Anime Conji 2011 - San Diego CA ~

Anime Conji 2011 in San Diego - Mar. 25th to 27th.

As it becomes no big shock this is 2011 & the spring/summer events are quickly approaching. Unfortunately without my associate, PieBear-, some conventions aren't really the same or worth while going to. One of them is the one that has passed this past weekend, Anime Conji 2011 in San Diego. From this being its 1st year event to now its 2nd & hopefully more to come, I was able to go for Sunday to catch all the aftermath of the past two days.

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A recap: Conji last year was held over in a smaller facility unaware of the large turn out. Its reason & purpose to cater to a focused media that folks enjoy & love, particularly, anime & everything else in-between. Moving from the small hotel accommodations, this 2nd of Anime Conji is held over at Town & Country. Larger facility in hopes to cater to more folks since their unexpected overfill of last year was overwhelming. This year was another hope for this convention event to only grow.

Now for the personal insight inquiry of the whole convention lifestyle, what is this exactly & why have I found myself here? Well, Anime Conji is a 3 day event of Anime, Video Games & Panels for all anime lover & goers alike. With vendors, artists & what not, for it being a small convention, regardless still takes a larger toll with the staff. For all their hard work & efforts, for them to put this event together is not only commendable but memorable. In all honestly this is a nice gathering of folks with common interests to flock, gather & network all in the same. Cosplayers, otakus & game players gallore, for this being its 2nd year and looking at between 1,000 to 1,500 attendees projected, this sure looks to be another promising year for a growing convention.

Corresponding comments from AnimeGamer found on MegaTokyo & SDCosplayers forum boards. The outcome of the 3 day gathering seemed to surpass the 1,000 - 1,500 projected attendance record. Folks were into it, the fun & most importantly the energy is there. Also, another comment, yet not confirmed of San Diego Comic Con supporting this growing group, calling it in their magazines, 'the Anime of Comic Con'.

The events, ongoings & everything as followed during the convention, AMV contest, Artist Events, Cosplay Gatherings, Fashion Show, Gaming, Karaoke, Last Comic Standing, Lolita Day, Masquerade Ball (imo a must have), Mochi Maid Cafe, Musical Performances, Model Building Contests, Pirate Rum Party & a Swap Meet.

Plenty to do & part of me wishes I was here for the 3 day event to take part of all the events that were held. Talking with AnimeGamer, I had learned that the Last Comic Standing event was quite intense with folks getting into it. As for all other events, there were a lot I imagine of repeating events that were held last year that were done again w/ the exception of the Last Comic Standing, Lolita Day & so forth. Not to forget there were also guests stars, musical performances & appearances by folks who took time out of their schedule to participate.

I personally, after going to panels before have become more of a panel person in pursuing knowledge, factoids & fun have been going to more & more of them. With Sunday's panel being pretty much laid back, I managed to catch two of them, a discussion on Disgruntled Otakus & Sailor Moon.

First off, the first panel I went to. The discussion on Otakus was okay but nothing spectacular. The arguments were a bit round about & the convention & charisma of presenting his argument weren't really there. It almost felt like it was just a larger presentation of an essay that was wrote in college that was given a good grade. Either way, admirable effort.

The 2nd panel was about Sailor Moon. The Sailor Moon panel drew a larger crowd with a lot of folks reminiscing & giving credit of where their start of anime beginning with this series. After analyzing the facts, reminiscing what was then & watching dubbed clips given by someone dressed as Mistress Nine. The news of Sailor Moon was to my liking, finding out that Kodanashi (sp pro'ally on the publisher) will be re-releasing Sailor Moon manga, along with Sailor V (never released in North America) with TBA of who has the rights to broadcast all 200+ episodes & movies of Sailor Moon. This is all because of Sailor Moon's 20yr anniversary coming & they're looking to re-release this world wide. The speculations of who will have the permission rights to air all 200+ episodes & movies is still to be announced, but like many fans (including myself) we will sit & wait until the official word comes from a reputable source. Either way, pro'ally my more favorite panels that I attended.

