Messages

I'd love to see MangaGamer come back, possibly Toylet, Hobby Link Japan if possible...and I know its a far fetched one, but...AMI AMI. Wouldn't that be cool?

FanimeCon 2009 was my first FanimeCon. It was so iconic to me for so many reasons besides being my first.
It was the first time I had ever ventured out beyond my own community in Sacramento, and I carpooled with a group of my best friends at the time.
It was also the first larger sized anime event I'd ever been to.
The trip began when I introduced a friend of mine to Sac Anime, which at the time was in the Scottish Rite Center, also used for Sac-Con, the building houses barely 2-3 thousand at max if I'm guessing correctly. Sac Anime Winter 2009 had been the first time I crossed the boundary of shyness and I brought a crappy little digital camera with me to the event to take pictures of cosplayers and other events. I had also never attended events with friends, and it was a good Sac Anime- in fact it was the final one to be in the Scottish Rite Center because there was so many people that year that the event outgrew it.
But back to FanimeCon.

Having such a good time together at SacAnime Winter 2009, my friends and I talked about taking a further step. Going to an actual good sized out of town convention, doing the whole hotel thing, and staying for 5 days. It was all so new, and we booked a terrible room at a Ramada Inn that was 7 miles away from the convention. LOL.
I had done intense planning at home, saving/earning money, and fantasizing about the biggest Dealer's Room I had yet to see- on top of everything else I'd be seeing there. Funny thing was, there wasn't a lot of coverage/photos or videos online back then, and it made it difficult to really picture what it would all be like.

We left for our journey on Day Zero, since I had heard about the benefits of it. It was check-in time for our hotel, and we rushed because I knew (back then) that you had to be in line at least by 3 or 4 pm or you weren't getting into Day Zero.
With terrible luck, we got into a car accident on the way to the hotel just after turning off from the freeway into San Jose.
The car was still drivable and everyone was okay, but the radiator was leaking profusely, and we later realized that we would have to buy a bottle of radiator fluid and use the whole thing just to get from the hotel to the convention, then back to the hotel later that night. We bought 10 bottles and used them all. LOL.
Also, one of our friends had to be "the reverse", since the car wouldn't do that either, our friend had to get out and push at times when we needed it.
But we endured through the whole 5 days for FanimeCon.

Each day of FanimeCon 2009 was amazing for me. I experienced the Day Zero Swap Meet back in its prime before stores and crooks started monopolizing it. Mostly everyone had good quality items to sell for low prices. The swap meet was about getting rid of gently used items back then, not about making a killing like it has become at most of them today. Sadly whoever is running them these days are totally unaware of what's happening in them.

Day One of FanimeCon 2009 was the day I walked into the fabled "Dealer's Hall". Exhibit Hall 3 (as it used to be), the biggest of them all, was teaming with anime goods and sellers of all kinds. The room looked like the one I saw in vids on YouTube, but it wasn't 2004 like the vids, this was 10x better! I found so many deals and merch I still have to this day.
I also learned of Haruko Momoi, met her and the fanimaids, and witnessed her panel. I had no idea who she was but I watched her anyway, and I learned that I was practically witnessing a goddess. The trendsetter of Akihabara, The Holy Land to all otaku, pioneer of the legendary maid cafes in Japan, and believer in the Moe' Space, an invisible field of good vibes brought about when an idol/maids are singing and the crowd is entranced, while some perform "Otagei" and all are happy in the Moe' and sheer glee.
Day One also taught me about the community. While much of the Sacramento community attends FanimeCon, I also got to know so many other like-minded individuals from the SF/Bay Area regions, and even folks from SoCal and even out of state!
FanimeCon felt authentic, true, and perfect.

Day 2 and Day 3 followed on, making memories for me that I'll never forget. One of them being MusicFest. O.M.G....Momoi's performance.
I might as well say that I had never been to anything that would have qualified as an authentic otaku idol performance. Its very hard for most who weren't there to understand this, but that concert was magical. It felt almost too good to be happening in Cali. The Otagei, the glowsticks, the music, the maids, lol, I felt like I was really in The Holy Land of Akihabara.

I came home very changed, and I delved deeper and deeper into my hobbies from that day forward growing and furthering my passion for event photography, the community, the anime goods business, conventions, and the otaku culture itself. I even turned my little blog about food and stuff that I did each week into a full blown production that created the company I manage today.


FanimeCon seemed enormous to me, teeming with possibilities and a limitless number of things to do and see.
Not only was I enthralled to be within it, but I learned much from it.
It helped kindle the fire inside of me that keeps me loving what I do.
And I'll never forget 2009.

PS: The car had to be towed away after it stopped working, and my parents rescued myself and one friend. I had a fun time stuffing bags of loot into the truck, and talked everyone's heads off all the way home back to Sacramento. (that's 3 hours!)

-Kazu

[will not]

So, just to confirm, Special Reg will not be open on Thursday, because Thursday is badgeless and only for Pre-Reg and Early-Reg members correct?

Moar Figma, Nendoroids, never a bad thing. :D
Doujinshi, oppai mousepads, "REAL" dakimakura pillowcases.
And of course more character goods, art books, and miscellaneous items. XD

Need more Type Moon, K-ON!!, and Touhou amongst other things.

Also...VIDEO GAMES! Where are they? Not the kind we can get from GameStop- I mean the juicy good stuff! I'd like to find Project Diva f, Idolm@ster 2, or Senran Kagura Shinovi VS and buy them right there! Would be totally awesome.

Also, more Blu-Ray box sets!

1.I'm a panelist.
2.I want to come on day zero and shop at the swap meet.
3.Haven't registered yet.

You know what, no need for badges to shop at the swap meet on Thurs. Does that work??:)

That's sounds great! So no one will want to see a badge at the entrance?
Also, will special reg be open on Thursday?

Thanks for taking the time to reply to me, I very much appreciate it!

Keep in mind its always subject to change. My first two years it was in Exhibit Hall 3. But it'll probably be in Exhibit Hall 2. You'll know as soon as you get your registration packet, there's always a very handy map!

So I have a situation that will hopefully be easy to answer, but its a little confusing and I need to make sure I get it cleared up in 24 hours before early reg ends in case I need to early reg.

1.I'm a panelist.
2.I want to come on day zero and shop at the swap meet.
3.Haven't registered yet.

I heard about something called "Special Reg" on the FAQ page for panelists, artists, and disabled folks.
Will Special Reg be open on Day Zero? Or do I need to Early Reg in order to attend Day Zero?
If I Early Reg now and pick up my badge on Day Zero, will I get the panelist discount?

Thanks