Very quick SULK.

State of mind: frus-case
Current soundtrack: quiet office-type noises

In Pyramid: Ultraman Max's Malaysian tour.

In office until 1 p.m. - M.Y.

Noooo I wanna gooooo I bet you I'm the only person in Malaysia who can sing the Max theeeeeeme I want to see the big cross-eyed lunkheaaaad GAAAAAAAA HALF-DAY LEAVE HALF-DAY LEAVE I WANNA GOOOOOOOO WANNA SQUISHGLOMP MAX AND XENON AND SING HAPPY UM SONGS~~~

*sob!*

*goes back to burning videos for great justice*

Noa Reborn(?)

State of mind: agitated
Current soundtrack: white noise

I think I may have found Noa-tan.

One of the handphone people who shares shop space with Vision Art, behind TOA, has a sort of blocky laptop—Compaq, because the old logo sans really swooshy Q is on the back—with a black back and rounded corners. And one of the keys in the top row is missing. I haven't gotten close enough yet to verify that it's the U key (which I had to tape to Noa a few months before his disappearance), or if it really IS a Presario M2000.

If it looks like a duck, and sounds like a duck...but may not quite be your old duck...then what is one to do?

(ETA 1710 - You eat your face about it for a while, then go down and check, apparently. The key is missing from the wrong row, and the M2000 insignia isn't there. *sigh* False alarm, people. But honestly, I still hope Noa-tan IS out there, not broken to piecemeal for crystal meth, and...maybe at least being loved and taken care of, and once again storing founts of work, art and dodgy fanfiction?)

I say, where DID my jaw roll off to?

State of mind: surprised
Current soundtrack: Kimi to Iu Na no Tsubasa De (Kobukuro)

The government said to remain calm. Do not celebrate. Do not hold victory rallies. (If that's not a veiled reference to '69, I don't know what is.) So, OK, I'm calm. I'm not celebrating. But my heart is a big, old, sweet rolling dance party.

The opposition coallition (DAP-PKR-PAS) has claimed 4 states in the elections, including my home state; perhaps not so happily, PAS alone has won over Kedah. 3-4 ministers lost their seats. Overall, BN has a simple majority and not the much-desired two-thirds. In Malaysia, this is probably the closest a not-Alliance party has come to FLAWLESS VICTOLEE.

Things are about to change, people, and don't you say you weren't there to see it happen. And if the 'Opposition' screw this up, they will never get the chance to get these seats again, so Do It Right, people!

Aaaaaaa?

State of mind: confused
Current soundtrack: Ultraman Nexus - Requiem (Kawai Kenji)

Dubious M.Y. is dubious. Is there, perhaps, some piece of history that I missed in the Ultra pantheon? Did Ultraman suddenly age? Was he put under a lot of sudden stress? Acid attack? Freak accident involving hornets?

...No? Rly? Then why do I see the A-type mask in the upcoming Daikessen! Ultra Ultra 8 Kyoudai? Again?

Old 'Man's the flagship of the fandom: the first, the original, the beginning. One would assume you want him to look his very best, and let's admit it, usually he does. One also hopes, with many hopes, that the site Flash uses some standalone promo shot and the A mask was not used in the actual filming. If it was, then Tsuburaya, you have some 'splaining to do! D:

I at least expect Tiga to have some 'By the Light itself, what happened to your face?!' moments, because he and Man have met before.

Work's going OK. I have the brain of a ten-year-old. Also, I saw Hako for lunch today and we had a long mutual unloading session about events past.

Aw man FOOOOOOO!

State of mind: gleeful

'Deru and DMJ probably know this by now—seeing as how they were there, but DARN it, someone beat me to the punch!

Hard Gay in Malaysia, FOOOOOOOOOOOO!

At least I don't have to worry about getting the hat and gloves now. Psst Cons, Crys, does that bodysuit seller still exist?

(and for those readers who do not know what the HG phenom is—Google it. Yourself. I want to pretend this blog is still kind of worksafe.)

Atromen.

