Megaplex, TTFC 2025

pro tip: if you're doing cons back to back, grab energy drinks.

after FWA, i had promised myself i was only going to do at most one big con a year. after all, plane tickets and hotel rooms are expensive. either i need to get a sizeable group to room with, drive in, or both. it just so happened to line up this year that i had both the lodging and the driving lined up to attend both Megaplex and Tails and Tornadoes, on back-to-back weekends. i don't recommend this approach for the faint of heart (or footpaws -- dear gods, i don't think there's ever been a week in my life i've walked as much as i did).

originally the plan was just TTFC. i was going to split a drive up to Oklahoma and room with four other furs (Tra$h, Scrumble, Lux, and Ada) to keep costs low. then i discovered that Lupi, one of my furry friends from cohost, actually lives in central Florida and offered lodging at their place in exchange for transportation into the con. with the stay itself taken care of, the matter of the drive over came next. i was hoping to find someone to split the eleven hour drive with, but it was beginning to look like the trip was going to be solo. i was prepping a huge list of podcasts and audiobooks to listen to to keep myself from dying of boredom...

then i heard that Tra$h, who was also going to be double-dipping cons, had dropped out of Megaplex plans due to a mix of factors. he was planning to be a driver for another crew (composed of another five friends: chase, Oz, Batty, Mikey, and himself), so i swooped in and offered my vehicle.

before the cons

at FWA i had made paper badges reading "HUGS OK!" and "DTF", but by the end of the con they were already on the verge of falling apart. a good trial run, but it was time for something with a little bit more production budget. i had gotten a laminator and had access to a printer through my job, so i set about redesigning the badges for printing. i was just about to save my work when i heard another local friend worked in entertainment and had easy access to a PVC hard-card badge printer. i quickly retooled my designs to work within the dimensions of the badges and for as slapdash as i threw together the new designs i am exceptionally happy with them.

as it turns out: i did not have a single suitcase to my name. i had always borrowed ones from my parents when i needed to travel. on the recommendation from a friend who often flew with his fursuit, i wound up getting a hardshell Pelican Air case. a little pricey, but well worth the durability guarantee. i planned to later pair it with a cheap networked-Bluetooth tracker when i do fly just in case (something i now have at time of publishing). the other reason i got a hardshell one is so i can stickerbomb it.

however, that Pelican label... i figured i could do better. i pirated a couple fonts and whipped up a couple custom Lucario-themed label and logo replacements and had them printed at Vinyl Disorder, which is where i get all my stickers printed at -- can't recommend them enough.

the drive over (Friday)

i headed out at 5 AM. we had to make a couple pit stops on the drive over to pick everyone up, and as such we had to pack my four-door sedan very tight to fit four people plus everyone's stuff. the drive was long, but for the most part pleasantly uneventful; we yapped more-or-less the whole time.

on the way, we stopped at a Walmart to pick a couple essentials, and i nabbed a cute shade of blue nail polish that i put on in the car. we also stopped at a Bass Pro Shop since chase had never been to one, and he was visibly animated the whole time we were there. he wound up finding and buying a coyote call!

the route we were taking in, as well as the route me and Lupi were taking to and from their house, put us on a couple toll roads. fortunately, Florida's SunPass system will mail you a transponder sticker, which i had done a couple weeks before. it was a little pricey, but still significantly less than the equivalent cost of a (portion of a) hotel room.

we arrived at around 5 PM. i dropped chase and Batty off at the hotel and zipped on over to Lupi's. we went out to a nearby seafood restaurant which served corn fritters dusted with powdered sugar -- absolutely divine. we also went and nabbed groceries to make sandwiches with. deli roast beef, mustard, and mayo on sourdough SLAPPED every time and i wound up copying the the strategy when i went to TTFC.

Megaplex day one (Saturday)

the parking garage filled up immediately (go figure). they had a grass lot for overflow parking, so after finding a spot there we entered the conspace. the very first thing they had up after entering was the sticker wall. of course, a couple ebus wound up there.

me and Lupi hopped in registration line at 10:50 AM, and got through registration at 1:50 PM, or just shy of three hours. i heard rumors after the fact that registration line went up to six hours, so we didn't even get the worst of it. it gave me just enough time to dash across the conspace and find the room for the blue dog meetup.

after blue dog meetup, me and Lupi met back up and we got to stroll through the dealers' den / artists' alley. i nabbed a couple shirts i liked. side note: why do so many furry shirt artists only make designs on black? there's so many other colors! my closet has so many furry shirts and half of them are black shirts. i don't know if you know this but it's hot where i live and jeans aren't an option for 3/4 of the year. my outfit options are already ridiculously limited! more pinks and pastels, please...

the last thing we hit in the day before heading back was the pool toy room. oh my gods. it was amazing!! they had turned the lights down, added blankets and mattresses, put balloons all over the floor, and had a DJ running chill music. the number of times i fell asleep over the con in here... it was paws down the best way to kill a couple hours. may have defended my title as the Magnus Carlsen of snuggles by meeting a guy and having him in my arms fast asleep 20min later...

Megaplex day two (Sunday)

we woke up bright and early to head out to watch a rocket launch! it was a SpaceX satellite (ew Elon) but it was neat to watch nonetheless. i didn't even bother trying to get decent shots on my phone; Lupi was the one to bring an actual telephoto lens.

we got back to the conspace a little bit later since most of the things we wanted to hit were later in the afternoon. we got in the night market wristband pre-check line -- not too terrible, only about an hour or so wait. was absolutely worth it as the actual night market line got suuuper backed up, but with the wristband you could simply skip all of it and walk in.

we took another stroll through the dealer's den since it had greatly cleared out by now and there was enough room to leisurely float through. we hit up the objectumsexuality panel (very interesting, as someone on the outside!) and then after that, the night market. i didn't grab anything there (this time)...

