May 31, 2012

SHOOOOOES

Just cause I can't use my arm, doesn't mean I can't plan for cosplay, right? So ever since I saw Puella Magi Madoka Magica, I SO wanted to make Madoka's magical girl outfit. It's pink, it's fluffy, and really, how could I resist?

So after some deliberation I realized that I would NOT be able to make the shoes (way too much effort as this is a "for fun" costume). So to the internet I went, and found a seller on Ebay who makes custom shoes. All I had to do was give em my measurements.

The shoes came in today. :)

A lot of these pics look kind of "instagram-like" because I have terrible lighting, and it was nighttime, and the flash made weird shadows on stuff.

It's hard to take pictures of your own feet in a mirror.

What? Not insane heels? NO.

This was the least offensive flash picture I found.

Did I mention I love bows?

I like how my feet look so much smaller in them.


Now for the wig to come in, I need to gather my floof, and then YESH I can sewwwwww.

May 28, 2012

Diagnosis

Hey, y'all. Sorry for being absent, but I wanted to update people on the arm status.

After the appointment, it turns out that, yes indeed, I have tendinitis along with a minorly pinched nerve in my right arm. (The pinched nerve seems to come from the majorly inflamed tendons, and jacked up muscles I have.

I'm currently on a painkiller + ice + rest therapy for one week, and if it still persists I get to do some physical therapy. Needless to say, this will make working on stuff a tad hard in the next week or two.

Really, what I TRULY need, is just a full week of not using my arm at all. And I'm not sure I can get that with work being how it is right now. But I'm going to try to negotiate it after I get the next big image or two done for our emails n stuff.

I can still type - as that motion doesn't bother me too much (I just can't do it a LOT). Touching a mouse hurts (but I now have some wrist rests that should help me out, and i'm learning to use my left hand as the main mouse hand), as well as holding a pencil for an extended period of time.

BUT THIS WILL NOT STOP ME. I will take care of myself the best I can so that I can come back and draw all the pictures, comics, and such in my head. :)

What can I say? I'm also STUBBORN.

May 23, 2012

Where Did I Go?

Note: I'm typing this while I still have some capabilities of doing so. So if my spelling or something suddenly goes awry later, don't be too shocked. :P

So I've been kind of absent on the blog front, comic front, and general art front. I apologize greatly for this. It has, however, been because of something that's out of my hands - or I should say something that is IN my hands.

We'll start with a story.

Long long ago, in a college land far away (okay so it was like 7 years ago. THAT'S A LONG TIME STOP MAKING ME FEEL OLD), I used to work in a payroll office on campus. It was an awesome place (except that one creepy guy who ended up getting fired), and I had nice hours and decent pay. However, despite it being like 2005, we still did payroll the old fashioned way by adding up and hand-entering all the hours on all the time cards. For the entire college campus. We would have around 2000 separate time cards for all the student workers (not including the staff ones that weren't "salaried").

So being one of the student workers in this particular office, we got the luck of being the ones to enter all the times into the system - which at that time was one of those reeeeeeally old fashioned black screens with green text that you have to tab to every part of the screen. No mouse use at all. I kinda liked it, in it's hipstery way.

I quickly learned how to type numbers quickly on a keypad (a skill that has benefited me ever since), and I was LIGHTNING FAST at it too. Darn accurate to boot. However, the greatest flaw to this was that the keyboard was not, shall we say, at an ergonomically sound position. I did not realize this. And after working all summer, and into the winter here... my arm began to hurt. So much I couldn't even touch a pencil without pain jutting up my arm.

Found out I gave myself tendinitis (by the local doctor just off of campus. Ech. I did not get long well with this one - indirectly the cause of my anxiety attacks for the rest of my life, along with poor diagnosis), but thankfully they assigned me some physical therapy and I did that for about 6 sessions and with rest and muscle relaxants, it got better.

