A moment of silence for the planet that was, but never was, that could've been, but now can't.

...



Pluto Demoted: No Longer a Planet in Highly Controversial Definition

I'll pour a little out for you the next time I'm out with the homies, man. I'm going to go bury the styrofoam ball that served as your representative in my 4th grade solar system project now.

On a quest to find a new series to watch, I downloaded the first two episodes of Innocent Venus. It has all the trappings of a stereotypical anime series: post-apocalyptic earth, guys in mech suits, corrupt government, little girl with ridiculously long pink hair, the usual.

If a series doesn't grab me by the end of the first episode I don't bother with trying to wait it out to see if it gets better. (There are exceptions, of course, like Gilgamesh.) And, while Innocent Venus' story wasn't necessarily compelling enough to warrant downloading the rest of the series, the very end of episode 2 totally got me.

Pirates.

Pirates on a big ass submarine.

The captain looks half pirate, half samurai.

Oh boy!

First off, to your right is a billboard I caught while walking out of the ampitheater last Sunday. This is for all my George R. R. Martin nerds. Sansa mp3 player, WHAT!

1. Purikura taken with my homie Anne Marie before headed out to see Dave Chappelle: It's easy!

2. Debuted a new costume at AOD last weekend, Karma Shenjing's bassist Yuu: This wig is ferocious!

3. One of my good friends had a press/photo pass for Rock the Bells, so he IM'd me the other day and was like, "Yo, I got pics of your man.": Mos Def-initely!

4. In case you're wondering what me and Anne Marie look like outside of washed out, bright ass purikura booths, this is us after sitting 7 hours in the sun at Rock the Bells: Hip Hop, and ya don't stop!

I'm going to echo dejitaru and just say those of you attending Otakon this weekend have fun... you fuckers.

Oh, who am I kidding. While y'all are sweating it out in B-more, I'll be
1) seeing Dave Chappelle tomorrow night
2) helping ziggybecket host a panel at AOD (estimated con population of 200 LOL) on Saturday and
3) checking out Rock The Bells* on Sunday.

But, you know, I do love me some MUCC. Donations for any random MUCC merchandise that may be purchased at Otakon are always accepted here! ;D

*Mos Def, Talib Kweli, De La Soul, Wu-Tang Clan, Redman, Del Tha Funkee Homosapien, Living Legends, Murs, Zion I, Supernatural, Planet Asia

Lupe Fiasco first caught my attention on Kanye West's "Touch The Sky" where he rhymed, "Yes! Yes! Yes! / Guess who's on Third / Lupe Steal Like Lupin the Third." I had to do a double take and ask myself, "Did he just mention an anime character in his rhyme?"

Fiasco is a skateboarder, self-admitted anime fan, comic book nerd and collector of random crap like, designer toys and expensive Japanese denim. Oh, and sneakers, of course.

Anyway, his first single (a romantic tale based around, yep, skateboarding) is pretty freakin' sweet.
Lupe Fiasco - Kick Push

But, even better, his producer Soundtrakk sampled an 80s Filipino song to create the beat for "Kick Push."
Celeste Legaspi - Bolero Medley

His first album drops on September 19th. I figure if I end up loving it, I might as well put him on the top of my "Future Ex-Husbands" list... above Mos Def. WHOA.

The real reason I want to drop all the weight/inches is because I found my next ULTIMATE COSPLAY. Straight from the underground, the internet-leaked Final Fantasy that never was... Final Fantasy XXX! You don't even want to know what kind of dresspheres they came up with for this bad boy. (Like the BDSM Sphere where Yuna walks around in stilettos and a whip, Rikku's her gimp and Paine's in a vinyl French maid outfit licking Yuna's boots.)

I know you're intrigued! See more here. (I would totally buy an XBox 360 just to play Halo Kitty, (even though the use of Comic Sans kills me a little) by the way.)

(And guess who's seeing Dave Chappelle perform at The Punchline on August 3rd? Say what? And I just got an email saying that tickets for Snakes on a (Mothereffin') Plane are available... who's with me?!)

So I'm checking out Nana Kitade's stuff (one of the musical guests performing with MUCC at Otakon (I hate you guys) in a few days), and I see one of the tracks titled, "Moonlight Densetsu."

...

And I'm thinking... oh no she didn't.

Nah, she couldn't have...

Could she...?

