蝴蝶的夢

screams~

2012-02-01T01:32:00.001+08:00

So I’ve unlocked most of the episodes for Hirikawa-san’s storyline. I’ve just finished “Knocking on the Mind” in Pro mode, rank A, and what was I greeted with?

I’m sorry, but if you can’t read Japanese, I refuse to translate this for you. And if you can read Japanese, I’m pretty sure it’s not what your thinking. ~~*nosebleed~*~~

I must say this much: I finally got Hijirikawa-san to kiss me! He sounds so much sweeter than the passionate Jinguji-san and playful Natsuki-san~ Eeee~ I will have lots of sweet dreams tonight!

I’m actually surprised that I’m unlocking these left and right… although I’m pretty sure I’ll hit a slump when it comes to Natsuki-san’s Hard and Pro modes. Lol, but my right-hand hurts a lot! I might need to wear my wrist support soon!

Hm… Perhaps I should try getting my own screenshots of these things.

Uta☆Pri Music

2012-01-26T23:50:00.002+08:00

Ok, thanks to Misaki-chan again, I’m stuck on my PSP, gaming like a boss lady~ My mother seems to have the idea that I’ve lost my mind since I’m always smiling to myself lately, but I digress…

“Uta☆Pri Music” has a lot of really catchy songs, and it kinda reminds me of DJ Max, only this feels much more complicated since you need to use one of any arrow keys on the left, then the X, Square, and Triangle on the right. What’s more, they used a music sheet layout, so it’s side scrolling instead of a continuous rain of notes like DJ Max.

Needless to say it fried my brain.

But my brain fought back~ Woohoo! I’ve unlocked all the songs after 4 days of gaming and I can do a few songs on Hard mode now too! Apparently, you need to get all the hearts in the character songs in order to get the “otome game”-like scenes like the one I'm posting here graciously translated by Bread Master Lee.

It kinda bribes the female gamers to try their best in the Pro levels because the scenes… Hnngh… Th-they’re voiced, and the voice actors… actually make kiss noises at you!

dsjfhslghdlfgd!!! ~~Be still my heart!~~ Natsuki, stop that! I’m supposed to like Hijirikawa, but after this game, I think you’ve won me over! But why are your songs so difficult to play?! Grawr~!

But I guess that will make the guys run away from this game for dear life now.

Sadly, it’s a Japanese game, so it’s challenging my Japanese language skills(?) which are poor at best, but I really don’t care! Their ~~kisses~~ voices and music are more than enough to make me play this game over and over again.

Oh yeah, Satsuki is never satisfied even if you get a perfect game. He apparently likes to call you a “stupid octopus”. sdkfsklgh!!! I will be a Pro Composer yet, just you wait, Satsuki!!!

Nutritional Diary: 2012.01.18

2012-01-18T01:27:00.001+08:00

So, after 2 weeks of this whole “dieting / eating better + exercise because this is my new year’s resolution (again)” thing, how am I doing so far?

Well, the bad news is, I stayed up late for about 3 nights in a row. One of which was an all-nighter. Literally. No sleep for more than 48 hours can seriously make you crave the worse kinds of food. You can probably guess the guilt-trip I went into. I mean, 3 sodas, snacking, junk food, and a ton of coffee? I feared the weighing scale!

Surprisingly though, I lost 3 pounds from new year’s day. Mark it, people: 3. pounds.

Woohoo! I guess all this walking really does help! But of course, this doesn’t give me the excuse of eating a lot of junk food simply because I can walk it off! No, no, I really need to do better next time and try to get some proper sleep! And I still haven’t found a good jumping rope yet… I was going to get one last Sunday, but I ended up staying in because of work!

Oh well, in the meantime, I’m celebrating that 3 pound lose like a boss! I hope this will last for a while! I’m beginning to like walking up and down the stairs for the additional tone-up! But I guess, since I was quite athletic before, I need to up my training a little bit. I don’t think I’m sweating as much as I first did a few weeks ago… Ah, and more water, less coffee for me! Hope I can stick to my goals this week!

And to remind myself that I should take better care of me, I’m going to buy those yarns and start making that cosplay sweater. I’m not saying which cosplay this is for yet! But yeah… time to start~!

Uta☆Pri: Knocking on the Mind

2012-01-16T00:02:00.002+08:00

I wanted to tell everyone my reason why I love Uta no ☆ Prince-sama ♪ very much. So I thought, why not make is a blog update, right?

Let me tell you a wonderful story about a boy and a girl…

When Haruka, the main character of UtaPri, was being bullied by her classmates in episode 3, she became so traumatized that she couldn’t play the piano anymore. Her fingers simply refused to move “as if her heart froze”, and she didn’t know what to do.

Hijirikawa Masato knew what it was like to feel intimidated, but since he was raised in a strict environment, he couldn’t express himself properly even though he was really concerned about Haruka. On his first attempt to comfort her, Hijirikawa said, “It’s tough, isn’t it? Even if you’re told not to let it get to you, it’s impossible.”

Don’t we also feel the same way? We say “I won’t let it get to me” but even in a small way, it really hurts.

That’s probably why Hijirikawa’s attempt didn’t go so well, because Haruka felt that she was being naive about coming to the prestigious Saotome Academy simply because she liked music. She never had formal lessons, unlike everyone else. She couldn’t stop her tears, so she excused herself, but Hijirikawa already saw that she was crying. He probably wondered if his words had also hurt her like the rest.

Finally, when Haruka wasn’t showing up for class, Hijirikawa skipped class as well and went to see her. He confessed that he knew what she was going through, and spoke about his past concerning his strict upbringing. Like Haruka having her grandmother, Hijirikawa had an old butler who simply let him to be himself and even taught him how to play the piano.

Hijirikawa then played a simple melody: “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”. The song brought back Haruka’s fond memories of playing the piano in her grandmother’s house when she was younger. Slowly, her fingers began to move.

There was a significant meaning as to why Hijirikawa played “the Star song”. Harukawa doesn’t know this but deep in Hijirikawa’s mind, he treasured the memory of having first met her. It was not in the academy, but in a playground where she was teaching children how to sing “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”. Seeing her so happy and singing with all her heart was what made him discover the joy of music. This short moment stirred something inside Hijirikawa and instead of just following what his father told him to do, he began to have dreams and aspirations of his own.

I'm not sure why Hijirikawa never told Haruka about that memory. Maybe it's because of his upbringing or because romance is absolutely forbidden in Saotome Academy. But then, he decided to say, “I want you to listen to something.”

I wrote this song after I met you. So... Right now, I want to share with you the joy of music.

The lyrics of the songs took my breath away. It was on the third line of the first stanza that really hit me…

Your dreams are always knocking on your mind. Feel it…

Even if you tremble in the cold darkness in some corner street,
Don’t be afraid, Pure Heart.
Flowers always keep their heads up.

After the song, Hijirikawa continued to help Haruka until she was finally able to perform in class. I don’t know, but I guess for me, this always-serious-and-frowning bishie reminded me that there are still wonderful people in this world.

I too, know what it was like to be bullied. And I’m sure everyone’s had their dreams crushed one way or another. But when that happens, think about Hijirikawa’s song. Indeed, flowers always face up, so hold your head up high and go through those walls that are blocking your dreams. Show them, that even though their words hurt you, you can definitely, definitely be strong and rise above the ashes! Gambatte ne?

周杰倫 (Jay Chou): Mine Mine

2012-01-14T00:03:00.001+08:00

I promised Misaki-chan that I would recommend more CPop songs, so let me start with my favorite one from Jay Chou's latest album "Exclamation": Mine Mine.

I don't know if there's a separate category for CPop by Taiwanese Pop Stars, because he’s singing in Mandarin and Tai-gi, Taiwan’s National(?) Language. But when I first heard this song in Hong Kong? I fell in love~ The beats, the lyrics, the dance moves… Even if I don’t think Jay Chou is that handsome, he’s at least nice to look at. And that piano is absolutely gorgeous!

In any case, Jay Chou is singing about a girl he loves so much that he almost wants to spoil her. Helping her pay for her ticket, helping her with her umbrella when “it’s already open”… all these chivalrous things seem strange to her, but he wants to do so because she’s his. Thus, “Mine Mine”.

And that to see her angry face is like winter everyday for him.

My translation is far from accurate, because I only know a few words, but I think this is half of the story of this song. He was also saying that if it was ok, when they have fights, not to tell her friends about it… Because later he would not be able to face them.

So Misaki-chan! How did I do? My translation is probably bad at best, so please ignore me! Maybe I should write about a more upbeat song next time!

Playing Pangya Online Again!

2012-01-12T00:01:00.000+08:00

If you haven't already noticed all the pangya emoticons in my blog, then let me just say that it's thanks to LeiLei that I’m addicted to playing Pangya Online again. This time, it’s in the US servers, so I had to start from scratch!

At least they were gracious enough to give me a few items after playing the tutorial mode. That little black mascot, Cocoa, has been kindly giving me +10% pang as well as 10 pang for every pangya, so pangs are not too hard to get. Most of the stuff in this server are acquired by points though, which is really annoying! But I guess the consolation of being able to purchase point items via pang for 7 day rentals is not too bad.

So far, Hana was able to get me an albatross in the new (for me at least) Wiz City map. But you know me, I’m not going to stop until I get my favorite character, even if it meant sleeping at 6 in the morning during my first play!

Yup, I got myself a Kooh after only a few hours of game play. This is thanks to all those tournaments and a new bonus: spinning boxes + key of fortune. The common items you get are 15 exp, 2000 pang, and temporary rings. All those 2000 pang pouches got me nearly 19,000 pang in a short time!

Ah, and Kooh got me a Hole In One during my 18 hole versus game with LeiLei. Just when I was complaining about not having an HIO in my records, I got lucky~

You know what this means, of course… More sleepless nights and more “Pangya!” shouting in my speakers. Even my brother knows what pangya is now, haha! Such a bad little sister.

So! Come play with me?

Nutritional Diary: 2012.01.10

2012-01-10T00:02:00.001+08:00

As far as the new year goes, I’m no different from everyone else in the world. Our number one resolution?

“This year, for sure! I will lose those pounds!”

And every year, it’s the same story… “I gained weight!”

So how is this year going to be any different?

Well, there’s this blog sitting around doing nothing. It’s hardly ever updated anymore, since I don’t write as much as I used to. Not to mention that I’ve been concentrating on kurohiko.com most of the time. So in order for me to write more and keep up on my diet, I’m planning to update this blog 2-4 times a month regarding my exercise, diet, and binges!

This is probably going to be super tough and embarrassing. I’m already regretting writing about it, but I need to keep my mind focused on losing weight. Hey, if the world’s ending this year, might as well look good for it! And cosplay before everything blows to smithereens.

So how was my first week++ of January?

Looking pretty good! I’ve been keeping my rice portions down, although I did finish a full cup that one lunch with my mom. Chicken cordon bleu, why are you so tasty? Ah, and there was that one McDonald’s day where I had a Coke Float… I can’t help it! Coke is my comfort food! But I gotta do better next week and skip the soda!

I’ve been cooking vegetables for dinner meals though. Not every night, but it’s more veggies than this family’s ever seen or eaten in a long time! Mom’s so proud.

As for exercise? 2 days of 5k walks while wearing a raincoat (a friend of mine swears that it’s super effective) and a night of swimming 10 laps at Ace Water Spa. Not bad! I want to at least maintain a 2 day per week of walking. Maybe get a jump rope too since it gets boring after a while, even with new songs in my mp3! When it’s taking too long, I sprint the last few hundred steps.

So! What’s your new year’s resolution and how are you doing so far?

Farewell, Kaname~ Greetings 2012!

2012-01-09T01:11:00.006+08:00

I had such a great Christmas dinner and thought to myself: “Vampire Knight’s so depressing these days, and it’s kinda affecting my mood and my blogging! I think I need to start the new year with a new series that’s bright, colorful, and cheery!”

Enter UtaPri! Short for Uta no Prince-sama!

I guess my blog’s layout is extremely shocking compared to my last one, but hey! It makes me smile looking at the silhouettes of Strish from their cover song “Maji Love 1000%”! Because their action for 1000% is the “ok” hand sign, and it’s a reminder that someway, somehow, everything will turn out ok!

…eh, maybe that line was taken from Card Captor Sakura’s “Everything will be alright”, but it’s very true~ So onwards 2012! Let’s hope I can get myself to blog more often this year than last year! Everyone cheer up! And have a great day ahead! Yes, yes!

The Meme Proposal

2011-12-23T04:35:00.001+08:00

I don't know about you guys, but that proposal is certainly one for the books. It made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside~ ♥

Best wishes to Tim and Audrey~ I hope you both have a happy married life~ ♥

But it makes me wonder, what if Audrey said no? Did he have something prepared for that scenario as well?

梁文音: 還是朋友

2011-12-07T11:38:00.001+08:00

I’m currently in Hong Kong with my sister and brother-in-law, and I’m disappointed that there’s been a ton of changes with the selection of anime and manga here. Five-something years ago, I can buy anime figures everywhere. Now, Sino Center looks so bare, with only a handful of anime stores in the whole building!

Oh well, at least I’m getting to update my Chinese mp3 list. Here’s one from 梁文音, “Still Friends After Breaking Up”. It’s so cute and it gives you a light-hearted, happy feeling. She’s saying that maybe one day, the guy she broke up will remember that silly girl… Well, I’m not qualified to translate this, so I’ll ask my sister later. :D

Sweets & Bitters

2011-11-26T01:52:00.001+08:00

I don't really "ship" any of the Vocaloids, but in this particular song? I support the Kamui Gakupo and Megurine Luka pairing. >: Just read this lyrics translation of the chorus:

Turn spoiled behavior and jealousy both into joy
Because doing nothing but seeking is boring
I'll give you unending tenderness
SO I'm not sending you back

I love how their relationship in this music video is serious yet playful. Isn’t this how love’s supposed to be like? What ever happened to those kinds of princes anyway? Did they all die out in the 18th century?! ;o;

A Lady and Her Butler

2011-10-22T04:06:00.001+08:00

I've had some creepy dreams about Kuroshitsuji after the first season of the anime ended… In fact, Sebastian generally creeps me out, even though I find this character to be quite “handsome”. I mean, who would want to have their souls eaten, right?

Well, the other night… rather, Sunday afternoon, I took a nap because I barely slept the night before, trying to fix my printer. I wanted to print some test panels for my independent comics for Komikon, but one of the gears cracked and I had to have it fixed the next morning (my only chance of getting out of the house, if you know what I mean).

Afternoon naps generally give me vivid dreams, but this one is still stuck on my mind.

In the dream, Sebastian was my butler. I wasn’t Ciel, because he called me “my lady” and I’m pretty sure… Ciel wasn’t there at all. It started out… familiar, because I told him I was tired- because of the same reasons that I was tired in the real world. He basically let me sleep and carried me to my room.

But in the next instance, I was going to meet my father for dinner. Now, I generally do this in the real world too, every Sunday, but it’s usually with the entire family. In the dream, Dad looked much older than his real self, and mom wasn’t with him. But it didn’t feel as unnatural as it should have been. I had the distinct feeling about a divorce of some sort, but I didn’t talk about it and neither did he.

