up early. daily grill breakfast. ride with denise to pickwick gardens. find an entrance. look for room. find room and start moving tables to create a dealers area. denise find closer parking lot and we unload bags.
dealers bus gets in and the table grab begins. cooper and i set up a table for us and covert several suitcases into a table for kathy browncoat and the firefly cargo bay. they arrive with more wire works and the ok bc helps them create a good sized table for their goods other dealers tables finally sort themselves out. still putting out goods when the first bus arrives, but all is going well. really well for an event planned in less than 48 hours. sold stuff. saw people, talked with people. visited other dealers.
by the third bus we were swamped. really scary monkeys that live in space were a hit. sold a
bud the bunny and passed out several bookmarks. he's not technically firefly/serenity related, but he does wear a brown coat, and as a (currently) self-published author, i need all the publicity i can get.
annoucement was made that robert lee of fruity oaty bar fame was here. i snagged a fruity oaty bar sticker from the bay to get his autograph. he wore a copy of striker's ring. he explained the context and meaning behind of the phrase "i take my face off". he signed my goods "don't be ashamed" and "eat the bar". i made a sign for him and left a bottle of water at his table. he stays all day talking to fans, signing autographs, taking pics. robert lee is a big damn hero.
greg edmonson, composer of the firefly soundtrack showed up. i sold out of firefly soundtracks. he gave a talk. he stayed and talked with fans, gave autographs, and let them take photos. greg edmonson is a big damn hero.
people sitting at round banquet tables, talking, laughing, taking photos, making memories. cooper pointed out there was a gathering to go for food so i joined in. out of the banquet hall, down the stairs, around the concrete barrier, down the alley, and into the parking lot we go. no mention of the destination or what was going to happen that evening, although the ca bc that led us to sustenance said it must be something big when all the senior organizers are walking around with extremely large grins on their faces, although i believe he used a different term.
made a sprint for the panda express inside the pavilion, which looks much like a tom thumb even down to the starbucks inside. waited in line. was joined by other bcs and the alliance officer i had directed to another dealer's table for a patch for his uniform. talked briefly with the man in front of my about the cancelled convention and the fantastic job the ca bcs were doing to give the 300 of us that had showed up something to do. california browncoats are big damn heroes.
grabbed two large bottles of water for cooper and myself and headed back. bedlam bards gave concert. they are here, performing, and selling goods to make back the expenses that should have been covered by booster events. the bedlam bards are big damn heroes.
buses begin taking people home. room clears and dealers pack. back to hotel with denise. up to room. would love to take a nap. re-pack and close out the cashbox instead. re-dress for diner. pack browncoat messenger bag that i indulgently bought from sue of out to the black outfitters that day with a few goods and cameras. down in lobby by 5:30 pm.
annoucement regarding evening plans. food is paid for. cash bar, tip the bartender well. no cameras - don't even bring them, go up to your room and drop them off now, you know the request, let it guide you regarding your phone. no items for autographing. first bus is outside and the other will run 15-20 minutes later. destination is open until 2 am.
brief thought and then checked bag with concierge. got in line for first bus. was number 10. bus holds 50. no idea where going but ca bc did, and led the driver with very female directions - down the road, pass this, road turns, take a sharp right. this is a cross-country sized bus, not your yellow schooler. i'm impressed at the driver's ability to make a sharp right. the faces of the people in the cars he barely missed were also amazed, although for some it was their own fault in that they had the delusional idea that their tiny mass would not be affected by our massive one. apparently the bus driver can also fold space. passed over highways of gridlocked traffic. saw the warner brothers tower. no animaniacs. many posters of tv shows and movies that i have no idea about.
arrive at event site. off bus, into venue - a bar/restaurant with a long thin hallway and outside seating in a courtyard that led to other restaurants. walked to the back and grabbed a seat at a table. waited a bit. asked lady across from me if she wanted a drink. went to bar for drinks, noting how much space the first bus filled. then the very loud music kicked in. huh.
while at bar getting drinks, see a familiar face, but not sure. by then, jonathan woodward had shown up. i get and pay for my drinks and wait beside him for a break in the conversation. touch him on the shoulder to get his attention and he winks at me. sorry, my adoration belongs to nathan fillion. asked him if that was claire kramer? yes, it is. pieces click into place - the club of joss has come to our rescue. i set drinks down and greet her. she remembers me from the las vegas con. her purchases of multiple packs of joss paper realized a new life as three different placemats for her thanksgiving table. wish i had pics of them.
