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Sabtu, 04 Juni 2016

Having The Courage To Cosplay Whoever You Want

Photo by Green House Photography

As a Puerto Rican girl from Philadelphia I have been told numerous times on what I "cant" do. It started early on in my childhood because I was told Hispanics could not accomplish anything. I was expected to drop out of school, join a gang, get pregnant at 16 and other stereotypes. I was even told I was brown eyed (even though my eyes are clearly green). Gender also played a part. I wasnt suppose to read comic books because I was a girl. I shouldnt be collecting action figures or wearing comic themed t-shirts. I was weak because males are the stronger sex. These criticisms often came from strangers, kids on the playground or classmates. Teachers have told me because I had "the face of an angel" I wasnt very smart. When I began costuming in 2006 I was told repeatedly by followers of cosplay (never from a cosplayer) that this was a hobby I should give up because there arent many Latinos in geekdom. I couldnt do it. Supergirl isnt Puerto Rican. There are no Hispanic Final Fantasy characters. There is no Latina Disney Princess. Once again, I decided not to listen and had the courage to cosplay whoever I wanted. Along the way, I have encountered other individuals who do not let gender, race or weight stop them from portraying their favorite characters.

Gender Swap Walking Dead Group at
Dragoncon 2014. Photo by
Project Radio.

Recently a group of friends visited me from out of town. We had a blast hanging out and doing impromptu photo shoots with many different costumes. One of my favorite shots from the day is of me and Shemika Berry as Harley and Ivy. When I saw the photo, I thought it was a powerful statement on cosplay freedom and how it sends the message on not being afraid of costuming whoever you want. The photo features a Latina as Harley Quinn and an African-American woman as Ivy. And we look fabulous. Cosplay is about creative freedom. If you want to be a gender bender Steampunk Maleficent, go for it! Ethnic Zombie Disney Princess? Yes, please. Dont match the skin tone of the character you want to portray? So what! Plus size superhero? Done! Dont let anything stop you. At the 2014 Dragoncon convention I participated in my first gender swap group. The theme was The Walking Dead and I was Carl Grimes. I cant tell you how much fun and exciting it was to do something different and express our fandom at the same time. If I had listened to the haters, I would not have wonderful experiences such as that.

Let me tell you what this Latina did in the midst of the masses who said I couldnt do anything in life. I graduated High School. I took some collage courses. I have been paid to model. I have been published nationwide for modeling in publications such as Latina Magazine. I wrote an article for a national magazine on Bratz doll collecting. I have worked in Early Child Hood Education for many years. I have been a guest at shows. I write product reviews for my Blog. I started my own birthday entertainment business and I do princess parties. I started the Pennsylvania branch of the Heroes Alliance and manage a team of volunteers and together we do numerous charity events. I moved to the suburbs and am in a stable relationship and we have our own home (and two beautiful cats). I cosplay whoever I want.

Not bad for a Puerto Rican girl who was told she wouldnt amount to anything. My point, friends? Dont listen to the haters and have the courage to cosplay whoever you want and also, have the courage to do whatever you want in your life. It is yours after all :) #cosplayequality

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Kids Love Comics at the 2014 Baltimore Comic Con!

Baltimore Comic-Con Offers Interactive Kids Comics Area with cartoonists, comic creation, capes, and light saber training!

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - August 6, 2014 - Kids 10 and under get in free at the Baltimore Comic-Con September 5-7, 2014 at the Baltimore Convention Center -- and show organizers are once again presenting a kid-friendly comics area, full of all-ages comics, as well as the artists and writers who make them. Creators from such companies as Archie, Scholastic, Disney, Simon & Schuster, First Second, Marvel, and DC will be on hand to sketch, say hi, and help to teach young ones about the magic of comics through mini-How-Tos through the weekend, right at the Kids Comics Pavilion! Plus, kids can take part in comic crafts, game shows, and more!

Activities in this super cool section of the show include:
* Interactive Comics Talks from some of Kids Comics top creators, such as Ben Hatke (Zita the Spacegirl), Andy Runton (Owly), Mike Maihack (Cleopatra in Space), and more!
* Design your own super hero cape and mask
* Doodle Scribble Draw! Kids Drawing Gameshow!
* Creator sketches and autographs
* Kid-Safe Star Wars Light Saber Training
* Puppet making with Chris O>Matic!

"The Baltimore Comic-Con has always been a welcoming, family-friendly show, and every year, we aim to make the Kids Love Comics Pavilion inspiring to young comic fans. Not only do we want kids to read comics, we show them how they can create their own! I wish there was an event like this when I was a kid," said Mark Mariano, creator of the Happyloo graphic novel series, and co-organizer (with John Gallagher) of the kids section. "Its so cool that I bring my own family here every year," added Gallagher.

