Went to see the family doctor today and got a note. Seems like it'd be fine in a few days.

Got the long-awaited Tales of Destiny for PS, but the screen would go black while the BGM continues to play after the introductory cut scenes. Haven't been able to find the solution to that so far... -__-

Another productive day. orz

Same thing as yesterday, except that I had pork for lunch at the Philippino cafe. Sunny-side up egg with runny yolk, need I say more? Oishi~XD

A very productive day. Dropped by the library for a couple hours, went out for lunch, then back to the library again for another few hours. Finished a book on blogs, a couple computer magazines, a reference book on mythological creatures and places, and a dictionary of symbols.

The little Chinese cafe changed owner and became Philipino Express Cafe. They still have the same bubble tea, but the food is completely Philipino. I had the milk fish dish, which was not bad. I liked the rice mixed with coconut milk a lot. :)

Some info on Gundam SEED DESTINY (Source: シャア専用ブログ)

GAT-02L2 Dagger L (ダガーL)
Earth Alliance mass production MS. Improved from Dagger (ダガー) and has stronger armaments.

ZGMF-601R GuAIZ R (ゲイツR)
ZAFT mass production MS. Minor-change version of GuAIZ (ゲイツ), the shield and the extensional arrestor on the waist are replaced by railguns.
　
TFA-4DE GAZuOOT (ガズウート)
Upgrade of ZAFT's heavy MS ZuOOT (ザゥート). The cannons on the shoulders are replaced by beam cannons and the dual barrel cannons are replaced by large missiles; stronger firepower.

Exass (エグザス)
Earth Alliance Special Task Force commander Neo Lorrnoke's destinated MA, equipped with dual railguns and four special all-range weapons. Despite being a MA, it has high offensive power that even several of the old ZAFT MS wouldn't be a match. It has the all-direction assult system Gunbarrel, which was put on the famous Moebius Zero in the war in CE 70 and later on GAT-01A1 Dagger (usually called 105 Dagger).

Madd Aves (マッド・エイブス)(seiyuu: Kusunoki Taiten)
Leader of the Minerva MS staff which includes Yolan and Vino; has the air of a middle-aged workman.

Ian Lee (イアン・リー)(seiyuu: Saizen Tadahisa)
Captain of the Earth Alliance Special Task Force's mother ship Girty Lue (ガーティ・ルー). He believes in Neo who is commanding the squad and assists him in strategic combats. Rank is Major.

Vino Dupre (ヴィーノ・デュプレ)
17-year-old mechnic crew of the ZAFT new ship Minerva. He works diligently for the launching ceremony of the new warship but can't hide his sense of lost when the Earth Alliance suddenly assulted. Usually has a bright personality and harmonises those around him.

Yolant Kent (ヨウラン・ケント)
17-year-old youth soldier, also a mechnic crew member of Minerva like Vino. He gets along well with those similar in age: Shin, Vino and Lunamaria, and he would go out with Shinn in private.

Cagalli Yula Athha (カガリ・ユラ・アスハ)
As the daughter of the former chief Uzumi, she is the new chief representative of the Orb State Union, which has regained independency after the Yakin Due battle. In order to ensure that war does not break out again, she is busily going between various forces. However, many argue whether her position allows her such political standing.

Neo Lorrnoke (ネオ・ロアノーク)
Belongs to the Earth Alliance; ranked Colonel. Commander of the Special Task Force of which Auel and the others are part of that's responsible for seizing the Gundam. He is a loyal soldier and very trusted by his subordinates. Always wears a mask to hide his face.

Arthur Trine (アーサー・トライン)
Adjutant of the new ZAFT warship Minerva built for transporting Gundam-type MS. Direct superior of the pilots including Shinn, but sometimes having difficulty dealng with the reckless Shinn.

Lord Djibril (ロード・ジブリール)
Successor of Multa Azrail as the leader of Blue Cosmos, a political organisation established for the purpose of eliminating the Coordinators. He aims to bring the organisation back to life with his hands and build an ideal world where Coordinators are annihilated.

DESTINY ASTRAY
Takes place after ASTRAY R. The Li Homu (リ・ホーム)corps that uses Genesis-alpha left for Mars, and Jess (ジェス) remained on Earth with only Hachi.

MWF-JG71 Raysta (レイスタ)(Main Works Figure Junk-Guild C.E.71)
A.k.a. "Civilian Astray," civilian MS built by the Junk-Guild from the Astray data leaked from the previous war. It is in fact not brand new but diverted from junk, and 40% of the parts are shared with M1 Astray. Military purposes is forbidden, and it is sold or rented out by the guild. Normal unit looks similar to Dagger but there are a lot of people remodelling it to look like Gundam's face, and there are manufacturers that specialise in this. Different kinds of option parts can be equipped on the back and the feet can transform into giant cranes. However, because any combat purpose is forbidden there is absolutely no weapon.

*I'm not familiar with Astray so I won't attempt to translate the rest at this moment*

ZGMF-1017AS GINN Assult (ジンアサルト)
　　この機体をもとに、ザフト軍は奪取したデュエル用のアサルトシュラウドを製作した。
　　武装、装甲、推力が強化されている。アサルトシュラウドは、すべてのMS用に製作可能だが、
　　ザフト軍の設計思想が、追加装備を持たせる発展から、新型機の投入へとシフトした為、生産数は多くない。
　　マディガン専用機と製色彩容器は別カラーで存在する。出撃中でもASをはずすことが可能であり
　　ASや追加バーニアを全て外せば、ノーマルのジンになる。

　　アストレイ アウトフレーム
　　ジャンク屋のロウが、ザフトのジェネシスαの中で発見したMS。
　　発見時には、装甲がついておらずフレームが剥き出しの状態だった。
　　そこでロウは『アウトフレーム』と命名。つまり、正式なアストレイではない。
　　それどころか、どういった経緯で開発された機体なのかも分からないのだ。
　　ザフトの機体である可能性が高いが、ザフトが鹵獲した他軍の機体という可能性もある。
　　現在の姿にしたのは、ロウであり、作業用MSとして完成させている。背中の上部に
　　アーマーシュナイダ―を装備する以外武装を持たない。腰パーツの中にはウインチとワイヤーが内蔵されている。
　　青白黄のトリコロール。

　　ドレッドノートイータ
　　プレアの乗っていたXアストレイ（ドレッドノート）をカナード専用に装備変更した機体。
　　カナードが操作できないドラグーン系の装備が全て外され別装備へと変わっている。
　　製作者はロウ・ギュール。「イータ」とはギリシア文字の「H」に装備形状が似ていることから命名された。
　　砲撃モードや、白兵戦モードなど、戦局に応じて変形する。傘発生装置は腰にある。本体部分に変更は無い。

　　ジェス・リブル
　　ナチュラル。20歳。フォト・ジャーナリスト。この世界でも珍しいMSに乗ったカメラマン。
　　性格は熱血。あまり考えずに現場に飛び込んでしまう。「自分の見た真実をみんなに伝えたい」という使命感を持っている。
　　ウワサや、他の報道が間違っている場合、特に強く反発する。自分では絶対に嘘をつかない。
　　MSは、レイスタ（ジャンク屋製民間用MS）を使用。ガンカメラで決定的瞬間を狙う。

　　カイト・マディガン
　　コーディネイター。22歳。プロのMSパイロット。ただし、組織には属していない。立場としては傭兵に近いが、
　　傭兵が戦闘のプロであるのに対し、彼はMSを使った任務ならなんでもこなす。
　　彼は、任務にあわせMSを乗り換える。どんな機体を使用するときでも、自分専用の銃を装備させている。
　　普段は、常にスーツで決めており、よほどのことが無い限りMSに乗るときもスーツのままだ。女に目が無い性格。

　　マティアス
　　ナチュラル。年齢不明。本名不明。通称マティアス。人によっては彼をサー・マティアスと呼ぶ。
　　素姓が全くわからないナゾの人物だが、大きな屋敷を所有しており、かなりの財産を持つと思われる。
　　ジェスのことを高く評価しており、仕事の斡旋をしてくれる。なぜか女性言葉でしゃべる。

Final Fantasy VIII 入手。

I've heard much hype about this game, how it's really a great love story, and I have seen many CG movie clips to know that it's also strong in the visual department. 早く遊びたいなあ。だけどいつ? -__-

Lost Universe 完食。

Frankly, I picked up the series only because it's supposed to be somewhat parallel to Slayers, and that the cast is not bad. While some of the concepts in the show are pretty interesting, the story doesn't hold up and the ending is rather disappointing. It's still entertaining, but not one of those must-see series. I guess I'll give it a C+~B- overall...

Dropped by a walk-in clinic in the afternoon and was told that my head was perfectly fine. Perfectly fine? So it was normal for me to not remember what happened and how much time elapsed, and fine for me to not be able to turn my head with the swell and cut? Well, I didn't have much hope to begin with anyway...

Due to the problem encountered last night, I was forced to stay home. My dear sisters phoned to check on me after the service and sent yuujin-L to see me. She even brought some congee over.

ありがとう、みんな。I am happy in this family with my Heavenly Father and all you loving brothers and sisters. :)

Gundam SEED ep.27-33

After Orb shelters AA, Kira is asked to assist in writing the OS of M1 Astray for Naturals and busies himself with work to escape thinking. The students are given the chance to meet with their parents, but Kira never went. On one hand, he might be feeling sorry for Flay, but equally important, he is trying to restrain himself from asking the question. "Why did you turn me into a Coordinator?" Like Flaga says, all parents want happiness for their children. Kira might not be able to understand it now amidst all the war and conflicts, but when this is all over, wouldn't he be glad that he has the power to do something?

Seeing the others reunite with their parents plunges Flay into a deeper stage of dejection, but it only reaches bottom when she finds out that Kira also declines the meeting. Despite losing everything she holds dear in an instant, her ojou character demands her to keep her chin high and refuses to let herself be pitied. Especially if that pity comes from Kira. She is the one taking advantage of Kira's weaknesses and using him to her purpose. He is the one giving all he has out there so he can protect her, kill the enemies, and die. Who is he to be considerate of her?

It's absolutely heart wrenching to watch the scene. Flay clenches onto Kira's shirt and hits his chest looking much in pain, while Kira holds her and tells her in an equally painful expression that they were both wrong. By now, Kira has grown up enough to stop relying on Flay, and his eyes have been opened to see what Flay is trying to do. Flay isn't just seeking revenge because she's lost everything. She is trying to destroy everything, including herself, so she can no longer feel the loneliness and desolation. He's realised, but he keeps being there for her and supports her quietly, hoping that one day he could turn that broken and frozen heart of hers back. That gentle embrace and look tell her everything. Kira is not hers to manipulate any more. What's more, he is turning the table and choosing to do this for her, if she would accept it. Hit with the sudden realisation, Flay yells and storms out the room away from Kira in a mixed state of shock, defiance, fury, bashfulness, and a sting of ruefulness. By the time the rush of emotion calms down and she's had the chance to clear her mind and sort things through, however, it's too late. She turns down Kira when she had the chance of healing together with him. Later her attempt to talk things over with Kira before the fateful sortie would be her last time seeing him...

