Five Favorite Nerd Moments of 2011
It’s the last week of 2011, and therefore a time to look back at the year and make lists. And who doesn’t love a Top 5 Countdown? This particular list is going to focus on those amazing nerdy moments which transpired in my 2011 world.
NERD MOMENT #5:
Although technically my introduction to this series took place in 2010 at around 6am in a Portland airport, I didn’t really fall in love until the television series came out. And then again when my spouse got hooked into it. And then again when I discovered the bromance of sorts between Brienne of Tarth and Jaime Lannister. And while I’m currently stuck at the mid-point in Book 3, I know I’ll get through all the rest of the material probably before the next book comes out.
Yes – the series is problematic in terms of race and gender. The violence against women in the book and the ridiculous sexploits on the show are a bit off-putting. But I’m hopelessly in love with A Song of Ice and Fire. Hopeless.
Read Game of Thrones related content here. And here.
NERD MOMENT #4:
The movie and the costume it took me a year to put together. I was very skeptical about the film and remember having arguments with several people because of all the CGI and how much it tried to cram into two hours (don’t they all?) but by the time I finished the costume and re-watched the film, I was pretty much in love. It’s sappy and romantic and hits just the right tone.
Read Captain America related content here. And here.
A Song of Ice and Fire: Halloween Costume Recap
Blame Nanowrimo for the lack of posting this week. After clocking in 2,000 words of fiction everyday, it is difficult to get inspired for a blog entry, I will admit. So I’m bout to be super lazy and just throw some pics at you. Get ready!
Here are the awesomely epic Game of Thrones inspired costumes we happened across this weekend.
The spouse and I dressed as Brienne of Tarth and Samwell Tarly. If you look closely you might even spot that I added freckles to my face to really flesh out the Brienne look. No one was willing to admit I have a horse face. Bless their hearts. 😉
Brienne of Tarth and Samwell Tarly
Our buddy Addie came dressed as Melisandre, complete with sexy red contacts and a hand sewn cape. Also, the coolest Jon Snow necklace of all times. She promised to make me one. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t totally stoked.
Brienne of Tarth and Melisandre
We hit up our friends party the next night and just happened to bump into another Game of Thrones nerd couple with themed costumes. The dude was dressed as an Other and she was Melisandre. Quite a popular choice! I only wish we could have found a Daenerys or Jaime Lannister to complete the group. Hats off to everyone on their costumes though. The lady of the couple really went all out – she even created the banner of Stannis Baratheon. Happy Day!
An Other, Melisandre and Samwell Tarly
You can check out the making of the Brienne costume on these posts:
Really enjoyed putting these costumes together and nerding out with people who actually knew what they represented! Being surrounded by fellow nerds this weekend inspired me to start reading Book 3 again, and I’m like 25% of the way through. No spoilers here – but so far I’m glad I stuck with it so far. George R. R. Martin is one sick bastard, that’s all I have to say.
Brienne of Tarth Costume: Part Three
Some of the final pieces of the Brienne of Tarth costume came in the mail on Wednesday. I was exuberant until I opened the package and realized that at least one of the items was not going to work.
At first I had hope for the floppy chest armor…if I just cut it in the right places, that might decrease the weird stomach bulge happening because of the poorly designed tying system.
This chest armor has nipples. This is what happens when you don't heed the warning reviews on the costume website. :"
By Wednesday evening I’d abandoned the idea of the armor working and was back to bouncing around all the internet sites hoping against hope that I could find a cheap alternative that would arrive in time.
Then, the DH and I recalled some armor at Party City which had actually looked decent. Unfortunately, it’s a bronze color. Not to worry though – just had to bust out the spray paint and go to town.
THE CHEST ARMOR
Here is the chest piece BEFORE:
This is Sparta!
Here is the chest piece AFTER:
THIS is Brienne of Tarth!
I applied the spray paint with a cloth method from this video tutorial. I didn’t use a black matte base, because the armor already had a lot of black mixed with the bronze. And I used more of a dabbing motion than any kind of sweeping. The whole process took about 30 minutes or so.
THE ARMOR SKIRT
Was also mildly disappointing because it only ended up being a “half-skirt” which is fine, because the cape will be covering up my backside anyway. But really – they couldn’t design a silver armor skirt that just, you know – wrapped around the entire body? Coulda used velcro and overlapping. *smh*
But it fits with the rest of the costume pieces so well:
Game of Thrones Costume: Brienne of Tarth Part 2
Have been working on putting the costume together and picked up a few pieces over the last week. Thought I’d post an update here to prove there’s been progress.
The sword:
Added some brown duct tape to the handle for better grip.
The armor:
Leg, shoulder and wrist guards. Rubber material.
