All of which leads me to an observation. What makes cons different from any other kind of, well, conventional convention: hardware expos or the auto show or motivational speakers? At those shows the goal is that all the attendees have pretty much the same experience. If you go you'll see pretty much the same stuff in more or less the same order, your tote bag will be stuffed with pretty much the same stupid promotional tchotchkes, and you'll come away with more or less the same impressions as everyone else attending. But fen are so idiosyncratic that even when 200-odd of us gather at the same place at the same time for the same purpose, as we all did at the Cabot Lodge-Millsaps in Jackson, Mississippi on June 6-8, every one of us takes away a unique set of memories.

Before I share a couple more of my unique memories of DSC, let me tell you what I didn't see. I didn't see much of the programming which is typical for me because I don't go to cons for the programming. I didn't see the masquerade. I forget why. I think I was busy enjoying myself watching Con*Tour magazine's gothgirl photo shoot. I didn't go to the Southern Fandom Confederation's annual business meeting, although I heard one of the highlights: a friend of mine nominated her husband for Secretary and got his name wrong.

The lovely young violinist disrobing towards the end of CCC's bid party encapsulates one of the best aspects of fandom. The reaction of the dozen or so variously intoxicated folks in the room at the time was pretty much "oh how nice -- now as I was saying..." We all enjoyed her charms and appreciated the humorous incongruity of the situation but it hardly disrupted the room. What happens in mundania when a girl gets naked in a hotel room full of men and liquor?

Some of us also got to examine the tattoos on the energetic young woman who you may've seen sitting behind the Electrical Eggs table. The point was not just to admire her Egyptian bodyart and explore how the deities invoked had ameliorated her joint problems, but we had a great discussion about providing physical aid to disabled folks and how that can create confusion about the depth of friendship or intimacy that creates between helper and helped. Once again, here's the best fandom has to offer: a discussion combining the intellectual, the spiritual, and the philosophical with shapely thighs.

Southern cons have a reputation of being more of the relaxicon variety, but DeepSouthCon 35 proved that doesn't mean somnolent. As a resident of Mississippi (major cities: Memphis and New Orleans) I had my doubts when Jackson's bid was successful two years ago but Tom Feller and his con committee gave us the best possible combination of gentility and lighthearted debauchery that the South has to offer.

A slightly different version of this conreport appears in Con*Tour magazine including much more interesting photos than these. I recommend it highly. For information about Con*Tour email fangirl@negia.net