"It’s funny how photos can help you remember details of events just by looking at them—especially photos from sci-fi and comic conventions from years past. For everyone else, this photo is just of me meeting Brent Spiner, a fellow Texan who is best known for portraying Lt. Cmdr. Data on Star Trek: The Next Generation. But for me, this photo provides a few more details.
The first is the shirt I was wearing. It was just a shirt I’d picked up from Old Navy that featured some random BBQ restaurant in Texas. Whether it was a real place or not, I honestly didn't know. Well, when it was finally my turn, Brent Spiner started asking question after question about my shirt and the restaurant on it—asking if it was good and where it was located in Texas so he could go there.
The second memory I have about this photo is of the guy and his wife who were standing behind me. At most conventions, I usually go by myself and keep to myself, especially back then. But we all started talking about this and that, passing the time while waiting in line. Afterward, they went on their way, and I went on mine.
At that time, Facebook hadn’t really taken off yet; I don’t even think it was around. But the convention had message boards (I miss those days) where you could post comments and photos about the shows, and you could actually keep up with the conversations without them getting lost in an algorithm. I had commented on the board about the show, and a person replied saying he had taken a photo if I wanted it. Sure enough, it was from the couple behind me.
Who’d have thunk it? On October 23, 2004, at Dallas Comic Con, when a random photo was taken of a random person, a friendship would start. And even though we don’t hang out as much now, I still consider both of them really good friends. Here’s to another 20 years, my friends."
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