![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
The Gathering of the Fellowship
Jul. 4th, 2006 01:18 pmOkay, so I haven't slept in four days, and barely eaten in just as long. And my allergies are just killing me. I stayed at work for 1.5 hours, and then gave up. Besides, I missed by computer. ::hugs computer::
Well, the Gathering went off, with a few hitches, but rather understandably. A huge congratulations have to go to Ed, Anthony and Jesse who didn't sleep at all the last 7 days, and who looked like walking zombies, and yet were still the first at work and the last to bed.
Other than that, my weekend has been made in many, many ways. So here is the high points. The offical Con report, which will get written...some time this week, will be posted here later, once I've put it up on the MF board for Kristy.
Friday: Got to the hotel early, which was nice, and had no problem getting to the room. Roomies are great. Had an inordinately expensive meal at Traders. Someone remind me never to go there again. Managed to get registered without hassle, which was nice, because Saturday morning was hectic.
Saturday: Managed to get down for Opening Ceremonies on time this year! It was...interesting. The theme was the Music of the Ainur, with Thoth as Iluvatar and Lingalad as the Ainur. Again, was...interesting. Went to a few very enjoyable panels during the day. Much better than the last Gathering. Got all dressed up as a hobbit (pictures to follow) for the picnic, got over to Hanlan island, got dinner, and then it rained. Finally gave up and we all came back to the hotel before the fireworks started and Lingalad treated us to an unofficial concert. Had a blast, and didn't miss not seeing the Festival of Fire.
Sunday: Went to panels in the morning. Then walked down to the Princess of Wales, in 5 layers of fabric never meant for 35* humidex. Died. Bought a green shirt that says "Fool of a Took" on it. Couldn't help myself, as all Gathering attendees got a discount at the theatre. The performance was FANTASTIC. Better even than 5 weeks ago. But it was the audience that made the difference. Everyone clapped at the end of a musical number and at the end of a scene. And there was a 10 minutes standing ovation at the end. The cast more than deserved it. Afterwards, when everyone else took off back to the hotel, 7 of us walked around the back to the stage door to see if any of the actors were about. They were!!!! Got to meet Merry, Gimli and Aragorn (who really is hot in real life). Got autographs and photos! And they thanked us for enjoying it so much. They were all a little depressed that the show has been cancelled. But Gimli was especially happy that for the first time the audience actually laughed when he bids Frodo "Namarie" at the end. No one else ever gets it. We were happy to oblige. Managed to rush back to the hotel in time to catch Ted Nasmith's artwork sh0w. Afterwards I thanked him for getting me into painting and Tolkien illustration, and he was suitably shocked. Gave me a nice autograph too. Then went and got changed (again) for the VIP reception. Which was fun, as I managed to coral both Bruce and Ted into photos. Which turned out well! Missed the room party that apparently ended up as a con party in the ballroom involving much brandy and chocolate. C'est la vie.
Monday: Got up in order to get in line for autographs. Was number 10! It was nice and informal and everyone was taking their time. It's so often rushed. Bruce called me beautiful, and hugged me, and wrote me a very nice note in my Two Towers book. Craig also called me beautiful (up ego!) and the picture of the two of us turned out fantasically! It was a good start to the day. After this, I rather lost track of the number of people who called me beautiful. It's so nice to here. Spent the day at panels, most of which involved Craig and Bruce and a lot of rather dirty comedy. :D I love those two. Craig now has 3 different versions of why Haldir was killed. Each one gets funnier.
Banquet: Took some of the afternoon off to get ready and do a photo shoot. The waterfall garden at the Sheraton really was the perfect location. We got some great photos, and the longer we were out, the more people showed up. There were some AMAZING costumes! I shall post pictures later, I promise. There was one lady dressed in Arwen's wedding gown, and OMG. ::dies:: And one guy dressed as Aragorn (in ranger gear) and OMG. Why is it that everyone who pretends/acts as Aragorn is hot? ::dies some more:: Took pictures with everyone for over an hour and then went to dinner. Then was the costume contest, hosted by Craig, and there were some great entries. And then everyone said thank you, and Lingalad started to play. At this point in time I was barely able to stay upright, so I went back to the room. Somehow I dragged myself out of bed at 7 this morning to get to work. Not that that lasted long...
