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Japanese Sex Toys

Japan is widely known for it’s unique and unusual culture of sex. It’s so unusual that Japan is considered the most perverted country in the world. Now I would normally rant about the justification of this statement as opinion based or actual fact, but I’ll leave that up to you.

This is about one particular company that makes special “toys” for guys, called Tenga. Their moto goes

No baggage

No Headaches

No String Attached

[think of it as dating without the drama]

This is from the official American Tenga distribution website where the products innovated in Japan can be easily purchased in America rather than buying them over in Japan. It seems they are targeting single guys and trying to make them feeling better by saying “your better than those other guys who have to deal with a significant other”.

“TENGA products are engineered to produce a potent, but controllable, sucking sensation without motors, pumps, or somebody that just might not be in the mood. TENGA’s don’t get tired. They don’t get headaches or PMS, and they don’t stop working if a storm knocks your electricity out. With a TENGA in hand, YOU control the experience – when, where, and how.”

The best part is how they boast in how awesome their products are. Using the latest technology and scientifically tested to produce the best sexual sensation-to replicate actual sex, Tenga does it all! The tutorial videos do seem to show some justice to what they say. When you see the tenga at work, literally doing work on your badongadonk, it looks rather painful or if your into the sadistic stuff, the most amazing thing to go inside your dingle-ling. They do have more than just one type of Tenga. In-fact theirs a bunch of different ones..

  • Tenga Black Deep Throat Cup
  • Tenga Black Rolling Head Cup
  • Tenga Egg Lotion
  • Tenga Eggs (Season 1 and 2)
  • Tenga Fliphole
  • Tenga Fliplite – Melty White & Solid Black
  • Tenga Hole Warmer
  • Tenga Red Air Cushion Cup
  • Tenga Red Deep Throat Cup
  • Tenga Red Double Hole Cup
  • Tenga Red Rolling Head Cup
  • Tenga Red Soft Tube Cup
  • Tenga White Air Cushion Cup
  • Tenga White Deep Throat Cup
  • Tenga White Soft Tube Cup

Each supposed to intimidate the best possible feeling of sex in different ways, for example the Tenga Red Air Cushion Cup is supposed to feel of one acting in missionary position. Each have their own chart of arousal and a very imaginative diagram of how its supposed to work. I would put up the rest of the other Tenga products information up, but you get the point.

The Hole and Lite versions come with lube and here are the descriptions of each.

MILD : Wrap yourself in a gentle touch. Let it envelope you in warmth and kindness.

REAL : Relish the feel of superb moisture for a realistic experience. For those who want it real!

WILD : Stimulation explosion! Enjoy every single inch with Tenga Hole Lotion Wild! Tenga Hole Lotion is a watery liquid

Red Air Cushion Cup Chart

the scheme of how it works

One interesting fact about the Tenga products is that some have a number of uses before it should be discarded. The Tenga Egg is a portable version of the series, small and compact, but can only be used once per egg. The Tenga FlipHole and Tenga Fliplite (smaller version of the hole) was constructed to be cleaned after use so it can be used multiple times. Now I saw some sources say that it should be used 50x or so then thrown away, but I don’t see why it needs to be thrown out at all if it can be cleaned the same every time.

I haven’t personally used this myself, nor will I ever (I think), but it’s interesting all-together. A couple years back I  browsed the site and they were in need of testers. I actually filled the online application because of these reasons.

1)Get paid to feel good (unless it’s a failed product that might cut your special part off)

2) Go to Japan for free as they pay for everything, housing, tickets, etc.

3) I’m single

I never got a call back, but perhaps it was for the best. It makes me wonder what kind of tests they would’ve done on people….(shutters). Anyways, here are some videos

July 29, 2010 | Categories: Japan | Leave A Comment »

K-On!