We now segway into the current job. Where I'm at now, my computer work is almost ENTIRELY reliant on using a mouse, clicking, dragging, all sorts of other things requiring the use of muscles in my hand and arm. (I do a lot of photoshop work, and the back end program that we use to update our store's website is mostly mouse based - there's no keyboard shortcuts to get around the screens, alas)

Lately, I've been getting a lot of last minute/rush type things, and adding that in with the long term use of the mouse, NEW problems have arisen.

So what does all this rambling have to do with me being gone? Well I'm finally going to the doctor about this problem.

I have an appointment tomorrow with a new doctor who I hear is pleasant, who will hopefully be able to help me solve this mystery (maybe finally prove to people I have something wrong with my hands), or possibly refer me to an actual hand specialist, as I'm just plain sick of having this constant issue.

Wish me luck!

May 17, 2012

Etsy Shop is ALIIIIIVE!



Hey! Hey listen! It took me long enough, but I've finally got some stuff in my etsy shop.

Just thought I'd advertise it, like... everywhere. It's also now a link under "My Other Sites".

Okay, I'm goin' to sleep now.

May 16, 2012

Anime Park 2012 Recap

I say, I must be getting old! I'm just now recovering from a ONE DAY convention I attended last Saturday called "ANIME PARK".

For those not in the know, it took place at my old High School known as "Plymouth Canton Educational Park" or PCEP for short. And yes, it is as big as it's name sounds. It's composed of now 3 buildings plus one extra band/sports building. We did indeed walk between buildings for classes, and in essence it was like a mini-college campus (we even had catalog sized books to pick classes from). When I was there, it had about 5,000+ people, and I'm sure that's increased since then.

I loved my high school. It was so big you could find friends ANYWHERE and with ANYTHING. In my senior year, we finally founded an Anime Club (and I recall watching Card Captor Sakura fansubs down in a classroom in a side hallway with like 8 other people). Since that time, it's apparently grown to 60ish plus people, which is AWESOME.

So they had the idea to put on a convention for a single day at one of the buildings. For a first year con, I'll have to give em props for doing quite well!

Long booth is long!


Dave and I woke up at the crack of dawn. Literally. We were up at like 6 am prepping our costumes (I finally decided on Zero), and filling the car. Ech. I much prefer getting there the day before, but it's so close, it'd be silly to do so. That and the building wasn't available for set up the night before.

We got into the area around 8:30ish (we stopped for breakfast and things), and wheeled our carts in to get set up. It was a small, quaint alley and for once, I had the "tallest" set up. We were spread out down a side hallway, and we chose a booth near a hallway and the door to the outside, which was GREAT.

I think I was talking when this pic was snapped, but I still like how it looks.


We met up with Sil early on too, and she helped us set up as an unofficial boothmate/helper/photographer/general heckler. She took like, all the photos here.

The vendor hall was set up in the cafeteria, and they filled in all the space, which was great!

I can't really do a play by play, since it was just one day, but here's some highlights:


  • I knew a couple of the artists on the list, but only one I knew showed up. I knew one was missing due to scheduling conflicts, but I don't know where the others were! I was sad! :( 



  • Met new artists down the alley, and they certainly had the right way of thinking and I could see em growing in further years. :)

Shiny colors....


  • No annoying music from booths this time, but they DID set up some sort of Vocaloid game in front of our booth. It's some sort of rhythm game set up like Elite Beat Agents, or Ouendan, and it was MEAN. But I did enjoy the smattering of music (nothing too annoying to me), and they were courteous enough to keep the volume to a pleasant level so I can still talk with customers.

    And it brought people down the hall near my booth, so I couldn't really complain.

Drawing. It's what I do.
Along with drinking lots of Dr. Pepper.

...

Lots.


  • Did a few commissions, which was fun!



  • Lasted till about 6 pm, when we were all tired, and then packed up and went home.



