An Event Apart: Boston 2007 belated wrapup
I really wish I could've been more timely with this update, but I managed to get ridiculously sick on my trip back home and have been basically incapacitated. However, it's entirely worth it. This was my first AEA and it surpassed my expectations. I cannot express just how enjoyable of an experience this was.
On day 1, I forced myself to awake at 3am pacific time, which wasn't easy at all. My excitement kept me alert anyway, and I prepared myself to venture downstairs to get registered and have some complimentary breakfast. Oh how a fool I was. There were no lines to contend with for registration, and even if there was, it only took 30 seconds tops. The first presentation didn't begin until 9am eastern either so I had a good amount of time to kill. I ate breakfast slowly and tried to hunt down Greg and Brian but was initially unsuccessful. By chance, I had my laptop open and Brian IM'd me notifying of his and Greg's location. I headed back and soon enough got to meet the majority of the Happy Cog crew + friends. Brian and I were henceforth knows as 'the Brians'. I think the first guy I met was Jason and he initially complimented me on my Mastodon shirt. This was already going well. Shortly after, Rob complimented my shirt similarly. Fantastic. I'll have to wear this shirt at every conference.
The presentations that followed were great. I found each one informative and inspirational. While I've been slowly working on putting up more of an actual design for this site rather than the quick and dirty form it's in, the things I absorbed from the presentations definitely gave me a lot more ideas. The lunch break wasn't quite so eventful. The food was pretty decent, but the 'cafeteria' was loud and noisy. I wasn't so much a fan of the environment so I ate quickly and hung out in my room until the next half of the day.
After the final presentations, everyone quickly rushed off to make it to the hosted post-party. Food and an open bar were promised, but the food turned out to be mostly little snacks. We hung out for a little while, then decided to hit up some real food. At this point, I was introduced to the Flap n' Snap. I haven't laughed so hard in so long. The meal was decent, but the good times were better. Our noble party returned to the hotel for a final drink before calling it a night.
I woke up a little later on day 2, still tired but still pumped. The presentations continued to please but at lunch time the decision was made to skip the free, noisy lunch and just hit the food court in the mall attached to our hotel. The second half of the day began with a rousing Mario Kart tournament. I didn't participate, but I got a kick out of the mass of designers huddled around on their DS-Lites. That evening proved to me more fun as a handful of the attendees met up at a nearby restaurant for a final farewell of sorts along with another string of Flap n' Snaps.
The following morning, I got myself a more reasonably priced taxi but ended up with an absurdly long trip back home. I got progressively more and more sick as the day went on but it was bearable. However, by the time I reached home I felt like hell and it only got worse. Sad, but still worth it.
Some more photos of the event can be found here