Friday, mcfitch, Nekrodave, Sanjeev and I agree to meet at mcfitch’s work in Waltham MA. From there we pair up and begin our journey. There was quite a bit of traffic, but eventually we find our way to Machinesoldier HQ, in suburban Philly.
We decided to check in the night before, so we would be well rested for the summit. Sanjeev had been so kind to book us a room at a hotel in the area. We unpacked our cars, and walked toward the hotel, we all noticed something really odd. Every person we saw was really fat. Now, I am a pretty big guy, but these people made me look like Karen Carpenter.
Maybe this is just what Pennsylvania is like?
We go up to the desk and Sanjeev checks us in. “Room for four” the counter lady says, with an odd look. As we approach the elevator we see a really large woman, with a really short dress with clear acrylic stripper heels on. Something is not right here.
We find our room easily enough, and once we enter, we find TWO double beds. Apparently Sanjeev didn’t specify that we needed 4 beds for the four people, hence the odd looks from the front desk. We sent Sanjeev down to score us another room, now doubling our cost. I knew it was too good to be true.
The Next morning we gather ourselves and head over to the summit. We arrive in the area early, and Machinesoldier (Mark) tells us where we can get some breakfast. We end up at a faux diner, and we convince Nekrodave to order something called Scrapple. Think of it as all the stuff that didn’t go into a sausage, ground up into a paste, shaped into a patty and fried. I’m actually getting a little ill thinking about it now…
We also spent a lot of time up in Mark’s toy room. Mark has a really nice display, and he is not shy about taking toys out and showing them off. I was particularly impressed by the Diaclone stuff, including Fortress X. And yes, someone asked about the shelves – they are from IKEA.
From there more trading went on, and then Jake and his crew of Rollergirls showed up. More food went on the grill and then it was time for movies.
- Nutrocker – (Machinen Kreiger movie)
- Leopardon
- Toei Openings DVD
- Final Fantasy Spirits Within
- Lucky Louie (episode about toy collecting)
As the night wore on, trading came to an end. We said our goodbyes and thanked our gracious host for having us.
Back at the hotel, after getting a little lost, we once again are surrounded by huge people. As we get on the elevator I spy a flyer on the table. We apparently got booked into a hotel that was holding a NAAFA (National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance) convention! Mystery solved!
Also, that night we found out Sanjeev is terrified of little people.
Gamera apparently drove a portion of the way home in mcfitch’s car.
