Serenity: Those Left Behind

TLB

I take a break from my freaking out over school to bring you this, Those Left Behind, a Serenity comic being published by Dark Horse. With a cover and a title like this, I'm VERY curious to see what the story behind this is! Why are Mal and Inara standing alone on a planet with Serenity silhouetted behind them? Why does it look cold? What's going on?? Argh! This looks great. I should mosey on over to Oasis Comics sometime soon and see if they can let me know the day they get this. Because.. ARGH. Ten bucks for a hundred and so pages? Of SERENITY? Dear Bob, I can't wait...

And just LOOK at that art. Who knows, maybe I'll do a mural of all 9 of the crew (Or the 7 remaining?) on my wall instead of a mural of Ed and Al from Fullmetal Alchemist.

*Squiggles* :D

Superfly - Jayne Hats

iCunning

I thought I'd shuffle some traffic along to Superfly, a very talented blogger who sells knit Cunning hats. I've been looking to purchase one for each of us, and I have yet to send them an e-mail and ask as of yet. I know we won't get them until spring time or so, but that won't stop me from wearing it year round. :3

Take my love, take my land
Take me where I cannot stand
I don't care, I'm still free
You can't take my hat from me..

-Flip

I am Santa Claus.

Yep, it's official. Well, I'm someone else's Santa Claus. But, yes. I went about my merry way with Mom for a bit today. We went to Dick Blicks so I could get my white gel pens and a new Sharpie keychain. Then a brief peruse through Target while she bought essentials such as bleach and clothing detergent. I looked for her, but at the same time looked to see if they had either Load or the Black Album by Metallica. (Yes. I splurge on account of my single male friend in the world. Try not to break out in a sweat.) But no, they didn't have either. (I'm hoping Borders will.) I then made my way back around after looking at socks. Because recently I've had a mild obsession with socks and stockings. Weather's too cold for skirts now however, so I'll be sticking to my usual jeans and black shirts. :3 And I found myself a new black scarf for the season. When I finally put it on while we were in the food court and looked at myself in the glass doors with my black beanie, Tortured Artist tee, and Dublin sweatshirt, I must admit: I look rather dashing. Though The Mother insists I looked very "angsty", I don't agree. I felt like one of those beatniks, only, you know... cooler. (Though I must admit, the berets are always a plus, but I could never pull off a goatee and sunglasses in a dimly lit and smoky room.)

And it was while I was walking by myself from Dick Blicks to Target that I realized: I like to walk. Specifically, to walk with really no purpose. Just to wander. I don't normally get to do it often, because I'm not allowed outside the house on my own for more than an hour or two. But when I have my iPod and "Ask DNA" by Yokko Kanno bouncing along inside my brain, I feel slightly more happy than I am inside the house. I think it's something I'd like to do more often. Just get out and walk. Maybe take one or both of The Girls out with me some day. (Maybe tomorrow if it isn't so windy again? Oooh!)

After Target, Mom and I went home. I touched up my Cthulhu picture from the previous post, and will continue to do so for a while. Then it was back out again to Gamestop to find The Brother his desired gift. (Game-boy Advance SP, Cobalt, as he so eloquently puts it.) The game that comes with it is Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, which I have a mild interest in. So I may try to sneak a few hours of that in when he's not playing his Namco Museam and somesuch.

Oh, and I got a wicked cool nerdy wristband. Zelda. (Another one on my favorite games. I remember playing parts of A Link to the Past on our old SNES before it was *sold*) I'm excited about the new one coming out soon. It looks to be a very beautiful game!! This will be the first Legend of Zelda game to be rendered realistically. Not cartoony. And Epona is back! She wasn't in Wind Waker, and I rather missed that. Though I realize that was a totally different story line. (Though isn't each Zelda game different? And why is it called Zelda when you play Link? This question haunts me each night...)

Christian Chenoweth is in an Old Navy commercial. I LOVE Christian Chenoweth. She plays Galinda in the broadway adaptation of Wicked. (Which, I cannot read although I desperately would love to.) I only bring this up because I'm listening to the soundtrack again. (What is this feeling?) Though my favorite character from hearing the soundtrack is Elphaba (Elphie) who is played by Idina Menzel. (Or, was. They change the actors in Broadway plays frequently. But those are who play the characters on the soundtrack.)

Oh what a wonderfully rambling post! :D I'm going to develop more of my writing stuff and *maybe* go to bed. ^_~
-Flippy

World Eater - Cthulhu Fun

World Eater

Messed around some more with my pens and ink. I liked the composition of it, so I think I'll keep it in my portfolio for this year. :3

On the paper, it's centered. So it doesn't look as funky. But there's also quite a few mistakes on it too, for which I need to get a white pen at Dick Blicks. I thought I bought one last time I went there, but the girl didn't ring it up. >:( Grr.