I sat down, but refused to eat and let him finish whatever it was that was on his plate, when we overheard the people from the table beside us talking about some wealthy bachelor from a prestigious family marrying someone. My Dad, as usual, wanted to hear the details even though he couldn’t hear well anymore, so Sebastian whispered to me what it was about. It turned out that the bachelor wouldn’t refuse the arranged marriage because the girl was quite beautiful.

Dinner ended, and I left. I didn’t leave with my Dad, and went home to my own manor. I went to the garden that evening and felt like dancing in the moonlight. And who else would be my dancing partner but Sebastian himself. Smiling, like he does in that icon.

All of these details in a matter of a little less than 2 hours of sleep. It was rather intriguing. Nothing felt unnatural, even my being very emotionless. Hm…

Now I think I’ll make it a habit to write up about these. :3

Grandfather is Watching…

2011-10-12T01:24:00.001+08:00

I-if this isn't a scary encounter, I don't know what is.

It’s common knowledge to my family that the warehouse in our complex is “haunted”. My mother claims it’s the spirit of her late father, because he died before everything could be settled properly.

I’ve never seen this “ghost” so I never believed these stories. My dad always asks me to accompany him when he needs to check something in the warehouse at night. And he always, always tells me not to wander too far away from him.

Well, because I need to take care of my parents in the morning until evening, I only have time for myself after dinner. Usually, from 8 pm – 1 am, I would either be working on Mist, updating Cosplay Holic, or just recently, walking and/or jogging inside the warehouse. It’s the largest open space I have for my bi-weekly exercise, so at 8:30 pm last Friday, I went for a walk.

Some time around 9:00 pm, I heard footsteps. His pace was much slower than mine, in a sort of hushed steps. I was confused because I had my mp3 on, so how could I be hearing a second pair of footsteps behind me?

I decided to stop walking… I could still hear the steps.
Then I took off my headset… the footsteps were a little louder.
The footsteps stopped. I turned around-

No one was there.

Then I told myself: “C-chill, Rei! It’s probably someone… maybe dad or your nephew’s playing a trick on you! Yes, that’s it! J-just have a look around… you’ll find someone hiding… somewhere!”

But I checked everywhere, including the locks on all the doors.
No one was there, and everything was locked up tight.

Needless to say, I finished the last 1000 steps faster than usual and went home. This is the first time I “heard” something without seeing it. It’s usually the other way around! You could say I’m kind of glad I sprained my ankle yesterday (another story for another time), but I really would like to get to the bottom of this… encounter.

…huh. I guess I’ll be taking that walk tomorrow evening after all.

Club Punta Fuego

2011-09-22T04:37:00.001+08:00

Some time last summer, my brother decided he was going to invite himself to his friend’s rest house which included a private beach; at least, that was what he told me.

He decided to drag me along for the trip, because he wanted a navigator to help him find his way and keep him awake. It’s pretty far from Manila, but I guess that’s the whole point seeing only the rich people can afford to live here.

When we arrived at the gates of the club, you can’t enter unless you actually know someone who owns property within the vicinity. I didn’t think much of it, until we actually entered the gates.

Just look at the gorgeous architecture! Each house is designed differently with their own themes and gardens. I noticed that most of them were newly built, but then again, I think the rich can afford to paint their houses once every year right?

But… I mean- come on, yachts?! And apparently, there are a couple of people who own more than one! I thought these kinds of rich folk only existed in movies!

I wanted to ride in one, but I don’t think anyone would take any free loaders. xD;;; Oh well…

The main clubhouse was pretty packed with people lounging by the infinity pool and indoor cafe. It was hot, so I guess the guests prefer to hang around with their iPads. ;u; I could only sit idly by in envy.

We then decided to go and hit the beach. Only to find out "Upper Beach" didn't really mean a beach at all! But this smaller, infinity pool was practically deserted, so we hung around here a lot to get some peace and quiet… and a nice nap.

And finally, the beach! The water was cold and crystal clear! Goodness gracious I could spend the entire day there just walking in the sand, picking up tiny shells, and building sand castles!

Sadly, we only got to spend a few hours there, because this was only a day trip. It was a fantastic day trip though! Definitely wishing I could afford to buy a house there. ;_; All that beautiful nature… I would be inspired to draw all day long!

And this would be my hand, with a paper pass around my wrist. The most amazing thing is, I swam with that pass in the pool, in the ocean, and I even showered with it! It didn’t tear off!

I guess the rich can even afford to make water-proof paper for their guests. *_*;;; Oh man… Remembering this trip is making me wish I had all the money in the world. Then I could draw manga all day long in my beach house. Le sigh~

And that was how I spent one of my memorable days of summer this year. :D Time for some sleep~

The Sorcerer and the White Snake

2011-09-12T00:41:00.002+08:00

Looks like Jet Li is coming up with another film~ I thought he was done with these ancient, Chinese martial arts films, but I guess he changed his mind!

The film is based on the Chinese Legend of the White Snake. I haven’t heard of this until now, so I might check out some of the books we have in the library to see if I can find out more about it. The film was also shown out of competition at the 68th Venice International Film Festival last 3rd of September, so I’m guessing there are a lot of nifty effects to look forward to~

Can’t wait until the 28th~ Please show this in the original Mandarin dialect with English subtitles! I’m begging you Philippines!!!

Flip. Flop.

2011-08-03T04:21:00.001+08:00

Summer’s officially over and the tropical storms are ~blowing~ me over. You know that, and I know that, but why in the world am I shopping for flip-flops at this time of the year?!

Quite possible because I can't resist skull candies like these. The only thing I hate about these cute designs is that they don’t last very long. >.>;;; You’d think they can come up with better printing by now! But oh well… All things must come to an end. =/

And then there’s this one.

What? The butterflies were cute so of course I had to get them. >.>;;;

Kozui Green Tea Cafe

2011-07-18T14:35:00.001+08:00

Kozui is well-known for their Green Tea soft-serve ice cream, especially their Japanese version of Halo-Halo known as Anmitsu. I mean, look at that gorgeous, green swirl and tell me your mouth doesn’t water. And with taro, green tea jelly, red bean, sago, a fruit of your choice, and mochi? How could anyone resist?

…I did last week, and it was because of this:

If you've hanged around with me enough, you’ll know that I have a weak spot for milk tea. Whether it’s hot or cold, I love having my teas with milk~ Now Kozui came up with a medley that I will forever love: Cherry Blossom Milk Tea. They call it Tokyo Sakura, and it is a must try. :D If you don’t like sweets that much (like yours truly~), then ask the server to make it less sweet. The fragrance of the blossoms in the tea is always more than enough for me to ask for more.

I have tried the rose version though, which is what I plan to have next time I go to Kozui~ Which will be very soon, since I’m already dreaming about it while I’m writing this~ ♥

On another note, why does it feel like summer again? ;x;

Butterfly Comb

2011-07-15T22:02:00.001+08:00

I finally for my bluetooth working on my new PC! I have so many photos in my phone that I want to post here that I don’t know which to show first!

However, I am currently swamped with work and drawing and manga, so I will start with something simple:

This is a hand-carved, pine wood comb I bought from Hua Mulan in SM Annex. Apparently, natural materials such as wood, ox horn, and goat horn make excellent combs because the mainstream, plastic types will cause hair static.

I’m not sure what else the girl was saying, but my sister swears by their product! I wasn’t really interested in buying one until I saw this.

<_< >_> What? I really like butterflies long before I met Yuuko-san!

So far, it does make my hair more manageable than usual. My hair is very hard to tame, so that says a lot! Plus, I comb my hair more often now, because I like poking the butterflies on the comb. ;u;

Simple pleasures… we must treasure them daily~ Just like my lovely Kaname-sama layout~~ ♥

Lunar Eclipse

2011-06-16T22:58:00.001+08:00

By luck and plurk, I had the opportunity to see the full lunar eclipse that occurred earlier this morning… This photo was taken by my phone’s camera. However, it’s not what you think!

It was around 3am when the moon turned into a nice, glowing red ball. The maximum lunar eclipse was around 4:12am, but by then, the moon was too low in the sky for me to see or take a proper photo!

I then turned to Slooh for the live feed. Only Dubai and Cyprus had available feeds, but you know Slooh, they won’t let you take a screenshot of what you see on your monitors!

What did I do?

I took a photo of my screen. Literally.

Then with the magic of photoshop, I have this “clear” photo of the lunar eclipse~ ♥

Oh, and I changed my signature for my photos~ If this better than the old one?

Nendroid Crazy

2011-04-18T13:59:00.001+08:00

Admittedly, I never thought I would get into Nendroids from Good Smile Company. For one thing, there are rather large for chibi figures, and having changeable parts isn’t really a good incentive in my opinion…

I say this while owning 3 Nendroids already… and I’m still searching for other characters I might like to add to my collection. It’s all Sebastian’s fault. Him and his cute cat.

Oh, and I did find a reason to like interchangeable parts:

Saber Lily looks like she stepped out of Fate/Zero when she’s in Sebastian’s body. Roflmao~ xD Guess I can go without buying that figure anymore!

DBSK: Why Did I End Up Falling For You?

2011-03-25T01:35:00.001+08:00

DBSK’s どうして君を好きになってしまったんだろう？or "Why did I end up falling for you?" has been stuck on my playlist on continuous repeat that I think I need to post about it again.

The moment I heard this song, it made me think that the lyrics sounded so sad despite the beautiful melody. Mind you, I’m not fluent in Japanese at all, so I was surprised when I read the translation of the lyrics…

それでも君が僕のそば離れていっても
永遠に君が幸せであること
ただ願ってる
たとえそれがどんなに寂しくても
（切なくても）

But, even though I say that I need you close to me
I just pray that you will be happy forever
No matter how lonely that makes me (or how sad)

Translations and lyrics from DBSKer

For those who don’t follow my art blog, I drew a fake screenshot of Vampire Knight’s Kaname and Yuuki. Please check it out too when you have time!

Baguio: Oh Mai Khan!

2011-02-28T21:54:00.001+08:00

Mongolian barbeque is not something I’d actually crave for, but Oh Mai Khan in Baguio City is an exception to that.

They have one dish in particular that never fails to blow me away, and that’s “Taste of Asia”! The beef is somewhat crispy on the outside and very tender on the inside. That’s not the most accurate way of explaining it, but you really have to try it!

The down side was their salad… I didn’t really like how it tasted, but their other dishes made up for that nicely! The strawberry sorbet is also very good, but it’s not your typical sorbet, it’s a drink! Think fresh strawberry with ice shake… absolutely heavenly! But if you’re not a fan of sweet stuff like me, better ask the server to separate the syrup.

I tend to do that nowadays when it comes to fresh fruit shakes… I guess I’m losing my sweet tooth?

Overall a good place to go to when you’re in Baguio. Just be sure to ask around for where it is, because the streets can be a little confusing… don’t be shy, the locals are quite friendly~ ♥

Sword Dance and Shadowgraph

2011-02-22T19:53:00.001+08:00

I never would have thought doing a kata on stage would look this cool.

Alright, alright, so it’s not than just any simple series of sword slashes, dodges, and tumbles… It has animation to go with it. But however came up with this is pure genius, ok? Ok.

Mario Karting in the Real World

2011-02-18T01:16:00.001+08:00

I would totally play this game if it weren’t for the cops. Seriously.

A Christmas Package on a Magical Journey

2011-02-04T00:01:00.001+08:00

~~Soubi’s~~ Dai’s package finally arrived the other day… which made me curious because for one thing, it took a lot longer than usual, even for something coming from the USA.

Upon closer inspection, it arrived in Pakistan on Christmas Eve. Normal enough, until I saw the front, which was stamped “missent to Malaysia”.

…my gift got to see Malaysia before I did.

And did I mention the post office asked me to open the package in front of them? They were probably curious to see what I was waiting for since last Christmas. Then again, when I said I was expecting a card and they received a package instead, I guess they were concerned? That or all packages must be inspected by the post office or something.

…needless to say, I squealed like a little girl when I opened the paper wrapped gift inside.

Golden butterfly earrings ~~that my camera phone refuses to take a clear picture of~~! ;_; They’re so cute and pretty and-

…now I feel that itch to have my ears pierced again. T_T

I’m not about to show you what Dai wrote in my card… but I thought I’d share this P.S. because for the love of me, my Soubi fangirlyness is showing. And besides, Dai has cute handwriting~

Now to think about whether or not I should pierce my ears. ;x; I’ve always wanted to, but the pain involved is making me run the opposite direction.

THANK YOU DAI~♥! I love my gift to bits and pieces! ;o;

Surreal Serenity

2011-02-03T04:35:00.001+08:00

Because of my current job as a ~~scientist~~ science blogger for WeaselTech, I’ve been researching a lot on Astronomy, Health, and other scientific findings that are worth mentioning.

I’ve come across APOD (Astronomy Picture of the Day) and found a beautiful photo that I can’t use for my work… so I thought I might as well blog about it here.

That is Venus hovering above the moon as seen Sunday morning in snowy eastern Switzerland. You can see the peaks of the Alps just below the rising sun, but the huge mountain on the right is Mittlerspitz. You can also see the light from the village of Trübbach the small town of Balzers, Liechtenstein far below.

And why did I post this photo, you ask?

Because I saw something similar along Marcos Highway during my trip to Baguio two weeks ago. I wasn’t able to get a proper photo of the cloud blanketed valleys, so I might as well settle for this instead.

Tagaytay: The Lake Hotel

2011-01-21T13:39:00.002+08:00

Because my brother had some business to do in Tagaytay last weekend, my sister and I decided to come along and enjoy the cold air.

Surprisingly, it was much colder in Tagaytay than it was in Baguio the week before. I’m not complaining though; I love the cold weather much more than the humidity of Quezon City.

Brother’s acquaintance is currently working in the Lake Hotel. I must say, the accommodations were lovely, but the prices are way too much… much more than Taal Vista, which is very surprising. I guess since it was newly built in November 2009 that they could jack up the prices, but unless I’m earning more than I can spend, I don’t think I can stay there.

Good thing it was only a day trip though, because I don’t think my wallet can afford any more abuse. xD;;;

Baguio City: The Good Shepherd’s Garden

2011-01-19T00:02:00.000+08:00

My brother has a sweet tooth for Good Shepherd’s Peanut Brittle, Strawberry Jam, Ube, among many other confectionaries this brand is well-known for.

I don’t like sweets very much, aside from the occasional Strawberry Jam on buttered toast. And I didn’t need to buy anything for anyone since no one really knew I went to Baguio in the first place. :D So I decided to walk around the gardens to enjoy the cool air while I still could. :3

For the record, even though I was alone during my walk, I was not emo tripping. ~~Ok, maybe a little, but that doesn’t count!~~ I’m actually glad I had a camera phone with me, since these will make very good art references some day.

Note to self: Buy a DSLR when you get the chance. I bet these photos would have turned out much better with a good camera. *A*;;; Ah well, such is life…

Good Taste: Cafe and Restaurant in Baguio City

2011-01-18T00:01:00.000+08:00

When people tell me not to judge a book by its cover, I now think about this particular restaurant, opened 24 hours in Baguio City.

