Rabbit Hop

A new image to commemorate my new laptop being in official use! I am still a little heartbroken over the extra money spent on this laptop, but it doesn't really matter when it's still a great and usable device. My only other woe? It's vista. Open Canvas threatened not to open several days ago, but the problem vanished the moment I downloaded the wacom vista driver...hopefully that is the end of that.

But there is always something unnerving about using a new version of Windows software....I'm so used to XP I feel like they shouldn't have changed anything at all. Of course, that's really up to the people are Windows, who do what their increasingly large bank accounts tell them to do (I'm joking. Gates does a lot of charity work around the world.)

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In other news, the Hong Kong legco elections are coming up (Sept 7th), and alot of the current candidates are looking not-so-fabulous. It's not that they're scandal ridden, it is more that they don't seem likely to be able to improve anything. They keep promising to control inflation, look out for the middle class; but how exactly will they do that? And there are candidates who even declare themselves 'independent' but are actually affiliated with government officials from the mainland-- seriously, what are we suppose to think?

Lunches and Snacks

Had lunch with friends yesterday in Central, and it's so strange to see some of them working real jobs now. One of them wore a power-business-suit with proper heels and make-up, which was a little intimidating at first....and it took a while to get used to. Anywho, managed to find a nice place in Central for lunch, and the bill totaled to less than 100HKD per person...a pretty good deal considering Central is one of the most expensive places on earth. Everyone around us in the restaurant wore suits and carried blackberries and were busy making business deals....while my other friend and I were donned in jeans, shirts and hoodies. So out-of-place...not that I mind. DEVIATE!

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Anyways, I went to apply for a UK student visa yesterday and it was hell. I arrived at 9:40am (thanks to my dad who went all the way to Admiralty even though his meeting was in North Point), handed in the relevant forms to the people and waited until 11:40am before they called my name. And that was only to pay for the visa, the actual photographing and fingerprinting procedure wasn't until 11:55am. As if the wait wasn't bad enough, I started going crazy during the wait. Thought they called my name once, but there were two people talking at the same time over the comm that I wasn't sure and sat for an hour wondering whether I made a mistake or not.

And then some lady announced to everyone that we had to have banking statements dating at least three months prior (and I'm sure that wasn't on the Consulate website when I read the list of required materials!) so another bout of worrying came. My dad told me it should be fine since the officials could hardly care less about what you provide as long as they know who you are generally, but the anxiety isn't completely gone.

And I still have to go back to the office on Monday to get my passports back.....fabulous. They told me to arrive at 3:30pm, but I'm not keen on waiting for another two hours and then braving the Central rush-hour masses (people queue up, but it's still crazy.)

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My mother came home with this today; some kind of bean bun with chocolate. Looks too cute to eat. Still pondering whether that is a unibrow on its forehead or just its hairline.

People, People, Everywhere

So I finally managed to get into the Computer Convention last night (after a failed attempt on Saturday-- too many people, and it would have taken an hour to get inside the building!), and apparently people have nothing better to do during weekdays. What happened to work and school? I'm still on my Summer holiday so that's a pretty good excuse to be browsing for computers on a Monday evening-- but what excuse does that middle-aged old man have?

Alright, I'm just being harsh because the amount of people and the noise was very stressful. In fact, the din left me temporarily deaf and I only began hearing things again this morning (it was worst than the music at Club C...back in the day.) Speaking of clubs, the convention was like a nerdier version of Lan Kwai Fong; the ratio of men to women were about 6:1, and there were plenty of posers all around. Electronic posers, mind you-- people who act as though they know 'all-that' about something just because they read the back of a box before you did.

But there were highlights to the convention, and they come in the form of cheap electronics. Snagged myself a pair of nice earphones (because my old ones that came with the i-pod died on me...damn you, Apple! And my warranty just ran out too); a digital photo frame; and various USB memory sticks for way under 10USD. Some heartbreak did happen as well....saw my Wacom tablet and my new Fujitsu laptop be sold for about a thousand dollars cheaper than the retail price which I got mine for. The again, I bought my wacom tablet more than half a year ago, so maybe that might explain the price drop..... but still, the laptop price! Nevermind, doesn't change the fact I have an awesome laptop.

