来ないと死刑だから

It's Gonna Be Totally Awesome!

Tue, 21 Jul 2009 22:14:41 GMT

So sue me, I haven't followed the HP fandom for quite a while now, but I stumbled onto this on a completely non-HP related thread on IMDb and think that it is "TOTALLY AWESOME!" \m/

Harry Potter the Musical

I don't know how long this has been floating around, but it's pretty brilliant. Example, Harry telling Ginny why they can't be together: "What I'm trying to say is I don't want my life to be like Spiderman 3, I hated that movie." XD Also, tap-dancing Voldemort! And Rumbleroaaar!

Darren Criss, who plays Harry and wrote a lot of the lyrics in the musical is pretty amazing, too. If you check out his youtube channel, there's an awesome vid of him singing "Part of Your World" from The Little Mermaid. ♥

Harry Potter & The HBP Movie Review!

Thu, 16 Jul 2009 09:29:15 GMT

So... before I read any reviews that might change or color my opinion, I just want to say that I think the HP6 movie was great. I actually want to go back and watch it again, which never happens to me with HP movies, as I'm usually content to see them once and then just catch them on TV.

My favorite HP adaptation so far has been Prisoner of Azkaban because I think it did an amazing job capturing the theme and spirit of the book. Plus, it was just gorgeous. That wasn't a summer blockbuster, that was art.

And that's what I like about HP6: it does an amazing job of catching the feel and thrills of the book and manages to be more than just an adaptation, but an enjoyable movie. I wouldn't go so far as to call this Film with a capital F because it lacks the artsyness of HP3, but the character interactions were incredibly rich, the young actors seem to have gotten a lot stronger**, and the decisions of what to include and what to cut/alter due to time restraints were largely on the mark.

This is the benchmark to which all of the HP movies should strive. Or should have striven, since we are now on the sixth one.

As far as things I liked, we have...

Pacing: I'm still not over the pacing horror of the GoF movie *shudders* But here, the pacing was seriously good. And it definitely didn't feel like a 2.5~2.75 hour movie, which is always a good thing (I'm looking at you, Watchmen, ugh). I thought HBP did a good job of moving the story along; it was brisk but still took the time to touch upon specific plot points without getting bogged down.

For instance, I thought the trimming of the Quidditch sub-plot was really well done. They cut out the games of Ron playing horribly but still built up enough tension so that when Ron finally played well it had a good effect. I'm glad they left in little details like Luna in her awesome Lion hat and Harry tricking Ron into thinking he had liquid luck on his side. I was surprised, though, not to hear anyone chant "Weasley Is Our King." Did I miss it??

Acting: These kids have really grown in their abilities. Ron's character came across as very genuine to me and not overly goofy or forced. I also thought I noticed an improvement in Emma Watson's acting, especially in the scene where she launched the birds at Ron. I'm glad that Emma decided to go the impassioned but not psycho-hysterical route with that one because to be honest, hormonal Hermione kind of freaked me out in the book. And Harry... What was up with his hair? It made him look kind of douchey. Anyway, one of my favorite concepts from the HP books in general has to be Felix Felicis--I even owned that domain name for a while!--and DanRad was priceless in the Felix Felicis scene. His overconfident bravado reminded me of the exaggerated version he played of himself in Ricky Gervais's show Extras; it was soooooooo good! I would watch it again just to see that~

Also, was it just me or did everyone seem really cheeky? In a good way, I mean! The delivery of dialogue in nearly every scene had me giggling; it was like the actors were playing up to the audience, which I would expect from a live performance but not from something on film. It felt kind of like fan service.

The thrills: There were two moments that really stood out for me because they were very creepy and well-done, the cursing of Katie Bell and the Inferi grabbing Harry's hand from the water. The first scene seemed like it had come straight out of a horror movie, rather than Harry Potter, and in a good way. It gave me the chills. In the second scene, even though I knew that it was coming, I still jumped out of my seat. That was a good scare! singlebluenote teased me about it on the drive back home.

Other things I liked about the movie:

I thought the focus on them growing up and developing relationships was well done.

Luna! She had a lot fewer scenes than in OotP, but was still great. I love this actress.

11 yr old Voldemort -- so creepy! I was surprised to hear that the child actor is also the nephew of Voldemort's actor Ralph Fiennes.

The scene where Harry touches the destroyed horcrux and jerks his head in the exact same way that Voldemort does. That was a subtle but brilliant touch and a great bit of acting on DanRad's part.

Slughorn's pajamas! I want a pair like those. Slughorn, himself, was... okay. Not bad and definitely good in the Felix Felicis scene, but the actor's bulging eyes freaked me out.

