Back to the Present

Aug 17, 2008

Posted by: John Admin

Uncategorized

Topic of the Blog: “I don’t know how the Muggles manage without magic” ’ Sorcerers Stone, Chapter 5

Hey guys! First thing I want to say is sorry for the delay. I have a number of blogs I tried to post, but the interwebs hates me, so I gave up until post-Terminus. My goal is regular posts, and INTERWEBS, I WILL NOT BE THWARTED!

Now that that’s finished¦the real world. This blog is supposed to be about me in the real world. I’m still not sure what that means, since I try to avoid the real world as much as possible. Pretty much it was my excuse to write about my Potter Adventures. But right now, I’m trying to find a way to get back to the real world, after one very amazing week.

Terminus. By now, I’m sure you are all very sick of hearing about it. But I have to reiterate how amazing Terminus was. And how amazing all Harry Potter conferences are. For those of you who have been to a conference, you know what I mean. For those of you who haven’t, let me try to explain. I don’t know if I can, explaining a conference is kind of like me trying to explain to my parents why (thanks to the Leaky Staff) my favorite song is “Total Eclipse of the Heart.”

Imagine a room with a big comfortable bed, with all your favorite candies and chocolates in easy reach. Now imagine that room full of books, as well, but only good books, none of that miserably depressing stuff you have to read for school. And on top of all that sweet, interesting, cuddly goodness, add all the love you’ve ever felt in the fandom. Yes, into that one tiny little room add ALL that love. THAT is a Harry Potter conference. It’s all the best things in life packed into one building for one long weekend. Or a week, if you’re like the Leaky Staff and like to try to kill yourself by partying until you’re all sick and exhausted. It’s overwhelming, but in an amazing kind of way.

I won’t go into all the details, I could talk for pages about everything. I’ll leave the panels and the costumes and the concerts for someone else’s blog. What I want to talk about is the feeling. The immense roller coaster of feelings through that whole weekend. The tide of joy and love that makes your heart swell when you see your friends/adopted family for the first time in a year. The overwhelming madness as the floor below you actually VIBRATES during the Whomping Willows’ set. The annoyance at having to reign in your emotions for the sake of the Gospel Conference going on downstairs. The giddy fangirl feeling as you run into THE Cheryl Klein. The sudden onslaught of tears as you listen to a panel, and the comfort of all your friends around you making you feel better. The awe at the face-melting awesomeness of Brian Malfoy’s guitar skillz. The laughter that bubbles up at random. And finally, that heartbreaking sadness as you realize you can’t stay, you have to return home. Or to the place you call home, because after all this time, you feel that your only home can be with these people that you love so much.

And once you’re home, how do you enter real life again? Muggles, and people who haven’t been to a convention, might have trouble understanding this dilemma. After all, you just took a vacation, you come home and pick up where you left off, right? But it’s not that simple. That’s where I am now, trying to climb back up the ditch that I left when I plummeted suddenly from that high alternate reality back to earth. How am I supposed to just go back to the real world after a week of love and brilliance? Especially when the real world is so undesirable! Since I’ve been back, I’ve learned that possibly thousands of civilians have been killed in the Russian invasion of Georgia. I’ve seen my family get into fights, I’ve interviewed for a job frying funnel cakes, I’ve filled out paperwork for said job. How unglamorous is this life? Where’s the hugs I found everytime I entered a room this time last week? Where are the smiles? Where are those wonderful emotions? It’s almost like my Technicolor world suddenly became black-and-white.

Now, I know things will go back to normal. I’ll get over my Post-Conference Depression like I always do, and I’ll rejoin the real world like everyone else. I don’t have much of a choice. None of us do. But we’ll go on, living on the hope for next year’s conference. I don’t know if that’s normal, or healthy. But it’s how we survive the monotony and sadness that come with life in the real world. I know it’s not all bad, this real world. I like the real world a lot of the time. But I can’t help counting down the days until LeakyCon, when I can slip into my Technicolored bubble again¦





The Leaky Cauldron is not associated with J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros., or any of the individuals or companies associated with producing and publishing Harry Potter books and films.