And finally had my first share of Peking Duck [for the summer] last night; absolutely wonderful. I can see why tourists requested that the Beijing chefs bring some over to London for the 2012 Olympics. Wait until everyone finds out about the Nanjing Duck...

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Now that Maka and Chrona's fight is pretty much over, I'm eager to get back to the rest of the Kishin arc-- starting from next week. And after the next couple of episodes, maybe we'll even see a new opening sequence...

Next Station

An image of Aein and Blithe together getting ready for the next station: London! Well, this applies for the Olympics but also for myself...grad school starts on October 1st.

Well, the Beijing Olympics are over, and I'm still nursing a headache from last night. Might have been the noise my neighbours were making during their celebrations, or it might has been that I stayed up too late (ended up watching movies- plural!- after the ceremony ended.)

The closing ceremony was pretty nifty, with lots of fireworks and shining lights. The London segment was interesting, though they were pretty much dwarfed by the scale of the other performances. The dancing was very energetic (tempted to use the word 'flexible) and creative. Leona Lewis was a confusing choice to represent London, and the poor girl didn't really have much of a performing moment; not with the awesome guitar drowning her voice out, and the cameraman focusing mostly on the guitar the entire time. (She's still a good singer though, nothing really changes that.)

Nonetheless, since I'll be in London in 2012, definitely will go to their opening ceremony and see how they convey their youth culture to the world. Might as well celebrate the fact that I'm almost past my youth, and must party while I still can.

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Death and stuffed animals....morbid stuffed animals. Afterall, he's not really about unicorns, 'plushies' and anything that seems approachable.

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And hurrah, I got my D-Grayark book today through the post! Scans posted online does it no justice. I did my maths; it's cheaper to order books online in Japan and have them ship it over to the 852 than to buy the book in Sogo HK! I don't understand where those extra charges come in; tax? Import fees?

In other news I'm getting my UK visa this Thursday, and I'm almost peeing in my pants. The guidelines on the website are effing scary; I can't bring anyone else with me, I can't arrive more than 15 minutes early, and I have no say in anything. I remember going into the U.S. embassy and I almost coughed up blood with the eerie silence and the stares from the security guard and other officials.

Scribbles

I hated yesterday's image so much I had to draw something else...kept staring at the image and had to take it down. So here is a spin-off of Chapter 52's cover page: 無敵! At first I had no idea how to finish off the image, but then monochrome seems fitting. And the asymmetry...how strange seeing it paired up with the character. I scrimped a bit on the background.

Bruises and Cuts

Just read the latest Soul Eater chapter (had to get the Chinese scanlations instead of the RAW...took me forever to understand what was going on). Now I'm left pondering what happens in the next issue. Couple of spoilers ----->Eibon [sans mask] actually makes a surprise appearance this time around, while Free and Kidd decide to cooperate to fight Mosquito. That's pretty much the summary of the entire chapter 52. Their fight was really awesome though, and who knew they would work so well together? But will they really die from those injuries? One of them is an immortal, the other is...a god? Who knows. Damn cliffhangers.

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The plot in X'am:d is progressing at a nice pace, though I still have my suspicions whether those 26 episodes could really cover everything and include character development. On the other hand, Code Geass R2 is progressing way too fast. I didn't really like any of the characters in the beginning, but after the series became an extermination-fest, things got interesting. I'm sort of left wondering if the only people left standing at the end would be the antagonist and the....well, other antagonist. (There aren't any good people in the series...they're all mentally warped.)

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Oh hell, why did TVB hire a bunch of random people for their Olympics coverage? Not only are they guessing the rules half the time, they're making pointless commentary about each other. Not to mention that one of their correspondents they sent up to Beijing can't speak Mandarin properly (seen her guess her way through several sentences before.) Not that ATV is any better, but at least they get experts on their show to explain what constitutes a winning move by the athletes. Too bad I hate the rest of the channel (as in the television series, and misc. crappy programming.)

Spin and Dropkick

Hell, I love designing these little dresses, and I would make these for my younger cousins/stuffed animals if only fabric wasn't so darn expensive (unemployed and saving up for tuition right now.) Anyways, tried to draw out Chinese textile patterns here, but the pixelation of the images might have messed up the outlines. I love Chinese and Japanese textiles...whilst the latter is prized for its simplistic graphic designs, the former has such a rich and organic quality to them. Of course, I also like Indian textiles and Scottish plaid....and basically most fabric patterns (except animal prints, neons and metallics.)

