Pinball tale

What's the best way to kill time while waiting for someone at the mall? Hands down, it's gotta be pinball! If you're like me, that is *shrug*

I'm not a fan or anything like it by the way. But I like hanging out at Timezone. It's just that, it's one of those free games I can play when I'm out of credits. It's kinda odd though, that in this age of digital video games, you'd see one pinball machine in every Timezone outlet. Who plays pinball in this era anyway?

The funny thing is, I play it, even though I don't really know the mechanics and all. What I know is, I have to keep the pinball rolling using the flippers in each side of the machine. I know that my numbers keep counting everytime the ball hits something. I love it when the ball enters a tunnel and something lights up, then my score keeps going up too. I don't know how many balls I have left when I drop one and I don't know just how many bonus balls am I supposed to get. The important thing is, it keeps me preoccupied.

After a while though, I just want to give up. When will it end? How many more do I have left? I think played enough, I'd just let the balls drop until the screen shows "GAME OVER". And why am I not surprised to get the highest score?

But after earning the title for the highest score, guess what? As a prize, I get one more credit to give me a chance to top my rank. No way man, I'm leaving. I hope a random player takes advantage of the unused credit tough teehee.

Hah, a friend alerted me for not updating my blog. Truth is, I do update my journal, I was just feeling idle to upload it. Well for the sake of my regular readers, here’s what happened for the last few days… Anyways, I’ve been very busy (like what’s new with that?)….

I’ve finally got Momonja a filter/ protector. Yay! Damn it cost me 200 bucks! I’m just irritated with the fact that its adhesion means doesn’t work efficiently! Damn, I ended up using a masking tape! Pathetic! I want a refund!!!

I checked Power Station at Rockwell yesterday, And I’m happy to report that I found it really great, just as much as find Timezone G4 and Greenbelt 3 great. Oh how I’d love to hang out with my friends there. Besides from the fact that it has House of the Dead 3 & 4, they also got KTV rooms, and what’s more, their KTV systems have Japanese (and Korean and Chinese Songs). And they have Dive to Blue, Ready Steady Go! Hmmm, more updated than Music 21 huh. Though I’m not satisfied with the sounds system. Well anyways, another good thing is that they have good selection of prizes, much better than Timezone’s. which motivates me to play “ticketed” games. And they have a very good basketball games, they’re different from any basketball games I’ve seen in all the arcade centers that I’ve been. They have this “modernized” look. Plus, Power Station have this reward system every time you reload. Cool huh… and considering I purchased the VIP card (a year ago), that gives me 200 worth of load on my birthday! Yeah! Now as far as I know, there are only 3 Power Station here, Shangri-La, The Podium, and Rockwell (Power Plant Mall). Hmmm, noticed something? All located at high-end malls huh? Well, whatever, I’m determined to earn tickets, I’ve already eyed an action figure worth 500 tickets!!! I will definitely be going back here hehehe…

Last Tuesday was Russell’s flight off to Korea. Damn, I can’t help feeling sad. I’d definitely miss the guy. He’s always been very generous to me and he’s one of the few guys I know that I could have a sensible conversation. Also, I’m being emphatic on Sherry, I just know, she’ll miss her brother the most. And, it’s not gonna be the same visiting the Nery’s home without him… oh well, time flies pretty fast… for all we know, before I’d knew it, he’s back…. 3 years is too short… ne?

Last Monday, I went to Feata, and what a very gloomy state they have there! They had their electrical connection cut! The Saleslady said that the owner (they are talking about the new wife or partner of the Japanese guy) didn’t pay the bills. And it’s been like that for 2 months! Good heavens, it’s the worst! I can’t bear the fact that those manga and anime stuffs are living in darkness. Okay, I’m exaggerating, my stuffs are also in darkness (cabinet) hehehe… but I do take them out of the light (and caress them hahah)at least every weekend. I wonder what were the reactions of the other customers (who’re definitely rabid otaku). Anyway, I went there just to claim my remaining 340 worth of gift for reaching the goal box. I got myself Aneglic Layer volume 2 and Tenkuu No Escaflowne vol. 6. Now speaking of Esca, I have to check which came first, the anime or the manga, because they have different character design… though most anime (90% that is) originated from it’s printed counterpart, there’d be cases that the anime would precede the manga version, just like Evangelion. Going back to Feata, is there anything we, (otaku-tachi) can do? I wish they won’t be closing down yet… oh pls. at least not until I complete my RK manga… I still have 5 tankoubons left to obtain… damn!!!

Also, I finished House of the Dead 4, with Mike, last week at Time Zone Megamall. All HOD are so addicting hehehe… I wish I could finish the very first HOD too, and I guess that’d make me a faithful follower of HOD hehehe. So far, only Timezone at Greenbelt 3 has the HOD 1.

