The She-Hulk Fan Club

As some of you may know, Atlanta hosts Dragon*Con every year over Labor Day weekend. It is a sci-fi/fantasy convention that draws all kinds of.... characters. Two in specific this year are Teresa Wentzler (of TWDesignworks) and Jennifer Aikman-Smith (of Dragon Dreams). As two of my favorite cross stitch designers, I jumped at the chance to invite them both to dinner with our local group of stitches.

And boy, did we have a blast! Check out all the pictures, if you'd like. I'll post a group shot in a minute. We had 14 folks total, two children included. Heather and I picked up Teresa and Jennifer at the hotel and drove them to a true Atlanta establishment, Mary Mac's. (My parents used to go on dates there, and it was famous then.) Thanks to Heather's wonderful husband Michael, we had a surprise waiting for Jennifer when she arrived. Before I tell you about the surprise, though, I have to fill you in on Jennifer's main reason for being in town. She decided to "turn 40 with a bang," so she is entering the Dragon*con costume contest as She-Hulk (that would be The Hulk's cousin). You can read all about her preparation and inspiration at her Becoming She-Hulk blog. Yes, she will be painted green and everything! So, to show our support, I made up these little "badges" (sticky mailing labels), and everyone was wearing them when she came in (thanks to our delivery boy), including Heather, Teresa, and myself who managed to sneak ours on as we went into the restaurant.


She was so stunned! "I think I'm turning red instead of green!" It was a great moment. We all got seated, ordered, and chatted (and ate) the night away. As suspected, Jennifer did not order dessert, but she did ask if there were any cinnamon rolls left on the table. Alas, there were none, and she declined to have any brought to the table. Ah-ha! The opening I had been waiting for. I snuck out and asked the waitress to please bring *one* cinnamon roll (she brought two) with a birthday candle stuck in it. I had been trying to figure out exactly when to break out in song, and this was just too good of an opening to pass up.

After singing, Jennifer decided to try out the swords our RenFest gals had brought per her request. I tell you what, she's an impressive woman to start with (6'5"), but sporting a 5'5" claymor on her back, she's downright imposing! She did go with the shorter sword (a mere 40 inches or so, tip to tip) to wear at her hip, but only to keep from knocking folks in the head with the other one. For those wondering, Teresa is attending the con as a "mere mortal" and for moral support. Lots of pictures, lots of chart signing, more chatting and laughing. I know everyone had a great time, and I am so happy that it all went off without a hitch.

Here is the group. Back row, L-R: Valerie, Cindy, Jennifer, Teresa, Ginny, Heather, Lynn, Pat. Front row, L-R: Marian, Becky, and Cris (holding Scarlett). I, of course, am taking the picture (my camera is a bit fiddly).

Currently feeling: triumphant