Days of Yore

Previous: Orycon 29 | Picofarad #12 contents | Next: Social Calendar

10 Years Ago

Corflu, the fanzine convention, made its first trip across the Atlantic, landing in Leeds March 13-16, 1998. Several fanzine writers wrote records of attending, but could say very little about the actual con programming and awards, having missed most of it due to hotel problems, being drunk, trying to find somewhere to eat that wasn't full of cigarette smoke, being miffed at the concom's way of running (or not running) things, being hungover, etc.

Ansible was apparently the only one to make it all the way: "the banquet, in a restaurant into which the entire con almost fitted, seemed OK despite alarmingly ichorous paté ('It wasn't killed, just frightened to death on the plate') and house wines whose quality faithfully echoed the hotel beer. I failed to hear rich brown's presentation of Corflu 1999 in Panama City; apparently fandom was nearly plunged into war by a false announcement of the date as March rather than 'late April/early May'."

100 Years Ago

Research for At the Mountains of Madness began in earnest with the first ascent of Mt. Erebus. Five members of the Shackleton expedition climbed to the crater rim to observe the "vast abyss" and its steam explosions.

1000 Years Ago

The Fatimids, Egypt's dynasty of the time, dispatched the trader Domiyat to China, where he established diplomatic relations with Zhenzong, the current Song emperor, and joined an imperial pilgrimage to Shandong.

Previous: Orycon 29 | Picofarad #12 contents | Next: Social Calendar


Picofarad home