Kagome_Vixen's Xanga

Otaku Fest 2009: A Spankin New Convention

Sun, 04 Jan 2009 02:41:24 GMT

Happy new year!

As many of you don't know, I'm the vice-president & founder of Centennial High School's Anime Club. This year, we're going to host our very own anime convention! It's not going to be as great as Otakon, but I think that if enough people hear about this, it'll be great regardless. ^^ (Pssst, that's your cue to spread the word).

So, without further ado, here's the information:

CHS Otaku Fest is brand new anime convention held at Centennial High School (4300 Centennial Lane) in Ellicott City, MD. Its designed to be a gathering ,celebration and promotion (for fans, by fans) of all thing related to Japanese animation, manga, and East Asian culture.The event will go from 9:30 am to 9:30 pm on April 25th, 2009. Our activites will include a dealer's room, live bands, discussion panels, anime screenings, artist's alley, video game tournament, an AMV contest, a masquerade and much more. For more information please visit our website (otaku-fest.webs.com).

If there's anyone that wants to help sponsor this event or is/know a dealer/artist who would like to be a part of this convention, please contact me at vp.chsanime@gmail.com to get a sponsorship packet or more information.

Please participate in our forums! (Found on our website)

Thanks for reading & please help spread the word!

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Sun, 16 Nov 2008 00:38:45 GMT

Featured Question:
How long is too long to be put on hold in a phone conversation?

Since I haven't been put on hold in a phone conversation often, I would say ten minutes or more.

I wish to act more professional; to look more professional. Looking pretty is one thing, but looking pretty & professional is a completely different thing. My friend Alyssa can pull it off marveoulsly, and I admire her for that. She just looks so set everyday. I just put on a shirt & pair of jeans. I need to try harder, but with what? There's nothing I have that looks professional anyway. I don't have enough money to buy clothes, nor do I care enough to look amazing everyday.

I also need to work on playing piano better & getting straight A's in school. I'll start with that rather than my lack of fashion sense. Wish me luck.

Das ist so kalt!

Mon, 20 Oct 2008 20:44:33 GMT

Geeze, it's soooo cold! I ran my fingers through a candle flame & didn't feel the pain from the hotness until my fifth time running through it....

Anyway, my rents made a deal with me. If I lose forty pounds, I get to have my dad's truck, but I have to pay for the insurance, gas, & any other monthly bills. I'll attempt, but probably won't be very successful.

Homecoming is already over? Wow, senior year DOES go by quickly. I need to send in my college applications NOW, but Ms. Polek hasn't finished grading my essayyyyy, aurgh! Hurry up!
Despite that, I've not once felt pressured about this whole college application process. I finished everything (except for mailing them) and I'm not stressed at all. Just a bit frazzled waiting for SOMEONE to finish grading my essay. *Sighs*

I found a new hobby- to create CD anime labels & burn anime series on them. It's sort of a pointless hobby, but whatever. ^^;;;

Surprisingly, I'm not really "hooked" onto any one new anime series right now. I'm watching "Mushi-shi" and rewatching "D.N.Angel," but other than that, I'm actually more into manga series.

Twilight

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 02:05:30 GMT

Die zurzeit Beobachtung...

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 22:26:22 GMT

Featured Question: What are 5 qualities that turn you off from the opposite sex?
Not in any particular order...
1. Egotistical/Arrogant/Immature/Stubborn (etc) behavior
2. 100% optimistic
3. Likes getting all the girls...being a player...
4. Doesn't know how to take care of self (unhygienic, unhealthy diet all the time...)
5. Lazy

Yeah, I know I'm asking too much...

Anyhow.

Current anime watching: D.Gray-Man
Current dramas watching: Gokusen 2 and 1 Litre of Tears

Since it's a classic and I've been on a "classic anime series" marathon, I decided to watch CardCaptor Sakura and finished it recently (including the two movies). I was honestly surprised that it wasn't as bad as I thought it'd be. Of course, I realized how CLAMP sort of connected this series to their other series Tsubasa Chronicles (which is connected to another series xXxHolic....), but it was still pretty good.

