End of Summer Musings

A Blog Post in 3 parts over multiple days probably defeats the purpose of a blog, but I've been traveling a LOT over the past 2 weeks, and my internet time has been limited at best.

From August 24-26 I was in Toronto working in a booth for AbbyShot at a convention called "Fan Expo". The weekend after that (August 31 - September 4) I was off to Atlanta for ANOTHER convention called "Dragon*Con" (which I fondly mentioned on this very blog last year).

I'll probably post soon with full reviews of both cons, but here are a few random thoughts from along the way.

Part 1 - Monday, August 27, 2007 - 10:00pm

Starting a new blog post, because Karen reminded me.

On the GO Train to Oakville now, after a crazy 4 (or was it 5?) days in Toronto. Karen's actually a good friend that I met 2 years ago during an amazing 4 months in France during an exchange term. It's cool that after all this time (2 years!), we're talking like that time in Rennes was only yesterday. We're both in agreement that it was one of the best times in both of our lives. I could say SO much about it all, but it's something you can only REALLY get if you were there. You know how it is.

It was funny, myself and Karen had a dinner of great pasta and went for a quick drink at a pub afterwards. Her boyfriend Mike (who she met during those 4 months in France) text messaged while we were at the bar, with an inside joke. Good times, the memories definitely live on. We discussed going back to Rennes, but we decided it would have to be a reunion trip. It wouldn't be the same place without the same people there. The people and the place have just been so intertwined in my mind that one without the other would feel not-quite-whole. Hard to explain, but true.


Part 2 - Tuesday, August 28, 2007 - 1:25pm

Quote of the day, from the Toronto Star:

"The original score is balls to the walls; it just doesn't stop as the orchestra is sawing away like they're clearing a forest. We're trying to let the film breathe a bit more."

- Andrew McPherson (of the band Eccodek) discusses his new score to Fritz Lang's 1927 science fiction classic 'Metropolis'

I'm gladly taking the day to relax and read the paper.


Part 3 - Sunday, September 2, 2007 - 8:30am

Wow, Atlanta is certainly a city of contradictions. Especially in Dragon*Con season. Yesterday we went from the aforementioned "con" (one of the biggest sci-fi / fantasy conventions in the USA, and probably THE best for costuming) to the Atlanta Underground area (which is known for its cheap market by day, and known for its layers of clubs by night). It's impossible to describe the difference between the two extremes, but interesting that everybody worships 'something' in their off-hours. Whether it's the movie "Evil Dead" or the latest rap tune, it's just good to get out there with a few like-minded people to enjoy it.

I'm beginning to think I've over-analyzed my night. Perhaps it's the beverages I was drinking.

Speaking of contradictions, I was talking to a girl at one of the bars we visited (an Irish pub playing ONLY rap music - go figure, it's Atlanta), and she was named "Portia" after the Shakespearean character. She thought her name was ghetto because everyone thinks she was named after the sports car. It's all about your perspective, isn't it?