I woke up early because it was Sunday and I go to church on Sundays. It was good I stayed with my sister because I was able to get walk to St. Joseph's Cathedral and go to 7am Mass. I am definitely more of a morning person. It's was nice walking early in the morning. After Mass I had to go back to my place to pack my stuff. I bought 2 train tickets for 8:24 pm. The plan was to see Much Ado About Nothing before going home. I contacted my line buddy Mike Saturday about the Nathan Fillion NerdHQ Panel tickets. Mike texted back that he had tickets for me and that he would meet me across from the Marvel booth at 10 am. So I hopped on the trolley and headed back to the Navy Lodge. I grabbed my stuff and went back to Carol and Chuckie's hotel to drop off my stuff and then I high tailed it as quickly as I could to meet Mike. The trolley runs every 30 minutes on Sunday so I was worried I would miss out on these tickets. I let Mike know I was running late and true to form he was generous and said he understood no rush he will wait. Our meeting spot was Bongo Comics right in front of the Marvel booth. Since he was there waiting I asked if he could try to get me an Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. poster. I finally reached Mike and paid for the tickets. He told me they ran out of posters...after he grabbed the last one. Mike is amazing. It was a sincere and genuine delight meeting him. Unfortunately I didn't get to spend more time with him but we did exchange numbers. As Mike said, Whedonites need to stick together. I offered Mike another button and this time he chose Serenity. Now I had to hurry for the 11 am Nathan Fillion Panel at NerdHQ and it was already 10:20 am. However I had to make a stop at the Jason Palmer booth. First I needed to protect my Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. poster and replenish my buttons. I've known Jason and Yelena since 2003 when I bought Jason's first Firefly Crew Print. I bought many pieces over the year.
After taking a pic of the Jason and Yelena Palmer and one of their assistants Corinne, I left very quickly and walked over to NerdHQ. I was really excited to see Nathan again and I was hoping that Alan Tudyk was moderating. The tickets I bought were not together but one was the first row so took that one. It was just magic when Alan Tudyk walked out to start the panel. My wish was granted. Alan and Nathan together are always entertaining. The audience roared for Alan and then finally Nathan Fillion walked out. One chair was in the middle of the stage and the other was off to the side. These 2 guys are so tight that I knew that the other chair would need to be next to Nathan's. Nathan looked over at the chair confused and then Alan moved it over. I can never remember everything about these panels. So I am thankful that this one lives in You Tube. I have met both Nathan and Alan so many times that they recognize me. I have been a long time fan and have made an impression. I went to the taping of a pilot Alan was doing and he spoke about me at a Convention in Australia! He was telling the audience about how I went so if it was picked up they could come see it too. Nathan is always a sweetheart and I think he just gets a kick out of the fact that he knows me by name and of course that I was in the movie. So I tell people Nathan and Alan know me but I always think maybe people think I have delusions of grandeur. That people think the guys are just being nice to me and they really don't know who I am but play along. Well now I have proof that they do know me.
I love not only that Nathan remembered me but the sound of his voice and his smile it was sheer joy for me. My favorite part is when he interrupts me to tell everyone I was in the movie. Then his enjoyment at my answer was wonderful. I notice that Alan was the first to notice me as Nathan is trying to locate me. I love that Alan is answering me and looking at me as he gives his answer. I was happy with my speech and my questions. The fact I was articulate and I remembered to include my sister in the interaction was awesome. It was a wonderful moment I will never forget and if I never get that close to them again I am ok with that. I have already been blessed abundantly. It's been 4 years since I last spoke with Alan. I am always hopeful but someday will be my last visit. This was a great one and I am ok if this was the last one, I would be going out on a high note. Both Nathan and Alan are rising stars and soon they will be out of reach.
I was hoping to get back to Nerd HQ and get a picture taken with both Nathan and Alan but unfortunately I ran into a bit of bad luck. We had to go back to the hotel because Carol and Chuckie still needed to pack. It turns out that Chuckie did not know about the fact Amtrak was requiring reservations. I checked online and saw that every train was sold out. Then I pulled out my ticket and realized I bought tickets for the 8:24 AM!!! Suddenly we had to find a ride home. Chuckie called her parents to see if they wanted to come pick us up. Dad said no then suggested we rent a car. I called around and tweeted about our need. We left our bags with the bell desk at the hotel and inquired about renting a car. It was a little more than we wanted to pay so we decided to go to the train station to see if there was anything they could do for us. All that they were able to do is reimburse me for my missed trains so at least that was a little something.
After the leaving the train station we walked over to the Gaslamp Theatre to buy Chuckie's ticket for Much Ado About Nothing. This was my 9th time and Carol and Chuckie's first time. By this time I was getting really hungry. On our way to the theatre we passed this place with a nice older lady who was soliciting business. The place was called Casablanco and it offered Meditteranean African food. It was really really good food. As we walked around and ate we all reached out and finally Chuckie found someone who was leaving at 8pm so that was perfect plenty of time to watch our movie and get back to the hotel and wait for our Hero Bobby. He spent his time in Hall H so he was able to give us info on all that we missed. I tried to keep Bobby Talking because we were all tired and would have fallen asleep if possible. I finally got home at 10:30pm, Home Sweet Home. It was a weird feeling. I was super tired but super happy I was still flying high from seeing Nathan and Alan earlier in the day. I found out a favorite show of mine was cancelled, Bunheads, but I could not fathom it. I was too happy to become sad.
I was very very fortunate to get tickets to the Con. I am not sure if I will be so lucky next year but I decided that if I don’t get tickets I will either still come down anyway or go on vacation elsewhere. I will not stay home wishing to be at Comic Con. It is an amazing experience but really wears me out and I spend too much money. I need more money. Dragon Con is next and that is really my very favorite Con. I hang out with my East Coast friends and they have Dragon Con Parade on Saturday. It is less insane that Comic Con and I love it a lot. I already bought my air and have a place to stay. Dragon Con here I come.
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