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1/31/2002
Yesterday, I was just so in need of a good time, I dragged my poor sleep deprived and manic ass into DC to see Metropolis, and it was good. The movie is kinda a reworking of the classic movie Metropolis. The mangaka, in the finest Japanese style, took some of the designs and the plots of the silent movie for his manga. Now about 40? 50? years later, it's been made into an anime. The animation was a wonder. The use of CGI for the buildings was stunning, breathtaking, awe inpsiring etcara, etcara, etcara. The character design was very old-school. (Anybody reading this remember Kimba? That's what the designs remind me of.) No long and skinny bishojo and bishounen. The characters were shorter, rounder and had big feet. It's required a slight shift for me to be comfortable with that, because I'm more use to the long and skinny designs. It's not bad, it's just different. Anyway, the animation was incredibly well done. The CGI blended almost flawlessly with the traditional animation. But, I expected nothing less then that from Madhouse. These are the folks who brought us Trigun and Card Captor Sakura. The music is an upbeat mix. The website says Dixieland jazz, and I suppose that fits. The pivotal scene of the movie takes place to Ray Charles "Can't Stop Loving You." Boy, did that give me a giggle. Climax of the movie, and I'm giggling. I really shouldn't have seen this one on 3 hours of sleep. The story itself is about a coup d'etat in a grand and corrupt city. What makes a being sapient? What righs do the poor have? Can/should make create intelligent life only as slaves? Did we have the right to destroy that life? Should one person control the world. Power shifts. People die. Shit happens. The story plays with great and grand themes, and has only about 2 hours to do it in. A difficult task, and I so would not have wanted to be the writer on this one. The story is so crowded, and requires so much set-up that something had to give. So, the audience doesn't get much of a chance to contect with the characters. Tima's cute. Kenchiro a good boy. Oji-san is doing his job. Rock is whacked. Duke Red's power-hungry. That's about all I can say about the main characters. Motiviations are slim for everybody but Rock. Rock worships his adopted father, Duke Red, and wants him to rule the world. If you're interested go see it. Sony did a nice job with it. They subbed it, but someone might want to mention to them that if there's a scene with a lot of white, they might not want to use white subtitles. The skivvy is that Sony has the Cowboy Bebop movie, Knockin on Heaven's Door. Hopefully, they'll treat it as nice as they did Metropolis. Well, Aithine, I didn't say I liked that convention of fannish behavior. I think it sucks. Mods should be allowed to fight back when they're getting abused, but somehow it doesn't work out that way on most lists. 1/30/2002
It's finally happened, the mods admitted that they aren't up to the stress of running Channel L anymore. They'd like to keep it running until MediaWest. Who'd like to lay bets that she's going to be accussed of blackmailing the list into behaving? Moderators are suppose to be above the fray. Moderators are suppose to be able to keep their tempers. Sadly, sometimes things become so vile on lists that moderators lose it and attack back. I will not respond to the troll's lastest slap on Channel L. I will not feed the troll. I will not lower myself to her level. I will not. I will not. I will keep my temper, because I have no desire to start a flame war. 1/29/2002
Don't mind me, my mind is churning out random bits. Mostly dialogue, and I can't spell worth a damn. Parts of something else. "Did I miss the memo that stated I was the assigned target for today? I thought victims were at least given warning so to better practice their escape and evade manuveurs" "Illya hasn't been stealing your mail again. This is all back room. We're spys. We're suppose to hatch plots and backstab." There should have been a battered wooden table and a lone lamp shining onto April's face as she said that. Some gray smoke drifting from an overflowing ashtray wouldn't have been out of line either. "We know that you're going to Polynesia. We also know that you're not taking us." "No pretty island maids for us." A person could almost see the island maids reflected in Mark's eyes. Grass skirts, skimpy tops and exotic flowers and Mark as their pasha. It was painfully apparent that Mark was the descandent of generations of fine British colonial officiers. (oooh, bad spelling...) "Or the equivalent, pretty island youths." From Regency maiden to Mata Hari to sexual vixen, April was certainly running the gamut today. "No imbibing of alcohols made of something besides potatoes or grains." Trust the Russian to focus on that. The vodka at every party must really be getting to him. "It's for an inspection of an UNCLE station. It's work." "Pull the other one, Napoleon. It's a little short." "You really don't know?" "No." "Everyone thinks that Napoleon and I are having an abusive homosexual relationship? Everyone thinks that I let Napoleon beat me when we're out in the field?" "No wonder the secetaries misdo my typing whenever Illya comes back tattered." "That explains so much of your paperwork." pauses Done for now. 1/28/2002
