Roller Derby: Empowering Entertainment

I don't want to speak for all Seattlites, but I know that it came as a surprise to me (and many people I talked to) that Seattle had a roller derby league. Roller derby seems like a thing of the past somehow, and invokes images of burly women who, as Jim Croce would say, are "built like a 'frigerator with a head."

Not so, Blogfans, not so.

Some friends and I went to the Rat City Rollergirls bout at the Key Arena this January, not really knowing what to expect. Specifically, I wondered what kind of people go to roller derby bouts. As it turned out, the spectators were people in their 50's, hipsters, teenagers, nerds, and everyone in between. And they all seemed to love roller derby.

Having never been to or even heard of anyone going to a roller derby bout, I had to look up the rules and read them ahead of time to know how the scoring worked, but the energetic announcers clarified what was happening, so you don't have to be a derby expert to follow the bout.

Another assumption I held about roller derby was that the sport was very violent. While it's true that the skaters got knocked down and body checked and went sprawling across the rink frequently, the nature of the collisions spills was not malicious. There were none of the aggressive, angry confrontations one sees in hockey games, for instance. The skaters here got back up, continued to skate and then talked and laughed with the opposing team when they returned to the lineup together.

It's hard to tell from my photos, which are taken from a distance with a zoom lens, but the participants vary in size and shape. Some of the girls were very large, as per the stereotype, but many were average-size women and a few were actually quite small. One thing I loved was that each girl has a derby name, so she creates her own persona, such as Anya Heels, Kamikaze Kim and Missile America. The smallest skater called herself Nehi (knee-high) Nightmare.

Watching the amazing displays of athleticism was really the highlight of this event. The skaters are quick, strong, agile and extremely tough. I would say that the Rollergirls' bouts are fun for the whole family, but in truth, you might want to be aware that there will be some references that parents might not want young children to be exposed to. A skater named "Muffstache" and a team called the Sockit Wenches are just a couple of examples, but nothing rated R. Maybe PG-13.

If you're looking for an activity that is exciting, out of the ordinary dinner and a movie, and that is empowering to women, go see the Rat City Rollergirls!

You Heart These Vendors

The vendor hall at GeekGirl Con was brimming with talented artists, crafters and skilled nerds of all kinds, so I wanted to highlight a few of the standout booths I encountered.

First there is Ra Design and Illustration, run by Rachelle Abellar. Check out her Facebook page to see more photos of indulgently nerdy merchandise like this:

 

WHO could resist falling in love after receiving one of these? 

If the Prime Directive says so, then: Yes we can!

You would come to this party.

Keep an eye on Ra Design and Illustration's Etsy site for updates and ordering.

Next, you won't want to miss EMK Photography's journals, made from up-cycled game boards and hardback book covers. The journals, all filled with recycled paper, ranged from old Scrabble and Risk board games to Care Bears and Dr. Seuss book covers. A wonderful gift for any geek!

I chatted with the proprietor, who said he makes sure that the board games and books are in poor condition and ready to be thrown out, so as not to waste good books and games. How thoughtful! EMK Photography also creates greeting cards with a wickedly nerdy sense of humor:

Oh, and EMK Photography also does...photography.


Lastly, if you are looking for steampunk headgear (and who isn't?) or just something fancy to adorn your coiffure at an upcoming event, Small Rini Lady has what you need:

And if you need more steampunk apparel, go to Team Time Inc. for amazing clothing, hats and pendants:

There are so many great vendors, it was tough to decide which places to focus on, so here are some bonus links for more geekiness.

The Petite Cafe: Adorable clay jewelry made in the shape of tiny food like cupcakes, pie and sushi!

Optimystical Studios: Steampunk, vintage style and unique jewelry

Ada's Technical Books: Rare books about geeky things, plus funky gadgets and toys

Happy shopping!

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!

Offbeat Bride Guest Blogger

I am going to shamelessly promote my own Offbeat Bride blog post, which is now up on their website. No, I am  not getting married. I just like weddings. And blogging. The post is about providing gluten-free alternatives to cake at a wedding.

And because no blog post here on What's the Smatter is complete without one, I will now leave you with a gratuitous cute animal photo:

This is Cactus Jack the North American porcupine, just waking from an afternoon nap.

Steelhead Diner: Splurging for Service

Last weekend Jared and I spent some quality time exploring Seattle's Pike Place Market, which neither of us had visited for a few years. Our excursion reminded me of why I love the Market and Seattle. The people-watching opportunities are superb, the artisans are top-notch, and the atmosphere is warm and welcoming, even if the weather isn't.

When our stomachs started to grumble, we headed to the Steelhead Diner, where we planned to enjoy a meal we normally wouldn't have the budget for (hooray for gift cards, and many thanks to Stephanie and Andy!).

We were seated immediately in a booth situated next to a display of neatly labeled fishing lures. A panoramic view of a river dominated one wall and an extreme close-up photograph of salmon roe hung on another.

The menu at this snazzy establishment focuses on fish, as the name would suggest, but I was eager to try a dish from the veggies and legumes selection. While the Steelhead didn't have a special gluten-free menu, our server very kindly pointed out a couple of gluten-free options from the regular menu that looked appetizing.

Jared ordered a hard-to-find Scotch ale, which arrived quickly while I pondered the gluten-free options. I ordered a Revelry Merlot to complement a vegetable chili and pan-seared broccoli topped with toasted almonds.

A lightly baked layer of creamy cheese covered the chili, which was packed with veggies like red peppers, tomatoes and even a little eggplant, I think. The broccoli dish was larger than expected, with a generous topping of warm, roasted almonds. Though the broccoli was a little oilier than I would have preferred, I forgave this because of the fresh citrus-flavor that balanced the nuts.

