Messages

i now i'd love to go...  of course, if most of the staff went, we'd have a problem...

when i went a few years ago, i didn't have any problems except for maybe one comment at an onsen i stayed at one night - and even that was incredibly minor and not from the staff but another guest.  everywhere i went, i was treated with, if not warmth, at least courtesy.  thinking back, i suppose some of the people i dealt with might have been less than enthused to see a gaijin come into their establishments, but they treated us well anyway.  i know it always surprised them when i would at least make an effort to communicate in even basic jp and they seemed to appreciate it.  they will treat you differently though if you're a foreigner living in japan vs. a tourist though and they can tell.  a lot of the xenophobia comes across to those who are deemed to not be tourists.  they treat non-tourists with far less courtesy, they are more insulting (even if it is veiled in politeness), etc.  i would actually recommend talking to gilles poitras at the convention (or attend his panel at least) because he can give you some really good insights into how the locals treat foreigners in japan.

on the train thing, i was lucky and never hit rush hour when we were traveling.  i would highly recommend picking up a jr pass before you go though - it'll save you a lot of time in the train stations because you wont have to worry about tickets on any of the local trains.  it also allows you to ride the shinkansen (bullet train) for free.

i agree with the venture south suggestion.  kyoto was an awesome place to visit and i didn't get enough of it when i went.  it's beautiful and full of historical significance.  one place i also regret not making it to was osaka - amazing food from everything i've heard.  if you feel like taking a little side trip, heading out to nara is worth the trip - especially if you're there for the beginning of spring festival (early february) and so is himeji (the largest wooden samurai castle is there).  tokyo has a number of areas which are really worth checking out like akihabara (otaku capitol), asakusa (giant gray? market), harajuku (go on a sunday for cosplayers), and of course ginza and other fun sites but because it is so metropolitan, it loses some of the charm you'll find in the smaller cities.

August 21 · 1:00pm - 10:00pm
Location:Mrs. Brown's
733 Santa Maria Road
El Sobrante, CA

Its BBQ Time!

Wear stretch pants and don't eat the night before or you won't make it ;)

The Menu at this time:
...
Ribs!
Chicken
Beef Roast(s)
Tracy's famous Turkey Spaghetti
Potato Salad
Collard Greens
Mac N' Cheese
Corn on the Cob
Spinach salad w/Mandarin Oranges
Broccoli Slaw
Chunky Fruit Salad
Mushroom Ragu
Cornbread

Dessert:
Peach Cobbler
Blackberry Cobbler

As before, please bring drinks,water,ice, or movies/anime to share. Also don't forget a coat for the evening

Mom asks if you are bringing any food or snacks to share to please prep them before coming. Space in the kitchen is scarce.

Questions/Requests: Call Tracy 408-250-3024

See You there!

in english, our sentences follow the following format: subject -> modifiers -> verb -> modifiers -> alternate subject -> modifiers.
in japanese, the structure is a little different: subject -> modifiers -> alternate subject -> modifiers -> verb -> modifiers.

so where in english we might say i rode that train to tokyo, in japanese we would say I, to tokyo, that train, rode. or in romaji, watashi wa tokyo ni sono densha ni norimashita which broken down, reads: watashi (I) wa (particle used to mean is/am) tokyo (city) ni (particle used to mean by/to) sono (that) densha (train) ni (partical used to mean in/on) norimashita (rode - noru: to ride conjugated to norimasu: i ride and modified for past tense: shita).

[Yamaga Party:]

Yamaga Party: Please introduce the guests of honor attending the party along with Yamaga at the beginning of the party.  Mori & Ishiwatari were just hanging out with the staffs.  They also looked bored.  When the churros were gone, so was Mori.  

The two people that won the Yamaga Party tickets at this year's slient auction were VERY VERY disappointed.  Also, if there is a no paper, pen, bags and backpack policy, put a notice along with the slient auction so people know what to expect.  

