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First and foremost I must say that it was a fantastic Con! It was very well organized and planned out (even if the process was apparently quite painful at times), and it all came together beautifully in the end. For that, all my thanks.

It was great to see so many familiar faces from last year's Con: Karen and Mr. Karen, Weetabix, Mo Pie, Chauffi, and Amanda. It was wonderful to have the opportunity to meet new people like Dreama, Pineapple Girl, Ladee Leroy, Rob, Ava, Mare, TranceJen, Beth, Shawn, Timbrat, Molly, Angeline, and Elizabeth. I saw Kymm only in two second increments, so I never got a chance to say "hello," and I really regret that. I really wish I'd just gone and given her a big hug and told her I was thinking about her, but I didn't, and I'm sorry about that. I also never got to meet to Erin, Eliza, Sundry, or AnnaBeth, but I saw them, and considering how many journallers were coming and going, and how much stuff there was to do, I'd say I did pretty darn good. Despite my best intentions, however, I wound up with Shy Girl Syndrome again, and only had the guts to go up to someone I didn't know and talk to them after I'd had a couple of drinks. I've probably forgotten to mention someone I met or spoke to or was introduced to, and for that, I'm very sorry. It's not a reflection on you, I promise! It's just that there was so much going on, I'm sure I missed seventy per cent of it anyway simply by blinking too often. But it was wonderful meeting you! Maybe we can chat next year?

I'm sure other attendees will write about the panels as well, so I will be brief. I went to the "Niches and Hoes: Specialty Websites," "Freelance Writing," and "For Better or Worse: How the Web Changed My Life" panels. They were all very well presented and informative. If I had one negative thing to say it was that the acoustics in the conference rooms were very poor, and even sitting in the second row, I had trouble hearing the panelists speak. This is the hotel's problem, not the panelists or moderators, however. Other than that, it was all good.

The "Niches and Hoes" was quite interesting because so many of these subject-specific journals and blogs have been popping up lately. There's people who write about their weight-loss struggles, people who write about sex, people who write about gardening, knitting, cooking . . . the list could go on forever. I particularly enjoyed listening to Erin and LisaNH, since they discussed two of my interests: fitness and gardening. All the panelists had interesting stories and good information to share.

The second panel I attended was "Freelance Writing." There was a great deal of good information here as well, but it came off as a bit of a downer. At least for me. It's not a reflection on the panelists, but on the very nature of the beast. Bottom line is, trying to break into the freelancing market is pretty tough, and getting enough freelancing gigs to support yourself is even tougher. I guess the moral of the story is, 'if you want to be a freelance writer, just start putting your stuff out there, but you'd better thicken up your skin, because the world can be a nasty place. Oh, and you'd best not quit your day job just yet.' It was a little depressing for me because I had been seriously considering doing some freelance writing work. I thought it would be an easy way to make some extra money, and maybe even become a full-time gig. The panelists were very honest about how hard it really is, and I really appreciated that. Basically, I could throw my hat into the freelancing ring, but I just shouldn't expect much to come from it.

The last panel I attended was "For Better or Worse," where journallers recounted tales of woe from being fired from jobs to losing friends to becoming estranged from family members, all because of their on-line journal. It was a shot of reality for someone like myself who often forgets there are other people reading this. The lesson to be learned: 'if you have a website, no matter how careful you are, even if you change your name, you will, eventually, be found.' It wasn't all doom and gloom however, as one journaller who lost her job had hated it anyway, and another actually got a great job because of her on-line writing. I guess the thing to take away from this panel is if you've got a website, it's safe to assume that someone you know will one day find it. So, as they used to say on "Hill Street Blues," Be careful out there!

Saturday afternoon I participated in the Web Writers Workshop. It was really great! There was just a small group of us – about seven people, I'd say – and we talked, critiqued, and suggested our way into better journal writing! Several weeks ago, we'd all sent rough journal entries to Mary, who ran the workshop, and she in turn sent us copies of everyone's entries. No one but Mary knew who'd written which entry, but it didn't take long for us to speak up when our work was being discussed. Everyone had great ideas and suggestions, and no one was shy about presenting their critiques to or sharing their opinions with the rest of us. This was the first time the Web Writers Workshop was included in the weekend, and I thought it was a great idea. I'd love to see more of this sort of thing at future Cons. The panels and journal readings are great and all, but really, for me personally, improving my writing skills is a major priority. Since I rarely get much feedback on this site, having my work read and critiqued by other journallers gave me a wonderful opportunity to learn what I need to work on to improve my journal entries. I learned a great deal in the two hours we were together, and hope that I will be able to put some of the suggestions - not only for my own entry, but for the others as well - to good use in future Self-Portrait entries.

There was more, so much more that went on over the weekend, but you'll have to go elsewhere to read about it, because there was a lot I didn't do. I didn't go out for Drunken Debauchery on Friday night, nor did I go to Karaoke or to The Show on Saturday - both of which I've heard were fantastic. I didn't manage to get any sightseeing in, I missed the Andy Warhol exhibit at the Museum, and never saw any bats, but am I at all disappointed? Hell no! I got to hang out with friends, and strangers who quickly became friends. There was a whirlpool tub in my room that I got to soak in every night before going to bed. I got to indulge a certain "vice" all weekend, and now I don't even miss it. I got my ass kicked playing foosball with Chauffi, and laughed harder and longer than I have in a very long time. It was an incredible weekend. It's so hard to put into words. But, I guess that's a good thing, because as the saying goes: "What happens at JournalCon, stays at JournalCon. At least until everyone updates!"

Cheers!