I’ll be speaking at ACen (also known as Anime Central) this weekend on a number of topics, including Japanese Folklore & Mythology. The talk isn’t strictly limited to Japanese tales, but that will be the focus since ACen is an anime, manga, and J-culture convention. Admission is by convention…
So I’m not gonna lie, I was a little worried about putting the widget up on the blog so you could all track my NaNoWriMo progress, but it worked out: I validated my word count at just before 4 AM on Nov 27.
Go, me!
Geekery, fiction, and ninja — that’s a pretty typical day in my life, actually….
We’ll be presenting tonight on Japanese Folklore & Mythology (and talking about Kitsune-Tsuki) at InConJunction in Indianapolis. And I’ve added a new video clip, my favorite scene from Ran, to the panel. /rubs palms together gleefully/ Say hello!
So for Earth Day today, I didn’t mow my grass.
Okay, so I probably wasn’t going to mow today, anyway. I have real grass, the grass that was here when the bison were still eating it, and it don’t need no stinking fertilizer and it don’t need no stinking water — during last year’s record-setting drought, it stayed green long past the time when most grass and many trees in central Indiana were dead or dying — and it’s tougher than most mowers. So it takes a bit of mental gearing up to challenge this grass.
Did you ever want to know the difference between a mononoke and an ayakashi? Do you know how to escape a kappa, if one wants to eat you? Have you ever wondered if you were missing some in-jokes in your favorite anime or Asian film? (Yes, very likely.)
I love Ben-Hur.
Yes, it’s become somewhat fashionable in recent years for critics to wave their hands disdainfully at the film which was previously held in such esteem. Fine, they can have their pretense of superior taste. And okay, sure, trends in acting have changed in the last half-century. But I still love the film.
No, seriously, I once calculated that I’ve spent maybe half a week or so of my life watching Ben-Hur. Step aside, amateurs.
I remember laughing when Patrick Rothfuss confessed to book-signing performance anxiety. (I suspect he’s rather over that by now, by simple necessity.) I hadn’t ever practiced my autograph, either. But I did read Pat’s final word on the subject:
You can find the two-hour panel “Japanese Folklore & Mythology: A Primer for Anime, Manga, & Film” at Anime Crossroads on Dec 8. Admission is included with con badge. We’ll talk about Japanese folklore, supernatural creatures such as tengu and dragons and kitsune, why it’s smart to fart…
“Because it’s Thriller! Thriller night….”
My day job is in behavior. My hobby is in geekdom. Sometimes these worlds collide and I get peanut butter in my chocolate, and it’s awesome.
