New Video from Shadow Clone Shows that it Feels Good to Cosplay

In my 25 years I had never seen someone who raps about anime and cosplay until I met Shadow Clone. In fact, I first saw him performing while I was waiting in line at Derby City Comic Con back in 2011, but that is before I knew who he was or how awesome he is! As a Nerdcore artist, he uses his hip hop beats to focus on his interests in anime/manga, video games, and all things that are generally nerdy.

This week, Shadow Clone released a video for his latest single "Damn, It Feels Good to Cosplay" which may have a very familiar beat. The video was filmed at SukoshiCon: Destination Anime and was a collaborative effort on two levels. In addition working with the video's director and other members of the crew, Shadow Clone also collaborated with cosplay special guests who were attending the convention and other cosplayers who were at the con, based in Destin, Florida. Prior to the convention, he reached out to the cosplay guests, who were very receptive to his request to be in the video.

Ahoy, Mateys!

As you can see, things have been a bit busier around here than they had as of late. I am sorry that I hadn't stopped in to say Hello more often, but things were extremely busy with finishing my last semester of school. In fact, I made school a higher priority than a lot of things, but it all paid off beautifully. If you follow Kentucky Geek Girl on Facebook, then you see my daily updates there. I also tweet like a mad woman as well. However, I just didn't have a lot of time to sit down and beautifully construct a blog post for your reading pleasure.

That changes now.

Keeping in Touch

Gentle readers, I want to apologize for my lack of updates recently. You see, I've had a great deal of "real life" happening which has prevented me from writing and posting as often as I'd like to (or at all). I'm halfway done with my last semester of my BA, so school is really taking precedence, which I know you all can understand and empathize with. I have a bunch of ideas brewing for content that I'd like to bring you guys, so when the time comes, I really hope that you'll enjoy it.

Facebook has put a definite damper on the way I'm intereacting with you guys. With page owners having to pay to promote individual posts, it means that only about 10% of followers see any given post. Honestly, that's not fair. Things were fine the way they were before and Facebook was still making its money. No one thinks this is a good idea and even George Takei posted a call out to his fans to add the page to their interests lists. That's exactly what you need to do. Hover over the "Liked" button then click "Add to interests list." It's super simple and will ensure that you're seeing all of my updates.

I'm still around over on the tweet machine, but these days I'm really just tweeting about my thesis word count. (For the record, as of this writing, 2700.) The first draft of my senior thesis in history is due this Friday. I'm giving a presentation on Colonial Boston tomorrow for my Colonial America class. I have two other classes (Art History and Intro to Archaeology) but there isn't anything major for those classes now. Mainly it's just getting this thesis done.

I have have a couple of life related things in the works that I will definitely share with everyone when I can. If you follow me on Twitter you've seen me talk about them a little bit, but it's not something that I can share with everyone just yet. Big things are happening!

So, this is just an update to let you know that I'm still thinking about you and to say that I'm very, very sorry for my lack of updates. I really hope to rectify that very soon. Please go add Kentucky Geek Girl to an interest list on Facebook!

Much love,

Natasha

Geeky Flea Market Finds

I don't know if it's something unique to Kentucky, but it seems like there are flea markets and peddler's malls in almost ever town. When I was a kid, I would browse through the used video game and movie offerings at the Hillbilly Flea Market in Russell. On a recent trip to Morehead, I stopped in at the Peddler's Mall there and found some items which were rather unique. It definitely has a different feel than going into an antique store, because a lot of items that I came across were really not worth anything. However, I did find some interesting gems that I wanted to share. I didn't end up buying anything, but these items struck my fancy.

The Complete Next Generation Trek IQ Book was compiled by Alan G. Rochussen. It was originally printed in 1998. Here's a summary of the book:

How high is your Star Trek IQ? 

Star Trek: The Next Generation was the most popular and entertaining SF television show of all time. With more than half a million fans attending over a hundred conventions annually, the excitement continues today. 

If you are serious about your favourite show, here is your chance to prove it, with a unique, entertaining survey-guide that dares to go where no guidebook has gone before -- all the way from the episode #1 ('Encounter at Farpoint') to #177 ('All Good Things...'). 

