I did something a little bit obsessive this evening.

OK, a lot obsessive.

I went through the membership list for World Fantasy Con and counted the number of people with whom I shared a meal, plus the number with whom I chatted, some briefly, some extensively.

I had my reasons, though.

I’ve never taken the life I lead for granted. But two recent conversations with people not part of my convention-going life reinforced how lucky I am to have what I have.

In talking to one person, I tried to explain the experience of entering a crowded room, knowing everybody, and having to decide with whom to strike up a conversation first.

“You know what it’s like to walk into a packed hotel ballroom knowing almost everyone there?” I started, but before I could continue, he quickly stopped me.

“No,” he said sadly, reminding me that not everyone has this thing of ours. “No, I don’t.”

And today I spoke with someone else about next year’s World Horror Con in Brighton, and she wondered why I’d consider making such an expensive trip. I told her that spending a long weekend with hundreds of your friends and staying up late talking with them about things that mattered was, as the commercial goes, priceless.

Which made me think—how many friends are we actually talking about here?

So I pulled out the list and counted. And discovered that at my most recent convention (I’ve been to hundreds of them since my first one at age 15), I’d broken bread with 24 friends. And had conversations with 121 others on top of that. (And it was actually more than 121, since there were a few times I was chatting with someone in a small group and never got their name.)

I promise never to count again, because the whole experience felt a little too anal, and could jinx it all. But it was worth doing it at least once to remind myself …

Who get to be embraced by that much friendship over the course of a weekend (as with Lisa Goldstein and John Kessel above)? Not many.

I’m a lucky guy. And the rest of you who get to experience this kind of life are lucky, too.