Thursday, October 27, 2011

「お好み焼き」じゃ無くて、「おっ、この土産!」

Redacted for obvious reasons.
Guess what came in the mail today- air mail, no less- the prize I won in a lucky draw contest from Travel Volunteer (One that I didn't know I'd won, being busy living, not to forget Facebook's tagging system failing on us at the worst possible moment). Oh, and I got to use the word 'redacted' for the first time ever. Pretty good, eh?

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Contrary to popular belief, chain-mail bikinis don't always work wonders

'Cos nothing says Steamboat Dinner more than a chainmail bikini
Warning: This post will contain some gruesome images, which may or may not affect your appetite. Also, if the sight of a chain-mail bikini causes copious amounts of blood to flow from your nasal cavities, I advise you to stay away. However, the text content of this post is relatively harmless fictional nonsense superimposed on real-life events, and has nothing whatsoever to do with a buxom warrior running around stabbing demons, though that is what I may make it out to be...

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Hudud? Let's just forget everything and join the Sith. Life's easier that way.

Image credit: Nababa
Recent barks from the political side of the world (Look out your window- it's the noisiest, tackiest area in sight) have really managed to hit a certain glossy red button with the words 'IRRITATE ME' embossed on it. The barker in question happens to be one Dr. Siti Mariah Mahmud, Member of Parliament for Kota Raja, which, though not located in my neighborhood, is too close for comfort.

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Gundam AGE, Episode #1 First Impressions: In which I say SAGE to AGE, tear my own logic to bits, and glue it back together

AGE! AGE! AGEgege no *copyright infraction*
First things first- Sunrise, or Bandai, made a monumental mistake in naming their new show Gundam AGE. I suppose it squares with the direction they want to take the franchise in- i.e. a new age. The problem is, it also opens you up to abuse by biased wise-asses (Namely me) who interpret AGE as the Japanese counterpart to the word/function 'bump' found on English forums (Most notably 4chan), which is used to keep an interesting post 'alive', so to speak. So what, you say. Well, never forget an antonym, which for 'age' is 'sage'- to lower/push down. There you have it. Sage to AGE. I wonder why 2chan hasn't noticed it yet.

Friday, October 14, 2011

Ghastly Unadulterated Nomenclature Dislocating Autocidal Nimrods, aka A Meaningless Title Unless You Know What to Look For

Credits for picture to... um. Please tell me if you know.
Back when I was still a wee little kid who thought of dancing little jigs barefoot on hot concrete and climbing defenseless short trees as a passably fun activity, I wrote poetry. Now that may seem rather anti-climatic, or at least vaguely disjointed, I feel for you, but it is the truth, and so there's no going around it.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

何度でもNANDO'S

Heart on a Plate. Where it Belongs.
Yep, yet another overdue post. For the life of me I can't even remember when it happened- though I can say with some confidence that it took place sometime last year (Probably early 2010)- a little lunch outing cum birthday celebration for me.

I never really cared much for birthday parties and the like till recently- I've even forgotten my own birthday once- but it has grown on me a little. I don't ask for it, nor do I expect it- but I've gotta admit, all the attention is rather nice. As thanks of sorts, there shall be no mercy in the composition of this post, that ye who are being written about may enjoy every word. Have a pinch of salt ready if you like- some nonsensical text is on the way.

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Animation-Comic-Game Hong Kong (ACGHK) 2010

Gunpla 30th Anniversary
30 July 2010:
It just so happened that I happened to be in Hong Kong just in time for the Animation-Comic-Game Hong Kong (ACGHK) exhibition. Even better, I'd read about it just a few days before, having had no idea of its existence until I arrived on the island. To add more sugar to the mix, I got to go on the very first day of the exhibition, which also happened to coincide with Bandai's 30th anniversary... ah, joy.
Super Mario Bros. Wii booth.
Before I go further- I have to mention this. Getting into the place was torture. I had to join a queue that stretched forever- around buildings, inside buildings, over streets, before finally reaching the convention center. Every 10th person in the queue was fiddling away on a PSP- none of them bright red, I noticed- which cheered me up somewhat (That was the colour I'd chosen for mine). As a consolation, however, I managed to get a tourist ticket- an excellent move on the part of the organizers

Monday, October 10, 2011

Middle Kingdom 2010 Part VI: Hong Kong

See the dragonfly... helicopter?
26 July 2010:
The journey by ferry from Macau to Hong Kong took about an hour. Passengers weren't allowed up on deck- in any case there wasn't much of a deck, and I doubt there was anything particularly eye-catching on the way, so it really didn't matter. The boat was pretty comfy too- nice big soft seats, spacious, and air-conditioned- perfect for the footsore traveler.

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Middle Kingdom 2010 Part V: Macau

26 July 2010:
Ah, Macau, Macau. A lot like Hong Kong, only a lot more cramped. Yet a million times more interesting and prettier looking than Zhuhai, where I was just minutes ago. Took the border crossing- before I knew it I was in Macau. It's that close. I thought that there would be a bridge, or something... instead I just got my passport stamped and crossed an imaginary line.

MS IGLOO II: The Gravity Front aka Against Incredible Odds, and Failing Miserably as Expected

"Because if you just blew up your vehicle (on purpose), no one's gonna pick you up if you don't pose..."
MS IGLOO II: The Gravity Front is a three part OVA, created mainly for Sunrise to show off their ability to produce amazing CGI. There's barely any story to it- each episode consists of Earth Federation soldiers being sent out on suicide missions against Principality of Zeon Mobile Suits. If you've never watched the original Gundam anime (actually, neither have I- though I've read wikis on it) you probably have no idea what I'm hammering on about. In that case, think of Igloo II as a Japanese Avatar (by James Cameron, not the one by M. Night Shyamalan)- watch it for the pretty pictures.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Green Bell Pepper: NZ-666 Kshatriya

NZ-666 Nagato
My fourth gunpla purchase, the NZ-666 Kshatriya. This thing's so huge it's box is the same size as my MG Strike Noir- and it's only a 1/144 kit. I wonder if Bandai will ever come out with a MG Kshatriya- just think of how large it would be. Not to mention how frightening the price would be...

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Middle Kingdom 2010 Part IV: Guangzhou and Zhuhai

Pier for the ferry-taxi service.
21 July 2010:
Arrived in Guangzhou around 8.30 in the morning. Hit a spot of trouble- couldn't find the bus that was listed in the guide I compiled back home- a problem easily surmounted by asking around and taking a different bus, though after getting off I walked blindly past my street and had to double back. Not fun at all, especially with the sky threatening to leak on me again.

Finally reached the river- the hostel was somewhere there. I knew I was on the right bank, but had no idea whether to turn left or right. Grabbed hold of a passing lady who offered to walk with me in the right direction- coincidentally the direction she was taking to work. The whole exchange was a lot more peaceful than it sounds, really.

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Utter Randomness: Musical Chairs

Copyright... no idea.
Let me get one thing straight before I go on: I hate chain mail. Not the kind you can wear to deflect otherwise mortal wounds, but the type posited on your doorstep emotionally blackmailing you into posting it again.

Memes, however, are fine, and I don't mind standing back at a safe distance to watch the play unfold. I don't take part, however. That being said, there are exceptions to the rule, this 'playlist shuffle' meme being one of them. I can't remember when I completed it, but the basic premise is this: enable shuffle in your media player, and click next. Each track is the answer to one question. Here we go, then...