Recently, I've been more addicted to dramas than anime. I finished the first season of Gokusen & am currently watching the second season. 1 Litre of Tears is pretty sad, and that's precisely why I love it. XD

I applied at Pumpkin Patches at the beginning of June....On the first day of August, they finally call me back asking for an interview. o.o" I'm happy that I even get an interview, but school's about to start & I'd much rather work somewhere closer to my house than all the way out there since it'd be easier to get there after school...oh well.

I can't believe I'm going to be a senior this year. College applications are so scary.....especially their essay questions...*hides*

I'm baking Ethan a Rubix Cube cake for his birthday. ^_^ I'll definitely take a picture of it before I give it to him~

In einer glücklichen Laune...

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 01:21:03 GMT

#1: Featured Question:
How did you meet your spouse or significant other?

Freshmen year of high school is always the worst, especially the first day in the cafeteria. Being the Asian outcast I am, I don't have many Asian friends, but I sat with some Asian people nonetheless. Needless to say, they kicked me out pretty quickly (I was getting tired of listening to them anyway... >.>;; ) In search for another table, I decided to go for the least crowded table instead of the most crowded. I saw a guy sitting by himself, so I decided to sit with him. He sat there always reading, not talking much nor acknowledge that I was there for a couple days. Eventually I tried to strike up a conversation with him, but they were dealt with swift answers, a glance, and then back to silence and him reading his book. Eventually, our conversations got better, and it helped that we had the same class the next period. We found another table with friends, and by Christmas time around, we started dating. ^-^ We've been together for three years now & going strong! <3 I love you, Ethan~

#2: AP Scores
AP scores were finally mailed today! I got my AP scores: 4 for both English and Psychology. I can't believe I passed! (Especially English, I thought that was harder than the SAT Critical Reading... >.>;; ) Yay for college credits! Yay for saving money! *Happy*

#3: Jessica
Jessica, my best friend from Texas, is visiting me tomorrow! We're spending the next three days together! We usually get together every summer because she visits her grandmother in Rockville. Nya. ^-^ I can't wait to see her again!!!!!

Warum schreie ich immer?

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 01:50:11 GMT

Why is it when I think I finally get you, you run out of my grasp? I know it's not intentional, but it feels like it is. Aren't you just taking me for granted a little too much? Do you think I'll stick around no matter what happens?
When will you finally notice me?

Honestly...you're the best and worst thing that has ever happened to me...

Love sucks.

My99 Songs Playlist

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 14:59:08 GMT

I actually don’t own an mp3 player, so I couldn’t just scroll through my favorite songs and pick them. That being said, I realized this project was going to be hard for me, but I didn’t know it was going to be this hard. Considering how I listen to a wide range of music from classical to heavy metal depending on my mood, it was hard to choose my favorite songs objectively. From day one when this contest started, I wrote and rewrote my list many times. Nevertheless, I had a blast going through most of my songs and choosing which ones would make it to the list. Most are chosen due to the emotional appeal, like love and humor. Others were chosen simply because of the addicting rhythm the song has, making my day so much more enjoyable when I listen to them. My two life stories are at the very end of the list. Enjoy, and thanks for the fun summer project!

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99. “The Sore Feet Song”- by Ally Kerr

98. “Jesus of Suburbia”- by Green Day

97. “Purple Haze”- by Jimi Hendrix

96. “Never Never Land”- from Peter Pan

95. “Bad Day”- by Daniel Powter

94. “My Pace Daiou”- by Manzo

93. “Minority”- by Green Day

92. “Wait”- from Sweeney Todd
Simply put, sometimes the best things come to those who wait. Because of that simple philosophy, I've been able to control my impatience over certain things.