Online Scrabble!

Online Scrabble!

I *love* playing wordgames, and even though I'm bound to lose when I go up against my family or anyone else older than me by about 20 years, I still have fun. :3

So if you feel like it, I may be on. I'm Cthulian. *snicker*

Um. No.

I think I swallowed my tounge this was so stupid.

Don't get me wrong. Of the Final Fantasy games I've watched people play (Being a backseat gamer like myself) and the FF:Crystal Chronicals game that I never seem to finish, it is a VERY beautiful series. Square Enix does a good job on making very pretty games. (They also did the Fullmetal Alchemist games, I think) But we don't own a PS2 and we will not go out and buy one just to play some games that really, we aren't that interested in.

And I'll rent Final Fantasy: Advent Children before I pirate it off the internet for the same reason. >:P

Threadless sale and Geeky T-shirts

My Mom is very cool. She is so cool, she helps me order all my favorite things from various online stores like Thinkgeek and Megagear. When I found out by way of Anath on Applegeeks that his favorite store, Threadless is having a 10 dollar christmas sale, AND that he found a 2 dollar coupon for users, I decided "Hey, I'll go see what shirts they have."

Well, I decided on The Dark Side of the Garden, and the total amount of everything came to 11.75. I payed 12 bucks out of my credits, and it should arrive here by next week. GEEKDOM.

I'm not really a Star Wars nerd, truthfully. But I still appreciate some of the fanbased ideas and such. My dad owns a Let the Wookie Win t-shirt that he really only started wearing when I whined and told him how hurt I felt that he didn't wear it. (I bought it for him 2 years ago as a fathers day present. They were out of "Who's Your Daddy")

So there, we have a star wars shirt each. I'm just waiting for that Boba Fett figural mug to get highly sought after and into the billions so I can be rich and famous for it.

I also had a wonderful Idea to line up all my favorite t-shirts, so that all of you could see the extent of my Otakuness, but they're in the wash. ^_^ I may go through and get rid of some clothes for goodwill though, seeing as my hamper is stuffed half the time. (I had to plow through it to find my Joss Whedon shirt, so it was then I decided that I'm doing laundry today...)

And I got some art-related stuff to post, so I'll show that later today. I have a buttload of Biology and Algrebra to do first, and I'm going to do that before I shoot myself in the foot.

Chocolate Flouride

Well, went and saw the dentist today. I'm a little annoyed I didn't eat all my burger, because now not only am I tired, but I'm hungry. (The 'rents just left to get The Panda, so food is on it's way. :P)

Got my teeth cleaned, which is always a treat. [/scarcasm] It's always like a game of "Let's see how many fingers I can fit in Caleigh's mouth!!" and the drillysuckythingy is ramming up on my gums and sometimes nowhere near my teeth. But despite the mild discomfort, it wasn't all that bad. Much better than last time with the plastic paddles...

The nurses and the orthodontist seemed to agree with me that instead of staying in the fruity vein of flavors, they should make chocolate scented gloves, and flavored flouride. I friggin' hate that nasty bubblegum flavor. And green apple is no better. (I did however make the decision to have grape-scented gloves on the orth's hands, just to see a grown man wear purple. XP Little things like that.)

So yeah, we talked about braces. I am NOT a candidate for the invisalign braces, so if I do decide to get braces, I'm going to go "fullmetal", or in other words, the metal brackets, not the ceramic ones. But apparently I'd have them for one, one and-a-half year, and then have a surgury to correct my jaw. Dunno... still trying to wrap my head around it.

---

I have an HTML project in Computer Apps right now, so hopefully he wants us to design a site or something. I've got two ideas so far, one I've already sketched and layed out, and the other one I got just now while listening to Hanson's "Mmmbop", which has been my life theme since my sister bought me the CD when I was... six? I forget. Hanson was love. They still are. :P First boy band I ever appreciated.

I'll try and upload sketches and ideas later.

---

No sketches yet. I'm still working on a few more ideas I've gotten, and my brainstorming keeps getting interrupted. This time we went to Vons because Dad wanted cookies and Mom got ice cream. I really didn't want either, so I asked for Pocky, and got two boxes of the original stuff.

Vons really doesn't leave much to the imagination. All the asian foods are kinda mushed together. You find vietnamese cuisine next to chinese and japanse ingredients. Only two flavors of Yan-Yan, chocolate and strawberry, and the only Pocky they had was Chocolate flavored. (Which is just fine, since it's the kind I like)

I read somewhere that Pocky is really more an appearance enhancer, at least in anime to make girls "cuter" or somesuch. I don't deny it, but it is fun to eat, and not a whole lotta carbs and calories. I don't buy pocky because I'm otaku (Well, I do...) but I buy it because I find it a healthy(er) alternative to a snickers, which is gone in like.. 4 bites.

