What?! you may be saying to yourself.  I don’t know anything about babies!  The last time I held a baby was when I… no wait, I’ve never held a baby.  And the last time I was around a pregnant person they were talking about WEARING it and I am clearly out of the loop.  What am I supposed to give a baby?  

You’re in luck, because Aunt J is here to the rescue.  Growing up, I had my much-younger-sister to help with; when I got older, I got some awesome nieces and nephews.  I am very near an expert on buying things for other people’s children.  There are major perks to this, trust me.

For one thing, because you’re not the parent, you’re automatically more fun, and anything you buy carries bonus points.  For another, you can slowly turn the child into a full-fledged geekling – because let me tell you, there are all sorts of crazy cool toys available now, for all ages and geek flavors.  Just find the category that applies to the geekling in question!

For the Crunchy Baby

No, I don’t mean baby that tastes good with ranch dressing or dipped in a Frosty; there are words that I could be throwing around here like “Montessori” but really I mean the baby whose parents have guidelines such as, no licensed characters, or no plastic, loud, flashy toys.  If you hear that chances are your mind will go blank and you’ll think But all I ever played with was loud, flashy, plastic toys!  But it’s easy, I promise.  The key word here is wood.  Anything wood is probably golden.  Er, wooden.  Here are a few options:

Young Mad Scientist Alphabet Blocks – They’re as educational as any normal set of wooden blocks, but incredibly detailed and awesome illustrations (‘D’ is for ‘Dirigible’).  And the fact that there’s only five blocks means the parents won’t get uptight about overwhelming overstimulation.

Melissa & Doug Wooden Sushi – Almost all parents – not just the crunchy ones – seem to really love this Melissa & Doug stuff.  This sushi set is made of wood and velcro, so the toddler can roll their own sushi and then chop through the velcro with the included wooden cleaver.  There’s just something hilarious about babies and sushi, but there’s a fruit set in case the parents are vegan too, sheesh.

For the Hipster Baby

This baby has hipster parents.  You figure a PBR shirt is a little inappropriate – or is it?  Irony is the name of the game here.

Cuter Than Baby Jesus Onesie - The parents will think it’s funny, and not-so-deep-down they’ll probably believe it.  If you don’t want to be THAT edgy, any onesie with a mustache on it will do.  Why yes, I know I’ve done posts with mustache merch before.  I never said I wasn’t a little bit hipster.

My First Bacon Talking Plush – It says “I’m Bacon!” when you squeeze it.  Why?  Dude, if you have to ask…

For (the) Science! (Baby)

Moon in My Room – My family actually owns two of these; my mother purchased the first years ago (I swear it was National Geographic brand back then) to keep in the room for her grandchildren, and I bought the second last winter for my nephews’ own room.  It’s a thin piece of curved molded plastic, like the surface of the moon; a little remote lets you flip through the moon phases and set it on your favorite.  So much better than a nightlight.

LadyBeez Lab Geek BeezLegz – In the last few years, you’ll be happy to learn, trendy patterened legwarmers have all but replaced tights on baby girls.  If this doesn’t fill you with joy, maybe you weren’t jammed into tights as a little girl or, heck, into pantyhose as an adult woman.  Anyway, legwarmers are cute on baby boys, too, not to mention functional, and they don’t get in the way of that whole diaper thing.  This set features beakers and symbols and makes science altogether cozy.

For the (Couch) Tater Tot

Not all parents ban their children from television; in fact, some can’t wait to share the TV and movies they grew up on.  However, it’s important not to stay entirely in the past, so that the kid will be able to relate to others on the playground (the ones who might not have grown up watching The Real Ghostbusters, say).  Thus, here’s a Greatest Hit, as well as the one that’s tearing up the charts today.

Little Star Wars Costumes – Because slapping some Yoda ears or Leia buns on a baby will never get old.

Yo Gabba Gabba Brobee Cuddle Pillow – I have never seen this show beyond clips on The Soup.  I do not pretend to understand it.  But every little kid under the age of 5 seems to agree it’s all kinds of awesome.

What about you?  What are some of your favorite gifts for geeklings?

Luckily, lots of people that were in attendance were kind enough to let us all know what went down.  Particular to my own personal interest every year is hearing what they announce for new products coming out in the year or so ahead.  While this list isn’t always perfect (there’s a noticeable lack of the Ravenloft RPG, for example, which was announced last year), it’s a way to get an idea of what direction Wizards of the Coast wants to take things in the D&D line.

So let’s have a look, shall we?

No 5th Edition

Firstly, despite a zillion rumors to the contrary, there was no announcement of D&D 5th Edition.  Thank goodness.  I think that 4E is a great game with lots of life left in it; I would’ve been rather upset if they were abandoning it already.

