Friendlist, am alive but busy -- a former Prof asked me to TA a class, and it's more intensive than some of my previous experiences. (But more fun as well.)

Just had a thought RE: JKR's big revelation. As someone points out here, Dumbledore is a gay man who was burned by love, and decided to put it aside in order to devote himself to a higher purpose, a big piece of which is education, guiding the next generation and so on.

And now I can't stop thinking Dumbledore = Tim Gunn. (If, you know, Tim had gone through a fashion fascist phase in his youth.)

New anime season: Shugo Chara is full of mahou shoujo WIN, my favorite so far. Clannad is more fun and less moe-baiting than Air and Kanon, and Gundam 00 has a sense of humor and nice little flashes of humanity. It's also well-paced, pretty, the action is great, it's not convoluted (so far) and it's full of gay*, but those first two were what really struck me. I knew the FMA director being signed on was a sign of good things to come. (The screenwriter also did two of my favorite series of all time, Dai-Guard and Magical Project S.)

* "I'm Graham Ace, the man whose heart your existence has stolen!" is just the most obvious.

Art meme number 2 of 7* finished! doortoriver, your Subaru is done! Hope you like it!

No content warnings, but warning for largeimage being large. (I read cat_macros too goddamn much.)

( To me, the one line still sounds like 'I wanna fly Mark Twain someday'... )

Next up: Geass LuluSuzu for rkold.

Finally! First Steelers game of the season, first game I get to watch coached by our new head coach, Mike Tomlin, and first game I'm watching on a TV big enough that I don't have to sit two inches away from it to follow the action. If I'd just remembered the Countdown special on NBC before the game and they'd get Madden off my screen, this would be a pretty perfect evening. <3

Well, I promised sketches, but never speed. ^^; The first of eight sketches to come, prompted by ladyuranus's request for something to celebrate the re-release of slayers, after the cut. Hope you like it!

( If this wasn't an actual scene, I'd be surprised... )

Next up: Subaru for doortoriver. (I'm thinking TB-era, if that's all right? If not, let me know.)

Also: why is Higurashi no Naku Koro ni so addictive? I grow steadily less embarrassed to admit that I'm really into Hoshi in the Land of Killer Lolis, because it's actually really entertaining, and the moe elements are very surface. (Although Geneon, it's less Twin Peaks and more It, really...)

Hell, since I'm looking to rkold's sketch for sumeragiskank, I'll do this, too: the first five people to comment will each get a quick sketch by me. Actually, the first seven, if rkold and sumeragiskank each want something. ^^ (Otherwise, five.) Nothing too elaborate; maybe color, maybe not -- but I'll give it a go. (Give me at least through the weekend to finish.)

Fandoms I'd be reasonably confident with: any CLAMP series up to and including Kobato, PoT, Code Geass, My HiME/Otome, To Terra, Flower of Life, Project Runway...

I'm pretty wide open on this since it's a sketch. If you like, check out my MyAnimeList and MyMangaList to see what I'm up on. Fair warning: I don't know recent videogames that don't involve dancing.

If you have a particular characterization in mind, please specify. If you want Lelouch and Suzaku having blushy TRU BOI LUV, please say so; if Lelouch is an evil bastard who uses his Geass to paralyze Suzaku while he..., likewise tell me.

CLAMP in Wonderland 2 official poster, courtesy of the always fabulous chibiyuuto.

I was going to nitpick the character designs (and hey, I think this artist is as bedeviled by Kamui's hair as I am :D), but then I saw that Fuuma finally has Tiny Glasses of Evil Sexiness. And I said, "Never mind. Thank you, Madhouse."

So I think this officially signals the start of Potterdammerung: the NY Times and Baltimore Sun both published advanced reviews of the final HP book, and JKR is pissed. (May be spoilers at the bottom of the link -- must avert mine eyes!) Favorite part: a spokeswoman for the UK publisher likens it to the Boston Tea Party.

Wahoo! The one DVD I'm allowed to buy during my hiatus came up for preorder today -- the third PoT DVD boxset. Even better, Right Stuf is doing a 40% off sale on everything Viz (+ 6% additional for Got Anime? members). In an ideal world, I wouldn't give Viz anything for their continued fuckwittery regarding the OPs & EDs and nonsensical lack of chapter stops, but realistically? I want it, and 46% off makes it go down a whole lot easier.