Located in 8-9 Lapu-Lapu Street, Good Taste may be a little hard to find, but well worth the trip. The setting and crowd in itself is not exactly “fine dining”… actually, it’s more like a chaotic, fast food place that’s jam-packed with hungry people all waiting to be served!

But I have to say, the serving sizes are huge, the price is affordable, and the food is absolutely delicious! Looking at this very bad photo of their famous buttered chicken is making my mouth water while I’m writing this. *o*;;; Their crispy pata and bihon were quite something as well.

I wouldn’t recommend to dine in this place at night though, because we did have some trouble with drunks along the side streets to find our way back to our car. Next time we’re going back, we’ll be ordering some take out and eat back in our hotel. I’m not sure if they have delivery service, but you can try calling them at (63 74) 444-2201.

…I should not have written this blog post so late at night. Now I’m craving for that buttered chicken. *A*;;; Mmm…

Camp John Hay: the Manor

2011-01-17T03:26:00.001+08:00

It took me a while to get them together, but here are a few photos from Camp John Hay’s Manor where my siblings and I stayed in Baguio last weekend.

The Manor itself is quite huge, and the rooms are comfortable enough that I wouldn’t mind if I had to stay indoors all day. Prices are slightly higher than the hotels you first get to when you enter the city proper, but it’s well worth the extra few hundred pesos when you want peace and quiet at night and a breathtaking view.

Both the facilities and the staff make you feel like you’re one of the richest people alive. I really liked the garden with this small waterfall because there were koi fish in them! None of them were significantly huge or pretty, but they were obviously well-fed. Too bad they swam too quickly for me to snap a photo of them.

We had a breakfast buffet on Sunday morning, and I have to admit, I wouldn’t mind going back there to eat again. You could probably tell from the lack of photos that we were all too happy to finish our meals that we forgot all about taking pictures!

The weather is excellent this time of the year too. It’s quite cold compared to Manila, which is a welcome change for many I’m sure, but it’s better to pack those jackets just in case your body can’t take the cold!

Overall, the Manor is a very nice place to stay in when you visit Baguio. I believe there is another facility within the area call "the Suites” which is similar to the Manor but is still under going construction. Same prices and accommodations, but less people stay there since only a few rooms are available. I wouldn’t mind trying that out once I get back to Baguio though~ ♥

The Manor at Baguio

2011-01-10T13:43:00.003+08:00

My siblings decided to go to Baguio this weekend while the parents are away. :3 It's just an overnight stay, but I have to say, Camp John Hay is really quite something.

The Manor makes you feel like a million bucks. xD All of the staff wear white gloves and the gardens are amazing. :3 I could just stay in this hotel and I'd be satisfied, but of course, my siblings get bored easily, so we'll be heading out in a few minutes to see Ibays for some silver then off to the market for some fresh fruits and vegetables.

Speaking of vegetables, I've never tasted vegetables so sweet. I guess what they say about Baguio having the freshest vegetables is quite true. :3

We ate a lot of good food at the most unlikely places too. I wish I brought along my bluetooth dongle for my laptop, but I doubt I'd have time to edit the photos.

I'll post more later... for now, I'm going to go get some strawberries and fondue~ ♥

Christmas Fireworks

2010-12-30T00:01:00.000+08:00

Despite not having a good camera, I do my best to capture fireworks displays with my Nokia 2760. Mind you, the camera’s only a VGA, but I’m quite impressed with the results.

It seems odd that SM North’s Christmas Fireworks paled in comparison to Trinoma’s though.

I think I was lucky to be at Trinoma on the 25th, and that my nephew went through the trouble of getting the show times for both. He took videos of the whole thing, but I’m not sure if he uploaded them anywhere.

Even the trees that were in the way gave a nice “framed” effect for Trinoma’s shots.

I suppose I should post this in facebook too, seeing this is the only thing that made my Christmas awesome this year. ^^;

How Do I Plan to Plan My 2011 with a Planner?

2010-12-29T21:57:00.002+08:00

~~I dare you to say my blog title 5 times really, really fast! xD~~

A question asked in Bong's contest competing for a rare Starbucks Planner from Malaysia.

The more I think about this inquiry, however, the more it begs the question: Can you really plan anything for the coming new year?

Certain circumstances usually come to “rain on your parade” whenever you least expect it. For instance, I had planned on migrating to Canada earlier this year, picturing my first experience of the autumn weather and finally getting to watch the snow fall on my perfect white Christmas. I had also planned to learn how to drive, take up my Master’s Degree for Fine Arts, study Mandarin, and the like.

None of these plans came true; mostly because they relied on the one thing that fell apart: my immigration. And my mistake was failing to make a backup plan in case I was asked to stay here for just a little while longer.

Even though the immigration will still occur some time next year, it made me realize a hard fact that the world is really full of uncertainty. You don’t, and can’t, know what the future brings no matter how sure you are that something is going to happen or even how many fortune tellers you go to.

But isn’t that also what makes life more interesting?

Even though I didn’t plan on it, I was able to go to Taipei, Taiwan and not only have the time of my life, but also fulfilled one of my many wish lists I never thought I could. I also started doing commissions on Deviant Art that led me to realize that I’m actually a good enough artist that people will be willing to pay for my work.

Most importantly, I’ve learned to appreciate life a little more, accepting that depression only means you’ve been strong for far too long.

So how will I plan the new year?

By leaving the pages blank… roll with the punches and be thankful for each new day that comes. And if I have to plan something, then I will always have a backup plan. That, and of course, sketch something on the planner almost everyday or as often as possible… like I always do~ ♥

Oh, and in case you don't dare click the links on this post, don't worry guys. All the URLs were shortened by a new URL crammer, xaverian. ^^;

Grace Christian College: A Christmas Carol

2010-12-23T00:01:00.000+08:00

Last 18th of December, I had the privilege to watch a student play from my alma matter, Grace Christian College (which was previously known as Grace Christian High School). My nephew needed to watch the play for a report, and I decided to tag along.

I didn’t think much about it at first, but I had to admit, I was stunned with the production. All of the students were very talented and among those who stood out were Honeyfer Amancio as Ebenezer Scrooge, Eugene Francis Tan as Bob Cratchit, and Stephanie Ann Yap as the Ghost of Christmas Present. I also like the Town Crier, Hans Christian Golong, as I believe he was the one who bought the turkey that was “as big as I was”.

Overall, the adaptation was brilliant. Perhaps the sound system could have been adjusted better, since some of the dialogue couldn’t be comprehended, but it was a nice, heart-warming play nonetheless. I do hope all the students get credits for their hard-work. ;3

Christmas at the Malls

2010-12-22T01:43:00.006+08:00

The Drummers of SM the Block

A Giant Christmas Tree outside Gateway Mall

How will Christmas be for you this year?

If you asked me that back in November, I’d be excited and tell you about our annual Noche Buena… the kind where I’d be waking everyone up around 11pm of the 24th, just so they can watch me burn the barbeque… and then there would be endless chatter, exchanging gifts, and fighting over who gets to dance the next DDR song.

But this year, it’s different.

My parents have gone to Canada to celebrate the holidays there. My sister on the other hand, will be leaving for Taiwan in a few hours. My brother and his family are visiting their in-laws, although he did mention they’ll be back in time for Noche Buena. My other brother… will probably be with his girlfriend.

That leaves me to the house all by myself.

I held a Christmas Event in deviant art to try and cheer myself up, but that just sunk me deeper into depression. For some odd reason, I can’t draw anything decent at the moment.

I guess I’m not used to spending Christmas alone. ^^;

Oh well… I shall spam you all with some Christmas photos for the mean time. Hope everyone gets a happier Christmas than me~ ♥

A "Real" Multi-Lit Train at Mall of Asia

Optimus Prime and Other Railcars from Mall of Asia

Personal DNA: My True Self Revealed

2010-12-20T03:24:00.009+08:00

The Concerned Artist

Traits	x/100
Confidence	8
Openess	42
Extroversion	16
Empathy	98
Trust in Others	16
Agency	10
Masculinity	12
Femininity	64
Spontaneity	36
Attention to Style	40
Authoritarianism	78
Imaginative (0)/Earthy (100)	20
Functional (0)/Aesthetic (100)	80

Who would have thought a lengthy meme like this one would turn out to be so accurate? Evidently, I am not suited for an authoritative position… and yet because I don’t trust people thanks to the fact I have near perfect empathy, it makes me a good leader.

This is going to be in my head for a while.

Charice Pempengco: Reset

2010-12-19T19:50:00.002+08:00

When I first encountered Charice in Oprah, I was stunned. She was still a teenager, but her voice was absolutely stunning! I was even more surprised to see her on Glee, but I didn’t know if she also had the talent in singing her own songs too.

After I heard this on the radio though, I’m pretty convinced that she does have a rare talent.

	Charice - Reset .mp3

	Found at bee mp3 search engine

Hey hey! Pakinggan mo naman ako
Hey hey! I think this is the way na dapat gawin
Reset! Sana naman ika'y sang-ayon din
To all the things that I'm gonna say
I wish ika'y pumayag din
Mag-aagree ka ba?
If I tell you that "Magsimula tayo para tayo'y sobrang happy na"
We should reset all this
Ibalik ang nakaraan

Start it up, Start it up, Oh baby

I like this single very much, even better than her well-known, international song, “Pyramid”. Although the rap does have Tagalog and English in it, it doesn’t sound as annoying as most Tang-glish songs.

Good luck, Charice! Hope we get more awesome songs from you! ♥

Dream Selfy

2010-12-03T01:58:00.001+08:00

www.dreamself.me

Now who wouldn't want a rabbit to perch happily on their shoulder anyway?

Sushi Katsu’s Chawan Mushi

2010-10-21T08:34:00.002+08:00

If you were to ask Tiffy, she’d tell you I’m not very fond of Chawan Mushi. It’s a Japanese dish consisting of egg custard with bits of seafood, and when I first tried it at Teriyaki Boy… let’s just say I wouldn’t order it for myself. ^^;;;

However, something changed my mind…

My sister, brother-in-law, and I went to Sushi Katsu; a small but very authentic, Japanese Restaurant in Tomas Morato. I love the food there, even if it is a little pricey. My sister told me that her father-in-law loved chawan mushi and Sushi Katsu served one of the best in the country.

He was not kidding. I’m completely in love with the dish now.

It’s not on the menu, so you’ll have to order it in advance… preparation takes 45 minutes after all, but I’m telling you, it’s well worth the wait.

Oh, and I can’t tell you what types of seafood they put in there. The chef kinda does this with whatever’s available, so you’ll get a bit of surprise every time. ^_^

Priest 2011

2010-09-23T07:14:00.000+08:00

It appears my gothic fangirl-ism has been tendered.

Priest is possibly one of the more epic movies to be released on 2011. It’s based on the Korean graphic novel of the same name, although I find it strange that they want to go with another “vampire” film instead of the zombie saga.

Regardless of the vampires, the presence of the Catholic Church going about its usual ways of ~~covering up something~~ protecting the general public has always been a source of fascination for me. I’m definately watching out for this one when it comes out… Let’s hope it does not disappoint.

Rei's Kitchen: Sunny Omelet

2010-09-22T10:23:00.003+08:00

I should remember to update Rei’s Kitchen… not that any of my recipes are anything superbly fantastic, but they are tasty and easy~

When I woke up this morning, I wanted to eat something with potatoes in them. A friend of mine mentioned having difficulty in making potato omelet, so I decided to give it a try. Surprisingly, it turned out pretty delicious – that, or I was just that hungry.

Ingredients:

4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 small onion, chopped
1 small potato, diced
1 hotdog, chopped
2 eggs

Eggs cook fairly quickly, so boil the potatoes in a small amount water, just enough to cook the potatoes thoroughly. Chop the garlic and onions and add these to your pan, seasoning with salt and pepper. Slice up the hotdog to pieces that are almost the same size as the potatoes and cook them until the water dries out. Add a dash of olive oil and pan fry the ingredients slightly before pouring two scrambled eggs.

This serves two people when served with rice or toast. It’s a really good pick-me-up, and I think it will be just as good when cooked with ham instead of hotdogs.

Oh, and just in case you attempt making this, I demand to see photos please. :3 Have fun in the kitchen! ♥

A Tale of Angelfishes

2010-09-09T06:36:00.001+08:00

When I decided to take care of a silver angelfish that no one wanted, I never realized I was up for a sibling drama that would rival the longest of telenovelas.

Clow Reed the silver angelfish used to have a white angelfish as a companion but sadly died of unknown causes. Clow became depressed and was almost koi food when I decided to take him out of that tank and into a 2.5 gallon one. Smaller than his usual 75 gallon, but big enough for him to swim about while he recovered from his wounds.

While I tried to figure out a way to buy him a new tank, filter, air pumps, and maybe a few more angelfishes, he was introduced to a gray and white feeder named Suicidal. Suicidal was the last of his batch of feeders who were all killed by the White Spot disease. I named him Suicidal because while I was cleaning their tank, Suicidal jumped out of the pail that was on a chair and landed on the cemented floor. He’s thankfully still alive until now, with no signs of ever giving up on eating every food pellet he could lay his eyes on.

Although Suicidal and Clow seemed to get along, I had to separate them when I bought two new angelfishes. A pure black one I named Yuuko, and a small white one named Sakura. The three were moved into a 20 gallon tank against my wishes as my sister favored the 15 gallon one I wanted. The ordeal upset me a lot, because having a 20 gallon tank in my room is 5 gallon harder to maintain than a 15 gallon one. Heck, my brother-in-law’s uncle takes care of 7 fully grown angels in a 10 gallon tank. Why I couldn’t buy my own 10 or 15 gallon, I do not know.

I was too bitter to really tell my older siblings off, but decided not to bring the tank home as I originally planned. A bad decision for my part, because my tank was moved to the lowest shelf of the aquarium stand. My sister has a bad back and had trouble seeing her fish if they were on the top shelf as my brother-in-law suggested. Why she didn’t consider my own difficulty in seeing my fishes if they were closer to the ground like my brother-in-law, I do not know.

I was mostly angry at this point because I had to give way to my older siblings wishes; first for the home I wanted for my fish, then the placement of the tanks… the last straw was when my sister decided to take the toys I had bought for my fish and returned the ones I had given her because she wanted the colors I picked. It wasn’t even my decision to buy the colors she had, because she and her husband chose them. I had no intentions of buying orange or yellow plants, but now I’m stuck with them.

What kind of a person returns gifts to their senders anyway?

Unfortunately, Yuuko and Sakura probably felt my anger and went on a hunger strike. Yuuko died only 2 days after I brought her home and Sakura died a few days later. I didn’t want anything to do with fishes any more, but I remembered I still had Clow Reed, who was also beginning to show signs of a hunger strike.

He reminded me of myself. Someone no one wanted and desperately wanted to care for someone, but ended up being alone all over again. My mother told me that grandfather also took care of angels before, and that made me want to try one more time.

With a last act of determination, I went to another fish store to look for angelfishes. A store called “Heavenly Fish” carried a small selection of angels, but they were having a sale at P100 (US$2.25) for ever large angelfish. That was where I saw Doumeki (the black angel with a golden head) and Watanuki (another pure black angel). Doumeki was larger than Clow and Watanuki reminded me of Yuuko a lot, so I had to bring them home.