The image is of Maka and Kidd...with Maka ready to kick some serious posterior soon.

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Damn, I'm being prank-called by some brat with nothing better to do. My father picked up the phone the first time, and the second time I did....and she basically told us to eat something-out-of-the-toilet-bowl. Not amused. If the brat doesn't cut it out, I'm getting the phone company to trace the effing call and grill that kid. While you can choose to have your caller ID omitted, the phone company has a record of everything, so it'll only take a minute to find everything out....this is why one should always do their research first [on how to make a clean getaway] before annoying the crap out of other people.

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So nervous about graduate school. Still nervous. Oh so nervous. ARGH. Need to watch Olympics to ease my mind....synchronized diving this afternoon. Just the preliminaries, but it's still diving. On another note, while I can understand why people are passionate about freeing Tibet (to be honest, I share similar sentiments), I think demonstrating next to the site of the Olympics is a no-go. Demonstrators will not earn local support for their cause because they; disrupt the Olympics (something that is very important to the locals); have entered the country under the pretense of being tourists (and ended up protesting, thus displaying deception); it is considered very rude to be a guest in the country and yet try to speak out about politics.

Good thing that these protests are happening on a small scale, otherwise it really will increase the us vs. them mentality in different countries involved. And then I'll be totally effed where ever I go, since I have dual nationalities and residency rights...and people will be asking me which way my opinions go (like they did in the U.S. this May). Grrr.

Warm Weather, Cold Fuji Apples

My friend came over today and made me watch the entire Mononoke series (as well as the three chapters of Ayakashi)...and what a fabulous series it is! Was skeptical about the animation techniques and the character designs, but it all proved to make each episode so addictive to watch. Especially love the direction and how the plot progresses, how each frame is composed, and especially the ideas with the fight scenes. So many colours, so much more awesome.
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Alas, last Sunday a level-5 fire occurred in Mong Kok, and two firemen (and two civilians) died because of it. And the media showed footage of one fireman's daughter cry non-stop in front of the fire station later that day, as well as the entire family in mourning ;____; (heartstrings!). Not surprisingly, many 852ers also bought flowers and paid their respects in front of the burnt building...it really is good to see everyone in Hong Kong is expressing their appreciation for everything the firemen did. Firemen in general really deserve more status in society...they put up with fires, rescue people in rural areas and fish surfers out of the waters during typhoons. I hope the 852 government will do building checks more regularly now so things like this never happen again.
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In a lighter topic, I must thank whoever introduced men's volleyball/gymnastics/synchronized diving to the Olympics. Never knew how much fun it would be watching all the athletes run across the television screen, while we (indoors with air-con) snack on fuji apples (bought 24 of them in one go because they were on sale) and just...gawk.

Scribbles and more

The new chapter of Soul Eater is out today, but I haven't read it yet. Yet to see what happens this time- who will fight who? Anyway, just a quick scribble here of the best comedy duo in the series. (Someone's suit is getting stained by grubby fingerprints, and someone else is going to get beaten to a pulp.)

I don't draw Maka nearly enough; which is strange, considering she is one of those female characters in a series which is likable and has a spine. So prepare to see how doodles of her here later on. Drat, I should really head to the beach to cool off in this weather, but not bothered to call people out+pack+travel+clean out sand from shoes later on.
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So the Olympics have started, and I have got to admit that the opening ceremony was awesome. Especially loved the segment where the people in scholar-garb were paying respects to the word '和'. The colour pairings between the costumes and the environment was wonderful, and never expected to see the torch be light that way. Some people thought the entire event was too flashy and over-the-top, but people are entitled to their opinions and mine happen to be different.

Now, time to watch the diving events....love watching people spring off those boards. And then flipping the channel to the men's gymnastics. (There are so many perks to living in almost the same time-zone as the Olympic host city....live broadcasts!)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Check out the geological characteristics of 852! They say 852 used to be infested with pirates during the imperial period, and I think I see why; too many caves and coves and natural ports to hide in. Awesome, I would love to explore these places when I have the means and the time someday....

Ponderous Day

An image of Kidd; just testing the tablet. Used to have an aversion towards drawing on the computer...but now it's so much fun. Not to mention how much less eraser dust there is involved in the process. I'm starting to wonder if I'll even need to bring my sketchbook over to graduate school this fall (limited suitcase capacity).

