all the sunscreen.

Content resumes after I return home, but knowing me, I’ll record stuff on the cruise to send out, and I might grab wifi here and there.

Stay safe, stay kind,

Mur

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*In other news, if you think you have my phone number, it's possible I no longer have yours. "New phone, who dis?" may be a very real thing I have to reply with.