We’re in Round Two! AND we’re paired off against Girls With Slingshots! In honor of this momentous occasion I’ve drawn a comic. Deepest thanks to everyone who voted and everyone who donated to the Hero Initiative. Together we made it!
Voting closes Saturday, Midnight, East Coast USA time.
The short version:
Things Without Arms and Without Legs made it into Comix Mix Madness Round 1. You can vote for them along with all your other favorite comics. Round One Vote. You have until Wednesday (timezone unstated, but probably midnight East Coast American) to vote.
If you’re like me and easily baffled know that the brackets show who you’re trying to get more votes than to get into the next round, but the actual voting thing is at the bottom of the page and a big list of names. This list seems to be by bracket rather than alphabetical so searching the page for your faves might help! You can buy extra comics by donating money to the worthy cause the Hero Initiative at 20 cents a vote!
The long version:
As you may have gathered I am rather caught up moving house right now. Things have been pretty hectic, physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted moving to a new place (which is spiffy and exciting). In the middle of the move I heard that we’d been short listed for this cool tournament. It’s uncomfortable to get in people’s faces and ask them to support you, but the possibility of just being in a competition with comics that have mused me for over a decade was too exciting to ignore.
I asked folks and in my rush I thought the cutoff was noon Eastern, not midnight. I thought phew! Looking at the voting it’s pretty clear I got in with 5 minutes past noon and went back to packing.
There is nothing that has a noon cut off! What was I thinking? Later that evening I went to check the website, a tricky thing as internet has been buggy during our move and my laptop REALLY doesn’t like the Comic Mix website. I saw that voting had continued substantially and the late surge had taken my comic from a respectable 90th to something that (according to my sleep deprived counting) was two or so places from getting into the tournament!
Oh no melon! I felt bad, not reading things properly and not pushing through to the end. I felt like I had wasted the time of amazing and wonderful people who voted for me. I decided not to beat myself up, although I felt a little sad and quite silly. I’d had a really good learning experience, I’d seen awesome people come out in support of my comic. I’d sincerely hoped to get further through, but that’s what you get for not reading things properly etc and best wishes to those who got through. I checked the website a few times to see who did get through and so I could vote for my muses, but it was squeezed in amongst the packing and I struggled to find any new news.
I drew a comic inspired by that experience and my plan was to write a follow up blog post today, thanking everyone who helped me and what I learned (push through to the end, read things more carefully, how awesomesauce some people are).
The blog post has changed though, because when I finally got Comic Mix to load (all my internet is from my phone acting as an internet hotspot!) and behave and saw to my shock that I AM in Round One. I made it in!!! I am astounded and overjoyed!
Not only am I in ROUND ONE, I get to face off against chainsawsuit by Kris Straub! It’s a Machine of Death artist (and much more) vs a Machine of Death writer! Whose prediction card will reign supreme?
What a crazy couple of days. Now go vote for stuff wot you love ^_^
#sfwapro
Things Without Arms and Without Legs are on the Comic Mix long list for the March Madness webcomics tournament.
It is such an honor to make it onto the list of 300.
Go vote for the comics you love and decide which of the 128 gets through to play in the tournament. It’s super easy, no login required and it’s super tight right now. I wouldn’t be surprised if who gets in and who misses out is determined by a single vote! http://www.comicmix.com/mix-march-madness-webcomics-tournament/2014/03/11/announcing-mix-march-madness-2014-seeding-round/
Voting closes Thursday, March 13 at 11:59 PM EDT.
#sfwapro
I’m often terrible at telling people when I’m announcing. It’s tempting to remain terrible so that I can get surprised messages from people going, “OMG! Am I listening to YOU?”
These are the events I announced as Ichabod ‘splain at the Wild West Showdown. I shall try to endure listening to my voice soon. Here are all my mistakes, forever enshrined on the internet.
Wild West Showdown
Friday 4am, track 1, Junction City Roller Dolls vs Sick Town Derby Dames.
Announcing with Mistress Mouth (warning, my mic is a little bit quiet to start with, thanks .00 Buck for replacing the microphone!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxbKooo6mFk
Saturday 10:15am track 2, I5 Rollergirls VS Rocky Mountain Roller Punks.
Announcing with Le Grande Mort
Saturday 5:15pm, Track 2, Seattle Derby Brats VS Rocky Mountain Roller Punks.
Announcing with Scott Chicken
Video TBF (To Be Found)
Saturday, 8:45pm, Track 2,Kitsap Derby Brats VS FoCo Spartan Babes.