This comprehensive, authoritative book covers every single episode, and includes multiple choice questions, character trivia, plot puzzlers, cryptograms, crossword puzzles, word searches and riddles. It is designed not only to test your knowledge of this immortal series, but to improve it dramatically -- and to award you and your friends with a Mission Performance Rating, and an actual Starfleet ranking -- from ensign to admiral.

Okay, so admittedly I wouldn't buy a 2003 calendar, but it had some awesome pictures of all of the Star Trek captains from Kirk to Janeway. Honestly, I would have bought it, but it had significant water damage. Hopefully it was well loved back in 2003!

I hadn't gone into the Peddler's Mall that afternoon expecting to buy anything, but if this set of I, Claudius had been DVD, I would have bought it in a heartbeat. I'll be finishing my BA in History in December, but I also have a mnior in Classics. My favorite period in Classical history is the Roman Empire. I, Claudius is a mini-series from the BBC which premiered in 1976. While a work of fiction, I think that I, Claudius provides an interesting view of the Julio-Claudian line. Some of my favorite actors are in it: John Hurt (Harry Potter, Hellboy, V for Vendetta) plays the Roman Emperor Caligula and it's so over the top, it's fantastic. Patrick Stewart (X-Men, Star Trek: The Next Generation) plays Sejanus, who was prefect of the Praetorian Guard, essentially bodyguards for the emperor. John Rhys-Davies, Derek Jacobi, and Brian Blessed (all fantastic actors) round out the cast. I know that it's ridiculously campy and it's basically a Roman soap opera, I just love it!

Here are some WTF items:

So, apparently this is an air-brushed poster titled "Hollywood" and it just features the portraits of a bunch of actors. I can pretty much tell who everyone is, but some of them are a bit off. I thought that the portrait of Marlon Brando looked a bit like Simon Baker (The Mentalist)... so yeah, kind of off. That's probably the worst picture of Nicholas Cage that they could have used. I think I would have preferred this one:

And finally...

This isn't so much nerdy or geeky, but just kind of out there. Do people put things like this in their homes? Honestly, it reminds me of the "Draw me like one of your French girls" meme.

Have you seen any geeky items at the Flea Market? Share them on Kentucky Geek Girl's Facebook page!

Be sure to follow me on Twitter @geekgirlinky

Add me to your circles on Google Plus!

Amazing Spider-Man Secrets Unmasked Tour Swings Into Kentucky

To get ready for what they are calling the biggest movie event of the Summer, Marvel Entertainment, Walmart Stores, and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment have kicked off the Amazing Spider-Man Secrets Unmasked tour which will travel around the country promoting the film, which hits theaters on July 3, the Amazing Spider-Man game (which looks like a PS3 exclusive), and other sponsors. I just happened to be at the Richmond Road Walmart here in Lexington this afternoon as the truck was packing up, but I got some information on what the tour had in store.

Pardon the dust

Friends, it's probably not hard to see that there have been a lot of changes made around here the last few days. I wanted to wait until I'd prepared everything to unveil the new awesomeness that had been in store for Kentucky Geek Girl all at once, but I was too excited to keep it a secret. (Full disclosure: that is a character flaw.) Anyway, I wanted to throw up a little post to let you know that the changes are not all complete and there may be some broken links, some dust flying, but things will be back to normal very soon, because LEXINGTON COMIC AND TOY CONVENTION IS ONE WEEK AWAY! Holy convention season Batman! It's here!

So, while I have you captivated, why don't I just share some stuff? First of all, I will have 2 more sets passes to the convention to give away. The details aren't fully in place yet, I just know that y'all have to work for it. It will be fun. Trust me.

Speaking of giving away free, awesome stuff. Lesley of Geek Soap and I have partnered for the convention to provide some freebies to convention goers. I'll have some soap up for grabs on Saturday, but again, you're going to have to work for it. Look for details in the coming days. I'm also going to have some neat stuff from The Morris Bookshop and Apex Publications available to win. I'm seeing what else we can rustle up so stay tuned for all of those details.

