Love is a Song, Love is a Song, Love is a Song.

Freshman city champ! :) 14:41, I think, with about 7:20 splits.
And...
I've been made an alternate for varsity, for regionals/sectionals/state (if we qualify). It totally surprised me, when we came to the "final" meeting to turn in our uniforms, turns out I'm still in season for two more weeks. Which is great, I mean, I'm happy that Geiger sees enough potential in me for me to be varsity next year, but I kinda made other plans. Like, you know, math team? Piano? (speaking of which, I have to accompany my friend who's playing flute for her exam which is in NOVEMBER.) And I have to design for the school directory, yearbook...

My new Yamaha U1 piano is coming next Saturday. :D

 
My new favorite song. Currently I love all U2-ish sounding songs. -squee-

YES!

Check this out here :
http://thesmartyowl.blogspot.com/2010/10/star-crossed-contest.html

I'm crossing my fingers.

And my toes.


My research for an awesome dSLR still continues.
But also on my list is the...
Sorry, lost that train of thought.
I think I might've meant to say that I still hae a Chem test to study for, and that I'm worried about how badly I failed my AP Human Geo quiz. Afterall, I did get 66.6 (devil's number, much?) on my last one. Haha.

-JY

Homework is going to kill me. And then my mom, if she finds a way to revive me.

Alright, so, I friended some old acquaintances on Facebook for the wrong reasons.

Alright, that didn't sound right

I friended some old acquaintances on Facebook because I LURVE their pictures.

Nah.

I friended some old acquaintances on Facebook because I love their picture quality, and most importantly, I love their photo editting skills. And their photography skills. SKILLZZZ.


So now I'm telling my mom that I should really get a digital SLR camera.
Yush, I am doing my research. At the moment, I'm looking at the Nikon D3000, I guess, since I know it takes great pictures and its cheap. But I think I'll have to do more research on different lenses, ISO, exposure, and apeture, because I really want to figure out how to take those really cool photos at night with flash.

Well. I had an interesting title, but it evaporated.

So I had a lot to say, except after doing 24 200m's, they kind of evaporated.
But this post is my attempt at remembering:

Recently, I was Facebook-stalking (haha. I wonder who's actually going to take me seriously when I say this) and I saw Jack Wanberg's photos with Annamalise. And it totally made me have an empathy-moment (I mean, honestly, it doesn't happen a lot, and why of all people, them?). But it happened so... I just felt so sad for them, because they were really good friends before, and had a good relationship after, and then I see their status'... SINGLE. I DUNNO!!! ;_; It just made me sad.

And my American lit. teacher is McCarthy... When I first saw his name, I went, "Hey..." There was this feeling, not of familiarity, but a cross between dejavu and I'm-pretty-sure-I-know-you-from-somewhere. Recently I realized what and why. It's because his name reminds me of McCarthyism! :D I had a major "OHHH!" moment when I realized. Which caused me to brain fart on my math problem.

Today after school, I was at my locker, and I saw a girl. YES, I SAW A GIRL. I won't name her, but she's a girl (YES, SHE'S A GIRL!), is a year older, is a fracky, is in my AP Chinese Lang.+Culture class, has awesome carving skills (my goshness, I saw photos on FB and she carved words out of pencil lead!), is good at percussion, has awesome baking skills too, and has awesome friends. Now, I'm not going to say anything about my current friends, I'm not implying anything either, but she has awesome friends. It just makes me wonder, if I had gone to Payton, would WY people still have tried to hang out with me some weekends? I dunno, movies, parties... And lastly, the reason why I say that she has awesome friends, is because ATM, I have a puppy crush--

Yes, a puppy crush and nothing more. I have to make this fact clear in black and white, because I just KNOW that confessing this is going to come back and bite me in the arse. But I just have to say this, for a personal record, because when I come back to this blog in ten years, I'll see it and laugh at myself. Now, I certainly do not want this fact out. This blog is public, but please try to keep this as private as possible. The only reason why I'm letting this out is because I trust you guys enough. I'm giving you guys the benefit of the doubt. I've read way too many cliche books about blogs SOMEHOW being found out. Not pretty.

--on N.o.a.h. S.e.b.e.k. Yes, because my socializing skills suck crap, so that's just it.

Third to lastly, for Alice's card, we should put, "You suck. But this game is too interesting."

Second to lastly, McCarthy's making us do a "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" blogpost, and I kinda (just kinda) want to draw a picture of a god with 26 hands (yes, because it has to be even, no?) blocking some sort of dam. That would be fun. But I don't think I can do it in one day. Sorry, I don't have enough time in my life to come home and just be able to finish homework and even do math team homework. -coughcough-

Finally, -whew, finally- I'm just going to drop off a little tiny fact:

I know why and how Sheila got mad at me for my controversial blogposts back in March. (You can look for them again, but sorry m'dears, I've saved them as drafts. :) )

-JY-

Pictures from trip

I need a picture of me doing something over the summer for AP Human extra credit, and so I’ve uploaded the better pictures of me throughout the whole trip. You know, the ones where I don’t particularly look too stupid, like all the other ones. So, I’d like your top three, or top two (or maybe top one, which would make everything easier).

Knock yourself out.

View Full Album

-Julie

EDIT: I was a little bit curious, so I clicked on my blog stats. And now I feel stupid I didn’t click it earlier, when the a-hole stalker decided to drop by.

+ PRTSC 1
+ PRTSC 2

PS. I didn’t know I had dimples until I smiled really hard at myself in the mirror.

Babbles.: Me.

Babbles.: Me.: "My name is Bob Jiayin Tang. I dislike writing essays and such because I sound stupid. Informal writings are good, and I like writing rando..."

'Tis my blogpost for my American Lit class.
Writing a blog is unusually, but seems pretty neat. :)

I'm not quite sure if I like it, but...
Maybe I'll be in a different mood tomorrow and decide that its ABSOLUTELY AWFULLLLL.

My mom finally downloaded the pics from the trip. :D So when I blog about Days 6-8, I can include pics!


Following is an email I sent about first day of school. I'm copy/pasting because I'm too lazy and I still have to do another AmeriLit hw. -sigh-

i finally got art, so i was excited about that
and i have lunch with a bunch of syd's guy friends
my american lit teacher is making us make a blog for class. its unusual, but i think its going to be fun
ap chinese we have a crowded classroom, and we actually have to turn in our summer hw (panic!)
for ap human our class is veryvery small, and the teacher isn't so bad. she's very straightforward, so i like that
i'm doing cross country now, which means for the season i cannot commit to anything but cross country :(
i still have to talk to math team coaches about practice (one which happens to be tomorrow)... bleh.

-Julie

Random Post.

Trust me, I haven't forgotten about Days 6-8. I'm just really unmotivated and busy right now.

Shakugan no Shana is really good. I'm on the second season right now, and it has just the right mix of romance and action! And so because of SnS, my new favorite thing to say is Enpatsu Shakugan no Uchite (「炎髪灼眼の討ち手」Flame-haired Blazing-eyed Hunter, except not the "no Uchite" part).

Anyways, my point:

Black Swan, starring Natalie Portman.

It sounds really good, but I don't really like the horror twist to it.
I'm uber paranoid, and therefore doesn't go well with me. :(

-Julie

Baltimore, MD – Day 5

Besides that lame ass comment from Anonymous who thinks I’m some bubbly idiot (great, I feel like I’m being stalked) and the frustrating email about Art I being full, my day was okay-ish. :)

Back in Baltimore, we visited Centennial HS, which is where my parents want me to go. I don’t really like it that much, prolly because I just don’t want to transfer. It’s all one floor and is really spread out, in the suburbs. But the ‘burbs in MD is a lot different because there are lots of hills and trees and very big houses. I keep telling them that if we ever have to move, I’m going to Choate Rosemary Hall. I don’t think that they think I’m serious, but I am. Eitherway, I’ll have to give up a lot, so I’d rather be in a good boarding school somewhere in CT than to live in the suburbs (something I would never want to do) and limit myself because the school itself doesn’t offer as much (compared to Choate and WY). Since my mom is indecisive, switching back and forth from moving to MD and staying here, I’m going to test for Choate anyway, and if I do get in with a scholarship and/or (are you allowed to have both?) financial aid, I’m going. For sure.

I think I’m going to limit the more personal info I’m putting in here. I didn’t think that my blog could be found so easily. Or I’m being stalked. Anyways, I’m gonna stop talking, since I’m afraid that Anonymous is stalking me and if I don’t get my details correct, then he/she is going to be a smart-aleck with me. –sigh- People these days. No manners at all.

I’m doing Days 3&4 later.