  • I actually bought a couple of things while I was there - I picked up a couple of blind box Madoka Magica figures (one of my new obsessions - GO WATCH IT).

    Managed to accidentally get the super special hidden figure. Yay me! They're so pretty. I want to get the rest of em for my art cave (once we move again).

Why yes, I do dance at my booth, why do you ask?



Got home. Went unconscious. The End.

Overall Thoughts

For it being run by a high school club, I did not have high expectations. But I was very pleased with how it went (organiziation, WHAT? No way). My booth was inexpensive (I made it all back plus gas money and a little profit), and the clientele was pretty friendly for being anime kids. (Sometimes it's a gamble).

I gave em a few tips and ideas on what to do/change for next year, so hopefully they'll remember! Namely, please don't make it on the weekend of ACEN next year.

Would definitely go back again next year if I'm in the area.

Next up... JAFAX! And a bunch of cosplay and artwork I need to work on. I'll probably talk about that for a while if I don't touch my "How to Artist Alley" or decide to post a rant anywhere.

May 10, 2012

This Weekend: ANIME PARK!

Hey guys! Just a short update this time around, but I wanted to remind y'all that I'll be at a teeny new convention called "ANIME PARK" this SATURDAY!

It's taking place at Canton High School in Canton, MI.

According to the website, the show will be FREE! You'll just want to make sure you have a photo ID to show for security purposes, according to their website.

Here's the Website: ANIME PARK

I plan on being there, and hopefully doing a lot of "Anime Portrait" and "Anime Chibi" sketches on the spot for people!

The sketches will be on 8.5 x 11" cardstock/vellum paper, will only be done in pencil, and will run around $8. I can do portraits or chibis, and they can be yourself, your own OC, or maybe fanart (if I can recall who the character is....)

I should have some examples made up soon to show off at the booth on Saturday!

Now the question becomes... what do I wear??


  • Zero Kiryu (Vampire Knight)

  • Luke fon Fabre (Tales of the Abyss)

  • Princess Rue (Princess Tutu)

May 8, 2012

Alice in Wonderland, COMPLETE!

Oh hey. I finished that drawing from the other night.

I am planning on having this as a print to sell at Anime Park this weekend. Let me know your thoughts! I'm planning on having 5x7 and 8.5x11 sized prints.



I really liked making this. I'll have to do some other stories perhaps!

May 7, 2012

What's been going on and some WIP

Hey y'all. Just wanted to post an update - this weekend is ANIME PARK! It's out at Canton High School in Canton, MI. It's a day-long convention put on by the High School anime club, and as an alumni of the PCEP campus, I thought it only appropriate that I get a booth and sell my wares.

I'm hoping to do fast $5 pencil portrait sketches all day as my commissions, so I'll be working on some examples this week to display.

Other news:


  • I was in a fashion show! How neat! I might be able to post a picture up here. I got to wear an outfit I made, and the store's Replica version of the Kate Middleton wedding gown. It was fun!

  • I saw The Avengers. OMG. Go see it. It's good.

  • I watched the Entirety of Madoka Magica. ZOMG. That was pretty darn good for a Magical Girl show. I may have to do some artwork for it.


In the meanwhile...

Here's what I've FINALLY been working on. For those of you visiting from my ACEN booth, you might recognize the pic as one I was doodling and drawing inbetween commissions (until the pain in my neck and shoulders got too unbearable).

Why yes, I do store all my outlining pens in a Rapunzel cup.

May 5, 2012

A Discussion About ACEN. Let's be honest.

Okay. I didn't want to highlight this in it's own post, but it got so long I had to move it (otherwise the recap would be like 4 pages long), but I wanted to have a rational discussion about what went on this past ACEN weekend.

Firstly, I want to say that I had a great time at my booth. It went so smoothly, check in was flawless and the staff was so pleasant and helpful. I was still moderately successful in comparison to other conventions, and I think with a few tweaks, I can do even better next year.