Story 7.5/10 - It’s simple, which is a good thing. Basically, there isn’t much of anything to expect as K-On! gets to the point. As in every anime that involves the daily life at high school, plenty of school clubs are doing their best to recruit new members. Then Yui, the clutsy, “stupid” character can’t decide which club t go to. However, when she accidentally signs up to join the light music club, she decides to become a guitarist. There’s just one problem: she’s never played the guitar before in her life. So it’s unique that she learned to play it and everyone else (including her younger sister) to know how to play the guitar well. K-On! Lacked much on the learning aspect of playing an instrument all together. As she meets up with new friends, her and the band aim for the bokugan, a show or competition bands go to.

Animation 8.5/10 - It’s your typical 2005 and up type of animation. Such as Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Clannad, etc. but this is good. The only difference from the other shows is the way the facial expressions on the characters faces are portrayed for certain events, making the characters ‘cuter’ and laughable. My personal favorite would be the repeated drawn circle on the eyes as some sort of fluster feeling or perhaps when they feel oblivious to what is going on (which happens quite a bit). The last important bit is the way the music the band plays goes very well with the animation, drums hitting where the drum at the right time feeling like they really are playing a song.

Characters 6.5/10 - All the characters were ‘lovable’. Of course they each had their unique perk, reaction, and all that jazz. You have the sane normal girl (Mio Akiyama) who plays the bass and tries to get her friends to act accordingly. The rich, blonde girl Tsumugi Kotobuki, who instead of acts like a stubborn, spoiled brat is innocent and forgiving. The crazy and misorganized Ritsu Tainaka who happens to be the manager of the band. Last but not least, the protagonist of the show Yui Hirasawa. In some shows we determine what kind of personality the character has; how they react to situations. This show tried not to have the characters overreact too much, so it feels more realistic and not so absurd to make it more funny or dramatic. I hate shows where the character exaggerates to the problem making it bigger problem than it should be. I know it’s hard to mix a character’s personality to more than just one particular category, but it’s the same pretty much through any other anime based off a group of friends. Same personality quirk, different face. It tends to get ‘boring’ sometimes.

Overall 7.25/10 - I wasn’t hooked like I wanted to be. I’ve seen and heard remarkable reviews for this show. It’s everywhere in the anime world, like the next Haruhi. From all this hype comes disappointment. I did laugh a couple times and it was a relaxing show, but that was it. Through the last half of the show I thought to myself “there is potential”. There is a second season called K-On!! (with two ! instead of one) and hoping they fixed the problem the first season had. Now it doesn’t sound professional to not exactly know what is missing or how it could be better, but I know it can be done. If you feel the need to watch a semi-comedic, not over-the-top ridiculous, relaxing show, then K-On! is for you.

July 27, 2010 | Categories: Anime, Anime Review | Leave A Comment »

Samurai Champloo Scratch

It’s sometimes hard to find a good AMV these days. Most of the time the one’s I do enjoy are usually found through other people. An anime fan told me about this AMV and I’ll admit, it’s badass. I am a fan of Linkin Park, though that is fading away rather quickly, but I’ll always remember a few of their songs. This AMV in particular matches perfectly with the beat of the song. Subtle and not too ridiculous to where the viewer can’t tell what is going on half the time. Overall, great AMV; I hope to find some more in the future.

Good work Suckafish80!

July 25, 2010 | Categories: Anime, Otaku | Leave A Comment »

Black Rock Shooter Dead Master

New to the vocaloid project, comes Dead Master. I found her while searching for new Black Rock Shooter figures and fell in love with her instantly. There’s not much detail about her other than what is seen on the figure itself. What we do know is that her real name is Takanashi Yomi.

She is a girl with wavy black hair and straight bangs, and neon green eyes.

Her outfit is similar to a simple Gothic lolita costume. She wears a black dress and a black bolero; her dress extends down to her thighs and is accented with a white ribbon attached to her waist. Dead Master also wears a pair of leggings and a pair of black pumps. She wears a pair of black gauntlets on each hand. On her head is a pair of long horns which resemble a pair of vertebrae with each tip made out of three tips joined at the end. Dead Master also has a pair of wings which sit low on her back, looking like a thick zigzag.

Her weapon of choice is a large scythe with an unusually-shaped blade and a long handle with vertebra-like detail.

