It’s not often I am invited to food conventions, in fact this would be the first and likely last time but that’s what life is about – taking opportunities to do new things! And try new foods! This one was technically for restaurant owners and those that work in said restaurants to pick companies to buy large amounts of food off of. I am not said people but luckily I’m lovable and no one asked.

The convention was at Gilette Stadium which I have driven past many times but I don’t believe I have ever visited. Even though it was in a huge stadium I didn’t really think it’d have a lot of people. I was wrong. This place was packed! We were greeted at the door by someone my companion knew and I was asked my name as a customary introduction. In a state of sudden overwhelm I forgot what it was. This was largely how the rest of the afternoon went. I was already a little concerned because I was having a hormonal day where my body thought it’d be hilarious to make random smells I normally like so repulsive I could puke on spot like a pregnant woman. I’m not pregnant, my body just hates me.

That being said it was lovely. First, we saw the produce section full of fruits, greens, and mushrooms of all sorts. Really beautiful. I paused to look at a bushel of apples to see if they were Pink Ladies but they were Honeycrisps, which are also good. I was told to take one. What? They’re samples. How is an apple a sample? I threw one in my free reusable bag that they gave me at the door.

I also tried dragon fruit! That did look like a sample as they were tiny sliver sized pieces impaled on toothpicks. I was disappointed. Tasted like a mild kiwi but without the tingling sensation (which I’m told in adulthood is probably a sign I’m allergic to kiwi.)

We wandered on to the real food. My companion found a bowl of peppermint suckers and gave one to me just in case knowing I am prone to nausea and sucking on peppermints usually really helps. That’s how you know you’re loved. From here we started trying all the samples – some tacos, lemonade, and lobster bisque. I gravitated towards anything bread and or cheese to appease my peasant ancestry. And the seafood! Which I am not normally that keen but my tastes have been changing a lot in the past few years. My favorite though was a bite of duck that tasted exactly like my slow grown roosters back when I was on the farm. I was not expecting that! It gave me an intense pang of nostalgia. Someday. Someday I will be back on a piece of land with some birds.

At this point I decided to really tempt fate by trying some sort of clam and cream cheese spread. That was intense. Funny enough it wasn’t bad but my body was insistent it was poison and swallowing it proved difficult. I probably made some faces. We wandered around some more trying to find some water to drink but all the free water was fresh out. I managed to get a cup at the bar but by this time I was having a hard time drinking it – which was a bad sign. Suggestive of I wasn’t just overheated but actively so and getting worse. I was unable to eat anything after this though I did force the water down.

My companions had eaten their fill after three rounds and I had to pass on what was supposed to be the best ice cream because my stomach was officially turned off from heat exhaustion. I considered taking a time out in the bathroom, but everyone was getting hot and overstuffed, and we were heading back to the car anyway.

All and all we spent more than two hours there, ate until we nearly exploded, and had a lot of fun in the process. Taking photos with no people in the way was near impossible but I did try. All and all, despite getting sick this was a positive experience.