many ramblings...
One week after Typhoon Ondoy (Ketsana) I'm still okay. Thanks and mega-hugs for everyone on my friends list who was concerned for my welfare, and wanted to buy me groceries and stuff. Good vibes to you all! *hugs tightly*
I actually got the week off work because the ice cream shop told me that sales were down, and they didn't need any cookies right now. This news made me go :) because yey, I can take a break from bonding time with my oven. On the other hand, it made me go :( because that also means no cash coming in for the week. Ah well. Win some, lose some.
The only other concrete things I managed to do this week for flood victims was personal -- I helped my friend F.L. move back to her house a few days ago. Her husband piled up all their new things -- including a mattress, pillows, etc. -- into the back of my SUV. With my friend holding on to my 3-year old godson, the car crawled through the streets to their flood-ravaged village. It was depressing, seeing all the furniture out on the road and the piles of unusable things waiting for the garbage trucks to haul them away.
Since all their cars drowned, and are now awaiting repairs, I did a crazy, spur-of-the-moment thing and let them borrow my family's spare car. I can't drive it because it's a stick shift and I'm stupid with things like that. My mom was not entirely happy with that but it was only for one day. I just prayed that F.L.'s husband was a better driver than me! They have since returned the car with many thanks -- it really helped them with moving stuff, and trying to get things straightened out.
Most of my cosplaying crazy friends hung up their Star Wars and LOTR outfits for the week and volunteered at various evacuation centers. While I really cheered them on for doing so, I hung back and didn't want to get more involved. It's selfish, I suppose, but this stuff really depresses me now. The younger me -- the crusading social worker -- would have been the first on the scene years ago, even perhaps telling the new recruits what to do. But really. Three years of doing that full-time really chips away at the soul, you know? I distinctly remember the last time I tried to do fieldwork. I was confronted with row after row of forcibly demolished houses on disputed farm land, and the families of poor farmers asking for my help as a writer. After listening to them recount all their experiences, I couldn't take it, I just broke down and cried. Me, who hadn't lost anything.
Ah, so those were the days. It's impossible for me not to moved now -- but I'm really trying my best to tread lightly, not to see too much, not to hear too much, as to retain my own sanity. It's very humbling, knowing the exact limits of my emotional well-being.
Anyway, by ignoring reality I got to catch up on a couple of things, including:
Nodame Cantabile. OHH. I'm really hyped now for the last chapter that's coming up next week. I can't believe this series is coming to an end. How will I discover more awesome classical music without it?!
It's rather strange, really. I know that Tomoko Ninomiya went through a lot of personal ups and downs which has stalled the series several times, and the pacing of the last ten chapters reflect that. There was a time I was thinking that NC was moving too slowly, and had too many 'new' secondary characters. But now... holy moly, I think it's moving too fast! I mean, can't I at least find out if Mine and Kiyora will get married and take over the Chinese restaurant, or if Kuroki ever gets over his aversion to animal prints and gets it on with Tanya?! ARGH!!!
Too bad there's just not enough time to wrap the the Kuroki/Tanya side story up. So sad. Yet another pairing I like that will live out all its possibilities in fanfic...
Oh, favorite moment in the past ten chapters I read this week: Yoda-sensei telling off Milch. MWAHAHAHAHA. Now that was richly deserved.
And this panel:
Deb posted this months ago, but really... this panel WINS.
One Piece. After almost three weeks of no One Piece, I am SO happy to be able to read it again online. :) Luffy is still fighting Pigeon Guy. Nami fought that slippery chick who's full of sexual innuendo, and Sanji finally got his groove back.
I happen to love one of Sanji's post-fight bon mots (don't enlarge if you don't want to know who he fought)
And Usop!! Usop! I don't like him very much, but I like Oda-sensei for giving him a crowning moment of badass in Chapter 419. Yay for the underdog, that's all I've got to say.
Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. I finally got around to watching the last few episodes of Season 2. It's taken me so long because really, like most of that fandom I was horribly demoralized by the Endless Eight arc. Yes, I know that a number 8 lying on its side doubles as an infinity symbol, but the animators didn't have to take it quite so literally. After the 3rd loop I wanted to claw my eyes out, and not even the humor of seeing Haruhi in a shirt that says 69 can make up for the wasted time...