Most of the time she is accompanied by two skulls, each with glowing cavities.

Dead Master is the primary antagonist in the OVA anime series Black★Rock Shooter. In the early stages of the animation project it was presumed that she was Black★Rock Shooter’s sister, but is more accurately played as Black Rock Shooter’s best friend before she turned into Dead Master.

Figure is currently set for Pre-orders! Releases November 2010!

July 24, 2010 | Categories: Anime, Figures, Otaku | 1 Comment »

Pixels

If you’ve been a gamer since the 1980′s, back where the Atari, NES, Genesis etc. this video is for you. Not only is it reminiscing, it’s very well done. The CGI is extremely high quality, the story…well let’s say that’s how things should end…

Just watch the video

July 24, 2010 | Categories: Video Games | Leave A Comment »

Eden of the East

Story 9.5/10 - The story was well written. It keeps the viewers intrigued on how the story unfolds as old questions are answered and new questions arise. Feeling like a Bourne movie where the protagonist, Akira, has lost his memory. He has a history

eh!?

that made him widely known as that “special someone”. So the story goes…It’s held in the year 2010, on a day called ‘Careless Monday’. Ten missiles hit the cities of Japan and oddly, there are no casualties and the event quickly fades from public memory. Akiraholds a phone credited with 8 billion electronic yen and a female voice on the other end called Juiz who will fulfill his every wish. Having no recollection of his past and calling himself ‘Akira Takizawa’, the young man accompanies Saki back to Japan in the hopes of discovering who he is. Akira’s enigma quickly proves fascinating and Saki decides to help him rather than reunite with her family; but what neither realizes is that Akira is embroiled in a dark game of life and death linked to the Careless Monday missiles.

Animation 9.5/10 – It was obvious that their was funds available for this series. CGI was common and didn’t look too terrible. The rest was top-notch. Ran smooth and looked good. The landscapes, buildings, cars, and all other things not to be ignored.

Characters 9/10 – I had trouble deciding what score this category deserves. No one really felt “stupid” in the show, which is a problem in most shows these days, so that’s a plus. The Protagonist’s development reveals a fascinating duality in his personality as being very likable, but

hard to know if he should be liked. His whimsical nature belies an underlying quick mind and a surprising level of gravity, the unnerving themes of misfortune he may have put onto others is a definite plus in the show.

Everyone else who gets involved in the show, sort of just shows up with no real character development. The good news is that the supporting cast, being ordinary people with ordinary problems, generally behave within the familiar boundaries of reason. While that sounds like it wouldn’t be a problem, with the events and story that occurs in Eden of the East, it seems out-of-place. It’s like people running around aimlessly, like zombies,

Shoot those missles

headless zombies, with no legs. At some point, I began to get a little annoyed watching Saki mope after Akira, worrying about his terrible secrets without being able to help uncover them. Her behaviour is always understandable, of course, but also off-putting for being redundant.

As far as the antagonists go, I don’t see a real problem, except who the true antagonist is, which is conveyed in the last few episodes of the show. Of course, there is the other people with the phone with 10 billion dollars, can make anything happen, and use that power for “bad” things, and feel as though they are the antagonists. They aren’t. My guess is Mr. Outside, the creator of this ‘game’. It’s hard to explain and don’t want to spoil too much.

Yes, that is indeed a robotic walking bear

Overall 9.25/10 - It was definitely a good show. I had not set my expectations high nor did I have a clue what I was in for, but it turned out for the better. I was undoubtingly interested throughout the whole show, wanted to keep watching more to get the questions answered. The biggest disappointment would be the ending and I would add that onto here, but I can’t because it’s not over yet. Not much later after air release, they made a movie that continues where the last episode left off. I also heard that the ending of the first movie ends more abruptly than the series did. Thank god theirs a second movie coming out to fulfill our disappointment. Then again, following the trend it may not end there and a third movie may be in production. Anyways, highly recommended, especially for those who enjoy the Bourne series.

