Straight off the heels of EMC, we have a slightly more subdued week to give you a chance to rest up before Show 2. Nothing special going on this week, just our usual stuff.

• Meeting #5 – Monday, January 31 at 6:00pm, Room MC 2035 – Another meeting is happening. There will be talk of how EMC went, and potentially future plans for Anime North. Also, I will be at this meeting, which makes it at least 10 times more awesome.
• Project Night – Wednesday, February 2 at 6:00pm, Room SLC 2109 – Another project night. It’s hard to think of new things to say for these every week. Hang out, play games and get stuff done. Apparently Kyle has been working on something, so let’s all be disappointed in him if he doesn’t have it ready in time for Wednesday.
• Games Night – Friday, February 4 at 4:30pm, Room AL 208 – Card games, board games, card games, video games, card games…any kind of game you can think of, you can play it at games night, assuming it can fit inside AL 208. Great place for general socialization, or learning how to play Weiβ Schwarz or Chaos for the upcoming tournaments.
• Cosplay Tea Party – Saturday, February 5 at 2:30pm, Amy’s Place – According to Amy, there is another one of these this Saturday. This is the last one before Con-G so if you have a cosplay that you need to get ready in time, you can get it done here.
• Meeting #6 – Monday, February 7 at 6:00pm, AL 105 – Don’t get confused, this one is in a slightly different location, but still in the same building. Come and discuss meeting-ness.

Is that really all? It’s still 4 events in one week, but by our standards that’s not very much. Anyway, yes, that’s it for this week.

Of further note, Con-G is coming up fast. It is taking place on Saturday, February 19 and Sunday, February 20 in Guelph, and several people in the club will be going. You can find out all the details here. Also, according to Amy, it is awesome, so you should definitely go.

Dylan, “The Grandpa who actually does appear”

Still sick from eating too much sushi? Well, I’m afraid Ctrl-A won’t be waiting for you to feel better. Let’s get started with week 4, shall we?

• Meeting – Monday, January 24 at 6:00pm, Room MC 2035 – Week 4 means meeting 4. Expect an in-depth discussion of EMC, among other things.
• Project Night – Wednesday, January 26 at 6:00pm, Room SLC 2109 – Yet more project night will be occurring this Wednesday, in the usual place at the usual time. Perhaps not as productive as I have been implying, but has the potential to be productive. Definitely bring any projects of your own if you have them.
• Emiko’s Mini Convention (EMC) – Friday, January 28, 7:00pm to 10:00pm; Saturday, January 29, 10:00am to 10:00pm; Sunday, January 30, 10:00am to 4:00pm; Location: Bricker Academic Building at Wilfrid Laurier University. Check out the official website here, or you can pre-reg for the con ($5) here. Schedule is available here. Of particular note is a Weiβ Schwarz how-to-play session held on Saturday at 11:30AM to 1:30PM. If you wanted to join the tournament but didn’t know how to play, this is your best chance to try it out.
• Meeting 5 – Monday, January 31 at 6:00pm, Room MC 2035 – As if there was any doubt, there’s another meeting this coming Monday. Go there and revel in the bureaucracy.

A representative from Anime North, Janet, visited on the Saturday of show 1 to talk about some available positions for the AMV contest. One of the positions is for the AMV Judging Team. This is a volunteer position, and amounts to approximately 5 hours of work. She is also looking to hire a video tech, a staff position, that will write submissions onto DVDs and mail them out. If you are interested in these, you can contact her by sending her an email here.

Now, I thought I’d take a moment to refer you to our forums. Just because there isn’t an event going on, doesn’t mean we aren’t all talking with each other; it just usually means those conversations are taking place on the forum. Here are some interesting things going on right now.

• Ordering Stuff – If you are interested in importing something from Japan, there is likely a thread here that can help you out. There are orders for AmiAmi, Rightstuf, Rakuten, Hobby Search, etc. Just post in the thread specifying what you want to buy, it’ll be added to the group order, and when it arrives, pay the appropriate person and get your merchandise. The main reason for this is to save on shipping, which is usually quite high.
• Anime North Pre-reg – I’ve posted about this before, but it’s an ongoing thing. Register for Anime North with us and you can pay the group rate of $40, a full $15 less than the standard rate. And once again, if you are interested in a group cosplay as Pokémon gym leaders, you can coordinate that in this thread.
• Find the Filter – Our forum game needs some love. Scour the forum and find the hidden word filters. There are four active filters right now, at least two of which are not very well hidden at all. If you find a filter, you get a point.
• Chaos and Weiβ Schwarz Tournaments – There’s still plenty of time to register, and even learn how to play if you haven’t yet. Talk to Will or Robo at games night (or wherever you happen to see them) and experience the card games that are spreading through the club like a plague.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. What are you waiting for? Go and check out our forums, and see what all the fuss is about.