Right Stuf also put out preorder listings for the first Bleach boxset (eps. 1-20) and the Death Note regular and limited edition DVDs, so if you're inclined toward either of those, now's the time to jump on them. The sale knocks about $40 off the Bleach set, and my understand is Viz isn't fucking with Bleach in any way. Likewise, I wouldn't worry too much about them messing with Death Note too much since the title is so popular.

For my own purposes, I figured out what episodes should be on the future PoT boxsets, ( behind the cut )

The DVD moratorium is going well, for anyone who's been wondering. 15 days in, and this is the only time I've bought a DVD or felt severely tempted. (Although I do wish I'd preordered the second Haruhi LE, and there was a crapload of stuff announced at AX that I'm dying for.) I did pick up some Fumi Yoshinaga pr0n at the comic shop last week, but not going EVERY week and grabbing every new volume that I want is actually progress for me. ^^; They had one of those "how to draw manga" books about yaoi, and I started leafing through it thinking it could be good for poses...but then I saw they had a chapter on "plot" and just started laughing.

The bad news out of the Viz panel at Anime Expo today: reps described the decision to replace the original OP and ED as "creative decisions we chose to make," and say they plan to continue the practice in the future. They're also "looking into" chapter stops. As though chapter stops were some incredibly rare bonus.

The good news out of the Viz panel at Anime Expo today: no new licenses announced! :D

Source: AOD

So I've now seen exactly two episodes of Death Note -- the first one and the last one. (I was curious to see if the ending was the same as the manga. It does.) I thought Madhouse did a good job with it (while hamming it up a little visually, of course), so I'll pick up episodes 2-36 at some point in the future.

WARNING FOR SPOILERS in the links below:
The most important thing, of course, is that someone did an anime version of the manga's infamous swimming lesson. I died.

Just sent off an e-mail to the department of the Ph.D. program I'm interested in regarding actually formally applying, costs, financial aid, etc. I think I can get in as far as academics go, but worried about the costs, especially since my first two years of grad school left me seriously in debt. (Also, it's abroad.) Well, we'll see how it goes. If I go all out, maybe I can get some decent scholarships, and I guess my existing student loans would be deferred if I'm back in school? (Heretofore unknown rich uncle, you can make your identity and my status as your soul beneficiary known at any time.) *hope hope hope*

Current mood: excited and terrified!

Finished Air TV finally. First observation: I want the KyoAni Kyon³ Threeway. That is to say,

Yukito	on Yuuichi	on Kyon,

although not necessarily in that order. Whoever's on top, bottom, or sandwiched in the middle, it will be snarky and bitchy and hot, and therefore wonderful. (If this ever actually does turns up as a doujinshi, do someone let me know. XD)

OK, now as to the show: Air is Kyoto Animation's first series based on a Key/Visual Arts game (see also: Kanon, the upcoming Clannad), and actually, I liked it. Not all parts, and it's not as good as Kanon, which is funnier, has richer character development, and a better story and execution. But the good outweighs the bad -- yes, even the Sad Girls in Snow aspect (at least until the final arc), and the scary character designs. (I must be getting used to them, because they didn't bother me half as much in Air as they did in Kanon.)

And of course, Yukito is another Kyon. He predates the Haruhi character, of course, but it's the same personality, albeit more apt to say what he's thinking out loud, and to get into fights with ten-year old girls. Just like Kanon's Yuuichi is Kyon, but suited up for winter weather. And even though part of me says, "KyoAni, you need to diversify" (and in a lot of ways), I'll actually be kind of disappointed if the boy from Clannad doesn't turn out to be Alternate Universe Kyon #4....

Today's lesson: when shopping for new glasses and trying on frames, try to remember that when you get the finished pair made to your prescription, you won't be wearing contacts with them; ergo, consider what the field of vision is for the size and shape of the lenses in the framesyou're trying on. Brought to you by the fact that I currently have no peripheral vision, and everything above and below my eyeline is blurry. >_<;; If I don't have a migraine by the end of the day, I'll be surprised.

