BronyCon: Day 2

July 3rd, 2012 by pladd

Day 2 of our trip was the first day of the convention!!! Super exciting!! At first, some of my wariness from the night before lingered:

But luckily it was short-lived:

It was super easy and fun to be a scientist! First, because I am one, no matter what lies Dr. Dodds tells you, and second because I was totally dressed for it:

Daring Do, like Indiana Jones, is probably at least nominally a scientist, right?

So I spent the rest of the trip giving Live Science coverage! Which, like most science, consisted of extrapolating from limited data and guessing at statistics. Science!!!!

Steven also looked super awesome because he found a way to also dye his mustache rainbow colors!

Sorry, ladies, he’s taken

All you have to do is paint it with washable Elmer’s school glue, wait for that to dry, and then paint it with washable kids’ paint! The glue layer gives the paint something to cling to, but since they’re both washable, it came right off at the end of the day with just water. It hardened to a prickly consistency Steven likened to a “rainbow Christmas wreath”, but as long as he was a little careful how he ate lunch, it stayed on great!

Here is a full costume shot:

Yeah, applique butt tattoo!!

Here’s the front of the convention center before they opened the doors:

And another:

The big red truck was pretty cool. The side of it had rotating ads and art, and it played My Little Pony music, both from the show and fan made.

Taken later in the day, when I needed a break from the polite but persistent crowds

I’ve seen every episode of this show at least twice, but I was still way out of my depth. At one point, everyone started singing along to a song I had never even heard before. I guess it was one of the many fan made character theme songs, and somehow everyone but me knew all of the words. It’s okay, as a scientist, I’m used to be an outside observer. Here are some science facts I discovered:

I even think this estimate might be a little too conservative, but when you take into account guys in college, Steven was probably one of the oldest fans there! Weird! A lot of the high school guys had brought their parents, so I always had somewhat baffled sitting companions on the outside steps.

Then, at lunch, I remembered the first rule of science:

I mean, I DO have an MS degree.

SCIENCE!!!

The afternoon went much better after that, especially since the last presentation of the day was from a clinical psychologist about his giant ongoing Brony Study!!! Click the link if you want to take the survey (for bronies and non-bronies alike) and further amazing pony and fandom science!

Give me a chi square value at the beginning of anything and my heart will just melt a little.

Sorry it’s not a better picture; we were sitting about halfway back, by a speaker for maximum listening comprehension

It was an interesting, though perhaps too wordy PowerPoint presentation about brony demographics and motivations as compared with the general population. Both scientists were wearing lab coats, and whenever the audience would clap for something, they’d look vaguely annoyed, like “Stop interrupting me, class, I’m trying to teach you something.” It was definitely my favorite thing we saw. Is that sad? NO THAT IS SCIENCE

Yay!!!!

Next: BronyCon Day 3
Previously: BronyCon Day 1

Tagged: , , , , , ,

Posted in Things I've Made |

BronyCon: Day 1

July 3rd, 2012 by pladd

In case you missed my hard hitting Live Science Coverage of BronyCon on twitter, I’m going to reconstruct it for you, scrapbook style!

Day 1 for us was Friday, June 29th and mostly involved the drive to Seacaucus, New Jersey.

9 hours and $25.55 in tolls. Why are your roads so expensive, The North?

The only good part was when we stopped for lunch at Steak and Shake and everyone dealt with Steven’s startling hair by badgering the wait staff till they were able to move as far away from us as possible.

Spotsylvania, Virginia just doesn’t know what’s cool

I don’t know what it was like where you were on June 29th, but I95 was the most miserable place to be. I find that this is often the case, but it was over 100 degrees the entire drive.

At one point Trixie’s thermometer hit 110 and I wept. Although I think terrifying traffic and getting lost were probably contributing factors.

Let’s pretend that I am being hyperbolic. Only Steven, Trixie, and a homeless guy at a DC Shell station will know the truth.

Anyway, after much travail, we finally arrived!! Just in time to pick up our badges and interact (reluctantly, at least on my part) with the roving bands of keyed up bronies.