Megaplex day three (Monday)

unfortunately this would be our last day at the con. one of my car crew had a new job orientation the next morning, so we would have to be back to sleep. but that didn't stop me from hitting up the sticker swap at 11 :3

i got a TON of new stickers. i tried to abide by sticker karma and put out more than i got / take only those which people considered my stickers a fair trade, but it was SUUPER hectic with people moving and looking around. i don't think i stole anyone's stickers, but if i did, i hope you at least got a couple Lucario ones to make up for it. (if not, hit me up; i might be making another big sticker order soon :3)

the drive home was mostly uneventful. i don't drink coffee or caffiene, so when i do, that one energy drink keeps me well awake for a couple hours; perfect for that last stretch, since i wound up taking final shift. i landed in bed back at my place around five A.M.; thank gods i thought ahead and took the Tuesday off.

intermission (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday)

the two-day turnaround was just barely enough to do laundry, mentally reset, and finish up last-minute TTFC plans. having an extra day here would have been nice, but no regrets. of course, first order of business was stickerbombing my suitcase.

next up, Lux had actually made badges for the five of us! we made a whole horror icon plan. i, of course, was patrick bateman :3

Tra$h and Scrumble drove to my place on Wednesday night and we all piled into the Tra$hmobile bright and early Thursday morning to head over to Oklahoma. Tra$h, the absolute trooper, solo'ed the entire drive up to Lux and Ada's place. (i did offer! as did Scrumble). aside from a brief foray into the pinnacle of American cuisine (McDonalds), we got there mostly uninterrupted. we hung out, had pizza and blondies, and watched The Amazing Digital Circus together.

TTFC day one (Friday)

the five of us packed like sardines in the Tra$hmobile. each of us, minus the driver, carried enough stuff on our laps to block our vision. there was enough room to breathe, and that was about it. fortunately the drive to the con hotel was only about an hour or so, so it was a lot more bearable. the hotel keycards were themed for TTFC and had a subtle pride design :3

we got set up for the room and headed down to go get registered! we pre-registered, so we got to move through pretty quick. just as soon as that was over, i was itchy for practice with Tra$h's camera, so i nabbed it and started taking pics.

we went through the artists' alley and dealer's den. i wound up getting a martingale collar and some fursuit spray! everyone got various little trinkets. meanwhile, Tra$h and Scrumble suited up and i snapped pics.

there was a brief opportunity in the afternoon to go on a grocery run, but as it turns out, there was a Super Target directly across from the hotel. i made a dash over to grab sandwich ingredients (why mess with success?) and some snacks. we got ice cream with taiyaki and it was amazing :3

that night we headed to the rave. Tra$h's Nikon D3500 struggled a bit, but if i timed the capture with the flash of the lights, i got a chance to snag a couple decent shots.

TTFC day two (Saturday)

we made a quick trip over to an IHOP for breakfast. i wanted eggs benedict, but figured that would be a bit light for me, so i got french toast on the side. turns out, the french toast being a whole-ass entrée was not an accident. they slice that bread THICK. still, i was hungry enough to finish off everything.

this day was the fursuit parade, as well as the dance competition. i might have been a colossal dumbass and went through the parade without a fursuit... BUT i was wearing the Patrick Bateman costume, so it wasn't like a total hack. after parade was the dance competition, but i didn't have a terribly strong interest in watching that. i took the time to relax for just a bit. after that, we went for buffet pizza -- excellent way to fill up on the cheap.

TTFC day three (Sunday)

we a nice leisurely wake-up, and got geared up to head over to the Oklahoma Aquarium! i snapped approximately too many photos, but it was all in good fun. i even got to feed a stingray with some shrimp :3.

since Ada had never tried sushi before, that was our lunch destination.

after sushi, Tra$h and Scrumble wanted to head back to the con to go to the charity auction. i ran off to go re-visit the artists' alley and dealers den to do some last-minute sticker trading. turns out, if you see stickers that are cute and you have a bunch, you can just ask people to trade and they usually say yes. LITTLE DID I KNOW, Tra$h was at the same bidding for Scraps, a Thread’s Workshop head being auctioned off for the benefit of local animal shelter. He actually won!! which of course meant i had to pause everything and go take 1000 photos.

we checked out of the hotel and packed back into the car to go back to Lux and Ada's for the night, though we did decide to go for a late-night photo shoot with the new suit.

the trip back (Monday)

the final day of the endeavor... we ate breakfast, loaded up the car with our stuff, and started the trip back. Tra$h once again coming in clutch with the solo drive. on the second arrival to our holy sanctuary (McDonalds) i got two (2) big mac

the aftermath

again, the full vacation day i took proved absolutely worth the investment. i slept like a baby. it definitely reinvigorated my interest in photography, and i may be soon making the investment to get my own camera...

i went through nearly all of my stickers over the two cons, finally clearing them out after i left the absolute last of my stash on a table after a local event. i'll need to make a refill; i might gather the art i have done / gotten or potentially even commission more, and get some new designs circulating.

next cons for me will be the new-and-upcoming Frosty Fur Fest in Februrary, and FWA in May! i might make the trip over to Dallas for TFF, or Houston for Stratosfur; it depends on what plans i can pull together.

hopefully by then i will be able to put together these blog posts with a turnaround time of *checks date* less than two months...