When the credits started to roll after The Dark Knight ended, some movie-goers in the middle of the Grand Cathay clapped.

It was quite wtf, but I understood why they did that.

The movie was far king awesome. If there ever was a third movie and a trilogy set comes out, I'd be sure to get it.

My PC is now officially a Mac poseur.

Honestly, I have no use for a dock, nor the sidebar (except for the weather widget gadget), but I didn't upgrade to 2GB RAM to do nothing.

( So it doesn't screw up your layout )

Sorry for the video spam, but with E3 and lotsa announcements this is what happens.

Anyway, the co-op looks good! While I like playing my survival action/horror alone, this isn't that bad either!

And it's now more or less confirmed that this game will play exactly like RE4, along with the irrtating barrel smashing. But for better or worse, I LOVE IT!

First, let me get this off my chest. OMGWTFBBQ FFXIII ON THE 360? DIE PLEASE SQUARE ENIX.

That aside, I couldn't care less now. Their finance is in deep dung and for now, I'm content just to get it on my hands. Let the deep pockets of Micro$oft save them. FFXIII Versus is still "exclusive" though, if it means anything at all in the economy of the present.

And by the way, while it is generous for them to show a full trailer (and about time for gawd's sake, them and their oh-so-secretive theater thing), I would appreciate like, NEW FOOTAGE? 98% are already shown on magazine scans. The gameplay footage is like OLD. Older than Old Snake. It makes me wonder if developement is actually progressing.

The silver lining though, seems to be an unconfirmed news of simulataneous release in Europe and North America. Could it be? I doubt, but we'll see.

Resident Evil 5 however, makes me drop dead. So much gameplay footage, so much awesome explosions and so many hungry zombies (on bikes even). It looks to be a difficult game to play, but hell, I won't expect any less from RE. Gimme gimme gimme!

If Capcom doesn't delay, I'll be able to get eaten by zombie voluntarily on March 13th 2009, which is also Friday the 13th. Wait, make that The Lucky Friday the 13th. I'll probably get both the Jp and NA version anyway, considering how many times I replayed RE4. I can't count, was it... 8?

Edit: Apparantly RE5 releases on the 12th for JP and 13th for NA. And there's online Co-op! San, let's playyyyyyy.

 

It's been quite a while
Every waking moment
Every sleepless dream
Like a haunting, relentless requiem

It's been quite a while
The struggle between E and L
Quite a dilemma it is
Similar, like the Beast and Belle

It's been quite a while
Should I say "Be gone!"
Or "Welcome back"
May I find an answer
While my sanity is still intact

It's funny how a less-than-positive experience is always the one that sparks off my inspiration.

If this format looks familiar to anyone, yes, I practically lifted it off your blog. ;D

Can't say I didn't see it coming, cant' say I'm not happy about it but still.

( Gundam 00 Season 2 Major Spoilers: Click at your own risk )

決意の朝に
On the Morning of Resolution
歌手：Aqua Timez
作詞：太志
作曲：太志

If that's what going to happen,
Let's go paint that useless dream of ours
If that's what going to happen,
Paint that useless bright dream of pleasant love
"You don't have to put on airs
Not acting cool is more like you, you know?"

The harder we work, the more we go round in circles on our journey
Like a grade school student marching out with the same arm and foot
But that's alright isn't it?
To live on, surely
It's just right for others to laugh at us

In my hearts of hearts, a real me locked away
A flesh and blood of 36.5 degrees Celsius,
We don't stop without this display
But I'm just faking this strength
I'm still putting this barrier up
I'm still fighting against pain

If only we can say we're suffering when we are
We're all just weaklings hiding behind laughter
The reason why I pretend everything is fine even when I'm lonely
Is to protect that seemingly crumbling self

Surely it's not just me
To be holding on to
These feelings that have no place to go
And this loneliness that doesn't belong

I didn't care about others' pain
And because of that, unease set in when it happened to me
Disliking others, thinking I'm the only unfortunate one
Just lamenting over what I wasn't given
Yelling like a three-year-old waiting for the snack called Love

