A Brighter Day

Dearest Rachel –

Outdoors, it’s a big change from yesterday. The sun is shining brightly; in fact, it’s beating down pretty fiercely, even as it approaches five in the afternoon – and just think, it hasn’t been too many months since it was ‘in the evening,’ or even ‘at night.’ And while I won’t say I’ve found the reason I go (or should continue to go) to these conventions, the sky is just one more thing to put me in a better mood about it all.

I wonder if I don’t have a mild case of Seasonal Affective Disorder. Or maybe it’s just a slightly more pronounced reaction to the weather that everybody has, now and then. All it takes is a brighter day, and everything feels better.

I haven’t been taking notes as I’ve gone along, like I probably should in order to give you a more accurate picture of the day. So you’ll have to forgive me if my descriptions are a little bit spotty; there hasn’t been that much to comment on.

The writers’ panel went like they usually do, to be honest; although it was quite impressive in terms of attendance. The panel room was close to being full, despite being held at the otherwise absurd hour. Even the exhibit hall was closed at the hour I arrived; the security personnel was grilling everyone as they tried to get in, to determine whether they were an exhibitor or dealer before letting them in, as the rest of us hoi polloi would not be let in until ten. Fortunately, when I said I was there for a panel, they let me in, too, but with strict directions as to where the room was, presumably so that I didn’t ‘accidentally’ find my way onto the merchandise floor unsupervised.

In fairness, I’m well aware that the open-table nature of convention hall layout lends itself far too well to the possibility of shoplifting, so I understand the concern. And it’s not like the Andy Frain people know me from Adam. But the implication that I might as easily be ‘that type’ gets ever so slightly under my skin. Of course, they could easily respond that there is no ‘type’ that would do that sort of thing, and so they have to screen everyone as they come through. Still, the scrutiny feels a little ‘extra’ at that hour, probably because there are fewer people to keep an eye on.

All things considered, though, I’d prefer you were to handle the job rather than him.

But I’ve wandered from the original topic, here. Anyway, once the panel let out (and Doc had to cut a little material from the discussion, as the audience participation was such that answering questions took up more time than anticipated, and they would be running overtime if they kept to the entirety of what had been planned), I actually did plenty of wandering, back through the industry and dealers’ areas. I even found a few things worth buying and bringing home with me (and several others that, not having you at my side to ask if you’d be interested in them, I sent photos to the group chat, to see if any of the girls might be interested – or even the boys, although if that was the case, they could come down and get it for themselves).

I’ll admit that purchasing multiple items from a single vendor could get awkward, as it meant carrying one item the entire length of the booth to retrieve the other before signaling a clerk that I had everything I wanted to purchase. Just the fact that I was walking around with an unpurchased item felt uncomfortable. See guys, I’m not the shoplifter ‘type.’

Of course, there was more to the exhibit hall than just ‘a lot of buying,’ as old Scrooge would put it. The gaming area was every bit as immense as it had been last year, and for whatever reason, there seemed to be open consoles, terminals and actual stand-up machines for me to play or at least join in on. Some of the stand-ups were specifically designed for multiple players, although most could also be played as a single player. Not all, though.

I’m pretty sure I killed a couple of hours in the gaming cavern alone; it’s easy to lose track of time there. It’s also easy to forget to take pictures while one hand operates the joystick (or trackball, depending) and the other is busily mashing buttons, so… yeah, sorry about that. It was fun, though.

By the time I made a point to cross over to the Hyatt (the AMV entries in the comedy category were being screened), it was finally warmer outside than it was inside. And on my way, I encountered something I don’t think we’d ever seen before at a convention.

In fairness, I’ve never been much of a car guy; you know this. My attitude toward cars is a nonchalant shrug like Detective Columbo, and his resigned line that “it’s transportation.” The idea of tricking a car out to homage one’s favorite anime (or a specific waifu character even more so) absolutely baffles me. That being said, I can and will respect the dedication these folks display to be willing to do this.

To be sure, it’s not like we haven’t seen a few cars like this from time to time at various (but by no means all) conventions, but to see at least a half dozen or so congregated together like this; that’s coordination. To think that there’s an entire group of people willing to do something like this: hey, I’m impressed, even though only the Yang (from RWBY) and Komi-san (from Komi-san Can’t Communicate) ring any bells with me.

On the other hand, for what it’s worth, the anime music videos weren’t all that great this year. I don’t know if it’s the lack of recognition of the footage or the music, but there wasn’t really a lot of laughter in the room while they were screening this alleged ‘comedy.’ So one form of anime appreciation seems to be losing its luster while another begins to rise in prominence. I guess that’s how things go.

Not sure how much I’ll be relating to you about tonight, but if you can keep an eye on me, and wish me luck, I’d appreciate it. After all, I’m going to need it.