On the road again: CONtraflow, New Orleans, day 2

The con kept me quite busy today.  I slept as late as I could but still had to get up early (for me) on this CONtraflow Saturday.  After showering and checking on the e-world, I grabbed a bottle of water and scooted to a panel room for my first job:  moderating a discussion on reconciling science and religion.  Neither my four fellow panelists nor I realized until the fifty-minute mark that the con had allocated a double slot for this event, so our discussion ended up running for nearly two hours.  Though opinions were strong and deeply felt, the entire group--three writers, an Episcopalian priest, and me as moderator--stayed civil and respectful of each other's thoughts.  I quite enjoyed the far-ranging conversation, and so, as best I could tell, did the audience.

I had to proceed immediately to a discussion of what the con called the ABC's of SF:  Asimov, Bradbury, and Clarke.  (During the panel, we basically added Heinlein to the list of highly influential early authors.)  We talked about books that we felt held up--and some we thought did not, the challenges one faces when reading works from fifty or so years ago, and how much the age at which you read a work can affect how you feel about it later.

As soon as that panel ended, I zipped across the way to run the charity auction.  I auctioned off 67 different items/groups of items, each of which had a minimum bid of a buck but all of which went for more, most for quite a bit more.

After a break, a group of us headed out to St. Roch Market, a sort of upscale local food court.  We shared a bunch of dishes, including dirty mac and cheese, crab cakes, Korean fried chicken wings, and red beans and rice.  Every single one was delicious.  I would definitely go back.

Tomorrow, more panels, and the con draws to a close.