I won't lose to the glare on the asphalt
Walking with my own feet and looking at others, I thought,
If I have a foot I can move,
If there's a place I want to go
I shall walk there with these feet

Although there may be some nights when I feel
I can't never regain my smile
But supported by the warmth of those important to me
I want to try believing again

If only we can say we're suffering when we are
We're all just weaklings hiding behind laughter
But even though he reason why I pretend everything is fine even when I'm lonely
Is to protect that seemingly crumbling self

Those mistakes, those scars
And those days I'm at a loss being about to cry
I'm going to make them a proof of me living as myself
From now on, before anyone else
I'm going to paint that useless dream without hesitation
Packing up my excuses, holding my head high
Let's continue to sing the song that defines me as a human

( 辛い時辛いと言えたらいいのになぁ )




This one may take some time to load. Imeem is starting to suck

------------------------------

Along with 「千の夜をこえて」, my other favorite Aqua Timez song.

Found two PVs, but one was removed and the other one can't really load unless you have a lot of patience. But I really love the PV so watch it if you can! :D If you can't, just enjoy the Youtube "video". At the very least it puts the song in context since it's the theme song of the movie "Brave Story".

Do what you can as yourself
There's nothing to be ashamed of
Sing your own song
Because no one else can
「千の夜をこえて」、「決意の朝に」辿り着きたい

OMG I just saw a Wii in the staffroom.

Behold the demonic reach of Nintendo!

Boo hoo.

My veins are too small for apheresis. The nurse told me to do more push-ups, but I doubt that'll work. D;

But that's not interesting. What I am going to write next, is.

The test for my haemoglobin level today had to be the worst in my life. For the benefit of those not in the know, they'll prick your finger, collect some blood in a capillary tube and dip a droplet into a bottle of solution for that test. If that drop sinks, congrats, they get to suck your blood. If not, try harder next time.

So there was this nurse who was going to do the test on me. I noticed her hand trembling violently while she was preparing and warning signals sounded. But it was just a fingerprick, so no matter how much you screw up, it can't be too bad. Right?

Right?

So she pricked my finger, at the side. My ex-oocupation hazard trained mind immediately told me she was a noob, as you don't prick the side of the finger, but slightly off center. It's less painful and also more effective.

That's fine though. It's not like I was going to drop dead from a fingerprick.

Then she started squeezing my blood into the tube. Normally they would squeeze around 1/4 the length of the tube, but she was long past that and still kept squeezing. On top of that, her hand was trembling so hard I could feel my whole hand shaking.

So she squeezed, and squeezed, until the blood has spilled all over my finger and onto her glove. I felt like telling her she already had enough, but looking at her staring intently at my finger, I couldn't bring myself to open my big fat mouth.

When she finally got more than half the tube filled (and my finger was already numb and bloodsoaked), she finally went on to the second part of the test while another nurse looked on. So she was talking to the nurse (as she was afraid that the droplet of blood won't come out), and then realized she forgot to see whether the droplet had sunk.

Orz.

I told her it did. Trying to be nice, I asked her if it was her first time. And as expected, she said today was her first day. I really felt like telling her that 1/4 tube would be enough but she looked like she was about to cry already so I kept my mouth shut.

Oh well, you've got to start somewhere. I'm just glad I have yet to encounter any shaky-handed nurse trying to poke a needle in my vein.

PS: Yes, the irony here is duely noted; I have shaky hands and I used to take blood. Sue me.

すばらしきこのせかい + The World Ends With You Arranged Soundtrack

The site is finally updated with the tracklist. The new song playing on the main page is "Three Minutes Clapping -Live-". I loveee it!

Some sample remixes are also available along with the original; just slide the slider left (arranged) or right (original) to switch between the two.

Who wants to order this? Etoh might be interested, so let's share shipping! :D

PS: These music are excellent pieces to jog along to.

