My Punkie's back! (IS back, not his back)

[blodeuedd]

So, G went to the big -- nay, HUGE! -- BIO convention in Chicago, right? Ostensibly for work, but we all know it was really to get goodies. Lots and lots of goodies. Since he's too lazy to make a proper inventory of them, allow me! Because I have nothing better to do on a Thursday night before a long weekend.

Please keep in mind that all of these things are branded with some kind of company or government logo, as this potentially negates whatever cool factor they may possess. Unless bio-tech companies are the latest word in cool brand names.


- a cool one-strap backpack
- 3 different large cloth bags, good for shopping, etc.
- a 60 meg jump drive
- 2 calculators
- a portable radio with a LIGHT on the end of it, plus earphones
- 3 identical reading lights
- 5 keychains, 4 of them with lights (3 blue, 1 red)
- 2 plastic ice cubes that light up and CHANGE COLOUR IN YOUR DRINK! Or if you hold it against your finger.
- 2 magnetic pins that light up and flash colours (1 Canadian flag, 1 lobster-shaped)
- a pedometer
- possibly the COOLEST PEN EVER!, which has a colour-changing light at the end of it, kind of like the ice cubes. But you don't have to put it in a drink.
- 3 packets of breath mints
- a card clip that doubles as a pen and is kind of pear-shaped
- a jackknife with blade, nail file and mini scissors (the wonder is that they let him get on the plane with this in his carry-on -- my guess is that he had so many random small metal objects, they didn't bother to check to see what it was)
- a large crocodile clip
- a case for post-its that has a little opening cover and everything!
- various notepads
- a blue travel towel
- a baseball cap
- a large metal thermos mug
- 2 regular mugs
- something that G tells me is a "beer jersey", meaning a mini foam jersey that you apparently put over a bottle of beer. O_O
- 3 stress balls (1 heart, 1 fish, 1 monkey)
- a shot glass
- 4 luggage tags (one with a nice brushed steel finish)
- 2 business card holders
- a bottle of green tea
- 2 white ribbons that say "CANADA" in red letters. You know, in case he ever forgets where his loyalty lies.
- 6 fridge magnets
- a soft cloth for cleaning glasses
- a tube of lip balm (amusingly, this one has "Global immigration expertise you can trust." printed on the label)
- 5 lanyards (for keys/nametags/etc., one in a lovely tartan)
- a tube of sunscreen
- a bottle of athlete's foot treatment product ("Made from scallop shell"!)
- a mini-flashlight
- 6 little bottles of anti-bacterial hand sanitizer
- a CD of the 2006 Juno Award nominees (this one's for me, it's got a Great Big Sea song!)
- 2 packets of Alka-Seltzer
- 4 little koala clips, holding Australian flags (you know, the little fuzzy animals that you clip onto something and it looks like they're hanging on for dear life)
- a "DNA ID kit", which is basically a little form you fill out with your description, blood type, etc., also with space for your fingerprints (there's actually an "ink pad" with it!), a place to write about any "distinguishing characteristics" you may have, and a little envelope in which to place a swab from the inside of your cheek!
- an automatic pencil
- 20-odd pens, including one made to look like a syringe (no, seriously, it's transparent and the ink is red! O_O;)
- a load of industry magazines
- probably twice as many business cards as he handed out himself, and he left with a hundred in his pocket


My response to all this, after the exclaiming and laughing and trying to figure out how to open the damn things, is to wonder at how easy it is to distract and amuse people with little doodads. Ooh, a pen that lights up! Hand sanitizer! Keychains with lights! Magnets! ALKA-SELTZER!!!

He also brought back a combination digital cam/camcorder, which wasn't free, unfortunately. Still, he got it for a really good price. And it's red! We haven't really started playing around with it yet, but I think travelling won't ever be the same.

Comments

[punkieg.livejournal.com]

Thank god for Conventions ;)

One of my colleagues was already calling me a "Convention Junkie" when he saw my booty from just *ONE* day of gathering... I cannot imagine what he would say if he really knew the extent of my addiction...
=)

[(Anonymous)]

Hhahaha G the Convention Junkie...all of the secrets I find out while reading M-A's blog... ^0^ Hope you had fun, ne, G? And M-A, why didn't you tell me that G was away? I would've called you up & kept you company, ne? Btw, the knitting is going splendidly well...still slow...but I'm making progress. The so-called scarf is about 10 CM now. Aren't you proud of me, ne? I'm overcoming my undomestic-ness...hehee..slowly but surely thanks to you!!!!