Arisia 2015

One of the fun parts of my job is attending conventions as a vendor. It’s exhausting, frustrating, and tremendously stressful leading up to the event, but once I get there and start helping to set up the booth things start to look a lot brighter. No matter how grumpy I am (or stressed out about how grumpy other members of our crew are) as soon as I see that first patron dressed as the TARDIS, I’m reminded of my place in the tribe and all is well.

I’ve been helping with the Threads of Time booth at various shows for about five years. I don’t get to see much of any show unless it passes directly in front of our booth, but I get rather familiar with the dealers’ rooms. I look forward to seeing the show regulars each year, and I’m always on the look out for new-to-me vendors. There’s always so much to see, so I usually end up with a pile of business cards at the end of the weekend.

Below are some of the other vendors I visited at this year’s Arisia science fiction convention (Boston, MA, January 16-19):

Tea and Absinthe – Always a favorite of mine at these shows, their tea is delicious and their tea accessories are fun (and functional). I always go home with a few bags of tea (and sometimes a new tea infuser), and I love when they bring their chocolate truffles to a show.

Emporium 32 – Lovely jewelry and other unique adornments. They have an author portrait pendant line that I love and they recently started carrying men’s grooming products. I got Jesse a mustache comb and he loves it.

Zooguu – Faux taxidermy! Adorable soft sculptures mounted on colorful plaques to dress up any wall. I really want the unicorn one. Or maybe the narwhal. Or platypus.

Storied Threads – While they started as makers of clothing, I really love visiting their booth for the patches. Anything you can think of in the geeky-pop-culture universe they’ve probably made into a patch. I want pretty much all of them.

Well Played Clothing – Represent your favorite pop-culture fandom in business casual style. I really wanted to get the Hogwarts one, but I spent too much on tea.

Crested Creations – I fell in love with these dragon soft toys, and if you need a giant mustache plush you need look no further.

Untamed Undies – Need some underpants with a kick-ass message? Here you go. My underpants tend to be quiet, and I don’t like words on my bum (or elsewhere), but every now and again I come across a booth and just want to shout “I LOVE THAT THIS EXISTS!” and so I’m sharing.

I wish, I wish…

Some of you may know of my love for the American Girl dolls. I know, I know. Expensive, yuppie toys. But when I was a kid, I actually had to save my allowance to buy one. Yes, I had a privileged childhood, but my parents did have some standards, you know.

Anyway, when I was 11, I saved and saved to buy my own Samantha doll. For my birthday and Christmas the next couple of years, I received some of her accessories. Then when I was a teenager and young adult, I stopped getting those things as gifts, and I spent my money on other stuff. Then I grew up and had bills and other adult stuff to pay for. I always thought I’d have the chance to catch up, complete the collection. Well, it seems time has nearly run out.

After over 20 years, Samantha is being retired. It turns out there are many, many items that I neeeeeeeeeeeeeed before they go away. Since this is the last holiday season that Samantha’s stuff will be available, I have created a gift registry. If any of you are considering buying me a gift this year for whatever occasion (birthday, Christmas, Decemberween, Chrismahannusolstikwansika), please consider indulging my 11 year old self. Just follow this link and enter the following info:

American Girl Dot Com

Parent’s last name: (my last name)
Child’s first name: (my first name)
Gift registry number: 47629662

That’s it!

Oh, and they’re selling out fast. Just sayin’.

The Quest for Pants

It’s an epic tale. Most women are familiar with it. Pants. One needs them. But dreads shopping for them.

How is it that I can be a size 10, 12, and 14 all in the same day?

Why can’t they be sold according to measurements? I mean really. Waist, hip, length. How difficult is that?

I didn’t come home empty handed, however. Though it was pretty gruesome near the end when I couldn’t find a pair of jeans that neither came up to my boobs nor failed to cover my arse. I wanted jeans. The kind made of denim (with no space-age stretchiness). I thought Levi’s would be pretty reliable, but no. And I detest shopping through a display of stacked jeans in cubby holes. There are far too many variables (size, fit, waist height, darkness of wash, etc.) to be able to rummage successfully through those piles without spazzing out.

After several stores, and only a few tears, I finally ended up with a pair that were only slightly stretchy (so I’ll forgive them that), fit ok in the waist (still a bit too baggy in the back), mostly contains my ample rear and thighs of steel (though they may be a bit too tight, at least nothing’s hanging out), weren’t too short… so, they’re okay. Not exactly what I was looking for, but they’ll do for now.

