This Week in Geek - 30/04/2012

A showcase of this week's finest geek and geek related activities for the week. Mark your calendars.

Longer Term

• Anime - The Masters of Studio Ghibli - Silver Spring, MD - now through June 17
• There’s a pretty amazing array of Miyazaki films showing over the next few weeks at the AFI Silver Theater. The bad news is most showings are mid-afternoon. The good news is many of them are shiny new 35mm prints. Here are this week’s films:
• Porco Rosso - Tuesday through Sunday (between 11 AM and 1 PM)
• Kiki’s Delivery Service - Wednesday at 12:35 PM
• Only Yesterday - Wednesday at 7:00 PM

A haunting image from the Ghibli Museum
image by Francesco G

• Comedy - Gilbert Gottfried - Washington, DC - May 4 through May 6
• Its Gilbert. You know, Gilbert. Sputtering, cutting, and sarcastic, much like the guy from MAT303 who hated everyone in the class but would show up again and again so he could keep hating them? Maybe that was just me. But if you want to hear Iago from Aladdin tell you nearly an hour of truly filthy jokes in the way only he can, then your time has come.

Wednesday

• Futurism - Futurist Bookgroup - Washington, DC - 7:30 PM
• Geeks, on a whole, don’t live here. We tend to live in the past, in the future, in alternate timelines and dimensions far away. We visit the here and now pretty regularly (note that most of us are employed, as an example) but still... The futurist bookgroup down at P&P is made for the kind of geek that like engineering in her fiction and dreams in her reality. This month its the discussion of The Third Industrial Revolution and its implications for distributed resource development. Yeah, that’s the stuff I need to knock the rust off my brain.
• Post-Punk - We Were Promised Jetpacks at Black Cat - Washington, DC - 8:00 PM
• Kilt-clad, post-punk, Scottish, emo. Check out the link to get a taste. I have to admit that by the time the music stopped, I had forgotten that I wasn’t listening to my own music. The Black Cat site says the group combines “the soaring emotions of a U2 anthem with the frenetic energy of post-punk.” I just know I like it.

Friday

• Pure Geek - Star Wars Day - Throughout the galaxy - All day
• Please, please don’t make me explain this pun and why this day works as The Star Wars Day of note in the English language. It broke my heart enough having to explain it to my folks. It’s the Fourth. Toss on the trilogy, get together with some friends, crack out your lightsabers and remember being a kid.

Saturday

• Comics - Free Comic Book Day - All the good comic shops - All day
• Be sure to check the participant list on the site, but this, this is the awesome idea for hooking folks in. Maybe its a friend who never got exposed as a kid. Maybe it is your kid. Maybe its you after years away. Sure, we can wait for the trades. Sure, we can just order online. But there’s something special to heading into your local shop once a month, once a week to pick up your pulls. There’s something about the community that springs up, the ability to meet your fellow fans, that scent of ink and dust and plastic that is a comic shop.

I can't be the only one who sees this and thinks, "America! Fuck yeah!"
image by Sarah Stierch

• Space - Space Day at NASM and Udvar-Hazy Center - DC and Chantilly - 10AM to 3PM
• If you’re in the DC area you probably ran outside to get fly over pictures as the surviving shuttles were carried off to their final destinations. The NASM out by Dulles continues that moment with celebrations and exhibitions this Space Day. The festivities of the day will focus around welcoming the Discovery home, talks with astronauts, and all sorts of mission planning activities.
• Entertainment - Tilted Torch Birthday Blowout - Washington, DC - 9:00 PM
• Maybe it's some combination of my inner five year old defining geek as someone who bites the head off live chickens and my healthy regard for physical forms in motion. No matter the root causes though, few live performance types please me more than burlesque style sideshows and that’s what the Red Palace has been giving DC more of lately. Personally, I’m a fan, and this weekend is a great excuse to get out and see what it's all about (especially if you skipped the Dr. Who show last week).

