Though Anime Los Angeles had a New Year's Day party followed by an ice cream social and dance party, Claudine, Tom, and I ended up going to the movies instead. A light hearted comedy like Yes Man was enough to set the mood for the weekend. On Friday, January 2, 2008, I woke up to the sounds of Britney Spears' "Womanizer." I immediately checked if I had everything packed for the convention (nearly forgot my wigs!). I performed a few last minute errands - hitting the ATM and getting media supplies for coverage. Finally, Tom and I were set to go Anime Los Angeles, the biggest little con in Southern California. My brother dropped us off at the LAX Marriott.

It was a breeze to pick up our badges. After all, we pre-registered last year. The immediate event was Cosplay Chess. Hosts Maguma (Black Team) and Julia (White Team) served as the event's lovely arbiters. Traveling Valentine Co-Founder Tom and Traveling Valentine member Stan participated on the White Team. Game play went smoothly until people noticed that the chessboard set up for the players differed from the chessboard that the players used, resulting in inaccurate moves and placement. As Tom yelled out upon noticing the error, "WHITE ON RIGHT!"

We also checked in for Saturday night masquerade. Faire Goddess was the friendly neighborhood masquerade coordinator. It was smooth sailing to register. We also ran into a few of our friends in the basement level of the hotel. Most events - panels, gaming, concerts, etc - occurred in the basement level. The poolside courtyard, hotel lobby, and con suite were the places for socializing with other attendees.

Cosplay Chess begun at around 3PM. Stan wore his Grimmjaw (holiday style!) as a bishop and Tom wore his Dr. House as a pawn. It was a class act to see cosplayers go head to head in a nice game of chess. In the end, the White Team claimed victory. The prizes were tiny trophies. All participants received a Cosplay Chess ribbon based on their respective team.

You can read more about Tom's experience as a lowly pawn and the rest of his Friday account on his Friday report for Associated Content.

And you can view his photos here.

Because it was freezing on Friday, Deb and I decided to hit the con suite. The suite was adjacent to the poolside courtyard. It was a convienient location. Deb and I got hot chocolate to keep us warm. Wearing a black evening gown (Chane from Baccano!) in cold weather was not going to cut it at all. The courtyard location was an appropriate environment for the convention - the palm trees and pool side spelled, "This is Los Angeles."

Of course, aside from the palm trees and sunshine, the lobby had a much more elegant, classic 1930s Golden Era of Hollywood look to it. It was a perfect location to take photos of my Chane LaForet (Baccano!) costume.

Pictures are copyright by Traveling Valentine. If I took your picture, feel free to use it on your site or cosplay gallery. While you're here, do sign the guestbook. This site was brought to you by the font Dance Club. Many thanks to Chaz Boston Baden for the image resizing and watermarking program.