robotech_master

I love the "exanimate" mood marker. It sends people scurrying for dictionaries to figure out, "Just what the heck kind of mood is exanimate?" And when you drag yourself back home from a long afternoon of biking around in the hot, hot sun, it just seems so applicable.

After work, I bussed down part of the way and biked the rest of the way to the Army Surplus store way way out west of town. I figured that if I wanted a good, sturdy, big backpack for cheap, I would find what I needed there. The back-to-school backpacks offered in Kmart would be too small and shoddy, and the camping backpacks there would be too big and expensive. For what I needed, only something milspec would do.

And they had just what I needed. A big ol' olive-drab cotton canvas knapsack, with backpack shoulder straps that could snap together into a single over-the-shoulder strap, sized to fit plenty of snack food and convention swag, priced at only $18. A polyester belt pouch at $13 was probably less of a bargain, but it had lots of pockets for miscellaneous little gee-gaws (camera, microcassette recorder, dice, etc.) and the main pocket was just the right size to conceal a 20oz water or pop bottle, meaning that I can stay constantly hydrated throughout my con-going experience.

But that wasn't all I found: I also came across a Coca-Cola reusable 35mm fixed-focus-with-flash camera for $6, pre-loaded with film. Given that disposable cameras are about that much for a single use, it was a bargain, albeit a slightly kitschy one. I just need to pick up a few rolls of cheap film for it ere the trip. I also grabbed a pack of travel trash bags for 59 cents, and a little travel first-aid kit in a plastic case for $6. You never know when you might need it at a con, after all. Then I happened across where they were selling Clif and Luna bars, 6-for-$1, marked down from 63 cents each. They only had one flavor of each, but beggars can't be choosers and that's an insanely good price for geek solid-rocket fuel. I grabbed $4 worth (3 of Clif, 1 of Luna).

And finally, there was a USS Theodore Roosevelt CVN-71 baseball cap that I just had to have, for the sheer obscure Robotech fandom in-joke value of it. I wonder just how many people will "get" it?

I was tempted by a few other gimmicks, like the LED flashlights, but I thought better of it; I can get them cheaper from SciPlus when/if I have the disposable income to place an order. I packed it on up, then rode my bike to the nearest bus stop where I waited half an hour to catch the last evening bus to take me most of the way home. (On reflection, I probably would have been here sooner if I'd just biked all the way, but I was overheating enough already.) Then I headed home, turned on the air conditioning and electric fans, shucked out of sweaty clothing, and grabbed a Powerade for some cool-down refreshment.

Whew. What a day. But at least all my running about prepping is by and large complete. Now it just remains to pack and stuff, and wait for the busy day.