Comics, Cosplay, and Fun for all! :D

Hi Everyone! So sorry for the late blogs again..... I have been in midterm and presentation mode for the past month and things are finally slowing down! :) So with that said, I will post some photos of my last two events I attended: Long Beach Comic Expo and Riverside Cosplay Gathering. I am pretty sure I have said I am an all over Californian so I try to go to multiple events all over the place. I can't wait for my next convention adventure. :)

Me with some CSU Long Beach students cosplaying as Ash and Misty

Long Beach Comic Expo- This is still a fairly new convention for Long Beach. I believe this was the third year it has occurred. I went on the Saturday, which was the bigger day of the two day con. I cosplayed as Dawn from Pokemon, which was a cosplay I created through mostly upcycling. I took photos with kids, and did selfies with other Pokemon cosplayers. I met Agnus Oblong, the creator of The Oblongs, and got an autographed drawing from him. I also haggled for an hour with a comic book dealer to get the first issue of Black Panther, which I was able to haggle down about $25. That felt great. Most people I encounter at comic cons do not do research on the book before coming to purchase, which makes haggling harder. I also did my usual Captain America pick up. That is a must for me as Captain America is my favorite superhero. :) I went to a couple of panels, one for Cosplay/ Geek Fashion, and one for DC comic's new endeavor called Divergence. That's about all I have to say for LBCE, and I hope to be able to attend Long Beach Comic Con at the end of the summer. Here are some more pictures from that con! :)

A drawing by Agnus Oblong. He has some really weird drawings in his album too lol

PikaPool and PikaAsh

Marceline the Vampire Queen

Also, I did the Riverside Cosplay Gathering, which was at Fairmount Park in Downtown Riverside. I met new people, did a photoshoot (that'll be a separate post when all my picture are done being worked with.), took pictures, just had some good fun. :) A lot of areas have cosplay gatherings : the Bay Area, the Central Valley, Orange County, the LA area. You just have to look for them and I recommend them all to find like minded people and immerse yourself into a community that is very loving and supportive.I might also say, that inconjunction with my Hachi and Life facebook page, I also have a cosplay page so feel free to follow! :) https://www.facebook.com/sunflowercosplay
Here are some pictures from the Riverside Cosplay Gathering:

Ash, Dawn, Knuckles (went turbo), Misty, Ash, and Sabrina.

Attack on Titan, Pokemon, and Panty & Stocking with a Garter Belt.

Till Next Time! (hopefully in less than a month !! -_-;;; )

-Hachi

Gotta Go Fast! Gotta Go Far! I Got a Car!

Hi all! My apologies for the lack of blogging these past few weeks. I've been pretty busy for the most part. I have some updates for you, but I'll do two separate ones. Today's post is about my new car! Yes, I finally have one! Doesn't mean I'll never take the bus again though. I like talking with some of the drivers . Also, I go long distances weekly between work and school so it'd be better for me to save gas by taking the bus and trolley when travelling shorter distances. So a little bit about my car, and then some pictures! :) My car is a 2013 Kia Rio LX hatchback with a black exterior, beige interior. Some of my friends on one of the forums I have been a member of since high school told me I should call it "The Hachiback" haha. I was thinking of calling it "Ri-chan" even though Kia is a Korean car and not a Japanese car. Lol I would like to add some color to it, probably a lighter shade of blue to accent and over the years make the interior black and blue instead of solely beige. Without further ado, I'll add some pictures!

Hatchback side

Passenger Side

Driver's Side

Only my Photogrid has the picture of the front side lol

Ps.  If you have any street legal mod tips, please let me know in the comments below!



 Till next time!

 Hachi

Cosplay Project Haul - Yoruichi Shihouin

Hi All! :) This is my first blog post of 2015! Happy New Year to you all, even though I said that on my Facebook page on New Year's Day. Today was a decent day for me. I went around to the shopping centers in search for cosplay materials. Currently, I am working on Yoruichi Shihouin (四楓院 夜一) from Bleach and Faye Valentine from Cowboy Bebop for Winter/Spring. I might add more projects if time allows though. So my first stop was Michael's. I didn't find anything I was looking for there, which came to be a bit of a disappointment. Afterwards, I went to JoAnn Fabrics, and found my safe haven. I was able to gather some cream white fabric, some soft'n flexible sew on Velcro, some purple ribbon, and some white thread. I had a good deal too. I bought the fabric at 3.695YRD for 28.78$ at 7.79$/YRD. Originally, this would have cost 48$ so I saved a little over 20$ on my fabric. Something that is AMAZING for cosplayers! I am thrifty and cosplay on the cheap, but I still make it look nice. That is key.:) I used a 50% off one regular priced item on Beep'n Go, which brought my Velcro down from 3.99$ to 2$. My ribbon was 3$ and my thread was 3.49. I also got my wig in the mail today! It is a little lighter than Yoruichi's hair, and a bit shorter, so either I will get extensions to add to the length, or just hope people get who I am cosplaying as, which they should from her outfit.

A small review on the hair: it was only 10.97$ on Amazon, yet this is one of the better quality wigs I have had in a long time. When I got my Mirajane wig from Cosplay Magic for almost 60$, it was falling apart completely from the moment I took it out of the package, a lot of hair came out and it was shaped awkwardly for the head. This hair, I have only seen two strands fall out, which I expected, but it wasn't tangled or matted up at all. Also, it was easy to run my fingers through and it is able to withstand heat. So far so good, 8/10.

I will do a blog post about my Faye Valentine cosplay once I start prepping for it. I am using an app recommended to me by my friend Taylor (you can find her cosplay page by clicking on her name) called Cosplanner. I recommend it. It saves paper, helps you keep track of percentages done, and of amount for the purchases. I will include a picture of how it looks. :) Without further ado, here are my purchases and viewing of the wig!

