WONDERFEST 2019

Ok, here is my tale of WF2019 from my own perspective.
For those who do not know, that is me on the right and my daughter on the left. (old photo don't have one from this year)

THURSDAY
For those who have read some of my previous reviews, this one is going to be a little different.
We actually had a stop to make on the way to Louisville.
Every year on the way down and back, we see this sign
.
We stopped to check it out. Mainly because Britny had stumbled on the place a few months ago, and they had DINOSAURS!
Though it was when the building was closed. So we made plans to stop and check it all out on our way down.
Well worth the stop!
See this page for some photos from the adventure.

The rest of the trip was uneventfull. We got to the hotel, got checked in, and unloaded the car.
We didn't get our room, but we got the one next door. Then we just hung out and visited with people. Paul showed off his cooking skills until the hotel told him to pack up his stuff. Everyone was in good spirits and things went well into the morning.

FRIDAY
Friday was even more fun!

That's right. We went to see the new Godzilla movie.
It was amazing!
By the time we got back, even more people were there, and some of the dealers were starting to load in.
So, we hung out for a bit, then went down the road to that pizza place we found last year and got food.
Got back in time to grab our badges and hang out.

Of course, Brit still had to finish up her contest entries

But after that, it was party time. Spent time in the lobby, at the Embassy, and Cult-Suite. As well as out in the parking lot.

SATURDAY
Was the usual blur of activity. Dealers room, contest room, trips to the room to drop things off and grab a bite. Socializing.
The contest was mind-blowing. Over 800 entries this year, and there were a ton of awesome kits with equally awesome builds.
Brit managed to take in a few demos, I managed to miss most of them :(
A few highlights were finally getting to meet Steven Lee

Seen here with Mark Van Tine and Paul Gill.
Steven (aka Ignatz) is one of the admins and founding members at the Clubhouse. It was so great to finally meet him in person.
The other highlight was seeing my grail kit in the dealers room! :o
Sadly, it was priced way out of my price range. :(

It was Terry Webb's personal build. And man was it a nice build.
But that made the price tag way too much for me to even think about. At least I now have more than the one blurry picture I took of the kit back in 2004.

After the dealers room closed, it was back to the room for a little rest, then off for food.
After that, it was more after hours festivities making the rounds like the night before.
With the addition of Iron Modeler, Naked Resin, and the Model Club contest.(which seemed to have lower turn out this year)
Naked Resin, was packed! The audience has grown so much, that they really need a larger room. I heard that will be happening next year.
The entries for both were outstanding as usual.
Just missed the group photo again (frown). I got downstairs right after it happened. Though I did get to hang out with everyone which was great.
I actually called it a night early (2 AM), Think Brit said she got in around 4.

SUNDAY
Another blur. The usual show activities. Though I did actually make it to one of the guest talks this time.
Skipped the awards ceremony though. I didn't have any entries, and the show is always so crowded.
This gave me a chance to visit with some of my dealer friends a bit more. The dealers room really slows down during the awards ceremony.

Britny earned merits for both her entries !!!
As the dealers room was closing down, we said our farewells to those we knew would be leaving right after packing up.
Then it was off to eat again. (we actually had no food delivered this year, which I believe is a first)
Then it was time for the wrap party!
We don't do the banquet (or whatever they call it now). We just hung on the patio, and out the door downstairs until the official party broke up.
Then we hit the Cult-suite for a while before going out to the parking lot again.
(something about the parking lot leads to discussions about ludicrous movie ideas. Saturday night was Wolverine and extra claws. Sunday was porn versions of Godzilla King of the Monsters. Don't ask, you had to be there. But I was sore from laughing both times)

MONDAY
And just like that, it was over.
Of course, the next morning wasn't as much fun. Packing. Loading the car. Checking out. Last bit of hanging out before hitting the road.
The drive back sucked pretty bad. We left the hotel at 10, around 11 we hit a traffic jam.
Dead stop until noon, then we went about half a mile and dead stop again. All told, we ended up snagged in that mess for about 3 hours.
Which meant we hit Columbus at rush hour, with road construction, and an accident that closed down the way we needed to go.
The trip ended up taking me just over 11 hours to get home. Not fun. But it was worth it.

In summary
I didn't buy too much, but had a blast. Lots of time catching up with friends. The after hours were a blast every night!
We even made the Cult-Suite 3 nights in a row!
Lots of great memories from this trip.

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