After too much waffling, I finally plunked my money down for a 4 day pass and hotel reservations at Gen Con. I did this once before, when I was in high school. It was a bad experience. Since then, I’ve been content to occasionally pick up a day pass at the door and wander around like an outsider. I’d buy some stuff and bring it home, checking out the new games I decided on a whim to invest in. But I never got involved in at the con. I always tried to keep my distance.
This year, I’m doing things differently. I’m going to get involved in events, and allow myself to enjoy the company of people who are just as delighted by these silly hobby as I am. The voices of those who grouse about “4e being the death of D&D” and, “this army book is broken” or, “everyone here but me is a retard”, are going to drift on by and I’ll focus my attention on the people who just want to build something cool and have a ton of fun doing it.
This hobby seems to attract a lot of sad people with sad attitudes, and they often get to me. But this year at Gen Con is not going to be like that. This year, I’m dedicating my time at Gen Con to experiencing the joy that playing games with like-minded people brings me.
This year, smiles everybody! SMILES!