Secondly...

REGARDING THE SITUATION ON SATURDAY

If anybody has heard or been keeping track, Saturday was a day full of craziness and disappointment for many attendees at ACEN. I want to post my feelings on the entire event (having not been a part of it this year, I can only give my view as an outsider this time).

For the first time I ever recall, half of the masquerade was flat out canceled. That's right. They did not show the skits, they did not get judged (from my understanding), and awards were not presented on stage (they were announced though).

But how does such a thing occur?

First, there was a concert beforehand that was running so behind the show started the time the Masq was supposed to. Then the band played an encore. Once the room was cleared out and they got the Masq audience seated, apparently somebody thought it would be a good idea to pull the fire alarm in the Hyatt, and then take a fire extinguisher and spray people with it wherever they were in the hotel. They had to evacuate the entire hotel, and Masq, and participants, wait a bit, then let everybody back in to be seated. (I have heard they caught the guy and he has since been arrested for what is probably a couple of felonies).

So around 8:30 the walkons were going across the stage (at a show that was supposed to have started at 6 or at the latest 7). They had the space until 9 I want to say, and the MC came on and announced the skits were canceled, and announced the award winners, but did not present. Then the room was cleared out and they got it set up for the Soap Bubble. (The Soap Bubble is their giant dance they have every year with DJs, and such and is commonly referred to as the "rave". It goes until 4ish in the morning, this year they extended it to 5:30 from what I hear.)

My heart goes out to all the cosplayers who worked so hard on their costumes and performances. I could only imagine what a crushing blow that was to them. Secondly, to the Masquerade staff, who have been very reasonable about dealing with all of this, and acting with so much class. You guys are awesome (I've been reading your posts on the boards.)

I don't know what decisions the upper level management made to come to this conclusion, and I'm sure it was difficult to come to (I should hope so). What I can tell you is what it looked like.

To any outsider, participant, audience member, and general attendee, this appeared to flash in huge letters: "WE CARE MORE ABOUT OUR DANCE/RAVE THAN WE DO OUR MASQUERADE."

Even if it isn't true. Even if the decision was made for money/contract reasons (such as, they paid to let these DJs perform at the soapbubble, and promised them all time to do their sets). Even if the decision was made by someone who had no idea the ramifications of what they were doing.

This has NOTHING to do with the actual intentions of the higher ups at ACEN.

This will have EVERYTHING to do with how they appear to the common attendee.

And they cut short one of the most important and high ticket events of any anime convention, so they could start their dance on time. A dance that goes for over 5 hours into the wee hours of the morning. A dance that could have sacrificed a half an hour to an hour of their time.

That is what it looks like to all of us on the outside. 

ACEN THOUGHTS IN GENERAL

As an artist, I'm still strongly contemplating coming back to this convention. It's a huge alley, with tons of wonderful artists (I was so happy with all the prints and artwork this year that I saw), and I met a lot of wonderful customers too, and I'd like to keep them happy by coming back with more and better items on hand! I'm already mapping out chapter 2 of Tangerine due to it's good reviews.

However, as an attendee, the problems are starting to outweigh the fun. The fact that I had to go to a hotel over a mile away (maybe it was 2) so that I could actually get a good night's sleep free from noise and general annoyances is a big red flag. ACEN is definitely appearing to become a "Party Con", with all the stories I hear about the Hyatt (which I stopped going to 4 years ago because of terrible drunken debauchery going on, which has apparently gotten worse since then).

Even my "quiet hotel" had become one full of noisy, rambunctious people. I cant' tell you how often I heard people talk about their "I'm getting drunk" money this year. Last year at the DoubleTree we had to fight off a room party next door to my room where an exhausted artist (me) was trying to sleep and a graduate student was trying to study complex latin documents. Knocking on their door apparently only made them play music louder.

Why is this occuring? Why does it only seem to happen at ACEN? I don't know.

