Oh my, was Furry Connection North a blast!

We left on Thursday right after work. genet and roho joined us to caravan from the northern Chicago burbs to Novi, Michigan, on the western outskirts of Detroit. The trip went well, with one small snag. We had originally intended to stop in Kalamazoo at Bell’s Brewery’s Eclectic Cafe for dinner. Unfortunately, the place was surrounded by construction and parking was hard to find, and once we got in it appeared that the place was packed and a band was setting up. Hm. Well, maybe not. We did stop by the gift shop on the way out, though, and picked up a few small items. We instead opted for Food Dance. Our meal was quite tasty, but a little pricey for what we got.

We rolled into Novi at around 10:45 PM and had no problems getting out rooms. Because we weren’t all that tired, takaza and I went to the nearby Meijer and bought supplies for the weekend. We got to bed around 2 AM.

Friday morning I was up far too early (as usual). The morning staff meeting went smoothly, and after that I stopped by the room and woke Dan up. After Opening Ceremonies, Dan and I had a nice lunch with Gir in the hotel restaurant, then it was time for my first Operations shift. I worked a lot of hours in Operations this convention, but “working” is a somewhat disingenuous thing to call it. It was more “hanging out, chatting, and occasionally helping someone when they stopped by.” I was really glad I volunteered for it. For dinner, I walked over to Kerby’s Koney Island *a little Greek diner across the street) with r_bear, fordshepherd, bajahyena, Roho, and Genet. A hilarious meal ensued, and the food was tasty and cheap, too!

After dinner, it was back to the con, and the taping of the Method 1 podcast. Nik and Gir were hilarious, and Dan and I were pleased to introduce them to Mamma Mia Pizza Beer. It was every bit as horrid as you might imagine (but hey, bad beer makes for good comedy!). Great show, guys. From there it was back to the suite to prepare for the evening’s party. Once again this year we hosted a Fine Potables Party, and what a party it was! Dan had a blast as bartender, making mojitos, Metrosexuals (a modified cosmopolitan), and various other drinks. I enjoyed playing host, circulating, and chatting with friends. We wrapped up the party around 1 AM. I certainly hope everyone had as much fun was we did!

Saturday morning I woke up way too early (see a pattern here?). tango and I drove down to Tim Horton’s for some Timbits for Dan, then we had a tasty breakfast at Kerby’s Koney Island. Then it was back to the con for a marathon Operations shift. Technically I wasn’t scheduled to work that long, but between Ed needing to step away for a family commitment and other staff members being more useful elsewhere, I wound up working 9 AM – 4:30 PM. Which, as I said, wasn’t a bad thing 🙂

At 6 PM we gathered a group of 28 people in the lobby and headed out to Zingerman’s Roadhouse for dinner. I had arranged things with them in advance and they were all set for us. They started the meal with a custom cheese-and-bacon sampler made just for us (soooooo good!). I ordered the beef brisket for dinner, which was…OK. I really wish I had ordered the Creole seafood stew, which was simply amazing. Dan’s burger with 7-year-old cheddar and peppered bacon was awesome as well.

For dessert, we had another item available at my request: biscuits with chocolate-bacon sauce. This dessert was not quite as successful, with the sauce reminding me of a chocolate sauce made by replacing all the sugar with salt. Ack! Still, it was a fun novelty, and Nik and Gir seemed to really like the one that we brought back to the hotel. Dan’s lemon cake was quite tasty, and mirkowuff‘s brownie sundae looked tasty as well. The meal was notable in that it was the first time in years that I’ve laughed so hard I couldn’t breathe.

We got back to the hotel to find justincheetah and calapurr‘s Brew and Mew party going in full swing in our suite (we shared the suite parlor with them, an arrangement that worked so well we’re hoping to do it again next year). They had brought three pony kegs of some excellent beers, and everyone seemed to be having a great time. Alas, I was really tired so I wound up crashing early and somehow sleeping through the din next door 🙂

On Sunday, it was back to Operations for the morning. RB and Tango were kind enough to pick me up a breakfast sandwich from Kerby’s Koney Island (yeah, I kind of liked that place). I worked/hung around Operations (and helped with a bit of Security work) for most of the day, then went to Closing Ceremonies. A notable item from Closing: A challenge has been laid down! At the Midwest FurFest Summer Picnic on July 17, 2010, Midwest FurFest will take on Furry Connection North for a Battle of the Burgers! I expect much anticipation, trash talking, and grilled meat. It’ll be a blast!

We wound up getting together a few folks in the suite on Sunday night and ordered pizza. We stopped by a couple of parties, and Dan got to walk around a bit in suit, then we retreated back to the suite and spent the rest of the evening chatting with a small group of friends. It was a very pleasant way to wrap up the convention.

On Monday we packed up the car (wow, we need to learn to travel light!) and caravanned with Mirko and Roho and Genet to Ann Arbor where we stopped for lunch at Zingerman’s Deli. I had the “Half-Italian” which was extremely tasty, but the hot peppers damn near seared my tongue off! From there, Mirko went his own way and we headed to Chicago with Roho and Genet following. The trip back was uneventful, and after a quick unloading of our car when we got home, we went over Dan’s mom’s house where she had been watching Buddy and Brianna (Roho and Genet’s Samoyed). Buddy was ecstatic to see us again and was bouncing around like a puppy! Dan’s mom was so helpful watching the dogs while we were gone, and they seemed to like it as well, even if her 8-week-old Rottweiler puppy kept nipping at them 🙂

So that was the con. We had an amazing time, and I’m really looking forward to going back next year. FCN is a great convention because of its staff, and they are an amazing group of smart, conscientious people. Gir and Nik are the most visible, and they knock themselves out to make sure everyone has a good time. Also, fine folks like Eddikat, Ed Hyena, Deyna Otter, Basil, Savant, Takaza, Giza, the Dorsai Irregulars, and so many others who I simply didn’t get a chance to see (or am stupidly forgetting) help to make FCN the excellent convention that it is. If you haven’t gone, you really should – it’s a great convention, a great party, and a whole lot of fun.