Level 4: KOKOMO-CON!

Greetings to you, fellow geeks, geekettes, and curious observers.  Although I had intended to post regularly to this blog on Friday evenings, I broke that streak this weekend in order to bring you a report straight from the frontlines of KOKOMO-CON, a new pop culture convention held in my hometown of Kokomo, IN at the city's Event Center.

Compared to Gen Con's 30,000 or Comic-Con's 130,000, KOKOMO-CON's attendance was relatively modest, but considering that this was the first KOKOMO-CON and not that many people seemed to know about it in the population at large, it was well attended.  Once again, I donned my Link costume in order to hang out with my fellow geeks.

Though the emphasis at KOKOMO-CON was clearly comic books, many of the vendors represented the other corners of geekdom as well.  Books, art, toys, movies, and video games all had their presence at this show.  I couldn't resist playing a few minutes of Super Mario Bros. 3 with Angel from PwnEm.com.

I took several photos at the show, which you are welcome to view with this public Facebook link.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=42582&id=100000044474655&l=439d482ec5

I'll probably add a more permanent link to the album later.

I chose KOKOMO-CON as the focus of this week's post, because one of the things I hope to get across with my book and this blog is that gaming is more than just a refuge for antisocial dweebs.  We gamers (and we nerds in general) know how to party and make friends as well as anyone!

God said in Genesis 3, "It is not good for man to be alone."  There's nothing like that feeling you get when you're around people who understand and appreciate you, and it's all the better when they happen to share your interests.  I made several new acquaintances at KOKOMO-CON, and all of them helped to make the day worthwhile.

During the course of the afternoon, I participated in a costume contest.  There were maybe 15-20 contestants, most of whom had excellent costumes.  Although I did my best to wow the judges with my rendition of "Zelda's Lullaby" on the ocarina, the prize went to the amiable Mark LeMieux of Platypus Productions, who was dressed as the Mad Hatter.  It was a pleasure to make Mark's acquaintance, and I hope to see him at the next KOKOMO-CON or perhaps at next year's Gen Con!

Here's to the social and spiritual fellowship of the Brotherhood of Nerds!