Yes I'm quite late. No, it's not likely to get read. But here you go anyway.


Because Flickr Uploadr was having some kind of issue, the photos are NOT in order in the photostream; you must use the Set navigation.

( Wednesy: Preview Night )

( Thursday: EW Women; Burn Notice; Psych )

( Friday: WB; Disney/Pixar+Miyazaki; 9+signing; Flynn's Arcade )

( Saturday: Lost; Solomon Kane; Extract; Zombieland; Iron Man 2; Human Target/Vamp. Diaries; Mythbusters )

( Sunday/Wrapup )

Sorry for . . . whatever, I'm only just barely able to tolerate this medication dose still. Hopefully it will improve soon. I'm not to go down again for at least another week (basically each time I go down I'm going to feel worse again). But I promised illustrated chipmunk stories; I shall deliver. I took these in a light drizzle/through glass, so they're not great, but I did what I could.

( ILLUSTRATED CHIPMUNK STORIES! x7 pics. )

Since you're here, help yourself to some girls playing a giant piano.

Nothing of any note to report otherwise right now I guess. Changing anti-vertigo meds and not enjoying increased dizziness on the half dose, if I haven't gotten back to you about something will do it tomorrow. Need bed now.

Japan photos are up on Flickr. These are all non-doll but there are some random ones with my tiny in them. I would like to think that I'll still get to writing some kind of report, for myself at least, but I'm not sure if I will. I did add fairly thorough comments to the photos so you know what they're of. I wish that I had taken more photos - the heat and the fatigue . . . well, if I had, I'd still be working on them.

As for photos with the new camera . . . The Nikon processing software is driving me up the walls but my previous "digital workflow" sucked hardcore so . . . hmm. Adobe Lightroom seems like the way to go except it can't handle the video files, and I have so little hard drive space to store original versions . . . don't know how to do it at all. :< If I choose "open in..." and send to CS3, the file loses the EXIF data. Probably have to make Lightroom work for me somehow because Nikon's ViewNX is not cutting it for organization, processing, or export. Don't know what res to use for Flickr, either . . . ergh. But to prove I've been taking photos with the D90 . . .
( one 1040x704 dragon. )

Had an intense day yesterday . . . only made the train going in because of someone in a wheelchair + running, had to do rush tickets for the second movie and couldn't get dinner, only made the train back out by three minutes (running again). It's very inconvenient living in the suburbs. But at least I got to see the two movies I most wanted to . . .

Definitely did get (much more mild) version of whatever my mom had but I'm pretty much past that now and still about to die of exhaustion for no apparent reason. Bonus batch of nasty vertigo tonight. Harass doctors more tomorrow I guess. :|

Too bad that all the doctors were out today due to Yom Kippur (sic?), since I have had an exciting turn - I may have gotten Lyme disease. :P I have a lovely (though small) bullseye rash on my knee, and the symptoms match quite well. Probably not but has to be checked anyway.

For some reason I decided to try and understand who won Nobel prizes and why, so I read about subatomic physics tonight. My problem with physics tends to be that as soon as it starts to involve mathematic equations, I stop understanding it. Admittedly I can't say that one course on quantum physics and some idle reading gave me anything more than a profoundly fragile grasp on the ideas. :P It does, however, involve some really cool diagrams. I think that if I could wrap my head around it well enough, things like catastrophe theory would be incredibly useful concepts in general . . .

I think that someone told me a zip file I sent them was corrupted, but now I can't remember who it would have been, or if I *dreamed it*. Maybe I should not have given up being an astronomer; I might be well suited to sitting around on my own thinking about strange things and being totally out of touch. :<

Put up photos from the Schmidt Museum of Coca-Cola memorabilia, where we stopped on the way between Louisville, KY and Bowling Green where my cousin's wedding was. Had a 10¢ Cherry Coke and got taken back to the private room to see the 1893 marble soda fountain. I wanted to go to other places but I didn't have the energy. :( I had to leave my cousin's wedding early (well it wasn't that EARLY). Admittedly I've been to most of the caves in the Mammoth area but I did want to go to Dinosaur World . . . did wind up going to Flea Land (KY's largest indoor flea market!). It was mostly newer stuff, an actual flea market + fried foods (like the Troll Market in Hellboy II but with rural Kentuckians instead). Cultural experience ahoy . . .

Also put up videos on YouTube for the first time. o_O Needed an easy place to put the two Japan videos since my father wanted to send them to the family - also put up three short clips from the Dragon*Con parade. I got lucky with the Halo solider and the kids, too bad I can't zoom while filming.