Smithfield, VA and Yorktown, VA - Days 3&4

Day 3

We woke up and ate breakfast and left for Smithfield & Isle of Wights. We drove on Richmond Rd (where the hotel was on) to Jamestown Rd, where we drove to the end of it where Jamestown Scotland Ferry to Surry County was at. Fifteen minutes, very cool. B) This is bucket-list worthy, I think. The ferry was really part of Route 10, and we continued driving on it on land. There weren’t any streetlights (not that we needed any ATM); very rural and countryside-ish. There were plenty of what looked like “haunted houses”, battered and seemingly empty. Sadly, we were driving too fast and so I couldn’t take any pictures.

About an hour later, we arrived. There wasn’t much—just very old houses, a museum about Smithfield’s history, and a British telephone booth. (Maybe I’m just too paranoid…but that wasn’t all, fyi. Ahem.) [insert picture here.] One of the interesting things about Smithfield, I think, was that it's (apparently) internationally famous for their hams, and produce(d) good peanuts (something like that). And it being such a small town, it has a museum about itself, and surprisingly, they have tourists coming, like us. Our excuse was that it was a place to stop at after riding the ferry, and also on our way to Virginia Beach. But forget it, since I don’t know what my point is. Anyways, for lunch, we ate at Smithfield’s Gourmet Bakery and tasted their, so they say, famous ham. On our way out of town, we stopped at St. Luke’s church, because it’s an old gothic church (the only) still standing since the 1600’s.

(There are lots of streams and river and bays and lakes in the East, which means lots of veryvery longlong bridges.)

We passed through Portsmouth and its downtown, where there was a veryvery longlong tunnel. On to Virginia Beach!
It was very hot, but the water felt really good. Unfortunately, I didn’t bring my swimsuit. I had to settle for just soaking my feet and shins in the water. WHEE. THE ATLANTIC OCEAN. There were a couple guys that were trying to surf (keyword: TRYING) all while trying to hit on “hot girls” at the same time. On the way back to the car, one of them was at the water fountain (one where you can rinse off the sand off your legs and whatnot) with a bunch of girls. He was very cocky and, I guess, they would say, humorful. I was figuring out how to work the fountain and he joked with me. (It doesn’t sound right, but it’s when people tell you that you broke something when you can’t figure out how to work it, because they’re just messing with you.) The girls laughed. He asked me where I was from, and I said Chicago. The girls shut up. (HA!) “You like it there?” “Yeah.” “Better than this shithole, huh?” –shrugs- And as I was walking away, I couldn’t really hear what he was saying, but it sounded like he was making fun of the way I said Chicago and the girls were laughing. Screw him, because I don’t like his accent either. Yeesh.

Understand that in between the hotel, Smithfield, and VA Beach, we drove for about an hour and a half. So by the time we were done with VA Beach, it was time for dinner. We tried looking for a good seafood buffet, (everywhere we go, we look for a visitor center :D ) through all the visitor guides and dining guides and maps and coupon books and ads and whatnot. I found Yukai, which was a seafood buffet and a sushi buffet. (which I thought was nice, since the last time I ate all-you-can-eat sushi, Japanese-style, was in Japan. –teartear- memories.) But it was a typical Chinese-owned buffet that you see in Chicago often, so we went to eat at Captain George’s another seafood buffet right next door. We ate lots, and I was really full.

Heading for the hotel, we drove a different route from Smithfield (the shortest route). We passed through downtown Portsmouth and its really long tunnel, passed through another longlong tunnel, before driving onto a very longlong bridge.

Day 4

We woke up early, ate breakfast, then checked out. We headed to Yorktown Battlefield, the last in the Historic Triangle. But it was too early, so we went exploring through the fields. At some point, my parents thought I disappeared, since the trenches the soldiers dug ended pretty high, so they couldn’t see me. When the visitor center opened, we went in and watched a video and browsed through their exhibit. Since we’d already walked through the fields, we decided to take an driving tour around the whole battlefield. We saw the siege walls, trenches, encampments, etc. I can’t offer any other details, since, really, it was just an empty field. (At this point Anonymous would say, What were you expecting? Preserved tents and dead bodies?)

We saw a family of deer. :D The male was pretty young, since he barely had horns.

Lunch: ate in the car, before going home.

It was a stormy day with scattered T-storms, so when Dad was driving on the very left lane on the highway, we drove under a huge raincloud. Before the rain, the wind was really strong. We driving at about 70mph and the car was starting to swerve in its lane. It’s a Western car (Chrysler), so its heavier. If we’d driven a Toyota or something, then I dunno what would’ve happened (Asian cars are lighter to save gas). The windshield wipers were going very fast (the fastest) but the rain was pouring so heavily and fast that it was louder than mom talking in the backseat. It was like driving under a small waterfall. We couldn’t see anything in front of us but rain and grayish-ness, from the sky, the mist from the car tires, and the heavy rain on the road. The cars all had headlights turned on, but in the rain it was still so hard to see. Our car and many others started turning on the double-parking lights, so that the repeated flashing made it easier to see. It was easier to drive in our lane, since we could follow the yellow line on the left. We were all panicking, and (almost) everybody had dropped down to about 45-55 mph. Some people stopped on the side to wait for the rain to stop. It was really scary, and lasted for about 10 minutes, I think (since it felt longer, like 30 for me).

Instead of home, we went to H-Mart to buy groceries, and ended up eating dinner there. We ordered Korean dishes (I dunno the names, but I wished I wrote them down) but the one my dad ordered was really good. Prime ribs with veggies and rice on hot stone pot. P:

Home, and outside the car, I get seven mosquito bites in one minute. I also had a headache for about the entire day, so as soon as I layed down, I passd out.

 

Excited for NaNoWriMo and the double ARC giveaway. |D
Music: ROBYN. Dancehall Queen, yo.

Baltimore, MD and Williamsburg, VA – Days 1&2

Day 1

So we got off at BWI (airport) from Columbus, OH, and it was awful. I felt like I was gonna puke. The pilot wasn’t as good as the first one, I guess, and also because I don’t think that after four years of not being on an airplane, two a day was not a good idea. But after going to the baggage claim and getting our bag, I sat down and felt a little better. My dad soon picked us up with a Chrysler PT Cruiser. Haha, I’ve never really ridden in a Western car before (except when carpooling). And, I gets to ride shotgun. |D On our way to my dad’s house I saw M&T Bank Stadium, home of the Ravens, I think.

Over at my dad’s house, we got settled in, and then went shopping at H-Mart (in Chicago too), Asia Market, and Wal-Mart for stuff we’d need for our trip. I got a good look at Baltimore, and apparently, some weird mayor wanted Baltimore to be a city of townhouses. So pretty much all the houses are connected together and reallyreally squeezed together. Their all really narrow. And old. At some parts of the city there are foreclosed and really rundown townhouses. :(

For dinner we had lettuce, noodles, kimchi, sauced meat, and nato. :)

Day 2

Couldn’t sleep on the first night, as always. But the East is humid-hot. We headed toward to Williamsburg, VA, which took about 3-4 hours. We packed lots of goodies, since we’d be staying there for 3 days and 2 nights.  There were lots of really weird road names like Good Luck Rd. and Paint Branch Pkwy. Closer to the destination I saw Opitz Rd., Dumfries Manassas, and Prince William Pkwy. (he also has a forest park named after him). The East also has lotsandlots of trees. Stick-straight and really tall, ones that I’ve never seen in Chicago. At some point (not sure, but prolly Annapolis) on the highway, I saw the obelisk Freedom monument or whatever it was again, and I saw the top of Capitol Building. Maybe we can stop by DC on the way back to Baltimore??? :D

(If you kill a a mosquito in your car that has just bitten your mom about 30 minutes ago, you can see all the dark red blood.)

We got a little backed at some point near where I saw the tips of DC on I-95, and so I just took some weird pictures. And when we went to get gas, I saw that their gas contains 10% ethanol, which I thought was pretty cool, because you don’t see that in the city (or at least, I’ve never).

