Hello Chums,
I thought on my opening post I'd talk about one of my favorite things. Going to comic book conventions (cons).
When I was a kid, I'd be lucky to go to one con a year. Of course this was the local con here in OKC. I would go with my friend Darin. My mom would usually take us and his would pick us up. Now this would not happen now days of course with all of the weirdos out there. But it was okay back then. We would spend the whole day at the show.
At the show, we would have the complete con experience. After paying our $5.00 to get in, We would spend our usual $20.00 on "awesome stuff" (comics or whatever). We would have lunch at the con hotel restaurant (a hamburger) because we were not aloud to leave the hotel. After looking at all the cool stuff in the dealers room, we would watch a movie in the movie room or play a role playing game. Yes the complete con experience.
Things have changed now that I'm an adult. The admission price of to the con is a lot more, $25.00 a day. Food prices at conventions are outrageous. Hotdog $5.00, Sandwich $8.00, Slice of pizza $5.00. Want to park your car at the hotel your staying at? $15.00 a day. You get the idea.
This begs the question. Am I a HIGH ROLLER or a low roller?
On the one hand, I feel okay spending money on air fare, nice hotels and the things I buy at cons (comic books, graphic novels, action figures, toys, prints, etc.) But $5.00 for a hot dog, that sucks.
I went to Wizard World Chicago for the first time this year. W.W.C. is in a HUGE convention center. At a huge con like Chicago or San Diego, there is an incredible amount of walking to be done each day. But don't forget your carrying your bag All Day Long. Now this bag has everything you need in it for the whole day. A few necessary items in it would be: sketch book,pens,camera,snack,water bottle, something to get signed and the con schedule. Then you start adding to it what you have bought and the free swag. This bag gets heavy fast. A lot of walking and a heavy bag will wear you out by the end of the day if not sooner. So in the evening when the show is over, your tired and hungry. It's time to get a good dinner.
After walking at the con all day, now it's time to walk back to the hotel (some years it's been 8-10 blocks away) to drop off our stuff and use the facilities, then walk to a restaurant, wait 30-45 minutes to be seated, eat and walk all the way back to our hotel. At Chicago the restaurants were almost a mile away. That's a lot of walking in one day. Now times that by 4 or 5 days.
I pointed out to my friend Scott that a HIGH ROLLER wouldn't do all the extra walking, he would take a cab when possible. But at the rate we were going we would need a cab 2-3 times a day, were we willing to shell out for a cab 10-12 times a con? Not likely yet. Hey we're barely in our 40's, still in good shape. We'll walk for now. Save some dough.
Does this make us low rollers? I don't think so. A low roller wouldn't be able to go to 3-4 cons a year. Maybe we are mid rollers.
D.L.
5 comments:
Don't forget Dude. The guys we saw riding in cabs, swilling huge amounts of acohol and eating high dollar steak dinners were NO DOUBT bankrolled by the BIG BUCK publisher they work for.
Since they are not funding this themselves, they can blow dough like the provervial 'kept woman' This does not make them "High Rollers"!
Since you and I are footing our own bill, I think we're allowed exercise fuguality!
After mulling over the delemia of "high-roller" vs "low-roller", I have came to this conclusion.. A "high-roller" would not care nor question the $5.00 hot dog and $8.00 sandwich, HOWEVER, a low-roller would split said sandwich with the friend or friends they had to bring to afford trip and they would have definetly brought their own drink!!!! The finally result is a "Mid-roller", but roller none the less!!!!!!! Steph H.
I think the issue is not HIGH or LOW roller, but the issue is 'Too Cheap To Take Taxi'.
And that's not a fair question. It's not that we are too cheap to take taxi's, but unfamilarity. I like in Oklahoma City. We don't take taxi's around here. Not counting airport shuttles, I but I haven't taken a taxi more than a dozen times in my life.
I (and this applies to you DL) cannot be to cheap to take a taxi, because i have no clue how much it would have cost to take one!
So I say get over it, put away the labels and let it roll.
You is what you is.
You're the one who's gotta pay your own bills.
(The real question is if you are too cheap to buy the OU vs. North Texas game...)
I have to second Scott's opinion. Forget the labels and roll with it.
My question, to change the subject, is that woman dressed as a John Norman 'Counter Earth' slave girl?
Hey Jim, welcome aboard. That fan girl is suppose to be Slave Leia from Return of the Jedi.
D.L.
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