Fun times, fun times.

Didn't really go to many of the events, and instead remained largely in the Exhibit Hall looking through the booths and Artist Alley...so I guess I missed out on a few things, but overall good. Lots and lots of walking for sure, but yeah...

Watched AX Idol. The contestants were all pretty awesome. Love, love, LOVED the Rurouni Kenshin dubbers.

Bought quite a bit of prints. Especially e1n's awesome One Piece ones. And OP Shanks and Mihawk commissions! One each from e1n, korilin, and Scuttlebutt, Inc. Hehe.

First day of cosplaying as Toph, I got this creepy dude wanting me to sit on his lap. Egh... Still. There were a couple very cute-looking Zukos around, too.

Bought the Samurai Champloo DVD set, hell yes, and a fuckton of yaoi manga. $3 and $5! Best bargains ever.

Er...what else...

Photos? I took some of cosplayers.

But my computer's being fixed by my cousin, so it's gonna be a while before I get repossession of the stupid machine.



In other life news...it's my second week of teaching.

Gawd. I have said more words in the past two weeks than I've ever in a month in high school (exaggeration? I dunno).

I'm glad at that at least the male teachers aren't ugly to look at. Eheh...

Merits a brand-spankin'-new Livejournal entry.

Yes. High school is over.

As much as I want to sound elegant and/or adequately run-on-sentence-y and emotional and poetic and writer-ly, I can't.

Now, there's this fucking huge world out there, waiting for me to fall over on my face and screw up again and again and again.

I can't wait. 8D

Alright...so I've seen a whole bunch of movies in the past two/three weeks -- all but one rented/seen on TV.


Starting with the best/most recent/expensive one...

OMG TRANSFORMERS!!!
I enjoyed that movie very much, even though my bladder needed to stay on hold for at least half the movie.. -_-;;
But anyway. Yeah. Exciting movie. Lots and lots of BOOM!! CRASH! SCREECH!! and yeah. Pretty pretty FX.
I MUST GET THE DVD.

Borat. Watched it with my dad. Ehhh...NOT the best thing to watch with dad. Didn't like it that much, but it was interesting...and gross o_O;;; Well, I guess I enjoyed the gay parade scene...but... Okay, that little tumble b/t Borat and Azamat? *retch* EWWWW FAT MAN. I'm sorry, but really!
Although...Sacha Baron Cohen himself is quite handsome...XD


Aeon Flux was interesting...but not my style interesting. Pretty-girl MC, kinda weird storyline...but pretty special effects/gadgets/scenery.

Starsky & Hutch. Are so gay with each other @_@.
Owen Wilson + Ben Stiller = lovely character interaction.

Dodgeball was funny. I liked it. XDD

Happy Feet was soooo cute.


What else...


Oooh, I got the first part of 해신 (Haeshin/Emperor of the Sea) -- 17 episodes, 6 DVDS, for $60. EEEEEH!!! XDD

And Gundam Wing. It was great seeing those again. And so now I have to concede...Heero looks like he's much more attracted to Relena than to Duo or any other male pilot. *sigh* Still, slash fanfiction for this fandom keeps me happy.


Alright then...


For the past 2 days, I've been having a really annoying headache. Possibly sleeping for 12 hours, then waking up and proceeding to watch 6 hours of television might have contributed, but still...

Is it unrealistic for me to imagine that many (a majority of?) gay men are actually "manly," more than what so many people call "gay"?

*sigh* I'm craving some hot MAN on MAN action.

Need a break from the seme/uke reminiscent-of-heterosexual-copulation anal hole penetration-ness. How about some fighting? grinding and sweaty, snarling, grinning, and absolutely ruggedly hot MALE-y, testosterone-filled alpha-male on alpha-male pr0n/slash/YAOI?

What the hell am I doing posting this here.



In other boring news...

Six Flags Magic Mountain!! Second time fully participating in attractions... One helluva day~!