Also in the next week, I'm going to have some previews of folks who will be part of the convention in some way. Exhibitors, vendors, guests, you name it. Look for that!

And finally, as you can see, there's a rather awesome new avatar for the site. Said logo, which I will affectionately call Mini Me, was designed by the extremely talented Michael Parsons. He's a Kentucky native who runs his own site Geekasms which is full of fun nerdity. Words really cannot express how thankful I am for his time and hard work to help facilitate this transformation of the site. Check out his site and if you're looking for a graphic designer, definitely contact him because he is simply awesome! She really looks like me and it's kind of eery. Even my mom approves. So, yay for Michael and his awesome work. A million thanks to him!

So, yeah, that's about it. I'm a bit behind on the reviewing, having seen some pretty good movies in the  last few weeks. I'm thinking about maybe doing some video reviews or videos in general. That might be fun! Yay! Just be patient while I get all of these aesthetic kinks worked out. I'm excited for the future, so just hang on with me!

Be sure to give me some feedback. I'd really appreciate it!

<3

Auld Lang Syne and all that

I'm sorry that I'm getting this one of these retrospective posts out now, but I did want to take an opportunity to thank everyone for making 2011 such an amazing year. I have met so many fantastic people through the blogging community, on Twitter, and will hopefully be meeting some of you in person this year. 2011 was a great year of growth for Kentucky Geek Girl. I created the Facebook page which has almost 200 fans, which is just amazing and I really do appreciate you all so much.

I do have a confession to make. I became so focused on creating content, getting out news and what not, that I lost sight of why I created the site in the first place. This was supposed to be my place on the web to talk about my specific interests in gaming and popular culture. In some ways, I feel like I failed the intent of why I began to put more effort into blogging, and for that I am sorry. I have also not written anymore of "Your Friendly Local ___ Shop." I look forward to getting out more in the Lexington community in 2012. In fact, I hope to branch out to any other places that strike my fancy, not just comics or gaming. Definitely look for that in the coming months.

I also want to take a specific look at some of the games that we play and the people who create them or even enjoy them as much as I do. Jasmine Hruschak, better known as IRLJasmine, was gracious enough to allow me to interview her and I look forward to sharing what she has to say about gaming in my first Gamer Spotlight. Look for that soon!

I'm also going to (hopefully) be attending several conventions in Kentucky this year. Unfortunately, my work and school schedules will not permit me to travel outside of the state, but next year I hope to attend GenCon, Dragon*Con, and Origins (at least!) and see many more of you awesome folks. If you ever pass through Kentucky, be sure to give me a holler!

I have some blogging resolutions that I definitely want to keep and I'm going to try and write even though I do have school and work. Thank you for reading and I hope to bring even more awesome things to the table this year and beyond. It means a lot to get feedback so if there's something you'd like to see or something you're not that fond of, just let me know. I really look forward to the great things that 2012 will bring.

(Image source: http://pfohlfamily.blogspot.com/2010_12_01_archive.html)

"Transylvania Mania" hits Rupp Arena

Photo courtesy of The Ramber

Most folks I know are huge fans of Mel Brooks' "Young Frankenstein." How could you not be? It's amazing! The touring production of the Broadway musical is at the Lexington Opera House this weekend. One of the songs from the production is called "Transylvania Mania." Conveniently enough, Transylvania University, where I am a history major, played the University of Kentucky Wildcats in basketball on Wednesday evening. Shortly before tip-off, faculty, staff and students from Transy joined with dancers from the Town and Village School of Dance of Paris, Ky. to perform "Transylvania Mania" flash mob style. Video after the break!

Elementary, my dear geek!

Semesters are finally starting at colleges across the country this week and with it comes new classes and fulfilling the wonderful general education requirements. For my history major, I'm taking The Age of Samurai and Europe 1914-1945. For my Anthropology minor, I was able to get into a class on Explorers and Anthropologists where I'm going to be doing a project on representations of explorers and adventurers in popular culture. (Cue *Dun duh dun duhhhhh*) Transylvania University (where I attended college) has a history of offering some pretty awesome classes. There have been Foundations of Liberal Arts (Freshman writing and composition) courses on Appalachian stereotypes, Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. I took a course on comedy called Laughing Matters. Some classes have even studied ghost hunting! Pretty awesome stuff. Transy isn't the only university to teach some pretty interesting and geeky classes. Check out a list after the break!