Other weird cities include Tappahannock and Mechanicsville, along with a museum called Weems-Botts. Not making fun here, just a little bit of linguistics-slash-culture shock. :)

We arrived, checked into the hotel (Marriott’s Fairfield Inn) and headed over to Jamestown Historic Settlement. There wasn’t much, but I did learn that there were 104 settlers that came to VA in the 1600’s. We went on and took an island drive. It was veryvery hot, like 106 degrees hot. DX –dies- Living in a cold city like Chicago’s rubbed off on me, I guess. We crossed several bridges over marshland, and at some point we saw little tiny brown crabs crawling sideways. I told my mom to take a picture, but they were too small. :( Also, on the drive, we saw a speckled baby deer (cute!!! but we couldn’t get it on picture; it decided to camouflage behind some grassy leaves) and prolly its mother a mile or two away. We also saw bamboo, which my dad said was very strange and mysterious, because why would something so Zen and Asian be growing in VA? And we also went through this reallyreally long and dark tunnel. Veryvery cool. :)

Next, Colonial Williamsburg. It was basically just one street (the Duke of Gloucester) where we saw a mini marching bad playing fifes and drums for 15 minutes (really just hired people). And then there were lots of old houses. See, this trip to the Historic Triangle (Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown) would be interesting, except we’re not American. And you’re not getting anything out of me, because I have absolutely no patience for hot weather and old ruins and forts and houses and churches. Definitely not churches. We rode a shuttle bus around the place ($6, $2 per person) and we passed through houses with people dressed in colonial clothes. This is why they’re paid, because I would never wear all those layers and long clothes voluntarily. I sure pity them.

For dinner we went back and I got to taste beef-like tofu that we bought in Asia Market. I think after this, I wouldn’t want to go vegetarian/vegan. And we also had Korean instant ramen and other pickled veggies.

It’s the end of Day 3 that I’m blogging this, but I’ll do Day 3&4 tomorrow. :)

Happy summer.
_julie_   B-)

EDIT: Apparently, someone decided to give me some flames, which I don’t happen to appreciate, so I’m replying. You may like Williamsburg, but I didn’t, so don’t be such a critic about a friggin’ blog post about my experiences.

Colonial Williamsburg is just one street? Hmmmm.... I guess you weren't really there, or you would know that it is an entire restored CITY with 88 original buildings. How did you manage to miss that?
The Fife and Drum were "hired people." What did you expect? Retirees from the American Revolution? Ghosts?

I didn’t say is was just one street, I said basically. And how did I manage to miss it? I JUST DID. It’s fine if you just want to correct me on the details, but no need to be such a butt about it. Besides, I didn’t read the pamphlet.
Yesyesyes, I did expect ghosts. In fact, I expected zombies—dead colonists back from the grave. Just being Captain Obvious, you got a problem with that?
Why did you decide to be anonymous? What could I do? Stalk you just to tell you some very colorful words?

Columbus.

Alright. Blogging here at Columbus. Sadly, to get cheap tickets, we have to stop here before going on our way to Baltimore. It’s interesting because mom and I had a mini-panic session when we couldn’t figure out the time. But luckily, this massage bar that’s right in front of me has a digital clock, so… (My mom thought Columbus was in Boston. Hello??? How can a city be inside another city?)

Anyways, once I get to Baltimore, I think I might be able to post again, and occasionally afterwards, until our return. Since coming back we don’t have to stop anywhere, I’ll have to wait until I get home. WHEE.

Getting on a plane was a little bit different, I’d have to say. I thought I’d be fine, but after we had taken off, my heart felt like I was on a roller coaster (‘Cause we kept dropping altitude and such). It was really cool after we had taken flight for about two minutes because suddenly you see downtown Chicago. Purdyyy. ;) And I was a little nervous about the landing. I’d bought a Newsweek while waiting for our flight and by the time the flight was over, the sweat off my fingers had stretched the paper. :P

11:39am here.
Currently listening to: Shut Up and Drive (off the 21 soundtrack)

-Julie

Twilight. And vacay.

It’s amazing what goes on online. But eitherway, my mom’s been watching the Twilight Saga with Chinese subs (she actually finished the 3 yesterday night) and it scares me a little, frankly.

Anyways, I’m just saying that I’ll be leaving for Maryland Monday morning, and will be back the 16th. (Missing a day of Acky orientation, but whatever. And I will not be reachable through my cell, ‘cause I’m leaving it at home. So don’t text me.) It’s the first time I’ve been on a plane in 4 years (in which I went to New York and the East Coast). I used to go vacay a lot, but not anymore, sadly. I traveled all over Japan when I was there (and Australia and China), and in third grade I went to San Francisco and the West Coast, and in 4th, to New York and the East Coast. I’d like to go to Hawaii one day, and the Caribbean. And of course, Europe. And South Korea…

Thank goshness we’re taking the computer. But I don’t think I’d be able to surf, because there’s not always going to be WiFi (sigh, gonna miss my high-speed) and my mom’s very sensitive about using the computer off its battery. (She doesn’t like it, let’s just say. And telling her that I just want to surf is not going to be a good enough reason to use it.)

I hope I won Ace’s Up. No guarantees though. Sadly I can’t check because I’m leaving for Midway at 6am tomorrow. And I really want to enter in the next ARC giveaway too.

Lastly, I’ve officially given out Shadowed Summer. I guess I decided that it would be happier in someone else’s hands.

-Julie

7 Souls

Alrighty. So I got the book in the mail today, by Barnabas Miller and Jordan Orlando. It’s an ARC copy, but the book went on sale July 13, 2010, so it’s not really an ARC, but oh well.

 

This is the cover of the book. (Ignore the background!) And it looks kinda creepy, with the face and hieroglyphics and stuff. I couldn’t see it clearly on RB.com, but now that I have it up close, it’s a little ugh-y (not necessarily in a bad way).

 

 

 

 

 

And this is the back of the book. I know you can’t see the words clearly, so here it is:

“Mary expected her seventeenth birthday to be a blowout to remember, courtesy of her best friends, fellow New York City prepsters Amy and Joon, and her doting boyfriend, Trick.

Instead, the day starts badly and gets worse. After waking up in a mortifying place with a massive, unexplainable hangover, Mary soon discovers that nobody at school is even aware that it’s her birthday. As evening approaches, paranoia sets in. Mary just can’t shake the feeling that someone is out to get her—and, as it turns out, she’s right. Before the night is over, she’s been killed in cold blood.

But murder is only the beginning of Mary’s ordeal. Her soul gets trapped in a strange limbo, and she must relive the day of her death through the eyes of seven people—each of whom, she finds, had plenty of reasons to hate her. As Mary explores the mysteries of her world, discovering secrets that were hidden in plain sight while she was alive, she clings desperately to the hope that she can solve her own murder, change the past, and—just maybe—save her own life.

With its blend of suspense, horror, fantasy, and realism, 7 Souls is an adrenaline rush of a thriller.”

It’s weird because I didn’t enter in the contest because I liked the book and whatnot, but because I just wanted to give myself a chance of winning. But now that I’ve read the summary about five times (too unsure whether I should start reading it or not) I’m a little intrigued. It’s been a while since I’ve liked this kind of dark stuff, so can’t wait!

RAWR.-Julie

Nice sunny day, isn’t it? Why yes, I quite enjoy the sparkle of my skin.

Current obsession: Cayla Kluver’s Legacy. It’s amazing she’s seventeen (16 when she wrote the book) and I like the plot very much. :) (LOVE TRIANGLES FTW!)
Prologue for Legacy’s sequel, Allegiance. And after that would be Redemption, but that’s a long time later. Which brings me to Eldunari, which is the supposed title for the last book in the Inheritance series! I guess I can add that to my wishlist, along with Allegiance when it comes out. :D

(I’ve noticed I’m not as hyper as usual nowadays. You know, excessive usage of emotes, parentheses, and caps lock. I think someone stole my jazz. D:< aka my GRRR face. Guesses are welcome. ‘Cause my blog would very much like comments. They warm my heart. :) At least, as warm as it can get, because we all know that my heart doesn’t warm easily.)

Anyways, onto the real topic, VAMPIRES! YAY.

So, today I went to see Eclipse. I felt a little weird admitting it to people, because you say, “Oh, I’m going to see Eclipse today” or “Oh, I wanna go see Eclipse sometime” and it just makes people go LOL. (At least, on FB chat. But who knows what their real reaction is? Something like a sarcastic “uh huh” with an eyebrow raise.) Plus when you say Twilight Saga, everybody thinks the whole cheesy vampire chick-flick that started the whole vampire-and-other-related-mystical-creatures-and-kingdoms-and-whatnot trend (or fad). And the sparkly skin under the sun. Because if you do think about it, sure, reading the Twilight Saga does (for most girls) induce some sort of giddy fangirl-ness. It doesn’t for me, but I don’t hate it. But when you really think about it, and you really listen to what those with opinionated minds say, the Saga is just basically an inner fantasy of a very lucky author and excessive usage of big words. But otherwise, Bella is hard to relate to, or maybe not relate-able at all. (Oh dear. Here I can go on about how unfair it is that somehow all the heroines in books are pretty. Now what happened to the fairytale ending for the ordinary and very plain-looking girl?) But, (finally onto my real point here) I saw Eclipse today (redundant, much?) and it still made me smile (really wide so you can see all my braces) regardless of everything. Because I just happen to LURVE love triangles. Sigh.

