GeekKon.  For three years it has delighted Madisonites and Midwesterners who enjoy gaming, anime, sci-fi, art and video games.  This year the event reached maturity – moving away from the Humanities building on the UW campus to the Sheraton.

While the event was growing up, those attending were getting younger.

I last attended GeekKon its first year.  Maybe it was because it was held on campus, but a large section of the crowd was at least college age.  This year the demographic skewed younger.  When I entered the hotel, most of the faces that greeted me looked barely old enough to drive a car.  Parents hung out and occasionally joined their children in costume.
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My lust for interactive pixel-crafted stories began at an early age.  Sunday mornings – before church of course – were spent preventing alien ships from touching down, no matter how fast they moved as their fleet was destroyed.  My Commodore 128 taught me about text-based games and to always carry some form of light when entering a dark area.  While other children saved their money for a Nintendo, my cash went towards the superior 16-bit graphics of the Sega Genesis.  Beating Sonic the Hedgehog made the investment worthwhile.   My first year of college I spent more time sacking the quarterback in Super Tecmo Bowl than attending class.

While in college I quickly realized the cost of games when they are first released, as my parents no longer subsidized my obsession.  Sure, I enjoyed being the first person to beat Streets of Rage, but I learned that if I waited six months, the price would drop in half.  Being a poor college kid, that was like an extra two months of ramen noodles and a case of Schlitz.
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Taste of Home. Unless you are a cooking fanatic, you might not be familiar with the brand. Still, this popular magazine has an audience of over 3 million readers and produces a slew of cookbooks each year.

The Taste of Home cooking school arrived in Beloit on Tuesday for a show, and I had the opportunity to play photographer for a day. It didn’t take me long to realize it has been years since I handled a digital (or even regular) SLR camera. I decided to use the strategy ‘if you can’t shoot good photos, shoot lots of photos.’ I was actually quite pleased with how most of the images turned out, and received my first print photo credit in BDN yesterday.

Here is a Soundslide gallery of the better shots. Read more…

I love live music.  Whether it be heading into a dark bar or catching it outside on a beautiful summer day, a good concert can’t be beat.  What’s better than a free concert featuring national acts?  Not much that I can think of, unless they provide free drinks as well.  While the second part might only be a dream, here are two opportunities locally to enjoy free music.
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Tomorrow the film “Whip it” opens in theaters across the state and country. This indy film has received quite a buzz over the past couple weeks. Not so much because it is directorial debut of Drew Barrymore. Also not due to my favorite actress Ellen Page being the star of the film.

Maybe it is because it is about roller derby and coincides with a recent resurgence in the sport.

Maybe…

Around the state, derby girls are hosting premier parties for the film. Three of the cities I have called home – Beloit, Madison and Milwaukee – have derby girls at local theaters supporting the flick. Want to check it out with some real live derby girls? Well, here are the details.

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