Trying to put things in perspecive - usually after a bout of intense worrying and brooding, I get a light feeling which is me trying to rationalize that actual severity of the situation. Mistakes are ok, as long as I learn from them. Got to be more thick-skinned and stone-hearted. *sigh* rationalizing is depressing...

Down in the pits today, wish I had never checked my email *sigh* Am heartily tired of walking into potholes at work. Things I never expected to matter become serious (maybe because they are symptoms of problems...) Seems like the harder I try the more I mess up. Am really dreading work tomorrow...feelin' wound very tight. Is it any wonder some turn to consumerism to relieve stress?

And Calcifer just too cute! He looks like a orange baby jelly with a cute butt. Maybe he flares up (heh) later in the show, but the preview makes him look so sweet! You just want to hug him, and squeeze him and love him...Calcifer UFO doll! In the book he is supposed to be blue-face with green har and pink eyes....

Howl's Moving Castle animation's spoilers...
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Ahhhh! Madam Suliman!!!??? Wizard Suliman became a witch! And it seem the whole contract-with-a-fire-demon thing got spilled out pretty early in the show - so no puzzling Donne poem, pity. And the Witch of the Waste looks like Ursula's long-lost sister. Won't know if we will get to hear Sophie goggle over Howl dumping the Witch of the Waste. Wonder if Miss Angorian or Howl's family in Wales will make an appearance, or Howl's teacher...

One the the most intriguing aspects of HMC was that Ben Sullivan and Howell Jenkins both came from the same 'dimension' to be taught by a witch from another world. Is like sci-fi (Sliders?) that appears like fantasy simply because the viewpoint that we see it is not Howl's. Just think! One of the fan merchandise they could sell would be the door-knobs with the coloured blobs...hmm, wonder if my parents will think I have gone bonkers if I do that to the doorknob to my room.

...when I was still studying, my fantasy working life was to be able to have the resources to shape my room and lifestyle around my hobbies. Want to make a Hamel doll? - Just drop by Spotlight and the cloth shops and start sewing dainty French knots. Or wallpaper my room with posters? Just stick 'em up on the walls, who cares if the paint peels? Or marathon a series every week...well, I'm close to that one, one series every fortnight...now I realise I'm too inert. I need to actually take up things after work - but now I alternate between worrying needlessly and worrying if I am too slack. Can't concentrate on doing stuff. I feel overloaded and making silly mistakes. Running around doing too many things and messing them up. Argh.

Anyways, am off on this Monday, so will recharge...somehow.

Just watched the trailer for Howl's Moving Castle animation - Be still my fluttering heart! Was thinking the anime may not follow the story all the way, but it certainly does! And it makes seems to have upped the romance factor, simply because it is animated. You can see the stars in Sophie's eyes, the magic of the first time she sees Howl, etc. Wonder how they're gonna do the "reddish fair hanks" scene but still!!! Have a feeling I'm gonna watch it at least thrice, buy the soundtrack and fall in lust with Howl, who seems like a blond flighty evil version of Haku. I think he even changed his hair colour (in line with his vain book self!) to black! Can't wait for November~ *dances*...will regret if I order the calender under these circumstances...especially since Sokyuu no Fafner, Tsubasa and Get Backers look kind promising....and double-especially since 2004's Naruto calendar lies in my cupboard only once opened. *sigh* And did you see his costume....hmm cosplay opportunities...

Sooooo~ yep, still around, not dead from work yet. I seriously need a kick to the head to get my life straightened out...and it's only work!

But on to funner thingamajigs in life.

Dodgeball - its like KKM except with a whole lotta corn...(hmm, triple pun?) Like the pirate bit, heheh....kind evil what that Le Fleur guy did, toying with that poor cosplayer's psyche...Lady in Red, haha! But me like series...and the movie was too short, and kinda typical for its genre....

Hikaru no Go - hmm, it seems I make it an yearly resolution to get hooked on the whole let-discover-a-G0-genius-and-the-meaning-of-a-1000-yrs-of-afterlife-then-guilt-trip-the-annoying-but-kinda-endearing-twerp. The whole 'laiverler' thing comes across pretty well too. Sai is soo cute and only marginally more girly than Gunter in KKM, who seem like simpering Gunter (Heika!~~~) one second and dashing Hotohori-Zorro the next. Schizophrenia adds dimension to people, no?

Phew! a long break from blogging but not from work unfortunately - still swamped and would be facing the daunting task of taking over my colleague's event management duties. *prays she doesn't screw up too badly* Am hoping that with September and after the first half of October I will have a break from things....can feel my quality of life taking a nose-dive and staying there...

...thankfully though, I still have my fixes of anime and manga!

Spoiler-ful rants below!

Koucha Ouji - I KNEW IT! Assam really is Darjeeling's son! No chemistry between the two though - seems like Darjeeling is pretty remote (if not a little cold) towards Assam. He should have known from the very start who Assam was, yet he displays more affection for Taiko and even concern(?) for Ceylon. Even his condition to return to his prison and let Assam be human seem motivated more for Taiko than Assam. But who know what goes on in his head - he's suddenly morphed from caring uncle to a powerful and sinister exile whom the Tea kings want to imprison.

Haou Airen - ok ok, purchased the series in a moment of manga withdrawal. (In the course of which also discovered the route to a ten-minutes walk to Clementi Central). Must say, Mayu Shinjo has finally mastered the trashy romance novel manga-style. Not that her work is bad, no no no - in fact, she has some of the most 2D gorgeous guys I've ever drooled over. Wish the character motivations could be a bit stronger/intelligent - I mean, a romantic misunderstanding dragging on for four volumes (causing much angst meantime) followed by amnesia! And then just when the misunderstanding is resolved, love rivals are beaten down, and the ties of underworld mafia given up for love then re-shouldered, some girly-looking lovesick teenager comes out from nowhere and offs the groom! I mean! Come on! But did enjoy reading the manga - Shinjo makes the cliches hang together so well, while showering the readers with serious eye-candy. Wish more could have been made of the pearl and the dragon tatoo though - her guys are always well-accessorized with meaning-ladened clues - just a bit sad to see so many good potential story lines abandon for racy and cliche scenarios.

Sokyuu no Fafner - well, cool robots, mysterious cloaked islands, bright colours, politics and a whole bunch of childhood friends becoming mecha pilots. Love the opening and ending and the short monologues just before the ending theme. But angsty this series is - as with a series with too many main characters (like X) the herd has to be thinned out. Much emotional trauma as friends/family are lost, sinister medical reports are given to parents and to top it off, there's a freaking mind-reading shape-shifting alien who likes to ask "Are you there?" (which is like the subtitle of the whole series) and woe to he who replies it. The alien from the other island was particularly scary. Anyway, nice chemistry and interaction, especially since it is basically the children (or very young teenagers) of the adults of the island who are chosen (or actually genetically reared) to be pilots compatible the Fafner mecha. Mucho mystery going on.

Kyou Kara Maou - If I went squee over Gwendel's knitted orange neko-chan in Episode 15 (I want to make it too!), I absolutely screamed with laughter in Episode 16 which was basically showing off everyone's sword skills. It figures that Wolfram would have fangirls. If Gunter (who btw is sooo Hotohori) had zorro-ed off the bad guys' clothes as well, I would have been forced to re-evaluate the sword-fighting techniques of the Mazoku. Or maybe it is a trait shared only among the brothers to slice off clothes? So far Gwendel hasn't displayed similar tendencies has he? As usual, Maou found a new way to display his logo - what was hilarious was the neck motion followed by "The case is closed." Hahah! Maybe a bit of Yuuri's passion for detective mysteries affected his behaviour.