The crotchety old lady in me says "Delete the Soap Bubble for a year", and see how it does. Apparently the Hardcore Synergy dance is more anime/Japanese related, and I don't seem to see a lot of the same issues from that dance than I do the Soap Bubble. It's also on Friday.

OTHER PROBLEMS I HAVE SEEN

Irresponsibility. I'm not expecting everybody to be perfectly moral and polite at all times... but
it pains me to see underage kids (those in their mid-late teens) coming to this show, acting like animals, and getting themselves drunk enough to injure/harm themselves (ambulances are apparently a normal thing for this con now - seen em for like 5 years. This is also the ONLY con I can recall where I see ambulances that frequently).

Damages. One year someone pulled a urinal off the wall in a hotel. Another year someone dropped a bottle from a balcony breaking glass in the dome. There were reports of this year people dropping liquids from above into a photoshoot. Previous years have cosplayers not remembering they have body paint on and leaving big blue smears over white seating. (Thanks Avatar!) Don't even get me started on some of the stories of what people have dealt with in the Hyatt on Saturday nights. Those stories are just downright unsanitary and disgusting. All these damages cause the ticket prices to rise each year, because the convention has to pay for those out of their own money.

Lack of regard for modesty/taste. Cosplayers, cosplayers, cosplayers. *sigh* Seriously. Please stop cosplaying inappropriate things (especially during the daylight hours. I don't care what you do after hours). I don't want to see your panty shots, I don't want to see your groteqsue limbs you made for your zombie costumes, and dear lord I'm glad I didn't see a supposed "Human Centipede" cosplay. WTF GUYS. Beyond the cosplayers, general attendees - why do you feel the need to dress like you're "working the corner"? Do you look in the mirror? Do you understand that you can see your undergarments through that white tanktop? All I ask is that you take a look at yourself in the mirror and imagine if you'd really want people to see you like that. At least try to cover yourself properly (even if you need cheerleader shorts). There are technically kids at this con during the day. I saw a lot of them come to my booth.

And what was with the weird Clown Posse that showed up halfway through Saturday? No really. I want to know. I'm not afraid of clowns, but I'll admit these guys creeped me out. And those horns. I thought I was hearing Gamzee floating around all day. And let me tell you, that's a little unnerving.

Lack of respect for space. Apparently this year trash all around was a terrible problem too. (Don't get me started on the food trash pile from my neighbor in the alley this year, eeew.) Previous years have left the Hyatt looking like a hurricane hit it inside. When they added the frosted glass stairs... I was honestly terrified at what would happen to them during the show.

Right now this is not a show that I would encourage parents letting their moderately older kids go to and spend the night. Sure the day may be kind of tame, but the nightlife is terrifying.

Something is going wrong with this convention.

So ACEN - I want to come back to you, and I want to believe in you. Please. Show me throughout this upcoming year that you're worth coming back to. I can't think of any good solutions to the problems right now, but there has to be something we can do.

We as attendees. We as a convention.

This is one of the largest conventions I go to each year. I want to say it's name and be proud I'm a part of the magic. Let's all work together to try to make this the great convention we remember.

I know I'll try to do my part.

May 3, 2012

ACEN 2012 Recap!

I've finally somewhat recovered from my giant trip out to the great land of Chicago, so you know what time it is? ACEN 2012 RECAP TIME!


Beats lookin' at the logo, right?

ACEN 2012 was ... an interesting time, to say the least. There were some high times and low times. I plan on talking about both, because it's silly to just wax over the little bumps like everything's special. No event will ever go precisely as planned, and we all need to know how to deal with the bumps and bruises. I will discuss this at the end of my recap. I'd rather go over all the cool stuff I did.

THURSDAY

We both took the day off on Thursday so we could take our time and pack everything up in a leisurely manner. Having been up late the night before finishing a bunch of packaging, it was absolutely wonderful to know we did not have to rise and shine at ungodly hours of the morning.

