#possible mini print for cons ?!

[rombitzy]

🩵

[auteezm]

happy pride!!! 🌈

after the youth music video came out and i saw lee know’s button that said “art is anything you can get away with”, i knew i had to draw something inspired by it. as a queer artist, the phrase really resonated with me since we often put pieces of ourselves into our work in the hopes that others will see them, and see us. i also wanted to work in the rainbow piñata from the mv, which looked a bit too busy behind the text, so i ended up with two versions 🩷

[assorted-fics]

Fics of the Month

Avengers

Repeat After Me by battybatzgirl

Tony’s face hardens as he says, “What kid.”

“I don’t know, some twelve year old—”

Below him, the kid coughs out, “Fifteen.”

“—Fifteen year old—”

Tony scrubs a hand across his face. “Don’t tell me he’s wearing a dorky shirt with a chemistry pun on it.”

Rhodey frowns. That was oddly specific. Glancing down, he looks at what little he can see of the kid’s shirt—which isn't much since there’s so much blood now, but what could be once called a cartoon joke is printed on it. “Um, yeah?”

“Son of a bitch.”

…

Otherwise known as how Rhodey finds out about how old Peter is, and how badly he needs to beat Tony with a stick.

Tennessee Outreach for Spider-Man (and friends) by Ciaconnaa

To: keenharley

From: tstark

I’m regretting this offer already.

But anyway, I’m the one that upgraded Spidey from pajamas to multi-million dollar spandex. It’s been good for him, but it’s not something he’s used to and that, combined with his occasional dumbassery, breaks or rips my hard work. The main source of his upkeep is his webs. And he's been busy. Needs some extra hands. That’s where you come in. I’ve sent over basic schematics of his suit and his web-shooters. It won’t run on Windows XP, so you might have to go to a library.

To:tstark

From: keenharley

I hate you. Also, we don't have a library so jokes on you

or;

in an attempt to help Harley beef up his college apps, Tony offers Harley a remote Stark

aiding and abetting: a peter parker saga by robinbuckley

Bucky Barnes stands in the middle of the produce section at Peter’s local supermarket, staring unblinkingly at the display of oranges like he’s having some kind of a war flashback.

“Finding everything okay?”

The Winter Soldier starts a little. “Yeah, no, I’m good, just—” he finally glances at Peter and squints. “You don’t even work here, do you?”

“No, but I know this place like the back of my hand.” He glances into the mini cart Barnes is pushing, which is full to the brim with junk foods: tootsie pops, cookie dough, Cheerios, and kettle cooked chips. “Have you considered, perhaps, a vegetable?”

or: 5 times peter parker runs into the rogues separately + the 1 time they work together as a team

In For A Penny by gender_bender08

Peter meets Daredevil when the man saves him from a shootout.

He meets Deadpool when the guy’s trying to steal a car.

He meets the Punisher when Red brings him to the gym.

He meets Jessica Jones when she corners him on a streetlight.

He meets Hawkeye when Jessica’s hired to solve one of his assassinations.

All of this to say, he meets a lot of people before he meets Tony Stark.

Daredevil

5 times foggy met daredevil (and 1 time he didn’t) by AsperJasper

The new arrival on the scene was definitely not a cop. In fact, Foggy had no idea who he was or what he was doing or how he’d taken out two men in ten seconds. Broken one of their arms, it looked like.

Especially considering he had what looked like a shirt maybe tied around his eyes? Like a ninja. Or a pirate. A pirate ninja who’d swooped in and beaten up the muggers like it was no big deal.

The corner of the pirate ninja’s mouth twitched, even though Foggy had no idea what he could possibly find funny at the moment.

i never could forgive myself for leaving out (you’re the one, you are the only one) by AsperJasper

It didn’t take too long to fall in love with Foggy.

In fact, it took all of two months. The thing was just that Foggy was the best thing to ever happen to Matt. He was kindness and warmth and laughter, and even if living with him took (a lot of) adjusting, two months in Matt caught himself wondering what it would be like to kiss Foggy.

But Foggy wasn’t his, he wasn’t dating Foggy, he had absolutely no right to feel like this just because Foggy had found somebody to date.

Heroes and Villains by AsperJasper

“…Matt?”

"Hmm?"

"Care to tell me why I just got an email containing two tickets to Hero-con including VIP passes?"

"Because I forgot to change the email that autofilled when I was buying two tickets to Hero-con including VIP passes?"

"Okay, fair. The question I should have asked, then. Why did you buy two tickets to Hero-con including VIP passes?"

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

The Man Behind the Myth by ohmytheon

When Roy is picked to be the subject of an article about the military, he's not sure what to expect, but as it turns out, a man is only as good as the people that support him.

Merlin

For Your Information by reni_days

Merlin sighs. "After your...announcement," he explains, "your father decided he needed a bit more information. Which is apparently where I come in. I'm sort of like his gay tutor, it's hard to explain."

Into Perdition by athousandvictories

“Aren’t you worried you’re going to get her pregnant?”

Arthur looks indignant at the insinuation, despite the fact that his hair is still sticking up in the back, and his tunic is still askew. “No?”

“All right. I just thought… you know. You being the king’s only son, and Sevain being an ambitious chap, it could cause quite a bit of--”

“We don’t do anything that could result in--Christ, Merlin, it’s just none of your business, is what it is.”

The Account of Sir Percival by Zaadi

Arthur, Merlin and several knights of Camelot have been forced to seek shelter in the enemy kingdom of Cameliard. Arthur and his men must hide their identities; Merlin is drawn to the freedom of magic permitted by King Leodogran; and all soon find themselves caught amidst Cameliard's own political struggles.

Avatar: The Last Airbender

put the weight on me by Orphan_Account

“I think he’s sick.” Bato says flatly. “So unless you want the next meeting to include the Fire Lord puking all over the budget scrolls, maybe see if he's okay?”

Hakoda glances up the hallway, like perhaps Katara will appear and take over dealing with the prickly teenager. Of course, his daughter is off treating injured refugees with the Avatar, and Bato is still staring at him expectantly, arms crossed.

“Fine,” He sighs, and he claps Bato on the cheek before heading into the room.

Or: Zuko falls ill not long after Ozai's defeat. Hakoda sits with him and learns some unpleasant truths about his childhood.

Sifu Azula by orphan_account

“If Zuko is my big brother, and you’re Zuko’s sister, does that make you my big sister?”

“Yes,” Zuko said brightly.

“No,” Azula said, at the exact same time.

---

Or, Azula teaches Kiyi firebending, real manners, and a few other things.

this love burns so yellow (becoming orange and in its time, exploding) by meliebee

Ten months after Zuko is crowned at seventeen, he faces his first coup.

the absence of heat, excess of destiny by theycallmesuperboy

Sokka is born in the dead of winter with a red dragon curling down the left side of his back.

