You have some new visitors, and they want to say “Hello” to their new city by opening a social gaming cafe this fall. Jessica Schattie and her husband just moved to Bellevue from Fort Collins, Colorado. They currently have a Kickstarter campaign for Gaslamp Social Games Cafe in Bellevue, which they say will be “a comfortable spot to hang out, play games, and enjoy our amazing coffee and snacks while you spend time with friends new and old.” Check out the video below.
You’ll never be able to complain that Seattle gets all the cool events and businesses! We caught up with Jessica to ask her a few questions about the Kickstarter project, which ends on June 17. Check out what she has to say about coffee, board games, and her vision for Gaslamp below.
Can you tell us a little more about your vision for Gaslamp Social Games Cafe?
My vision for Gaslamp Social Games Cafe is a place where folks can come to create a community. My husband and I have met so many wonderful people through gaming, and we want to create a place where others can make those connections. I envision it something like a personal library from the 1800s – warm tones, comfortable seating, vintage-y touches here and there, wrought iron accents, and of course shelves stacked full of games. Add in a cup of coffee or tea and a few friends to pass the evening with, and you’ll be all set.
Hi everyone! It’s time for the June edition of Geek About Town! Ring in the summer season by checking out this list of events!
Friday, June 1st – Sunday, June 10th:Seattle International Film Festival Be sure to check out some of the amazing films playing during the Seattle International Film Festival, which runs until June 10.
Saturday, June 2nd:Olympia Comics Festival From the website: “The Olympia Comics Festival was started in 2001 to celebrate comics as an art form.” Guests of Honor include: Jason Shiga, Mike Allred, and Shannon Wheeler.
Saturday, June 2nd – Sunday, June 3rd:Seattle Mini Maker Faire at the Seattle Center From the website: “The mission of Maker Faire events is to inspire, inform, connect and entertain thousands of Makers and aspiring Makers of all ages and backgrounds through the public gathering of tech enthusiasts, crafters, educators, tinkers, hobbyists, science clubs,
students, authors and commercial exhibitors.”
Saturday, June 8th, 8:00 PM:Icons of Science Fiction Opening Party From the event invite: “Don’t miss this opportunity to preview the exhibit and squee over props and costumes with your geek peers. The exhibit includes an Imperial Dalek, Captain Kirk’s command chair, and Neo’s coat–plus a whole lot more. Opening party activities include a Star Trek/Doctor Who trivia competition, photo-ops, and interview with curator Brooks Peck and artifact collector Aaron Carlson. Advance tickets are required. Visit the EMP Museum event site for more details.”
Friday, June 8th – Sunday, June 10thNorthWest Pinball Show From the website: “The show is a family friendly event that will feature over 300 pinball and arcade games all set on free play! Over the weekend there will be guest speakers and personalities from the world of pinball and video games, from designers and manufacturers to world record high score holders. The show includes vendors, tournaments, contests and give a ways. Enter for your chance to win a full-sized pinball and arcade game, along with hundreds of other game related items, t-shirts, posters and more!”
Friday, June 8th – Sunday, June 10th:Alls Faire From the website: “We are growing the Larping community by exposing the different aspects of our various clubs though music, merchants, tournaments, questing, games, workshops, and the arts for both adults and children.”
Saturday, June 9th – Sunday, June 10th:VanConShow Pop culture and collectibles show.
Tuesday, June 12th, 7:00 PM: HTML Prototyping at Seattle Information Architecture & User Experience Meetup with Seattle UX at Piecora’s From the meetup page: “Continuing our themes, in June, we’d like to bring focus to an important part of IA & UX work: prototyping. We’ll have a panel of speakers with Matt Turpin (Fell Swoop), Bram Wessel (FatDUX), and Kevin Wick (Frog Design). RSVP, space is limited!”
Friday, June 15th – Sunday, 17th:ConComCon: A convention for con runners From the website: “ConComCon, or “C-Cubed”, is a conference for science fiction convention organizers held each June in the Northwest. Special guests include: C.J. Cherryh and Jane Fancher.”
Saturday, June 16th:Free RPG Day From the website: The goal of Free RPG Day is to inspire gamers to play a new RPG, which will in turn, create sales through local game stores.
Thursday, June 21st, 7:00 PM: Beer Tasting with Issaquah Highlands Craft Beer at Blakely Hall (Issaquah Highlands) From the meetup page: “Stop by and meet your fellow craft beer lovers. Bring a bottle or two of good beer for us to try and try our beers. Home brew, local craft beer, imports, whatever you like. For this first meeting we will keep things very casual. No particular theme. Just beer tasting and discussion.”