Heres a rundown of the Kids Love Comics Pavilion Creators:

Harold Buchholz - Archie Comics archiecomics.com

Frank Cammuso - Salem Hyde, Ottos Backwards Day, Knights of the Lunch Table cammuso.com

Jamie Cosley (Saturday only) - Cody the Cavalier, Zucchini
Tyler Cosley (Saturday only) - AlakaZach, Ninja Squirrel jamiecosley.com

Franco (Appearing Saturday and Sunday) - Aw Yeah Comics!, Tiny Titans, Itty Bitty Hellboy awyeahcomics.com

Jay Fosgitt - Bodie Troll jayfosgitt.com

John Gallagher - Zoey and Ketchup, Buzzboy, Roboy Red
Katie Gallagher -Zoey and Ketchup skydogcomics.com

SL Gallant - GI JOE slgallant.com

Chris Giarrusso - G-Man, Mini-Marvels chrisgcomics.com

Jimmy Gownley - The Dumbest Idea Ever!, Amelia Rules! jimmygownley.com

Ben Hatke - Zita the Spacegirl, Julias House for Lost Creatures benhatke.com

Jason Horn - Ninjasaur ninjasaur.com

Jamal Igle - Molly Danger, Supergirl, Firestorm jamaligle.com

Lora Innes - The Dreamer thedreamercomic.com

Mike Maihack - Cleopatra in Space cowshell.com

Mark Mariano - The Other Side of Hugless Hill, Happyloo, Flabbergast mypalmark.com

Mark McKenna - Banana Tail, Star Wars, Marvel, DC markmckennaart.com Jamar Nicholas - Leon: Protector of the Playground jamarnicholas.com

Chris O>Matic - The Chris O>Matic Show! omatics.net

Chris Otto and Ben Taylor - A Dogs Life adogslifecomic.com

Dan Parent - Archie, Kevin Keller danparent.com

Andy Runton - Owly owly.com

Gregg Schigiel - Spongebob Squarepants Comics, Pix hatterentertainment.com

Jeff Schultz - Archie Comics archiecomics.com

Kids Love Comics joins our previously announced guests, including: Eddy Barrows (Earth 2); Marty Baumann (Pixar artist); Jeremy Bastian (Cursed Pirate Girl); Marguerite Bennett (Batgirl); Christina Blanch (The Damnation of Charlie Wormwood); Mark Buckingham (Fables); Dave Bullock (Batman Black and White); Jim Calafiore (Leaving Megalapolis); Darrenn Canton (Tunnels & Trolls); Greg Capullo (Batman); Richard Case (Sandman); John Cassaday (Doc Savage); Bernard Chang (Green Lantern Corps); Jo Chen (Buffy the Vampire Slayer); Sean Chen (Amazing Spider-Man); Jimmy Cheung (Infinity); Cliff Chiang (Wonder Woman); Frank Cho (X-Men: Battle of the Atom); Amy Chu (Girls Night Out); Richard Clark (House of Gold & Bones); Steve Conley (Bloop); Mike Curtis (Dick Tracy); Jeremy Dale (Skyward); Alan Davis (Wolverine); Rachel Deering (In the Dark); Todd Dezago (Tellos); Tommy Lee Edwards (Star Wars); Garth Ennis (Preacher, The Boys); Ray Fawkes (Constantine); Tom Feister (G.I. Joe); David Finch (Forever Evil); Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez (All-Star Western); Gerhard (Cerebus the Aardvark); Dave Gibbons (Watchmen); Keith Giffen (The New 52: Futures End); Bryan JL Glass (Mice Templar); Michael Golden (The Ravagers); Allan Gross (Road Song); Cully Hamner (Animal Man); Dean Haspiel (The Fox); Fred Hembeck (Garfield); Marc Hempel (Sandman: The Kindly Ones); Adam Hughes (Before Watchmen: Dr. Manhattan); Justin Jordan (Luther Strode, Green Lantern: New Guardians); Dan Jurgens (The New 52: Futures End); Chris Kemple (Red Vengeance); Denis Kitchen (Al Capp: A Life to the Contrary); Barry Kitson (Empire); Aaron Kuder (Action Comics); Norman Lee (Iron Man Special); David Mack (Shadowman); Kevin Maguire (Guardians of the Galaxy); Pop Mhan (All New X-Factor); Alex Maleev (Moon Knight); Billy Martin (Vitriol, The Hunter); Ron Marz (Witchblade); Mike McKone (Ultimate FF); Bob McLeod (X-Men: Gold); Tradd Moore (Deadpool Annual); Mark Morales (New Avengers); Dan Parent (Archie, Veronica, Kevin Keller); David Peterson (Mouse Guard); Joe Prado (Justice League); Brian Pulido (Lady Death); Ron Randall (Trekker in Dark Horse Presents); Tom Raney (Incredible Hulk); Ivan Reis (Aquaman and The Others); Budd Root (Cavewoman); Don Rosa (Donald Duck); Craig Rousseau (Perhapanauts); Joe Rubinstein (The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe); Andy Runton (Owly); Alex Saviuk (Web of Spider-Man); Louise Simonson (Power Pack); Walter Simonson (Thor); Andy Smith (Superman #23.1: Bizarro); Allison Sohn (sketch card artist); Charles Soule (Thunderbolts); Jim Starlin (Thanos: The Infinity Revelation); Joe Staton (Dick Tracy); Paul D. Storrie (Sheena, Queen of the Jungle); Ben Templesmith (The Memory Collectors); Robert Tinnell (The Wicked West); Peter Tomasi (Batman and Two-Face); John Totleben (Swamp Thing); Herb Trimpe (GI Joe: A Real American Hero); Billy Tucci (Shi); Rick Veitch (Saga of the Swamp Thing); Mike Vosburg (Lori Lovecraft); Mark Waid (Daredevil); Lee Weeks (Daredevil); Mark Wheatley (Frankenstein Mobster); Bill Willingham (Fables); Renee Witterstaetter (Joe Jusko: Maelstrom); Rich Woodall (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles); Kelly Yates (Amber Atoms); Thom Zahler (My Little Pony); and Mike Zeck (Secret Wars).