Board Games

It was announced that Dungeon of Dread, a boardgame in the style of Castle Ravenloft and Wrath of Ashardalon, has been dropped.  Now, however, they’ve announced a March 2012 release called Lords of Waterdeep, a game of intrigue and resource management.  They describe it as a “Euro-style” boardgame, which suits me fine, as there have been fantastic resource games coming out of Europe for years.  I’m very curious to see this when it comes around.  Since my hubby loves those kinds of games, I imagine we’ll be investing in a copy.

RPG Stuff We Already Knew About

They confirmed that Madness at Gardmore Abbey is still planned for release.  This boxed set adventure prominently features the classic Deck of Many Things in what’s being described as a much more sandbox-ish and roleplaying focused adventure.  Sounds like a very interesting piece – I’m looking forward to it.

Mordenkainen’s Magnificent Emporium had been announced last year, was canceled from the catalog, and has now returned.  Thank goodness!  With the addition of a rarity system for magic-items, D&D is over-run with uncommon items and desperately in need of more commons and rares.  I hope there’ll be plenty more in this book.

Player’s Option: Heroes of the Feywild is coming – none too soon for my tastes, given that my own campaign has a significant Feywild adventure coming shortly.  There are new player races, including Hamadryad, Satyr, and Pixie, a race which can fly starting at 1st level!  There’s also a new dual-role Barbarian build coming: Striker while raging, Defender when not.  Curious idea.  I’ll look forward to seeing how that looks.

The Book of Vile Darkness, presumably to coincide with the movie of the same name, will be out in December.  Much to my surprise, it’s been announced that this book will be about running a campaign with evil PCs.  Now that I think about it, a lot of the 3rd Edition BoVD was on that theme as well, so maybe I shouldn’t be so shocked.  Curious to see what they update.

RPG Stuff We Didn’t Know About

There’s a limited edition set of 5 dragon figures, which I’m excited for, coming in October.  This will include brand new sculpts for the white and green dragons.  I love dragon figures, so I’ll look forward to it.

More Dungeon Tiles are coming.  New sets include Shadowghast Manor, with a haunted house theme, and Cathedral of Chaos, which will have more diagonal tiles and was described as allowing one to make “Gygaxian chambers.”  Heheh.  Nice reference to some of the bizarre rooms Mr. Gygax put into his adventures.

More Fortune Cards are coming, including Fury of the Feywild and Spiral of Tharizdun.  As before, these will coincide to some degree with the campaigns of D&D Encounters that will be released for in-store play.  Apparently, the Feywild one will be based on Beyond the Crystal Cave, a module from 1st edition that I loved that had fey, Shakespearean romance, and a curiously ambiguous happy ending.  It was one of the more thoughtful mods I remember from the old days, so I may have to look into playing that.

A new series of products called Lair Assault is coming.  These books are challenging adventures made in the Dungeon Delve style.  The announced adventures include Forge of the Dawn Titan (a fiery dungeon adventure), Talon of Umberlee (pirate-themed adventure), and Attack of the Tyrant Claw (defending a tower against dinosaurs).

Map Packs are going to start coming out in January.  I am thrilled with this idea, as I love the well-illustrated poster maps WotC has been putting out, and I enjoy theming adventures around them, rather than making my own.  Some are from previous adventures, so I’ll keep an eye on this.

April will bring us an as-yet-untitled adventure set in Undermountain.  This is an absolutely classic adventure setting, so I’m looking forward to some good old dungeon delving goodness.

It was hinted that there’s a new setting planned for August 2012 that will not just be a new location but a new way to play the game.  It was stated outright that it won’t be Dragonlance, but it was agreed that there are dragons in the setting (big surprise).  It was stated that it’ll be something D&D hasn’t tried before and that “Twist” was a good word to use for it.  My first thought was that it might be something similar to Council of Wyrms, where PCs played dragons, but that has been done before, so I guess we’ll have to wait and see.

Miniatures!

This was the announcement I’d personally been waiting for: They are reviving the minis line, but they’re going to get away from randomization and collectability.  Instead, they will put out sets of 12 or so figures for monster themes like Drow, Orcs, or Goblins, including large figures.

I think this is a fantastic idea, and it’s what a lot of people pushed for from day one.  If you need goblins, you don’t want to buy a bunch of random figures hoping to get a few goblins; you want to buy 12 goblins and move on with your day.

The only trouble I see is that there’s a lot of player races with limited or no support yet.  For example, there’s only 1 Shardmind figure and no Wilden figures.  I’m hoping they might put out a big set of player character types that’ll include common concepts, such as human fighters, elf rangers, etc., and slip in some oddballs like Shardminds and Wilden.  Fingers crossed.

Your Turn

So that wraps up most of what I’ve heard.  Is there anything you’re disappointed with?  Anything you’re looking forward to now?  Let us all know!

No, the main hindrance in my geek life had nothing to do with the fact that I was a girl; it was hard to be a geek because I was poor.

