Shore Leave (US convention)/1995

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Convention
Name:	Shore Leave (US convention)
Dates:	July 7-9, 1995
Frequency:
Location:	Baltimore, Maryland
Type:
Focus:	multi-fandom
Organization:
Founder:
Founding Date:
URL:
Click here for related articles on Fanlore.

Shore Leave is an annual fan-run convention that takes place in Baltimore, Maryland, USA.

It was founded by the Star Trek Association of Towson which continues to run it. The first convention took place in 1979; the con was still running as of 2025.

The con's focus was initially on Star Trek, but it has since broadened to include other science fiction media.

1995: Shore Leave 17

It was held July 7-9, 1995 at Marriott's Hunt Valley Inn.

front cover of the 1995 program book, Girard W. Roundtree

back cover of the 1995 program book, Girard W. Roundtree

The co-con chairs were Melissa James and Rosanna Kroll.

The guests of honor were Garrett Wang, Dwight Schultz, Mojo, Louise Kleba, Howard Weinstein, Bob Greenberger, Brad Ferguson, Carmen Carter, Tim DeHaas, A.C. Crispin, Michael Jan Friedman, Jacqueline Lichtenberg, Steve Wilson, Joan Winston, Richard DeAcetis, Patti Papineau, Dr. Kirk Borne, Christian Ready, Patricia Vener-Saavedra, Warren Hack, Dr. Anne Kinney, and Mary Beth Wrenn.

Though originally listed in the program book, Bob Eggleton bowed out, and Allan Asherman took his place.

Laura Hayden was not listed in the program book but was listed in the later pocket guide.

From the program book, "Rabbit Tracks":

Shore Leave is happy to have a mix of old and new friends this year. Garrett Wang has brought a budding maturity to Ensign Harry Kim, and it will be fun to watch this character grow along with the Voyager series.

Dwight Schultz is a local lad, graduating from Calvert Hall High School and Towson State University just down the road. It's been a treat watching him portray so many unique characters, including Next Gen's Lt. Barclay, over the years. Welcome home, Dwight.

Bob Eggleton is a Hugo Award-winning artist known in part for his paintings in the Star Trek Master Series by Skybox. He will be conducting the Artists' Workshop as well as giving us a look at his experiences in the world of science fiction art.

Louise Kleba, a payload specialist from McDonnell-Douglas, is on hand to describe what it's like to be involved with the space shuttle program.

And of course we can't forget Howard Weinstein, Bob Greenberger, the authors and scientists who never fail to present interesting and fresh information and views, the Boogie Knights, Cheap Treks, and Conventional Magic.

Also from the program book, "Rabbit Tracks":

One question that keeps popping up in conversations this past year has been whether or not Star Trek fandom is at a crossroads. After all, we saw the death of James Kirk in "Generations" as well as the destruction of the Enterprise D; the "classic" actors will probably not make any more aired appearances as the original characters, and the Next Generation cast may be seen in the occasional Trek film. We do have DS9 and Voyager, but there is no Enterprise flagship of Trek legend.

Fan-run conventions like us can help. TV Guide, in their special Trek issue, stated that Shore Leave and other fan cons "make up in grass-roots vitality what they may lack in polish, and allow the fan community to really come alive. Fans convene for panel discussions, stage fashion shows, throw marathon video sessions, hold art competitions," etc. Some of our guests have gone this route. Steve Wilson, for example, began writing for fanzines and is now writing stories for DC Comics. Mojo, special effects wizard for Babylon 5, was a convention attendee (including Shore Leave) several years before turning pro in Hollywood. For those of us who volunteer our services, whether it's planning a convention, designing a costume, writing a story or filksong or painting a scene, we all have something to offer. We can help our fellow Voyagers on this planet by donating blood or giving to the Food Drive this weekend. Make your voice heard in a panel discussion.

Last year we chose as our slogan "Looking Toward the Future". This year a cynic might support the slogan "Surviving the Present" because we live in extremely challenging and changing times. An old Chinese curse says, "May you live in interesting times." We don't have to make it a curse, though; let's make it memorable. Thanks for coming.

From the pocket guide, info about a fan production:

"LIGHT YEARS" AHEAD

OF ITS TIME

Fan produced series is about to take off.

What is "Light Years?" It is a twelve-episode sf tv series, telling a continuing story-with-a-beginning, -a-middle-and-an-end. It is a story of invasion, new worlds, nanotechnology, freedom, war and the ultimate destiny of mankind.

"Light Years" is the story oftwo unlikely heroes whose planet is invaded by the Lo-Gar: a race of intelligent nano machines, rather like a sapient virus. The heroes flee to a nearby mining settlement, where they enlist the help of an alien missionary and his friends to free their homeworld from Lo-Gar domination.

Light Years is also a tv phenomenon. In the tradition of Dr. Who and Blake's 7, Light Years relies on plot, character and storytelling rather than big-budget special effects. The show is produced by "regular guys" using high-end consumer equipment like NewTek's Video Toaster. It is expected to be completed in early 1996.

Light Years was written by Don Sakers, and is produced by Don Sakers and Thomas Atkinson.

At Shore Leave, Atkinson and Sakers are premiering the penultimate version of Episode 1 of Light Years, and discussing the process of creating and producing do-it-yourself television. Your feedback will help determine the final shape of the show.

1995: Programming

From the program book:

The folks from Space Telescope and Goddard Space Flight Center will show you the latest astronomical discoveries of the Hubble Space Telescope, as well as tell you about the results of the collision between comet P/Shoemaker-Levi 9 and Jupiter. They will also show you stuff like intergalactic traffic accidents (galaxy collisions, stars blowing up), worm-hole theory, and physics demonstration.

