Salute to Supernatural San Francisco – Sunday Report
Sunday, Sunday, Sunday! That’s right, it’s time for the final long-winded installment about my experiences at the San Francisco Salute to Supernatural convention. Sunday was really fun, and also the most-attended day of the convention. I’m told this is the way of things. Everyone wants to see Jensen and Jared.
Now, when my mom and I were planning our convention experience, we decided on general admission tickets for the weekend because we really just couldn’t afford anything more. Some of those tickets are expensive! So we resigned ourselves to hanging out in the crowd and listening to the panels. But Alice had a surprise in store, and it was a big one. She bought Jenniffer, our esteemed site co-admin, and me a photo op with Jared and Jensen. It was an amazing gift, and I can’t thank her enough. I was so flipping excited when she told me about it, I can’t even tell you. But then I panicked because I had no idea what I was going to wear, and I really had no idea how to do my makeup or anything. So of course I had to do something about that! Shopping spree! And I even went to the Clinique counter at the mall and learned how to do grown-up fancy makeup. I mean, I’m almost 30, so it was about time to learn anyway, right? Basically, I had a girly girl reaction to the situation.
But it was totally worth it because the first event of my Sunday was the photo op. And Jenniffer and I had a plan: we were going to ask Jared and Jensen to Lewis and Clark our photo. You may be asking yourself, “What the heck is she talking about?” Well, I’ll tell you because when you see our photo, it won’t make much sense otherwise.
For those foreign readers who might not be familiar with Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, they were two very important American explorers. During a two-year expedition, they mapped out the American Pacific Northwest, a huge and essential job. I happened to be out in Colorado during the 200-year anniversary of their expedition, and there were all sorts of museum exhibits and events and things. So there were pictures and paintings and billboards of Lewis and Clark everywhere. And in the artwork depicting them, they are always pointing or looking at a map or looking off in the distance. Sort of like these images I found during a Google image search.
It ended up becoming this huge joke among my friends and family who were with us on the trip because Lewis and Clark were EVERYWHERE; car commercials and billboards with a pointing Lewis saying “This way to savings!” So we started randomly pointing and looking at things and making fun of the whole thing. Then a few years later, a friend who was there and in on the joke ended up backpacking to Lewis’ grave in Tennessee. He sent me a picture of himself and another friend doing Lewis and Clark poses in front of the grave. It was amazing. I laughed so hard I cried. Naturally, I decided one Lewis and Clark photo wasn’t enough, so I started taking them whenever I traveled somewhere, and now my friends and family do the same thing. I have a whole collection of Lewis and Clark photos on my wall at home. So when I suggested to Jenniffer that we Lewis and Clark our photo op, she was really excited because she knew the whole story.
Anyway, the first event of Sunday was the photo op. For those of you who have never been to a photo op, here’s how our process went. Everyone with a photo ticket goes into the ballroom and sits in rows according to whether they have a solo Jared photo, a Jensen solo photo, or a Jensen and Jared photo. If you didn’t have a photo ticket, you weren’t allowed in the ballroom, so my mom wasn’t allowed in with us. She decided to mill about in the hall near the photo-op room in the hopes that she could see one of the boys heading in or out of the room. Good idea, right? Except she started talking to another fan and totally missed Jensen walking by! But she caught Jared, so she was excited about that.
As we’re waiting around in the ballroom, I’m feeling pretty calm, all things considered. I guess it hasn’t really sunk in yet that I am actually going to get to meet them both, if only for a little bit. Then our row gets called, and we’re led out into the hallway and then into the photo-op room. There’s a large fabric screen blocking the view from the hall so that people can’t just stand around gawking. There’s also a table in front of the screen where you have to drop off your purse. I drop off my purse, head around the screen, and then I have my first and only fangirl freak-out moment because OMG, THEY ARE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE ROOM!!!! Flail! But one freak-out was enough, and I got it out of my system. We made it through the line, and then it was our turn! And if you’ve read this far, you deserve a reward, so here’s our picture, and then I’ll talk about how it went down. I am on the left under Jared.