Enough ranting, though, because it's boring. The last four new episodes are reasonably tolerable, even occasionally funny. Perhaps my real complaint about the four episodes of "The Sighs of Haruhi Suzumiya" that there's too much moe grandstanding. Aside from that, I adored Shamisen's moments, and I wouldn't mind re-watching Yuki attacking Mikuru over and over again because it's simply makes my day. I'm sure that it makes the day of yuri fetishists for entirely different reasons. See here:
On the down side, I felt that Kyon's argument with Haruhi was a little bit overwrought. Perhaps I should re-read that part of the light novel again, because I don't quite remember it being played out that way. Hmm.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. Yes, I'm rather late to the game, I know. (sigh) I actually wasn't planning on watching it, my plans for FMA was to read the goddamn manga. But while channel-surfing last week with my stranded buddies, we hit upon FMA: Brotherhood on Animax and I attempted to explain the why I knew, but did not know, exactly what we were watching. Argh. Otaku fail. I realized I had to start all over again.
Besides, I might as well admit it that anime-Ed catches my eye better than manga-Ed. It's the flowing tresses, I tell you. I bet state alchemists are issued specially formulated shampoo for that extra bounce...
Just watched episodes 1-6. What can I say? Winry singing bits of the OP is adorable. I love the ending credits, too. It's amazing how everything seems familiar but still subtly different. It's like the FMA version of Endless Eight! HAHAHAHA. Certain elements were changed, left unexplained, glossed over -- especially some bits that made a lot of sense in the first series.
I can't remember if Roy Mustang's back story is presented right away, for instance -- right now it just seems suspicious that a ranking member of the military just randomly shows up on the Rockbell doorstep saying he heard of Ed and Al. I mean, that sort of thing calls for major suspension of disbelief. This makes me wonder if first-time viewers of FMA are baffled by this. Or is this really what happened in the manga? Can anyone on my F-list tell me how close is the adaptation really is?
Only six episodes into this version, and I'm already loving Winry and Riza Hawkeye more. It's nice to see them more proactive.
Perhaps the only thing that disappoints is that Scar has a different seiyuu. I'm usually not fussy about seiyuus, but I really liked the idea that Scar was voiced by the same guy who does Byakuya Kuchiki. Ah, but not anymore...
Anyway, for random silliness, here's Roy Mustang doing his Gendou Ikari impersonation:
More suspicious behavior to follow.
I actually got the week off work because the ice cream shop told me that sales were down, and they didn't need any cookies right now. This news made me go :) because yey, I can take a break from bonding time with my oven. On the other hand, it made me go :( because that also means no cash coming in for the week. Ah well. Win some, lose some.
The only other concrete things I managed to do this week for flood victims was personal -- I helped my friend F.L. move back to her house a few days ago. Her husband piled up all their new things -- including a mattress, pillows, etc. -- into the back of my SUV. With my friend holding on to my 3-year old godson, the car crawled through the streets to their flood-ravaged village. It was depressing, seeing all the furniture out on the road and the piles of unusable things waiting for the garbage trucks to haul them away.
Since all their cars drowned, and are now awaiting repairs, I did a crazy, spur-of-the-moment thing and let them borrow my family's spare car. I can't drive it because it's a stick shift and I'm stupid with things like that. My mom was not entirely happy with that but it was only for one day. I just prayed that F.L.'s husband was a better driver than me! They have since returned the car with many thanks -- it really helped them with moving stuff, and trying to get things straightened out.
Most of my cosplaying crazy friends hung up their Star Wars and LOTR outfits for the week and volunteered at various evacuation centers. While I really cheered them on for doing so, I hung back and didn't want to get more involved. It's selfish, I suppose, but this stuff really depresses me now. The younger me -- the crusading social worker -- would have been the first on the scene years ago, even perhaps telling the new recruits what to do. But really. Three years of doing that full-time really chips away at the soul, you know? I distinctly remember the last time I tried to do fieldwork. I was confronted with row after row of forcibly demolished houses on disputed farm land, and the families of poor farmers asking for my help as a writer. After listening to them recount all their experiences, I couldn't take it, I just broke down and cried. Me, who hadn't lost anything.
Ah, so those were the days. It's impossible for me not to moved now -- but I'm really trying my best to tread lightly, not to see too much, not to hear too much, as to retain my own sanity. It's very humbling, knowing the exact limits of my emotional well-being.