From the program book:

The Harford Adventure Society (H.A.S.) was started in 1989 by a group of gamers from Harford County, Maryland. The purpose of the society was to hold a small gaming convention in which all the gamers of Harford County could get together for a fun-filled weekend. H.A.S. is now hosting its sixth year of the DemiCon Gaming Convention on September 1-3, 1995. The convention now draws about 350 gamers together from all over the world and is being held this year at the Sheraton Conference Hotel in Towson, Maryland. The group regularly meets the third Sunday of every month at The Strategic Castle Gaming Store in Bel Air, Maryland, around 7 p.m.

From the program book:

Shore Leave welcomes its Filk Guests of Honor, Musical Chairs, to their first Shore Leave. Musical Chairs consists of Linda Melnick, Lucinda Brown, and Jean Stevenson.

Linda is a former member of Technical Difficulties. Jean has been writing and performing filk since the late 1970s; she wrote some of Technical Difficulties' music. Lucinda made the mistake of saying, in Linda's presence, that she sang, so Linda forced her to learn to play the guitar. (Linda, put the whip down!) Now Lucinda is so dedicated that she's got her filk book cross-referenced.

Musical Chairs was given their name because they kept switching seats during an early performance (whoever had the guitar sat in the middle).

• Showcase: Con Skit: Mystery Trekkie Theater 3000 was NOT performed here.
• Showcase: Con Play: Starship Blvd. by Cheap Treks (see for more information on the con's skits in general)
• Panel: Gaming - How & Why ("an introduction to the world of gaming by those who love it best -- the Harford Adventure Society")
• Panel: Internet Info ("Learn about the Internet and the World-Wide Web from a professional Internet Consultant, Eric Richardson.")
• Panel: Convention Preview ("Get your questions answered and find out what you don't want to miss from the Shore Leave Committee!")
• Panel: Fanzines ("Discover the fan publications that have been called the "heart and soul of fandom" -- Sponsored by Orion Press.")
• Panel: Joan Winston & Jacqueline Lichtenberg ("Two of fandom's first and finest fans and authors.")
• Panel: Babylon 5 vs. Deep Space 9 ("This should be a lively debate. -- Mojo, Louise Kleba, Howie Wcinstein and Tim DeHaas.")
• Panel: Broken Trek ("Is Paramount ruining Star Trek? Is Voyager the new hope? -- Stephen Zeber, Don Pearl")
• Panel: Generations - The Movie ("What did you love, what did you hate? Can the STTNG cast carry on? -- Ann Crispin. Dennis Bailey. Cindy Geppi)
• Panel: Voyager ("Is this what we've been waiting for? -- Joan Winston, Allan Asherman")
• Panel: ST:DS9 ("Between Voyager and STING movies, has DS-9 been forgotten? What makes this show popular, unpopular? -- Michael Jan Friedman, Brad Ferguson.")
• Panel: Internet Meet 'n' Greet ("Net Surfers Shoot the Curl to Hunt Valley. Net surfers, novice and pro alike, will want to be in the Rendezvous Lounge adjacent to the lobby at 8:30pm. A get together is planned, complete with screen-name badges, to help put faces with the the anonymous surfers that share the Information Superhighway. So bring a friend, write your screen-name on a badge, and get ready to have a GREAT time!")
• Panel: The Future of Space Exploration, a Discussion ("What are we doing and where should we go from here? -- Dale Arnold, Stuart Hirsch, Jean Ayers.")
• Panel: Trek Online ("Discover and compare the Star Trek discussion groups on the nets. -- Members of USS Chesapeake, DS 495, Allyson Mann")
• Panel: Fanzine Readings ("Selected excerpts from "the best of the best" in fan fiction. -- Sponsored by Orion Press.")
• Panel: Welcome to Starfleet ("You've heard of it for years - now find out what it is and how you can join!")
• Panel: Bob Greenberger (" Up-to-the-6econd information about Star Trek and other SF movies, including trailers from the hottest films of the summer.")
• Panel: Doctors of Trek ("From McCoy to Zimmerman, who makes your temperature rise? -- Michael Jan Friedman, Brad Ferguson, Joan Winston.")
• Panel: Collecting Trek ("Explore the world of memorabilia and collectibles. -- Kett Kettering, Inge Heyer")
• Panel: Trek Talk ("The ultimate Trek panel, we'll discuss ANYTHING Trek! -- Russell Wooldridge, Mike Schilling, Marilyn Mann")
• Panel: Costuming ("How to exhibit your costume to best advantage.")
• Panel: Costuming for the Trek Generation
• Panel: Makeup, Prosthetics and Appliances
• Panel: Batman ("Everything about the caped crusader in movies, television and comics. -- Bob Greenberger")
• Panel: X-Files ("The little show that became a phenomenon. -- Joe Oorffner, Rosy Ianni")
• Panel: Sliders ("Now that it's getting a second chance, what do you hope to see changed? What should stay the same? -- Brad Ferguson. Dennis Bailey")
• Panel: The Prime Directive (" Does it really work? Has every captain had to violate it? -- Howie Weinstein, Steve Wilson")
• Panel: In Praise of Older Men ("A discussion of the mature men of Trek and why we love them! -- Brenda Shaffer. Betty Dain, Kathleen Speck"
• Panel: Pen Names ("The why and when of the professional pen name. -- Jacqueline Lichtenberg")
• Panel: Getting Started, Turning Pro ("The first steps to amateur and professional publication. -- Joan Winston , David Gardner.")
• Panel: Collaboration ("Just how do you share the writing of a book? And why? -- Bob Greenberger, Howie Weinstein, Michael Jan Friedman.")
• Panel: Respecting Trek (and Trekkers!) ("Is Trek receiving more respect than in the past? Do they understand that [[Get a Life (skit)|we DO have lives? -- Laura Hayden, Ann Crispin")
• Panel: Take Me To Your Leader ("Who is your favorite captain? Least favorite? Why? -- Carmen Carter, Allan Asherman, Ann Crispin, Dennis Bailey")
• Panel: Finding Your Mate in Fandom
• Panel: Medi-Trek ("Is the medicine you see in Star Trek accurate? Possible? Probable? -- Lana Parsons")
• Panel: Trek in Education ("Two teachers discuss how they have used Star Trek in the classroom. -- Patti Papineau, Paddie Patchan")
• Panel: Writing for & Producing Star Trek Comics -- Steve Wilson, Bob Greenberger, Michael Jan Friedman, Tim DeHaas
• Panel: Whence Classic Trek ("Why is it so hard to find on t.v.? Is it still the first and the finest, or has time passed it by? -- Steve Wilson, Dennis Bailey")
• Panel: Broadcast Science Fiction ("Find out about and interact with a Science Fiction based Radio Show in the making. -- Russell Wooldridge, Tom Sommerville")
• Panel: the Romance of Science Fiction ("Romance/Time Travel/Sci-Fi author Laura Hayden discusses this fast-growing writing genre")
• Panel: Save Vedek Bareil ("The Friends of Vedek Bareil discuss the demise of this popular DS-9 character and the possibilities for his return. -- Gayle-Lynne Gordon, Stella Sutkiewicz")
• Panel: It's All Trek to Me ("Forget the Comparisons, this is a celebration of all Trek! -- Sponsored by S.T.A.N.C.A.R.")
• Presentation: Light Years ("The making of a fan-produced, sci-fi mini series for television. -- Tom Atkinson, Don Sakers")
• Workshop: Artist Gayle Freyman
• Workshop: Screenwriters ("This is the first time this workshop has been offered at Shore Leave. And it's all Howie's idea' We think it's about screenwriting but we DO know it is limited to 20 participants in order of pre-registration. And it's FREE." -- Howie Weinstein, Tim De Haas)

