Alternative Pants A Trip Report by Randy Byers Photos Jim de Liscard: front cover Randy: 2, 5, 17, 20 BrisChri (flickr.com/photos/brischri/): 4 Graham Charnock: 8 Rob Jackson: 10, 12, 13 Mike Meara: 14 Geri Sullivan: 21, 22, 23, 25, back cover A (Press) Production August 2011 Randy Byers, 1013 N 36th St, Seattle WA 98103, USA [email protected] Designed by Carl Juarez Plan B n 2010 life got in the way of my two favorite con- should take Tobes too — and probably a film crew.” iventions. I couldn’t make it to the Corflu in Win- And so an itinerary began to take shape. When chester, England because of a family trip that same I threw the idea out on LiveJournal, Geri Sullivan month. I also decided to skip the Worldcon in Austra- chimed in that she had been invited to be Fan Guest lia because Sharee had gotten engaged to somebody of Honor at a brand new convention in Toronto called else, and I wasn’t ready to face that music yet. This SFContario that was going to be held the weekend double denial was frustrating! When I learned about after Novacon. As part of her FGOHship, she could Sharee’s wedding plans in February, I was working give me a free membership to the convention, and I with Mark Plummer and Claire Brialey on Slow Train was welcome to share her free room as well. I could to Immortality, an anthology of British fan-writing fly from Britain to Boston, where she’d pick me up, that was to be distributed at Corflu Cobalt, so eventu- and we could drive to Toronto together again. The last ally they were the ones I e-mailed when it occurred time we’d done a roadtrip to Toronto together, for the to me that maybe this would be a good year to go to Toronto Corflu in 2006, we ended up agreeing to co- Novacon, which was something I’ve always wanted to edit the next issue of Science-Fiction Five-Yearly. Who do. Part of the appeal was that their fellow Croydon- knew what another trip might bring? fan, Jim de Liscard, had indicated that he’d be up for In the final days of preparing for the trip, my an expedition in search of fine beer in Belgium were I old friend Ron Drummond suggested that since Geri to come over for a visit. and I would be taking I-90 to Toronto, we might stop Mark replied via e-mail: “Much as we’d love to to visit him in Troy, New York along the way. Geri see you in Australia, there’s something cosmic going agreed to this plan, and my wandering, overly-busy on driving you down this path, I feel. I mean they itinerary was finally set: Croydon, Brussels, Antwerp, don’t coincide precisely, but your email was sent just Nottingham, back to Croydon, Boston, Troy, Toronto, before — and seen by us just after — we were talking and then a brief stop back in Seattle before heading to in the pub about getting you to come to Novacon, in Central Oregon for a family Thanksgiving. the wake of your email about coming to the UK some So on November 6th I flew from Seattle to time and setting off on a Belgian beer odyssey with Heathrow, where I was met by Claire and Mark, who Jim. The general consensus was that if you do this you were holding a sign that said, ever taste of Welsh rarebit2 — or melted cheese on toast, as it turned out. I only knew about it from read- ing Winsor McCay’s Dream of the Rarebit Fiend comic strips, but if the rarebit gave me any strange dreams, I didn’t notice, because I slept like the dead — or the dead jet-lagged — that night. But before that was the pubmeet at the Claret, where I met three people I hadn’t met before: Kay Hancox, Robert Cogger, and somebody whose name I didn’t catch, maybe it was Paul. Next day I learned that it was actually Dop, a.k.a. Antony Shepherd, who I asked if this made me a relative of A.S. Byatt, is somebody whom I’ve been aware of online for a and they seemed to think so. We set out on the epic number of years, and who looked absolutely nothing bus journey from Heathrow to Croydon, gabbing like his animated LiveJournal icon. Also in attendance along the way about everything under the sun — in- were Liam Proven and Noel Collyer, both of whom cluding even James Bacon. Claire was of the opinion I’d met before on my 2003 TAFF trip and 2005 trip to that James uses too many commas in his writing, and the Glasgow Worldcon. Kay had brought a delicious this led us to the idea of the comma-ellipsis, which whisky & ginger cake in honor of the international would be used to elide smoffish secrets while winking visitor, but I was beginning to fade at that point, so knowingly at the same time. I also mentioned that I’m not sure I earned my two slices. I sat at the table after I’d been dropped off at the airport in Seattle and with these long-time friends with their past relation- checked my bag, I discovered that the fly on my pants ships and well-established attitudes toward each other, was broken, so I’d flown all the way to London via with their stories of ancient Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Iceland with the barn door wide open. Claire hoped I Galaxy events where they’d all first met as teenag- had brought alternative pants, which I thought sound- ers — or at least where they’d all met Claire when ed like a fanzine title. Mark thought it sounded like a she was a teenager — and I felt both deeply a part of band name.1* But indeed I did have alternative pants. it and deeply alien. The jet lag struck, fueled by many A Plan B trip requires Plan B clothing. So when we got pints of ale, and I was suddenly on another planet, far to their house on Shirley Road, I changed pants before from home. Which was a damned fine place to be, all we headed to the pub. things considered. It’s traditionally fannish, even. This was something I’d been looking forward to ever since I started planning the trip. The Fishlifters frequently mention in their e-mails to me that they are going down to (or coming back from) the weekly pubmeet with various Croydon fen. It always sounds like such fun that I want to join in. Now was my chance, although we started out not at the pubmeet at the Claret but at another local favorite of theirs, the Cricketer. We were met there by Jim de Liscard and his partner, Meike. Jim was wearing a ‘Ride the S.L.U.T.’ t-shirt that someone had given him, such is his reputation. (South Lake Union Trolley is the street name in Seattle for what’s officially called the South Lake Union Streetcar.) Soon we were downing pints of Dark Star Hophead (a hoppy session beer that showed an American influence) and Over the Moon and talk- The fishlifters ing about breweries and squirrels and other bollocks. The highlight of this session, however, was my first The next day I hung out chez Fishlifter, getting my bearings and cooling my jetlag while Claire and * This footnote marks the first of three endnotes, which may be found at the end of our tale. Mark went to work. This was a good opportunity to 2 • Alternative Pants explore the Fishlifter collections, including an impres- system, which was causing much consternation and sively organized fanzine collection in the upstairs discussion amongst my friends wherever I went, to closet and an appropriately extensive book collection the extent that by the end of my stay in Britain I was on the ground floor. There was also a vast collection laughingly claiming that my trip report would consist of Novas and other awards on the mantel, and a great of nothing but a discussion of changes to the British deal of fine fannish artwork on the walls. (Never education system. The short version is that the British did find the stash of wine, I now realize.) In a house system is being pushed by the current coalition gov- stuffed with fascinating objects, however, the most ernment in a more American direction, with less state charming was the crossed fishlifters (i.e., spatulas in subsidization and higher fees for students. American parlance) sitting by the door of the guest We could have talked all night, I’m sure, but bedroom. I took a picture of it, with screws sitting some people had to work the next day, and others next to it, and when I posted the picture to Live- had to travel. A tube, a train, and a bus got us back to Journal after the trip, Mark was motivated to finally Croydon again, and as we parted ways with Jim and mount this piece of sculpture on the wall above the Meike, I promised to meet them at East Croydon Sta- guest room door. That’s the kind of influence that -in tion again the next day for the next stage of the trip: ternational travelling jiants have on the world. the journey to Belgium. Indeed, the next morning we In the evening I set off toward East Croydon Sta- made our way to the glitzy St Pancras Station to catch tion to meet Jim and Meike.