Thursday, March 1, 2007

Oh Lawdy
So I was on the Customers Suck! forum (where I should really get an account), and was reading someone's account of a drive-through order at McDonald's that was severely complicated by the manager, who was taking orders and had apparently little to no English language skills. The customer said something a bit rude as he left, though it did make the point that the manager should probably know better English. He said in the post that he simply couldn't stand by and allow stupidity to affect other people. Several people replying criticised his use of the term stupidity, saying it was more of a problem with language, and he shouldn't have been rude.
Now see, the stupidity is not in the lack of English-speaking capabilities. The stupidity is that this person who doesn't even know enough English to understand McD's menu items is not only manager but also taking orders in the drive-through, where it's already difficult to understand anything being said. Sure, it's California, but there are plenty of English-speakers in California too that would appreciate someone who understood them. Why would such a person be taking orders? The stupidity here is the same as if someone with no technology skills were given a job typing up, formatting, and faxing documents. It's the same as if someone who can't cook were given a job cooking. It's just not supposed to happen. Even working at McDonald's requires some skills, namely a grasp on the language in which the menu is written. This goes for English-speakers too.

Hm, that's really all. I needed to rant. I haven't done it enough lately so the rantiness is eating my insides. Eek.
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Monday, February 26, 2007

A genius walks among us...
And his name is Terry Pratchett. He's a satirist, sure, but wasn't Mark Twain a hero too? In his own way at least. But Pratchett, for all his comedy, still manages to impart in every book a few gems of wisdom and truth. This is my favorite, and I think it may just be my senior quote.
"The enemy wasn't men, or women, or the old, or even the dead. It was just bleedin' stupid people, who came in all varieties. And no one had the right to be stupid."
-Terry Pratchett, Monstrous Regiment
This, my friends, is why Pratchett is my hero.
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Saturday, February 24, 2007

Stage of the Ground
Hee hee, yeah, now I'm into a group called Bump of Chicken that Yuki says was quite popular when she was last in Japan. I love their lyrics and they have a really interesting slight folksy feel to their style under the usual J-rock/pop stuff.

Anyway, I just wanted to tell everybody--I just made a Japanese pun! Okay, wanna hear it? Er, read it. It's not a sentence, just a word, but here... "エド豆" AHAHAHAHA!! Poor guy XD. Okay, that's all

(All right, fine, I'll explain the pun. There's a bean (豆, mame) called edamame, it's soy beans in the pod that you as a snack. Very yummy actually. Anyway, I made a pun with Ed's name (エド) so it reads "edo-mame", "Ed-bean". Cuz he's small. ...It wasn't that good, i know, but I'm so proud I thought of it all on my own! :3)

PS: If you can't read the characters, you don't have them installed. I won't bother explaining how one goes about installing them. It's not that great of a joke...
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Saturday, February 17, 2007

Katsudon for Katsucon!
At least, that's what I wish I'd eaten today. I had nummy Chipotle tacos instead though, so that's okay.

I spent a crapload of money at Katsucon! I even had to borrow some from Yuki for a pair of neko ears that were just perfect for Exo. It's really hard to find qualiy neko ears, so I figured I'd better jump on the chance. I also got a funny Prince of Tennis yaoi boardgame that works like Clue. I must play it with Jenny. I got a lot of prints, and this is the first time I've ever really spent a lot in the Artist's Alley, but there were so many cool things, and the dealer's room is really mostly canon stuff I already have. Ha ha. ^_^U What do you get the fangirl who has everything? Something original from Artist's Alley! Yay! I met some really nice people there. I think the AA is my new favorite place, at least at Katsucon.

Please allow me to take a moment to plug Aardvark tees (just Google them, for heaven's sake, I don't have time to make a link for you!). I have a bunch of their shirts and a lot of people laugh at them. I love them too, of course. There are the classics I got at Otakon last year (thanks to Exo), "I can't dance without arrows", "Equivalent Exchange is for losers", and "The Philosopher's Stone...is PEOPLE". Then today I got one with my new favorite catch phrase: "If it weren't for the gutter, my mind would be homeless." I saw it on an icon once and laughed hysterically, and now I get to wear it!

There are some other AA people who asked me to spread word of them, but I'll get to that once I've found the wbesites... Yes, this is the first thing I'm doing after getting home from the con. Don't laugh at the poor little blogger girl!

I managed to hook up with a bunch of friends, hurrah! Cons are really best when experienced in a group. Sadly, no one recognized my character (young Kino from Kino No Tabi), but I'm hoping that if Exo cosplays original Kino at Otakon I'll get some people to recognize us... I'll be putting up my cosplay pics once Yuki sends them to me. I really like how the costume turned out; thank you, Mommy! Please forgive me for dumping all the work on you! Please! *cower*

Yupyup, so that's the con in a nutshell. Any questions?
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Wednesday, February 14, 2007

Happiness in Intelligent People
Long time no see! Sorry 'bout the radio silence there, I've been busy as hell. School, events, illnesses, and of course my little hobbies of gaming and reading have been sucking up time. That's okay though, because once again I am here to bestow upon the lowly people of the world my genius advice!

Today I have compiled some advice for all sorts of people and activities. Some is practical, some is born out of my frustration with people in general. Here we go!

Worldly Advice, Round 1:
When attending a winter formal dance, there are some things you simply should not wear, because they make you look like a total dumbass. Here are a few:
-Flip-flops. It's WINTER, for Jesus's sake. Formalities aside.
-Uggs. I have expressed disdain for these shoes before, because people just looove to wear them at inappropriate times. I don't care how comfy they are and how little you will actually be wearing shoes during the dance. The whole point of formal dances is to wear uncomfortable and elegant shoes. Just do it.
-Lingerie. On the outside. Yes, it may be a dress, but a leopard-print silk babydoll that barely covers your legs is not appropriate clothing in public.
-"Suits" that don't quite match. A suit jacket and pants that are obviously different will pass. However, a suit jacket and pants that are almost the same color but different styles, i.e. a nice tux jacket with a pair of oversized pants, just gives me the creeps. Go for totally different or perfectly matching.

Worldly Advice, Round 2:
DDR can be tons of fun, but it can also be dangerous! Here are some useful tips on not dying while jamming to Sandstorm.
-Use pads that don't stick to your feet. The flat, foldable plastic kind can't stand up to shoes, but they stick to your bare feet and can trip you up. Go for a pad with a little more weight or shape to it, like the foam-filled kind, if you want a lightweight pad. You can wear socks with a foldable pad so your feet aren't so sticky, but this can be a little risky, and not recommended.
-It's been said you should always wear shoes when using a hard pad because of the screws, which can knock up your feet pretty badly. If you like playing barefoot, as I do, don't fret, because there's an easy solution. Put duct tape over the screws, in a manner that doesn't hinder the buttons. If this isn't aesthetic enough for you, use colored duct tape and make pretty designs. Duct tape is a wonderful thing.
-Before playing any particularly bouncy song, make sure there are no loose, heavy objects around that could fall and break or hurt someone/something. My dad's big CD shelf doesn't rest evenly on the wonky porch floor, so it's tied to the wall so it doesn't fall and kill us. Your DDR spot should be in the safest part of your house, and preferably hooked up to the nicest TV/sound system.
-Between games, move the pads back to a good position. They tend to shift during play, and you can end up encroaching on your neighbor's space or getting too close to the screen.

Worldly Advice, Round 3:
Not everyone is a home decorator, but it's important to make sure your house does not annoy the crap out of your neighbors. Even if you don't care how it looks, they might, and they probably have large dogs and/or a shotgun.
-Take down your goddamn Christmas lights, or at least stop turning them on. You're wasting electricity and looking ridiculous if you still turn on your lights in February. At least take down the big inflatable monstrosities; they were ugly to begin with, and even moreso now that we're not full of Christmassy goodwill.
-Choose a sane color for the outside of your house. You can decorate the inside however you want, so there's no reason to go all flamboyant on the old plastic siding. You might love the color fuchsia, but a lot of people don't, so please be considerate. On the other hand, it does make it easier to find your house for first-time visitors.
-Speaking of which, please display your house number clearly. I don't care if you write on cardboard and shove it in the ground on a post, I just want to know where I'm going for this or that fab party. Not showing your number does not give off an air of mystery, it give off an air of obnoxiousness, and your postman probably hates you. Get a wee sign to put on your mailbox or something, it's very easy.
-Keep your cars to yourself. This is an issue we have with some of our neighbors. The horrible ones who are always annoying have about five cars in front of their house, and only one or two seem to actually function. If you're having a big party, suggest to your buddies that they carpool so they don't end up using the driveways of your poor neighbors. Also, one car per member of the household is quite enough. Nobody likes a hoarder.

That's my cranky advice for the day. I'm going to go play video games.
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Sunday, January 21, 2007

IT'S SNOWING, BIOTCHES! WHOOOOOOO!!
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Wednesday, January 17, 2007

And the Winner Is...
Nobody, again! Whoo! What was the answer? B! That object is a shrimp de-veiner. Honest to god.
I don't really have anything else to say, so...whee. Life is crazy.
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Sunday, January 14, 2007

HOMG!
Last night I sent in an audition for a part in a radio play based on this webcomic (as Morgan). I got all positive feedback! It looks probable that I'll get the part, I think. I'm so excited. :3

Now it's time for a new round of What the Crap Is That?! Here is the new mystery item:


This object is for:
A) Removing the seeds from oranges.
B) Removing the veins from shrimp.
C) Removing the eyes from potatoes.
D) Removing the dust from vents.

Good luck. Winner gets something, I don't know what yet. Start guessing!
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Thursday, January 11, 2007

Kyou Mo Sagashiterun Da Boku Ni Motto Niau Simple Sky...
I'm still alive. Just horrendously busy, as I'm trying to balance being newly engrossed in .hack//GU with dealing with the new school and new semester. It's even harder when we throw socializing, reading, and getting enough sleep into the mixture. But I'll get by. I'm having a lot of fun all around, and I'm just upset that I'm not capable of running on little or no sleep so that I can spend all the time I really want to on various activities.
I have some pictures of the new school I'll put up later, along with the next installment of What the Crap Is That?
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Monday, January 1, 2007

Happy...New Year...
What did I do tonight?
Well, as we were on the way home from a party at Jenny's, a man tried to commit suicide in front of our car.
Short story long: It was only a few minutes after midnight and the roads were crappy, all wet and slick. We were still on the residential roads driving back from Jenny's, and we saw about a half a block away, at an intersection, a man in a suit standing between the lanes. The radio had just mentioned that a lot of cops would be out to monitor for drunk driving, so my mom pulled up further, thinking this man could be one. About fifteen feet away, he gestured for us to come closer and began to move towards the middle of the lane. My mom inched forward and rolled down the window to ask what he was doing. He ignored her and moved to stand directly in ront of the car, still motioning for us to keep going and run him over. Suddenly a little girl came screaming and crying running towards him and dragged him by the arm away from the street to the sidewalk, where two older girls were standing. My mom leaned out to ask if they needd help, but they said they had it under control, and we drove off.
The look on that man's face is burned into my memory. He was totally expressionless. It was obvious he was drunk or otherwise not in control of his senses, because even hitting him from a few feet away wouldn't do more than bash him up pretty painfully, and who was going to go ahead and hit him anyway? And the girl's crying as she pulled him away was heartwrenching. That family will be in my prayers especially from now on. No one has to go through that.

Other than that, happy new year. I played Guitar Hero and the newest version of DDR at the party. And played with sparklers and boxes of matches. 'Twas fun. Don't get drunk, guys, seriously.
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