Happy Valentine’s Day, Singles Awareness Day or Cheap Candy Eve, whichever you prefer! As usual, I’m running behind on posting things here (plus I’m meeting with the Otaku Ohana Anonymous Director of Forced Social Relations in a few minutes), so here’s a quick Ota-cool Incoming! calendar covering some events that are coming up over the next few days…
Kawaii Kon Karaoke Competition preliminary rounds: So you think you can sing, and you’re planning to go to Kawaii Kon this year? Give the annual Karaoke Competition a try, then. This month’s preliminary round will be held at its traditional location, Orvis Auditorium on the University of Hawaii at Manoa campus, on Sunday; sign-in starts at 10 a.m., and the tryouts run from 10:30 a.m. through 1 p.m. Don’t forget to bring your karaoke track on a CD. Can’t make it? There’s one more tryout on March 15 at Nocturna Lounge, the video game/karaoke bar just downstairs from our editorial/advertising offices here at Waterfront Plaza/Restaurant Row. Sign-in for that starts at 3:30 p.m., with singing starting at 4 p.m. Full details on what you need to do to prepare are available at bit.ly/Karaoke_Prelims.
Comic Jam Hawaii: This group of collaborative cartoon artists meets every first and third Sunday of the month at Pearlridge Center; locations within the mall may vary. Visit www.facebook.com/groups/ComicJamHawaii (Facebook login required). Next meeting: 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday.
Anime Swap Meet: Hosted by Kawaii Kon, this opportunity for local otaku to buy and sell assorted preowned collectibles from one another will be part of the 25th Annual Hawaii Collectors Expo from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 21 and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 22. Interested in selling? Check out kawaiikon.com/anime-swap-meet for all the details; registration deadline is midnight Wednesday. This year, the rules are a bit more liberal: $20 will get you a 5-square-foot space for both Saturday and Sunday, and you can share your space with one other person. Interested in buying? Admission is $5 or free to those with valid military ID.
Otaku Ohana 
Entry for the Collector’s Expo is also free if you come in Cosplay! 🙂