Last year's Yamaga party was fantastic which was the reason that they bid on the tickets at this year's slient auction.  Last year's Yamaga party didn't have the no paper, pen, bags and backpack policy.  GOH and party attendees were interacting with each other by asking for autographs which starts conversation about their work in the industry.

If party attendees can not bring pen and paper, give a sharpie to each guest.  The guests can sign each attendees's Yamaga party invitation which will provide interaction between GOH and party attendees.  GOH will not be bored.

Charity auction:  Don't conflict live charity auction schedule with any major events such as the Yamaga party.

I'd like to give a little insight into some of the decisions facing the Yamaga Party this year.  First off, to the complaint that no pens/paper/bags/backpacks allow me to explain the reasons behind this.  In 2009, Yamaga-san noted that everyone was asking for autographs and sketches from the guests which was not what he wanted.  His vision was to have a reception type event where the attendees could mingle with the Guests of Honor in an informal setting.  He specifically requested the ban on writing implements and the like.  Since he is the host, and we are trying to organize the party to meet his desires, we were obligated to accede to his request.  As to the backpack/bag ban, that was mostly for logistical reasons as we had no place to store them in the room.  In addition, people could bring writing implements and paper in them so there was that concern as well.  

When it comes to scheduling, because Fanime is very large convention (something like 19,000 this past year?), we sometimes have to cross-program events.  In an effort to not cross-program the party with the Black & White Ball (which several of the guests wished to attend as did yours-truly), we pushed the party to an earlier time slot.  This had the unanticipated effect of crossing over with the auction which was hosted by Ric Meyers and Reuben Langdon.  The two of them made very quick work of the auction (bringing in nearly $3000 for charity if I recall correctly) and then proceeded over to join the party which was already in progress.

The suggestion of the sharpie to each guest is not a bad one and we can run the idea by Yamaga-san for next year.  Also, introducing the other guests is certainly a good idea.

nodame cantable, hana yori dango, and hanazakari no kimi tachi e

worst case scenario, there is always the twitter feed which gets a fair amount of use during the con.  i've heard rumors that a few new departments might be trying it out this year, but that remains to be seen.

personally, i think this could be very funny, BUT, i can't honestly see it extending for even 30 minutes.  i've been on stage most of my life, both in front of and behind the scenes and i can tell you that unless you have extremely good material, you will lose your audience after only a few minutes.  i have to agree with sysadmin here and say that 5 minutes is about all you'd be able to realistically do, in my opinion.

now, that said, i'd love to see it.  i was doing comedy of errors by Shakespeare a number of years ago and at one point, one of the characters has an exorcism performed on him.  at our first rehearsal, when we performed that scene, the person playing the priest who performs the exorcism dropped into a southern baptist televangelist accent and gave his line "i cast the out vile demon".  needless to say, everyone cracked up laughing because it was so well done and over the top funny.  however, while it was funny the first time, it would not have been so during the actual performance and the director required the lines be read properly.

if we think about it, while that one line was funny, if the actor had tried to perform the rest of his lines with the same accent, the part would have gone from being funny to offensive very quickly.  the whole "he's trying too hard to be funny for the sake of being funny, and it's obvious, and because of that, it's not funny (aka tom green/jackass)" thing.  this idea has that same potential and it would be very difficult to not run into it.  keeping it very short, like a commercial, would reduce the chances of that but your material would still need to be top notch and writing even 5 minutes of comedy is not easy.  

Ohh, fine - it's "Fantasy-RPG".

el sobrante is in the north east bay near richmond.

We've been warning you for months....and now its here!

BAAS Christmas Party

When: Sat Dec 19th

Time: 1pm - 10pm

Where: 733 Santa Maria Road, El Sobrante


Once again you are being invited to hang out, watch movies, socialize with 'interesting' people and eat yourself into a food coma. A tentative menu will be sent out soon.

We ask you to please bring soft drinks, ice, and movies to share. if you plan to bring any dishes to share, try and let me know ahead of time.

