Before I get back on the road: I just had an awesome time in Seattle over Emerald City Comicon—special thanks to Jim Demonakos and Mike Byers! And after five straight years, I think my little colony of Treklanders there is really growing—a hoot for me, since Seattle in 2012 is the very first place I tried out my "Con of Wrath" crowdfunder meetup idea. The prior two years I had cut my chops doing 8 a.m. fan meetups with Shannon and Matt and their once-and-current Seattle Geekly podcast! ECCC itself is just booming and selling out, as are most comic-cons.
Now, little did I guess that panel-and-meetup Sunday would be an even more hoppin' day than I'd planned: A pretty full crowd greeted us for our fan forum "State of the Trek," and a lot of passionate, feminist, activist, pro-and anti-corporate views of Trek were voiced...and I think I added a little insight as well. Our Q&A speakers were lively, with everything from feminism and untapped diversity to "Hollywood factory" disgust versus JJ's franchise-saving put forth—and I think I threw out a few insights folks might not have considered, too.
But the adrenalin was already pumpin' thanks to TWO shocks right before that, in bang-bang order...
With about 45 minutes to go, who comes up to say hello but three honchos from Seattle's own Outdoor Trek theatre group (inspired but he now-ended similar group in Portland), Joy DeLyria (left) and Kris Hambrick—plus Phillip Duff (who took this snap, right). I'd only read of their productions of TOS Trek—treating the classic scripts like Shakespeare with free-form and free-casting choices meant to showcase the stories, like those of the Bard's as timeless. In fact, with 20 minutes to go til my panel, I grabbed the Canon and we SHOT a 10-minute interview for TREKLAND STV that you'll see here before their season starts in July. 
So that's why, why before I chatted with Kris and Joy, curting it close.... I accepted this $180 value DS9 tabletop gameplay station model from Stephanie Fields and Sarah Tolsma of Uncle's Games of Seattle/Spokane, who ran it over to me just so I could give it away. Easy come ...
... And easy go. After teasing it sitting out all panel long and thanking and plugging the store profusely, still amazed myself, we did a trivia question fior it. Dave Kosin, whose energy we practically had to restrain, actually won it fair and square. My thanks to front-rower SarafinaCosplay.com for hopping up to give me a second set of eyes once I launched the trivia question. Good job, Sarafina—we did not need a run-off!
But I needed a breather. Our post-panel throng was wonderful... but thanks to Seattle fan and follower Umberto Lenzi I eventually got out of there and up the hill three blocks via rollerbags for our third annual "Dr. Trek" crowdfunder-meetup for The Con of Wrath...back in the Six Arms pub where it all began.
And that I'll save that story for later this week...
To the young lady in the brown, "Inevitable betrayal" Wash Firefly TShirt who so elegantly defended J.J. Abrams and his movies, and by extension the new and younger fans who came to Trek fandom because of them:
I want you to know that I love you, and nothing I threw in as commentary from other sources was meant to squelch your intelligence, your opinions, and most of all, your passion. Thank god we have you and so many more like you. I'd have loved to have talked to you more, but until I can—just keep the fire, girl. Don't let the Tellurian turkeys (including, perhaps, me) get you down!
Maybe should be it's own post?
I didn't do much cosplay snapping, but I couldn't resist this shot just outside the convention center:
