Tony’s Travels- AAC 2012

October of 2012, Boot Size 12

…. Oh, no, I don’t have an explanation for my absence  Take any combination of life, college, and been out traveling and that’s pretty much. If you want to know more about the everyday events of my life, I have a Facebook page and an Instagram (vivianaayre). It’s easier to be active there.  Anyways, on with the story!

Not long ago, Tony and I ventured up to New Hampshire to attend Another Anime Convention 2012 to have a truly nerdy time. During our time there, Tony met some pretty awesome people, and saw some cool cosplays.

First he chilled with some Narutards and one adorable little Kayleigh (from Firefly) cosplayer.

Then he helped out Misa on Wheels, New Englands favorite cosplayer on wheels, with her wheelchair. For some reason she wouldn’t let him install rockets. 

Check out Misa on Wheel‘s Facebook page! She’s an inspiration for all

Next was a trip to a Brentalfloss concert

Next Tony demanded to see some lady cosplayers. The pervert!

After harassing the ladies, security decided to have a word with him… but Tony has that kind of charm that just draws you in.

Overall both Tony and I had a blast with all nerds, sharing our love for anime and and good times with the rest of New England.

Until our Next Adventure,

Viviana Ayre and Tony

Attack of the Tweeners

October of 2012, Boot Size 10

My Dear Readers,

So as I had told you guys, I attended CampAnime as a performer a few weeks back. It took me a long… long, long while before I had the time to post about it (college is fun!) but here I am now, keyboard and candy at my disposal!

Now of course I have to state outright that I cannot reveal everything about my adventure, due to the fact that I work for Steam-Funk Studios, and I have to be quiet about company secrets and obviously I have to be polite about my experiences. Aside from that, I intend to dish about different aspects of attending a new con.

There’s the big thing about adorable little CampAnime. Honestly it is a brilliant idea: put a convention on a nice campground and increase the number of possible activities. The only downside to attending the con this year was it was a first time con with a first time con-head (the person who is essentially the boss of the convention). First time cons never run smoothly because let’s face it, it is the first time and they haven’t figured out what could go wrong yet. So a lot of this con was spent figuring out what can go right and what can go wrong. Such as crashing computers!

Three… crashed… computers… containing the registration lists. Which you need to get your pass and entry into your convention. Oh boy. I ended up spending an hour sitting around being ignored because I was a performer and not a casual attendee. So I waited for my boss to arrive and make some magic.

Overall opinion of the con given that it was a first time convention? It was very peaceful and relaxing, with a lot of fun activities to participate it such as archery and swimming. The panels were lacking, considering the company I work for had to cancel 2/3’s of our panels due to a lack of attendance. No, we don’t suck… We’re actually kinda funny! But sadly our panels were more on the informational and intelligent humor side of the panel world, and the highest population of the convention (tweeners) usually aren’t interested in learning how to be awesome and build nifty things quite at that point in life.

I was a tweener once, so I’m not knocking them. It is very common to see tweeners nowadays in the anime world. I call them tweeners, but they have another term: weebawoos. So that I don’t have to go into a long winded explanation as to what a weebawoo/tweener is, I have this lovely picture that I found on the delightful internet:

I like to believe that I belong in the first category which is an otaku. I love nerdy things; I am definitely proud of it, and it consumes a decent chunk of my conversations. But I also allow myself to have interests outside of my nerddom, instead of rejecting anything not related to anime, Doctor Who, or video games. Why else would I have a travel blog laced with my love for the geek?

Anyways, this convention consisted of mostly tweeners. They were more enthused by the physical activities like swimming, archery, water balloon battles, and some event involving watermelons. So thankfully this convention was spent relaxing and getting to know some of my coworkers and getting my character figured out, which was well needed since I didn’t know I was to be a performer until about a week before the convention.

So unfortunately I don’t have many wild and crazy stories that I can reveal to you guys since I spent most of it plotting a character and chatting, but I’ll show you a few picture highlights! As a note some of these photos are by Eric LaCore photography, which I have noted with each picture. Seriously, check them out they have awesome shots:

Me on Friday night doing some flagwork.
This picture was not taken by me but by Eric LaCore Photography. Check them out on Facebook!

My coworker and new friend Tony dressed up loosely as Rainbow Dash

Our cameraman, Louis!

Two awesome rings I bought at the event. ^_^

My more obvious steampunk outfit for the con
Again, credit goes to Eric LaCore photography! They’re awesome

My professionally taken picture of my Chinese dress
This photo was not taken by me, but again by Eric LaCore Photography

My boss, regaling us of his tales!

