Tag Archives for fun

Main Street Car Show

I’m convinced that going to a classic car show in a small town is the quintessential end-of-summer activity. Last weekend, Andrew and I went to the Main Street Car Show in Minden, Nev., where we both went to high school (although we didn’t know each other in high school. He’s probably the only person in our graduating class I didn’t know). Minden is in the Carson Valley, which is a small community about an hour away from Reno. Currently my mom and Andrew’s mom still live there so we visit every so often.

When we got there, it was sunny. Look how blue the sky was!

But that didn’t last very long because soon the clouds came and it started to pour. It continued to rain on and off all afternoon. Normally I love summer rain but it was difficult since everyone had their beautiful cars displayed and they were getting soaked.

Andrew and his family had three cars on display: a dark grey 1957 Eighty-Eight Oldsmobile, a yellow and white 1957 Ninety-Eight Oldsmobile and a green 1957 Thunderbird.

The 1957 Ninety-Eight Olds:

The Thunderbird:

The grey Oldsmobile is my favorite because of all of the detail.

We also walked around and checked out the other cars.

But what made the day really special were the awards Andrew and his family won for their cars! Andrew’s car, the grey Olds, won him first place in his category. The white and yellow Olds also won first place, and the Thunderbird won People’s Choice (and Andrew’s grandfather got a GIANT trophy for it!).

Andrew and his prize-winning car:

It was a fun day. But I’m ready for fall!

Epic Fantasy Weekend 2012

Somehow, last year, the finale of the first season of Game of Thrones happened to correspond with the big Renaissance Faire held every year in Lake Tahoe. Luckily, it’s happening again this year, so I’m starting a yearly tradition to hold an Epic Fantasy Weekend to indulge my lifelong obsession with all things fantasy.

Last year during the unofficial Epic Fantasy Weekend, we played Oblivion (ah, the pre-Skyrim days…), rewatched all of GoT, drank a bunch of beer and went up to the Valhalla Renaissance Faire. And that’s pretty much what we’re doing again this year. It rained a lot the entire weekend, but if anything, it added to the whole vibe. We ate fish and chips in the forest of Camp Richardson, and stayed up late questing with candles lit around our desks and a supply of hefeweizen (with orange slices… mmm). It was pretty magical.

I’ve been to the Renaissance faire in Golden Gate Park, and the one that used to be held each year in Genoa, but the Tahoe one is by far my favorite. Lake Tahoe is pretty much one of the best places to have a ren faire, especially since it’s up in the beautiful Sierra Nevada mountains, much of the local architecture is inspired by Scandinavian and Bavarian culture, and there is an abundance of restaurants/pubs with names like Black Bear Inn and The Divided Sky (and one called Fire & Ice, funny enough, although it’s a stir fry place). There’s also a freakin’ castle called Vikingsholm in Emerald Bay. Need I say more?

This year, we’ll be heading up to the faire. I haven’t really gotten an outfit together, but honestly, most of my closet consists of peasant skirts and scarves, so it shouldn’t be too hard to throw something together. Someday I’ll make an awesome Dark Brotherhood outfit like I’ve been dreaming of doing for a few years now.

I also want an outfit like these lovely ladies from last year’s faire.

I’ll also be seeing Snow White and the Huntsman, which is a movie I feel like I’ve been waiting my entire life for. That sounds dramatic, I know, but when I was a child, I yearned for the day where I could make a film adaptation of my favorite fairy tale characters starting rebellions instead of lusting after princes. I didn’t end up as a filmmaker, so it’s nice to know that others share my visions. No matter what the reviews say, I think I’m going to really like this movie. I was head over heels in love with Alice in Wonderland, another movie that got mixed reviews, but since the same producer is behind Snow White, I’m not too worried. Ever since I saw this promo image of Kristen Steward in armor–Snow White is wearing armor, people!–I’ve been extremely excited.

And while I’m really sad that GoT is ending until next year, I’m really excited to see the finale of this season–which has been freakin’ awesome, by the way.

Other items on the EPW 2012 agenda:

Annnd I also pre-ordered Guild Wars 2, but the beta weekend events don’t happen until next weekend. Can’t they move it up a week? Sigh.

So now I just have to get through one more day of work, and the festival can begin!