Did we miss something? If you have an event you’d like to promote that isn’t on this list, leave a comment or email us. Other weekly reoccurring events are listed on our website (such as Rocky, CCG tournaments, crazy themed happy hours). For more information, check out the calendars at DC Geeks.

Podcast - Parrots and Puppetry

New podcast! This week Scooter, Brannen, and I discuss:

• What is a puppetry slam and why is it awesome?
• What does Doctor Who have to do with ponies… and fezes, fezzes? fezi?
• How will my obligatory love of Geek and Sundry manifest this week?
• What is up with How I Met Your Mother's weird, non-geeky, obsession with goats?
• Anyone else notice that anime makes for seriously dysfunctional historical fiction?
• What horrors lie at the end of the internets? (A few moments hedge towards NSFW)
• How badass are Shapeways' 3D-printed dice?
• Will our merry trio last through the ongoing parrot apocalypse?
  (You can't hear them on the recording, but they were raising hell through half the podcast.)
• What did you all think about Mass Effect 3 (slight spoilers)?

We did such a good job avoiding spoilers in ME3 that we go on to spoil the crap out of Dragon Age. We wrapped up by discussing whether or not I made up all the horrors in Parasite Eve.

This week I tested out a few oddball settings in garageband (I learned that the automatic level control is there for a REASON. Sorry, guys). If you've become accustomed to the quiet voices on the past weeks, don't just automatically ramp up the volume on this one.

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Let us hear feedback. Anything you want us to read/watch/play and discuss? Let us know in the comments.

Podcast - Minecraft and Memespeak

Here's a new podcast from Scooter, Brannen, and Aine. This week, we discussed

• how it's so common for games to be pretty, we take it for granted
• how horror games are awesome, especially Eternal Darkness
• how Amnesia is so scary, none of us have played it
• how we all need to play more Minecraft, I mean seriously
• how hard it is to talk to people who don't understand meme or referential humor
• how awesome all these [spoilers] are for Dragon Age, Fallout, and Fallout 3
• how disappointing Mass Effect 3 was [without spoilers]
• how geeks have to be stealthy in DC (i.e. show their geekdom and still look employable)
• how awesome Skyrim is so great without any dragons
• and a bit about tabletop gaming, drinking, and upcoming events.

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Thanks for listening, and remember: it's turtles all the way down.

This Week in Geek 2012/04/23

A showcase of this week's finest geek and geek related activities for the week. Mark your calendars.

Its like a fair, but more Science and less funnel cake.
Image by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

Longer Term

• Science! - USA Science and Engineering Festival - Washington, DC - April 28 - April 29
• Question: Where can you see Bill Nye, cast members of Big Bang Theory, and the stars of Mythbusters all at the same time? Yeah, that's right, here. This is the second year for the festival and already its grown from beefy to huge. More than 3000 exhibits and over 100 stage shows will fill the two day program. The event is meant to appeal to all levels of involvement in science and engineering, as well as all ages. Putting on my geek father hat for a moment though - there's a massive book fair this year and a career pavilion for high schoolers with an interest in STEM subjects. And its free.
• Convention - Malice Domestic - Bethesda, MD - April 27 - April 29
• A change of pace for the DCG writers, but definitely one worth getting out to, Malice Domestic is a full three days dedicated to the classic mystery. Its a chance to get close to a list of award nominated authors longer than my leg, but beyond that the workshop and panel schedule is simply mouth watering for anyone with desires to get published. From discussions on methods of death to the realities of research to specific genre panels, this con just keeps growing in depth every year. And this is year 24, so I'm not just giving faint praise here.

Wednesday

• Film - Indie Game: The Movie - Washington, DC - 6:30 PM
• In the wider culture the deadly words are "Dude, we should open a bar!" Not quite the same for many a geek, but we have our own Achilles heel: "I could make a game that would completely wreck what we're playing right now." Well, have a look at what the industry, the market, and the obsession is like these days. This is a documentary, so think less mockery and more deep examination of our passions. Tickets available at the E Street Cinema.

