JANUARY 21, 2026

It's my birthday! I'm 24 today! Happy birthday to me...!

The trip was super fun! I flew into New Jersey on Monday (Jan 5) and we spent the next few days hanging out and checking out some really cool stores and restaurants around the city. We went to karaoke one night, and it was probably some of the most fun I've ever had. My frineds also introduced me to Kamen Rider (specifically O's and Amazon Riders) which I'm still watching now, it's crazy good.

I was kinda sick for part of it, but unfortunately it got pretty bad on Thursday, AFTER we'd made it all the way to Maryland. I was out of commission and sick for most of the night, so I missed Act II's performance... I'm still sad about that, but my friends were so kind and helpful in taking care of me that it still makes me emotional to think about. If they hadn't done such a great job, I wouldn't have recovered by the next day, and I couldn't have met up with more friends at Magfest.

I went around the marketplace for a while, and we actually met with John Delucca and a guy who was DEFINITELY NOT COMMANDER B. HAWKINS OUT OF STAGE MAKEUP, I SWEAR. Delucca was so nice, and when I got a print from him, he gave me a discount since it was the last one (display print) and it had a little damage on the back. He even signed it! I managed to give him his keychains and my own print as an extra trade, and he was so awesome to meet in person. Commander was also super awesome, he was really jazzed about the keychain I gave him, and I even got a sticker directly from him! I also bought the bracelets and some CDs and prints from the Protomen's table, as well as a ton of other stuff from the marketplace... I probably spent too much money -_- but it's fiiiine

Here's my cosplay btw:
Later on, we went to the meetup for the Protomen's semi-official Discord server (that I'm actually a moderator in!) and I was in my full Protoman cosplay. I was still kinda disoriented (since the costume is SUPER SUPER SUPER HOT and the venue was very humid) so when I was approached by a guy, I was confused when he was like "YOU HAVE SOME NERVE..." until I realized it was KILROY! Who also plays Protoman on stage. It was really funny.



I got to hand out people's keychains and gave everyone stickers and prints, and we took some photos together! I'm the one in the Protoman cosplay in the front left. When we did a silly picture, I wasn't quite sure what to do, until I realized Kilroy was kissing the helmet?!?! LOL



I didn't get to go to many panels since I was sick, but one of the panels I did manage to make it to was something called "Waluigi's Second Grade Music Class". They handed out recorders and moustaches and taught everyone how to play (badly. The recorders were dollar store quality) and at one point the presenters asked if anyone in the crowd knew about Megaman. I held up my Protoman plushie and waved it around, and they actually CALLED ME UP on stage.

One thing to know about me is that I'm TERRIBLE at instruments. The wires tend to get crossed in my head and often the best I can do is play rhythm games. So when they asked me to not only be the teacher for this next song, but also for one of the few songs I don't actually KNOW (Splash Woman's stage) I was PANICKING, because I knew I was going to make a fool of myself, but I played along because I didn't want to ruin anything. So, they pull up the video, I click it...

It's a RICK ROLL...

I've been punked.

Luckily, they let me sit back down afterwards (I was still sick lol) and the rest of the panel was really fun. I had an awesome time at that one.

The performances of Act I and Act III were AMAZING. I almost cried-- I DID cry-- several times, especially when Protoman came up on stage. Honestly, whenever they brought out the helmets I got emotional.

The unfortunate part happened at 9 PM on Saturday, when the signups for the meet and greet came out-- no joke, they sold out in THREE MINUTES. And I DIDN'T MANAGE TO GET A SLOT. I had these special keychain gifts I'd made for them-- OF THEM-- but I was freaking out because I was worried I wouldn't be able to get it to them. But I just decided, screw it, I'm going to go and try anyway-- what's the worst that could happen? Absolute worst case scenario, I knew my friend Veg had a slot, so I would just hand them off to him if I needed to.

So, after the amazing show on Saturday, I grabbed the keychains from my friend Cue, and RAN back to Rock Island. I went up to a guy, and was like "hey, where's the meet and greet?"

"Did you sign up?"

The crossroads appeared. Should I be honest? I don't really like lying, but I didn't want to just be turned away immediately after getting all this way. I had a split second to decide--

"Yes."

Okay, we're doing this now. I was praying he wouldn't ask for confirmation or proof...

"Cool, follow me."

JUST LIKE THAT?!?!?!

He leads me down the hall and past the Chipspace. I'm nervous, so I mention that I have gifts for them and that's why I was in such a rush. He says that as long as I managed to sign up, I'm fine. I'm like haha, sure...

He leads me past sign after sign saying that the signups for the meet and greet are totally SOLD OUT and that I should TURN BACK if I don't have a slot. It's terrifying. He points me down the hall, where I can see people lining up for the meet and greet. Between the line and me is a table with a lady sitting at it, but she seems distracted. I start walking, telling myself "As long as I walk like I belong here, they won't stop me."

At the back of the line, I see Veg! I wave towards him, and he starts waving back. I start RUNNING, and I run past the table with the lady-- NOBODY STOPS ME. Not a single person goes "hey, did you sign up?!" And I make it into the line. Nobody asks me for proof. Nobody checks to see if I belong there. I'm then in line with Veg and HulkyKrow for the next TWO HOURS, shooting the shit while we wait for the line to get up to the table, and the whole time nobody checks my signup at all. It was amazing.

I managed to get the band their keychains-- they loved it! I almost cried a few times when talking to them, since they really do mean so much to me as a band. I don't think I'd be the artist I am today if I hadn't been introduced to their music; it's really important to me. I also got them to sign my copy of Megaman X Command Mission, because that's the funniest thing I could've had them sign. So I have that now.

All in all, while my very first convention and trip alone had some bumps, I had so, so much fun. I'm so thankful to my friends for being there for me, and for the time I could spend with them. I miss them a lot, and I hope I can see them again soon... IN NASHVILLE?! WHERE THE PROTOMEN ARE PLAYING AGAIN?!

Later today, I'm going to play some Mario Party with my friends over call. Prince is going to order me an ice cream cake... I'm really happy. I'm still sick from con crud, but I'm thankful to have friends who love me and the opportunity to live richly with them.

Here's the keychains I gave to the Protomen, by the way! I made them specially for them :)


Let's play some video games later! It's my birthday!

SONG OF THE DAY