State of mind: dumbfounded

HAPO BENDO NIE?

The remix of Gaia at the beginning and ending was an interesting stuff, but I have to hand this over to people better versed in 'loghe Kelate' to translate most of it.

In other news, Mori Chuck kinda looks like Ando. %\

I will attempt to be succinct @ Hudsonning.

State of mind: peckish
Current soundtrack: AWAKE - Un Dia Llegara (Josh Groban)

I saw a Black Jack kewpie in the shops today. It might as well have been called Kowasugi Creepy McCreepypants-Ohmyheart. °A°

Karcy brought this issue to my attention, so I ran with it. Non-denominational deity on a flatbread, it took THIS long to reach my ears? You'd have had me frothing and cheesed off in two seconds flat, but now I'm so peckish I can barely curl my lip and snarl. I may not have caught the cake one at once, but that poem about the turtles? I remember it! By gum, do I remember it! Wangst and martyrdom shall be no excuse for flicking it! It's far too clean for a coincidence!

Anyway. What shall I hudson, then? Let's try this little extract; you'll have to excuse me if I can't make it rhyme. She got away with it.

Lafazlah kau 'gin' dan bir'
Sementara ditempatkan selamat di sini
Dan dihantar ke pertempuran kecil;
Tetapi bila membunuh
Kau akan bekerja demi air
Dan menjilat but sial pemiliknya.
Ha, di iklim panas Injia,
Di mana kuluangkan masa dulu
Berkhidmat untuk Duli Yang Maha Mulia Permaisuri,
Daripada semua pekerja keling
Yang paling cekap
Ialah bhisti pasukan kita, Gunga Din.
Dialah 'Din! Din! Din!
'Kepal habuk batu yang terhincut-hincut, Gunga Din!
'Oi! Hitherao licik!
Air, dapatkannya! Panee lao,
Patung hidung penyek, Gunga Din.'... [+/-]Gunga Din oleh May Chong!

(And before you go ANY further, Kipling is one of my favourite authors and this, clearly, was meant as a piece of satire, jokery and jiggery-pokery; and yes, the k-word is not a nice one. But you transliterate 'blackfaced crew' into modern sensibilities...)

Next week: A piece about Poppies! No, wait, someone's already done that...

Sanity springs a leek!

State of mind: incredibly amused
Current soundtrack: Ieva's Polka - Loituma
Go crazy with me, hapless readers, and ask me not what I've been doing up since half-past-one. :D

The good, the bad, the ugly and...?

State of mind: annoyed
Current soundtrack: Black Jack - Fantastic (Ami Suzuki)
The good
I've survived my first full week at work, graduated, and made Hazmer want to go to UMLand. *evil, evil laughter* I even got a job offer—background and character design, fr srs!—but nope. Have to wait another 2-3 years first.

The bad
Leaving them AS 3 files in the student computer on Friday. Oops. Hope they're still there on Monday, otherwise have to do some heavy-duty bugging...orz Bank a/c dropping precipituously due to necessary purchases, and I haven't even gotten my first paycheck yet. Adobe Creative Suite, thou growest farther and farther away...TT_TT

The ugly
Omaigod, another teeny-weeny girl got kidnapped. Edmund Hillary's dead.

The just plain weird
Never mind the fact that Tsuburaya seems to consistently romanise ジョーニアス(Jōniasu) as 'Joneus', which imo looks...clunky. Now it seems they cannot decide on a constant romanisation for メビウス: TWO acceptable romanisations are mentioned. I'm not one to pass up a good running concept—with the whole 'infinity' and 'future' and 'connection' themes, and ALL those ∞ motifs, why stop at the hero name?—but for REAL, TPC. I left UMLah in an argument over this issue. Just pick *one*, clean up the typos and stick with it. If even Joneus *shudder* turns out to be official, aye, that's what I'd stick with.