91. “All in All”- by Point of Grace

90. “Heresy”- by Nine Inch Nails

89. “Nobody Knows”- by Suga Shikao

88. “Another Brick in the Wall”- by Pink Floyd

87. “I Want to be Bad”- from Good News

86. “Boulevard of Broken Dreams”- by Green Day

85. “London Beckoned Songs About Money Written By Machines”- by Panic! At the Disco

84. “Bop to the Top”- from High School Musical
This choice surprised even me. I highly dislike High School Musical, so why put one of their songs in my “Top 99 Playlist”? Honestly, whether I like it or not, this song has an addicting beat that cannot find its way out of my head. The lyrics aren’t half-bad, appealing to my side of wanting to do the best in whatever I do.

83. “The World”- by Nightmare

82. “Every Heart”- by BoA

81. “Time is Running Out”- by Muse

80. “Hare Hare Yukai”- by Aya Hirano
I didn’t choose this song for the actual song in itself, but rather the dance that goes along to it. My friends and I spent this entire summer rehearsing through the dance choreography so that we can perform it at Otakon, a Japanese anime convention center this August. I had a blast learning the dance movements with my friends!

79. “Siberian Railroad”- by Polysic

78. “Seasons of Love”- from Rent

77. “Sandstorm”- by DJ Darude
This song first became memorable to me because it was the first song I beat in Dance Dance Revolution, but it became more memorable to me due to my friends. My friends and I love techno, and after hearing it at every single school dance we’ve attended to so far, Sandstorm gave us the idea of bringing glow sticks to dances. Spanning from that idea, we started to hold raves in our basements filled with strictly techno songs and learned how to spin glow sticks in our hands along with many other tricks.

76. “Tori no Uta”- by Lia

75. “Play With Your Food”- from Honk!

74. “Good”- by Polysic

73. “Treason”- by Kutless
This song reflects what I believe is happening in today’s society. I see people everywhere calling themselves Christians, but not do a single Christian act. This song talks about how a person would praise God, but then go off and curse or do other un-Christian acts. Although my religion isn’t Christianity, I still feel infuriated when people claim a religion, but never actually pray nor worship unless they’re in trouble and suddenly “need” God.

72. “Für Elise”- Ludwig van Beethoven

71. “Helena”- by My Chemical Romance

70. “Jessica”- by Dir En Grey

69. “19 O’Clock News”- by Tokio

68. “I Wanna Be a Producer”- from The Producers
Other than the hilarious opening with all the accountants being in synch with their typing to the beat, this song was pretty inspiring to me. An accountant who is forced to have no self-confidence is able to dream big of becoming a huge Broadway producer. While I’m not exactly in the same boat, this song helped me gain confidence in pursuing my dream, no matter how absurd it might be.

67. “Reflection”- from Mulan
This song conquered my pre-teen days when I struggled a lot with my identity. I was in the stage where I wanted to break free of what my parents wanted from me and going into what I wanted from myself. We had a lot of family conflicts, but I believe that this song helped me steer myself to my dream instead of my parents’ dream.

66. “The Domestic Fucker Family”- by Dir En Grey
*Sorry for the vulgar language in the title, but it’s a really good song! *Bows apologetically*

65. “Hello Goodbye”- by The Beatles

64. “My Heart Will Go On”- by Celine Dion
After attending Lily’s, my close friend’s, funeral, I watched a series of movies during my span of depression. Both this song from Titanic and the one below from Phantom of the Opera brought tears to my eyes at the time. The songs spoke strongly about the death of someone close to their hearts. Even though this song is about a lover and the song below is about a father, I developed a strong connection to these two songs as they helped me through my depression. This song especially showed me the importance of getting back on the track of life because I’ll still have the memories of Lily in my heart.

63. “Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again”- from Phantom of the Opera

62. “Seasons”- by Vincent Cheng

61. “Rock On”- by KJ25

60. “Sonatina 3”- by Muzio Clementi

59. “Mistakes”- by Blue October (the British band)

58. “The Saint”- by Dr. Seok Kwee Chew

57. “Different”- from Honk!
Being the conforming non-conformist I am, this song appealed to me how the Ugly Duckling insists that he’s just different, not strange, weird, etc. Especially to people who believe that there is only one way to live, this song speaks out that it’s ok to be different, because in the end, we’re all human (never mind the fact that the character who sings this is a duck).