My recent addictions, I’m currently hooked to YUI’s music… her soft and childlike voice reminds me of Sakura Kinimoto. Kawaii!!! But her music can be both jumpy and relaxing. Typical Jpop… but I haven’t seen a female J-pop singer playing guitar… cool! Also, lately I’m into Incubus’s music, and I’ve been pestering Manong Pirate to get me an Incubus MP3. I want all their albums I said! But he’d always tell me that there’s always a raid in Quiapo so he can’t get me one. Geez, alibis! But above all, Narda still tops “Kid’s” chart hehehe… still a constant song number in my playlist hehe… in fact it’s playing in my WMPlayer right now –nag-aabang sa langit, sa mga ulap sumisilip, sa likod ng mga tala… kahit sulyap lang…-

Hmmm, what else, I’ve finished reading The Balck Lotus. Now I’m currently reading The Perfumed Sleeve… I just love it. I learn a lot of yaoi customs during the Tokugawa Era hahaha… scenes from Gohatto suddenly flashed my mind hehehe…

Lastly, we had our calendar planning yesterday. Actually, just a VL planning, my boss asked us to schedule our VL and make sure that no one would lapse the other. Knowing the busiest month for me would be June, I scheduled my VL from June 13-June 23. why, of course, Toy Con, Manila International Book Fair, The Condor’s Quest play, would be held between those dates… and besides, 2 of the most important figures in my life would be celebrating their birthdays in two of those dates… my self-proclaimed holidays hehehe…

And it’s a rainy day today… -sigh- I got no umbrella…

Belated Happy Easter! I’m thankful to God for the break I had. It’s been a good one really, although a piece of me is definitely missing, but staying home for a longer period, made me think of all the people around me, who cares about me and they give me hope that everything’s gonna be alright. First thing I’m thankful is that Mathet and I talked yesterday over the phone, she was inquiring about issuance of employment certificate at MDH… we talked about our sighs in the Hospital… what I really want to say is that it’s been so long since we had a talk like that. I miss hanging out with her, despite our big differences we get along well. And it might still be too early to hope that we’d be just like before, but I’m keeping my hopes up… second, I’ve taken the first step in teaching my dad to use PC. I taught him how to start and shut down Windows… and the first program I taught him is MS Word (of course). He doesn’t have to be an expert, just the basic operations would do. And I’d really feel some sort of fulfillment if I can get him to get used to Windows. And then I went out with Mike, well I promised him that I’d treat him to Starbucks. He gave me a 3/1 scale (hehehe) plushie of Mokona (of TRC and not MKR!)… It’s really cute! Mokona looks like an egg, so Mike was actually giving me an Easter egg hahaha. Then we played at Timezone at Greenbelt 3 and G4. Finally I’ve played the House of the Dead 4! It’s sooooo freaking cool. Too bad we didn’t beat the game… we went out of load, but we were really close to the final chapter hehehe… we also played House of the Dead 1 and 2, hehehe…. HOD is soooo addicting! And after such a long time, I got to play that boxing game (damn I forgot the title of the game)… that boxing simulation game is sooo fun plus it’s a calorie burning game hehehe…. We played basketball, bowling and car racing… Whew, really it’s been so long since I spent so much time in an arcade center, and it feels so good. I just want to point out that it feels so great to be young hehehe… haay so much for the fun… it’s back to -reality check- work…. I want to go on vacation leave!!!

Nicknames, IDs, Cloud... My rabidness…

I had my hair trimmed yesterday! I love it, just a trim but it feels lighter… I asked the stylist to retain the length and reduce the thickness. But I had my bangs and right sideburns shorten. Why only left? Because I’ve had enough with symmetry hehehe… anyway very few noticed the hair trim…

Then finally got my ID! Yay, after almost a year! And as I’m expecting, the front portion boasts my nickname Kid! My otaku name is in my valid ID! Sugoi! And it’s even better because the pertinent info are much accurate than the one I lost, I also had my TIN written in it now hahaha. Geez, what a simpleton, rejoicing over an ID hehehe. But anyway, ever wondered of the etymology of my otaku name… Kid? I just love it, very suitable for someone looking young and androgynous hehehe. I wonder how many would think of it as a guy or gal’s name. Honestly it sounds like a guy’s name to me. Ever heard of Jason Kidd (NBA)? Well it was used as surname. What about Kid Rock? Uhm yeah, it’s a screen name. But I didn’t get it from them okay, I’m just citing them as examples. Well just a brief background, more than 6 years ago, when I was still a rabid anime fan, I used different anime nicknames in the anime online community. It depends on my current addiction. I’ve used Momonja (from Mojacko), Nanashi (Trowa Barton’s name when he lost his memory)… uhm, I can’t remember the others already. I guess it’s a youngster or otaku’s nature to use other names. I used the name Kid during the brink of my addiction to Chrono Cross. Kid is the female lead character of Chrono Cross. I just love Kid’s character, reminds me of myself. And I also found it cool that such a pretty girl is using the name Kid, well, she’s boyish yeah, but it was obvious that she has some special interest towards Serge hehehe… back to Kid, it was summer vacation of my 2nd year, I’m turning 3rd year when I got hooked to Chrono Cross and eventually started using Kid as nick. In fact, I also use a surname for it, Himura of course. See it’s Kid Himura (weird combi huh). Like I said, I also used other nickname to other communities. But as time passed by, I realized the need for consistency. I have to use only one. Well, I was right when I chose Kid. It’s very convenient (because it’s one-syllable) to pronounce don’t you think. Besides, I love the letter ‘K’. I realized back then that most my favorite characters in various anime starts with ‘K’ Kenshin, Ken, Kennichi, Kyo, Kiba, Kira, Koenma, Kokubunji, Kaworu, Kamui, Killua… Killua… so now you know… well I believe some of my regular readers know this already…