And, speaking of how Twilight is an inner fantasy, it’s “an inner fantasy of a very lucky author and excessive usage of big words”, quoting my earlier words, completely incomparable to Sunshine. It was reallyreallyreally good. :) Although, I don’t think I did it much justice, because there was too much “world-building” going on (and in my mind I kept wondering, DO THEY REALLY?) that I was a little impatient for the end. I doubt you would have any self-control to not read the spoilers, but this wonderful review sums up everything nicely. I’m prolly slacking, but I couldn’t have said it any better, not to mention I didn’t even view the book as deeply as the reviewer did. Anyways, I loved it.

I found this too, and it seems a little interesting. Although Robin McKinley should tell us what the recipes are.

Lastly, you likey my new theme? + Here.

 

-Julie

Emergency Post

I’m freaking about. Seriously.

silverado writes: In regard to the recent anti-piracy activities in the film, music and manga industry I've decided to write this post as a warning to all website owners who are currently hosting scanlations or fansubs to think twice about a take down request!

The publishers made their move and it's now up the community and admins to make ours. Despite many rumors and confusion there is one thing we can tell for sure: Going to court is the worst of all possible scenarios!

If the scanlation community wants to survive and maintain the freedom they are enjoying now, it is of utmost importance that all US online manga viewing sites comply with the publisher's take down requests. Because it takes only one loss in court to create a leading case to make scanlations officially and forever illegal. For the first time in history is the creation and hosting of scanlations threatened. Do you remember Morpheus P2P or Kazaa? Winny or ShareEX2? File sharing was tolerated until it grew too big to be neglected by the industry. This is the same. If this case gets through, there will be no gray-zone, no tolerance, no tolerated hosting anymore! A loss in court will result in a wide spread trickle-down effect on all US webhosting providers. Scanlations will be seen as cancer that has to be cut out and pursued. Hosting scanlations, even unlicensed material will be classified as illegal software. Webhosting accounts will be banned, IPs might be given out to find the uploader. This is all a real threat and it pains me to say that this is legally possible and a very probable scenario. So if you all want to continue reading scanlations from your favorite group, stop whining about it and start supporting your admin's decision to take down licensed series! We all are carrying the moral responsibility to set the legal environment for future scanlations! So support your admins decisions to take down manga! As for the admins, think twice before you don't comply to a take down notice. The best solution for the scanlation community and the corporation is to cooperate exist next to each other. Don't force them to use legal weapons of mass destruction. It's a lose-lose situation for all of us.

"He who knows when he can fight and when he cannot, will be victorious." - Sun Tzu

silverado

I’ve gotten the warning message on OneManga, and today, when I finally came back to MU to check up on my updates and read La Corda D’Oro, it was gone. Licensed. This whole thing, honestly, is scary. I haven’t been in the community long enough to know what reading manga “underground” means or how to use an IRC site, but the whole thing’s just sad. If this goes to court, of course the publishers will win. I personally think that the publishers really have no right to bring this to court, because those who bought the raws bought the copyright, and all editting and translating and whatnot are from the actual scanlating groups themselves. The scanlating groups are like non-profit groups, and while the publishers are 100% legal and do for profit, I don’t see how scanlating is could become illegal if brought into court. Obviously, I don’t know publishers on which side—the home country or publishers like Viz? And if it were the publishers of the home country, then I have no idea what kind of rights they hold in this. But it could be both, so…

I agree with the idea that you reap what you sow.

Scanlations just became TOO visible through all those online readers. They're reaping what they sew.
If scanlations are just made IRC only, no one'll notice they'll still be around; and the people that have half a brain will still get to read their manga.

We’re getting used to the luxury of having (almost) all our manga in one place. I’m getting used to it. It’s a luxury that we all enjoy. And I think that if we had at least tried to sacrifice this, to not be too lazy, then we’d probably not be having this issue right now.

On a little brighter side (I mean, this is issue is the absolute LEAST of my worries) I don’t think MU has anything to do with it. MU only provides an online database on all published manga (how is this illegal? in fact, I think this is reallyreally smart) and allows manga readers to keep track of their manga. Though the latter does work hand-in-hand with scanlating groups, MU is really not muddling in any murky legal waters.

But perhaps I’m just being naive. I don’t know much of this legal stuff, besides what I gather from common sense (that some don’t even have—this can lead to a very long, and different topic I can go on forever about: how I absolutely hate how all people in this world think about is money, money, money. Greedy bastards.)

Sometimes I know that things are going to turn out okay. Because they always do for me (at least, between my mom and me). But I have to remind myself that this is the real world, where people are really greedy and care nothing about the general happiness of the public, where people work to get a salary and not because they like their job, where as long as people have good lawyers and take this case to court (especially against such an unofficial and unorganized community), they’ll win the case. Because in this world, as long as people have money, they’ll do anything to get more money (and also because they just can). They’ll lose all their morals, if that’s what it takes.

Anyways, I’m ranting now, and being a little harsh. Obviously, there are going to be exceptions in all my cases. But there are so many horribly, caustic people that I can’t help but overlook these mere exceptions.

I’m leaving you something to think about, at least, whether you agree or not.

-Julie.

Stairway to Heaven

Stairway to Heaven is a Korean drama I remember watching with my grandma back when I was in fourth grade. I’d been really curious about it for a long time (because I remembered the basic plot details, including the end, and it was such a tear jerker) but I didn’t know the name. I googled it for a while, gave up, and googled “Good Korean Dramas”. And finally, after reading some of the answers, I found it!

Stairway to Heaven

It’s absolutely sad. Wikipedia completely spoils the whole plotline, but the Korean names are confusing and even if you do know what’s going to happen, it’s nothing compared to the actual thing when you watch it. I’m planning to rewatch it, but it was so absolutely sad that I don’t really want to. :(

 

Anyways, just something I really wanted to say.
My book reviews are coming soon—I finally got Shadowed Summers!
 
Yeah, I hate the cover. But more in the review. :)

BOOK HAVEN. :D

Lala-land for books. Yush.
Introducing, Random Buzzers! + link :) Click, and trust me, you will love it.
So, onto that, I have won the ARC for Shadowed Summers. WHEEE. Once I read it, I’ll review it, I guess. :) Hold me to that.

And, a banner!

  with the original:

ANDDDD…
It’s for Firelight by Sophie Jordan! (which I found out on Random Buzzers)

A CONTEST!!!

ANOTHER UNOFFICIAL POST! :)

This post, I'd say, is actually meaningful, for once. Today, you, along with me, will explore embedding mp3 players into a blog post. Yay! It is a simple matter of HTML codes, which I copied off the Web. The only codes I write involve Logo, which is no use unless you want to draw pretty shapes and tessellations with the Turtle. :) (I do know some simple HTML, but that's about it.) So please, don't feign innocence and ask why not. Besides, you'd be rubbing it in, since mom's not letting me go to UC this summer, and if she did, I would've been able to learn Javascript! ARGH.

Anyways, what we're also doing this time is playing a guessing game! WHEE. I've been training my ear to be sharper, unconsciously or consciously, and I like to pick out the little tiny sections of a song and separate them. Like a melody always has a harmony, a pop song has a lot going on in the background, except you just don't notice because everyone listens to the melody. I've gone ahead and picked out sections of songs I like (mostly because the electric guitar sounds so KEWL).

First link

Sadly this allows a download, but I couldn't find any other good ones that worked. -sigh.
I don't think you would've preferred it to this:



which has no volume controls and has branding. GAH. Not that you could do much with a download of a 23 second section of a song, so we go rolling along!
Also, if you are true, loyal fan, then you should know #1.

Second link

This one's a bit harder, but... If you'd been to Yahoo! recently you should prolly know. :D

Third link
Fourth link

These two are the hardest. But man, they are really cool. :)

Lastly, two more:

Fifth link part 1
Fifth link part 2

All from the same song. Not very well known, but if you go for something Disney-related, you just might be able to get it.

If I get some comments, I can start working on another Guessing Game, and maybe, just maybe, I'll include answers from this game.
How 'bout that, yush?

^______^

FUMES. >:P (another unofficial post)

I can’t do a “grrr” emote, so sad.

Happy Independence Day, people!

