The word is obviously a contraction of the words “costume” and “play”. Don’t let the word play fool you however, I want to stress that cosplay is indeed intended to be a fun and enjoyable experience for all, but it’s also serious work. Many cosplayers sew and construct their own garments and accessories, serious feats of labor and dedication! Cosplayers are some of the most ingenious individuals I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. They sew, and thrift, and scavenge, and many design their own patterns for elaborate outfits that yet to exist for purchasing!

Several members of Geeks R Us were gracious enough to sit down with me, and allow me to pick their brains on the subject of cosplay and their own involvement.

Nathanael Wittlinger, pictured below as the iconic Seymour from Little Shop of Horrors, began his foray into the world of cosplay in 2009 when he dressed up as Jack Skellington for Halloween. In 2012 he attended UB Con in cosplay and was immediately struck by how into cosplay attendees got; he loved all the positive reactions and bystander attention. Nathanael is also a gifted puppeteer, and today has over 160 puppets! He performs various skits with these puppets on his YouTube channel, being heavily inspired by the legendary Jim Henson, and specifically his work on Sesame Street. He believes that puppets are great mediators, and he enjoys rescuing stray puppets from local thrift stores. I asked him what a dream cosplay costume would be for him, and he replied with Big Bird, of Snuffie from Sesame Street.

ProTip: If you want to make a career of cosplay go for it, but don’t make it your whole life. Prioritize your time and money.

Mathieu Crowley, pictured below with Elvira as a Vampire Prince of his own creation, got into cosplay as something to do for conventions. He has attended numerous conventions such as Roc Con, Monster Bash, and C2E2. When asked what his dream cosplays were he responded with, Cobra Commander, a movie authentic Darth Vadar, and Sarumon the White from Lord of The Rings.

Protip: Make friends with someone who knows how to sew!

Samantha Platek, pictured below as The Undertaker from Black Butler, first started cosplaying about two years ago. She said that it all really began when she started watching anime. She currently alternates between ten different cosplays, and has attended conventions such as Tora Con, Snowfest, and Anibash. Her top three cosplays are Grell, Tsukiyama, and Howl.Sam picks new cosplays as she watches new shows, so her list is ever increasing. When asked about her dream cosplays she said that it is her dream to build on the cosplays she currently has.

Protip: Take your time, do your research, but it’s never going to be 100% accurate and that’s okay.

Valentine Dudek pictured below as The Doctor, from Doctor Who, says that they’ve always been a theatre kid, and then one day realized, “hey, cosplay is a thing.” The rest is history. He frequently cosplays as Renzi from Bleach, the 10th Doctor, and two different versions of Sherlock Holmes. His dream cosplay would be a working Iron Man suit. Their future cosplay plans include Flynn Rider from Tangled, and a male version of Raven from Teen Titans. Valentine discovered the Geeks R Us club when he saw Sam Platek dressed in cosplay in the student union, and was informed by her about the then Anime Club. Valentine suggested expanding into general geek culture.

Protip: Don’t be afraid of us in costume. People are gonna stare, just let your geek flag fly!

Below are two pictures of me in cosplay! I recently attended RIT’s Tora Con as Shiro from No Game No Life, and Draculaura from Monster High. It was a blast! So if you’re a designer looking for a new way to utilize your skills, if you are a complete sewing novice and simply want to develop skills, or if you just want to buy some cool costumes online and unabashedly enjoy something that you enjoy, why not try cosplay?

The annual GCC fashion show continues its reign as the largest and longest running fashion show in Western New York!  We had record-breaking attendance this year with a total audience at GCC of 1,717 attendees.  This was also the very first year that we had live international streaming video.  We had an additional viewership of 440 US households watching in 19 states and 156 International households in 27 countries bringing our total audience to 2,313.  It is probably more because we don’t know how many people were viewing the live stream at each location.

We of course owe the success of the show to the students and faculty that were a part of it.  Everyone gave it their all, and it really showed!  The fifteen scenes in the show were all very distinct from one another, doing a fantastic job of representing to the public our theme: that fashion is something different to everyone.

Now that it’s over, it almost seems like it never happened.  We all spent months preparing for this, agonizing over every last detail, and after a few moments, it was all done.  It was as though a storm ripped through us, leaving us feeling empty and calm afterwords, only somehow changed and strangely energized.  The designers are all getting offers for their clothes; the students that participated in other areas are taking exciting internships that will doubtlessly lead to even greater levels of success.  In short, this event helped to springboard the careers for everyone that worked on it.