Oh yes, yes she did. MY CHILDHOOD OF WATCHING SAILOR MOON RETURNS! And it's pretty funky! I think I am now determined to see her perform at the Virgin Megastore in SF on August 2nd just to see her sing this live. (And suppress the urge to sing along. LOL)

Nana Kitade - Moonlight Densetsu (I am a total nerd for posting this.)

Edit: Wait... wait! There's more!! She also covered the Rose of Versailles theme! (Hello, NERD FEST happening right... NOW.)
Nana Kitade - Bara wa Utsukushiku Chiru

And, in completely unrelated news, while cleaning my room the other day I found the badge to the first ever anime con I went to: Anime America in 1996. This con doesn't even exist anymore. My friend and I went specifically to go to the Dealer Room to buy Sailor Moon crap. I think I remember seeing one cosplayer.

In reference to my previous post: Me at 120 lbs. at Senior Prom, no less. Check out those A-cups! (Okay, don't, really.)

Miss wagashi and Miss tristencitrine (and whoever else out there that has watched up to episode 44 of Monster) will probably be the only people that get this...

( The Monster inside me has grown this big! )

Ahh... nerd shit. :D

Went to a "con."
Wore Kohran.
Got blinded by confetti dot and traffic cone orange.
Took some pictures.
Got my ass whooped by Dhoulmagus.

Good day? Mos def.

Now this is pretty sweet. There is a worldwide, year-long vote going on for the new 7 Wonders of the World. The original 7 Wonders of the Ancient World were named by a single Greek guy that wanted to create a list of "must-see" man-made structures in and around the Mediterranean, of that 7 only one exists today: the pyramids at Giza.

http://www.n7w.com/

The 21 "candidates" are
Acropolis - Athens, Greece
Alhambra - Granada, Spain
Angkor - Cambodia
Chichen Itza - Yucatan, Mexico
Christ Redeemer - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Colosseum - Rome, Italy
Easter Island Statues - Chile
Eiffel Tower - Paris, France
Great Wall - China
Hagia Sophia - Istanbul, Turkey
Kyomizu Temple - Kyoto, Japan
Kremlin / St. Basil - Moscow, Russia
Machu Picchu - Peru
Neuschwanstein Castle - Füssen, Germany
Petra - Jordan
Pyramids of Giza - Egypt
Statue of Liberty - New York, USA
Stonehenge - Amesbury, United Kingdom
Sydney Opera House - Australia
Taj Mahal, Agra - India
Timbuktu - Mali

( My vote )

Following the rule of C.R.E.A.M. (Cash Rules Everything Around Me - Wu-Tang Clan), the site isn't merely love, laughter and promotion of humanitarian acts. There seems to be some commercial aspect in regards to the partners listed on their site and they even have Official Host Television Stations. I'm sure we'll see New 7 Wonders t-shirts springing up in your local Ross by Summer of 2007. Regardless, I think it's still a pretty cool undertaking, and it looks like a good chunk of the proceeds will go towards restoring cultural treasures.

You have to call an international number to vote, and even if you don't, what do you think you'd vote for and why?

I have the whole house to myself and what have I been doing? Partying it up, doing lines on the coffee table, toga parties or hiring strippers? No sir, not for me! Instead, I've been trying to beat that Exercise in Frustration known as the last song in Guitar Hero on Medium. Not even on HARD or EXPERT... Medium! My inner gamer girl weeps. (The song is "Bark At The Moon" by Ozzy Osbourne. The solo part kills me everytime!)

During my breaks from the Exercise in Frustration I've been playing Dragon Quest VIII. I think my age is getting to me because I've gotten my ass whooped three times by the first major boss. I still haven't beat him! (Stupid waterfall dragon thing with the stupid crystal ball...ararrrgghhh.)

I think I'm just going to turn in my membership to 1Up.com now and start cross stitching.

And, no, I still have no idea what I'm doing for New Year's Eve. Vegas is out (friends left this morning) and LA is out (Diana got some sucker friend of hers to fly her to NYC). Seriously considering hitting up an all-girl party BY MYSELF because 1) I'll really dig the music, 2) I have no one else to go with, and 3) It won't be the same party with the same people that I've seen for the past three New Year's Eve in a row.

Or, you know, I could stay at home, do lines on the coffee table and hire a stripper.

Or play more Dragon Quest.

AAHAHHAHAHAHAhahahahahahah oh my god, kill me...

COME TOSS ME!

In the great words of Paris Hilton, "That's hot." "Do you love it, bitch?"

Thanks, dejitaru!