July 22, 2010 | Categories: Anime, Anime Review | 1 Comment »

I-25 Wrong Way Crash

Now I don’t watch the news much, but this is a different case, I was involved. On July 5th, I was driving to pick up my friend from the airport who had gone to California for a week. Her flight was delayed and coming around 10 o’clock PM instead

Wrong Way Driver

of 8 o’clock PM. As we were driving back, she needed to get some snacks so we stopped at a gas station before heading back on the highway. This caused me to miss the exit to get onto the tollway, which is the

quickest way home. We were taking the long way route back to the highway and multiple times I had the urge just to take an exit and turn around to go back, but she insisted that I stay on the same road because it would take us to I-25 (which was true). About 5 minutes into merging into Interstate 25, driving on the passing lane, I eventually saw two white lights on the same lane as I was. The first thought that came to mind was “what the hell is that?” then asked “is that construction lights or something?” then came to the conclusion that “that might be a car coming right at me!”. Without exactly knowing it was in fact a car driving towards me, I instinctively swerved to the right. I had lost sight of the lights by this time as I was trying to gain control of the car as I tried to stay on the road. It was to much for the car to handle at such speeds

Vehicle where the passenger was killed

and hit the median 3 seconds after I had swerved out of the way. I estimate that I had hit the cement wall at 70+ MPH. At first I couldn’t see out of my right eye as it throbbed with pain, then I began to worry about my friend who actually ended up asking the question first “are you ok?!”. I responded with a yes. We got out of the car smoke began to consume the inside. By the time I got out, there were cars pulling over to the side and I ran into a guy already on the phone talking to the police. I asked him “is it true, was there a car driving the wrong way?” He said “yes…you were lucky”. I was relieved to know I had survived, and with that, wasn’t seeing things.

I was told to sit on the wall because I kept my hand over my right eye that seemed as though I was in pain. Everyone kept telling me “it’s going to be ok, the ambulance is coming”. I held my hand over my right eye as it throbbed, not able to see out of it, I thought to myself “I won’t be able to see out of this eye”. The police arrived first and asked for my insurance and driver’s license and a short story of what happened. Then the ambulance came. Multiple police cars were speeding across the other side of the road. I overhead the police saying she was still driving the wrong way and they were trying to catch her. The paramedic asked me question after question and encouraged me to be taken to the hospital due to the speed we had hit the wall. I took the offer without hesitation. As I was loaded onto the vehicle, one of the paramedics said “we got a 4-0″. I asked what that meant and he said “someone had died, it pretty much means the person’s vitals are gone by the time we get there”. We all assumed it was the driver who was going the wrong way.

Elizabeth Long's Vehicle

As soon as I got to the hospital my eye began to swell to the point where I couldn’t open my eye. The doctor asked if there was any other types of pain as they put pressure around my eye and I didn’t feel much of anything. They wanted a scan of my skull just to be safe, I took the offer.

Good thing I did. An hour after the scan they had found a fracture underneath my right eye, but wasn’t serious enough to require surgery. Then the officer to took my insurance and ID came and found me to return my stuff and ask more questions. I asked, who was the person who died? He said “it was a passenger of a vehicle she had collided with, yes, it wasn’t the driver going the wrong way”.

The next day, I had received a call that the driver was Elizabeth Long was released from jail and that the death was Mary Warren. She was a 22, a CSU grad student, who lived in Fort Collins. Almost sounds like me!?

Their is more information and even a video of me talking to the reporter of CBS4 Denver. I am wearing an eye-patch due to the grossness of my swollen beat up eye (plus it’s cool!)

Interview

My friend and me talking to th reporter

July 21, 2010 | Categories: News and Events | 2 Comments »

Audio Technica ATH-A700

Now I am a true audiophile. It bothers me when the littlest touch of noise is not right, and I’m not talking about the song. Most of the time, the sound doesn’t sound right or adequate because of the speakers. That’s right I’m talking about headphones. I’ve spent much of my time looking around for the perfect headset. This is NOT easy because it takes dedication, time, money, and good ears. Money is not on my good side, but I have purchased many headphones the past year (and returned them all) searching for that perfect headset.

