Ok people myself and my friend Krux have setup an EVDO laptop outing to a wifi access point for lite interweb fun. I have uploaded my first batch of Westcoast Traintrip pictures at Flickr and here is the addy
fucos: Past tense of focus, you have already lost focus that you can't even spell focus. Can be combined with shit for impressing anonymous crowds; fucoshit. source: Wil Weaton
Holy Shit! Wish I could be there! Fuck me for moving to Seattle! Have fun, and I'll see y'all tomorrow night!
I'm working until 9, so I won't do many evening activities, but that does mean I can pick up a few of you at the train station and taxi you to your hotels.
ctishman on
Get the PAX 2008 Countdown widget and while away your sad, pathetic life watching it tick down the hours to PAX '08! http://homepage.mac.com/ctishman
fucos: Past tense of focus, you have already lost focus that you can't even spell focus. Can be combined with shit for impressing anonymous crowds; fucoshit. source: Wil Weaton
Woooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo supertrip rocked! I don't see myself in those tiny photos but I should be there somewhere in a WoW tshirt and a Starcraft II hat with buttons on it.
Folks, it was great - and tomorrow we ride again. Here we go! Once all this blows over I'll be discussing plans for the next great train trip! I guess I've been thrust into the role of organizer. I didn't realize it until the trip was practically over, can you believe it? But I'm gonna take this and run with it, and I'd like to thank everyone for playing along with it.
I'm already making plans for next year, and that includes contacting Amtrak and seeing if we can have a continuous seating system, and a private room ahead of time, as well as working out some type of system for Train Trippers to easily identify each other (the obvious solution is wearing our badges right away - if you're on the train trip and you didn't preorder, why are you there?) so that we can rapidly coordinate ourselves. Next year I'll definitely be prebooking dinners, and I'll probably bring proper raffle tickets, too - well, maybe. Making them out of an unused D&D sheet has a certain charm.
I have no idea how some fucking lurker like me, who while reading PA for six years and reading these forums for two, only registered proper for the forums a few weeks ago managed to get control of the train trip en totale is beyond me and frankly more than a bit intimidating, but I promise I won't abuse your trust and will do my damndest to ensure next year's train trip is twice as slamming. If you were missing the personal, small-con experience from this year's PAX, join the train trip - it'll kill that feeling before you even get there!
The trip was it's OWN convention! It's the only way to describe it!
Augustus on
I belong to no organized party. I am a Democrat. - Will Rogers
...as well as working out some type of system for Train Trippers to easily identify each other (the obvious solution is wearing our badges right away - if you're on the train trip and you didn't preorder, why are you there?) so that we can rapidly coordinate ourselves.
Hey, I'm the one hiding back in the sleepers on this trip. Sorry I didn't wander that way much, but I spent most of the trip trying to get through flu enough to enjoy the con.
Just wanted to say that I didn't have a pre-order badge and hopefully won't have one next year. I'm an enforcer and we don't get our stuff 'til we show up for work. Also, there is the chance for a pre-reg packet to get lost in the mail, so I wanted to put the word that not everyone planning ahead- months in advance- may have a badge to flash.
Oh, yeah, and I also want to say the train rocks even if you're down for the count. I would much rather have spent a day on the train than a few hours in the gauntlet that is air travel these days.
All I can say it that the trip was awesome. I'll be there with boyfriend in tow next year as well. I feel bad I wasn't as social as the rest of you. Kudos to George for running around make plans and ensuring the happiness of fellow trippers.
For those of us that walked to the Sheraton, Let's not do that again next year.:?
It was nice to talk to all of you and I hope to see your grinning faces next year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Vertigo on
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ViscountalphaThe pen is mightier than the swordhttp://youtu.be/G_sBOsh-vyIRegistered Userregular
edited August 2007
I am fairly happy with the West coast train trip. Far less hassle then the super trip. I would love to get a bunch of people on the same bus for the sheraton and have them all come and get us. Its not far by car really. I think I had lucked out twice on my ride from the train station (getting a free one from an awesome enforcer) and then getting a 10$ flat rate from the cabbie on the way back.
Some of the train station people were dicks to me but whatever. Oh and if you can, a roomlet is such an awesome and comfortable way to travel on the train.
Next year I am sticking with the train and the taxi services to get around. Driving was expensive when you factor in Valet, gas and cost of parking for four days. However, it was useful if I had to get somewhere outside of town...then again...a taxi would have been better. I might even fly and spare myself a few hours.
All I can say it that the trip was awesome. I'll be there with boyfriend in tow next year as well. I feel bad I wasn't as social as the rest of you. Kudos to George for running around make plans and ensuring the happiness of fellow trippers.
