Diary 28th To 30th September 2018 Cancer Support and Comic Con Preston

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Diary Friday 28th September 2018 A very buy day today. I did voluntary work helping out at a Macmillan Coffee Morning. This was an event run around the UK at various locations, with our event taking place at the University Of Lancashire University where I help with various voluntary activities. We sold cakes, both home-made and shop bought / donated, as well as cups of coffee and tea, to raise money for Macmillan Nurses, who work tirelessly to provide support for cancer patients, their families and carers. We got very busy at times, and sold lots of lovely cakes. Shortly afterward I went to a friend’s surprise 90th birthday party (I bought her a very nice cake from the stall as a present). The party was a huge success and the lady concerned was very moved by the support by her family and friends. It was a delightful event. Diary Saturday29th September 2018 Another busy day as I attended the Preston Comic Con event. I went as a Nazgul, one of the ring-wraiths who hunted Frodo in the Lord Of The Rings. Though the bulk of my costume was a large heavy cloak and gloves which I could carry in my sports-bag, but I also had a large heavy wooden broadsword to carry openly which drew quite a lot of attention on buses and in the street before I got to the Guild Hall where the event took place. I got into costume and entered. Many people got photos of me and with the costume mask restricting my eyesight and breathing I had to take breaks frequently. Comic Cons have two kind of guest events. 1/. Panel interviews where the guests are interviewed by an MC with a Q & A session with the audience too. 2/. Autograph & photo sessions. While panels are usually free to attend, autographs and photo with the celebrities have to be paid for. This I a practice I disagree with on a number of principle. a/. Attendees have already paid an admission fee to attend the Con. b/. We have paid to see our heroes in films, read their books, etc. c/. Costs of autographs and photos are often very high. d/. Some guests do to their credit refuse to take fees for signing autographs or letting fans take their own photos or for signing already purchased merchandise. I was disappointed that leading guest, Hattie Heyridge, who played Holly in the comedy show Red Dwarf, was only doing autographs and photos, but not taking part in panels. The panels that did take place were great though. Mike Quinn was a puppeteer who worked on many shows and movies with Jim Henson, including The Muppets, The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth. Undoubtedly, the fans themselves provide the greatest entertainment, with stunning costumes. I saw Batman, Squirrel Girl, Lara Croft, Harley Quinn & The Joker, virtually every Star Wars character you can think of, a whole battalion of Cybermen, and many more. I took part in the costume competition though I knew I was outclassed by many entries. I never even made the shortlist final selection. Only four children took part in the junior competition but there were lots of us in the adult contest. Congratulations to the winners, thanks to everyone who organized the events, and everyone who offered kind words or took photos of my own costume. After the show finished I called in a local pub, The Market Tap, for a beer and then headed to another bar (the Greene King run Lane Ends, which I knew served food. They had a meal deal where I could get a reduced price beer with the meal so I ordered that option only to be then told that the beer I chose was not on offer that day, so I had to choose another beer within the offer or pay the full cost of another beer. None of the other beers in the offer appealed to me. Normally when this happens bars offer other beers the pub offers at the discount price but I was offered no choice but accept weak ale or pay more. The bar man was very surly. I contemplated jut refusing to order at all and going to another pub but I was very tired and hungry by this time so I conceded to taking the lousy beer. When the waitress brought my meal over she saw I was unhappy and asked why. I was mainly concerned that she didn’t feel I was unhappy with her service. She agreed that he was wrong to ignore my concern and arranged that I got a free dessert with my meal by way of an apology. I was too tired to write anything once I got home. Diary Sunday 30th September 2018 A quiet rest day after a very active week and weekend. Arthur Chappell