Current mood:	happy
Entry tags:	balticon 42, con, meme

Memes from Balticon 42
Here are some memes I witnessed birthed or helped birth at Balticon 42. I will be, consciously or otherwise, probably helping in their diffusion in the coming months.

Midget ninja: born in particular of Andrea's sense of the light hearted comedic worth of individuals of strikingly short stature but combined with the universal geek trope of the awesome that is the ninja. There is a delicious hint of cognitive dissonance at work, too. Can someone of awkward proportions pull off the stealth powers of the shadow clan? I think the answer is those diminutive trainees to pass muster would have to be of such astonishing caliber that they would be a class above and beyond your run of the mill masked assassin. Still, despite the power of this image, the meme also evokes coolness and comedy by turns for the laugh potential of the height disinclined cannot be diminished even by ninja training. This effect can be amplified by juxtaposing the stocky shuriken slinger with that epitome of vinegar pie. Ask andreahg as I cannot do that meme justice, and it originates with her family. The midget ninja, it must be noted, is not synomous with said wrongful pastry, merely that the dissonant aspects of the black clad meme are amplified by invoking the vignette of said anti-hero figure scarfing that mind-bendingly off confection.

Of the many x I could have y-ed, this is one of them: matt_wallace invoked this truism of writing workshops and critical circles everywhere. It delighted Andrea and I in its potential use in every day situations. Andrea's con wrap up is an excellent, specific exemplar of this usage.

Pretty for a con chick: This is not the pejorative you would imagine at first blush. Many recipients of said appellation are perfectly attractive in ordinary circumstances. Rather it is a commentary on the time and space warping powers of the sheer concentration of the geek norms that occurs at cons. There is an ironic component, as well, as some who bear this tag take advantage of the temporary boost in appeal experienced at cons at the expense of their every day credibility. Contrast to geek goddess, an archetype whose credbility is enhanced by an opposite reaction to the throngs of adoring geeks, a surplus of humility and all around graciousness born of seemingly genuine ignorance of their own elevated status.

Alternate merge: This meme may be still born as I don't think it survived its own stilted inception. I include it here for completeness as I found it remarkable enough to include in my notes. The genesis was a sign indicating a three way merge. This provoked musings of the fervid bureaucratic imaginings that would create such an innocuous label for a potentially mythic cluster fsck. matt_wallace also suggested it might make a good college radio band name and was agreeable to the refinement of speaking as a question rather than a statement.

Outrage addict: Credit again goes to matt_wallace though I will admit I do not know if it is his own coinage or he is merely popularizing someone else's notion. Regardless, it should require little explanation and establishes a nicely continuous line from the well established "drama queen" into the depths that are only apparent at certain events such as beauty pageants, drag shows and amongst certain circles at cons.

Take a costume change: This was a follow on and while, again, it was matt_wallace sharing this bit of wisdom, I am pretty positive the advice originates from planetx. In short, the phrase is claimed to be an adequate protective abjuration when confronted by the previously described outrage addict.

Feel free to add any memes you witnessed in the comments along with a definition and/or example of typical usage.