What Neil wrote.

I do declare, someone get me a Mint Julep lest I faint dead away.

full circle

Remember when I got this? The man who wrote the book the movie is based on saw it tonight, was quite amused by it, and then signed the button-sealed envelope for me.*

I will be shadowbox-framing this baby as soon as budget allows.

*I am not the first, nor will I be the last, to say that Neil Gaiman is a charming man, highly nice, a gentleman, and absolutely freaking hot. Oh, sigh.

---

Where's summer Knitty? Soon, my pets. Very, very soon. In the meantime, the rest of the pics from tonight can be found here. I've done the best I can to title them helpfully, including a few choice quotes from the man himself that I remember quite vividly. Much better than a wordy blog post, no?

Coraline movie premiere planning....Speak Up!

ETA: I'm very sorry. I bought tickets at the Beach Cinema based on information from movietickets.com and it turns out the theatre is NOT showing it in 3D despite the information on the website. I'll be getting a refund and I'm very sorry if any of you get stuck not seeing the version you wanted.

Cinema Clock has what seems to be correct information about which theatres are showing the 3D version.

Good luck, all! I hope we actually get to see the thing tonight!

---

p.s. Don't ever buy tickets from movietickets.com. They don't stand behind their listings (they blame the theatres) and won't give a refund. I now have to go back to the Beach Cinema to get a refund. NEVER buying from movietickets.com again. Advise you to do the same. Grr.

---

Okay! Info is finally up!

The Alliance Atlantis Beach Cinemas are showing Coraline in 3D. The showtimes are 6:50pm and 9:20pm.

So! I know some of those interested get off work at 6pm, which makes the early show a little tight. Is there anyone who can't make the late show? We could meet at the Purl, stock up on knitting-in-the-dark supplies and then all head out en masse for the later show. Tell me what you think! Quickly! Once we decide, everyone needs to buy their own ticket(s) here:

MovieTickets.com Alliance Atlantis Beach Cinemas. Movies, showtimes and tickets.

Then at least we'll have seats!

Summary: WOOOT!

A Saturday catch-all post, including Coraline! Flutes! And other news

For those awaiting the upcoming Coraline movie, a few things:

1. My favorite Coraline news source: Evil Buttons. Read back to the beginning to learn about the Coraline keys [I purchased mine on eBay...wasn't lucky enough to run across it in the wild on my own] and all the other interesting ways Laika is publicizing this upcoming movie.

2. Those following my Twitter feed already have seen this: From Mr Gaiman himself, his favorite Coraline trailer so far...and it's deliciously creepy. Finally.

3. Last Coraline post [for today :)] -- I call all those within driving distance of Toronto to join me on opening night, February 6, to watch the movie! It's too early to find theatres with showtimes, so as soon as I have details, I'll post here. I'll pick a theatre that takes online ticket orders, so we can buy ours in advance and actually all get in to the same showing! [It'll be the 7ish pm show and I'll confess now that I'm rather partial to the Alliance Atlantis theatre on Queen East at Kingston Road.]

4. Were you thinking of joining Franklin and I on the Alaska Sea Socks cruise this year? I'm sorry to have to be the one to tell you, but it has been cancelled. Franklin and I were informed of this news by the cruise operator last week.

4a. I love cruising and teaching on a cruise is absolutely awesome, so I am quite sure that I'll be doing another cruise one day in the future and really hope you'll join me. Will report here when there are details, promise.

5. I joined a Ukulele Jam last week and had a blast. It's very embryonic, and my noob skills are not useless there, which is really encouraging! It's led by two guys who have played in bands and know what the heck they're doing, and it's filled with people of all levels of experience. The ukulele spotting alone is enough reason to go! This has me thinking of my next uke...and the one after that. Being a gear ho™ is not restricted to my knitting, you know. If you've got a uke and can play, you're welcome to join! Visit the site linked above for all the information you'll need.

5a. As a result of finally picking up an instrument I've wanted to play for years and loving it, I've decided it's finally time to sell my flute, which has been carefully stored, unused, for about 20 years. I received it as a birthday present from my parents when I was in high school and loved it for a long time, but it's just not the instrument for me any more.

SO! If anyone is interested in an Armstrong Model 90 sterling head/body flute, closed hole, with original case, leave a note in the comments. It's in gorgeous shape [except for two tiny dents on the back of the head -- I was a teenager. Cut me some slack]. Pictures here. There are a lot of them and the defects I'm aware of [just 3] are marked with notes on the pics.
---

Okay! That's it for today. This post was kind of like a little brain burp, all the unrelated stuff in here.

I'm off to do Saturday errands!

no ways.

Yup. Neil Gaiman got a box of his own -- as he should!, though it's not one of the airquotes official Coraline boxes, he reports. It is supercool, though. If you're one of my new converts* or an old-time Gaiman fan, you've got to go read the post and see what he got!

My favorite line in the post above?
"I think my favourite of the boxes is http://www.knitty.com/blog/2008/12/my-coraline-box.html but it's a close thing."

Dudes. That's my blog Mr G has linked to, and my box he's talking about! [Megathanks to Elithea for pointing this out to me.] I am just stunned that he's been by here...and I didn't even have time to tidy up!

In any case, welcome to anyone stopping by from Mr G's blog. Not sure all the content here may be to your taste, but who knows? Maybe you'll feel right at home. Can I teach you to knit?

*I've heard from at least three people in the last week that I've turned into Coraline-obsessed Gaiman fans with all these recent blog posts. There are uncountable numbers of us already and there's infinite room for more. Join us.

My Coraline Box

All over the web, boxes have been surfacing, each containing artifacts from the upcoming stop-motion 3D animated feature, Coraline, based on the book by Neil Gaiman. If you've been reading my blog for a while, you'll know that I adore the man and his work. And his voice. And all that. I'll stop now. Sorry.

Anyway, when I started seeing Coraline boxes appearing on blogs of all sorts, I dreamed of getting one, but didn't imagine I really would. And then this arrived in the Knitty mailbox. Dudes, I cried with the happy when I realized what it was.

There are 50 boxes in total. This is box #8.

click to read the letter

Now that you've seen the images, I have to tell you something: most of the tools are not metal, despite what your eyes tell you. I have seen them from millimetres away, and if I didn't touch them, I'd never believe they weren't metal, machined to look so menacing and evil. I don't know what they are made from -- some sort of modelling material -- but they're very light and perfectly sculpted and painted to create the illusion that they clearly have achieved. This is not CGI...this is all work done by hand. Remember that when you watch the movie next February.

I am so honored to have received such a gift and want to thank the team in Portland, Director Henry Selick and Mr Gaiman for the whole fabulous Coraline experience.

Because this Coraline box is so uniquely configured, I am hoping to find a way to mount it safely to the wall [in the Knitty office, of course]. Because having it sit, closed, on a shelf would just be criminal.

You'll find the full set of images in my Flickr stream, captioned, for those as obsessed as I am.