The secret of the twins is revealed (though all evidence already pointed to this outcome...) but still concealed to the two themselves.

The Zala squad sneak into Orb to search for AA, in vain. Drawn by the sound of Torii, Athrun watches with wide eyes as the mechanical bird lands on his hand in a familiar manner. And there, coming out from the factory in a mechanics' suit calling for the bird, is Kira. Under the watchful eyes of the others, the two can only convey their feelings with casual talk and subtle implication. They are glad to see each other again and grateful for the confirmation of their friendship. But they are on different sides of the fence now, and they are destined to face each other on the battlefield as soon as they leave this place. With a dreadful determination, Athrun walks away from Kira and Cagalli and returns to his teammates. Cagalli recognises him from afar, but there is nothing she can say or do, for this is their fight.

The fateful battle which takes place right afterward marks the end of the climb and starts the rapid descend down the roller-coaster ride. With a strike of the sword, the 15-year-old piano-loving Nicol dies in the hands of Kira. With a throw of the sabre, the 16-year-old friend-loyal Tolle dies in the hands of Athrun. The death of their friends adds to the already desperate situation between the two and kills their last rational thoughts. Both throw away all that they shared and, their minds now plagued by regrets and despair and clouded by rage and agony, fight the ugliest battle of their memory as the best of friends since little exchange blows and slashes. And finally, Athrun punches in the code to self-destruct Aegis at point zero. The battlefield is engulfed in a blanket of light, accompanied by earth-shaking explosions.

Aegis is no more, and Strike suffers damage as well as a melted but empty cockpit. There is no sight of Kira, but Athrun survives the self-destruction physically and is rescued by Orb. In a room on the rescue boat, Cagalli and Athrun confronts each other in an emotional outburst, both shedding tears and trembling for what they lost. Cagalli, a kind and gentle friend; Athrun, a close childhood friend that he has no choice but to kill.「あいつは…俺が殺した…」Athrun cries with resignation,「敵なんだ、今のアイツは、もう！なら倒すしかないじゃないか！」Cagalli fists the front of his shirt and cries with agitation,「殺されたから殺して、殺したから殺されて、それでホントに最後は平和になるのかよ！」Having enough with people dying, Cagalli gives the stone charm to Athrun when Yzak comes to bring him back.

Even though he still bad-mouths him, with Nicol killed and Dearka MIA, having Athrun back alive no doubt puts Yzak's mind to rest a little bit. He is probably happiest than anyone else to see his last teammate. With the order of Athrun returning to PLANT as the pilot of the latest MS, the squad is essentially disbanded. Being rivals, Yzak surely notices the recent change in Athrun after his battle with Strike. With the parting threat from Yzak of having him as a subordinate next time, Athrun smiles a little and leaves the sorrowful Earth.

Unbeknownst to all the people mourning on Earth, Kira opens his eyes in the glass garden with Lacus by his side. He is still overwhelmed by the shock of his death battle with Athrun, among many other things. Lacus watches over him quietly and smiles kindly to support him. This is an important period for Kira as he thinks over all that have happened and come up with a resolution for all that is to come; to end the mental tortures and to end the meaningless war.

Onboard ArchAngel, the battleship is in an uproar as a result from the recent battle against the Zala squad. Tolle dies on the battlefield and possibly Kira as well, and the surrender of Dearka with Buster. Without Kira there, Flay is at a lost and seeks comfort from Sai. She tries to reconcile with Sai and denies her feelings for Kira, but Sai yells and renounces her denial. Perhaps all this time when she thinks she's using Kira as a tool of revenge, she has unknowingly and slowly fallen for him. With her mind set, she doesn't consider that as a possibility, but from the eyes of the others, it is as clear as daylight.

As a POW, Dearka remains his careless self which evokes the crew greatly. Having lost Tolle and constantly mocked, Milliaria loses her temper and allows herself be driven by hatred to seek revenge against Dearka. Sai finds out in time and withholds Milliaria from trying to stab the ZAFT prisoner. Flay witnesses everything with cold eyes and steps in, grabbing the gun without hesitation and points it at the Coordinator, ready to get rid of another of her sworn enemy race and do the dirty work herself. In her mind, if even Kira is dead, then all Coordinators should just die. By now Milliaria awakes from what she's doing and jumps in to stop Flay, because nothing would change from her pulling the trigger and killing Dearka. Seeing the girls' violent outbursts and struggles, Dearka finally realises the seriousness of the situation. Flay is blaming the Coordinators for everything especially now that Kira is gone, and Milliaria is bitter and sad from losing Tolle. They are all suffering from the war. They are just ordinary girls looking for happiness, but they have been turned victims with a blink of an eye.

These sure are some of the most emotion-filled and moving episodes of the series, and each one of these heart-wrenching scenes plays a crucial role of shaping the characters and preparing them for the final showdown. The real actions are about to start, and the war is going to turn even more twisting.

なるほど、「突然眼前一黑, 昏了過去」はそういうことなのか...

The black out had me worried for a moment there; I was afraid I wouldn't be able to catch Gundam SEED phase 2 on YTV. Luckily, it went on and off a few times and remained steady not long before 9.

Still having trouble recognising and adjusting to the English VAs, especially Athrun...

Since I'm picking up a friend for the cell group at a&b sound, thought I'd drop by and see if there's anything worth getting...

The Gundam Trilogy Movies? I was tempted, but the fact that I've never even seen the Original Series and the high price tags was enough to keep my hands in my pocket.

...that's it? You guys sure don't really have anything in terms of anime, do you? What does one have to do to get one's anime ration? Surrey is a good place to live in, but it sure can't compete with some other cities in this aspect. *sigh*

Gundam SEED ep.25-26

Under the hot pursuit of Athrun's squad, AA enters the peaceful neutral country, Orb. Cagalli's true identity is revealed to be the daughter of the Orb Prime Minister Uzumi Athha, and sudden realisation hits Athrun as he listens to her claim amidst the chaos.

モーメント is the mid-point summary episode with Nishikawa as narration, wrapping up all the story so far as well as the feelings and emotions between the five youth: Kira, Athrun, Flay, Lacus, and Cagalli. Almost no new stuff here, but the insert song "meteor" is definitely one of the best songs of SEED!

The slow climb is nearly over and the stage is about set for the roller coaster ride to begin.

*taken from my post in the Gundam SEED DESTINY thread at AX.Com*

Saw some scans from the monthly Bon Bon. Shin's little sister is named Mayu in the manga, and the preview page ended with Lunamaria calling Athrun by his full name and Athrun denying the name, "I am..." Is there just no way of getting his alias before we hear it when the show airs?

The scan also shows Neo's MA, but it's kinda small so it's hard for me to make out its structure.

Personally I like the art of the DESTINY manga (by Takayama Mizuho) a lot better than the SEED manga (by Iwase Masatsugu).

Oops.

Sold a computer package today, but I only realised my mistake after they left. There's no DVD burner in that model! They did say that it's a nice-to-have but they may not use it... In any case, they'd probably return it to get the right model if they really want the DVD writer. *sigh*

Got a call from another store tonight requesting a transfer of 20 TI-83+ graphing calculators. After some counting and making sure that we have enough left after the transfer, I said yes. A minute later, our manager saw me moving the boxes and inquired. Apparently, we've been selling 50-60 of these per day so we only have enough to last one more day. So I immediately phoned back and cancelled the transfer.

Good thing it was found out and stopped in time. Yokkata~

The Lord of the Ring: The Return of the King.

I don't remember much of the movie, but I do recall it being very beautiful and has battles of great scale (which is always good, as I'm accustomed to these from watching anime and such). Never gotten the chance to finish the novel --I'm still at the first book-- so I can't really compare the two, but I know that I wouldn't be able to imagine the grand settings myself just from reading the text. On the other hand, I am glad that I'm not fan to any of the actors so I can still see the characters as I originally saw them when they were first introduced to me in the novel, no more and no less.

The Lord of the Ring has always been dubbed one of the central masterpieces of Western fantasy. I will have to squeeze some time to read the whole book to get a real feel of it. Nothing against the movie. I just prefer the original version, as I have yet to see any alternative media representation outperforming their original novels.

Gundam SEED ep.18-24

The infamous Desert Arc. I have to argue though, that it also sets the foundation of development for many characters, especially Kira.

After a series of hellish events, Kira's mental state is tense as usual. He's been depending on Fllay for support, but here is a fresh ray of light, Cagalli. Granted, she doesn't know he's a Coordinator until Andy reveals it, but her attitude towards him remains the same after knowing it. Fllay, too, notices the potential threat Cagalli might pose, and she tries harder to keep Kira under her influence. It's almost official that it's over between Kira and Sai.

The (re)encounter with Cagalli and Andy brings Kira out of his former state somewhat, for better and for worse. On one hand, he's been able to express himself more freely, but on the other, he is thrown into yet another whirl of confusion. While he shouts「気持ちだけで何が守れる！？」, he is met with「この戦いを、どうやって終わらせればいいと思うのか？敵を全て滅ぼして終わらせるのか？」He realises the grimness and the irony of war from the so-called enemy, and he begins to be conscious of his role as a participant in the war, starting with his duel with Andy.

While Kira and Cagalli are at Andy's place, there is chaos onboard ArchAngel. Sai anguishes at his failure of even moving Strike, and tears roll down Fllay's cheek while she turns her back. At this point, she is probably mainly using Kira. There might be the factor of both of them being wounded inside, but she is approaching Kira out of vengeance more than benevolence. She no doubt still holds some feeling toward Sai, and it pains her to see him like this. The moment she bets on Kira returning and wins it, she's set to see her master plan through. She wouldn't allow anyone to interfere, but isn't that also her kindness, to keep others from getting involved and hurt?

On PLANT's side, Athrun gives Lacus a long overdued visit. Sadly, Lacus reveals that she likes Kira. Poor Athrun. He is truly surprised and taken off-guard. Yeah, yeah. I knew from the beginning that Lacus would end up with Kira. The OP is more than obvious. But I shall remain faithful and supportive to the couple. Though, if you really look at it, Athrun is the youngest of the four... Not my usual style to have the male younger than the female. *sigh* Oh well...

