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I keep meaning to update and I keep meaning to update and I keep meaning to update.
Things that have taken up time recently include:
Anime - Re-watched Baccano!, which I picked up the boxset of (also got Tsukihime v. 1 and Millennium Actress, both of which I'll re-watch sometime soon). Still such an awesome show ♥ It is chock full of fun characters and cute pairings and wild action. Watched the first four episodes of Le Chevalier D'eon, which is unfortunately still eminently boring (and honestly kind of ugly, as far as the character designs go) to me, even though all I've heard about it is positive. Watched Please Twins! (lol I know, I know), which was actually kind of fluffy cute and fun, if also ridiculous and silly. I think I did like it better than Please Teacher. I don't think I ever talked about watching Noir (back in the middle of January), which is a show I've been wanting to see since I first got into anime. It did not disappoint; it wasn't the BEST EVAR but it was supremely entertaining.
Books - Back in January I was reading Jane Austen's Emma, which was good but took an eternity to complete (or so it seemed). I moved on to the first Moribito novel, Guardian of the Spirit, which, besides being absolutely beautiful physically (I can't explain it, but the materials just screamed "high quality," from the ink to the texture of the pages), was a pretty darn good read. Next up was The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya light novel, which I'd picked up half-price at the Waldenbooks going-out-of-business sale. It was ... OK. Entertaining enough, but not as funny as I remember the anime being. Maybe Tomokazu Sugita really does make Kyon so likable (or maybe it was the translation at fault in the novel?). Right now I'm reading Moribito II: Guardian of the Darkness. I could definitely get addicted to this series; Darkness is as good as (or even better than?) the first novel. Balsa is an awesome protagonist, definitely one of the most kick-butt heroines out there. She's capable, she's smart, she's strong, she's human. Oh, and she's an adult instead of a teenager! Moribito also has some interesting mythology going for it too. I'd definitely like to check out the anime sometime.
Games - Not so much on this front, but at the end of January I downloaded Final Fantasy VII from PSN for my PSP. I've never played FFVII before, so it's interesting to finally see the game so many people have heaped praises upon. I'm having fun. Before FFVII I played a bit more in Tales of Phantasia (for the PSP, in Japanese) too. (Finally got to the point where Arche joins the party.) I wonder if I'll ever finish that game, ha ha.
I had the uncomfortable experience of eating by myself at a sit-down restaurant last week. I signed up for a bunch of birthday offers this year, and one was for a free burger from Red Robin. My parents weren't around the day I decided to go (and are trying to cut out needless expenses anyway), and I haven't been in very close contact with friends lately, so I went alone.
I've picked up food from places before, of course, and gotten coffee to sit by myself and read, but this was very different. The hostess seated me next to a table of three noisy people (one of whom was talking about being in jail ...), and then the waiter came to take my order. Somehow, having a reasonably attractive male waiter made being by myself worse. I worried that I looked pathetic to him ("Oh, look at the chubby girl eating a burger all by herself" -- or am I "Oh, look at the cute girl eating by herself"?); I worried that, if I was too friendly with him, I'd appear desperate for male attention. (I still tried to be somewhat friendly and left a good tip.) I guess I am an insecure person, even though I realize I'm being silly. I always wonder how I look to other people. At work, I've been told by several patrons that I'm always smiling and cheerful. I do try very hard to be pleasant, even though I don't love my work. Outside of work, though, I don't know how I come off. I am unsure of my own attractiveness -- there haven't been many guys interested in me, so I tend to doubt that I am attractive.
(The waiter was really pleasant to me on the way out. But I think this was because of the tip.)
After eating, I went and bought Tales of Symphonia from Disc Replay to make myself feel better. (That makes it sound like an impulse buy, but really I was planning on it from the start since I've wanted to get my own copy of the game, ha ha.) I don't think I'll get to replaying it for a while though ... my second playthrough of Abyss (and you know, all those many games I haven't finished a first time yet) come first.