After a few mishaps of our own, namely a bottle of Dr. Pepper deciding to explode in the kitchen like a sugary carmel grenade, (I wasn't there, but the aftermath is pretty spectacular) we were packed and ready, and headed out. Of course, forgetting a few key things. Like lactose medicine. WHAT. WHY DO I FORGET THESE THINGS. (I'm acutely lactose intolerant, but I love cheese. I consider it Fate's cruel joke on me.)

And people wonder why we can't carpool anymore.


Sooooo after making a few stops, we headed out on the road. Again. We totally just did this like... what, two weeks ago? But this time we have a full vehicle, loaded with supplies, wire frames and the like.

Obligatory Funny Sign/Truck: The truck reads "People's Gas"
Man. I hate it when I have to deal with other People's Gas.


Made our 5 hour trip pretty uneventfully, but needed to find a way to drop off our stuff to get it into the alley and then drive to our hotel. For the first time in like... what, 6 years we decided to stay at a hotel that is NOT walking distance from the convention center. This was for two reasons: 1.) I wanted to be cheap, and this one was 89 a night and 2.) It was not technically a "convention hotel" which means I will not be having to fight off loud room parties when I'm exhausted from working a 10 hour day.

I got a second handtruck! BEST $25 I SPENT.


We were able to pull into the circle drive, and Dave went and parked the car. We brought our stuff in (with minimal issues too!), and set up the booth as much as we could. I was of course having major anxiety and self-esteem issues, but that's kind of par for the course when it comes to Artist's Alley sometimes. It also didn't help I have been going through a very long extended funk with my art.

We checked into the Hotel, and I used Magic!Phone to find a Portillos. And it was combined with a pasta place. HOW AWESOME IS THAT?! It became our new "go to" restaurant of Chicago Suburbia.


Best. Hotdogs. Evar.


Meanwhile, we wanted to pick up a couple of forgotten things at the local Jewel Osco that was there. I find that Chicago is full of strange and unusual things.

What is this. I don't even....

Got to sleep, and got ready for...

FRIDAY

Friday was a bit of a blur to me. I wasn't cosplaying this weekend, as two weekends prior I hurt my foot, and I realized the table spaces were WAY too small to try to fit some of my costumes through without bumping people. So I was in civvies all weekend, which felt really weird, but ended up working out for me in the end (more on this later).

The gates opened, and the herd came rushing in. I must admit that Friday was very much a pleasant surprise as we had steady traffic ALL DAY. Usually Fridays are kind of dead, and we're all sad and lonely in the Alley, but the removal of the side walls helped a LOT. So if you ever see this post, ACEN AA DH, THANK YOU. YOU HELPED US SO MUCH.

It was hard for me to stay at the booth, as I'm used to managing other things at the same time, but I think I hung in there pretty well. I've been to so many conventions that going into the dealer hall isn't that exciting any more.

However, Dave did win the "awesome" award for finding this for me:


It has pics of EVERY main character from every Tales game.


Let the cosplay begin.

We shut down the booth around 7 pm when the doors closed and we went and got our only costumes for the weekend to head to the Masquerade Ball. Which was a total let down. Oh gosh. I'm so sorry I paid $25 for a ticket. Wait, sorry about $50 cause we both had to buy a ticket (you couldn't buy them in discounted pairs).


That was about the size of the floor. And it was that full at 8 pm.


I'd go into my gripes and whines, but let's just say the room was WAY too small for the event that was scheduled - only half the attendees were on the dance floor, not cause they were shy, but because the floor was FULL when we entered around 8 pm. FULL. Dress code was loosely enforced apparently, and our light snacks were just pretzels in a bowl. To top it off, the DJ only played what I'd like to call "Rave Light" (a bunch of continuous techno/dubstep remixes of top 40 songs, I think is what one person described them as). For a dance that claimed to be a "ball" with apparently waltzing lessons beforehand... it super failed. Having been to their masquerade ball in years prior, this was not an elegant affair. I've been to school dances better than this.