56. “Hate Me”- by Blue October (the American band)

55. “Seize the Day”- from Newsies
*Life story for this song at the end of the list

54. “Give Me Novacaine”- by Green Day

53. “Jealous”- by Dir En Grey

52. “Mad as Rabbits”- by Panic! At the Disco

51. “Russian Dance, Trépak”- by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, from The Nutcracker

50. “Aoki Haru”- by MUCC

49. “Katamari on the Swing”- by Shigeru Matsuzaki
Come on, who doesn’t love any of the songs from the video game Katamari? I was tempted to put all the songs form Katamari in my “Top 99 Playlist,” but I felt as though that’d be cheating. (^-^) Without these simply amazing songs, Katamari wouldn’t be half as fun to play. Besides, I got a few of my friends addicted to the video game simply because of the soundtrack. Game on!

48. “Halloween”- by Aqua

47. “For Fruits Basket”- by Ritsuko Okazaki

46. “More Than Useless”- by Relient K
While all my friends pursue their talents and decide on their careers, I was still struggling to find mine. I began to feel left behind, useless, and unimportant as I blindly tried out many different things, not finding what I’m good at anywhere. My friend gave me a mix CD with this song being the first one on it, and it shook me back into reality that just because I don’t know what I want to do in the future right now does not mean I’m useless.

45. “Which!”- by Polysic

44. “Kinjirareta Asobi”- by Ali Project

43. “Open Wounds”- by Skillet

42. “Seishoujo Ryouiki”- by Ali Project

41. “Around the World”- by Aqua

40. “Think of Me”- from Phantom of the Opera

39. “Futatsu no Kodou to Akai Tsumi”- by On/Off

38. “Epic Symphony”

37. “Teenagers”- by My Chemical Romance

36. “Sakura Kiss”- by Chieko Kawabe

35. “A Little Pain”- by Olivia

34. “You’ve Got to Pick a Pocket or Two”- from Oliver!
The first time I watched Oliver! was three in the morning. No doubt I was dead tired and wanting to sleep. When this song came up though, I bolted up as though I just drank three cups of coffee. The song appealed to me about how poor boys have to pick pockets in order to survive. Again, I am reminded of the saddening fact about the measures some people take to simply survive while others practically sleep on money. I know this world could never become a socialist society, but it’s nice to dream…

33. “The Becoming”- Nine Inch Nails

32. “So I Thought”- by Flyleaf

31. “Lullaby (Goodnight My Angel)”- by Billy Joel

30. “Starless Night”- by Olivia

29. “Forever Yours”- from Once On This Island

28. “Back From Mars”- by Aqua

27. “Saishuu Ressha”- MUCC

26. “I’m So Sick”- Flyleaf

25. “Becoming Insane”- by Infected Mushrooms

24. “Build God, Then We’ll Talk”- by Panic! At the Disco

23. “Pika Pika no Taiyo”- by Ueda Kana
This upbeat song was a favorite from my childhood. I used to play this song every morning while getting ready for the day. It was a nice adrenaline boost and washed away all the remaining sleepiness I felt.

22. “Flight of the Bumblebee”-by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
At age fourteen, it took me three months to master this song on the piano. I look back and laugh at myself over how much I struggled through this song, but my determination back then to play this song the best I could give was what made my piano recital memorable.

21. “Roses Are Red”- by Aqua

20. “Pink Killer”- by Dir En Grey

19. “All I Ask of You”- from Phantom of the Opera
It may be just me, but I think this song is one of the sweetest love songs ever written. My boyfriend was such a good sport to go along with my obsession to this song. I played this song on the piano and sang Christine’s part while he sang Raoul’s part after school.