(Take that Urban Dictionary. )

Now, I have to go look at Sanrio stuff for ideas on my Bid, because Freak and BBG are no help at all about what they want. -_-'

Old Nevada - I like Wolves more than Hangings

Wild Mule

Went to Old Nevada on Friday. It's this kinda out-of-the-way attraction that's supposed to show what life was like in the Old West back before the Major Casinos and Cookiecutter Housing Industry.

Mom was a little put off that the toll-taker pulled out his gun. Even though he was kidding, I can see why she didn't find it funny. That gun was heavy. And as far as I knew, it could have been real.

So we popped in after a few moments of hecking car parking (Halfway wedged into a mesquite bush, by golly.) and kinda trumped around the inside of the place.

In all honesty, it was rather boring. I had no desire to watch a mock hanging anyway either, since it looked like they were taking audience members up, and with my luck Mom and The Brother would have walked off, and I'd have been there in all my angsty glory for the rest of the Tourists to see.

All the wax figures were missings fingers and other appendages. And the Bear with Davy Crockett had a peg leg. Heheheh.

So Brother and Mom went and rode the tiny little train that ran around the place, and I waited for them and tried to help Tyler surf the internet. (It's really not an easy task, as he is someone to give up easily when you KNOW he's not doing what you're telling him to) And that went on. Then I got the the part I was looking forward to, which is the Petting Zoo.

I've always been real fond of being close to animals, so long as they weren't birds of any kind. Chickens and geese just aren't my thing. But as soon as I walked in through that heavy gate, this Coatimundi comes running at me to say hi from inside his enclosure.

Now, Dad and I had only seen a Coatimundi but once on White Spar on the way to my grandparent's house. They look like someone took a raccoon and stretched it, then dipped it in molassas to make it a real pretty dark brown. I stuck my fingers in and let it lick me. I love animals.

I wandered around and avoided the chickens at all cost. I saw rabbits in various hutches, guinea pigs, and all sorts, but no animals to pet. Until I rounded the corner and what do you know.

Two female deer, stubbornly turning away from every camera pointed at them. I'm not one to claim I'm an animal whisperer of any sorts, but I did manage to help one lady get a good picture of one doe with her head up, with out wasting my money on the crap feed you can get in the dispenser. Then I moved on to the lumpy old Donkey that had come out of hiding. Fat old thing, with a really oddly shaped neck. It kept trying to knock me down, but I was too big. It stopped when I rubbed it's ears. :D

So, I made my way even further back. This place has a difficult time discerning what areas are Employees Only and what aren't, so I passed by the open gate that said "Caution, Wolves running, do not enter." But it was open. So seeing as there were other people back there, I walked in.

I stopped by the small wolf encloser and was very elated to see two wolves, in their fresh new winter coats. Both timber wolves. T'Kai, the older, was in the back sleeping, and Littlefoot, the newest addition, paced back and forth nervously. I went and saw the male deer first (Who licked me! Ee.) and then came back.

And would you believe it? The caretaker came out and called T'Kai over so I could get a good picture of him. :D I was so elated. I told her about how I want to work with wolves some day, and maybe assist in the reintroduction of Red Wolves to the wild. (Where I'm going to fit this in with College, Irish Wolfhound breeding, and life, I don't know.) And it was fun.

Then on the way home I got a good picture of a wild mule. :D

It's nice to escape The City sometimes.

-Flip

Japanese Snacks.com

Thimbelle recently asked me how many kinds of Pocky there are. And, in an attempt to answer her question, I googled it.

My first stop was the urban dictionary definition of Pocky, but the people at Urban Dictionary label anyone who eats pocky as someone who is wasting their money on a stylistic not-very-filling candy, and a Watanese... something or other. Which may have a valid point, but I am not going to waste my time talking about such cynics.

Instead, I turned my sights to Japanese Snacks. It's a huge database filled with all sorts of japanese sweets you can imagine. I imagine their database isn't stock full yet, but there's a very massive amount there.

And Pocky is listed under Glico, if you want to look yourself. :3

EDIT:
While browsing some more, I also found JapanConnection, which hooks you up with alot of japanese items that they don't make here in America, and which you cannot get imported without this person. However, the person who runs this site has been repeatedly stiffed and is a little annoyed. I would be too, if people didn't give me money for what they wanted. >:(

But still no Kerokerokeropi banana bubble gum. Ugh, this quest is turning out to be fruitless.