Friday, June 22nd – Sunday, June 24th: Fairy and Human Relations Congress From the website: “The Fairy & Human Relations Congress is an annual event that attracts about 300 people in the North Central Cascades in Washington State. The Congress is Dedicated to Promoting Communication and Co-Creation with Nature Spirits, Devas and the Faery Realms.”
Saturday, June 23rd – Sunday, June 24th: Ye Merrie Greenwood Renaissance Faire A Richland, WA, renaissance faire featuring mystery dinners and performances. From the website: “The Greenwood Players consists of actors, dancers, and musicians of all ages. We bring Elizabethan England alive through song, dance, costuming, and environmental theatre.”
Be sure you catch GeekGirlCon at the following:
Saturday, June 2nd, 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM:GeekGirlCon at iFEST & Science Expo Day! at Seattle Center From the event page: “Play a game, win a prize, and learn more about GeekGirlCon ’12 at our booth located in the white tent between EMP and the Center House, 10:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. Also check out our panel, Women in Video Games. A panel of women currently shaping the
ever-evolving video game industry will talk about their perspectives and experiences! Women don’t just play video games; they make them. 3:00 PM at the Seattle Center.”
Sunday, June 10th, 10:30 AM:IGNITE: Brighter Future Walk GeekGirlCon will participate in a fundraiser walk for IGNITE!, an organization that works to empower young women to succeed in STEM careers and inspire girls to dream big to achieve their full potential.
Saturday, June 23rd, 11:30 AM – 1:00 PM: GeekGirlCon All-Hands Meeting at Card Kingdom (Tournament Room) Get informed about all the latest and greatest as we gear up for our 2nd annual convention in August! Because we’re using the Tournament Room, food and alcoholic beverages will not be allowed during the meeting, only nonalcoholic beverages in containers with a lid. If you would like a bite to eat before or after the meeting, we suggest patronizing Cafe Mox, located next to Card Kingdom.
Sunday, June 24th, 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM:Watch for GeekGirlCon at the Seattle Pride Parade! From the event page: “GeekGirlCon is excited be walking in the Seattle Pride Parade on Sunday June 24th to show our support for the LGBTQ community. From staffers and volunteers to supporters and fans, the LGBTQ community has been part of GeekGirlCon from the start, and it is time for us to show how much we care.”
Be sure you let us know in the comment section if you went to an event listed here or have a GeekGirlCon sighting!
–
Shubz K. Blalack
PR Content Producer
prcontent@geekgirlcon.com
How can you partake in the fun? Below are 10 simple ideas.
1. Purchase a pass for GeekGirlCon ‘12. Prices go up June 1, so today is the perfect day to show your geek pride and lock in a good deal for our convention.
2. Carry a towel conspicuously with you for the day. What better way to show your love for The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy than to know where your towel is?
3. Answer all questions with, “42.”Did you realize today is the ultimate Towel Day? 5+25+12 = 42. Mind. Blown.
4. Join the Towel Day discussion on social media. Upload a picture of you with your towel on Flickr (tag it “towelday”) or a video YouTube. There’s also a Flickr Towel Day group. Don’t forget to join the #TowelDay conversation on Twitter.
6. Watch the BBC Hitchhiker’s Guide TV series (or the American movie versionif you really want…). If you’d rather celebrate your geek pride without a towel, why not re-watch episodes from your favorite geeky TV show, like Battlestar Galactica, Firefly, or Star Trek?
7. Tell someone you know about one of your geeky passions. Are you digging a comic book series? Love Doctor Who? Are you spending every waking moment playing Diablo III? Tell your friends about it! Spread the geekiness to those around you.
8. Throw a geeky-themed party. Don’t have a lot of time to plan? Don’t worry! You can easily toss together a few trivia questions or search online for some great (and quick) party ideas. Star Wars cupcakes anyone?
9. Grab your friends and hit up your favorite store or hang-out. Use the opportunity to support the geeky stores you love.
10. Donate to an environmental organization. Douglas Adams was an environmentalist and animal lover. Honor his legacy by supporting organizations working to save and protect animals. Check out Last Chance to See, the book he wrote with Mark Cawardine, followed by the TV series, starring Stephen Fry and Mark Cawardine.
If you are reading this, you are likely a geek. Tell us how you’re celebrating Geek Pride Day and Towel Day in the comments below!