Maybe it was driving 13 hours in sweltering heat, but I was really in no condition to withstand someone complimenting “your mane” in a piercingly squeaky fake pony voice. Don’t worry, I am always in a better mood after sleep and a shower.

Next: BronyCon Day 2
Previously: Bronycon: My hat

Tagged: , , , , ,

Posted in Road Trip |

Bronycon: MY HAT MY HAT MY HAT

June 28th, 2012 by pladd

Previously: Costumes, Cutie Marks, and Freezer Paper Shirts

So I bought some supplies for making wings, since both of our costumes are of pegasus-ponies, but we ultimately decided they would be annoying to wear all day. So I had all these left over materials, and decided to jazz up my costume a little bit. First I learned how to braid five strands at once (I know, getting fancy!!) and made a bracelet out of some wing-fabric so I’d have something the color of Daring Do’s coat:

I know it’s not rainbow hair, but we can’t all be as cool as Steven

I used a kind of combination of this bracelet tutorial and this headband tutorial.

Speaking of headbands, I decided to make one using the above tutorial out of some old gray t-shirts of varying shades to match Daring Do’s grayscale color mane and tail:

My expression says, “Steven, you’ve taken 12 pictures already, please let this be the first non-blurry one” And it was!

And then I remembered, wait, no one will even see this headband anyway, because, OH RIGHT I BOUGHT THE BEST HAT EVER:

Sorry I don’t have a tutorial on how to get this yourself. I guess just try to be awesome like me?

Next: BronyCon Road Trip!!!

Tagged: , , ,

Posted in Things I've Made |

BronyCon: Freezer Paper Stencils

June 28th, 2012 by pladd

Previously: Costumes and Cutie Marks

So the day before yesterday, after Steven dyed his hair crazy times to look more like Rainbow Dash, James Fox and some guy at Harris Teeter both said, “Too bad you didn’t dye your mustache too”. We’ve actually since worked out a strategy for that, but it made me say “Then you’d be Rainbow ‘Stache” and thus a cosplay knock off was born. But how best to inform everyone at BronyCon of his awesome new name?? Shirts, duh.

Making shirts with fabric paint and freezer paper stencils is something I’ve always wanted to try. It’s a simple process with a billion tutorials on the Internet. First, you make a design and trace it onto freezer paper (paper side):

Chances we use the rest of this freezer paper for anything non-craft related: 0%

Then you use a craft knife to cut it out, making sure to save the little inside bits of the letters:

“A meticulous, fine motor skill task that will take too long? I AM THERE” Steven shouted with glee

Then you iron it to the shirt (on medium heat? we guessed) and the waxy side sticks right down there. Then applying the fabric paint is a snap! Especially if you got the spray-on kind.

This is the test shirt, drying!!

The paint says you’re supposed to wait four hours, but I was impatient to see if our test had worked, so I pulled the stencil off after maaaybe one:

The letter-insides are still on there, but otherwise pretty good!

I think the remaining two shirts (one for each day of the Con) will probably get more than one coat to make them slightly darker. Pictures of the finished product later when our costumes are complete!!

Next: BronyCon: Everybody look at my hat

Tagged: , , , ,

Posted in Things I've Made |

BronyCon: Cutie Marks

June 28th, 2012 by pladd

Previously: BronyCon Costumes!!

I know the term “cutie mark” sounds a little silly. Sometimes I even use the term “butt tattoo” because it’s slightly cooler. Even if you’ve never watched any iteration of My Little Pony, you probably know what I’m talking about:

Using Dr. Whooves as an example to head off the question of if there are boy ponies

Every pony has one once they come of age, and they’re supposed to symbolize what makes that pony special. Which… sometimes I buy, but other times seems to just be BS.

There are so many better things you could’ve picked to symbolize “teacher”. Cheerilee is clearly in denial about her gardener-destiny

Anyway, since these cutie marks are an integral part of each character design, we have to include them in our costumes!! Rainbow Dash’s looks like a cloud with a three-colored lightning bolt:

Here are the pieces of it I cut out to trace onto the felt!