Oh, and I should mention, if any of the trolls involved sends me a message; a piece of hate mail or even a "let me explain my viewpoint" note, then all said forms of communication will go unedited into this blog. It should go without saying, my response will go here to, and I very much doubt it's going to change from "Fuck off and die." You want public debates? Fine, then you don't get to hide your poison pens behind "private" msgs any longer. Don't mind me, I'm just going to be ranting a bit today. Yes, I am ranting about a specific event. No, I'm not naming names. All parties involved could probably id their camps if they were hanging out on this page. Let's start with the fact that moderators are not out to get you. Most moderators only hope that you enjoy being on their list. Beyond that, they probably have no interest in you and they are trying to do their best given the fanatics they're dealing with. I know that this probably comes as a shock to the more paranoid members of the internet, but it's true. Sadly, some people just can't return get that. Because hey, the mod makes unpopular decisions and that often means fannish politics rears it's ugly head. No matter what a moderator says or does, they're wrong and stupid and foolish. Moderators are easy targets to them, especially mods that want everyone to get along and desire a harmonious list. Nothing the mod does is right to them. Since the mod has much too much class to snipe back, the "people" are free to snipe and mutter about how wrong, wrong, wrong the mod is on-list. Empathy is lost on these people, if they ever had it at all. Lastly, I am a bitch. I lurk on most lists, because I often hold unpopular ideas. I no longer have the desire to defend those ideas from all comers. I can do it, and have done it with venom and verve in the past. But, I long ago burnt that desire out of myself. It's not worth my energy. What I am not is a troll. I don't attack people. I don't beat up people under the guise of free discussion. I don't play pile on the moderator. If I'm unhappy on a list, I don't torment and badmouth the moderator until she's miserable. Nope, I just acknowledge that that particular list is not the place for me, and I leave. I happen to think that it's a very adult and mature policy. So, I would like to say, something I can't say on the list I'm talking about, and even though all parties involved aren't reading this little shot: Fuck off, and die bitches. If you hate the people in charge of the list so bad, stop spreading your poison and get off of it. Well, Les Pacte des Loups was different. Like "The Devil's Backbone" different... Got to the theater 20 minutes before it started, and almost didn't find seats. What's up with people and subtitles these days? Did "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" finally prove to people that they can read? 1/25/2002
Bored. Bored. Bored. Bored. Bored. Bored. Bored. I'd like to see the Escaflowne movie this weekend, but the closest it's playing to me is NYC. I'd also like to see the Metropolis movie, but I'm poor this weekend and have already promised to see Les Pacte des Loups. sighs Oh well. I'll get to see it the Metropolis movie soon. Maybe next Friday. 1/24/2002
Getting back to my normal obsessions today. (insert fangirl squeals here) I got 'em! I got 'em! I got my Aqua Rose 1 and Aqua Rose! Whhheeeee! There's some lovely stuff in these. AR 2 has chapters from Seven and AR 1 has a totally incomprehensible (ie text) SY story with some lovely art. There's also some other stories that I haven't manage to piece together the plots for. Anybody who's been following this blog has heard me whine about the Aqua Roses and how I was having troubles getting them. They're from a fairly unpopular mangaka here in the US. So, most people I contacted blew me off when I contacted them and I was most unhappy. Then, Aithine pointed out a page that had reviews of drama cds, so this is all her fault! Anyway, I followed the links to here. These folks were willing to do special orders. These people wrote me back! They were willing to get them for me! I was in heaven! I