Animazement Con report
Jun. 2nd, 2009 01:00 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rev_yurodivyAnimazement. Was. AWESOME. Definitely the best con I've ever been to, in my admittedly short con-going experience. There were a few hang-ups along the way, namely due to poor planning and miscommunications on my part (sorry again Sediea!)
So, on Friday I registered at about seven (we got in late on account of waiting for my sister to get home from school.) There wasn't a line at all-- registering took all of about two minutes. I also got to see a while lion fursuiter-- think he went by Leo? Unfortunately, I stood around waiting for Sediea in the convention lobby when we were supposed to meet in the hotel lobby...my mom's blood sugar hit rock bottom and she had a fit, so we went to get some Subway and I was able to contact Sediea via IM, so that problem was sorted out. After that, we went out to grab some snacks with her mom, and had a mini room party and I got to see some live demos of Mac programs. We didn't get to sleep until about two, and even then I didn't sleep for more than two hours straight (at best) due to having too much adrenaline.
Saturday was a heck of a lot more eventful. We got up around nine-thirty and had breakfast at the hotel. Then we spent at least an hour and a half in the dealers room, in which I got a ton of loot, including the most awesome hat that ever awesomed in the history of awesomeness. I checked up on PMs at TFT and called Claire's cell to make sure she was at Raleigh, and we met up with her just outside the convention center. And then we wandered around the Dealer's Room even more, getting lost a bunch of times before we finally met up back at Sediea's hotel room and then went out for lunch. I ended up splitting a pizza with her. A single slice. Yet I had four glasses of Mountain Dew. To be fair, refills were free and we didn't want to wait an eternity and a half for a full pizza, since they were swamped with business from the other con-goers. >_>
The highlight of Saturday was the incredible Phoenix Wright: the Musical. Let me repeat that to make sure it sinks in. Phoenix Wright: the Musical. It's just as epic as it sounds. I almost cried from laughing so hard, especially at the stalling. Speaking of which, I have had either the Stalling Song (including the beatboxing) stuck in my head, or Redd White's solo stuck in my head for the few days after getting back. Not sure if they're going to be giving any show reviews after this, but if they do, make sure to catch it. You can look it up on YouTube, but it's seriously not the same.
Zylaa and I took note of a guy at the con who was walking around carrying a branch of bamboo. Rather than actually doing something sensible like walking up to him and asking why, we opted instead for Wild Mass Guessing as to the purpose behind dragging a sprig of bamboo around. The obvious answer, of course, was that he was cosplaying a bamboo forest, but sadly was on a budget. Bamboo Cosplayer Person, I doubt you are reading this, but you are practically my favorite cosplayer there, fursuiters and PW: the Musical cast notwithstanding.
After that, we went back to the hotel room and watched/read a bunch of funny things on the Internet, Houseplants of Gor, Fellowship of the Peeps, and Chikuto's ToS in a Nutshell comics being the ones I remember the best. Then Zylaa had to leave, and there was much mourning. Until we went to the Steampunk panel, whence there was much rejoicing on my end and sleepiness on Chi's. But they had a giant sniper rifle with a gyroscope in the stock, and it was amazing. Plus, I got a lot of good tips for making fun (yet impractical-- goggles do nothing!) gadgets.
Oh, pro tip here. One thing that came up was whether or not dumpster-diving at metalworking factories is a legitimate, legal way of getting materials. There's an answer for this, and it is...yes and no. It depends on where the dumpster is. If it's behind a fence, then it's illegal. If it's outside of the building premises and close to the road, then you should be okay since police are legally allowed to gather evidence from there, as there is no expectation of privacy. Theoretically, you might even be able to make a case that you weren't stealing anything since it's pretty obvious that they weren't going to be making use of the materials, but on the other hand it's pretty obvious you were trespassing on private property, which is illegal. Either way, wait until the Supreme Court is more left-of-center before attempting to test this out.
THE MORE YOU KNOW. <3
So, after that we were both dead tired and pretty much passed out at about one-thirty. Which is crazy early for both of us, as I've stayed up until five writing and I think Chi's running record is around six? She can correct me if I'm wrong. :P We didn't wake up until around nine-thirty, which was way later than I wanted. Still, we managed to get out the door by about eleven, being delayed mostly by the elevators. The elevators were *terrible.* >.< It was like a five minute wait just for one to come up, and it was a crap shoot as to whether or not it'd be too full for anyone to get in.