It’s easy to forget that following a passion takes money, unless you’re in a situation where you have very little to begin with.  So much of geek culture – well, pop culture, really – revolves around what you were doing at a certain time, those shared experiences.  For many of them, you had to have bought a certain product at a certain time.

For example, I didn’t get a Nintendo until I was ten or eleven – and then I got the original console, handed down from a friend who had happily moved on to Sega Genesis.  It was 1994, and I was only just playing Mario 3.  To this day, I occasionally get teased because I’ve never played all that many video games – like the original Zelda, for instance.  That’s because the only games I had access to were the ones handed down.  I played the ever-lovin’ crap out of those games.  But today, can I be a “true” Nintendo fan when my knowledge is limited to maybe seven or eight games?

And so it went for almost everything I liked thereafter.  It takes money to buy an entire band’s catalogue, or to own a giant collection of figures, collect games, buy spinoff novels, construct costumes, and so on.  The Mean Girls in my life didn’t look down on me because of my clothes; they did because I had never read a manga or didn’t have the money to go to a con.  This video makes me want to hurl something through a window, not because the girl looks eerily like Christine Taylor, but because, in my head, that’s what happens when you run into an insufferable Rich Geek, not a Girl Geek.

Granted, the internet (which I didn’t get until 1998) has leveled the playing field in some respects; it’s possible to learn about or pirate quite a bit.  Assuming, of course, that you have the internet, or that it runs at a tolerable speed.  But whether you’re upgrading your computer or buying the latest cute Doctor Who shirt, being a geek takes a certain amount of disposable income – maybe more than some “mainstream” hobbies, because to be a dabbler, a casual fan, is to be a sham.

So the next time you meet a casual fan, be it man or woman, remember the many mitigating circumstances before you scoff.  Maybe they’ve got a newly discovered passion.  Maybe they don’t have the cash to really delve in the way they’d like.  Maybe they’ve been focusing on getting their Master’s degree.  Most importantly, it’s not really any of your business.  Maybe you should be glad that you’ve met anyone else who’s willing to discuss The X-Files.

C's Kaylee costume from Halloween 3 years ago. It's too big now, which is part of why she doesn't have a cool costume.

Back around the start of the new year, I made a list of geeky resolutions for 2011. One of them was to cosplay for the first time. So with our first con of the year coming up in just a couple weeks, I must have an awesome costume or two ready to go, right?

Nope. I got nothing.

Part of the reason I made my resolutions here in my column, for all the geek world to see, was so I’d have you all to hold me accountable. And I can’t expect my readers to make and keep resolutions that I can’t keep, can I? So here I am, fessing up and looking for a little encouragement and advice, which just might help someone else in the same boat, as well.

I could throw out a bunch of excuses as to why I don’t have a costume ready to go – lack of time, lack of money, lack of muscle tone – but the main reason I’m still floundering around in the very early stages of my cosplay journey is very simple.

I don’t know who I want to cosplay as.

To seasoned cosplayers, who have more ideas for costumes than they can count, this might seem like a ridiculous problem. It’s like standing in a library full of books and complaining that you can’t find anything to read, isn’t it? With so many possibilities to choose from, how can I not have a clue who I want to pretend to be?

Where I’m Stuck

There are three big things that are bottle-necking my quest for a great cosplay:

I wear glasses, and cannot wear contacts. I also desperately need my glasses to function and walk around, so leaving them off for even an hour or two is not an option. This automatically rules out any costume that would require face paint. Plus, I don’t want to look silly cosplaying as a character who doesn’t wear glasses. There aren’t a lot of choices out there for someone who really wants to wear glasses as part of their costume; my searches on teh interwebz turned up a number of characters from anime/manga that I’ve never heard of (sorry, M) but not much else. So it’s looking like my two main options right now are Baroness and generic Hogwarts student. Which brings me to…

I want my cosplay to mean something to me. I’m a child of the 80’s, so I liked G.I. Joe, but it wasn’t exactly something I planned my days around. Baroness isn’t high on my list of characters I absolutely love. And while I do love Harry Potter, I’d prefer to actually be a specific character that people would hopefully recognize. I don’t want to pick some random anime character just because the look is right – I want to portray a character from a fandom I at least like, if not love (like X-Men, Firefly, InuYasha, or most things fantasy). And finally…

I want to be comfortable. I’m just a jeans-and-t-shirt kind of girl, ya know? I can handle a dress or skirt if needed, but I’m not a fan of high heels. And any costume that restricts my ability to breathe, eat, sit, or go to the bathroom without a couple girlfriends to help me out of my trappings is not going to work for this geek girl. I want a costume I can get into and out of by myself (maybe with minimal help from my husband) in a matter of minutes – I don’t have the patience to spend two hours getting into costume. I also want to be able to wear it for several hours – or even a whole day – without discomfort. If I’m feeling pinched, poked or constricted, I’m going to turn into a cranky geek girl in very short order, and no one wants that.

