Let me put tournament-playing to the side. What was it like being at Pinball At The Zoo and seeing so many people for the first time in two-plus years? And it was sort of like the feeling when you get to your first furry con of the season: weird and normal, with that mix of recognizing faces you haven't seen in forever with that feeling that of course you would see them then. This was the first time a lot of these folks had seen me with long hair. Seemed to impress folks and I promised it's even better on a roller coaster, although since I still have not got a decent ride photo of my hair doing something wild that's an unproven claim. We exchanged a lot of expressions of gratitude that we've made it through so far, and that we're happy to be out and about again. And hope that we'll be able to do more; I have a fear we're about to hit another wave and have to shelter in that awkward state of being the only grownups in the room. There were some people wearing masks at the convention, not enough people but people I feel a new love for. The space might not have been absurdly risky as it was in a large hall, with loading doors open on several sides of the place. And it was not packed; even if you weren't trying you could have ten feet between you and the next-nearest person, except of course at the pinball tables. I know this is all in accord with the current health guidelines but, you know, if we waited until we got new infections down to zero to stop trying to control Covid-19 we could actually control Covid-19. On the other hand, nobody confronted us about our choice to decline a free Covid-19 infection. If they were saying anything about us it was where I didn't hear it. (I grant I'm oblivious enough a person I might not have noticed if they had said it.) All that anyone said to my face, what they could see of it, was how they hoped I was doing well. I skipped telling anyone about my work woes, CST surprised us by not appearing, and we don't have any explanation for that. Someone we did see was his former business partner and, we thought, best(?) friend TG. TG told us that the partnership of routing a couple games had dissolved with CST abruptly texting that TG betrayed him and his lawyer could arrange for collecting his property. TG said he had no idea what this was about and CST wasn't forthcoming, even after he might have had time to calm down from whatever the issue was. I have no further gossip regarding this. In happier news, TG has opened a Playable Pinball Museum in Battle Creek, just weekends for now, but somewhere we might go spend a Sunday afternoon hanging out trying to figure how to play Eight Ball Deluxe, Sky Kings (one of the daily tournament games at PatZ), or Hoops. And, as he's retired and doesn't have to fear an overly-intrusive supervisor, he could get back to playing our local pinball league; we hope he will. Also absent, and for awful reasons: JRA and his father DAD. JRA's brother was dying, and would die on Saturday. We wouldn't learn that until after everything was well over. For all that I saw people, I didn't get to talk much with them. Most of the folks I know were busy competing, and were hovering around tables figuring out where to go next and when their turn might be up. Or, sometimes, trying to glean information like whether there's any way to make the ramp shot on Space Shuttle. (There is, but it's a hard one.) And I realized afterward one person I expected to see there and not competing I missed: Vix had said at Motor City Furry Con he'd be at Pinball At The Zoo. We agreed we'd try to meet up, and then we failed to do so. Hrm. Some more photographs from after Closing Ceremonies at Motor City Furry Con. Finally got a good picture of Vix! But there is always something sad in the groups gathering around after the end of the convention. Don't be sad that it's over, be angry that it's like a year before this all starts up again, if all goes well. Trivia: Apollo 16's Lunar Module Ascent Stage remained in orbit of the moon for approximately one year. Source: Apollo By The Numbers: A Statistical Reference, Richard W Orloff. NASA SP-4029. Currently Reading: The Complete Peanuts, 1977 - 78 , Charles M Schulz. Editor Gary Groth. Oh, hey, also. Want to know What's Going On In Gil Thorp? What is Scooter's deal? Here's your plot recap for February - April 2022 all set for the reading.