Anyways, to the point—I was wondering what was going on with Kiniro no Corda, since the latest chapter came out about 12.7 weeks ago (about 2 months) and it was from the February issue of LaLa! BLASPHEMY! >:U And so I went to check out Kaito Zero, the scanlating group, and no notices from them. SLOWPOKES. And then I check out their translator’s blog page, and chapter 64’s already been translated, since MARCH. Even more reason to be frustrated, I’d say. Then I go on Mangafox, and guess what? It’s been LICENSED! Great! I’m sure it’s bad business for Viz, but it publishes sooooo slooooooow. Besides, people do end up buying really yummy mangas like La Corda. I just don’t because my mom is a Hater. D:

Soooo, luckily, the forum’s still up, and I check out the spoiler scans for chapter 67. (OMGNESS) Screw my Chinese, and screw traditional. (Since getting my mom to read it for me is NOT an option.) But I did manage to get the overall meaning of the chapter and it just really makes me want more. NAO. Sometimes I tell myself I’ll come back in a year, and then most of my serials would be completed by then. But then I quickly tell myself that, like TDA, I’d lose an insight as to what’s going on, and miss out on a lot of new series. So no.

But maybe 3 months. :)

BORED. :O

Mkay, so read some good books today. :) I’m adding the “Recently Read Books” widget. Graceling by Kristin Cashore. Yush. :D I’ve been reading so much fantasy recently, and I’ve simply no patience for the classics that I promised myself I’d read (or reread, in some cases). But I guess fantasy is just so much easier to immerse myself into and allow myself to be swept into. Besides, the books in YouMedia are so neeew and some of them look realllly cool (I’m sorry I judge books by their cover, but it’s a habit I can’t overcome).

And Live Writer is so kewl. Yesterday was the 27th and the previous post was posted the 20th (which was when I drafted it). >:D Today’s the 28th, but I think this should go as the 25th, haha.

I was so bored recently that I decided to learn (or more accurately, sight-read) some more pop songs. Well, in this case, I was going for more Yiruma-like songs (and prolly other Asian songs, because they sound pretty and have really nice cadences, like Gackt). I found some good ones, so for now, I’ve got something new to work on. I have to admit, I do feel a bit bad. I already have a couple songs that are currently in progress (like La Campanella and Un Sospiro by Liszt [La Campanella is not by Paganini, idiots! Paganini composes for violin, not pianists! IT WAS A COLLABORATION!], Yiruma’s Kiss the Rain, Chopin’s Ballade No. 1, and Pachelbel’s Canon arranged for piano solo…)

Lastly, I forgot to say that I cut my hair. :D So once I take a good picture I’ll post it, along with my other pair of purple glasses that no one’s yet seen/recognized. (For some reason I’m really sensitive to when a person gets new glasses. People look totally different, and that’s why you really have to choose glasses that look good on you. The way they frame your face prolly makes a subtle difference, but its enough to make you look different.)

>(^___^)>

I’m Not Poor -_-''

(BTW, I changed my theme again. Best seen with full screen. +mah old theme Thank goshness I didn’t reload my theme for Writer. –phew.)
 
As the title suggests, I feel bad because I asked for financial aid for camp. I don’t think I should really make it such a big deal, because my dad is in Maryland and things are a little tough right now. But my dignity, I guess, is just too big for me to swallow ATM. –sigh. What I’m trying to say is that sometimes when people somehow find out that you are in need of financial assistance or that you applied for aid, there’s that goddammmmm (< hehe) pity. And/or the look in their eyes that says, “I’m sorry. I should help you/give you special attention because you are needier than me.” And/or they patronize you because you are needier than them, so they think they can bully you (indirectly or directly, through small or big ways—this is a touchy subject, but I do feel that in some ways or another I have been bullied/patronized [usually because of race—I mean face it, there is still a lot of racism]). ANYWAYS, my point being that I’m a little uncomfortable about the fact that I asked for financial aid. (Then again, I don’t think I would’ve been able to escape stupid FRESHMAN CONNECTION if I hadn’t.)

Anyway, onto lighter subjects. I was watching TNT the other day, and the Rescue Me commercial came on with Alicia Keys singing her “Concrete jungle where dreams are made of/ there’s nothing you can’t do/ now you’re in New York/ these streets will make you feel brand new/ the lights will inspire you” part from Empire State of Mind and I decided that I was gonna try to look for a version with her just solo. I mean, seriously, I just don’t sing rap. (I love the when her voice gets a little scratchy on the higher notes.)
And another thing about Empire State of Mind—a ton of people on Youtube were like, “Hey, high-five if you’re from New York! :)” I mean, I’m sure in the suburbs and the rural areas, NY has very pretty lights. I mean, the chorus (and pretty much every other lyric in her solo version) suggest that it’s New York CITY. Don’t be so conceited guys, I understand, we all want to live in places like NYC and Chicago, yes? :D Yes, I’m being a bit mean about this, but whatever. Just playing. (Don’t get me wrong [like last time].) 

On the topic of music, I realized that I love going through my iTunes library with my mom. I remember going through my JRock songs (by アリス九號。—it was really fun asking VoiceOver to say it. HAHA. XD ) and she asked me, “What kind of music are you listening to?” Then we listened to David Archuleta sing Crush + Touch My Hand + A Little Too Not Over You and I get, “Who is this? Why’s his voice so quiet?” I cracked up. :)

Lastly, I’m working on CHAPTER 1 (if you don’t remember, you can read it via Google Docs, and please, no copy/pasting to others) as Sheila spontaneously emailed me this week to tell me to finish. I suddenly now have a couple other ideas floating through my head (they are going to evaporate soon) and it’s so funny the times creativity decides to tap me on the forehead. Because I’m obviously not that hot and lazy to write them down.

Gonna blog sometime later.

Listening to: my iTunes library (or more specifically, my “awesome songs” playlist :) )


--fades out.

Oolala.

I gots a new theme! ^_____^

I prolly might change it once in a while, because there are lots of cool combos and I wanna see them all. But maybe this one will grow on me (or maybe my old one has grown on me) so who knows?

Random post, so here’s a pic of me during/after graduation:

  

And another random pic:

Keep rocking, peeps!
And also, please, NO STEALING THIS PIC.
I swear, I can give a very long lecture about how immoral it is to rip others’ graphics, (seriously) coming from an amateur graphics maker.

JUNE!!!

June, I think, marks a very thin line between an end and a beginning. (Or rather, a beginning and an end.) It marks the beginning of a serious personal change (for the better or worse... ATM it seems for the worse D:  like losing rather important things and not knowing when tests are-- the tides had better turn!!! * _ *) and also the end of actual SCHOOL.
You know what? I honestly have no idea what I"m talking about, as to how a beginning and end relates to what's been going on in my life right now. But let's just check out mah schedule:

2nd: must fill out counselor form for FYI, print/email physical exam scan and scholarship form to Dawn Mikels, and send out all other forms to Purdue (including Getting to Know You). go talk to Dr. Kenner about interview. make sure times are set for recitals. ortho @ 3.30

3rd: finish writing paragraph about Dr. Kenner. collect class trip money. redo ss packet. Beethoven's Sonata for Piano, op. 13 no.8 - Grave MUST BE MEMORIZED COMPLETELY. ask about mandarin textbooks. HAPPY BDAY TO YUYU. 8D

4th: give revised essay to Swanson. finish log!!! finish majority of Chinese HW. finish reading omnivore's dilemma and finish the questions up to chapter 16. finish family food survey and analysis, organize pictures. pick up glasses!!!

5th: ABRSM recital (HOLY CRAP I HAVEN'T PRACTICED MUCH). 12.55 @ track meet. an hour piano lessons @ 3? STUDYSTUDYSTUDY. finish up all bio projects. finish up all chinese hw. shoe/dress shopping.

6th: PRACTICEPRACTICEPRACTICE. recital in deerfield @ 2. STUDYSTUDYSTUDY. finish up all bio projects. finish up all chinese hw. shoe/dress shopping

7th-9th: STUDY!!! pay off textbook debts and get cap and gown. unwrinkle them. shoe/dress shopping.

10th: would be pure awesomeness if people came over to my house for sleepover, got ready, and headed over to John Hancock. :D LUNCHEON!

13th: practice speech. get dress ready for graduation.

14th: rehearsal @ 7. (for food >:D  )

15th: graduation before 12.

18th: MAH BIRTHDAYDAYDAYDAYDAY!!!

(And this schedule is going to be something I'm gonna stick with for the rest of the month. O_o)
We should totally have a party!!! *  v  * (to celebrate both graduation and my bday. did you know my golden birthday is also when I turn legal???)

I would say that I'm going to do Pt3 soon, but that's so overrated now. And some of my series have been updated two to three times since I last posted Pt1 and 2, so I think I am going to just restart, starting finals week. :) Hold me to that.

K THNX BAI. :)

Geek Chic

As you may know, I lost my glasses on Monday (I mean, WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MINDS STEAL GLASSES???) and so I had to get new ones. I saw some “geek chic” ones and was about to get them, but I didn’t know when they would soon be “out” and what would be “in” (again—fashion repeats itself) next.