... You know, I was just going to use this entry for this 30 day meme. WELL I CAN DO THAT TOO.
Day 01 - Your Favorite Song
Dagnabit, this is really hard D: Like Jen, I'm going to limit myself to four ... even though it's hard ...
Buck-Tick - Long Distance Call
Kokoro ga kowareteiku dareka wo kizutsuke ni iku
tomaranai tomaranai ore wa iku yo
Aishiteiru yo Mama mou umaku hanasenai yo
aishiteiru aishiteru hoka ni nani mo...
I ♥ Buck-Tick. (The Japanese text on my LJ header is from another song of theirs, "Gessekai.") This is one of my early favorites of theirs -- a song written about the singer calling his mother long distance while she was dying in the hospital. Even without knowing that info, this song definitely has a heart-wrenching quality. (And no, it doesn't showcase the awesome bizarreness of some of their other stuff.)
Akino Arai - The Wish
Sonna shizuka na basho ni anata wa iruno?
Oritettemo ii? Soko e
Daremo inai inai inai yoru
Daremo inai inai inai kana?
Mado wo akete
tsumetai kuuki no hane atsumete
Yoake made kakurenbo shiteimashouyo
"Kega suruyo, kega suruyo"
sore demo...
Akino Arai's songs tend to have this beautiful, otherworldly quality. Honestly, I could do a favorites list of just her songs because I love her so. This song makes me think of taking walks on my empty college campus at night, with a sky full of stars above.
Jars of Clay - Crazy Times
It seems it's always the crazy times
you find you wake up and realize
it takes more than your saline eyes
to make things right
Jars of Clay is probably the longest held of my favorite bands, and Much Afraid is one of my favorite albums. So basically, it's impossible to choose a favorite so I just picked one :D Their stuff makes me think of jr high and high school, when I would listen to their albums obsessively to try to make myself cheer up.
Megumi Nakajima and May'n - Nyan Nyan Service Medley
(Includes "Lion," "Infinity," "My Boyfriend is a Pilot," "Diamond Crevasse," "Seikan Hikou," "What 'bout my Star?", "Do You Remember Love?" and briefly, "Ai Mo")
At first I was just going to put "Lion," but screw that (this one has most of Lion anyway). I didn't like Macross F the anime that much, but the music is infectious pop that usually has me singing along (it is composed by Yoko Kanno, after all). The Nyan Nyan Service Medley doesn't have all of its amazing songs ("Pink Monsoon" is my jam right now, but it came out more recently for the movie), but it's got the highlights.
Agh, this makes me seem like a weeaboo who never listens to music in her own native language D: Admittedly, I have a lot more Japanese music than English, but I do listen to English music at times too. Anyway, I have so many more favorites than this ... I just know once I post this I'll think of 10 songs more worthy than the Nyan Nyan Service Medley (much as I love it), ha ha.
Left to go:
Day 02 - Your favorite movie
Day 03 - Your favorite television program
Day 04 - Your favorite book
Day 05 - Your favorite quote
Day 06 - Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 07 - A photo that makes you happy
Day 08 - A photo that makes you angry/sad
Day 09 - A photo you took
Day 10 - A photo of you taken over ten years ago
Day 11 - A photo of you taken recently
Day 12 - Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 13 - A fictional book
Day 14 - A non-fictional book
Day 15 - A fanfic
Day 16 - A song that makes you cry (or nearly)
Day 17 - An art piece (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.)