You haven't lived till you've seen... you know what?
Never mind. Make your own erotic dancing cyberman joke.
Image by Ben Sutherland

Friday

• Entertainment - Swami YoMahmi presents: Doctor Who Burlesque - Washington, DC - 8:30 PM & 10:30 PM
• Alright, The Red Palace shows up here often enough that if you have even a single social impulse in your crackling neurochemistry you really need to go. This week you've really got no excuse. Music, dance, erotic stage show, and burlesque, all with a Dr. Who theme and basis. Wrap up in your scarf (bonus if its more than 14' long) and head out for the night.

Saturday

• Convention - Eastern Shore FanCon - Princess Anne, MD - 10:00 AM
• There's nothing quite like a young, one day con. The eagerness of the con staff, the hope of new ideas (or old ones done well), the discovery of a new venue, it's like finding a vestal virgin just hanging around a stone altar. This con is a heavily focused on illustration arts and fandoms, which makes a nice switch from the often rigid line between anime and comic conventions. $10 is a hard price to beat for a full day of dedicated entertainment.

Did we miss something? If you have an event you’d like to promote that isn’t on this list, leave a comment or email us. Other weekly reoccurring events are listed on our website (such as Rocky, CCG tournaments, crazy themed happy hours). For more information, check out the calendars at DC Geeks.

Your Passion - DC Rollergirls

The February bout between the Majority Whips and Scare Force One

The problem with running a Geek website is that you can get too myopic in your focus. What does it mean to be a geek? Is it all miniatures and Dungeons & Dragons or is there room for more? I prefer to think of it as having a dedication or passion to something that goes well beyond the norm. And since Scooter agreed that a broad focus was a good idea, I am going to do periodic blogs called "Your Passion" in which I interview people in the DC community about the things that get them fired up. So first up, Aine and I went to see the DC Rollergirls at their February bout. We were told many of the girls were very geeky, but sadly I never got to ask them about those passions. I was just too damn enamored with my new favorite sport.

Sex, Drugs, and Apple Pie: The DC Rollergirls Cut Deep

Beneath the lipstick and glitter, the torn fishnets and gold panties, the nasty derby names and the bad attitudes, roller derby is unrelentingly authentic. Imagine my surprise to discover it in the heart of DC, a city that has a not wholly unfair reputation as one of the most duplicitous cities in the country. And my timing in discovering it could not have been better.

The national debate is eclipsed by questions of class and wealth. It is the center of every debate. From, the Occupy movement to the President's State of the Union to the Republican Presidential Primary, to Charles Murray's The Bell Curve to even the new Batman movie, the growing divide between rich and poor and the sense that it is tearing at the fabric of our national identity has been the center of the national dialogue.

So what, exactly, does this have to do with Rollergirls? Everything. Based on my interviews with the DC Rollergirls, I am under the impression that they might be just what the doctor ordered for an ailing society.

DC Demoncats vs. the Cherry Blossom Bombshells

Roller derby is a thrilling, high speed, full contact, adrenaline fueled sport. The teams consist largely of blockers, with one team member designated for scoring. That team member is the jammer. The objective of the jammer is to lap the other team as many times as possible. Both teams have jammers; both teams are trying to score simultaneously. The lead jammer can call off the jam at any point, banking points and preventing the other team from scoring.

Odd as it might sound, the experience is not unlike football. As much as you thrill at the jammer’s clever moves or amazing feats of athleticism, the moments that get the crowd on their feet, that produce those collective gasp moments, are when one blocker checks another blocker, or a jammer, sending them crashing to the floor and tripping up a dozen rollers. Force equals mass times acceleration and those blockers are BIG girls. Watching 190 pounds of blocker, skates, and padding collide knee to kidney with a jammer at 20 mph is enough to make you want to wrap your children in bubble wrap for the rest of their lives. It's an estimated 777 newtons of force. Math.

A group of blockers goes down, taking a jammer with them.