The waitress was attentive and helpful without being pushy or insincere, which is exactly how I like my waitstaff! She apologized for a delay in taking our order, but I will admit I hadn't noticed, since it takes me so long to decide what to order. As an appeasement, my glass of wine was complimentary.

If you're in the Seattle area, searching for some luscious seafood, quick service and a casual atmosphere where the waitstaff are polite enough to know when to leave you alone, try the Steelhead Diner!

Burke Museum and UW Seismology Lab

When my friend Alex said, "Wanna go on a field trip with my class?" I thought, "Like...as a chaperone?" But no, Alex's college geology class was taking a trip to visit the University of Washington's seismology lab as well as the nearby Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, and guests were welcome. Always eager to participate in nerdy activities, I readily accepted the invitation.

We started our journey at the UW seismology lab, which looked a lot less like the international space station flight control room than I expected. Instead, all of the field trippers, amounting to about 20 students, wedged into the lab with only a tiny bit of breathing room.

The most advanced earthquake monitoring and recording equipment in the Northwest looks like this:

Even more interesting than (and approximately the same square footage as) the main lab was the seismology closet.

We visited the lab just a week before the 9.0 rocked Japan, so we weren't able to see any of those recordings, though they must have been absolutely incredible.

Alex and I unpacked ourselves from sardine-tin lab and walked across campus to our next stop, the Burke Museum.

Although the Burke is not an especially large museum, the use of space and quality of exhibits is exceptional. Alex's professor, who proved to be as knowledgeable about natural history as he is about geology, led us through the exhibits displaying dinosaur skeletons, fossils and other amazing prehistoric artifacts.

A sauropod femur is nearly as tall as I am and probably weighs more.

The replicas of dinosaur bones were so realistic that I couldn't tell which ones were genuine. Archeopteryx, an avian ancestor is called "Urvogel" in German, which is a combination of the word for "bird" and the prefix used for "first" or "great," as in "great-grandmother." This is the great-grandmother bird's fossilized remains:

You can see the elements that make this species a transition between reptiles and their flighted relations.

A mastodon skeleton loomed over an entire narrow room, so much so that I couldn't frame it properly for a photo.

Did you know that when breaking ground for Seatac airport, construction workers stumbled upon the fossilized skeleton of a giant ground sloth? Did you even know such a thing as giant ground sloths used to exist?

In life they probably looked more like this:

And the Tyco toy company, with which many children of the 1980s are familiar, would have us believe that neanderthals used giant sloths as mounts for riding and shooting each other with turret-mounted lasers, rather like this. Slowest blitzkrieg ever.

We also learned about an archeological site in eastern Washington where the ancestor of what we know today as rhinos got caught in a lava flow that essentially acted as a flash-flood fossilization. The body burned up but the lava hardened into a rhino-shaped hole around it.

You probably aren't supposed to recline in the hole, but rather inspect it scientifically. Oh well.

The final skeleton we viewed, the Terror Bird, was displayed with accompanying drawings that (I quote Alex here) "made him look more like a terror chicken." Some of these birds stood over 10 feet and weighed in at about 400 pounds.

The lower floor of the Burke Museum also houses a collection of art from native peoples from around the world, so we perused the spectacular masks and totem poles, even though they were not even tangentially related to geology.

The museum, located just off of NE 45th on the UW campus, is open to the public daily from 10am to 5pm. For up-to-date information about visiting the museum, check out the Burke Blog here.

Comic Con 2011: Ramping up the Nerdiness

Having read very few comic books in my lifetime, I feel hugely under-qualified to review Emerald City Comic Con 2011. Not only is my DC/Marvel nerd knowledge lacking, but my photos don't do justice to the bizarre and amazing things I saw there. But I'll try.

Seattle's Comic Con exploded in the past few years; now it includes other pop culture and cult classic series, not just comics. It's not just for nerds anymore. Well okay, it's still just for nerds--but for a wide variety of nerds! And Seattleites are into it. People in costumes of every sci-fi and comic character you can think of (and a whole bunch you can't) wandered the Convention Hall.

We wore our nerdiest shirts; Jared got several compliments on his, which features a Star Wars joke within a Star Trek joke--ultimate nerdiness. Mine is just furtuistic profanity. Many of the best-dressed attendees were mobbed by people wanting to take their photos, but I was only brave enough to ask this nice gentleman in a Tom Baker Dr. Who outfit.

Even though The Shat--William Shatner himself--Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, James Marsters, and several other celebrities signed autographs and held photo sessions, the minimum charge was twenty bucks, so this is as close as I got to my Star Trek favorites:

We were in the same room as all the stars, but the crowds who paid for face-time blocked our view of everyone except, very distantly, Felicia Day from The Guild. Even so, this is the best picture I could capture zoomed in from across the room.

One of the best costumes we saw was a cross-dressing Wonder Woman, but I was too shy to ask him/her for a picture. Other highlights were about 15 Boba Fetts in a clone parade, a Weeping Angel from Dr. Who, a 4-year-old with mechanical Batman wings, and a Silver Surfer who had painted himself entirely in shiny silver body paint. But like I said, I didn't get good photos of these things, so here's an Incredible Hulk made from balloons:

I also would like to encourage everyone to jump on the band wagon and start paying attention to a group of filmmakers from the Tacoma area who call themselves Dead Gentlemen Productions. These local boys are hitting the movie/weblog scene with episodes of a hilarious show called JourneyQuest, which we were able to catch a glimpse of on the big screen at Comic Con. I'll have to post a more complete review of their material at a later time. I want to be in one of their movies. So. Much. I'd make a good elf.