Post by VelmasDead on Nov 9, 2016 10:50:02 GMT -6
Who would have thought this would bring a disgruntled teen and his authoritative mother together? I sure didn’t. My son has always been a fan of The Walking Dead, but not so much of me, his mother. I saw there was going to be a Walking Dead Convention in Chicago and decided to ask him if he wanted to go. His first reaction was, “I hate conventions.” Mind you, he has never been to a convention in his life. After explaining there would be actors there, he slowly became interested.
I purchased my general admission tickets via Groupon. I booked a hotel room and on a rainy Friday afternoon, we were off on a 4 hour road trip to Chicago. I will admit sitting in the car with someone who constantly wanted to change the radio station was getting annoying. Also the, “Are we there yet,” was not cute for his age. I kept thinking about the bigger picture. We were going to spend quality time together and actually see some awesome actors from one of my favorite shows!
On Saturday morning, we got up early and walked over to the convention center. It was packed! We couldn’t believe it. Not that I questioned the popularity of the show, but it has been a long time since I have gone to an event that big. After we were herded in, the fun began. The first person I noticed was Penguin from Gotham. I was so excited to see him. He was also in two episodes of The Walking Dead. I wonder how he is connected to Kevin Bacon? Anyway, the one thing I was not a fan of was the cost of autographs and pictures. I understand that this is a business. I really do. But, I am a single mother and it was hard enough paying for the hotel room and the tickets. I then had to figure out how to buy my son the autograph and picture he desired and also get something for myself!
I was debating between getting a photo with Michael Rooker and Michael Cudlitz. My son pretty much made his decision. He wanted an autograph from Tyler James Williams on his hat and a picture with Chandler Riggs. So, we got in line for Tyler James Williams. My son was awestruck and told Tyler that he was his idol. I told him that my son’s favorite soundtrack was for the Disney movie “Let It Shine”. He was really shocked because he said that he didn’t know how that movie was perceived. So, I shook his hand and he signed my son’s hat.
Orin then told me to go get my picture taken. I am really not a social person and really felt uncomfortable waiting in line to get my picture taken with anyone. My son is the total opposite. He saw that Chandler Riggs’ line was thinning out so I parted with $60.00 for him to get his picture taken. I looked at Michael Cudlitz’s line and realized the Bisquick sold me. I got in line and watched all the people with their kids and families talking to this man. I got up there and didn’t even look at him. So he starts taking the picture with my phone and I realize he is staring at me because I am being totally rude by not even acknowledging him. I redeemed myself by smiling a big goofy smile and he said, “Goodbye, sweetheart.” And that made my day. I was walking around like I had climbed Mount Everest. Not really, but I think you get the point. As I walked out of the line I see my son walk up with the biggest grin on his face. He was carrying on and on about how cool Chandler Riggs was and he showed me his picture, which I will post here.
That was pretty much the extent of it. It was the one time I actually did something with my son that we both enjoyed and weren’t arguing about. And to my surprise, recently he said he wanted to go again so that he can get another picture with Chandler Riggs.
So, if you are a mother having trouble relating to your teenage son, take him to the WalkerStalker Con. And if you are lucky, you will have a few days of bonding before you go back to bickering constantly!