Sorry to have taken so long to post, Post-PAX. I came down with what has been dubbed the PAX Pox and I blame a Mr. Wheaton for infecting me. Watch out for hugs.
Looking back on PAX I feel sad, the weekend went by in such a flash and I miss it. It was a relief to be among my geek, gamer, and nerd peers. As a poster on the Penny Arcade forums so aptly put it, "PAX isn't a gaming convention, it's a god damn family reunion." Anyone who has ever been to PAX knows how true that statement really is.
As a community and a culture, geeks, gamers, and nerds are very isolated from the rest of society. For years we have been called antisocial, believed to prefer solitude with our offbeat interests than commune with the rest of the world. I have never believed this to be true.
When geek/nerd culture really began to form there wasn't a convenient series of tubes hooked to your home to connect you with your fellow (fill in the blank). Isolation from the rest of the populace was developed as a form of self preservation. How long can someone be the brunt of jokes or mocked for their passions before they retreat? We were taught by society at large that we were small and alone. Now that is changing and people are coming out of the geek/nerd closet in droves. And they are going to PAX.
There is such a sense of peace and community at PAX. There is no need to be on guard, ready to defend you interests to the world, you are among friends. I had such fun during the whole convention and enjoyed the friendly atmosphere. However, something had been burning within me and it wasn't until the Wil Wheaton Awesome Hour!!1 that I really found the ability to say it aloud. Everyone at PAX had allowed me to really be myself without fear and I had to thank them. I did during the Q&A and I wish I could say that I didn't cry. It was such a relief to know that other people felt the same sense of home at PAX.
Honestly I wish there didn't have to be a PAX to feel so accepted but since there is little else I will retreat back to the Internets and wait until next year. I hope to see you all there.