Almost as weird: Mebius DVD vol 3 has a little insert that mentions Hikari was offered the post of DIRECTOR of the Space Science and Tech. Bureau (Eien Wolff retiring?) but turned it down; many say it was 'because of the planet Arb'. If they mean 'because of what happened to Arb' and not 'because he was ON Arb', Himeya Jun would probably like to go out for a drink with Hika-cchi some time.

* Because I have yet to find the Holy Grail 1st/2nd Super Hero Chronicle UM sets...

*troubled*

State of mind: bercelaru
Current soundtrack: Black Jack 21 - Destiny on loop

Class went fine today, I tried the goodness of J.Co donuts (OHMIGOD FOODGASM) and it looks like tomorrow might yield some actual work. I AM tutoring my tutor's sister! 0_0 Kind of fawesome. But in the meantime, I have issues.

...For serious, man, why me and why now? I don't know how this is going to work out. While I am loath to hurt anyone, you go ahead and take that one step. See if I don't push hard enough for everything to fall. Better now than later.

Even if I fear the coming reactions. Manjusri, Hikari and the Ultran Trinity, give me strength!

DAY THREE: NAGASAKI > SHIMABARA

State of mind: boneless
Current soundtrack: Ultraseven X - Arl (J.S. Bach Cantata No. 51) (Saitou Takahiro)

Onsen today, yes. But before that…

Started the day with a big breakfast and checked out, heading for the long-delayed Glover Gardens. It’s at the top of a hill, past a storybook museum (!!) and at the end of a looooong shopping street.

Seems the three most-pimped things in Nagasaki are chanpon, sara-udon (fried udon?), castella sponge cake and kakuni manjuu. Popped up on every second sign I saw!

Right, the garden. It was…a bit meh, actually, as we were slightly rushed through the whole thing (Well, I was. Oo look, a tree...*dawdle*). It includes bits of Japan’s first foreigner settlement, Madame Butterfly memorabilia, and Japan’s first asphalt road and tennis courts, but honestly? Not all that pretty and I still don’t know who the heck ‘Glover’ is. Seems to be a preserved foreign residence/settlement, with a ‘performance art’ museum (read: nifty shape-based floats)

But you have to admit, some of the floats damn cool. Shachihoko FTW! Look at the splashiness!

The Peace Memorial was a bit better...well, sort of. We ended up in the Atomic Bomb Museum instead, if you're going to be pedantic. There’s a big old gold-coloured statue in front of that to commemorate all the teachers/students who perished. The tour group went straight ahead into the museum after some pic ops, but they missed a very beautiful statue off to the side of two girls flying gloriously. It’s based on a painting by Matsuzoe Hiroshi and is…quite uplifting. You need this just before going in, let me tell you. No pictures were allowed, so I sketched up a storm. (Thumbnails for now, btw. Click for a larger view.)

The memorial has a good, interesting use of space and ambient sound. Mind-stopping/changing exhibits. I’d recommend this place to anyone who comes down to Nagasaki, just maintain some respect for the site. Walk through and soak it in, and never mind the maudlin copywriting at the beginning. It’s best enjoyed as a long, quiet walk with no major interruptions. Which is what someone should have told the @#*^~in’ Taiwanese tour group who entered. “AND THIS IS THE THINGIE FROM SOMEWHERE. AND OVER HERE AR WE HAVE THIS DOOHICKEY FROM SO-AND-SO”. I’m getting a headache remembering how the guide’s voice cut like a chainsaw through the smooth silence. OK, so y’all read no Japanese or English. But please, please for the love of mercy: Shush! It felt so paiseh just being in the same room with those people. (And it just occured to me. Doesn't the place produce Chinese pamphlets? Hey, boss, here's our next comm. service job. It would be brill. :D)

Rant aside, the place is quite…depressing? Blood-curdling? Chilling? Awe-inspiring? It’s kind of hard to say. Maybe all of that. You look at the blistered trees and things with shadows burned on them from the heat; at the melted glob of rosary; at the cathedral which was torn down during Sakoku and rebuilt and FLATTENED by Fat Man (only one wall remained, slightly warped inward); at the people who were peppered with debris like machine-gun fire when the wind blew back into the hypocenter (this is where mushroom clouds come from); at the cancerous spleen vs the normal one; at the amount of nukes still out there today. I didn’t read a lot of the testimonials, fearing I’d dissolve into tears there and then, but what stuck with me was this:

A girl, 10 at the time, had a 2-year-old sister trapped under a large wooden beam. Many sailors tried to move it; they could not. Girl’s mother came back from the fields, where she’d been harvesting eggplants. She’s covered in shrapnel. Her body is burned purple from the intense heat. Forget all clothes. She’s naked, wounded and exhausted. The daughter called out, she gave the sailors a long look, and she put her shoulder under the beam and heaved. IT MOVES.

The girl went free, but all the skin came off the mother’s shoulder and it was stripped to the bone. She died in agony later that night.

It’s not a pleasant image, but it stays, and is touching. To me, anyways.

I came away feeling very…tired. Bought a book about the Hiroshima Panels (also incredibly depressing) and headed back to the bus.

Moving on to lighter things (must try!) the group headed out to the Peace Gardens (yay!) There was a big blue-green statue there (10 m high) with a little moat around it. It’s a very tranquil place. At one end is Big Blue, part Buddha* and part God; at another is a fountain, in memory of all those who died with pleas for water on their lips. The streams form a sort of wing shape, ala a crane.

Through the park/garden/area are bits of preserved Nagasaki...prison, and statues from various countries, hoping for peace. NZ’s one was really nice; Germany’s was blocky and square and, er, Germanic; Bulgaria’s had a kind of grace to it. It all makes you feel even worse when you recall missionaries first came to Japan through Nagasaki and it still got the shit bombed out of it. Makes you feel more hopeful when you see how beautiful and calm and all-together Nagasaki is today.

A quick lunch at a Chinese restaurant and we left Nagasaki for Shimabara. On the way we stopped near Mt. Unzen and went up to a lookout point. Bought some loquat sweets (nice, but meh) and saw, would you believe it, a big old Harley-Davidson. It belonged to one of three very old Japanese chappies (< = 79) whom we got pally with before leaving. Big strong bikers with hearts of gold, travelling Asia...

...But I cannot really account for THESE on the Beemer-ojisan's bike. O_o;;;;;;;;;;;;;; Ohgodpleasebeusingthemformereaestheticvaluepleasebeusingthemformereaestheticvaluepleasebeusingthemformereaestheticvalue

It was then time to go again, but there was another stop—a buried village, smothered in Fugendake’s pyroclastic flow of 1991. O_o;;;;;; Luckily everyone had been previously evacuated, so nobody died or was injured—even M.Y. can only take so much death and destruction in one day. Houses got buried up to the roofs, though. They run a little cottage industry-thingie nearby, and I mean this because the price stickers say ‘XYZ made by so-and-so-san’ etc. Very nice.

We finally stopped for the night at Shimabara Kowakien, a ryokan-hotel combo jobbie. ZOMG, SWISH. We were treated to a lovely Japanese dinner (I dare not say kaiseki, as it probably wasn’t), and there was of course the ONSEEEEEN. To be more specific, the ROTENBUROOOOO. It was very appealing, once you get past the ‘argh naked boobies naked with other people’ mindset. I went twice! They have a yuzu-infused tub *bob bob* and a normal tub, which is larger (and somewhat steamier?). I intended to check out the outdoor baths the first night, but my body had other thoughts; 3 m out the door, at night in early winter, in the raw, and I had to turn around and flee. I honestly felt FREEZING. Plucked up courage once more and tried again, but a cold wind blew s-o-f-t-l-y through the door and I finally admitted defeat. For now.

I feel very clean and shiny. I’m doing it again tomorrow! Now I shall curl up in my futon(!!) on the (tatami!!!) and prepare to don a yukata(!!!!) in the morn.

As if it was possible to love Kyushu even more. :D

* It's not just the face; upon further inspection while prettying up the pictures for blog consumption, it appears that Big Blue may have a third eye.