Members of an unusual but by no means unpopular group called Gasukan gathered at Lincoln Park on Saturday July 30 to dress up in sometimes amazing costumes, socialize and share their love for anime, and fantasy fiction.

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Cliff Nordman, one of the members explained, "It's basically a monthly costume party. Every month we pick some public place and some date and we all show up and wear costumes (...) It started back in 2007 and we've had 40 of them so far. Gasworks was the first one which is kind of where the name came from. We had to have kan at the end and we need a name at the beginning so we chose Gas for Gasworks, and we had Gasukan. Some people are photographers, some people show up to have super awesome costumes, some people just show for fun to share food. It's a lot about socializing."

Costume play or Cosplay is a type of performance art in which participants wear costumes, makeup and accessories to represent a specific character or idea.

Sebbey Young came wearing a borrowed costume and said, "I'm having a blast and I'm going to go eat a cheeseburger in a minute."

Sydney Parkhurst cosplaying Flutter-shy from My Little Pony, Friendship is Magic said, "It's partially just to get to know other people who like the same things that you do. It's also because it lets you act like someone you aren't. It lets you put on persona of someone different than you. I'm a very outgoing person but the character I'm cosplaying today is really shy and really likes animals."

The website thread for the gathering is on a site called Cosplay.com and the details are there but in brief it's a monthly cosplay/anime meetup for cosplayers and photographers in the Northwest. People come from as far away as Canada and Oregon or further. The events are free and are generally held in the central Seattle area.

The webpage itself has a good overall description of Gasukan as written by its founder Kristen "Kumi-Chan."

"We're themed. Our first meetup had a theme of Under the Umbrella. It was my way of encouraging everyone to bring a prop and sort of tie us together. And for some reason, we've continued the tradition ever since. The important thing to know about the themes is they are completely optional. In other words, if they don't fit the outfit you want to wear that month, that's perfectly fine. They're merely there to set the mood for the gathering (and help you pick a costume if you've got multiple options.) Since May we've evolved to have two per GK, one that sets the mood, and one that's a "prop" theme.

- We're mobile. Our location changes depending on expected weather conditions and is often influenced by our theme for the month. This helps us find new and exciting backgrounds for our photos. We've met at many locations--the UW campus, Seattle Center, Tacoma's Botanical Conservatory, and even Freeway Park by the Convention Center in Seattle--but our home base is Gasworks Park, and it's likely we'll meet there at least twice a year.

- We're free. Transportation and parking notwithstanding, there is no entry fee to attend GK. Anyone can show up, either in costume or not. The only thing we ask is that you be polite and friendly to the other attendees, and especially that you respect our surroundings and passersby who may not be aware of who we are or what cosplay is."