But beneath this invigorating the violence, there is a level of passion and caring you just do not see in America anymore. By almost every measure, community involvement is down nationwide. With some notable exceptions, charitable giving is down as well. But the Rollergirls participate in their communities. They volunteer at Food Banks. They spotlight a different charity every month. Their bouts are non-profit. In addition to Food Bank they sponsored girl scouts, transgender health clinics, Gay Prom, and several inner city youth groups.

Their halftime show regularly features the Greenbelt S.I.T.Y. Stars, a jump rope team made up of inner-city youth that are simply amazing. These particular jump ropers have performed in Disney films and for the Obamas at the White House. Their website has some video, but it is nothing like seeing them in person. Just—look, just trust me. I’d pay to see them alone.

The picture doesn't do it justice, but they're jumping rope
while doing a split.

The snacks sold at the games are made by the girls themselves and similarly raise funds for charity. If you’re curious, some of the girls are gluten-free, so if allergies are your concern, ask—they probably have you covered.

The crowd is welcoming to everyone. At $12 a ticket, just about anyone can afford to go. Rich and poor alike. The crowd was diverse along not only race and gender lines, but also age and personal identity. One man was there with his mentally ill son. They have a section roped off for the deaf where an ASL translator will sign the announcements as the game goes on. It is the most inclusive sport I have seen. It seemed like everyone was represented from punks to preps. It was like everything your high-school pep-rally wished it could be.

Velocity Raptor of Scare Force One

Nasty Pelosi of Majority Whips

But the girls don’t just preach good works. They live it off the track. The Rollergirls themselves represent the entire socioeconomic spectrum. They are doctors, lawyers, active-duty military, and more than a few  librarians. They are rich and poor. When a girl has financial trouble, they help her out. Scare Force One jammer Velocity Raptor works for Planned Parenthood when she isn’t throwing elbows. Majority Whips jammer, Nasty Pelosi is Native American; due to the pounding rock and pop music being blasted during the bout my recorder did not clearly pick up the name of her tribe/nation. She is a graduate of one of the best law schools in the country, working in one of the nation’s biggest law firms, and somehow convinced them to pay her an enormous big-shot lawyer’s salary to work 100% pro-bono for the next year on issues ranging from Native American rights to violence against women. 


As an aside, and because I just can’t resist sharing, Nasty Pelosi’s derby-playing fiancé is John BoneHer. Yeah. I was apoplectic with joy, if such a thing is possible.

When the girls aren’t serving their country, or fighting over social and economic issues of paramount importance, they will have brutally honest and unvarnished conversations with you. I asked one derby girl what her worst derby moment was and, without missing a beat, she told me “the time I sodomized myself with a roller skate.” You could have scraped my jaw off the floor. “Oh yeah, I fell bad on my left ankle [ ] when I looked in the mirror, there was a wheel shaped bruise between the cheeks.”

I never understood the "athletes as heroes" thing. I mean, yeah, Mark McGuire hits a ball really, really well. Why on earth does that make him a hero? In what world does athleticism translate to moral fiber or good judgment? But I get it now. At the risk turning off readers with a little too much schmaltz, Nasty and Raptor are super-heroes. I seriously cannot express how amazing these girls are.

Roller derby may be the first sport that you can love that will also love you back. At their bouts, they announce the location of their after-parties so that the attendees can come crash a local DC bar with them. And they do party. As Velocity Raptor told me about many of their good works, I couldn’t help but be a little crestfallen. The derby names, the attitude, I was really hoping for girls with daddy issues but Raptor swore most girls were stable and happy. I thought they might be nuns on wheels; what the hell happened to sex, drugs, and rock & roll? “Oh no,” she replied with a wink, “we’ve got that too.” She let it be known that the Derby Girls are a hard living, hard partying, settle your grudges with a quick punch or live it out in the next bout kinda troop. Later in the evening I couldn’t help but think of Neil Young as I watched Nasty Pelosi nurse her face with an ice pack; she had taken a solid hit in the mouth from another girl’s helmet. “It’s better to burn out, than to fade away.”