So far, the three of them are getting along… Clow Reed started eating again, but tends to chase after Watanuki at random. I’m hoping he and Doumeki don’t die like Yuuko and Sakura did, but it’s only been 3 days so it’s hard to tell. I’m trying to keep myself positive and let go of my frustrations so that they won’t feel my hostility.

Needless to say, I’m happy that I have 3 angels now. If I can afford it, I will buy a few more and have 5 or seven large angels in that tank. I mean hey, if my grandfather could take care of angels, so can I.

…on a last note, why do angelfishes like biting and chasing after one another anyway? I noticed that with my own tank and the tanks in fish stores. They should have called them “Vampire Fishes” instead of angels. =_=;;;

Devious Journal Entry

2010-09-08T04:17:00.001+08:00

I’ve been much more active in Deviant Art lately… mainly because the haphazard life of a free-lance artist needs much more care and attention than I thought.

I found out that merely posting that you are opened for commissions does not mean people will start falling in line right outside your doorstep. For someone like me who has only 20,000 pageviews in 4 years, the forums turned out to be a huge help. You can offer your services there and find people who are looking for artists to commission.

My persistence with the forums paid off, as I’ve had 2 commissions so far. A third one is on the works, which is taking more time than I thought.

That’s another thing I learned about these commissions: people are willing to wait for their artworks. It’s a good and bad thing as you get to work on your own time, but tend to slack off whenever something grabs your attention.

Needless to say, this artist needs more discipline. But it’s admittedly a huge relief from commercial works with deadly deadlines.

In other news, I won second place in the Thou Shalt Honor Fella Contest! This gives me a 6 months premium subscription on Deviant Art and an official Fella Plushie! x3 I’m not sure when I’ll be getting my plush, but like my commissioners, I’m willing to wait. :D

In case you’d like to commission me too, I’m having a Commissions Sale for the month of September. It’s called the Faux ScreenShot Project, in which fake screenshots will be made for only US$7 a piece. The catch? They’re in smaller resolution; 700 x 525 pixels to be exact.

More information can be found on my Deviant Art. For now though, here is a sample of what I can do on such a small canvas:

Faux SS 02: Rima by *kurohiko on deviant ART

*cough* Just in case you know someone who'd like to see their work turned into an anime screenshot, please do point them my way. You don’t need a Deviant Art account to commission me, but you do need a paypal account. ^_^

Emergency NTC 117: NOT For General Public Use

2010-09-07T03:49:00.001+08:00

Yesterday evening, on our way home, there was an accident between a “security” car and a motorcycle. The accident was on the corner of our street, and at first glance, it appeared as if the security car had run over the motorcyclist. As if that wasn’t bad enough, the car stopped on an incline, and it looked like it didn’t have the hand brake on, threatening to crush the driver a second time.

My sister and I were the only ones in the car, so my first instinct was to call Emergency NTC 117. I had my Sun Cellular mobile phone with me, and immediately tried to call for help.

That was by far the most idiotic choice one could ever make.

The phone kept ringing until I received a message saying there was no answer on the other end of the line. I called again, and this time, after a few rings, I received a busy tone. 4-5 calls later with the same results, my load ran out, and I never did got to call for help.

Just what kind of an emergency number is 117?! No answers, busy tones, and it eats up your load just for hearing a ringing/busy sound? I had at least P70-50 left on my credit, and I know this because I had just reloaded my Sun Cellular with a P150 regular load on August 25th, 2010; a load that would usually last me 45 days with a lot of credit left over.

Aren’t emergency numbers supposed to be answered quickly and efficiently? And most importantly, there is an emergency. Why should we have to pay for calling for public service help?!

Sadly, we didn’t see what happened to the motorcyclist and the crying child, who was presumably with the motorcyclist. He seemed unharmed, but was scared and crying all the same. We saw the security car on another road a few minutes later. Same car, but the motorcyclist was not there. The driver seemed to have fled the scene and kept his headlights off so that we couldn’t see his plate number.

I hope this blog post somehow gets on the news. I’m certainly posting this on twitter, plurk, and facebook. For shame, Emergency NTC 117! Charging for calls without even answering them is a disgrace.

Alas, only in the Philippines…

Mega Man Online Trailer

2010-08-28T04:24:00.001+08:00

This... this trailer is so epic that I can't even- I am so playing this when it’s released! And I shall just… watch and re-watch this trailer until then.

It looks like the entire Mega Man universe carefully sewn together. I see Bass, Proto Man, Roll, Doctor Light, Doctor Wily and the villains from the Mega Man series, then there’s Alia, Iris, and Colonel from Mega Man X. But where, oh where, is my Zero?!

It does beg the question: how are they going to make an MMO out of this classic? Beggars can’t be choosers, but still… I can’t wait for this to be released! And let it be free-to-play, please, please, please. ;_;

Grief…

2010-08-25T04:56:00.001+08:00

A hostage situation that started peacefully ended in a blood bath, killing 8 Hong Kong tourists.

Hong Kong Interpol will be making their own investigations on what went wrong.

Two nations who both wish to seek the truth silently can not cooperate with one another.

And I can’t help but watch from the sidelines, thinking the situation could have been handled better, but could not do anything except to helplessly watch as the events unfolded.

I love Hong Kong. I love it so much that when I had the opportunity to work there, I enjoyed every single minute. The food, the freedom, the people… even those who looked down upon me changed their minds when they realized I was Chinese.

I don’t know the people who were taken hostage… neither do I know the ones who were killed. But watching the entire thing unfold left a pain in my hear that refuses to heal.

I can easily point fingers as to who did what wrong. In fact, I have been doing so in my twitter and plurk accounts. But then I realized, my bitterness cannot help those who are really suffering: the families left behind by the departed.

And so I will light incenses and keep them in my prayers.

May God bless the departed souls and the families who were left behind.

Influence Map

2010-08-22T15:28:00.001+08:00

I suppose it doesn’t come as a surprise to anyone that I’ve jumped on the meme bandwagon, even on deviant art.

When I think about the people who have inspired and influenced me, I could probably list about a hundred names, more or less. They’re not all visual artists; some are musicians, teachers, family, and just people who were there to encourage me in times of self-doubt. The one that particularly stands out, is my teacher and uncle, who is always so relaxed when it comes to drawing and teaching. He made it seem as if drawing was not hard at all.

I could go on and on, but that’s enough rambling… on to the meme!

Kurohiko's Influence Map by ~kurohiko on deviant ART

It makes me wonder, looking at this, do any of the artists featured on the meme have obvious influence on my work? Will I ever become par, or even surpass their expertise?

Maybe one day, I can meet them all personally… Just so that I can say “thank you”.

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My Very First Commission

2010-08-21T06:49:00.001+08:00

Even though I’ve worked for Mango Jam as Twilight Calling’s continuing artist, I never really felt my artwork was something worth paying for. Maybe it’s because they hired me as a continuing artist and not as the original artist, but that’s beside the point…

I’ve opened commissions some time ago, and didn’t really think anyone was going to commission me… until recently.

Commission: A Reunion by ~kurohiko on deviant ART

Adiv and Altair (Alaistair) are characters created by ~Stine22 aka =Kilo112205. I have to say, I never thought working on commissions would be so enjoyable. I’m a little worried that this may not be what she had in mind, but I did my best! And I sent a thumbnail sketch before I started working on the actual artwork.

I think I like the blood stained moon on this piece the most. The wings were painful to detail, and drawing embers is pretty much a first for me.

My sister mentioned that “one is crying, and the other is salivating” in her usual innocent way. >.>;;; She also kept pestering me why the wings are brown when angels have white wings. THIS WORRIES ME EVEN MORE! *headslap*

I just hope my client doesn’t see this piece the same way she does. ;x; I might… cry in the corner or hide under a rock… forever.

Cinnamoroll’s Instant Curry

2010-08-20T05:30:00.001+08:00

I love curry. I don’t know what spices make up the sauce, but I love it nonetheless. May it be Japanese, Indian, Classic curry, it’s probably one dish that can’t go wrong in my menu.

But add a cute character into the packaging of instant curry?

You can be sure I’ll buy at least one.

My family went to Cartimar the other day because brother needed to buy supplies for his Japanese restaurant. In a little shop called “Asuka”, I found this Cinnamoroll edition of instant curry~~, begging to be bought~~. It only cost P72 for one box, which is good for one meal. There’s also 1 of 20 illustrations of Cinnamoroll and/or his friends along with a sticker set~

Cuteness aside, it’s unfortunately not the best of instant curries out there. There wasn’t a lot of potatoes and carrots in the pack, and the sauce was a little sweet to taste… probably because this is aimed for kids. I like my curry a little bit spicier, but Japanese kids sure are lucky to have all these cute things.

…oh, and this doesn’t mean I’m not buying any more of these. The stickers were just too cute, so sue me. ;_; I don’t mind cooking extra meat and potatoes. And besides, there’s always the ever faithful stove to adjust the spiciness of the sauce!

Thou Shalt Honor Fella

2010-08-16T12:47:00.003+08:00

I can’t believe Deviant Art has been around for 10 years… and that I’ve been a member for more than 4 years already.

The good (and shameful) thing about Deviant Art is that you can go back too far… Stuff that I used to consider to be my best work prove to be a stepping stone to what I wish to become. I’ve learned a lot from experience, and from the members of this community, and I’m thankful for that.

Putting that aside, Deviant Art came up with its 10 Commandments in order to celebrate its anniversary. They’ve put up a lot of contests this August, and I was able to join one contest… twice.

On the 7th Commandment, it is written: Thou Shalt Honor Fella. As such, you shall depict your ideal Fella.

At first, I only wanted to give Fella a make-over. I mean, we have fancy llamas for goodness sake, why don’t we have a Fancy Fella?

Then it dawned on me… Deviant Art is 10-years-old. That makes for a devious shota Fella, doesn’t it?

…so my ideal Fella comes in two forms. I’ll keep my fingers crossed on this one.

I really love how they turned out, but I’m wondering if my ideas are brilliant enough to win the contest. They seem… very typical and simple ideas to me, but then again, looking at the entries, no one really came up with the same ideas as anyone else. I think that goes to show that what we deem as simple may turn out to be very complicated for others.

In other Deviant Art news, I won second place in =Kilo112205’s "contest"! I’m very excited to see her character, Alaistair, with Rei Kuassary as her father figure~! Rei needs a father figure, obviously, and my character in another artist’s rendition is always so exciting and awesome~

It does make me wonder though… I’ve always seem to come up just a little short when it comes to these contests. I’m not complaining, of course, in fact, I’m very grateful! But I always tend to think “maybe if I tried just a little harder…”

Self-doubt be gone. =_=;;; I need to finish my first batch of commissions and collect more money soon… Being a free-lancer is hard work!

DJ Max Clazziquai PSP Wallpaper Collection IV

2010-07-30T05:29:00.002+08:00

DJ Max Portable: Clazziquai Edition Image – Fate

After several grueling hours, days, months just to get the 2 images from Fate, it begs the question: was it worth it?

I’m not really sure. When I got the images today, playing more than 70 times the entire day, finally succeeding in Melody Hard Style to unlock the the track, proceeding (and getting stuck) to Area 5’s “Rockfest” on Club Tour, I would say it was slightly underwhelming, but well worth the effort. I’ll probably never be any good in 5 Buttons and 4 Buttons FX, and you can forget ever succeeding in 6 Buttons mode, but I became a lot better in this game. And for that I am thankful.

I did think that the illustration I would get would be the same as the Fate Card from DJ Max Technika. I actually wanted that, but I’m still happy with what I got.

Did I mention I liked Fate’s illustrations the most because they remind me of Renka-chan?

Enjoy your new wallpapers, guys! Remember: Credit Please and No Hotlinking!


Supersonic	Supersonic 2

Honeymoon	Honeymoon 2

Lover	Lover 2

Lover 3	Lover 4

Y	Y 2

Blythe	Oblivion

Oblivion 2	Sin

Sin 2	Every Morning

Memory of Beach	Memory of Beach 2

Memory of Beach 3	Sunny Side

Sunny Side 2	Elastic Star ~UK Garage Mix~

Syriana	Fate 2

DJ Max Clazziquai PSP Wallpaper Collection III

2010-07-30T04:43:00.002+08:00

DJ Max Portable: Clazziquai Edition Image – In My Heart 2

"In My Heart" is a cheery, feel-good song that I love playing on Clazziquai. The artwork is superb as well~ The girl looks like she’s dressed up as Sherlock Holmes!

I will most likely be using this wallpaper if and when I grow tired of Fate. In any case, you guys know the drill: these are free to share as long as you provide proper credit to me and do not hotlink the images! Thanks, and enjoy!


Proposed, Flower, Wolf 4	Proposed, Flower, Wolf 5

In My Heart	In My Heart 3

In My Heart 4	In My Heart 5

The Clear Blue Sky	The Clear Blue Sky 2

The Clear Blue Sky 3	I Want You

I Want You 2	I Want You 3

JBG	JBG 2

JBG 3	Melody

Melody 2	Here in the Moment

Here in the Moment 2	Here in the Moment 3

Here in the Moment 4	The Last Dance

The Last Dance 2	The Last Dance 3

DJ Max Clazziquai PSP Wallpaper Collection II

2010-07-30T04:03:00.006+08:00

DJ Max Portable: Clazziquai Edition Image – First Kiss 3

First Kiss was the first song I fell in love with in Clazziquai. In fact, if you are a long time follower of this blog, you would recall I made a rather embarrassing comment in 2008…

Oh well, that’s life. Remember folks, you are free to use and redistribute this, provided you please credit me and not hotlink the images! Enjoy!


Hard to Start 2	Hard to Start 3

Hard to Start 4	No Way

No Way 2	First Kiss

First Kiss 2	First Kiss 4

To You	To You 2

To You 3	To You 4

Motion	Motion 2

Motion 3	Touch My Body

Touch My Body 2	Tell Me

Tell Me 2	Urban Night

Urban Night 2	Proposed, Flower, Wolf

Proposed, Flower, Wolf 2	Proposed, Flower, Wolf 3

DJ Max Clazziquai PSP Wallpaper Collection

2010-07-30T03:17:00.004+08:00

DJ Max Portable: Clazziquai Edition Image – Eternity 2

If you are a frustrated DJ Max Portable player like I am, you’re probably playing your heart out for the PSP Wallpaper collection.

Well, ok, not really, but I really wanted Clazziquai’s Fate wallpaper for my pink PSP, which you could only get after playing the game 1000 times. No kidding, people, a thousand songs played, and that doesn’t include the ones you failed in.

Today, I finally achieved this goal. I wasn’t able to unlock all of the songs, but I completed all the images Clazziquai has in the game. In case you want these PSP wallpapers, this is free to share, but please credit back to my blog and do not hotlink the images! Getting them took a lot of hard work.

Here are the first 25 PSP wallpapers… the rest will be added as soon as I arrange and upload them.