• Workshop: Beginning Writers ("This workshop covers the basics of creative writing, such as plot, setting, narration and theme, as well as finer composition points for fan and professional publication. It will consist of a two hour lecture, followed by an optional manuscript critique section. Manuscripts must be typed (1 2 pt. or larger), double-spaced, single-sided, and no longer than 25 pages. Any type of fiction except poetry is welcome. Manuscripts must be submitted no later than June 7, to Beginning Writers, C/O Shore Leave, P.O. Box 6809, Towson, MD 21285-6809. You may register for the lecture alone ($15), or for both sessions ($25). Registration is limited to 40 attendees for lecture only; a maximum of 20 manuscripts will be reviewed." -- Carmen Carter)
• Workshop: Intermediate Writers ("This is the first time this workshop has been offered at Shore Leave. To register, you must have completed a previous workshop conducted by Ann or Carmen, or have Ann's prior permission. The workshop will consist of the following: brief review of basics of writing; professional writing techniques; making your fiction saleable; a question and answer session; and an optional manuscript critique. All manuscripts must be typed, double- spaced, and single-sided. Manuscripts are limited to 7500 words for short stories and approximately 20 pages for novel's first chapter. Send a SASE with manuscripts, submitted no later than June 7, to Inter. Writers, Shore Leave PO Box. Costs are: lecture ($20), lecture and critique of 1-5 page writing sample ($25), lecture and full manuscript ($30). A maximum of 15 full manuscripts will be reviewed." -- A.C. Crispin)
• Workshop: Signing ("Learn the fundamentals of sign language for the deaf and hearing-impaired. -- Patti Papineau")
• Game: Trivia Contest ("Win more than glory, win a free membership to Farpoint '95! -- Emceed by Steve Wilson")
• Science Programming by Patricia Vener-Saavedra, Warren Hack, Christian Ready, and Dr. Anne Kinney
• Shore Leave Wrap-Up ("So, how did we do? Come tell us what you think worked, or didn't work, and how we can make it even better!")
• Masquerade Critique: ("A discussion of who won at Masquerade and why. -- Cindy Geppi, Dave Keefer")
• Music: Temple of Trek
• Music: Bardic Circle ("filk in a non-concert format... a bardic or round-robin filk")
• Music: Boogie Knights
• Music: Musical Chairs
• Music: Friday Night Filksing (Howard ("if he practices") Weinstein, Roberta Rogow, The Denebian Slime Devils, Greg Baker, Zembock and the Galactic Boogie Band, Future Dreams ([April Valentine] and Kathy Ackerson), Thomas Atkinson, Musical Chairs (if the train gets in on time),and Jenna Sinclair and J. S. Cavalcante.)
• Harford Adventure Society
• Art Show and Auction
• Stargazing
• Blood Drive
• Children's Workshop

1995: Gallery of Ephemera and Samples from the Program Book

• 

  badges from the 1995 con

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  from a flyer for the 1995 con

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  from a flyer for the 1995 con, includes some costs

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  the 1995 flyer or the Cheap Treks skit, "Sunset Blvd."

• 

  from the 1995 program book, appears to be the inside front cover, Girard W. Roundtree

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  from the 1995 program book

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  from the 1995 program book

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  from the 1995 program book

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  from the 1995 program book

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  from the 1995 program book

• 

  from the 1995 program book

• 

  from the 1995 pocket program

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  from the 1995 pocket program

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  from the 1995 pocket program

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  from the 1995 pocket program

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  from the 1995 pocket program

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  from the 1995 pocket program

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  from the 1995 pocket program

1995: Garrett Wang and the "Women of Star Trek"

One of the guests of honors, Garrett Wang and some fervent K/Sers had a humorously wary encounter.

