#tmpost

[march32nd]

tags directory

i have enough specific tags and am obsessed enough with arbitrarily sorting that i think i have finally reached a point where my tags directory needs a separate post from my pinned intro so here it is!!!

tv/movies:

nbc community: #communityposting

house md: #houseposting

dead poet's society: #dpsposting

x files: #txfposting

dr. who: #whoposting

back to the future: #bttfposting

psych: #psychposting

creep (2014): #creepposting

taskmaster: #tmposting

college humor/dropout tv: #chposting

rocketman/elton john: #rocketposting

music:

nickel creek: #creekposting

phil ochs: #ochsposting

the beths: #bethsposting

folk music: #folkposting

music in general: #musicposting

other (things I am a fan of):

the works of william finn: #finnposting

formula 1: #f1posting

improv stuff: #improvposting

cool art tag: #MWAH

other (personal/misc):

original posts: #harperposting

my buddies/mutuals: #friendsposting

philosophy stuff: #philosoposting

my gossip: #hearsayposting

random assortment: #miscposting

ps i hope u like the caterpillar ones i made them myself :3

[telekineticmaniac]

Arisia 2018 Review

Hey all it’s time for another review! This time I will be reviewing Arisia, a four-day-long sci-fi and fantasy convention. I really love Arisia as I haven’t had anything less than an awesome experience at this con yet, so here’s a little bit on why.

The Convention Programming:

The programming at this convention is not typical to what I usually see at conventions, at least in my area. The programming is definitely catered to a working adult crowd with a smaller amount of kids activities (probably for their young children who tag along). And although they certainly have many events that go with the theme of sci-fi and fantasy, they also have many other panels that are just catered to more adult things in general as a great many panels are 18+. For example they have panels on LARPing, costume construction, and gender identity, but then there are also panels on kinks/BDSM, growing older in the convention community, and burlesque shows. I can say honestly that I’ve been to panels on each of these subjects and they have all been incredibly well run and wonderful in their own ways. But they aren’t exactly like anime con panels as they are run for specific audiences for the full panel run time. It’s not like Anime Boston where you can wander in and out of panels and they will all be catered so that teenagers can wander in an out. I love the programming at this con a lot but it is a bit different

The Crowd:

I have been going to this con for three years now and the crowd has pretty much stayed in the same general age-rage of 30-40. However I have seen an increase of con-goers in their 20s over the course of that time, especially this year. I believe that’s partially because Arisia is trying to change some of the programming of the convention to cater to a younger crowd and also just because of word of mouth. I know Hailey and Becca wouldn’t have ever attended this con without my telling them about it, and there are a few quite popular cosplayers who have been attending this con for the last year or two and like to promote their love for it on social media. So the crowd is changing bit by bit, but mostly it’s older and mature and quite enjoyable if you love 80s references.

My Personal Experience:

I love this convention. It’s very chill and I can always find something new and fun to do if I want or just relax back into an event I already know I love if i want to too. It’s just a friendly convention that’s been up for anything and so far I haven’t had a bad experience.

If you are interested in seeing more of my experience at the convention this year, do check out my convention vlogs start with this one here:

Bottom Line: Would I Recommend This Con?

I wouldn’t say that this is the most teenager friendly convention in my experience, as it features lot of programming for working adults and their kids who tag along with little in between, however the convention seems to be doing a lot to improve that when I compare 2018 to a few years ago. So to anyone who enjoys sci-fi and/or fantasy and is okay with the convention slowly adding to its teen-friendly content, I absolutely would recommend it!