When I saw the title in the preview, I knew that the destined encounter refers to Athrun and Cagalli. Yeah, again, we all saw that coming. I don't hate this pairing (just disliking it a little XP), and the island episode is one of my favourites. Up until now, Kira has been the one under the spotlight. Athrun's finally getting some deserved development time. The atmosphere for the episode is very nice, and the scene with the insert song "暁の車" is very moving. I immediately fell in love with the song.

Aisha sounded kinda weird to me the first time I watched this part but didn't pay it any mind. I thought it might be intentional (you know, the native accent for the desert people or something). Then Neko-kun told me that it's Vivian Su, the one that also sings the 2nd OP. No wonder. That was really bad acting. -__-

Natarle has quite a few instances where she shows her shy and cute side: bringing water to Norman, giving treat to a kid and getting surrounded by more, calling Kira "少...少年" It must be hard for her to watch over the young crews like a hen to her chicks, what with a humanitarian captain and all. ご苦労さま。やばり、いいおんなだ。:)

Gundam SEED on YTV! Well, I never go for the English dub but I just wanted to watch more SEED...

The OP was cut down to about 15 seconds, showing just Strike with the Gundam SEED title and the last sequence of Strike shooting out from Archangel. The staff names were squeezed in during those 15 seconds. I wasn't too happy about that. The OP sets the mood and impression of the show, especially if a person was watching the show for the first time.

The ED was completely intact just like you would watch it in Japan. I didn't mind that, but that means no listing of the English VA anywhere. Not that I really cared, but it's weird to be watching the dub version and seeing the names of the original Japanese seiyuu.

I don't remember much of the English voices, one reason being I was still watching J's SEED DVD until 9:20pm (SEED shown at 9:30pm) so I had a hard time adjusting. That, and I never pay attention to the English VA. They all sound too similar to me and simply can't compare to the original cast.

As for other edits, I don't think there was any. None that I noticed anyway. Episode 1 was pretty 'clean' as I remembered.

Witch Hunter Robin also premiered on YTV tonight after Inu Yasha. Both OP and ED are the original ones (Why, oh, why can't you give SEED the same treatment?? -__-**), but otherwise the same boring and slow-paced plot. I did finish the episode but I doubt I'll continue to watch it.

*taken from my post in the Gundam SEED DESTINY thread at AX.com*

[some information translated from various magazines]

The title for the first episode will be called "Angry Eyes."

According to the Q&A section in New Type (the 'we' refers to the staff):

- Whether Kira will make an appearance is yet a mystery. Even though Kira, Lacus, and Milliaria are seen in the OP, it doesn't mean they will be in the actual story.
- Yzak has a lot of fans, but who knows what will happen to him and Dearka.
- We are worried about the relationship between Milliaria and Dearka as well. What will happen to them?
- (I can't understand the question about Haro and Shiho Hanenfuss. Something to do with the manga version?)
-Lunamaria is a spirited and tidy person. The relationship between Lunamaria and Shin seems like that siblings or in-law siblings. She would fix the button on his uniform if it's not done properly and scold him, and he would in return tell her to stop because he isn't a kid.
- Shin isn't a bad person. Even though he has a dark past, he doesn't succumb to it like Kira. He is a normal youth. The only thing is that he carries his little sister's cell phone around wherever he goes.
- The uniform skirt Lunamaria wears is not standard. She modified it herself.
- Rey is a leader type, and people pay attention to him naturally when he, Shin, and Lunamaria stand together. He is cool and a man of few words. He is Shin's roommate, but these two probably don't talk much. He's the type that would clean and tidy up his room.
- Meyrin is the type of person who is easily misunderstood by guys (whatever that means...)
- Neo (the masked guy) is the captain of the Earth Alliance Special Task Force and the commander of Stellar and the others. He is thoughtful for his subordinates and has an unexpectedly sparkling personality. He is trusted by his subordinates.
- We don't know why he is wearing a mask.
- Fukuda is secretly anticipating the real identity of Neo to be someone people know and like (not too sure about this one; don't tell me it's Fraga...)
- The three different colours of Impluse is not the result of different parts. The Silhouette system changes colour in addition to the change of weapon pack. The colour also indicates the level of energy (Blast Impulse eats more energy and has a shorter moving time, etc.)
- Even though Impulse and Zaku can equip external packs, they are developed independently. The packs are designed to be universal.
- As in SEED, DESTINY, GUNDAM, and ZAKU all stand for something.
- Lord Jibril (voiced by Hori Hideyuki, who played George Glen in SEED) is the new leader of Blue Cosmos. The organisation flourishes under his leadership and strength, and he is scheming to eliminate all Coordinators.

The Junius Treaty was signed in an EA battleship parked at the former location of Junius 7 in the first half of CE 72, ZAFT erected a monument at the site of Junius 7. The treaty stated that it is forbidden to use neutron jammer cancellers and mirage colloid for military purposes, and it limited the number of MS units that can be kept. Even though both sides signed the treaty, the hatred didn't disappear. They started focusing on developing new weapons and arsenals. Due to the cap on MS unit stock, they concentrated on the quality instead of quantity, resulting in the birth of models of high performance. That's the Zaku and the new Gundam series.

Earth
- cities have revived and returned to the level of normal life
- the discord between Naturals and Coordinators are not resolved; Blue Cosmos is still there
- Orb, which was occupied during the war, returned to the state before the war
- the leadership role of Orb was succeeded by Uzumi's daughter Cagalli

Space
- Dullindal is considering taking a harmonic policy route with the Earth Alliance
- Shin is attracted by such humanity from Dullindal
- ZAFT erected a monument at the former site of Junius 7 after the war

Shin
- moved to PLANT after the war and entered the military at the age of 15
- possibly holding a grudge against the leaders of Orb for getting involved in the war

Rules of War
- banning of Neutron Jammer Canceller
- limited number of MS can be kept
- the race to develop single units with high attack power started
- Saviour might be able to carry another MS unit and fly
- Chaos' claws are similar to those on Aegis

Someone came in today to complain about his fried computer. Apparently he tried to install memory himself without using any antistatic measure. Because he bought the memory from us, he wanted us to repair his computer at no cost.

Now, now. First of all, you were the one that wrecked the computer. Second of all, that's why we told you we have a technician who can install it for you. You declined the offer. You proceeded at your own risk.

Of course, he didn't get what he wanted. He did threaten not to buy from us again, but with this kind of mind-set and attitude? Fine. You can try that somewhere else, and you still won't get it.

Finally saw First Attack.

The scene where Shin's family was escaping was shown, but it was truncated so it's hard to say who fired the fatal shot. It's also uncertain whether Shin saw exactly who did it. On a side note, I wouldn't be surprised if it was Kira. He is already the tragic main guy in SEED anyway...

The full version (I think) of ignited is played, and transformation sequences for Chaos, Abyss, and Saviour are added to the previously shown Gaia sequence. Athrun is shown with Saviour, which officially confirms the rumour. Lunamaria is in a red Gunner Zaku Warrior, and Rey is in a white Blaze Zaku Phantom. A few scenes, presumably from the 1st episode, are shown, including the meeting between Cagalli and Dullindal. Athrun is sporting a shade while acting as Cagalli's bodyguard. Ridiculous looking disguise, I must say. Athrun and Cagalli are in a cockpit a few shots later and looking shocked, probably from seeing the new units.

NJStar me. It now puts a impassable end to the trial period of its products, regardless of version as long as it's installed after they engaged the detection system.

So New Type's stuck with no Chinese input, which is a no-no 'cause Mum needs it for replying emails. After much searching and failing to find a free and easy to use input program, I threw in the white towel and went to the Microsoft website.

So New Type's stuck with the MS IME, which is fine as long as Mum can type Chinese. The biggest pet peeve about the MS IME is that it's turned on all the time and one needs to manually change the mode to English in order to type English. I sure am glad that both Coordinator and Little Black still have usable NJStar. -__-

Mowed the lawn after service today. It's actually relatively dry today, but soon it'll be cold and wet all the time...

Zwei!! 入手。

No, this is nothing special. I just happen to have a few Zwei!! wallpapers from before and wanting to test the Jmode. Turns out that I can now run Japanese games on Jmode properly. Sweet. :)

ちょびっツ完食

I watched the first 6 episodes or so a long time ago. At that time, the only impression I had was that it looked pretty and must had a twisted tone because it's CLAMP.

Thanks to someone posting the series, I was able to finish it. Have my impression of it changed? Not really. On one hand, some of the main cast were good (桑島法子, 関智一, 田中理恵, and I've learned to recognise 杉田智和) and the art was beautiful as its original manga. On the other hand, I felt that I gained nothing from it. I guess romantic relationship between a human and a robot just isn't the thing for me, and I found the plot to be rather shallow.

I guess overall... B- at best and possible C+.

I was just chatting with out tech on how trusty my Little Black was yesterday, and guess what happened today? Little Black gave up the ghost.

It's like this. I turned off Little Black the night before leaving for the 4-day summer camp. Since Coordinator is here, it didn't get turned on until earlier today.

It couldn't find the hard drive.

That instantly threw me into a fit of panic. My stuff! My writings! My webpages! My pictures! My pouring of heart and energy over the years!

I broke off more parts (one of the supporting stands on the bottom, 2 white little things inside somewhere) and cut my hand while trying to get the hard drive out, hoping it would be possible to extract the data using another computer in case the hard drive wasn't completely dead. After much frustration and struggles, I managed to pull it out. My blood ran cold the moment I saw it. It's not gonna be compatible to anything. I tried taking it out and putting it back a few times, but all failed.

Such was the burden I carried with me when I went to the cell group in the evening. When Soph said to pray for what we want during praise and worship, Little Black was the first thing that came to my mind. So I prayed for it.

Sugoi! could not describe the surprise and shock I felt when I went home, ran straight to Little Black, and saw the familiar howling wolf on the DOS background. Uso!! was more like it. :D

Thank You so much, God!!! You listened to my prayer and resurrected Little Black!!
~>___<~
Thank You. *^__^*

Today I had the honour of doing the first Telus activation in our store. Which also meant that I had no one to rely on except for the 'orange book.' Cell phones were never my forte as I don't even use one and therefore don't pay attention to them.

Anyhow, we managed to go through most of the processes as outlined without much problem. Of course, it took me 5 minutes to get a print-out of the info sheet. Otherwise, everything went relatively smoothly.

It took me at least a good half hour. An interesting but time consuming experience, I say.

Hn. So this is what Wacom is like. Took me a while to set up the tablet and install the software. Hopefully I will learn to use this (provided that I have the time) and end the long period of art drought.

Returned to KK Mud once more after nearly a year of absence. All my characters are still there; the LV.1 ones were all deleted in the char cleanup a long time ago. Now I know how to properly enjoy KK: CMODE. JMODE works, too, but there're lines all over the place, and I can't see the Chinese text I type before sending. Everything looks so nice and clean under CMODE. Though because changing modes require restarting the system, considering my usage habits, it'd probably be some time before I login again...