Here’s the story about our photo experience. It’s finally our turn, so we head over. I ask, “Would you guys mind Lewis and Clarking our photo?” They both look at me with complete confusion on their faces. We tell them that it involves one person pointing and one looking into the distance with their hand shielding their eyes, and Jensen, who was sick and probably hopped up on cold medicine or something, is still looking confused. But Jared is instantly excited and goes, “Can I do both?!” I say, “Of course you can!” And he’s really excited now. Adorably excited, in fact. Jensen still looks a little confused about what he should be doing because I only mentioned two options, and Jared has claimed them both. Things happen so fast in these photo ops that I didn’t even think to tell him he could still point or whatever. So sorry, Jensen, for not making that clearer!
Jenniffer and I get in position and start unfolding the map, and Jensen is like, “Let’s get this map going.” At this point, Jared is still standing to the side of me, but as we are fumbling with the map, I can feel him moving more and more behind me, and then he sort of leans over, and now he’s officially looming over me. Seriously, look at him in the picture. He’s LOOMING! We’re almost set, and out of the corner of my eye I see Jensen abandon the map plan and look down at his watch. I thought that was a really great improv, especially considering we weren’t very helpful about his posing options. And he’s going to be the only one on my Lewis and Clark wall looking at his watch! So we’re all set, and as we’re in our final pose, people in line start clapping and laughing. Most of the ops we saw were just everyone smiling, and maybe there was some rule about not asking them to pose, but if there was, I totally missed it. My bad! Anyway, the photographer takes the picture, and as we head out, Jensen says, “Good job,” and I thank them for posing, and Jared says, “You’re welcome.”
It’s at this point that I start shaking. I was completely fine and calm and not flustered during the whole photo op, but as soon as it was over, major shaking going on. It must have been an adrenaline comedown, or maybe I was just so happy that they Lewis and Clarked the photo op, or maybe it was both. And they could have said no to our request and just had us do a regular photo. But the fact that they were willing to go along with our crazy photo request, and so enthusiastically in Jared’s case, is absolutely amazing. These Lewis and Clark photos are a silly and fun and really meaningful project to me, so I’m really humbled that Jenniffer and Jared and Jensen were all willing to participate and create something special for me. Jenniffer totally didn’t have to go along. It was her photo, too. But she’s a dear, and she was even more excited than Jared was about the whole idea. Really, I don’t know what else to say other than I am so ridiculously happy that everyone was willing to do this for me. And I know I’m a little biased, but didn’t it turn out well? I could not be happier with my photo. So, Alice, money well spent, I’d say!
Phew! What an experience. I still can’t believe that it happened, really. And at this point, just let me address something that some of you might be wondering about. Yes, these two are even better looking in person. Even sick, Jensen is insanely handsome. He’s almost illegally good-looking. As for Jared, the cameras do not do him justice at all. Somehow, he just does not photograph or film properly because he is exponentially better looking in person. It’s kind of crazy, actually.
After the photo op, there was some waiting around back in the ballroom for the Jared and Jensen panel to start. And since Alice wrote up such a detailed report, I won’t go into any specifics about it. Instead, I’ll just say that I thought it was fabulous, really entertaining, and a whole lot of fun. They were really funny, courteous in answering awkward questions, and just overall great. So in lieu of a more detailed report on the panel, pic spam! Alice or Jenniffer, whoever uploads this, is going to kill me, but enjoy some photos I took of the events. First up is my view of the stage. You can see how far back I was, so go zoom camera! The ones with the guys holding signs are from the auction. Those signs came from the set of the crazy meta episode they had just finished filming.
And here are my two favorites:
After Jared and Jensen’s panel was over, I was suddenly really tired. It had been a long weekend, even though it was really fun, and I was ready to just sit back and enjoy it. So I pretty much stopped taking notes at this point and just enjoyed the last two panels. Sorry I don’t have super detailed reports for the last two guests, Brock Kelly and Richard Speight Jr., for you guys.
Brock Kelly came out to much cheering. And he was wearing a blue plaid shirt and a black leather jacket, almost the exact same outfit Jensen was wearing. It was kind of hilarious.