I also managed to score a few other pairs of pants for work, which is good. A pair of way-too-stretchy “denim” capris (I hate to actually use the word, when I think they’re mostly spandex or whatever), a dressier pair of capris, and a couple of pairs of trousers (one fairly casual, and another more dressy). And I got a few tops to get me through the rest of the warm weather, but are fall-ish in fabric and colors.

All in all, not a bad day out, considering I shop only twice a year. Oh, and I finally found a purse I like. I popped in to Claire’s (ugh, I know) to try to find sunglasses (I lost my only pair in Colorado), but found this brown corduroy and plaid and tweed deal. It’s big enough to hold my lunch, dinner, planner, and other purse essentials, but isn’t huge, and isn’t that lame tote bag I’ve been using all year. So, yeah. A good day out. I feel a bit dirty having spent money on clothes, but I was looking a bit shabby, so I’ll try to not feel too guilty over it.

I did resist buying these, though, which was a bit difficult.

Hopefully, the next time you see me, I won’t be ungracefully hitching up my pants.

S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y NIGHT!

Happy Birthday to MK!

Going to a super-fun party tonight to celebrate her 30th time around the sun. I have a fabulous new dress, and fabulous shoes, and a fabulous new hair cut. All of which is appropriate to the theme, “Dress to Thrill.” (Especially my fabulous new hair accessory.)

In health related news, I still don’t know what’s up. So, let’s hope no news is good news, eh? Another appointment on Wednesday morning. And I’ll (finally) get my heart-test results back Monday. I figure if I exploding were immanent, they would have been required to tell me, yes? One hopes.

But no time for worrying, Dr. Jones, there’s a party to go to. (And cookies to eat.)

ready for lunch

Bento boxes drying

Yesterday, before heading to Andrea and Bill’s for Bill’s birthday party (which was great, by the way; we had a fabulous time), JeT and I went to Kam Man Marketplace, in Quincy. Though the Laptop Lunchbox is great, we had been wanting to buy some Japanese bento boxes for a long time. But ordering them online direct from Japan is way too expensive. Seriously. If you shop on Ebay (or any of the other bento shops online), you’re going to pay at least $10 for each box, and then add on $6-10 in shipping. It’s craziness, I tell you. Especially since we got five, two-tiered boxes, two sets of chopsticks (with cases) for under $15. Total. I didn’t expect them to be that cheap. No box was over $2. (Click through to see photos of individual boxes.) And Kam Man Food rules. It kicks Super 88’s arse. Though it’s not as convenient to get to from Boston, it’s worth it. (It’s about 2 miles from the nearest T stop.)

I haven’t put much energy into any of my lunches these last 6 months or so. Sure, I’ve been packing my lunch most every day, but they’re basically just filled with leftovers plopped in, with not much fun going on. Tasty, but not fun. So, since I had today off of work (yeah!) I spent the day making food that takes a bit of time, but freezes well. The gyoza (moon-shaped dumplings filled with cabbage, shredded carrot, and tofu) can be cooked in only a few minutes, and they are super tasty. We also bought some prepared moshi (sweet rice cake things) and mini jellies (made with fruit juice and seaweed) to pack in for a little extra, and some umbeoshi (pickled plums), too. I’ve also pre-chopped some veggies (carrots and peppers) and they’ll keep all week stored in container filled with water in the fridge.

We couldn’t find any mini sauce containers nor condiment cups at Kam Man, so we’ll just have to pack our mini cups from the laptop lunch box instead. We didn’t have much time to look around in depth, so we’ll have to go back. I need some mini sauce containers. They’re too cute: little squeezy bottles in fun shapes (like vegetables or animals). I may have to order those online, but they are at least pretty cheap.

Here’s to a bento-filled 2008!

I can has short rows?

O HAI!

Thanks to all who came to the Winter Super Fun Times gathering on Saturday! Click through to see our poor sampling of photos from the event. Click here for way better pictures from SEA, though I think you have to be one of her contacts to see them. Which is fine by me, since I got one of my, shall we say, “party whims,” and decided it would be great fun to knit a merkin. Many modeled the blue, fuzzy thing and SEA captured the action. (All merkin photos are clean, don’t worry.)