this is her place. they were painting this morning. they are not officially open, which is why she can gives the run of it on a saturday night during the holiday season. claire kramer is a big damn hero.
take drinks back to other bc and made a decision. said she could let my seat to whoever wanted it. went outside to a table and sat down. robert lee was explaining some chinese characters to one of the security team, a lady in a fine browncoat. i sipped my coke. others came to sit out side. and smoke.
making another decision, i left the table and stood outside the rail to remain upwind. i thank everyone and everthing for having the wind come from that direction all night. granted, eventually i was outside on the sidewalk at the entrance to the courtyard, but at least i had some place to go other than back to the hotel.
i don't like parties. i don't drink alcohol. secondary smoke makes me very ill. but ... something is going to happen, and i'm willing to wait to find out what it is. and to hopefully get a chance to present myself to the captain. we share the same birthday after all.
talked with robert lee and became the guardian of his umbrella for the remainder of the night. spoke with security browncoat tommy and became the keeper of her drink of water. i now had purpose for being outside. hÂ'orderves circled. the chicken and veggie quesadillas i tried were excellent. i passed on the shrimp thingy and guacamole nacho thingies. while free, the food was not enough for dinner, and i paid for other bc's dinner if she would get me mcdondalds.
talked with various people as the place slowly filled up with each busload. stopped 6 people who weren't wearing the required orange wristbands who tried to enter the facility. 4 were looking for a party that was in a restaurant further down. i think the other 2 were trying to crash.
having fun, although cold. have worked my way as forward/toward the street as i can and still be associated with the party. taking an observatory writer's view of events. tommy starts backing people away from the entry. nathan fillion arrives, walks quickly past me, enters the bar and jumps into the front booth that has been barracaded for just such a person. he looks like he's entering a battle field.
total celebrity list, from what i saw and those i recognized. apologies for those i miss: nathan fillion (captain malcolm reynolds on firefly, caleb on buffy), mark sheppard (badger on firefly), christina hendricks (yolonda/saffron/bridget on firefly), ron glass (shepherd book on firefly), jonathan woodward (tracey/dead solider in ep The Message of firefly, on buffy and angel as well), james leary (clem on buffy), camden toy (gentleman from Hush ep of buffy), morena baccarin (inara on firefly), one of the twins yan/rafael feldman (mingo & fanty in Serenity), michael fairman (niska on firefly), robert lee (fruity oaty bar man on serenity). all of them are big damnheroess for coming out to this crazy, last minute get-together, sitting in a fishbowl, talking with fans, and braving the few that give the rest a bad name by asking for autographs or grabbing asses. i don't care how much you paid for a ticket, they are not slabs of meat or slaves and you have no right to grab ass. period.
rain. cold. water running in the streets. droplets falling from the sky so hard they bounce back after hitting the pavement. i am having quite a lot of fun.
some bcs leave for the hotel. other go next door for pizza. one has too much to drink and leaves her dinner to wash down the drain. the ca bcs come looking for cash for a cab, as the next bus will be too long. i have $45 and hand it over immediately. they say they will pay me back the next day and i believe them.
dale makes a run for coffee, hot chocolate, and hot tea. takes her a while and i start to get worried. not only that, she has robert lee's umbrella.
i see people having the time of their life and a few that aren't happy. to me, this event is completely what you want it to be. the browncoat backup bash is NOT a convention - it's what was pulled together when a convention was cancelled at the last minute. anything that happens is gravy, a gift, a bonus, a treat, something to be thankful for and not to be complained about. i'm sorry it's not what you wanted, but it's what you got, and that's something.
rain eventually stopped.
tommy started clearing a path out of the bar and nathan came out. he walked the line, looking to the crowds on both sides. he almost backed into dale who was standing beside me. he shook my hand (okay, it was really two fingers as i was holding 2 umbrellas in one hand and someone's drink in the other) and look me in the eyes and smiled. we all know he is a hellofan actor, but i'd like to think the smile was real, and that he had a good time. i know i did. those 10 seconds with him made standing in the rain and cold for 5 hours completely worth it.
having gotten what i came for, i climbed into the waiting bus and sat talking with tina for the next half hour until they drove us back to the hotel. up to my room. tried for a hot shower to warm up, but the hot water still wasn't working. maybe tomorrow. went to bed, very happy.