Where I’m NOT Stuck

Before I sound like a complete whiner, I’m pretty open about a couple things for my cosplay. I’m not opposed to wearing something skin-tight, or even showing a fair amount of my super-white skin. While I’m not quite ready to wear a chainmail bikini, I’m confident enough with my weight and shape to wear a short skirt, a low-cut top, or a spandex bodysuit. And generic or original characters aren’t out of the question, if that’s what ultimately works best. I’m also open to the idea of cosplaying as a male character.

Help me, dear readers and cosplay veterans! Are my glasses-wearing fears unfounded? Should I really just cosplay whoever I want? Is it possible to be comfy all day long in a costume?

While it’s too late to pull together a costume for MisCon 25, we won’t be hitting another con until late this fall. That’s plenty of time if I can get all my ducks in a row. Perhaps with your help, my next column about this journey will reveal some progress toward the best cosplay EVAR! (Or at least a good one.)

What advice do you have for me in my quest to create a great costume?

A wise and learned man (i.e. my dad) once said that in the end, every career ends up coming down to managing people. Even the most solitary jobs or lowbie entry positions often end up evolving through promotions and reassignments into full blown leadership of a team or coordinating between clients and managers.  So chances are that all of us, even the most solitary writers and night watchmen, will find ourselves in a position where we have to unite people and direct them in some sort of capacity.

The idea of being a leader can be very intimidating to a lot of geeks, this particular geek included. But a lot of us may not realize that we’ve had more leadership experience than we know. Our favourite fandom pursuits are often a great way to learn people management skills and be a leader, to say nothing of gaining confidence. Whether you’re a shy nerd who’s happiest on the computer or a geeky social butterfly who’s constantly in the spotlight, chances are you’re already a bit of a social, political and professional mastermind… and you don’t even know it.

Sadly, a lot of geeky leadership experience isn’t the sort of thing you can put on a resume; I’m still bitter about the fact that my years  of working as a guild leader in WoW  isn’t good for at LEAST a CEO position! But even if you might not be able to confess to your interviewer that you are an expert mediator of internet flame wars, you can still take satisfaction and confidence in your own accomplishments and skills. So next time you’re nervous about applying for a job that might demand a lot from you, or even just feeling down about yourself, take stock and think about how your experiences have made you a better leader.

Me? A leader? Yeah right…

Think about it:

-          Have you ever GMed a roleplaying campaign? Have you ever helped organize a session? Have you been the one hosting a game, calling people up, arranging the food and timing and everything?

-          Have you ever been part of an anime club (or gaming club, or sci fi club, etc) in university? Have you ever been part of the executive (e.g. President, Secretary, etc?) Have you ever been in charge of showings or events?

-          Have you taken part in a geek convention? Have you worked as volunteer staff or as one of the committee? Have you directed volunteer and staff teams?

-          Are you part of a guild or clan in an online game? Are you an officer? Do you lead raids or assist guildmates? Do your fellow players look up to you like a leader?

-          Are you active on fandom and geek forums? Do you serve as a moderator in a forum, even in an unofficial capacity? Do you like being in charge of threads and keeping the conversation on topic?

-          Are you part of a modding, scanslating, fansubbing or other creative team? Are you part of the decision process on what your next projects are?

-          Have you ever hosted or organized a LAN event or other geek event? Gotten the word out? Talked to people, made bookings, gotten the whole thing going?

I bet you’ve done at least one or two of those, or perhaps a few that aren’t on the list. And every one of them is an example of helping direct people and working as a leader to accomplish a goal. And you thought you were just another pretty face!

How can I turn this into a career?

As you can probably guess, a lot of this geek leadership would be a hard sell on a resume or in an interview… but not all of it. Convention experience in particular can be a great sell in terms of event management and dealing with teams, and executive leadership of university clubs can also be a good example of leadership experience an employer might find useful. The key thing to remember is to emphasize your skills in a way that will appeal to a company. In other words, dwell less on the “geekness” of your background and more on the specific tasks and responsibilities you had, such as what you organized or what you were in charge of. For example, rather than emphasize the fact that you were Head of the Klingon High Council of Con Security at your local Star Trek convention, point out that you assisted congoers and guests as well as security volunteers, ensured the safety of the venue, and coordinated with a team to keep security running smoothly. It’s up to you how much emphasis you want to put on it – you could mention it in Extra Curricular, Volunteer or Hobbies – but think about the job you’re applying for and figure out how best to present yourself… just like everything else in your resume.

But the most important thing isn’t the resume, it’s you and your own confidence. Don’t let yourself think that, because you’re a “geek”, you’re bad with people. Chances are that you’ve already been a great manager in some form or fashion, and even if your employers may never know your secret geek mastermind persona, you know… and that might help give you the personal boost you need to try for that next promotion, or apply for a job you might not have thought yourself “worthy” of.