Now you may or may not have heard of Audio Technica, but they are just as popular as Sennheiser, Grado, and AKG. All of these companies are huge manufacturer’s of electronic instruments such as microphones, amps, speakers, and of course headphones. This whole article is about the ATH-A700′s that by far have exceeded my expectations from headphones.

I spent about a month on the internet reading reviews and whatnot about these headphones. I really wanted to try them out. They looked unique, comfortable, and it apparently had good sound. The problem was that I wanted AKG’s because my friend had a pair and I’ve heard constantly that AKG’s are the best of the best. Luckily I had that friend come over and let me try the K242 HD High Definition Headphones. They were comfortable, but talk about disappointing. The problem with headphones that range from $150 and up become more power hungry, meaning that inserting them into a let’s say a headphone jack on your laptop or MP3 player will not give out enough juice. This equals low sound output. I pretty much couldn’t hear anything when my laptop was maxed on the volume dial. During this time I had the Sony MDR-XB500 set that would blast my ears out at max volume (pictured below). So those who are interested in the how the 242′s sounded, I can’t tell you. I can tell you that my friend enjoys them very much, but it was the first and only high end headset he has every purchased and tried. I’m sure they would’ve sounded amazing with a $500 amp. I wondered if high end headphones had some sort of “not all parts included” on it.

Now it got my thinking, what if I did get the ATH-A700′s? Would I have the same problem? The price is the same and the it was built for professional work in studio’s etc. I was worried so I went on a different path. These are Sennheiser RS160′s. The main point to make here is that it was battery operated and wireless. I used them quite a bit, and what’s nice about them was that it was portable. It came with a dongle that sent the signal to the headset which also took batteries. So I used these while riding my bike and walking around campus, not having any wires flopping around. Pretty soon I realized I didn’t like them. Not because they didn’t have great sound, they did. The low’s were weak, and the high’s were great (take note I listen to techno), but the mid’s were mediocre (no pun intended). They sounded better than 90% of the headphones I’ve ever tried in my life, but they were not particularly comfortable over a period of time. Big, heavy, and took batteries. I knew I could do better so I returned them after 3 weeks. So then I went on a different path…

After much work on finding over-the-ear headphones. I thought I’d give the in-ear sets a shot. The Sony MDR-XB40′s were my next victim. Long story short, I had returned them the day after I bought them. Problem’s were

1) Very uncomfortable

2) Sound was mediocre on all level, except the bass, there wasn’t any

3) Kept falling out of my ear

4) Cables were annoying

5) Allowed too much noise in

The in-ear headphones were so bad, I didn’t bother trying another pair. After weeks of disappointment and effort I finally caved into buying the ATH-A700′s. I had also done some research on amps and most of them were quite expensive. The cheapest were poorly rated and seemed pointless. Then I ran into an amp that was very small, inexpensive, and worked. I had bought it together with my new Audio’s so I could use them right away. As soon as I got them, I was shocked! They were HUGE, I was freaking out! “OMG these are INSANE!” I was even told to calm down. I took them out and put them on, it was the most comfortable thing I had put over my head. It was lightweight and the design was flawless. Plugged it into my ipod nano and let the music sink in.

These were wonderful, I was so happy I had bought them. The bass was there, but not as much as I hoped. Apparently there is a break-in of 230 or so hours on these puppies. After they have broken in, the true potential of the headset comes out. I have not reached that point yet, and I can’t imagine how much better this could sound. The bass is supposed to be sharper/heavier and the mid’s just rock the music, or so I’ve been told. Now these work great for techno, but I do believe these sound better for rock, jazz, country, and classical types of music. The high’s and mid’s is where it’s at. It seems as though I was hearing noises I had not heard before. The problem about juice was no concern. I had not plugged into my amp when I first tried these on. They allowed me to hear my music louder than I normally would. The amp wasn’t needed, but it does make it even louder (way too loud) and the bass enhancer does help a little bit, which is nice for techno or anything of the sort.

There are a few problems with this set. They are big. The size is a problem for people like me who wanted a set that I could use everywhere. Even though I have been able to do it so far, it’s all thanks to my large backpack. They don’t fold or move around at all to allow it to be placed into small spaces, it just wasn’t meant for that. It is though, very adjustable to the head. It’s a snug fit no matter what shape or size head the person has, it’ll work. I’ve been using these while riding my bike and it probably looks ridiculous, but I like that. Wind noise is not an issue because it’s well sealed onto your ear due to it being the closed type of design, which is a problem because the ears become hot and sweaty :( , but it’s better for a more natural bass.  Noise doesn’t leak out too much either, but it’s definitely not the best at it. Also worth mentioning is the cable. It’s basically a rope so it doesn’t tangle easily which is a good thing because it’s about 10 feet long. Now this is both good and bad. It does become a problem when I’m outside, but when I’m inside it’s wonderful.

My friend thoroughly enjoyed them as well. It encouraged her to buy a set of her own. She had plans to buy some Grado’s after a bit of research, then later on she decided to go with Audio Technica’s, the ATH-M50′s. These are smaller, folds into a smaller package, and the cable was coiled. It was everything my set wasn’t when it came to portability. In terms of sound, they are good! To be honest, they sound amazingly similar to mine being half the price. I felt the bass was definitely heavier on the M50′s than my A700′s. When it came to the mid’s though, it wasn’t the same. Wasn’t as crisp and enjoyable as I was used to. High’s are A+. The M50′s also have more of a stick to the head type of design. It’s very tight as it basically clamps onto your head and won’t let go. Doesn’t sound comfortable, but it isn’t too bad. Over a period of time though it became a bother. Overall, she had made a good purchase. She had wished she had also purchased an amp because it increases the bass, perhaps she should just take mine. Take note the M50′s don’t necessarily require an amp to hear it over built in amps on laptops and MP3 players.

My friend's headset

Folded up

While I am sticking with these for awhile and do feel this was the best purchase in a long time, I still would like to go out and keep experimenting. Maybe I’ll find something even better….it’ll be awhile though, that’s for sure!

July 19, 2010 | Categories: Electronics, Nerdy | Leave A Comment »

Anime Drawing

My fourth try, not too bad I dont think!

This was something I drew when I was bored and lonely. It is still not complete, but I’ve already spent 20 or so hours on it so far. I am very proud of this and will hopefully finish it and frame it on a wall!

A good side story to this drawing – It was 2 AM in the morning. I was by myself all day since everyone was either out working or out of state for vacation. I was listening to ambient techno, very soothing and relaxing music until I had heard the doorbell. I was surprised to see a police officer on the other side and wondered what could possibly bring him to my place.

Police officer – “What are you up to?”

Me – “Im drawing actually”

Police Officer – “Really? Although I do believe you because I didn’t hear anything for awhile, I came to tell you to turn down whatever noise you were creating because we recieved a noise complaint on this house.”

Me – “That’s really weird, haha, I guess I’ll turn down my pencil”

We both laughed and he walked away.

The neighbors really disliked us for some unknown reason, so all of it didn’t surprise me.

July 17, 2010 | Categories: Anime, Otaku | Leave A Comment »

Ponyo

Story 7.5/10 – The story is a little odd and hard to explain, but I’ll do my best! Ponyo is a goldfish who lives in the sea, and has an over-protective magician for a father. Soon Ponyo runs away from home and is rescued by a five-year-old boy named Sosuke. As she wants nothing more than to understand what it’s like to be a human being, Ponyo uses magic to transform into a human girl, and the two begin to form a special bond. However, this magic results in drastic consequences, and one final test stands in Ponyo’s way before she can truly be human. Can Ponyo fulfill her dream, or is she destined to return to the sea. Got it? It’s a fully on classic feel that Miyazaki films always achieve. They contain a moral, fantasy based idea into the real world. Such as in this, the humans are destroying the oceans, therefore do something about it or some goldfish with a face will come and do…… stuff!

