Life, as it Unfolds: It's Showtime!

Part of the fun of living a life with "piecemeal" work is that you end up doing all sorts of things!

On Thursday, we're heading off to Ocean Shores, Washington for the 2024 UFO/Paranormal Summit. For myself, to set up a vendor space to sell my handpainted mandala stones; for my wife, to give a presentation on Saturday morning.

Sounds a bit strange and esoteric, no?

I suppose you could say that "like begets like," as we are somewhat fringe-dwelling people, ourselves. The point here is that one of the lessons I learned with trying to sell my particular type of art is that I am far more successful at unusual events (like this one) and festivals, than I am trying to cater to an "arts and crafts show" crowd.

This particular event is a pretty big deal... is was one of the largest of its kind, before Covid lockdowns took it off the map for a few years; this is the first time the organizer is putting it back on.

And no, this is not just a gathering of weirdos and freaks wearing tinfoil hats! There's are usually quite a few scientists from NASA, SETI and other major organizations... as well as personalities you might recognize from various TV shows about unexplained phenomena.

Anyway, it will be a small "working" road trip; it's about a three hour drive from where we live, and Johnny (event manager) treats presenters extremely well, so we get free room and board at the Resort for three nights.... which is part of what makes this one of the most worthwhile events I go to.

Hopefully, it'll be a good experience again, this year! Last time I was part of it was in 2019, last year before Covid shutdowns.

A look inside the main auditorium during the 2019 event

I think the event is likely as well attended as it is because the venue is about a 2 1/2 hour drive from both Seattle and Portland, which have about seven million people between them.

So anyway, that's what my weekend is going to look like!

I might try to do some "live" posts from the road... we'll see how the time works out!

Preparing for an event like this is quite time consuming... which is why my blogging has been a bit sporadic, lately.

In spite of the fact that I have been "doing events" as a vendor for close to 15 years, and have also owned and operated a couple of retail shops... I always feel like I am forgetting something, or have overlooked something important. When you're 3+ hours from home, there's not much you can do about it!

Regardless, it's sure to be a good time... seeing old friends and perhaps making some new ones. I'm normally not much for "crowd situations," but this is one of less overwhelming crowds I've been with.

A sampling of my artwork

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great remainder of your week! I will update, as time permits!

How about you? Do you ever go to any unusual events or conferences? Leave a comment if you feel so inclined — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!

(All text and images by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is ORIGINAL CONTENT, created expressly for this platform — Not posted elsewhere!)

Created at 2024.05.01 00:42 PDT
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