San Japan 8Bit...

~*July 31st- August 2nd*~

Another year, another Anime Convention! 

Like every other summer, I attended San Japan this year along with my dear Harkiewiczes! I always love having this time to spend with them, especially since I never see them. Once upon a time we were so close, and I don't wanna lose that. This year, as always, was fun & exciting and came with some amazing surprises!

Firstly- I COSPLAYED!! FINALLY!!! Kassie made me a Sakura cosplay and it was so cute! Ok, it was slightly incomplete, but I still loved it!! I was flipping out because I kept seeing Cardcaptor Sakura merchandise! It was the perfect year to cosplay as Sakura, haha! 

And I wasn't the only one! My Harkiewiczes all cosplayed, too! Sarah and James were Harley and the Joker- they were perfect! But they kept getting stopped for photos, haha. I mean, that's great except when we're trying to get places..! (-u-;) And Sam was, of course, our resident Poison Ivy! And Kassie, who joined us for the 1st time at San Japan, was my Syaoran! Sadly, we were unable to get a photo together since she spent most of her time volunteering with the staff. 

The 2nd exciting thing that happened this year: Kieran was here again! She's such a crazy cool chick, and I love her nerd rock music. If you haven't listened to her music yet, do it! 

Along these lines: after 2 years away, I participated in the San Japan Idol again! Made it to the finals with my Japanese performance of "Let It Go" (Of course I sang Disney ;p). But the compliment I got from Kieran during my audition, man... She told me straight-up that I had passed, no need to wait for a deliberation. "I'm literally shaking- I got chills!" Oh my goodness!! I can't believe this fantastic woman told me that! Now, performing for 1 or 2 people- no problem! But in front of an audience??? You'd be surprised how nerve-wracking that is!! I messed up on my final note in the finals- SO BADLY- but I had a fantastic time on stage. I can't wait till the next year! I want to keep performing until I'm actually comfortable!! Practice makes perfect!! 

The next amazing surprise was these fanfuckingTASTIC finds!!! As always, I spent the 1st two days walking around, trying to figure out which plushy I would buy- it would be between a Sakura plush or an Eevee one (they were everywhere!). HOWEVER, I found THIS jewel!!! A CONAN PLUSH!! Just... WHAT???? Everyone knows I fucking LOVE Detective Conan, and I have never seen a Conan plush before! And there were 2! There was one with him in a detective's costume and then this normal Conan- I NEEDED HIM!! Once he was bought, I couldn't stop hugging him..! (>w<)

The Meowstic I helped Nicky buy for me (because he's such a sweetheart) and the 4th Season of Case Closed was given to me for FREE from a friend! He won it in a game, didn't know the show and just offered it up- "Fuck ya I want it!"

Of course, I always attend the Voice Actor panels and this year San Japan had a great group! From left to right: Jessica Calvello (Hange Zoe from Shingeki no Kyojin), Brett Weaver (Gunther Schultz from Shingeki no Kyojin), Lisa Ortiz (Lina Inverse from Slayers/ Tony Tony Chopper from 4Kids' One Piece), Steve Blum (Spike Spiegel from Cowboy Bebop/ Guilmon from Digimon Tamers), Mary Elizabeth McGlynn (Motoko Kusanagi from Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex). All wonderfully talented, sweet people with crazy fun personalities.

Now, the Voice Actor panels are always my favorite. I always get inspired just sitting there listening to their stories, taking in all their tips, and learning through observation and what-not; however, this year I met fucking Steve Blum! He's practically one of the royals of the voice over world! I've been a fan of his for yeeeaaars- since I 1st watched Cowboy Bebop! And I have always wanted to meet him & I finally did!! Talk about starstruck! Definitely a highlight of my weekend!! (>//<)

My absolute favorite surprise this year, though, was getting to take Nicky to his 1st ever convention!!! I always said I would and for his birthday this year I promised him that he would come. I was really worried that I wouldn't have the money for both of our tickets, but it all worked out and I was able to take him!! I had so much fun exploring with my little brother and it made my heart so happy just to see how excited he was (TvT). I'm so proud of this kid- I can't believe he's in high school already!! Can't wait to take him again next year!! 