Gundam SEED ep.9-17

フレイとキラ

Death of Fllay's father, the event that transforms her from a naive and spoiled girl to a young woman who's seen the cruelty of war firsthand. The sudden catastrophe sends her into a state of extreme shock and causes her to close herself. She was never fond of Coordinator in the beginning, and she blames Kira for not fighting seriously because of his Coordinator status. Then, she hears it, and something starts stirring inside her. The pilot of Aegis is a childhood friend of Kira's.

What can she be thinking when she hears it? That Kira is indeed acting all along in a conspiracy with his Coordinator friend? That Kira is also facing hardship and forced to fight his friend because of the war? That Kira is pitiful being betrayed by his friend and his own people? Whatever her thoughts, her attitude toward Kira changes almost instantly. She realises that she can use Kira as a tool of revenge against Coordinators, the root of the war in her mind.

When they have the chance to leave AA and become normal citizens again, she makes the decision to stay and join the Earth military. Even knowing that she might be the only one staying, she is willing to give anything if it meant to be able to end the war once and for all. What is going on in her mind when she stood in front of Kira's locker peering at the pilot suit? What is she thinking when Kira returns to pilot Strike and doing it for her sake as well? But Kira does come back and is determined to fight. That's enough. She would protect him with her feelings. She would keep him from breaking down in the face of war. She would hold him close to comfort him. She would be the one for him until he died on the battlefield. She would not allow anyone to interfere and come between her and Kira. She would be devoted to Kira and in return have him commit to her resolution.

Times and times again, even in the midst of battles, Kira is constantly reminded of the fact that he is different from everyone else. Just because his friends are onboard AA, he has to fight despite hating it. He has to fight against Athrun. He has to endure the accusation and scorns. He has to kill. He has to carry the burden of other people's expectation and their lives on his young shoulders. Once he fails to protect, he is overwhelmed and gets crushed by the weight. The death of Fllay's father marks the beginning of his mental deterioration. Each consequent failure eats away his sensitive conscious until he can't take it anymore. He is drowning and being sucked into the endless black hole called despair.

But an angel with wings of light pulls him from the terrible darkness. She gives him hope and courage when he feels he can't keep going. She shows him compassion and love when he feels isolated and neglected. She is always by his side. She is his lifeline. She is his guardian angel. The desperation to protect her and the others prompts his SEED mode to awake when AA is trying to enter the atmosphere. After that, his tensed nerves are stretched to the limit all the time. He is eager to fight and destroy so he can protect her and the others.

The relationship between Sai, Fllay, and Kira is starting to turn ugly, and no doubt it would get more complicated with Cagalli back into the scene. The first cours ends with AA landing in ZAFT's territory on Earth, and Kira is going to confront another major influence in his life, Andy Bartfield, very soon.

Character relationship aside, the battle between the 8th Armada and Creuset ships is really something. The scale of the battle and the emotions involved are so intense, it got me glued to the screen and had me thinking, "Where else can you see something like this but in a Gundam show?" Of course, I assume the UC Gundams to be on a similar level. Wing, with just the five brats in their super invincible Gundams, can't even come close.

On a side note, the scene where Lacus appears with the bulge in her stomach is interesting. Sai's comment and the look on Athrun's face are amusing indeed. The comment that they don't need to put out N-jammer anymore is also funny.

Ah, and this time I was able to identify 関 as Fllay's father, 三石 as Yzak's mother, �進藤 as one of the councilors, and �笹沼 in a few other places. And I finally noticed the scene where Kira's mother was shown holding two babies. For a show as complex and integrated as Gundam SEED, maybe watching it only now is better as I've learned more about it in the past year.

Lastly, Natarle is gotta be the most beautiful woman in the whole series!! XD I wonder when Maryu and Fraga developed their relationship? And the idea of a Goddess of Victory is also very stimulating... まぁ、ここまで以上だ。

知ってるかい、Jmodeは？本当に面白いよ!

I've discovered one good feature of XP Pro. ありがとう、楓猫君、あなたのおかげで。:)

One titbit of miscellaneous but pleasantly surprised info on Gundam SEED: Kaohsiung, the city seen on the news under ZAFT's attack in the 1st episode, is 高雄 in Taiwan as I had suspected! Hehe...XP

カウボーイビバップ完食(第二次)。

"The work, which becomes a new genre itself, will be called Cowboy Bebop."

And it is indeed a new genre in itself, what with its unique blend of beautiful art style and choreography, jazzy music from Kanno Yoko, and subtle yet significant amount of philosophy. The seiyuu cast isn't bad, either.

I have to admit, though, that I'm not that much impressed nor captivated by the story. The whole show oozes a feeling of melancholy and foreshadows the poignant ending, and I am not one to be charmed by angst. In addition, I find the lack of interaction between the main cast unappealing. They live on the same ship, yet they pretty much mind their own business except the occasional teasing and scolding.

I guess A- for presentation and B- for content, so overall: B~B+

It's back to work first day after the summer camp. Learned something new today: McCafe is a Star Buck clone under McDonald's. 知らなかったで悪かったな。Our McDonald's are just normal McDonald's...

With much reluctance, we left the camp site and returned home. Mum already left for the States while I was on the bus so I came home to find the cat alone.

Apparently, we ate too well at the summer camp. I was shocked when I stepped on the balance and found myself at a new high. -__-

*taken from my post in the Gundam SEED DESTINY thread at AX.com*

Ooh, the shades... Athrun didn't even wear a mask before, how is that little thing going to help conceal his identity? Or is it just for the sake of looks?

Neo Roanoke's mask looks like a mix of Creuset and Zechs, and he feels too much like Creuset for comfort. He's ranked colonel, btw.

Haven't finished SEED so I'm not very familiar with the clone thing except that there's some kind of relationship between Fllaga and Creuset. I find it interesting how the roles (as far as seiyuu is concerned) seem to reverse in DESTINY regarding the blond and the masked man. Rey is a Coordinator and there has yet to be any background info on Neo. That aside, I think Seki Toshihiko and Koyasu Takehito are fine choices for two of the major players.

Remember the Millennium Gundam I mentioned once before? The Athrun scan done in April indicated that he is slated to be the pilot of Millennium Gundam. It is still unclear whether Millennium is the name for the rough draft Saviour or a later unit like Destiny. It also says "18 years old; ZAFT."

For some reason, I have a feeling that Cagalli is not going to survive, and that's when Athrun returns to ZAFT (in name, not in allegiance) and pilots ZAFT's Gundam. That might explain why Lunamaria is shown together with Athrun instead of Cagalli (thinking of the SEED OP where Nicol stops appearing because he is going to die soon). I have yet to see First Attack so this is just my guess after seeing Zero Attack.

Day 3 of the summer camp and the grand finale!

  ∧︿∧
（ ´∀｀）~♪
  ⊃    ⊃

Day 2 of the summer camp!

  ∧︿∧
（ ^д^ ）~♪
  ⊃    ⊃

Day 1 of the summer camp!

  ∧︿∧
（ の.の)~♪
  ⊃    ⊃

Martin's sharing during service fired me up once again.

"Here I am, please send me."

This, without a doubt, is my mission in life.

Mum's tennis friends came over for a pot luck feast. Needless to say, we were busy preparing food before the guests arrived. Just as we were almost done with everything but the clean-up, the sink pipe was plugged. -__- Luckily, it was fixed after we called for someone.

Anyhow, the feast was good. Though I didn't have much as I was eager to return to the solitude of my room. No, I am not anti-social. Not that much, anyway. I had assignments to finish so I could go to the summer camp guilt-free.

They left some curry chicken and ribs (I loved the ribs, btw) for us afterwards. I suppose that would be Mum's staple when I'm off to the summer camp, and if there's any left, those'd be mine after I come back as Mum won't be here...

セルは好き、でも祈り会はもと好き。:D

I'm definitely trying to make it every week.

やっば、セルは最高よ！そして、来週はサマーキャンプだ、楽しみ！:D

Wallpaper change!

Well, this is almost becoming an anime exclusive blog, isn't it? That goes to show how much life I have besides work, school, and church. -__-

Not that I'm complaining (too much). It's amazing how much I've learned.

Wow, I used "much" four times in one entry. XP

犬夜叉 天下覇道の剣

本当は、何もおぼえでない。二月前のことだから。 (今日は十月七日) ^__^;;

Which also proves that this 3rd movie isn't as moving as the 1st one, which remains one of my favourite anime movies yet. まぁ...

Finally decided to dig out the Inu Yasha CD spindle and started a futile attempt at catching up. The anime is going to end in a month or so, and I'm, what, only about 50 episodes behind? It's not very exciting especially considering the fact that I've read past this point in the manga a long time ago.

No, no, I'm definitely not bashing the show; just berating myself for slacking off and being lazy like usual. Hopefully I'll get to finish the series this year so I can start on the other series that I have saved to watch. I really want to watch Wolf's Rain, RahXephon, Noir, Planetes, Scryed, Uchuu no Stellvia, and.....

*taken from my post in the Gundam SEED DESTINY thread at AX.com*

Finally saw the Zero Attack promo.

Lacus seems to have two costumes. The one she's seen dancing with isn't exactly the same as the revealing one. She appears to be the only character with large enough endowment to have them shaking when she moves. That's somewhat a comfort. -__-

I'm not very keen on the idea of Impulse having different parts and then merging together, but I like Gaia's transformation, which is the only one I'm interested in so far. From the looks of it, at least the first half will take place on earth and hence the transformability of the units; depending on the size of Armory One, it could be Earth or any of the PLANTs.

It is still not officially confirmed, but the only one shown without a unit is Athrun, and Saviour isn't shown either, so the rumour of Athrun piloting Saviour still stands. Interestingly, Athrun is shown with Lunamaria, kinda like the 1st SEED OP where he is with Cagalli though with less interaction.

The OP "ignited" is typical as far as T.M.R. goes. A section of the song sounds very much like a section of "zip", which is played as an insert in the SEED special edition one.

The transition from SEED to SEED DESTINY is clear as indicated by the main character's names: Yamato -> Asuka (both are names for Japanese era in ancient times). Lacus, as the leader of the "winning faction" from the previous phase, might play a part in helping to unify the sides. I'd like to see what Kira is doing. Is he going to just stay in the back and quietly watch the events unfold, or is he going to step out sometime during the series to testify or even lend a hand? I'd also like to see what part Yzak and Dearka are going to play as they were directly involved with the previous war (and the potential of Dearka/Milliaria). Since SEED DESTINY focuses on a broader scale, characters representing different aspects of the society will no doubt be important.

It's probably just me, but the narrator sounds like Okiayu Ryotaro (seiyuu of Andy Bartfield) to me...