(The worst part is that the frames are cute. (Mine are the lime/green.) I love the way they look on me, and the overall shape, but I don't know if I can actually wear them day-to-day. In hindsight, I should have asked the woman helping us out, "Are these good for people who are severely nearsighted? I mean, like without correction, I've only got clear vision about six inches in front of my face -- that kind of severely nearsighted?"

Actually, the worst part may be that I don't know if I can exchange these, and even if I can, it'll be a pain to get them replaced.... Here's hoping I can get used to them over the weekend.

I've been addicted to Right Stuf sales since this past Christmas, but their Bounty/Abundance sales kill me. For a fixed price, you pick a certain number of DVDs from a select list, your choice of 10 DVDs for $50, or 25 for $100. I thought I'd be all right when the current Geneon Bountiful Bargains Remix sale started because I didn't think there were that many Geneon series I was interested in.

Turns out my interest can fluctuate based on price -- at $4 a disc, I evidently find a lot of series worthwhile. So I went a little overboard. My current favorite rationalization is, "You don't realize it, but you're actually stockpiling eBay fodder for later in the year." (And technically, it IS easier to sell a complete R1 set used there than used singles...)

At any rate, I decided that I need to get my spending under control, so I'm starting a DVD-buying moratorium today. I'm shooting for one month (ending July 21), but saying "two weeks to start" since that's less depressing. Rules:

• No checking out Right Stuf Daily Deals, because they're too tempting. Likewise Anime Nation closeouts.
  
• No preorders.*
  
• No glutting on manga "because it's OK if you're not buying any DVDs." Same goes for Copics, doll clothes, and delicious fast food.

This will be a real test of will. Wish me luck -- I'm going to need it. ;o;

* Lone exception to the preorder rule: the 3rd PoT boxset if it becomes available during that timeframe. (Cover art showed up recently -- yeah, another Ryoma cover -- so it shouldn't be long.) I'm serious about supporting the release, more so than before after marathoning the National Champsionship OVAs during my last trip home because it made me realize I still love this stupid show.

Well, I resisted as long as I could, but it looks like I'm going to become one of the Scary Doll People after all. Haven't actually placed an order yet for my "resin captive," as sumeragiskank likes to call her BJDs; however, as of this morning, my ING homepage now has a new savings account called "Doll" with about $5 in. (I guess if I save up enough for one and don't end up going for it after all, it'll be a nice nest egg...)

Technically, I've had a Dollfie for while, as rkold bought me a 1/6 model -- that is, Volks' plastic version of a BJD, about the size of a Barbie doll -- a few months ago after I found one of hers extremely useful in posing a picture. (Would have had a much harder time with foreshortening on Keigo's left leg otherwise.) ( Here he is with Kim's Leon and Cloud at Dollpa: )

But something in me snapped after going to Dollpa in New York 2 with rkold and sumeragiskank this past weekend. Apart from the hidden bathrooms and Kim and I not realizing just how far "20 fast blocks" in Manhattan actually is, it was a great time. Everyone seemed reasonably friendly, and I was surprised how often someone would just lean over and start chatting with me about how nice the one-offs were, even though we were total strangers. I enjoyed seeing the variety of dolls people made, including the super-rare limited edition Super Dollfie Chicken. (Note: kidding. It's actually a one-off.) It's amazing how much different the same kind of doll can turn out in two different sets of hands. I was especially surprised by how a different faceup (painting a doll's face, giving it "makeup") could completely change the character of a particular head mold. Seriously, it's like night and day. Kim showed me a girl head she was interested in for a particular character, and at first I couldn't see it at all -- I thought the doll looked kind of vapid. But when she pointed out a picture of the same head in a photo book, the same face became sexy, smirky, and just right. And it was all in the faceup.

BJDs can seem like sort of an odd hobby from the outside, but really, it's not any stranger than my brother spending thousands of dollars customizing his poor truck to death. (Yes, he pimped his own ride.) He put rims on, lowered it, did all kinds of things, then took it to car and truck shows to show off his hard work and meet other people who were just as enthusiastic about making their vehicles functionally inoperable. By that standard, BJD collecting is perfectly sane, since even if you fuck up your doll somehow, you can probably still make it to work the next morning.

