Boas are a lot like BPs- pretty heavy bodied snakes that don't do all that much in all reality. I've had young ones up to adults, all just sat there like a BP did. Crested geckos are cute, but frankly for me lost their appeal. They do a lot of sitting too, and aren't too much fun to handle- I was always worried about mine jumping away and losing him than anything else. Fragile critters. JCPs are a lot of fun, decent sized, very active, hardy snakes. I'd look into something like that.

The other recommendation which I personally give- find yourself a superdwarf retic at the show. At least play with it a little bit. They are extremely active, very strong feeding responses, and don't get massive. Most people come to me trying to find that perfect snake that's active, but isn't a stubby/fat little rock, that will always eat, and be fun to work with, and that's were I steer them.