University of Kentucky holds world's largest water balloon fight

Brigham Young University set world record for the world's largest water balloon fight in 2010. The University of Kentucky is nothing if not ambitious, so Christian Student Fellowship sponsored a fight during K-Week (freshman orientation/move-in week) on August 26. Over 175,100 balloons were used in the fight.

Balloons were provided by KAOS, a company that makes water balloon launchers. 8.957 members of the University of Kentucky community participated in the fight which was held at the Johnson Center (athletic center) at UK. 

As Transylvania alumnae, we're super proud of our friends at the University of Kentucky. Good job, guys!

Gizmodo blogger threatened by the awesome

Two days ago, I read the Gizmodo article where Alyssa Bereznak blasts Jon Finkel for omitting his gaming habits from his OKCupid profile. As I have talked about before, I'm a gamer, but Magic the Gathering isn't my forte. So, I didn't know who he was, let alone that he was a World Champion MtG player. Was I impressed? I sure as hell was. What didn't impress me was Bereznak's lack of class in writing the article. I was a bit confused as to why her article appeared on Gizmodo, if only because it was about an online dating site, thus making it semi-tech. She didn't just talk about having a bad dating experience, she blamed the bad experience on the fact that Finkel was a world champion Magic the Gathering player.

Williams-Sonoma unveils the Marvel Kitchen Collection

When I saw the Star Wars accessories last year, I was ecstatic. Last week, on their facebook page, Williams-Sonoma posted about superhero cookie decorating classes held at their stores. After a brief moment of sadness for missing such an amazing event, I delved into the Williams-Sonoma website in order to take a look at why they would host superhero decorating classes (okay... why wouldn't they?!) The reason: The Marvel Kitchen Collection! Holy fondant, Batman! These new items look freaking awesome.

George R. R. Martin draws hundreds to Joseph-Beth in Lexington

Last night, author George R. R. Martin drew a crowd of around 900 to Joseph-Beth Booksellers in Lexington. In case you've been living under some sort of rock, Martin is the author of five books in the epic fantasy series "A Song of Ice and Fire" which has inspired the HBO series "Game of Thrones." The first season of GoT garnered massive attention to both Martin and the books, which I think is absolutely spectacular. The series was nominated for 13 Emmy awards including Best Drama and Best Supporting Actor. Peter Dinklage, who is a total rockstar by the way, totally deserves the award which Martin expressed to the crowd last night.

The signing in Lexington wasn't even supposed to happen. George R. R. Martin specifically requested that Joseph-Beth Booksellers be added at the end of this leg of his tour for the newly released "A Dance With Dragons," the fifth book in "A Song of Ice and Fire." Joe-Beth was particularly sentimental for Martin because he came to Lexington on his initial tour for "A Game of Thrones." That book tour was drawing crowds of less than a dozen, but in Lexington, hundreds came out to support him. Fifteen years later, Lexington showed that it still loves its fantasy and it still loves George R. R. Martin. But Lexingtonians weren't the only attendees of last night's signing. According to the store's Facebook page, people drove down from Columbus, OH and up from Tennessee and South Carolina to see the author.

Dragon Chow Contest Winner!

I want to thank everyone for entering, tweeting and supporting the contest. I'm pleased to announce that a winner has been chosen (via Random.org) and they have confirmed! The prize is a standard dice bag courtesy of DragonChow.com! I'm hoping to do more contests periodically, so check back for updates there.

Without further adieu...

Congratulations! 

Leila of Within Pages
I always admit, even on my book blog, that I played WoW and openly flaunt the D&D books on my bookshelves! Not to mention that I visit local game shops like Amazing Wonders.

The Voyage Home

Paperclips, why did it have to be paperclips?

I apologize for my disappearance from the blogisphere this week. I was really busy last weekend with work events in between celebrations for my birthday and gaming. Then, on Tuesday, I started a new job and worked it and my after-school gig until Friday when the kids got out for the summer. Needless to say, I didn't have much time for blogging.