[march32nd]

tumblr user march 32nd intro post!

hi! my name is harper, any variation of which is fine although i do find that my name is uniquely nickname-resistant? that said, i do delight in any kind of nickname, whether related to my actual name or otherwise, so any are welcome :3 literally just pick what you think suits me best!!!

i use any pronouns and again, feel free to mix it up/go with what you think suits me best. i literally have no preference and am happy with any including it/its and will respond to/be happy with however i am referred! as i have learned in recent years it is actually so freeing to just be genuinely flexible with how i identify and to be honest w other people to get treated flexibly

my url comes from a random one-off joke in hit 2009 nbc sitcom community where the dean says something about how britta has britta'd april fools day so bad that april first at greendale will always be cancelled and they'll call it march 32nd instead. tbh i'm a britta truther but i thought it was funny?

click here to find my quick tags directory! i realized i had too many to keep listing them here but i keep that updated regularly. the tags underneath this post will also be updated :D

if you only want to see certain things from me, filter out everything else! if you only don't want to see certain things from me, filter out those! i know that i'm like medium-active in a number of really unrelated fandoms so if you want to follow me for what i have to say about just one or just a few of them there is literally no harm/shame in just filtering out the others so you don't get your dash spammed with something you don't care about at all when i get in a mood about it haha

pls pls pls talk to me!!! i am always always happy to hear from people and i promise i'm not scary!!! i'm 19 and would prefer someone be at least 16 before messaging me privately but my ask box is open to anyone :D

[telekineticmaniac]

Another Anime Convention 2017 — A Review

When I went to AAC this year, I had a moment in my vlogs where I realized just how much I didn’t get to share with you all in my con vlogs. I have a lot of fun filming amusing moments and recounting things that happen but the actual convention and all the bad things that may or may not happen at it, are never really caught on camera. So instead of just not acknowledging everything you don’t see in my con vlogs, and instead of taking up more space in my video schedule with a convention review for every con, I thought I would do some little reviews here on this blog so that you can know the nitty gritty of every con I attend. 

Also, I know it’s kinda of a boring first blog post after saying I wanted to get back into blogging, but I think do it’s important to address. And hey, there will be some totally new things coming your way soon so if you aren’t about this life, you only have to wait a little bit longer. If you are about this life though, totally keep reading!!

The Convention Programming:

Anyone who attends this con can say immediately that is a “beginning” convention. It is very small in both attendance and venue size, but has been growing at least throughout the few years I have attended. I’ve heard people have questionable things to say about staff and the organization of the con in the past, and I personally have had some questions and confusions with the layout and programming, however this year I noticed a huge improvement in all of those things. 

For example, to avoid people flaking out at the last moment, it was actually required for panelists to preregister before submitting a panel. A really simple rule set in place but and effective one as I heard much less stories of friends showing up to panels they were excited to see only to find an empty room. After a glance over the convention schedule, I saw that the content for the panels was however much the same as it has been in years past—lot’s of in character ask panels and joke-y panels. Although it’s not a huge variety like for example a con like Anime Boston may provide, it offers a type of panel that I find a lot of people immersed in specific fandoms really enjoy. 

And then of course there are the events that the convention is known for: the AMV contest and, to a lesser extent, the masquerade. As far as the masquerade goes, I’ve personally always found the numerous judges, categories, and awards to be more a friendly environment than most con’s masquerade atmospheres. It’s usually a very fun show that is more about getting on stage and having a good time rather than showing off the most incredible of costumes. That being said, I think it is incredibly successful at doing that and is usually a highly anticipated event of the convention. On a the completely different end of the spectrum, the AMV contest at this convention is insanely competitive for a “beginning” convention. One might say it even rivals the AMV contest that Anime Boston holds (which is saying something). The people who compete in it produce some of the best AMVs I have ever seen and it is wonderful to pop in a watch a few—or even just watch the winners broadcasted at the end of the masquerade!

