Cookie Monster - Share it Maybe (parody of 'Call me Maybe')
I Saw Three Rogues (WoW/Machinima; parody of 'I Saw Three Ships')
Staying in Anthem (parody of 'Party Rock Anthem')
Saturday, July 21, 2012
The interwebs is for fun and procrastination
The Lizzie Bennet Diaries (web series)
Lizzie Bennet - 24-year-old grad student, single, living at home. A retelling of Pride and Prejudice set in modern times. Currently new eps are released twice a week.
Cookie Monster - Share it Maybe (parody of 'Call me Maybe')
"Hey me just met you, and this is crazy! But you got cookie! So share it maybe?"
I Saw Three Rogues (WoW/Machinima; parody of 'I Saw Three Ships')
How to turn a well-known Christmas song in to something about World of Warcraft... and catchy too! If you're a fan, check out the rest of Oxhorn's stuff.
Staying in Anthem (parody of 'Party Rock Anthem')
Sounds like many of my own Friday nights...
Cookie Monster - Share it Maybe (parody of 'Call me Maybe')
I Saw Three Rogues (WoW/Machinima; parody of 'I Saw Three Ships')
Staying in Anthem (parody of 'Party Rock Anthem')
Travel Plans, Kendo and Writing
I'm off for my first "solo" overseas trip! Going to New Zealand in November for around 2 weeks, and 11 days of that will be with one of Topdeck's NZ trips. I'm pretty excited about it all. This will be the first time going by myself, and not with a friend, family member, or in a group. Also I'll be able to catch up with some of the girls I graduated with who moved to NZ for work. I'm kinda surprised at how cheap it is... the whole thing minus spending money will cost me under $2000.
I've also been thinking about what to do for my 25th birthday next year. Maybe a return to Japan might be on the cards. It'd be pretty cool to celebrate my actual birthday in another country!
Speaking of Japan... I'm enrolling in a beginners Kendo course this week. The course starts on the 7th, and I've been looking forward to going all year. I missed the first semester start cuz I 1) had no money and 2) was out of the country and 3) was starting work. Now that I semi have work under control, I feel more able to start doing some more active hobbies.
Which leads me into the writing portion. I've always wanted to write and publish something! I can see myself as an author on top of everything else. I just have to be in the mood to write! Anyways, since returning from Japan, I've been wanting to write a novel. The Inari-Taisha near Kyoto was an extremely inspiring place, and if I were to write something it would at least in part take place there and involve kitsune and other such spirits... maybe like Spirited Away for a more adult audience? I've always been attracted to the richness of the Shinto belief in spirits and gods.
For now though it's back to poking my nose in 'Shadow of Night' by Deborah Harkness and her world of witches, vampires, alchemy, academics, and history.
I've also been thinking about what to do for my 25th birthday next year. Maybe a return to Japan might be on the cards. It'd be pretty cool to celebrate my actual birthday in another country!
Speaking of Japan... I'm enrolling in a beginners Kendo course this week. The course starts on the 7th, and I've been looking forward to going all year. I missed the first semester start cuz I 1) had no money and 2) was out of the country and 3) was starting work. Now that I semi have work under control, I feel more able to start doing some more active hobbies.
Which leads me into the writing portion. I've always wanted to write and publish something! I can see myself as an author on top of everything else. I just have to be in the mood to write! Anyways, since returning from Japan, I've been wanting to write a novel. The Inari-Taisha near Kyoto was an extremely inspiring place, and if I were to write something it would at least in part take place there and involve kitsune and other such spirits... maybe like Spirited Away for a more adult audience? I've always been attracted to the richness of the Shinto belief in spirits and gods.
For now though it's back to poking my nose in 'Shadow of Night' by Deborah Harkness and her world of witches, vampires, alchemy, academics, and history.
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Interwebs Dating: A Rant
I've tried internet dating a few times now... and have found myself totally disappointed! Well maybe not totally... maybe its more like its lived up to my no expectations! I mean, if I had a dollar every time I was asked if I was up for some 'fun' I would be paying them to go away! And then, if I had two dollars every time I was asked the same question but with it being followed by 'but I'm in a relationship/married'...
Now, its either me... or Canberra is FULL of such aforementioned men. So it gets me wondering how people manage to meet decent people on these sites...
... maybe it means I need to get out more...
Now, its either me... or Canberra is FULL of such aforementioned men. So it gets me wondering how people manage to meet decent people on these sites...
... maybe it means I need to get out more...
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Apps
I finally updated to the 21st century earlier this year and got myself an iPhone. I may have gone a little crazy with the apps though... My favourite ones are:
- Manga Storm - an app that draws together many online manga sources to give a very comprehensive reading list of 'scanlated' manga which is specifically formatted for iPhone (and iPad too).