Zuko is born in the sweltering heat of summer with a sword down his spine.

—

He doesn’t want to talk about it when their gazes turn on him. They make assumptions— is it someone he left behind in the Fire Nation? He looks away when he agrees with them.

Toph brushes past him when they all part ways. She says, “I know you’re lying.”

Watch the Bright Stars by JustGettingBy

The Palace can be a lonely place, especially for a kid. Luckily for Zuko he's got his older cousin around to show him the ropes.

OR

The five things Zuko admires in Lu Ten and the one thing he doesn't.

Agni Kai Abuse by mindbending

Zuko groans. “It’s illegal to ban Agni Kais without a constitutional amendment, and that’ll never happen because it’s ‘a blatant affront to tradition.’”

"Babe," Sokka says with an indulgent smile. "Have you considered that you just need to honor tradition instead? Really embrace it?”

“...what’s the plan?”

[spongebob-connoisseur]

Hey! So you’ve met some of the SpongeBob VAs at cons before right? I’m hoping to meet Rodger Bumpass at one this year but I’m so nervous! What was it like? Any tips on how to stay composed? Lol

Ohh! You're gonna meet Rodger? Lucky!! Congrats!

I've only ever met one of the SpongeBob voice actors. That time with Dee Bradley Baker (voice of Squilliam, Perch Perkins, Bubblebass, etc) in 2024 was my first time ever meeting a voice actor period😭

I feel like I really fumbled the moment because I was so ill prepared. It was wonderful to hear Bubblebass's voice in person. Its so weird. He was pretty funny and kind but I wish I got more out of the experience. It was entirely my fault because I wasn't prepared. I spent the entire week before the con working on my Slappy cosplay (never make your cosplay last minute) so I didn't plan anything else out.

But it was an informative experience! I learned a lot and let me know how to prepare if I ever get an opportunity to meet any other voice actors in the future.

- first of all carry extra cash on you. The prices for autographs and things like that on the website can change and may not be how much it'll be when you're there in person. I had the exact cash for an autograph based on online pricing but the price went up when I was there in person, which was why I only got a selfie with him😭

- have a plan on what you want him to autograph. Yeah voice actors have their own prints but they are horrible quality. I was looking at the prints they sell for autographs and they're horribly jpeg pixelated. Just bring your own thing. You can bring your own print or have him sign a piece of merch. Though be careful because some VAs may charge extra for that. some VAs might be kind enough to sign more than one thing for the price of one. Depends on the person.

- right now write down everything you want out of meeting him. In the moment it is incredibly disorienting and you will forget what you want to do and say. I was tired and anxious, I didn't ask any of the things I wanted to say. I completely forgot to ask about Squilliam, I forgot to ask for a voice recording of Perch for a friend. I was standing in line for so long and I felt kind guilty knowing how many people were still waiting behind me that I tried to speed through it as fast as possible. For how much I paid for this experience, I really wished I took my time. It was still a good experience but not what I wanted to do. Write down now what you want out of it. The day of the con, write it on a mini piece of paper and keep in your pocket so you can check it while you're there and make sure you're not missing anything you wanted to say or ask. It's also good to rehearse in your head while you're in line. I was so disoriented I forgot everything. Just keep it in your mind and keep replaying it. Don't let the social anxiety win. I'm not good at being composed tbh dawg. I can only suggest to both physically have your bullet points of what you want to do on hand and rehearse in your mind. It may feel awkward but knowing you hit all of your points of what you wanted to do in the moment is more important than trying to play it cool. I'm sure the VAs wouldn't mind either since I'm sure they are well familiar with socially anxious fans.

- if you have something personal to tell the voice actors like how much the characters and show means to you but you feel like its a lot or you're too embarrassed to say it ourloud, you can always write it in a letter and hand it to him. You may not hear a response but if its just something you want them to know then its fine. I've always wanted to meet Tom Kenny (I doubt he'll ever come to Canada though) And I could never fully express how deeply personal the show is to me, how much it means to me and how much the characters Spongebob and Slappy means to me. I'm writing it down in a letter😭😭😭 I'll still tell him some of it at the table because I just want to hear a response but the bulk of my feelings will be contained to writing.

- I personally dream of giving Tom Kenny some of my drawings of Slappy and Spongebob. If you wanna gift the voice actors something, you totally can btw! They'd appreciate it.

- Try to meet the voice actors in the morning. Do it as early as you can. The line to meet voice actors are incredibly long. Every time I thought I was at the front and I was finally gonna meet him, the line zigzaged. It is MUCH longer than you expect. Being early at least makes it easier. If you can, you should plan to go to the con for 2 days, that way you have one day to meet voice actors and another day to actually experience the con. I couldn't do everything I wanted to that day because meeting voice actors took most of my day. I really wanted to do cosplay red carpet but I missed it😭😭

- wear comfortable shoes and keep your lunch on you + extra snacks. The first time I ever went to a con, I went as Spongebob. I wore my doc martens dress shoes because it looked kinda like Spongebob's dress shoes. Big mistake. My feet was hurting the entire day and I constantly had to sit down. The shoes weren't that bad, I wore them many times before but the con was the longest I've ever been on my feet in those shoes. When I got home, I saw my feet drenched in a blood bath😭😭 wear comfortable shoes dawg. On top of that snacks and food. When I went to meet Neil Newbon, he took a 2-3 hour break in between to take photos with fans. So I was sitting in line for so long. I'm glad I had my lunch on me, my friend didn't. Its hard going thru the entire day at the con without eating. Even though I had food I didn't bring water. I had a horrible dehydration headache towards the end of the day. Stay hydrated and stay well fed. the con experience is incredibly draining.

- Have a friend be there with you. This isn't a must but I feel like it helps me a lot to have someone familiar next to me😭😭 i do not fare well with social situations and I lean on her a lot. But also if you want to record your experience, it helps to have a friend be there and physically record it for you. She helped me a lot that day frrr Anyways I do recommend if they allow, to record the experience because if you're like my friend who has a poor memory, you wouldn't want to forget. I have a pretty good memory but I still forgot part of the experience somehow because I was feeling disoriented. You can always revisit a video, but your memories are less consistent lol

- If you're doing cosplay, it can be heavy. Its okay to take some of it off and keep in a bag while you're in line. My Slappy head isn't that heavy but I did get tired holding it in my arms while I was in line. I had a big Walmart bag to put it in when I got tired carrying it. I wish I had a clear trash bag tho and covered it with blood splatters so when I'm not wearing the Slappy head, it looks like I'm carrying his decapitated head around😭😭 I'll remember it for this year's con. But yeah, waiting in line is uncomfortable, any way to make yourself more comfortable is welcome.

- and most importantly, have fun! I wish you a fantabulous time!