So how much does the DC Geeks crew love roller derby? Well...

After some thought we opted instead for t-shirts.

Now, how can you get in on the awesome fun? First, some background. DC has four local teams and one national team. The local teams are:

Scare Force One

Cherry Blossom Bombshells

DC Demoncats

Majority Whips

The national team is the DC All Stars. Think of the local teams as the minors. The All Stars recruit from the locals. The local teams, by virtue of not being on the road, play a lot more. The season is almost over, but don’t worry, there are still games to be had. All games are double headers, so you get lots of bang for your buck. Get your tickets here!!!!

TONIGHT! The DC All-Stars play Queen City (NY) followed by Cherry Blossom Bombshells vs. Scare Force One.

On April 14, the DC All-Stars play the Port Authorities (ME). The DC Demon Cats play the Majority Whips.

On May 12, come celebrate my birthday (a week late) with me as I get drunk on Pabst and yell rude things as the four local teams battle in their season championship for 1^st-4^th place.

This Week in Geek 2012/04/16

A showcase of this week's finest geek and geek related activities for the week. Mark your calendars.  

Longer Term

• Starcraft 2 - Barcraft MLG Spring Arena - Washington, DC - Saturday and Sunday
• Its alcohol and gaming, a combination that always appeals to the red blooded... geek. This is our sports bar event though - violence hyped space marines getting ripped apart by genetically engineered killing machines. I never realized how intense watching Starcraft could be till I did it with a crowd who had skin in the games.

If this is the sort of thing you'd put in your basement,
Barcraft is probably for you. (via Glenn Batuyong)

Tuesday

• Space! - Space Shuttle Discovery - over Washington, DC - 10:00 to 11:00 AM
• This one is in a narrow time frame, but for those of us who grew up during the 80s and 90s it’s not something we can miss: the Discovery’s last flight (albeit atop a transport jet). Weather allowing the flight plans call for intentional flybys of the DC area monuments and public spaces. Check the site for specifics.

Wednesday

• BLUE - Blue Man Group - Washington, DC - 7:30 PM
• No, you do not get to join if you show up in blue bodypaint. Please. Don’t show up just in blue body paint. Honestly I’ve always seen them as the next step in the evolution of the family that claims mimes in their distant ancestry, but don’t let that scare you off. The Men are funny, talented, surprising, and the perfect evening out with friends.

Tip for trying new events: don't just show up with one of
these, screaming FUS RO DAH! (via Søren Niedziella)

Thursday

• “S” Words - Montgomery County Freifechter - Germantown, MD - 6:00 PM
• The event is longsword training. How awesome is that?! Given that this is probably a lot of sword-wielding awesomeness, it might be best not to show up unannounced. I included it on this week’s “in Geek” because I think the group definitely deserves a look. Introduce yourself on the meetup and ask around about joining up. Because odds are this is cooler than what you were going to do this Thursday.

Saturday

• Art - Japanese Art at the Workhouse - Lorton, VA - 11:30 AM
• I promise you that we won’t have too many more Cherry Blossom events on this site. Not till next year, at least. This one calls for you to head down to the Workhouse Arts Center in Lorton (a pretty nifty place for art geeks, anyway). For our fans of Japanese art and traditional culture, this is a day you really can’t miss. Traditional flower arranging, lectures on art styles, glazing style demonstrations, fabric arts, cuisine and film will all be on the menu.
• Burlesque - Valentine Candy Burlesque Present: Something's Fishy -  Washington, DC - 8:30 PM
• Under the sea burlesque?  I mean, how many of you have fantasized about Ursula Ariel? I mean, come on! Look at those tentacles seashells amazing songs and stuff!  Looks to be a good  burlesque show.  Two shows in a row, second one is at 10:30.

Sunday

• Redditicilous - Board Games at a Bar - Washington, DC - 2:00 PM
• To quote the illustrious Philip J. Fry, “Not sure if I think these are awesome because I’m a Redditor, or if Redditors just throw the best meetups.” It’s at the Mighty Pint and the picture shows beer and Candy Land. That pretty much sums up the best idea ever in my opinion.

• D&D - Keep on the Borderlands at Labyrinth - Washington, DC - 12:00 PM
• At the time of this writing, there are six slots remaining for this game. It's the newer version of the adventure - all the death, half the roleplay (Why don't I tell you what I really think about 4th ed sometime)... BUT it's a great way to dip a toe in and see if the 4th ed. play style is for you.

The most organized series of tabletop games
I've ever seen. (via Benny Mazur)

Did we miss something? If you have an event you’d like to promote that isn’t on this list, leave a comment or email us. Other weekly reoccurring events are listed on our website (such as Rocky, CCG tournaments, crazy themed happy hours). For more information, check out the calendars at DC Geeks.

Podcast - Anecdotes and Reviews

Brannen, Scooter, and I recorded a new podcast! This week we tackle these exciting topics!

• Tara Tiger Brown is a bitch, but given the other coverage, you may already know that.
• We go retro and talk one last time about Starfire's tits.
• The problems of gaming in public and scaring non-gamers (complete with childhood anecdotes)!
• Hunger Games review (mostly non-spoilers unless you're going to be heartbroken to hear about the socioeconomic, racial, and political demographics of Panem's districts and why I don't mind that Jennifer Lawrence isn't anorexic).
• GI Joe. God, wasn't that a horrible movie?
• Know what's worse? Wrath of the Titans.
• Something that seems to be a common reason for avoiding watching Dr. Who.
• And I make the obligatory Wil Wheaton reference - I might have a problem.
• Scooter takes time to correct our ignorance of The Death and Return of Superman.
• The upcoming events with the Gamer Symphony Orchestra.
• Did you know there's a Blacksmithing Guild of the Potomac? How awesome is that?!

Podcast Powered By Podbean

As always, the DC Geeks Podcast is produced under a CC-BY-NC-SA 3.0 license. The music is copyrighted by Random Encounter and used with permission.

The Art of Video Games or Bust

Oh Minecraft.  I'll never get that 300 hours back via Art of Video Games

There's been a lot going around over the last year about this exhibit.  The geek community in general couldn't stop talking about the opening of a video game based exhibit at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. The lands of the internets were awash with discussions on whether this truly counts as a form of art and what it means for video game culture.  Does this mean that video games are truly legit and I can stop feeling bad for keeping that old Commodore Amiga with a copy of Captain Blood in the basement? (The worst part is that it doesn't even work.)


There is a lot of self-hate within the video game community. Every time something like this comes up, we cling to it, almost in a hope that finally, just maybe, we can be considered normal. That our passion is a legitimate, verifiable 'thing'.

Original Video Game Art on Display.  Sweet.

Let's get back to that later.


The exhibit itself was amazingly presented.  First off, the feeling for it was, understandably, very different from most of the other exhibits you're going to find at any Smithsonian museum. I enjoyed that some of the games were playable, allowing the attendees to experience the games as complete pieces rather than simply still frames or a looping video.


Video games are an enticing medium mainly due to it being a co-operative experience.  I don't mean necessarily you and your buddy co-oping through Halo 2 on Legendary, I mean the space created when the developer and the player come together to make the final product.  That's why video games end up so engrossing compared to other media.  No matter how heavy handed the plot, you're part of the game.  It's your story too.

I do really love the lighting used, good nerd cave feel.

That's where The Art of Video Games fell shortest.  Having the one room with it's few games available to be played barely brushed upon the sense of shared experience. Granted, I'm not sure what they could have done to improve that.  You can't have a museum audience come through and play the entirety of Baldur's Gate after all. There's not enough time or space, plus I think that's going in the wrong direction.  You didn't come to the museum to sit down for an hour or two of video gaming.


