Please read this damn thing. It took me an hour and forty five minutes to type.
I'm leaving this publicly posted on the off chance that someone I met or gave my LJ name to might stumble across it.
the_hawk and I drove to Jacksonville Wednesday night so we could fly out of the Jax airport at dawn the next morning. lrdchtulu and his wife kindly put us up for the evening (and helpfully assured me that he did not in fact see me naked when he walked past the open bathroom at 4 am).
The flights went surprisingly smoothly. As we were standing up to exit the plane after landing in L.A., I looked down the aisle and saw two girls that I could have sworn I'd seen before, but no idea where.
Matt and I immediately located shimmelk at baggage claim. She was hunched sideways on a bench holding a "Collecting Mr. Smith" sign. After much shrieking and hugging, she told us that while waiting she'd seen Gordon Ramsay collecting his luggage. She was only able to get this blurry photo of him next to a pillar, because if she'd tried anything more obvious he'd have eaten her face.
We collected our rental car, checked into the hotel, and shimmelk and I went to haunt the lobby. After a while, we saw Gareth David Lloyd checking in, which shot my adrenaline level sky high. At some point that night while drinking in the lobby we met Gay British Simon who spent the weekend lusting after Matt. We also eventually began talking to the two girls I'd seen on the plane and it turned out their room was directly across from ours. Thus the alliance of Team Awesome (pronounced with a heavy Welsh accent) and The Girls Across The Hall began - which was a lifesaver for me, since findingbeauty took a ton of really good photos and also was kind enough to introduce me to rm when I was too chicken to talk to her.
The plan had been to go to Disneyland that afternoon, but hmfeelyat missed her flight - and then her second flight, even though her luggage had already been sent on. Heroes that we are, we hopped into the car and made the five minute drive to pick up her luggage, returning to the airport hours later to collect Heidi herself. Behold her awesome Garth Marenghi shirt!
The next morning we ate croissanwiches and then headed back to the hotel to prepare for the first day of programming. My priorities were obviously GDL and Kai Owen (Ianto and Rhys). Their first Q&A was hilarious and GDL's constant use of "Awesome" amused us greatly. When asked if we'll ever get to see Ianto's flat, he answered that he thought Ianto lived in the Hub, "in Jack's manhole". (If you'd like to see their panels, check out lv2bliberal's YouTube videos.
The highlight of Friday had to be when Kai was answering a question and someone shouted from the back of the room. It was Naoko Mori (Tosh)! She went up to the stage and joined the boys for the last half of the Q&A. She was adorably sweet, though much quieter than the guys.
Directly after the panel was the first GDL and Kai autograph session (as well as Peter Anghelides - had to run to the room and get my copy of Pack Animals). Because he was being sponsored by a company, Kai had to charge 20 bucks per autograph. I wasn't really willing to pay that, so I apologized and moved on, though apparently he and shimmelk discussed jam.
My main regret about the whole weekend was that in order to stave off an obsessive hyperventilating freak-out (which, uh, I did twice anyway), I purposefully tried to not think about where I was or whom I was standing next to. I was unthankfully aided in this process by GDL who, IMHO, was kind of a douchebag. Whenever not doing a panel, he seemed bored, annoyed, and completely distracted by his girlfriend who he had sitting next to him during the autograph sessions - which I thought was the slightly inappropriate, though not as inappropriate as if he'd had her on the stage for the Q&A sessions. Despite his obvious indifference, I had him sign my LISA IS DEEEEEEEEAD!!! shirt as well as a gift for someone I presume will be reading this. You can see the signature in this photo of the Canadian and I hugging the TARDIS.
The next day I wore my Ianto costume and attended the cosplaying, Torchwood-related, and one DW series 4 review along with Toby Hadoke interviewing GDL. As soon as that was over, we hopped in the rental car and drove to Disneyland. Because I was in total nerd mode, all I could see in Tomorrowland were Jack and Torchwood related things - I was convinced that these were Torchwood trash cans. Since we only had a few hours, we managed three rides - the Matterhorn, the Great Thunder Mountain Railroad, and Space Mountain. Waiting in line for an hour and a half for Space Mountain was torture, but we passed the time with dramatic readings of a Doctor Who novel.
As soon as we got out of Space Mountain, I was practically whipping their heels to get them out the gate so I could get back for the Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang: Adult Themes in Torchwood and Doctor Who panel (which totally turned out to be all about fanfic, and I had read every story referenced, and I agree completely that Jack/The Doctor's Hand is NOT a pairing, and and and...)
Unfortunately, because we went to Disneyland, I missed the Masquerade as well as Toby Hadoke's stage play/stand-up thing. Apparently there was a group of people dressed as Doctor Who and Torchwood Do High School Musical and a full-size Dalek with a bow on its head.
Sunday I was planning to re-wear my Ianto-as-a-woman from Almost Perfect costume that I'd worn to the adult panel, but I didn't want to deal with the heels, so I wore my Boosh tour t-shirt instead which received an incredible amount of attention from the other con attendees. I did continue to carry around the coffee pot I'd been using as a purse for my Ianto costumes, as seen here with our Garth Marenghi in-joke maggots.