Bring a warm Coat or canned food and gain a chance to win prizes!

While we party, let's try and help those who have not been as fortunate. All donations will go to the Bay Area Rescue Mission in Richmond.The more canned food or Coats you bring, the more raffle tickets you get!

For more information contact:

Tracy
408-250-3024
[email protected]

Arina Tanemura!!! <3 i love her manga as well as anime.
she's the one the wrote the Full Moon wo Sagashite ,  Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne , and Gentlemen's Alliance Cross.
my gosh, it would be a dream come true to see her.

i second this

/

Crispin Freeman please. I think many would agree.

Oh and remember way back when, when Sanami Matoh was going as a guest but then got sick or something and canceled? Let's see if she's up for it again.

chrispo is not a great guy. at another con i went to, he was rude to everyone, staff and con-goers alike.

I have lots of stories, of which I will not share. I don't like the guy nor how he treats the fandom as a whole. To him it's a job, and something he gets paid to do, and he really shows and treats it like it.

this is scary. i agree with you.

Spike Spencer, on the other hand, is a really cool guy.

having personally dealt with crispin, i can tell you that pyon is correct.  he isn't a fan himself, but rather, he only looks at voice acting as a paycheck.  if you are dealing with him in a business setting, he's fine and can be quite helpful - especially to up and coming voice actors - but i wouldn't recommend him as a guest again. 

spike, for the record, is a freaking awesome guy.  he's nice, personable, a great story teller, and all around fun guy to hang with.  he enjoys what he does and shares his enthusiasm with his fans.

they also don't run into other issues that the chemical glow-sticks run into like the potential to break open and damage the carpet etc.  imo, not a bad idea.

there is a possibility that vic might show up even if he isn't officially a guest of honor (spike spencer too) - it's been known to happen.  i know that people like danny glover, whoopie goldberg, and a few others have rolled through in the past and vic knows at least one staff member at fanime so you never know.

PS: this statement is in no way intended to suggest that he is even being looked at as a guest - i have no idea who is being looked at nor could i release the information even if i did know.  it is simply to point out that it's possible he might show up unannounced and on his own - he lives in san jose (or somewhere close) i believe.

on the main topic though, i vote for Myco.

given 2010's theme, the black mages would be awesome

if there's no food left after the bbq, i'll be amazed.  we ALWAYS have leftovers :)

[Come One Come All to the 18th Annual BAAS Summer BBQ!]

Come One Come All to the 18th Annual BAAS Summer BBQ!

When: Saturday, August 22 from 1pm to 10pm
Where: 733 Santa Maria Road, El Sobrante, CA
What to bring: Your appetite!  Snacks, sodas, ice, etc. are always welcome though.
Why you should come: Fun, food, friends, and the annual raffle.

MENU:

So far... we have 16 slabs of Ribs, to be followed by some Chicken and probably
a Beef or Pork Roast.

For those who are not so meat-centered (why not?) Mrs. Brown's Collard Greens and World Famous Deviled Eggs will making a comeback. And Tracy's not so famous Broccoli Slaw and OMG! That's Big! Cheeseball. A more detailed list will be available the week before the BBQ.

As always, we ask you to please bring drinks,ice,games, snacks and movies to watch.

Also, bring a jacket. Expect the temperature to drop with the sun.

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=110749671495

edit: added facebook link
edit: added menu

Food - Hotel contracts with events typically specify that outside food cannot be SOLD in the hotel.  Theoretically, unless the Fanimecon contracts person was seriously out to lunch that day, outside food CAN be brought in by the event.  We've had pizza parties as well as alcoholic get togethers at events sponsored by the event with no complaints by the hotel.  What does this mean?  Someone with a car, budget and Costco card can easily provide munchies under the aegis of event preference.

While food and drink can be brought in to an event, the event will have to pay a corkage fee.  This fee can be extremely high depending on the location and what is being brought in.

if it helps, cml is/was with emi