Ramblings of a Crowe

The Particle "Kara" （から）

Well, it's been awhile since I've talked about my journey to learn Japanese. I haven't had much time to study, since I've been engrossed in other projects, but this week, I took some time to sit down and go over a few things.

Japanese is rich with particles. They're everywhere. They're confusing. They're kinda fun. So I'm not going to talk about them all at once. Nope. One at a time. Today, I'm going to talk about what I've learned about the:

The Particle "Kara" （から）

Kara is often used with location and time nouns-

明日から一週間旅行します。
Ashita kara isshukan ryokou shimasu.
(From)As of tomorrow, I'll be traveling for one week.

At the end of a sentance kara becomes the word "because"-

私はまだ一歳でしたから。
Watashi wa mada issai deshita kara.
Because I was still only a year old.

Kara is used with moraimasu (to recieve or get)

私はスミスさんから招待状をもらいました。
Watashi wa Sumisu san kara shoutaijou wo moraimashita.
I received an invatation from Mr. Smith.

"Kara" （から） and "made"　（まで） can be used together to indicate the beginning and end points of a sequence of motion or period of time-

五時から六時まで勉強しました。
Goji kara rokuji made benkyou shimashita.
From five 'o clock until six 'o clock I studied.

When "kara" is used as a clause particle, it can mean "since", "so", "because", or "therefore".

桜の木が二本ありますから春とても綺麗です。
Sakura no ki ga nihon arimasu kara haru totemo kirei desu.
It is very beautiful in the spring because there are two cherry trees.

"Kara" following the "-te form" of a verb can be translated as "after".

家に還ってから電話します。
Ie ni kaette kara denwa shimasu.
After I return home, I'll call you.

"Kara" can be used to express casual relationships (requests and suggestions)-

雨が降っていますからうちにいましょう。
Ame ga futte imasu kara uchi ni imashou.
Since it's raining, let's stay home.

Enough about "kara" for now. Here's some interesting distinction between Japanese and English:

Yes/No Questions:

Japanese answer yes/no questions differently than English speakers.

昨日来ませんでしたか？
Kinou kimasen deshita ka?
You didn't come yesterday?

はい、来ませんでした。
Hai, kimasen deshita.
Yes, I didn't come.

An English speaker world reply: "No, I didn't come."

However, when the sentance is a suggestion, the yes/no distinction is the same as in English:

映画を見に来ませんか？
Eiga wo mi ni kimasen ka?
Why don't we go see a movie?

ええ、来ましょう。
Ee, kimashou.
Sure, lets go.

面白いね？　（＾－＾）

Oops...I WAS wrong!

Gankutsuou has one final episode. I'm downloading the raw as we speak, though I probably won't say anything more about the show. My post below stands as a decent summary. The show could've ended with the 23rd episode...though I am glad they'll wrap things up.

I've Lost My Voice!

Yesterday, as I was watching TV, my son stepped into my room with his homework in hand. "Mom, can you help me," he asked as he handed out this green piece of paper with "happy" writing across the top. "I have to write a story that has a circular plot."

Cringing, I took the paper and read over the directions that the teacher had given him, remembering our conversation at my son's conference several weeks ago. Ms.XXXX told me that my son's ideas were disorganized and too complex. She didn't care if Huck Finn could spell better than him, or that my cat knows more about a comma and period. His ideas were too rough. His stories had no structure.

This, of course, confused me. Shouldn't the premisis of writing begin with where to properly capitalize and where you put your periods? No wonder he's doing below average in his writing. At home, he has me scolding him like a relentless banshee about commas, periods, and capital letters. Oh, let's not forget he spelling either (yes, my spelling in this blog sucks. If I had a spell checker, I'd use it). At school, he's being told that doesn't matter...right now...but your stories and ideas are all over the place. You need to make them a tight, neat bundle with a header sentance and three supporting sentences. All your sentances must start with First, Secondly, Thirdly, and/or Finally. Every paragraph needs to be the same. Got it?

So, he writes his first draft, with his autrocious punctuation, spelling, no capital letters then brings it to me...and I start bleeding from my eyes. But I'm not looking at the latter, I'm looking at several paragraphs, exact copies of one another with words the only difference between them. "Hunter, what is this?" I ask him.

"That's how paragraphs are suppose to go," he tells me. He gets this worried frown on his face as I stare at him.

That's when I go storming into the family room, where my mom is reading or sewing, and start shouting, "How the hell is he suppose to write a story like this? What are they teaching my kid!?" She's used to this. She works for the school as a teachers assisstaint and knows all to well how crappy our educational system is. She also knows how I feel about their educational methods. Oh, and I'm her daughter, she's had twenty eight years to accustom herself to my temperment (she says I take after my dad...).

"Just do it the way they want it done," she says with a shrug.

Okay, there are rules to be followed when writing. My son is only ten. I don't expect him to be elaborate. I don't expect him to be perfect. He's just learning the rules of the english language, and that's fine. That's important. All I really expect of him is to be creative; because he is one of the most imaginative young boys I've ever met.

I understand that schools need to teach "tight writing" to our kids. What I disagree with is asking them to be creative and THEN write a tight, neat story cemented to the rules of some dusty text book. That sort of teaching hinders our children's creativity. It teaches them that creativiness and structure are one in the same.