- Crunchyroll - by the website of the same name, crunchyroll is an offical online streaming source for subtitled anime, with many popular anime released the same day as aired in Japan.
- Period Log - one for the ladies, makes it easy to keep track of your cycle with the ability to add in symptoms, moods, and other notes.
- Bejeweled - play different versions from classical, to zen mode, to butterflies, to diamond mine, and blitz.
- Angry Birds - honestly, who doesn't love the idea of throwing kamikaze birds at little green pigs. Spend long enough playing and you will be saying "Piggies, Y U no die??"
- Glee - a cross between karaoke, sing star, and the tv show Glee; sing your favourite glee songs, get gleeks, and have fun beating your best scores. You can also autotune and add harmonies to your voice, as well as sing songs loaded on to your iphone.
- Shazam - use it to find out which song is playing, and it gives you links to youtube, itunes, and lyrics.
- ABC iview - catch up on your favourite ABC shows (Australia only I'm lead to believe).
Monday, July 2, 2012
Eyes, Supanova and Plans
Just had an expensive trip to the optometrist today! I've been short sighted since I was around 14-15 years old, and they've progressively gotten worse since. When I first started wearing glasses, I just needed them for trying to read off the blackboard in class and watching TV. When I started driving the year after, I needed to wear them for that too! Then I had to wear them all the time like I do now, but I really should take them off when I read or do anything close up.
Anyways. I need stronger lenses, and I wanted to get a new set of frames cuz my current ones (Ray Bans I've had for just over a year) tend to warp a bit which gets annoying even though I absolutely love the look of them! So I'm going back to the 'traditional' wire frames, instead of the half frames I have at the moment. I also need to get prescription sunnies, gotta get more proactive about protecting my eyes from the harsh Aussie UV! Growing up with the Slip-Slop-Slap-Wrap of the mid-late 90s, it should've already been engraved on my brain! I've had clip ons before, but they got annoying cuz they didn't give good coverage so hopefully the added cost of prescription ones will solve my issue of getting sun in my eyes from where my glasses don't cover my eyes!
I also ordered more contact lenses, which will make things a little easier at work - glasses and hospital work don't seem to work well together!
So about $900 later... I knew there was a reason I pay private health insurance! It should take some of the bite out of the cost, but it is worth it at the end of the day! Anything to keep from going blind!
I don't know if I'd do Lasix surgery in the future, I kinda like wearing glasses and I'm alright with contacts. Plus my eyes still seem to be changing constantly, so I don't know if I'd be a suitable candidate. Plus, I'm that used to seeing myself with glasses that when I'm not wearing them I think I look strange!
I'm finally putting up my Supanova pics in my room! Sydney 2012 was the first ever one I went to, after about 10yrs of trying to get to one and failing every time! It was a blast though! Went up on Friday morning on the train and stayed at Olympic Park for the weekend, which is where it was held this year. It was great seeing everyone who had cosplayed - really makes me more motivated to get off my butt and start doing it myself and really getting back into what I learnt in textiles in high school.
On the Saturday, I did all my photos and signatures. I got photos with Christopher Lloyd, Natalie Tena, and Vic Mignona! I can't believe how tall Mr. Lloyd is, and both Natalie and Vic were full of energy - even after a whole day of signatures, panels, photos, and rabid fangirls (and boys too). I have to say, Saturday was extremely crowded! You couldn't move around the back end of the stalls, especially where the Madman stall was set up! I ended up commissioning a sketch from an Aussie comic book artist who my brother had met at Melbourne Supanova last year. I ended up getting myself done as Wonder Woman, and it looks pretty kickass! It's great to see so many talented Aussies and others continuing in the footsteps of the comic and manga pioneers of the world. If I had to sum up Saturday, I would dub it (as many others do) Line-Con! Waiting 2hrs in line to get a signature off Mr. Lloyd pretty much takes the cake there!
Saturday night, I got to hang with my awesome former Tasmanian-turned-Sydneysider cousin - much shenanigans were had! The weather was pretty crappy, we must've brought it up from Canberra with us!
Sunday was better weather-wise and crowd wise. Much more of a family day, and what topped it was the father and sons who had dressed up as Jedi! Wish I stopped them to get a pic! I also got randomly hugged by one of my favourite psychopomps, and traveled on a train with Naruto and Temari. I splurged and got myself the complete 2nd season of Gundam 00 and Arietty on DVD, and the first 3 volumes of Blue Exorcist (which my brother then cursed me for not getting more!) They've been added to my collection of 5 volumes of Naruto (which I bought at Kansai airport on my way home from Japan), and 3-in-1 of Kare Kano.