Due to scheduling issues, GDL and Kai's photo session was moved to Sunday morning (at the same time as the Impact of Torchwood panel - grr). I was nervous as hell, though I befriended a cosplaying Martha in line. Team Awesome decided to do three separate photos and then one group. Here is the Canadian making a sad Welshman face which apparently GDL didn't realize was what she'd asked for. I had my photo taken by the con staff so it'll go on the Gallifrey site.
Behold Team Awesome!
Sunday was the day when I truly came to the conclusion that GDL is a dickweed. At the photo session, he snapped my bra strap. What the hell was that about? Directly after the photo session, we headed for their last autograph signing. It was held in the dealer room and thus much less formal. I again apologized to Kai for not even having twenty bucks on me, and he was very sweet and admired my tattoos. Next up: The Bitchy Welshman.
Me: Hi! Could you sign my program to Caz? It's for my roommate, he's watching our cats.
GDL: Is he. ::signs::
Me: ::sets down coffee pot::
GDL: What's the deal with the tea pot?
Me: Uh... it's a coffee pot. You know, because Ianto makes the coffee?
GDL: Oh. ::grabs it and signs the top without asking my name because he sees it on my con badge::
Me: ::trembling, takes it back:: Thanks. Um. I... ::runs away::
I spent the next two hours alternately crying and raging in our hotel room. As Heidi and the Canadian pointed out, GDL and Ianto really barely resemble one another, and that my love for a character can continue even if the actor is a tumbling dickweed. As it is, I think I'm going to avoid him at any future cons I may attend.
That night I met spinemasher and naebeliser in one of the hotel restaurants. While we were eating, I looked up to see Kai Owen just chilling in the bar with a beer. With many apologies to Kari and Mike, I got up to go talk to him.
Me: Kai! I'm sorry again about not being able to pay for your autograph.
Kai: Tattoo girl! Do you have a pen? No one needs to know if I sign something now.
Me: Seriously? Yeah, hold on!
So he signed my con badge and then we talked about air travel and how he was astonished at how long it took to fly across the U.S. and I told him the horror story of our trip back from the UK and he told me about a time he fell asleep on a train and ended up in Scotland by accident. Compare these two interactions and then tell me if you disagree with my assessment of GDL.
Even better than getting Kai's autograph was that Naoko Mori showed up in the bar a few minutes later. findingbeauty took my photo with her and if I get a copy, I'll post it.
Thus ends the tale of the most awesome weekend ever. If you want to know any of the slight spoilers/info about Torchwood Series 3 that I found out, please comment and I'll either e-mail or IM you.
Because the part that took place a few hours later when I brutally mangled my shoulder is not part of the awesome.
the_hawk and I drove to Jacksonville Wednesday night so we could fly out of the Jax airport at dawn the next morning. lrdchtulu and his wife kindly put us up for the evening (and helpfully assured me that he did not in fact see me naked when he walked past the open bathroom at 4 am).
The flights went surprisingly smoothly. As we were standing up to exit the plane after landing in L.A., I looked down the aisle and saw two girls that I could have sworn I'd seen before, but no idea where.
Matt and I immediately located shimmelk at baggage claim. She was hunched sideways on a bench holding a "Collecting Mr. Smith" sign. After much shrieking and hugging, she told us that while waiting she'd seen Gordon Ramsay collecting his luggage. She was only able to get this blurry photo of him next to a pillar, because if she'd tried anything more obvious he'd have eaten her face.
We collected our rental car, checked into the hotel, and shimmelk and I went to haunt the lobby. After a while, we saw Gareth David Lloyd checking in, which shot my adrenaline level sky high. At some point that night while drinking in the lobby we met Gay British Simon who spent the weekend lusting after Matt. We also eventually began talking to the two girls I'd seen on the plane and it turned out their room was directly across from ours. Thus the alliance of Team Awesome (pronounced with a heavy Welsh accent) and The Girls Across The Hall began - which was a lifesaver for me, since findingbeauty took a ton of really good photos and also was kind enough to introduce me to rm when I was too chicken to talk to her.
The plan had been to go to Disneyland that afternoon, but hmfeelyat missed her flight - and then her second flight, even though her luggage had already been sent on. Heroes that we are, we hopped into the car and made the five minute drive to pick up her luggage, returning to the airport hours later to collect Heidi herself. Behold her awesome Garth Marenghi shirt!
The next morning we ate croissanwiches and then headed back to the hotel to prepare for the first day of programming. My priorities were obviously GDL and Kai Owen (Ianto and Rhys). Their first Q&A was hilarious and GDL's constant use of "Awesome" amused us greatly. When asked if we'll ever get to see Ianto's flat, he answered that he thought Ianto lived in the Hub, "in Jack's manhole". (If you'd like to see their panels, check out lv2bliberal's YouTube videos.
The highlight of Friday had to be when Kai was answering a question and someone shouted from the back of the room. It was Naoko Mori (Tosh)! She went up to the stage and joined the boys for the last half of the Q&A. She was adorably sweet, though much quieter than the guys.
