What does Yojimbo mean to you?

[caretactic]

Hi there, everyone! First post! Anywho that is not the point of this thread so I will get to the point.
While walking around last year I saw a bunch of people wandering around in these red jackets that kinda looked like the top portion of a wrinkled yukata from japan. When I walked up and asked "What are you all cosplaying as?" I got: "We're not cosplaying we are working." I then found out that these guys were the worker ants of the con, I found this to be pretty true since these guys (and gals although I saw maybe 2) were all over the place. I also found that they were acting the acting security when they kept asking for my badge to go into events. By Monday though, I found most of them looked tired, worn out, and thought to myself: "Why?". Then my friend told me about this website recently and I checked it out. (At that point I wasn't thinking about yojimbo at the time, But while browsing around I happened upon the Yojimbo Sign up board.) And it got me thinking.
So what I am thinking is: "How come I never really hear much about them as a con goer?" I see them around, I pass them by, I never give it a second thought. But when I read the job description of: "You will be up early and to bed late, sometimes you may not sleep or eat for long periods of time. But the rewards of seeing all those con goers having a great time is what we are all about." I have to wonder if I really show how much I appreciate what they do for me personally on that one weekend? I mean to volunteer that much time and effort I have to wonder, What does Yojimbo mean to anyone really?
So here I am asking:
What does Yojimbo mean to you?
Are there any personal experiences you would like to share about yojimbo?
What do you like/dislike about them?
If you could talk to one what would you say?
Do you know what it is they do exactly?

I know its a lot to ask. So I thought I would answer first.

What does Yojimbo mean to you? It means that those guys in the red jackets are asking to see my id before I go into an event.
Are there any personal experiences you would like to share about yojimbo? The one I talked to seemed quite nice, Although I don't recall much about him other than that.
What do you like/dislike about them? Sometimes they yell pretty loud but I understand why... and umm I like the fact that they are willing to devote so much time to to something I love.
If you could talk to one what would you say? Thanks for taking so much of your time to help me enjoy my weekend.
Do you know what it is they do exactly? Other than guard doors and clear hallways from lines, not really no.

Anyway I was just sharing my thought process in hopes that someone else was thinking about them too. I look forward to reading your posts! Thanks!

[vampirek_yaoi]

Hey this is really nice that you took some of your time to post this. I been Yojimbo, and this will be my second Year working as one. It's true that not many of the attendees know about us nor really care to think of us much. It is also true that we do our very best to make everyone at the con enjoy themselves and have a great time. I am aware that some people think we are not very useful at the con nor we deserve any attention, but I personally thank everyone that has become part of Yojimbo for actually taking a whole weekend to help and make sure things are safe for everyone at the con. I am happy that I am one and I don't ever regret becoming nor signing up as one once again. Even if we do work almost 24/7 with sometimes no time to sleep or even eat I believe its a very enjoyable experience.

[BigGuy]

Thank you for your post, I started out in Yojimbo because I wanted to help out the staff and the attendees and I like moving around dealing with things as they come up.
 Feel free to talk to any staffer, Yojimbo or not, most of us are very nice. However a lot of people might be tired from working hard. I've been trying to get people to sign up as staff or to help out as volunteers so we can spread the workload out a bit. If you have a spare hour or two and want to help out the con, go to the info desk and ask about being a volunteer. You might be the person who gives a staffer some time off to eat/rest/go to a panel they want to see/ or just chill and enjoy the Convention. Plus we love Volunteers.

[kylite]

I became a Yojimbo in 2004
Came back in 2005, 2006, and 2007 because I loved doing it
In 2008 I ran the Yojimbo
And now in 2009 I am assistant manager

And the reason... is because of people like you. We arent thanked very often but the few times we are is like having all the gold in the world.

Our duties include: Manning doors (badge check and equipment guarding), roaming halls (to keep them clear for fire code), controlling lines, peace bonding props, responding to numerous situations (such as missing persons, fights, wardrobe issues, medical, etc), bodyguard if the need arises, chaperons, set up, tear down, and being there for any and all needs that arise. And if we cant handle a situation, we can get someone who can.

I will admit the job can be stressful. We work long hours, we miss events we might want to go to, we might not get a chance to eat for long periods of time, etc... but most of these issues are extreme cases in which we often FORGET to eat and or FORGET to leave our shift because were having too good a time as is.

But its all worth it just to hear someone say thank you, even once.

so in response to your post, thank you.

[DemonSpawn]

I just wanted to say: I love you people so-so much!
All the yojimbo I met last year as a 'staff minion' (I made a sign!)
were so nice and answered all my friends and my questions about becoming yojimbo.