Although I was fairly swamped with work this past weekend, I somehow managed to take the time to go see PAX East, the huge gaming convention and general geekfest organized by Mike Krahulik and Jerry Holkins of Penny Arcade fame. Kelly’s brother Matt came up from Philadelphia and joined Patricio and I as we indulged ourselves in a geek’s paradise – specifically, a gaming geek’s paradise. So go no further if you have a low tolerance for that sort of thing.
On the first day, I managed to squeeze in a few hours in between shifts, although I did have to go in my three-piece suit, as you can see below.
I don’t get to wear that suit (or my antique pocket watch) very often, so I didn’t mind too much. That statue is from the Wizards of the Coast area for Dungeons and Dragons. Patricio spent much of the weekend taking pictures of all of the awesome costumes he encountered. I did not take nearly as many pictures, but I did get a few.
On the second day, I got to spend a lot more time at the con and finally managed to attend a few workshops and panels, but as they say, the real action is always on the floor. I managed to meet a couple of celebrities that were kind enough to get their picture made with me. First I met this little guy while I was wandering among the booths on the floor. You may recognize him. He’s done some movies and stuff.
But the capstone of my weekend (literally and figuratively) was who I met when I was heading out of the convention for good late Saturday afternoon. I did not think it was likely I would return on Sunday as I figured I would be too exhausted and there would be only a few hours left anyway. So as I am leaving the table top gaming area I spot someone who I immediately recognized, as I am a huge fan of both Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog and The Guild.
Now, this put me in an interesting dilemma. Ordinarily, I really don’t believe in bothering famous people when they are out and about. Seriously. Kelly and I once had Terry Francona sit down three feet away from us at a restaurant and we left him alone. And just Friday I saw Curt Schilling at PAX and somehow managed to leave him alone too. As a lifetime Red Sox fan, believe me, that was tough. I have his jersey, for goodness’ sake. But when I saw Ms. Day, I knew that if I did not take the opportunity to say hello and ask for a picture, a lot of my friends might kill me. And since Felicia is also friends with one of Kelly’s biggest heroes, Jenny Lawson, aka The Bloggess, I actually thought Kelly might throttle me if I did not seize the opportunity. So against my better judgment, I took off my hat and politely asked her if she would mind if I got a photo, since my wife is such a big fan. She seemed a bit surprised, but she agreed, and since she didn’t mace me or anything I guess it was ok. So I thanked her, told her I had to get back to work and said “enjoy your trip to Boston”. When I told Kelly, she said something to the effect of “OMG I would have totally gone all fangirl on her.” Yes. I know. I wonder what will happen if Ms. Lawson ever comes to Boston on her book tour and Kelly actually gets to meet her. Kelly might just let out one of those shrieks like the Macy’s commercial with Justin Bieber.
So if you are out there and somehow manage to read this, sorry I bugged you, Felicia Day. But you made my wife very happy. And some of my friends very jealous as a bonus. So thank you.
-Geoff
The Books are Taking Over... 