sent them the money, and prayed it wouldn't get stolen. When the money arrived in Singapore, they contacted me and told me it had arrived. When they shipped the ARs, they told me and gave me an estimated delievery date of 1-4 weeks and asked that I contact them when it arrived. After about 3 weeks, they contacted me to ask if the package had arrived. (I'd picked it the day before, and hadn't had a chance to tell them.) apanese Doujinshi Mail Order Corner now has my worship and praise. They're not cheap. Mostly I think it's because shipping between countries is bitch, but they are very, very good. They accept PayPal now, so they're going to be hideous on my credit card. Cause ya' know, I want the rest of the Aqua Roses. On an unrelated note, CC just image the cows who are bothering you choking on a pretzel. Cause you know they're silly enough to do it. 1/23/2002
I'm hurt. Incredibly, madly, horribly hurt. I'm never going to forgive you, and I'm eating the Flakes I meant to send you for Christmas. I found my socks, thank you for asking. Nice to hear the flaying of fingers makes you happy... 1/22/2002
Today, or at least in this blog, I shall not blog about fandom, Japanese cartoons, recipes, manga or doujinshi. Cause today, I'm doing social commentary. See, I live near one of the greatest musem complexes in the world. I live near the Smithsonians. Walking down the Mall (which btw, is a great big grassy area. It's not a bunch of stores. ) In the course of a day, I can visit the Hope Diamond, the Star-Spangled Banner, Whistler's Peacock Room and watch the Orangutan language lessons at the Think Tank. It's an amazing place. An amazingly diverse collection. No other museums can match. It's also having a bit of a problem. See, money for everything (ie exhibits, repairs) has just about dried up. To combat the problem, the new director Small has come up with some interesting ideas. Sadly, these ideas shaft it to the Smithsonian. He tried to close the Zoo's Conservation and Research Center last year, and he's selling the American History branch to a group of private donors. Actually, the selling of American history is what I want to talk about. Seems that the Reynolds and Behring subscribe to the "Great Man" theory of history. They don't understand that a great man may influence the course of history, but that to influence history the great man has to connect with the common man. In their visions, the common man doesn't matter. There is no context for their contributations to society in their worlds. AND THIS PISSES ME OFF! On so many levels this pisses me off. Let's start with the fact that the "Great Men" get boring after a while. How often does anyone want to hear that George Washington chopped down a cherry tree? (Which he didn't, btw.) Or that Thomas Jefferson wrote the founding documents of or country and may or may not have slept with his dead wife's half-sister? (Raise your hand if you knew that tidbit on Sally Hemmings.) The "Great Men" get thrown at people so often that they become overused and white noise. Next comes, how dare the Reynold's and Behring's disregard my family's achievements? None of them were "Great Men," but they helped build and support this country. I lost family in the Civil War. My grandfather kept the coal mines running during WW2, worked in the CCC and was arrested for union violence during his life. None of this was great and grand, so it matters for naught. No one reading this journal matters for anything in this view of the world. Taking care of people, working for your church, sorting through historical documents and supporting newspapers are nothing. They have no value. No substance. We support the world, and BULLSHIT! History isn't really about the great people anymore. History is about us. By supporting, or attempting to change, the social order of the world. We create history. By standing beside and supporting, a leader, we create history. Individually, we may not be remembered, but collectively our decisions and our lives stand. This foaming at the mouth brought to you by a history major. Most comments here are going to be recycled for a letter to Smithsonian. 1/19/2002
It's snowing, and I'm stuck in the house, because no native (intelligent) DC/Bal'more Marylander drives in the snow. Why don't we? Because we don't get enough snow to ever learn how to drive in it. Would anyone like to guess how I'm amusing myself today? Yep, more food. 1/15/2002
Wait, I thought you wanted an accordion? Or a pair of bones? How did a bodhran get dragged into this? 1/14/2002