The show was over before we knew it, and none of us could have even thought about taking the time to snap photos; luckily, we had an expert crew there to capture some footage.  Here are but a few stills, which impressively do justice to something so heavily reliant upon movement:

Here are the stats from the Fashion Show streaming…

Once again, this would have been impossible without the tireless efforts of our extraordinary fashion program professors Mr. Dudkowski and Ms. Ehrhart, Mr. D’s wonderful secretary Cheryl Young, production efforts from Marc Tillery, Barry Chow, Gary Glaser, the entire event planning class, the criminal justice students, and everyone else that contributed to making this show happen! Thank you all so much!  We literally could not have done it without you, and your continued support means the world to us and our program! I know I’m not alone when I say, I can’t wait to see what next year’s show has in store!

This blog will be about me and my weaknesses so please do not feel as if I am directing this at you or anyone else.

When is the last time you picked up the phone and called someone just to say hi or to check in on them? Now think about the last time you called them for a favor…

Think about the friends you made a few months ago, or maybe even a year ago. How is your relationship with that person now? Is it where you want it to be? What can you do to get it there? Have you already tried? Do you need to stop trying?

These are some of the thoughts that come to my mind when I think about how I relate to the people around me. Because I am a college student who is dependent on financial aid and work study funds (which is really just financial aid you work for), I tend to ask people around me for help…even though it kills  me. I’m the type of person who hates asking for help, even from family members. But if I never asked people around me for help, I’d constantly be in need, and life would be a lot harder. Can you relate to what I’m talking about?

How do I show gratitude to those who help me, when I don’t have much money. If I had money, it would be so easy to “pay them back” for what they’ve done for me. But then again, if I had money, would I have asked for help in the first place…?

Humility is this weird quality that we all aspire to have…(I think most of us). But the life events that come to humble us, don’t always “feel” good. At least not in my life because I have to put my own personal (defensive even) pride aside and become open to rejection to ask for help. The last thing I want is for someone to think of me as a beggar, or as someone who’s always needy. It is so important to me to become independent and self sufficient, words can not express how important this is for me. But even in my endeavors to reach that goal, I have to ask for help every now and again. Humility… If I could personify this word and give it a monologue, it’d say:

“I want to help myself, but I need you to help me. I want to give back to you but I don’t have anything of equal measure. I lower myself and esteem you, for you are kind. I need to grow in so many ways and give more of myself than I have been. I know I can show gratitude greater than words…I need to put in the effort it takes to show you I mean it when I say thank you.”

Humility rubs you, and dulls spikes of pride down. It makes you a real person, gives you wisdom, and motivates you to work at whatever you need to.

I know that the very least I can do to show gratitude to those who help me, is to say thank you and help who I can next. But how would I feel, if someone gave the very least to me? Most of the people in my life, go far and beyond the very least. They go out of their way and make me feel like it’s their privilege to bless me. When I evaluate myself, I don’t think I’m like that right now…but I want to be.

I know this blog is different, and it’s not related to events at school. But isn’t it something we can all relate to as human beings?

Peace.

By: Lauren Mye

Thank you to everyone who participated in the survey. This information will help me to organize my blog into certain topics. The topic with the most interest was hallucinogens, with opiates not being too far behind. I will be writing my next blog based on information about hallucinogens.

Some other topics that people wrote down that they were interested in included, Meth, Date Rape Drugs, LSD, Heroin, Ecstasy, effects drugs have on you, abuse, family member effects, steroids, birth effects of drugs, smoking, and addiction recovery. I am really glad to see that people are interested in learning more than just the basics. I will be sure to include some of these topics mixed in within the upcoming blogs.

Did you know??
In the ‘50s and ‘60s, the US government tested acid on people—yep, American citizens—without their knowledge.

Learn more in my next blog.

The G.C.C. Fashion show was this past Saturday and it was amazing! Out of the two GCC Fashion Show’s I’ve seen, this one was my favorite!

As Hanna Tischer’s video woman, I got a glimpse of the magic that goes on behind the stage. Everyone looked amazing and I was super impressed by the high level of professionalism carried out by my peers. It was more than an enjoyable experience.

Here are just a few some snap shots from the event. (Click to enlarge).

The 35th annual fashion show at Genesee Community College is so very close being that it is only 2 days away! So with that said the question ‘What is fashion to you?’ is sparking the interest of many.
This year the 8th scene of the show is Bohemian chic featuring children’s wear. This scene is produced by Jessica O’Brien and Jordan Reese with assistance by Bailey Johnson and Jeannie Riveria. This scene is coachella inspired with a hint of children to wow the crowd and grab the attention of the audience.

When I think of fashion I think of the quote “fashion is the armor to survive the reality of everyday life” to me this means you are who you are and what your style is, but that doesn’t mean it defines you. It allows you to extend what fashion is to you. After this year; I will be attending LIM in New York City to continue with my dreams of fashion.
35 years of fashion has been demonstrated and shown through this community, and this year we, as a whole are producing fashion is. We can’t wait to see what you all think of this years show. Hope to see you there!

-Jessie O’Brien