I'm going to my first-ever science fiction convention this weekend as a travel south to Baltimore for Balticon 42. It seems strange that I could be as into scifi as I am, particularly books and novels, and never gone to a convention, but its never really been my scene. Generally speaking, if I'm going to spend $50 to go to a con, I'd rather spend that time playing games than wandering from seminar to semainar.

So what's different about Balticon? Friends. A hell of a lot of my online friends are going to be at the convention, and I'm hoping to hang out with them and engage in actual, real time conversations with people I've known for years.

Crazy, isn't it?

Of course, it won't be all jabbering, all the time, so I've browsed the Balticon schedule [PDF] and noted the stuff I'm particularly interested in. I can't say I'll definitely be at all these things, but there's a pretty good chance I will be. The only one I'm hellbent on attending is Mur Lafferty and Jason Adam's live recording of the Geek Fu Morning Show - After Dark. I've been listening to Mur since the beginning of the podcast era, and I can't miss a chance to see Geek Fu live.