That’s all for this week. Have fun!

“Drinking goodness sake for goodness sake!” Dylan

So I hope everyone had a lot of fun at Show 1. Unfortunately, there is no show this weekend (or next weekend) but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a lot of fun stuff to do. Check this out:

• Meeting – Monday, January 17 at 6:00pm, Room MC 2035 – This is the third meeting. Not sure exactly what’s on the agenda, but there will probably be a game, and I think June will be repeating her presentation from the show.
• Project Night – Wednesday, January 19 at 6:00pm, Room SLC 2109 – Jeremy is back again for another project night. Same as usual. Bring your projects and your willingness to help others, and be productive for once. Also of note is that Kyle will be shaving his moustache. Since the hair would make a mess of the room, he’ll be going home early to do it, but he is “welcoming” people to follow him to observe this historical moment. There is an open call for suggestions on what he should shave it into.
• Games Night – Friday, January 21 at 4:30pm, Room AL 208 – Card games, board games, video games, etc. If your idea of a Ctrl-A show is staying in the corner playing games, this is the night for you. Even if you aren’t much of a gamer, this is a great event for getting to know people and general socialization.
• Cosplay Tea Party? – Saturday, January 22 at 2:00pm, Amy’s Place – This may or may not actually occur, I have to confirm it. If it does, come and drink tea, work on costumes, play games and um, watch She-Ra. If you need to know how to find the place, I think the easiest way is to send an email to Kyle.
• Sushi Lunch – Sunday, January 23 at 1:00pm, Sushi 99. This is the first of what is likely at least two sushi lunches occurring this term. Sushi 99 is a newer all-you-can-eat restaurant located at 36 Northfield Dr E. Be sure to RSVP to Kyle by noon on Thursday in order to get in the reservation.

And just a few quick reminders of upcoming events that you can sign up for:

Alcina is arranging group admission for Anime North. Check out this thread if you are interested in saving $15. Also, we need more gym leaders!

And don’t forget to sign up for the Chaos and Weiβ Schwarz tournaments happening Show 3 and Show 4. They are still a ways off but you should register in advance so they can plan accordingly. If you don’t have the cards or don’t know how to play, that’s not a problem! There will be plenty of people at games nights and shows that would be willing to teach you, and Will apparently has way too many cards and is willing to lend some out for use at the tourneys. If you have any questions, contact Will or Robo on the forums.

This concludes your briefing on this week in Ctrl-A. You have your mission, now get on with it!

Dylan “Clever sign-off” Mead

The term continues to build momentum as we plunge head first into the second week. I already covered what is going on this week, but I’ll recap it since this news post is going to push it further down the page and you’ll all be too lazy to scroll that far down.

• Project Night – Wednesday, January 12 at 6:00PM, SLC 2109
• Club’s Days – Thursday, January 13 and Friday, January 14, 10:00AM to 3:00PM, SLC Great Hall
• Show 1 – Friday, January 14, 4:30PM to 10:00PM and Saturday, January 15, 2:30PM to 9:00PM, AL 116 – Schedule here.
• Meeting – Monday, January 17 at 6:00PM, MC 2035

For more information on what these are, scroll down to the last post. Now for a few exciting announcements.

There will be a screening of Evangelion 2.0: You Can (Not) Advance at Conestoga Mall’s Galaxy Theatre on January 20th at 7:00PM. From the official press release:

EVANGELION 2.0: YOU CAN (NOT) ADVANCE is the second film of in four part film series, re-imagining the sci-fi animated series blockbuster Neon Genesis Evangelion (also written and directed by Hideaki Anno) which aired on Japanese television in the mid 1990′s.

If you want to go with some other club members, there is a forum thread about it here.

Next is a contest annoucement from the good folks at RightStuf.

This month, we’re giving away one copy of the The Third: The Girl with the Blue Eye DVD Collection Thinpak. In order to enter the random drawing, send animeclubs@rightstuf.com an email with “Stuf for Clubs Giveaway” as the subject line. In the body of the message, include your name, the name of your club/organization, and your preferred mailing address (no P.O. Boxes, please), along with your response to the below:

“If you could travel via any anime- or manga-based mode of transportation, what would you choose?”