Ending off the day with Karaoke ~ chatting with AnimeGamer about how Anime Conji went. Overall the experience was fun & memorable. Unfortunately with time restraints, lack of sleep & other priorities I wasn't able to attend the closing ceremonies. With this convention coming to a close, depending where I will be a year from now, I look forward to coming to this event again, whether its to hopefully volunteer or who knows, possibly representing any vendors or selling my own stuff. Many thanks to not only those who did attention & support, the photographers who took lovely shots of all the cosplayers, the staff, guests & volunteers who had put it the time & effort.

Now...obviously I couldn't possibly cover everything & discuss everything lengthy detail. For all those who are interested & want to read more info about Anime Conji 2011, the guests, the events & the pics. I of course will be listing them down.

Link: Anime Conji 2011

Contributing photos (I DO NOT TAKE CREDIT FOR THE FOLLOWING PICS IN BLOG! Linking & accrediting the following.) -

Photo 1
Mike Rollerson

Joits

If I missed any (and any I mean that one photo Dx;!!), my sincerest apologies!

Random browsing through

Ha ha ha

So waking up & having messages being left during my idle state, one friend decides to leave a link to another place. Having to browse through & attempting (yet failing) at trying not to post every post swear word gif image from there I found all of these funny, what is going at during the time & last but not least ironically appropriate to catagorize some appropriate responses to some forumers if you're one of those forum lurkers in a forum community.

Bacon...bacon...more bacon?!

...I apologize for the follow for apparently my fascination of bacon overwhelmed me...

Yes...a moment with uhm...bacon.

First off, my apologies for the sudden fascination with bacon. After talking to one of my friends, he manages to link me two things.

Bacon fragrance - http://www.ecrater.com/p/3255096/bacon-fragrance-oil-1-oz
Bacon attire - http://www.mcphee.com/shop/pages/Bacon-Tuxedo.html

The origins of this odd fascination for bacon...well here's a funny fascinating story.

It was a question that extended from what women prefer to have their men smell like. Well, respectively, switching it around, I had to ask, "What would guys prefer to have women smell like?" The question had pretty much extended to all my 'guy friendly mmo games'. With this pending question after asking friends on their & guilds I've had some interesting answers. One that kinda came out to be roughly the same answer was bacon...(ham...was also mentioned...I dunno why.) This further continued with a family relative who had linked me to a video on youtube which was called "Epic Meal Time". With their undying love for bacon in almost (if not everything) they've done, it lead to those links & to where I am here today...

So now...just out of the random blue of those links! The random bacon search had begun & here are my finds...

The bacon bra...

The bacon mug...

The bacon bikini

The bacon gun...

Last...but not least....

I think my heart stopped from the bacon ... quick ... where's my nutella!?

Ah...yay! :)

Watching & waiting

[ Featured artwork by LuckyCupcake @ deviantart ]

As many have watched the events unfold on what some would say tragic event unfold on the news. It is a little heartbreaking to watch yet difficult to turn away when we're overloaded with images of struggle & hardship of the people there then to fascinating yet saddening photos over a phenomenal natural event. No one saw March 11th, 2011 would expect to happen like this, especially to the people of Japan. From a 9.0 earthquake that shook the northern region, its rippled effect...quite literally from the waves of tsunamis that extended as far as across the Pacific Ocean.

Yet think of this...through the smoke and mirrors of the event...lets break it down from the constant waves of the media showing images upon images & stories upon stories of word play on what's going on.

Seeing how folks survived a 9.0 earthquake was a testament to their technology, preparedness & readiness. It wasn't so much a earthquake that rocked Japan's foundation, more so the 30ft high tsunami that crashed onto the shore & swept countless numbers of people into the sea. Now with a nuclear accident in the horizon, precautions are made & people take action to what may happen there. Perish the thought another Chernobyl happens on top of this.

Now don't get me wrong, there's nothing heartless behind what is said.

Someone out there has a friend, a family or a relative in Japan. People pick up the pieces, wonder where will they go next? Those who are missing or unaccounted for are still being sought for with that little bit of hope left in their hearts that they're alive & okay. Folks lost their homes, their livelihoods & priceless memories that were saved can never be replaced by money.

This indeed was its own unique tragedy like many disasters, natural or not that have proceeded this.