I'm really excited about my new job and although it's just a temporary position, I'm hoping that it might turn into something more permanent, which would be nice. I was able to go ahead and get Lil Indy and Ariel, two of my desktop staples set up and I need to put up all of my pictures to really personalize the space.

Welcome back to Blogspot!

I was reflecting on where the blog started and I decided that I wanted it to return to its true home. I'll buy the KentuckyGeekGirl.com domain someday, I promise, but for now we'll just be here at the .blogspot.com address and I'm okay with that. This change signifies big and awesome things to come and I'm really glad to be back here!

Stay tuned for upcoming details about the giveaway in conjunction with Dragon Chow Dice Bags. I'm really excited!!

Be sure to like Kentucky Geek Girl on Facebook and follow me at @geekgirlinky!

Stuff That Doesn't Suck (2)

Stuff that doesn’t suck is a meme hosted by Pam at Bookalicious where we graciously share with you the things that we come across in a week that don’t suck. This includes a variety of things from books to music to youtube and even more. Feel free to join in on the comments or on your own blog.

Song That Doesn't Suck

Mumford and Sons - Little Lion Man

It was a tough pick for this week. There are a lot of songs that I'm all about right now, but Little Lion Man is just one of those songs that you hear and instantly want to listen to again. I think it has a lot of heart, but there are some sarcastic elements to it as well. Just listen to the lyrics. I interpret it as a guy talking to himself about the love that he had, but totally f&%$ed up. It's like you have this love to give and it's in your heart, but everytime you get close to expressing it, the worst happens. Just my interpretation. Regardless, it's an amazing song. I can't wait to check out more from Mumford and Sons.

Cupcakery That Doesn't Suck

BabyCakes Cupcakes opened its doors in Lexington, KY in April 2009. They only use all-natural, organic ingredients for their cupcake creations and offer gluten free options. Their cupcakes are absolutely divine and have so much flavor. BabyCakes offers over fifty flavors and even have Cocktail cupcakes with a hint of your favorite alcohol. Best of all, BabyCakes is totally committed to the community. They offer donations for local events (such as my museum's Scary Night at the Museum Halloween event) and do donation days where their day's sales go toward causes such as flood and earthquake relief. The owners, Trish and Keith are a delight and it was really nice to see Trish today when she came to my work to deliver a cupcake display for a wedding!

BabyCakes Cupcakes
153 Patchen Drive, Suite 57B
Lexington, KY

Photo That Doesn't Suck

Yes, that's a funnel cloud...

So, we've been having some pretty severe weather here in Central KY for the last week or so. Last night, things really ramped up and when they said that a system that had a history of tornadoes was passing into my city, I got a bit freaked out. I love storms, but it was still pretty nerve-wracking. Thankfully, a friend let me come over and hang out with him while the storm passed. While it didn't actually touch down here in Lexington, we did get to see a funnel cloud. This picture was taken by a friend. You can follow his weather tweets at @WatcherWolf_KY.

Gaming Shop That Doesn't Suck

I am working on a series of posts called "Your Friendly Neighborhood Game Shop." I wanted to give a a shout out to my new favorite store in Lexington. Amazing Wonders Gaming & Hobby Center is a new store in Lex, but has already made a great name for itself. The folks there are friendly, they have a large event center and the store is clean. I was able to find a pretty set of d10s for our Vampire game. They take special orders and have a huge selection of Role-playing games, Card games and other hobby items. Look for my post about them soon! Meanwhile, check out their Facebook!

Awkward Embraces Rolls A Nat 20 in Awesome

Let's face it, dating isn't easy. It can be difficult, uncomfortable, but most of all, it can be awkward especially if you're a geek girl. Not only can asking someone out or being asked out be an absolute chore, but then there's the date itself! It's so hard to find someone who truly appreciates all of your interests and who won't run screaming from a conversation about Star Trek. Come on, nerdy girls need love too! Finally, there is a series which shows the difficulties that your typical lady geek goes through to find her Number One. Awkward Embraces is a web series from Project A Productions which encapsulates perfectly what it's like to be both awesome and socially awkward at the same time. Show of hands, how many of us can relate to that?