Oh, and I have a new venture with a few other online people: making personalized graphic design stickers. I'll post several of my ideas within the next few days.
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Yesterday was one of those days (this sentence sounds grammatically incorrect already) where you're just hoping the rain wouldn't flood your house and your brain. It was a typhoon 8, and while I'm glad my parents got a day off....they got the day off to spend with me. I know I shouldn't complain, but there is always something vexing about not having full control over your own schedule. Bah, I'll stop whining. I ought to be grateful that I get to spend a few more hours around them, since it'll be 'weekly-phonecalls' soon again. Drat, and I promised myself I won't think such depressing thoughts for now...

Another topic: did I mention how much I dislike the equestrian events already? I don't mind the horses; I just mind the fact they're holding the event here in 852. The only reason they're having the horses here is due to a technically in animal-import policy up in the mainland....and knowing this sort of ruined the entire mood already. Combine that with the super motivating speech of the Hong Kong equestrian representatives today on television (something along the lines of "not needing to win, just to represent"), makes us all so much eager for the event to take place.

If the computer screen is precipitating, that's just my sarcasm at an all-time high.

But I need to clear something up first: I'm not against the Olympics or the participants, I'm just grumpy that they're only having an event in the 852 because of a rule. Personally I like watching the waterboard divers, but the gymnastics event look too painful... so I tend to skip over these.

Death Bunnies over Horses anyday

Death the Kidd with Death Bunnies. Generally, I think all rabbits are evil anyways, so they make a fitting pair. (Or trio, if you want to get all technical here.) It's good to see that Soul Eater has finally resumed the plot after a week of filler...though I wonder if the anime is going to conform closely with the manga later on. The anime is meant to last 51 episodes, but the manga is now at chapter 51 and they're still not done fighting. Who knows?

It's going to be a busy Fall this time around. Plenty of shows to watch, and I don't only mean anime.
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I totally forgot that the equestrian events are being held in Hong Kong this Summer. That would explain the recurring images of horses on the television, in the shopping malls and...well....that's it. Good job advertising the event, 852 gov. Way to promote.

But then I shouldn't be expecting that much. Afterall, the 852 gov is famous for promoting the voting process for legco this September, and hell knows how much effort they put to convey registration instructions to young people. They did such a stellar job that I missed the news and didn't hear that the registration cut-off was....a year ago. I shall now shake my fist and wait for the next round.

Back to the horses: I have a friend who is apparently volunteering for the equestrian event, and told me that the security there is absolutely horrendous. Not that the guards are lax, but that the technological capabilities the security firm employs to detect weapons and explosives is simply not up to par. Though the security people deserve some credit for bringing in real scanners to put on a show, rather than nick cardboard boxes from old ladies and stand there making "beeping" noises themselves.

It's August; no countdown yet?

That the rate fashion is going (changing fast, going in circles), I wouldn't be surprised is overalls made it back onto the streets bigtime. Personally, overalls should only be worn if i)you're working in construction/other manual-labour-intensive jobs ii)you're under the age of 12. I already saw some jumpsuits last time I was in Causeway Bay (bear in mind it is summertime right now, and people drink plenty of liquids so toilet-trips are frequent; so the jumpsuit makes no logistical sense at all!) Or maybe such worries of the overall-revival is pointless. Afterall, I remember some people in L.A. tried to reintroduce the trend but were pretty much ignored.

Not going to explain the title to this post, because it'll just make me depressed. And I've managed to escape the bouts of melancholy so far this Summer (save once), so I would appreciate not having it return. Yet. Save the mopey-ness for when I head over to the U.K., and I have to start living by myself again.
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And I just started watching X'am:d Lost Memories by Bones. It's made by almost the same team that brought Eureka Seven, so there were worries that the plot would be too similar, that the characters would resemble the last series too much. Let's just say that's not the case here. It's supposed to last only 26 episodes, so not sure whether the scale of the plot is going to be as grande as Eureka Seven at all-- but things look interesting so far so it's probably going to be the most interesting series of the Summer.
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EDIT:
The previous illust (Thought Puddles, see last post of July) was too messy, so I decided to draw Aein again (albeit as a 'scribble' instead of 'illust'.) As one can tell, wasn't too bothered with the outfit design here...but do like the colour scheme.