[n7punk]

She-ra (2018) Con-Exclusive Merch & Giveaways

I'm assembling a master post of all officially-produced merch for the SPOP reboot, but it's focused on information. I have a separate post focused on promotion-exclusive items, and this post is dedicated to detailed information for the ambiguous middle ground: con exclusives. Some of these were given away and some were for sale.

If I get additional information on any of these specific items, I'll edit the post to add it, but if I find anything new then it'll go in a reblog addition as I've hit the image limit on this post.

Sometimes you have to click photos to see full images, as many are cut off due to varying dimensions. Any [x]s will lead to the source of the images, usually secondhand listings that will eventually become defunct. I use the best photos I can find.

Pins/Buttons:

The buttons (first two images) were at NYCC in 2018. [1st] [2nd].

Han Cholo sells a lot of pins on their website, but the four on the bottom left were exclusive at SDCC one year (concept photo in the final reblog here, this post chain in general has a ton of photos of She-ra merch from a mix of sources). [3rd]

A unique pin was given out at LightBox Expo in 2019. [4th]

Misc:

A foam tiara (2 photos) and a (seemingly foam and plastic) flat sword were at NYCC 2018 & 2019 and SDCC 2019. [2nd], [3rd]

There aren't any good photos and I'm at the image limit anyway, but there are pictures in the final reblog here of knee-high socks that were given out at promo events (possibly cons) and in reviewer/influencer promo packages. They're patterned after She-ra's uniform and have a cape on the back. Any details on this would be appreciated if you know them.

Temporary tattoos (far left) and stickers (middle left) were at NYCC 2019 and maybe also Power-Con. Coloring sheets and hair ties were at either NYCC or Power-Con. The coloring sheet is watercolor with paint squares provided at the top of the sheet. I believe the hair ties came in three colors (purple, pink, and blue) and the long post* has good photos of the pink one. If you want to look at approximately ten pixels, this listing has all three colors. [1st] [2nd] [3rd]

Bookmarks were available at SDCC one year and likely any other locations that had the books (Power-Con, NYC BookExpo, etc). [x]

Collector card sets featuring 16 of the characters were given out at cons, possibly SDCC 2018. First image is the front of the packaging, second is one of the cards, and the third is the back of the package. [1st] [2nd] [3rd]

Posters:

Buckle up, this is the final, longest part. Posters were at many conventions and some designs may have been available at multiple cons. I mostly want to catalogue the designs here and will list a con just when I know it. Most listings online are of fan reprints unless otherwise specified.

The first four (left to right) were available at SDCC 2019. The 4th & 5th are the front and back of the same poster, which was probably also distributed at places like Power-Con or wherever they sold the books (since it's a Scholastic poster). [4th] [5th]

Here are clean social media uploads of the 2nd and 3rd image. The 2nd was also the cover image for season 3 and the front of the DVD for seasons 1-3.

The character mini prints in the bottom right [6th] seem to have been given out at multiple cons. They were probably at SDCC (year unknown) and/or Power-Con (year unknown). The collector card designs roughly followed their design pattern.

All three of these were at SDCC WonderCon. The first was 2019 and the second was probably 2018. The 3rd was supposedly at 2023 WonderCon but was definitely at California Republic Comic Con a few years prior and if it was at WonderCon, was probably actually there in 2018. WonderCon also had a variant of the 4th poster from the SDCC section above, but I can't find good photos of it and there's going to be a third variant of it further down too, so at this point I think you get it.

The first design is the cover image for season 2.

The first was probably at NYCC 2018. The right two were given out at a NYCC 2019 panel, as well as sent out with an exclusive statuette to family bloggers to promote season 4.

The first design is the cover art for season one. Its design was also used for a shopping bag at Anime Expo 2019 (photo in the final reblog here). The second one is the cover image for season 4.

Distribution currently unknown (if there ever was one). The second image is the cover for season 5. I'll edit on the distributions if I happen to find them, but I'm fine with what I've got here. I could have missed one or two posters, but since their distributions mostly amounted to handing out flyers, they're hard to find.

[ebonytails]

PotA: Fall is Over!

This means that this week I’m going to chip through unfinished commissions, thank you so much for your patience!

As my first boothing experience for a big con, this was very special, and I learned a lot! It really melted my heart a lot to see everyone’s reactions to my work, and so much so that they buy them to bring home… Stickers are usually an easy-buy, so it was such a pleasant surprise when on the first day, my first order was someone who bought almost HALF of all the prints I brought!

It was honestly a very lucky experience for me, I think. It was also genuinely an honor to see so many people want to buy physical copies of my art and to trust me with drawing their commission ideas in person!

I met a lot of cool people this weekend, and it was a really different experience from just attending a convention for sure. It’s one thing to take someone’s business card from the otherside of the table, and it’s another to be exchanging them mutually..

I also made back table! It’s made me feel like perhaps a life where I feel fulfilled while being able to do art is actually quite possible :-]! I haven’t been able to make this post for a while, because I feel that there is a lot I can say, but with a mix of exhaustion and also “there is so much I could say”, I get lost! The best part, really was just connecting with people and seeing everyone’s reactions. I am very lucky

I’m not sure how I may be coming off as right now, but I just wanted to do my best to quickly journal how this all feels, so hopefully as I keep doing this in the future, I really don’t lose that spark of why I started in the first place.

We also raised a humble amount for the PCRF! About ₱500! A lot of people refused the extra mini-sticker, and told me to keep the change for various purchases so it can go towards the people in Palestine. It was nice to see.

For the rest of the week, I will be resting and also chipping away at other project slowly as I get back into the groove of things. Thank you so much for supporting us and what we do. It makes what we’ve been worried about a little less scary in life!

[zlulyart]

Fat orange Cat 🐱 aka Garfield. Had fun with this will be making Mini (small) prints and possibly stickers. Will be available at my next con.

[mirika]

Gosh, feels like it's only been few weeks since I went to Comic Con Holland (it's been two months-ish), but this weekend I went to Dutch Comic Con.

Day one. So I went in my 'hobbit vibes dress' as I used to call it, but honestly... it's just 'my OC dress' now haha. I wear it in almost everything I get commissioned now. I didn't really take a selfie, but I did take a photo of my coffee. Starbucks is doing tiramisu flavour and I'm here for it.

We arrived well on time as we always do on Saturday - I went with my bestie Eneath. They had some vendors just outside the entrance door this time, which was nice to kill some time with.

Our day was actually mostly spent on visiting vendors, I always try to get this done on the first day, because I will not be relaxed until I'm sure I've seen all the vendors. Ended up splurging on buying a Digimon cards booster box, but only because I felt like I behaved in the artist alley. They gave me an extra pack for it.

From the artist alley I only bought one Astarion charm. See, I behaved! I considered getting Digimon pins, but its price made me hesitant and I wanted to see the rest of the con first (spoiler alert: I never went back for the pins despite wanting them, I just decided not to).