So I decided to PS myself with them since I would not be able to wear geek chic glasses. I decided to do some crazy stuff with it. (I might have gone a little overboard with the filters and some parts I was too lazy to look over and erase—the effects on the face are distracting.) It turned out nicely, and didn’t really take as much time (an hour—it takes about 4-5 times longer usually).

the original    v                                    where i got the glasses    v

 

I ended up getting two of the same glasses (except the colors are different). I can’t wait to get them!

Pt3 is also coming soon!

~nya.

Windows Live Writer

Ok, ok. I’m getting there.
I’m going to post Pt3 sometime soon, I PROMISE! (more like, I’m promising myself that I will promise to post it.)

Anyways, I just wanted to post this since I had just linked this blog to my, ahem, “Windows Live Writer”, which came with mah aweshome Windows 7. Now I can blog offline! The joys. And it has automatic spell check too! HOOOOLY CRAAAAP.

And lastly, I just wanted to post this vid:

I had to download and edit/cut some parts for my decades project (2000s, btw). It’s pretty interesting, but a little confusing for those who don’t really know how it works. I barely understand it, so I hope that when I present tomorrow, no one’s going to grill me with hard questions.

Osh. (AND THIS IS MINE, STEALERS!)

Whistling

MUST READ
OHSHC fanfic, but is so well written that you don't have to know zip about the manga serial. It's M-rated, but just for violence/bad language. I forgot what else was in it; it's been so long since I read it. Brace yourself, and don't come accusing me of whatever insults you come up with. I SOOOO wanna write something just as good for NaNoWriMo. *Dreams*

Ok, I've neglected this for a while again, sadly.
I planned to post Pt3 a long time ago, but I haven't been bored recently. Coffee Prince, Avatar, fanfics... They've all been keeping me busy.

And so after hanging around LJ many times, I decided to make an account. I'm hopeless, I know. But I guess it'll just be an outlet for fanfic ideas that I don't really deem ready to publish on FF.net yet.
But it'll just be like another blog, and so therefore prolly completely pointless. WHATEVER.

HERE.
For future reference, I guess. Check back in a month, and I'll prolly have everything set.

And just BTW, I have two piano recitals, one for ABRSM (stupid mom for advertising that I passed Grade8) and one as a preparation for my competition near the end of June, on the 5th and 6th, respectively. (Whew. Long sentence--is it a run-on?) Feeling pretty stressed.

Listening to: United State of Pop '09

I should prolly be working on homework. Sigh.

I'm going shoe shopping/dress shopping tomorrow. I haven't got anything done, and mom's gonna be pissed. And I'm gonna end up deep in shite.

ORGY, Pt2

Main Entry: or·gy

Pronunciation: \ˈȯr-jē\
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural orgies
Etymology: Middle French orgie, from Latin orgia, plural, from Greek; akin to Greek ergon work — more at work
Date: circa 1561

1 : secret ceremonial rites held in honor of an ancient Greek or Roman deity and usually characterized by ecstatic singing and dancing

2 a : drunken revelry b : a sexual encounter involving many people; also : an excessive sexual indulgence

And #3 would be the correct definition for how I am using it in context. :P But #2b is just... LOL. Sorry, inside joke. XD
Moving on...

0 VAMPIRE KNIGHT:
If I had done Pt1 today, then this would've been first. But since it just got updated today, this will have to go in Pt2. :) Anyways, OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG. [spoiler] WHO'S THE NEW PUREBLOOD? AND WHY IS HE SO CONCEITED AND KIDDISH? [/spoiler] Next issue should be around April 24th, according to the scanlator!!! Going into the details, I LURVE the love triangle because both guys are so... Well, almost everyone is friggen emo in here, and all vampire-y (like Doty :D ). Except Zero is just dark and introverted--he inflicts pain upon himself because he cares about others. And Kaname is sophisticated and super mysterious. He has an evil past, which scares me a bit. Lots of development so far, so I will prolly camp out at SGK until they release it. Osh. :DDDDD

6 Shugo Chara Encore!:
ALALALALALALA. (I think this might sound like Tarzan, but it's just my fangirl-scream version.) Next chap will be April... *checks calendar*... April 16th!  The world is a cruel, cruel place for manga fangirls--what are they gonna do during Panic Week? ('Tis my new name for that time of month where NOTHING's coming out, since it's approx. a week, though it seems longer.) SCE on the 16th, then VK on the 24th. There will most likely be OHSHC in b/w, of course, and other serials. Anyways, I love how Peach-Pit's actually making an encore b/c w/o it, we would die! We won't let go of Amuto! NEVER! Kutau's really cool, never really thought it'd actually work out. Sooooo, seeing how the prequel to it was just action, I am expecting a lot more from Encore. Seriously, or else I would've resorted to writing fanfics, and by now we've already learned that me + fanfics= not a very good idea.

7 Hana no Kishi:
So this one's an interesting one. Only one chap out so far, about a month ago. I'm thinking chap2 might come out soon, but who knows? It's being serialized in Hana to Yume/Hakusensha so that's not a problem... The first couple chaps of a new serial is always critical b/c you never know if the mangaka is going to start a new series/continue an old one (like Akagami no Shirayukihime-- come on, mangaka! How could you?!) or if the scanlating group is going to give up on it. It's a little weird right now, but I can almost see where this is going... :3

8 Nabari no Ou:
Despite the whole schnazz about it being similar to Naruto and whatnot, I like it because it's a lot more relatable and has more slice-of-life. Now, I'm not a fan of slice-of-life, but NnO isn't one--it just is more rooted to earth than Naruto, Katekyo Hitman Reborn!, Fairytale, blahblahblah. I tried Prince of Tennis, but I hated the art and the seinen/josei-ness. Anyways, let's not start talking about shounen. Even though there are 65 chaps out already, I'm only on chap22, which is pathetic; I know. If it's not obvious, I'm not a big fan of shounen, so I guess NnO doesn't pull me in as much. There isn't much action going on other than Raimei and Raiko's battle, but her brother just took her sword away. Bummer. Not to mention, I can't even remember all the terms anymore, with shinrabanshou, ninjutsu, lalala.

9 Kaichou wa Maid-sama!:
Ohkay... I don't really know what to say for this one. I'm divided, since part of me is confused as to where it's going. Usui seems a bit sketchy to me, and Maria-sensei as well. She creeps me out... does she lean, erm, both ways??? (She seemed like she wasn't just, I dunno, lesbo.) And what's with the other Miyazono, the one that's a rich jerkface? I can't stand him! I hate scenes with him in it. And then part of me is just fangirlness, except maybe Misaki is a bit too tsundere??? Hopefully it'll update soon. I hate being left on a cliff with the Miyazono jerkface gracing the last box while the mangaka draws the next chap. *shudders*

Fangirl-ness Pt1

I should be studying for the chap11 geo test, but... let's just say studying was never my thing. ;P
Here I will be blabbing about my ongoing series. (in order by most recent updates)

1 Houou Gakuen Misoragumi:
Only 7 chappies out so far, but even so, very cool. :D I like this because this isn't so shoujo-y. No cliche we-bumped-into-each-other scenes, no stupid and weird blushing, no frantic and dramatic lovey-dovey thoughts. Shoujo is nice, but I might actually like this better. The only complaint for this is that this involves heterophobia, and this isn't doing much to the plot because it still lacks depth. I'll guess we'll wait and see... Of course, this is categorized as LGBT Character in a Non-Yaoi/Yuri Manga. I would never be caught dead reading yaoi/yuri, but I'm SURE the main character is going to convert in a ten or so chaps. >:DDDD By then I would've prepared myself enough for the incoming shoujo-ness. Masochists, sadists... UFUFUFUFU. * v *

2 Fly High:
Erm... Definitely not one of my favorites. Readable, bearable, but I can't really say I like it. This one lacks depth as well. The main character is totally happy-go-lucky and just goes on blabbing about how she's going to make 7th grade the happiest year for the students blahblahblah. Not to mention, how is it friggen possible for a bunch of 8th graders to rebel like that? Agh. *shudders* And of course, very predictable. She's gonna fall for the bad boy. DOI. The only thing keeping me reading is the love triangle. XD

3 Barajou no Kiss:
One of my new favorites. Love polygons, now that's new. :O And bishies. YAYAYAY. Bishies only exist through good art, so this is a must. Definitely needs more depth, and currently hoping the mangaka will recover from her broken ankle soon! Must read about the new development of orange and lime roses! MUSTMUSTMUST! OLALALALALA.