For those of us that walked to the Sheraton, Let's not do that again next year.:?
It was nice to talk to all of you and I hope to see your grinning faces next year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Arooo?
I thought walking to the sheraton was fine. Hell, I walked back alone yesterday.
Thank you so much to all of you who made me feel so welcome and helped me find my way around and stuff, and thanks to those of you who brought consoles and card games and made our trip not just survivable, but also totally amazing. Having DS games going non-stop all journey was just so cool.
The movie night on the train back was a thing of legend - getting a PC running with a 22" LCD in the kids room on the train was so pro
Thank you George for being a most valiant leader and getting everything worked out proper awesome, you're a hero and you deserve beer.
I made it to my hostel in SF by the way - thanks to the people who helped me find my way, and no thanks to Amtrak who wanted to charge me $77 for getting off the train early if I wanted to change my ticket, just so I could get the shuttle bus in. Ha! I defy you, Amtrak! I got a *normal* bus.
I bought a couple Sumo bags. I would be sooo tempted to bring one of those on the train, though I think the logistics of carrying it would make that impossible.
But yea, list of things to bring next year...
- Decent pillows to sit on because seating in the kiddy car sucks.
- More extension cords since having a power strip just isn't quite enough. And just as a nice to make things safe for people some a cable guard so if you need to run power across a walkway, you're not creating a death trap.
- Think I did a pretty good job on making the wireless relatively painless to setup, but I can do some better with throwing people through a proxy on my linux box, so when everyone hits the PA forum, at least there is some caching of images, etc.. I also want to make people at least do a click through to get access, so you don't have Joe business man saying, hey free wifi, I'll use it to connect to the VPN at work and download gigs of email. That'll also tell you if there is a problem with the network.
- Still doing the sleeper car this year, since that rocked. Kind of pricey, but you do get first run at the diner car, and meals are included... oh and coffee, juice, water, and muffins. The attendant we had in our car was also really cool and helped us out quite a bit. It's $200 extra, but you have 2 people in the room, and it covers the cost of the meals for each person, so you are not spending as much as it sounds. Well unless you go for one of the big rooms, but those hold more people...
The rest is just logistics. It'd be cool to see if we can get an entire car set aside for pax people so we don't have to worry about the noise levels.
Hey, this is Ollie. Long-haired guy. Fucking amazing trip guys, PAX was 5 days long this year. I made more friends than ever before, it was so awesome to be walking around the line on the first day waving to everyone you already know from the train. I'll definitely be coming next year, and we should definitely try to see if we can work out booking the whole coach car with the kiddy room, top and bottom, so we can be as loud as we want.
The fact that we had fucking INTERNET on the way up, and video games both ways, was just amazing. The only thing that could have been improved upon was the seating stuff, but that's just a given for packing that many people into a small room. Next year I'm bringing my Wii and a good pillow for those horrible benches.
I also just want to say thanks again to George. For such an impromptu leader, you did an amazing job. I have a lot of respect for you for taking as much responsibility as you did, and if there's any way I can help next year's trip please let me know.
I'm doing a bit of research and I think we can make PAX-Train 08 even more interesting than 07 was. I would strongly recommend anyone who has not signed up for Amtrak rewards program to do so and claim this trip to get the points for it. Combined with what I'm cooking up, I think everyone here could not only ride the PAX-Train at no cost, but with a sleeper car upgrade.
Now thats what I call a [Train Ride]. And next year can only be an even better [Train Ride]. PAX 07 rocked, but for those of us on the train, we got our Con on before and after everyone else did. I'm so looking forward to next year.
Quick note of mention: Someone left a cell phone charger. I picked it up and have it in my possession. If you did, say so - maybe we can work out me mailing it to you.
Cheers all around. You guys are the greatest. Everybody. (Even you. You know who you are. Yeah, you have a problem discerning lines, but you're great too. In retrospect think it was just trip fatigue, cabin fever and general crabbiness working against you.)
I'm not kidding about any of my plans or ideas. I will be contacting Amtrak in due time. If by any chance the Great and Noble Righteous Robert Khoo checks this thread, we're kicking around the idea of arranging a "PAX Car" with Amtrak. They're Amtrak, they're always looking for business. Barring that, even just "more of the same but with even more badassery" is fine by me.
Augustus on
I belong to no organized party. I am a Democrat. - Will Rogers
We got cabin feva! we got cabin feva! we got cabin feva!
Oh and I hope your head doesnt hurt too much george.
Hope you all got home ok. We dont need a down side of this trip after all.
Lots of fun, lotsa mario cart, lotsa new friends. Next year im up for a sleeper car, and if I have a next gen system by then we can have that on train at the first stop. Also would like to find someway to make a wctt shirt to wear to help identify our envoys on each stop.
