It has been an exceptionally good day, largely spent with the coolest person in the Western Hemisphere, Shaenon Garrity of Narbonic. I'll write up our historic meeting later this weekend, as well as getting the next several Shortbread categories out, but for today I'm tired and enjoying memories of fun times, conversation, slacking-off sea lions and kickass a capella music.
Also? The Bay Area's light rail system seriously rocks.
That's an unfair claim!... oh, no, wait... I'm in the Eastern Hemisphere. Okay then. ;-)
Heh. We'd be berating you for not giving us our Shortbread on time, but hanging around Shaenon Garrity definitely is a worthy cause. Have fun!
Robert A. Howard, Tangents reviewer
http://tangents.keenspace.com
You're in the bay area?! And you didn't inform us ahead of time!? That's like... around here and stuff!
I don't know... maybe it's just me..., but when he said repeatedly he was going to Baycon, I just took it as a given that it was something in the bay area... :)
I must confess, Mister Dean, I am even as we speak in Palo Alto, and soon shall be in San Jose. (Do you, by any chance, know the way?)
If you've the gumption to make it down towards Baycon, I'll stand you and Elizabeth to beverages. That right there's a promise. ;)
For all my big talk, making it down to baycon this week/end would be nearly impossible - this sunday we officially take posession of our new downtown sacramento apartment, and saturday is going to be spent preparing for that endeavor. You tempt me, too. The promise of free (insert thing here) is always tempting. :D
Talking the wife into it would take some doing, at the very least. :P
BART rocks? Seriously? BART?
Huh...
No no, Forsaken. Caltrain rocks.
Given that he's been in San Jose and Palo Alto, I suspect Eric is talking about CalTrain and not BART. BART's OK, and is great for going to A's games, but won't extend to the South Bay for another ten years.
Any chance you're meeting up with Andy Weir (of Casey and Andy), or is he busy preparing to move?
Ah, when I hear Bay Area light rail I think Bay Area Rapid Transit. Good, my mind is no longer blown. ;)
Ooh, what kickass a cappella music? I loves me some kickass a cappella music. Also, it so completely freaks me out that you (Greg Dean) are from Sacramento. I mean, I'm from Sacramento. Not sure why it's freaky, just... you're all with the internet and the famous or at least highly notable, and Sacramento's sort of... I don't know. It's like someone saying, "Oh, yeah, I'm actually from... your living room." So I'm all, "Oh, my living room? Um, nice couch in there, huh?"
Well, considering BayCon is in San Jose and that the VTA is so unimaginative as to have named its light rail system "Light Rail", I suspect he may mean that. Which would leave me even more bemused, given that while it does have nice cars it doesn't really cover a critical mass of territory. (And doesn't connect to the airport, and goes maddeningly slowly through downtown, and...) But it does go just a couple of blocks from the hotel where BayCon is, so that's something in its favor.
Besides, CalTrain is definitely heavy rail, and BART is usually considered heavy itself.
I think you mean "San Jose's light rail", Eric. There is no light rail system that serves the entire bay area. Caltrain is heavy rail (and I believe only on the peninsula), San Francisco has its trolleys (not just the cable cars), BART is a subway/overhead hybrid mishmash, and the North Bay (Marin, Sonoma, etc.) has jack shit as far as I can tell.