4 Suki-tte Ii na yo:
If you don't like smut, don't read this one. This isn't what the rating says it is, but it definitely is a step above your usual shoujo, and maybe even josei ('cause afterall, the only difference b/w josei and shoujo is swear words). The art style is a bit like Five, but it's MUCHMUCH better, and the characters are actually skinny, unlike most smuts. It has some depth, but I'm hoping for some more character development. Not much atm; gonna keep reading before I decided whether I like it or not.

5 Watashi ni XX Shinasai:
There were some character developements... Art is nice, love triangle developed, but... Eh, I don't know. It interests me, but the MC is such a n00b at this--its weird seeing her blush and wonder why her "chest hurts". Jeolousy. DOI. A couple chapters have come out now, but Nagareboshi is a bit slow, so...

Omegle

Oi.
So I don't go on omegle, but my weird addicted friends on crack (jkjk XD ) do, and I just found this convo hilarious. (Though it kinda gets old after a while.) Beware, 'tis really long, and when you get to the end, you feel like you wasted ten minutes reading it for nothing.

Stranger: HI
You: heeeeeeeeey
You: OMG I LOVE CAPS LOCK
Stranger: OMG ME TOO!
Stranger: ARE YOU MAGGIE?
You: OF COURSE
Stranger: YES?
You: YES
Stranger: AAAH!
You: IKR THIS IS SO CRAZY
Stranger: PROVE YOURSELF.
Stranger: HOW DO YOU KNOW ME? O:
You: MY PATRONUS IS A OTTER
You: MY MOTHER WAS A HAMSTER
You: AND MY FATHER SMELLED OF ELDERBERRY
Stranger: OMFG WILL YOU MARRY ME
You: HM LEMME THINK
You: YES!!!!!!!!!!!!
Stranger: WHO IS THE BRIDE?
You: YOU'RE MY WIFE
You: Y
Stranger: Y?
You: NO
You: UR FACE
You: IDK
Stranger: OH
You: HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO U
Stranger: MY FACE IS HAWT
You: THATS NICE
Stranger: THANK YOU!!!!!
You: SO IZ MINE
You: DO YUO LIKE GRAPE JELLY?
Stranger: YAY WE CAN BE THE HAWT FACES COUPLE
You: YEAH!
You: WE ROCK!
Stranger: YES I LOVE GRAPES. I ALSO LOVE APPLES
You: BUT DO U LIKE CANTELOPE?
Stranger: CANTALOPE IS AWESOME
You: I LIKE ANTELOPES
You: OMG LETS ELOPE
Stranger: I LIKE ZEBRAS
You: ME TOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!
Stranger: ESPECIALLY WHEN THEYRE PINK
You: I LIKE PURPLE ELEPHANTS
You: OMMFG WE HAV SO MUCH IN COMMON
Stranger: I ALSO LIKE IT WHEN MY FROGS ARE GOLDEN
You: OMG COMMON IS A PALINDROME
Stranger: YES WERE THE PERFECT COUPLE!
You: IKR!
Stranger: WHAT IS A PALINDROME AGAIN? XD
You: YEAH I JUST REALIZED THAT COMMON IS NOT A PALINDROME
Stranger: IT'S NOT BECAUSE IT WOULD BE NOMMOC
You: BUT A PALINDROME IS A WORD THAT IS THE SAME FRONTWARDS AND BACKEWADS
Stranger: AND THATS A WEIRD WORD
You: YEAH U ROCK
You: IT TOTALLY IZ
Stranger: YOU ROCK TOO
You: AWW THATS SO SWEET
You: SO DO U
Stranger: I LIKE CHOCOLATE DO YOU LIKE IT?
You: OMFG I LUV IT
You: BUT NOT AS MUCH AS I LUV U
Stranger: AWWWWWWWWWWW :3
Stranger: THAT WAS SWEET BUT I LOVE YOU MORE
Stranger: MY PATRONUS IS IN THE SHAPE OF YOUR HAWT FACE
You: OMG I THNK MINE MIGHT B CHANGING
You: FROM AN OTTER
You: WOW UR RLLY HOT EVEN AS AN OTTER
Stranger: YOU ARE TOO YOURE SO PRETTYFUL
Stranger: WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE RING?
You: I THINK IT SHUD HAV A PIC OF UR FACE ON IT
You: AND URS CAN HAV ONE OF MINE ON IT
Stranger: THAT'D BE AWESOME
You: AND WE CAN WEAR THEM FOREVER
Stranger: AND EVER
You: AND EVER
Stranger: AND EEEVEEEEEEER
You: YEAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!
Stranger: YOU'RE MY SOULMATE (:Y
You: RT MN/
You: YEAH THAT WAZ AN ACCIDENT
Stranger: OH
You: HOW MANY CHILDREN SHUD WE HAV
Stranger: I THINK 26
You: OOOOH THATS A NICE NUMBER
You: ALMOST AS NICE AS UR FACE
Stranger: YES IT'S NICE AND ROUND (: LET'S HAVE 26
You: SO ITS SETTLED
Stranger: WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR DINNER?
You: SUSHI
You: AND LOTS OF CHOCOLATE
You: LOTS AND LOTS
Stranger: * CHOPS FISH AND RICE AND SPRINKLES WITH CHOCOLATE *
You: YEAH!
Stranger: WITH A COVER OF CHOCOLATE
Stranger: IT'S GOTTA BE DELICIOUS
You: YEAH AND WELL BECOME WORLD FAMOUS CHEFS TOGETHER!@
Stranger: WERE GONNA BE FAMOUS, WE'LL ROCK THE WORLDS SOCKS
You: AND WELL B ROCK STARS TOO!
You: AND ALL OUR 26 CHILDRN WILL B OUR GROUPIES!
Stranger: I WANT TO DO THE GUITAR PLAYING BECAUSE I CAN'T SING
Stranger: BUT I DON'T WANT TO HAVE SEX WITH THEM BECAUSE THAT WOULD BE WEIRD
You: AND WELL BE THE AWESOMEST FAMILY ROCK BAND THE WORLD HAS EVER SEEN Stranger: THEY CAN STALK ME
You: O YEAH THAT WUD B WEIRD
Stranger: BUT THEY CAN STALK US RIGHT?
You: YEAH JUST FOR PUBLICITY
Stranger: COOL
You: YES HONEY, THEY CAN STALK US
Stranger: PEREZ HILTON WILL BE JEALOUS OF US
You: IKR
You: WE SO ROCK
You: AND WERE NOT EVEN MARRIED YET!!!
You: SO WHEN DO U WANNA HAV THE CEREMONY?
You: THIS WEEKEND?
Stranger: BUT AT LEAST WE KNOW HOW MANY KIDS WE WANT
Stranger: YES
Stranger: THAT'D BE PERFECT
You: KK
You: DO U HAV A NICE SPOT?
Stranger: I WANT PINK ZEBRAS TO BRING THE RINGS
Stranger: LET'S MARRY IN A TREE
You: OMFG THAT WUD B AWESOME!!!!!!
You: YESSS!
You: U R TOTALLY MY SOUL MATE!
Stranger: IKR ;]
Stranger: AND GOLDEN FROGS, THEY SHOULD BE THE HOSTS
You: YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You: U NO WAT
You: WE HAFTA HAV CHOCOLATE FONDUE
Stranger: TELL ME BBZ
Stranger: YES!!
Stranger: THE HUGEST FOUNTAIN EVER!!
You: YEAH!
You: WE CAN BABTIZE OUR BABIES IN IT!!!
You: (WHEN THEY COME)
Stranger: YES THAT WOULD BE AWESOME THEY'D TASTE SO SWEET
You: YEAH!
You: AND WELL LOVE THEM ALL EQUALLY
You: AND WE WILL LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER
You: THE END
You: :)
You: IT WILL B SO HAPPY
Stranger: WE'LL GET THEM SOME PINK ZEBRAS TO RIDE ON (:
You: AW SCREW IT LETS GET MARRIED TMRW
You: YEAH!
Stranger: YESS!
You: AND WELL HAV A WHOLE HERD OF PINK ZEBRAS AND WE CAN RIDE OFF INTO THE SUNSET TOGETHER
You: ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY
Stranger: WE'RE THE BEST TEAM/COUPLE/PARENTS/ROCKSTARS/CHEFS IN THE WORLD!!
You: AND WE CAN HAV OUR OWN TV SHOW!
You: REALITY
Stranger: YAY!
You: YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!
You: THAT WILL B AWESOME!!!!!!
Stranger: IKR!!
Stranger: I ALREADY LOOK FORWARD TO RIDING OFF IN THE SUNSET
Stranger: WHERE DO YOU WANT TO GO ON HONEYMOON?
You: O WE SHUD GO TO THIS AWESOME ICE HOTEL IN CANADA
You: I HEAR ITS RLLY NICE
Stranger: YEAH THAT SOUNDS COOL [this is where they kinda got bored]
Stranger: I ALSO WANT TO GO TO THE MOON, JUST TO SEE WHAT IT'S LIKE
You: OMG!!!
Stranger: AND TO STEAL THE FLAG AND PUT IT ON OUR HOUSE
You: YEAH AND PUT OUR FAMILY PHOTO ON THE MOON
You: AND IT WILL B OURS
Stranger: THEY'LL BE SO SURPRISED
You: AND WHEN WE GET OLD WE CAN RETIRE THERE
Stranger: LETS BUILD A HOUSE ON THE MOON
You: YEAH
You: WITH LOTSA PINK ZEBRAS
Stranger: YES OMFG I LOVE PINK ZEBRAS SO MUCH
Stranger: WE COULD ALSO HAVE SOME BLUE GIRAFFES
You: OMFG I LUV THOSE!!!
Stranger: ME TOO!
You: AND WE CAN HAV LIKE A WHOLE REPLICA OF THE AFRICAN SAVANNA ON THE MOON CEPT IT WILL B ALL COLORFULL AND HAPPY
Stranger: WOW THATD BE SO AWESOME
Stranger: YOURE SO INSPIRING HUBBY
You: AND LITTLE FAIRYS CAN COME AND MAKE US TEA
Stranger: YES I LIKE FAIRIES UNLESS THEY PULL MY HAIR
You: WELL THEY WONT DARLING
You: CUZ UR SO HAWT
Stranger: GOOD (:
You: LETS HAV THE CEREMONY IN VEGAS
You: QUICK AND DIRTY
Stranger: ON TOP OF A MCDONALDS
You: UNDER A BEN AND JERRYS
Stranger: YES UNDER A BEN AND JERRYS
You: I LUV ICE CREAM!!
Stranger: THAT'D BE THE BESTEST WEDDING EVER
Stranger: I LOVE BEN&JERRYS
You: ESPECIALLY CHOCOLATE
You: AND STRAWBERRY
Stranger: WE COULD HAVE A BIG BEN&JERRYS PARTY AFTERWARD AND THEN TAKE A WHOLE TRUCK OF IT WITH US ON OUR HONEYMOON
You: YEAH!
You: AND WHEN WE BECOME ROCK STARS WE CAN GET IT FREE EVERY DAY
You: CUZ WE ROCK
You: OHHH
Stranger: EVERY ONE WANTS US TO EAT THEIR BEN&JERRYS
You: SO THEY CAN TAKE PICS OF US THERE AND HANG IT ON THEIR WALL AND B LIKE
You: THEY WERE HERE!
Stranger: AND WE COULD SIGN THEIR BUTS AND THEY'D BE LIKE 'I'LL NEVER WASH IT AGAIN!!'
You: AND WE CAN GO AROUND TO NOT FAMOUS PLACES AND CARVE OUR NAMES IN THE TREES AND B LIKE AWESOME
You: YEAH THAT WUD B WEIRD
You: BUT WHO CARES!
Stranger: YEAH IT'D BE FUN TOO BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO WASH THEIR ASS SOMETIME O:
You: YEAH ADN THEN THEYD COME BACK TO US AND B LIKE SIGN MY BUTT AGAIN!
You: THAT WUD B WEIRD
Stranger: YOU TOOK THE WORDS OUT OF MY.. KEYBOARD!
You: AND AWKWARD
Stranger: BUT FUN
You: YEAH
You: WE R SO
You: MADE FOR EACHOTHER
Stranger: IKR
Stranger: WE SHOULD MAKE A MOVIE ABOUT US
You: YEAH!!!
Stranger: MILLIONAIRS, IN ONE DAY
You: IN ADDITION TO THE REALITY SHOW
Stranger: YEAH
You: YEAH!
Stranger: YEAAAAH!!!!!
Stranger: WE ROCK BBZ
You: YEAH
Stranger: I WUVS YOU HUBBY (:
You: SAME HERE
Your conversational partner has disconnected.