I've been attending Anime conventions for 10years now. Man that makes me feel old, haha. And no matter how many times I go, or where it takes place, I am still amazed by the talented and kind-hearted people I meet. I love attending conventions and will continue to do so for as long as I am able!! Conventions are an amazing place where you can bring out your weird and no one judges you. And even more-so, there's usually people more crazy than you are, haha! 

Oh, but wait, there's more: JAMES PROPOSED TO SARAH!!!!!! They are so adorable and nerdy together and James is an absolute sweetheart. I'm so happy for them!! Who knows when the wedding will be, but you know I'll be there! And now I'm off to Florida! I'm gonna miss these girls so muuuuch!! Till next year, my dear Harkiewiczes!!! (\TvT/)

Sinister 6...

What seems to have become a sort of tradition, 

I ended the summer by spending time with my friends,

attending the ever-growing con, San Japan!

Day 1:

  Luckily, we arrived early to the hotel and got checked-in and went through badge pick-up amazingly quick! None of us really knew what to do with ourselves, so early in the con! We spent most of this day roaming the Dealer's Room, Artists Alley, and just enjoying all of the cosplayers! I ran into a number of friends that I hadn't seen in a while, so it was really nice to catch up!

 Around mid-day, we discovered that there was to be an Avatar: The Last Airbender demonstration!! None of us knew what to expect; nevertheless, we were all excited and rushed to the front row seats! Sifu Kisu, this hilariously wonderful man pictured above, explained and demonstrated a number of bending techniques. Sifu, it turns out, was one of the founders of the original Avatar series, and remains to be its head martial arts specialist! It was so amazing getting to see bending come-to-life!!

  To close-out the night, I attended my first EVER Rock concert!! Almost two years ago, now, one of my friends, Stacy (whom I've taken Japanese &&& VA classes with), got me into their music. Like most fans, I had heard about the band because its lead-singer, Johnny Yong Bosch, is a big-time Anime voice actor (also the original Black Power Ranger); however, not until Stacy gave me access to their music did I really fall in love! Now I own all of their albums & I was so happy I finally got to see them perform live!! 

  Another great thing I've learned: Short people get the BEST concert spots!! Upon entering the stage, Eyeshine told everyone to move closer to the stage in order to have a more intimate concert setting, so I was near literally ON the stage! Polo, the lead-guitarists was RIGHT THERE!! I had to keep taking steps back because I was scared he was going to hit me! But still, it was so FANTASTIC! Polo is such an amazing guitarist & I got to see his playing and facial expressions up-close & personal!!

The BEST part of the night, though, was getting to see Stacy pulled on-stage!! She is seriously Eyeshine's biggest fan: she talks to Ginny and Polo over Facebook all of the time, she brings them their favorite snacks every time they meet, and she makes sure to attend every concert she can! Partway through a song, Polo reaches over the crowd and pulls her onstage, gives her his guitar, and she got to jam out with Johnny!! Her face was so red and I was so happy for her!! 

 I'm so happy that Eyeshine was my first rock concert! They were amazing and so much fun!! All of their fans obviously love them, and the con atmosphere made it all so much more intimate and exciting! I'm hoping I can tag along with Stacy to more Eyeshine concerts in the future!!

Day 2:

  The following day happened to be just as exciting as the first! I made it to the Finals of the San Japan Ani-Idol competition! It was a lot of fun performing, but with only 2days of preparation, I knew there was no way I would be able to advance any further... Teehee, but there's always next year!! (*0*)

  Besides the competition, I got to meet this awesome lady, Kieran Strange! She's a British singer who is too amazing and has an adorable accent! I had never met her before, but I knew by how we subconsciously matched shirts & the way she freaked out at my Spider-Man USB drive, that she was going to be cool... After meeting her, I decided to listen to some of her music & I love it! She's become so big recently and will be starting her Japan tour this fall, traveling around performing her own creation of "British nerd-rock!" I can't wait to see her career blowup in the near future!

The second day, I was so busy running around trying to get from panel to panel, as well as attending the competition, so I didn't get to take as many pictures as I would have liked! However, there were so many that I loved! I saw so many classic Anime characters, which made me so happy! And, of course, the usual abundance of Naruto and Poke'mon cosplayers were there as well!

