So naturally, I was greatly looking forward to going again this year, and while the event likely will never have the same impact as the first one, this year was made even better because Piper and Jet shared our hotel room. So unlike last year when we had to sleep on an air mattress (partially inflated by mouth in the hotel hallway at 3 in the morning because my battery-powered air pump ran down) in Eric's room with four other people, it was much more comfortable this year, sleeping in a proper bed in a less-crowded room.
I was hoping to take Friday off to get a head start on the event, but Lori couldn't spare me so I had to work until past 6 pm before I could drive to Staten Island and pick up Puck. Jet and Piper drove separately and we met up at the Agreeable Agony vendor booth, run by Kiernan and Dee, our friends from Massachusetts. That's where I bought my flogger and Puck got their metal claws last year.
We saw more music this year, and one band I really liked was Ego Likeness, a goth/industrial band that we thought sounded like a combination of Garbage and Depeche Mode. I bought all three of their CDs and had them autographed by the lead singer and the guitarist.
Saturday was our full day at the con and it started with a Goblin Market in the morning. Puck went dressed as a fae, using a cotton-candy satin, over-the-top girly, ribboned dress from my closet as a skirt (putting some rips in the mesh for the proper ethereal effect). While they horse-traded secrets, memories and outgrown names with other people in the market and we watched burlesque performances emceed by the Goblin King, I traded an Open Love NY bracelet for a balancing plastic bird with the science geek, who also gave us a sample of chocolate ice cream freshly made with liquid nitrogen.
Here's a picture of Puck in their fae costume, along with someone we met named Vell in a fully decked out purple steampunk outfit:
As with last year, there were some fun exhibitions in the lobby of the hotel, such as the juggling demonstration:
Saturday afternoon, Piper (with Jet's help) led a group discussion about bottoming for rope that included things like demonstrations of different ties (me, Puck and Dee helped to demonstrate different positions), how to talk to a rope top, how to not get arrested while doing rope in public, and how to look good in pictures of yourself while tied up.
All weekend Puck participated in a live-action role play game (LARP) that required us to run around and perform quests and tasks that took us to every corner of the hotel. I didn't want to play for myself, so we just teamed up - I was their familiar, so maybe I was a unicorn (or is that too fancy for to be a familiar?) They did things like try on corsets, get flogged (by me) with a dice flogger, find a sexy male leather jacket, get photos or autographs from certain costumed characters (like Jesus, Severus Snape, the Goblin King) play a card game, etc.
Sometimes we'd run into other players and there would be a showdown of Rock, Paper, Scissors and an exchange of cards. But mostly we did a good job avoiding those battles.
Late Saturday night we saw the same band that we liked last year who again opened for Voltaire, This Way to the Egress. They are described as a steampunk/dark cabaret band, an homage to old-fashioned vaudeville, incorporating sideshow, burlesque and comedy in their own musical mayhem. They had both a ballerina burlesque dancer (who danced en pointe) and the mime performer we saw last year:
Once again, just like last year, we failed to see headliner Voltaire; this time because Puck had to use the bathroom and couldn't get back in because of the massive line to get in. Maybe next year!
Even later on Saturday there was a performance/showing of the Rocky Horror Picture Show where Eric performed with a troupe of players. Since Puck has never seen it before, they were herded on stage with other "virgins" to have their "cherry" popped in the form of a balloon held between their legs:
The performers did skits and dance numbers corresponding to the vapid plotline of the movie, including leading the crowd in dancing "Time Warp" and a prelude done to Michael Jackson's "Thriller":
Since I have seen RHPS once before (and that was enough for me) I left after Rocky Horror made his appearance and made my way back to the hotel around 3 am to shower and get into bed. Jet, Piper and Puck made their way back after the movie ended - Puck said they were "underwhelmed" by the movie.
Sunday we woke up bright and early at 10:30 am to get packed up and checked out of the hotel. Puck continued LARPing in a new purple-y, sparkly femme outfit, complete with my over-the-top makeup job.
I took a little break from LARPing with Puck to catch an encore daytime performance by TWTTE and buy their new CD, plus get it autographed by piano player Sarah, who was so sweet and down-to-earth:
All of Puck's LARPing paid off handsomely when they were named the first-place winner of the game, receiving a complimentary admission to the upcoming Steampunk World's Fair event in May, so we're making plans to go to that.
I wanted to get to my weekly yoga class uptown, so we left right after the awards so I could drop them off at home before heading home for a change of clothes and a subway ride to Jonathan's apartment. I used my new Manduka yoga mat and I found it very comfortable, but since it's so thick, it was difficult to balance on one foot. I guess that's a necessary trade-off because otherwise it's too painful for my back, knees and tailbone.
I wanted to get to my weekly yoga class uptown, so we left right after the awards so I could drop them off at home before heading home for a change of clothes and a subway ride to Jonathan's apartment. I used my new Manduka yoga mat and I found it very comfortable, but since it's so thick, it was difficult to balance on one foot. I guess that's a necessary trade-off because otherwise it's too painful for my back, knees and tailbone.