I bought a Lord of the Rings themed tabletop game that describes co-operation as a game mechanic; I prefer my games to be co-operative rather than against each other. We'll see. I also got myself a very cute owlbear mug from a vendor called "D&Tea" - they sell all kinds of D&D-themed teas. On the very right you see two 3D-printed goodies. A very tiny fox that was just too cute and an ace pride keyboard button that you can click for fidgeting needs. I've always had mixed feelings on the way 3D printing is used for financial profit (a lot of sellers use 3D models that were not designed by them and possibly not allowed for profitable business, though I mostly saw this on Etsy), but sometimes you just can't resist - I am also not sure of course if these 3D models were from ethical sources. Either way, I just wanted to get that opinion mentioned.

This was all I purchased - if we ignore the Digimon booster box, most money was spent on food. I found out afterwards I spent way too much on food and drink this Comic Con... ugh. It was good though, I tried a Korean corn dog for the first time - no clue what the American one tastes like, but the Korean one was alright at best. Oddly sweet.

After shopping, my friend and I found a D&D mini-game where we had to visit vendors for mini quests. One resulted in getting a taste of the D&Tea, disguised as potion-testing. Once we were finished with our mini quests, we could hand in our ticket at the GlassStaff station (great D&D vendor) and have a chance at their raffle... and oh my god, I actually freaking won?! I was so hecking excited, the second I saw the number pulled on their Instagram reel I was getting up to go there. I did not even see that they posted reels on what I'd won, which is nice, I was spoiler-free. It was a really cool package!

I received some candy and D&D-themed fortune cookies, a whole bag of leaf tea, two sets of dice (but the acid-coloured one will go to my friend so they can feel like they won a little too 💙✨), a mini painting kit (I have no experience, let's see how that goes, could be great practice for the future), a really cool notebook that I do kinda wish wasn't green, a dice tower (seen below) and a Harry Potter-themed D&D adventure. I have mixed feelings on Harry Potter nowadays, but knowing the money doesn't go to the writer of the books is a great consolation. I'm sure I'll find it a lot of fun.

I checked in with the vendor on day two to confirm what the hell this dice tower portrays, and I think it's supposed to be dwarven architecture as it was near two very dwarven-looking towers. I did not have a dice tower yet, so it's really cool to finally have one!

All-in-all I am very happy with my prize and I still cannot believe I won. I've had a terrible 2025 so far (even if I hate relating bad luck to a whole year, it has been a weird one) and having that luck turn around for a hot minute was really cool. I can't wait to check out the fortune cookies, but I think they are meant for when you critically fail at something in D&D.

My friend and I also checked out a mini game that we forgot to do a second time on day two, which was called "The Lair" - we went in with three strangers to face off a Beholder. We won from the Beholder, but because we had no critical hit, no big prize. It was interesting though, having a dice thrown at us from behind to see which eyebeam was about to hit us... I do recommend trying it out when the line is not too long.

Victory!

Thank you GlassStaff for the awesome experience overall. This, the mini games, and they have really good merch. I use their dice tray I bought last year a lot.

That's it for day one.

Day two. What I did not mention on day one is our excitement for which actor would be present this edition. David freaking Tennant! We visited his Q&A and it was hilarious; at some point he ended up taking off his shoes to show off his colourful socks. It was hecking random, but also extremely wholesome. We were just watching this adult man excitedly throw his feet up in the air from the couch to show coloured socks. Never change, David.

I'm very good at forgetting the content of these Q&As sadly, the sock thing just really stuck with me, haha. He also accepted a trans bracelet and confirmed up to two times he's an ally. Of course we already knew, but it can't hurt to be mentioned again.

I also actually made a selfie today, sorry to interrupt.

I am actually having mixed feelings on my hairdo and just my look overall, but it is what it is. My friend says it looks good.

And since I am distracting you from the con anyway, here's buildings just outside the venue that reminded me of The Last of Us.

It's just because of all the greenery. Everything is overgrown in The Last of Us because of the obvious apocalypse reasons. It looks sick as hell (this is a good thing).

Back to the inside of the con, I had to take a photo of these Bulbasaur cactus-holders.

I was lowkey considering one, but then decided not to. They are pretty cheap, but the idea of trying to carry a cactus home didn't seem very fun.

Later my friend and I signed up for a D&D mini-session after our photo with David Tennant. It was a lot of fun, I just wish audio was better; we had to lean in to the Dungeon Master to hear him and even then it was a little awkward. I also had terrible luck with the dice, my fighter's HP ping-ponged in all kinds of direction while being unable to make vengeful shots. We still won, but good grief I was at 1 HP at some point!

I also wanted to share some more dice towers I saw; one of my friend argues I should have a Mount Doom dice tower for my D&D dice that have The One Ring in them, and well...

I've to admit this is cool as hell, but I don't think I'd want to bring Mordor to my table. A nice hobbit hole, that would be the dream tower for me... well, not tower.

Oh, and if you thought Sauron's tower was impressive there, look at this baby.

MASSIVE. FREAKING. TOWER.

This should be part of a Dungeon Master's household for every important roll ever.

Of course last but not least... I have to show off my photo with David Tennant.

I feel like I look a little less awkward than I usually do.

David Tennant is such a happy guy. The way he greets you, he seems like the kinda guy who is just genuinely happy to see you. Only good vibes. Afterwards I asked him if I could hug him (I was already considering asking him this, but seeing someone else in line also receive a hug from him had me relieved a bunch). I am not even that much of a hugger, but I am glad I got to hug him. Thank you David!

Obviously David Tennant was the highlight of the day. One step closer to becoming a Doctor's companion, haha!

I think that after our D&D mini session we were too knackered. I was thinking about items I wanted to purchase that I saw the day before, but I gave up. The Digimon pins I considered in the artist alley, a gorgeous Alucard print from Castlevania in the regular vendor hall... I decided to keep my money for now.

So it's been an adventure, a really good one actually. I was worried on day two we'd have too little to do, but we honestly easily filled up our noon. We were also discussing which actors we'd like to see enough to get a photo taken with and I am honestly at a loss. In hindsight I now realize I should've said Joey Batey and feel bad he did not cross my mind at the time, but after having met Elijah Wood, Colin O'Donogue and David Tennant... it's tough to beat that. I've really had some dreams come true thanks to Comic Con, even if it's our little Dutch edition.

So yeah, there you have it. Another review on another Comic Con. Thanks for listening and see you next time!

