SC Comicon 2018

I was really excited to see that Cary Elwes was coming to a nearby con in Greenville, SC but since it was right after Lexington Comic Con I didn't think we'd be able to go. But my wonderful husband surprised me by buying a photo op with Cary Elwes at SC Comicon for my birthday.

Cary Elwes is an awesome actor. My favorite role he's done is Westley from The Princess Bride mostly because that is one of my all time favorite movies. He doesn't do a lot of conventions either so I really wanted to meet him.

Since I work on Saturdays, it was easy for me and Emily to go on Sunday (sadly Todd had to work). But my Sunday School teaching partner was out of town that weekend, so I had to teach Sunday

School first. Since I wanted to get down to the con as quickly as possible because Emily also had youth group that night, Em and I wore our costumes to church.

I was Anna from Frozen so it was just a fancier dress than I usually wear to church and Emily was clad in her Pikachu costume. The kids in Sunday School thought it was a little funny. But once Sunday School was done, we got in the car and headed to Greenville.

Once we got there, we went straight to Cary Elwes' booth. We had to get a ticket showing we had bought a photo op to get in line and his booth was completely closed off so no passerby's could see him.

We didn't have to wait too long, and finally we got inside for our picture. He talked to us for several minutes and was very sweet, especially to Emily, as we talked about The Princess Bride. 

After we got our picture, I ran into several people I knew and chatted with them. Emily spent the money she had brought on Pokemon cards, and then we got some pictures with cosplayers. Batman, Boba Fett and some Ghostbusters!

We took off after that, since Emily needed to change before youth group. But it was a fun afternoon!

Browncoat Ball 2014 - Friday

My home Browncoat group has been the Greenville, SC for about seven years now. Greenville is about 45 minutes from where I live, and there was not an active Asheville group at the time. Last year, we decided to try and bid for the Browncoat Ball. Many of us had been on the planning committee for the Charlotte Ball in 2010. We got the Ball and after a year of planning, the morning of October 17th dawned.

I was the first one to arrive since we had a small window for Todd to bring me and unload my stuff since Emily was in school. Once everyone else on the planning committee arrived, we unloaded everything and got setup.

The afternoon was pretty quiet. People started trickling in and a lot of people went down to do the zip line. I went down late in the afternoon. The worst part was climbing up to the tower because it was just a rope net and while I had a safety harness, it was hard climbing up there. Once I was up on the top of the tower, the actual zip lining was a lot of fun.

After that, it was time for supper. It was a Wash inspired luau complete with hulu dancers. The food

was really good - pineapple and chicken skewers were a highlight for me. After supper was done, I went on the night hike. We did little activities during the hike and it was really interesting to try to adjust our eyes to the darkness.

Fire dancers were next and they were really great! They did several dances with different objects on fire. They were very cool under fire (pun intended!) even when one dropped a fan. Luckily they were also very prepared - had heavy blankets to put each fire-y objects out.

After that, a lot of us went into the gaming room. I finally got to play Cards Against Humanity - which is basically Apples to Apples for adults. We played for hours - rotating out players as we went. I did pretty well for my first time playing!

I finally headed to bed around midnight. I made myself go to bed because I knew I had to be up early the next morning.

Up Next - Saturday and the Ball

Five Reasons You Should Attend the Browncoat Ball

October starts next week and while many people's thoughts are on pumpkins and ghosts, my thoughts turn to shiny things. That's because there is only a few weeks left before the Browncoat Ball!

The Browncoat Ball started ten years ago by the Chicagoland Browncoats with a goal of bringing Browncoats together to share their love of the show Firefly. The Ball has moved from city to city every year ever since then.

This year, the Browncoat group that I'm a part of is bring the Ball to Greenville, SC. It's going to be a very fun weekend and I'd thought I'd share some reasons why you should attend the Browncoat Ball.

1) Murder Mystery! 