Tickets General Admission and VIP Package tickets for Weekend, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday are now on sale! Visit www.baltimorecomiccon.com/tickets/ for more information and to purchase your advanced tickets now! In the coming weeks, look for more announcements from the Baltimore Comic-Con. We are looking forward to highlighting our guests, the Harvey Awards, industry exclusives, and programming. The latest developments can always be found on our website, Twitter, and Facebook pages.

My top seven posts of 2014

Im now in my fifth year of blogging. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to read what I have written—especially those who have commented. Ive learned a lot from you.

My seven most read posts of 2014 are listed below. Click on the title to read the post.

"That electric hand dryer study was bogus" was an analysis of a study that made outrageous claims about electric hand dryers and dispersal of bacteria.

"What are the residency prospects for graduates of offshore medical schools?" took a look at the realities associated with graduating from medical schools outside the 50 states and Puerto Rico.

"Preventing infection: The "bare below the elbows" rule for doctors doesnt go far enough" discussed the role of clothing in the transmission of disease and the ultimate solution to the problem.

"A medical student says to abandon the match" was my take on a proposal to do away with the residency matching program in the US. Spoiler alert: I didnt think it was a good idea.

"How to select surgical residents: The evidence" was a review of the limited evidence concerning how surgical program directors select candidates to interview and rank.

"A paper of mine was published. Did anyone read it?" spoke to the proliferation of medical journals, the likelihood that a single paper will be read, and what the future may hold.

"Health Care and the $20,000 Bruise: A different take" raised a lot of questions about a Wall Street Journal article written by a doctor who took his son to an emergency room for an 11-day-old bruise on his head.

And the all-time winner so far is this post, "Appendicitis: Diagnosis, CT Scans and Reality," which was the tenth post I ever wrote and is approaching 22,000 page views.

Best wishes to all.

Minggu, 15 Mei 2016

5 Cosplay Artists You Should Be Watching!

The grand hobby of costuming has exploded over the last few years. Hundreds of thousands of cosplay accounts exist on tumblr, Deviant Art, Facebook and other places across the web. There are many talented individuals on the scene but Id like to take this moment to highlight some of my personal favorites. I bring you (in no particular order) 5 Cosplay Artists You Should Be Watching.

Traci Hines

Words cant express my love and adoration for Traci Hines. She is hands down, the best Ariel I have ever seen and can bring any Disney Princess to life with flawless accuracy. This gorgeous red head also crossplays and is a talented singer. She has done a series of covers and has recorded her own original music. Last year she launched her own successful t-shirt line titled "Adorkable". The original hipster mermaid has legions of adoring fans, myself included. I promise you wont be disappointed when you check out her music and costume work.

http://www.tracihines.com/

https://www.facebook.com/TraciHinesMusic

http://www.youtube.com/TraciJHines

http://www.twitter.com/TraciHines

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Cosplay Kitten

Heidi aka Cosplay Kitten is one of my favorites for many reasons. When I first began costuming back in 2006, I quickly became a fan of her work. Her craftsmanship and attention to detail are first class. She has made costumes from all different genres including anime, video games and comic books. She is absolutely beautiful and is very kind and gracious to everyone. The best part of Heidi is that shes fun and a big geek like the rest of us! I always look forward to what this beauty will create next!