I'm hoping to polish my sewing skills enough to make good-looking clothes, both to sell and for my own sinister purposes. Like somehow, no one makes a Rabi~en~Rose outfit for 1/6 scale boy dolls. Tragic, yes? I'm tempted to specialize in cross-dressing fashions for boy dolls just to fill that niche.

Anyway, this is all a long way away -- I'm not making a firm decision until around Christmas if at all possible, but it is something I'm very interested in. But if I ever do a post on my LJ that says I just spend my rent money buying my doll a pair of pants, please, someone come drag me out of my house by my hair and flog me in the street until I regain my senses.

Also: I will get caught up on comments this weekend if it means still working on them at 2 AM this coming Monday morning...

I sometimes talk in my sleep. It's something I've done since I was a kid, and so did my brother. We often did it on the same nights and at the same time, so that it sounded like we were having a conversation. Naturally, this would seriously creep out my mom on nights when she was the only one home with us.

Today, I know that I have bouts of sleep paralysis*, and trying to make myself talk (or scream) is one of the ways I can snap myself out of it.** I wonder if I was doing the same thing back then, or if it was just the general talking in your sleep that apparently up to 50% of kids go through and grow out of. But one of the triggers for sleep paralysis is a lack of sleep, and I was never wanting for that as a kid, so it may not be the same thing in both cases.

Either way, I learned the technical term for talking in your sleep -- somniloquy. Cool, yes? I think I have a new favorite word. :D

* I haven't experienced a lot of the weird hallucinations that sometimes come with sleep paralysis, but the sudden sensation of falling thing has happened many, many times.
** This article says that trying to move your eyes or facial muscles is a good way to try and break the paralysis. I'm going to try this next time, because trying to move a body part or speak is damn hard.

So I had a train to catch early this morning, and stayed up all night without sleep loading anime onto my laptop for the long, boring stretch between New York and my hometown. I put on all the stuff I wanted to catch up on -- Lucky Star, Negima, the PoT OVAs, Romeo x Juliet -- and grabbed my burned discs of XXXHolic and Magical Pokaan for some older stuff.

Get on the train, and only then find out I left my power cord at home. Naturally, I DID have the extension cord that goes with it, which is totally useless without the main adapter.

The bright side is, I caught up on the sleep I missed last night, but damn, the rest of this trip is going to be lame. LAME.

Slate.com continues their history of scintillating journalism with this morning's feature on lolcats. (Featuring favorites like Monorail Cat and up-and-comers lolrus and the lolpresident.) I'd love to see the site stats for how many people accidentally click on the link to the Christopher Hitchens article, then immediately backtrack to read the lolcats story...

In part of my ongoing quest to pass on awesome deals on to my friends (and also avoid doing real work):

AnimeNation's license for Risky Safety expires this fall, so they're offering the complete series plus artbox for $14.99 from their website. They also have a lot of the original production material, which they're selling for about $10 for five pounds. They say they've sorted through and picked out the best of the lot, including frames of animation, painted backgrounds, etc.

I haven't seen Risky Safety, so I can't vouch for it. Everything I heard about it was positive, though -- it sounds like one of those little sleeper series that should be better known, but isn't. $14.99 for a complete series isn't much of a gamble, especially considering that you can probably get $15 out of it if you sold it to a second-hand DVD place.

Yamato Nadeshiko Shichihenge licensed by ADV, announced at Nabeshin's event in Texas yesterday. To be sold as "The Wallflower," the title Del Rey used for the manga. One of my favorite recent comedies -- it's good enough that after a while, you stop minding that the animation is like, Weiss-level bad.

Now if someone could announce Ouran and Negima?!, I'd be set for comedies for a good while. (Not to mention the first season of Nanoha, which isn't a comedy, but there were rumors Geneon had it, and it's fucking KILLING ME...)

Also making me gleeful is Criterion revealing yesterday that they're releasing Luis Bunuel's Milky Way in August. I haven't seen it yet, but more Bunuel is always a good thing. I'm still hoping they eventually do an Eclipse/A> collection of some of Bunuel's lesser-known/earlier films, like Los Olvidados and The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz.