Friday, April 14, 2006

Growth - Articles, Costume, SOAP, and Quiz
Well, today was the first day of a three day weekend. We also have one next week. (Score!)

Well, today my article of "If It Were Anime" was posted. It was one of eight, and got half the lines in the news post. XD Seems to be going well, though, err, seven people have voted. X3

My Haruko costume is 80% complete. I am so happy. Today, the white go-go boots arrived, and they fit perfectly. I was so happy I started to scream, and thus missed the first call for dinner. - -;; But I'm happy, since, well, they fit, and I have wide feet.
And yesterday, my wig came. XD I need a hairnet, in all honesty, and I need to cut the wig. It's a little too long, but that should be no problem. Teh weh!

SOAP is growing. Today, two new members were added - otakualchemist and, my real-life friend, ryu6fw. I already explained that the "6fw" actually stands for something ("six foot wonder", as dubbed by me XD), so, err, yeah. He is actually a lot different online than in the real life, which was intersting.
His one and only article seems to be, persay, extremely controversial. I mean, it's a humor article, you know, but people are cheesed off at how he pokes fun of how serious anime is unrealistic. I still laugh over the Advent Children one, because it is supposed to be realistic-esque.
What was really hilarious, though, was that on Tuesday at lunch, Ryu and I were talking about his article and the articles site in general. We had our friend Waffles sitting between us, and she just kept making these confused faces. About halfway through, she said something along the lines of, "I keep going between you two going mwe? mwe?, and you guys just keep on going."
Well, since Ryu's apart of SOAP now, I get to poke fun at him. Who knows, maybe he'll come to ACen next year. o.o

Speaking of ACen - well, I'm PUMPED. It's three bloody weeks away! 21 days to the spot! (I would've installed the countdown code, but the thing has a giant ad slap for Firefox, so screw you.)
Unfortunately, Waffles (who was dressing up as Sohpie from Howl's), can't go. Today I was over at her house, and we were just casually talking about the con. Her mom was about fifteen feet away in the kitchen. So we were talking and I happened to drop the line of, "I'm excited, I get to meet two of my online friends."
Well, like most paranoid moms do, she starts freaking out while Waffles just nods. "You mean - you're meeting people you don't know?"
So I have to reply to calm her down. "Well, yeah, they're just some friends. Two of them. And I'm going with a group of my friends already, so I won't be alone."
But she keeps on going. "Does your mom know about this?"
And I have to lie. "Yeah."
"And she's...okay with this?"
"Yeah, 'cause she knows I'm going with a group of friends already, and that I won't be alone."
"Well...okay..."
I turn to Waffles and half-whisper, half-mouth, "She doesn't know."
And Waffles reply? "You met them on myOtaku, right? You'll be fine."

The quiz! It's coming along beautifully! I just need to finish up the last question, code it, and then e-mail it off! This is great, and it means I'll have the quiz submitted on Saturday. I really hope it gets accepted. It's twelve questions long, which seems to be a long one. o.O;;

*sway* Can't waaaaait~!
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Wednesday, April 12, 2006

Wait, it's different now~!
Last post, I complained about my English research paper.
I just got to be lucky in the end.

While in the library on Tuesday, I complained to Mr. Wichman that I wasn't able to do alchemy. He was surprised.
"Huh? You can do alchemy, if you want. You know, the history of it and how it influenced modern science."
"O_O Zomg! I can?"

So yeah, I get to do alchemy and stuff. And I can be my own resource, what with my two FMA articles. ^^;; Awesomeness.

One more day left and then we have a three day weekend. Maybe I can coax my mom into taking me and Aiyanna to Chicago. She promised us that during spring break. "Whatever Friday is nice and that you have the day off...And that I'm not working."
My mom's a substitute teacher, though not in my district, since the pay is crap.

I submitted a new artcle and four hours ago. It takes three of my parodies - Oliver Twist, And Then There Were None, andRomeo and Juliet. Something Wicked This Way Comes just didn't come out that well for me, and besides, I had to make it under three pages. X3

Oh.
Does anybody know if I can put a countdown code on myOtaku? I want to have something for ACen...of course.
Speaking of ACen - Ada Pallas is coming! Threesome, awaaay! I have a feeling she's gonna be adopted into my group of friends, since she's going by her lonesome. *sniffle*
Aweseomness!

23 days until AnimeCentral 2006
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Monday, April 10, 2006

25 days, 6 results, 3 away, 2 topics
I can't quite focus. Yeah.

25 Days: Twenty-five days until ACen. I realized that last week on Friday whilst I was standing at the bus stop.
"Holy crap! Four weeks - twenty-eight days - until AnimeCentral!"

The New and Improved Haruko Checklist:
Wig [+]
Turtleneck [-]
Red Overshirt [+]
Pants [+]
Boots [+]
Gloves [-]
Just need to get garden gloves and find a turtleneck, both of which are no problem.
My mom and I are already making the red overshirt, modified from a sleeveless dress costume. So when a person comes up to me and say, "Hey, nice costume!" I can respond, going, "Oi, thank the mother." XD

6 Results: The quiz-'n-article is going along nicely. I have six results. For one result, I used an image from the FMA 4Koma manga book, but I loved how it fit the theme so much, that all the images are coming from that 4Koma book. ^^;;
The results are all made up. I've made three out of roughly ten to tweleve questions. Woot.

3 Away: After visiting the SOAP site on Sunday (ooh!), Ada Pallas stated that she might be coming to ACen as well. Bellpickle proclaimed that we would be a three-some battle force (or something of or relating to that), and I responded by going, "Three awaaaay!".
Meeting bellpickle is already interesting, but with the addition of Ada Pallas, it's getting...quite exciting.
Mainly 'cause, I can't wait to meet people I only know online. They get to see me too. X3 I ph34r.
Not really.
...
Nope.

2 Topics: Freshman Honors English, and this is our first and only really writing project of the year. It's a research project.
Of contemporary issues.
There goes my alchemy idea.

So I have two ideas. The first one is about the thingie that kids are supposedly spending too much time online and not developing real-life realtionships. But I sorta have an attachment to one side. Guess which one. X3

My second idea (which I thought of, you know, last night in the shower XD) is concerning TV. It'll rely on a poll, which I want to conduct here because of the variety of age I get. I have to broadcast it out, though, so if you can, PLEASE assist! ^^;;
Here's the scenario:
TV has changed dramatically throughout the years. Even within the past ten years, things are radically different. Compared 1996 TV to 2006 TV, and you're bound to quirk an eyebrow.
Has TV as a whole become more violent, more sexual, less and less, or a variety? How about shows aimed for kids between the ages of 7-12?

So yeah, those are my rough ideas. I'll have to have like, six polls. XD But you get the idea.

If you want to be apart, the only thing I ask is if you can give me your real age. I need to have a variety of an age group. Actually, it might be a little different now, seeing as how it's now depending on teens.
The conversation with my teacher sorta went like this:

Katana: "Yeah, well...hm...I know there are older people at this place. There are people older than me...I know."
Mr. Wichman: "Yes, that's true, but you do need a variety in age. You can't rely on people your age."
Katana: "Yeap. Actually - heh - I have a friend on there who's in college training to be a teacher."
Mr. Wichman: "Oh really?"
Katana: "Uh-huh. It's funny, because I told him he would be the only teacher I know who can draw."
Mr. Wichman: "...That's true."

XD
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Wednesday, April 5, 2006

If It Were Anime: And Then There Were None
Previous experince with this book would probably help - a lot. If you can't remember, then check out the SparkNotes for it.

As discussed shortly on the bus:

Strange events started to take place off the southeastern coast of the Ryukyu Islands on the Izumi Isle. A series of ten grisly murders has left people questioning their own safety. The attacks, which seem to happen completly at random, are linked only by the poem left at the site of every case:

Ten little samurai went out to dine; one choked himself and then there were nine.
Nine little samurai sat up very late; one overslept himself and then there were eight.
Eight little samurai speaking of Heaven; one said he'd live there and then there were seven.
Seven little samurai chopping up sticks; one chopped himself in halves and then there were six.
Six little samurai playing with a hive; a bumblebee stung one and then there were five.
Five little samurai settling a score; one lost a fight and then there were four.
Four little samurai going out to sea; a red herring swallowed one and then there were three.
Three little samurai walking in the zoo; a big bear hugged one and then there were two.
Two little samurai sitting in the sun; one got frizzled up and then there was one.
One little samurai left all alone; he went and hanged himself and then there were none.

Fifteen-year-old Hanako Ryota, granddaughter of the murdered Takeshi and Etsuko Ryota, has found out that she can talk to the ghosts of the murdered ones whenever she carries the Midori Katana, a blade that had been kept within her family since feudal Japan. At first, she tries to learn about the people that were murdered. The colorful cast consists of (in order of death and poem) Arata Masuyo, playboy extraordinare, Etsuko Ryota, an old and frail maid, Jiro Goro Minoru, a dojo sensei, Takeshi Ryota, butler, Emi Bao, a ruthless and overly devoted priestess, Wei Hideaki Bo, a brash police officer and inspector, Esmail Goya Aki, a weak-minded alcoholic doctor, Phuong Lim, a mercenary for hire, Vien Chikako, a rather young and former government official, and Li Wen, a judge with a burried sadistic personality.

All of their families had posessions from feudal Japan, ranging from charms to armor to swords, all of which were used in combat. Through more investigating, Hanako discovers that each of the ten people that had died had relatives from the feudal era that had joined together to form the Akane Katsuro, a band of samurai living under the government but with their own goals in mind.

It turns out that they completly wiped out almost an entire clan, and, in that case, were each accused of their own style of murder. The killer from the present believed that an unpunished burden would forever carry on in the family unless the descendent was dealed justice. The way these people had been killed appeared (to the outside world) to match the poem. And yet, the autopsy's reveal the insides as being brutally hacked up and shred to pieces...and each missing the hearts.

But who is this killer? Hanako is confused and distraught - and is running out of time! If she cannot find the murderer, than not only will all her efforts be wasted, but the ghosts of the deceased will never pass on and will forever stay in limbo! Why? The attacks on the people were caused by dark magic, and without their hearts, they won't be able to survive.

What's a teenager to do...?

(Name searching came in this order: Japanese, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Indian, Native American...and then things would get desperate.)
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Sunday, April 2, 2006

*groan* It's back to the grind of school tomorrow. That also means...um...um...
Crap, I didn't read "To Kill A Mockingbird".
Thank God for sparknotes.
But then there's an interesting section that I might want to read...
Omph, and I didn't finish biology either.
Why do teachers assign work over the break when they know their students won't do it unitl the last night of it?

Aiyanna was over here for a little bit. We went to this shopping center, the Geneva Commons, and messed around in the various stores. They were the places that me and my mom would never go in to together - aka, the electronic stores. X3 So therefore, me and Aiyanna went to the Sharper Image place, Dick's Sporting Goods, CompUSA, and Fresh Market to get some sushi. XD
At the sports store, we went upstairs and screwed around with all the exercise equipment, questioning how things would work and attempting to not break things. That's the beauty of us being in personal fitness...we know how things work. :3

What else...

33 days until ACen!
Checklist:
Wig [-]
Turtleneck [-]
Red Overshirt [+]
Pants [+]
Boots [-]
Gloves [-]
...I do have a wig resource. And possibly a boot resource. Shirt, no problem. Gloves, no problem (to the garden store!)

I am of teh nervous. RAASK! And now I have a jumble of energy that I don't know what to do with. Oi. o.O;;
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Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Ignorant Bliss
If there is one problem with my Katana(at)randomthunk(dot)net e-mail address, it's that I don't check it as often as I should. That's 'cause I don't get e-mails from any people visitng my websites.

That's also the place I pre-registered my ACen badge with.

And guess what? I go on to check.

And what is waiting there, dated from the 16th? "Anime Central: Registration - Registration Complete"

X3

I've been registered since the 16th, not even three weeks since I mailed the bloody stuff.

Though my stupidity makes me laugh at this stuff:

Badge Name: Katana
Gender: F
Over 18? NO
Payment: Check
Amount Paid: $35.00

Which goes to prove that my preminissions can be wrong. Thank God.
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Tuesday, March 28, 2006

Spring Break
*sigh* I'm into my...um...fifth day of spring break. Outta ten. NOOOO!!!

There's really been nothing to do, and even worse, my normal computer (aka, the "upstairs computer") has been plagued by a virus. *sobith* My randomly demented plan of action is to fire it up, disconnect it from our home network (it's upstairs and the internet is here, on the "downstairs computer", also known as the "basement computer" (Katana lives in a ranch house)), download security patches/updates und stuff to my USB stick, transfer it up there, and hope that it works.

...
*collapses from lack of air*

And so, hence the lack of...um...yeah.

While I'm in the early development stages of my grandmaster scheme for the quiz-'n-article thingie, I'm thinking about throwing in a sorta "for the sake of confusion" article. It came to me a while ago, then I dropped it, but now I decided to actually go with it. It's a seemingly good idea.
In FMA, there's all these military ranks. Now, we all know about "Major" and "Colonol" (wrong spelling, bite me), "General", and "Liteunnant" (again, wrong spelling, bite me). But what about all the other things? "Master Sergant", "Brigadder General" (ignore my spelling), and those things? That's where the article comes in! It explains the rank and that kinda stuff.
The article will start with a sorta disclaimer, IE: "I suck at things realting to the military, and therefore, if you're a curious bystander like me and have no idea what all t0hese ranks meen, then this is for ye".

I have a feeling I can't spell this early in the morning.

I also have no idea what to do with my Haruko costume. The biggest part is that sorta long, sleeveless shirt but more sleevless short dress hybrid ma-bobber. Err...Yeah. My friend Waffles (dressing up as Sophie from Howl's Moving Castle, by the way) said that when she was younger, her mom would make dressers for her and her sisters. However, she couldn't do sleeves, and therefore, they'd look a lot like what Haruko wears (except longer skirt :3).

But I feel really guilty about asking someone like that. ;_; Just the pattern, perhaps?
Or can someone here help me? X3

Surprisingly, I actually found a 95% perfect wig for the costume. On eBay. XD It's a little longer, but hell, I don't care! In the 38 days left until ACen, I need to do anything I can.

THERE'S ONLY 38 DAYS LEFT?! O_O

----

...


----

Okay, well, after cussing to myself more than nessicary, I reach two problems:

1.) I need to find go-go boots for the costume. This isn't hard. Except: I have a wide foot. I can't fit into the typical shoe size of "9M", I need a "9W". *sigh*

2.) I'm getting extremely nervous about my badge/ticket/confirmation/whatever. I have never gone to a con before, so please, try and understand my confusion, all con-goers-before-me. X3
Now that I count, however, this Friday will be the four-week mark of me mailing the registration. It says allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. *sigh* I'm just nervous, because with my luck, it'll be the week of the con, I'll have everything ready (costume, friends, transportation), and discover that I haven't gotten my confirmation. Then I'll get to the ACen badge-pick-up and the person will be like, "Sorry kid, we didn't get any mail from you/You're letter arrived a day after the first deadline and the money was inadequete and we're lazy and didn't send it back so therefore we're keeping your $35. Bye."

...
*shivers*
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Friday, March 24, 2006

Thinking 'bout Nightmares
Well, my upper introduction quote has been scrapped. Instead of "You've got style kid", I now have my new favorite of "You have the imagination of Dr. Suess and Willy Wonka on crack."

Dude, I thought Willy was already on crack. X3

My brother recently bought "Star Ocean: Till The End of Time" for the PS2. It's addicting, and very shiney. For some reason, the music sounds like the stuff used on "Golden Sun" - the GBA game that created a new high line for graphics on the GameBoy.
Anyways, it's extremely fun. All thoughout my (dead) times yesterday, I kept thinking, "Man, I wanna get home and play Star Ocean, dammit!"

It's spring break! And I had today off! Ten days of nothingness! Major wootness!

Well, you're probably thinking "What about nightmares?" As many of you know, I'm going to AnimeCental (ACen) come the first weekend of May. Surprisingly, I found out that bellpickle is going as well. I'm jumping at the chance to meet a fellow myOtakuian, as well as a person I know only through the internet.

...Which there in lies the problem. I've never seen bellpickle before, and I only know her through the internet - her obsession with Johnny Weir/Death Note, and her very pink site. ^^;; So I have about two scenarios running through my head about what will happen when I meet the pickle of the bells. (X3) Actually, three:

SCENARIO 1
Status: Not-A-Nightmare
Image: Here comes Katana and her large ambush party. She's dressed in a Haruko costume, her guitar case bulging with randomly bought items. On one side is a Sophie (Howl's Moving Castle), on the other, Haku (Naruto). They're in some sort of eating-ish area.
Katana: "Keep an eye out for a girl dressed as . Her tag says "ZOMG".
"Sophie": "Err, okay Kat, whatever you say..."
Haku makes a motion to indicate that he's found the "ZOMG" girl.
Katana: *after moment's hesitation, she screams:* "BELLPICKLE!"
The girl turns around. In fact, the costume cannot be indentified (empty coffee mug says something Death Note), but the girl itself strongly resembles Chi (one "i"? two?) from Chobits.
bellpickle: "You're...a lot different than I thought you were. Shorter too."
Katana: "..."

SCENARIO 2
Status: Creepy
Image: Here comes Katana and her large ambush party. She's dressed in a Haruko costume, her guitar case bulging with randomly bought items. On one side is a Sophie (Howl's Moving Castle), on the other, Haku (Naruto). They're in some sort of eating-ish area.
Katana: "Look for a girl with a nametag that says "ZOMG". Just trust me, okay?"
Sophie and Haku nod and look around. They spot something, and cringe back a bit. The two look at each other, reluctant as to whether to spoil Katana's, err, virgin eyes.
Haku: ...*sigh* "Hey, um, Katana...I think we found her..."
Katana: "REALLY?! Woot on rye!"
Cue bellpickle to pay attention. But the sight makes Katana scream. This bellpickle is extremely obsese, weighing upwards of about 300 pounds. That wouldn't be bad, except for the fact that she's wearing a Sailor Moon costume, fake wig and all, with the middle part made of elastic, half-transparent material, way too short skirt, and her bra is blindly showing through. The sight is so horrible that Katana hides behind the people of her ambush party until they leave.
Kat is later treated for mental trauma.

SCENARIO 3
Status: Hell Beyond Hell
Image: Here comes Katana and her large ambush party. She's dressed in a Haruko costume, her guitar case bulging with randomly bought items. On one side is a Sophie (Howl's Moving Castle), on the other, Haku (Naruto). They're in some sort of eating-ish area.
Now, insert the second scenario here, except that it's a full grown man, weighing about 400 pounds, and he's still dressed up as Sailor Moon. Katana dies on the spot.

So bellpickle, if you're here, I'm hoping you're more like scenario 1. Horrifingly enough, I had all those scenarios in three seperate dreams.
Yeah.
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Thursday, March 23, 2006

If It Were Anime: Something Wicked This Way Comes
Created during the lunch period half-spent in the library:

There’s Jin and there’s Yuki, two boys who are best friends and yet total opposites. Their world is controlled by the mundane and the ordinary – school, homework, sports, and reading.
One day while at the town’s library, they accidentally stumble upon an ancient book – one written in a foreign language that’s neither Latin, Greek, or even Demotic. Try as they can, they can’t identify what the words read. The book is soon forgotten.

Later on in the week, a man known as Dark is elected prime minister of their country. With him comes his strange cabinet – a man who controls fire, an old man kept alive by electricity, a lady claiming to be a witch, and the mysterious Cheng who keeps on taking up various forms. But the public doesn’t know these things, of course.

Yuki is determined to prove that Prime Minister Dark is not what he seems to be. Jin, though, is looking for excitement and adventure, and is continuously tempted to join the supporters of Dark and his group.

To counteract that, the boys have discovered that the book they discovered was actually a spell book, and by focusing on the task at hand, the language can be translated into attacks. The boys now have power over earth, water, wind, and fire.

However, the side of Dark also has one of these books, and through slick talking and smooth actions, they manage to cover up all their tracks. Can Yuki and Jin prove that friendship is stronger than temptation, or are they destined to grow up in a country ruled by a tyrant meant to engulf the world in darkness?

Oi. Bell’s ringing in five minutes.
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Wednesday, March 22, 2006

Woot!
Second quick post! More fear!

Finally - the first time since I was in fourth grade, my school district's referendum has passed. *heaves sigh of relief* The difference is voters may have only been 4%, but it's a pass. Finally.

People seem to be liking Otaku Otaku Revolution. :3 While that not only brought up my (and everybody else's) childhood memories, the whole "talking in narrative" thing seems to have some people entertained. XD

Before I lose the thought, I have a next brilliant idea for not only an article, but a quiz. Thing is, the two are intertwined! BWAHAHA!
Many fans want websites, ya know? But what would they be good at managing? I basically operate my Azumanga Daioh fansite (shamelesss plug), and also sorta manage the, er, portal page of randomthunk.net. Still don't know what to do with it. Portfolio maybe?

ANYWAYS. So I'm trying to think of all the results, and I've managed to come up with things like a fansite to one or two particular series, a gallery, a media site (video clips, mp3s - illegal much? X3), a general anime site to multiple series, and, of course, the whole "encylopedia" ish theme - more like theOtaku over ANN.
That's the quiz.
The article will take those things and elaborate on things like difficulty, amount of HTML skills needed, time, and, obviously, the ever hated question of: Bandwidth.

If you guys have any more ideas, please pop them in. *dashes off to catch the bus*
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