It was a lovely convention—and everybody was very nice to me: they had a kind of special do for me as GOH and people said very nice things and Michael Whelan sent me a very special gift. Wiishu was ‘Doll Guest of Honor’ and Jane and Nina had a good time.
Unfortunately I’d sprained my knee out whacking weeds beforehand, and was walking with a cane, in a very long, strungout hotel…and it just got worse and worse, until on Saturday, I caught my foot on a microscopic rise of carpet between the tile bathroom and the outside, and sprained my sprained knee—again. Only worse. A doc at the convention advised me how much Advil I could safely take, and I did. And to put the compression wrap on spiraling up from the ankle, which also helped.

The Advil meant I was a little less than focussed. When I got home from the con on Sunday night, I went to bed, with the leg propped, and I’ve been mostly sleeping, on high doses of Advil, for 48 hours, leg elevated, which has done a number on my lower back, but it is getting better.

Anyway, I’m still a little groggy, but sitting up. I’ll tell you, after 3 days where every step hurt like hell, I am now walking without the cane, with occasional twinges. And I am sitting up again, in my regular working chair, which is a recliner with a footrest, thank goodness.

I have now done a thorough scout-out of the Shejicon hotel, and I can definitively say the hotel offers a very nice breakfast/buffet—but advise the waitress if you are allergic to onions (they will have the omelet cook use a different pan)—and do not expect the chef at Spencers (the hotel lunch/dinner restaurant) to have ANYTHING without onions, garlic, leeks, or shallots…the chef manages to put onion couli onto no-onion dishes, and is devout in his desire to have onions in every dish. If you like onion, you will be perfectly safe. But it’s a pricey restaurant. Azteca, the Mexican restaurant across the street, is less oniony than Spencers. And there is Chili’s, the chain, across the street (I made it once, Saturday night—I was getting desperate for food and had people to help me!—) Chili’s has one really excellent dish so far as I’m concerned: the baby back ribs—it never fails, they never screw it up, and half a rack is not a bad supper, for me. Their restaurant seating is bad and noisy and they make you wait. We almost never wait at a Chili’s, because we just ask if there’s seats in the bar, which is self-seating, and we get a nice comfy place with no waiting at all. This works at very many places that have bars. The bar is more comfortable because they want you to stay and drink and drink; the restaurant chairs are crap because they want you to eat and move on so they can seat another party. Rule of thumb at many establishments.