Come to Me	Come to Me 2

The Night Stage	The Night Stage 2

Color	Color 2

Creator	Creator 3

Flea	Flea 2

Freedom	Freedom 2

Freedom 3	Electronics

Electronics 2	Love Mode

Love Mode 2	Mutu

Mutu 2	Mutu 3

Mutu 4	Eternity

Eternity 2	Hard to Start

Secretly in Love

2010-07-29T06:10:00.001+08:00

All that drama in Ustiur Base Camp made me want to make my own drama…

The secret meeting of the two lovers… maybe? Not that it’s a secret or anything, since Rue and Rukia are pretty much together… despite Rukia being a lot stronger than him. ~~She has to protect him most of the time,~~ but I digress…

I was able to rescue Romina’s scout in the Skull Dungeon without much of a hitch. Mainly because my Muerte Balada has an additional 90% attack rate for the undead. Unfortunately, Rukia’s stance is already at its max, so I will need another weapon so that she can raise her other stances.

I’m not sure why Grandice disapproves of investigating the Dungeon and wants to leave it to the Vespanola Army, but she and Romina are no longer in good terms. It’s fine for me, either way, because I finally have my Rescue Knight card. And Romina gave me the key to that Skull Dungeon.

I’ll have to take a look after I get some sleep.

To Be Happy

2010-07-28T05:25:00.001+08:00

6 of 10 - Akira Tomosuke by ~kurohiko on deviant ART

When you owe a person something, I think it's best to pay that person no matter how long a time has passed.

This is a long overdue sketch for Akira, but somehow, his character turned out to look a lot like Kira Yamato from Gundam SEED. I didn’t realize it until I already posted the artwork.

I just hope this was worth the wait. *_* Forgiveness please, Akira…

On another note, I feel very happy today after talking to my mom. Now I feel like I can achieve whatever my heart desires. And that makes my spirit soar.

The Tyrannosaurus in Ustiur, Zona Dos

2010-07-27T06:03:00.001+08:00

I’ve decided to leave Rio Albi to train in Ustiur Base Camp. I wanted a bit more challenge that higher level mobs bring so that my main family would level up faster.

I did not expect Grandice to send me on a mission to kill this thing:

That is the Level 92 Tyrannosaurus Boss accompanied by a few Velociraptors that are hidden behind all the battle shots. Thankfully, my level 88 crew prevailed after the second try. I had to use 2 of Renae’s (female scout) buffs to speed up my movement, HP regeneration, and SP regeneration. It’s a good thing the t-rex wasn’t looking with Rei (Catherine the Summoner) was summoning her doll army.

I can’t believe I was able to kill this thing at my current… Call it lucky or whatever, but I’m still in shock.

Lady Rukia of Kuassary

2010-07-26T06:01:00.001+08:00

All Hail, Her Majesty, the Queen!

Or, so the other members of the Kuassary Family proclaims… specifically Rochelle (Grace Bernelli) and Rie (Catherine STR). They are only level 41 and 39 respectively, so you could say they are in awe of their eldest sister. After all, Rukia can handle guns better than either of them at the moment.

Rukia, Rei, and Renae have all reached level 88, but only Rukia was able to attain proper armor and weapons… Bone Frame Armor, Paladin Mace, and Muerte Balada. I spoil her the most because I love the strength she possesses.

Now if only I can find armors for Rei and Renae before they begin to think I am playing favorites…

Completed Viki Quest

2010-07-25T06:10:00.002+08:00

After a few weeks since restarting this quest, I finally got my own Viki!

…his character card anyway. I haven’t decided whether or not I’ll be deleting Panfilo and Emilia to give room for this cutie. He and Lorch were recruited into the Kuassary Family a few days ago, and now I keep checking the Market Manager to see if anyone is selling a barrack slot or two.

There’s also the dilemma of naming him. As much as I like the name Viki, each of my family member starts with the letter “R”.

Of course, there’s always the option of using the deleted character’s name. Rei used to be a female musketeer, until I recruited Grace Bernelli and changed Rei into Catherine the Summoner. Regan was the same; once a male scout, now Panfilo… maybe soon to be Viki?

In any case, faction members Assbutts and Theraphossa, helped me out a lot during this quest, because the farming of rare items was absolutely tiring. My thanks goes to them! Although it would appear they have left SEES… ;A; I hope this is just a system glitch because I miss them! And Deputy Faction Leader Elleszar too!

Important things to remember if and when you want Viki:

This quest can only begin on Wednesday in the SEA Server. This gave me headache, and when I made the mistake to talk to Ulrik on Tuesday, I couldn’t start the quest on Wednesday. ;_; I had to wait another week before I could try to get it right!
Save 300 pieces of Cabosse. This drop becomes very hard to get when you’re a high level player farming in Tetra Hill. Unless you can stand mobs from Largo Celeste and Rio Albi!
Save all strange items in Dr. Torsche’s Mansion. You will need 20 pieces of strange cogwheel, spring, hinge, tube, and clock equipment. They are not cheap in Market Manager, but they are dropped often in the Forgotten Territory of Dr. Torsche’s Mansion.

Other than that, it’s fairly easy to finish at level 80. Viki is both a scout and a summoner, much better than Emilia despite healing less than her.

Viki’s summons include the following:

Theraphossa’s Viki summoned Turrydog, which can be achieved at level 1 of the Amicus stance. The cost is only 50 SP.

The Hill Giant can be summoned at level 10, costing 300 SP and 1 Hill Giant Summon Stone. These stones drop a lot in El Tejado Verde.

The final summon is Ararat who can be summoned at level 20, costing 600 SP and 20 Otite Chips. Theraphossa didn’t have Ararat yet, so the screenshot is from the quest. :3

Enjoy recruiting, guys~ Good Luck!

Of Cats and Butterflies

2010-07-24T16:28:00.001+08:00

Sometimes, I wonder whether or not I could ever surpass my own previous works.

When I made Goth Eri back in 2007, I was convinced that it would be one of the best illustrations I’ve ever done. Such that I would never make another Eri artwork that could ever compare.

That was then, this is now:

A.illusions: Feline Sisters by ~kurohiko on deviant ART

Ironically, it’s for another Deviant Art contest that I didn’t win.Even still, I love how this came out. I have to remind myself that hand-drawn patterns look better than default ones… take more time, but worth it.

I don’t know if it compares to Goth Eri, but I think it can at least stand side by side with it. ^_^;;;

Inception

2010-07-20T14:20:00.001+08:00

When you fall asleep and dream that you get hurt, the pain feels "real" while you are dreaming. However, when you die in your dreams, you simply wake up.

But is the world of your own subconsciousness really that safe?

Dom Cobb specializes in “Extraction”; stealing secrets from a target’s mind while they are asleep by using an Architect and a Point Man to design and fill a dream world that will make their target reveal real-world secrets. When Saito proposes an offer Cobb could not refuse, he embarks a team to perform an “Inception”; that is, to create new thoughts in the target, which he later accepts as his own idea. He then hires a Chemist and a Forger, but how will he avoid being trapped by the Shade?

There are mostly questions in this review, but that is the only way I can write about this film without revealing too much about the plot. Writer, producer, and director Christopher Nolan did an excellent job with this film that left the audience literally gasping and clapping at the end of the movie. I think this is one of Leonardo DiCaprio’s best work that compares to the Titanic, but of course, that’s just me.

This is a must watch in theaters, but before you do, you might want to read this webcomic which occurs right before the movie. It will give you a better understanding of what’s going on…

Once you have watched the film, however, I want to know: Was the ending real?

牛爸爸 (Niu Ba Ba): The Best Beef Noodles in Taipei

2010-07-19T09:20:00.000+08:00

You should not leave Taipei without visiting this restaurant, or you will definitely regret it.

牛爸爸 (Niu Ba Ba) or Nyuu Papa as I call it, serves 16 different types of beef noodle bowls. That’s right, 16, and no two are alike… as I am told, because I was not able to test their most expensive bowls ranging from 3000-10000 TWD (roughly USD $90-300).

Those bowls serve one person only I’m afraid, and my Chinese is not good enough to know how they worded it on the menu.

The restaurant itself is not much to look at, but the place is clean and the people are very friendly. It’s run by a couple, who moved backed to Taiwan from Vancouver, Canada because they wanted their kids to grow up in a Chinese speaking community.

Why oh why did the couple have to leave Vancouver when I’m planning to move there? ;_;

Anyway, my sister, brother-in-law, and I did splurge a little and went for the 1000 TWD (USD $30) bowl:

Those would be my sister’s perfectly manicured nails and a look at their wedding rings only, as they don’t like to be photographed… ~~Kinda sounds familiar.~~

Words fail me to describe how delicious this beef bowl was. Everything from the broth, to the noodles, to the various pieces of beef was just perfect. It even had beef tendon which I don’t normally eat, but couldn’t get enough of from this bowl! I think there was Wagyu Beef there too, because one particular piece melted like butter when I ate it. And no, that was not an exaggeration.

There was a news article that Jet Li visited this restaurant and ordered the 3000 TWD bowl. My sister was there to witness Jet Li eating at Niu Ba Ba, and she was able to talk to him. He politely declined when she asked if she could take photos with him though, but since she’s a huge Jet Li fan, Niu Ba Ba became an instant favorite of hers. She visits this restaurant every time she visits Taipei.

The address is on the calling card, which I would recommend you print in case you want to visit Niu Ba Ba, but here is their contact information if you’d like to save it somewhere:

牛爸爸牛肉麵 (Niu Ba Ba Niu Rou Mian) “Bovine Father Beef Noodle”
台北市忠孝東路四段216巷27弄16號
Chunghsiao East Road, Section 16, Alley 27, Lane 216
TEL :886-2-27783075 886-2-87715358
Website: http://www.688beefbowl.com/

The Sorcerer's Apprentice

2010-07-18T09:21:00.000+08:00

In 740 AD, one of Merlin’s three apprentices, Maxim Horvath, betrays him and joins the evil sorceress, Morgana le Fay. His two other apprentices, Balthazar Blake and Veronica, try to rescue Merlin but is too late as Merlin was mortally wounded. At Veronica’s sacrifice, Balthazar imprisons Morgana along with Veronica in the Grimhold which appears to be a nesting doll. Merlin then leaves his dragon ring to remaining apprentice; a ring that will eventually choose the Prime Merlinian, a sorcerer who will succeed Merlin and obtain his powers.

I’ve been seeing a lot of movies lately, including the much ~~loved or~~ hated Twilight Saga “Eclipse”. There hasn’t been a lot of good movies to write about lately, but this was really enjoyable! Possibly because it’s a Disney film, so you know it’s a feel-good movie.

However, there are many instances in the movie that really reminded me about my childhood. Balthazar Blake is a thousand-year-old wizard played by Nicolas Cage. This character is actually based on the magician Yen Sid in Fantasia’s the Sorcerer’s Apprentice! Mickey Mouse got in a lot of trouble for his mischief, which is pretty much the same as Dave Stutler who pulls almost the exact same stunt as Mickey did.

I won’t spoil the movie any more than that because you really have to watch this for yourself! Oh, and Jay Baruchel who played Dave Stutler, is also the voice of Hiccup in “How to Train Your Dragon”. :3

UFO in China?

2010-07-17T09:22:00.000+08:00

An Unidentified Flying Object was spotted in Xiaoshan Airport, China on July 7. Don’t get your hopes up too high though. An ABC article said:

…an anonymous source told China Daily that authorities already discovered the identity of the UFO after an investigation but could not publically disclose the information because “there was a military connection”.

Creepy though… that light looked pretty bright. I wonder what it really was?

Kimono Ken: Enticingly Japanese. For Less.

2010-07-16T03:57:00.001+08:00

If there’s one kind of food that’ll satisfy my cravings, it’s Japanese food.

We got to visit Kimono Ken at their Tomas Morato branch, and I have to say, I was impressed. I like the cheery atmosphere, and the food was delicious~

This is their Soboro Chicken, which according to the menu, is “minced chicken with scrambled egg toppings in a special sauce”. The sauce was a little sweet, and I don’t normally like sweet food, but this is definitely an exception to that rule.

It’s one of the few restaurants that are opened until late. Late, meaning having dinner at 12 midnight, late. I don’t recall why we didn’t get to have dinner at a normal time, but I do recall some last minute shopping care of my sister and brother-in-law.

…and I should not write about food when it’s late. I’m getting hungry.

Of Similar Worlds: Twilight and Vampire Knight

2010-07-11T04:45:00.007+08:00

I’m probably going to get flamed for comparing the two fandoms which people either love or hate, but this was something that I’ve noticed ever since I’ve read the second part of Vampire Knight. Similarities between the two series go beyond the fact that they exist in Vampire Worlds, and this was confirmed when I finally sat down to watch the first movie of the Twilight Saga.

I’ll try to explain this as best as I can without spoiling too much about any of the series, so please hear me out before commenting ~~anything hateful~~ in my blog.

Symbolism

The original covers of the Twilight Novels, particularly New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn have photos of a rose, a red ribbon, and a white king (or white queen?) chess piece respectively. These symbols have appeared numerous times in illustrations made by Hino. However, the red apple which became a signature illustration of Twilight, has never appeared in Vampire Knight as of yet.

Setting

Set in modern day, peace and harmony reign the two worlds so different from the ignorant human race. In Twilight, we see them as Vampires and Werewolves while on Vampire Knight, they are known as Vampires and Vampire Hunters.

The Werewolves and Vampire Hunters will kill any vampire who dare to hurt the humans, but their origins are somewhat different. Werewolves in Twilight are from people who descended from wolves while Vampire Hunters are said to be humans who ate the flesh of a Vampire Ancient in order to attain the powers to kill vampires.

Twilight's Volturi has a Vampire Knight counterpart known as the Vampire Council of Elders. Similarly, Twilight's werewolves are ruled by the Alpha Male, which is the same for Vampire Knight's Hunters' Association.

The Characters

Both series have teens as their main protagonists. However, the similarities do not end there:

Bella Swan/Cullen and Yuuki Cross/Kuran

The main heroines of both series; not only do they share hair styles and hair colors, but they also have very similar problems: loving two boys at the same time and refusing to choose one over the other. They also act differently when they are with one or the other boys they are choosing from. Bella is more like her human-self when she is with Jacob, which is the same with Yuuki when she is with Zero. The girls do not act like themselves when they are with the one they “truly” love.

As much as I like love triangles, the angst flowing from these two princesses made their respective series somewhat redundant and predictable. However, there is one thing they do not have in common (as of yet)… Bella has chosen Edward, and from what I gather from the fans, she will stay with Edward. Yuuki, on the other hand, still hasn’t chosen what she truly wants and stays with her Ancestor, Kaname for the time being.

There was also the fact that Bella insistently wanted Edward to change her into a vampire. Although Yuuki only wished to become one in order to stay by Kaname's side and/or help Zero, she was also very persistent with Kaname regarding her forgotten past.

Last but not least? Both girls are extremely tempting and tasty. This goes for vampires and werewolves/vampire-hunters-who-are-also-vampires.

Edward Cullen and Kaname Kuran

One thing struck me as the most obvious about these two: their Family Names. “Cullen” and “Kuran” are very, very similar in the way they are read. Although Kaname was revealed to be the ancestor of the Kuran Family and Edward was only turned by Carlisle, the two long for their demise and live only for the one they love. Both boys also seem very distant and have a tendency to fall into mood swings whenever they are with Bella and Yuuki.

Edward confessed to Jacob that even if Bella chose Jacob over him, he would not kill Jacob, because he doesn't want to make Bella miserable. The same promise was mentioned by Kaname, who couldn't bare the thought of Yuuki hating him.