And just few things from the movie that I want to nitpick over:

Where did that go/come from? First, a disclaimer: I didn't bother re-reading HBP before the movie came out. The WB pushing the movie's release to summer for greedy reasons really bugged me, so for a while I didn't even care about seeing the movie, I was that disgruntled. However, I finally saw the extended trailers, which made me excited to watch HBP, but by that point I was so busy with work I haven't had time to re-read the books.

That said, WHERE DID THAT SCENE OF THE DEATH EATERS SETTING THE BURROW ON FIRE COME FROM BECAUSE I DON'T REMEMBER READING THAT!!! How are they supposed to have Bill and Fleur's wedding there next summer--oh wait, they won't because the Bill and Fleur subplot was cut out.

Also, I was really disappointed that we didn't get a Death Eater/Dumbledore's Army showdown at Hogwarts! Sure there are time constraints, but I'm surprised that Yates passed up the opportunity for a big fight scene =o The whole Astronomy Tower scene was slightly altered, as well, in a way that I don't really think was necessary to the story. The design of the tower was weird for no apparent reason, and I'm not sure why Yates decided not to have Harry stupefied beneath his invisibility cloak.

Other than that, my qualms with the adaptation side of the movie are pretty minor. I thought HBP did a good job of including as much of the story as possible without getting bogged down in complicated details that would detract from the enjoyment of non hardcore fans. I would have liked to see more about Tom Riddle's background, but I know that it would have disturbed the balance of the film. This is a movie about Harry Potter, after all, and while a book can wax on about other characters who are not Harry, a movie needs a little more focus otherwise it will be spread to thin.

Characters MIA: I did notice some characters missing from the movie, especially Rufus Scrimgeour. They were able to carry off the story just fine without him, but I can't help but suspect that there are a large number of moviegoers who haven't read the book and still think Cornelius Fudge is Minister of Magic. It doesn't really matter since Scrimgeour dies at the beginning of HP7 anyway, but they could have at least thrown a headline into Harry's newspaper at the beginning of the movie.

Romilda Vane's brief cameo was rather disappointing. I wasn't fond of her character in the book, but her lack of lines in the movie made Romilda come across as a nice girl rather than crazy and annoying! Besides the love potion thing, of course; that was crazy =D and the card that came with it was pretty awesome. ♥

Crabbe & Goyle... what happened to these guys? I seriously don't recall seeing them in the background; Pansy and Blaise got most of the screen time for the Slytherin team. The whole Polyjuicing them into first-year girls and Harry looking at them on the Marauder's Map would have bogged the movie down, for sure, but I would have at least liked to see them lurking in the background a little bit.

The Casting: For the most part, I have no problems with the casting in the HP movies, as most of the actors do a decent job, but there are a few that bothered me in HBP.

Tom Riddle, age 16 -- Originally played by Christian Coulson, teenage Tom was recast as Frank Dillane. If the goal was to recast teenage Tom with someone who looked more like Hero Fiennes Tiffin, the awesome child actor who portrayed Orphanage!Tom, then mission accomplished because the resemblance is incredible. However, I actually find that Dillane looks way too young to be teenage Tom--more like a 13 yr old version--and I really think that he lacks Coulson's charisma and good looks, both of which I attribute to teenage/young adult Tom Riddle.

Lavender Brown -- sure she was ditzy enough, but she was not cute. At all. What was the deal with her huge bushy hair that stuck out on top and that ugly bandanna she always wore in her hair? Also, she seemed a little bit on the thick side, if you know what I mean. @_@ Not that I promote Hollywood's obsession with stick girls, but Lavender just came across as looking very "average" rather than the popular, pretty, trendy girl I always saw her as. I was expecting preppy and fashionable and got country bumpkin. =( Then again, since my mental image of Lavender is a young Keira Knightley à la savethefurries, I guess it's a hard standard to compete with.

Dumbledore -- I don't dislike Michael Gambon, and I think he looks swell as Dumbledore, but I would so have loved to see Richard Harris's interpretation of the role in these last couple of movies. Miss him a lot.

A few other details I think could have been changed/added without bogging down the story:

More Neville! Poor "Boy Who Almost Was The Boy Who Lived," he's really been gypped and deserves a lot bigger role in the story, in general. Hopefully they don't cut out his awesome big scene in Deathly Hallows.

Just a little more analysis of Voldemort's character. I don't think they stressed his vanity or habit of collecting "treasures" enough. Even a single line thrown into the Horcrux conversation would have sufficed.

Dumbledore coming to rely on Harry as an equal. One scene I really like in HBP is when Dumbledore, who has always been in charge and giving orders, tells Harry that he knows things will be all right because "I am with you."

Umm... I guess I'll add more here as I remember them.

Now it's time to go and read everyone else's thoughts and find out if I'm the odd man out. ^_^;

Hello, Friends!