Overall it was a pretty good, relaxing weekend where we focused more on comradeship than on attending events.

Until my next adventure,

Viviana Ayre

It’s Getting Closer!

August of 2012, Boot Size 10

My Dear Readers,

So it is now only a few hours away from being a week until my adventure at Camp Anime begins. My new costume (properly known as a cosplay) has arrived, and I’m super excited. Granted, I have a feeling this trip is going to be very busy considering I’ve discovered that the company I’m interning as a videographer for is running about 50-70% of the panels.

….. Oh Boy I’m going to be busy.

Other possible complications that I won’t mention will also be difficult and I might have to enter an element I’m not sure I’m comfortable with. But hey, you only live once right?

I feel like the term YOLO is a good mentality in its core… but is severely misused. It’s sad really, because it can be such a good phrase to live by when you travel. New food? Try it! Because you only live once. And now that I have gotten my opinion on YOLO out, I can continue my thoughts on Camp Anime.

I’ll be taking off Friday morning to head off to Connecticut, sadly by myself, but I’ll be meeting up with the people I work for. It’s not going to be a super long drive, but I won’t lie, long drives alone are rather brain draining. Having no one to talk to and share the driving experience with is kind of a bummer, but hey, you take what you can take!

I’ll be staying in Connecticut from Friday until Sunday before I head back home to a work meeting that night (lucky timing, neh?). During that time I’ll be running from panels to panel, taking video, taking pictures, and dressing up in cosplay. The nerdlet in me is screaming in excitement, and I’ll be honest with you guys that my fingers are trembling as I type this.

Current events wise, I started college this week! A light load this semester with only three classes and only going to school Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday will help me immensely. Hopefully I’ll be able to bang out some more travel posts for you guys, because I have regained access to my fountain of pictures, and I’ve been getting a few ideas. Alas, ridiculous hours have kept me from my keyboard. But my workload has been lightened with college, so I’ll hopefully have some more time to write. I swear I have a few drafts brewing, but nothing solid quite yet that I’m going to be releasing to you guys quite yet. Until then I’ll be working hard for you guys!

Until my adventure begins next weekend!

Viviana Ayre

So…. I’m on CNN

April of 2012, Boot Size 10 (I’ve kinda shrunk and equaled out to regularity!)

I exploded when I found out. Not long after my weekend of heaven in Boston, my best friend (known as Panda) texted me and then then called screaming that I was on CNN.

Now granted, it’s not from saving a child from a burning building, but apparently a CNN photographer had been at Anime Boston taking pictures. And out of the potential hundreds he took, he posted ten. AND I AM IN THE SECOND PICTURE!!!!

I couldn’t believe it. I screamed, cried, and tittered that my first ever cosplay ended up on a significant website. Someone I don’t even know loved my outfit and put it on the CNN website. I have calmed down since then, but suffice to say that little fifteen minutes of fame has made my life. I’m thrilled and super excited to return to Boston next year.

Without further ado, the link! As I said, I’m in picture number two.

http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-773468?ref=feeds%2Foncnn

As a note, I’m currently nearing finals week, hence my long absence. With finals and work, I do not have the time to write a good post, and I want to give you guys quality. Please have patience for the poor crippled college girl, I promise you a quality post.

Until my next adventure,

Viviana Ayre

Anime Boston 2012 ~ How We Survived

April of 2012, Boot Size 10/11

My dear readers,

Wow. Despite trying to get you guys some posts during Anime Boston, I found myself mobbed by the fantastic-ness of it all. I managed to list to you one pro and one con of the… well, con. But now it is only fair that I tell you about the entire experience and include some tips.

Tomas and I were ready to leave at nine in the morning, eagerly taking off in order to make it to Panda’s dorm in time. One huge advantage is that Panda lives right now the road from the convention, eliminating the cost of hotels, and including a bit of exercise! After driving around the confusing one-way roads we managed to get to her dorm, and she helped us cart up our suitcases and bag of food.

Tip #1: Bring as much of your own food as possible. Con food is often way over priced and not all the healthy. Bring non-perishable fruits, breakfast bars, and if you have a mini fridge bring some things like lunch meats and cheese for sandwiches. So instead of paying twenty dollars for one meal, you can pay twenty dollars and have food for the entire weekend. Being a starving college student, I prefer this method.

Once Tomas and I had gotten settled, we garbed up in our first cosplay of the day: Team Rocket. With my newly cut hair (the day before I had cut my hair for the first time since the third grade) I decked out in my black dress and my snazzy, pin-laden hat, accessorized with Team Rocket paraphernalia. Panda had donned a black dress and sexy fedora and similar accessories. Tomas went with the mob boss look, with a fancy hat, impressive black coat, and cane (he loves that cane). Overall, we looked pretty damn awesome.

Panda and I, posing for the first pic of the day!

I did not take this picture. With permission I borrowed this from Panda's friend, Cassandra, who is dressed as Ash. That said, we were so going to get Pikachu that day!

Our first panel was how to have a safe cosplay fight. Our panel leader was a professional stage fight since he was thirteen, and he and his partner were amazing. In learning certain moves, you also learned how wrestlers do their little tricks. Panda and I were a little to giggly to look like we were really fighting, but we knew the basics, and with that we know we’ll be able to practice when Tomas isn’t pointing a camera at us the entire time. 😉

How to choke without choking

After that panel we decided exploration was necessary. We spent a lot of time in the vendors area looking at all the wonderful nerdy items. That said, we never got to many other panels, other than a very boring fabrics panel that we left after about ten minutes. Panda is a fashion design major, she knew all this stuff; we has thought the panel was going to have advice on how to find fabrics for those tricky cosplays. It… didn’t. SO instead we wandered the halls, met friends, and took pictures.

Saturday is the main day for the convention, so I went all out to showcase my first official, complex-ish cosplay: Suki from Avatar the last Airbender. I now leave it in your hands, how well do you think I pulled it off?

So this is Suki from the TV Show...

How do I match up?

I found a fellow Suki!

I had a few choice words with Miss Azula after she knocked me out and threw me into a prison...

I won’t lie, I was super proud. This cosplay was the reason for my drastic haircut, and I think it came out great (still, opinions would be loved!). I was tickled pink at the number of times people stopped to ask for pictures. Last year I was stopping people to get pictures, this year it was my turn. J

We managed to get to Artist’s Alley, which is where I lost most of my money. Honestly artist’s alley is the best place to spend one’s money, because it helps support local people and they often have great little deals, and sexy art. I got little tags, Tomas bought me a poster of Gaara (which he still has so I am currently Gaara-less), we bought buttons galore, and I couldn’t help getting a sexy Christmas shot for Sakura, Hinata, and Ino from Naruto (it was only a dollar, I mean… how could I not?!).

Best. Zombie. EVER!!!

I will state that the best part of Anime Boston is meeting new people. In Artist’s Alley we met a bunch of amazing artists who were super friendly and always willing to give advice to the lovely Panda. We also met a ton of old friends, made new ones, and overall had a blast.

Tip #2: Don’t be afraid of meeting new people. Most Anime Boston con go-ers are super friendly! I for one went around and hugged all my favorite characters like Iron Man and Kenshin.

Tip #3: Please follow the 5-2-1 rule! Five hours of sleep, two meals, and one shower every day! I personally eat more, but if you’re going around a lot and don’t have blood sugar issues, then two meals is better than one. And please… shower. As I mention, thankfully this year con-stench was down, but we cannot give up the fight for basic human cleanliness!

Sunday is the best day to make your purchases. Most vendors have an end-of-con sale as they try and sell as much merchandise as possibly. With this in mind I finally completed my Black Bird and Spice and Wolfe collecting! I am now current and have no need to find an old issues! Now if only I could get my hands on the three-in-ones for Kenshin and InuYasha… That’ll take some doing. Decked out as Misty I spent every dollar I had.

Tip #4: BRING CASH! One, it can help stop you from going over your budget Two, you can avoid Mass taxes. Credit cards get charged tax while when going with cash it’s “included!” This can save you a lot of money and tears when you realize you put yourself in debt from buying too many awesome thing. 😉

By the end of the con, all three of us were tired, but very happy. We have already begun plotting for Anime Boston 2013, May twenty fourth through the twenty sixth. Needless to say, we are super excited and have tons of cosplay and skit ideas. Plus with over a year of time, I think we’ll be a lot more organized.

Tip #5: Have fun. Honestly because if you’re getting stressed out by a convention, you’re doing it wrong.

Until my next adventure,

Viviana Ayre

P.S. Please check out Panda’s work, she’s aspiring to be able to make cosplays for people. Plus her art is amazing! http://velvetsoulpanda.deviantart.com/

Anime Boston 2012 ~ Saturday

April of 2012, Boot Size 12

So as Panda, Tomas and I await for a plushie workshop to begin, I felt I needed to describe the past two days.