Directly after the panel was the first GDL and Kai autograph session (as well as Peter Anghelides - had to run to the room and get my copy of Pack Animals). Because he was being sponsored by a company, Kai had to charge 20 bucks per autograph. I wasn't really willing to pay that, so I apologized and moved on, though apparently he and shimmelk discussed jam.
My main regret about the whole weekend was that in order to stave off an obsessive hyperventilating freak-out (which, uh, I did twice anyway), I purposefully tried to not think about where I was or whom I was standing next to. I was unthankfully aided in this process by GDL who, IMHO, was kind of a douchebag. Whenever not doing a panel, he seemed bored, annoyed, and completely distracted by his girlfriend who he had sitting next to him during the autograph sessions - which I thought was the slightly inappropriate, though not as inappropriate as if he'd had her on the stage for the Q&A sessions. Despite his obvious indifference, I had him sign my LISA IS DEEEEEEEEAD!!! shirt as well as a gift for someone I presume will be reading this. You can see the signature in this photo of the Canadian and I hugging the TARDIS.
The next day I wore my Ianto costume and attended the cosplaying, Torchwood-related, and one DW series 4 review along with Toby Hadoke interviewing GDL. As soon as that was over, we hopped in the rental car and drove to Disneyland. Because I was in total nerd mode, all I could see in Tomorrowland were Jack and Torchwood related things - I was convinced that these were Torchwood trash cans. Since we only had a few hours, we managed three rides - the Matterhorn, the Great Thunder Mountain Railroad, and Space Mountain. Waiting in line for an hour and a half for Space Mountain was torture, but we passed the time with dramatic readings of a Doctor Who novel.
As soon as we got out of Space Mountain, I was practically whipping their heels to get them out the gate so I could get back for the Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang: Adult Themes in Torchwood and Doctor Who panel (which totally turned out to be all about fanfic, and I had read every story referenced, and I agree completely that Jack/The Doctor's Hand is NOT a pairing, and and and...)
Unfortunately, because we went to Disneyland, I missed the Masquerade as well as Toby Hadoke's stage play/stand-up thing. Apparently there was a group of people dressed as Doctor Who and Torchwood Do High School Musical and a full-size Dalek with a bow on its head.
Sunday I was planning to re-wear my Ianto-as-a-woman from Almost Perfect costume that I'd worn to the adult panel, but I didn't want to deal with the heels, so I wore my Boosh tour t-shirt instead which received an incredible amount of attention from the other con attendees. I did continue to carry around the coffee pot I'd been using as a purse for my Ianto costumes, as seen here with our Garth Marenghi in-joke maggots.
Due to scheduling issues, GDL and Kai's photo session was moved to Sunday morning (at the same time as the Impact of Torchwood panel - grr). I was nervous as hell, though I befriended a cosplaying Martha in line. Team Awesome decided to do three separate photos and then one group. Here is the Canadian making a sad Welshman face which apparently GDL didn't realize was what she'd asked for. I had my photo taken by the con staff so it'll go on the Gallifrey site.
Behold Team Awesome!
Sunday was the day when I truly came to the conclusion that GDL is a dickweed. At the photo session, he snapped my bra strap. What the hell was that about? Directly after the photo session, we headed for their last autograph signing. It was held in the dealer room and thus much less formal. I again apologized to Kai for not even having twenty bucks on me, and he was very sweet and admired my tattoos. Next up: The Bitchy Welshman.
Me: Hi! Could you sign my program to Caz? It's for my roommate, he's watching our cats.
GDL: Is he. ::signs::
Me: ::sets down coffee pot::
GDL: What's the deal with the tea pot?
Me: Uh... it's a coffee pot. You know, because Ianto makes the coffee?
GDL: Oh. ::grabs it and signs the top without asking my name because he sees it on my con badge::
Me: ::trembling, takes it back:: Thanks. Um. I... ::runs away::
I spent the next two hours alternately crying and raging in our hotel room. As Heidi and the Canadian pointed out, GDL and Ianto really barely resemble one another, and that my love for a character can continue even if the actor is a tumbling dickweed. As it is, I think I'm going to avoid him at any future cons I may attend.
That night I met spinemasher and naebeliser in one of the hotel restaurants. While we were eating, I looked up to see Kai Owen just chilling in the bar with a beer. With many apologies to Kari and Mike, I got up to go talk to him.
Me: Kai! I'm sorry again about not being able to pay for your autograph.
Kai: Tattoo girl! Do you have a pen? No one needs to know if I sign something now.
Me: Seriously? Yeah, hold on!
So he signed my con badge and then we talked about air travel and how he was astonished at how long it took to fly across the U.S. and I told him the horror story of our trip back from the UK and he told me about a time he fell asleep on a train and ended up in Scotland by accident. Compare these two interactions and then tell me if you disagree with my assessment of GDL.
Even better than getting Kai's autograph was that Naoko Mori showed up in the bar a few minutes later. findingbeauty took my photo with her and if I get a copy, I'll post it.
Thus ends the tale of the most awesome weekend ever. If you want to know any of the slight spoilers/info about Torchwood Series 3 that I found out, please comment and I'll either e-mail or IM you.
Because the part that took place a few hours later when I brutally mangled my shoulder is not part of the awesome.