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 22:39:55 GMT

Hello, friends! I am looking for awesome people to play with this coming year~

After spending this last year mostly alone and unhappy with a horrible roommate and very few friends, I've decided that my goal for this coming school year is to surround myself with awesome, nice people ♥ I'm so sick of mean people and negative energy =o

So come play with me =] I do get busy with work, but I have a car now and sometimes I even have money, hehe.

In other news: since krispy_kream, tsuzusushi, and chiharu_octavia have been raving about it, I've finally dusted off my copy of Professor Layton that's been sitting around for ever! Yay, DS time~

The Best One Yet!!

Fri, 24 Apr 2009 17:07:17 GMT

There were strawberries in the dining hall and breakfast, and all I could think was, "This could be the very best strawberry in the entire world, but you wouldn't know cause you didn't eat it." ♥ HSM3

The Craaaaziest Thing Ever Happened to Me Today! ...Well, Not to ME Actually

Fri, 06 Feb 2009 09:17:06 GMT

So I've just gotten home from class, and I'm sitting at my computer with no pants on.

It's been pouring all day, you see, and my Dickies have gotten soaked up to my shins so I've taken them off to dry. I'm on MSN chatting with the BF (who I'm gonna go see in Boston tomorrow!! ♥) when I hear someone calling loudly from outside the building. Thinking that someone's been locked out of the dorm, I throw on a pair of sweatpants and go to let them in.

Outside I find my suitemate on the ground with her bags strewn all about her. She was just coming home and slipped on the wet concrete outside the front door, getting badly injured in the fall. She's in a lot of pain and crying. She says her head hurts and she can't move her arm; she thinks it's broken. I run inside to call the police and then hurry back out to keep her talking until the paramedics show up.

She asks me to call her mother since she's from Nor Cal, like me, and has no family down here. I let her mom know what's happened and which hospital she is being taken to. Then I track down her roommate and other girl friends in the suite, so they can go to the hospital and bring her some dry clothes and take care of her when she is released. ♥

She is back when I get home a little after 10 tonight. She got a concussion in the fall and has fractured her wrist, possibly requiring hand surgery, but at least she's safely home now. And on Vicodin. And lying cozy in bed, being spoiled by the other girls. =)

Best Superbowl Commercial Ever! ♥

Mon, 02 Feb 2009 00:29:54 GMT

Love love love this cars.com commercial. I thought David Abernathy was just the cutest thing ever~

Bishop Gene Robinson Rocks!

Sat, 31 Jan 2009 07:07:54 GMT

I've been catching up on The Daily Show (I like to wait a week so I can watch a bunch of episodes in a row), and I just caught the Inauguration episode. Episcopalian Bishop Gene Robinson was hilarious. Check out this exchange between him and Jon Stewart:

Stewart: Can I ask you--I mean, Washington was so crowded today, there's so many people... You as a Bishop are sort of doubly handicapped in that situation, only being able to move diagonally. How was that? How was that negotiating the crowds?
Rev. Robinson: John. John, you have to understand there's a Queen on the board as well.

You can check it out for yourself on Hulu at 17:48 (after the second commercial break "dot" on the timeline).

Speaking of the Episcopalian church, watching this reminded me of a discussion with some friends on the origins of the religion. I brought up that it is the American version of Anglicanism, though of course they don't have the tenet of the British monarch being the head of church like the Church of England because of that whole War of Independence thing. Turns out, I remembered my AP European History lessons correctly! ^^ Wikipedia, which isn't a reliable source, sure, but this one's got a book citation behind it, says that the Episcopalian Church had "to break with the Church of England on penalty of treason as Church of England clergy were required to swear allegiance to the British monarch." Cool stuff!

I think the Reformation is one of my favorite parts of European History. Here's another cool thing. I've always been fascinated by how the church broke off into many different branches, and I found a diagram (source) that illustrates how the different types of Christianity are related.

Of course, it gets a little more complex than this diagram indicates (not to mention that Roman Catholicism appears to become the Lutheran Church rather than continuing on as its own religion?!) but this is a pretty good illustration of the concept.

I Woke Up the Other Day and Realized I No Longer Live in a Country I Have to Be Ashamed Of

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 23:15:07 GMT

Dear President Obama,

Thank you for overturning this ban on US funding to overseas family planning clinics, a policy which has contributed to the deaths and injuries of countless women and girls. I don't think it's arrogant or unethical at all of you to make this decision, and I'm glad that it was one of your first acts as President.

Love,
Hachi♥
The Inactive Catholic

Was Gonna Friends-Lock This One because I Say Funny, Awful Things about My Family in It But Whatev!