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HDCC - 2025 - hobbit vibes/OC CCH - 2025 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) WHDCC - 2024 - no cosplay, just vibes Twitch Con - 2024 - no cosplay HDCC - 2024 - hobbit vibes / vampire vibes WDCC - 2023 - hobbit vibes / Mimi cosplay DCC - 2023 - no real cosplay WDCC - 2022 - scuffed Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) DCC - 2022 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) / scuffed Ellie (The Last of Us) RCC 2020 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) WDCC 2019 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) / Mimi (Digimon) ACC 2019 - no report, little happened DCC 2019 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) / Mimi (Digimon) DCC 2018 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) ACC 2018 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) DCC 2018 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) RCC 2018 - Mimi (Digimon) WDCC 2017 - Mimi (Digimon) ACC 2017 - Mimi (Digimon) DCC 2017 - Mimi (Digimon) RCC 2017 - Mimi (Digimon) ACC 2016 - Hook (Once Upon A Time) DCC 2016 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) DCC 2015 - Sunday - Hobbit (Lord of the Rings) DCC 2015 - Saturday - Ellie (The Last of Us)

[eclipsecrowned]

IDEAL VALENTINE'S DAYS for @teardownheaven

Exhausted Empire State Student would kill for simple pleasures. A day off, a warm house, inviting her babe over for some good-ass takeout and anime marathon. Literally chilling on the most romantic of days, which is actually a big deal to her. She'd possibly let her partner have the honor of mutual dyeing hair for intimacy.

Could not care less about gifts, but wouldn't say no to gift cards to favorite eateries. She's so low maintenance as a partner, I promise, she's happy just to have good food and her ride or die with her. Her date is getting a small Kayden Connors original. Be it a sketch of a favorite character, a portrait of the partner themself, or something more sentimental, Kayden has artistic talent and that's her partner's problem now.

Please take the non-local Wizard on a mini-adventure. Get up early and go on a little trek to watch the sunrise. Go on a long hike to have a scenic picnic. Visit an isolated historical site that has been untouched for generations. She wants to have shared experience with her partner and a break from academia.

Just get her books or spell scrolls, it's literally the best gift you can give her whether as her partner, friend, mentor, whatever. She's so devoted to learning and delights in being supported in her academic pursuits. Keep in mind she'll agonize and overthink a gift for her partner in turn, probably spending more than she should on a grand romantic gesture of jewelry or a new weapon or something of the sort as a desperate attempt to put her feelings into action. She's trying, please like her.

Oh, canon era Sarah is a romantic minded growing up too fast teenager, she wants the classy restaurant date to feel grown and whispered sweet words she thinks are real romance. My mainverse modern actually grown Sarah would settle for a little wine and moongazing and long conversations as the world winds down.

As a kid, she wants the chocolates and stuffies and standard romantic trappings, and that is valid. As an adult, she wants to know what makes her partner tick. Give her some piece of your puzzle, an album that shaped you, a book that changed your worldview, a print of something that made you appreciate art. In turn, she tends to be the long con date that will roll up with something her partner had been eyeing a while ago and really wanted. She might be intrigued by a partner's past, but she's here for their present and, if it works out, their future, too.

[boldegoist]

Ahhhhhhh Please tell me the HJ mini zines will be at cons this yearrrrrrr. You're coming to a con near me this summer and I plan on going to plunder your Borderlands based wears (mostly rhack, Jack, Rhys, Timothy, jackothy, rhackothy bc im completely and utterly totally normal about them and I am not counting down the days to this at all)

Hi non-kun! We are planning to bring our mini zines to everything but for Colossalcon (due to the extreme restrictions) as of this moment. Can I talk about how excited we are for cons this year too? We booked a show in August that will have Dameon Clarke and we fully intend to bring new Borderlands merch to the table! Hopefully at the minimum new prints, and possibly new ship art, tooo! I already made the piece that I submitted for Rhysothy Week 2025 into a print (we'll be posting about that, soon!) and we have plans for new buttons and keychains, too.

If there's anything super niche you want (i.e. the candy bags,) let us know; we can set up a small order for you to pick up at the con, too! Thank you for the kind message, we hope you have a good evening <3 - Ickah

[sofiarichards]

HOW DO YOU DRESS IN A SWEATER DRESS?

Sweater dresses are comfortable, warm, and fashionable. You can choose from a variety of sweater dress styles, each with unique length, fit, colour, closing method, and knits. Whether you want to use it with tights or just for fashion purposes is entirely up to you.

These dresses come in a variety of styles. The selection is broad and diverse, ranging from body con, micro-mini sweater dresses to long, bulky ones. Choose from a variety of chunky knit dresses or go with a traditional rib knit dress. You can layer dresses with various coats, cardigans, or ponchos depending on the fit and style of the garment. The secret to successfully wearing a sweater dress is layering.

By adding a long blazer, a fashionable belt, or printed scarves, you may give your sweater dress ensemble some edge. The appearance will be further elevated by the inclusion of stylish accessories like chains, striking necklaces, and purses.

HOW SHOULD I STYLE A SWEATER DRESS? There are several possibilities when it comes to footwear with a sweater dress. There are other footwear options to wear with dresses besides heels, so resist the urge to go for those sexy stilettos or t-straps. Or, to look like a diva, you can wear platform heels, which are now fashionable.

In addition to these choices, you should choose a variety of boot styles for an outfit that will not fail. piece. Wear a black midi sweater dress underneath a coat in black and white plaid. Combat boots in white will complete this look.

Utilize animal designs with a black sweater dress. Try pairing it with a similar-colored purse and boots with leopard pattern. Alternately, wear black ankle boots and a scarf with tiger stripes wrapped over your neck.

BOOTS AND A LITTLE SWEATER DRESS We reach for our short sweater dresses with chic boots if we want to look great without sacrificing comfort. Wear a gorgeous green body con sweater dress to effortlessly rock the combo. Black pencil heel ankle boots are a lovely choice for the body con dress since they give you a confident image. Make sure you choose black accessories for this outfit, such as a sleek shoulder bag and a black necklace.

COWBOY BOOTS WITH A SWEATER DRESS The interesting cowgirl look is really popular right now. You can choose to wear a full cowgirl suit or add components of the look,such as cowboy boots or a hat, to your more casual outfits. Put on a brown leather jacket with fringes, brown cowboy boots, and a beige sweater dress. Add a brown cross body bag to elevate this look.

HOW SHOULD I STYLE A MIDI SWEATER DRESS? Sweater midi dresses come in a variety of styles. If you choose one, be sure it fits your body type and that you pair it with the appropriate kind of boots. While a pencil dress would allow you to choose higher boot designs like riding boots or combat boots, a loose-fitting A-line sweater dress will look great with stylish ankle boots.

Grey suede ankle boots look great with a purple turtleneck dress. This unusual mix creates a seductive appearance. To give this outfit a party-ready vibe, accessorize with metallic silver accessories and hoops of silver jewelry.