All of the purchases, including the wig

Fabric

Ribbon

 Velcro

Thread

This actually has nothing to do with anything, but I wanted to show how my TV stand is organized.

Cosplanner

This is the look I am doing for her cosplay, instead of the orange one.

The wig, and yes I did add purple eyeshadow to my eyebrows so it'd match the color lol Eyebrows on fleek! jk

The wig from the back. See why it seems a bit too short?

That's all for now! As stated earlier, this was only some purchases for Yoruichi's cosplay, when I start Faye's, I'll make a new one, and I'll keep you posted on my crafting process. Do any of you cosplay? We have such a wonderful community, a family full of diversity, if I have ever seen one. I will also reiterate that "cosplay is not consent" so please respect us, and we will respect you back.

Till next time!

-Hachi

Last Post of 2014~

Hi All~ It's been a while! I have been up north visiting family and friends. I am back in Southern CA now with my crazy cats lol. They really missed me; you never know how attached a pet is to a person until you leave them for a while. Anyway, it's time to reflect on 2014. The year itself was like any other year for the most part: school, work, making some new friends, losing some old, going to anime and comic book cons, playing new games. The main difference was having some family health scares, which put life into perspective for most. Especially when it's someone other than me for once. I am glad they are getting better and I hope 2015 is a better year for them. I am looking forward to the new year. New life changes, such as new school, making more new friends (I hope), finding love (I hope), getting a car, moving to a new city. Seeing old friends and family, who have stuck by me and continue to do so no matter where life takes us. I bravely anticipate whatever comes to me in 2015. I believe everything happens for a reason, so I will take it all with clarity and good reasoning. I wish that all of my friends, family, and readers have a happy and safe 2015 year, as well. Please keep each other close, hold each other tight, and keep the squabbles to a minimum. Life's too short to be lazy, remain sad, or be angry. Take each day one step at a time and think of at least one thing that makes you happy for that day. Instead of just 100 days of happiness, make it 364/5 days. Happiness is shown in many forms, just like many other emotions, use them all if you must. Just please be happy, please be kind, and please be healthy. I hope to interact with everyone more in 2015!

Till 2015 ;)

-Hachi

Merry Christmas :)

Hi all! Sorry for a slight delay of posts. I've been a bit busy with my research and winter house cleaning.  Right now, I am back in Northern California visiting family for a few days and then it's back to Southern California to await the start of graduate school.  So to keep this post short, I'll wish you all a nice and safe Christmas day and a happy holiday season :)

 Till Next Time!

 - Hachi

Stuffed Bell Peppers!

Hi All! So sorry that it's been a couple of weeks since I have blogged. Life gets in the way, as always. :/ I have a few upcoming blogs over the next week since I finally have free time, so stay tuned. :) Today's blog is a recipe I did last week of stuffed bell peppers with rice. As a kid, I was never that huge of a bell pepper fan, but now I like them. So I decided to make stuffed bell peppers, which was something I have not eaten in over 13 years. I was a bit apprehensive to how they might taste, but I must say they tasted ahmayzing (amazing)! So without further ado, here is my recipe. Partial credit goes to Betty Crocker as that is where I found the measurement amounts from. All of my adjustments are in purple font. :)

Stuffed Bell Peppers:

4       large bell peppers (any color)

1

lb lean ground beef (I use 93% lean ground beef for everything)

2

tablespoons chopped onion (brown onion)

1

cup cooked rice

1

teaspoon salt (or you can substitute for 1.5 teaspoons of taco seasoning)

1

clove garlic, finely chopped (or minced garlic)

1

can (15 oz) tomato sauce (any brand)

3/4

cup shredded mozzarella cheese (I used Cheddar Jack cheese and lots of it)

Step 1:
Wash and cut a thin slice from stem end of each bell pepper to remove top of pepper. Remove seeds and membranes; rinse peppers. If necessary, cut thin slice from bottom of each pepper so they stand up straight. Place them in a oven safe glass dish.

Step 2:
In 10-inch skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until beef is brown; drain. Stir in rice, salt (taco seasoning), garlic and 1 cup of the tomato sauce; cook until hot.

 Step 3:
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Stuff peppers with beef mixture. Stand peppers upright in ungreased 8-inch square glass baking dish. Pour remaining tomato sauce over peppers.

 

 

Step 4:
Cover tightly with foil. Bake 10 minutes. Uncover and bake about 15 minutes longer or until peppers are tender. Sprinkle with cheese.

  Step 5:
Remove from oven, and let cool a little bit before eating. Enjoy!



I hope you guys liked my recipe post. What is your favorite savory recipe? Let me know in the comments below!


Till Next Time!

-Hachi

Japanese Garden Clean-up (October)

Hi all! So sorry for the late blog! I have been so busy lately, that I basically get home from work and lounge around reading manga, but it's my usual 3-day weekend now, so I am here to write! Well in this blog, mostly show pictures. I'll write more in my next one and try to get back to biweekly. :)  A few weeks ago,  I helped the international relations council for the Tohoku, Japan area, I am a part of with the Japanese garden clean up. Here are some pictures of the garden. :)

Complete garden photo

Gazebo

 

Water Fountain

The opening gate - middle kanji means heart, but not quite sure what the first and last one are. I forgot them. :/

Clouds, palm trees, normal trees, and sun.

Maybe it's a mini pagoda?

Me in front of the gate, probably tanning.....

Lunch! Amazing salad, croissant sandwiches, and kettle chips

I was pruning the flowers.

Do any of you like to do community service projects? Or what kind of projects are you involved in? Let me know in the comments below.


Till next time!

-Hachi