ArtisticallyChill

Yes, I know it was tragic and we should never forget those who gave their lives on that day or days afterwards whether it was from the aftermath or in the pointless war that followed, but the fact remains is that since then, we have given into FEAR, whether under the influence of the government, media, or on one’s own accord.

Now, on the anniversary of that day, I can’t help but wonder if old wounds of HATE and FEAR are opened rather than heeding the TRUTH in the words spoken above.

Choose not to live in FEAR but just to LIVE.

Learning how to braid Serena’s hair while throwing back a few beers and catching up with Torchwood: Miracle Day.

Serena and I attended San Diego Comic Con International 2011 this past July. It was a fantastic vacation hanging out with family, friends, and just geeking out. The biggest highlight of this year’s vacation was the success Serena had at this year’s convention. Not only did she make the DC Talent Search for the second consecutive year in a row, she made it to the top of the list and was the only female that made it out of the group that submitted their portfolios for review.

Serena also made it onto Marvel‘s list for a private portfolio review for the first time! At the request of our dear friend, Jim McCann (Return of the Dapper Men), she spoke to Mark Smylie, Chief Creative Officer of Archaia Entertainment, for a portfolio review. He was really impressed with her work and asked Serena email him and his editors a PDF copy of her portfolio! She made a lot of contacts this year and out of the 10 portfolios she printed out, she handed out 9 of them to various publishers.

I didn’t have any doubts that Serena would do better this year as I have seen her artistry improve so much by leaps and bounds this past year. So I knew that we had to attend next year’s convention because next year could be the year she breaks into the industry. Unfortunately, getting pre-registered for SDCC 2012 was not an easy task as registering for SDCC 2011 last year was. Last year, after picking up my badge and swag bag at the convention center breezeway, I jumped right into a line where, at the end, there were 20 machines, manned by some helpful staff, and the wait was about an hour. Once pre-registration was complete, I was free to enjoy the rest of the day and the rest of the convention geeking out.

This year, however, was a totally different experience and was a complete pain in my ass. Pre-registration for SDCC 2012 was now off-site, a few blocks down from the convention center at the Hyatt. Another change that made pre-registration an ordeal was that Comic-Con was only allowed to sell a certain amount of pre-registration tickets each day, limit 2 per customer, and there was only a 3 hour windows of opportunity each morning. After 2 unsuccessful attempts to get tickets by showing up at 6am and jumping into an enormously huge line, my cousin, Mark, my friend, Jimmy and I decided to spend Friday night camping out into Saturday morning for our tickets. Mark and I got there at about 11pm and the line was already past the a hundred people in line. Jimmy was already setup and we joined him and our other friend, Eddie, who didn’t have a ticket but since Jimmy was buying his for next year, wanted to stay up all night with us. We did not sleep at all. Our other friend, Vic, stopped for a visit and we just stayed up all night talking about stuff.

About 6am, the line started moving and some after that we were herded into a conference room and waiting for 8am to hit so we could purchase our tickets. The price was up another $70 for a 4-day pass with Preview Night. We all decided that it was all that worth it and we picked up just the regular 4-Day passes, saving ourselves $25 a ticket.

By the time, I had gotten through the exit doors, it was a little after 9am. The doors had already opened and everyone was well underway in enjoying their Saturday at the convention. I met up with Serena and she had her day planned out with more reviews and panels. I was more in search of food and a place to nap. With Mark and Yul, we got some grub at the convention cafe and decided that the bayside terrace was a good spot to just nap since it wasn’t crowded and there was enough shaded spots to plop down for a few Zs.

Overall, SDCC 2011 was a lot fun as usual. I didn’t attend that many panels this year. I spent more time, just hanging out with Serena, my cousin, and my friends this year instead of wandering around taking pictures of cool things I want, but will never have. Our time in San Diego was short since the convention took up most of our time and I didn’t get to see all of my friends I had planned on seeing nor did we do any site seeing. But there’s always next year to create more great times and memories.

See you next year SDCC!

~ LoneWolf