Last week I attended the Emerald City Comicon in order to visit with my brother, the independent artist GW Fisher. Four samples of his work can be seen in this post. They’ll also be given away.
I didn’t get a glimpse of George Takei or Wil Wheaton, but I got an eyeful of costumed revelers: superheroes, anime characters, steampunk posers and a tall young woman in a Wonder Woman bikini who left a string of broken geek hearts in her leggy wake.
Whenever I offer free movie tickets there’s a lot of interest. I can only infer that the tighter economy has led a lot of people to cut back on entertainment.
This week you’ll get both dinner and a movie in time for the Feb. 26 Academy Awards. Even if you don’t go see a nominated picture, you’ll be hitting the theater for free. If you play your cards right, you’ll be hitting the theater more than once.
I spent six butt-numbing hours at the movies on Saturday, watching the Metropolitan Opera’s live broadcast of “Gotterdammerung.” Spectacle, pageantry, a buff and bitchin’ Siegfried who turned out to have a down-home Texas accent – it was a very successful day.
The only thing better than opera is frugal opera. In fact, the show didn’t cost me anything:
“War Horse”? “Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol”? “We Bought a Zoo”? “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo”? “The Adentures of Tintin”?
Let me buy the first two tickets.
Jacob over at My Personal Finance Journey is running something called the Tour de Personal Finance. I’m one of four “racers” in Stage 4, hoping to move on to the next leg.
That’s where you come in.
I went to “Transformers: Dark of the Moon” today. It was loud. And long. And loud. The final battle scene was interminable. Did I mention the volume?
Surely there’s something a little less grueling to see if you win this week’s giveaway.
If so, ask South County Girl — she has an extra ticket, now that she’s been declared the winner of the AMC movie giveaway.
I’ve been reading and re-reading this wonderful Charles Portis novel since I was a teenager. Mattie Ross is a hell of a protagonist. She’s strong, determined, relentless and, above all, frugal.
Here are 10 things you could learn from her story, courtesy of Mr. Portis and the Coen brothers. And without a single song by Glen Campbell!
1. Negotiate. Mattie convinces Stonehill the stock trader to buy back the four ponies he’d sold to her now-dead father for $25 apiece. (Whether it’s the price of a car or a shirt, you might be able to strike a deal. Doesn’t hurt to ask.)
2. Stand up for your rights. Since her father’s horse was stolen from the stock barn, Mattie asks Stonehill to accept responsibility. He refuses, she persists. (If you think you’re being hosed, say so.)
Art film, tearjerker, special-effects blockbuster – whatever kind of movie you like, you won’t have to pay for the next two. Or for your beverages, either.
Here’s today’s word, and it’s a funny one: gofobo. (Try saying it five times, fast.) This movie-mad site offers access to free screenings, contests and events.
I’d been planning to write about free movies but my daughter beat me to it. Well, at least she got me off my dime. Which, of course, means saving you some dimes. Lots of them. I’ve paid as much as $10.25 for a matinee ticket in Seattle.
As Abby notes in the blog post linked above, gofobo is chronically last-minute; you might have 24 hours or less to respond.
“Still, what’s the worst that happens? You get an offer on a movie you can’t go to,” she writes. “I’d say that’s one of the smaller tragedies in life.”
About that $10.25 ticket: It was a business expense. Otherwise I would have used a freebie. Here are some other ways to get them.