In which I fail to sign up for a kaffeeklatsch

[carbonel]

So I asked Sharon Sbarsky where I could sign up for a kaffeeklatsch, and she said up in 515c. So I went up to 515c, and asked about it. A woman (Person A) said that signup would start at noon, and that once it started it would be for the entire convention, not just 24 hours in advance. A man (Person B) remonstrated with her, saying that he understood that no, it was only supposed to be 24 hours in advance. While this was going on, a man (Person C) started taping signup sheets for the next 24 hours to the table where I was. When A and B said they'd been told it was supposed to happen downstairs, C said he'd been told to do it here, and pointed to some vague person at the back of the room. A said that she was planning on having a signup book, that people could leaf through to make their selections. I pointed out that this would create quite a bottleneck if only one person at a time could sign up, and there were a large number of slots available.

A & B's response to this was "Well, this is a volunteer-run convention, and we're inventing this as we go." I said, as non-acerbically as I could possibly manage (which wasn't very) that yes, Worldcon was volunteer-run, but this wasn't the first Worldcon to have kaffeeklatsches, and there was a tradition for the procedures to run them.

As I left, A, B, and C were still arguing over where the signup sheets for Friday's kaffeeklatsches should go, and I never did find out if the signups for the subsequent days would be available earlier, or only the day before.

I'd like to have gone to John Scalzi's kaffeeklatsch, but it seems unlikely that I'll manage to be in the right place (wherever that is) at the right time (whenever that is).

Comments

[lil-shepherd.livejournal.com]

Cripes!

[yarram.livejournal.com]

I was also originally told 515c. Later, after failing to get accessibility information from Handicapping Services, I noted that Kaffeeklatsch signup sheets appeared to be next to the Program Attendee sign-in area. I haven't decided yet whether to sign up, but I should soon, or else that decision will be made for me...

[txanne.livejournal.com]

What you said, except when I asked about signup sheets, the people in 515c started explaining all about the lottery system. I said, "Oh, we can list favorites?" OH NOES, they assumed I meant Neil Gaiman. Sheesh. Also they had no idea where the sheets would be, so I went and did other stuff.

[cakmpls.livejournal.com]

They're inventing as they go?

The mind boggles.

[fmsv.livejournal.com]

I'm always amused by how worldcons manage to reinvent the square wheel.