CC now that you mention it, I think I am the only blogger who shares recipes. It never occured to me before that nobody else does it. Sometimes, I'm just entirely too pleased with myself and I just have to share. This says quite a lot about the value I place on food and making it myself, doesn't it? You did nail what Bisquick is. No one in my family has mastered making biscuits. So, we resort to Bisquick. You add water to the mix, and ta-dah biscuits! My mom and I can't make pie crusts either. Mom never "got" how to do it, so she used Pillsbury ready-made crusts. By the time I had any interest in cooking, I agreed with her, the ready-made stuff was easier and never learned how. I'm craving biscuits now... Well, at least they'll go well with dinner. Pam, I hate to tell you, but you're not talking to yourself. 1/13/2002
I had to stay off the computer today, therefore I had to amuse myself someway. So, I cooked. I didn't cook an amazing amount of food, but hey, weren't bad. Being fairly pleased with the results, I present recipes! Tangerine Applesauce Throw apples, peel, and juice into a largish pot. Bring to boil. Stir, and turn down to a simmer. Let simmer, ooooh an hour or so. Stirring every once in a while to help encourage the apples to break down. Once you're happy with the apples. Toss in the sugar. Stir until the sugar dissappears. Let simmer for another 20 minutes. Again, stir to encourage the apples to break down. Remove from heat and let cool. Easy Banana Chocolate Chip Bread Preheat oven to 350 F. Stir together first 6 ingredients. Then stir in Bisquick and chocolate chips. Pour into a non-stick pan. Bake 50-60 minutes. Cool. Cut. Eat. 1/11/2002
Blue Gender? I saw that at Otakon this summer with a bunch of folks. We mocked it. A lot. The hero and heroine were unattractive on just about every level to us. Nothing about them made me care if they lived our died, and I have never wanted to smack fictional characters so badly in my life. I think I really wanted the male lead to stop screaming too. Okay, admittedly he was having a bad life, but he was just...just...whiny. I might have become a victim of group-think during the showing, so my opinions on the matter should not be counted as gospel. Tell me, how was Weiss Kreuz? (Alas, I cannot make my computer do the cool character like Aithine. I am uncool.) MediaBlasters do a good job? CC I'm much more likely to have the closing song from CCS stuck in my head (Whhheeee! La-la-la! La!) I'm not sure what this says about me, but it probably isn't good. The shoujo-ai is always there in CCS, but for many reasons it gets toned down between Tomoyo and Sakura during the later episodes. As for the costumes, well considering how short those school uniforms are, Tomoyo's costumes aren't bad. Just gaudy. Really, really gaudy. Tomoyo-chan is a dear, and my favorite character, but her tastes are more then a little over the top. Erm. Erm. There was something else that I wanted to say about the show, but I can't think of it right now. Woe. Woe. Woe is me.
Back to the regularly scheduled babbling... ahem YEESSSS! (insert happy dance) Just for the record, I'm not that friend, and I couldn't find my cranberry colored socks this morning. 1/10/2002
Oh wow... I have seen the light, or at least it's less dim. The people who write the pairings that make everyone else go "What the fuck where you thinking?" I think I understand how they're getting there. They're playing w/a completely different set of "What ifs...?" They're not saying, this person likes/loves this person and I believe the story can support me here. That is, I believe, the common "what if..." in fanfiction. They're saying, I know this about this person, and I know this about this person. Since I know these things about both, I believe can create the circumstances where they would like/love each other. If you think about it, that's a hell of a "what if..." To make the central premise believable, they really have to sell it. I don't think most of second camp have the skill in writing or plot to do it. There might be one or two who can do it, but most will fail. 1/9/2002
I find myself craving hot chocolate. Not the pre-packaged "just add hot water" variety, but the pain in the ass type. The one that requires you to mix cocoa, sugar, salt and a little milk and then add the hot milk with a splash of something pepperminty. I also want fried salmon cakes, and potatoes and onion fried in bacon fat. Cabbage fried with bacon until it's slightly burnt and limp would be good too. Somewhere in my brain, something is screaming "IT'S WINTER! Gain some WEIGHT in case we run out of food!" Stupid brain. 1/8/2002
Cause one of officemates insists on carrying on loud, personal conversations, I now blasting the Great Big Sea mix that Mary made for me. *sings* OH me, oh my, I heard my old wife cry! Ohhhh me oh my, I think I'm gonna die! I live in hope that someday, the msg will be gotten.