It's not.

Creativity is free. Yeah, you got to make things make sense, but rules are bendable; workable. If schools want kids to write tight paragraphs, make them do reports. Don't ask them to write made up pieces of fiction, then force them to write paragraphs that are built of mortar and I-beams. You can't write decent stories like that. You can't write INTERESTING stories like that. Stories won't make any sense written like that.

Hunter writes me entire sagas on his own time. He comes up with multiple characters, active and passive scenes, character emotion, humor and drama, etc. For his age, I'm amazed. Sure, his stuff is juvenile, but I don't care. He's writing in his own voice, with his own ideas. I read them, correct his errors, talk about different ideas when he's stuck, etc. I always praise him for his accomplishment, for his effort. I'm proud of him, even when the story has more plot holes than swiss cheese. Stuff like that comes with time and practice.

However, I worry about his love for writing and his natural talent becoming tarnished within our educational system. Think back to your English classes in high-school, some of us, even college. Do you remember the foundations of all those essays, reports, speeches, short stories that you had to write? I sure as hell do. My English classes from 7th grade through highschool were college prep. It was beaten into my head that we were to write one specific way and that was it. There was no room for "coloring outside the lines," even within a short story. College for me wasn't much different. I passed all my English and Lit classes with 3.6-4.0s (depending on how often I went to class). Why? Because they kept teaching me the same, boring drivel over and over again.

A few months ago, I was sitting in front of my computer, wondering what the hell my writing was missing. I'm just an amature, so there's lots of stuff wrong, but there was something nagging at me, something big. I picked up a few books on writing and began to read. One of them mentioned writing in "your own voice". The author of this book talked about how our school system is designed to teach structure and doesn't cater to creativity. In the end, writers lose thier "natural" voice somewhere inside all those I-beams and mortar. We become "bland" writers. We lose our voice.

I'm not talking about voice in the sense of "first person", "second person", "multiple perspective". No, I'm talking about the author's voice. MY voice.

What your reading right now is "my voice". It's how I write when I'm not fretting over I-beams and mortar. Yeah, there's a lot of spelling and grammar errors, but that's stuff I would fix later if I planned on submitting this anywhere important.

My stories have too many I-beams. Too much mortar.

That's what I've been doing wrong.

I'm trying to change that. I was so happy when someone reviewed a piece of my work and told me my writing was "raw" and "real". Granted, it's just a fanfic peice, but I consider ff to be a drawing board to practice new stuff. I want my readers to hear my voice, not some stuffy english essay from my highschool days. I want them to understand and see what I'm seeing. I want them to enjoy what I've written and feel comfortable reading.

I'm still working on it. I slip up all the time; diving back into the old habit of writing for Mr. XXXX in my junior high college prep class. It's hard not to when for over fourteen years that was all you were taught.

My son is going down the same road. I'm not helping his grades any. Kids need structure and consistancy, and the poor guy is torn between what school tells him and what mom tells him. So, we've settled on a compromise. He writes me his own stories however he wants. They can be seven pages or twenty. He creates them in his own voice, using his own ideas. School stuff, well, we still come up with crazy stories and we laugh about all the wonderful possibilities, but in the end, we play by their rules. He writes a drab, dull piece of work which isn't his fault, but the system's he's been thrust into. How can a story be "tight" when paragraphs have to be four sentances? It's a no win situation. It will be until he leaves school and hopefully finds a college professor who will encourage him to "be himself" when he writes.

Hell, he might not even care by then.

NOTE:

If you want to see some authors that have a great "voice", I suggest reading the works by:

Sanda Hill (Viking sagas)<---I'm not a big fan of romance novels, but these are an exception. Hysterical, real, very raw. Great stuff!

Janet Evanovitch (Stephanie Plum series) <---this is probably the best example of an author who writes with a great voice. I cannot recommend this series enough. If you like a good mystery with a barrel of belly laughs, read these! NOW! (mystery with a tad romance)

Laurell K. Hamilton (Anita Blake/Meredith Gentry series)<--- I have some issues with her repitious nature, but she writes with such personality, I can forgive her. Both series are excellent!

Jeffery Deavers (Licoln Ryme series)<---Everyone remember the movie "The Bone Collector"? Well, he wrote the book. The guy is amazing and writes such compelling mysteries. I've read a few of his books on one sitting.

J.K Rowling (Harry Potter) <---Need I say more about this authors voice, not to mention her imagination?

Peirs Anthony (Xanthe Novels) <---I've been reading his stuff since I was a kid. I've always loved fantasy stories, and this guy's writing is just amazing. His imagination, much like J.K Rowling's is INCREDIBLE.

Billie Letts (Where the Heart Is) <---I'll admit, I've only read one of her books, but it was amazing. This story is a classic, a few of you might have seen the movie, but read the book. Ms. Letts has a very powerful voice.

Anne Rice (Vampire Chronicals/Blackwood Farm) <---She's a tad wordy, but that doesn't hinder her story telling. A rare talent, great writer.

Stephen King (The Green Mile/On Writing)<---I've read other stories as well, but I'm choosy, since he scares the hell out of me. I do recommend that all aspiring authors pick up his book "On Writing" and read it...several times. You'll see just how well he uses his voice in this help manual (which reads like a story instead of some boring text book).