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 14:16:31 GMT

You know, I don't update this thing nearly as often as I should. To be honest, I moved over to the micro-blogging wonder that is Plurk, it's like facebook statuses on crack--you earn Karma for updating your status as often as possible and getting people to comment on it. XD If anyone is interested, lemme send you an invite (because it will help me earn Karma). Helllllo, ulterior motive.

I didn't really make any New Years resolutions, so I've decided this very moment that my NYR is to update my sad LJ regularly even though I've gone all Buck Rogers, micro-blogging in the 25th century with Twiki and Dr. Theopolis. Here's what I've been up to lately (it's been a pretty busy winter break).

1) Even though I told myself that I wouldn't buy any Christmas presents and that everyone would understand, as I am so broke that I could actually financially destroy myself for the rest of my life, I went and bought everyone a Christmas present. (No, that was not for your pity, please laugh at me! XD) And I thought they were damn good presents, too, because I bought them all on our Black Friday 12-hour shopping spree. Then I paid for the gifts by selling a Toshiba Satellite on e-Bay, which I snagged at Fry's on Black Friday. Genius, right?

2) I asked a cute guy who was bagging my groceries at a Japanese market in West LA for his number and got it. Yes, I have a weakness for white boys in Weezer glasses. Sue me. And then he drove down to Long Beach the next day and we hung out and I decided that I don't really like him after all because he couldn't stop talking about himself (and is one of those people who gets caught up in pyramid schemes wtf). But I was proud of myself for doing something terrifying and gutsy, and now singlebluenote can never call me chicken. Ever. Of course, now I have to figure out how to politely turn away grocer guy's advances when I've already told him I think he's cute. :/

3) For Christmas we had a gigantic sixteen-person-one-canine sleepover at my grandparents' house, which included my uncle + his boyfriend + their new puppy Leilei (squeeeee) and also my (estranged?) dad + stepmom + stepbrother who is the same age as me + his toddler second child had by his girlfriend during divorce proceedings from his first (underaged) wife/baby-mama. No lie. I played a lot of Rock Band 2 with my cousins and now am hooked on that Panic! At the Disco song, which sucks because I have to start liking them again even though I still resent the fact that they removed the exclamation point! from their band name. Also ate a lot of ham, which is really weird because I couldn't stand that stuff before I went to Japan. Damn you, Tokyo, for ruining me dietarily as well as financially.

4) Eighteen hours after returning from San Jose for Christmas I immediately hopped on a 6AM flight to Pittsburgh for New Years. Yah, I'm crazy. But since I couldn't find anyone crazy enough to take me to the airport at 4:30AM, Matt dropped me off at Denny's down the street from LAX the night before and I sat there until "morning."

I think I'm in love with the East Coast. Pittsburgh is an amazing city. I never would have expected it to be so beautiful; it's full of old buildings, huge rivers and tons of bridges, skyscrapers, and oh so many lights. ♥ Not to mention that it snowed. I was so happy~ My friend Matt (different from the one who dropped me off at Denny's) has an apartment overlooking the river. He took the boy (his brother) and me out every night as thanks for the crazy party fun time we showed him when he came to visit us in Tokyo last spring. I had no idea that Pittsburgh had such a lively nightlife, whoa, and also rad Thursday night unlimited bowling with 80s music! After five straight nights of partying (no joke), the boy and I demanded to stay in and we all played Scrabble. I can't get over the amount of good food I ate (go figure, in Pittsburgh of all places)--Indian chicken makhani with mango lassi and garlic naan, Thai basil tofu with steamed jasmine rice and kabocha curry, and these amazing sandwiches from a sub shop called Jimmy Johns that I can't get in Long Beach because the only California branch is in Clovis (Fresno). T_T I also got to geek out because Zack and Miri Make a Porno was filmed in Pittsburgh. The boy and I watched it together and I was really happy that he liked it. I wanted him to so bad because the first time I ever watched it, I couldn't stop thinking about him. He really is my best friend and we have been through as much crazy shit as Zack and Miri have together. I just hope I get my happy ending, too.

5) I got my second braces adjustment! They are dark blue and baby blue--I was going for a winter theme, and I think it came out really cute... Also I can't believe how straight my teeth are looking these days. (Actually, they were straighter last month and now my teeth are straight but my alignment is all out of whack. The bottom and top rows don't line up anymore as everything shifts back to fill in the extraction gaps o.O) Anyway, I am now 1/8 of the way through my treatment, yay~ I will try to post comparison pictures soon for everyone. I was told that in March they're going to screw in pins! >:O This will help move my upper teeth back faster, but it still sounds kind of crazy!