Then, after some cutting, one memorable Skype conversation with Steven at work where I told him to “borrow a ruler from [his boss] to measure your butt” (for some reason he wouldn’t do this?? I ended up using the pockets on some of his jeans for reference), and some basic applique, this:

Again, Steven was just not willing to put these on so I could take a picture of his butt for the Internet. Weird.

Because I want to be able to wear my cargo pants after this convention, I decided to embroider it on the back pocket instead of appliqueing. It’ll be less noticeable, but I won’t feel weird wearing them to the grocery store in two months. Daring Do’s cutie mark is a compass rose, and I admit to going a little overboard with trying to make sure it was geometrically accurate. In my defense, I’m terrible at eyeballing things.

So proportions and geometry are two things I like. It’s allowed, I’m a scientist now

Also, yes, that is my family heirloom compass, and yes, it has like an old-fashioned pen nib on one end instead of a pencil. Yeah, that’s kind of annoying, but not an insurmountable challenge.

I own this too, what do you want from me?

Anyway, after much travail, I was able to make a guide for myself exactly fitted to the space I had to work with:

Thanks, Mrs. Branch from 8th grade geometry! I’m sorry I doubted you 11 years ago

Then I ended up watching TV while finishing it, so it turned out a little wobbly anyway:

Oh well

Next: Freezer Paper Stencil Shirts

Tagged: , , , ,

Posted in Things I've Made |

BronyCon: Costumes

June 27th, 2012 by pladd

Along with 3750 other people, we’re going to BronyCon this weekend!!!

In case you’re not from the Internet, bronies are older-than-the-intended-demographic (usually 20-something male) fans of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. Here is an article from The Washington Post explaining the brony phenomenon!! It’s the one with the least amount of baffled condescension I could find. Also, there’s a library in it!

At some point–I’m not sure when this happened–Steven went from watching this show with me to becoming an enthusiastic member of the brony community. At one point a few weeks ago he told me he was “worried I’ll run out of fanfiction to read”. Middle School Patricia screamed “HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE???” but 25-year-old Patricia just said, “Well, clears you should write some of your own”. Yeah, it’s a little bit strange–that so many guys would give this show a chance. I’m not surprised that they like it once they watch it; it’s hilarious and clever and self-aware without compromising its message. I’m also ecstatic that so many bronies feel comfortable owning it, because I think it represents a really great change in gender dynamics. If girls can like monster trucks and superhero movies, there’s no reason guys can’t like adorable ponies learning about the magic of friendship. But if your preconceived notions of masculinity make you uncomfortable with this, whatever, haters gonna hate, that’s not what I’m talking about today.

What I’m talking about is costumes!!!! When Steven first brought up the idea of going to this convention, I was a little skeptical. I’ve never been to a convention, and it’s in New Jersey. But then I remember conventions=costumes and FINALLY A CHANCE TO USE MY SKILLZ!!!! It is basically validation of all the time I waste playing around with fabric and modge podge and reading tutorials about freezer paper stenciling. “Some day this will be useful,” I lied to myself. SURPRISE, TODAY IS THAT DAY!

Steven decided to go as Rainbow Dash:

Because she is 20% cooler

She’s an athlete, the fastest flyer in Ponyville and the only pegasus to ever perform the Sonic Rainboom. Since we live only a few minutes from UNC, it was pretty easy to find him a t-shirt and workout shorts in that color blue. And of course yesterday he did this:

Of course he picks when we’re leaving Carrboro to finally join its ranks of wacky-looking folk

I decided to go as Daring Do, an Indiana Jones parody from Rainbow Dash’s favorite book series:

I mean, mostly for the hat, yeah

Luckily, I already have some explorer cargo pants and hiking boots! Sorry, I’m not dyeing my hair gray and black.

We’re assembling the rest of these costumes kind of quickly through trial and error! Stay tuned.

Tagged: , ,

Posted in Things I've Made |

VIQVI: Real People Edition

June 26th, 2012 by pladd

I know, usually the vast majority of Vitally Important Questions of Vital Importance that I receive are from my many adoring spambot fans, but lately I’ve gotten a few questions from real people!! Exciting!!

Caitlin M. writes about my last spam post:

How come you get so much spam? I don’t have any. Should I be jealous?

I think one of the main reasons for your lack of spam is that your blog has exciting Captcha technology, while commenting on mine just requires that you type in a (not even necessarily legit) email address. Captcha is designed to keep out just such spam traffic as I am obviously enjoying! Blogger probably sees this as a good design feature–you don’t have to spend time managing your spam folder!–but you are clearly missing out on some vague and misspelled compliments and non sequiturs about handbags.

Also, spambots are apparently way more interested in sarcastic reviews of Sam Neill movies than beautiful pictures of gardens and insightful word-snapshots of life. You just have to provide the content your target audience desires, and if you want to shift your target demographic from thoughtful friends and family to advertising robots, then you’re going to have to buckle down and watch Merlin II like I did. It won’t be easy, but it’s the only way.

Brian R. writes about Ten Years of Journals:

Wonder what a chart of worries over time would look like.

Wish granted:

Look at the sharp decrease in worrying about school right after high school! lol IB and your stress-stomachaches

Rachel K. writes:

I can haz blog post about the crazy new pony hair I saw on facebook?

She’s talking about this:

The blue and purple are maybe too dark to see in this shot

And I WISH I could write a blog post just about this, but ever since he got back from Aveda, Steven has just been working! Like he thinks his job is more important than rainbow hair! What a loser! Anyway, now it’s getting dark, but he promises there will be an amazing rainbow photoshoot tomorrow!

Not to mention pictures of the amazing costumes I am making for this weekend!! You haven’t even seen my new hat yet! I’m not going to say it’s more exciting than rainbow hair, but it’s probably at least 80% as exciting.

Tagged: , , , , , ,

Posted in Advice |

Sam Neill Update: Losing My Mind Edition

June 19th, 2012 by pladd

I’ve noticed that Sam Neill loves playing crazy people (Event Horizon, In the Mouth of Madness, arguably Merlin 2 because why would you ever agree to Merlin 2?). Unfortunately, I did not group these movies thematically before viewing, so this Sam Neill update only has one movie where it’s actually Sam Neill’s sanity in question. Oh well.

Current project status: 91% complete!!! Right now, only 6 more to go! Assuming my spreadsheet is correct.

Dean Spanley (2008)

Peter O'Toole, Jeremy Northam, and Sam Neill just wanted to hang out without that pesky Henry VIII bothering them

The Movie: Peter O’Toole is Jeremy Northam’s aging father and their interactions are Edwardian and hilarious. Even though I don’t have a brother who was killed in the Boer War, I still can completely interpret every long-suffering look on Jeremy Northam’s face as his dad demands to eat the same meal every day, is affably rude to random acquaintances, and loudly snores during a public lecture. Through a series of coincidences, Northam discovers that local Dean Spanley will regress to his previous life as a dog while drinking some kind of super rare Hungarian liquor he likes.

Let's get smashed and talk about how fun it is to chase sheep and pee on things

And not just any dog, but PETER O’TOOLE’s childhood dog!!!! Who disappeared unexpectedly, crushing his young heart and making him incapable of responding to grief!!! But, after listening to Dean Spanley’s account of that day (spoiler alert: he was shot by a hunter? farmer? someone kind of grizzled, anyway), the aging father finally accepts his son’s death and shares a bonding hug with Jeremy Northam. Then gets a dog. Booyah.

Some fathers and sons bond over fishing, but whatever it takes, you guys

The Character: Sam Neill is Dean Spanley!!! Of course. His full name is W.A.G. Spanley, which is not at all a connection to his previous life as a spaniel named Wag. He’s actually quite serious and no-nonsense, even when talking from his past life dog point of view. There’s just something so bizarre and transfixing about seeing this kind of uptight guy saying things like “The Master didn’t understand how much I hated baths; there was nothing so shameful as meeting a friend and having no smell” like it is the most serious business in the world.