18. “Kesenai Tsumi”- by Nana Kitade

17. “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)”- by The Proclaimers

16. “Ready, Steady, Go!”- by L’Arc~en~Ciel

15. “Definitely Maybe”- by FM Static

14. “My Oh My”- by Aqua

13. “El Tango de Roxanne”- from Moulin Rouge

12. “Still Doll”- by Kanon Wakeshima

11. “Worst Pies in London”- from Sweeney Todd
I am amazed that you can sing about something being so horrible. People usually opt for singing about how great this is, or how wonderful that is, but this song is truly unique in the sense for singing about how horrible (in this case) these pies taste. In reality, many people would try to cover up blemishes about themselves, trying to make themselves as perfect as possible. I believe that a perfect person is someone who’s imperfect. One’s mistakes should be part of their character, not hidden in some dark corner of their life. Like this song, people should sing out about their flawed parts! Wouldn’t that be so much more fun than egotistically singing about how great you are?

10. “Paint it Black”- by Rolling Stones

9. “Gee, Officer Krupke”- from West Side Story

8. “American Idiot”- by Green Day

7. “Bohemian Rhapsody”- by Queen

6. “Your Song”- from Moulin Rouge
This sweet song dedication made me go “awww” while watching Moulin Rouge. Besides the fact that I am a sucker for love songs, Ewan McGregor’s voice still penetrates me every time I listen to this song, giving me that warm-and-fuzzy feeling deep inside. This song reminds me of how my younger sister would play sweet ballads on the piano and always tell me with a grin that she’s dedicating the song to me.

5. “Hero (Red Pill Remix)”- by Superchic[k]

4. “Come What May”- from Moulin Rouge

3. “The World Will Know”- from Newsies
This song with its powerful beat speaks of sheer determination towards a certain goal. Many times when I feel like I can’t handle what’s going on in my life, I use this song as a energy boost to help convince myself that I can do anything I want to as long as put my mind into it.

2. “Elephant Love Medley”- from Moulin Rouge
*Life story at the end of the list

1. “Epiphany” from Sweeney Todd

My stories:

55. “Seize the Day”- from Newsies

I’ve known this song long before I’ve even seen the musical. I was in a summer camp called “Broadway Juniors,” where we perform various songs from a variety of Broadway productions. One of the songs was “Seize the Day.” I was offered to sing David’s part in the song, but since it would be my first time singing a solo part, I almost refused the offer immediately. I decided to think about it and give my director an answer the next day. That night I listened to “Seize the Day” over and over again while arguing with myself whether I should do it or not. While I was going around in circles, the lyrics to the song got stuck in my head. I heard the message, especially the line, “Don’t be afraid and don’t delay,” and it kept spinning ’round and ’round in my head. When I really focused on the song’s message, it gave me enough confidence to accept the offer.

Opening night came much sooner than I anticipated, and I was shaking from head to toe. Suddenly I didn’t feel so brave anymore and wanted to bail out of there as soon as possible. The responsibility seemed too great—I didn’t know how to lead a group of people into a song! Suddenly all those rehearsals seemed meaningless. No matter how smooth those rehearsals went, I knew something was going to go wrong the minute I stepped onto that stage. Silently, I chanted the lyrics to myself seconds before going onstage, hoping I’d get that burst of confidence, but no such luck. Shaking, I went onstage and started the opening lines weakly. As the music picked up and more people joined in to sing, my confidence and energy rose with them. I felt like I was bouncing off the walls with energy and couldn’t stop grinning from ear to ear. We ended the song with a bang, striking our ending poses to a cheering audience. Never have I felt so exuberant than that moment.

To this day, this song became my motto- Carpe Diem; seize the day. You never know what’s going to happen unless you go for it, and more often than not, you have nothing to lose. I now love experimenting with things, so I always dive headfirst in new ideas with no worries about what’s going to happen.

