I rarely do anything just halfway. Whatever it is, I usually jump in and get all of the info I can to try and fully understand it. And so now I find myself sliding into the depths of otaku culture. Now this really isn’t a stretch for me since I’m a Star Trek fan from way back. So researching minutia and keeping up with the latest thing is not new. But I would say that in this age of digital media and the global communication capabilities fostered by the internet, being an otaku has never been more fun.
Since Otakon ended, I’ve been on the net cruising cosplay picture sites and watching fansubs of The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi. I’ve registered for Reactor and booked a room at the Purple Hotel (shudder) while working on a Google Gadget related to all of this, that I hope to enter in the Google Gadget contest. The biggest/riskiest project I’m working on is a costume for crossplay (just bought shoes yesterday! *grin*). This will be my first cosplay, so making it a crossplay might be a bit much the first time out, but like I said earlier, I don’t like to do anything halfway. I’m also helping my son with his first real cosplay too. He’s been excited about this since ACEN ended in May. And since that time has become quite an adept plushie maker. He can pretty much make anything he sees! Here’s his Kagome progression from 2D model to 3D plushie. Pretty good for a 10 year old!
This all feels like an addiction, but of course I can stop anytime I want. But why would I want to do that, this is just too much fun! And if there are others who enjoy it too, then so much the better!