Brock was really sweet and rather soft-spoken and seemed a little shy. It was pretty cute. Here’s a little bit about what I can remember from the panel. He talked about some of his other projects and other shows he’d love to appear on, one of which was “Spartacus.” Good choice! I haven’t seen it yet, but you can’t go wrong playing a gladiator. Someone requested that he say the line “I’m a hero!” and he graciously obliged. He mentioned that he had to get his hair cut to get the Dean look, but otherwise, he didn’t really have to change anything about his appearance.
Someone asked him if the boys had ever pranked him on set, and by this point, I was sick of hearing that question. He said no, but Colin Ford actually got him pretty good. I guess before they filmed “After School Special,” Colin called Brock and said that they had gotten a different, better-looking, funnier, and better actor to replace Brock in the role of young Dean. He had him going for a couple minutes before Colin admitted he was just kidding.
After Brock was Richard Speight Jr. again, who closed out the convention. He was, once again, very charming and funny and a real crowd pleaser. He started the proceedings by telling everyone to get out of their seats and move forward towards the stage. Since it was the last panel, he didn’t care what Creation would do to him. So that was kind of fun. Very diplomatic. But since I was just kind of along for the ride at this point, I really don’t remember much of what he said. Sorry, Richard! I do remember that my mom had a funny question, so I went up and asked it for her so I could also thank Richard for being such a good host at karaoke Friday night. She wanted to know if there was some sort of Dead Character’s Society amongst the actors who have been killed off the show. He said no, which is a shame because that is a hilarious idea. I really want to see that.
Also, my pictures from this panel all turned out kind of blurry, so here’s the best of the lot.
And that’s about it for the convention. After Richard was his usual fabulous and entertaining self, the convention was over. What a whirlwind weekend! To wind down, my mom, Jenniffer, Alice, her daughter, and I all went out for dinner. It was a great way to end a great weekend. I had a wonderful time. It was quite an experience, one that I’ll remember for a long time. I am so, so glad I went, and am really happy that I got to share the whole experience with my mom. Meeting Alice and spending more time with Jenniffer was icing on the cake. And Lynn, it was great meeting you, too. I didn’t get a chance to say goodbye on Sunday, so I’ll do it here. Bye! I hope we get the chance to meet up again sometime. Also, I’ll be posting all the pictures I’ve shared in these reports and some other ones I took on my Tumblr account http://candyforastronauts.tumblr.com/ so if anyone wants to use them for graphics or whatever other reason, please do! I’ll start posting those sometime Sunday. That’s it for me. Thanks for reading, everyone!
Thank you for all the visual essays and songs that have brought so much enjoyment into my life.
love and best wishes, Sharon10
Thank you for the wonderful report! It was like being there! And the “Lewis and Clarked” photo was hilarious! 😆
Thanks Arde. I really did enjoy reading both Saturday and Sunday report.
Sounds like you did have a great time. And your sandwich pic looks jus great. What a glorious idea. I can just imagine how much fun Jared had. It most definatly was a different pose than usuall for them.
And do yu think Brock Kelly is trying to copy Jensen?
Arde,
Another great report! I can ‘feel’ the energy in your writing. I love all your photos and thank you for sharing your Jared and Jensen and Jenniffer photo with us. Jensen improv’d quite well as many watches have a compass on them, so it also looks like he was checking the direction.
🙂
Arde,
So glad you and your Mum had such a great time.
I confess I was worried last weekend when I heard Jensen was ill that he might not be there, so glad he was as you had waited for this weekend for so long.
Loved reading your reports and hearing about your fun times, you have some great memories to cherish here love Ju
Oh Hon I’m still wiping away the tears from laughing so hard. What a great idea, Lewis and Clark poses. I bet the boys won’t forget your photo op anytime soon. Your pic is priceless. Loved it.
Flamey, you lucky woman! I am so happy you had such a great time there in sunny California! I needed to be tutored on Lewis and Clarke, because my brain was working slowly and even after reading your report, I didn’t connect the dots :o… uh-oh!
Those memories will stay with you for a long, long time!
Love, Jas
I LOVE the photo op! What a fun & creative idea!
Thanks for the awesome con reports!
Thanks so much for typing this out and sharing Arde! Glad you had such a great time. Thought the Lewis and Clark photo op was hilarious! You look so serious and ready to discover! I recognized the pose immediately. Much of their journey went through my home state, so they are EVERYWHERE here. And Elle2 is right, Jensen looking at his watch made me think of a compass.
