"Poisoned... by, God! No... by Ten."

Friday Gallery

3:00PM rolled in and the Dealers Room opened while panels started. While this allowed people to commence the SacAnime experience, having both rooms on the same side of the hall made it confusing to determine which line was for what. Having already perused the Dealers Room in the morning to determine what I wanted later and attending the Travis Willingham and Vic Mignogna voice acting panel would yield the information needed for my Arts & Entertainment articles, I opted for the panels. I hoped Laura Bailey would have joined so I could get the trifecta in one panel, but she was working and flying in later that night.

No matter how much an anime fan loves or hates an English dubs, it is very hard to hate these people live onstage. They all ooze a certain charisma during their panels. That combined with already established fan girls and fan boys screaming over every little thing they really sucks you into joining the love. I fear what would happen to any poor sod who dares to boo a voice actor in a room full of fans. While I could give a play by play commentary of what those two said as Edward Elric and Roy Mustang, the video I shot will help people relive those fabulous moments such as Vic's adoration for Star Trek TOS and stopping short of the not so fabulous moment where the panel ended after one attendee had a diabetic seizure. The staff and attendees were calm and supportive in assisting her and getting the medics to arrive.

Panel finished, I hit the Dealers Room to get the pocket watch I promised Pegasus Maiden that I would buy. With the economic decline combined with a lack of interest, I really had nothing to buy at the Dealers Room. The Escapist provides me my DVDs, the costumes I want are not in my size, and I lack the shelf space to store merchandise. Though I do admit I was thirsty for something more than water. Anime V with its new employee Ten sold me a melon soda. My only memory of melon soda before my convention life was that a lady friend of mine requested I get her some bottles during a trip to Japan. Mind you, this was a more innocent time before Mitsuwa and bans on carrying liquids beyond the 3-1-1 rule on airplanes. Perhaps drinking one would remind me of those simpler times.

Yomi finally got us checked into the hotel room. But she opted for a room on the other side of the hotel that was closer to her car. There is nothing like seeing a diminutive Asian lady push her way into a better room. The room was like any hotel room and I would mainly need it to change, shower, and dump photos and video.

I was busy unloading the contents of my phaser when I felt the food poisoning coursing through my body. Nothing kills a convention mood better than illness. Judging from the food I ate in relation to the timing of the poisoning, the only suspect was that bottle of melon soda. Whether a natural reaction to a foreign drink, a defective product that was tainted, or intentional sabotage from Ten, I quit letting paranoia take over and just wanted to cure myself. I turned to my suitcase and its supply of food, first aid, and drugs. I tried my Florida's Natural Blend Fruit Juice Nuggets convention rations--easier to carry and nationally superior to Pocky--hoping some calories would offset the poisoning to no avail. I knew painkillers would not work but took them nevertheless hoping for a placebo effect. Nope. The first aid kit that I got from work only treated cuts so unless I wanted to swallow a bandage I needed something stronger. With steady doses of vitamin C and pink stomach panacea, I was able to get over the poisoning by the end of the night in between trips to find region from a porcelain god.

Travis Willingham was a good sport in signing autographs for every attendee willing to stand in line. I was the last fan in before the cut off that night. Most conventions treat Press like cattle, which really de-motivate me from writing favorably about their convention. Say what you want about organization, but SacAnime really knows how to treat its Press. If I want to bypass lines to get to the panel I need to cover, they will wave me through before the panel and allow me to set up as long as I do not block the way. I only draw the line at using the Press badge to bypass autograph lines. I get really annoyed when Press people abuse their passes to jump ahead of the line to get personal autographs. This is what gives us a bad name. Bypassing the line to photograph the autographing is coverage. The moment you ask a guest to autograph your personal items, you are just another fan and needs to stand in line like the rest of the fans.

The food poisoning and subsequent drugs to fix it made me late for Vic Mignogna's concert. My Press badge allowed me inside in time to see the final two songs. As Full Metal Fantasy served as buffer, I watched Vic with the tech guys as he prepared for his final act and complimented his performance as he walked back onto the stage. While I am sure he sounded great, the acoustics and background sounds covered most of his voice so I could barely hear him from the back row. Additionally, the lighting and the medication kicking in gave Vic a devilishly red glow during those songs. Catching up with Trina and Jaimie after the concert, we stood in line to get his autograph. Still hyped up from the concert, Jaimie and I bought one of Vic's CDs. I swear, if Vic were a little older and his fans were of voting age, he could easily run for President. Later at midnight, Voltaire was signing autographs and taking part in one hell of a prank call with an innocent attendee's phone. And I thought I could spew forth a stream of ad-libbed bizarre scenarios.

After handing off some of my Fruit Juice Nuggets to Little Sister #3 and a passerby in desperate need with low blood sugar--I really need to bring more of those--Trina, Jaimie, and I ventured beyond the convention grounds for cheap eats and I learned my GPS simply sucks when navigating Sacramento streets. We nearly drove into bat country thanks to its misdirection. I returned to the video room to assist Yomi. We had a special night planned with the gaming department but had to wait for those slowpokes to show up. In between cleaning up aisles, rearranging chairs, taping up curtains and screens, and chatting about our personal lives while waiting for the green light to start the special night, I sometimes popped off to partake in some honey liquor and other spirits. I cannot determine whether this stuff made me a friendlier person, but when my toasts are in celebration of what passes as a lady in this room, maybe I have had a bit too much. Then I had even more when Ryu showed up and invited me to his room for sake and women uninterested in either of us. One last trip through the empty halls of SacAnime yielded in the most efficient "date" I have had thanks to a pair of Naughty Dice.

Returning to the video room with a certain swagger typical of one who has enjoyed his drinks, Yomi informed me the special night was canceled so we packed up, closed up, and retired for the night after she introduced me to fellow video room staff Maxine and Santiago. As the food poisoning gave its final bouts of resistance and my painkillers wore off, I welcomed a good eight hours of sleep. Then I realized I had my early morning flight to Los Angeles for ALA.