Welcome Back!
ACOG hits full gear on Saturday -- let's look at some of the things going on this morning and afternoon!
Art Show
Come chat with your favorite Arisia artists and see their latest projects! Over the course of Saturday and Sunday, ACOG will be hosting Google Meet sessions with a number of the Arisia '22 Artists. Come join in -- all are welcome, and it's a great chance to talk with a bunch of talented folks!
There are two sessions happening today (Saturday), one from 2-3:30pm and one from 6-7:30pm. Note that Google Meet can run in most browsers, so you shouldn't need to install additional software if you don't already have it.
Taskmaster
Have you ever wanted to race around your house finding an assortment of objects and arranging them just so? Would you like to write a haiku on a particular theme? Do you feel like you have a grand talent for sketching a cityscape during a giant octopus invasion? If so, come join us over in #taskmaster-tasks!
This is an ongoing game throughout the weekend where your TaskMaster will post a challenge, project, or task and wait until there are five to eight submissions. Instructions for how to play and where to submit are pinned in the channel! Submissions will then be posted in the channel and everyone has a chance to vote! Winners will get to add a trophy to their badge name and there will be a winners-only All Stars task round as well. Come join!
Do You Want to Play a Game?
There are lots of online platforms for playing games online -- Board Game Arena, Tabletop Simulator, and many others. Sometimes the only tricky bit is finding people to play with.
For this, we have the channel #looking-for-players (under "Gaming"). If there is something you'd like to play, head over there and make a suggestion! (Or keep an eye open there to see what games other folks are starting up.) One advantage of the online environment is that there are as many tables to play on as folks want, so don't be shy about getting a game together.
There is also another session of Among Us this afternoon, from 2-3pm. Come play this lively social deduction game with us!
And don't forget, our Minecraft server is open until 11pm tonight -- see #minecraft-chat for the details!
Vendors
Arisia has always had a wonderful array of creative vendors selling a wide array of wares; we might not have a physical Dealer's Room this time around, but there is still lots of great stuff to check out. See the #vendors-promo channel for some of your options, and the #vendors channel to chat with them and learn more. And for a more complete list, check out the full A'22 Dealers listing.
Around the ConGathering
Members of the Arisia Community have lots of fun things going on throughout the weekend! Some activities to consider today include the following.
Dramatic Improbable Readings
A long-time Arisia feature is readings from the annual Ig Nobel Prizes:
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor achievements that make people LAUGH, then THINK. The prizes are intended to celebrate the unusual, honor the imaginative — and spur people’s interest in science, medicine, and technology.
Sadly, we can't have live readings this year. But to ensure that nobody misses out, they have been prerecorded, and are now available on YouTube! As always, they are funny and thought-provoking, so if you have an hour, check them out!
Filking
Hobbit is putting together a space specifically for filking this weekend, so folks can get together and share some music! He is experimenting with both Zoom and Discord for this; he says,
Here is an intro page describing how to operate a server in a way that supports this. Please give it a read with an open mind, and feel free to experiment. (I'm also working on lining up some Zoom capacity if needed.)
As of this writing on Saturday morning, he's taking a poll in the #music channel (being set up as this is being written) -- check it out, provide your opinion, and enjoy some music with us! We're trying to get a first filking session together around 3pm.
Star Wars Origami
Today at 1pm, there will be a session of Kid-led Star Wars Origami! (See the #external-activities-board channel around 1pm for the link.) We'll make some paper Star Wars creations from the Yoda Origami series. Have some paper, scissors, pen/pencil, and tape handy.
Contributing to Arisia
You can help Arisia, and celebrate the community, by ordering an A'22 Mask! These stylish masks were commissioned by the convention before we were forced to cancel -- they're comfortable, have adjustable loops and a filter pocket, and are only $8. For more details, see the Mask Sales Page.
More generally -- while we're doing everything possible to cut costs, Arisia is out-of-pocket quite a bit due to the cancelled convention. If you would be interested in donating to Arisia Inc, to help defray expenses, please check out the Donations Page. Note that Arisia Inc is a registered 501(c)3 corporation, and donations may be tax-deductible.
Okay, seriously -- why "The Erisian"?
Eris was the Greek goddess of Discord. Plus, "E-risia" was fitting for this electronic fill-in for the usual Arisia. (Thanks to Mike S. for the suggestion!)
More to Come
There's a lot more going on this evening, so keep an eye out for our next edition, coming late this afternoon!