What did you come here for? If you're at all like me, you're interested in checking this out just to see what they did with the thing.  To see what the craze is about. Maybe to get some better understanding of the though / creative process that goes into creating a video game. While this exhibit is full of nostalgia and a brief history of the progression of graphics and style in video games, I never got a full sense of why things developed the way they did.  One of my biggest complaints is that I don't understand how the exhibit shows why video games are art.  I feel there was way too much "here's a video game" and not enough of inspection of the medium.

Not in this photo, but still, PC games had two kiosks.  TWO!  Come on!

Don't get me wrong here.  I'm not say you shouldn't go to see the Art of Video Games.  I believe it's imperative that you see the exhibit while it's on display.  And the reason for that is very simple: the Art of Video Games draws in the right kind of geek.  The main people that will be interested in seeing what is on display, arguing about it, remarking, and griping will be those of us who are passionate about video games.  I can't tell you how many amazing conversations were spawned by standing around a section of this exhibit and making a random remark.  People fully engaged with each other without trying. There is a sense of community that goes with this.


I know that Chris Melissinos and the staff at the Smithsonian American Art Museum poured their hearts out for this.  The biggest triumph, where they truly earn a gold medal and half a dozen internets, is that they created something that people can go to and feel like they are a part of it. Not by playing the video games on display, viewing the art, or looking at the videos of games from yesteryear, but by striking up a conversation with that nerd next to you wearing the 1-UP t-shirt who's arguing with the guy dressed as Link about why ET wasn't chosen.


Community.  Something that the DC Geek scene really needs more of a sense of.  If I could wish for one improvement to this exhibit.  It would be for a bar/coffee shop to be attached to it.


So, we've got this milestone.  We're in a legit museum.   This huge part of our lives that we love, debate over, fight for, create in, and lose vast quantities of time to - has gained that much more mainstream recognition.  We really didn't need verification like this to prove that video games aren't just for kids or a passing fancy.  It's freakin' awesome we have it though.


What's next?


The Art of Video Games is on display until Sept 30, 2012.  Go check it out and form your own opinion.  We'd love to hear what you have to say.


Check out the the DC Geeks Flickr for The Art of Video Games for more images.

This Week in Geek - 2012/04/09

A showcase of this week's finest geek and geek related activities for the week. Mark your calendars. 

Hold it! This guy's cosplay is awesome.
Image by ElCapitanBSC

Longer Term

• Movies - Filmfest DC - Washington, DC - April 12 through April 22
• Yeah, we can fit "film geek" into our broad umbrella of fandoms. Most areas of geek interest involve film or longer form visual creations anyway. The sheer variety of offerings at the Filmfest this year are enough to get me all warm and tingly. But for the video game geek audience out there I have two words for you: Ace Attorney.
• Documentary - ComicCon IV: A Fan's Hope - Opens April 13
• We're geeks. And with a very few exceptions, we love to analyze, dissect, and pick apart our obsessions. That's not really this film. This is for those who love ComicCon, those who've never had the chance to go, and those who hope to find their life's dream in those halls. There also seem to be several meetup groups headed that way on Friday, so grab tickets while you still can.

Tuesday

• Beer! - Galaxy Hut - Arlington, VA - 5:00PM
• The only note on their schedule is "tuesday april 10: tapping virginia’s only keg of anchor old foghorn barleywine 5pm." Now, I like barleywine (hell, I've brewed barleywine), and I have to say the Old Foghorn sounds great. Keep in mind that barleywine is for serious beer drinkers, so fans of "canoe beer" may want to stay away. I can't substantiate the claim that Galaxy Hut has the only keg in the state, but are you really willing to risk skipping it?

Thursday

• Party in Space! -  Yuri's Night - All around the area
• April 12 has always been a good day for manned space flight (Yuri's first boost into orbit and the first launch of the space shuttle come to mind), and its a great day for supporters of man's place in space to get together.  There will be Yuri's Night parties all around the area with talks, presentations, drinks and more. Check out the party list for details on all the local events.