6) I got a Japanese "airwave perm," and now I will have curly Asian girl hair for the next couple of months. I decided not to get another straight perm because I was tired of my hair being flat for three months, awesome for three months, and then annoying for three months. I'm kind of nervous about having curly hair everyday but I have to admit that it looks super cute. Now I totally want to wear a milkmaid costume or something. tsuzusushi, please please PLEASE let me try on one of your cute Kitchen Print headdresses~ I swear, my hair is nearly as curly as your awesome wig ♥

The sad part about getting my hair done is that at the Japanese hair salon, I started reading a CanCam magazine and felt totally homesick. It makes me want to do something stupid, like go to grad school in Japan even though I shouldn't just so I can go back to my old life and shop in Shibuya again and speak Japanese everyday until I finally actually get good at it. 'Cause, you know, that's all I really want out of life. But the right (and smart) thing to do is go to a prestigious East Coast grad school because I want to do something really impressive for I change. I have what it takes to get in, and I'm falling in love with the East Coast, and it will line me up for a brilliant career so that someday I will actually be able to afford to go shopping in Shibuya as much as I want. Only... what if I'm too old to shop at 109 by that time? I'm afraid that if I go East, I'll be farther than ever from Japan and my Japanese will deteriorate even further and... Gah, I should have never picked up that magazine. Now I totally want a subscription to CanCam just so I can pine for the glamorous lifestyle I once had.

Well, now that I've finally updated this thing with an entry so long no one can possibly read it (haha), my next goals are to do laundry, clean my dorm, get rid of my unnecessary packrat possessions, donate all my unused clothing to a charitable organization, get rid of an unwanted suitor (maybe two; there's this guy who's been texting and facebooking me a lot), and somehow do enough interesting things to update this LJ again next week. Oh, and I might go to Boston soon.

Stuck the old hard disk in an enclosure, and now I have a sexy coaster

Sat, 13 Dec 2008 02:12:43 GMT

So my hard disk failed right before my birthday this year (Happy birthday to me~♪). I popped in new drive and was running again in no time--take that lousy HP customer service, trying to get me to purchase a new support plan!--but I wasn't able to recover any files from the failed disk, boo. I even tried freezing the drive and mounting it in Linux like a wannabe nerd, but I guess I'm not hardcore enough/the drive was too badly damaged.

Fortunately, I'd been saving most files to my external hard drive, particularly my giant music collection. But I did lose a few important things.

1.) My e-mail drafts. I saved a lot of hints to passwords in e-mail drafts to myself. Probably not the best or most secure way to do it, but anyway it's all gone now. Have no idea what my FAFSA pin is so it's going to be a pain applying for fin aid next year.

2.) Photos and vids from my bff's visit in October. I *always* save files from my camera to my external hd, no idea why I saved it to my desktop this time. :/ Lost a great photo of me at Pacific Beach in a bikini.

3.) Most importantly, I lost at least a third of the fic I wrote for Nanowrimo '07, and it was the best third! It was so good that I would periodically reread the ending of that fic and marvel at how well it turned out, and now it's gone. Including a really awesome sex scene *cough* ahem. I thought I'd saved it to my external hd, but when I went to look for it today it wasn't there, and the only copy that I e-mailed to myself for BUYND (back up your novel day) was at the 30k word mark just before things started to get good.

When I think of trying to rewrite it all, I know I would never be able to recapture the spirit. *sigh* Guess this means I'm going to have to retire it from the fanfic site where I'd been posting it.

In other news, I have a brand new factory sealed Toshiba Satellite L305-S5891 that I'm trying to sell for $500. My cousin was set to buy it but backed out at the last minute, so if I can sell it to someone I know rather than ebay it, that would be nice.

flails

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 19:43:42 GMT

WHYOBAMA?!

Not Hilary for Secretary of State....! Noooooooooooooooo

In other news, my family is not celebrating Christmas this year.

A Little Late, But Stop the H8!

Sun, 23 Nov 2008 20:53:55 GMT

I know it's a few weeks old, but I just found this in a facebook friend's posted items~!

Look, it's krispy_kream at 1:38!! ♥ Kyaaaaa~

Anti-Prop 8 Rally!!

Sat, 08 Nov 2008 09:21:35 GMT

Whoa, CNN works fast.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/11/08/same.sex.protests/index.html

I wanna see pictures of us, we were so cyuuuute~ :3

Is Having the Shittiest Birthday Ever

Thu, 06 Nov 2008 02:28:46 GMT

Come on, really?

1) Wake up to find that even though the gap is closing, Yes on Prop 8 is still in the lead.
2) International Politics midterm
3) Isn't going out for dinner or doing anything special tonight. Asked 2-1-2-2 if we could hang out, but he turned me down and said, "I've been really looking forward to making some curry, so I kinda want to go home and do that." Sorry. And, no, it wasn't a clever trick leading to a birthday surprise.
4) Roommate is gone, so... sitting in dorm room. Alone. On birthday.
~~5) Talked to best friend in Japan last night, hoping he would remember my birthday and say something. He didn't.~~ Turns out he wasn't sure of the time difference and called me today~
6) Hard disk of my laptop just died in the midst of midterms. So far haven't been able to rescue ANYTHING, even when nerdily mounting the partition from Linux
7) Showed up at sign-ups for snowboard trip next month (the $31 fee paid by my awesome roomie as a bday gift ♥) only to find out that they had secret unannounced hidden sign-up list at 2PM today, so the sign-up list was already full BEFORE it was even open to the public. The one thing I've had to look forward to... is gone.

誕生日は一人で過ごす…なんて寂しいな><

Last Day to Register to Vote

Sun, 19 Oct 2008 21:31:08 GMT

If you're a California resident and haven't registered to vote yet, TOMORROW October 20th, is the last day to register to vote in time for the November 4 Elections.

Remember to fill in your registration card completely and have it postmarked or hand-delivered to your county elections office (such as the Office of the Los Angeles County Registrar in Norwalk, CA) by October 20th.

I don't want to interfere with church affairs, I just don't want others to interfere with our Constitutional rights to equality.

P.S. Remember, you can't vote NO on Prop 8, unless you're registered to vote!! XD

On Abe Lincoln Figureheads and Totempoles, etc.

Sat, 04 Oct 2008 19:01:54 GMT

My friend singlebluenote linked me to this video essay, Vowellet. Apparently, the voice actress for Violet from The Incredibles is a cast member for NPR and a SUPER HISTORY GEEK--as in Abe Lincoln is her hero geekiness. Just watching her is random and kinda nerdy-awesome.

In other news: Aaron and I were at karaoke, and on my way back from the restroom I ran into tsuzusushi and chiharu_octavia in the next room, haha!

In other other news: My braces have stopped hurting and my teeth have been moving... BUT NOT FAST ENOUGH >:O

Natto FTB... For The Breakfast

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 14:04:50 GMT

Natto is the breakfast of champions! I would eat it everyday if I could~

In other news, I'M GETTING MY BRACES TODAY! LIKE, LEAVING FOR IT.... NOW!

Nice Is Never Out of Style

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 07:47:06 GMT

I think everyone needs to watch this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84YmMIjpM6o

One of my friends has entered a video contest, and the theme is "Nice Is Never Out of Style." Out of the many entries (now in the fifties!) only the top five videos with the highest number of views will be judged, so please check it out. If you have a youtube account, add it to your favorites, spread it around!!

This video is totally sweet, adorable, and will fill you with warm fuzzy feelings! Love FTW

In other news: I'm hitting up IKEA tomorrow night for their college event, yay free stuff!

"Everything I Touch, I Ruin!!!"

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 21:46:19 GMT

zskjf;JSf[pj v]ed[

OMFG, I messed everything up >< So my orthodontist said I had to get my four first bicuspids removed before I had my braces put in. When I went to the dentist to get my stitches from my wisdom teeth extraction taken out, they said they could pull my bicuspids that day and it would only take twenty minutes.

I was a total 'tard and panicked!! Not that I'm afraid of getting any more teeth removed. I mean, I survived the wisdom teeth extraction and bicuspids are nowhere near as difficult (they barely even bleed). BUT, I had no idea when my braces would be put in since I had to wait for the orthodontist to get my records in, and I really did not want to walk around in the meantime with four conspicuous gaps in my mouth... especially since I'm going back to San Jose later this week to visit my family and old friends!

Well, I got a call from the orthodontist today. My records came in, and they were ready to have my spacers put in TOMORROW and my braces NEXT WEEK ON THE 28TH!!! Except now have to wait until I get my bicuspids removed because they can't put in the spacers until a week after, and I couldn't make an appointment to see my dentist for the extraction until next week, the 27th!!

So, because I chickened out like a wuss, I just delayed all my dental work by three weeks ㅠ.ㅠ I'm so stupid!

Anyway, now I get my spacers put in on September 4th and my braces on the 12th

あぁ　あなたの声が遠くなる　遠く遠く

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 08:50:52 GMT

Today I got to speak Japanese for the first time in weeks, きゃーあ！ Ordered us lunch, then spoke to the clerk at the Shiseido makeup counter all 日本語で～☆ and got a free sample!

We were having a great time at karaoke when I sang Chatmonchy's 女子たちに明日はない (Joshi-tachi ni asu ha nai) and the lyrics to the song made me feel incredibly sad... I got all choked up as I tried to continue singing but I broke down and started sobbing with homesickness.　　I'd never made a personal connection to the song before, but today I realized that the words perfectly describe the transition I've been experiencing lately.

