I know, I've been siltent for a long time.    I really haven't had much to say.  It's just been the same old crap, day after day.  I could bitch and whine abot D, but that gets old after a while.  I could go on about the fact that they've moved my boss to another location and now Spaz is in charge of things, but I'd need a good day or two to get that all out. 

But, I WILL rant about the fact that Otakon is coming!!! 

I've been putting off getting things together for my cosplay.  I will be doing Alvis again, as well as Sumomo/Plum.  But this year, for Sumomo, I'm adding a prop.  I just spent 2 hours at Home Depot getting things together.  I'm making a giant pencil so this year, hopefully I won't get "OMG!!! It's Giant Sumomo!!!"  Maybe, maybe not.  We'll see.

It took a while to figure out how to go about doing it.  At first I was just going to make it out of thick cardborad.  Inexpensive and lightweight, but not very durable.  I had many set backs and was ready to scrap the idea.  Then it hit me... what about PVC?  So, I went in search of some PVC pipe not realizing how heavy a 4" tube was.  Dad suggested ducting, but i didn't want to use anything that was metal.  Then we turned a corner, and there it was... 4" plasting tubing.  Right size, and weight was not an issue.  I also picked up a connector to serve as the part that hols the eraser, which I have a small chunk of styrofoam to use for that.

Now the only problem I have is figuring out hoe to go about doing the tip.  Originally, I was going to use a funnel.  But of course, since I have to bt way too much in to things, I wanted to find a way to put a marker in the tip so it actually writes.  The funnel idea got squashed because of stability issues.  I'm thinking maybe using a styrofoam cone and hollowing out a spot to jam a Sharpie in.

After all that, I still need to get out to the fabric store to get material to make this year's new costume. Plus, I need to find a suitable wig.   I'm down to about 2 1/2 months now, and I have 2 projects in the works.  Plus D said he might think about joining me in cosplay, and I told him that I'd make it for him.    I'm so screwed.

I just got back from the Nine Inch Nails concert that was in Philly tonight, and I should be  but... well, i'm more like

Let's just say that I went with D, that's all my trouble right there.  All day long he was in a super pissy mood.  I had a few errands I needed to run before the concert (which, by the way, started at 8PM).  So, there we were, in the parking lot of the King of Prussia mall, looking for a spot to park at about 3:50, and he's freaking out that were not going to be able to get into Philly in time AND he's blaming me for the lack of parking.

All I have to do is make a return (thanx a heap, Loose!!!), then head over to Game Stop or whatever to pick up Soul Calibur III (I recommend this one, folks!).  After that I was done.  While I was making my return, the girl at the counter was a little confused why my receipt had different prices then they had in the system.  I explained that I had a coupon for 25% off when I made the purchase (thanx again, Loose!), which made sense to the sales girl and she completed my return once she was able to figure out how to adjust the prices.  Now, grant it, it did take slightly longer than the normal just go in and make a return, but it really wasn't that much.  As I'm walking out, I have D behind me freaking out about it taking so long and again, we're not going to make it into Philly.  Ok, time check, 4:06.

The excursion to get my game was the same.  We went down to EB, which happened to be on the other side of the mall.  Now he's practically crapping his pants when I went in and was looking around instead of walking right up to the counter and asking for what I wanted.  I said that I wanted to see if there was anything else out that I might want to pick up.  Now, the heavy sighing begins, as well as the muttering under the breath.

I have now decided that there, in fact, is nothing else I want to purchase and I go to the counter and get my game.  In the 30 seconds that took, I have now lost D.  No biggie, we're in a game store, it's not like he's going to stray far.  Sure enough, he was playing a game that was on display.

"C'mon hon, I'm done" is what I say.  My reply?  "Just a sec, I'm playing a game."  I'm wondering what happened to this time warp that was going to prevent us from getting into the city on time.  Speaking of, time check, 4:32.  After he was done playing his game, 4:48.  Uh-oh, better watch out, only 3 hours to go for us to make a 30 minute trip.

We walked around a little bit before heading out.  I think we were pulling out of the parking lot at about 5:10-ish.

On the way into Philly, I kept wondering if this time warp would be big enough for me to see so I could tell him to steer around it.  But before I had time to break out my binoculars, we were already taking the exit for Broad St.  Time?  5:36.