Friday

• Superstition - If you believe in that sort of thing - Right behind you! - All day
• The wikipedia entry for this is filled with awesomely huge words for this fear (friggatriskaidekaphobia and paraskevidekatriaphobia - neither of which are Scrabble-legal). What it should boil down to is a great excuse to hang out with friends and watch cheesy horror movies.
• Freestyle Sideshow - Black Ties, Red Noses - Washington, DC - 8:00 PM
• Yeah, yeah, its a fundraiser. Just make peace with that and realize that its a fundraiser in a historic house stuffed to bursting with dancing, burlesque, sideshow acts, clowns, fire eating, and a speakeasy downstairs. Grab your tickets quick. 

Its party time!
Image by Mick62

Saturday

• Cultural - Sakura Matsuri Japanese Street Festival - Washington, DC - 11:00 AM
• This is the big one for the Festival. With the exception of the blossoms themselves, this is the event that most of us really try to get out to during the Cherry Blossom Festival. Fans of Far Eastern (especially Japanese) culture, fans of martial arts, and rapid fans of taiko performers (guilty) should be willing to sell an aunt (or at least rent a sister) to make it out for this one.
• More Culture - National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade - Washington, DC - 10:00 to 12:30
• Ok, so there are several reasons you really try to get out to the festival. Even if you're not interested in the festival, everyone likes parades, right? If you want to have the best seats in the house, it'll cost you $20, but standing along the parade route is free as always. If you're on the fence, check out Flickr and YouTube for a taste of last year's parade.

Sunday

• Deadline - Cherry Blossom Photography Contest Ends - FotoDC - 11:59PM
• Hey guys, Aine stepping in for a second here. (Editor'd!) Now, I'm wary of posting this, but I opted not to let my own views on photo contests get in the way of something you all may find interesting. With the centennial, I'm sure many of you have filled your SD cards with gorgeous petals, stunning sunsets, the monuments through the trees, maybe some laughing babies. If you don't have a moral objection to paying to enter a photography contest, FotoDC wants pictures of the blossoms. However, the contest is coming to a close, so enter soon.

Did we miss something? If you have an event you’d like to promote that isn’t on this list, leave a comment or email us. Other weekly reoccurring events are listed on our website (such as Rocky, CCG tournaments, crazy themed happy hours). For more information, check out the calendars at DC Geeks. 

Podcast - Pre-gaming

I am so excited to be able to post this week's podcast. We finally ran out of free space over on Soundcloud, so bear with us as we shift and try a few different host sites. This week we're trying Podbean. Let us know in the comments how you like it.

A little while ago, Brannen, Scooter and I stopped to record a podcast before going off and attempting the Boondock Saints Drinking Game. We wound up talking about everything from my mom to Mazes and Monsters to 3D-printed artificial limbs. I hope you enjoy.

Podcast Powered By Podbean

As always, the DC Geeks Podcast is produced under a CC-BY-NC-SA 3.0 license. The music is copyrighted by Random Encounter and used with permission.

Katsucon 18: A Video Retrospective

This year we got the pleasure to talk to and help out Eric Hunsaker, of Black Lab Film + TV, with a retrospective on Katsucon 18.  We'll start off with the video itself.  Take a quick look, I'll wait.




Katsucon 18 from eric hunsaker on Vimeo.
Ok, as far as the help we gave, I wish we could say that we helped him carry his camera equipment and chase down costumed folk.  Really, all credit for the awesome of this should go to Eric himself.  We just helped get him some access and threw around a little weight.

This is one of my favorite retrospectives of a convention.  It does a pretty amazing job of getting the breadth of costumes that came out (not all of them, but a good variety) and the sense of wonder that comes with going to a con.  How often have you been to a convention and just looked around?  It's a full-on Alice in Wonderland experience, even for the seasoned veterans.

Makes me wish I was at one right now.  Only just under 10 months til the next Katsucon. :) Hopefully see you there.