2. “Elephant Love Medley”- from Moulin Rouge

“Some people wanna fill the world up with silly love songs.” “Well what’s wrong with that? I’d like to know.” Lyrics from this song filled the classroom used by our after school club. Blasting from an iPod, the song continues while we sing along to the duet. After having a Moulin Rouge fest, my friends and I couldn’t get enough of the songs, especially this one. Days spilled into weeks, and weeks dragged on to nearly three full months of nothing but singing songs from this musical from my friends and me. Also being the anime freaks we are, we searched up AMV’s (anime music videos) on YouTube where fans like us used this song and made a music video out of a certain anime series. Almost immediately we found our favorite (titled “Ouran Love Medley;” here's the link in case you’re interested in watching it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGP-M__WGt8).

Time goes on and eventually my enthusiasm for Moulin Rouge died down. A few weeks ago, however, I encountered the song again. I believe there are no such things as consequences, only the inevitable, and this encounter made it clear that “Elephant Love Medley” was definitely a song that was dear to my heart. Especially for someone who cannot imagine this world without love, I cannot possibly imagine people turning their backs on love, especially something for so trivial as lack of money. Part of the reason why I love this song so much is because Satine finally “gives in” to Christian’s love for her and the sheer fact that it came from the movie Moulin Rouge. The other reason why I love this song is because of all the memories it invokes.

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I hope you enjoyed reviewing this as much as I had doing this project!

Elefantenliebe-Mischmasch

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 22:30:35 GMT

Love is a many splendored thing
Love lifts us up where we belong
All you need is love!

Please, don't start that again...

All you need is love!

A girl has got to eat!

All you need is love!

She'll end up on the streets!

All you need is love~!

Love is just a game.

I was made for loving you baby,
You were made for loving me.

The only way I'm loving you baby
Is to pay a lovely fee.

Just one night,
Give me just one night.

There's no way
Cause you can't pay

In the name of love!
One night in the name of love!

You crazy fool!
I won't give in to you.

Don't leave me this way
I can't survive without your sweet love
Oh baby..
Don't leave me this way

You think that people would have had enough of silly love songs...

I look around & see it isn't so...oh no

Some people wanna fill the world up with silly love songs

Well, what's wrong with that? I'd like to know,
Cause here I go again~~
Love lifts us up where we belong
Where eagles fly
On a mountain high!

Love makes us act like we are fools
Throw our lives away for one happy day

We could be heroes,
Just for one day

You, you will be mean.

No, I won't!

And I....I'll drink all the time!

We should be lovers...

We can't do that.

We should be lovers...
And that's a fact.

Though nothing will keep us together

We could steal time
Just for one day
We could be heroes forever and ever
We could be heroes forever and ever
We could be heroes...

Just because I...will always love you

I...can't help loving you...

How wonderful life is now you're in the world..

Geschäftsklasse

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 22:57:28 GMT

So, I'm pretty much all set for taking an "Intro to Business" class at Howard Community College. Yay~ I dunno if I'm actually going to use those business skills in the future, but it's something nice to do over the summer IF I DON'T GET A FREAKING JOB.

*Calms down*

I've been recently getting addicted to SIM City 4...even though I owned the game for a long time. >.>;; Random, but it's a fun game. I approve. I like watching the buildings grow. XD

I've been itching to bake some desserts, but since I don't have school, I wouldn't have any test tasters. Boo. That's one reason why I like school-- all my friends are more than willing to eat my baked desserts. XD Thank god I haven't killed any of them yet... >.>;;

Last Saturday was the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year! (Yes, I'm very late about notifying this...) I had fun celebrating it in the name of the Oak King. I'm Wiccan, and this is a Wicca holiday, but I'm not going to go into details about this in case I offend anyone... >.>;;; Let me just make this clear: Yes. Wicca IS a Pagan religion. However, this does NOT mean that Wiccans worship Satan or any of that nonsense. +.+ We're basically nature lovers, simply put. And I'm going to shut up before I go into a spiel about the Wiccan religion vs. the Christian religion. ^^;;;

Ah, I'm listening to Nana's soundtrack right now....J-Rock is so soothing to the soul...*drifts off to sleep*