Animation 9/10 - It’s fresh, it’s smooth, it’s beautiful. The only problem I had is there were times when the show’s frame rates dropped and looked very laggy. The times where it wasn’t were absolutely stunning. The show was very cute and family oriented due to the way Miyazaki’s team portrayed the backgrounds and the characters facial expressions. It seems odd that being one of his latest films, would contain little to no 3D generated effects. Perhaps technology is not in favor because he feels that animation literally means pencil and paper. This is just a guess, but I can see where Miyazaki is coming from. This way does feel more natural and in place than having a obviously computer generated car moving across a background that isn’t 3D draws attention away from everything  else too much.

Characters 10/10 – This show has little to very few number of characters. Out of the few I found the mother of Sosuke to be the most entertaining and sadly, the most humorous. Ponyo of course was the main attraction, was very cute, innocent and inspiring, but wasn’t my favorite. It seemed the behaviors matched what would happen in real life according to their age and living standards. The mother’s reactions felt the most real at times, the most ridiculous. Such as

Sosuke: Mom Ponyo WAS a goldfish

Mother : Oh…..? Who’s Hungry?

Which I know is a very abnormal response for the situation, but at the same time had that motherly answer to it.

Overall 8.5/10 – I’ve seen almost all of Miyazaki’s films. They all have some sort of moral quality to his films. Don’t judge people, don’t pollute, be courteous to others etc. Ponyo is no different and perhaps the reason why it’s so good. Since Miyazaki’s fims are so popular and successful, why change the movie? Make more of the same. It’s okay because it’s creative. Every movie of his has a beautifully creative fantasy world or concept that everyone can jump right into. While this isn’t my favorite film that he has made, it’s not as bad as I was once  told. Most of my friends disliked the movie more so than any other Miyazaki film to date. It is true that this movie is more childish and less oriented towards adults,  but it’s definitely a family film. You could say it is an anime version of a Disney movie. In the end I would say, go see it for yourself. The ending was a little abrupt and disappointing, but it’s not enough of a reason to back away from something so very….unique.

July 16, 2010 | Categories: Anime, Anime Review | 1 Comment »

Yukata!

They were pretty comfortable

Went to an Asian store called East West Imports a couple weeks back with a friend. I bought some Bruce Lee shoes and my friend tried some yukata’s. I know some people who work there and am currently trying to become an employee since one of them is leaving for New York. This would be a perfect opportunity because most of the customers and the owner are Japanese and would aid my Japanese skills.

Learned some facts about yukata’s that are worn in Japan. If I can remember correctly, married women usually don’t wear them in public, but if they do it’s apparent that she’s married. Less colorful and looks “older”. As for women who aren’t married and are looking for that special someone wear bright and colorful yukata’s and the way the bow in the back differs between married and single.

July 15, 2010 | Categories: Japan | Leave A Comment »

Clannad Review

Story 9.5/10 – Similar to Kanon, which probably doesn’t help much, is focused on the life of a guy named Tomoya Okazaki. He is a third-year high school student who is generally bored with life and doesn’t take his studies, future, or anything else seriously. One day, however, he meets a lonely-looking girl in the school courtyard, Nagisa Furukawa. She explains to him the source of her loneliness: she had missed a lot of the previous school year and thus is repeating her third year; everybody that she knew has already graduated, and she is lonely. Tomoya is rather indifferent at first, but decides that he has nothing better to do and spends increasingly more time helping Nagisa restore the school drama club. As his relationship with Nagisa grows, Tomoya begins to open up to various other people around the school as well…thus begins the harem as every new person he meets happens to be  a girl.

Animation 9/10 - Most of Kyoto’s work is work I can really appreciate. I feel that their work has evolved animes visuals in the past couple of years. It looks stunning and you can see it took much time and effort for it all to work together as well as it does. There’s not much else to ramble about when it comes to animation unless it just plain sucks. Ok that’s not true, it’s all based off opinion so I shouldn’t be making a statement of fact.