Anyway, by ignoring reality I got to catch up on a couple of things, including:
Nodame Cantabile. OHH. I'm really hyped now for the last chapter that's coming up next week. I can't believe this series is coming to an end. How will I discover more awesome classical music without it?!
It's rather strange, really. I know that Tomoko Ninomiya went through a lot of personal ups and downs which has stalled the series several times, and the pacing of the last ten chapters reflect that. There was a time I was thinking that NC was moving too slowly, and had too many 'new' secondary characters. But now... holy moly, I think it's moving too fast! I mean, can't I at least find out if Mine and Kiyora will get married and take over the Chinese restaurant, or if Kuroki ever gets over his aversion to animal prints and gets it on with Tanya?! ARGH!!!
Too bad there's just not enough time to wrap the the Kuroki/Tanya side story up. So sad. Yet another pairing I like that will live out all its possibilities in fanfic...
Oh, favorite moment in the past ten chapters I read this week: Yoda-sensei telling off Milch. MWAHAHAHAHA. Now that was richly deserved.
And this panel:
Deb posted this months ago, but really... this panel WINS.
One Piece. After almost three weeks of no One Piece, I am SO happy to be able to read it again online. :) Luffy is still fighting Pigeon Guy. Nami fought that slippery chick who's full of sexual innuendo, and Sanji finally got his groove back.
I happen to love one of Sanji's post-fight bon mots (don't enlarge if you don't want to know who he fought)
And Usop!! Usop! I don't like him very much, but I like Oda-sensei for giving him a crowning moment of badass in Chapter 419. Yay for the underdog, that's all I've got to say.
Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. I finally got around to watching the last few episodes of Season 2. It's taken me so long because really, like most of that fandom I was horribly demoralized by the Endless Eight arc. Yes, I know that a number 8 lying on its side doubles as an infinity symbol, but the animators didn't have to take it quite so literally. After the 3rd loop I wanted to claw my eyes out, and not even the humor of seeing Haruhi in a shirt that says 69 can make up for the wasted time...
Enough ranting, though, because it's boring. The last four new episodes are reasonably tolerable, even occasionally funny. Perhaps my real complaint about the four episodes of "The Sighs of Haruhi Suzumiya" that there's too much moe grandstanding. Aside from that, I adored Shamisen's moments, and I wouldn't mind re-watching Yuki attacking Mikuru over and over again because it's simply makes my day. I'm sure that it makes the day of yuri fetishists for entirely different reasons. See here:
On the down side, I felt that Kyon's argument with Haruhi was a little bit overwrought. Perhaps I should re-read that part of the light novel again, because I don't quite remember it being played out that way. Hmm.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. Yes, I'm rather late to the game, I know. (sigh) I actually wasn't planning on watching it, my plans for FMA was to read the goddamn manga. But while channel-surfing last week with my stranded buddies, we hit upon FMA: Brotherhood on Animax and I attempted to explain the why I knew, but did not know, exactly what we were watching. Argh. Otaku fail. I realized I had to start all over again.
Besides, I might as well admit it that anime-Ed catches my eye better than manga-Ed. It's the flowing tresses, I tell you. I bet state alchemists are issued specially formulated shampoo for that extra bounce...
Just watched episodes 1-6. What can I say? Winry singing bits of the OP is adorable. I love the ending credits, too. It's amazing how everything seems familiar but still subtly different. It's like the FMA version of Endless Eight! HAHAHAHA. Certain elements were changed, left unexplained, glossed over -- especially some bits that made a lot of sense in the first series.
I can't remember if Roy Mustang's back story is presented right away, for instance -- right now it just seems suspicious that a ranking member of the military just randomly shows up on the Rockbell doorstep saying he heard of Ed and Al. I mean, that sort of thing calls for major suspension of disbelief. This makes me wonder if first-time viewers of FMA are baffled by this. Or is this really what happened in the manga? Can anyone on my F-list tell me how close is the adaptation really is?
Only six episodes into this version, and I'm already loving Winry and Riza Hawkeye more. It's nice to see them more proactive.
Perhaps the only thing that disappoints is that Scar has a different seiyuu. I'm usually not fussy about seiyuus, but I really liked the idea that Scar was voiced by the same guy who does Byakuya Kuchiki. Ah, but not anymore...
Anyway, for random silliness, here's Roy Mustang doing his Gendou Ikari impersonation:
More suspicious behavior to follow.