For the first time in Browncoat Ball history, the Ball is going to host a murder mystery! From the Browncoat Ball website:

After the death of Rance Burgess, life changed a lot on Lowther. With no leader, Rance’s gang of thugs disbanded and that desolate moon became a better place. Better, but still no place Petaline Andrews wanted to be. After taking over the bordello and re-naming it Nandi’s, she was ready to leave this moon behind her. She took the girls, her son and an unexpected business partner, Belinda Burgess, to town of Missed Fortune on Planet Deadwood to start over. The women pooled their money and bought the Leland Hotel and Saloon which serves as the new home for Nandi’s. As is the way of the ’Verse, trouble tends to follow them that don’t deserve it. It wasn’t long after their arrival that trouble found them by way of a murder.

It's going to be a lot of fun. One of the first events I ever attended with the Greenville Browncoats was a LARP - it was an awesome weekend of Firefly fun and I made some great friends. I'm looking very forward to playing in the mystery over the weekend!

2) Carnival and Vendors 

I have to plug this part because it's the section that I'm in charge of for the Ball. We are going to have several vendors, including myself, as well as Firefly themed carnival games! It will be happening on Friday so everyone can have something fun to start the Ball with!

3) Mikey Mason

This is one of the things I'm looking forward to most. Mikey Mason, a geeky comedy rock star, is going to emcee the whole weekend as well as perform. I've missed him performing live a bunch of times, so finally I'll get to see him perform.

4) Adventures and Entertainment

Beyond the Ball and the Murder Mystery, there is going to be loads of entertainment. Fire dancers, musicians, belly dancers and more will be performing. There will be zip lines, gaming, fencing classes and more. It's going to be a weekend of non-stop Firefly fun!

5) Meeting Fellow Browncoats

One of the best parts of the Browncoat Ball is hanging out with other Browncoats. People come from all of the country and beyond to attend this yearly gathering of Firefly fans. I've only been to one other Ball - the 2010 one in Charlotte, NC, but I still have friends that I met at that Ball. 

All of these reasons and more are why you should consider coming to this year's Browncoat Ball. Check us out at Facebook and come to the Shiny-est Murder Mystery of them all! Also check out the video teaser at YouTube!

2014 Browncoat Ball Website is Live!

Me at the 2010 Ball

One of the things I’m looking forward to most in 2014 is the Browncoat Ball. I had the pleasure of being on the planning committee for the Ball in 2010 that took place in Charlotte. This year the Ball is going to be in Greenville, SC and I’m on the planning committee again.

The Browncoat Ball is a unique experience were fans of the show Firefly and the movie Serenity get together. The Ball moves from city to city and every year there is something different. The things that stay the same are there is always a dance, which is the Ball itself, and there are chances to do fun things in the host city.

This year Greenville is hosting the first murder mystery with the Ball. I think it’s going to be a lot of fun. My first big event that I did with the Greenville Browncoats was a Firefly LARP back in 2007. It was a weekend where I made a lot of friendships and just had a great time.

The website for the 2014 Browncoat Ball launched yesterday! Check it out and consider coming to the shiniest shindig of the year!

The Browncoat Ball is Coming to Greenville!

I’ve been a Browncoat since the first episode of Firefly aired. It took me until after I moved to North Carolina to get involved with a Browncoat group. There wasn’t a group in Asheville, but there was one in Greenville, SC which is about 45 minutes away. I started going to meetups in Greenville and made some great friends.

I also got to meet some of the Charlotte, NC Browncoats too and went to some of their gatherings. In 2009, it was announced that Charlotte would be holding the Browncoat Ball in 2010. I signed up to be on the planning committee. It was a lot of work but it was a ton of fun especially at the Ball itself.

I’ve wanted to go back to a Ball since then, but I haven’t been able to. This year, the Greenville Browncoats put in a bid and got the Ball for next year. I’m on the planning committee again and I’m so excited!

2014’s Browncoat Ball is going to feature a Firefly-themed murder mystery. We are already have a Facebook page up if anyone is thinking about joining in the fun. It’s one of the best shindigs of the year and I’m looking forward to helping make it really shiny.