For those of you who are not familiar with Lewis and Clark here is a wiki link to check them out.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_and_Clark_Expedition
And here’s a few to their well known (artistically at least) poses.
http://www.psu.edu/ur/archives/intercom_2002/Nov21/Images/ARTS_Lewis_ClarkUndaunted.jpg http://govdocs.evergreen.edu/hotopics/lewis-clark/lewis-and-clark-painting.jpg http://stabledays.typepad.com/.a/6a00e553bd675c88340120a5971eec970b-800wi
Great recaps of the convention Arde. They were a blast to read.
Phew, almost caught up with the comments!
Sharon10, you’re welcome, and thanks for commenting.
Brynhild, glad you enjoyed! And I’m so happy you like the photo! I love it so much.
Yirabah, you’re welcome! I sure did have a great time, and I sure do love my photo! I don’t think Brock was trying to copy him intentionally. I think they just both knew they looked good in plaid and black leather jackets. =)
Elle2, what a sweet thing to say. Thank you so much! I guess I was just so excited about the whole weekend that it bled into my reports. And awesome point about the watch and compass. I didn’t even think about that, but I really like it!
Dany, aw, don’t be jealous! Okay, you can. It’s okay. =) It was funny, too, how Jared went from kind of confused to immediately really excited. So adorable.
Julie, I am really thankful that Jensen toughed it out and came anyway. I know when I am sick I want nothing more than to curl up on the couch and relax. I do have great memories to cherish now.
sn_chills, o/ I know I’m biased, but that photo is pretty funny! I want to hug it I love it so much. It’s funny, because Jenniffer got the hard copy, so I went to buy a .jpeg of it so I could have a version, too. And as I get up to the photographer, who is burning the .jpegs onto disc, he’s like, “I remember this. This was a good one.” Yeah, thanks, awesome photographer!
Jas, no worries! If you’re still confused, I can explain more on the Cbox or via e-mail. Lewis and Clark are pretty famous in the US, but outside? I have no idea!
BagginsDVM, I love it, too! It’s going to fit right in with the rest of my Lewis and Clark photos. I’ll be able to see it every time I go up or down my stairs because the photo wall is on the side of the staircase in my house.
Yvonne, I am serious and ready to discover whatever Jared is pointing at. He looks pretty ready to investigate, too, doesn’t he? I bet they are everywhere around you! You sure can appreciate that photo, then! And thanks for the links! Love them.
I’m Ardeo’s mom, and I had a great time, too!! I am terribly biased, but Ardeo is a fabulous traveling companion. It was so much fun to share the experience with her. I was so frustrated trying to get the photo of her being hugged by Malik! It was a weekend of great memories!!
Excellent pictures, thank you for sharing.
Hi Ardeospina
That photo is fantastic. It’s great that the J’s were willing to play along.
I so happy you and your mum had such a great time on your first Con.
Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us.
*waves* So nice meeting you too — and yay, you got the Lewis and Clark photo! It’s awesome 🙂
Give your mom a hug from me and hope to see you again soon!
It’s so funny that Brock is wearing almost the same outfit Jensen is. 🙂
“I thought that was a really great improv, especially considering we weren’t very helpful about his posing options. And he’s going to be the only one on my Lewis and Clark wall looking at his watch!”
That’s Jensen for ya! That’s why he comes up with so many good ad-libs on Supernatural. 🙂 If you don’t tell him what to do, half the time he’ll come up with something even better on his own. LOL He’s dangerous that way.
Everyone says it, but I’m still trying to imagine how Jensen Ackles could be even better looking in person given how insanely good looking he looks on camera.
AWESOME! Lucky, lucky girls. 😛 Thank you for sharing.
I’m glad to hear that the boys are still really, really nice people. THANK YOU, JARED & JENSEN, for being just delicious to us fans. 😳
Sorry, I wanted that Smiley to be giving you a kiss, but it’ll do.
What you said about the boys’ hotness: I keep wondering how Daneel and Gen prevent themselves from melting when they’re around their hubbies.
does anyone know where i can get a jacket like jensen’s?