So iMovie can't import .mpg video files; I try and convert in QuickTime Pro. Can't figure out why I have no audio no matter what format I use. Turns out, QT can play fine, but it can't extract the audio from MPEG-1 for export - can't handle any MUXed audio. That's STUPID. Luckily, there is a freeware program that CAN do this called Squared5. Posting this in case it comes up for anyone else. :P

( thoughts on the American Life on Mars )
Whether you watch the American one or not . . . seriously, do yourself a favor, and watch the BBC Life on Mars. I watch a lot of TV because I think it's fun or entertaining; but this show was really exceptional work no matter how you evaluate it.

I finished uploading San Diego Comic-con 2008 photos. Mostly represents: the Squeenix booth, Spaced panel, Venture Brothers and Robot Chicken, Mystery Science Theater 3000 20th anniversary panel, Chuck panel, and Mythbusters panel. I believe some people have been waiting on Mythbusters. I wish I had more good ones but between my camera issues and the fact that I'm quite sure panel photos are an art form . . . did what I could. I guess I'll do the crash course version report tomorrow so they're not in a total vacuum.

Now my Tylenol has worn off and I am relentlessly being chased by a mosquito so I'm going to bed. I guess I can finish deciding what to use my Sideshow gift card on tomorrow (must...resist...lifesize right hand of doom...)

. . . what was I going to say? Oh yeah. Assuming I can stay awake long enough to do the code, this is my D*C trip photo post. I'm almost done with my report except I can't remember what happened which evening. >_>;

World of Coke trip photos are on Flickr here; Dragon*Con photos are here.
( some random faves with commentary )

My camera, incidentally, is getting progressively more insane. Or I've been screwing up with manual more and more. Either way I did my best. :(

Artists and creators, or those with friends who are - read this and pass it along. I'm not a company-basher, but this Tokyopop contract sounds like Serious Bad News. If nothing else, the contract is "sign over all your rights to your work in perpetuity for a flat fee", they shouldn't make it sound like they deserve a prize for it. :P Especially given that they reserve the right to post your work *without crediting you*. I was already leery of TP, but now I'm insulted to boot . . .

( Three new Dew flavors: taste test )

( remodeling pics + flowering tree + my dog )

This post would have way too many images in it if I post anything else. Will have to wait. Also, apparently I'm the only one who DIDN'T like Indy 4 - what are the odds that I will be fed to ravenous ants if I post my review anyway? I'm not trying to assault anyone's firstborn here but it will not be a positive review. Hmm. (Will cut of course for those who have not seen it yet.)

Lawl. I need to call it something less . . . formal. I'm a cosplay photographer so exclusive, you've never even heard of me. Since Flickr breaks things up strangely, I wanted to repost these in more minimal format. I will be quiet for a while now. @_@

( Monica and Kai from Yakitate!! Japan x8 )

( WhateverIt'sPink Lolita x4 )

I would like to do more photography, but . . . I don't know. I can't really put myself out there to do shoots, there are more than enough talented people already; I don't have much to offer. But for the moment, if it's of use or entertainment to my friends, there you go. It'd be great to do some shoots not at a con, the lighting drives me bananas. D:

Acen pics are up! I will include some highlights in my report post which will I'm finishing now but if you're bored you can hit them up now. I need to work on taking hall photos again SO BADLY I feel terrible about that, I always assume other people get better ones, but what if people never get them after all? (I never got photos of komori_tifa's other costumes either, or anyone else D: ) Why am I getting *worse* at going to cons instead of better? @_X;;;

But my semi-excuse . . . I may have to take on paid commissions and whatever else I can do to raise some funds. Not that funds are *ever* a bad thing, but I have to replace my camera. Something is wrong with the IS, I'm more and more certain of it. It's heartbreaking to have my photos so frequently screwed up. I could get the H3 for half what I paid for my H1, but it seems like I should upgrade . . . am I ready for a DSLR? :|

"I've decided to oppose society and make worthless statements in a grandiose manner!" (Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou-sensei ep. 3)
Want to try it? :O I shall demo. The other day . . . I thought I was out of toothpaste . . . but then I found another package in the cabinet.

And though you didn't need further proof that Ticketmaster fails . . .
( have further proof anyway )

I much prefer winter storms when I don't have to go out in them. In the front you can't tell we ever HAD a sidewalk even though it was blown clear after the previous snowstorms. In technical terms we have a METRIC ASSTON of snow. (I am still campaigning to make this an official unit of measurement.) I heard a sound earlier today and looked up to see half of one of our large pine trees snap off and hit the ground (not near the house, luckily).
( snow pics x2 )
FYI, I've been periodically adding photos to my Flickr, including scanned film photos, and just added a couple more last night. Including the one of the ice crystals in our door. >_o The other ones are like . . . minor rising steampunk obsession. I really want to get some books with inspiring steampunk-related things but I'm not sure what library keyword to use, lol.

Well here's the photo to sum up the holidays, I guess. Happy New Year!