Also, I finally took pics of Cloud! Aww, my very pecious toy… Okay, I can’t wait anymore, here it is! The super cool Cloud Strife with his drop dead gorgeous Fenrir! Looking at these pics makes me want to be an action figure too hahaha…. If only to get to that gorgeous Fenrir with the super cool and handsome Cloud-sama –faints-

Yesterday, Fars asked me to accompany her at G4 Park. Bamboo had a concert. Well, I had nothing to do, and Friday night is always the best time to hangout late (despite the fact that I have a regular duty every Sat!). It’s been a while since I went out at a Friday night and I really miss it. Besides I wanted to check something at G4. So there, I watched another Bamboo gig, but I’m still not converted huh. Let me remind that I’m doing this for a friend. According to the ads, show starts at 7pm, but since we had experience waiting considerably longer at Winston Wings Tour, we learned our lesson. This time we didn’t hurry, we came past 7:00 PM. Well, we were right, the show haven’t started, but it was really crowded, and it was impossible for us to get in the front. Part of me is delighted, because I’ve promised I’ll never situate in a front seat/row (whatever), unless it’s a L`arc~en~ciel concert (speaking of Larc, I have some exciting tidbits later). But part of me feels sorry for Fars. She went all the trouble of preparing her camera hahaha.. Anyway, being a hard-headed kid that I am, I went forward despite the crowd and encouraged Fars to follow. There were benches which I though we could stand on, at least we could see Bamboo, but heck, standing on the bench was strictly prohibited, we were reprimanded (in a nice way) by the guard hehehe… oh well, at least we got a good position. Now about Bamboo, like I said, I’m still not converted. His songs are fine, but I don’t find them interesting. I love it though, whenever he’d sing songs of Rivermaya… last night he sang 3 Rivermaya songs (Kisapmata, Hinahanap Kita, and Ulan).

Anyway, after the show, I requested to drop by at Timezone G4, what I really wanted to check, were the latest games. And heck, I finally saw what Sherry was excitingly saying –House of the Dead 4! Damn, its graphics is way better than its preceding installments! And this time, the characters use machine guns! And with its very huge screen, this arcade game is sooooo cool! I wanted to try it so badly, but I’m broke, a game costs P25 already (for VIP card holders). And besides, the game was occupied. But Fars loaded my Power Card, and we played House of the Dead 2. Although I’ve finished this game twice (The 1st time, I was alone, I used I think 25-30 tokens. The 2nd, I had a partner, but we’re not acquainted, I used 5 tokens), I still find it exciting to play it every now and then. By the way, I’ve also finished House of the Dead 3 (a couple of weeks ago) this time Sherry was my partner and we used 11 tokens. Gosh, I can’t wait to lay my hands on that machine gun!

Whew, I’ll be on undertime today because I have to meet my cousin. Also, my sister is here right now, she had a chest x-ray then afterwards she’ll be off to the review center. Finally she decided to take the board exam. I pray that she’ll make it this time. I believe in her… funny, I am the most skillful amongst my siblings when it comes to academic exams, but I’m the only one with the course with no Board exam, even with the course I’m taking now, still no board exam hehehe….

Now going back to L`arc~en~ciel, last week I saw the PV of ‘Link’ at Animax. Damn, I’m sooo happy I finally got an update on them, I mean at least I know their latest looks. It seems they really drifted from their ‘dressy’ era. I’m so surprised to see Hyde in baggy pants. Not that baggy okay –hyde fans pls. don’t kill me- it’s just that I got used on him wearing either gothic skirt or fitted pants. And what’s with the funky hair huh? But I loved it so well. They look more westernized now (get-up) which I don’t really mind, Hyde is a real bishie no matter what. In fact, it seemed that he looked younger hehehe. Hmmm, ‘Link’ is the opening theme of FMA movie, I wonder if they did a PV of ‘Lost Heaven’…. Damn, I want to see that!

geez... i need a haircut...