DRESS IN BLACK WITH SWEATER AND BOOTS You may create a variety of outfits utilizing a black sweater dress as your foundation piece. Wear a black midi sweater dress underneath a coat in black and white plaid. Combat boots in white will complete this look. Utilize animal designs with a black sweater dress. Try pairing it with a similar-colored purse and boots with leopard pattern. Alternately, wear black ankle boots and a scarf with tiger stripes wrapped over your neck.

BOOTS AND AN OVER SIZED SWEATER DRESS How about fending off the chill in a stunning blue and white ensemble? opt for a royal blue dress with an over sized cable knit sweater. An attractive silhouette can be achieved by tying a white belt around the waist. For a glam look, pair this outfit with white wellington boots.

CONCLUSION You must be fairly adept at pairing a sweater dress with boots by this point. We have provided you with various suggested clothing, ranging from fancy to casual. To upgrade your fall/winter 2023 looks with stunning success, add chic sweater dresses and modern boots to your collection. Who knew achieving functional style could be so simple? Thank you very much.

[sirladysketch]

Been a hot minute since I’ve done one of these so ignore under the cut, lol.

WT stuff:

Spec costs for mini pin

Finalize washi design

Finish test pour for suncatcher

Quilt

finalize design

prep fabric

cut pieces

iron together

quilting

Finalize full bundle items + cost

Thank you gift for full campaign supporters

Misc:

Test destati lamps

tiny

tupp

Sidon papercraft sample

Washi designs + 5

Komory restock (?)

Tarot card finish

private commission (May-ish)

Con builds (?)

Woodworking designs

3d printed stuff

resin scenes

Plush

Lifesized meow wow

Rex lapdragon

those sumeru birds lol

Knock-off bags

More pin tapestry designs

Genshin

Fall

Halloween

Chesapins sketches

Cryptiddies sketches

Teyvat Travel Pins

Diecut Sticker sets (Tags)

Shaker charm/ <redacted> merch designs

More TK as I remember them lol

Possible new fandoms for merch:

SVSSS

MXTX

Genshin

Dragon Age (again)

[toonytoodles]

So like once a year there's a local art exhibition thing at a mini-comic-con, and there's no word on when it's coming back, but I'm highly debating on joining when it comes back to sell prints/get commissions. Do you guys think I should? Or would I just be embarrassing myself? Be honest please, if I'm not good enough for something like this I'd rather be told here then at the event. And if I do it, what sort of fan art should I make if I do it? I'm thinking centaur world and kid cosmic for sure, some Pokemon and animal crossing stuff, star wars, jojo (possibly), maybe some MLP stuff (if I can learn to draw a horse), but Idk what else people would like? There's no word on if it's returning, it'd likely be next year at best but I wanna know what people think

[n7punk]

She-ra (2018) Promotional Merch

As part of an ongoing project to catalogue all the merchandise produced for the 2018 She-ra reboot, this post is going to contain everything I can find that was only available as part of another purchase, promotion, or exclusive gift. None of these are available anymore outside of resale.

Sometimes you have to click photos to see full images, as many are cut off. Any [x]s will lead to the source of the images, usually secondhand listings that will eventually become defunct. I use the best photos I can find.

Con-exclusives (for sale or giveaways) are on their own post. The master post focuses on for-sale merchandise but includes descriptions for everything else. This post acts as support to that, including photos I don't have room for there.

Lootcrate:

Socks, a notebook, and a tumbler were produced, all exclusive to Lootcrate subscribers in their respective month(s). The tumbler was for March, unsure of the months for the other products.

Sonic Kids Meal Toys:

Four figures, two "straw buddies," one inflatable sword, and character profile magnet 3-packs of at least six characters (possibly more. Probably at least one more since Glimmer is missing from the BFS but I haven't seen any not included here yet).

The above photos were found on the now-defunct He-Man forums. Note this does not include all items. Missing: a Catra variant magnet (her "standing" keyart that is used whenever they don't use the leaping keyart with a Plumeria background like Bow and Adora), Glimmer (her standing keyart with a Plumeria background), Shadow Weaver (standard keyart with a Fright Zone background), and possibly more.

Influencer Exclusives:

This promotional statuette was sent to family bloggers in 2019 to promote season four. It might have also been sent to reviewers in 2018. It's fragile (possibly porcelain) and very rare. Clare has taken more extensive pictures with notes on construction here. [x]

This promotional metal lunchbox was sent to influencers to promote the series in limited quantities (not to be confused with the insulated fabric lunchbox that was for sale on Amazon). The graphics are stickers rather than directly printed on the lunchbox and it is in mini size. It came with the small variant of the button pins from the con exclusives post. It was seen at cons but seemed to be display-only. [x]

Recruitment Swag: Stickers

She-ra stickers promoting the Dreamworks' Career pages were given away with Dreamworks pins, likely to current or prospective employees, though when and why is currently speculative. [x]

Media Press Kits:

Media press kits were sent out to outlets. They included collectors cards (the same cards as were given out at cons, see that post for all the cards), a foam tiara (also given out cons), and buttons (guess where they were given out to the public: cons). A letter (fifth image) was also included in the box, the only completely exclusive part of the box that didn't make it to the public. [x]

A separate kit (sixth image) was sent out to celebrate International Women's Day ahead of the show's premiere, though the contents of it are believed to have been the same and only the box color differed. This was produced by Commuter Industries. Some of the recipients were those bloggers mentioned earlier. Thanks to Clare for finding it.

Commuter Industries produced further promotional material for IWD 2019 such as digital booklets (Clare has some pulls here). They also made an activity book & character standees for cons.

Reviewer Special Mentions:

They were not exclusive, so they're only getting a small mention, but the Super7 Catra & Adora action figures, as well as limited knee-high socks patterned after She-ra's uniform (with little red capes on the back) were sent in promotional packages to some reviewers. These socks were given out at other promotional events, though I'm currently not certain which and thus whether they were ever available to the general public. While the action figures did go for public sale, they were in very limited quantities, so it felt worth mentioning.

Absolutely Not Merch: Promotional Con Props

Three large props - a Sword of Protection, a statue of She-ra, and a prop of the Horde Throne - were created for photo ops at conventions and the company that made them has provided photos on their portfolio page. Their current location is unknown. The She-ra statue seems to be based on the same character art that the promotional statuette was made from. Also featured in these images from upper-left-to-right are Aimee Carrero (Adora's VA), Karen Fukuhara (Glimmer's VA), and of course ND Stevenson (creator/showrunner).

[percussionmassagerblog]

10 PROS & CONS OF MASSAGE GUNS FOR RUNNERS

People that are always trying to find the very best & best method to call home through hard races and workouts. And who could blame individuals? The capacity to recuperate quickly means athletes may endure education hard, which theoretically, means advancement to getting a quicker, stronger runner. Of course, each time a fresh restoration technique or even product reaches the endurance community, then it is inclined to show viral. Compression socks. CBD oil. Epsom salt tub. Percussion / vibration massage firearms are no exception for the principle.