Total social blog, yet again. CC, you didn't put down my excitement at all. I tend to feel that honest opinions are rare on the Internet, so your honestly telling me that you didn't care thrilled me. You read! You listened! You formed an opinion! Then, you told me about it! I'm not going to tell you anymore of my opinions on Card Captor Sakura. Nope, nuh-uh. Not a word. Not until you form more of your own opinions. I'll just agree w/you and say Touya broods very well. *g* As for the firebugs, is it possible that civil suits could be filed? If you can't lock up the kids, can you at least take away money from their guardians/parents? It's a punishment in a roundabout why, but it is a punishment. You! Pbht! 1/7/2002
Ahhhh! Aithine got HP! You're getting it in completely different places then I do, but you see it. See, I read PoA, and my little slasher's heart screamed "Snape/Remus! Snape/Remus!" Near as I can figure, I like a little (all right, a lot) more conflict in my pairings then you do. Or perhaps, I like my conflict in different places? Whichever, yes, I am sick. I am twisted. I agree to that. No need to taunt me or smack me around over it. I know I'm a bad, bad girl. I'll be over in the over corner grinning happily in my dementia Anyway, perhaps to explain part of the appeal of Draco, which I actually haven't "gotten" in a long time. I read the Lady of Shalott's stories in the early days, and then drifted from any interest in the character. The very fact that Draco is so one-d is what makes him appealing. The writers believe there has to be something, anything more there, so the writers create something more for there to be there. Same sorta holds true for Snape/anybody pairings. However, there is actually something more to Snape. He appears to be evil, but he isn't, not really. Puts the writers in a tizzy. Gives them more space to play. Also, you have to factor in the fact that Alan Rickman is, well, Alan Rickman. Quite frankly, he ruined my vision of Snape. Before him, Snape/anybody sent me screaming. After him, welll, ummmm, let's just not go there. I expose enough of my personal preferences and kinks in this weblog. Though, I would like to say, "IT'S ALLL YOUR FAULT!" (I have been dying to say those words for a very, very long time.) You just had to show me those pictures of him, didn't you? You are responsible for this!
1/6/2002
Glad to hear you've got rain, CC. Hopefully, this'll help a lot w/the fires. BTW, are they really going to make the brats you set the fires do community service in burn wards? They are going to make sure the little monsters get out live? For some reason, I don't think the victims families are going to be happy with them. As for the not seeing, or even being curious, about HP or LoTR slash. Good for you. (No, really. I'm not being sarcastic or snide.) You have no interest. You skimmed the text, and then stated your preferences in the matter. You don't care. It has no impact on you. It's great. I had a decent blog about the emergence of Tolkien slash yesterday, and Blogger and AOL conspired against me to eat it. But, I'm not bitter. Nooooo, not in the least. Onto me hashing out my thoughts, ideas and waffles on the subject. For the second time, I saw Lord of the Rings at the Uptown. I adore that theater...Balcony, big screen, slightly shabby... Tolkien's words were dry and dead to me. Everyone always told me that LoTR was a great book, and that I would love it. You know what? They all lied to me. Peter Jackson didn't. What he created was beautiful and I adore it. It's alive in a way the book never was to me. Do I think that there's slash in the Tolkien mythos? Damned if I know, I can't finish the blasted story. It's dry. It rambles. It's a torture for me to read. I just don't get the worship that the story receives. I might (big might) have had some thoughts on a Sam/Frodo relationship while trying to read the books, but I could just be rewritting history for myself on that front. So, why could I be rewritting history on the Sam/Frodo thing? Cause I am so seeing something between the two of them in the movie. If it ain't love on Sam's part, why the hell is he staying? Yeah, yeah, I know. He promised Gandalf. * A promise doesn't explain the devotion and adoration I'm seeing on Sam's part. Frodo, Frodo is clueless, but I can understand that, because he's slowly being corrupted by the Ring. It's whispering to him. I'm sure that every non-crisis minute that Frodo has, he's resisting that whisper. Crisis moments, the whisper of the Ring becomes a shout, his walls against the Ring crumble, and he slips a little bit faster into