Prior to heading out for this trip, I informed D of where our destination was - the Wachovia Spectrum.  We get to the Sports Complex and he pulls into the first thing he sees, Citizens' Bank Field.  Tour Guide Donut points out the error and gives the proper correction for said error.  No, we have to go talk to that guy down there.  Mr. I'm so Happy to be a Parking Attendant confirms what Tour Guide Donut has already pointed out, "You're in the wrong place."

Great.

He tells us to go back the way we came, make a left at the light, then make another left after we pass the stadium.

"Was that a left he said to make?" I'm now asked by the directionally challenged.  "Yes, after we pass the stadium."  I should have paid more attention, because at this point, we are now turning left before we pass the stadium.  "Are you sure he said left?"  Tour Guide Donut has now quit.

We eventually arrived at our destination.  Time? 6:03.  Concert begins?  8:00.  Now it's become "fend for yourself to find something to do, I'm gonna take a nap."  I think it may have been about 7:00 when a goup of people pulled in and started tailgating.  This annoyed D, they had the music up too loud and he couldn't sleep.  Well, jumpin' Jesus on a pogo stick, thell them damn kids to turn down that awful noise, Gramps is tryin' to git some sleep.

7:30 just couldn't come fast enough, I wanted to get in the building and try to ditch him for a bit so I could calm down.  But he seemed to be ok once we got inside.  At least for a while.

Let's see...  Concessions, t-shirts, seating...  all went off without a hitch.  Opening band came on, again, no real issue.  Next up, Queens of the Stone Age.  Ahh... the pot smokers are making them selves known.  Whatever, I'm not going to damn all these people to hell just because I don't do it.  I've been to several concerts and I'm aware of the goings on, and it doesn't bother me much.  Yeah, it stinks up the area, but it's not like there isn't other air to breathe.  But Mr. OMG I Think I'm Breathing in Asbestos is in freak out mode again.  He's ready to tell the guy behind us to put it out.  I shot him a look that said, "If you even think out turning around, you better make best friends with your hand 'cause that's the only way you're gonna get any...." then he backed off a bit.

10:30 rolls around.  At this point, I'm practically bursting at the seams despite all the events leading up to this moment.  At the very first note sung, I'm at the point of "I am seriously going to cream myself", but instead, I get asked, "Why's everyone standing?

"Are you fricking KIDDING ME?!?!?

I had no response.  I was just so... I... wow, I still can't respond.  Needless to say, D proceeds to sit down and play a game on his phone.  Now, I am furious.  Why the hell would you say that you would come with me when you're going to be this much of a bitch and drag me down with you???  Dammit, when I got the tickets I said that he didn't have to go, there are other people I could have gone with... hell, I would have gone by myself.  Instead, I'm now in a horrible mood when I should be basking in all the glory that is Trent Reznor.

Fuckhead.

To make matters worse, sometime about 11:15 or so, D started checking his watch every five minutes, followed by that heavy sighing that I know means I really don't want to be here, so let me out before I become pissy.  Tough shit, I am not going to miss out of one single second of the reason I woke up breathing this morning.

The concert ended at 12:30 and as we were making our way out, I realized something.  D does not trust me one bit.

When it comes to slicing through concert crowds, i've become kinda skilled.  This being D's third concert ever, and it not being the type of crowd he would be used to, i grabbed his hand as if to say stay close and follow, I can get us out of here.  Instead, I got yanked in the complete opposite direction.  Meanwhile, he keeps talking down to me like I don't know where I'm going and I can't navigate around people because, I dunno, I'm blind or something.  Everytime I see an opening that would be easy for us both to slip through, I get pulled back into an even bigger crowd of people and told that we have to go this way.

Once we got outside, I pulled away from him and told him I'd meet him at the car.  This didn't go over so well.  So, there he is freaking out again because I'm trying to take the easiest route back to the damn car and he's pulling me directly into an area that's all blocked up.  I said, "go this way around everyone, it'll be easier."  And now he's mad at me because I'm "telling him what to do."

So, now, I'm sitting here typing all this, and he keeps getting pissy because i'm not going to bed yet.

Ah, well, I am getting tired.  Maybe I'll go watch some TV and fall asleep on the couch. 

