The Prose of Cons

In 2013, I was introduced to the world of Once Upon a Time. To many it was simply a television show that provided entertainment from 8-9 p.m. every Sunday night. To me, it was a fascinating universe that combined the real world with fantasy and magic. I fell in love with the fantastical lands, the characters, the magic, and most of all...the actors. It was a few years later that Once Upon a Time would introduce me to a whole new world: the world of fan conventions.

When I was a child, travelling simply was not an option for my family of five. For a few years when I was younger, we were able to drive from my hometown of Louisville to a city in Florida or South Carolina, but by the time I was in middle school, we had stopped going on vacation altogether; it was just too expensive. I didn't even board a plane until I was 18. But my brothers and I were always happy with quick trips to amusement parks and other fun spots, so we never felt deprived. My mom did everything imaginable to keep us happy and entertained.

When I heard that Once Upon a Time held fan conventions across the United States, I never thought travelling to one was an option. The closest they came to Louisville was Chicago, and the 5-6 hour drive wasn't the only factor to consider. Heading to Chicago meant my mom and I would both have to find the time off work as well as the funds for gas, the hotel room, and the con itself. However, I'd had my own job for nearly three years at this point, and I was determined to bankroll the trip and meet the actors from my favorite show.

My very first convention photo op with the devilishly handsome, Colin O'Donoghue (a.k.a Captain Hook).

The Once Upon a Time Chicago convention was supposed to be my first and only convention that satisfied my need to meet my favorite actors, and it was amazing and memorable in every way. However, just before that convention, the show's lead actress announced she'd be exiting the show later that year, so I just had to fly to the convention in Burbank, California for a two day vacation, foolishly assuming it would be the only time I'd be able to meet her (I was very, very wrong).

My mom and I spent two days in Burbank, flying in Thursday night and leaving early Sunday morning in order to make it back in time for class and work. I enjoyed the convention and my first trip to the western U.S. immensely, but I still remained certain that this trip would be my final convention, not yet sensing how the trips would quickly transform from a need to meet my favorite celebrities just once to a desire to travel and make memories.

My photo op from Burbank with Colin (again!) and Jennifer Morrison, "Once Upon a Time's" lead actress and Savior.

The next year, I attended my second convention in Chicago during another quick two-day trip in April. While my favorite actress was no longer allowed to attend the Once Upon a Time conventions because she had exited the show, I discovered that she was busy attending a slew of conventions across the U.S. that celebrated countless fandoms, genres, television shows, and films.

In May of that year, one of Jennifer's conventions happened to line up with a Once Upon a Time convention, taking place in Orlando just one week apart. While it meant I'd have to find a way to get a week off from work, it meant I'd get a nice vacation right after my semester ended. And so, my mom and I drove down to Orlando, heading to MegaCon the first day and filling the week before the Once Upon a Time Convention with Disney World, beach trips, and family visits.

Colin O'Donoghue may be my favorite pirate, but the Dread Pirate Roberts is definitely second!

After the Orlando conventions, I was more acquainted with the (massive) world of fan conventions, so I set my sights on Boston Fan Expo where Jennifer was set to appear next. Unfortunately, she had to cancel at the last minute for a fantastic job opportunity, but I decided to go to the convention anyway and make the best out of the situation. I didn't get to meet my favorite pirate that time, but I found this Dread Pirate, so I think it worked out for the best!

Later that year, I attended two more Once Upon a Time conventions within the span of a month, heading to New Jersey and Burbank yet again. Since Once Upon a Time was cancelled after seven seasons in 2018, Burbank marked the last official convention, so I went into 2019 not knowing when my next convention would be. My quick trips with my mom were something we looked forward to, placed sporadically throughout the year. We always had something to plan, and when work or classes got particularly tough, we could always count the days until our next trip.

My most recent picture with Colin is definitely my favorite! He sure made it a great one!

While the trips aren't always as frequent as we'd like now, we have been able to travel to Kansas City (a terrible 8-hour-drive that I do not recommend) as well as Orlando within the first six months of 2019, and we've set our sights on more trips later this year including Nashville and New Jersey.

We like to document our travels on Facebook because it's a great place for storing memories and getting recommendations from friends, but a lot of our friends frequently ask us how we can afford to travel so often. After not travelling for so many years, the conventions originally became our excuse to travel together. However, what we found was that we had to make time for vacations and travel because what's the point of life if you're not going to make time for the good things. As my beloved Prince Charming would say, "Life is made up of moments." Travelling doesn't always have to be extravagant and expensive, it just has to be fun and memorable. And my mom and I have certainly made some wonderful memories in the last two years.