Before I can get started on my Exoticon review I must talk about the job I took the week prior to raise the money to get there.  I worked on the crew for Landscape Builders as they installed a new landscape at a Pebbles Restaraunt in Winter Park, Florida.  On my first day there a palm tree fell over while I was watering because the Landscape Builders skimped on the two by four to hold it up properly.  It was an Argentinian Queen palm, and it scraped by back missing my head by about  three inches.  I came out shaken but only with a couple scratches.  They were nice enough to send me to the doctor to get checked up so that was cool.  The rest of the week I spent mostly digging ditches and sweeping out the parking lot, although I did get near the palms again to prune them with pole pruners.
This is the culprit here.  I was watering the Ligustrum behind it when it went timber.

  This is Jon, he was my supervisor on the job.  Do not  work for this big gay man.

Anyway the following week Warren and I hit the road.  After driving all day Thursday our first stop was Biloxi where we rested up and ate.  Biloxi is like a super run down version of Atlantic City with a lot of poor people, a military base, and casinos.  The casino factor proved to be to our benefit as we managed to get one free and one half price buffet at a somewhat decent casino.  Thanks to our Korean hotel clerk who had the killer coupons.  I am proud to say that I did not spend a dime towards gambling and slept well Thursday night.

The next morning we drove into New Orleans.  It was cold and rainy so the Cafe Du Monde in the French Quarter was a welcome site.  We drank cafe au lait and ate beignets which are a french pastry that are sort of like funnel cake without the funnel.  We walked around the french market and around the shops in the quarter for awhile before we had lunch on Bourbon Street.  Our lunch consisted of Po'boy's. A simple sandwich on french bread. These were very filling.  Soon we arrived to the Radisson were we awaited the group that we were to room share with.  They never showed, and at the last minute I had to book my own room.  It was a pain, and I had to do some heavy talking to get it as the hotel was booked solid.

Before I got my room I ran into my good friend Kim.  Kim is a beautiful redhead with a fifth degree blackbelt.  Her job was to make sure the Guests of the convention (the celebrities) were secure and safe.  She did a fabulous job and also let me hang in the VIP green room for a while as I waited for my no show friend.

Thanks Kim!

I also ran into my friend Dawn Marie who was registering.  She came through for me that night when my people didn't show.  We wound up spending a lot of time together while I was there.  Dawn Marie is a cam girl.  I am addicted to her site DawnMarie.org. She is a witty writer.  I look forward to reading her Moment for Us column as often as I can.

  ThanksDM!

Dawn Marie is the first Queen of Exoticon and Friday night was her coronation.  That night she introduced me to a great group of people.  Chris Owens was a very nice guy who also has a web site where he is on cam called Wasted Space.  Dawn also introduced me to Wes and Stephanie.  They were a great couple from Huntsville, Alabama and are pictured below.

Some of the other cool people I met were CircleK, Jen and Rob, and this girl who's name escapes me but I think is Luka.  She is the Marilyn Manson looking girl in the middle of Stephanie and Dawn Marie.

As you can see there was no shortage of glamour at Exoticon.

I finally got a room and ran around the hotel for a little while dressed as a zombie.  It's weird how being a zombie will let you get into just about any room at the convention without a badge.  Exoticon Security was on my case though and they seemed to be everywhere I went on their littlle radios.  "zombie on the second floor", "zombie in the dealers room", "zombie on the sixth floor harassing porn stars", etc.  I soon became Jose again in time to attend the coronation which went over splendidly.  Dawn marie was queen Exoticon 1 and that's her coronation gown with all the sparkles.

After the coronation we all went out to Bourbon street for drinks.  It was cold and miserable but we still managed to get a lot of walking done on the street.  We did spend a lot of time in bars and drank these drinks called Hand Grenades.  No one would tell me what was in one and that seemed to be a theme for the entire trip.  People would give me drinks, not tell me what was in them, have some weird name for them like Reanimator Fluid, and just say "trust me"!

Well.. the next afternoon I got up and worked out in the hotel Gym with this cool kid I met named Shannon.  See I met a girl named Xia at Exoticon Last year and this year she brought her daughter who is seven.  I love kids and Shannon proved to be a better workout partner than most adults because she enjoyed using the stairmaster and didn't whine.  Kids are super cool.

That day Warren spent a lot of time schmoozing with Peter Mayhew.  Peter played Chewbacca in the Star Wars Trilogy.  Warren is a huge Star Wars fan, so he got a kick out of that.

Check the height on that guy.  I had to get very low and point up to take this pic.

Peter Mayhew is Chewbacca.  He really walks like Chewbacca and everything.  Peter was the guest of honor at the Con and he deserved it.  He and his wife Angelique were lovely people.

Saturday thh whole entourage ate lunch at Mother's on Poydras street.  The food was excellent classic cajun cooking.  Served hot and fast.  There was  a line out the door to get in the place and I could see why.  I sampled a lot of the food there including the gumbo, the jambalaya, and the bread pudding (delish).  It was a busy, crowded, and bustling restaraunt that I would recommend to anyone staying in New Orleans.  They even had a full bar but I stuck to the cafe au lait and water.

That night was marked by the costume contest and more partying.  Warren took first place in the contest with his Andy Warhol Costume.  The prize was a lifetime mebership to Exoticon.  So we'll be back next year for sure.  Afterwards there was a secret party on the sixth floor.  I think the theme of this party was "we are cooler than everyone else so lets have a party where we have to be quiet and drink a lot of liquor."  I got a lot of heat as we entered the party fom security,  and they kept getting on us about the noise level.  I quickly retreated back downstairs with the regular folks where they had a DJ, loud music, dance floor, and excitement was an option.

A few costumed revelers!

After I got all my energy out I went back to the secret special party.  It was cool, but things just got progressively weirder so I turned in for the night.

The next day was spent talking to people in the dealers room and promoting my web site and The Brothers to whoever would listen.  I have to say I had a blast at this year's Exoticon and look forward to  seeing everyone again.  Special thanks to Wes and Steph for letting us share a room with them Sunday as we would not have been able to afford another night at the Radisson.

There's plenty of stuff I left out of this little review, but those who were there know the deal.  Thanks to everyone who took me in and treated me so well.  Looking forward to Fantasm in April.  Special props go to Kim, Dawn Marie, Wes, Stephanie, Circle K, Count Gore Divol The horror host of the internet, Christopher, Rob,  Bill Blair for being so bold, Jen and Rob, Luka, Xia and Shannon, the reverend for the full bar in Dawn's room, the entire New Orleans Worst Film Festival crew for being the first group of people to take me in at Exoticon '99 whether they liked it or not, and anyone I may have forgotten, I didn't mean it