あなたの声が遠くなる　遠く遠く

したいことが多すぎて　散らかった狭い部屋
何から何まで捨てられたなら

Your voice is far, so far away

There are too many things that I want to do
My tiny room lies in disorder

If I were able to throw it all away...

For months I dreaded having to leave Tokyo. I was always so busy, and there were many things I wanted to do but never had the time for. When it was time to go, I was surprised--I'd left so many things undone but time had run out. I promised myself that when I got back to California, I wouldn't let myself be depressed or angry about being back because I knew that if I allowed myself to do so, I would only sink into a spiral of unhappiness.

Still, the song caught me off-guard. It reminded me of all the things I've been trying not to think about--my small, messy room back home; the friends I'll never see again; the things I wanted to do but will never be able to.

分かってるのは　ただ一つ

In other news, we rented Batman Gotham Knight and one of the stories featured a bishounen version of Bruce Wayne!! Yes, you heard me correctly Yaoi Batman. And Lucius Fox winked at him. ♥♥

大嫌いって言わないで痛いくらいキミの愛が～☆

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:52:52 GMT

もうすぐだ！

I am scared that no one will come to meet me at the airport when I arrive Friday morning at about 11:30AM. Granted, it's my own fault for not calling people and asking them to meet me... but!!! I wonder if I should have flown back to SFO anyway, rather than LAX, and been greeted by my family.

誰も来ないと寂しいからな～

If anyone can make it, I would love you forever! Please come and I'll show you my new arm muscles. Haha, just kidding~

In other news, since I really love that Japanese electronica duo capsule, I'm wondering if I should get into Perfume. They're really big right now and Yasutaka (the mastermind behind capsule) has been producing them for a few years now, so his sound is really evident in their music...

Antique Bakery Anime ♥♥

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:17:34 GMT

Ahhhh, so I am a dork and even though I have years of facebook experience under my belt I pressed some buttons which made it post weird results that I wasn't intending >_< If you don't understand what I am talking about, just ignore this please... I am so lame.

ANYWAY!!! I was walking through the metro today and saw a giant ad for the Antique Bakery Anime, kyaaaaaa~ Here are some pictures I took on my camera phone.

Apparently it starts this Thursday, July 3rd, at 1AM (so technically Friday). Too bad I have class the next morning at 9AM or I would totally watch it... Waaaah!

In other news, I just got into this awesome Japanese duo called capsule. Their style started out as retro lounge pop and has evolved into some kickass electronica. I've heard it described as a mixture of Daft Punk and a sunshine smoothie. Check it ooooooouuuuuut!

Read and Comment ASAP: お土産 ♥ OMIYAGE!!

Sun, 22 Jun 2008 16:16:46 GMT

Okay, guys!

I was talking to Aaron about what to bring back for everyone's お土産 (omiyage), and it turns out that right now this popular store here called uniqlo (kind of like a GAP/Old Navy type clothes store) is selling really cheap 浴衣 (yukata)!! They have really nice quality clothing there despite the affordable prices (for Japan), and I thought that I would loooove to pick one up for all the beautiful women in my life ♥♥ AND THEN WE COULD WEAR THEM TOGETHER, kyaaaa~ （＾ε＾）

Check out the website here: http://store.uniqlo.com/jp/CSaDisp/Wyukata I'm going to head over to Uniqlo as soon as I have the time to check out what designs are still available. Since these are about $40 each, and it would end up costing me over $250 overall *dies*, I was thinking maybe we could split the cost? $20 isn't asking too much for a gorgeous yukata, is it? >_<

♥ Beth
♥ Danielle
♥ Kara
♥ Lianna
♥ Liz
♥ Sharon

Let me know ASAP because I think the special only lasts until the end of the month!! By the way, did I miss anyone? If so, don't hate me, it's 1AM here. @_@ If I missed you and you would like one, please mention so in the comments!

In other news, I am in Osaka with Aaron (his stomach is so flat now, OMG) We went to see Indy Jones together today ♥♥

Hachi-Puri... Part I. Planetarium

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 16:07:09 GMT

I had a great idea today and couldn't wait to get out of work (English conversation partner - 1 hour, 3000JPY + transportation fee + free drink @ cafe, FTW) to try it out!! I figured, I'm such a clothes whore -- geeze, how am I ever going to get all this back to the states -- and I've got all these great outfits right now, so why not do a little showcase of the various things I wear? ...VIA THE WONDERFUL MEDIUM OF PURIKURA ☆☆

So here is the first of what I hope to make a series (at least until I have to leave Tokyo, boo!) where I'll tell a little story about the outfit and, as much as I can, try to break down the price for you. For the meantime I'm calling it Hachi-Puri for lack of a better name, but if you can suggest a better one I will love you forever, especially if you can incorporate purikura and fashion and/or hachiko and/or shopping into the name ♥♥

The Inspiration

Today's outfit was strongly influenced by the Otsuka Ai song Planetarium. The PV has an absolutely gorgeous summer night theme, in which she wears a white one-piece (that's Japanese for dress, haha) and makes her crazy ぶりっ子 (burikko) faces at the camera. (Check out that link for a really excellent description of the Japanese burikko phenomena!) While burikko is actually a huge turn off for me, I absolutely love this song and video.

