CHICAGO, IL -- This past weekend was a total whirlwind, let me tell you. Before I get into my story about the convention, I'll start by explaining how we got here. You all know by now how I got into the Blackhawks and why they mean so much to me. I've always watched the convention footage from my dorm room or from my apartment in North Carolina, but it's definitely not the same as being there in person. Before this, I had never been to any kind of convention before and never experienced what I was lucky enough to experience this past weekend. So, naturally, when the tickets went on sale in the middle of January, it didn't take much convincing for me to buy tickets for the convention this year. A lot has happened in my personal life between January and now, and some of what has happened almost made me miss the convention entirely. But, I cannot stress how happy and thankful I am that I decided to go anyways, no matter the circumstances. I arrived in Chicago la