Gong Xi Fa Cai

In my opinion it's not Gong Hay Fat Choy.
Afterall, Cantonese is just a local dialect. (no offense)
For me, it's Gong Xi Fa Cai.
So if any of you happen to be in Beijing or wherever on Chinese New Year, don't say Gong Hay Fat Choy.
Don't.
It's like telling an American "Happy July 4th" in Italian.
Awkward, much?

[Olympic fangirl-ness]
And kinda getting off topic, but APOLO SHOULD'VE GOTTEN GOLD!
-fumes-
Although it was a miracle the two Koreans crashed and took themselves out at the last minute...
BUT HE SHOULD'VE GOTTEN GOLD!
-sobs- This'll prolly be his last Olympics... (TT_TT)
Oh wells. I'll be looking forward to seeing JR Celski then.
[/Olympic fangirl-ness]

When in doubt

When in doubt, write something.
Even if it does happen to be something like:

Sardines take years to expire.

or

My counselor is a poopy-face.

or

A 3 month old swimsuit is no good if it doesn't cover your butt.

or

I can't decide-- tai chi vs. chai tea.

or

I'm just going to stop listing examples now.

And because I'm currently in doubt, I write

Black cats and blueberry muffins are very smexy.

o by the by

o by the by
has anyone seen
little you-i
who stood on a green
hill and threw
his wish at blue

with a swoop and a dart
out flew his wish
(it dived like a fish
but it climbed like a dream)
throbbing like a heart
singing like a flame

blue it took my
far beyond far
and high beyond high
bluer it took your
but bluest it took our
away beyond where

what a wonderful thing
is the end of a string
(murmus little you-i
as the hill becomes nil)
and will somebody tell
me why people let go

E. E. Cummings

UWAAA!!! I'M SORRY!

Sorries... It may seem like I forgot about you guys, but that's not true. (or is it?)
Anyways, many many things to ramble about.

1 The pool is my other home.

2 My swimsuit is currently purple. (Yay, Sheila!) 'Tis very purdy. I like it.

3 Shinshi Doumei Cross aka Gentlemen's Club Alliance (or whatever it was in English). You must read it.

4 I have awesome JPOP CDs at home. They are pwnsome even though they are from a century ago.

5 I am currently writing again. As for fanfics... -HIDES-

6 Claire and I made a pwnsome comic book about biology. (Is there any other awesome word that is synonymous with "pwnsome"?)

7 AND LASTLY, FINALS ARE OVER!!!
Wheeee! Let's celebrate!
I am guessing that my grades will be 93-97, which is sad. (This makes me an overachiever, right?) But there will be a curve. :3
I swear, if our curve is low because some frickin idiot told a bunch frickin idiots about the frickin tests we took I will murder them. (*_*) -DEATHSTARE-

A Cold and Sunny January Sunday

Ok, so Bloland assigned us this weird collage thing, and I'm thinking about collaging the pictures on Photoshop, and doing a bunch of cool effects with it.
But, come on.
It's such a stupid project.
And it's so not worth overachieving for.
So I just decided to print the pictures out and resorted to collaging it in that lame, average, and mediocre way that everyone will do it in.
Go with the majority.
Why not?
I'm about to print it, but my printer doesn't really print anything other than a couple meek green lines.
Then I try my other printer, but it doesn't print at all.
Great.

Which leads me to the fact that I just had to go outside by MAHSELF, walk to FedEx Kinko's by MAHSELF, pay for them to print it by MAHSELF, and walk home by MAHSELF.
-huff-
I'm walking the streets by MAHSELF with no one in sight in the mile radius.
It's fricking Sunday and it's fricking cold.
The entire time I'm thinking, "What the hell is a girl like me doing, walking around on empty streets on this cold and sunny Sunday?"
Then I ask mahself, "How did my mom convince me to do this?"
But despite all this crap, I enjoyed the little walk.
'Tis refreshing! C:

Whoever read the whole post...

You are a loser.
XP

First post of the New Year

Hm...
Nothing much to say right now.
Just wanted to post my first post of the new year!

Yeah.
And also, I'm starting a new fanfic on Gakuen Alice, which I need help from.
Except a certain someone COUGHCOUGH Syd COUGHCOUGH hasn't read it yet/ is ignoring me/ hasn't finished reading it.
I don't know which one it is.
Because -ahem- she's not replying to my emails.
Even though I'm pretty sure she was on Facebook earlier...
-DEATHSTARE-
She's going to make me hunt her down when we get back to school.
She's making things resolve this way.
Tsk, tsk.

So yeah.
Syd, if you're reading this...
WATCH OUT.
Because I'm going to glomp-attack you any moment...

XD