I spent this past weekend hanging around the Edmonton Comic and
Entertainment Expo having a blast. It
was a trip that I hadn’t planned on making and had lots of little hiccups
leading up to it but once I got there things got fun just as they always do at
the Calgary Expo. I had some amazing
moments like putting on my Expo shirt and realizing I need to stop asking for
the largest and start asking for a size (the largest was too big…woo hoo!). I also had some great moments getting
autographs and photo ops. I mean
seriously Christian Slater was there!!!!!
What sticks out from the weekend though is a conversation I had with
another favourite guest, Ted Raimi. I
spent some time writing about it on Saturday evening and will try and put it
into coherent form now.
When I went to get Ted Raimi’s autograph we started to chat about
conventions and how cool it was to have a place where you could go and just
love what you love and know that you will find other people that love it
too. It was a short conversation but of
course it stuck with me because although there are many reasons that I love
both the Calgary and now Edmonton Expo, one of the biggest is how I feel when I’m
at them.
Typically I avoid places like the Expo.
Anywhere there is a gather of lots of people tends to put me on edge
because it usually means I’m going to have to deal with stupid people who think
it’s fun to make rude comments about my size.
I have thick skin and have put up with this for years but I will still
avoid situations that make that likely.
So while my friends had started going to the Calgary Expo before me and
tried to convince me to join them I avoided it.
Eventually though my inner teenager gave in because Calgary Expo kept
bringing guests that I had crushes on and so I had to go. I went prepared to deal with the stupid but
was pleasantly surprised when by the end of the whole weekend in spite of being
surrounded by thousands of people I never heard one negative comment or saw one
negative look.
This didn’t really resonate with me that strongly that year, although I
did write about it in my journal, it was noticed. It wasn’t until the next year when I went and
enjoyed the weekend again and still nothing.
It was then I realized just how special Expo was. I have now gone to 7 conventions (5 in
Calgary, 1 in Edmonton and a really small one in Des Moines Iowa) and it has
been the same at each one. You go in and
it doesn’t seem to matter who you are you are accepted. Everyone is there to have a good time and
enjoy the things they love. You get to
be surrounded by people who like the same things as you which means you can
strike up a conversation in any line. I
have also learned in a lot of cases it makes it easy to talk to the guests that
I love too. Expo is a very accepting
place. It always leaves me feeling
amazing, happy and full of many great memories.
There are many reasons to love and check out a convention and the
acceptance is just one of my reasons (cute boys are totally another…hehehe). I do find now that I actively encourage lots
of my friends who have never gone to go and check it out. I always tell them that it doesn’t matter
what you love you will find someone else that loves it too. You will get to talk to people you may never
have talked to before. You become bonded
by a shared experience. I love that and
want other people to experience it. I
really do look forward to that feeling every year.
Oh and anyone wondering about some of my other memories and moments I am
working on another entry to be posted soon.
I realized that I also didn’t write about Calgary this past April and
now with Edmonton I have lots to share.
This year has been pretty amazing in terms of moments with some of the
media guests that came out.
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