I would say more but you all know how I feel. Take care all of you and see you on the next PAX train.
Lindygamer on
The opinions I don't have are the opinions I don't got.
I gotta say, thanks George for taking the initiative to get things done, if you hadn't, things wouldn't have gone so smoothely. Also, thanks to those who donated their game systems temporarily to be used by the kiddy car passengers, you guys rock. And thanks everyone on the train and at PAX, it was good times to be had by all, both on the way up and down, and I think we've changed PAX from a 3 day schedule to a 5 day one with this train. A slight bit a drinking and gamers from all over the west coast and beyond = good times.
All hail West Coast Train Trip.
-Aaron
PikeGod on
Failure is the art of mastery. Thusly, I am a master. In many, many things.
Hanging out before we got there in that room was really fun.
Anyone know if the train farting thing is on YouTube yet?
Yeah, I wasn't in the room at the time either and only heard about it later. And unfortunately the train on the way back didn't have a farting ceiling.
I just wish someone had been filming George's Mario impression... That would've been YouTube Gold.
Posts
Oh yea, and while you're there, check out my zork 404 error page http://thcnet.net/Woot_PAX!
Train Trip Photos
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
Okay, people who have not yet boarded the train..
We have taken over the downstairs of train 14.
There is currently a SNES and a wireless party.
We have a TV. we have room for another console if you dare bring it..
WE have two Power squids and another outlet at the ready..
You're thinking about bringing something..
dude..
Bring it..
BRING IT!
You're drawn to my eccentric Brawl Code: 4596 9143 4529
I'm working until 9, so I won't do many evening activities, but that does mean I can pick up a few of you at the train station and taxi you to your hotels.
Get the PAX 2008 Countdown widget and while away your sad, pathetic life watching it tick down the hours to PAX '08!
http://homepage.mac.com/ctishman
Serith: Hunter of Dunemaul
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lovenotes/sets/72157601606100392/
Serith: Hunter of Dunemaul
Oooo... the PAX Zepplin Supertrip, that would rock.
Get the PAX 2008 Countdown widget and while away your sad, pathetic life watching it tick down the hours to PAX '08!
http://homepage.mac.com/ctishman
*Ahem*
Actually... it's "smilingmadman," but I forgive you.
I look sexy in those pics. Thanks for posting 'em! And taking 'em!
(I got crash space btw in case anyone cares)
Folks, it was great - and tomorrow we ride again. Here we go! Once all this blows over I'll be discussing plans for the next great train trip! I guess I've been thrust into the role of organizer. I didn't realize it until the trip was practically over, can you believe it? But I'm gonna take this and run with it, and I'd like to thank everyone for playing along with it.
I'm already making plans for next year, and that includes contacting Amtrak and seeing if we can have a continuous seating system, and a private room ahead of time, as well as working out some type of system for Train Trippers to easily identify each other (the obvious solution is wearing our badges right away - if you're on the train trip and you didn't preorder, why are you there?) so that we can rapidly coordinate ourselves. Next year I'll definitely be prebooking dinners, and I'll probably bring proper raffle tickets, too - well, maybe. Making them out of an unused D&D sheet has a certain charm.
I have no idea how some fucking lurker like me, who while reading PA for six years and reading these forums for two, only registered proper for the forums a few weeks ago managed to get control of the train trip en totale is beyond me and frankly more than a bit intimidating, but I promise I won't abuse your trust and will do my damndest to ensure next year's train trip is twice as slamming. If you were missing the personal, small-con experience from this year's PAX, join the train trip - it'll kill that feeling before you even get there!
The trip was it's OWN convention! It's the only way to describe it!
Hey, I'm the one hiding back in the sleepers on this trip. Sorry I didn't wander that way much, but I spent most of the trip trying to get through flu enough to enjoy the con.
Just wanted to say that I didn't have a pre-order badge and hopefully won't have one next year. I'm an enforcer and we don't get our stuff 'til we show up for work. Also, there is the chance for a pre-reg packet to get lost in the mail, so I wanted to put the word that not everyone planning ahead- months in advance- may have a badge to flash.
Oh, yeah, and I also want to say the train rocks even if you're down for the count. I would much rather have spent a day on the train than a few hours in the gauntlet that is air travel these days.
For those of us that walked to the Sheraton, Let's not do that again next year.:?
It was nice to talk to all of you and I hope to see your grinning faces next year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Some of the train station people were dicks to me but whatever. Oh and if you can, a roomlet is such an awesome and comfortable way to travel on the train.
-M
Arooo?
I thought walking to the sheraton was fine. Hell, I walked back alone yesterday.