---

And also, as you may notice, there is a banner up top. The new Childsplay site is up, an fund raising event that goes towards getting games and other toys for various hospitals. It's a non-profit thing done by Mr. Krahulik and Mr. Holkins of Penny Arcade. Rest assured, this is the only time of year you will ever see a banner not done by me here on TOG. :)

I don't know if we're going to donate this year or not, but I hope we are.

One (Another Korean made Flash)

Somehow, I think that Koreans so far have the best handle on Flash. All my absolute favorites are made by Koreans, (See: SamBakZa Studios' There She Is!! Series) and now, I've found a new one I like. (Also on Newgrounds.)

It looks like a cross between rotoscoping and motioncapture, but it's very fluid and very... nice. o_o Check it out.

One

Kushi-Dango

Kushi Dango

While taking a break from re-designing TOG (Yet again. UGH. HTML and CSS are just too frustrating to deal with right now. Gar.) I was browsing a few sites.

The first I came to was a site I found through Penny Arcade, a webcomic that I read. Friends of theirs that they met at their first Sakuracon have finally made a shop with all sorts of anime goods and candies. (No Kerokerokeroppi bubble gum though. >:( Looks like I'll have to actually go to Japan to find some.) They've got Cowboy bebop merch and wallscrolls and such. They have yet to get any FMA stuff in yet, but I'll wait. I'm looking for a really good wallscroll to hang in my room. :P Their website can be found Here.

I finally became compelled to look up a recipe for Dango, or Kushi-Dango, which is basically a fried ball of dough with some sauce. They eat it in nearly every anime and manga you come across that deals with humans. (Especially in Samurai Champloo, since they're always broke.) Dad thinks it looks nasty, but I think I'd be willing to try some. A recipe can be found here. Rather simple, it seems. Not too much involved.

(I should look up plain rice balls too. I love those. :D)

Foxly Gent and Other Things

Foxly Gent

Dad stayed home sick today, but that didn't stop me from having my usual fun. We watched a few more episodes of Full Metal Alchemist, and the rest of the time he spent playing Stubbs the Zombie (His new gamefly game) and napping. The day blew by so fast... It was like... wow.

So, I sat down and drew my daily picture. Today's happens to be some Wind in the Willows-ish looking guy. I'm proud of it, so I think I'll hang onto it until the holiday season when I decide to shuffle off a bunch of my originals to who wants them.

Did I mention?

I'm thinking of offering my original sketches/lineworks, plus a 'print' of the computer-generated image (if there is one) for Christmas this year. Or whatever holiday you might celebrate. I don't know how many I'll send off, it all depends on who wants them. I hope I don't forget... If I do, well, you know. Remind me. :P

Pizzanight! *Dances*
-Flip

Thomas's Gift and an E-mail

Check out This Deviation, Thomas!

Sorry it's a day later than I promised. >.o

---
Found a funny e-mail someone posted on DA today.

To get the full effect, this should be read aloud. You will understand what 'tenjewberrymuds' means by the end of the conversation. This has been nominated for the best email of 2005.

The following is a telephone exchange between a hotel guest and room-service, at a hotel in Asia, which was recorded and published in the Far East Economic Review:

Room Service (RS): "Morrin. ; Roon sirbees."

Guest (G): "Sorry, I thought I dialed room-service."

RS: "Rye..Roon sirbees..morrin! Jewish to oddor sunteen??"

G: "Uh..yes..I'd like some bacon and eggs."

RS: "Ow July den?"

G: "What??"

RS: "Ow July den?...pryed, boyud, poochd?"

G : "Oh, the eggs! How do I like them? Sorry, scrambled please."

RS: "Ow July dee baykem? Crease?"

G: "Crisp will be fine."

RS : "Hokay. An Sahn toes?"

G: "What?"

RS:"An toes. July Sahn toes?"

G: "I don't think so."

RS: "No? Judo wan sahn toes??"

G: "I feel really bad about this, but I don't know what 'judo wan sahn toes' means."

RS: "Toes! toes!...Why jew don juan toes? Ow bow Anglish moppin we bodder?"

G: "English muffin!! I've got it! You were saying 'Toast.' Fine. Yes, an English muffin will be fine."

RS: "We bodder?"

G: "No...just put the bodder on the side."

RS: "Wad! ?"

G: "I mean butter...just put it on the side."

RS: "Copy?"

G: "Excuse me?"

RS: "Copy...tea...meel?"

G: "Yes. Coffee, please, and that's all."

RS: "One Minnie. Scramah egg, crease baykem, Anglish moppin we bodder on sigh and copy....rye??"

G: "Whatever you say."

RS: "Tenjewberrymuds."

G : "You're very welcome."