But, there was one upside to that. Two of the girls on the same floor as us struck up a conversation with me on account of both of us wearing tails. Then we started talking about conventions, and how much fun it was to see the reactions of normal people. She told a hilarious story about her brother cosplaying Hellboy right when there happened to be some kind of church convention in the same hotel. And I saw she had a con badge with what might have been her fursona. And I just could not work up the courage to ask her if she'd been to a furry con before. ;_; Think her furry name was Kisara, if that means anything to anyone. I didn't get a good look, but her fursona might have been a white wolf or dog or something. Yeah, I know that's really specific. ^^; Sorry.
Then, we went off in search of breakfast, more specifically at an IHOP. Churches were starting to let out, so considering I was wearing what basically constitutes mildly gothic clothing, a top hat, and a fox tail, so the timing could not have been better.
Everyone was staring at me. Obviously, they were jealous of my tail. :3
Oh, and I had some crepes that were pretty good. Better than anticipated, at least. Could have used more Nutella, though. After that, it was back to the con. And one of the best moments there. See, there were a pair of fursuiters them (no idea who they are, pictures are below) but they were a fox and a fennec insofar as I could tell. And I got a hug from the fox. <3 And it actually felt good (his costume had nice faux fur,) which makes me think the hang-ups I have on physical contact are really just due to the way human skin feels.
Then Chi had some misadventures trying to get back in and trying to contact her mom (I'll let her tell that) and they formed a Caramelldansen line in the lobby, and I got to dance next to a Simon cosplayer. It was so much fun. :D Also, on my second trip through the dealer's room, I talked to the lady (or more specifically, Lady Heather!) who sold me the most awesome pair of pants ever, and she asked me to model them. :3 So, as soon as I can send in the pictures, they might show up on her website. More on that later, I hope!
Unfortunately, not too long after that we had to leave. D: Always the worst part. Fortunately, I was able to bring up going to Anime Mid-Atlantic with my mom, so that's one more thing to look forward too. ^_^
Overall, I had a really great time, and this has been probably my favorite con so far. Some of the staff could have been a lot nicer, it was well-organized, had some very talented cosplayers, even some fursuiters, a great dealer's room, and lots of fun activities. I'm going to do everything in my power to go again next year.
kk so who wants pics
Zylaa and I.
Posin' with my awesome pants and top hat. :D
Even more posin'.
The Phoenix and Maya from the PW musical.
Me and Chi. I was distracted by something in this pictuer and can't remember what. D:
The foxes and I. :3 Love the shirt on the red fox.
So, that's about the gist of it. ^_^ And for once, I actually enjoyed posing for pictures and such, which makes me think I might be a natural cosplayer/fursuiter.
So, on Friday I registered at about seven (we got in late on account of waiting for my sister to get home from school.) There wasn't a line at all-- registering took all of about two minutes. I also got to see a while lion fursuiter-- think he went by Leo? Unfortunately, I stood around waiting for Sediea in the convention lobby when we were supposed to meet in the hotel lobby...my mom's blood sugar hit rock bottom and she had a fit, so we went to get some Subway and I was able to contact Sediea via IM, so that problem was sorted out. After that, we went out to grab some snacks with her mom, and had a mini room party and I got to see some live demos of Mac programs. We didn't get to sleep until about two, and even then I didn't sleep for more than two hours straight (at best) due to having too much adrenaline.
Saturday was a heck of a lot more eventful. We got up around nine-thirty and had breakfast at the hotel. Then we spent at least an hour and a half in the dealers room, in which I got a ton of loot, including the most awesome hat that ever awesomed in the history of awesomeness. I checked up on PMs at TFT and called Claire's cell to make sure she was at Raleigh, and we met up with her just outside the convention center. And then we wandered around the Dealer's Room even more, getting lost a bunch of times before we finally met up back at Sediea's hotel room and then went out for lunch. I ended up splitting a pizza with her. A single slice. Yet I had four glasses of Mountain Dew. To be fair, refills were free and we didn't want to wait an eternity and a half for a full pizza, since they were swamped with business from the other con-goers. >_>
The highlight of Saturday was the incredible Phoenix Wright: the Musical. Let me repeat that to make sure it sinks in. Phoenix Wright: the Musical. It's just as epic as it sounds. I almost cried from laughing so hard, especially at the stalling. Speaking of which, I have had either the Stalling Song (including the beatboxing) stuck in my head, or Redd White's solo stuck in my head for the few days after getting back. Not sure if they're going to be giving any show reviews after this, but if they do, make sure to catch it. You can look it up on YouTube, but it's seriously not the same.
Zylaa and I took note of a guy at the con who was walking around carrying a branch of bamboo. Rather than actually doing something sensible like walking up to him and asking why, we opted instead for Wild Mass Guessing as to the purpose behind dragging a sprig of bamboo around. The obvious answer, of course, was that he was cosplaying a bamboo forest, but sadly was on a budget. Bamboo Cosplayer Person, I doubt you are reading this, but you are practically my favorite cosplayer there, fursuiters and PW: the Musical cast notwithstanding.