Kim Harrison (The Good, the Bad, the Undead) <---a cross between Stephanie Plum and Anita Blake. Funny, suspensful, with characters that move all on their own.

That's just a few authors that I can think of off the top of my head that write using their own wonderful voices. Read them. Study them. Learn from them. But whatever you do, find your own voice and make it happen!

As I was once told by an author, "The worst thing a writer can do is procastinate. Just sit down and write the damn book. Worry about the other stuff later."

How true.

Gankutsuou Comes to an End

So, last night I watched the final episode of Gankutsuou. Twenty-three episodes (I thought it was 24, apparently I was wrong???). I cried. Oddly, I cried for everyone, even the people I came to hate in the show (such as Fernand Mondego).

What a terrible, terrible story. I don't mean terrible in the sense the show was bad. Quite the contrary. Gankutsuou (as I've said many, many times before) is one of the best animated series I've ever seen. No, the theme, just as the book it was based off of, makes us take a deep look into what hate, revenge, and greed can do to the hearts of humans. Sure, those ideas are used all the time in movies, cartoons, etc, but Gankutsuou hits the mark with frightening accuracy.

The entire show makes a person's heart ache, as if the pain of the Count and the other's he hurts on his quest for retribution is real. I think what sets this show apart from the other series that use this theme is that it plunges into the hearts of the and souls of humans. We are creatures driven by passion. Our ability to love, hate, laugh and cry is unique and the story of Gankutsuou grabs that and runs with it. There are no sub-plots. The show is based only on the evil and wretchedness that lurks in the heart of all human-beings.

All of us alive can contest to being hurt, wanting revenge, even hating someone; but most of us never go beyond the ability of just 'feeling'. We don't act upon those emotions. We don't become them. The characters in Gankutsuou are their emotions. They're humans obsessed with their greed, lust for vengence, and lost in innocence. They show us, the real people, what happens when we let our feelings take control.

The results are tragic.

I recommend this show to anyone and everyone who enjoys a deeply serious show, animated or not. Also, I suggest reading the book, "Count of Monte Cristo" as well. Both are brilliant pieces of work in their own right, and I must commend the creators of Gankutsuou for developing an adaptation of Mr. Dumas's masterpiece that does it justice.

Hopefully, sometime this year, Gankutsuou will get a North American release. The DVD's will be worth the money, and I'll be the first in line to pick up a copy.

Annoying, wankiest, rediculous site...

Go here.

If you're a member of this site, I'm sorry. If you hate me for what I'm about to say...well...I don't give a shit...

Strolling around Fandom Wank I ran into the above site and thought I’d check it out. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew I shouldn’t, but it was sort of like driving by a car crash-you know you should keep your eyes on the road but you just can’t help yourself. You have to look! You have to see the carnage! You just have to!

Then you regret it for weeks afterwards…

Okay, so I exaggerated, but that’s how it felt at the moment when I realized I stumbled upon fourteenth level of hell, also known as: The Place Where Flamers Are Born TM

My God. I’ve never seen so many whiny, spoiled people in my life. It was like a friggen day care, but for teenagers…

S-C-A-R-Y…

I’d rather deal with snotty kindergartners than sniveling teens…At least the when the kindergartners get pissed, there’s a reason. (I’ve worked in daycares and I’ve had my own kindergartner…so no one better tell me I don’t know what I’m talking about here). There was this one time…

Just kidding…(about the story, not the kindergartners)

Anyhoo, I should have backspaced my ass outta there, but the wankiness was like a vortex, just sucking you in until short of unplugging your computer, you’re trapped…

Who do these people think they are? I don’t ever remember seeing any “Rules” or “Guidelines” for fanfiction written in the 10 Commandments. I think the entire word “fan” sort of gives away what kind of stories you can expect. It’s not like you earn money for writing stories (you better not be). It’s not like the people writing them are professionals. It’s not like everyone sees your favorite fandom the same way you do. (I just love the flamer argument “It has nothing to do about how you saw the show so don‘t tell my it‘s your opinion!” That just cracks me up. No one is allowed to have an opinion different than a flamers. The 11th commandment apparently.)

Anyway…if bad fics bug you…Simple solution. If you don’t like a story, DON’T FUCKING READ IT. Even a monkey can grasp that concept. Why not tap into that bitchiness and use the energy you spend complaining to improve your own writing; instead of constantly whining about other people’s work for Chrissake.

Yeah, there're some crappy fics out there. Cut the people some slack. Has anyone ever thought that a lot of these authors are fairly young? A helluva a lot younger than me, that’s for sure. They haven’t had the classes or the time to hone their writing skills. A select few people are talented with the gift of writing well at a young age, everyone else has to work at it. That means practice. That means writing crap and learning from mistakes. That doesn’t mean having to put up with snarky flamers who offer nothing but BAD CRITISISM. Yes…all you flamers, you’re bad reviewers, which is just as bad as being a bad writer. You bring NOTHING constructive to the table.

You people piss me off.