Here’s my personal favorite of the AMVs I’ve seen at AAC over the years to show you exactly the ride you are in for with the AAC AMV contest:

The Crowd:

I’ve always loved the crowd at this convention and this year did not disappoint. I will be perfectly honest, I’m sad to see that the days of AAC being “Homestuck Con” are fading away. However the crowd of the convention continues to be rather accepting of non-traditional genres, like webcomics and podcasts. Although I tend to cosplay whatever the hell genre I want at whatever con I want, whether or not that falls under the over arcing genre of the convention, this can prove problematic at some cons. When I attended Boston Comic Con back in 2014 I received some nasty comments for being a Homestuck instead of cosplaying as someone from a traditional comic book. At Arisia, I have received comments about being a stupid kid who should go back to my anime conventions. This isn’t to say that the every attendee of BCC and/or Arisia was bad, but dealing with hate like this or even dealing with even microaggressions that prioritize specific attendees over others based on what fandoms people are in and what cosplay someone may be wearing certainly affects the overall tone of the crowd.

AAC remains kind of a safe haven for all parts of the nerd community, which I find rather interesting and wonderful all things considered. In a time where we as convention goers have to keep pushing things like “Cosplay is not consent” and reminding people that there is no nerd hierarchy, and continuing to instill the fact that people should absolutely be treated with respect, it refreshing to attend a small convention where overall the crowd is accepting. 

The Surrounding Area:

I have one immediate complaint and that is T H E P A R K. For those of you who know the convention and/or area well, you probably know that there is a beautiful park across the street from the Radisson, where the convention is held. It is where most cosplayers go to get photos because it features pretty stone walls, bronze statues, and a lovely fountain. One might even argue it is the only place to get photos (unless you have an odd and specific location in mind—like one year I got photos of Kaneki in the parking garage becasue that was the tone I wanted). So. WHAT THE HELL WAS THEAT GIANT, GROSS, YELLOW TENT RUINING EVERY POSSIBLE SHOT THAT COULD HAVE BEEN GOT IN THE PARK. I am bitter about the tent. It was honestly a huge let down for me because I was really excited to shoot by the fountain and the tent made that impossible. I’m hopeful that maybe it won’t be there next year, but if it remains up that will be a huge loss for cosplayers looking to attend this convention. 

Also random note, if you know Manchester, NH well and want to share with me what the purpose of the tent was, that would be appreciated. Maybe I’ll end up hating it a bit less.

But yeah, moving on to just talking about Manchester and the people there. I am a resident of Boston, so maybe it’s just me, but I always find Manchester to be so smol. The main strip of road the convention is placed on only has a few restaurants and shops and don’t think I’ve seen more than one hundred people out enjoying the nightlife at one—and there are even less people out during the day. Other than that being different than my Boston lifestyle and that throwing me for a loop, the people are generally friendly and curious about the convention. I have had some really horrible experiences when I have attended conventions involving people harassing me, stalking me, and worse, so generally this is pretty awesome.

This year however my friends and I (and many other attendees) had some serious problems with pedestrians sitting outside the Radisson and taking photos up people’s skirts without their consent. Usually people don’t sit around outside the hotel unless they are involved with the con, however this year the weather was so good it seemed that many people felt that they had a right to just invite themselves onto the hotel grounds, have lunch, and harass cosplayers. This was not okay. It upset a great many people—who were right to be upset. Cosplay is by no means consent and sniping photos that people may not be comfortable with someone taking is not okay. Con security was very helpful in trying to escort the people from the premises, but it was still upsetting and changed my view of the atmosphere of Manchester.

My Personal Experience:

Overall this con was very chill for me this year. I pretty much hung out with my friends and wandered the dealers room for the two days I was able to attend. We didn’t get to involved with the convention itself—we only attended the masquerade—but we did manage to meet new people and enjoy the crowd, which was just lovely. Other than the gross photo taking by passersby, it was quite a wonderful experience and a great end to my official 2017 convention season!

And obviously if you haven’t seen them yet, my convention vlogs can give you a real taste of my personal experience:

Bottom Line: Would I recommend this con?

