I don't remember when the Anime Expo 2003 madness started. I remember putting more time with Fanime. After attending Anime Idol at Anime Central, I decided to try my luck at Anime Expo Idol. I really didn't care about winning, just going up on stage to have a good time. I spazzed out when I found out that Maya Okamoto was going to be a judge at AX Idol. *^^* It crossed my mind to do karaoke again, but I didn't want to make too many commitments. After all, the AX Ball was at the same time as the contest.

As far as costumes...two debuts. Thanks again to Amethyst Angel for the new Karen costume. Oh, and Anime Expo 2003 was the debut of my cosplay duo groupage with Tom (Traveling Valentine). The Karen costume I was going to wear is another artbook shot of her. Haven't seen this one done, but I have a thing for red formal wear. ^_^; Tom would pair as my Aoki (since he wanted to do an Aoki cosplay a while back). Then there was talk about Battle Royale. Before Fanime, Jarod was convincing me to be Keiko from Battle Royale. After Fanime, I made a trip to Kathy's Uniforms. They were willing to modify the uniform for free, but still the grand total would be $40 for a skirt and a vest. So mother and I made a trip to Goodwill. $7 for red shoes (for Karen costume), skirt, and vest. Yay!

Rooming...my friend Jenna from BMHS had a room at the Coastal. So it would be seven people in the room for the weekend. My friend Tom needed a room, so we let him stay with us. Sora and Will needed a room, so we let them share the crash space. A day before Fanime, I could have found out that I could have stayed at the Hilton for free. My cousin was going and could have roomed with them. However, I rather be with friends I rarely get to see. It's worth paying $45 for a room with people I truly adore.

So, Wednesday July 2nd came. I went to my morning Japanese class. Quite a few of the students were talking AX. I stayed silent about it and resumed memorizing hiragana. I nearly slept through my Psych class...not at the good stuff yet. Went home and watched Shall We Dance to brush up on my dance skills. When it was 6PM, Tom gave me a call right after I got out of the shower. Changed quickly and decided to glomp him once he got to the door. At about 8: 45PM, Sora called from LAX saying her flight arrived. So we got gas at the cheapest place, and tried to find a way to get to the 405 from there. We found Sora and Will waiting for us at Terminal Three.

We went back to my place and got some In and Out burger. Sora went gaga over the palm trees. Will was playing Para Para Paradise. Sora and I were warming up for AX Idol. Tom was shooting my brother. More madness happened when I found out that Will was going to crossplay as Card Captor Sakura. Typically, I go as Nadeshiko Kinomoto (the mother), and Tom has a Touya costume. Interesting family, ne?

So, then we all hit the hay for the big con ahead of us. Is this going on the con report? Oh, and I think Sora and Tom got drunk over the Victoria Secrets Love Spell perfume...