GeekGirlCon President and Marketing Director Erica McGillivray (left) and Programming Operations Director Julia Santo (right) show off the TARDIS built by GeekGirlCon staff and volunteers
Do you live in or around Seattle? Are you interested in getting to know other geeks in the area?
Then you should join GeekGirlCon’s first informal meetup of the year!
In addition to hosting special events such as movie nights, art auctions, and burlesque shows, we want more opportunities to get to know all of you better and build a community of GeekGirlCon fans.
What do you love? What sort of geeky things get you excited each day?
Come discuss them at one of our meetups, which we plan to host every other week. We’ll explore areas outside of Seattle, chatting with geeks in Tacoma, Everett, and perhaps as far as Spokane. We might focus on certain topics each time, and we’ll mix up times and locations — a bar one night, a coffee shop another, and an outdoor picnic on a pretty day.
We’ll host our first meetup on Wednesday, May 30, from 6 to 8 p.m.
But we need your help to get there. Tell us where our first meeting should be. We’ll stick to the Greater Seattle area for the first one, but what neighborhood or city?
Leave a comment below telling GeekGirlCon why we should come to your neck of the woods. The area with the most comments gets the first GeekGirlCon meetup hosted in their neighborhood. And feel free to suggest great pubs, coffee shops, or other meetup locations.
** UPDATE: Capitol Hill is the winner. We’ll be meeting at Ada’s Technical Books. Check out our Facebook event page for all the details. ** I’m counting down the days, and can’t wait to get to know more about all of you!
Today’s blog post comes from Jaden Blazier, a GeekGirlCon copywriter intern. Jaden shares her love for all-things-Pokémon!
For as long as I can remember, I have wanted nothing more than to live in a world where Pokémon exist. Pokémon, arguably the most amazing media franchise in existence, has truly sculpted me into the person that I am today. It all started with Pokémon Yellow for the Nintendo Gameboy Color, a role-playing game based in a fantastical world occupied by “Pocket Monsters,” or “Pokémon.” There is one simple goal: to become a Pokémon Master by catching them all!
At the time, I couldn’t appreciate the game for much more than the cute little critters and colorful Pokémon battles, but that simple fascination evolved into so much more. I began playing new versions of the game, collecting the trading cards, the plastic figures, the stuffed animals, and watching the anime — and to this date Pokémon is still my favorite show. Other kids my age seemed to be following a similar path, though maybe one a little less obsessive than mine… One of my greatest accomplishments was the memorization of all 151 first-generation Pokémon in numerical order!
By the time we reached grade 5, Pokémon was no longer considered “cool.” The trading cards and daily episodes became a thing of the past as other fads pushed it aside. New generations of Pokémon continued to be created, but as the new additions of monsters and characters became less and less personable, the popular love for Pokémon began to vanish. “That stuff is for little kids!” they would say, but I didn’t care. My love was unending; I never stopped my quest to collect them all.
Here at GeekGirlCon, we love to feature guest blogs from you — the people who come to our events, attend our convention, and volunteer or donate to our cause. You are the geeks who keep us motivated, even on the craziest of days.
Today, we are featuring a blog from Eliza Hirsch, a local writer and, of course, proud geek girl. Below, Eilza shares a story about one of her favorite books and why it spoke to her when she was a teenager.
I only made it to my sophomore year before dropping out of my Colorado country high school. I left behind trailer classrooms (the debate club was relegated to a stuffy box hidden behind the school proper), an extra creative mascot (the mighty fighting Falcons from Falcon High School, in the city of Falcon), and a few real, honest-to-Betsy cowboys.
During my illustrious public school career, I developed a couple coping mechanisms. Books were my primary line of defense. I fell in love with stories, and the ability of those stories to transport me into different, more interesting places. Places that made sense.
The paperback cover for Into the Wild Nerd Yonder
Places like the world in Julie Halpern’s Into the Wild Nerd Yonder. The book follows Jessie in her sophomore year of high school. Her best friends are changing in ways she’s not sure she likes, and she’s trying to figure out who she is, how she fits into the world. Sound familiar? Sound like everyone’s second year of high school? Yeah.
I liked this book, and Jessie in particular, for a few reasons. The most important is that Jessie is the kind of girl I might have been in high school—if I was approximately twice as innocent and half as angry. She wears crazy clothes (most of those skirts I mentioned came from the quilting fabric section) and hangs out with people on the fringe of the social strata; she’s funny, and fun.