That review button doesn’t give you the right to be rude, condescending, insulting, vituperative, contumelious , or anything else related to mean spirited, classless behavior. That argument, “If you can’t handle the criticism, don’t post your fic” is bullshit. People, even poor writers, should be able to post their stories, art work, websites and not have to shovel shit from some malevolent shark’s pissy attitude. Just because the internet gives you anonymity doesn’t give you a free pass for bad manners. You want to review something, show some class and do it right. No one is telling you to butter the author up with compliments. Point out the good points…don’t tell me there aren’t any because even if it’s something as small as correct punctuation, that’s a plus. Point out the bad, but do it with tact, then give some examples on how they can improve. If something as simple as leaving behind a helpful review is beyond your grasp, you have no more business writing reviews than poor authors have writing bad fics.

Personally, I’ve never been flamed, well except for that troll who called me a fucking bitch and then said that my artwork sucked. It pissed me off. Not his words, but the fact that there are ignorant dumbasses like that all over the world and there’s not a damn thing I can do about it. I could care less if he thought my art sucked…hell, I think my art sucks, but that’s not any reason to be a jackass about it. The bitch part was funny, since it's true and the F word has lost its zing, since I use it daily (I know, I know-I'm trying to quit, but I work with all men! Cut me some slack!). Random meanness is for the small minded. And I can't stand morons...

Sticks and stones, folks. One of my favorite authors said once that a writer and artist needs to learn to pick their critics. Some feedback is helpful, some isn’t. What it all boils down to is what the creator wants to listen to. Everything else is irrelevant…that includes you flamers.

In a nut shell, your opinions don't mean JACK-SHIT unless the author wants them too. However, you have the option, not to read their story...I think that's a fair trade off.

*************************

Oh, another things I found funny on this site is this thread. Really people, why do you have to "figure out" the new rating system on ff.net? Is it really THAT hard? I don't think so...looked pretty self explanatory to me. And you people claim to understand English grammar?

*shivers*

How the Mighty have Fallen...

I was looking through some of my online projects last night and realized how badly I'm behind on ZERO. Sheesh...I'm such a slacker. So I did some searching for my notes for the rest of book 2, only to realize they've been lost with my old computer. Dammit...I though I'd saved them, but they are long gone...which means I have to re-do the last 100 chapters before I put up more scans.

I did managed to get my hands on Book 8, which confirmed several of my suspicions and made my bawl my eyes out. Aw hell...thinking about it makes me sad...

Anyway, I plan on getting back to the translating, it helps me with the language (which I've stated I'm not fluent in, but trying hard...being self taught is tedious)...

On another note, I'm cranky as hell this week. Everything is pissing me off. It friggen SNOWED this morning on my way to work. What the hell? I live in a desert...last week it was almost 80 degrees outside! Sheesh...I won't go on about work either...all I'll say is I'm stunned at the amount of feet dragging our company does sometimes. It's amazing we get anything done at all.

I'm so pissy (no, not PMS), I don't feel like writing or drawing or doing anything constructive. All my projects have come to a burning halt these past few days...as you will note that I haven't bothered to do any summaries of last week Naruto or Bleach over the weekend.

Maybe this weekend I'll feel better...

What Went Wrong?

Red Lake and Columbine...

How horrible. As a parent, it makes me worry about the saftey of my son in school. And my mother, who also works in the field of education.

What's the matter with the world today? How can we "miss" kids that are so fucked up in the head? Where are their parents? What are they doing? When their son/grandson/cousin/nephew started getting interested in Hitler, did anyone bother to sit him down and explain to him what the man really was? Did anyone tell him what Nazi's stood for? Did anyone explain to him how precious life is? Did anyone talk to him about reality vs fiction?

Did anyone pay any attention to his silent cry for help?

Did anyone try to help him?

What the hell went wrong?

I'm still waiting for the usual "The music, video games, comic books, movie made him do it," crap to show up. That's utter bullshit. Yes, kids are easily influenced by the stuff they watch and hear, but you know what, if they do shit like this, something else went WAY wrong early in their life...and its the parents fault for not fixing it, not noticing it, not paying attention to their children. No, something far deeper than any music, movie, or videogame drove this kid to kill his peers, family, teachers and then himself.

What's sick is Americans won't see it that way. It'll be everyone elses fault...television, music, games, books, etc. Its never the "poor" parents fault.

Oh, yes...parents can't watch their kids all the time. You don't have to tell me that. My son is 10. I can't be with him and hold his hand everywhere he goes. School, tennis, to the library, to his friends. But you know what? I can spend time talking to my son, listening to his problems, giving him advice, hearing him out, instilling in him confidence and morals that he will carry throughout life. I'm never too busy to do that. I'm never too ashamed or tied up to answer his questions, no matter how "embarrassing" or "bothersome" they are.

I worry for my son's future...I worry about the other kids being raised in this world of irresponsible parents that refused to raise their children themselves. I loath the parents who deny accountablitity and cry out for myself and other citizens to pay for their laziness. You work long hours and don't have the "time" to peer over your children's shoulder? Don't have kids then. Any idiot knows they take lots of time. Growing them up is exhausting work. If you can't dedicate your life to them, then DON'T HAVE THEM!

America is a place of violence, yet we are the most censured in the free world when it comes to media. Nudity, violence, speech on television, movies, games, music are all guarded more so than in other countries. Tell me then, why is it that our youth crime is so much more outrageous than anywhere else in the world? Why our crime period? The FCC and government goes through great lengths to censor what we see, watch, and hear. Why is this country such a scary place?

What are we doing wrong?

Another Funny Inuyasha Spoof

found over at DevArt. Check it out.

Gamer Message Boards and....stuff....

I haven't had much to talk about here lately. I'm to lazy to do any reviews of Bleach and Naruto (well, pissed off you could say). So, I was stumbling around Gamefaqs today, checking out the message board on DMC3 to see if I was the only moron having trouble with the game (apparently not). Sheesh, I didn't have issues with DMC (which was difficult but not too bad once I got the controls down)...DMC2 was dumb and I got bored halfway through...but this game...DAMMIT!!! Well, at least when I die repeatedly and get sent back to the beginning of the mission I can just blow more shit up...which helps ease the pain a bit...ha ha ha...

Anyway, I stumbled onto this topic : InuYasha vs Dante and I HAD to look. It was so absurd...

I love InuYasha but sheesh...there's no contest here...

I don't mind topics like this. Most of the time they're pretty funny...because if you want to get to the nitty gritty of it all and throw everyone into a jumbled pot, the DBZ characters would win everytime...hands down...*laughs* But usually some idiot comes along and creates some absurd comparison because they have an over abundance of character love for XXXX (in this case, InuYasha).

Folks, no matter how much you love Inuyasha...he would lose this fight. Badly...

More stupid vs topics:

Kenshin vs Bruce Lee
Kenshin vs D (Vampire Hunter) (D's got what 11,000 years of experience behind him...not to mention is practically friggen immortal...)

Naruto vs World of Anime (oh! Come on!)

Brandon Heat (gungrave) vs Spike (cowboy bebop) (sheesh...once again...uh...Brandon has been necrolized...he's friggen dead people. Anyone notice how regular bullets just sort of "expel themselves from his body?" DUH!)

I didn't have to look far to find a zillion of these stupid threads. You can tell how bored I am...*sigh* Anyway, I ran into this place, which I thought was pretty funny. It sort of sums everything up in a nutshell.

Ha ha

Creation Go!

I stumbled on this halarious little short story about Albel, Fayt, and Sophia in the Koma Manga. Once again, this is the property of Square Enix and Kanzaki Ryuuko. I've done the translations to the best of my ability, though I'm not fluent. Politely point out any mistakes, if you see them. Japanese manga are read right to left, for those who don't know. Read them the other way, and they won't make any sense. ;-) (Click on the pictures to enlarge them!)

Isn't little Fayt soo cute! And Albel the...what is he? A flan? Ha ha ha! I thought this was pretty damn funny, especially when little Fayt tries to share his cookie! So adorable! That part cracks me up everytime! (does "little Albel" even have a mouth?) Of course, if you haven't played the game, you won't understand the jokes...

Congrats to My Cousin on "Robots"

A big congrats to my cousin Ian for his first animation job being a success. We're all very proud of you and we're looking forward to seeing more of your work up on the big screen! :-)

Manga Under Scrutiny in Maine

"In a recent column in the Deering High School newspaper, senior Colleen Hagyari questions why the school is spending tax dollars to buy "written garbage" such as the "Mew Mew" series, which averages six words a page and features seventh-grade girls who learn to "dress and act like floozies" to get what they want."

Oh yes. Moralistic soccar moms raise their ugly heads again. I guess its too difficult to think out side the box...

Full story

Hn...I'd just like to say as a parent myself, people need to lighten up. Hide things from your kids, and they'll just be all the more curious. My son reads manga. All kinds. Same goes for cartoons. I know what he's watching, and if a situation arises that might seem a bit "over his head", we talk about it. There are certain shows I won't let him watch at this time, but when he gets older, I intend on follow the same critera. There's nothing wrong with him. He's not bad. He's not damaged. If anything, he's better off than most children whose parents are to afraid to address touchy subjects.

I hate articles like this. As a parent, they piss me off.

Update: J's weblog has moved

Just a note, J's blog moved and I've updated the link.

J, I'm glad you're happy in Boise! We miss you, but you aren't so far away that we can't come visit! If you have a Borders there, I'll be sending you e-mails. Ha ha!

BTW, your "comments" part of you blog gives me a 404 page. Just thought you might want to know. Beware of comment sp@m too. I got tons of it before Jeff hooked me up with some stuff to stop it. Might want to check in to that too.

Jeff is cool! We both owe him a big thanks for everything he's done. Perhaps we should buy him a card? *winks at cousin*

Bleach and Naruto summaries

Well, I've finally had a moment to sit down and have a few moments to myself, so I figured I'd do my weekly summaries before tackling the rest of my weekend. *sigh* Busy, busy, busy!!!!

Anyway:

Naruto Chapter 151
Kankuro's puppets are in pieces and he's been poisoned by Sasori's scorpion tail thing. Sasori laughs at him and tells him that he is none other than the Sand's former puppet master. Kankuro asks why he left the village (20 years ago) and Sasori tells him he doesn't need to know because he's going to die anyway. Tenmari is sitting at a tea house eating dumplings when her tea cup cracks. She thinks how she doesn't believe stuff like that, but she's got a bad feeling. Kankuro nearly gets a hit on Sasori, but he's too weak from the poison. Sasori tells him he won't finish him off, but he'll die in three days. As he blacks out, he thinks "Gaara". Back in Konoha, the trio of Kakashi,Naruto, and Sakura are saying their farewell's to Tsunade and the others. Jiraiya shows up and warns Naruto about the Akatsuki, reminding him that they are after his Kyuubi. He also warns him not to get too hot headed and to NOT USE "that Juutsu"...(I'm assuming he's possibly taught him the sealing technique??? or something worse?) Zip back to the Sand, and Kankuro isn't fairing well. Apparently they're without a Kazekage candidate, because they mention with Kankuro out of the loop, they have to ask his "retired sibling" to do the job. Cut to Naruto and co. running into Temari...Is she going to be the next Kazekage until Gaara returns? At the same time, Sasori and Deidara (the "yeah" guy)are talking about "jinchuuriki", which literally means "monster inside a person". Deidara asks Sasori which "jinchuuriki" is his and Sasori he doesn't care who it is, just so long as he gets one. Hmmm...so apparently the Akatsuki are looking for people who have demons in them, so they can steal them and use them themselves. At least that's what I'm reading between the lines here. I don't understand why though...not to mention, Itachi doesn't strike me as the type to rely on "outside" power, but I could be wrong. Does this mean we're going to see more ninja appear with demons inside them? So far, we only know of Naruto and Gaara...

Bleach 170
This chapter starts off in color, with Gin and Aizen (bastards!) leaving the chamber. Hitsugaya runs in and sees them. He's stunned to see Aizen and doesn't believe it's really him at first. Aizen assures him he's the real deal then chides Gin for not coming up with a better plan to keep him busy longer. Gin apologizes, saying something about Kira not being enough. Hitsugaya asks what they're talking about, and Aizen replies "tactics" and then tells Hitsugaya that it's normal to have a plan when engaging the enemy. Hitsugaya askes him what enemy, then quickly wants to know where Hinomori is. Aizen answers "I wonder?" and Hitsugaya runs into the room and sees her body. Aizen apologizes that she was found so quickly and thinks out loud that he should have chopped her into pieces instead. Hitsugaya is pissed and asks how long he and Gin have been plotting together and Aizen replies that they've been together since the beginning...Aizen talks out his ass, saying a bunch of shit that doesn't make any sense and Hitsugaya gets even more pissed off. He points out that everyone was decieved, including Hinomori who idolized Aizen. She worked hard to become a vice captain in order to serve him, but he threw her away like trash. Aizen remarks that its easy to manipulate people who idolize him, so it worked out well. He then tells Hitsugaya that admiration doesn't equal understanding. No one has understood him. Histugaya goes Ban Kai, saying he's going to kill Aizen, but Aizen cuts him in one blow (WTF!!!) and defeats him. He tells Hitsugaya not to use such strong words, it makes him look weak. Well..........................I guess that's all I can say at this point. I have no friggen clue what those two jackasses are up to...but it's not good.

Bleach 21
A so so episode. Mostly a character introduction. Ganju appears, riding his warthog, Bonnie chan. He and Ichigo immediatly hate one another and start fighting (fist fighting). Ganju proclaims he's the #1 shinigami hater and demands that Ichigo and Co. leave. Ganju is a goof, but I really like the guy. Anyway, the clock strikes 9 and Ganju freaks, saying he has to leave. The episode ends with Bonnie chan leaping over (onto) Ichigo...ha ha!

Naruto 125
I was a bit disappointed that they didn't extend the fighting between the sound and sand nins. Oh well...Lee asks Gaara why he's helping them and Gaara says he owes Konoha a big debt. Kimimaro shoots these disgusting bone fragment things out of his finger tips and Gaara uses his sand to stop them (barely). Meanwhile, Shikamaru has ran out of oomph and Tayuya is about to finish him off but she's blown away by a huge wind. Temari appears with her fan and teases Shikamaru about being weak. She asks if he's going to give up and Shikamaru tells her he doesn't plan on it, nor does he want to be protected by a woman. Temari tells him to shut up about the man and woman crap. He tells her a bit about Tayuya's abilities and Tenmari uses her fan to slice up the tree and sends Tayuya's sound waves back at her, blowing her away.

Meanwhile, Sakon is looking for Kiba and wondering if Ukon has already caught him. Down the trail aways, Ukon is facing Kankuro and his puppet. Kiba tells his to watch out because the sound aren't to be taken lightly. He then smells Sakon and yells for Kankuro to watch out. Sakon leaps on Kankuro, grabbing him by the head. Kankuro fights him as Kiba tells him to look out for the special "merging" technique. Sakon says it's too late, but Kankuro's face breaks, and reveals that he was actually another puppet. The real Kankuro is wrapped up on the back, and he rips free. The puppet Sakon is holding breaks free and produces these mulitple saws on its arms, then grabs Sakon in a deadly "hug". Sakon is down for the count. Ukon changes back to his level 2 form and leaps in front of Sakon, allowing him to merge with his body. He then reverts to his "normal" form and comtemplates that he doesn't have much chakara left, but thinks it should be enough to defeat Kankuro. He says he's not usually the one in control and his rusty movement might be a problem. Kankuro attacks Ukon with his puppet, which shoots kunai and senbon from practically every part of its body. Ukon dodges all of it, but fails to see the OTHER puppet behind him. He trips and falls backwards into the large belly, which locks shut once he's inside. Kankuro smiles and says that his puppet Kuroari isn't an offensive puppet, it's used to capture targets. However, when used with Karasu, it becomes a weapon. Karasu splits apart in the air, its many arms revealing short swords at the end. The swords are driven into Kuroari and Ukon screams. All that's left afterwards is blood leaking from the slats of Kuroari.

Back in the forest, Tenmari gets more of an update on Tayuya and her skills. Shikamaru thinks its best to retreat, but Tenmari tells him no. She summons Kirikiri Mai, a weasle with a scythe and the spirit literally levels the entire forest. Tayuya is crushed beneath the trees.

Meanwhile, in the meadow, Garaa and Kimimaro prepare for their big show down...stay tuned next week for Kimimaro's untimely and uneventful demise....Though the fight between them should be decent enough...

Screen Caps

(I'll do screen caps of Bleach once I reach an episode worth taking the time to capture and edit them...)

There She Blows!

Mt. Saint Helens finally blew her stack yesterday afternoon! Who'd have guessed I'd live to see 2 erputions from one mountain in my lifetime? Hunter was terribly excited! We're expected to get some ash, but not much. Let's hear it for mother nature!

Albel Nox/Abarai Renji Wallpapers

Bored and cleaning up my computer, I sat down and got creative. Using manga clips I came up with a half-assed wallpaper of Albel. I think I'm gonna do a Gravi one next, starring K. There aren't enough "K" wallpapers out there. *laughs*

Doesn't Play Well with Others

To Your Knees

Well...shit again...(Bleach and Naruto summaries)

Hn...well, I have to say it was chapter 169 of Bleach that threw me for a loop this time.

The last time I checked, that guy was pinned to a wall, bleeding profusely.

Friggen Aizen. God damn him...Who would have suspected he was alive...

Anyway, this chapter starts off with Kira and Matsumoto fighting. And fighting some more. Kira is a freak now. He's totally lost it. They fight some more and he tells her he's going to show her his zanpaktou's ability. (yawn)

So, meanwhile, Hinomori is following Gin (stupid girl!!!) and he takes her to some top special area no one is allowed in. There she meets Aizen, and they have a tearful reunion. Then he stabs her and kills her, then walks off with Gin.

WTF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm having a hard time believing it is really him...perhaps he's one of those well made faux bodies the Research people were talking about awhile ago...but that would suggest that possibly Urahara is involved, and I think I'd be even more devistated if that happened.

But I called it, didn't I...I said last week, someone is going to die...but this was the LAST thing I expected.

*grumbles*

Okay, Naruto 250 has Gaara being taken away by the Akatsuki guy (the one that says "yeah" all the time). Kankuro gives chase but Baki tells him not to attack and track them instead. However, Kankuro being Kankuro, he confronts Akatsuki and demands they return Gaara. Sasori, other Akatsuki guy, tells the Yeah guy to go on without him. He uses this large scorpion like tail to stop Kankuro's puppet.

Back in Konoha, Tsunade is giving Naruto and Sakura crappy missions while Naurto bitches about it. A letter arrives and tells them what's happened at the Sand. Tsunade tells Kakashi to go help them and to take Sakura and Naruto with him.

Hn...nothing too exciting going on here, though I have to admit, I'm worried about Kankuro. I have feeling he's going to get messed up big time. Either that, or he's gonna have to have some super new move to save his butt from this mess. I don't think Gaara will be waking up anytime soon (he was nearly blown up, remember?)

Episode 124 was a lot more exciting. Actually, it was one of the better fights in Naruto, IMO. Very well done. Lee has mistaken Tsunade's sake for his medicine. He's drunk off his ass and not very pleasant. Apparently, he's a natural at "Drunken Fist". Yes, its been done a billion times, but this attempt was pretty damn cool. Lee owns Kimi, who can barely dodge him, let alone make an attack. The two of them duke it out until Kimimaro figures out what's going on (apparently, he's not the sharpest crayon in the box). He uses his special blood line limit to grow bones out of his body and then proceeds to mess Lee up. (It's gross) Meanwhile, Kiba is still on the run from Sakon and Ukon (I love those guys) and Shikamaru is grappling with the foul mouthed chick...and losing. Naruto is chasing Sasuke through the forest, getting more and more pissed by the minute.

Everyone is pretty much screwed at this point. Shikamaru has run out of strength, Ukon has found Kiba and Sakon isn't far behind, and Kimimaro is about to do Lee in. That's when the sand shows up and takes over. Next week will be awesome, especially the fight with Kankuro, Sakon, and Ukon. Kimimaro's demise is pretty anti clamactic...

The newest Bleach episode isn't anything special. They've made it to the Soul Society and have to fight Ju...crap, I forgot his name...anyway, he's a big dude with axes. Ichigo takes him on first and shows off Zangetsu's power (which was cool because...well...Zangetsu is just cool). He beats the big guy, who starts to cry because his axes got broken. Ichigo feels bad and apologizes. The big dude opens the gate for them, but freezes. Inside, Gin approaches, smiling that disgusting smile of his.

SCREEN CAPS

Sorry for the crappy screens. I started to edit them, but decided I was too friggin lazy to do them all. OH well...

Mean People Suck

I think we've all see this around at one time or another. "Mean People Suck".

Yes they do.

Why are people mean? Well, who knows, but they all have several things in common. Look at the word "mean". It can also be used to define something "small". Mean people live small, think small, and usually feel pretty "small" themselves. To feel big, they treat others badly because they aren't capable of being big on their own merit. The more smallness in thier lives and personality, the meaner they tend to be. It's actually pretty sad, when you think about it. It must be horrible to have such a crappy life and poor self esteem that you're unable to see anything good and decent in your life and feel forced to behave like an ass.

So how do you deal with one of these small minded nasties when they decide to target you? There's a few ways to handle them actually, but usually it depends on circumstance and personality. You can always do what this guy did (this story is probably not true, but it's funnier than hell), but that's a lot of time and effort to waste on a couple of assholes. Anyway, in most cases, smiling and outright laugher works well. Nothing throws a bully or jerk off more than when they insult you and you laugh in their face. Honestly, if you think about all the mean things that have ever been said to you, do they make much sense? No, probably not. Mean people live inside their own small little world where they are HUGE...laughing at them brings them back down into their smallness and makes them uncomfortable. Their words are meant to hurt. They make up the stupidest stuff to make others feel bad, often resorting to petty, school yard name calling. It's really asinine and funny when you think about it. If you really want to throw them, call them a "doo-doo head" or something equally as juvenile.

You can also counter meanness with head on. Usually this works with bullies who don't know you well and believe you'll just take their crap laying down. A few snappy comebacks and some "large" wit can shut them up. Then again, it can tick them off and send them spiraling into a diarreah of sophmoric cataurwauling that will make you want to stab them in the frontal lobe. Just remember how infanitle thier tiny minds are and try to feel some pity.

Ignoring a jerk has its uses too. The theory is that if you pretend not to see or hear someone's meanness, they'll think you aren't paying attention and leave you alone. This can backfire. Often, bullies just don't get it that you could give a shit about them, and mistake your silence for hurt feelings.

Of course, the honest truth is often a great counter to meanness. The saying "truth hurts" is very accurate. Calling a bully out and pointing out all their personality flaws will either make them run crying, or start a fist fight...so be prepared.

Overall, assertivness seems to work the best. Jerks are more often than not, preditors looking for people who'll put up with their crap. They have to be bigger, they have to be right, they have to be the best, even when they suck at everything they do. Feel bad for them. They aren't very smart. Case in point, the sticker we've all seen before. Jerkoffs decided to counter with their own sticker, and in a stroke of brilliance came up with the slogan "Mean people suck, but nice people blow/swallow."

Uhhhhh...correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't it all go together? *shakes head* You see, they aren't creative enough to think big and come up with something orginal. Poor saps.

Don't let mean people intimidate you. Pity them, laugh at them, and put them in their place. They need guidance from us realistic, centered individuals. Only then can they begin to become constructive, useful human beings again.

Poor Hunter

Today has been one of those days all the way around. I think the worst thing that happened today was the people hosting the tennis tourney called to say that Hunter was the only 10 year old boy to sign up for it. Everyone else was several years older and far more experienced.

Needless to say, he won't be participating and he's terribly upset. I feel so bad for him, because he was so excited. How do you explain to a kid that they aren't just skilled enough to play with the bigger kids? He's fairly good for a beginner, but not good enough to play with older children yet. He doesn't understand that. I just told him that there were no kids his age playing, so he there were no matches for him.

He went to bed early today, in tears, and I can't do much to make it better.

That really sucks.

Another Sketch

Finished another drawing. Started on another one, but it pissed me off so I've set it down for the time being. I think I've tapped my creativity for the day...time to leave things be and come back later...*sigh* I miss my art classes. I could do so much better than this stuff...

At least maybe...*weak laugh*

deadman120: Your spelling and personality suck way worse than any of my drawings. Lynard would be ashamed. If you stopped smoking so much weed, you might be able to upgrade that old ass OS of yours, you troll.

THIS is why I'm against Ritalin for kids

All 12 of the children included in the study experienced an increase in chromosome abnormalities three months after starting Ritalin. Chromosome damage has been linked to heightened cancer risk and to other health problems.

“Nobody is saying that because a child takes Ritalin he or she will develop cancer,” toxicologist and senior investigator Marvin Legator, PhD, tells WebMD. “There is nothing certain about this yet, but this is potentially a very large risk factor.” Full Story at Fox News

Hn. Now I'm even more happy I was so adamantly against medicating my son, who has been diagnosed with ADD (not ADHD). Actually, after speaking to another doctor, he suggested we have him tested for an audotory processing problem instead. He doesn't think Hunter has ADD, but rather a problem processing and remembering information he hears. He goes in this spring.

Happy March!

It's March already! Can you believe that! This weekend, Hunter will be participating in his first tennis tournament! Go Hunter! yay!