Red, white, and blue, and geeks too!

The best fourth of July I had was probably the first year I attended CONvergence, a local sci-fi convention held every year over 4th of July weekend. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy cook-outs and fireworks as much as the next gal (well, cook-outs anyway I can take or leave fireworks) and I'm happy to live here in the good ol' US of A, but your typical Independence Day celebration just doesn't stand up to a long weekend of rowdy, geeky fun.

If you've never been to a fan-run convention before, you probably have a very different picture in your mind of what it's like. I know I did before I started going to cons. Events like CONvergence are held at hotels, not convention centers, and they're about more than meeting famous people. They're about meeting other fans, and having fun. Spending time with people I like is a central reason why I go to cons. Every year I see people from college, work, high school, the internet, and of course that other category of "I have no idea how we met, but HI!". And con gives us a chance to catch up, have a drink, play a game, go to dinner... It's just... fun.

My husband and I as Jabba and Leia at a con

Aside from seeing friends, the biggest draw for a lot of people are the parties. Every night at CONvergence each room in the first two floors hosts a party. The parties have themes, food, booze, decorations, and their own unique atmospheres. For example, there's the TARDIS Tea Society party room, where the door looks like a TARDIS (and it is bigger on the inside) and they play Dr. Who and serve tea and adult beverages and cute little British-style finger foods. It's one of the more low-key rooms and one of my favorites. But there are parties of all speeds and intensities, here's just a short list of things I've seen at CONvergence parties: fake political campaigns, zombie snot drinks, massages, pole dancers, body shots with vodka whipped cream, giant inflatable peeps, toast with any topping you can imagine, movies, klingons, delicious meatballs, custom made cupcakes, a completely convincing Star Wars cantina, people in every costume imaginable, and many, many more fun, geeky, spectacles.

There's so much to do and so many things to see, I'm afraid this post is not doing it justice. Stay tuned in 2 weeks and I'll give the skinny on what CONvergence meant to me this year. And have a great weekend!