Re: this year, and last . . . hmm. I think that's the sort of thing I ponder way too much so it's not really any different this time of year. I've been knee-deep in Ohayocon prep for a few days and last night I was up until about 4:30. My mind was still wandering when I went to bed, and for some reason it hit me: in just four years I'll be 30. It sent me into kind of like a panic, I found it totally frightening, because it forced me to think about where I am in my life. I want things that I let myself forget about, and I'm missing things that I've never had. That sort of view is enough to take your breath away.

But today I feel differently (sleep deprivation is bad for your mental state, kids). Some days you have to focus on the small picture. This year I finished four ceramic Santas I started painting probably 10 years ago. It was a cheesy Frank's kit and I felt I wasn't doing it right and never finished. Now they're finished. Small things. I have moments where I don't feel this way at all, but I feel very level lately. I guess I really am sort of at peace with some things (mostly) and more than ready to move forward. So I'm not going to try and think about the million things I want to do, but just think about moving forward - small things. So maybe this won't be my last press-to-finish before a con; I thought I had to swear off it entirely. But I feel calm because I know that the only reason I'm doing it is because I chose to - because it was what I wanted to be doing.

So I guess I found the answer to the question from that other post - what do you say to "it doesn't matter"? If it doesn't matter, then you can make choices and take responsibility for them free of regret. That thought can be control, not hopelessness. Some days I feel like the earth spins too fast for me to ever keep up - and I always think "stop the world, I want to get off". But, of course, it isn't going to stop; so then I think you have to run without hesitation, not drag your feet because you're afraid of making a wrong step. Maybe the only difference between the impossible and the possible is the willingness to try and the faith to not fear failing. (I mean, check out my avatar. You can wrap some guy's head in tin foil and it can be fscking awesome. This is a big world with room in it for an infinite array of the possible.)

I promise at least some costume preview pics before Ohayocon, regardless of whether anything gets finished. lol.

Today's Completely Unrelated Quote: "When two girls fight, everyone wins" (<-- tiarah, you can still post it lol)

(I just love that LJ error message.) First off thanks to the folks who wished me a happy birthday. Big hugs and whatnot and I won't use the "heart" symbol because it always shows up as a line and I wonder why people are all "I | you". I used to also have trouble with thinking <3 was "less than three".

|+| You are getting this before the doll journal, photopoem "even the stars have fallen". Beware, contains dollies and/or boy love o.o; (whichever traumatizes you more). FYI, the LA Dolpa report (with bad photos of my booth) and sales post (if you wanted to see some of the items) are public posts.

|+| I did make it through the bad weather to the sneak of The Golden Compass. It was very true to the book, overall (as these things go), and I enjoyed it a lot. You don't have to have read the book(s) to see it; and definitely don't write it off as a children's film. It's very different than other "kid's fantasy book" movies you will see; if nothing else, it has an LotR level body count. Anyway, it was well crafted and I won't say anything more for fear of spoilers. If anyone wants to discuss it, though . . .

|+| Sci-Fi has actually put all of Tin Man online, if you don't get the network. It's pretty well worth your time. Alan Cumming hardcore FTW, if nothing else. The ending was kind of . . . abrupt. o_O; (This is really not a spoiler.) "Group hug! :D Roll credits." I did just find out why Neal McDonough (Cain) was so dang familiar - he was the lead in White Dwarf! <3 I have to get that off my homemade VHS in the next week, I don't care what else I have to do, it's been put off long enough. I wonder if I'd get sued if I uploaded it to YouTube. Maybe I should write Sci-Fi a letter and suggest they air it, it's made already . . .

|+| Great news for everyone (I hope?) - in the third stage of a collaboration between Yahoo! Japan and eBay, American bidders will be able to use their eBay accounts to bid on Yahoo! Japan. (Of course, I would take a wild stab that the majority of the auctions will still NOT ship internationally. I think this is mostly about JP users buying on eBay.)

|+| I must needs now go back to decorating the Christmas tree. It seems kind of unfestive to do it alone but my parents went off to a party and I'm not sure I should leave ornament boxes everywhere.

|+| I don't really know what my problem is lately. It's possible that I feel weird because I've gone off two of my medications - maybe they had side effects I wasn't aware of. I don't feel bad, I just feel . . . weird. It's sort of a caffeinated feeling, so I'm wondering if this is like "whoa, I'm not constantly drowsy from being overmedicated". I think I don't know how to handle that @_@ So I'm feeling vaguely anxious and hyper and like I'm going to explode for no reason. @_@ So apologies if I'm acting weird or start talking and can't shut up. IT MAY BE TOO LATE.