Fucking exhausting (I'm so not used to near full-day excursions to an amusement park...), but fun. OMGOSH I love Tatsu @_@. And, LOL, Gold Rush(?) operation error! We got to ride twice in a row. That ride strangely makes me all giddy and happy. So...Viper, Tatsu, Roaring Rapids, Colossus, Scream...watched the Batman Begins Stunt Show, no Deja Vu, no X...then Tatsu again XDD. I think that sums up the rides/attractions.


XDD CHESSBOARD PORN!! Oh, the things desperation does to a girl... Knight on knight on bishop on king 8D. Or...I'm content with two knights, actually. And maybe a knight/king? Bishop/knight?! Bishop/king??!!? T-T;;;

I'm hopeless...

I went on a missionary trip. With a fricking missionary, for God's sake (pardon the pun)! I never thought the day would come. :| But it was fine, the trip. So I'm going to recap.

A few weeks ago, my cousin invited me to a trip to Tijuana, Mexico. I accepted hesitatingly, not fully aware that I might actually need to do work there.

And so Friday comes along. I have a sleepover at my cousin's house, wake up at 5-ish, and head for her Presbyterian church. There, we meet up with her church fellows, and head to some other place with lots of Vietnamese peoples' offices. We have a 예배..worship thingy w/ a few other groups. Of Presbyterians? Or were there other denominations, too..?

Anyway, yeah, we headed to the border starting a bit past 7...I think. I went with a group in a separate van from my cousin or brother. A family of 5 daughters and a son. For a couple or so hours, we rode and rode, with one of the girls talking to me, very outgoing and all. I feel that she's found out a lot about me then. :\

We stopped at Carl's Jr at around 9:30-ish, had some minor problems in the ordering process, and I ate half a nice BBQ Chicken..burger thingy. (Gahh, I can't remember the entire name.) After, we passed the border and arrived at Tijuana in another couple or so hours.

The entire atmosphere there is different from L.A.'s. First, there's a lot less greenery and a lot more dry brown ragged hills and visible desert. Then there's the trash littering every corner of the land. I mean, there seemed to be not one sq. yard of land w/o at least one piece of trash littering it. And the houses... In L.A., either the buildings are tall and poor or rich, or low, 2-story houses that look expensive. While the van passed by, the houses were just...something I can't really imagine L.A. to possess. Tons of old, ugly, small houses packed tightly...the crappy roads... The dogs everywhere, wandering abound, lying down... What I felt as the scenery passed by was...poverty and a heavy sort of hopelessness.

Anyway, first we stopped at this church near a trash dump, and whoo boy..it was a spectacle, that place. Hundreds of seagulls gliding atop the heaps of trash...the odd stench...and those kids playing soccer.

One other prominent thing I noticed was the soccer. Instead of basketball or baseball, it's soccer that seems to dominate. It was odd, and pleasant...I guess. I liked that.

The dogs. I must comment on that. Why do they seem so...complacent? I mean, none of the random stray dogs attempted to sniff around us, or bark at people, or attack... They were relatively...subdued, I guess..? But yeah..interesting. :p

So...after a bit of time touring the trash dump XD we headed to a little school...I think, coupled as a church of sorts. What I did there in short is this: help with setting up/preparing materials for the children to use; observe some Christian preachiness; smell the stench of dogs and tar and manure; feel numb about the whole poverty thing; get a bit too much sun and an acupuncture needle on my head; and go through nearly an hour of "introductions" and a "closing service."

I had Mexican tacos. :D And they were delicious. American Mexican tacos can't compare like whoa. And I had a glass bottle of coca-cola. :)

And so another bit of time to the border, an hour-or-so wait to actually reach the borderline, a yummy churro, and some sleep... And then when we reached the Carl's Jr from before, the meeting place of all the vans, and waited for what seemed like an hour for the last van to come so we could all go eat dinner.