Sunday arvo, my brother and I travelled in to the city and had a late lunch/early dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe at Darling Harbour. The trip pretty much was an adventure in itself as the city loop was having track work, meaning the timetables were a bit odd. So after going Olympic Park-Lidcombe-Central, we got on a tram to the Convention centre. Here, my super-awesome-directional-skills come in to play... and by super-awesome, I mean absolute luck! What I didn't tell my brother was that I had a vague idea where we were going, but as for where to go after getting off the tram... As luck would have it, Hard Rock was pretty much straight ahead once getting off the tram platform!
I'd have to say though, out of the 3 Hard Rock's I've been to, the one at Ueno-Eki in Tokyo was the best! Being able to see Japanese hospitality merged with an American restaurant still amazes me! Especially the energy they have when it came to greeting customers! Irashaimase yelled enthusiastically by every waiter/waitress in the joint every time someone walked through the door! Definately made it a loud place, but so much fun!
The one at Darling Harbour is pretty nice though, but a much more quieter experience than Ueno-Eki!
Which brings me to my 'plans' section. I sense another trip to Japan in my near-future... its just a matter of finding someone to go with (I know my dad would love to go with me again cuz we just history-nerded it up at all the temples, shines, and sites), a time to go (late-winter was good... weather was similar to winter here!), and getting the time off to go (nothing shorter than 2-ish weeks)! There are heaps of things I didn't get to do which I really want to go and do next time I go... the Studio Ghibli Museum being one of them. Another week in Tokyo would be awesome, especially staying where we were in Taito-ku.
I'd have to add a few more places on to my list, especially going back to see the bits of Europe and Canada I haven't seen, NZ, USA, and maybe some more of Asia. Now, that'd require some serious coin and time!
Anyways. I need stronger lenses, and I wanted to get a new set of frames cuz my current ones (Ray Bans I've had for just over a year) tend to warp a bit which gets annoying even though I absolutely love the look of them! So I'm going back to the 'traditional' wire frames, instead of the half frames I have at the moment. I also need to get prescription sunnies, gotta get more proactive about protecting my eyes from the harsh Aussie UV! Growing up with the Slip-Slop-Slap-Wrap of the mid-late 90s, it should've already been engraved on my brain! I've had clip ons before, but they got annoying cuz they didn't give good coverage so hopefully the added cost of prescription ones will solve my issue of getting sun in my eyes from where my glasses don't cover my eyes!
I also ordered more contact lenses, which will make things a little easier at work - glasses and hospital work don't seem to work well together!
So about $900 later... I knew there was a reason I pay private health insurance! It should take some of the bite out of the cost, but it is worth it at the end of the day! Anything to keep from going blind!
I don't know if I'd do Lasix surgery in the future, I kinda like wearing glasses and I'm alright with contacts. Plus my eyes still seem to be changing constantly, so I don't know if I'd be a suitable candidate. Plus, I'm that used to seeing myself with glasses that when I'm not wearing them I think I look strange!
I'm finally putting up my Supanova pics in my room! Sydney 2012 was the first ever one I went to, after about 10yrs of trying to get to one and failing every time! It was a blast though! Went up on Friday morning on the train and stayed at Olympic Park for the weekend, which is where it was held this year. It was great seeing everyone who had cosplayed - really makes me more motivated to get off my butt and start doing it myself and really getting back into what I learnt in textiles in high school.
On the Saturday, I did all my photos and signatures. I got photos with Christopher Lloyd, Natalie Tena, and Vic Mignona! I can't believe how tall Mr. Lloyd is, and both Natalie and Vic were full of energy - even after a whole day of signatures, panels, photos, and rabid fangirls (and boys too). I have to say, Saturday was extremely crowded! You couldn't move around the back end of the stalls, especially where the Madman stall was set up! I ended up commissioning a sketch from an Aussie comic book artist who my brother had met at Melbourne Supanova last year. I ended up getting myself done as Wonder Woman, and it looks pretty kickass! It's great to see so many talented Aussies and others continuing in the footsteps of the comic and manga pioneers of the world. If I had to sum up Saturday, I would dub it (as many others do) Line-Con! Waiting 2hrs in line to get a signature off Mr. Lloyd pretty much takes the cake there!
Saturday night, I got to hang with my awesome former Tasmanian-turned-Sydneysider cousin - much shenanigans were had! The weather was pretty crappy, we must've brought it up from Canberra with us!
Sunday was better weather-wise and crowd wise. Much more of a family day, and what topped it was the father and sons who had dressed up as Jedi! Wish I stopped them to get a pic! I also got randomly hugged by one of my favourite psychopomps, and traveled on a train with Naruto and Temari. I splurged and got myself the complete 2nd season of Gundam 00 and Arietty on DVD, and the first 3 volumes of Blue Exorcist (which my brother then cursed me for not getting more!) They've been added to my collection of 5 volumes of Naruto (which I bought at Kansai airport on my way home from Japan), and 3-in-1 of Kare Kano.