In reality, as I write this article, every advertisement that this is appearing within my own interpersonal networking packs is to get an alternative new rub gun down. Apparently everybody is expecting on the bandwagon, from quite long recognized restoration application brands, to businesses you may possibly have definitely never been aware about. Thus, what's the offer with percussion / Percussion Massager firearms? Achieve they actually get the job done? Let us dig deeper.

A massage is actually a handheld resource which massages muscles by supplying rapid bursts of force at concentrated, short-duration stimulation. Think about a mini-jackhammer, especially parts of your muscles.

The notion is the fact that the movement and impact, frequently called shaking treatment, helps loosen tight and sore muscle, very similar to that of a massage, in addition to stimulate the flow of blood to aid one to increase healing.

The massage firearms are an average of battery powered, also have various rate settings to change the intensity out of the massage. The majority of those massage firearms arrive with interchangeable minds to concentrate on different muscle tissues and portions of the human body.

Let us first discuss the advantages of these massage programs for runners.

Decreased DOMS

For anyone not familiar with the definition of, DOMS is the tender, tight experience which pops anywhere from 24-28 hrs after a powerful work outside or race. It's brought on by microscopic tears which ofcourse occur in muscle fibers throughout exercise. DOMS isn't simply embarrassing, however it might interfere with future work outs by leaving you sense too sore to work out, or inhibiting movement routines as a result of aggravation.

Plus one as straightforward as changing your running gait as your hamstrings are tender may lead to additional injury else where.

Essentially, the shaking therapy will help in avoiding mechanical overload of their muscular fibers, leading to less of one's above microscopic tears that the muscle.

Higher Efficiency Exactly the Exact Same above research shows that utilization of percussion and/or vibration treatment before exercise might assist:

Decrease tissue adhesion, thus increasing array of flexibility Reduction accumulation of lactic acid in the bloodstream, so decrease time before fatigue May offer an earlier decrease in pain (origin ). Each one these things can subscribe to increased functioning performance.

Greater Blood Circulation = Faster Recovery When used article exercise, percussion massage-therapy firearms might help temporarily increase the flow of blood into the muscle. Heightened blood circulation helps hasten the healing process by helping remove waste product in tissue that is damaged. What's more, the specific blood provides oxygen and nutrients into the muscular mass, and also help stimulate regrowth and recovery of their tissue.

Pain Alleviation Let us imagine you worked outside or dashed hard, and no matter of one's absolute best preventive measures, you still have muscles that are super sore. Massage. In other words, percussion massage firearms feel-good about sore muscles.

However, what does this mean?

According to the theory, sensory nerves carrying vexation sense and sensory nerves carrying vibratory sensation both transmit signals towards precisely the exact afferent neurons, which then sends data to a mind. The nerves triggered by vibratory feeling impair the afferent pain nerves, hence barring or preventing the material delivered by the nerves who felt pain. To put it differently the shaking by the percussion caress rifle may shut the nerve pathways into painful inputsignal, preventing pain sensation in traveling into the leading nervous system.

Give More Anxiety than Massage therapies I have no idea about you, but I am definitely the most intense at using self indulgent programs such as"the rod" and sometimes perhaps polyurethane rollers. Why? Because I can't physically use the tension needed, or I am at precisely the exact same time frame chicken to take to (as it strikes ). The battery life run, mechanical percussion/vibration massage firearms, but do not return. They have the seriousness that my muscles that are sore desire once I can not...or will not...take action .

Which would be the Disadvantages of Knead Guns? Here Is What you Want to're aware of the drawback of those recovery tools:

User Error Have you some idea what it is you're doing? Are you currently trained in the science in addition to implementation of massage? Chances are the answer will be extremely little (it's okay, the majority folks are not ). And consequently, often there is a chance you may wind up utilizing the massage gun erroneously. Or, you may possibly well be massaging a region that's experiencing known pain, also maybe not targeting the location which really needs help with healing.

I reached to someone Who's trained in massageand she consented up on." It (the massage weapon ) is a instrument, so it is just like the consumer " Says accredited massage remedies therapist Michele Zeberlein. "Should you understand just what direction to go and manners, then it's really a fantastic tool. However, in addition, it can cause further problems is employed in the incorrect way. "

It's required to learn the safety instructions which include your percussion massage handgun. So if in doubt in the event that you're targeting the suitable area for helping any pain you're having, make reference to your doctor or maybe massage therapist.

Stroke firearms utilized on harms such as stress, sprains, broken bones, and sometimes extreme swelling may potentially cause your injury more powerful. They are able to further hurt the wounded tissue, and sometimes even fortify swelling speed. This is only going to delay healing period, and might cause further annoyance.

Hypertension (elevated blood pressure) Rheumatoid arthritis, arthritis, arthritis, or fibromyalgia Varicose veins

Muscular dystrophy or alternative muscular ailments As always, reevaluate to a medical doctor when you have questions regarding respect to massage gun usage and some other injuries, chronic complications, or other health conditions such as pregnancy.

Bulky / Enormous / Noisy While maybe not true for each and every percussion massage weapon, more than a few of these are able to be bulky or heavy. The very first time that I implemented one, I had been astonished by just how much sexier it had been anticipated (today, do not misunderstand me, an average of the ExoGun DreamPro we have is 2. 5 weight. Still, I did not expect the burden ). It primarily is logical, nevertheless, since the battery has to be large enough presenting capacity to the engine which goes pretty fast.

Rely to a Solar-battery While virtually all the massage firearms available on the industry at this time chance to be corded, they still have a battery that has to be charged. Different from a normal foam roller or hand-held tool which could possibly be human-powered, a massage weapon wont work without becoming an energy resource.

Therefore, if you should be carrying your knead rifle into a lengthier event -- state an ultra marathon or stage race, then you have to become conscious of battery lifetime.

Bundle cost This is huge. I have seen percussion massage prints vary between $49. 9-5 completely as much as $1, 200. Sure, you read that right -- a dozen hundred cash to get its small edition, goldplated, G3PRO Theragun. Many folks us seem to put at the 100 -$300 range. All these are certainly the investment, and maybe not really a cheap tool such as a roller coaster.

You may be wondering exactly what these acronyms mean -- and also why that they matter. Thus, allow me to help.

Stroke Length: that can be called amplitude. To spell out, just how far does the mind of this massage gun travel. Or simply, how heavy can it move in your own muscle. Percussion exact firearms will routinely have a increased stroke span than guys designed to concentrate on vibration.

To put it differently, what number"percussions" (sometimes the mind of this massage gun will likely reach on your muscle) each and every minute.

Stall Force: how the burden it's possible to apply on the apparatus before it dries and ceases changing. To put it differently, just how much pressure could YOU placed on the rifle before motor ceases proceeding.