Would you take a spin through space on the Bebop? Or would you prefer to float down the canals of Neo Venizia on a gondola with President Aria at your side? Get creative and have fun!

All entries must conform to the above and be received before February 13th, at 11:59 p.m. CST.

Thirdly, Anime North! If we all get tickets together, we pay the Group Admission rate, a full $15 less than the regular price, so if you’re going to Anime North, it would be prudent for you to check out this thread on the forum. Also, some of the club is planning a group cosplay as Pokémon gym leaders, and are always looking for more members. If you are interested, this is the forum thread to check out.

Finally, Robo and Will are planning Chaos and Weiβ Schwarz tournaments for the weekends of Show 3 and Show 4, respectively. For more information and to sign up, check out the Chaos and Weiβ Schwarz threads on the forum.

And that just about covers it. Until next week!

Dylan, “Kaizoku-ou ni naru otoko da!”

Hey, everyone. This is Dylan, your new webmaster for the Winter 2011 term. (Yes, someone finally ousted Jon. :P) I’m not much for introductions, but if you have any questions/concerns about the website or the forums, PM me (wartjr2373) or send me an email and I’ll be sure to respond.

Information is limited at the moment, so I’ll add more later, but here is some of the stuff you have to look forward to:

• Games Nights – Friday, January 7 at 4:30PM, AL 208 – Games nights! These generally occur every Friday at the same time, but the room will usually change, so check back here to find out where it is.
• Cosplay Tea Party – Saturday, January 8 at 2:00PM, Amy’s place – Amy wants to have another cosplay tea party. I wasn’t at the last one but basically you drink tea and work on costumes. If you like either of these things or just want to hang out, then come to this! Location is Amy’s, same place as the Hot Pot last term. If you didn’t go to that or don’t remember, you can try to get a hold of her. Or, probably easier, you can meet us in the SLC at 1:00PM. We’ll be going to Gamestop to get Shiny Raikou and then proceed to Amy’s place.
• Meeting – Monday, January 10 at 6:00PM, MC 2035 – There will be another meeting next Monday. Most of the initial bureaucracy is out of the way, so this one should be shorter and more fun. History suggests discussions of Show 1 and Club’s Days. Again, no room booking yet, so stay tuned.
• Project Nights – Wednesday, January 12 at 6:00PM, SLC 2109 – Project nights. These happen every Wednesday at the same time in the same room, generally. If you have any projects you’ve been working on, the people here would surely love to help you work on it. Even if you don’t have anything, you can come and help other people with their projects. Generally much more productive than our usual stuff.
• Club’s Days – Thursday, January 13 and Friday, January 14, 10:00AM to 3:00PM, SLC Great Hall – Club’s Days is where we show off how great we are and try to convince people to join. You can come to learn more about the club, buy your membership, and you can even help recruit more members.
• Show 1 – Friday, January 14, 4:30PM to 10:00PM and Saturday, January 15, 2:30 to 10:00PM, Room AL 116 – Schedule can be found here. This is where and when you want to be, our first show. This is where we show off what we do best, and actually watch some anime!

Now that that’s out of the way, if you’re still reading this, I have a couple other things to impart to you. First of all, if you want to get involved in the online community, be sure to sign up on the forums. If you have any questions that aren’t answered by our woefully out-dated FAQ, it’s best to consult the forums. Start a new topic if your question is unanswered, and the right person should be able to get to it fairly quickly.

If you want to receive information via email, be sure to sign up for the mailing list. Information on how to add or remove yourself from the mailing list can be found here.

Finally, since we held elections last Tuesday, allow me to introduce your Winter 2011 CTRL-A executive task force. If you want stuff to happen during this term, bother the right person in this group until it happens.

• President: Kyle Kylie
• Vice-President: June
• Secretary: Will
• Treasurer: Karl
• External Relations Officer: Jonathan
• Publicity: Alcina
• Electronic Communications: Kylie Kyle
• Activities Coordinator: Mo
• Web Maintainer: Dylan (ME!)
• Concession Manager: Andrew

For details on these positions, check out the constitution and the by-laws. If you want to reach any of us, you can find our contact information here.

Phew, I think that’s all of it. Remember to check back later for more detailed room information for the events that are close-at-hand, or sign up for the mailing list if that’s more your speed. Have a great week, and enjoy the rest of your stay at Ctrl-A. We are the club that keeps on expanding, because we select all! Hahahaha! >_> Ignore those Ctrl-C guys, though. They just keep multiplying. (snicker)

Okay, I’ll stop.

“Yoroshiku onegaishimasu!” Dylan