I had wanted everyone’s Decemberween presents to be done by Saturday, but that did not happen. I can’t knit on the train anymore, because I take a later train, which is way crowded, and I get all cramped trying to avoid elbowing the person next to me. So, evenings are my only knitting time these days. I kept getting terrible headaches in the evenings the week before the party, so I ran out of knitting time. Finishing the larger items (which shall remain slightly secret, since there is at least one who may read this that still does not know what they are) was impossible, so I decided to just work on the smaller items. But I needed at least 15 of those, and only managed 7. Therefore, only a few party guests got their party favor nose warmer. Alas.

I have decided that one of my knitterly resolutions for this year is to knit things that teach me new skills. For too long have my knitting skills been stagnant. I decided that the first things I would learn would be short rows. I know, I know, I’ve been knitting since I was 13 and I still need to learn short rows? Yes. Well, not really anymore, since I had to learn to do them for the nose warmers. They are essentially the toe of a toe-up sock, with crochet chain ties to secure behind the head. The instructions I used (for sock toes) were pretty good, except they left out certain important elements, such as which side of the work the yarn needs to be on for certain actions. Or rather, it kept leaving out the instruction to put the yarn back after having moved it. I find it very hard to learn new skills from written instructions because there are too many gaps. Without a real person sitting next to me filling in the gaps in instructions, I’m at a loss.

Anyway, after much trial and error, and tears, and ripping the darn things out again, it was midnight on Friday, the night before the day they were supposed to be gifts, and I still hadn’t got it right. I went to bed annoyed, but in the wee hours I had a knitterly epiphany, and as soon as I picked up the stupid thing the next morning, it started to click. I finally had the thrill of learning something new, and stopped swearing at the instructions (and the yarn, and the needles, and myself), and was able to whip them out at a pretty good pace (25 minutes each, including weaving in ends). Now I just have to finish the rest of them, and pop them in the post. Who wouldn’t love to get a nose warmer in their mailbox, right? I do need to figure out who got one and who didn’t, though.

It snowed Monday, and Radcliffe was closed, so I got to finish several things and pop a few in the post, which was rad. Unfortunately, I got sick that day, and then stayed home most of the week. It was a killer cold with a stupid fever and stuff. I had a really long, one day work week. And Monday is a holiday, too. I feel like a bum. But a well rested bum.

We’re going to see Cloverfield tonight. JeT has been following the marketing/hype/propaganda for this film for months, so we’re wicked excited to actually see the darned thing. I’m just excited to get out to see a movie. We don’t get out very often. And tomorrow, I’m going on a shopping spree with other people’s money. I’ve been amassing a fairly large collection of gift cards these last few months, and I’m going to spend them all in one day. A movie and shopping? Super fun consumer times, woot! There will also be a trip to Kam Man market tomorrow for some bento supplies. Hooray!

Birthiversary Party Tonight!

Wicked excited about the party tonight. It’s going to rule. If you need more information (maps, directions, etc.), please go here.

So, I kinda ran out of time to get my dress this week. I had to get it this morning. JeT had to pick up the table cloths, the PA system from Jaime, so that left me with the 10 – 11 am time slot to go shopping. I had to be back by 11 so that JeT could go pick up the cat’s food at the vet’s, which closes at noon. (The Shanks is on prescription food, so off the shelf stuff is risky, given the severity of his issues.) I left for the mall a little after 10. It’s a fifteen minute trip each way. I had, therefore, a little less than half an hour to find a dress and shoes to match.

I sprinted into Macy’s and started perusing the dresses. Because I’m a smart, super-fast shopper, I parked right in front of the door to the fancy dress department. I picked out three potential dresses in under five minutes, brought them to the dressing room, and wouldn’t you know it, the third dress was perfect. It’s a great fit, a nice style, and it was on sale. I was practically giddy going to the counter to pay for it.

I knew I might not find shoes I liked at Macy’s, but I had no time to be really picky, so off to the shoe department I go. Nancy, the nice and very helpful sales associate, helps me choose a few different shoes that will go nicely with a velvet dress. (Sometimes velvet can be tricky.) I asked for a size 10, but I think these shoes must have run extremely large because in all sizes a 9 1/2 was perfect, and I nearly fit into a size 9. I haven’t been that shoe size since high school! Turns out the first pair I picked out were exactly right, though not on sale. Still, I didn’t break the bank on them, and I think I’ll wear them again.

So there you have it: a formal dress, with shoes to match. In 30 minutes. I got home at 5 ’til 11.

I rule.