And for the record, I would *totally* hire a Head of the Klingon High Council of Con Security.

How has geekiness and fandom made you a better leader?

“The most wonderful time of the year,” can, in fact, be the most stressful.  So how do we get your relationship through unscathed?  Hopefully these tips and tricks will help, regardless of the age of your relationship.

Learn to Share

This one’s a problem I hear particularly from those who are college-age, traveling home for winter break, but even in the “adult world” we often travel “home” for the holidays.

For many, the winter break or holiday season is one of the only times of the year when they get to see the rest of their loved ones – family, friends who might live elsewhere, etc.  It’s a period of only a few weeks, and it’s expected that a year’s worth of bonding will occur.

It’s hard to give the same level of attention to a boyfriend or girlfriend when you’re being pulled in a thousand different directions, and nothing crashes a holiday high faster than knowing your significant other is miffed.  If you know your other half is going to have a lot of stress and people to pay attention to, try giving them some space, and take the time to hang out with your own friends and family (It’s also a great time to do some sneaky present shopping that won’t be easily detected).

Pick and Choose

So you come from one background, one set of traditions or even religion, and your significant other comes from another.  You don’t understand why she thinks a fruitcake works best as a doorstop, and she doesn’t understand why you would open all your presents on Christmas Eve.  Ah, the holidays – a time of culture clash.

Well, for those who are getting testy instead of jolly, try bearing two things in mind:

No tradition exists in a vacuum; there’s no one right way. Take Christmas, for example, a mishmash of traditions from various cultures and even religions.  Instead of rolling your eyes at some “silly” holiday routine, take this as an insight into your significant other’s life.  It can be a learning experience, and you might even pick up something fun and new that you incorporate yourself (like the Doctor Who Christmas special).

Start your own traditions. Who says you have to do everything exactly like your parents?  You’re adults now; you choose what stays and goes for the future.  Not only do you get to pick and choose from what you were raised with, you get to think of brand-new stuff unique to your relationship.  Maybe the new tradition is to go out to dinner at a Thai place.  Maybe it’s to be non-traditional and mix it up every year; whatever feels right for you.

It’s OK to Be Yourselves

So maybe you’re practically an honorary Christmas elf, and she just doesn’t get the importance of the tree and the lights.  Maybe he likes to do the holiday party circuit, and you get hives when you think about being in crowds.

It’s important to remember that it’s okay to be yourselves, even when you don’t exactly line up perfectly.  After all, if they love you the other eleven months out of the year, it shouldn’t break their heart when you don’t have an opinion on house lights (LED? Icicle?).  And if you’re one pulling out the decorations the day after Halloween, remember that you can explode your holiday glory all over the place and if they’re not pressured to do the same, they might just have a good time watching you.

So there you have it!  Hopefully by following some of these tips, and even just being aware that the holidays can be stressful, you’ll be ahead of the game.

Do you have any additional tips to share?  We’re all in this together, after all!

But wait, I hear you say, wouldn’t being a geek make you the perfect candidate for the job? Aren’t anime companies filled with ascended fanboys and fangirls making a living at their hobby?
Well… not exactly. And thus, here’s another Reality Check column on fan insiders and employees in the industry.

NOTE: All of the below is referring to Western anime companies, particularly English-speaking. I genuinely don’t know enough about Japanese anime company dynamics to know if the same is true for them.

The Fantasy

American anime companies are run by passionate and dedicated otaku who live, eat, sleep and breathe anime. These are people that know exactly what the fans want, because they are fans themselves, and that personal love for the medium guides each and every action they take, from the licensing to the casting to the marketing. Each title is treated like it’s their own personal baby, shielded and protected from anything that could ever besmirch the perfection and the beauty of the original Japanese product, like changes to the script or names. Who cares about money as long as we can produce as much high-quality anime as possible? Everyone involved with each project, from the voice actors to the writers to the director, is completely devoted to the series and to anime as a whole, and after a long day in the studio will go home to watch more anime, eager to immerse themselves further in their hobby.

The Reality

To be fair, depending on the company, there is a note of truth to this. There are quite a lot of fans working in the industry. Funimation in particular seems to have found massive success in being a by-fans-for-fans company. After speaking with some of their reps and examining their approach to the market, it’s clear that they have a personal and passionate interest in the medium, and that the majority of their workers are fans themselves. A lot of smaller companies manage to keep things pretty strongly on the otaku side of things too. And I think you will find that, in general, the marketing departments of many larger companies will have quite a few fans kicking around, as having people who understand the target audience is a great benefit to a company.

But for many companies, the reality is that most of the employees are not big fans of the medium. Oh sure, they may have a passing interest – possibly caused by the job itself! – but for every frothing fangirl dub/subtitle writer who blogs for Geek’s Dream Girl (*cough*) you’re likely to have five or six sound engineers, subtitlers or producers that come to the office with a cup of coffee, calmly and diligently do their work, then go home and forget all about it. I know, I’ve worked with several; they’re all very nice people and are at least intrigued by the medium, but they’re not hardcore fans by any stretch of the imagination. And let’s not even get started on how things work for the voice actors (that will be an entirely separate future post). For a lot of industry insiders, an anime-related job is just that… a job.