The Photos

The Breakdown
Shiki hat 2500JPY
Creamy white one-piece 2900JPY
Salmon pink scrunchie 1000JPY
Loop earrings 1600JPY
Imitation pearl necklace $10~20 (already owned)
Brown knee-length boots 3000JPY
-----------------------------------
11,000JPY total (about $100) plus necklace

My Thoughts
This one-piece randomly caught my eye while I was shopping and I tried it out on a whim, not expecting I would end up liking it this much. Japanese clothes in general are not fitted - maybe because Japanese girls aren't particularly curvy? So blouses and one-pieces tend to be cut in a BOXY shape (yes, I'm serious, they wear potato sacks here, guys) which allows tops to drape loosely and a bit baggily on the body. This one-piece strongly reminds me of an old-fashioned nightgown but, you know, for some reason that doesn't bother me... I must be getting way too used to the potato-sackiness of Japanese clothing. o_O The majority of the dress is a polyester-rayon blend that turned out to be very breathable: I felt nice and cool all day despite the humidity that is creeping up over Tokyo. And the price was a great steal - 2900JPY (a little under $30) which is a good price for ANY piece of Japanese clothing.

The boots I got last fall for really cheap (about $30). They're a great reddish-brown color and go all the way up to my knees ...They occasionally strike me with a Tokyo cowgirl feeling, haha. The hat I had to buy as soon as I tried it on because its shape is exactly the same as the hat my favorite character Shiki wears in the game Subarashiki Kono Sekai or The World Ends With You, as it is known in English. And the scrunchie... eek, I did not check the price before I went to the register because I kinda-sortof-actually went and paid $10 for a stupid hair tie (they usually run about $5~6 here). But I wore it on my wrist as an accessory, and it really added a nice touch to this simple but cute ensemble.

For the future, I'm considering adding an oversized fabric flower pin (yes, just like Sex and the City) which is a really big trend going around Tokyo right now.

In other news... yay for avoiding writing the last six pages of my ten-page classical Japanese poetry midterm paper and a two-page 作文 both DUE TOMORROW.

In other other news, there's a 飲み会 tomorrow, yay~ because I haven't really gone drinking for like two weeks now, what the heck.

Shounan Yosakoi 08 or "Guys, I'm Way Too Slow at Updating!!" T___T

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 13:29:58 GMT

I was meaning to post this two weeks ago, gaaah >_< Anyway, this is the first time in four years that I've missed Fanime Con, but it only felt weird for a little while because this Memorial Day Weekend was pretty much the same as every other: crowded venue, badass costumes, stage performances, and overpriced food!

(There's also a high quality version located on Youtube itself if this one is too pixel-y for you.)

We did a five-minute stage performance, for which we received the 鳴子大賞 (Best Naruko Award) - naruko, by the way, are the wooden clapper things that we hold. In the video I am located in the center, three people back. See if you can spot me! =D

We also did a craaaazy street performance in which we danced parade style for fifteen minutes straight with no breaks! >:O Afterwards, I was sweating and fanning myself like crazy - as you can see in my LJ icon, though the torrents of sweat aren't visible. The video for the parade is still stuck on my camera, thanks to my brand new damn 4G SD card which won't let me put the stupid video onto my computer. If anyone has experience with transferring large files (like over 1G) from SD High Capacity cards onto a PC, I would really appreciate the help and in exchange offer ~~hotsmex~~ cookies. Lots and lots of cookies.

For those of you who don't have facebook, here are a few photos of me in the awesome costume :3 You don't want to ask how much it cost, though, because your wallet may just cry like mine did.

My eye makeup looks freaky in this picture. O_O Aaron looks awesome, though; he's lost over 15lbs since coming to Japan.

In other news: I've been plowing through SubaSekai but, gaaaawd, my R4 card is a real battery drainer, so half the time I want to play my DS is dead. =( Also, I waste waaay too much time leveling up stupid badges that I don't even like (I think they're called "pins" in English???) just so I can master all of them.

In OTHER other news: Has anyone see the new Youtube video annotations?! Haha, total ニコニコ動画 wannabees~