All in all, was a fantasic weekend. Wish it was an annual thing.
Off to catch up on fanfic.
~a very tired Amy
Well, the Gathering went off, with a few hitches, but rather understandably. A huge congratulations have to go to Ed, Anthony and Jesse who didn't sleep at all the last 7 days, and who looked like walking zombies, and yet were still the first at work and the last to bed.
Other than that, my weekend has been made in many, many ways. So here is the high points. The offical Con report, which will get written...some time this week, will be posted here later, once I've put it up on the MF board for Kristy.
Friday: Got to the hotel early, which was nice, and had no problem getting to the room. Roomies are great. Had an inordinately expensive meal at Traders. Someone remind me never to go there again. Managed to get registered without hassle, which was nice, because Saturday morning was hectic.
Saturday: Managed to get down for Opening Ceremonies on time this year! It was...interesting. The theme was the Music of the Ainur, with Thoth as Iluvatar and Lingalad as the Ainur. Again, was...interesting. Went to a few very enjoyable panels during the day. Much better than the last Gathering. Got all dressed up as a hobbit (pictures to follow) for the picnic, got over to Hanlan island, got dinner, and then it rained. Finally gave up and we all came back to the hotel before the fireworks started and Lingalad treated us to an unofficial concert. Had a blast, and didn't miss not seeing the Festival of Fire.
Sunday: Went to panels in the morning. Then walked down to the Princess of Wales, in 5 layers of fabric never meant for 35* humidex. Died. Bought a green shirt that says "Fool of a Took" on it. Couldn't help myself, as all Gathering attendees got a discount at the theatre. The performance was FANTASTIC. Better even than 5 weeks ago. But it was the audience that made the difference. Everyone clapped at the end of a musical number and at the end of a scene. And there was a 10 minutes standing ovation at the end. The cast more than deserved it. Afterwards, when everyone else took off back to the hotel, 7 of us walked around the back to the stage door to see if any of the actors were about. They were!!!! Got to meet Merry, Gimli and Aragorn (who really is hot in real life). Got autographs and photos! And they thanked us for enjoying it so much. They were all a little depressed that the show has been cancelled. But Gimli was especially happy that for the first time the audience actually laughed when he bids Frodo "Namarie" at the end. No one else ever gets it. We were happy to oblige. Managed to rush back to the hotel in time to catch Ted Nasmith's artwork sh0w. Afterwards I thanked him for getting me into painting and Tolkien illustration, and he was suitably shocked. Gave me a nice autograph too. Then went and got changed (again) for the VIP reception. Which was fun, as I managed to coral both Bruce and Ted into photos. Which turned out well! Missed the room party that apparently ended up as a con party in the ballroom involving much brandy and chocolate. C'est la vie.
Monday: Got up in order to get in line for autographs. Was number 10! It was nice and informal and everyone was taking their time. It's so often rushed. Bruce called me beautiful, and hugged me, and wrote me a very nice note in my Two Towers book. Craig also called me beautiful (up ego!) and the picture of the two of us turned out fantasically! It was a good start to the day. After this, I rather lost track of the number of people who called me beautiful. It's so nice to here. Spent the day at panels, most of which involved Craig and Bruce and a lot of rather dirty comedy. :D I love those two. Craig now has 3 different versions of why Haldir was killed. Each one gets funnier.
Banquet: Took some of the afternoon off to get ready and do a photo shoot. The waterfall garden at the Sheraton really was the perfect location. We got some great photos, and the longer we were out, the more people showed up. There were some AMAZING costumes! I shall post pictures later, I promise. There was one lady dressed in Arwen's wedding gown, and OMG. ::dies:: And one guy dressed as Aragorn (in ranger gear) and OMG. Why is it that everyone who pretends/acts as Aragorn is hot? ::dies some more:: Took pictures with everyone for over an hour and then went to dinner. Then was the costume contest, hosted by Craig, and there were some great entries. And then everyone said thank you, and Lingalad started to play. At this point in time I was barely able to stay upright, so I went back to the room. Somehow I dragged myself out of bed at 7 this morning to get to work. Not that that lasted long...
All in all, was a fantasic weekend. Wish it was an annual thing.
Off to catch up on fanfic.
~a very tired Amy