I think I made a new friend or two... *shrug* Both the eldest girls are so outgoing and smart. -_-;; Well...*sigh* we'll see how it all goes.

When the van came, we went to this 순대 place. It took I don't know...an hour and a half to get there from Carl's Jr place? Jesus Christ.

That's pretty much the end. After I ate, I went to my cousin's house to pick up my stuff and went home. Arrived at...10..11, was it? Sleepy like heck. Of course a LOT is missing (I mean, how can a person talk about an entire day like this in just a few hundred/thousand words or so?).

I don't think I'll ever go on a missionary trip again. :)


Now I must get back to all the homework I've pushed aside for two entire days. A.P. Euro notes, Bio lit review, Author Project paragraph, fucking painting... T-T

Alright, so I fucking BOMBED the A.P. Euro test today, I just know it. Why can't I ever learn?! (That, by the way, was a rhetorical question.) Yes, I know. Stupid. *sigh* Well, what's done is done..

I feel like I did kind of okay on my Gatsby essay. If I get a C, that's just sad.

Now I'm studying for my Biology test tomorrow. Then I need to read some of Eudora Welty's biography book thing. And work on the Biology independent project and have some product physically printed out and stuff by this Friday. How'm I gonna do the latter..? Urgh... Well, payment for my laziness. Blah.

My aunt had another baby today. Hmm.. :)

Halloween Carnival's coming up, and so is the 10K Walk.

Then shortly after, the 1st paragraph of my Author Project is due. Joy.

At least soccer keeps me happy. *sigh~* :DD

And I'm liking 이정현's new 6th album. "날 날 날 날 사랑했던~ 많고 많은 남자 중에~ 난 난 난 난 늑대 같은~ 철수야 너를 사랑해~" XD My taste in music may seem weird, but hey, I adore my Korean dance music.

Videos! Of Kaka' and Sheva. More Kaka', though.
But I adore both of them equally. X3


Kaka' talks to MIlan Channel, and Sheva! LOVE that last minute. <3

And fdsakjldgslk Sheva's voice is just - guh. x_x


Here, Kaka' and Sheva have a conversation.



Playstation hilarity cuteness:




Today was a very gloomy Sunday in terms of the weather/atmosphere. It's odd that I'd actually feel so melancholy on such a day like this, but yeah... It wasn't a particularly spectacular day.

(Practice) PSATs Wednesday. Joy.

Louis XIV trial in A.P. Euro...must research for that. *sigh* I need some more motivation/inspiration for this class.



EDIT with another video of Cesc! X333

Thanks to cornycow

AP homework is boring me to death sleep. Not good at all... ._. And independent reading..? Uh oh. Biology test on Wednesday - must study, sketches for Harmony art contest - must start... -_-; But my June calendar for art is coming quite nicely, and the NB assignment for English is done... Bleh.

Yesterday was the Annual Father/Daughter Picnic. Not much fun. Not much school work done. Not much anything but a waste of 4 hours and sleep. AND I kept sneezing from something and my nose was all blocked, stupid allergies. *sigh*

Now I must tackle this beautiful question: What factors contributed to the successes of the West in the age of discovery/encounter?
- the motives: "God, glory, gold"
- the means: new maps, enhanced ships, new sailing technology
- what else...? :-(
- Portuguese success based on "guns and seamanship"
- Columbus' persistence in his explorations
- the general determination of all the explorers and conquerers...?
- some things about economy?
I'm confused, but what the hell. *shrug* Something'll come to me.

And I haven't gone to school because it's a school holiday/Columbus Day. :D Thanks Columbus.

Aside from my complaining about my incompetence, there's not much else to be said.

Except...oh, yeah, yesterday's encore of Discovery Atlas: China Revealed. That was really good. Very pretty and quite informative (Shanghai is 9x the size of New York?! O_O), not to mention inspiring. I don't know. The way that the documentary was presented just gave me goosebumps - the ones you get when you watch something so inspiring/revolutionary/pretty it's almost unworldly. But yeah. It was a great way to spend time I should've spent on homework.