The boots:
Have been wearing these around town to break my feet into the notion of high heels. This is how much I love Halloween and costumes.
Game of Thrones Costumes: Brienne of Tarth
After a drunken conversation about Game of Thrones with one of my oldest friends – she announced her intention to dress as a relatively obscure GoT character. Of course Dan and I took up the gauntlet that she’d thrown down – and we all three agreed to dress as characters for Halloween. She is going as Melisandre, Dan as Qhorin Halfhand and I’m attempting Brienne of Tarth. So of course I’ve been spending most of the last few days looking up ways to make my costume as authentic as possible.
BRIENNE OF TARTH
Base Outfit:
This was the first one that caught my eye, but the cut of the top is too low and the fabric on the sleeves doesn’t even remotely resemble mail. Blah.
Joan of Arc Costume
This one fits the bill much better, except for the startling lack of a skirt or any kind of armor on the bottom half of the body. Its one of the few pieces to actually boast chest armor designed for lady boobs. HAS to be paired with something else.
Silver Glamazon Costume
I will probably have to purchase this Men’s Templar Costume to poach the shoulder armor and the fabric chain mail shirt with hoods. Not sure yet how I’m going to make it attach to the chest piece or what kind of leggings I’ll need – probably go for brown with black boots…some silver knee pads perhaps?
Men's Crusader Costume
Spreading the Link Love:4/22/2011
Turns out I lied about writing a full review of Game of Thrones. I’m going to give the show at least another two episodes before judgements are cast. AND since I’ve been packing and prepping for Disneyland this weekend, this is going to be another entry full of linkspam – most of it is interesting, I promise!
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DISNEYLAND BREAK-DOWN
To entice you into reading some of my vacation recaps, here is a sampling of the events on our agenda for the next five days.
1. ElecTRONica at the California Adventures Hollywood Pictures Backlot. Entering the Arcade was actually one of my favorite pieces of SDCC 2010 and I’m equally geeked out for this!
2. Pirates of the Caribbean – On Stranger Tides: Sneak Peek in 3D. It’s been awhile since pirates were cool, but it might be worth packing some of our gear to get into the spirit and watch this film, which Dan insists we are doing.
3. Watching the Jedi Training Academy…and wishing I was 12.
4. Dinner at Medieval Times – cause someone needs to bring jousting back. As an Olympic sport. Or maybe the Gladiator style games. But not with spandex.
5. Unfortunately for us – STAR TOURS IS CLOSED WTF!!!!11!! but at least we can ride on Space Mountain and watch Captain EO. So it’s ALMOST like being 12 again.
6. At least one night I’d like to hang out in the House of Blues and spend some time at Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen. It might remind me of all the good parts of my December trip to New Orleans. Either that or the Blue Bayou or Cafe Orleans restaurant. I would even settle for the French Market Restaurant.
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And here’s the rest of the intriguing linkspam I’ve captured over the last week:
The book , “One Con Glory,” captures the trials and tribulations of a female nerd at a Comic Convention and is finally being made into a hilarious movie for the world to see. Thank the sweet and fluffy lord. It’s about damn time. While I love and adore male-centric geek flicks, this is definitely going to be more applicable to the ladies. We won’t be relegated to the token (usually white) female of the male dominated group.
Oh, the book and screenplay are written by a woman AND the producer is a lady too. Excellent.
Games of Thrones Link Love: 04/20/2011
Need at least another day or two before I can pump out a decent Game of Thrones review but in the interim here’s some interesting link spam that’s gotten nerdy lady bloggers up in arms.
Apparently someone wrote a review of Game of Thrones in the NY Times saying this probably isn’t most ladies cup of tea.
And many nerd ladies like this one disagreed.
Especially in this article that was JUST posted on MSN the day before the NY Times piece.
Frankly after watching the first episode (read the first two books BTW) I’m kind of leaning towards the NY Times take on the show.
But while it claims the sex was thrown in for the ladies, I have to really question that. Seriously – three sex scenes and not a one of them was even remotely sexy? It’s shameful AND pitiful.
They could really take a cue from Spartacus. The ridiculous 3-5 sex scenes per episode at least clock in with some caressing, rubbing and chiseled man chests. Has viewing access to hordes of delicious mostly-naked men ruined me for period-piece costumed TV shows forever? Perhaps. I mean, there was that semi-nude Dothraki dude, but he was not making with the charming. Gah, that whole scene was not well-done at all.
OK – this is getting into review territory. Not sure of what to make of all this controversy. I’m not an overwhelming GoT fan, but if anything, it’s the lack of sexy sex that turns me off. I mean…don’t dudes like sexy sex too? I would argue that teh ladiez are interested in this show, but so far I haven’t seen much of the show that’s interested in us.
Forced back-door sex gets a big frowny face from me. 😦
Dan
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