Other items to think about: Additional variables to take into account are now actually going to boil down to personal taste. Consider precisely what you want (and desire ) out of a massage weapon ). Those variables might be:

Battery life or interchangeable battery packs Weight Develop (could it be easy to put up? Would you reach specific sections, such as the back or shoulders? ) Noise place Attachment heads

Therefore...Can I Want a Massage Gun Only for Running Retrieval? The thousand dollar question -- will probably soon be these massage firearms worth every penny?

Maybe.

The boundless marketing effort in my face book feed directly now may possibly be attempting to embarrass me these would be the best things since sliced bakery. But massage firearms are merely an instrument. They'll in no way completely block or solve sore tissues, and they'll never guarantee decreased healing period.

While there's loads of researching pointing into the efficacy of percussion and shaking healing for muscle soreness and healing period, there's also viable research that says differently.

My thoughts: In case you should be excited about purchasing a massage first use one from the pal or with a massage therapist. See whether you take pleasure in the stroke, also notice some other positive aspects.

After that, browse reviews.

You are able to acquire hundreds of brands of massage firearms available on the industry at the moment. Ordinarily the greater price label does not necessarily relate to some fantastic nutritional supplement. Conversely, a relatively inexpensive massage rifle does not suggest it's crap.

And finally, be sure to actually enjoy the massage gun. Many folks will likely delight in the impression of percussion and shaking massage rifles, while some could see them anything but relaxing. Of course in the event that you are not going to make use of a restoration tool or procedure as you can not endure it (such as me personally along with ice bathrooms ) so of course it wont be quite good in any way.

[volantedesign]

Letter from Japan

It's quiet. It is really really quiet. There's a gentle white noise from the mini split and that's all. We're in Kyoto sleeping on the floor, inhaling the sweet reedy smell of the tatami mats. We're staying in a major metropolis. It's 4 in the morning because I'm still jet-lagged. The doorways are all too short for me. When I stand up on the train I invariably bang my head on the hanging handles, not hard, just enough to surprise myself and to feel foolish. I am enormous here. I forgot to pack walking shoes and bought a men's size, as the women's sizes stop well before my (size 9) giant feet. We've been doing a lot of walking. There are so many beautiful little streets, with worn fabric banners showing hand printed or drawn letters that look like nothing more than beautiful shapes to me. I am utterly illiterate here. The people I've met have been unbelievably gracious and put up with our knowing nothing in a way that makes it seem like they are at fault for not knowing what strange thing we're asking for in their country, in their home. We've been traveling very low-budget and staying in single rooms in homes and ryokan (tiny hotels run by families mostly). For some reason the images in my mind of Tokyo are not the sweeping torii gates of the shrines that we went to see. I have photographs and will always treasure the memory of seeing them. But what I was most amazed by were smaller things that we did not know to stop and document. There was a set of three ceramic pots, sitting on the street next to some potted plants. They seemed vacant at first, but they were full of water, and tiny fish hiding in the water plants. The tiny shapes of the fish were right there in the street under the sky. The bright flash of this revelation was both so fitting for the setting and so unexpected. I imagine that they belong to some grandmother who sits out in the evening and watches the fish go around. Who cares if this is true or not. I remember also vividly the meh meeeeh-ing sound of the cicadas, such a complaining sound, so loud in a country where even the construction is done with as little impact as possible. There were some houses styled to be European that stuck out. They looked like something from an anime. They didn't look like any European house I've seen. More like a very tidy cake in the shape of a house. The first night we landed and went deliriously in search of some food after flying for about 17 hours, we stumbled into a family run udon shop. David begged me to make a decision about food, because everything seemed bright and loud and utterly indecipherable at that time of night in our strange state. We ordered the first and second thing on the menu, ordered a beer. Blessedly the word for beer is understood everywhere. We got some amazing home-made noodles in broth, some cat-foody tasting fish, a bowl of clams in rich brown sauce? We think they were clams but honestly I'm not sure, and rice with tuna mash and a raw egg yolk on top. It was unbelievable. I think that's when I knew we were in Japan. We ate our udon hot even though they asked us 3 or 4 times if we were sure about that. It was about 90 degrees. It never occurred to us to have it cold. The cook went to sit in the back room and drink with his friends after it seemed there would be no more customers coming in. He poured us a tiny challis' of sake and left us to his wife's watchful eye. She tidied, we ate, and then payed and fled. I love how clean it is here. I love it. I have always liked order and taking off my shoes inside. I am German after all. Everyone seems to carry their own hand towel for a day's outing. There are no paper towels in most of the bathrooms. This same hand towel can cover your hair should it rain. Why you'd want to cover your hair when it rains I'm not sure, but it was clearly an important function of the towel. We enjoyed a late afternoon of watching people run through the rain with various items over their heads while we sat in the window of a restaurant/pub. The fashions and people were equally fun to watch. People wear floor length flowery mom-ish dresses and make them look cute. Can you believe it? The rooms we've been in are spare, clean, everything in the bathroom is white, as though to prove to you that there's no speck of dirt hiding that you might miss on a colorful tile. I love that people don't smoke and throw their butts on the ground, but either wait near an ash-can or carry the butt away in a small pouch designed for this purpose. I don't even mind that there's smoking in some restaurants. I grew up with this in Germany and it seems sort of cozy to me. I know that it's terrible for all involved of course- but what can I say. I've seen folks with gloves for ridding the train so they don't have to touch what other people touched. There are even men in the train stations who clean the ever rotating germ-buffet that is the escalator handrail. There seems to be a whole fleet of people in the parks who's job it is to clear away leaves. I love that they care enough to employ people to make sure that it's nice. We could learn from this America. We came to Japan to see Tokyo Games show and see if it would ever be a viable market for us. It's much cheaper to send me and David (who go for free) than the company and all the stuff required for a con set-up. So, we've reviewed Tokyo games show, and basically it'll be a very long time before we come to exhibit at this show if ever. No judgement of the show, but it doesn't really look like folks are interested in shopping. And what there is to buy is very easy to buy, t-shirts, towels, stuffed critters. It's blastedly full and hot and sort of dark also. But there I am being back at work, analyzing, explaining. I'm done working for the trip. We've got one week to do whatever we want in Japan. The funny thing is we have gone so far away to be able to have a real stopping point. To be able to stop working or even thinking about work it helps to have little to no internet and not to be callable. I think we must learn to be unavailable more often. The most wonderful thing about running a business is that you get to set the terms. You get to chose. This is also the very hardest because you have to chose carefully and then follow up on your choices. It never really ends of course. This has never been more true than now. As we grow, (not as smoothly as it sounds) we also have new growing pains, new overhead costs, new challenges, new systems we have to learn and master. There's nobody to help you "figure it out." It's hard to shut-off, to stop working. It's hard to feel like your ship will stay afloat without you watching it's every move. But it will, it does, it has for the last week.

- Willow Volante