http://www.cosplaykitten.com/

https://www.facebook.com/CosplayKitten/

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Faces of Freya

Theres no doubt about it; Freya kicks ass! She has quickly become one of my favorite artists on the scene. She works hard to maintain that knock-out figure. In addition to cosplay, she is also a historical actress and charity worker. Freya is fun, sexy and exciting. Her photographs are stunning to look at. She truly emulates the spirit of the characters she is portraying. I find this woman inspiring on so many levels and look forward to seeing her on the convention floor!

https://www.facebook.com/FacesOfFreya

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Michael Cox

Batman never looked this epic! Michael Cox has an impressive collection of handmade costumes that just keep on getting better and better. His recent armored Batman literally blew me away when I saw it at this years Megacon Convention. In addition to crafting and creating, Michael is also a Council Member of the Heroes Alliance Charity Organization and has been doing super hero charity work for the last several years. This true life super hero is one of the nicest guys around and very humble but watch out for his wicked sense of humor!

Facebook Page

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Knightmage

With his insanely awesome costumes and infectious positive attitude, Knightmage has become a favorite among fellow costumers and fans alike. The wings he created for his recent Spawn costume literally made my jaw hit the floor. This man is pure, raw talent. Knightmage has been a guest at several conventions around the country and donates all of the money he makes selling prints to childrens charities. I had the pleasure of meeting him at the 2013 Allentown Comic-Con and he is a true gentleman. I cant wait to see what he will create next!

https://www.facebook.com/Knightmage1

Kamis, 12 Mei 2016

Man of Steel and Trinity Set

Photo by Future Photography by M3 with edit by
SII Posters

Planning a photo shoot with a large team of artists takes time and patience. It took several months to plan a Man of Steel themed photo shoot which included costumers Jason of JET Cosplay, Kevin D Cosplay and photographers Miguel of Future Photography by M3, Marvin of Hero Hotties, Brian of Green House Photography and Piera of Photos and Designs by Piera. The shoot took place in my home thus proving that having a creepy large basement can in fact be good for something. Many people drove a long distance to make the shoot a possibility and when they all arrived, I was dressed up as Queen Elsa from Disneys Frozen (having just returned from entertaining children at a birthday party). It was exciting that this was finally coming together. I loved the Man of Steel movie and we had an amazing cast of costumers and photographers. We also decided to take things a step further; since Kevin cosplays Batman and I cosplay Wonder Woman, this was a great opportunity to get some Trinity shots.

Two costume changes were required for me for the Man of Steel set; Lois Lane and Faora. After washing off my Elsa makeup and slipping off the blue sparkly gown, I changed into Lois Lane (which requires less makeup than Faora). Superman and Lois shots were taken as well as Superman, Lois and General Zod.

Have I ever mentioned how much it irritates me that they kept Amy Adams red hair for the role of Lois? I wouldnt have to wear a wig for this if Zack Snyder remained accurate to Lois appearance. Amy Adams doesnt look like Lois Lane in Man of Steel; she just looks like Amy Adams. It took me forever to find a wig this shade of red. Lucky for me I found it at a wig shop local to a relatives house. It was the only orange based red wig in the store priced at $25. It was literally collecting dust on display. It is quite beautiful however and it will be used for Anna from Frozen for parties.

Next up is Faora which is a costume I have only worn once for a brief shoot earlier this year. Unfortunately with all of the chaos of the day, I forgot to put my belt on and didnt realize it until I saw the photos. Costume fail. The short wig is made of human hair. I tend to feel quite self conscious in it but it photographs well.

After a pizza break, it was time for Zod and Faora to change into Batman and Wonder Woman for some epic Trinity shots and one romantic shot with Superman.

Great times were had behind the camera and a lot of laughs. For some, it was the first time meeting and working with one another and it was an absolute blast. New friendships were made, fond memories and some stunning art. My thanks to all of the artists involved with the shoot whom I am honored to call friends.

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Rabu, 11 Mei 2016

Wonder Woman Gallery

Wonder Woman is my favorite super hero and throughout the years I have costumed different versions of the Amazon Princess. Below is a gallery featuring all of my Wonder Woman costumes. Heres to many more in the future!

Photography Credits: Future Photography by M3

Green House Photography

Stephen Sansname

Photos and Designs by Piera

Traditional Lynda Carter Wonder Woman Costume made by Three Muses Clothing

New 52 Wonder Woman and other versions made by me.

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Minggu, 08 Mei 2016

Costuming in 2014 A Year in Review

2014 is coming to an end which means its time for my annual year in review costume breakdown. For new readers of Confessions of a Cosplay Girl, this means I list all of the new and fun characters I brought to life this year. The list is pretty long and features my first gender bender character and two characters featuring body paint. My thanks to all of the amazing photographers I have shot with in 2014!

Mystique