First off, thanks to the footballslash community, and specifically businesslike for this video of that infamous and friking hot Stevie/Xabi kiss.


link


Second...I went to the Grove today to meet up w/ Estella to work on AP Euro stuff. I spent a whole 2 hours browsing books before the meeting, though, and I've become broke. :-( But w/e. I had a bit of fun...

Three. I really need to finish AP Euro hw.

Took the TOPIK (Test of Proficiency in Korean) today. And I was placed in the ADVANCED group?!! No one gave me any notice until I got to Korean school this morning. I have a LOT to do before I qualify for something like this again.

And I've HW to do. -_-; How is it possible to procrastinate this much?

Hmm...so Assignment I of A.P. Euro summer homework wasn't so terrible... Psh, what am I saying. IT. WAS. FRIKKING. HORRIBLE. I mean, the reading, which I finished yesterday, took me almost 12 fucking hours. 12! O_o But I somehow managed to be interested for the whole night I spent on it.

The essay: finished today. Tonight. Just now. Around 3~5 hours. Not so bad...but reading and organizing the stupid info on the stupid person...ugh. And it's really, really half-assed. I wouldn't be surprised if I got a D on it. Heh.

But yeah, that's over with. Now I need to complete the study guide. Typing out the words of the Identification section alone took me a considerable amount of time... Oh, when the fuck will I be able to finish~ ㅠ_ㅠ

I somewhat dislike spending the night on homework. It's odd. Done it three times this week counting today. Ugh. I really need to regain balance.

Anyway...I LOVE THE A.P. EURO HISTORY TEXTBOOK. Yes, yes I do~ XDD

Hmm...just today I watched a Liverpool vs. Chelsea game in which Liverpool won 2-1. SHEVA appeared here! and made his first goal for Chelsea, though I didn't get to see much of that because I only got to watch the second half! >:( But anyway, yeah...appearances by some of my favorites: Liverpool - Steven Gerrard, Xabi Alonso; Chelsea - Andriy Shevchenko, Frank Lampard, John Terry. *sigh*

Damn, how I hate that sorry excuse of a brother. Stupid fucking idiot.

And, the day before, on Monday. I saw what I think was two gay guys. Crossing the street right in front of dad's car. Half-naked, in shorts, lovely muscled torsos...and HOLDING HANDS - that hit me hard. And I did a double-take. I mean, it's rare for people to have their shirts off like that, and...the hands? XDDD But yeah. Sweet.

I...really need to finish reading The Prince tonight. And finish that damned summary. I'm actually finding the book quite interesting. Not really fun, just...interesting. Though I don't really understand half of what's being said. (Gah, Machiavelli's way with words makes my head spin.)

So...yeah. Good night. (Too late to say that what w/e.)

Left the U.S. on Friday, July 28, right after summer school ended, for China, baby. :p

Tour of the Shanghai and Hangzhou area. For three days. Rocks, figures carved into the rocks, green forest, the sound of cicadas and streams...I forgot where exactly this was, but it was nice. And the park...Lu-something, a very famous place. Very green and...park-y. Bought 3 fans (those fans with paper connected to wood, able to fold close and open) for 1000 won. (Later, we found a vendor selling 5 for 1000 won.) Hangzhou - a very clean city...? Streets disinfected every morning, according to our Korean-speaking Chinese tour guide. Something like that. Shanghai is a very quickly developing city. The buildings in Shanghai - their sheer height, enormity, numbers - were quite something. And at night, the city was bright with the lights, coming from everywhere - cars, building tops and sides, apartments, street lamps... It was pretty. And impressive. The cities, at least the bigger, developed/ing ones, are all impressive to a degree. China as a nation and its people as a whole are impressive. Such growth over such a short period...hm.

