Geek Girl Con Seattle

Geeky is the new cool.

Last weekend Seattle kicked off its first Geek Girl Con, much to the delight of nerdy girls and guys across the Northwest. I arrived early and stood in line peering at the other attendees, some of whom were dressed as Wonder Woman, Mario and Bowser, Vulcans. Everyone else sported their dorkiest daily attire.

My first stop was a presentation given by Emily Huh, editor-in-chief of I Can Has Ceezburger, a silly website featuring cats with bad grammar, that has exploded into an international sensation. As a Lolcat and general Cheezburger Network fan, I listened intently to her discussion of how a ridiculous captioned photo sparked a huge cyber movement. 

If you aren't big on Lolcats, don't worry; there is an abundance of humor at Cheezburger Network! Try visiting Failblog, Failbook, or one of my favorites: Wedinator.

Next on my agenda was to attend a panel called "Geeks with Hearts of Gold," which focused on ways geeky people can use their eclectic interests to help others. I discovered there are organizations such as the 501st and Mandalorian Mercs, clubs that dressed in full Star Wars character costumes to perform charitable acts such as visiting pediatric wards. Apparently there are also chapters of an organization called the Harry Potter Alliance, which run events such as book-drives for underprivileged schools in order to promote "literacy, equality and human rights." It was a heart-warming discussion. What is still lacking though, is a central loaction on the web where organizations like these can network, advertise events and search for volunteers. We need a geek charity forum so I know when the next steampunk charity ball is being held!

Speaking of steampunk, I sat in on a panel discussing the influence and development of the steampunk movement just before I stopped in at the vendor hall to be amazed. There are some incredibly crafty, talented geeks out there. They may even deserve their own separate blog post.

Would you like to buy a Tardis?

After a day of dorky adventures I attempted to take the bus home from downtown Seattle and stepped right into the middle of this:

It hadn't occurred to me that the Occupy Seattle protest would be underway directly in front of the bus I needed to take. Fortunately, despite the throngs of people, the cops, the chanting and the sign waving, the buses were running close to on time. Ah, the miracle of public transit.

On the second day of the conference I made sure to arrive in time to stand at the front of the line for a panel hosted by one of my favorite website networks, Offbeat Empire, a place where you can find everything from DIY Lego boutonnieres to posts about how to cleverly utilize that weird space under your staircase.

My favorite photo of the Offbeat Empire ladies is this one:

I love it because the Offbeat Empress, Ariel, with a sweeping gesture, encompasses the energy and style that these women put into their websites. The girl across the aisle from her is named Cat Rocketship. No joke. That's her actual name; she moderates Offbeat Home. Then there is the random attendee walking toward the camera in her loud, vintage dress, fluffy pink hat and enormous grin. Lastly, I enjoy that in the background, we've been photo-bombed by a someone most definitely dressed as Amy Pond from Dr. Who season six carrying Starbucks coffee.

Next I attended a panel led by a group of women who run their own geeky businesses. Kudos to these women who are turning their geeky passions into careers, even if their passion is creating video-game-controller-shaped soaps or producing burlesque shows based on nerdy TV series.

I'm thrilled that our local Northwest gamers, comic book readers and sci-fi aficionados took matters into their own hands and brought us GeekGirl Con in 2011. I'm even more excited to see what they bring us in 2012!