Jessica Mills, creator of Awkward Embraces, stars alongside Candis Phlegm and Lyndsey Doolen as they create the Three Musketeers of Geekdom. Jessica, who Candis describes as a “geek boy's dreamgirl,” loves Star Trek, video games, and all things geeky. She wears Star Wars t-shirts proudly and loves throwing in obscure pop culture references into everyday lingo. Her friends love her, but don't always get what she's talking about. (Such is the plague of a geek girl, unless all of your friends are geeks too!) The show, now in its second season, is honest and cleverly written and if you've ever had a bad date, you can totally relate to girls' dating highs-and-lows.

One such low is recounted by Jessica in Season 1's Fourth episode titled “The Morning After.” After meeting a guy at a mutual friend's party, she goes back to his place and “accidentally has sex with him.” Also in season one, Candis is set up on a blind date by her mom. In season 2, Lyndsey reconnects with an old friend who has less than savory intentions for their reunion. The situations that the girls go through in Awkward Embraces aren't too far-fetched to not be something that might happen to one of us. Candis, Lyndsey, and Jessica seem just like any set of friends. They're totally there for eachother, but not afraid to tell it like is is. When Jessica asks if she's a dirty slut, Lyndsey says, “Yes, you are, and it's awesome, right?”



Awkward Embraces is an independent web series. The show is considerably successful to have such a small financial backing; funds for Season 2 were raised on IndieGogo. And while it looks as if the show was filmed in the girls' own living rooms, that actually contributes to the personality of the show. Jessica is a sort of “everywoman” who lives out our own trials and tribulations. In fact, a neat feature of the show's website is viewer submitted dating horror stories. Maybe I should submit the story about the guy I went on a date with who was the self-proclaimed best healer on his realm in World of Warcraft?

The show is currently on hiatus, but that gives you plenty of time to go back and watch all of the episodes from Season 1 and the beginning of season 2. You will literally laugh out loud at some of the awkwardly realistic moments. Meanwhile, check out updates on the show's website, Facebook and Twitter accounts. You can also follow Jessica, Candis and Lyndsey on twitter! Oh, and Candis is totally awesome! (She didn't tell me to say that.. I promise!)

Coming Soon: Your Friendly Neighborhood Game Shop

I love visiting game stores. When I went to Louisville last year, my friends and I checked out a shop there and it was really cool. My best friend Leila and I happened to visit two of our local game stores on Friday afternoon and ran into a distinct contrast. While visiting the second, I had an epiphany. My site is Kentucky Geek Girl and yet I haven't really talked about Kentucky at all. Why don't I start reviewing game stores here?!  Leila agreed that it was a brilliant idea and thus "Your Friendly Neighborhood Game Shop" was born.

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="302" caption="Image courtesy of Google Image Search."][/caption]

I plan to visit each of the game stores (and comic book stores) of Lexington and talk about their pros and cons, discuss special features, and include pictures. I'm very excited to undertake this project! I'm currently putting together a list of all of the stores in Lexington (and even those in surrounding cities) so I can visit and review them. Any suggestions on what I should discuss in the review?

Basic outline:

Name of Store
Address
Phone Number
Website/Social Media

Brief Description
Pros
Cons

Should I include a rating? Let me know what you think!

So what type of geek are you, anyway?

I've written a bit about Dungeons and Dragons as well as video gaming, but there are many more sides to this geek girl. I'm somewhat of a comic book geek, though I must admit that I do not currently collect any. I love X-Men and have fond memories reading Spiderman at the soda fountain counter of a drug store in my hometown. I am a history major and am a total museum geek. I love Renaissance Fairs and historical reenactments. I'm a music and movie geek as well. TV has always been a part of my personal geekdom with Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Star Trek: The Next Generation being among my favorite shows. I've just rediscovered my love for Broadway musicals and have been listening to them non-stop. Oh, I love languages and other cultures, too! I could go on and on, but why don't you just take a look at this diagram and decide what kind of geek you are. Leave a note in the comments section and tell me what you love!