But the weather - hot as hell, literally. And humid like ugh. I mean - 33°C < every day?? With the added humidity? I can't function properly in that condition, and am prone to complaining like an idiot about it.

Then, to South Korea, my motherland. To stay at for the remaining week and a half or so. Stayed for about three days in the Paradise Hotel (with a special discount thanks to a friend of Dad's), left for Busan to hold a memorial service sort of thing (can't be translated really well from the Korean - 제사) for my deceased grandfather. My first time ever doing such a thing. Interesting, in a way. Before that, though, I went around part of Busan with my niece as a guide sortof because I didn't have a clue about the area. Watched a Korean movie ("Fly, Daddy" - "플라이 대디") in a Korean theater (The Grove is waaay better); bought a frikken ton of clothes (5), some CDs, and...yeah. Then we went to Masan (after the memorial service) to stay in my aunt's house for about 5 days or something. Lots of moving and seeing things and going places. Went to a temple, the mountains to eat, ate lots of nice foods...and some other things I can't remember. And I had to sleep on the floor. Not complaining, but I'm so not used to that. My bed at home is the most comfortable, soft thing, and changing from that to hard beds and floors in both China and Korea...I still feel the aches. Then, we went back to Paradise for a night.

It was frikking hot there, too. -__-;

And, oh god, the things I bought, the money I squandered... A huge silk pillow, pearl cellphone ornaments, a few dozen books (all manhwa), almost 10 CDs, and the clothes... I am ashamed, but... :p

August 10. At the Gimhae Airport in Pusan. We had four hours to kill, so I bought another book (manhwa), a few CDs, and waited. Flew to Incheon Airport finally, had dinner, and got on the KE015 flight for L.A. While we were waiting though, an announcement board or such was pulled in by this airport person, stating that "Liquids, gels, and other items of such substance are prohibited" or something to that effect, and we were curious. About that terrorist thing in England, (I heard today - technically yesterday - that 24 suspects were caught) which I know little about. No worries there. So we flew back from South Korea after the two-week "vacation" with no mishap.

I am surprised at how well I took to having no Internet access for 2 weeks.

Ooh, while I was in Korea, I was able to watch several old football/soccer matches - from the UEFA Champions League - maybe '05-'06? Or '04-'05? Saw Real Madrid, AC Milan vs. Bayern Munchen (OHMIGODKAKA!SHEVA!), Arsenal, Rosenborg (or something, sorry)...all with Chinese commentary, though. I was also able to watch a couple Amsterdam Cup Tournament matches. Didn't see Inter Milan in action. Though, I saw the others...forgot which they were. I should find out, but...^^;; I did watch the last match of the tournament... Who won?? I forgot...v__v;; But yes. I was SOO FSKING DELIGHTED with that!!! My heart's starving for football/soccer here in California. I feel so deprived it's pathetic. The EPL's coming up - and there is little chance of me being able to watch... -_-; And I missed the Chealsea vs. some American team (All-Stars?) game. And the Real Madrid vs. D.C.-something game... There's another one comeing up. Today, I think. Arg!

Okay, finished Catcher in the Rye, am 1/4 into East of Eden, need to start on The Prince and the reflection+essay, and have to complete the A.P. Euro study guide. Within 10 days. Finish those damned summer projects. Blahg.

Anyway....that was a looong entry. Good night.

My life so far has been boring and uneventful.

Egg-Baby project started yesterday. It's so...ugh. I don't like it at all. But oh well. I'm doing okay so far, but I might've lost 25 points already today. So careless in the most inopportune moments.

I'm going to China for a few days, sometime next week. Shanghai, and other places. Yay, I'm gonna melt to death.

I should start reading East of Eden and Catcher in the Rye and The Prince and finish The Girl With the Pearl Earring...and start the A.P. European History projects! *weep*

Got a digital camera on Monday. I like it muchly. <333

I've got to stop procrastinating.