It should be noted, by the way, that there are many different kinds of anime or anime-related companies as well, and a lot of the fannishness can depend on what type of company or what division it is. The marketing, licensing and creative departments of, say, Viz are more likely to have fans than finance or HR, and a dedicated publisher like Bandai is going to have more anime-focused employees than a general animation post-production company that tackles anime, Marvel cartoons, French animation and tons of other things.

So why not make a bigger point of hiring anime fans? Well, there are several possible reasons. One of the biggest is confidentiality. Everyone in the industry has to sign a non-disclosure agreement as soon as they walk in the door, pretty much; we’re not supposed to talk about what we’re working on outside of official press releases and interviews. But if you are a prolific poster and/or engaged with anime fandom, and you find yourself landing a major title like Death Note or Bleach… well, speaking from experience, it’s really hard to sit on your fingers and not say anything to anyone. A lot of fans might not be able to manage it, and one careless word could end up opening a can of worms all over the fandom. Plenty of companies might decide not to take the risk and instead hire someone who isn’t about to rush off to the Internet to tell everyone who they cast to play Char Aznable.

Another reason could be keeping it professional. As a fan, I’ve had my share of slightly unprofessional moments, such as my response to landing the second half of Death Note (the phone conversation went somewhat along the lines of, “OHMIGOSH OHMIGOSH thankyouthankyouthankyou!” while I danced around my apartment) but I’ve made an effort to keep my fangirling on the downlow as much as possible, or at least express it in a more polite and restrained fashion. Let’s be honest, not all fans have that restraint. Is Viz or Bandai going to want to hire someone who constantly trails off into rants about how OMG GOKU CAN TOTALLY KICK EVERYONE’S BUTT EVEN A GUNDAM or SQUEE NARUTO IS MY BISHIE AND I WANT HIM AND SASUKE TO DO IT?  Or how about someone who refuses to adapt a Sailor Moon script properly because EVERY TIME YOU DEVIATE FROM THE JAPANESE, GOD KILLS A KAWAII NEKO CHAN! Obviously not all fans are that… um… enthusiastic, but still, the company is going to want someone who can be professional and treat the job seriously as opposed to an excuse to squee.

Lastly, let’s face it, skills are probably going to trump enthusiasm. You might be the most dedicated anime fan on the planet, but if they’re looking for a sound engineer, then you’d better have had sound engineering training, experience etc. Not to say that there aren’t amazing otaku sound engineers out there,  but it’s that second part they’re going to be really interested in; the fannishness is a bonus.

So the reality is that, as much as we’d like to think otherwise, the anime industry is not some paradise of pure geeky glee, and a lot of the people in it, from accountants to subtitlers to secretaries, just want to make an honest buck or two, even if it involves weird big eyed Japanese cartoons.

When Reality and Fantasy Collide

Unfortunately, no one tells the fanbase this, and thus it’s very easy for them to have somewhat unrealistic expectations of how a Western anime company should approach a title. They expect everyone on board to love the series as much as they do and want to preserve its awesomeness, then get pissed off when it’s not done to their satisfaction. Obviously, this isn’t entirely unreasonable if the adaptation is particularly bad; anime fan or not, that’s still no excuse for lazy production, bad acting or badly marketed product. But I have to shake my head a little at some of the pearl clutching that can go on in forums and other fannish spaces. “My god! They translated Chichiri’s ‘no da’ as ‘you know’! How could they? Surely their deep and intimate knowledge of Chichiri’s character should have stopped them from writing something so out of place!” Or how about, “How can Viz/Bandai/ADV/Funimation POSSIBLY not want to translate Boku no Sexual Harassment? Surely they must realize what a masterpiece of romance and workplace drama it is!”

The unrealistic expectations can also end up bleeding over into a more professional aspect, that of job-hunting within the anime industry. Because it’s easy to assume that anime companies prize a passion for the medium above all else, applicants can often end up dwelling a bit too much on that aspect of their resume, to the point where their interest in anime is the only part they focus on.  Result: a stack of resumes from people who would totally be a great candidate because they spend 18 hours a day watching anime and know all of Fist of the North Star by heart, for real. While it certainly helps to highlight your interest, you do need to offer something more, and you should not be talking more about your Gundam marathons than your professional experience and skills.

Can Fantasy Become Reality?

I’m pleased to say that yes, it can indeed. There is plenty of room in the anime industry for passionate fans to find a niche and get paid for doing what they love. I’m living proof! We also see plenty of fan-employing companies (like Funimation) enjoying indecent amounts of success, as well as a few fan-started companies taking off as well. So yes, there is plenty of room to turn your passion for big eyes and interesting hair colors into a job where you make it happen.