Gundam SEED DESTINY (Source: シャア専用ブログ)

From Yamato to Asuka (大和から飛鳥へ). First, the story of Kira Yamato was raised and started. If AA didn't become Kira's place of belonging (居場所), what would have happened? Maybe he'd join ZAFT when Athrun persuaded him and fight to the death for the sake of protecting peace of that place of belonging with Athrun, becoming the ace of shooting down enemy units and feared by the EA soldiers?

Shin Asuka is in a similar situation. Because of the war in Orb, he no longer has a place of belonging and drifts to PLANT. He applies for ZAFT and trains himself with all his might to be the top, so that he can have revenge on those who took away his place of belonging. He is also fighting to protect his place of belonging now.

Shin Asuka is possibly another Kira.

Two years after SEED where Orb was involved in the war damage and caused the lost of his parents and younger sister, Shin acts as the bodyguard of ZAFT Supreme Council Chairman Dullindal. However, Armoury One is under mysterious attack. In order to protect Dullindal, Shin boards the Gundam and witness the mysterious event unfold. With unknown motive for serving in the military and always carrying around a memento of his younger sister, his private life is surrounded by mystery.

Unlikely Athrun who's had special education to hone his talents since little, Shin must have paid much effort to get to the position of bodyguard of the Supreme Council Chairman during the two years. What purpose does he have for such endeavour?

He's meeting Athrun and Cagalli at an early stage. Since Cagalli's father was the Representative Leader of Orb when his family died, what kind of relationship would he have with Cagalli?

出産おめでとうございます、Priscilla や John 牧師。

誕生日おめでとうございます、Jabez くん。

:)

任務完了!>▽<

あの collab が提出した、後は... そうですね、五匹のレポート。^__^;;;

なに、そんなことを簡単にできるさ。

たぶん。

I've decided that ニニンがシノブ伝 2X2=SHINOBUDEN is worth the time. No, it doesn't have any content whatsoever. It's just so stupid, it's funny. Though, I most likely wouldn't bother continuing it if it isn't for the cast as mentioned before. That might explain why I never bothered with Azumanga Daioh after 15 minutes into the first episode. Kuwashima Houko as Kagura wasn't enough to keep me watching, not to mention that she doesn't even have much screen time.

*mostly taken from my post in the SEED DESTINY thread on AX.com after seeing the 15-sec CM*

...Is that ugly grey thing going to be the main ship?? Why did they have to stick with the blocky and clunky 3D models? >__<

Rey is the mysterious bishi as he obviously has some connection with the masked guy in the CM. Interesting how he is piloting a commander class Zaku Phantom but is of the same rank as Shin and Lunamaria.

Meyrin looks even more like Fllay than her older sister. *sniff* I miss Fllay.

I just noticed that the ZAFT belt Stellar wears is the same type worn by the Elites, if that means anything?

Gundam SEED DESTINY update

After Azrael's death, it is unclear as to what the anti-Coordinator organisation Blue Cosmos is doing now. Sting, Auel, and Stellar sneaked into PLANT the night before the launch of the new ZAFT battleship. Stellar shows of extraordinary strength when fighting. The motive of having EA pilots boarding ZAFT-made Gundam is yet unknown.

Gilbert Dullindal sets out for Armoury One for the launch of the ship. Shin accompanies Dullindal as his bodyguard and the official pilot of Impulse Gundam. New Type says that Shin is 17, though other sources say he is 16.

[mecha]

Gunner Zaku Warrior (ガナーザクウォーリア), ZGMF-1000/A1, the artillery version of Zaku Warrior, carries the high energy and long-range beam cannon 'M1500 Orthos' and large capacity energy tank on its back; boasts of robust firepower. Standard colour is green, while personal colour is only permitted for ace pilots and commander class.

Slash Zaku Phantom (スラッシュザクファントム), ZGMF-1001/K1, the high-end model for Zaku Phantom commander class pilots; equipped for close-up combats with Gatling beam cannon on both shoulders and a giant beam axe by its waist.

Blaze Zaku Phantom (ブレイズザクファントム), ZGMF-1001, one of the armoured variation of Zaku Phantom. Slash is probably used for hand to hand combat and Blaze for artillery combat.

Minerva (ミネルバ), ZAFT's space battleship for transporting the new MS Gundam; equipped with Dutolion beam transmitter to supply Impulse Gundam with energy; armed with numerous weapons and has high combat power. Its appearance gives the impression of a set of bow and arrow.

Gati Ru (ガーティー・ルー), mothership of the Special Task Force; the shape and armament are clearly that of the Earth Alliance, but it's yet unknown to which faction it belongs; equipped with the Mirage Colloid, which violates the Junius Treaty.

[character]

Rey Za Burrel (レイ・ザ・バレル), a blond bishounen onboard Minerva; possesses high fighting ability and pilots a commander class Zaku Phantom even though he isn't ranked as one; rarely loses his cool.

Talia Gladys (タリア・グラディス), captain of the new ZAFT battleship Minerva, exhibits determination and courage.

Meyrin Hawke (メイリン・ホーク), younger sister of Lunamaria; in charge of communication control of Minerva; has the image of a nice and cute girl.

Hunter x Hunter OVA 2 完食。

Since I skipped OVA 1, the first few episodes were a bit confusing, but once they got into the game itself, everything went smoothly. One word: sugoi! The setting is quite interesting and not unlike an online RPG. Greed Island seemed like The World at first, where players could actually die from playing, but it's different in its own way. The card system looked interesting enough and would probably result in a spin-off trading card game. Makes me wanna go back to KK once more. Gotta remember to install Zmud someday...

Something else that's very interesting was the special feature that demostrate the process of how the show was animated. From initial character design, story board, actually drawings, colouring, editing, voice over, BGM, etc. As usual, I was amazed by the seiyuu. Out of the four main characters, three are voiced by female seiyuu. I didn't even find any of them annoying or inappropriate. Sugoi desu.

Hunter x Hunter 完食。

Not bad... is what I'd like to say. There are certainly good moments, but what's with all the loose threads in the end?!（ノ`Д´）ノ～～┴───┴

What about the Shadow Band? Did people really think they're gone? What about Kurapika? What about Kirua's brother and the game? What about Gon's search for his father? What's the relationship between Hisoka and Irumi? What--

Anyway, even though I don't know a single seiyuu in here, it's perfectly fine for me (I don't know anyone from Wolf's Rain as well --1 episode so far-- but I love it). The art is nice and refreshing with no fan service whatsoever. Well, some people might argue otherwise and point out the potential for yaoi, but I believe it's pure friendship between guys.

If I really have to decide, my favourite character would probably be Kirua. I wouldn't be surprised if he is popular. *shrug* Irumi seems stoic, but I actually find him amusing in a childish way, especially in the last episode. He isn't a bad guy, after all.

So I guess I'll give it a... B for overall.

輸了。今天早上的意志力戰大敗、所以就沒去了。其實我很想去的、不要那麼早就好了。T__T

Spent a few good hours watching Hunter x Hunter. Not bad. I've heard much hype about it but never got around to watch it or bothered to. I have the weird tendency of not going with the flow on purpose.

Anyway, I'm halfway through the TV series, so far so good. The series doesn't focus on Gon alone, which is good. I was afraid I would turn out disliking the main character as in many other series (Saint Seiya and Granzort come to mind), but everyone's been likeable so far. Well, except for that annoying two-timing Rookie Killer Tompa.

基於要去從來沒去過的地方參加講座、今天起了個大早、結果比預期的時間要早到了快一個小時。本想坐在瞭望窗旁寫些東西的、不料一個人走過來、眼神跟我對上、開口就叫出我的名字、果然是跟我同期的、早知道我出門前也該看一下個人資料好認人。不過想想我是登記參加者裡唯一的東方人、不用看照片也知道是我。

總之、有幾個人陸陸續續過來、主持講座的已退休教授(也是本 program 的頭頭)也出現了、六個人在瞭望窗那裡聊了起來、九點半正式開始的時候才進講室。

今天的內容沒什麼、主要就是討論如何改善 program、問問大家 GIS 的經驗值多高 (如果說以十個等級來分、而我是等級零的話、離我最近的也有等級五)、討論 final project 跟碩士論文的要求跟可能性。也許是因為昨晚睡不到五個小時、頭頭在講的時候必須強撐才不會打瞌睡、總之有點辛苦。

講座結束後大家晃了一下就移師到後面的一間餐館、SFU 要請所有參加者吃飯。坐定後大家分別跟自己對面的人聊了起來、我對面是已經在 Nunavut 待了很多年並留著違反常理的鬍子的教師、他旁邊是從敘利亞到 Edmonton 工作三年的電腦程式設計師。其他人大多是聊 GIS 相關的工作話題之類的、我們是聽那個教師講北方原住民的習性跟那裡的生活、等他轉移陣地到別桌後、我跟那個敘利亞人才開始聊天。據說他是第一次遇見從台灣來的人、表現地相當興奮、看我戴著十字架又興致勃勃地跟我討論起宗教。我是不反對跟你聊這個啦、不過你可以不要以你對印度教跟最開始的天主教的認知來評論中國的儒道佛跟基督教好嗎？-__-

漫長的用餐時間 (從進餐館等到離開共三小時多) 終於結束了、大家也各自分道揚鑣、準備明天再齊聚一堂聽 (應該會比較有趣的) presentation。因為難得到 downtown、當然要跑一趟圖書館、於是匆匆忙忙地趕過去、隨便抓了幾本書就聽到要關門在催人的廣播了。結果借的都是日文書:超級機器人大戰 F 完結編 Perfect Guide、羅德斯島戰記英雄騎士傳漫畫 2 & 4、機動戰士鋼彈 MS 戰記漫畫。

早上七點半出門、回到家的時候已經十點多了。上網跟沒能參加的同學延續團體報告的討論、之後又這邊弄弄、那邊看看、又是跟平常差不多時間上床。看來明天早上又要經過一番大掙扎跟意志力戰了。

ニニンがシノブ伝 2X2=SHINOBUDEN The nonsense KUNOICHI fiction.

Just like the complete name says, it is totally nonsense and pointless. But at least I got through the 1st episode rather than turning away after watching half of it as in the case of あずまんが大王. Plus the seiyuu cast isn't too bad (川澄綾子、関智一、若本規夫), and the ninja design is so very cute! XD

Whether it would be as entertaining as せんせいのお時間 is yet to be seen, as I've only watched the 1st episode so far. We'll see.

Speaking of せんせいのお時間, I haven't seen it and 絢爛舞踏祭 ザ・マーズ・デイブレイク for a long time now... >____<

On a side note, I finally set up the speaker after it was exchanged. The base is really loud, but so far satisfatory.