 

I know I was supposed to go throgh my stuff I got at the con, but I've been so damn busy with work.  We got new systems, and the suck some major moose balls, but that's another rant for another day.

The big excitement was D moved this weekend.  I'm not too overly happy about it, but I'll stick by and support him since that's what girlfriends do...  Anyway, a friend of his just bought a house kinda near D.  He and his girlfriend just moved back to this area from California.  Now, the roommate that lived with them in CA was supposed to move out here with them, but he bailed, so they asked D to move in with them.  I like both of them just fine, but not to the point of being around them 24/7.  See, the problem is, D's friend is very, um... in need of social interaction all the time.  For instance, when his girl friend is at work, he'll call D constantly until he picks up the phone, then chat away forever.  I joke that he's D's wife, but it's really not a joke.

D seems to value his friend's opinion abouve everyone else's, including mine or his own.   Which get on my last nerve.  Prime example would be me getting tickets to go see Nine Inch Nails.  I've been waiting forever and a day for a tour to come around again.  I told D that if he didn't want to go, that's fine, just let me know before I buy a ticket for him so I came make other arrangements for myself.  Because come hell or high water I AM going to go see NIN.  Well, after I bought the tickets, D's buddy goes on a rant how he doesn't like NIN live because the studio sound is unable to be reproduced live (well... duh, it's live you dolt.), and now D doesn't want to go becuse his friend says he didn't like it live.  I think the whole point was missed that I don't care about the sound live, I'm just happy to be there.  Of course, eye candy like Trent Reznor doesn't hurt at all either.

Oh!  And today, yeah, that was wonderful.  After moving a bunch of D's stuff into the new place (and borrowing my mom's car to do it), we're sitting on the couch and D turns to his friend and asks him if he was hungry, would he like to go grab a bite to eat.  Um.....hello?  I've been with you all damn day, haven't had anything to eat (caffeine free to this point, too), and you're asking him if he's hungry??  WTF?!?!?  Not even a, "what about you?", I was completly cut out of the entire conversation.

All I have to say is this is going to get really ugly at some point.

Well, I suppose I should get some shut-eye for now.  I think the two of them are going to drag me around China Town tomorrow.  Yippe f'n skippy.

 

Yesterday was pretty uneventful. The only thing we did was hit the dealers’ room, then called it a day. Things were going to be ending fairly early anyway, last day of the con and all.

Today we got all our crap out to the car, checked out and hit the aquarium. I did get a few pictures before my batteries died, but I still need to see how they came out. The entire time we were there, there was this family that was behind us with this rather annoying little girl. Well, not that little, she had to be at least 12 or 13. She would talk with her mother, who, by the way, was standing right next to her, like she was across the room. All of this right in my ear. And boy did she like to push. Every time I was at an exhibit, she was right there up my ass, pushing me into the window, screaming something in another language to her mother right in my ear. When I would turn around to walk away, she wouldn’t let me out, she’d just push forward. Needless to say, she caught my elbow quite a few times.

Afterwards, we had lunch at the Hard Rock Café, and I finally got myself a T-shirt from Baltimore to add to the collection. You would think that I’d have one already, but nooo, why would I get one from places that are close to home and I go to all the time? It’s like that for Philly and Atlantic City, too. I don’t have either, but I do have places like Cozumel, St. Maarten, and Paris.

Anyway, once I get home and unpack, I’ll share what my booty was this year.

 

Gawd, it sucks getting older.

It's only 10:00 and I am beat.  There's one more thing I want to see at the con tonight, but it's at 11:45 and I don't know if I'm going to make it.

On a brighter note, I did got a huge buttload of stuff today.  I got up before D and went out to catch some stuff early this morning.  It was nice just wandering by myself for a while.  I got some more great pictures.  Then D and I hooked up around 1-ish and spent the rest of the day together.

We decided to go back to Edo for dinner.  This time D was the drunk one, and damn was he getting on my nerves.  Aside from being really loud at the restaurant, when we got back to the room, he had to slam the door shut anout 20 times just becuase he could.  Then, if he heard someone walking by, he'd jump out in front of them, run back in the room (slamming the door shut, of course), then proceed to pound on the door from the inside.

Now he's passed out (thank the Lord up above), and I'm debating if I want to head back to the convention center one last time.

I think I'll take a power nap and see how I feel later.