However, that love for anime is not going to get you the job all by itself! You might be the biggest otaku in the universe, but they’re still going to hire the guy who knows nothing about it if he can do the job better. Not to mention that even if a company does hire fans, it’s not just an endless party of hanging out in the break room and watching anime! In the end, this is a job, and like any job, you need to be professional, skilled and reliable. Work on nailing that, and you might end up getting that dream job regardless of your manic addiction to One Piece.

What are your thoughts or experiences in working in a “fannish” industry? Should a company in a geeky field make a point to hire appropriate geeks, or should skill trump personal interest? What “geek” to “srz bznz” ratio would you expect?

Put that curiosity and penchant for technology to good use, and learn some methods to make money!

Internet Marketing

You should know first of all that internet marketing is likely one of the fastest-growing interests, but it has a high rate of failure. A lot of people never invest the time needed to succeed, never treat it like a business, or simply don’t understand how people’s attitudes to buying online work.

It’s my belief that geeks may just have a slight advantage here. Often, we are quite likely to buy online ourselves, so if we step back and critically think about marketing and human psychology, we can understand the buying triggers behind our own decisions and use this to help other people.

Geeky or not, a lot of internet marketers genuinely enjoy helping people. We’re often great at digging up information, cures, and solutions, so an example of an internet marketing product you could get into is creating your own information products and selling them. There are a lot of options and almost limitless niches, so you’ll have to research how to find a niche, write a product, and run an ecommerce site for digital products first.

Website Design and Techie Skills

There are plenty of people who hate doing “techie” things. It’s amazing how many people will pay others just to take care of fixing problems, installing new plugins or themes on WordPress, coding HTML sites, and other relatively simple tasks.

If you’re one of those people who actually enjoy these kinds of tasks, it can be a fun way to make some extra money on the side. Advertise your services and try to attract repeat clients who use you for all their technology skill-related needs.

General Computer Skills

You might not be so keen on designing websites or fixing them, but you still might be better at some aspect of computers than a non-geek who only just started to learn how to use a computer. If you’ve ever been complimented on how well you can fix Windows errors, how fast you type, or how patient you are, have you considered teaching people computer skills?

This is a fantastic way to help other people upgrade their employability and skills while making some change for yourself. You do have to be patient and resist the urge to say, “Here, give me that mouse, I’ll do it,” every time your student runs into an issue. Teaching them the “why” as well as the “how” can help them understand issues and solve them on their own next time.

Non-Computer Geeks

Don’t worry, I’m well aware that there are plenty of geeks who don’t really obsess over computers or technology glitches. Maybe you obsess over knitting, anime, or something else entirely; if this is the case, you still might be able to turn a profit from your interests.

See if anyone is eager to learn what you know. Teaching or tutoring others about the things you’re passionate about is immensely satisfying and relatively easy if you know what you’re doing! If your skills involve creation of things (digital or not), you can sell what you make or even the knowledge of how to make it (knitting patterns are a booming trade, or so I’ve heard).

Be Creative!

If you just can’t find a job anywhere else, or you want some spare change and have some spare time, think of how your geek status enables you to do, know, or be something that challenges others. You may just hit upon a goldmine.

Been There, Done That?

Have you ever tried to make money from your interests before? How did it go?

Are you interested in learning more about the topic, or are you happy to leave your interests as hobbies and not income-generating activities?

So when you’re a geek in the heart of Atlantic Canada, what are you going to do on a date that’s a little bit more original than walking up and down Barrington Street? Well, this largely depends on your individual brand of geekiness, for a start, and on the season! As you probably know, an outdoor date might not go over so well in February if your date is more of the console gaming type.

Here are a few ideas that should carry you through any season!

1. Laugh the night away at a comedy club

There are a few great comedy clubs in downtown Halifax – try Joker’s or Yuk Yuk’s for some comedy that won’t disappoint. This can give you an astounding insight into your date, as the comedy we find funniest tends to reflect our personality. What’s more, if your date likes very crude jokes but you like sophisticated jokes that are difficult for anyone who doesn’t have a degree to understand, you’re not likely to last too long. There will just be awkward pauses all the time, and you’ll frustrate yourselves and each other. Do this crucial bit of recon into your date’s personality early on and make sure you click while having fun all night!

2. Explore the waterfront… by canoe!

Nope, this isn’t the usual advice to head to the boardwalk and explore, take pictures by Theodore Tugboat, and get ice cream at COWS, though that can be fun. If you’re looking for something different than the usual waterfront walk, you can even canoe along the Northwest Arm, thanks to the St. Mary’s boat club on Fairfield Road (off Jubilee in the South End). Assuming you can both swim, this could be a blast! At $8 an hour for a weekend rental, it’s cheaper than any dinner date, but it’s only available until late September, naturally.