Uncle Jim, after fighting against cancer for nearly half a year, passed away yesterday late afternoon. They have been family friends for the longest time, and even though I am not overly close to them, tears rolled down my cheek as I read the news. It is somewhat comforting to know that Uncle Jim was baptised sometime back and should be peacefully in His arms now.

This kind of news isn't news anymore as more family friends and relatives get older. What scares me the most is where they would go if they never accepted Christ.....

Ganbatte kudasai, Yvonne-obasan! Soshite, Iesu-sama no soba ni irunasai. Soshidara, mada tengoku ni au yo, kitto.

神風怪盗ジャンヌ完食。

Truth be told, it isn't very exciting at all and the story is lame. The only reason I watched it is because of Kuwashima Houko. The art is bad, and the repetitive checkmate is way too much like Sailor Moon.

Overall: C-

Airport, the avoided frontier. This is the voyage of the 8-year-old Mazda, its struggle to escape home safely, to search for the one correct route, to unwillingly map out new regions no one has gone before. ♪

Heh, no matter how many times I've been there, I seem to take a different road every time. Here's the most current one: leave parkade, took a wrong right turn due to unclear sign, turn back in time to pass the 1st stage, missed the exit to connect to another highway due to unclear sign, noticed something's wrong and finally got off at Stevenson Hwy -- I was already going toward the tunnel, got to the end of the road and studied the map, en route back to the major highway, missed the exit to connect to another highway due to lack of sign (though I was thinking of turning here at first), u-turned in a church parking lot, took the turn, finally entered familiar territory and got home from there.

And I had the strangest deja vu, as if I had taken some, if not all, of the wrong turns before. -___-

Che, I'm going there again Sunday evening, huh? It's going to be dark when I try to find the right road, huh? At least Mum will be in the car so I might have a better chance of finding that critical exit that I never took.

やばり、2ch は不思議の場所だな... 種ネタバレスレ在一天內就開新版(1000+)、憑我的閱讀速度跟能力、在有限的時間裡根本就跟不上。-___-

わかるの部分はまだ10%、でも時々面白いネタが見る。

不過最令人厭煩的要算是一直看到フラガ的名字了。いい加減にしろ！那個將不可能化為可能的男人已經成為宇宙塵了(本当だよね？ね？！)、不要再說他是那個仮面男或セイバー的駕駛員啊～（ノ`Д´）ノ～～┴───┴

Gundam SEED ep.1-8

Poor Kira, not wanting to fight yet forced to. Not to mention he's facing some serious identity crisis. Most of his friends knew of his Coordinator background; Tolle seems ok with it, but Miriallia, Sai (to some extent), and, especially, Kazui seem a little weary. When the time is peaceful, nobody seems to remember that Kira is a Coordinator. When the time gets rough and their ability and capacity are being tested, Kira's superiority is evident and thus caused them to be uneasy.

Fllay is straightforward in voicing out the words on everyone's mind with her opinion of Coordinators, but she's recognised Kira as someone different, though it's mostly because he's Sai's friend. Right now, Coordinators are just modified people with abnormal abilities to her, and though she denies being a Blue Cosmos, she agrees that it's not comforting to know the existence of those super human-like Coordinators and tries to avoid them.

By staying with AA, Kira has to fight Athrun and at the same time being treated as a traitor on ZAFT's POV and a non-timed bomb on Naturals' POV. But he is doing all this because he wants to protect those he calls his friends.

With the arrival of Lacus, the small crack caused by the identity conflict widens as many are openly hostile to the girl. Each remark made toward the girl because of her background is like a poisoned arrow aiming for Kira's already burdened heart. It's not hard to see that he won't be able to take it eventually.

On ZAFT's side, Athrun tries to 'get Kira back' with every chance. On one hand, he is fighting to end the war so something like Bloody Valentine that took the life of his mother won't happen again. On the other, he discovers that his best and seemingly only friend is on the other side, piloting Strike and exchanging blows with him. His abnormal behaviours on the battlefield are commented and snarled at by other members on the team, but he can't tell them anything. Already, he's lost a fellow teammate (and roommate) Rusty and a mentor Miguel, and he seems to be losing his friend Kira to EA now as well. The conclusion the Council comes up with doesn't help, and the obvious fact that his father is obsessed with crushing the Naturals adds more weight to his heavy soul. But he is a soldier, and the son of war-advocate Patrick Zala.

Nicol doesn't seem well liked by the older members of the team, but then, it's to be expected from the egotistic Yzak and the sly Dearka.

Natarle is really great and has the pose of a general. AA would have been taken down long ago it not for her. Being the soldier type, she is able to analyse the situations with a calm mind and come up with the best solution. Her combat ability and strategy is also excellent. Because she focuses more on rules and regulations, people tend to think her heartless and cold. I think she is really kind, but with soft-hearted Ramius as the captain and the extremely easy going Fraga around, she has to be the black face of the ship and put the ship and its crew before personal feelings. If only her commanding officer is as able, then she could probably show her tender side. Yeah, I want to write a fanfic for her again. Maybe pick up the one I left a year and a half ago?

BTW, I noticed a few other differences between the regular episodes and the special edition:

- the New Type sound when Fraga senses Kuruze is new
- sequence after Fllay emerges from the life pod
- Lacus asking three times before leaving the room is new

Gundam SEED DESTINY update

For the 2nd half, the lead mecha will be Destiny Gundam.


Heh, it seems I'm in a SEED fever once again. (￣ー￣)

Gundam SEED DESTINY update (Source: シャア専用ブログ)

From Osaka King Gundam SEED DESTINY booth:

- to be aired starting Oct.9 2004
- C.E.73
- close-up of Shin Asuka
- Kira looks melancholy and slightly disheveled; background: sunset
- Lacus in a blue dress; background: ruins
- Cagalli in military uniform (from the official book 2, pg.32)
- new Athrun illustration
- Milliaria as a cameraman on the battlefield; wears a bandana; background: ruins
- Lunamaria Hawk with Zaku Warrior as background
- Meilin Hawk (メイリン・ホーク) in green ZAFT uniform; red hair in twin tails
- Talia Gradis (タリア・グラディス), captain of Minerva; female; blond hair
- longer transformation scene for Gaia
- Zaku Phantom shoots out missiles
- Rei Za Barel (レイ・ザ・バレル), the Elite guy in the CM; pilots Zaku Phantom
- longer Impulse Armour Schneider scene than in CM
- Impulse jointed scene; Shin Asuka pulling lever
- all characters drawn by Hirai; "ignited" as OP

Narration:

Earth Federation and ZAFT concluded an armistice after the second battle at Yakin Due, however, the tinder for the conflicts between Naturals and Coordinators is not yet extinguished. The time is C.E.73, October. Cagalli, the chief representative of Orb, is accompanied by Athrun to visit ZAFT's plant Armour One. This is where the secret meeting called by Supreme Council Chairman Gilbert Dulandal, concerning the once more unstable state between the two sides, is held.

This happened two years ago. Earth Federation invaded the neutral country of Orb with military force. Getting involved with the sudden war, the citizens ran with confusion, and in the midst of this was a youth who lost his parents and little sister in front of his eyes. Orb was collapsing, and Gundam flew by him overhead. With the cruel state his hometown was in, he moved to PLANT with a vow. "It's useless without strength and power."

New strength, new enemies, new Gundam. The unending conflict between Naturals and Coordinators! Take and be taken away; chase and be chased after. The curtain isn't lowered yet for the drama of ZAFT, EA, Orb!!

For what reason does one fight? Is strength a must in order to protect? What is justice? The human drama of doubt, trouble, and desperation to decide by one's self is on once again!!

DESTINY, the fateful encounter. What is the destiny of the youth who aims for strength?!

DESTINY, the rondo of fate. What can stop the recurrence of the repeating tragedy?!

Destroy this kind of destiny, Gundam!!

除了天氣依然很熱、在西曬的暖爐裡吸地毯、幸福地啃炸 zucchini 跟炸雞(只有一塊就是)、晚上在沒有準備的情況下進了 collab 討論但是順利結束之外、本日西線(為什麼是西線)無戰事。

Ah. Turns out it's not Mum after all. My bad. It's the ZoneAlarm update I did on the same day. It's working again now that I reinstalled the older version (good thing I always keep two versions handy for those that update often, otherwise I doubt I'd be able to get an older version of it).

A big thank you to the Shaw tech guys! :D

Ok, whatever Mum did with the Shaw tech guy killed my xnews completely. It's showing that it's transferring data, but I don't see anything in my folder. This is very bad. Very very very bad. This is grave, and I intend to get to the bottom of this.

「SEEDスペシャルエディション 虚空の戦場」

フレイの気持ち。

Her father being the only family member she has (and being the spoiled ojousan that she is), his sudden death in the hands of ZAFT drives her to the first phase of shock and consequently insanity. As a Natural, even in the neutral state of Heliopolis, she has no doubt been taught to despite Coordinators. The killing of her father further deepen her belief that Coordinators are the bad guys. She quickly singles out Kira and blames him for not fighting seriously because of his background.

When she overhears that Kira is friend with Aegis' pilot, her feeling is mixed. On one hand, she still thinks Kira is holding back during battle, but on the other hand, she realises that it might be because he is fighting a friend. No one wants to fight with their friends, especially in a war situation like this. She apologises to Kira half-heartedly and sees war as the ultimate source for all this; the death of her father and the sadness of fighting against a friend to the end.

With the resolution to end the war in her own way, she joins the military. As she stands in front of Kira's locker and looks at the pilot suit, she is determined. Even if she has no training at all, even if she doesn't know how to fight, she would do it and end it with her own hands.

Then Kira returns and decides to fight. She knows he is much superior in piloting and fighting. She knows by donning the pilot suit, he is going to clash with his friend. She knows he doesn't want to fight despite his words and actions. But he is back and has willingly put himself in what she is planning to do. Therefore, she welcomes him with open arms and feelings. Until Kira accomplishes what she intends to do, to end the war by destroying all those participating it, she would be with him and keep him going. She would become his strength and comfort. In return, he would protect her and continue to fight. She would watch over him, to have him fight to the very end and ends up getting destroyed himself. Before he does that, she would indulge him with her words and body.

New things I noticed:

- the 5 of them (including Rusty) talking before the sortie
- different sequence for the news, lab, and first meeting with Cagalli
- Lenore Zala! She's pretty~
- Kira's cry sounded a little different; from what I know now, the special edition is after-record?
- Nicol and Aisha didn't sound exactly like I remembered; Nicol turns out to be played by Park Romi, but I totally didn't catch that; Aisha was played by a Japanese this time, but she still sounded weird
- Cagalli's shower scene (not sure if Kira's was new)
- T.M.Revolution's insert "zip"
- Fllay and Kira actually did do it...

