Yay! My computer has been on the fritz since I moved and I’ve been relying on my friends and family for computer access (hence the lack of blog posts). But I now have a brand spankin’ new power supply and I’m back up and running bitches!
*sigh*
My life is once again complete.
On to the fun stuff…Vikingfest!
Be afraid. Be very afraid.
Because I’m way prouder of my heritage than any decendant of rapists and pillagers should be, I decided that it would be fun to go to Vikingfest not one, but two days over the weekend. That, and I’ve been deprived of lefse for far too long and one days worth simply wasn’t enough.
Mmmmmmm….lefse….
I am lucky enough to have a double dose of viking blood from both the Norwegians and the Danes. I wrote a bit about growing up Norwegian while reviewing Thor but there’s more to it than mythology. There’s the fact that we (and by we, I mean Leif Ericson) discovered America 500 years before the rest of Europe (suck it Columbus). You know that Bluetooth gizmo that all the douchebags never take out of their ears? It’s named after Harald Bluetooth who was King of Denmark and Norway in the late 900’s. The Bluetooth symbol? His initials in Nordic runes. Dannebrog, the flag of Denmark, is the oldest flag still in modern use and was sent to King Valdemar II by God himself (I’m just going to assume that this legend is true) during the Battle of Lyndanisse. It’s so awesome that the design was stolen by Norway, Sweden, Iceland and Finland.
Yes, I’m a history nerd…though not of the caliber that my friend Pete is. Seriously, don’t try to out-fact him, he’ll kick your ass every time.
Going back to Vikingfest 2011. It’s kind of like a Renaissance Faire only with women dressed as Valkyrie instead of wenches. Uhmmmm, more awesome much?!
Here are some pics from Vikingfest:
A chick warrior!! I gotta give her props because that armor was ridiculously heavy.
Pretty sure she can kick my ass
A traditional Viking tent dwelling.
I could get used to this
Party in Valhalla!
I'm totally wearing this the next time I go grocery shopping
I got the Danish from my Dad and the Norwegian from myMom. We have epic “uff da” vs. “oof dah” battles.
The woman who taught me how to make lefse
Testing equipment with Don, one of my parental units.
He's Scottish but I like him anyway
Norwegian recliner.
It's more comfortable than it looks
My new kitchen towel knows what’s up.
You've been warned
The Dread Crew of Oddwood is a pirate “heavy mahogany” rock band. I didn’t know you could play heavy metal without electricity until I saw them. (oh, and nice hat dude in the front row).
Fellow rapists and pillagers
And last, but not least, my favorite t-shirt ever.
Epic win
Next month there’s a jousting competition and a Scottish festival. I’m not Scottish (does a touch of Irish count?) but I dig a man in a kilt so you can bet your sporran that I’ll be there.
I got the heads up about the AMP Music Festival from it’s Producer Andy Lowe (who directed Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog Live! in San Diego a couple of months ago). He drew me in with videos of George Takei…an excellent method of nerdy seduction. When he mentioned press passes I was officially sold.
On the surface it doesn’t seem like there’s anything nerdy about a music festival…unless you’re a music nerd…which I’m not really. BUT, this festival had a few nerdy things going for it and I like Andy so I’m going with it.
Nerdy thing #1
George Takei starred in the promo (also directed by Andy Lowe). I posted it on the facebook page last week and if you didn’t watch it, you should, because it’s uber funny. Alas, I didn’t see George there. If I had you would have heard the nerdgasm half way around the world, I can guarantee it.
There was a band called Science Fiction. No joke. They played jazz. Science fiction jazz. It was kind of like hanging out at Mos Eisley’s. But outside… Anyhooters…their version of MJ’s Thriller was epic.
*side note: my high school friends will appreciate the fact that when this song started my first thought was “they’re playing Didomite?!?” Uff da.
Nerdy thing #4
They had cosplay girls there. Y’all know I love my costumes and hot girls in costume are just a win-win.
Photo by Christina Rogers
Nerdy thing #5
AAA aka Asian American Awesomeness. Pretty much every performer I saw was an amateur comedian and they were hysterical. The songs about being book smart and taking off your shoes before going into your house had me in stitches. And they gave scholarships away to kids that seriously deserve it. It gave me warm fuzzies.
Oh, and they had prizes. Beer visors for all!
Yes, this is my Mom. I take her places because she’s kick ass.
Big thanks to Andy Lowe for hooking me up with a day of fantastic entertainment! Now I don’t just owe you one, I owe you two!
HNG with cast members Nathan Turner, Michael Minto, Zack Wolfe and Jane Lui
First off, a disclosure. I have never seen the original online Dr. Horrible starring my beloved Neil Patrick Harris (NPH), Nathan Fillion (NF) and Felicia Day (FD). It’s true. As much as I heart Joss Whedon, I have never been big on watching TV online and, to be honest, I’m lucky to have time to watch good ol’ fashioned television TV. I thought about watching it before driving down to San Diego but two things held me back. One, this move from LA to SD is killing me and every spare moment is going into packing and prepping. Two, I kind of wanted to see the show on its own merit so that I wouldn’t be tempted to compare it to the Whedon’s Writer’s Strike pet project.
HNG age 12. Admit this is an EPIC win.
Another disclosure, I’m a huge theatre nerd. I come from a theatrical background and have been performing most of my life. I have a deep appreciation for the time and effort that goes into putting together a production. Needless to say, I was very, very excited to see this show.
