As expected, July has been packed with events already. Beginning with July 2nd, I spent 3 long hours in the dentist chair having the New Teef installed. I’ll blog more about that later - with photos.
On July 3rd, I packed up some stuff and headed down to The Day Spa in Edina where I met up with Gwen. We enjoyed heavenly spa pedicures. Gwen stayed for a manicure while I headed out to run a couple more errands. Eventually, I drove to the Sheraton in Bloomington where CONvergence was being held. Adam met me in the hotel bar and helped me get settled into our room.
This year marked my third time attending this event. I wish I could tell you that I have a fabulous time when I go…but the truth is that most of it weirds me out. CONvergence attracts all kinds of people. I’m a little horrified when I see reeeeally young ladies walking around in lingerie or nothing more than a little duct tape hiding their, er, business. Couple that with free-flowing booze and the situation could be bad. This year, I was hit on by a drunk pirate who couldn’t quite take a hint (as I was standing right next to both Adam and Tim). Oh, and I was growled at twice by an 8 foot tall Klingon. I can’t make this stuff up.
I think the creepiest thing I witnessed took place in a party room that had a guy dressed up as Jesus who was dispensing temporary tattoos. A very large woman in a very small patent leather bikini had the Jesus guy applying one of the tatts to her thigh. She turned around with a leather whip in hand, looked right at Gwen and declared in her best dominatrix voice, “I just made God kneel.” Sistah, pleeeze.
Aside from the weirdos, my problem is that I’m not a “fan” in the way that these folks are. Sure, I enjoy Battlestar Galactica but I have no interest in discussing it with the rest of the fan community. I’m also not much of a “gamer,” nor am I into comic books…so why do I go? Alas, I go to this event because Adam enjoys himself and likes meeting some of the people who’ve worked on his favorite TV shows/movies/books. I met Andrew Probert and his wife in an elevator, who were both really sweet. Adam bought a couple of his signed prints.
Now that I’ve griped enough, I’ll offer some positive things about the convention. CONvergence features a “Dealer’s Room” where folks setup booths for selling goods. Since I was not in need of a corset, potion bottle, fur tail, Sci-Fi book or a glass dragon figurine, I paid more attention to the artists selling jewelry (which, outside of shoes and bags, is my weakness). I found this gorgeous gemstone necklace wired with gold in such a way that it had a lace-effect. It’s a stunning, well-crafted piece and I’ll get a ton of wear out of it.
Other highlights: on Friday night, Gwen, Tom, AdamV, Dena, Adam and I had a lovely dinner at La Fougasse next door to our hotel. The service wasn’t the greatest but the food was fah-bulous. And finally on Saturday, we enjoyed homemade ice cream with Adam’s friends Joe, Andrew, Jason, Tim and a few others - a high calorie event but lots of fun. I appreciated talking with Joe and Andrew (a fellow photography buff!) and I hope we can have dinner with them outside of the convention. It was also great hanging out with Adam’s friend Tim and I look forward to dinner with him and his wife soon.
So there you have it. I done did the dang thing. Uhh-gain.
Next up: Cozumel this weekend!