The Time That Is Given To Us

 One of the vendors I bought some goods from was this one, whose primary specialty was cutting boards and coasters in wood, with a pop culture theme.

The map of Middle Earth on this cutting board was particularly appreciated. If I had a larger kitchen- or to be more precise did any cooking- I would have picked it up.

Thor's Trinkets is the name of an eastern Ontario artisan who does pop culture on beer mugs and other glassware as the bulk of her work. I have a good number of beer mugs and other glasses from her, and picked up a couple of glass coffee mugs this time out. Note the various genres represented here.

Another place I stopped by sells these t-shirts. They are pop culture icons largely done as silhouette, and most of them brown on a black t-shirt, but not all as you can see. I have several of them already, including the Batman one at top left, and bought two more this time out- a Star Wars one and a Godzilla one.

These cosplayers caught my eye- Wolverine, Juggernaut, and Mystique, all of the X-Men corner of Marvel.

The woman's Mystique make up was particularly effective- the character is a shape changer, and this woman decided to depict Mystique mid-transformation from her usual blue skinned self into whoever she's impersonating.

I chatted with a longtime Marvel artist who always turns up at these things, and bought some graphic novels from him to add to the others I had bought from other dealers. And I bought a few more things, shown here at home. While walking through, I had noticed several dinosaurs like this from one vendor; I returned and bought a triceratops. It now sits on top of my desk.

One of my favourite quotes from the Lord of the Rings; this sign came home with me.

My two new mugs. The one at left is definitely me, while the one at the right shows my LOTR fandom.

And I got four coasters- three of which were Star Wars related, and another featuring Groot from Marvel comics- and a bottle opener from the Harry Potter side of things.

I Had Friends On That Death Star

 Cosplayers are a big thing at Comicon. The Scarlet Witch at left caught my eye. Her companion was a more improvised Iron Man.

Thor's Trinkets is an artist's business based out of eastern Ontario. I've bought beer mugs and tumbler glasses from the artist before, both here and at the Lansdowne Christmas market. I had a chance to speak with her, and she'll be back for that market in a few weeks.

I should have bought this one, as it made me laugh- so who is this moderation everyone is telling me to drink with? 

I don't drink, but if you can get a laugh out of me I'm likely to buy. Hopefully it's in stock for the Christmas market later in the year.

And that one at centre, with the downcast Imperial Stormtrooper. Should have bought that one too.

Members of a local Star Wars cosplayer troupe were in attendance. I took a couple of shots in quick succession.

This caught my eye on my first go around.

As did the mugs to the left. Again, I don't drink coffee, but the saying made me laugh.

At home: the one beer mug I did pick up from Thor's Trinkets this time out: Monty Python's Black Knight, Bridge Security Est. 932 (tis but a scratch!).

And of course I bought that mug. Here it is, both sides. The Grim Reaper is appropriate.

The Cosplayers

"You don't know the power of the collectibles side. It is useless to resist." ~ Darth Vader, Star Wars Episode V and a Half: The Fans Strike Back

Back in May, I attended the Ottawa Comiccon, an annual event down at the EY Centre near the airport. It's a big event as Ottawa events go, though not like it is at the big San Diego event each year. And it was busy. There were plenty of cosplayers around. I could have gone as Lex Luthor. Perhaps next year.

Some people attend to see various celebrities who come for the event. Others come as cosplayers. I came to photograph cosplayers, buy some shirts, and pick up some art along the way. I did pick up some poster art from an indie illustrator pair, as well as two well established artists in the industry, Mike Zeck and Geof Isherwood. I thanked Mr. Zeck for his work in what I still consider to be the best comic book story I've ever read, a Spider-Man story titled Kraven's Last Hunt. I bought four shirts from one vendor (and got two mystery freebies in the bargain, fortunately neither of them featuring Wolverine, or as I call him the Drunken Hobbit), and two from another that I'll show tomorrow. And I bought one more item of merchandise that appears at the end of this post. Here we have a wide view of one of the corridors. The building is a large one, and probably more convenient for load-in and out than the convention centre downtown.

I know these are Dr. Who related items, but admittedly I've never seen more than a few minutes worth of the show, enough to convince me that you'd need a big bag of weed to figure out that convoluted mess. Fans of The Doctor may strangle me at their leisure.

The Canadian War Museum had a presence this year, as they had last year. The temporary exhibit Highland Warriors is on now at the museum. I'll stop by on Canada Day.

Thor's Trinkets is the name of an independent artisan shop in Brockville, Ontario. I chatted with the artist and bought one of these beer mugs- the empty space in the first shot is the one I bought. I've seen her work before at the farmer's market here- a teddy bear outfitted in Thor chainmail armour, complete with hammer.

Here's mine at home. Of course when I saw the Ministry of Silly Walks, I had to pick it up. For those of you in the UK, there'll be a Monty Python retrospective on British television in the fall. It'll apparently include a shot or two of a Silly Walks sign that was here in Ottawa that I took for the blog. I have more from here tomorrow.

Setting Up The Tree

A Christmas tree was being decorated in the World Exchange Plaza one weekend, while most of the office workers of the complex were away from work. A curious mix, the tree and the whale sculptures hanging in mid air around it.

This display is on the second floor, and can be glimpsed in the shot directly above. The reindeer in the following shot is back on the first floor, taken on another day.

And now for something completely different, but rather close to the World Exchange Plaza. Here at the corner of Sparks Street and Metcalfe Street, a block south of Parliament Hill, nutcrackers have been set up. Nutcrackers have a rather demented look to them (don't tell my cousin, who collects the things and loves them to pieces), which makes them quite fitting for what's nearby- the sign for the Ministry of Silly Walks, which I've shown you before. 

The Ministry Of Silly Walks

Someone in the association of shops making up the Sparks Street pedestrian mall has a sense of humour, and an appreciation for Monty Python. I wonder if any of the Pythons know about this.

This signage is in an appropriate spot- one block south of Wellington Street and Parliament Hill. I don't imagine the Dark Lord in the Prime Minister's Office would appreciate the insinuation, but I doubt that paranoid lunatic has ever laughed in his life (hi, Stevie!)