The Honorary K/Ser Award — to the ingenuous, unsuspecting, and thoroughly delightful [Star Trek Voyager actor, Garrett Wang] who, during an accidental late-night rendezvous with a certain crowd of women, related a funny Voyager script idea he'd thought of: a classic hurt/comfort scenario involving Kim and Paris in which the dying Kim reveals to Paris that he loves him! The Surakian Composure Award — to [SB] for her quick thinking and aplomb in coolly telling [the actor, Garrett Wang] "that's a scenario we appreciate" when he was trying to figure out why all those women went nuts over his humorous script idea. (And twenty lashes with a double-ridged you know-What to [KS] for saying "Should we tell him?")

I'll briefly talk about our evening with [the young Star Trek Voyager actor]. What a lovely young man he is. I think he's "cute" on TV, but in real life he is more than cute — he's definitely good looking, and a hunk at that. He was looking for an America On-Line group in the lounge, and stumbled upon this group of about 12 of us women instead and joined us for three hours or so. He couldn't figure us out, I'm sure; he asked if we were "Women of Star Trek." We basically said yes and left it at that. We began to touch on things of particular interest to K/S'ers, and it could have gotten even more interesting, except a bunch of Trekkers, you know those folks, started gathering around and asking sometimes-dumb questions, bless their hearts. So we didn't have him to ourselves anymore. Anyway, he described a scenario he read in his file (or room or whatever the lingo is) on AOL; someone had written a scene where Ens. Kim professes his love for Tom Paris, dying in his arms. We said that definitely is a scenario we can appreciate. He talked about the disparaging remarks that came up on the net in response to that scene, and that he couldn't believe Trekkers would be intolerant like that. So this led into talk about gender and racial bias, etc.

Around 11pm, we were all engaged in a serious discussion as to whether it was physically possible for K and S to actually do it together at the same time, when suddenly, some guy (a male, daring to join our group??) knelt down beside [J] and quietly inquired if we were all with "America On-Line". "No," [she] replied sweetly. "We're Star Trek." The guy stood up. It dawned on us that this guy was the con's guest of honor…. Well, we made a place for him and he regaled us with wonderful, funny, clever anecdotes, thoughts and feelings until the bar had to close and kick us out! We had been granted our own private con activity as he talked about Voyager, his character, Creation cons, the Internet, his background and Star Trek. We got that close to revealing who we really were, but thankfully discretion remained as we were dubbed "The Women of Star Trek". Whew! Our secret is safe! One rather funny moment occurred when [he] related a story he had read on the Internet that had to do with Kim and Paris. As in, Kim and Paris. He told it expecting, perhaps, a negative reaction from us (women of Trek, remember?). However, when our reaction was one of pleasure, he was glad, if slightly mystified.

Garrett Wang: What a sweetie! This candid, very funny and personable young man was looking for a group of American On Line computer people and never knew he had stumbled onto a gaggle of K/Sers. He stayed and spoke with us for hours about everything from opportunities for "older" Asian actors-you know, those who are "30 or 31," to B'Elanna being a possible future love interest for Harry. I wound up giving him a hug goodbye and reminding him to call his mother! (Yeesh! I can't believe I did that!)

I did go to see Garrett Wang since Ensign Kim has obvious slash potential. Garrett was witty and interesting. He talked about meeting a group of about a dozen women in the bar the night before. Even though I had gone to bed early and had not heard of this event from any of the KSers, I knew who these women must be.

1995: Some Tricks and Manipulations at an Art Auction

The art auction (the main one or a private K/S one?) was the scene of the usual high spirits, but also of some maneuvering, something that did not sit easy with at least one fan.

The ever-emotional art show and auction. I was standing in the show on Friday contemplating a panel filled with Southern Cross pieces when Carolyn comes and stands next to me. Two minutes later she's crying. With trembling finger pointing to a exceptional color drawing, she gasps, "It's so beautiful!" and has to leave to regain her composure. (And how wonderful that, through the auspices of someone truly extraordinary, Carolyn now owns that picture.) Another image: Hearing the last bidder awarded the mind meld picture that Shelley had drawn for my novel, and being overwhelmed by despair because I hadn't been able to bid on it. Shelley has a handy shoulder for crying upon. Oh, and one more. Seeing that [Andi L] was opposed in a bid for a piece from The Price of Freedom by a determined young man, I scooted across the room and informed him, sotto voce, just where that picture came from. A novel about, gasp, two guys! Kirk and Spock! Do you know what K/S is? The poor fellow blushed, and stopped bidding. Andi got the picture. Sabotage!

This was not the only time I wished I had brought Kleenex. The art auction turned out to be quite emotional, with several people crying. I got a big laugh out of [J] talking a young man out of bidding on one of the slash pieces while the bidding was actually in progress. In retrospect there was something about the art auction that made me uncomfortable. The group was wonderfully cooperative, not bidding against each other, divvying up the pieces, talking outside bidders out of bidding, which was nice for us. But I wonder how good it was for the artists and for the con. Auctions are supposed to be competitive so that the artist gets the best price she can for her work, and the con wants that too because they get a cut (I think. I don't entirely understand how all this works. Artists help!). It seems to me we were undermining their efforts by being so nice to each other. But maybe this is way off base.

I think this subject is a very difficult and complicated one. In an ideal world (at least, in my Marxist-anarchist vision of such), everyone would have the resources, time and space to do the work she loves. In our society, though, money inevitability has an impact on our motives and behavior, if only because we need it to survive.

In addition, some of our most deep-seated attitudes have to do with our relationship to money. I suspect all of us developed attitudes during our childhood about how to deal with money in ways that are consistent with law, morality and good taste <g>.

