I have realized something about myself as I process the events of last weekend's Anime-LA. I'm fucking 41 years old and I am getting more, not less, geeky as I age.

1.) I just ordered a sewing machine from sears.com (Kenmore Mini Ultra...very kawaii) because after my "gateway experience" with costuming at Anime-LA I realized that this is something I want to learn how to do. I can explain it away with practical explanations, "Oh, it will be so nice to not pay someone $25 to hem a pair of pants that are too long for me to wear." but the reality of the situation is that I want to sew myself kewl Anime-inspired threads to wear. First thing, I want to take that yard of Kitty-chan fabric I found at Jo-Ann's and make a drawstring pouch. Next, I want to get that kimono that got started at Anime-LA into finished, wearable shape. Then after that...who knows?

This is also weird because it's the second of the "big three traditional things women were expected to do at the turn of the last century of the Common Era." Yeah, I cook, and I'm damn good at it. Now I'm going to learn to sew. However, Richie has superior cleaning-fu and I will defer gladly to him as far as the cleaning part of the Big Three are concerned. And NO, I'm not any less liberated for wanting to learn to sew! If I sew clothes for myself, it's one less garment made in a grimy maquiladora in some Central American hellhole that I bought. That is, unless you go further and insist that the fabric is made under humane conditions...dammit!

Update at 4:42pm PDT: It's here. Taiwanese-made to Kenmore specs, kind of a super-deformed chibi version of a regular sewing machine. The aesthetics of the thing is very Japanese. Small enough to fit in a tote bag. All it needs is Kitty-chan faces on it and something in Engrish...Yes! Sewing! Fun to make super fashion with Mishima Mr. Sew! Power works, mechanical system works, all I need to do next is run some thread through it and do some practice sewing on some of this fabric left over from the kimono project. Then maybe I'll have the guts to actually finish up the kimono.

2.) There will be gaming at the next Anime-LA. Which reminds me of the fact that I miss pencil, paper and dice gaming. Video games are ok and all, but when the computer is fuxored, no more fun. Also, when you are game-mastering, you are developing storytelling skills. Period. I could use that. The big prob is the expense of rule books and so on. Those stupid dice don't come cheap either. Then again, that uber-leet video card one needs to run That Bitchen Game That Just Came Out ^(tm) costs a hell of a lot more than books, grid paper and dice.

3.) Tonight I'm going to be at the meeting for the organizing committee that runs Anime-LA. I want in. Let me at 'em. Rather than just half-assedly volunteer the weekend of the con and run the risk of not getting assigned enough work to make it worth my while, I want to get in on the ground floor. Tom is 100% behind me on this. He's involved with more than one con in the Southeast (damn, I wish he'd move from FL...one of the reddest of the red states...) and he thinks this is a great idea.

So yeah, this is why they call me Geek. That's Ms. Geek to you.