Jessie’s also unapologetically intelligent and—with a goal of sewing enough skirts to wear a different one every day of school—she’s uniquely creative. She doesn’t mind standing out, yet at the same time she’s pretty insecure, relying on her increasingly difficult-to-relate-to friends. What’s a girl to do?
Hey everyone and Happy Mother’s Day! Some of us here at GeekGirlCon decided to take the time to share the difference our mothers have made!
PR Content Producer Shubz and her mom on her wedding day
“My Mom is a fantastic leader in our family, and also one of my biggest fans. I have always been in the performing arts, and for every recital, dance competition, and (recently) gig or open mic, Mom has either been there or has put it in her calendar to come through and check out. I gave her a 1337ology article I was featured in for nerdcore and she absolutely loved it. Rap and hip-hop may not be her thing, but the fact that she is so ready to support and love the work I do is such a confidence booster.” – Shubz Blalack, PR Content Producer
“I never really thought about my mom having an influence on my geekiness, because it was always so obvious. What I did not really appreciate until later was that she was actually quite a bit of a geek herself. She always encouraged me to follow my passions and not worry about what anyone else thought. She also made sure that my brother & I saw Star Wars (the original/only three: episodes IV, V, and VI) and loved it when we recreated scene after scene verbatim ad nauseum. She has passed along two ‘family jewelry’ necklaces — one C3PO and one X-wing. She pledged PBS when we couldn’t stop quoting lines from Red Dwarf; and she’s bought expansion packs for Carcassonne, while getting all of her friends to play on and offline. Funnily enough, neither of us is a big fan of Mothers’ Day. It feels a little small to limit appreciating her to a single day a year. She is frakking awesome, and I’m so proud every day that she’s my mum.” – Amanda Powter, Copywriter
“My mom can certainly be blamed for my fall into the geekdom, and that’s a great thing! As a pharmacist, she instilled in me a love for science and math at an early age. But she did so much more than that! She encouraged my strange and unusual behaviors. When I stepped out of my room in a plaid top and striped pants, she smiled. When I said I wanted to paint my car pink, she and my dad took me to the auto detail shop. She came with me to see Lord of the Rings at midnight. These seem like little things, but when you grow up around someone who shows you she’s proud of who you are and what you love, you have the freedom to truly be the person you’re meant to be.” – Susie Rantz, PR Manager
PR Manager Susie Rantz and her mom after running a half marathon in Hawaii
So you’ve heard from us, how about you? Tell us about the awesome mom/mother figure in your life!
This week, GeekGirlCon partnered with Central Cinema to host a Doctor Who-themed TV dinner. We screened two of our favorite Doctor Who episodes:
“Blink” starring the Tenth Doctor, David Tennant, and written by Steven Moffat “The Doctor’s Wife” starring the Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith, and written by Neil Gaiman
We also had a lively intermission, as Behind the Blue Door performed a new burlesque act from their upcoming Doctor Who-inspired cabaret show! You’re not going to want to miss this show when it debuts at the end of June.
Behind the Blue Door performers, who gave a teaser for their upcoming Doctor Who-inspired cabaret show!
It’s pretty clear the Seattle area has a lot of Doctor Who fans, as the event sold out! Thanks so much to everyone who came.
I’m a huge fan of Neil Gaiman and always love watching his Doctor Who episode. It’s funny but also so emotional and eerie — that’s Neil Gaiman for you!
Are you a fan of “The Doctor?” What’s your favorite episode?
There are a number of amazingly geeky hangouts in the Greater Seattle area. Comic book stores, cafes, gaming taverns, and movie theaters. Today, we are highlighting one of these hangouts: Ada’s Technical Books. Ada’s, located on Capitol Hill, is owned by Danielle Hulton. Danielle — a bona fide “geek girl” — has been a GeekGirlCon sponsor the past two years.
We had the chance to catch up with Danielle and ask her a few questions about herself, her business, and her geeky passions. Enjoy!
Danielle Hulton, owner of Ada's Technical Books
How did you get the inspiration to open Ada’s Technical Books?
In school, I studied electrical engineering and computer science. I have also always loved to read. After working in the tech industry for four years, I decided I wanted to do something a little different. Technical bookstores aren’t something new in the U.S. and I thought it was really strange that Seattle didn’t have one. Also, I felt that I could bring a little different feel and some new ideas to technical bookstores than those that I’d been in before.
Can you tell our fans how Ada’s Technical Books got its name?
Ada’s is named after Ada Lovelace. Ada is considered the first computer programmer. She lived in the late 1800’s and was a mathematician. Click on the link for much more information. She was a super interesting person!