千の夜をこえて
Crossing a Thousand Nights
歌手：Aqua Timez
作詞：太志
作曲：太志

I wanted to be loved yet I never set out to love
Lost wandering in these repetitions
I've found one answer
I was afraid, I was hurt
But I'd let the person I love know I love her

Do you love me or do you not?
It doesn't really matter either way
No matter what hopes one may hold
There are probably tons of things in this world
That can't be changed
That's right, and the fact that I love you
Is the only truth that no one alter

Crossing a thousand nights, I want to let you know
There's something I have to tell you
I wanted to be loved yet I never set out to love
Lost wandering in these repetitions
I've found one answer
I was afraid, I was hurt
But I'd let the person I love know I love her
It's frightening to put your feelings into words
But I'd let the person I love know I love her

In a world so vast,
How can one express the joy of reunion without using words
That's why we smile and sing Do-Re-Mi,
To mark the passing of an autumn of colours so vivid
And with winter on our backs,
We await the sunlight of spring streaming through the trees
Newly reborn, as if we can protect someone

Looking back at the path I came from and my destination
I've always seen a timid me
I want us to face each other but I can't look at you
Repeating the days when I can't love her honestly
In those days when I'm tired of being alone
I tried to love someone without getting hurt

Crossing a thousand nights, I'm going to see you now
There's something I have to tell you
I wanted to be loved yet I never set out to love
Lost wandering in these repetitions
I've found one answer
I was afraid, I was hurt
But I'd let the person I love know I love her
Those wishes didn't come true
But to let the person I love know I love her,
That was the most wonderful thing in the world

( 好きな人には好きって伝えるんだ )



------------------------------

This song is my favorite song by Aqua Timez. I first knew of this song when I sang it in one of their albums while browsing through the CDs in HMV and the title caught my eye. "Crossing a thousand nights". What could possibly make anyone do that? What could the song be about?

It didn't disappoint. The tune and the arrangement was excellent. I really love the guitar. But the thing that caught me and held on was the lyrics.

How direct!
How daring!
How refreshing!
If you like someone, tell them!

Overcome your hesitations, your hurt, your fear - those 1000 nights, and tell them! Even if it doesn't go the way you want it to be, it's still the most wonderful thing in the world!

I like what's implied in the following:

あの日の僕は
無傷のままで人を愛そうとしていた
(In those days,
I tried to love someone without getting hurt)


Meaning, you're going to get hurt either you get loved or not, which, if you think about it, is so totally true.

And I'm glad this song actually helped someone. In one of the comments in the youtube PV, someone wrote this:

"この歌を友達から聞かせてもらった後、実際に告白しました。"
"After I let my friend listen to this song, he/she went to confess to the person he/she likes."

Isn't it wonderful?

So what about you? Have you crossed your thousand nights yet?

I've been thinking about donating platelets, but everytime I book my appointment for donation on the donorcare website, I'm only allowed to select "Whole Blood".

The HSA website is of no help at all. They state that I can donate platelets (in fact, for people with blood type B+ like me, they prefer platelets to whole blood), but there is no information on how to go about doing it!

Luckily my best friend, Google, can help. A bit of clicking brought me to a forum of blood donors. I was like, wow! A community of blood donors, talking about donating blood! Anyway, I was able to find my answer from a senior moderator.

Apparantly, you must go to the apheresis center to get your vein screened, to see if they are thick and prominent enough. If they are, you'll get registered as a platelet donor and you'd be able to book an apheresis next time.

Naruhodo

Since I'm eligible for donation on the 8th this month, I'll pop by the center to get my cannot-make-it veins screened. They look really puny at the moment, so we'll have to see if I can pass the screen.

Then again, I wonder if I'll overcome the discomforting thought of lying somewhere with a needle stuck in your vein for 2-3 hours. =/

HI GRAVITYSNOTION!

Saw this at the Square Enix members website yesterday, but since Squenix is selfish, it was a flash video which I have no knowledge of extracting. So no sharing.

But it was only a matter of time before someone finds a way to upload it into youtube. After all, this IS Final Fantasy we're talking about.

Frankly, I'm no fan of fighting games, but I suspect the amount of fandom overflowing from thia game will at least keep me entertained for quite some time.

PS: A certain fan of Tidaa-sama will certainly want to watch this video. :p

It's not really that accurate though.

すばらしきこのせかい + The World Ends With You Arranged Soundtrack

YES.

YES.