What can you do other than just watch all of this happen & wonder what will happen because of this? You can donate even a penny, nickel or dime to a foundation that's aiding relief? Pray? You can, no one is stopping you.

In the end, you have to admire some of the basics of human compassion. Regardless of the wars, the political dissonance & religious difference, when faced with hardship & struggle after something tragic like this, we come together with no difference of race & religion to help out those in need.

...A moment of clarity...

Its time to start organizing since I am planning to start my own comic. The characters are in place, the story is about to be told...but first off...I gotta finish the rest of my commission work. I'll probably be looking up & taking notes how to go about doing this. Either way, it'll be fun to do something like this finally...again. So! I look forward to it!

A moment to save ...

...Ah ah ah...

So sometime ago me & my friend WiggleBear were chatting & she brings something peculiar up. Granted, the season of politics are over for now its just a lil funny to remember...don't forget...these people were or are in politics.

20 Worst Names in Political History

Not to fret. Where there is this, there is also this.

20 Best Names in Political History

This finishes an interesting moment for now. Stay tuned for planning on a how to segment...maybe.

Mmm cheddar! The beginning of March Madness

"That's a lovely shade of green you're wearing. It matches the color of your eyes, but unfortunately not the darkness of your soul." whoa whoa whoa, wait whut? D: hehe :)

Not exactly how I expected my month to start. There is a lot of highs and lows since after February 28th. Now what hell are you asking on what I'm talking about?

Before I go into a fun filled story of something completely mundane. The month of March holds full of promises. Still working on that project which now has possibly grown to 10 paid commission pieces, I have decided to buckle down to write out a thoughtful commission price so I don't get caught offguard again. There are plans in the distant-future of going through with a comic story told of my choosing. I look forward to working on that too.

With good news & hopefully a positive turn-around those are perhaps the only mention worth moments without delving into the recesses of my real reality.

As I promise, here's a fun little story:

From the incomparable CherBear, she writes.: "Well lets see...last month while working with my Audition Family on a Fam contest, FAM Love Event 2011, we had taken the grand prize yet again. Again you say? Yes because the other fam creative event that was held a long time ago, FAM Contest 2009, my Audition Family had won that too. Granted with a 2nd win & a back to back successful victory, it was all yet again bitter sweet.

Afterall, you just can't please everyone...

Like then, people questioned, disagreed & disliked the fact that my family won. It all holds true again this time. Unfortunate because my fam did work just as hard as everyone else. Of course, no one will ever believe that or will care, because ultimately in the end, they felt they should've won & that their victory was rightfully theirs. This is understandable & respectably their right to voice it. Not to mention, everyone has their own opinion, their own view & their own perspective of how the victory should have been decided. This is all fine & respectable, in the end, it doesn't change the fact I, nor my family had no control over the ultimate outcome of what had happened.

We are also prepared that with these results there would be some subjection to possible ban from rooms, sneered comments & hateful whispers.

A reinforced reminder of a lyrical quote said best in one of the songs I find myself listening to: "And it seemed like nothing we could do would ever get us respected." - We Made It by Busta Rhymes ft. Linkin Park. Holds ever so true once again.

Though the very few who voice their opinion can never overshadow nor shake the foundation of what was held true about this Audition Family, close knit through & through. A family in-game, very good friends we've become out of it. This, to those who were shaken should remember this. :-) We still have plenty of memories to share in distant future too.

As the mayhem & chaos continues, the complaining & the discontent of decisions being made. The reality is this, it'll blow over, a new contest will commence & ultimately, in the end, there will be a new thing to complain about & the cycle starts all over again.

To those who appreciate & said that congratulations were well deserved, my humble thank you ~ in my personal opinion with all the entries, they were all wonderful & beautiful in their own right, they had their own characteristic features & ultimately defines who their family is & what they represent. In the end, these FAMs worked together, had fun & made their own set of memories like we did. This cannot be changed nor taken away.

With this story reaching a conclusion, as a good friend tells me after witnessing the moment of madness. This quaint little family shall continue to hold their heads high, soak in the victory & move on with their lives."

Ta da! I know, not as good as my friend but hey its fun to put a perspective spin on such. :) Either way. Its been fun! :D