I was so happy to catch quite a few Sakura Kinomoto cosplayers! I just had to stop and take a picture of my favorite Anime characters!! I am desperately hoping that I will be able to cosplay next year too!! Sakura, of course, is my dream cosplay, but at this point, I'll do whatever I can manage! Other personal cosplay ideas are Ciel Phantomhive from Kuroshitsuji / Black Butler, && Vanellope von Schweetz from Wreck-It-Ralph!! o(^ ^)o

  Besides the Ani-Idol competition, my goal for the second day was to attend every Voice Actor panel! And I did!! All of the panels were back-to-back, all in the same room, so it was pretty convenient! The VA panels are always my favorite part of attending conventions! Even if I've already met the person, I still love hearing all of the stories! 

  This guy... Just... Let's just say, he was hilarious, vulgar, and soooo hyper! I don't know why people kept giving him sugar throughout the day! Haha, but it was great to meet the infamous, Scott McNeil!! Voice of Van Hohenheim (FMA), Koga (Inuyasha), Wolverine (X-Men Evolution), and a million other credits, but more importantly- Piccolo from Dragonball Z!!!! 

  My friends and I just happened to run into him about a hundred times throughout the day, and every meeting was an event! Eventually, we got his autograph and the chance to be a part of this San Japan photo-op! He also gave me a bunch of hugs because he claimed that I was "height-efficient and so adorably huggable!" Haha, I loved this guy! (^-^) 

  After seeing her at panels a number of times in the past couple years, I finally got to officially meet the amazingly talented and adorable, Carrie Savage! Another one of the "greats" with a million voice credits including, Maromi (Paranoia Agent), Momoka (Ouran High School Host Club), Kaname (Madoka Magica), &&& Mokona from Tsubasa: Resevoir Chronicles & XXX/Holic!! She was such a sweetheart! And don't be deceived, the only reason why she looks so tall compared to me is because she was wearing heels! (-u-)

  My highlight of the weekend, or maybe of the year: I got to meet the amazingly awesome, Jerry Jewell!!! I found out that he was attending San Japan months ago, and just as I did with all previous guests, I was so excited! Except, as the days passed, I thought more and more about the characters that he's done and I realized- he's voiced basically every one of my FAVORITE Male Anime characters!!!! Claire Stanfield (Baccano!), Russia (Hetalia), Kyo Sohma (Fruits Basket), Jin/ Sakamoto/ Suzaku (YuYu Hakusho), Happiness Bunny (Shin-chan), and of course a million other amazing characters I could throw in there, BUT, his most important one for me- Jimmy Kudo from Case Closed!!!!

  After I realized this, the con just became a mission: GET JERRY JEWELL'S AUTOGRAPH! And I did... I mean, sure, I had to be one of those fangirls that bombarded him at his very last panel (the 18+ panel, which was SO GREAT, by the way), but hey, at least I got it!!! And it was so weeeeiiird!! I hadn't been "star-struck" in such a long time! I didn't know what to say when I met him! I'm just so happy I did.

Day 3 

  All we did was hit the dealer's room for all of its sales and check-out of our hotel, but none of this mattered to me, because, basically, my dreams came true this weekend!! I got to meet so many awesome people, attend my first rock concert, and meet one of my FAVORITE voice actors!! 

  It's times like these when I just want to hit fast-forward on my life and be a voice actress already! I mean, I'm optimistic enough to fully believe I will be someday, and even though I'm only 20years old, I feel like it's taking FOREVER!! I want to be that person that makes people feel as amazingly happy like I do right now, just thinking about this weekend! Anyways, San Japan Sinister 6, definitely one to remember! I can't wait till next year, but till then, I've got about 9months of school to deal with! Wish me luck!!

Sincerely Yours,

Lisette Monique Diaz

ৎ꒰ ¯ิ̑﹃ ¯ิ̑๑꒱ુ ୭ ~Sweet Dreams~ ৎ꒰ ¯ิ̑﹃ ¯ิ̑๑꒱ુ ୭