YESSSSS! Good job Square-Enix. I knew you'd come through. I want to listen to the full version of "Deja-vu"!

But it'll only be released on the 30th of July. Why so longgggg.

PS: The track playing on the website is known as "Twister Gang-Mix", which I happen to like too!

I was at a bench in B1 of Taka this morning, reading a book. After a while, this lady took a seat next to me. I took no notice of her. After reading a few more pages, I heard her say somethig. Since I didn't catch what she said, I turned to her and gave her a are-you-talking-to-me puzzled look.

"Are you a Christian?" she asked again with a smile.

"Er...no." I was extremely confused, especially since I was trying to process the information in the book when she suddenly interrupted me.

"No?"

I could tell she wasn't expecting to answer. I looked at the two pages I was reading, and then understood why she asked me that - the words "God", "Christian" and "Catholic" were written all over.

"No? How come you are reading-, can you show me the cover page of the book please?"

I showed it to her, and it said:

"The God Delusion - Richard Dawkins"

As soon as she saw that, this shocked and WTF expression crept up all over her face. It was then I noticed she was holding some phamplets promoting Christianity. After a while, she composed herself, smiled at me and then went on to arrange the already very neat pile of phamplets in her hand.

I went back to my book, and she left after a while. While I am utterly amused by this incident, I feel somewhat sorry for her to encounter such a discouraging thing when she's about to go around Orchard to promote her religion.

New trailer for RE5 was released today! Just looking at the hordes of enemies you'd have to deal with makes me shiver with excitement.



It'd seem like they're going down the parasite route from RE4 rather than the virus infection of previous REs. And the 'parasites' (if they really are parasites) bear some resemblance to the Las Plagas of RE4. And since Wesker got hold of Las Plagas and considering Wesker is Chris' (main character) arch enemy, it doesn't take a nuclear scientist to take a wild stab at the story of RE5.

In any case, I hope this trailer will put an end to the "White man vs Black men" conspiracy theory, especially since now the "Black men" have tentacles and mandibles coming out of their mouths.

I'm rather amused by Chris' "knife", which seems more like a sword. LOL. And the chainsaw dudes are back! Looks like it's gonna be one hell of a ride!

And Capcom is still being a tease by not stating a release date. C'mon, state some generic date like Winter 2008 (hey, one CAN hope) already. We know you're going to delay it anyway!

Metal Gear Solid 4 releases in exactly 2 weeks time! If you don't know how awesome this series is, please, do yourself a favor and take a look:



In preparation for this PS3 exclusive (yes Xbox fans, deal with it :p), I went back to play MGS3 once more to catch up on the story... and abuse a few enemy soldiers on the way.

I found myself strangely hooked on the theme song this time, so much so I kept listening to it. Maybe I was just too hooked up on the game last time to care. It's quite amusing how its kinda James Bond-like, being Jazz. The image fits especially when coupled with the opening sequence lol.



Some joker even the opening sequence along with Casino Royale's theme song and it kinda... fits? lol.

The choreography of scenes in some animes never fail to amaze me. For example, this scene in episode 6 of Macross Frontier, where the insert song cuts into the ending and each part of the song is placed perfectly within appropriate scenes to create an emotionally charged atmosphere.

To understand this short scene of 4 minutes better, let me summarise the background:

The singer, Sheryl Nome, is a famous songstress on a galatic tour. Before her last performance, she received news that her home fleet, the Macross Galaxy, came under attack from alien lifeforms. This transmission however, came a few days late because of distortions in the fold of time-space thingy (which I won't go into), drastically reducing the chances of survival.A fleet however, will be deployed for rescue, which launches during this 4 minute sequence and during her last performance for the tour.

I like how they cut into a far-camara backshot of Sheryl when she sings "It's long long goodbye", homing in the impression that she's bidding farewell to Macross Galaxy even though she said she hated living there.

Someone help me, I can't stop listening to this song, especially after watching episode 6. HALPPP.

And with that, I shall share this clip in the hopes that I won't be alone in this addiction (although San is already hooked haha). I searched through youtube to find one with the highest sound quality so you yarou-domo better appreciate it. :p