Overall, it's pretty much a recap of the general plot from the beginning to the end of the desert chapter with a few new scenes. Having already seen the first cours, the special wasn't all that exciting. But it helps with figuring out Fllay's emotions and feelings better with the more focused version. Of course, that love scene also confirmed what I have been denying between the two. I definitely can't say I enjoyed it as much as the series itself because of the cut-down, but the few new scenes do enhance the experience and background a little bit.

I don't know if I would recommend it to someone who's never watched SEED, though. While it delivers the general direction of the plot, it's simply inadequate and not on the same level as the actual series, not to mention not as deep. So, watch it only after seeing the real thing.

On a side note, whoever made the DVD is really good. To the untrained or inexperienced, it looks almost authentic. Obviously the all region code is a dead giveaway, but it also has another telltale sign: no Bandai sticker or mark anywhere. I found it really ironic how it warns not to infringe on the copyright of the material. *roll eyes*

Hmm, just found that I now have 3 Gmail invites and the ability to import my Yahoo contacts if I want to. Interesting. Not that it concerns me much, but interesting.

I am planning to sleep around 2am today (as supposed to the usual 3:30am), so I guess I better finish up all the postings I need to do today and start on my reading...

We have a new guy! So the schedule dilemma is solved after all! XD

I am fearful to see the ESP percentage for today when I go to work tomorrow. It's gotta be horrible, especially considering I sold the 3 LCD's, the laser printer, and the colour laser without any ESP... -___-

But most of all, tsukareta. Betsu no shigoto yaritai.....

Good. It seems that the Surrey system is retaining its forgiving nature regarding overdue items after all. At least, I was able to renew all items due today while two are listed as overdue.

This is why I love the Surrey libraries over any other ones. The Vancouver ones might have a better and larger selection, but it's too far and inconvenient once something is overdue. Surrey library saikou! XD

It's such a hassle not being able to renew library items online. -__-

Due to the library changing the software, the system went down about three weeks ago and is still not back up yet. That, or they just haven't gotten around to update the links: it's fully functional when I used the computer in the library earlier today. I see they're going to use the same one as the Vancouver library, huh? The field showing the number of renewals is a really nice addition, but I would be very annoyed if it also adopts the unforgiving nature of the Vancouver that doesn't allow any renewal once a single item is overdue. That would suck. And I have a bad feeling it's going to be exactly it. -________-

At least the Surrey branches are close enough to home...

*Taken directly from my post in the SEED DESTINY thread on AX.com*

Just took a quick peek at Gunota Headlines and found some interesting information.

Originally, I thought the Gundam takeover operation would take place some time before the secret meeting, but since Armory One seems to be the location for both events, maybe they coincide with each other? That might explain how Athrun becomes the pilot of Saviour (yet to be confirmed by official source). If so, then it's possible that the three would see Cagalli and would report back to the Earth Federation of Orb's supposed movement. The possibilities and complications are endless!

I totally missed the ZAFT belt Stella wears. I can only think of a few plausible explanation: either she got it from a former ZAFT pilot as a war prize, or she actually used to know someone from ZAFT. If it's the first case, then she might be a scary person. If it's the latter case, then we can surely expect to see more twist and angst in the plot.

Also, according to the character scan, Lunamaria was originally supposed to be a pilot candidate. I'm glad they made her a MS pilot.

Now my next big question for SEED DESTINY is who will play the new characters. SEED has a really excellent cast, including many of my favourite seiyuu. Personally, I hope Kuwashima Houko returns, maybe even as Lunamaria. She feels like Fllay...

Just watched Mission 1 with the English track. Not too bad. I think Inu Yasha has a better dub than Full Metal Panic, but I could be very biased. Whoever is doing Inuyasha is very different from Yamaguchi Kappei, but he's pulling it off nicely. I'm afraid I can't really say the same for the VA for Sagara Sousuke, seeing how Seki Tomokazu is one of my top favourite seiyuu. I think the VA's for Kagome and Kaname are doing a good job comparing to Yukino Satsuki. Of course I like the Japanese version a lot better, but it's nice not having to read the subtitles. Though I was having trouble making out what the person was saying at times, especially when it's over a phone or transmission. I also noticed a few differences between the translation, yabari it's because of the limitation of dubbing, timing, and such?

PS. Blogger seemed to have fixed the submission problem while I was away on the Paddlewheel boat trip with the guys from work (which was interesting to say the least, with lots of dancing and drinking (not on my part, mind you)), and the breeze was very nice and cool). That was quick! :)

Telus just phoned to promote their ADSL service.

To the casual users, it's a good deal: constant 0.8mb/s connection, dedicated servers, free MP3 player, first month free, switch to turn on/off the internet connection, 5hr/month for laptop to access internet anywhere, $24.99 monthly fee.

But it doesn't meet my biggest need. The bandwidth caps at 5G/month for download and 1G/month for upload with Telus. While the upload barely matches what I use if I BT a lot, the download is way below my usage of 20-25G.

So I declined the offer.

BTW, Blogger is acting funny again whenever I submit. The progress screen would keep refreshing at 0%, and nothing shows when I reload the blog, though the entries show up in the edit section...

Gundam SEED DESTINY character and mecha update!

[Character]

Stellar Loussier (ステラ・ルーシェ), MS pilot of the Earth Federation Special Task Force; pilot of Gaia Gundam. She looks too much like Cagalli to me, and the uniform is just wrong...

Sting Oakley (スティング・オークレー), sneaked into the new ZAFT ship before it entered water with Stellar and Auel; pilot of Chaos Gundam. I thought it's a cross between Orga and Shani...

Auel Neider (アウル・ニーダ), member of the Special Task Force; pilot of Abyss Gundam. Seriously, this guy looks like the main hero from a fantasy RPG game...

[Mecha]

Sword Impulse Gundam (ソードインパルスガンダム), ZGMF－X56S/β, designed for close-up combats and equipped with two huge anti-ship swords.

Blast Impulse Gundam (ブラストインパルスガンダム), ZGMF－X56S/γ, equipped with heavy firearms, pretty much like Buster.

Saviour Gundam (セイバーガンダム), ZGMF-X23S, one of the advanced units developed by ZAFT, can transform into fighter jet-like MA; the '2' signifies its ability to fly, while the '3' is its development number. My goodness, the head looks ridiculous for some reason. Poor Athrun...

Chaos Gundam (カオスガンダム), ZGMF-X24S, one of ZAFT's Second Stage MS series units, piloted by Sting Oakley, can transform into MA; equipped with claws and numerous firearms, designed for fierce attack. Is it just me, or does its head look like DeathScythe's?

Gaia Gundam (ガイアガンダム), ZGMF-X88S, one of ZAFT's Second Stage MS series units, piloted by Stellar Loussier; the '8' signifies its ability to transform into four-legged unit for land combat. Has the same colour scheme as Blitz.

Abyss Gundam (アビスガンダム), ZGMF-X31S, eqipped with beam weapons, lance, and various weapons for different situations, piloted by Auel Neider; can transform into MA for combat in water.

Zaku Warrior (ザクウォーリア), ZGMF-1000, the memorial first model line in ZAFT's New Millennium Series after the armistice; able to equip various backpacks and are the main force for the next term. They're actually using the Zaku name, huh? ^__^;

Zaku Phantom (ザクファントム), ZGMF-1001, the advanced version of Zaku Warrior for commander class; also able to equip different backpacks like Zaku Warrior, which results in many different personal colours for the unit. Don't tell me we're going to see Haro pink or some other ridiculous colours...

Personally, I'm not very thrilled with the design of the new characters (though Auel looks interesting and out of place XP). Almost everyone looks the same. No wonder I'm still having trouble adopting to Fafner. Che, he wasn't this bad in Ryvius...

Backpacks and transformability seem to be the focus for the new line-up, and apparently the designs are nothing new. Not that I care very much since I'm pretty much illiterate in the ways of mecha. I'm holding any complaints or comments for now until I actually see them in action. All the mechs revealed so far are developed by ZAFT. What is Earth doing? Too busy fighting among themselves for power and dominance? -__-

It seems that the story will be a reverse of SEED this time, where the elite team from Earth sneak into ZAFT's ship (probably Minerva) and seize three Gundams. When the Gundam takeover operation takes place is still unknown, but since it's before the ship entered water, I'm assuming it's before the secret meeting between Dullindal and Cagalli.

Hot. Way. Too. Hot. Why is it so hot??? （ノ`Д´）ノ～～┴───┴

Today is Best Buy's grand opening and we had quite a few people coming in asking whether we'd match their prices. No, we don't match door crasher or limited quantity items. No, we don't match price if they're out of stock of it. No, we don't match price if it's an opening special.

And almost right before my shift was up, I talked to a customer with a Best Buy quote in his hand for a computer system package. After some checking and calculating and inquiring and asking, I gave him a quote as well with match and beat. It was 5 past 5 when I swiped out, and R was commenting that I was almost turning into him (overtime).

Took Mum out for dinner because the GM's been nagging me about using the contest money I won. We went to the small Italian restaurant in the 'Little Mall' because we didn't know where else to go. Plus we had a coupon for it.

The place was nicely decorated and full of flavour. The waitress was kind of moe. The Happy Birthday song the other waitress played on the little guitar-thingie for one of the tables was cool and unique. The food was delicious (almost typed 'delirious') and in large serving. Maybe we'll go there again on their special days! XD

As soon as we got home, Mum asked me to set up the VCR for her. Apparently, she borrowed some dubbed Korean drama tapes from a friend. I didn't watch it with her because I'm not interested in Korean dramas so I went back upstairs to use the computer. A few chapters of Hanakimi later (and all the while fanning my self with the pencil board), I couldn't take it any longer and went downstairs. There's got to be a 5 degree difference between the floors, I tell ya. -__-

I tried to read the PC magazines I brought downstairs but the TV was too loud. Not to mention that it's in Mandarin so I would hear it no matter what. I ended up watching a good portion of it and only managed to finished less than half of one magazine during the 2.5 hours I was there. Mum was still at it by the time I went to bed (3am?). Is she going to have a Korean drama marathon??

Ya know what? The schedule dilemma is not solved. The new guy didn't show up. -___-

Anyhow, today we went to the Peace Arch park due to certain reason, then to Crescent beach as originally planned. Because of the detour to Peace Arch, it was already nine by the time we got to the beach (I know some girls were not too thrilled), and we didn't have time to take a stroll after eating. Nor were we in time before the ice cream shop closed. :(

It was still nice, however. Not too hot and the night scene was cool. I didn't really dare to walk down the bridge to the pier at night though. It was already not so easy for me the last time during the day, and this was during the night, when I couldn't see anything but pitch black sea surrounding the long bridge! *shudder*

Highlight-light (not...) of the trip: driving down the scariest hill I could imagine. I had to keep my feet on the brake and only go 16km/hr at same point. That hill feels like a 50-60 degree, though it's probably 30 degree in reality.