Day 18 - Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 19 - A talent of yours
Day 20 - A hobby of yours
Day 21 - A recipe
Day 22 - A website
Day 23 - A YouTube video
Day 24 - Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 25 - Your day, in great detail
Day 26 - Your week, in great detail
Day 27 - This month, in great detail
Day 28 - This year, in great detail
Day 29 - Hopes, dreams and plans for the next 365 days
Day 30 - Whatever tickles your fancy
... Just looking at some of these topics, I know I'm going to be in trouble :D
Things that have taken up time recently include:
Anime - Re-watched Baccano!, which I picked up the boxset of (also got Tsukihime v. 1 and Millennium Actress, both of which I'll re-watch sometime soon). Still such an awesome show ♥ It is chock full of fun characters and cute pairings and wild action. Watched the first four episodes of Le Chevalier D'eon, which is unfortunately still eminently boring (and honestly kind of ugly, as far as the character designs go) to me, even though all I've heard about it is positive. Watched Please Twins! (lol I know, I know), which was actually kind of fluffy cute and fun, if also ridiculous and silly. I think I did like it better than Please Teacher. I don't think I ever talked about watching Noir (back in the middle of January), which is a show I've been wanting to see since I first got into anime. It did not disappoint; it wasn't the BEST EVAR but it was supremely entertaining.
Books - Back in January I was reading Jane Austen's Emma, which was good but took an eternity to complete (or so it seemed). I moved on to the first Moribito novel, Guardian of the Spirit, which, besides being absolutely beautiful physically (I can't explain it, but the materials just screamed "high quality," from the ink to the texture of the pages), was a pretty darn good read. Next up was The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya light novel, which I'd picked up half-price at the Waldenbooks going-out-of-business sale. It was ... OK. Entertaining enough, but not as funny as I remember the anime being. Maybe Tomokazu Sugita really does make Kyon so likable (or maybe it was the translation at fault in the novel?). Right now I'm reading Moribito II: Guardian of the Darkness. I could definitely get addicted to this series; Darkness is as good as (or even better than?) the first novel. Balsa is an awesome protagonist, definitely one of the most kick-butt heroines out there. She's capable, she's smart, she's strong, she's human. Oh, and she's an adult instead of a teenager! Moribito also has some interesting mythology going for it too. I'd definitely like to check out the anime sometime.
Games - Not so much on this front, but at the end of January I downloaded Final Fantasy VII from PSN for my PSP. I've never played FFVII before, so it's interesting to finally see the game so many people have heaped praises upon. I'm having fun. Before FFVII I played a bit more in Tales of Phantasia (for the PSP, in Japanese) too. (Finally got to the point where Arche joins the party.) I wonder if I'll ever finish that game, ha ha.
I had the uncomfortable experience of eating by myself at a sit-down restaurant last week. I signed up for a bunch of birthday offers this year, and one was for a free burger from Red Robin. My parents weren't around the day I decided to go (and are trying to cut out needless expenses anyway), and I haven't been in very close contact with friends lately, so I went alone.
I've picked up food from places before, of course, and gotten coffee to sit by myself and read, but this was very different. The hostess seated me next to a table of three noisy people (one of whom was talking about being in jail ...), and then the waiter came to take my order. Somehow, having a reasonably attractive male waiter made being by myself worse. I worried that I looked pathetic to him ("Oh, look at the chubby girl eating a burger all by herself" -- or am I "Oh, look at the cute girl eating by herself"?); I worried that, if I was too friendly with him, I'd appear desperate for male attention. (I still tried to be somewhat friendly and left a good tip.) I guess I am an insecure person, even though I realize I'm being silly. I always wonder how I look to other people. At work, I've been told by several patrons that I'm always smiling and cheerful. I do try very hard to be pleasant, even though I don't love my work. Outside of work, though, I don't know how I come off. I am unsure of my own attractiveness -- there haven't been many guys interested in me, so I tend to doubt that I am attractive.
(The waiter was really pleasant to me on the way out. But I think this was because of the tip.)
After eating, I went and bought Tales of Symphonia from Disc Replay to make myself feel better. (That makes it sound like an impulse buy, but really I was planning on it from the start since I've wanted to get my own copy of the game, ha ha.) I don't think I'll get to replaying it for a while though ... my second playthrough of Abyss (and you know, all those many games I haven't finished a first time yet) come first.
