My Best Weekend Ever! My Inside OTH Experience!

So a couple of weeks ago I got to fulfill one of my many dreams. Those who know me well know how much I absolutely love the show One Tree Hill. Over the past few years I have watched and envied everyone who went to one of the many different OTH conventions held. I never thought I would get to experience meeting the cast I have adored for so long. Then Inside OTH got announced at the right time (tax refund) and I decided to splurge. I went for the best of everything. Planning the trip it felt surreal. Finally getting to Wilmington felt so dreamlike. I have so many fantastic pics. Some of which I shared on my fan twitter and have also seen posted and shared on Tumblr not by me but what can you do? It bothers me a bit because I wasn’t credited but I don’t have the time to look people up and as long as they don’t claim as theirs, I can deal. 

My two faves!

It’s a bit long but read on for my encounter with each cast member.

Dreams do come true!

Bethany Joy Lenz: Running on adrenaline and lack of sleep after being awake for almost all of the 16 plus hour drive it took me to get to Wilmington, I went to see Bethany Joy Lenz in concert. Seeing how I absolutely adore Joy and been hoping to see her perform, it was like Christmas and I was VIP. When she came out to greet everyone in line even those with general tickets, I was in awe. She shook my hand, hugged me, took a couple selfies and so on. And finally seeing her perform was better than I had imagined. Hearing her sing live is enthralling. She was so sweet and approachable. I got quite a few pics with her but one of my favorites was posing in her concert t-shirt I purchased that she was also wearing with another fan. Such a cute pic. Being such a fan and not knowing if I would get to do this again I purchased everything I could with her at the convention. She was sweet every time I approached her. It was everything I could have dreamed of and more. One of my highlights is during the meet & greet she asked who doesn’t get enough hugs and all of us who raised our hands she took a moment to hug us for a long while. It was unexpected and one of the nicest things ever!

Hilarie Burton: I know everyone already knows but it bears repeating that Hilarie Burton is one of the most enthusiastic, and sweetest personalities you could ever meet.  The first moment I stepped into her presence she had her arms wide open and when I asked for the tightest hug she did not hesitate to say sure thing. She has this positive energy that you just can’t help but be enveloped by. And you could tell she was so excited about the whole weekend. I didn’t get to go to karaoke but I did attend Shantel’s birthday party and Hilarie’s voice was so close to gone. I told her she had to go care for her voice a rest. She laughed and said she would. She is absolutely hilarious! How she has not done some type of comedy baffles me. Highlight of the weekend with her was her putting on a unicorn mask during Shantel’s party and reading a scene. I never laughed so hard. Just being in her presence was amazing. 

Chad Michael Murray: I will say meeting Chad had me a bit nervous. Mostly because I had so many stories about him being standoffish and rude over the years. I wasn’t going to taint that experience but the nerves were there. I have to say he was so kind and charming. I ordered two of his charity shirts and only wanted him to sign the one I wasn’t wearing so I could frame it but he offered to sign the one I wore as well. I wasn’t going to tell him no this is the one I want to wear regularly. Then when he was signing a pic for me, we were told we could only get one thing signed but he noticed I also had the Rivercourt guys’ photo and asked if I wanted that signed too. I told him I didn’t want to get in trouble and he said don’t worry he wanted to do it. I was just so appreciative.

Shantel VanSanten/Robert Buckley: Let me tell you I was super excited about seeing these two together. I adore their friendship and I couldn’t wait to see them in person. My first encounter was the Clinn photo op and watching them plan out poses with fans was entertaining to watch. Shantel kept directing Rob and it was so fun. They were down for whatever pose. It was fun joking with them. Unfortunately Rob was sick the next day so I didn’t get to have my solo photo op & autograph but I did get them with Shantel and she was the sweetest. Talking with her felt natural. And she didn’t mind taking a selfie after the photo op which later was no longer allowed, lol. I went to her bday party and while it sucked Rob wasn’t there his goofy prizes were. I went on stage and read a scene along with other fans and got some fun prizes and a shark onesie. It was a total blast. And her BF John is hotter in person.

Fun photo op with them and Joy.

Paul Johansson/Barbara Alyn Woods: Where do I start? Well let me start with Barbara. It was her first convention and you could see how excited about it she was. She was all about chatting with fans as they waited for autographs to start and was willing to do quick selfies before anyone caught on. (I think over time the convention runners just let it slide, lol) She was a proud momma, happily showing pics of her daughters and talking about their careers. And let me say in person her daughters are absolutely gorgeous! It was great talking to her and she was so kind. Now for Paul, one of my shining moments was getting the Dan Scott treatment from him. It was an honor. He does a good job of playing up his character but you can tell he appreciates his fans.  He was such a goofy infectious personality and he made you feel so welcome. My favorite moment was when he interrupted my autograph moment with Joy to get her to sign a jacket. He said “Excuse me can I interrupt?” and when I said sure go ahead he looked me straight in the eyes and said “I love you”. I could have melted into a puddle right there. Unforgettable.

All we needed was Vaughn.

Rivercourt Guys (Lee Norris, Antwon Tanner, Vaughn Wilson, & Colin Fickes, Cullen Moss): Such a cool group of guys. Antwon was such a trip. He made me laugh so hard during his Q&A with Lee and Chad. He was really kind and liked messing with you. Lee I was in awe of since I was such a Boy Meets World fan. I told him and he laughed about it. Told him I enjoyed him on Girl Meets World and he mentioned how he was headed back for another episode. Then he had me tearing up when he talked about being in the hospital for a lung issue and how it made him appreciate things more. I just could not love him more. Vaughn I met up by catching him in the lobby with a new friend. He was sweet and let us take a photo and sign things without us paying. He was just so sweet. As for Colin I couldn’t not tell him how amazing he was as Jimmy Edwards. Told him how 3x16 was the only episode my sisters will watch with me and how we all agreed he was amazing in it. He was very humbled and grateful. Unfortunately I didn’t get to meet Cullen Moss directly besides my group photo so I’m bummed I didn’t get to tell him how I liked seeing him on The Walking Dead, another fave show of mine, and ask how it was to work with and get eaten by a zombie.

Overall it was such an amazing and unforgettable experience. And I wish I could relive it again. It was truly a dream come true. I finished my weekend by visiting a majority of the main filming locations and of course leaving my mark. I hope I can do it again. Maybe adding James and Sophia into the mix. I can only hope for now!

Sorry this was long but I felt the need to document and share.