ECCC 2015 was a first for many reasons. But no, I've been attending the convention since 2008. It was the first convention of the year for me, it was the first convention since the birth of my son, and his first time attending a convention. It was also the first time to go to a convention without any press credentials. ECCC was tightening their distribution of press passes for the last few years, due to growing popularity and that some so called internet zines or other websites have abused their privileges to gain access to interviews and places to get photos. Also the fact that the website I worked for, anipike, had an increasingly shrinking viewership. Each year I was turned down (since 2011) for a pass, until I decided it was futile. All of these points were moot as anipike shut down in 2014, so now I got to a regular badge like everyone else. I got a badge for Friday and Saturday.

This gives me little incentive to cover events at conventions, but again this first convention was a challenge for me anyway. Having being a new dad, and juggling my day job and my "night" job (taking care of my son) was already tiring me out. I approached the new convention with enthusiasm, but even after food and extra sugar I found myself running out of energy at one of now favorite conventions I look forward to each year. The first day of convention I was originally looking forward to it as there were several media guests I hope to catch them at their panels. Unfortunately the three I wanted to see: Karen Allen, LeVar Burton and Marina Sirtis, all cancelled right before the convention. I was let down as I bought a Friday ticket mostly for those guests. I was left with little to do except walk the con grounds, mainly in the artist alley and exhibtion hall, and take some cosplay photos here and there. Again my loss of energy unmotivated to take many cosplayers doing their thing. I attended a Doctor Who panel which talked about the latest news, the upcoming Anglicon and they had all the cosplayers come up and show off their costumes. That was pretty fun and I definitely felt at home with all of the other DW fans. Other things I spotted were a delight, such as arcade machines to play in one area of the the center, an area for a beer garden which was a new thing at ECCC this year. I also saw the official ball pit, an inside joke and stab at a failed convention that took place earlier in the U.S. the previous year. Another event I attended was a Doctor Who open discussion panel. This turned out to be a mistake due to my shyness around people: I'm a bit introverted and only interact well with certain people--I can just tell. I didn't feel too comfortable so I left halfway through. Not bad for a Friday, but could have been better.

Saturday I brought my wife and 5 month old son to his first convention. He was also wearing his first cosplay ever in his short time being around. We know parking would be difficult downtown so we opted to park at Seattle Center then take the monorail to the convention center. We go to the convention right before 1 pm and met up with a friend and my sister. I took some photos, and then got photos taken of us and our friends, hung out, then checked out the rest of the convention. I didn't want to abandon my wife and son to go to panels so I stuck around, sacrificing some opportunities to see some guests. This was fine in the end, although I barely took any cosplay photos again due to lack of motivation and energy.

As for what the convention offered for families was a big plus for the first time. They had a family room so mothers could nurse their babies, change diapers and basically relax and get away from all of the mayhem. We were glad they had these and utilized them that day.We didn't interact with staff very much, but I saw a minor incident regarding the attendee flow to the escalator. There were so many people heading there, a line was formed and controlled by the staff from the esalator, wrapping around to the edge of the hallway. Some people didn't notice the line and one man was stopped and accused of cutting in which he denied. Apparently there were several complaints about ECCC staff or "minions" as the were called who were accused of rude behavior and lack of people skills. Here was one of them, which is why I try to avoid any run-ins with staff at any convention because I have seen these poorly trained staff before at other conventions. They know what to do but forget to be polite.

After resting we looked around some more, ate snacks and then returned to the room where the other 3 stayed until the con closed. I had a few minutes left to buy some great movie based artwork that would look great on the wall of the den room at home. We decided to head out and take my sister home, but not before having some chinese food to top it off.

So that was pretty much it for ECCC. Unfortunately some missed opportunities, but when you have a baby with you to take care you have to make adjustments. Heading from home and back makes it much more difficult to get to con each time. We learned from later cons in 2015 what to do now and that may involve getting a hotel room for next year. I think that way we can enjoy the convention more that way. And we can come up with a balance between seeing what we want to see and having time for family as well. What I did see at ECCC I enjoyed, that's for sure.