Saturday was by far the best despite a slow beginning, since my cosplay took three hours to get ready. So by noon, Tomas and I set out for the convention center. And let’s just say, my legs are rather sore from sinking into battle poses because I looked exactly like Suki. I was surprised and amazed, and I was super happy every time someone asked for a picture. Heck, I even had kids asking to pose with me. With that cosplay over (and makeup still sticking to my neck), I have tons of ideas for my next con AAC in Nashua to further perfect Suki. Tomorrow pictures will be posted of my full Suki cosplay, once I’m not stuck on an iPhone. for now I will do one one pro and one con of the… Con.

I was highly surprised by the lack of con-stench. Those who have been to conventions will know of what I speak of. Con-stench is created by those select men and women who do not believe in showers, and thus nearly kill those around them with a sweat soaked aroma that makes flowers wilt. This is amplified by small halls packed with many people; some that are dressed in fur cosplays.

On the downside we missed out on Masquerade which is one of the best parts of AB, but overall I had a blast. Panda and I have plans for a web comic and making buttons, and a million new cosplays for new conventions.

For now I must flee for plushies await!

Until my next adventure,

Viviana Ayre

Getting Ready for Anime Boston 2012

March of 2012, Boot Size 10/11

My dear readers,

You may have noticed the little countdown that I have thrown up on the side of my little blog. To those not versed in the geeky ways, this is a countdown to the famous convention Anime Boston, which I am attending this year. And oh my goodness IT’S IN EIGHT DAYS!!!!!!!!!!

I guess the first aspect to attend to is my love for anime in manga. Of course my interest in Japanese culture manifested before I even knew about the craze that now, in our modern day, is much more common (though not necessarily socially popular). I did not pick up my first manga until middle school. And my first ever manga was the infamous InuYasha.

Despite it's faults, I still love this series. ❤

InuYasha is not the best manga, and yes it holds the same flaw that many shounen manga have; it could have been a little less drawn out. But I was hooked to the series as a child, and I will always love it. Feudal Japan, school girls, demons, and a sexy white-haired and dog-eared half demon (known as a hanyou)? Yes please, and make it a double! I’m slowly working on owning it and other manga series for myself, seeing as I am a recovering addict of free scanlations of manga (I have much more respect for authors now, and try my best to buy their work). Once InuYasha was in my life, I was hooked to anime and manga. I obssessed over it. Thankfully after abstaining for about six months when I decided to stop reading and watching for a while in high school, I am finally able to control my rampant need to read and I now allow myself to be nerdy in other ways. But I still love manga, Japan, and (almost) everything involved! And this includes cosplay.

This is my best friend in the entire world, Panda, who has graciously allowed me to use this picture to show off how gorgeous she is in this partial shot of her as Katara from Avatar the Last Airbender. She is a fashion design student, and also an amazing artist! Check out her DA if you like. http://velvetsoulpanda.deviantart.com/

These complete strangers I snapped a pic of are cosplaying (starting from the left) the Kazekage Gaara, Naruto, Sasuke, and Ino. All from Naruto.

Yes, cosplay. The hobby and/or lifestyle of dressing up as your favorite character from an anime, manga, sci fi show/book/film, movies, and more. I am a novice, this year being my first official cosplay as real characters from a show. I’ve spent a lot of time planning this with my best friend in the entire world and soul sister, Panda (if you didn’t realize, I’ve changed names including my own in order to protect certain privacy’s). This girl is my Brazilian twin and partner in crime, having been crafted from perfection. She is also known as Leila, though in anime/nerdy situations I will be calling her Panda since this will involve her work AS Panda. I absolutely love her to pieces, and we are attending Anime Boston together!

She is also the most amazing person in that, as a fashion design student, she is making my cosplay for the main convention day! With that said, I have to give her some credits here, so please check out her work as she slowly works her way into a great cosplay creator and artist: http://velvetsoulpanda.deviantart.com/

Anyways. So we have planned each of our days as far as our cosplays. Friday we are going as members of the nefariously useless Team Rocket! Each with our own little Pokemon to keep up company. Saturday is our big day in which I will be showing off Panda’s work; she will cosplay Katara and I will cosplay Suki from Avatar: the Last Airbender (this is an amazing show and you should watch it if you haven’t). Sunday, while I am not 100% sure about Panda, I know that I will be cosplaying post-epic-battle Misty from Pokemon. Why post-epic battle? Well the theme of the con this year is the apocalypse of course! So instead of a neat and clean Misty, I’ll be messed up and abused Misty! Rips in the tee-shirt and I especially look forward to throwing myself into the dirt for that authentic “roughed-up” look. I’m pretty sure Panda intends to be the Togepi to my Misty, but that isn’t confirmed since she has enough on her hands trying to get two cosplays done in a month when this is her first two big projects. If she actually gets a Togepi cosplay… I’ll worship her.

