Happy Pig Collectors Club Convention 2008

It started all the way back in July 2007, when the HPCC convention goers went against convention and decided that Canada would be a good place to have the 2008 convention. Really? Even with the new US passport requirements? Even with the soaring price of gasoline, and the outrageous prices to fly into Toronto? You sure?

Okay. If you're sure, we would love to have you!

Then, suddenly July 2008 rolled around, and much to my surprise, everything was planned, booked, reserved, and generally ready. Being rookie convention organizers, I was expecting some forgotten detail to bring the convention to a screeching halt. I was encouraged by the fact that Anne was the brains of the operation, and I was just the muscle.

The traditional get-together for early birds was at Remezzo, an Italian restaurant near our house. The highlight for some of the restaurant patrons was Jim's Pig Mobile. The highlight for us was having the chance to catch up with our pig collecting friends again. There was no awkward silence, or need to break the ice. I think we were all happy to be able to talk about our pigs without getting weird looks, or the infamous question, "What collecting?"

Friday was the official start of the convention, but I had forgotten to book that day off, and my usually accommodating co-worker was unable to cancel his plans to take his son to St. Thomas to see Thomas the Train. I did still have the pleasure of meeting some of the more eager conventioneers early Friday morning. (Oh. Did I mention the unexpected guest we got during breakfast that turned Anne as (proverbially) white as a sheet?) Then some boring things happened to me at work ... but before I knew it, it was time for lunch.

Lunch was originally meant as a creative way to save money - a picnic in one of Toronto's beautiful parks on a beautiful sunny day. It was a great time for everyone to mingle and schmooze. Simple, quiet ... what's that? I can't hear you over George's homemade propane burner.

... then I had to pack up and go back to work, while everyone went on the Hippo Tour. I gathered from the pictures that everyone enjoyed themselves, though it also sounded like taking the subway was an adventure in itself.

At about 5 pm, we all met up at The Purple Pig for dinner. There were pigs everywhere, from the moment we walked into the restaurant. The chalk drawings around the restaurant provided photo-ops for everyone. The mouth-watering food came out at a brisk pace, and disappeared at an even faster pace. After a while, the food was not even making it to the buffet table anymore. The wait staff were being flagged down as they brought the food into the room. Ribs. Wings. Pizza. And to think, we might have chosen a different restaurant were it not for the name.

After dinner, I drove some people back to their car at Fairview Mall. And as I waited for Anne, I watched as people went by, some excitedly pointing at Jim's Pig Mobile. When Jim returned to the Pig Mobile, he discovered that someone had left him a congratulatory note on his windshield. Apparently, this happens to Jim and SuAnne all the time.

Saturday was a blur for me. It started with the pig sale, and we were definitely concerned that the room wasn't big enough for everyone. The hotel owner actually came downstairs to check out the sale, as her daughter was a pig fan. After that I was off to get food from Mr. Greek, and after lunch, we headed home to get ready for all our visitors.

Most of the time, people are surprised at the number of pigs in our house. That afternoon, it was different. The conventioneers were more interested in how the pigs were displayed, and we got compliments, and not just polite-because-you-are-the-host ones.

Then it was off to Lin Garden to get dinner. The lady there yelled at me for putting the trays of food into my backseat. Of course, I wasn't listening, but when I got to the hotel, I suddenly understood what she was talking about. She was trying to tell me that the trays were full of sauce, and I had to lay them flat. Well, I had at least two weeks after the convention to learn that lesson, as it took as least that long to air and Frebreze the smell of garlic sauce out of the fabric in the back seat.

By Saturday night, I was getting tired. I decide to skip the meeting and sit outside with other like-minded husbands. Well, that peace and quiet didn't last very long, as I was verbally dragged back to the meeting room in short order.

We finally got to the real reason we had all congregated in a dumpy little hotel in the outskirts of Toronto - to vote for Janet Booth. She campaigned early and hard, and most of all, she gave us all candy!

And of course, if the elections and official business weren't enough excitement, we also had the raffle, where we picked up (and received) piggy baby stuff, so that we could start the pig indoctrination early.

In the end, there were some missed details, both forgotten, and unforeseeable, but over all, I would like to brag that the convention was a success!

Thanks to everyone who attended this year. Our greatest regret was that we didn't have enough time to talk to everyone. We look forward to making up for that next year in WI!

- frank and anne