There was also the fact that Edward did not wish to change Bella. Kaname wanted to keep Yuuki "in her box garden" for as long as he could. Edward asked Bella to marry him first before he would change her... Kaname did not mention the same but asked Yuuki to be his lover before he would reveal everything about her past to her.

There were some parts of Eclipse that made me think Edward is similar to Zero Kiryuu as well. For one thing, both characters wished to be apart from the one person they loved because they thought “she would be better off without me”. Both were, of course, coerced to return by the ladies, but I will not spoil any more than that.

Jacob Black and Zero Kiryuu

Both Jacob and Zero are childhood friends of Bella and Yuuki respectively, but these two do not have the same personalities at all. In fact, Zero is much sadder and angrier than Jacob who smiles a lot more. However, it was their lines that caught my attention.

Jacob wanted to stop at nothing to keep Edward from turning Bella into a vampire. This was the same for Zero until it was later revealed that Yuuki is actually a vampire to begin with. Although Jacob openly confesses to Bella about his feelings for her, Zero is more reluctant to do so, but appears to be incapable of hurting Yuuki and, quite possibly, will wait for her to return to him as well.

Rosalie Hale and Ruka Souen

Similar in appearance and in attitude, both Rosalie and Ruka do not like nor do they accept the main heroines of their series. Blonde, beautiful, and regal, both characters come to terms with the heroines as the series progresses, and eventually end up as friends.

Carlisle and Esme Cullen; Haruka and Juuri Kuran

Parental figures of the male protagonists, Carlisle and Haruka share a common compassion over humans, while Esme and Juuri are both passionate individuals. Esme and Juuri have also had the same hair styles and hair colors, just like their “daughters” Bella and Yuuki.

Carlisle may also share some similarities with Headmaster Kaien Cross. Although Kaien is far more out-going when he’s relaxed, the two are quite fearsome and capable when threatened or serious.

Publication

Both Twilight and Vampire Knight were first published in the year 2005. While Twilight has ended in 2008, however, Vampire Knight is still an on-going series. The tiles of each publication rhyme too.

Authors

Stephanie Meyers and Matsuri Hino both have three syllables in their first names and two syllables in their family names; fives syllables each in total.

Conclusion

I am not an expert on Twilight or Vampire Knight, and while these similarities may be purely coincidental, it is still quite interesting to consider. And please take note that I am not accusing one or the other of plagiarism. I was a huge fan of Vampire Knight, but I did not like reading Twilight at all. Now that I’ve written the similarities down, I begin to wonder why I loved one series and hated the other.

One thing is for certain though… I am losing interest in Vampire Knight, because of the amount of fan-bashing and storyline angst. I really just want Yuuki to choose Kaname or Zero and let it be the end of it.

And no, I don’t think I’ll ever convert to Team Edward or Team Jacob. Vampires just don’t sparkle in my book.

Prison de Joaquin’s Secrets Revealed

2010-07-05T04:59:00.001+08:00

I was finally able to finish the quest I started before my hiatus from Granado Espada! Good job, team! High fives all around!

I remember this Investigation of Prison de Joaquin starting when I spoke to Grace Bernelli. She asks for help in her investigation, but I do warn you, it would be best to complete this quest when your team reaches level 84 minimum. I was only able to finish this at level 86.

Anyway, collecting the Old Insignia from the Mucerati Gladiator and the Bloodstained Identification Discs from the Demonic Priests are easy enough. You will need Eusebio‘s help in reading these, and an important thing to remember about his requests: “Splitted Lands” actually mean “El Canon Diabolica”! Other than that, you can easily figure out which monsters drop what items in the areas specified.

Once you report what you’ve learned back to Grace, she will then tell you to return to Prison de Joaquin, The Mohrgus where you found the disc.

Wait, what? I don’t remember this at all. Didn’t I get the discs from the Priests?

I had to run around the Mohrgus until finally finding it somewhere between D7 and C8. You will then be teleported to fight Undead Soldiers and Failed Subjects which are level 80 and 85 respectively. As it turns out, the boss on this part of the Investigation is Gavin Jameson at level 80. You will have to be very careful, as he hits with criticals like there’s no tomorrow. I had to give Rukia her Plate Mail to add more defense, but even that was not enough to keep her from dying.

Once you’ve reported back to Grace about Gavin, she remembers Jean-Pierre Gascon’s reports and tells you to head for Thueringwald’s Cemetery. There is a grave close to, not in, the cemetery, and once you investigate, Gavin reappears with his undead army.

Grace will be with you this time around, so the fight will not be as difficult. After you defeat Gavin, he explains that you have no idea what you’re doing and tells you to see for yourself. The key he hands to you, however, will be incredibly frustrating. It will unlock to a secret location at the Mohrgus, but the only problem is, he forgot to tell you where it is!

You can find that very secret location in area G4 of Mohrgus, though. Just sayin’~

This next map looks like Area 2 of Prison de Joaquin. The investigation reveals Doctor Fran Mothtein as Montoro’s little “experiment”, an undead controlled by Montoro. Montoro is one of Granado Espada’s most wanted as well as the 10 Nobles. Once Gavin appears and declares vengeance, Montoro makes a hasty exit and turns Doctor Mothtein insane.

This is a very difficult boss to kill even if he’s only level 82. He has both elemental and magical skills, as he can perform Fireballs and the Apocalypse. My advice? Run away! No, seriously, run! Let Grace and Gavin handle it, just like they used to do in Brestia.

That’s right, people, these two are from Brestia. I know that Gavin was the Second Lieutenant of Brestia’s Special Forces, but I forgot what he addressed Grace. I think she was the First Lieutenant, but whether it’s in the same force of in the Intelligence division, that is anyone’s guess.

Gavin’s leave will return you to the Port of Coimbra, where you will learn from Grace that she too could have fallen into the hands of Montoro if she didn’t leave for the New World. She mentions that she will continue her investigation and hopefully put an end to Montoro and the 10 Nobles.

And that marks the end of this quest! You are rewarded with High Grade Glaziums, Level 84 Enchantment Chips, and Level 80 Experience Cards. I wasn’t able to get the actual stats of the bosses and areas of this quest, but I did find a few blogs with better walk-throughs. ~~Why I didn’t search for these earlier, I don’t even know! I wish I did!~~

Granado Espada: Prison de Joaquin’s Secret Guide – player’s walk-through with screenshots of the boss’ stats and map locations of the secret areas.
Hideout: Continuing Bernelli’s Quest At Prison de Joaquin – another player’s walk-through with more screenshots.
Granado Central: 70.3 – Prison de Joaquin’s Secrets – step-by-step to-do-list.

That it for the Kuassary Family for the day! Now it’s time for me to get some sleep. Hee~

Final Fantasy XIII Theme in Violin

2010-07-04T00:01:00.001+08:00

See, this is the reason why I want to learn how to play the violin.

Tam, or Tamusic apparently plays these pieces on the spot. He knows his violin that well, and when he plays? People stop. Especially people like me.

…Tam's technique is even better that Hiiragi’s. ;_; I want to learn how to play the violin… ~~maybe then people will leave my double chin alone, ROFL~~~

The AdagasBooties and Kuassary Family Scandal!

2010-07-03T00:01:00.001+08:00

Bai Hu AdagasBooties saw Rukia Kuassary yesterday in the City de Reboldeaux making her usual transactions at the Leonardo Expresso. He decided to push his luck and flirt with her so that he could steal her gun, a fairly uncommon Claude Baudez Nique. How could a girl like her handle a weapon so powerful as that anyway? It would be such a waste!

Who would have thought it would be Rukia who would surprise him? Although she’s never met him, she smiled and gave him a kiss, making him forget about the gun he was trying to steal.

Or something like that anyway! Actually, Adagas saw me in Reboldeaux and was bored. He kissed all my girls, but only Rukia kissed back before running off to do her quests… hee~

Praying for the Future

2010-07-02T05:34:00.003+08:00

We, the Kuassary Family, pray for our fallen comrades from HeroEmpires.
We vow to take part in keeping Peace and Order as Royalists of Granado Espada.
Long life to our leaders and members who are no longer of this world...
They are dearly missed.

On a more serious note, if appears that God has answered my prayers. ^^ I will continue praying that His Will may be done, and that the Philippines will thrive once more under the rule of the Aquino Family.

Rukia’s great sword reminds me of Souseiseki’s scissors in Rozen Maiden. Not that I’m complaining, as I need to raise her stances levels for that anyway.

All this sleeping late is going to get me in trouble sooner or later. I hope I can get my old sleeping schedule back.

Who’s Your Momma?

2010-06-30T06:55:00.002+08:00

Renae approves of Rukia’s new look!
And Rei will just be... cowering in a corner... crying her eyes out.

Oddly enough, I was a level 81 just yesterday. As you can see, however, Rei, Renae, and Rukia have all jumped to level 84. 2x EXP is working wonders for my game addiction. *_*

The Gladiator’s Armor looks very good on Rukia, and short hair really suits her! I was going to get her the hat to go with her new suit, but since I already bought this haircut for her some time ago, I might stick with this look for a while.

I was going to get the Pericolo set for Renae, since one of the members of the HeroEmpires gave me the hat already… but someone was selling a +6 Rescue Suit for level 84 for only 700,000 Vis. Quite a deal considering Andre sells the Pericolo without modifications at a cool 1,920,000 Vis!

Too bad for Rei though, as I can’t afford to buy her a new look. NPC need real money for their costumes, but I should at least get her a new Leather Armor. She’s level 84 and she’s still wearing a 76 Ringmail! Why are Ringmails more expensive than the exclusive attires for characters anyway? @_@;;;

Recruiting My Viki

2010-06-29T03:47:00.001+08:00

For the new pioneers who wish to do the Viki quest, do not sell your Cabosse. It will be essential in the first part of Viki’s quest; Cacao Sonador.

I recall farming this item when I was still recruiting Lisa Lynway. It was very easy to get, but when you’re at a higher level, drop rates are not in your favor. Worse, buying this from the Market Manager will cost you 10000 to 20000 Vis each, and you need 300 pieces of these things.

My Faction-mate said this item is also dropped in Rio Albi which levels at 87-90. I wasn’t able to try it since I’m only level 81 right now. Getting the Robo R 90 is a lot easier since they’re quest items.

Battling the Treasure Golem was a lot more exciting though. Rukia, Rei, and Renae were all at level 81, so it was pretty easy for them to defeat the golem. Viki’s grandfather, Ulrich, summoned Aratat, who is the cutest little giant I have ever seen! Much better looking than the Treasure Golem. Shame on Cheryl for saying he’s a useless old thing!

Now I have to do the next part of the quest which is gathering items to repair Aratat. It’s a bit boring with the spawn rates so low in Ferrucio Junction, so I might pause this for a while to take advantage of the 2x EXP for now.

Speaking of giants though…

Look at that cute Hill Giant! It’s the first time I’ve ever seen one, and he was only level 6! I was wondering if there was a Viki somewhere in the area who summoned it, but then he tried to kill me!

Ah well… back to leveling up for me.

Level Me Up!

2010-06-28T06:25:00.002+08:00

Rukia: Rei’s not about to do what I think she’s going to do… is she?

Renae: Eep! If she scares that Auch Guard, we’re going to get slaughtered! Rukia! Stop her!

Rukia: …you’re kidding, right?

Crappy, one-screen, fail!webcomic aside, Granado Espada SEA has Game Wide 2x EXP which quickly allowed me to jump from level 76 to 80. Still not enough to kill the bosses lurking around Prison de Joaquin, but Renae looks good in her Rescue Suit… something I got from a HeroEmpires Faction member who no longer comes online. :( Kinda sad when I think about it…

Now if only I can train them fast enough to reach level 100 before 2x EXP ends on July 1.

Granado Espada: The Queens of SEES

2010-06-24T15:06:00.003+08:00

After a long hiatus from MMORPGs, the Kuassary Family has returned to Granado Espada for some mindless fun… Only to find out that my first faction, the HeroEmpires, no longer exists.

I’ve checked my Friends Lists constantly as I relearned the game’s controls but none of the familiar people I knew appeared online. So I wandered around on my own and decided to finish any pending Quests and even started the Viki Quest after I figured out that only starts every Wednesday.

It was all that wandering in the Port of Coimbra that Faction Leader of SEES, Neon Hearts, found me.

Now with my main family, Renae (Female Scout), Rei (Catherine the Summoner), and Rukia (Female Fighter) at level 76, Deputy Leader Elleszar has dubbed me “The Violet Queen of SEES”. There are only a few girl gamers left in Granado Espada, and the SEES Faction currently houses 3: The Red, White, and Violet Queens. ~~I am Violet, because I can be “violent”, despite my low level. xD;;;~~

I’m glad I got Rangiku (Female Elementalist) and Rue (Male Wizard) up to level 52. They were in desperate need of a wardrobe change. Rie, my Catherine STR, is also up to level 36. I’m a little worried about the patch to GE 4.5 though. Simply because everyone knows how terrible I am with manual patching. -_-;;; But I’m looking forward to the release of Catherine Torsche!

All hail the Red, White, and Violet Queens of SEES! (Not the candy, mind you, but the organization from Persona 4)

Toy Story 3: Be Good to Your Toys!

2010-06-22T00:04:00.001+08:00

One of the better movies I’ve seen in a while…

Toy Story 3. It made me think, how could Disney and Pixar pull-off a third successful movie seeing the first and second ones were absolutely fantastic?

I was blown. Away.

Andy, now a 17-year-old kid getting ready for college, no longer has time to play with his toys like he used to. After countless garage sales and spring cleanings, Woody’s family becomes smaller and smaller, even losing Little Bo Peep and her sheep.

Left with only Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Jessie, Bullseye, Slinky Dog, Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head, Rex, Hamm, Toy Aliens, and a few Toy Soldiers, Andy’s mother begins to pester him to clean up his room and gave him two choices: to throw out or to donate the stuff he can’t bring to college with him. Otherwise, anything left in his room will be thrown out. What will he do to his beloved toys?

I’m 26, but I still have a lot of my childhood toys hidden in my room and around the house. The ending made me tear up a bit because I began to feel guilty about not playing with my old toys. And well, are PVCs even considered toys? I’ve never played with them the way Andy did, haha~

I highly recommend watching this in the theater. Don’t miss it, guys! And oh yeah, Totoro from Studio Ghibli’s “My Neighbor Totoro” is in this movie!!! I want a plush of him too! :(

The Best Thing That Has Ever Happened to Sprite

2010-06-18T00:06:00.000+08:00

As far as “obey your thirst” goes, this takes the cake.

If you love green tea, then you are going to love this. My trip to Taiwan has introduced to my new favorite soft drink: Green Tea Sprite. Now, if you don’t like tea at all, you can forget this drink ever existed, because it’s a very fragrant drink. It’s not flowery-fragrant, but my sister thinks it may be close to sweet Jasmine tea.

One should not leave Taiwan without tasting this soft drink, soda, pop, or whatever you’d like to call it because sadly, I’ve only ever seen this in Taiwan, hence the Chinese characters. I wasn’t able to bring some home, because you can’t bring liquids from outside the airport to the plane, but my sister and my brother-in-law were lucky enough to get the new vending machines when they flew back to Manila from Taipei. They got me 3 in total, but I’ve already drank one bottle before I was able to take a photo.