I did meet some very lovely people, and some fabulous Prom!Stuck cosplayers. Had to get me a picture, of course.


Faaaaahbulous!


Despite all the downsides, I did get a fun photoshoot in over at the DoubleTree (WHY DID YOU REMOVE YOUR AWESOME STAIRCASE ASDFJKL). I'm still messing with the pictures, but here's one of em:



Went to hotel, fell asleep.

SATURDAY

The nice thing about staying at a hotel a little further away, is you sometimes get a FREE CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST. So for the first time in half a dozen years, I had real breakfast before I left each day.

Got to the booth, sold stuff. ALL DAY. I actually got some commissions, which I for some reason suddenly could actually COLOR properly for once. It was such a lovely feeling. What wasn't lovely was that I slept funny so I had a really bad tensed muscle in my shoulders.

Heard about the Masquerade, which I will talk about in my next post. I want to give it proper dues and discussion.

We were waiting for our Indy!friends after the masq, so we sat around and saw Alice in Wonderland (the new one) whilst receiving our unusual text messages regarding the show.

Upon their finish, Dave and I headed over to the hotel, picked up one of the Indy!Friends, and headed over to Chilis for some food. Really, we all just needed to get away.

Once again, I found that Chicago is filled with STRANGE AND WONDEROUS THINGS.

There was a monitor that you could pay for the meal,
split the check, AND print out a receipt AT THE TABLE.

CITY OF THE FUTUUUUUUUURE future future....


Went back to hotel, Slept.

SUNDAY

A view from my booth, this was probably, what 1/4 of the alley?


Remember that bad shoulder muscle problem I talked about? Well I'm going to blame the hotel bed, but it was so bad, it was piercing pain up my spine at the base of my neck. I was on a lot of ibuprofen that day, so if I didn't see you right away, or looked angry, it was cause I was in very intense pain only staved off by medication.

Sunday was also a blur. Got to sit around and hang out with And Sewing Is Half the Battle at my table for a while discussing things like the masq, other cons, and cosplay. Really the usual. It was a fun time. We'll probably meet up at the Anime World conventions which are on my list to vend/visit/panel at.

We waited until the VEEERRRRYYYY last minute to pack up what we could, and managed to fit it on both our carts. So yay for packing! Then began our grand adventure home.

First, we made one last stop at the Portillos/Pasta place and had a great dinner, and I stopped at the Jewel Osco (again!) to get a heaty pad thing for my neck, as it wasn't getting any better and I had no way of laying down at all.

Once again, we figured that traveling through Chicago on a Sunday afternoon would be fiiiiiiine. Once again, we were wrong. Though I think I have figured out the main reason for Chicago's troubles: They don't understand MERGING. Honestly. I saw so much awful merging I wanted to jump out of my car and beat them to death with their steering wheel. It's like the concept of pausing to let a car in every other vehicle space is completely foreign concept in other mysterious lands states.

Also, they can't seem to figure out construction. After diving off one of the exits to a side road to lead us to UltraFast!Lakeshore Drive (thank you smart phone), we got bogged down in traffic yet again. Only to find that the reason the people were being slow was that they stripped the first layer of cement off the concrete and apparently a half inch to inch deep, 3 feet wide rut was too difficult to drive over.

We drive through potholes larger and deeper than that all the time back in Michigan.


We ended up making it back around  midnight, and then thankfully got to sleep and did not work on Monday. We were so exhausted.

COMING UP NEXT: A somber discussion on some of the "not so great" things about the weekend. It's something that needs to be talked about.

COMMISSIONS!

Here's what I did at the convention:

Locke from FF VI



An Original Character.


Somebody wanted a Terezi button.
Commissions are still permissable.


I think it's an OC. Correct me if I'm wrong.


More OCs