A Bat's Eye View of Eyecon!

A couple of the fans who won tickets from TrueBloodNet.com agreed to write up their experience at the convention.  We're so glad they had a good time and agreed to share their experiences with us!  Thank you Beatrice and Sharon! Their Eyecon Story:

Our journey began when I came across the TrueBloodNet.com contest. I wanted to win so badly I could taste it. All I had to do was state the question I would ask the cast if I had the opportunity. My question was "What character on the show would you most want your character to do bad things with?" I checked my email several days later after accepting defeat, and lo " I was a winner"! I jumped up, grabbed the phone at 12:30 am and called my friend Sharon, and told her we won. Oh, but that was just the tip of the ice burg. Reality set in. We had to figure out transportation and lodging on a budget that was so small it was almost invisible. I broke the news to my husband and he broke the news to me that he had Guards the same weekend. Crap now I had to find someone to help out with the kids too! Ok, I called the campground that I have a membership with and asked if they had any openings. After the representative was done laughing she sounded surprised that she actually had exactly the days we needed. Sharon and I pawned the kids off on different friends and family. Things were starting to fall into place. Thursday night we got a late start and it was pouring down rain .The kids and husbands were fairly easy to pry off however the family dog had to be bribed with a biscuit to move away from the magical vacation door. We jumped in the car making sure our families didn't go on recon missions to bring us back. We drove from New Jersey through seven states, torrential rain storms and a set of wiper blades going nonstop, with no sleep. Eighteen hours later we were in Florida driving around in circles. After threatening the Evil GPS and all its components we found our way to the campground. We pitched the tent took a well-deserved shower and ventured out to the Conference center. We registered at the Eyecon convention and were recruited to donate blood. Because they rarely allow us out of the state of New Jersey and we are women on a True Blood mission we saw fit to have more fun giving blood than anyone has the right to. By the time we were done we each had a T-shirt, extra cookies and juice. Now were talking, breakfast and lunch! I can guarantee the vamps there [red cross] will never forget our names. Our next stop was the vendor room. Our first table was for the Choroideremia Foundation, which Deborah Ann Woll supports. It raises money for research on this degenerative genetic eye disease that causes irreversible blindness. I bought raffle tickets, not thinking I would win but feeling good that I was donating to a good cause. To my surprise I did win one of the prizes. There were only a few more tables to visit and we left the convention feeling a little disappointed that there weren't more vendors. After an evening of fighting a GPS for directions and a demon possessed flashlight that kept blowing bulbs and leaving us in the dark, we devoured our cookies and juice and called it a night. On Saturday there were quite a few more people at the Eyecon convention but not enough that it was overcrowded. This was great! We talked with members of the band Nova Echo and got an autograph and pictures. Next we moved on to the Q & A's. The first one was with Sam Trammell. Yes, I asked my winning question. Sam turned red and laughed but never really answered the question saying he would get in trouble. This question had the same effect on Todd Lowe, however he answered saying Arlene. The autograph sessions were great we were actually able to talk directly to the stars. Sam couldn't believe my last name was truly Blood and I pulled out my license to prove it. After the autographs we once again fought the demon GPS back to our campsite, had Chinese food and relaxed. About 7:30pm we started getting ready to go to the Fangbangers Ball. We got to the Conference center about 45 minutes before the ball so we went to the Nova Echo concert and sat in the back realizing most of the people were not in costume yet. (Talk about awkward). The music was good and not that many people showed up. It was to our surprise that Todd Lowe sang two songs with the band and then we looked to our left and right next to us stood Allan Hyde, Ashley Jones and Sam Trammell. Can you say "We're in Heaven!!" We did not bother them; we continued to watch the concert and smile. We went to purchase one of Todd's CD and he autographed it and took a picture with us and then Sam, Allan and Ashley took one with us too. It was AWESOME!

Although we had fun at the Fangbanger's Ball, it was not the same as the advertising of the event. The description in the advertising left one with the expectations of seeing Fangtasia or a representation there of. This ballroom fell a little short. On the upside it wasn't overcrowded and one could stop and talk to the star of their choice. But I'm still wondering if the judging of the costumes happened or not [Editor's Note: It didn't, disappointing yours truly as well who went as an incompetent shifter]. Leaving the Ball at 1:00am, we popped in Todd's CD, let's just say: not for kids or the faint of heart. However, we found it twisted and entertaining. Sunday, the last day for the Eyecon Convention and the final Q & A's, with Ashley, Nelsan, and Allan. While Ashley was entertaining, Allan was genuinely sweet and innocent and opened up sharing many personal stories. But it was Nelsan who took the show. He was funny and almost fearless in his answers and stories about other cast members. He answered my question, but only after first trying to get clarity about "bad things". Sharon and I both said "use your imagination". Nelsan's answer was he wanted to do bad [criminal] things with Eric and nasty things with Anna, also mentioning Stephen Moyer did good by her. On a more serious note he discussed his sister's death and domestic abuse. All the stars were down to earth , humorous and pleasant to be around. After the Q & A's we attended another autograph session where we met up with Kasandra from TrueBloodNet.com and thanked her. Overall, we had a wonderful once in a lifetime adventure. Now it was time to drive 18 hours and seven states home. Thanks again to the TrueBloodNet.com fairies [Editor's Note: We're shifters not fairies!] for sprinkling a little magic in our otherwise ordinary lives. ~ Beatrice Blood ~ Sharon DeHainaut We at TrueBloodNet.com are thrilled that you got to go and had a good time.  You were very inventive and fun!  Wish we'd met up earlier!

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