Big things for the site in 2006. Hiatus, what hiatus? I got a stack of magazines, flyers, and other random crap about a foot high that's callin' for some scannin'!

...


Oh good lord, help me.

Happy holidays, everyone! :D

J-Rock Connection:
Much more fun than I expected. Honestly, I didn't think it was going to happen, but I'm glad I was proven wrong. I look forward to attending next year. Good job, guys, you deserve whatever praise goes your way. Holler!

Good times all around with dejitaru and ziggybecket (holy crap, go check out his photos in his latest post). But, really, that goes without saying.

The bands:
Xenophobia
Missed them, but after hearing the song on their sample CD I'm glad I did! (Hey Ma, look, I'm a hater!)
Judge for yourself: Drone

Nex Letalis
Oh god, no. I'm sorry, just... no. I'm not even going to expand upon it because really, I'd rather just forget that I saw them perform.

Nikita with Metallic Beast
Straight up, the vocalist had amazing voice. He held his own while doing covers of Dir en grey, MUCC and a bunch of other bands. Band-wise, Metallic Beast had a really good lead guitar and drummer, but the other two members could stand for improvement. Best part of their set was when they ended it with MUCC's Zetsubou and at points he sounded like Tatsurou! Amazing.

Chaos+System
RARARAR ARAHARARAHARARARARAR ARARAR ARARARARARAR *sing* RARARARA RAR ARARARAR
Wait... what was that? Oh, those are the lyrics to your first, second, third, fourth, eleventh song? No way! And here I thought you were just trying to clear a hair ball from your lower intestine! Oh, my bad, I'll pay more attention next time. I think half of their set was noise plus a little more noise with some yelling on the side. Next!

Karma Shenjing
AKA: The little band that could.
These guys went through two losses of sound (after a whole night where none of the other bands had any problems), a bassist that almost twisted his ankle when he took a mis-step and stepped off the riser, and a guitarist that broke a string and rendered his guitar unplayable (but was saved when Nikita offered his guitar instead).

Anyway, let it be known that I'm a sucker for cute furitsuke. And these guys had it. Damnit.

So here, you go, my favorite song of theirs: Hikari Ao Saisai
(note: the vocalist sounds way more nasaly in the recording than he does live) I'm totally teaching you all the furi to this whenever I see you. I'm betting less than a month before an LJ community pops up for them. ;D

Ah, back to business tomorrow.

Cho Chang... cute.

Cho Chang speaking with her accent... hot.

Cho Chang acting... not so hot. (But refer to the above statement and everything's a-okay again.)

Victor Krum... hot. In fact, Durmstrang as a whole was pretty saucy.

Ron Weasley... holy crap, he's huge!

Harry Potter... six pack (albeit pale), holler! (I should not be saying that considering how old the boy is).

Fleur Delacour... could've been hotter.

Just the highlights... the con was just full of random surprises.

// After much gluing, taping, pulling and adjusting we (ziggybecket, ajmeow, kitkat_nap and praedestinatio) rocked out as Gilgamesh cannon fodder and did an awesome photo shoot with lionboogy. Can't wait to see the results!

Surprise #1: Half a dozen people recognized us... freakin' amazing because that's half a dozen more than I anticipated.

// Cracked jokes with sutori_toenzeru while her sister, yoshinya, made love to the camera. Work it, baby!

// Got asked to judge the Masquerade... sweet! An honor, to be sure, and got to meet Jaina Solo and HoneyBunny. It was one of the most entertaining Masquerade's I've seen!

// Ahh... the Bishounen Auction. My favorite wasn't in the auction this year, and it wasn't as crazy as year's passed, but there was still a lot of good performances. (Like the Cid Highwind singing Elvis' "I've Been So Lonely.")

Surprise #2: The host's assistant, Lady Saya, an Asian American woman in a corset and mini skirt was a surprise auctionee and went for $125,000. For reference, the highest bishounen from last night went for $1,400.

Let me say that again: $125,000

A group of guys pooled their credit cards together to make it happen. Think if I bother them next year in a corset and mini skirt they could buy me a (small ass, in the ghetto) condo?

// They requested that the Masquerade judges appear in costume, so I wore the vinyl Gilgamesh madness all day. After the main events I got two different guys to drop to their knees before me because of the dress. hahahahah... Pretty effin' sweet, man.