I feel like this con is a very niche con. However it’s not one I wouldn’t recommend. To anyone looking for a really chill time—so first time con goers or people who are just looking to end their convention season with some relaxation—I would recommend you this convention. If you like anime or non-traditional genres that will certainly help your convention experience, but if you attend I would have to encourage you to make it what you want. It is chill. You are probably not going to stumble into the best event ever that will totally make the convention for you. But that’s not to say you cannot make your convention experience wonderful with a few good events, a nice place to eat, and some good company!!

And thus ends my first convention review!! I hope you found what I had to say informative if not enjoyable. If you have any questions about this review or suggestions for upcoming reviews, feel free to send me an ask (because Tumblr does not have a functioning comment system at all—yikes)! Until next time Manic Fam!

—MadDog

[telekineticmaniac]

Thoughts on Katsucon

Katsucon was my dream convention for a very, very long time, however after attending it last year I really don’t feel like I need to go back. Here are my thoughts on why.

First off, and the hardest reason I have to admit is: Katsucon was very underwhelming and disappointing to me in a lot of ways. I had a total blast while I was there—because hey I was with my friends having fun in cosplay like of course it was a blast—apart from some random issues that popped up, however it really didn’t live up to everything I had heard about it. Contrary to what people had proclaimed to me, the location wasn’t all that interesting, it wasn’t terribly inspiring (yes, there were some fabulous cosplayers to be seen but you can see fabulous cosplayers at any convention), and the convention itself wasn’t even all that big. I really wanted to be interested and inspired by the convention and immerse myself in the huge creative crowd that so many people claim it to be, but it kinda bored me in that sense. And when I tried to get into enjoying the actual crowd (that seems more distracted and tired than anything else), I found that I really couldn’t and that I had to stick to my friends or I would be ignored more than ever. It didn’t seem like conventions as I know and love so much as I seemed like a bunch of people wearing their most impressive cosplay in an attempt to try to get in front of cameras. And I didn’t really like that. 

I know. Everything I just said was probably quite harsh—especially if you who are reading this had only heard good things about the con like I had until I formed my own opinions on it. And maybe I just happened to be in all the wrong places at all the wrong times. That could very well be the case. People clearly have had better thoughts on Katsucon than this. It seems to be by no means a bad con when you look at most everyone’s accounts of it. So hey maybe if I went back this year it would be significantly better. But to me it’s not worth the trip back. Because of my other reasons.

Reason two: Katsucon was logistically horrid. I have been planning trips successfully with different groups of people to various locations for a great many years now. But the timing of this convention on top of the National Harbor prices just did not seem to be worth it to me, who, keep in mind, currently exists as a student. It was a nightmare trying to get down to DC around everyone’s class schedules alone. On top of that it cost a small fortune to exist in a space that had limited opportunities for hotels, parking, and food. As someone who’s had to pay ridiculous prices around the globe I know sometimes you just gotta take what you can get. But why should anyone have to take it if being there isn’t worth it to them? So I’ve decided I’m just not gonna be there to take it. 

Reason three: there are so many other opportunities this world has to offer. I have dreams of attending so many different conventions, cosplaying tons of new characters, and even on day going on location and filming with my friends. I don’t want to waste my time on a con that I probably won’t enjoy when I could get a head start on saving and prepping to achieve some of those dreams. Comparing my dreams to a convention I didn’t really like apart from being with friends, just makes my decision seem obvious—at least in my eyes.

So yeah. That was a bit long, but I will not be going to Katsucon. I hope I explained my reasoning well enough so that anyone curious or confused now understands why this is. Thank you for reading manic fam!

—MadDog

[dahleetaemin-blog]

Kangtaejoon is like every Taemin's daddy, it's crazy.

[dahleetaemin-blog]

Why am I being so emotional lately?

I think I'm just gonna log off and watch HIMYM...

[dahleetaemin-blog]

I should stop spending hours waiting for that asshole. It's obviously a waste of time.

[dahleetaemin-blog]

Lost three followers after my mini spam

Do you people have something against Francisco or what?

Oh well, more for me then.