... You know, I was just going to use this entry for this 30 day meme. WELL I CAN DO THAT TOO.
Day 01 - Your Favorite Song
Dagnabit, this is really hard D: Like Jen, I'm going to limit myself to four ... even though it's hard ...
Buck-Tick - Long Distance Call
Kokoro ga kowareteiku dareka wo kizutsuke ni iku
tomaranai tomaranai ore wa iku yo
Aishiteiru yo Mama mou umaku hanasenai yo
aishiteiru aishiteru hoka ni nani mo...
I ♥ Buck-Tick. (The Japanese text on my LJ header is from another song of theirs, "Gessekai.") This is one of my early favorites of theirs -- a song written about the singer calling his mother long distance while she was dying in the hospital. Even without knowing that info, this song definitely has a heart-wrenching quality. (And no, it doesn't showcase the awesome bizarreness of some of their other stuff.)
Akino Arai - The Wish
Sonna shizuka na basho ni anata wa iruno?
Oritettemo ii? Soko e
Daremo inai inai inai yoru
Daremo inai inai inai kana?
Mado wo akete
tsumetai kuuki no hane atsumete
Yoake made kakurenbo shiteimashouyo
"Kega suruyo, kega suruyo"
sore demo...
Akino Arai's songs tend to have this beautiful, otherworldly quality. Honestly, I could do a favorites list of just her songs because I love her so. This song makes me think of taking walks on my empty college campus at night, with a sky full of stars above.
Jars of Clay - Crazy Times
It seems it's always the crazy times
you find you wake up and realize
it takes more than your saline eyes
to make things right
Jars of Clay is probably the longest held of my favorite bands, and Much Afraid is one of my favorite albums. So basically, it's impossible to choose a favorite so I just picked one :D Their stuff makes me think of jr high and high school, when I would listen to their albums obsessively to try to make myself cheer up.
Megumi Nakajima and May'n - Nyan Nyan Service Medley
(Includes "Lion," "Infinity," "My Boyfriend is a Pilot," "Diamond Crevasse," "Seikan Hikou," "What 'bout my Star?", "Do You Remember Love?" and briefly, "Ai Mo")
At first I was just going to put "Lion," but screw that (this one has most of Lion anyway). I didn't like Macross F the anime that much, but the music is infectious pop that usually has me singing along (it is composed by Yoko Kanno, after all). The Nyan Nyan Service Medley doesn't have all of its amazing songs ("Pink Monsoon" is my jam right now, but it came out more recently for the movie), but it's got the highlights.
Agh, this makes me seem like a weeaboo who never listens to music in her own native language D: Admittedly, I have a lot more Japanese music than English, but I do listen to English music at times too. Anyway, I have so many more favorites than this ... I just know once I post this I'll think of 10 songs more worthy than the Nyan Nyan Service Medley (much as I love it), ha ha.
Left to go:
Day 02 - Your favorite movie
Day 03 - Your favorite television program
Day 04 - Your favorite book
Day 05 - Your favorite quote
Day 06 - Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 07 - A photo that makes you happy
Day 08 - A photo that makes you angry/sad
Day 09 - A photo you took
Day 10 - A photo of you taken over ten years ago
Day 11 - A photo of you taken recently
Day 12 - Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 13 - A fictional book
Day 14 - A non-fictional book
Day 15 - A fanfic
Day 16 - A song that makes you cry (or nearly)
Day 17 - An art piece (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.)
Day 18 - Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 19 - A talent of yours
Day 20 - A hobby of yours
Day 21 - A recipe
Day 22 - A website
Day 23 - A YouTube video
Day 24 - Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 25 - Your day, in great detail
Day 26 - Your week, in great detail
Day 27 - This month, in great detail
Day 28 - This year, in great detail
Day 29 - Hopes, dreams and plans for the next 365 days
Day 30 - Whatever tickles your fancy
... Just looking at some of these topics, I know I'm going to be in trouble :D
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