Announcing with The Norwasian Persuasion
Sunday 9am, Track 1, Junction City Roller Dolls VS Ark Valley High Rollers.
Announcing with .00 Buck
Sunday 12:30pm, Track 1, Calgary Roller Derby Association VS Slaughterhouse Derby Girls.
Announcing with Dick Pounder
The MOST ROMANTIC STORY I HAVE EVER WRITTEN went out to Daily Science Fiction subscribers today (subscription is free and you get a sweet sweet nugget of fiction that speculates in your inbox every morning). If you are not a subscriber you’ll be able to read it live on their website next week.
If you go there now you can read three other stories by me! Just chuck Argall in the search box on the right hand side of any Daily Science Fiction page.
I had the pleasure of skating in a mixed team of Rat City skaters after weather created much sadness for Juneau Roller Girls of Alaska. Juneau tried very hard to make it to Seattle to play against Jet City’s Camaro Harem, but after days at the airport it was clear they were not going to make it. Rat City quickly pulled together a team to play, my first ever bout against an established team. There was an audience and announcers and I thought I was hallucinating, because when I went up to jam (ie be the skater who runs through everyone to get points) folks chanted my name. It was a lot of fun to play. On the eve of the Seahawks going to the superbowl our team was called Go Hawks. Our cheers included “Sea. Hawks. Sea. Hawks” and “Friendship is Magic!”
Hopefully Juneau will be able to make it out some other time, that must have been so rough for them. I hope we get to see them play soon.
Photos!
http://photography.dannyngan.com/gd-doubleheader
I’m the chick in a white t-shirt with a purple helmet and braids.
Video!
The good people over at Lightspeed Magazine asked me to write an essay for them about my experience as a woman destroying science fiction. It’s part of a great kickstarter to celebrate and showcase female contributors to genre fiction put together by one of genre’s finest contemporary magazines.
I think my favorite moment writing this essay was realizing that Richard Pryor is the actor who showed me the magic of computer hacking (in Superman III, a movie that came out the year I was born!). He was the first hacker I ever saw on the screen and showed me that computers were cool. As someone who can be quite intelligent and goofball I really liked him and was a character I could relate to (although how far they pushed the bufoonery bothered me, I liked it best when we laughed with him). We often forget the power of the obvious and surprising Lex Luthor with the utility of socks was something that has stuck with me.
So here’s my essay, I hope you enjoy it. I think I need to watch Superman III again, I don’t think I’ve seen it since I growed up!
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/lightspeedmagazine/women-destroy-science-fiction/posts/738103
I’ve blogged about my resolve for the new year on a completely different website. Head over to the Things Without Arms and Without Legs website if you want to read about play, fun and burnout avoidance. I’d love to hear about your resolutions over there too, maybe we can cheer each other on as the year gets to the tricky middle bit!
So, I made an interesting derby discovery, interesting enough that I thought it deserved a blog post!
I was chatting to my sister about glutes the other day. She was telling me how whenever we get injured or hurt our glutes can shut down. It’s sort of the body’s way of saying OH FOR F$%&*%%%%% SAKE STOP DOING THAT THING YOU’RE DOING!
This can make life difficult if you a) want to keep doing the thing you’re doing or b) the glutes never switch back on again and you start using tiny muscles for things your POWERHOUSE of MIGHTY glutes should be doing.
Caty sent me an article about glutes and I was pleased to note that most of the exercises they suggest are exercises I do, or do similar ones. I thought, hmmm, interesting article, confirms that all the stuff I’ve been doing as prehab to activate my glutes is activating my glutes, HOORAY FOR DERBY BOOTY!
I thought that would be the end of it, but it wasn’t… the article planted a cool brain seed.
Ever since a really crushing fall last year, sometimes when I fall hard I can feel my glute switch off. Sometimes it goes numb, sometimes it just doesn’t feel as stable and it takes a while to get back into things. Off the track I’m working on my hips by getting horrible massagey stuff, active release and various exercises to build muscle aka natural armor. On the track my strategy has been to punch my glutes until they wake up and (if there’s space) do a few squats/sit down on my ankles.
Today I went down, felt my glute start to switch off and then I did something different. Thinking back on the exercises in the article I did some one legged squats and one legged balancing. That much more effectively targeted the shocked area and my glute came back to life faster and more evenly. One legged squats engaged a lot more muscles and I could almost feel the squat gathering up my muscles and bringing them back on line.
Yay one legged squats… and now you know, if I’m doing one legged squats on roller skates I’m not just being a weirdo. I’m also priming my butt so it can do some damage!