Surprise #3: Got to talk to my favorite bishounen and turns out homeslice is originally from the 707 too (different city than me), but currently lives in another neighboring town. Weird thing? I remember talking to him last year and this time he gave me totally different information about himself. I think he knows I think he's cute and, therefore, trying to rock a secret agent identity. It's all good, man, you don't gotta lie to kick it! ;D

...

I'm too worn out to bother with seek for work tomorrow, so I think I'll just wear my flying squirrel kigurumi all day instead. Time to pass the eff out!

Although that NANA cell phone strap is hella cute, it's also going to be crazy expensive after all the auction service fees if you end up getting it.

Also, all that random cute NANA crap is just that; crap. Stuff you will look at, go "Oooh," then put on a shelf or drawer somewhere and never ever use. (Much like those Sanrio erasers you used to buy as a kid that are still in perfect condition after 20 years.) You will never use those NANA glasses because you'll be afraid that you'll break them and those pillows (in pink and red/black) don't come close to matching your room.

And, as much as you try to justify it by saying you like Ai Yazawa's illustration style, at your age you do not need a poster of make-believe drawn characters on your bedroom wall. Yes, I know you still have that Psycho le Cemu poster up but that's different, at least they're real people.

Yes, your coworkers will think you're weird if you start hanging up NANA postcards at your desk for decoration. No, explaining will not help any.

You haven't used a folder since you got out of high school, what makes you think that having a set of NANA clear files will change that?

However, bootlegged Vivienne Westwood jewelry is acceptable. At least you can wear it. (No, you cannot buy a NANA t-shirt.)

...

Someone get me away from Yahoo! Japan Auctions.

This is where I ask all you FFXI folks to give me your opinions on that game on the PS2 as opposed to how it is on PC. I'm thinking about getting online and trying it out, but since I have a Mac the only way I can play it is if I get myself all hooked up via my PS2.

I'm not even sure why I'm asking for a comparison since it's not like I have a choice in the matter. Just entertain a tired woman today, yeah?

I've heard that they're not even selling new copies of the PS2 version anymore, anyone know why? PC version more popular? Too many problems on the PS2 version? Square Enix just felt like it?

Assuming I did sign on to try it out, would I run into any problems being a late comer compared to all the people that have been playing for over a year now? Have you found that your life has been sucked into the world of Vana'diel, where you eat/sleep/live FFXI? Will I never been seen outside of my house again? Will I attempt to shape my ears to look more Elvaan? Will I name my children after TaruTaru?

Good lord, I'm tired. Any help would be appreciated, though! (I know there are a few of you on my Flist and beyond that play/have played this game.)

I just got a bunch of free anime and I'd like some advice on what I should watch and what I should return to the land of Suncoast so I can get the rest of Samurai Champloo.

Here's the list:
Gall Force: Eternal Story
Darkside Blues
RG Veda
Night Walker: Eternal Darkness
Cyber City: The Final Collection
Odin: Photon Space Sailer Starlight
Ariel

If you've seen it and you enjoyed it/hated it beyond belief... please comment and let me know! I'd rather cut out the fat and get to the good stuff than watch my life slipping away because of a horrendous anime.

Thanks y'all!

Maybe it's 'cause my expectations were ridiculously low (Y'all remember that thing called Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within, right?), maybe it's 'cause everything was so damn pretty, maybe it's 'cause the folks at Square Enix did a really good job at casting everyone's voices so they didn't sound like retards...

But man, Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children is pretty freakin' SWEEEEET.

I'm all the more looking forward to crossplaying Reno at Yaoi-Con! Thanks for hookin' it up, ziggybecket!

Is it nerdy to say that I could possibly die a happy woman if I ever saw a group of male Japanese cosplayers that lived up to the sauciness that is Kadaj, Yazoo and Loz? Eff it, I said it!

I picked up an all Japanese-language manga magazine JUST so I could get the free cell phone strap included with the issue. Just forget the fact that my current phone doesn't even have a cell phone strap HOLDER. Yeah, shut up.

The magazine was Cookie, by the way, where NANA is serialized monthly. And yeah, it was a NANA strap... a screen cleaner that has a picture of both Nana's on it.

Anyway, so in the story the two Nana's end up living in an apartment together. The apartment number?

707, beeyaaaatch!! 707 is Vallejo's area code. WHAT!

Guess where I'm moving back to at the end of the month?

707, beeeyaaaatch!!

Guess what I found advertised while flipping through the pages of the manga magazine?



Awww yeah. 1800 yen? I figure it's worth it to REPRESENT MY MUHFUGGIN' 'HOOD! *b-girl stance*