3. Go to the farmer’s market together

It seems cliche by now, since you’re probably used to meeting up with friends there, but thanks to the recent addition of the second farmer’s market location, the crowds are much more reasonable. There are fewer stalls at the old Brewery location on Lower Water Street, but the rest are still kicking – just visit Pier 21 to find them. Delicious food from many ethnic backgrounds, handmade crafts, and hey – you can get your grocery shopping done together. For bonus points, plan out and cook a meal together if you’re going on a second or third date – buy the veggies from the farmer’s market, head to one of your places, cook, and enjoy!

4. Board games at the Paper Chase

You might have seen or visited the Paper Chase cafe on Blowers Street before – it’s a cozy spot for dates, with enough privacy to let you spill your life story and enough visibility that you can see the servers approaching with your hot chocolate or snack. The food is good, the drinks are better, and there are board games on shelves tucked in the back corner near the computer, so if your date is a geeky type, the two of you can enjoy a little friendly rivalry. Afterwards, walk to Strange Adventures on Sackville for some geeky comic indulgence together.

5. A food adventure in downtown Halifax

One of the advantages of living in the largest Atlantic Canadian city is the great variety of cuisine available here. If you and your date share a love of restaurants and eating out, meet up on a Friday or Saturday and go for a day-long food adventure. Breakfast, snacks, lunch, and dinner – restaurants exist to cater to just about every taste. For something traditional, try the Fireside for dinner; if you’d rather explore a little, try Indochine Banh Mi for Vietnamese cuisine and bubble tea as a late afternoon snack. Pick up fries from street vendors or get donairs at one of the famous donair shops that dot Halifax. There’s a lot to eat, so you’ll never get bored!

You, too, can avail of the plentiful interesting date locations and get out of the standard “Second Cup for coffee and a chat” rut. These are just a few ideas for the geek who happens to find himself (or herself) in downtown Halifax and searching for geeky Halifax date ideas… explore more on your own and have fun!

What unique and interesting date locations have you stumbled upon while wandering throughout Halifax? There’s definitely a South End bias here, because I don’t know much about the North End… where are the best spots to hang out there? Share your thoughts and experiences here to help your fellow Halifax geeks out!

Dear Y,

I’ve been dating this girl for a few weeks now and really like her.  We’re going out at least 2 or 3 nights a week and have started to get physical. But I’m not sure how to start the conversation about whether we’re “exclusive” or “official” or “going steady” etc.  Do you have any advice on how to broach the subject?

- Is She “My Girl?”

Dear ISMG,

There comes a time in every relationship when the dreaded question must come up…

“Are we exclusive?”

How though, do you GET there? How do you push through all the butterflies and what-ifs and disaster scenarios in your head and get the words out of your mouth?

This is a story about how Mr. Right Now became my Mr. Right.

When Mr. Right and I first started dating, things were definitely on the casual side. We had dinner, we fooled around. Definitely a Mr. Right Now relationship, rather than two adults seeking a genuine love relationship with each other. One hookup turned into two and before I knew it, we were talking about taking a vacation at the beach!

Even after a planned romantic getaway, the subject of our “relationship” had yet to come up.

Were we exclusive or were we just on a very expensive hookup?

Was I open to date other eligible bachelors (and bachelorettes!) or was that an assumed no?

Was he going to bed thinking about me or the many other entries in his little black book?

Though I do have a tendency to be like Samantha of Sex in the City, I eventually began to break down and wonder. Was I the only sex he was getting in the city? I suddenly realized I had accidentally gotten to know Mr. Right Now so well that he became my number one contender for Mr. Right!

No matter what my insecurities were, I now had to define our relationship before either of us took another step. I seized the opportunity during our next… date and decided to pop the question.

“Mr. Right Now,” I began, snuggling close to him.  ”I was wondering, where do you see this headed?”

He looked a bit puzzled.  “Do you really need clarification? I mean, we’ve done it so many times now…”

“No, no, I meant us! I think this is a good time to mention it, don’t you?”

“Can we talk about this after we’re done?”

“Actually, no. Now’s good for me, thanks.”

“If you want to know, I think I’m falling in love with you.”

“Are you just saying that?”

“No, I mean it.”

And there you have it. As quick as a flash, Mr. Right Now became my Mr. Right.

On the flip side of things, I have had many conversations with Mr. Wrong(s) that landed me completely on the opposite end of the galaxy.  A relationship I thought was going somewhere was just a fling for them.

Is this annoying? Yes.  Does it hurt? Yes.

But looking back, getting that conversation out of the way was the best thing that could have happened for me, because I never wasted time on a relationship that wasn’t going where I wanted it to go.  In the long run, brought me to Mr. Right.

The moral of the story? Jump in and have the conversation. If you’re at the point where you want to be exclusive to her, then suck it up and say it. No matter what happens, your life will eventually be better for getting the answer.