Good thing I keep a blog (woefully neglected the last three months) or I’d have no idea what I got up to…. please let me know if there’s anything I forgot that was interesting! I am constructing this from records, this year has been such a blur! I thought I didn’t do much this year and while there are many things I’m sad I didn’t achieve it’s good to know why I feel a little tired and have been enjoying a month or two without work related travel. There is so much value in lists.
Scrolling back through my posts I discovered I made a New Years Resolution last year. My plan was to cultivate the beginners mind. I think I did that pretty well in the world of roller derby and comics. I struggled a little bit more in the land of prose, bobbing in and out of that place like an reluctant hedgehog having a bubble bath.
Things Without Arms and Without Legs, created comics 81 through to 225. I created my first minicomic, the content voted for by wonderful readers. My sweetheart gave me a spanking new iPad to draw comics on and it has been a delight. Yay Things!
Mermaid’s Hook – print and audio
Blunt Force Trauma Delivered by Spouse, one of two thousand submissions. It appeared in This is How You Die with Grand Central Publishing. It received many kind reviews.
One of my blog posts was reprinted on the Science Fiction Writers of America website! Jealousing is the new writing exercise.
I gave Apex publications sage advice on how to survive a convention.
I drew a visual poem about The Tick on the back of a placemat… it is now in the anthology “Flying Higher”
Increased the number of letters I wrote AND posted!
Experienced the awesome that is Rainforest Writers Retreat. Wrote my best short story this year while I was there.
Launchpad Astronomy Workshop – download all the astronomy into my brain!
Participating in a month of letters. It’s good for the soul and I’ve written letters just about every month this year!
Participated in the Clarion Write-a-thon, as I do every year. I raised $300, drew comics, wrote words and created 20 units of awesome.
Participated in Nanowrimo… did pretty abysmally, but it’s got my brain rolling in new directions, so I think it was worthwhile challenging myself in a place of deep discomfort. The word count is not quite as terrible as my profile says, but it’s pretty close.
Emerald City Comicon – I worked the Rat City Rollergirls booth and we had a grand time.
Wiscon (and afterwards a water bottle was posted to me with so much awesome I almost exploded!)
Sakuracon – I didn’t attend Sakura con so much as was Totoro’s guard AND then got to don the enormous structure myself and be Totoro. Kinda completely awesome.
Norwescon – popped in and hung out with folks.
Live tweeted the Locus Awards, as is my custom… I love the Locus folks (a Hawaiian shirt chucked over my sweaty derby gear as I’d come straight from trying out for Rat City!)
GeekGirlCon – popped in and hung out with folks! Love this convention.
World Science Fiction Convention – many complex panels requiring lots of prep and my first one hour reading!… afterwards exploring Austen & New Orleans with my sister.
Orycon – many panels, lots of fun!
As Ichabod ‘Splain I was an announcer at the Big O, as well as announcing London vs Oly and Taco Kickers vs Bad Reputations
I tried out for Rat City until I was blue in the face (and a photo of me featured on the tryout page!) and finally got on to Rat Lab (Rat City Roller Girls’ new skater program). Achievement unlocked!
I played in the mightiest roller derby bout of all time! NSHOBOS vs NSOOOOO GOOD LOOKIN‘ – it was hilarious and lovely.
I think I only NSOed one tournament in 2013! The PNW Juniors Championships… I could be wrong though.
NSOed a bunch of Rat City bouts, probably NSOed my last ever Key Arena bout (sniff).
I was runner up at the NSHOBO Awards for best NSO turned skater… if I work reeeeeaaaaaallly hard who knows, maybe I can claim first place next year.
Retired from the Lightning Fists of Science (Rat City’s Non Skating Official team) so I could focus on skating & not get confused by too many hats… though as Lightning Fist Alumni I still help out from time to time and they’ll never fully get rid of me.
Lost my first toenail.
Attended my first ever Halloween Party and haunted spooky thing (there were zombies, a gorilla suit and a chainsaw… the gorilla with the chainsaw in an enclosed space may have made me scream a little). I feel like I dressed in an adequately horrifying and spooky manner.
Went to Hawaii for the first time. This is under the derby section because we stayed with two referees AND Mike head refereed a bout and I skated in it. I sliced open my knee just before the game, but three stitches had me ready to hit the track. The stitches were applied by a nurse who had been one of Birute Galdikas‘ research assistants – ie involved in pioneering research about orangoutangs!
Became a much better skater.
And that’s it for the year… and it doesn’t mention any of the people I am privileged to spend time with, met, hung out with or admired.
Phew! I’m glad I got 2013 off my chest and got a little perspective.
Now what on earth do I do with 2014…?