Confidence in Cosplay

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

The biggest con event of the year is happening this weekend. That’s right it’s New York Comic Con. NYCC is one of the largest cons in the nation drawing together iconic celebrities, cosplayers, and geeks.  Most cosplayers will probably roam about the city and be themselves.

For someone with anxiety, roaming around the city in cosplay is a victory. Growing up, cosplay was looked down upon and considered to be a waste of time. Whenever a cosplay was worn it was often made fun of and the cosplayer was deemed a loser. Even when attending ACBC and WWP this year, I was a bit hesitant to walk around in public dressed in my cosplay. I had no idea how I would be viewed or would be said of me. However, maturity and cosplay’s modern acceptance and view have changed me.

I’m a woman in her late twenties cosplaying a fictional character and to be frank with you, I couldn’t be happier. It’s an extension of expressing myself and to publicly wear that cosplay for a con I’m attending gives me joy. Sometimes I’ll get compliments. Sometimes I’ll get strange stares, but at the same time I simply don’t care. I’m being myself and it’s wonderful. It takes a ton of confidence and assurance to be one’s self in this world with bullies (both physical and cyber), society’s perspective of things, and people in general. I think after all these years my confidence has come to fruition especially by means of cosplay.

When Saturday comes I will happily walk onto the train, through the stations, down to Manhattan, and wherever else I please wearing my cosplay. I have the confidence to override my anxiety, ignore what other people think and/or say of me, and just generally be myself. It’s a feeling that once embraced, can never be taken away from you and cosplay has helped me achieved that.

I think in life we need to find the things that make us incredibly confident. It can be one thing or it can be multiple things. For me it would have to be writing and cosplaying and maybe it’s other activities I haven’t discovered, but if there are any more, I plan to discover and fully embrace them.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you enjoyed it, feel free to comment, critique, share, and subscribe.

So tell me, what makes you feel confident?

NYCC: Be Careful

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

In a few weeks I’ll be going to NYCC and I’m filled with excitement and anxiety. I’m excited because I finally get to go to NYCC after all these years and anxiety because of any possible attacks.

Three pipe bombs were found near a train station in Elizabeth, NJ, there was an explosive set off at a Marine charity race in Sea Isle City, and a dumpster in the Chelsea block of Manhattan housed a pressure cooker explosion. Another homemade explosive was found two blocks away from the Chelsea neighborhood, but did not go off. Twenty nine people were injured in these attacks, but thankfully no one was killed. The attacks were formulated by Ahmad Khan Rahami who was captured by the police in a chase that ended in Linden, NJ. Rahami was shot in the leg and taken into custody while an officer he had shot sustained a mere chest injury.

New York has been home to various bombings, most notably 9/11, the Boston Marathon, and other attackss in between with pressure cookers and makeshift bombs galore.

New York is a wonderful city and a large pot of America’s melting pot culture. NYCC in particular is an example of this concept. As a cosplayer I love seeing people from all of the world cosplaying characters everyone knows and loves. I also love meeting other cosplayers and conversing with them.

To attend this annual New York based convention after a few bombings shakes my spirits some. It’s a scary notion of going to a city after it was bombed because no one knows when another assailant may appear. No one can predict a bomber’s next action or who is a bomber. Albeit, NYCC’s security appears to be tight which is a mild relief. Yet the idea still persists.

In the past year I’ve ventured to at least six cons in areas both pleasant and putrid. Through these experiences, the con life has taught me something. It’s that you can’t always be scared nor can you predict what will unravel.  This not only applies to cons, but just travelling in general, and I obtain some peace with this advice. At best all I can do is be careful, be cognitive, and be close to my friends at NYCC. It’s all anyone can do honestly other than to avoid the con itself, but why would I avoid something I’ve already paid for and been looking forward to for so long?  

To those attending NYCC like me: be safe, be aware, be with your friends, and be sure to have a great time.

Thank you for reading. If you enjoyed it, feel free to share, subscribe, comment, and critique.

So tell me, are you going to NYCC?