 

Otakon 2005 is in full swing! 

Today was great.  Cosplayers were out in force, and an excellent job everyone did this year.    I got a lot of fantabulous pictures.  I was dressed as Sumomo/Plum from Chobits and got some really great compliments.  Thanx eveyone!

I got tons of shopping done today, too.  Plushies galore!    Tomorrow, it's time to look for DVD's, then Sunday whatever I missed.

The only disappointments today were at the end of the night.  I went to see Hellsing Ultimate, but it was replaced with The Count of Monte Cristo.  So I went to go catch the Gravitation OVA, but that was replaced with the TV series insread.

Oh well, I guess ya can't have everything.

 

Hooray!!!!   We got our badges in practically no time at all. After seeing how long the line was, we decided to wait until later to got in in (so we wouldn’t be I the horrible heat of the day). It was about 7-ish or so when we got in line. Things went rather quick. I think last year we waited in line for about an hour and a half. This year, 45 minutes tops. Mental note has been made, get the badges later in the day. We actually just passed the pre-reg line at about 9:30-ish. And we would have been in and out in no time at all. I think next year we’re going to wait until later to get them.

After that we went all the way to Edo just to get something to eat. OK, so it was this place called Edo Sushi in the Harborplace. But it was gooood. Not to mention the fact that I’m nice and toasty on sake right now. If it wasn’t for spell check, this post would be practically unreadable.

Well, it’s an early morning tomorrow, and I’ve got to sleep of this nice buzz I’ve got going on. More to come, I promise!

 

Well, we made it in one piece. So far, the hotel is great. It’s close to the convention center, the room is nice, the elevators aren’t an issue (~shudders at the thought of last year~), and the parking garage is connected to the hotel. I am pleased. This will most certainly be a repeat next year.

After we got checked in, we went walking around to check things out, get something to eat, and see how the line is for pre-reg. Holy hell that line was loooooong. From the door where we need to be all the way around the building up and down stairs where ever they may be. So, we came back to the hotel to hang out for a bit then head back to get in line. It’s a good thing we have nothing better to do tonite.

 

….We’re goin’ on a field trip.

Well here we are, on our way to Baltimore.   This apparently is going to be the weekend of unusual sights, and I’m not talking about the hoards of otaku in cosplay.

Last night on my way to D’s, I was stuck in traffic behind a house.   That’s right, I said a house. Ya know, one of those modular units on a flatbed truck. It was just odd. So far today, we passed a funeral procession. Not just any funeral procession, but full-on ghetto style. In the lead and pulling up the rear were completely pimped out Cadillacs, complete with light bars. And the Hearse wasn’t a Hearse at all. Oh no… It was and El Camino with a cap over the bed.

We’ve also discovered that the police are out in full force. Within a 1 mile stretch of road we passed 2 speed traps with 5 cars already pulled over. 11 cops cars in total! A bit further down the road (about 20 minutes or so), there were 2 more speed traps, that’s 6 more cruisers. It was at that point D decided to set the cruise control for the speed limit since he has one hell of a lead foot.

All of this, and we haven’t even left Delaware yet.

Now all that’s left is getting to the hotel, checking in, then getting in line to get our passes for the con.

 

Ok, I'm a crispy critter.   I went tubing today with a bunch of co-workers. Had tons of fun, but now I'm paying for it.

We left at about 8 this morning and headed up to Point Pleasant, then spent 3 hours on an inner-tube floating down the Delaware. After that we stopped off in New Hope to grab some thing to eat before heading home. By the way, we managed to get lost heading in both directions, there and back.

My sunburn is actually not to bad... it's just kinda spotty. I have a chunk of my arm completly roasted, and both of my shins, plus the top of my right foot. I guess I didn't put the sunscreen on as well as I thought I had. Oh well, just as long as the worst of it is gone before I head out to Baltimore next weekend.

Speaking of which, I got home and spent what seemed like an eternity working on my damn costume for the con. I'm not sure if I'll ever get it finished. I'll be working on it until the day I leave. Except for of course when I need a break...

During those short breaks I've been taking, I made 2 new wallpapers. Yay me!! Both are from Gravitation and have been posted on my Goodies page. Enjoy!

I guess I should get to bed, I have a whole 2 days of work before I'm officially on vacation!!!