The evening started off with Gam3rs: The Play, a one-man show about an extreme gamer and his attempt to wage an epic RPG battle in the middle of a work day. The premise was clever and the actor/co-writer, Brian Bielawski, was great as the spastic and obsessive Mountain Dew drinker “Steve.” I dug the myriad of obscure nerd references and character voices he whipped out. Nary a line was said that wasn’t culturally significant in the geek lexicon. Having done one-(wo)man shows myself, I know how challenging it can be to pull off and I think he did an admirable job. I guessed the ending the very first time the boss came out but I chalk that up to my superhuman ability to guess the ending of virtually everything I watch. Seriously, it’s bizarre. That said, I smiled and laughed throughout the whole show and truly enjoyed watching it. If you’re into WoW, D&D, FF, Diablo, DQ or any of the other fantasy-based RPG’s, you will appreciate this show. Part of my press packet included a “made of awesome” pin which, I must admit, is pretty awesome.
Onto the main event!
Like I said, I’ve never seen the original Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along Blog so I really didn’t know what to expect from the Live! version. I figured, if it’s created by Joss Whedon then it’s got to be good! Andy Lowe and Co. did not disappoint. There was great deal of creativity that went into this in the form of shadow play. My friend (who has seen the original) wasn’t sure how they were going to pull off certain scenes and the shadows seemed to fill in those blanks for him. As a Dr. H virgin, it made perfect sense to me to use them as a storytelling tool. One thing we were both shocked and impressed by was when they brought out an actual van that had been cut in half and attached to a flat for Captain Hammer’s introduction. Rarely do you see such a feat on a large stage let alone one that is relatively small like 10th Avenue Theatre’s.
Fun with shadows! (photo by Christina Rogers)
There were some seriously amazing voices on that stage. Nathan Turner (Dr. Horrible) was utterly charming whether he was in “aspiring evil genius” mode or “awkward nerd likes pretty girl” mode. You can tell that he’s a stage veteran and I thoroughly enjoyed every moment that he was performing. I was surprised to read in the program that this is Jane Lui’s (Penny) first time acting. Very impressive. Both her voice and her demeanor are very sweet and she’s completely adorable. Seriously, I wish I could pull off her awesome hairstyle. Check out her music, it’s lovely. Michael Minto (Captain Hammer) is delightfully cocky and obviously having a lot of fun playing a character with such bravado. I can totally picture Nathan Fillion (*sigh*) playing this role. The rest of the ensemble cast has some wonderful moments but one in particular was my favorite actor in the whole show. Zack Wolfe does double duty as Moist and an extremely flamboyant Captain Hammer fan. Even before he made his first appearance as Moist he was catching my eye as a background singer/dancer in the first laundromat scene and from then on I kept finding my attention wandering in his direction. I can’t even count the number of times he made me LOL. When I met him at the after party I think all I could blurt out was “seriously dude, hilarious.”
Dr. Horrible and Moist (photo by Christina Rogers)
Speaking of the after party…it was great to finally meet Andy Lowe, the Director and champion of this noble effort, after corresponding via email. I found him to be warm and engaging and genuinely passionate about this project. The cast members were awesome and friendly. It seems like a kick ass group to work with. The rooftop space is the home of other parties related to Gam3rCon and if you get a chance, you should definitely check it out. You will be rewarded with lots of string lights and some seriously gorgeous views of downtown San Diego.
With Director Andy Lowe and fellow HNG Joy
The after party also marked the first time ever that I’ve been recognized in person. Like many nerds, I tend to be shy and a bit socially awkward (hopefully it wasn’t too obvious) so having someone say “Hey, you’re Hot Nerd Girl!” was kind of trippy and kind of awesome all rolled up into one big burrito of weird. I’m not really sure what that means but I’m rolling with it.
In conclusion , if you are heading to San Diego for Comic-Con, you should really swing by Gam3rCon and check out the tournaments and plays. You can get more information about all of the festivities at www.gam3rcon.com. And hit www.iwanttosingalong.com for more on Dr. Horrible Live!
Go. Now. Don’t make me shoot you with my Freeze Ray.
Don't be fooled by my innocent looking exterior, Bad Horse has nothing on HNG
About 2 months ago (holy crap time flies!) I decided it was high time for another HNG photo shoot. As a bit of a change up I focused on fantasy-related costumes and threw out these options. Since then I’ve been insanely busy but I finally got around to tallying the votes and Xena was the overwhelming winner. Sooo, just like with the Slave Leia costume, I’ll wear it and be photographed in it provided that enough donations come in to buy the $50 costume.
That said, a lot of you wanted Xena but didn’t like the costume I found. So if you know of a better one, let me know. I’m open to suggestions. And sorry, but I don’t have the time or talent to make and sew a leather costume. I am gifted in many areas, sewing together strips of leather is not one of them.
So donate today! 😀
Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along Blog – Live!
Nathan Turner, Jane Lui and Michael Minto
I’m still amazed that anyone gives a hoot about what I think so imagine my surprise when I was invited to attend the premier of Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along Blog – Live in San Diego this weekend. It sounded like fun (and I’m a huge theatre nerd) so I’m heading down (and braving Carmaggedon I might add) to check it out. You should too. If you go on Sunday the 17th I will be there geeking out. You can find more information about it here and here.
HNG is relocating!
Live Long and Prosper Los Angeles!
Speaking of sunny San Diego…I’m moving there at the end of July. Los Angeles certainly has its perks but I’m over it so I’m leaving. The good news is that a relatively quick drive up the freeway will take me right back to Hollyweird so I can still take advantage of those perks without having to inhale smog and deal with hellacious traffic all day every day. It’s a good thing. I mention this because I’ll be packing, moving and unpacking over the course of the next few weeks and my posts may be a bit sporadic and all over the place. I apologize for this ahead of time. I may even have a couple of guest bloggers come in to pick up the slack a bit. We’ll see how it goes.