After that, we went back to the hotel room and watched/read a bunch of funny things on the Internet, Houseplants of Gor, Fellowship of the Peeps, and Chikuto's ToS in a Nutshell comics being the ones I remember the best. Then Zylaa had to leave, and there was much mourning. Until we went to the Steampunk panel, whence there was much rejoicing on my end and sleepiness on Chi's. But they had a giant sniper rifle with a gyroscope in the stock, and it was amazing. Plus, I got a lot of good tips for making fun (yet impractical-- goggles do nothing!) gadgets.
Oh, pro tip here. One thing that came up was whether or not dumpster-diving at metalworking factories is a legitimate, legal way of getting materials. There's an answer for this, and it is...yes and no. It depends on where the dumpster is. If it's behind a fence, then it's illegal. If it's outside of the building premises and close to the road, then you should be okay since police are legally allowed to gather evidence from there, as there is no expectation of privacy. Theoretically, you might even be able to make a case that you weren't stealing anything since it's pretty obvious that they weren't going to be making use of the materials, but on the other hand it's pretty obvious you were trespassing on private property, which is illegal. Either way, wait until the Supreme Court is more left-of-center before attempting to test this out.
THE MORE YOU KNOW. <3
So, after that we were both dead tired and pretty much passed out at about one-thirty. Which is crazy early for both of us, as I've stayed up until five writing and I think Chi's running record is around six? She can correct me if I'm wrong. :P We didn't wake up until around nine-thirty, which was way later than I wanted. Still, we managed to get out the door by about eleven, being delayed mostly by the elevators. The elevators were *terrible.* >.< It was like a five minute wait just for one to come up, and it was a crap shoot as to whether or not it'd be too full for anyone to get in.
But, there was one upside to that. Two of the girls on the same floor as us struck up a conversation with me on account of both of us wearing tails. Then we started talking about conventions, and how much fun it was to see the reactions of normal people. She told a hilarious story about her brother cosplaying Hellboy right when there happened to be some kind of church convention in the same hotel. And I saw she had a con badge with what might have been her fursona. And I just could not work up the courage to ask her if she'd been to a furry con before. ;_; Think her furry name was Kisara, if that means anything to anyone. I didn't get a good look, but her fursona might have been a white wolf or dog or something. Yeah, I know that's really specific. ^^; Sorry.
Then, we went off in search of breakfast, more specifically at an IHOP. Churches were starting to let out, so considering I was wearing what basically constitutes mildly gothic clothing, a top hat, and a fox tail, so the timing could not have been better.
Everyone was staring at me. Obviously, they were jealous of my tail. :3
Oh, and I had some crepes that were pretty good. Better than anticipated, at least. Could have used more Nutella, though. After that, it was back to the con. And one of the best moments there. See, there were a pair of fursuiters them (no idea who they are, pictures are below) but they were a fox and a fennec insofar as I could tell. And I got a hug from the fox. <3 And it actually felt good (his costume had nice faux fur,) which makes me think the hang-ups I have on physical contact are really just due to the way human skin feels.
Then Chi had some misadventures trying to get back in and trying to contact her mom (I'll let her tell that) and they formed a Caramelldansen line in the lobby, and I got to dance next to a Simon cosplayer. It was so much fun. :D Also, on my second trip through the dealer's room, I talked to the lady (or more specifically, Lady Heather!) who sold me the most awesome pair of pants ever, and she asked me to model them. :3 So, as soon as I can send in the pictures, they might show up on her website. More on that later, I hope!
Unfortunately, not too long after that we had to leave. D: Always the worst part. Fortunately, I was able to bring up going to Anime Mid-Atlantic with my mom, so that's one more thing to look forward too. ^_^
Overall, I had a really great time, and this has been probably my favorite con so far. Some of the staff could have been a lot nicer, it was well-organized, had some very talented cosplayers, even some fursuiters, a great dealer's room, and lots of fun activities. I'm going to do everything in my power to go again next year.
kk so who wants pics
Zylaa and I.
Posin' with my awesome pants and top hat. :D
Even more posin'.
The Phoenix and Maya from the PW musical.
Me and Chi. I was distracted by something in this pictuer and can't remember what. D:
The foxes and I. :3 Love the shirt on the red fox.
So, that's about the gist of it. ^_^ And for once, I actually enjoyed posing for pictures and such, which makes me think I might be a natural cosplayer/fursuiter.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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Date: 2009-06-02 05:54 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-06-03 05:27 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-06-04 12:27 am (UTC)As a matter of fact, i should have a picture of him doing it. I'll find a way to add it to my post...once I actually get my butt into gear and write it that is.