Sunday arvo, my brother and I travelled in to the city and had a late lunch/early dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe at Darling Harbour. The trip pretty much was an adventure in itself as the city loop was having track work, meaning the timetables were a bit odd. So after going Olympic Park-Lidcombe-Central, we got on a tram to the Convention centre. Here, my super-awesome-directional-skills come in to play... and by super-awesome, I mean absolute luck! What I didn't tell my brother was that I had a vague idea where we were going, but as for where to go after getting off the tram... As luck would have it, Hard Rock was pretty much straight ahead once getting off the tram platform!
I'd have to say though, out of the 3 Hard Rock's I've been to, the one at Ueno-Eki in Tokyo was the best! Being able to see Japanese hospitality merged with an American restaurant still amazes me! Especially the energy they have when it came to greeting customers! Irashaimase yelled enthusiastically by every waiter/waitress in the joint every time someone walked through the door! Definately made it a loud place, but so much fun!
The one at Darling Harbour is pretty nice though, but a much more quieter experience than Ueno-Eki!
Which brings me to my 'plans' section. I sense another trip to Japan in my near-future... its just a matter of finding someone to go with (I know my dad would love to go with me again cuz we just history-nerded it up at all the temples, shines, and sites), a time to go (late-winter was good... weather was similar to winter here!), and getting the time off to go (nothing shorter than 2-ish weeks)! There are heaps of things I didn't get to do which I really want to go and do next time I go... the Studio Ghibli Museum being one of them. Another week in Tokyo would be awesome, especially staying where we were in Taito-ku.
I'd have to add a few more places on to my list, especially going back to see the bits of Europe and Canada I haven't seen, NZ, USA, and maybe some more of Asia. Now, that'd require some serious coin and time!
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Irrational fears and fun times
Last week I took a trip out of town with one of my bestest buddies to take photos around one of the cave sites close to where we live.
I had been to Wombeayn Caves back in 2003 when I went on Year 9 camp there - 3 days of bushwalks and caves! It was the first time I had ever visited a cave and even went caving, which was awesome fun!
Coming back in 2012 just served to remind me how beautiful the area is. Especially with the amount of water that has been falling of late. When I went back in '03 the drought was on-going and I definitely do not remember it being as damp and green as it was when I visited the other week.
My friend and I decided to take a self-guided tour through 'Fig Tree Cave' - which is set up with automated lights and information points where features of the cave are explained and shown. I had been in Fig Tree back in '03, but descending down the narrow stairs into darkness in '12 caused me to really have a wussy moment and best buddy came to the rescue by volunteering to walk first!
It really got me thinking. Am I getting more wussy as I get older? I've never had problems going in to caves, dark places, or even cramped spaces before (heights are another matter though!), so why now? Is my adult sense of self-preservation finally deciding to come to play now that I'm well and truly past my teen years?
Maybe I just need to get out of my comfort zone a lot more...
Anyways, managed to snap some really lovely pics using a DSLR for the first time - haven't managed to upload them to the laptop yet though. I think I took around 160 pics, but I know a lot of them are probably blurred, out of focus, overexposed, underexposed, etc, so that's something to practice with this year!
I had been to Wombeayn Caves back in 2003 when I went on Year 9 camp there - 3 days of bushwalks and caves! It was the first time I had ever visited a cave and even went caving, which was awesome fun!
Coming back in 2012 just served to remind me how beautiful the area is. Especially with the amount of water that has been falling of late. When I went back in '03 the drought was on-going and I definitely do not remember it being as damp and green as it was when I visited the other week.
My friend and I decided to take a self-guided tour through 'Fig Tree Cave' - which is set up with automated lights and information points where features of the cave are explained and shown. I had been in Fig Tree back in '03, but descending down the narrow stairs into darkness in '12 caused me to really have a wussy moment and best buddy came to the rescue by volunteering to walk first!
It really got me thinking. Am I getting more wussy as I get older? I've never had problems going in to caves, dark places, or even cramped spaces before (heights are another matter though!), so why now? Is my adult sense of self-preservation finally deciding to come to play now that I'm well and truly past my teen years?
Maybe I just need to get out of my comfort zone a lot more...
Anyways, managed to snap some really lovely pics using a DSLR for the first time - haven't managed to upload them to the laptop yet though. I think I took around 160 pics, but I know a lot of them are probably blurred, out of focus, overexposed, underexposed, etc, so that's something to practice with this year!
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