Needless to say, I’ll be reserving a bottle (or both) for a special occasion… whether it’s good or bad news, no one is stealing these bottles of Green Tea Sprite from me.

Now if only I can find a way to smuggle some green tea milk from Taiwan. Hm…

California Berry: Blueberry Frozen Yogurt

2010-06-17T04:50:00.002+08:00

I just had a new, deliciously colored, frozen yogurt!

California Berry has released their Blueberry Flavored Frozen Yogurt! I couldn’t get the photo to come out any better than this because of the lighting in the shop, but the yogurt is actually purple! And it tastes delicious~! It’s the first time I ever saw frozen yogurt in this color! Plus, it’s not very sweet, so it’s perfect for fruits and nuts toppings!

My sister mentioned she thinks it tastes more like grape than it does blueberries, but I don’t really care. I like it either way!

The Starbucks tumbler is something I bought in Taiwan by the way. The frozen yogurt is available here, and the California Berry branch on Tomas Morato is open until 1am on weekdays and 3am on weekends. Since my sister never sleeps, we’ll be frequenting this place in the next few days.

I hope they make this a regular flavor from now on. I want to have another cup of this soon!

Make Your Cheeseburger Count

2010-06-16T02:41:00.001+08:00

When I went to get my passport renewed last May, my brother wasn’t sure how he was going to pick me up so he told me to get something to eat. The Department of Foreign Affairs had a McDonald’s right across the street, so I decided that I might as well take the short walk there seeing that the building was closing and that I drained my PSP battery again.

I like McDonald’s, but not that much. I didn’t want to eat anything heavy since it was 5pm, so I decided to get a cheeseburger.

Only, the girl at the counter didn’t just give me a cheeseburger, she handed me something else.

It was a sticker for McDonald’s “Make Your Cheeseburger Count”. Every time a customer buys a cheeseburger at McDonald’s, 1 Peso is donated to a local charity known as “Bright Minds Read” through Ronald McDonald House Charity. Their goal? To reach one million pesos worth of donations.

I made my cheeseburger count! My sticker is the one on the lower-right corner of the photo. I hope you guys will too!

Nostalgia…

2010-06-15T09:17:00.001+08:00

A new and clean blogger layout later, I feel as if I want to blog more frequently again.

When I was still using WordPress for my blogs, I used to have a Shakugan no Shana layout. It was one of my favorites, despite the overall theme being green. Green is my least favorite color, but it used to be my favorite until my older sister got angry at me for “imitating” her… that was when I switched to pink and then blue-violet.

To be honest, I didn’t really like Shakugan no Shana very much. When I was watching the series, it became a little tiresome for me, and I never finished season 1. It wasn’t until I read the light novel that I appreciated it, even just a little.

You may also notice that I’ve been plurking again. I’m not much of a plurker compared to before, but my purks are almost always different from my tweets. Feel free to be one of my fans, or if I know you in some way or form, then be one of my friends!

I will need to update this blog again soon, but for now, I need my sleep. Things have been rough lately, and I haven’t been sleeping properly because of the stress… partially also because of the weather.

But I would also like to ask… if you believe in God, please pray for me. The future looks so bleak that I’ve been refusing to look ahead. I’m not in denial, but keeping my spirits and hopes up is very challenging.

I really need all the help I can get at this point, so thanks a lot in advance! I will blog about this in more detail when I get more information.

DJ Max Technika

2010-06-08T11:35:00.006+08:00

I should have blogged about this some time ago, but I've been lazy in writing lately.

I first heard about DJ Max Technika when I was strolling around Taiwan. There were several posters about this game "coming soon" in various arcades we'd pass by the Underground Malls. I thought it was another game for the PSP, but I was glad to find out I was wrong.

It's a pretty good game, though I've only played a few times in the past several weeks. I get most D's and C's in the Popular category, but at least I get to finish? Heh...

And suddenly! I have this:

Now as much as I adore this card, I was recently face to face with a real live jerk who used her Platinum Card status to make fun of the other players at Trinoma. The worst part was, I saw her card and it had the same design as mine! Now I want it changed...

I'm thinking about buying another card, specifically the one with "Fate" as its design. ~~I wonder if I can return and exchange this one instead? Please tell me that's possible... >.>;;;~~

Welcome, Kaien…

2010-05-28T03:53:00.001+08:00

I have never done this before, and I hope I wouldn't have to again any time soon...

Ichigo, my PC, had been failing in his performance as of late. After a few system checks, it appeared as though he had a worm infestation I just could cure. And so, before the worms reach my files, I decided to reformat him and re-install his entire operating system.

It was a fairly complete success. So far, Kaien is performing very well. His reaction time is much faster than Ichigo’s, but I suppose that’s mainly because not all of his programs have been installed as of yet. I have to say, it wasn’t too bad for a first timer like myself… But I am wondering whether or not I should have wiped the entire HD clean before re-installing everything.

Well, it’s a bit too late for that now. If I want to do that, I’ll have to wait until the next reformat.

Ichigo was 5-years-old before he was turned into Kaien. I’ll miss him dearly, but it was time for him to go.

On another note, I was able to find an English copy of Paint Tool Sai. Everyone on Deviant Art has been talking about this program for a while, so I thought I might check it out. Now if only I can find some tutorials on this program so that I won’t have to go in blind.

Miramar's Ferris Wheel

2010-05-13T01:15:00.008+08:00

If there was one thing I didn't plan on, it was this one.

I didn't know about Taiwan's fascination with Ferris Wheels until my sister told me about the biggest one somewhere in the country. Apparently, a lot of soap opera scenes are taken there, wherever that is.

I didn't see the biggest one, but I was able to see and ride on the second biggest Ferris Wheel in the country. It was about 70 meters high if I remembered correctly, and the ride was on the 5th floor of a mall known as Miramar.

You can probably imagine how high up we were. And I'm not exactly all that comfortable with heights. However, I do love Ferris Wheels. I made a mistake on convincing my sister to ride with me and my brother-in-law, because she then asked for the clear passenger car.

Clear. Passenger Car. More than 70 meters off the ground. I almost fainted!

But... I didn't regret it. Even if the ride cost me 150NT, it was worth it. I mean...

...just look at how beautiful that Ferris Wheel is. I don't like green, but it was such a sight to behold. I would show you photos from the top of the ride, but I only had a sucky camera phone with me. You'll have to take the ride to find out~ Especially with someone special~~

Hello Kitty Sweets: Cuteness in Taiwan

2010-05-12T03:49:00.009+08:00

You would think that I would get over the Hello Kitty phase by now, but my trip to Taiwan made me re-think that statement.

When I arrived in Taipei, our taxi driver asked me what I liked and what I do for work. When he heard about Hello Kitty (which he really misunderstood with my Chinese fail speak), he told us about a Hello Kitty Cafe, the only one in Taiwan. In fact, he drove us there to show us, even though the store was already closed, and I was overwhelmed with the cute overload.

Unfortunately(?), I wasn't able to buy any of the cakes or even coffee, so I can't really say how good or bad they are. According to my sister and brother-in-law, the prices for the cakes were pretty good, especially since it's a Hello Kitty themed cafe. The chairs were shaped in Hello Kitty's head, and the waitresses were all dressed in pink and Hello Kitty clothing!

Way too much cute for me, but I dare say the next time I do go back to Taiwan, I might as well make it a point to visit and dine at Hello Kitty Sweets. I mean, who wouldn't want a bite out of Hello Kitty's head?

Anime Shopping in Taipei, Taiwan

2010-04-22T11:54:00.004+08:00

About 2 years ago, I posted my very first item on the "wish list" category. Mind you, when I write something on the wish list, it usually means I can't afford to get it, or that it's a rare item that I will no longer be able to find.

Why then, I wonder, was I able to get something like this Saber figure by Gift?!

Not that I'm complaining, but oh my Taiwan, I love you forever!

Taiwan has a lot of shops in the Taipei Underground Mall that allow anime collectors to rent a space to sell their anime figures, cards, and other things that they may no longer want. You can get to that mall very easily by taking any of the exits on the MRT labelled "Y". It was at one particular shop near the very end of the mall... Y28 exit if I'm not mistaken, where my brother-in-law and I stumbled upon this lovely gal...

...at a price that I'd gladly pay double for.

The item wasn't bad at all for a second hand. There were signs showing that the box had been opened before... like the scratches on the stand she's on. There was also some oil on her skirt, but that wiped off clean pretty easily.

I had to hand carry her home though, since her box was pretty bulky. Brother-in-law insisted we get another box at the post office so that she wouldn't be damaged. We were going to buy one, but the post office we went to was a small branch, so they weren't selling any boxes... they gave us one for free instead.

And such a cute box it was too...

More of my shopping rambles later~ For now, I need to run off and try to make some money~ :D See you guys later~

Fun Taiwan!

2010-04-12T12:47:00.003+08:00

Yesterday, I took a plane ride to Taipei, Taiwan to visit my sister and my brother-in-law. I've always wanted to see what Taiwan was like, as I always get my manga from there... whenever the sister's in the country, of course!

I took Cebu Pacific and I have to admit, it wasn't as bad as I imagined it to be. The flight was pretty smooth sailing, though the immigration officer in the NAIA Terminal 3 was pretty mean. "Where are you going?" "Where's your visa?" "You think you can get in Taiwan with only this?" >.>;;; Ayiyi, such a horrible nightmare she was!

But at least the immigration officer in Taipei was such a cute bishie!!! >o<;;; Why didn't he ask me more questions instead of that creepy girl ~~who I first thought was a man~~? ;_;

Oh, and there was a cute little girl wearing a Hello Kitty jacket on our flight too, so that helped erase the nightmares of NAIA. Heh~

Airport food is highway robbery though... a bottle of mineral water cost me P115 (US$2.50). Dx!!! I hate you Terminal 3. T_T

I should remember to tie some ribbons to my luggage when I fly back though... So many people have the exact same one! I almost took the wrong luggage but it was a good thing we had different locks! @_@;;; When I got mine, I checked the combination and ran off to the exit... which was another surprise because... Where was my sister?! Hahaha... I looked around in the waiting area and there was hardly anyone there! I walked around for a few minutes before they arrived~ Which was ok, because I was already expecting that! ^^

My first meal was prawn salad, kung pao stir fry crab, prawn roll with almonds, radish cake, corn soup, and shi mi lu! I wasn't eating well all day because I was too excited about my trip, but dinner was so heavenly delicious that... I was in heaven! I will post pictures later if and when I have more time~ Heh~

Oh, the cab driver was super nice too. He asked me if I liked Hello Kitty and I mentioned that I used to work for her. Haha~ He showed us a small cafe called "Hello Kitty Sweets" and I swear, I squealed. xD Even if I don't like Hello Kitty all that much, that place looked really cute! My brother-in-law promised that we'll go there when it's open, and I'm super excited! >3<;;;

Got home pretty late so we slept the morning away... I think my sister and brother-in-law are still asleep, so I'll raid the fridge for the left overs... I think there's some pork chop rice around somewhere. 711 is right downstairs too, which looks a lot like Hong Kong's...

Did I mention I'm staying in Holiday Inn's Executive Suite at a fraction of the actual cost?

Photos to be posted on another date! xDDD

Adding Asuka to the Mix...

2010-04-03T11:15:00.001+08:00

I didn't think I would do it, but I did it. ._.;;;

By which I mean, I didn't think I'd buy the Asuka Langley version of the UCC Milk Coffee set seeing that I already have Rei's... but I was in a strange mood on the day of my dad's birthday. And seeing that lonely can of Evangelion UCC Milk Coffee on the shelf made me feel sorry for it. *_*

~~Did I mention I was in a weird mood that day?~~

Even more surprising is that I actually opened and drank the darn thing... despite being warned that it is not the best of milk coffees out there. =.=;;;

Sadly, the Internet didn't lie. It wasn't very delicious... it kinda tasted like watered-down-condensed-milk. ~_~ Good thing I ordered UCC's Coffee Jelly dessert... that was bitter enough to counter the sugary, sweet taste in my mouth.

I suppose they were targeting the younger fans and coffee drinkers for these, but dear gracious... I felt like I was going to get diabetes with each passing sip. =A=;;; Coffee should still taste coffee-ish even when you add milk to it, please and thank you!

...though I am now thinking of drinking that Rei Can I have sitting on my desk. The can's worth keeping, maybe, but the drink inside? I'll probably mix an additional spoonful of black coffee to it.

The art is gorgeous though. No denying that. ♥

Fangirling Over Kuroshitsuji Things

2010-04-02T20:12:00.000+08:00

I'm finally completing my episodes of Kuroshitsuji and stumbled upon the OVA the other day... Now I'm just totally confused. The series was pretty vindictive in showing that revenge is everything in this world, and then the OVA dictates the exact opposite. It seems that Ciel learned this lesson from the children in the audience... in a way, Sebastian also taught him that. If that were the case, then why did Ciel end up dying in the end of the anime series?

Too many questions left unanswered... but despite the OVA being an overall disappointment, their depiction of Hamlet was pretty hilarious~! I'm guessing they wanted to do something different for the OVA.

That also reminded me that I haven't even posted this yet:

I like this and I don't like it at the same time. ~_~ I'm not sure... maybe it's because it looks too typical of Ciel to look like... well, Ciel? xDDD;;; It just seems like I copied it from an original piece or something. =.=;;;

I need to draw him and Sebas-chan together~ ♥ I wonder what season 2 will hold in store for us? New master, now butler (even if the new butler sounds like Sebas-chan); this should prove to be very interesting indeed. >3

Happy April Fools~ xD!!!

Artist for Hire

2010-04-01T00:01:00.006+08:00

Because I am now a starving artist, I've decided to put up commissions. For now, these are the services offered, but I will update my Deviant Art Commissions Information if I think I can handle any more.

Yes, I'm serious... even if it is April Fools today. xD;;;

Portrait Commissions: US$15 ($7 for each additional character)

* waist up
* full color
* minimal to no BG only

Samples:

Chibi Commissions: US$10 ($5 for each additional character)

* full body
* full color
* minimal to no BG only

Samples:

Color Commissions: US$10-20

* price depending on difficulty
* lineart must be provided in high resolution
* minimal to no BG only

Sample:

If interested, please send me an email with the following information:

Name:
E-mail: (your PayPal email)
Commission Type:
Description of character:
Art style: (you can choose any style from my gallery)
Link for reference of character:

RULES

- I reserve the right to post commissions on my websites.
- Sketching will begin only after the commission has been paid either in 50% down payment of preferably paid in full (PAYPAL ONLY).
- Please give at least 15 days before issuing a follow-up.
- Corrections will only be entertained during sketching stage.
- The final artwork in its highest resolution will be emailed to the commissioner in JPEG format (unless requested otherwise).
- No hentai, yaoi, or yuri.
- Allowing the artist a bit of leeway for the poses is preferred.

If you have any questions, comments, requests, and suggestions, please do let me know~ ^_^ Thank you very much!

A.illusions: Durarara!!

2010-03-31T19:46:00.005+08:00

The sad thing about this..? I've never even seen an episode of Durarara!! >.<;;; But it's been going around Deviant Art and Youtube so I decided to do a parody of my own.

