While I was at Pemmi-Con, the North American Science Fiction Convention on July 20 to 23 in Winnipeg, Canada, I succumbed to encouragement and entered the Masquerade. This is a kind of costume contest often held at science fiction conventions since 1939.
Masquerades can be intimidating. Some costumers put breathtaking effort into them, and all I had was a Doctor Who scarf. But it was no ordinary scarf: It meant something. I entered it as “Tangible Artifact,” and when I went on stage, the convention’s toastmaster, Tanya Huff, read my story:
“When I first started going out with Jerry, neither one of us wanted to go out on Friday nights, and eventually one of us admitted: ‘Well, there’s a TV show I like to watch. It’s kind of odd. It’s called Doctor Who.’ ‘Oh, I love Doctor Who!’ Soon, I asked my mother, who loved to knit, to make a Doctor Who Scarf for my boyfriend as a gift, and I got her the official BBC pattern from a fan club. She watched the show to get the colors right, and she loved it, too. Eventually Jerry and I got married, and a year later Mom died, but the scarf remains as a tangible artifact of the love that flows through fandom.”
The audience was touched, although I wasn’t the best in show, obviously. You can see the winners here and admire the master-level craft in the costumes. Still, I won two awards: an Honorable Mention in the Novice Class for Stage Bravery, and a Workmanship Award for my mother’s exceptionally skillful knitting. We miss you, Mom!
Semiosis 