I don't know that we can really sort out all those issues here. Aside from the issues about intellectual property, I think there are conflicting messages and values within fandom about whether it is OK to make money from fanac. Are we practicing a gentleperson's hobby (an elitist concept in itself) or operating within a market economy? Inevitably, because we live in a market economy, it becomes both, I think. Somehow, fan art has become more "commodified" than other forms of fan activity (that is, its commodity form has become more acceptable to us), and for the reasons Dot cited, it is easy to see why that is so. A bit of clarification about art and the cost of zines. I know at least one artist, [Gayle F], who after she became well-established as an artist, rarely produced art for zines for free. She had a scale ranging from $100 for a pen and ink drawing to around $400 for a watercolor. I assume, though, that most editors bought her art for their own personal collection and did not charge it off against the zine.

While I certainly don't disagree that $100 for one of Shelley Butler's art works is an outright steal, I believe she must make many times that from the sale of prints at $20 apiece. I do not begrudge her that, but I also think that whether it's right or wrong or indifferent, the cash nexus affects our

motives and behavior in ways that I think are not always clear or easy to recognize. The "commercial" aspect of the KSP party that Mary Ellen and I reacted to is simply an aspect of that, I think.

1995: Con Reports

…There is much to discuss, but first...the tranya! I continue to be amazed by this beautiful diverse group of women. Diversity in the most delightful combinations. It really is so beautiful. I loved being with everyone, to put it mildly, and I can't say it enough. I also thought of everyone who was not there—not that I could have taken any more wonderfulness. I love all of you. Such a heady experience. Inspiring and stimulating; crazy and silly; loving and encouraging or comforting or for whatever was needed, practical or emotional, someone was there. A time to laugh, a time to cry.

Not to mention, a time to buy. Boy did I get great collectibles (besides the new zines of course). Just for instance, one dealer gave me a beautiful ST:TMP TV tray, beautiful Spock at his station I get to put on my lap and eat off of. And here's something I got that tickles me: ST:TMP "cleansing towelettes" with photos of Kirk and Spock on them.

Chris: You were missed, and also you were very much with us. I hope you know how much K/S pleasure you give us with your music videos. We played it late one night. It is so skillfully and lovingly put together, and of course we all watched closely, and avidly, with love, and sometimes with tears.

I suffered from The Unbearable Desiring of K/S Art.

[JSC] and [JS]’s filking was absolutely wonderful. They boldly sang some obvious (to us) K/S lyrics at the concert, but then we also got a private concert later of no-holds-barred K/S songs. They are so beautiful. A number of us reading the new [issue of] CT together one night was definitely a highlight….

I have to say something about the goofy thing [we] did, since others might make it sound even more ludicrous than it was. We proved via demonstration (fully clothed) that two men, namely Kirk and Spock of course, can penetrate each other at the same time. Whoever has photos of that, if you would please keep them from casual observation — we had to have looked absolutely ridiculous. Of course, [MM] and their outlandish chocolate penises (your choice of Kirk, Spock or Tuvok) are to be blamed as co-conspirators in the ridiculousness.

Though some of us didn't partake of many of the con activities, except the dealer's rooms, still it's so great to be in a hotel filled with Trekkers with all that stuff going on. It's really a rainbow society, Trek is, where no one is out of place, people who otherwise don't quite fit into the molds out in the world. I enjoyed this sight: a young Klingon in a wheelchair in full regalia, flanked by his two big and beautiful warrior women (those great Klingon bosoms!).

On the shuttle to the airport on Monday morning, another woman and I were the only passengers and of course we talked. It was funny — after some hinting around we discovered we were talking about the same kind of zines, the same kind of filking, etc. The thing is, there are a lot more K/S'ers out there who we don't necessarily know about. She is a nice white-haired navy-blue-suited retired woman, lives in Chicago and No. Wisconsin, doesn't ever want to get things in the mail, so she goes to cons to get zines. She wished she had known about the Friday night K/S party, the private filking concert, etc. She'll find us next year, she said.

How to describe the indescribable? I didn't think it could get any better than the last two Shore Leaves. I was wrong. Boy, was I wrong!.... [JS] and [JSC] gave a fantastic public performance of filk songs, and then later an even better private one of K/S songs. There is no way to describe the talent these women have. And beyond that, their love for Kirk and Spock just pours out of everything they do.

Even nicer was the surprise baby shower we held for [J S C]. Among the many lovely gifts was tiny command gold captain's shirt and … a baby-sized T-shirt printed with a bolero-wearing Kirk and a bearded Spock. The caption read: Someone visited the mirror universe and all I got was this T-shirt.

Then there was the burning Question of the Con: Is it possible for two men to penetrate each other...simultaneously?!?! Let me tell you, the debate was hot and heavy on both sides! Finally it was decided that nothing less than a demonstration would suffice, so using...um...edible visual aids (as we say in the ed biz), in lovely shades of pink and green provided by the ever efficient [RH], two of our number (who shall remain nameless.. Unless they choose to divulge the information), got down on the floor and... Well, you get the picture. Actually, I got the pictures, Several of them. Reprints anyone? I'd love to tell you which side won, but I can't. I was laughing too hard.

What else... How about the two blue ribbons Shelly won in the art show: Best in Show and Critics Choice, and the secret K/S message hidden in one of her fabulous drawings.

How about watching Chris Soto's; music videos together and sharing them with those who hadn't experienced that particular pleasure before….

How about [D]'s K/S jewelry that was so beautiful, and the way everyone wore the necklaces. It became a physical symbol of our love for K/S and for each other and just one more sign of the unity among all of us. How about the way her face lit up when she bought The Southern Cross drawing she had always wanted. And the debut of [J]’s long awaited novel and [C]’s first story. We toasted them with tranya. (Alright, so it was ice water.)

I had the extreme good fortune to purchase on of Shelley's pictures entitled "Calendar Vulcan." Go ahead, indulge your imaginations, I'll wait... All finished? Well, you're not quite right. Picture Spock in longish hair, open jacket and jeans. Oh, my! I also am the proud owner of a Southern Cross drawing (in color, no less) that reduced me to tears. (Where was Spock when I needed him? Thank goodness for friends … with strong shoulders. ….I never was fortunate enough to have a sister. Now I have many.

I can't believe another Shore Leave has come and gone. How to describe it? It was far easier to write about Shore Leaves that were funny, exuberant, and crazy. This one was intense, deep, emotional. And it wasn’t just me…Everybody seemed to feel it. From the initial arrival in innocent Baltimore, which seemed to have no idea what strange creatures would soon be flocking into the area, to the "quickening" when the hotel hallways suddenly started looking a lot like the DS9 Promenade, to the tearful goodbyes on Sunday...

Shore Leave 17 was intense. For me, this con was more physically demanding than any I've attended, and I well and truly spent all my resources, physical, mental, and emotional. …If we sisters came to the well at Shore Leave #15, if we drank from it at #16, then surely we immersed ourselves in it at #17. I can't imagine what we'll do at #18. Drown?

The experience was almost too intense to talk about ... indescribable in the way that a mind meld is indescribable ….So instead of trying in vain to describe it further, I present this year's installment … of the Shore Leave Awards

• The Starbase 16 Hilton Award for hospitality above and beyond the call of duty — to [KS] … who made perfect cappuccino to order every morning—and sometimes in the evening, too. Yummy!
• The Kaferian Apple Award for the most sublime gourmet experience — to [JAB] for real German chocolate cake made by a real German.
• The Harcourt Fenton Mudd Memorial Venus Drug Award for supplying the perfect fix at the right time — to [RH] and [CB] for sending us our trib copies of FT 42 and our July Come Togethers Thursday night before we reverted to... well, you don't want to know.
• The Honorary K/Ser Award — to the ingenuous, unsuspecting, and thoroughly delightful [Star Trek Voyager actor, Garrett Wang] who, during an accidental late-night rendezvous with a certain crowd of women, related a funny Voyager script idea he'd thought of: a classic hurt/comfort scenario involving Kim and Paris in which the dying Kim reveals to Paris that he loves him!
• The Surakian Composure Award — to [SB] for her quick thinking and aplomb in coolly telling [the actor, Garrett Wang] "that's a scenario we appreciate" when he was trying to figure out why all those women went nuts over his humorous script idea. (And twenty lashes with a double-ridged you know-What to [KS] for saying "Should we tell him?")
• The Cyrano Jones "Give 'Em What They Want" Award — to [D], for bringing her gorgeous K/S jewelry and T-shirts to sell because we all begged and pleaded. Hope you're home making more, [D]!
• The Mr. Flint Award for excellence in art collecting — again to [JS], who walked away this year with both a Shelley Butler masterpiece (the "hyacinth" picture from [J]’s new novel; the print in the zine is great, but the original is sublime!) and a #1 print of the famous Southern Cross "unicorn" drawing.
• The "Way to Eden" Award for music appreciation — to all the friends who turned out to support [us] while we sang blatant K/S songs in front of a mixed filk audience Friday night. We got even more blatant during our private concert on Saturday, and we really appreciated everyone's warm reception of our music.
• The Michelangelo Would Be Jealous Award — to Shelley Butler for her K/S Pieta , which you have to see to believe. It's by far the most exquisite drawing she's ever done and you know that's saying a lot. And it's not for sale; sorry, Mike.
• The Beach to Walk On Award — To [JS], for love and support beyond the call of friendship; for singing, understanding, and offering a shoulder to cry on.
• The Edith Keeler "Let Me Help" Award — to [BA] for her compassion and friendship during the longest and most trying train ride of my life. Thank you, B. You made a huge difference.
• The Far, Far Better Thing Award — to Chris Soto, who wasn't even at Shore Leave 17 (and whom we missed terribly), but whose music video mourning Spock's death in Wrath of Khan had a whole roomful of us in tears.
• The Zephraim Cochrane Award for attempting to rewrite the laws of physics and the Pile of Tribbles Award for the most hilarious (or insane?) moment — to [KS] and [BF], for their almost entirely unbelievable demonstration with the green and pink confections. I still think it's impossible, but what the heck ... to paraphrase, "we saw a side of K/S no one should ever see."
• The Vulcan Biology Award to [BF] for elucidating the facts about our favorite, er, part of Vulcan biology: "Sure it's possible. Spock's is twenty inches long and bendable."
• The Saurian Brandy Toastmaster Award for best toast and the "Beam Me Up Scotty" Award for quick thinking — to [KS]: "But first, the Tranya."
• The "They Are Not Outworlders, They Are My Friends" Award — to [CS]’s delightful daughter, who actually was willing to be seen in public with a crew of rabid K/Sers. And the Amanda GraysonA/Vinona Kirk Award — to [CS] for sharing her wonderful offspring with us.
• The Rayna Kapek Award for most fascinating intellectual discussion — to [JG] and [DL], for our "breakfast' forum that lasted till 2 PM. Let's do it again, it's becoming a tradition.

I've already run out of room. Just want to say thanks to everyone for being there. And remember, it's only eleven and a half months till Shore Leave 18.

Friday night was [R]’s party. The festivities had to be moved from poolside to inside due to inclement weather. The team of [MM] outdid themselves this year. They made some extraordinary candy. Suffice it to say, said candy was individually foil wrapped and contained either pink or green. Well, some K/Sers (who shall remain anonymous) had quite a time acting out the possibilities.

Later that evening, [JSC] and [JS] (appropriately named "Magical Blend") performed their filk songs in the main auditorium. Their voices are so beautiful together. One of the highlights was their rendition of "Call Me Brother" complete with an explicit reference to "T'hy'la". Great lyrics. Brave girls. Shocked audience.

Then we descended upon the lounge and proceeded to perform our primary function of rearranging all the furniture……

Zines were flying fast and furious. In fact, faster and more furiously than the dealers had realized! [R]’s table had been depleted by Friday alone. By Saturday, she and [EA] were taking orders! There was nary a [JS] novel to be had. I must say that all this zine buying is great news. K/S not only lives, thank you—It thrives. So many zines sold and so many closet K/Sers showed up! Closet K/Sers who we don't know about. Ones who don't write, don't subscribe to CT (of course, not after I got a hold of them...) and thought they were alone in their obsession! But they read. And buy zines… A continuing event was when one of us would show the others some item that we had found in the dealers' room and en masse we would proclaim that we wanted it, too, and then we would rush off to buy out every last one of them….. I bought an old (circa 1970-something) Star Trek coloring book. The cover is great as it shows Spock sticking his hips out as he walks with Kirk. But even better is inside, I discovered. One of the things it shows is Uhura as a white, blond-type woman. The absolute best is the page that describes the Enterprise crew taking a "coffee break", showing Spock drinking coffee and eating doughnuts.

[D] had some gorgeous K/S jewelry that she had made herself. We were like members of some secret society as we ran around wearing the K/S necklaces. … We are all so connected by this beautiful phenomena of K/S. And even if, as usual, we barely participated in any of the planned Shore Leave activities, it is the very nature of the surroundings that helps to make our gathering so special. Trekkers of every size and shape. All there, all accepted, all one. The feeling is like no place else. The only words I have left to describe the experience are that I love you all. All of you — my sisters in K/S and beyond…

This was not the only time I wished I had brought Kleenex. The art auction turned out to be quite emotional, with several people crying. I got a big laugh out of [J] talking a young man out of bidding on one of the slash pieces while the bidding was actually in progress. In retrospect there was something about the art auction that made me uncomfortable. The group was wonderfully cooperative, not bidding against each other, divvying up the pieces, talking outside bidders out of bidding, which was nice for us. But I wonder how good it was for the artists and for the con. Auctions are supposed to be competitive so that the artist gets the best price she can for her work, and the con wants that too because they get a cut (I think. I don't entirely understand how all this works. Artists help!). It seems to me we were undermining their efforts by being so nice to each other. But maybe this is way off base.

I'll briefly talk about our evening with [the young Star Trek Voyager actor]. What a lovely young man he is. I think he's "cute" on TV, but in real life he is more than cute — he's definitely good looking, and a hunk at that. He was looking for an America On-Line group in the lounge, and stumbled upon this group of about 12 of us women instead and joined us for three hours or so. He couldn't figure us out, I'm sure; he asked if we were "Women of Star Trek." We basically said yes and left it at that. We began to touch on things of particular interest to K/S'ers, and it could have gotten even more interesting, except a bunch of Trekkers, you know those folks, started gathering around and asking sometimes-dumb questions, bless their hearts. So we didn't have him to ourselves anymore. Anyway, he described a scenario he read in his file (or room or whatever the lingo is) on AOL; someone had written a scene where Ens. Kim professes his love for Tom Paris, dying in his arms. We said that definitely is a scenario we can appreciate. He talked about the disparaging remarks that came up on the net in response to that scene, and that he couldn't believe Trekkers would be intolerant like that. So this led into talk about gender and racial bias, etc.

Around 11pm, we were all engaged in a serious discussion as to whether it was physically possible for K and S to actually do it together at the same time, when suddenly, some guy (a male, daring to join our group??) knelt down beside [J] and quietly inquired if we were all with "America On-Line". "No," [she] replied sweetly. "We're Star Trek." The guy stood up. It dawned on us that this guy was the con's guest of honor…. Well, we made a place for him and he regaled us with wonderful, funny, clever anecdotes, thoughts and feelings until the bar had to close and kick us out! We had been granted our own private con activity as he talked about Voyager, his character, Creation cons, the Internet, his background and Star Trek. We got that close to revealing who we really were, but thankfully discretion remained as we were dubbed "The Women of Star Trek". Whew! Our secret is safe! One rather funny moment occurred when [he] related a story he had read on the Internet that had to do with Kim and Paris. As in, Kim and Paris. He told it expecting, perhaps, a negative reaction from us (women of Trek, remember?). However, when our reaction was one of pleasure, he was glad, if slightly mystified.

Jenna and J.S. Gave a fantastic public performance of filk songs, and then later an even better private one of K/S songs. There is no way to describe the talent these women have. And beyond that, their love for Kirk and Spock just pours out of everything they do.

[I remember] spending lots of time in somebody's room that became the official gathering place. I'm still not sure who actually occupied that room. Laughing and talking late at night and hearing a knock on the door. Dear Kathy Stanis answering the knock, and being told by a young man who says he's hotel security that we're making too much noise for the guests and please pipe down. There's a moment of astonished silence before the fellow breaks down and laughs and says that it's just a joke, he'd been passing in the hall and had heard what a good time we were having, and couldn't resist the temptation.

[...]

-- Friday night, standing on the stage next to JS in the bright lights, but being able to see clearly all our K/S friends out there in the audience. I know that filks are an acquired taste and not everyone finds them delightful, so my "Thank you" to y'all is even more heartfelt. I'm very conscious of your support, your willingness to listen to us. I can feel your acceptance of what we're trying to create. I do so love to sing K/S filksongs. And I found your tolerance of the Saturday night private concert to be equally extraordinary.

-- Even later on Friday night. Because of the filks I delayed to hear, I was a little late to join our group that had formed in the lounge. I came upon this congregation of a dozen or more of my dearest friends, and found them all engaged in animated conversation with --- a guy! A man? I asked JS, "What are they doing talking to a man?" with as much scorn as I could put into my words. (When you travel around with Shelley, you learn how to brush off interested men.) When I was informed by Janet, I think, that this was Garrett Wong, I furrowed my brow and asked, "Who's Garrett Wong?" The name sounded familiar, but.... Well, I never said I went to Shore Leave to see their programming, or their featured guest either. Garrett was a dear, and assumed throughout that one of the reasons we'd come was to see him.

— The ever-emotional art show and auction. I was standing in the show on Friday contemplating a panel filled with Southern Cross pieces when Carolyn comes and stands next to me. Two minutes later she's crying. With trembling finger pointing to a exceptional color drawing, she gasps, "It's so beautiful!" and has to leave to regain her composure. (And how wonderful that, through the auspices of someone truly extraordinary, Carolyn now owns that picture.) Another image: Hearing the last bidder awarded the mind meld picture that Shelley had drawn for my novel, and being overwhelmed by despair because I hadn't been able to bid on it. Shelley has a handy shoulder for crying upon. Oh, and one more. Seeing that [Andi L] was opposed in a bid for a piece from The Price of Freedom by a determined young man, I scooted across the room and informed him, sotto voce, just where that picture came from. A novel about, gasp, two guys! Kirk and Spock! Do you know what K/S is? The poor fellow blushed, and stopped bidding. Andi got the picture. Sabotage!

It certainly was nice to meet everybody at Shoreleave, though there were a number of people whose names I didn't quite get straight. Unlike most of the KSers, I actually went to the con. On the whole it was pretty light weight compared to cons I usually go to (Worldcon, Boskone, Readercon). Except for the big events like the filk concerts and the guest of honor speeches, the program was very poorly attended. I was at several panels where there were less than 10 people in the room and that included the panelists.

The science program, put on by some NASA astronomers, was quite good, though I always find astronomy to be rather unrelated to science fiction. When you're dealing with things that take stellar lifetimes to happen, the time scale is just too large to deal with in stories. It was nice to see what good pictures the Hubble telescope is making.

The best panel by far was with Howard Weinstein and Steve Wilson on the Prime Directive. The sparse attendance made for good panel-audience interaction. We all agreed that Berman and Co. have gone way overboard with the Prime Directive in Voyaaer. We agreed that it was never intended to apply to the situations they have been using it in. Howard talked about the origins of the idea in the Vietnam era, and we discussed it as an anti-colonialism measure, not some rule that would make you leave thousands of people on a planet that an asteroid was about to hit because you couldn't interfere with the planet's "development." I asked why Berman has gotten it so out of whack and one of the panelist replied that it's because Roddenberry is dead, and the work he did is being enshrined as canon law even if the enshriners don't really understand it in the first place.

During a lull in the programming I stopped in the video room to watch "Bread and Circuses." I haven't seen it uncut since it originally aired. I forgot how involved the scene with McCoy and Spock was. I also loved the way Spock was desperately trying to get out of the jail while Kirk was sleeping with this slave woman.

I skipped the Dwight Schultz session. I never liked the Barclay character on Next Gen. But I did go to see Garrett Wang since Ensign Kim has obvious slash potential. Garrett was witty and interesting. He talked about meeting a group of about a dozen women in the bar the night before. Even though I had gone to bed early and had not heard of this event from any of the KSers, I knew who these women must be.

The only other program event that I went to worth talking about was a panel by Laura Hayden on writing the new sf romances. I've been convinced for awhile that I can't write romances, and nothing in this panel changed my mind. However, I did take extensive notes that I wrote up for a friend. If anyone else would like a copy, I'd be glad to supply one.

I had an interesting experience at breakfast one morning. I met a Vulcan woman with a disease that caused her ears to flop. We got talking about various things, including fanzine writing. When I told her I wrote slash she said, "Oh, one of those." and proceeded to talk about swords for the next 15 minutes. Fortunately I am very conversant about swords. I never enlightened her as to what I really wrote about.

As for the slash events, they were a lot of fun, though I wasn't sure that I wasn't in a vampire fandom when Kathy Stanis cut her hand at dinner and we tried to treat it with someone's water glass and table napkins, because we were so hemmed in we couldn't move. Shelley came to the rescue with BandAids. This was not the only time I wished I had brought Kleenex. The art auction turned out to be quite emotional, with several people crying. I got a big laugh out of Jenna talking a young man out of bidding on one of the slash pieces while the bidding was actually in progress.

In retrospect there was something about the art auction that made me uncomfortable. The group was wonderfully cooperative, not bidding against each other, divvying up the pieces, talking outside bidders out of bidding, which was nice for us. But I wonder how good it was for the artists and for the con. Auctions are suppose to be competitive so that the artist gets the best price she can for her work, and the con wants that too because they get a cut (I think. I don't entirely understand how ail this works. Artists help!). It seems to me we were undermining their efforts by being so nice to each other. But maybe this is way off base.

The official filk was lovely, but the unofficial filk was more fun. I unfortunately fell asleep in the middle of story hour, but the part I heard was very good, and it was very nice of J.S. to write an original story for the event.

I also must say that as nice as it was to meet you all, and get to talk about K/S in person, sitting around bars and smokey rooms late at night is not my favorite activity, so I don't think Shoreleave is likely to be an annual event for me.