What were you doing before you opened your bookstore?
Before I opened Ada’s, I worked at Pico Computing as a software/firmware engineer. Pico is an FPGA platform company… really cool stuff!
What are some challenges you face as a business owner?
Honestly, I think my biggest challenge is figuring out what I’m doing. 🙂 I haven’t ever studied business, so most of the time I feel like I’m just winging it. But, that makes things really fun and interesting too.
What is the most rewarding thing about owning your own business?
I love that I can have a vision for my business and then, because it’s mine, make it happen. I love seeing my dreams come to life every day at Ada’s. Also, I love meeting all sorts of interesting people through customers, authors, and conferences.
Beyond being a place to buy books, Ada’s also throws events. What were some of your favorite events?
Hmm … great question! I’ve really loved a lot of our events, but the few that come to mind right now are our events with authors Phil and Kaja Foglio, “Captain” Roberts, and Rob Flickenger. We have a big party in the works to celebrate Children’s Book Week that I think is going to be really fun too.
Because we are GeekGirlCon after all, we have to ask: what are you geeky about right now?
Vegan cooking, figuring out how to hack my Tassimo Coffee maker, and gardening. I will also always be a Star Trek TNG and sewing geek.
Thanks so much, Danielle. Now, what are you all waiting for? Head to Ada’s Technical Books now!
Hey folks! In celebration of Free Comic Book Day, the GeekGirlCon staff wanted to take a moment to share about their favorite comic book heroes. Here’s what a few of them had to say:
“Peter O’Donnell’s Modesty Blaise is hands down my favorite comic book hero. She is the most complex, sophisticated, skilled and intelligent of all action heroines. As lovely as she is deadly, Modesty is the Princess of Spy-Fi. Whether great friend or shrewd adversary, she kicks ass – backwards and in high heels.” – Jen K. Stuller, Programming Director (See more about what Jen has to say about Modesty Blaise in this blog piece!)
“My favorite comic book hero is Kitty Pryde. Not only was she the inspiration for Joss Whedon’s Buffy Summers, but I could see so much of myself in her character. She came from humble beginnings and entered the X-Men series as a teen. It was incredibly empowering to follow someone who was young and unsure of herself, but could also kick some serious butt. It always thought her ability to ‘phase’ was a great metaphor for our desire as teens growing up to sometimes just disappear.” – Susie Rantz, PR Manager
“I have to admit, I have only read one comic book series ever: Fables by Bill Willingham. I love it, but who I loooove the most in it is Bigby Wolf, aka The Big Bad Wolf. Willingham took this hated character from children’s stories and made him human without sugarcoating his past and what that character is known for. After killing thousands of humans and animals, then fighting in the ‘human wars,’ he ends up being the person in charge of the safety of Fabletown’s residents as their Sheriff. Willingham took the Big Bad Wolf and made him into a loving, caring (okay sometimes his wolf ‘anger’ comes out and he shifts back into wolf form) character you really connect with, which is why he is my favorite comic book character.” – Mel Howard, Customer Service Coordinator
“My favorite superhero is Jennifer Walters, aka She-Hulk. Unlike her cousin, the Hulk, She-Hulk maintains her personality, brains, and sense of fun when Hulked-out. When she’s not being put in charge of the UN or saving the world with the Avengers, she’s practicing superhero law, being a mentor to the Hulk’s daughter, and probably being a fashionista (all 6’7″ and green). She-Hulk tends to break the fourth wall and talk to her readers and creators. Oh, yeah, she also saved Santa Claus that one time. She-Hulk’s pretty awesome.” – Erica McGillivray, Marketing Director and President
Who is your favorite comic book hero and why? Leave us a comment below!
For more information on participating “Free Comic Book Day” stores, check out the store locator.
, 
, or another of your favorite books to show your geek pride.
(or the 
if you really want…). If you’d rather celebrate your geek pride without a towel, why not re-watch episodes from your favorite geeky TV show, like Battlestar Galactica, Firefly, or Star Trek?
he wrote with Mark Cawardine, followed by the 
, starring Stephen Fry and Mark Cawardine.
By the time we reached grade 5, Pokémon was no longer considered “cool.” The trading cards and daily episodes became a thing of the past as other fads pushed it aside. New generations of Pokémon continued to be created, but as the new additions of monsters and characters became less and less personable, the popular love for Pokémon began to vanish. “That stuff is for little kids!” they would say, but I didn’t care. My love was unending; I never stopped my quest to collect them all.