Nothing about this situation is funny at all

What I Learned: At any one time, there are only seven great dogs in the world.

You should watch this if: you like Peter O’Toole and his ridiculous faces

The Vow (2012)

Oh, Sam Neill, the sacrifices I make for you

The Movie: Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum are quirky and in love and so forcibly adorable that you want to throw up in their hair. Then Rachel gets amnesia after a car accident, forgetting entirely about her relationship with Channing Tatum, and why she hasn’t seen her family in years. Channing attempts to be even more quirky and adorable to win his wife back, but after pressure from her family and resistance from her, he agrees to a divorce. Then Rachel discovers the reason she quit law school and left her family for the city and art school: her dad was having an affair with one of her friends! Also she likes art more than law. The film ends with McAdams back in the city and art school, asking Channing Tatum out for dinner. Nicholas Sparks, someone is horning in on your turf.

Sam Neill will always offer you a drink before trying to break up your marriage because he's a classy guy

The Character: Sam Neill is Rachel McAdams’ dad, who at first seems like a bad guy, trying to use the accident to break up the marriage he never liked and win back the daughter he betrayed without her knowing. Except it was kind of more his wife whom he betrayed? And she’s cool with it? Whatever, the point is, Rachel McAdams forgives him in the end, because she is such a big-hearted person, and he really just missed her and wanted what was best for her.

What I Learned: This movie was based on a true story!!!! I’m not sure how much of the law school/cheating Sam Neill backstory is true, but at the end they tell you that the real-life couple stayed married and have kids, and that she never regained her memory. Wikipedia says they credit “their faith in Jesus and their wedding vows before God” with keeping them together. So not chocolate and skinny dipping like in the movie, then.

You should watch this if you like: Nicholas Sparks

Children of the Revolution (1996)

I WISh everyone in this movie had a mustache

The Movie: So this Australian lady is obsessed with Joesph Stalin and writes him these passionate letters about how she just can’t get the revolution started in Australia. He invites her to the USSR to woe her, but ends up dying after they sleep together. Luckily everyone is pretty psyched, so she’s not in trouble, but she is pregnant. She marries some guy in the Australian communist party who like-likes her, and tries to raise the son, Joe, in the communist way. Joe falls in love with a Latvian policewoman whose grandparents were brutally murdered during Stalin’s purges, a fact that begins to torment her after Joe grows a mustache and starts taking control of the police force, looking and acting more and more like Stalin daily.

Yeah, I would not be that upset if I came home to find Sam Neill unexpectedly in my house, but I'm not a communist party leader so whatever

The Character: Sam Neill plays Joe’s possible father, a Russian/Australian/British/??? spy, who seems pretty unclear on whose side he’s on, just that he’s in love with Joan. He accompanies her to the USSR, either to kill her or to protect her, depending on whose orders he decides to take, and ends up having grief-sex with her right after Stalin’s death. Yes, that’s apparently a thing. He tries to do his best by Joe, believing he might be the father, but ends up attempting suicide after discovering he killed Joe’s wife’s Latvian grandparents on Stalin’s orders.

I don't know, somehow this movie is still billing itself as a comedy

What I Learned: People have apparently been arguing about the cause of Stalin’s death since it happened! In 2003, a joint group of Russian and American historians announced their view that he’d eaten warfarin, a powerful rat poison which predisposes the victim to strokes. Stalin was 74 and already suffering the ill-effects of his lifetime of heavy smoking.

You should watch this if: you enjoy fake documentaries; you want to see the lighter side of Stalin

I can’t believe I’m almost done with this project!!! I’m going to have to think of something dramatic to do to celebrate!

Previously: Prime Minister, Soviet Sub Captain, Master Criminal
Next: Thomas Jefferson, Tennis Dad, and a Somber Narrator

Tagged: , ,

Posted in Project Series, Sam Neill Marathon |

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »

Site and contents are © 2009-2025 Patricia Ladd, all rights reserved. | Admin Login | Design by Steven Wiggins.