Yikes! One of my office mates brought a gown! And damn they insisted on me wearing the gown. They are just so freaking curious to see me in a “girly mode”. Geez, for Pete’s sake, give the old ladies what they want. Ma’am Len took a pic of me… damn, that is sooo not me! Well, just so they could see something different from me hehehe. I wanted my friends to see me in this kind of outfit sometime too. I’ve been actually planning to cosplay a cute female character in fuku after the Tohma cosplay, but I just couldn’t think of a female character that suits my personality. I’ll have to watch more anime hehehe. So for the moment that I haven’t come up with a shoujo character to cosplay, I’ll push thru with Subaru Sumeragi plans, anyway he’s a gay heheheh… I’m starting to look for accessories already, thru friends and classmates… Haay, i still prefer my bishounen mode hehehe... well, I’ve got less than 2 months to prepare, and sem-break is nearly coming, I should be able to find time to complete my costume (hope so)… Oh by the way, I have finally seen the FFVII Advent Children! Yay! I was really stunned and blown away by the events and fighting scenes! Damn! The best CG film I’ve ever seen! My god, Cloud makes me really drool hehehe… I really felt nostalgic when the characters (Cid, Barret, Yuffie, etc) finally made an appearance! Though the pacing of events were rather fast and some details that I’d want to dig were not really brought up. Like the origins of Kadaj and such… But I’m still satisfied on how things turned out. And it felt good to see Sepiroth again hehehe… okay, I really wouldn’t want to say much about it, I don’t want to end up being a spoiler. A colleague who haven’t played the game, and has no interest on Japanese stuffs, liked the film. Yay! Anyway, bottom line is, it’s a must see for all otakus!

Oh my god! Oh my god! I just got my DVD copy of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children!!! And I have already took a peek…. Gosh, I’m having Goosebumps just hearing the opening music!!! Nostalgic mode on!!! My memories of playing the game is coming back and how it feel so good! Gosh, Cloud is sooo handsome! I first saw its trailer more than a year ago and Lord knows I waited real hard for its the completion and release. And how long have I waited, just scanning the video makes me feel it was worth the wait… the graphics were really far more stunning than any CG animation I’ve seen… I can’t wait to see it… this weekend, I will definitely watch it and the Howl’s Moving Castle! Anyway, like I said in my previous post, my anime hype’s real up at the moment! Yeah keep ‘em comin! Oh Cloud-sama *teary eyes*

So July 25 (Monday) was declared as a special non-working holiday. Honestly, I am partly happy, because finally I’ll have a whole day break. However, I still can’t help feeling a little irritated. For one thing, I really hate to miss “History of Arts” and “Anatomy”. Besides, this declaration of special holiday, to avoid any street demonstration because the President will address the state of the nation (SONA), is very illogical! Heck, if people can conduct rally on busy days, what more on holidays?! There must be a hidden agenda behind this declaration. Hah, I hate bothering myself with such issues but I’m affected because I’m an eager student. Anyway, as I’ve said, I’m partially happy so I should partially thank Malacañang because I’ll have a time for myself. I’m planning of going to Sherry’s place to watch my videos…

Waaii! It’s been so loooongg!!!! I finally got to play “House of the Dead II”… I didn’t eat lunch just so I could play hehehe. Anyway, tomorrow after my NSTP class, I’ll go to my friend’s place to watch my videos. Yay! I’m so excited, I’ll finally see the succeeding episodes of Tsubasa Chronicles! Yay! ^-^x

deprived...

it's been weeks already since i've been to arcade. I miss "house of the dead 2" and percussion freaks! I feel deprived! Schooling and work at the same time deprived me from my other activities I also feel outdated. I can't join in the discussions of my classmates talking about Naruto, One Piece, Shaman King etc... You see i don't get to watch these new anime being aired in local and cable TV anymore! *sigh* the price i had to pay... But i heard that Fullmetal Alchemist will be aired in GMA7. Geez, It's a good thing that i won't be able to watch it, because if I do, I might explode complaining with the dubbing and editing. I assume they'd be cutting some major issues in the stories, like issues involving religion, considering how conservative Filipinos are.

ah, I was late (again) in school this morning, since i started tudying again i never had enough sleep. Plus, we had a quiz in Graphic Arts I! I got zero! When I arrived, they were already at item no. 8. The quiz is 1-15, about contemporary Filipino Printmakers. What a good start for the day ne!

i read an article in "Business World" newspaper, that a Japanese publication will hold a national exam for Japanese geeks (otaku) on August 5! It was also posted in one of the ML that i membered in. Cool! I hope there's also something like this here. I want to take that test!