3ds friend code: 2981-6032-4118
Augustus: Drop me an AIM at docfur83 or an email at ctishman@mac.com and we'll get to work with the planning for '08.
Get the PAX 2008 Countdown widget and while away your sad, pathetic life watching it tick down the hours to PAX '08!
http://homepage.mac.com/ctishman
Thank you so much to all of you who made me feel so welcome and helped me find my way around and stuff, and thanks to those of you who brought consoles and card games and made our trip not just survivable, but also totally amazing. Having DS games going non-stop all journey was just so cool.
The movie night on the train back was a thing of legend - getting a PC running with a 22" LCD in the kids room on the train was so pro
Thank you George for being a most valiant leader and getting everything worked out proper awesome, you're a hero and you deserve beer.
I made it to my hostel in SF by the way - thanks to the people who helped me find my way, and no thanks to Amtrak who wanted to charge me $77 for getting off the train early if I wanted to change my ticket, just so I could get the shuttle bus in. Ha! I defy you, Amtrak! I got a *normal* bus.
Get the PAX 2008 Countdown widget and while away your sad, pathetic life watching it tick down the hours to PAX '08!
http://homepage.mac.com/ctishman
Less ass pillows, moar real pillows.
Also next year, I'm bringing the big'uns.
But yea, list of things to bring next year...
- Decent pillows to sit on because seating in the kiddy car sucks.
- More extension cords since having a power strip just isn't quite enough. And just as a nice to make things safe for people some a cable guard so if you need to run power across a walkway, you're not creating a death trap.
- Think I did a pretty good job on making the wireless relatively painless to setup, but I can do some better with throwing people through a proxy on my linux box, so when everyone hits the PA forum, at least there is some caching of images, etc.. I also want to make people at least do a click through to get access, so you don't have Joe business man saying, hey free wifi, I'll use it to connect to the VPN at work and download gigs of email. That'll also tell you if there is a problem with the network.
- Still doing the sleeper car this year, since that rocked. Kind of pricey, but you do get first run at the diner car, and meals are included... oh and coffee, juice, water, and muffins. The attendant we had in our car was also really cool and helped us out quite a bit. It's $200 extra, but you have 2 people in the room, and it covers the cost of the meals for each person, so you are not spending as much as it sounds. Well unless you go for one of the big rooms, but those hold more people...
The rest is just logistics. It'd be cool to see if we can get an entire car set aside for pax people so we don't have to worry about the noise levels.
Am I forgetting anything?
The fact that we had fucking INTERNET on the way up, and video games both ways, was just amazing. The only thing that could have been improved upon was the seating stuff, but that's just a given for packing that many people into a small room. Next year I'm bringing my Wii and a good pillow for those horrible benches.
I also just want to say thanks again to George. For such an impromptu leader, you did an amazing job. I have a lot of respect for you for taking as much responsibility as you did, and if there's any way I can help next year's trip please let me know.
I'll post more when I have math done.
Get the PAX 2008 Countdown widget and while away your sad, pathetic life watching it tick down the hours to PAX '08!
http://homepage.mac.com/ctishman
Cheers all around. You guys are the greatest. Everybody. (Even you. You know who you are. Yeah, you have a problem discerning lines, but you're great too. In retrospect think it was just trip fatigue, cabin fever and general crabbiness working against you.)
I'm not kidding about any of my plans or ideas. I will be contacting Amtrak in due time. If by any chance the Great and Noble Righteous Robert Khoo checks this thread, we're kicking around the idea of arranging a "PAX Car" with Amtrak. They're Amtrak, they're always looking for business. Barring that, even just "more of the same but with even more badassery" is fine by me.
Oh and I hope your head doesnt hurt too much george.
Hope you all got home ok. We dont need a down side of this trip after all.
Lots of fun, lotsa mario cart, lotsa new friends. Next year im up for a sleeper car, and if I have a next gen system by then we can have that on train at the first stop. Also would like to find someway to make a wctt shirt to wear to help identify our envoys on each stop.
I would say more but you all know how I feel. Take care all of you and see you on the next PAX train.
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
All hail West Coast Train Trip.
-Aaron
Getting to the con, late, on pre-pax day.
Hanging out before we got there in that room was really fun.
Anyone know if the train farting thing is on YouTube yet?
I exclaimed "Khoo is my Sensei!"
So if memes make great shirts,
And Pod Six is Jerks,
Then Moe, Khoo and I had our day.
I missed karaoke man.
Karaoke
Yeah, I wasn't in the room at the time either and only heard about it later. And unfortunately the train on the way back didn't have a farting ceiling.
I just wish someone had been filming George's Mario impression... That would've been YouTube Gold.