Characters 9/10 – I thoroughly enjoyed Kanon purely because of the main characters witty behavior. Sometimes I wish I had the ability to say something or act totally random, but in a manner that didn’t make me look like a tard. Well the same goes with Clannad. Tomoya has the unique ability to become friends with any girl he encounters due to the his remarks he spits out every now and then. Also not to mention, the father of Nagisa, which comes down to nothing but humor. As for the other characters, theirs the girl obsessed friend, the crazy girl, the innocent, the genius, the strong yet sensitive, and the “normal”  (whatever that means). It all works out in the end though as each person is felt through the entire show, especially Nagisa. It helps much to have a show where there isn’t a person you dislike or find annoying. As for me, I didn’t have that problem.

Overall 9.25/10 – Kyoto animation has been getting quite popular over the years. They have been involved in titles such as Full Metal Panic!, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Kanon, K-On, Air, and Lucky Star. Since my first experience with Full Metal Panic! some two years ago, I’ve found myself continually impressed with Kyoto Animation’s visual novel adaptations. Although, this isn’t always the case. Air was called for being amazing, superb, a new generation of anime. After much hype, I thought “this is going to be the best anime ever!” Turned out to be one of the worst shows I’ve ever seen behind Yumeria, which is saying a lot! The story made no sense, the characters made no sense, the sense made no sense. But this isn’t Air, this is a show that is currently my number one favorite anime of all time (for now). A definite must see for those who need a show to watch to calm the mind and need a good laugh every now and then.

July 15, 2010 | Categories: Anime, Anime Review, Cartoon | 1 Comment »

No Respect!

Board game that was literally "boaring" haha

Went to a coffee shop to “chill” with a couple of my friends. This place has a bunch of games you can pull out and play at the table. It was a bold move, but we had my good friend go and choose the game for us. What does he come back with? Just as the picture depicts, a Rodney Dangerfield game called No Respect. While it took longer to describe the rules of the game than it was to play an entire game, it ended with the need to gouge our eyes out. It was tempting to play another round, but we moved on…just like Rodney Dangerfield, who probably wished this game and its entirety be lost and forgotten forever.

July 14, 2010 | Categories: News and Events | Leave A Comment »

Car Show 10′

This event occurred a couple months back (late March), but it’s worth mentioning now. I have been going to the Denver Auto Show for 7 years and every time I go it seems to get more dull. The past 2 auto shows had too many people, meaning too many of my friends came and checked it out. I spent more time looking for my friends than looking at the rare and expensive cars I never usually see and most likely, won’t be able to drive. This is a problem because IT SUCKS! Before it was just me and a good friend of mine, then 2, then 3, and then 4 (which was perfect). Now the numbers are in the double digits. In the last two years it reached to 10 or so people.

Another point to make out is the fun level of the Auto Shows have decreased dramatically every year I go. I figured I should skip a year, take a break , but all my friends insist on going and it’s hard not to say no. I’d end up being alone, wishing I had gone, and moan etc.

I think the reason is that the cars are pretty much the same. There’s the Aston Martins, the Lambos, Lotus’s, and it’s all rare and exciting, but not so much the 2nd time or even the 7th time. Plus with the global warming and gas price crisis, going green is the new fad. It’s all nice and dandy, and I really should care (I do), but they aren’t the cars I want to see. Anyways, here are some pics last years Auto Show!

Look at that post!

New Lotus EvoraFront view

New R8 V10

July 13, 2010 | Categories: Cars | Leave A Comment »

It’s Alive!

So it’s been 7 months and 26 days since I last updated my website and am sorry for that! Although it hurt me than it did you. I pretty much have to start over with the amount of readers I had before, which was more than I thought imaginable being up for only 5 months.I was going through a hard time in my life from September through November and every passing day was hard to get myself to continue posting new material on Xgondadotcom.

So let’s get this going once again!

I’ve been watching a ton of Youtube videos made from RayWilliamJohnson. It’s a creative idea with the popularity of active users on the internet watching uploaded videos to talk about the uploaded videos. He’s witty and tends to combine the 3 videos he reviews in a sort of sympathetic, mean, yet funny way that everyone could enjoy. It also helps to keep the people updated of what’s going on in the uploaded video world. This here is one of my favorite segments he did.

July 11, 2010 | Categories: Humor | 1 Comment »

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