It was pretty easy to decide which characters to do on the top, but as I gradually began to venture down, it was getting harder and harder to fit the personalities of the characters with the poses. In the end, I had to change Azorite's and Souji's poses entirely, but it turned out pretty good too!

I was suppose to put the antagonist of the series there, but decided to have the automatons get their share of the lime light~ ♥

Nephews have decided to animate this and use the piano version of "Trust Me" to show off their talents. xD Hopefully, we can get it done soon!

View the A.illusions Gallery post and the full deviation in Deviant Art please~ x3

Rei's Kitchen: Menudo!

2010-03-25T16:06:00.005+08:00

Many of you already know that I've resigned from my day job some time ago. That means more housework for me instead of sitting in the office all day long. Don't get me wrong though, because I'm not complaining! I've been wanting to learn to cook different kinds of food, so I've been experimenting a lot... with my mom's supervision of course, unless I want to blow the kitchen up!

~~And of course, these are the days when I wish I had a better camera...~~ Please excuse the blurry picture! ;x;

Menudo is something like a tomato/ketchup sauce usually with pork, potatoes, and carrots. Some people put green peppers in them, but the guys in my house claim green peppers are bad for them. =.=;;;

Mom had some Menudo mix from McCormick, but when I tasted the semi-finished dish, it lacked flavor. Apparently, I need to read the packet and measure more because it was only for half a kilo of pork! I believe I was cooking more than that, seeing there are 6 people in the house right now, so I had to add a bit of ketchup and sugar to taste. It turned out pretty good in the end though! x3

There's squash on the side for lunch, which I boiled in water along with garlic and onions. I recently discovered that Thyme is my best friend, as it gives a lot of flavor to a veggie dish with just a pinch! It smelled really delicious too~ ♥ But I need to remember that squash may look hard, but they cook fairly quickly..! It almost turned into Squash Soup! ;A;

I did learn that sauces taste slightly different once everything is in the pot, especially when dishes have potatoes and carrots in them, so it would be best to taste test every now and then. I also learned that I need to put the potatoes last in saucy dishes like Menudo as they tend to cook faster than frozen pork! >.<;;; Good thing mom told me to let the pork boil with the garlic and onions to tenderize it before adding the mix as well as the potatoes and carrots!

Did I mention Menudo is one of my favorite dishes? x3

The Last Airbender

2010-03-24T18:07:00.004+08:00

I saw this in the movie theater last night. Don't ask what I watched though, as this was the only thing worth mentioning from last night:

Trailer from the Official Website.

I'm quite happy they finally pushed through with this film, and with M. Night Shyamalan as the director, this might turn out to be a pretty awesome movie. Let's try to forget Shyamalan's last few films, and remember the good ones, shall we?

Though it makes me wonder... Where's Appa? And for goodness sake, I thought Prince Zuko was suppose to be Chinese? Dx But I'll hold my tongue from any more complaints until I see this on the big screen.

I must say though, Noah Ringer is probably the cutest Aang I have ever seen. x3

Alice in Wonderland

2010-03-09T15:10:00.006+08:00

13 years after Alice Kingsley's first encounter with the strange white rabbit in a waistcoat, Alice has grown to be a beautiful young lady, who is soon to be engaged to Hamish Ascot. The death of her father has led to the Ascot to take over the Kingsley's family business specializing in foreign trade.

Alice is troubled and unsure about Hamish's proposal and is troubled by her "visions" of the white rabbit running around in the engagement party. She decides to follow the rabbit, leaving Hamish without an answer.

The white rabbit leads Alice to an all-too-familiar rabbit hole. Peering closely from the edge, Alice falls into the hole and enters Underland, the real name of the world "Wonderland" that she stumbled upon when she was much younger.

I was able to watch this film with my siblings last Sunday. I must admit that I enjoyed seeing Wonderland as if it were depicted in the real world, but my siblings were confused with the details since they couldn't remember what happened in the animated film. I've been reading mixed reviews about the film too, but I think Tim Burton did a fantastic job. I don't recall seeing the White Queen in the animated film, but Anne Hathaway just blew me away... Even if the ending of the film made me think the White Queen is practically a damsel in distress sort of ruler. -_-;;; I kinda wish the White Rabbit was a lot cuter, but Johnny Depp being the Mad Hatter made up for that very nicely. I mean, how could you possibly go wrong with Johnny Depp? Really?

Anyway, people, go watch the film! I'm sure you wouldn't regret it~ ♥

Oh, and in case you're wondering, yes, that is Rei Ayanami on my banner. Apparently, almost everyone in the family thinks she is "my most favorite character ever!" What's a gal gotta do aside from cower and cave in?

Besides... I kinda like this better than my Kaname one... What do you guys think?

You Can (Not) Advance

2010-03-04T11:26:00.007+08:00

Look what I got from UCC yesterday!

Apparently, there was a special promo for Evangelion's second of four films, "Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance". Coffee drinkers will get a chance to win Asuka Langley Shikinami's figure by Kotobukiya, Petit Eva Secial Figure Set (5 kinds), or UCC Special Eva cell phone wallpaper '09 ver (18 kinds) by subscribing the QR code on the can via the Internet.

Sadly, the promo was held last year in Japan from May 18 to July 31, 2009. And I'm willing to bet you need to be in Japan in order to participate. Although I can't really speak or read Japanese, so you might wanna check out the official website for more info instead of taking my, or rather, Gigazine's word for it.

There are 6 designs in the series featuring Rei Ayanami, Asuka Langley, Shinji Ikari, Kaworu Nagisa (with the Giant Moon), new character Mari Illustrious Makinami, and the cast in chibi form. I have the one in the picture sitting on my PC table, but I'm not sure whether or not I should drink it. From what I've read online, it's more milk than it is coffee and the taste leaves a lot to be desired.

To drink or not to drink... that is the question.

Aside from whether or not I should buy the entire set anyway.

Honestly though, I'm not even a huge fan of Evangelion, but apparently, most people think my internet identity, "Rei Kuassary", was based on Rei Ayanami. Even my nephew and brother-in-law thinks so, and hence I have a lot of Rei Ayanami figures from them. Not that I'm complaining of course, but I think I need to look up on this second movie.

Did I mention there are other sets with other promos too? Though I've only seen this set in the Philippines, particularly in UCC Tomas Morato. ^_~

It's Complicated

2010-03-03T16:57:00.003+08:00

When the Adler children had finally grown up despite her becoming a single mom for the last 10 years, Jane thought she had finally got it together and begun to feel "normal" again. No longer did she sleep through lonely nights, and she even had a successful bakery known as, simply, "The Bakery".

Who would have thought attending her son, Luke's graduation with her ex-huband Jake, would actually develop into an affair? And the timing couldn't be worse as her architect, Adam, seems to have fallen head over heels for her too!

Oh, did I mention Jake had already remarried to a much younger girl named Agness who had a son with another man?

Told you it's complicated!

It's actually been a long time since I last went to watch a movie in a theater. I have to admit, Meryl Streep did a wonderful job in this film. I bet most people didn't realize she was the boss in "The Devil Wears Prada".

In any case, it's a cute romantic comedy film, and not the typical ones you see these days. ~~Yes, I'm talking about the Twilight Saga, but that's another story.~~ It's really refreshing to see love from the eyes of the more mature and successful women; and, that despite getting a divorce, there's still hope for love.

Admittedly, however, ~~teens may find this film boring since they prefer Twilight and all,~~ but I thought it was a really nice film. Alec Baldwin was adorable and so was Alec Baldwin. I wish we got to see more of Adam though...

...oh and yeah, my brother-in-law and I had a craving for chocolate croissants after the film. Anyone know of a place that has good chocolate croissants, if at all?

"Age is one of my favorite things about you." - Adam Schaffer

Aww~ ♥

Fanning the Flames of Outrage

2010-03-02T12:48:00.002+08:00

I’m sure people have heard about Nick Simmon’s “Incarnate” by now, seeing that he’s “paid homage” to popular series Bleach.

But to release a statement like this?

“Like most artists I am inspired by work I admire. There are certain similarities between some of my work and the work of others. This was simply meant as an homage to artists I respect, and I definitely want to apologize to any Manga fans or fellow Manga artists who feel I went too far. My inspirations reflect the fact that certain fundamental imagery is common to all Manga. This is the nature of the medium.

“I am a big fan of Bleach, as well as other Manga titles. And I am certainly sorry if anyone was offended or upset by what they perceive to be the similarity between my work and the work of artists that I admire and who inspire me.”

From: Manga Worth Reading
Nick Simmons Releases Statement, Takes No Responsibility

I am upset by this, of course, since I draw my own webmanga, 黑火子 and let manga fans read it online for free. There are ads, yes, but I really hardly make any money out of those. And it’s not that I’ve never used references before either. I mean, there have been comments about Rei Kuassary looking like Lady Anne of Gundam Wing… and let’s not forget, I mentioned tracing parts of this as a practice for using the pen tool…

So… I don’t know. At one point or another, artists have done their share of copying works in order to practice. I don’t think I’m that “pure” to be the one to judge him.

I do know this… All publicity? Most probably good publicity. I hope he manages to get out of this in one piece.

A Letter

2010-02-25T17:09:00.002+08:00

To the mother of the child waiting for the train yesterday evening:

Please show some more concern for your daughter. Yesterday was a horrible day to catch a train as the North bound roads were blocked off for the celebration of the Edsa Revolution. You knew of this, didn't you?

I don't think trying to force yourself into a jam packed train, carrying for 5(?)-year-old daughter in your arms, was a good sense of judgment. I apologize for raising my voice in concern for her, making you miss that train, but if I didn't, your daughter would have gotten caught in the closing train doors.

Moreover, standing so close to the platform edge, why didn't you notice that your daughter's hand was reaching for the departing train? I'm sorry that I touched her, but really, would you rather I didn't and let her get dragged off at nearly 70mph?

She is a child. She doesn't know any better.
You are her mother. You are responsible for her.
You are responsible for yourself too, and should know when you need to ask for help.

You can threaten to call the police on me just for touching your daughter's arm to shield her out of harms way, despite what people around us witnessed... I don't care... just please, try to be more attentive to your child. She is still so young.

The world is a beautiful and cruel place. We know this... she doesn't.

I wish you all the best, as raising a child is a most difficult responsibility. Please do your best so that you will not have any regrets.

Stay Safe,
Rei~

Sugary Sweet Sundaes

2010-02-25T13:48:00.002+08:00

I feel so nervous all of a sudden. *_*

I’m so behind on my pages that I feel like I’ll be missing deadline after deadline again. I need to break this habit and try to keep proper time management.

Unfortunately (or fortunately?), my sister and her husband arrived earlier this morning. This would mean sleepless nights of endless drabble that’ll cut my productivity in half. I’m trying to come up with ways to keep her at bay so I can try looking for a printing press in time for Komikon.

Well, that’s the plan anyway. I’m going to try and print limited copies of the digitally re-mastered edition of A.illusions Act One, and possibly Mote-Mote if I can afford it. I’m so nervous about the whole thing because… what if no one buys my books? That’ll be a disaster. But at the same time, this could be my last chance to try and sell some indis, which I’ve been wanting to do for the longest time.

I might just have to take a leap of faith… but I’m still nervous about the whole thing, haha!

In other news…

Sweetest Dreams by ~kurohiko on deviant ART

I’ve always wanted to try my hand at drawing Trinity Blood. Good thing ~Laura28182 requested Abel for her prize~ x3

White Lady

2010-02-19T17:03:00.001+08:00

Last February 8, my brother asked me to accompany him to his restaurant. There was a Feng Shuei Master coming to visit, and he wanted some help in listening to the suggestions and noting them down.

Of course, that was done in the morning… but I didn’t think I could make it to work for the afternoon anyway, so I tagged along with him the entire day. We stopped by a friend’s house in order to check on the progress on the repairs of her driveway. Don’t ask me why the gravel on her driveway’s in shambles. It just is. ._.;;;

But then, I was bored. I don’t anything about construction, so I walked around the house. One particular stone caught my interest for some reason or other, so I kicked it… and it left white marks on the gravel.

Upon closer inspection, it looked as if I found myself a new toy. x3 So I scribbled away and made this:

At first it was a phoenix I think… But I didn’t like it and started drawing from another angle. It sort of evolved from there…

…or maybe I did see a White Lady from the corner of my eye and began to draw her face subconsciously? Creepy when you think about it…

Anyway! I like how it turned out in the end… The tire tracks look like wings, and I didn’t intend them to be wings at all! I do miss drawing on the ground like a kid with a new set of chalks though, haha~

Yes, those are my shoes and legs. Guess you guys know what I look like now! xD

Life is Like a Boat

2010-02-11T15:33:00.002+08:00

I am, quite literally, going crazy now. @_@;;;

I’m one page late in Mote-Mote, hahaha. Too many things are going on in the real world right now, that I have no time to work on personal projects. A shame when I feel so creative at the moment..! But I guess there’s a time for everything.

I’m hoping and praying that will push through. So far, things are looking good, though not in the pace I would prefer it. I’m just praying the decision I made was the correct one…

Ah! It would appear that I will be jobless for a few months. The very thought of it makes me panic! I think I’ll have to set up a paypal account and start accepting commissions in Deviant Art. Maybe open a few slots to see how it goes before going full throttle!

I would also have to find some way to help out my brother without gritting my teeth, lol. It’s one thing to be out of work, and other to work without payment. @o@;;;

You see how insane life can be? I wonder what sort of fortunes my year has with the year of the tiger? Hurr…

Kuroshitsuji The Musical: Part 2

2010-02-05T15:31:00.001+08:00

I never thought I’d see the day…

Kuroshitsuji The Musical: Part 2 Announced!
Kuroshitsuji – The Most Beautiful DEATH in The World – The Shinigami that fell with a 1000 souls

The Story - England, the 19th Century. The almighty butler Sebastian of the Phantomhive House: the “evil nobles” that are contracted to perform the Queen Victoria’s “underground” work. His true form is that of a demon. According to his contract with his young Master Ciel, a proudly independent boy who faces his cursed fate head-on, he becomes Ciel’s shadow and cleans up the incidents that occur in the underground society.

One day, the two set out to investigate an outbreak of random killings in London on the Queen’s orders. At the same time, the shinigami dispatch association, which is burdened with the task of “collecting souls”, has been troubled with a plague of “non-collectable souls”. The shinigami William knocks his subordinate Grelle, who does nothing but play hooky, over the head and leads the investigation with honor-student shinigami Allan and his friend Eric.

Demons, Shinigami, an incurable disease, a cursed past. The incident will entwine each of their destinies, as well as uncover the sad truth. Amongst all that, the curtain rises on the grand opera performance the viscount of Druitt is holding.

Can death visit on shinigami? Why can’t the souls be collected? Alongside the sad and painful investigation is a Noir Fantasy in which the strings are pulled by the Black Butler.

Official Site: Kuroshitsuji Stage
Translated by: Ann chan
From: otouto ja nai!

Someone tell me there's an English Subtitled version on that DVD! What is this unhealthy obsession of mine over demon-like bishounens? =_=;;; First Kaname and now Sebastian! ~~Even though I still think Sebastian is going to eat me. –.-;;;~~