the corruption. It's okay that he doesn't see/doesn't return Sam's love/devotion/adoration, because he other things on his mind. Onto other pairings, because I know they're out there, and I have opinions. Merry/Pippin? Sure, why not! More a exploration of what makes two young men feel good then a deep and lasting passion. ie Buddyfucks galore. Boromir/Strider? Sean Bean might have made me sit up and howl since the days of Sharpe's Rifles, but I ain't seeing it here. Besides, Strider's got a girl. * Legolas/anybody? I seem to be the only fangirl who doesn't see the glory of this boy. Gandalf/ & Gimli/? Let's just not go there w/these gentleman. Ian McK might be gay, but that doesn't mean Gandalf is. As for Gimli, well, I don't like beards.* Other actual thoughts on LoTR slash following. I'm wondering if any of the folks you are crying "NO" right know have read any of the stories. Or are they just condemning on their gut reactions? Not that I think that there's much good Tolkien slash right now, but I am wondering if they condem without knowing. I'm also wondering how many of the Tolkien naysayers write HP slash? Why is it okay to slash one, and not the other? Because HP saga was written for kids? Because, it's not a "classic?" Because the prose is easier to read, and therefore easier to copy for fanfiction? Somebody explain to me why one is okay for them, and the other is taboo? Also, to continue and emphasize my hair-splitting of Friday, the writers and readers have to admit to, and understand the fact that they're not working solely in Tolkien's vision of the Middle-Earth, but that they're playing in Peter Jackson vision* of Tolkien's vision. As long as they're honest about it and admit that they're writing about the movies and not the book, then I've got no issues with them. What's the point of all this? There is no point. I'm just rambling out my ideas. Any I going to go looking for LoTR slash? Nope, but if another LoTR parody from Tizgane & Yoiko turns up in my inbox, I'm not going to pitch a fit. Because you know, it's funny. It's a parody. If they're not going to take it seriously, neither am I. If another *Sidenote 1: I would make a terrible servant in Tolkein's mythos. First experience with the Ring Wraiths, and fuck the promise. I'm outta here. *Sidenote 2: If there's a strong canon m/f pairing, I can't accept an alternate non-canon m/m pairing. It's hang-up of mine. *Sidenote 3: Shallow I know. *Sidenote 4: I know that Peter Jackson isn't the sole creator of this vision, but it's a nice catch-all. The actors, the other scriptwriters, and a helluva lot of other people created this Middle Earth, but it's a lot shorter to lay the creation a Peter Jackson's feet. *Sidenote 5: Anyone realize out there realize that Christopher Lee has also acted in another classic of British fantasy? He was Flay in the BBC production of Gormenghast. Wonder if he's done any of the C.S. Lewis stories. Wonder if he met/knew CS Lewis as well. 1/5/2002
Blogger. AOL. You bitches. You ate the enitre LoTR post I wrote. Fuck if I'm gonna rewrite it tonight. 1/4/2002
Wow. Cool. Tons of interesting ideas that my little tiny brain just can't process right now. Wonder if I need more caffeine? Personally, I think that all the fangirls that are writing Tolkien slash should just start admitting that they're not really writing in Tolkien's mythos. They're writing in Peter's Jackson's vision of Tolkien's mythos. It's a similar world, but not the original. Why, yes, I am splitting hairs. However, I seem to be incapable of framing in argument/thesis/theory without splitting hairs. It's a horrid failing, but I'm use to it after my time on this earth. I'd ask everyone to forgive me, but yah know, it doesn't really matter. 1/2/2002
Thank you, Aithine! drools For the record, I want my copy right now. I also want my Aqua Roses and my Pink 3 and my Love Mode 9 right now. Even if I find Takaguchi's color sense appalling, I do adore her line art. Well truthfully CC... Those curiously empty squares should be graphics. I'm just having issues in loading them right now. Blogger throws an error code at me when I tell it to transfer the files, and I'm just to lazy to save and uploaded them right now. And, trust me, my bedroom is in no way uncluttered. Happy news! Just to prove something does go right for me once in a while. My Aqua Roses have been shipped! I'm getting 1 & 2! Yaaay me! Hopefully, they'll be lovely, lovely SY images to scan and fiddle with soon. And! And! And! My latest Sasuga order should be coming soon. I hope, I hope, I hope.
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