Now my last year my adventures at Anime Boston were rather tame. I made the mistake of not going in a group, and I didn’t have any real cosplays. Instead I trolled around in my steampunk-wear, which did get me stopped for pictures a few time (^////^). I went to a lot of panels, including one really LAME one in which I teamed up with my friend That Guy to troll the speaker (normally I do not condone trolling the speakers of a panel, but this guy was being a ridiculous whiner). Overall I enjoyed my stay, but I knew there was room for improvement.

1. Go with a group. In this case it is Panda, my partner, and I.
2. Have some cosplays ready. I’ve already listed them, I won’t repeat.
3. Be pickier about panels. I don’t want to deal with another whiner. Honestly, it’s the 18+ panels that are the funniest, though I have a rather dirty mind, so…. Nah they’re still funnier half the time.
4. Actually know what manga I need to get for the big Sunday sale.
5. Actually buy an art piece to support local handy work! I think I’ll search for a Gaara or a Hinata one. ❤
6. Photographs. Let myself out from behind the lens and capture my costumes and have some awesome poses prepared.
7. Get in character and REMAIN in character! 😛

This was my outfit last year, made by my awesome mom because I can't sew... at all. I am dressed as myself, Viviana Ayre of the H.S. Chronos Aetherium.

With these goals and changes in mind, I think this will be an awesome weekend and I fully look forward to the crazy stories that I will be able to share with you. I will also take many pictures. While I intend to post some pictures, I will have even more on my Facebook page for Bootprints: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Boot-Prints-in-the-Sand/316217361729366 (Yes, this is an obvious plea for people to like my Facebook page. It helps my poor, college-abused ego).

With eight days until this epic adventure begins, I’m being buried in school work as the semester is already coming towards the end (how the hell is this possible? I’m so used to school being done in June!!!!) and I’m also working and trying to get my cosplays ready as well as planning transport and such. I’ve gotten a ride down to the train station, so as to not pay for parking. I intend to stop at grocery store ahead of time and have healthy, cheaper snack and lunches to take along. There are confirmed plans of taking over a ramen shop 😉 . I have to pack. Oh goodness packing will be an adventure (*ahem* torturous act of doom) I am going to attempt another adventure report before Anime Boston, but I doubt that I will have the time to fit it in. But I will do my best!

Until my next adventure,

Viviana Ayre

An Update…

So recently I informed you guys that my exciting plans to go to Disney had fallen through. Over the past month or so I’ve tried to get the plans back online, but alas, it is obvious that a journey like that at this point in my life is mildly inconceivable.

To give people an idea of that life, I am currently a biology orientated college student. My days of exploring the world are currently on hold as I pursue my dream to become a large animal veterinarian or a farmer of sorts. I’m also rather financially poor with very little support from my family. Granted my mother helps me immensely by allowing me to live with her without requiring rent and she helps me in life emergencies. Alas I cannot ask her for college help so I am relying on FAFSA and other such college loans to bring my dreams to life. As such I work in order to at least mildly support myself and to pay things such as insurance and my car.

But I do not intend to let my inability to go on extravagant adventures to bring me down. Instead I intend to take smaller and cheaper ones. My first goal is to purchase a new bicycle. For one, it will be much healthier, cheaper, and greener for getting around my smaller town. Two, I intend to take biking trips around my state and around New England to just enjoy the outdoors again. Three, I have very poor knees and riding a bicycle is much less abusive on them than walking or running.

As of late, I have not been able to go on many trips. But I am going to be able to accomplish my second goal which is spending a weekend in Boston for their annual anime convention, which I count as a traveling experience simply because I’ll be meeting nerds from across the country, and I’ll even be meeting famous voice actors and performers from Japan. And I’ll be doing all this with my best friend in the entire world. Needless to say, I am beyond excited.

Other than that I have no solid plans or goals aside from surviving college, though I am willing to take adventure suggestions, provided they are feasible and cheap.

Until my next adventure,

Viviana Ayre

P.S. I do intend to have a real post, considering it’s is now spring break, but I probably won’t post it until tomorrow or Monday.