There was a tiny anime convention here in Atlanta a few weeks back ("Momocon") at Georgia Tech. Ended up going after my wife's cosplay-loving friend* convinced her it was worth it. Didn't bother going to panels, screenings, or any of that shit. Just walking around for a bit and seeing all the cosplayers and experiencing the "wonderful" stench of otaku was enough; she got a kick out of the freaks dressed up; I got nauseous seeing a 300 lbs. woman-thing wearing only two plastic cups over her breasts.
That was the first con I went to in a decade and it was worse than the one I went to previously, Anime Weekend Atlanta. I used to like to go to that and Dragoncon to hit up the dealers' rooms and buy shit, but then the internet took over in full force and that shit wasn't necessary any longer. My friend told me that the dealers, packed into tiny little rooms, were mostly the same people who set up shop everywhere and some of them even had failed anime stores that shut down since no one gives a shit about bootleg HK posters, toys, and CDs, and pirates all the anime. It was sad. And stinky.
(*= She's a nice lady and is, amazingly, slim, in-shape, attractive, and Japanese, where this shit is more accepted, but no less nerdy. She draws her own comics and showed me that not all hardcore-otaku types can be so fucking scary. Or stink like shit.)
