Bookshelves!

[kestrell]

I bought myself new bookcases for my birthday and they just arrived! My day is totally saved. I think the UPS guy might have been a little taken aback by witnessing a blind woman get so excited about bookshelves.

Comments

[jesse_the_k]

Ah, not just any blind woman -- it's the blind bookworm! (Given that she's got superhero powers, what should her superhero costume be?)

[kestrell]

My superhero persona nowadays has morphed into Meta Girl, andAlexx is my sidekick, Fan Boy, so his superhero costume is a geeky t-shirt and jeans (in other words, what he always wears). I think my costume should probably be clothes printed with text from various books, or, if I had the tech, clothing capable of scrolling digital text across it. But mostly I just wear lots of tie-dye,
although I've often thought the BB should have a silly hat shaped like a book with a bookworm wearing sunglasses popping out of the cover. I haven't figured out how to make this though, except that a graduation cap would probably be the best base. Perhaps superglue a paperback book to it, hollow out the pages, and stick a little bookworm in there? Maybe I could find one of those boxes where a sprinrgy thing pops out when you open it. Hmmmm.

[jesse_the_k]

I think "Meta Girl" in Greek would be appropriate, since that's pretty meta. I think you're in the correct area code to find someone who knows how to letter that, if it's not you.

Scrolling digital text is not far off. Think Geek has scrolling text buttons
http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/7c54/?srp=2#tabs
and belt buckles
http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/7c60/?srp=6#tabs

"Fan boy" is indeed the easiest costume to pull together. Some fan boys fold their Ts and stack by odor right next to the bed, so they can arise and dress in one coordinated movement.

Worm-in-the-box hat for the win. This website explains how to construct a sturdy-ish jack-in-the-box with just paper:

http://estierasmus.blogspot.com/2011/01/jack-in-box.html

Alternatively, one could get a Cat in the Hat hat (tall, fuzzy concentric red-striped top hat) and build a woodpecker nest in it for the bookworm to droop out of. Less engineering.

Gee, I wish we could cosplay all year long!

Any thoughts on the Readercon sturm und drang?

[kestrell]

Wow, those are some very cool links! At one point, I had an amazing book featuring math and science symbols, with the symbols in braille and *large* embossed versions of the symbols but, sadly, I gave it to a teenager who said he wanted to go to MIT, and I have been unable to find a replacement copy.

I've been avoiding most of the ReaderCon thread, but I did get some of the relevant recent information from Alexx, who posted his thoughts here
http://alexx_kay.livejournal.com/

Like Alexx, I'm really impressed at how quickly and eloquently the ReaderCon folks took action and posted their apology online. I've worked on access with Rose and Crystal in the past, and they are some of the nicest people I know in fandom. Most con coms would take months to address such an issue, let alone apologize. I realize that good intentions aren't always enough to signify when a major mistake is made but, like most rights issues, I figure it's a process, and sometimes the mistake offers an opportunity for people to really talk about the issue, and make a big step forward.

[jesse_the_k]

Ooh, that tactile print & Nemeth sounds intriguing -- and the kind of thing NPB or DO-IT would have. (I wrote Nemeth confidently but has the UBC happened? Never mind, I'll Google.)

Alexx nails it.

That the board abdicated in favor of the concom is also surprising, since the "old guard" tend to comprise boards. "Old guardians" are often retired from the con's day-to-day, and less in tune with the newer ideas of the membership.

In recent memory I've been part of a concom buffeted by the pressures of Internet-time advocacy. I can understand why folks Want Change Now! I am delighted that Readercon has been able to respond in that time line. Also delighted that I doubt I'll ever participate in the concom again, so won't have to get up to that speed.

[kestrell]

What is UBC? Universal Braille Code?

I have searched for this book on NBP, but have had no luck in the past.

Re Old Guard: Boskone and even, at this point, Arisia (which set itself up as the young lions in opposition to Boskone) are seriously having this issue. The 2011 Boskone obviously set out to try to appeal to a younger audience, as they had Charlene Harris as the GOH, and a bunch of young horror writers, also (I don't think I had ever witnessed Boskone even acknowledging horror before, beyond Lovecraft and Poe, that is.

I think Readercon makes a very conscious effort to attract particularly intelligent and innovative writers, and progressive ideas often accompany that sort of aesthetic.