|+| My father was gone this weekend so my mother went aggro on the mess in the basement. No problem with that, though regular cleaning is still better than emo cleaning. Anyway found a box of old floppies - including stuff from the 386 (got rid of that in 1995 or so). I wasn't able to get data off all of them, but I'm currently converting a lot of old files. Remember when we thought 1MB was a lot to fill? I admit that it's very depressing for me - I used to write a LOT and I think I might have been better in middle school. x_X; Maybe I'll find my creative drive in a box, too. :<

|+| "Have you ever gone 60 mph in a dining room?" So there's this new show airing on BBC America, Top Gear, which I keep catching random bits of (emphasis on the RANDOM). Apparently it's based on a magazine and the main point is testing cars, but then they also do incredibly bizarre challenges - like playing soccer in mini-coopers, or filling a Mercedes with concrete, laying down wood floors and a fireplace, and putting in wingback chairs to make it look like the interior of Anne Hathaway's cottage - and then taking it for a drive. Next week appears to feature some small European car being fitted with rockets and sent down a ski jump. Another regular portion features celebrities test-driving race cars. So you'd probably appreciate it a lot more if you actually KNOW anything about cars, unlike me, but it's still got great WTF factor and the hosts are pretty hilarious. I thought about posting it to OB, but I haven't actually watched a full episode yet.

|+| So I have not been getting as much done as I'd like, but I did get to one of the things on my list and managed to make a post to Otaku Booty's news page for the first time since 2005 (FAILURE). Go, read, it's about a live action version of an anime featuring giant robots - that ISN'T the LA Eva!

|+| ( CSI@MSI, baby chicken, etc photos )

|+| ( mini-Cloud x5 )

If you read nothing else in this post, click on the link at the end. I regret that I have no Picard icon to use.

|+| Sew-y things . . . nearly done with a humanoid/UFO catcher plush, which wound up being Watanuki from xxxHolic (I just did the muslin for his jacket so I have that and finishing his shoes). Sale Skitzo #1 is finished, but needs his bow, so I have to get ribbon unless I can find a remnant.

|+| Went into the city today to try and go to the CSI exhibit before it closes but it was sold out when we got there. x_x So we looked at a few things at MSI and then came back home. Going back tomorrow (last day, got tickets today). @_@

|+| Long-promised Orlouge (SaGa Frontier) photos . . .
( pics x2 )

|+| I could post about serious things. But you know what you need? You need the Picard Song. (My thanks to strawberrygoth for linking me to something else that led to finding this video. I heard the song over an iTunes feature and could not save it several years ago at a con.)

|+| Busy weekend. *Really* sore throat today too so I don't know if I'm sick with something new or what . . . Anyway blood_sorbet was in town and we wound up going up to the Bristol Renaissance Faire on the invite of stephen_poon on Saturday.
( short weekend report +2 pics )

|+| Mini-Cloud photos ( from the faire grounds x5 )

|+| Today's random links of amusement: Comic-con costumers circa 1982. And from stephen_poon: will you marry Mii?

Putting up swag photos now while I work on my report! I thought at the very least you'd want to see the promotional posters, since some of those are newly released designs. I have to do some more cleaning tonight so it will probably be late-ish.

( mm swag.  )

Okay, the exhibit hall photos are up. Panel photos and swag photos will go up with the report; I'm aiming for tonight, but it may well be tomorrow, because there are so many photos. I did try to take photos of specific things I knew people here would be interested in.

SDCC exhibit hall photos on Flickr. I had to make a new Flickr account because I can't log into my old one. I'm not sure whether there's any chance of that, or if I'm going to be using this one from now on. >_o

Photo processing from the trip is taking me a really long time; I had about 550. I hope I'll have the regular photos done really soon, the doll ones took me a while (I took some dolls with me and we had a small meetup). When I post up my other photos, I'll have some story to go along with it. In the meanwhile, I'll post up my "toy photos", and also give you a link to my brother's Flickr gallery from the trip. He was planning to add some of mine as well but I don't think he's gotten to it. If you're a "foodie", you'll especially like it (my brother's GF has a food blog). ;3 Please ignore the photos of me XP

( mini-Psycho photos x2 250x333 )

( mini-Cloud photos x13 )

Speaking of food, I feel like baking tonight for some reason. I wonder what I should make . . .

Pics from Ohayocon. Yes I totally fail at taking photos as usual. On my honor: Katsucon. Things will be different. lol. Mainly I'm bad at asking people for photos, even friends, and usually think that if Lionel and Al are around they'll get better ones than me anyway. I will say that while I make no claims to being especially good at it, I will do a photoshoot for any of you any time you like. Sorry but I'm too tired to make smaller sized ones also. x_X So there are 8 640x480 pics in total behind the cuts.

( best Totoro plush ever )

( Maple as Agito from Air Gear )

( Maple as Ion Fortuna from Trinity Blood )

blood_sorbet: sorry, I linked your old journal in the previous post. >_o Uh but if you want larger versions, or unedited versions, or a folder with all the pics (except duplicates, I picked the best takes from those to keep) please ask . . . I just picked some and did what I felt like to them in photoshop. XD;