High-light (not...) of the trip 2: having to drive L home first because of her mum. As a result, I drove three times the distance than needed if she could be dropped home last and were in the driver's seat at least 40 minutes more than necessary. It was past 12am by the time I got home. Not to mention the added amount of gas the long detour consumed. :(

It appears that "pop's best kept secret" as dubbed by BBC Radio 1, delirious?, will be in Athens on the night of Aug.14! Gotta make sure I watch the opening ceremony if it's broadcasted on TV. XD

...で、見てわかるように、翻訳のこと結局何もやてない。＿|￣|O

This is what happens when one has way too many interests across fields and disciplines, and at the same time way too easily distracted as a result...

ごめん！この週末必ず！

YES!! The schedule dilemma from yesterday is resolved! :D Although the last guy can't take the shift because he is attending a wedding, the new guy we just got can! Nice. :)

Ok, better start some serious translating. *rub hands in anticipation* The next issue is coming out in two weeks and I have 8-hr shifts for the next two days. Definitely need to have the draft sent out to be beta tonight!! Yoshi! Ikuzo!

Ooh, just noticed that the never-reaching-100% bug in Mozilla-based browsers seem to be fixed! Way to go, guys! :D

大変ですね、これは。上個禮拜忘記跟 manager 講八月初有三天要參加講座的事、結果今天去看、果然已經被排班了。那個四小時的班還沒什麼問題、讓另外一個人做八小時就行、問題是禮拜五那個八小時的班。全部門加我總共七個人、那天被排班的有三個、一個請全禮拜的假、一個是職員假、一個到新開的分店幫忙半個月、最後的那一個也在那天打了叉、傢俱部門裡一個有時候會被叫來幫忙的那天也有班... 唯一的希望是最後打叉的那個可以做、不然就完了。

所以明天就跟 manager 說八月底有三天要參加夏令營的事。

之前跟我搭訕的人今天來退貨(不是跟我買的 speaker)、順便又問我要不要跟他一起出去、這次我就直接跟他說沒興趣、上次他問了我年紀以後也覺得他自己太老、所以那個大我十五歲的大叔就只是笑笑走了。You see, if you just want to be friends, we can be friends. Not to mention that you're Christian, too. 總之、搭訕事件就這樣圓滿結束了。

That scared me, a lot. I accidentally quick formatted New Type when installing the XP copy and, when I get into Windows, was greeted with the shut-down-in-60-second thing like before. So I thought, "Fine, I'll not quick format you. I'll do a complete format." Guess what? Same thing. I think it's Sasser or whatever that gets in before I could go online to download the firewall. Anyway, because I had such scare before, I downloaded a fix tool on Coordinator some time ago. After running it on floppy first thing after restart, problem solved. At least, that's what I'd like to think since no such occurrence happened after that.

I was going to set up a limited account for Mum, but the extra configuration and tweaks I had to do for her account took up too much time so I ended up with just one account. I hope she keeps her word and won't download anything unless approved by moi.

So, New Type is now a wolf with XP skin. I don't know when it'll shed off that skin and bare its fangs, but at least I can read and understand what every single dialogue and message is saying. Since Coordinator is my main system now, New Type should fare just fine with minimal disturbance unlike before. Here's hoping.

And after everything is settled and I get my research done, maybe I will turn Prototype into a penguin! XD

Yup, went and bought Full Metal Panic Box with Mission 1 after service today. $46.15 after the coupon and tax. Not a bad deal if I do say so myself. Though, I'll have to cut down on my spending for the next three, four weeks like when I bought FF XI.

Watched the four episodes in Mission 1 as well as the ADV previews for other shows. The subtitle is kinda annoying and glaring, but it's nice to be able to watch it on the TV screen.

A side note on the ADV previews: the dubbing of Hoshi no Koe's main girl sounds too deep; the Kirika dub sounds fine, though she only has about 2 lines in the promo clip so it's hard to really tell; I was cocking my eyebrow when I heard the scream in the RahXephon preview. It sounded just like the original seiyuu! Then I heard Sakamoto near the end and realised that it was indeed the original seiyuu. And I was just getting impressed with the supposed dub acting... I knew it was wishful thinking. -__-

PS. The T-shirt in the FMP box is XL-sized. I don't think I can fit into that thing and I don't want to fit into it. I'll have to think of something.

Started setting up New Type since yesterday and still struggling with it. For some unexplainable reason, it's running extremely slow even though I haven't installed many programs yet. Not to mention the Chinese Windows interface caused all my English fonts to look unbearably ugly.

If things don't get better by tomorrow, I'm going to format it again and go with the more vulnerable evaluation XP copy. -__-

昨天才在說想看 AFTER PHASE、今天就 BT 到了！ :D

キラ一副無法振作的樣子、不知是否會離開跟ラクス的小島隱居生活、再度乘鋼彈而戰。那兩個人好像已經很習慣跟導師照顧孤兒的生活了嘛。

アスラン跟カガリ已經明顯地一起行動了、不放棄希望地努力著、他們的努力也將延續到 SEED DESTINY。

イザク臉上的傷痕已不復見、果然已經不再抱著怨恨吧。加油、イザク！曾經親身經歷戰場殘酷的你、相信會用同樣的熱血在評議會中提倡和平。

ディアッカ... 穿著赤服跟隨イザク、真的沒有再跟ミリアリア聯絡了嗎？我很看好你們的說... >__<

艦長 kawaisou、想著フラガ對飲。

サイ似乎已經決定向前看、不過牆上依然釘著與フレイ及其他人的相片。

老虎先生也加入 Orb 了嗎？Orb 不愧是 DESTINY 中的三大勢力之一。

ミリアリア還想念著トール、獨自一人在房裡悲痛。ディアッカ你為什麼不跟她聯絡啊～～～

看來大家都努力地往邁向和平之路而行、仍四散在宇宙中的機體殘骸是戰爭無情的見證、也是提醒。

期待 SEED DESTINY 的到來。

New info (and rumours) on Gundam SEED DESTINY!

Confirmed:

- Saviour Gundam (セイバーガンダム), can transform into flight mode.
- Chaos Gundam (カオスガンダム), can transform into Hermes-like MA (NT exclusive MA)
- Abyss Gundam (アビスガンダム), Asshimar-type Gundam
- Gaia Gundam (ガイアガンダム), BuCUE-like Gundam (we're actually going to get a non-humanoid Gundam??)

Rumours:

- Saviour Gundam is to be piloted by Athrun
- Chaos, Abyss, Gaia are seized (while Impulse is saved by Shin); I don't know who's taking the suits, but I'm guessing it might be the Atlantic Federation
- Zaku Warrior (ザクウォーリア), mass produced model by the Federation; commander unit is red
- Neo Dagger (ネオ・ダガー), successor to the 105 Dagger and also able to equip Strike packs
- M2 Astray (Ｍ２アストレイ), developed by Orb to success M1 and lighter and more mobile than M1; Cagalli and Athrun's unit; grey frame
- Lemu (レムー), mass produced model; Lunamaria's unit (I was really hoping she'd pilot a Gundam -__-)
- Kira will pilot a Gundam in ep.14 (such motion is so far fetched, I almost decided not to add this one to the list)

Noticed the news about Google acquiring Picasa and that we get to download it for free! Having always wanted to post pictures in formats other than jpg, I eagerly downloaded it and tried it out.

...yabari, my extremely huge image collection proves to be overwhelming for Picasa to handle effectively. I was able to remove everything in Picasa and only import those I want to post through Hello. It's bothersome, but it should work fine.

Alas, before I get a digital camera, I don't really have anything to post... I'll have to test it a lot later.

AFTER-PHASE 「星のはざまで」 (Source: ガンダムSEED考察レポート)

- Cagalli and Lacus exchanging conversation while attending to the kids at Malkio's house.
- Kira seems awfully thoughtful and even doubtful.
- Athrun seems like his usual self.
- Lacus sings Shizukana Yoru Ni.
- Yzak takes part in the Council with Dearka (wearing the Elite red shirt) beside him.
- Maryu Ramius has a cheers with Fraga, though it's more dream and imagination than reality.
- Sai works on the computer. The wall of his room has photos of him & Fllay, and him & Toru & Kazui.
- Andy is in Orb.
- Miriaria mourns in the dark in her pajama, her eyes full of sadness at the photo of her and Toru. (doesn't seem to be communication with Dearka... T__T)
- Wreckage of MS scattered in space as Lacus' song ends

I want to see it, even if it's only 5 minutes. >__<

A Walk To Remember.

Landon Carter, a popular guy in school with a bunch of friends, is just moving along the drift with his life. Until circumstances put Jamie into his life. Jamie, the Reverend's daughter and the outcast of the 'popular and cool' of the school, is a girl with strong faith and confidence. Slowly and steadily, Landon finds himself changed and attracted to Jamie. The feeling is mutual, but the gap of life and death stands between them, as Jamie has leukaemia and not long to live. Landon helps Jamie to accomplish the things on her to-do list, including getting married in the church where her parents got married. Years after Jamie passed away four months after their marriage, Landon visits Jamie's father and is sad that Jamie never got her life ambition fulfilled -- to witness a miracle. Jamie's father replies that she did, and that Landon was the miracle she witnessed. Through being with Jamie, Landon's life is transformed, and his friends are also changed. At the end, Landon reflects back to his memory with Jamie and how their love is like the wind: it can't be seen, but it can be felt.

いい映画だ。Very touching and meaningful. The scene where Landon reconciles with his father is especially moving for me.

For some reason, Rosette comes to mind once Jamie reveals her condition. The scene where Jamie clings to Landon because she is scared to not be with him especially reminded me of the last sunset where Rosette cries in Chrno's arms because she doesn't want to die yet. The to-do list also reminds me of Rosette's words during the carnival. Because she doesn't have the luxury of time, she doesn't hesitate and just move forward boldly.

So it's decided. Kansou is going to be Chrno Crusade themed. XD

...nani kore? Why is the compose window suddenly different? It actually looks a lot more confusing now. >__<

Yeah, I know it's more convenient for people to format their text, demo komarun desu yo. For me, anyway. I'm never a fan of those rich text formatting thingie in some web-based emails.

Ah well, as long as I can post the way I used to, I don't really care.

The whole thing seems broken. The spell checker no longer work for me, and it's inserting too many line breaks! I want the old compose window back... ;__;

EDIT: Apparently, the spell checker and file upload features didn't work because of the built-in pop-up blocker in Mozilla. There seems to be a few other bugs concerning Mozilla and Firefox. I'll wait and see how things proceed from here.