RAHHH POSTAGE!!!

sorry, I just had to get that out of my system. I update my Facebook far more often than my own blog, how sad is that? Also I realized something, I can have the best of both worlds, see my blog automatically updates on my Notes section of the book of face so it works out pretty well.

Well, Anime Expo is a little more than a month away, and what do I have done? Plane ticket? Done, Hotel room? DONE. Passsport? Uh...not done, at all. Thats one of the last hurdels for me standing between me and my vacation. I am going at it full force though, but I still need all kinds of stuff from different people an blah, blah, BLAH.

Anyway, for those not in the know, I am headed for a blind date on Thursday tomorrow. This makes me really excited and scared at teh same time, but hopefully it will work out tomorrow. Which means I wont be attending soccer tomorrow! Sorry Missionaries! But this is my Friday night, and I need to leave for work in roughly a half hour so its all good.

Also a bit of sad news, since there is roughly a month left for prepping for AX, I fear I might not be able to get done my Link cosplay I had previously planned. if I had complete, and full days to work on this, I could probably get it done, even on my tight schedule and budget. Maybe I wont cosplay this year, and just have fun, for the past two years I had been dressing up and gathering people together and running the show, but this year, I figure I might take it easy at AX, since its going to be the only vacation time I get. I need to run to the forums over at cosplay.com and tell them the bad news...

Well...I just thought I would update you guys on current events spiraling around in my life. OH a Mental Note just popped into my head:

Never leave money in your pocket. Put it directly into your wallet/purse/container for holding said monies. Trust me, you wont regret it. Like I did Monday after pulling a 20 and then loosing it.

Delayed notes...

But always follow up! Thats my policy. Anyway, about the dance: I had a great time, even though the live band didnt really play much slow music at all. If I remember correctly they played one slow song the entire night. I saw most of them dancing and saw some friends of mine from the New Years dance and then they kinda disappeared but I went and found them. They had brought their iPod and a speaker and were jamming out in the basement of the church.

Of course I joined in, since I was about done listening to the live band play something from the 60s again. I met two new friends down there and one is TOTALLY into video games and Alt music and they all get together and jam out with Rock Band or Guitar Hero! I was in bliss down there with my friends, and one of the girls even got my number.

At around midnight we decided we were all hungry and we piled into a car and started driving down the street looking for a Denny's. What we found was Boston Pizza instead,(Mental Note: They make AMAZING pizza, if you ever come to Canada, have Boston Pizza!) and had delicious food. We stayed there until they closed, which was around 2:30AM and we decided to go our separate ways and head home. So I made friends who are into the same things I am!

I am thinking about looking for a different job or maybe switch my hours. I work at night and sleep during the day. Its not so great to meet up with friends who has the exact opposite schedule. Only problem is that unless I can get my A+ computer certification, I dont think any computer selling store will hire me. Plus I need to get on the ball and find out about my college credits and if they transfer up here or not. Still lots to do yet, but I think after I pass my A+ things should go really well for me.

Now I just need to get the book and study it until my brain turns to mush and oozes out my ears.

*ACHOO*

Yep I feel a cold coming on. For me, it starts with a bad migraine and then moves to the sinuses and then the rest of the body. I HATE when I get a cold, because when I get them there is something really important I have to do: like call Costco back tomorrow and have an interview at 7-11. I like to think I dont have a whole lot of stress in my life, but with my hair going gray and me loosing sleep over some stuff I guess it takes its toll and translates into the dreaded Stress Factor.

I mean, I would love to go and work for Costco, only problem is that there are no buses that run that way and the closest stop is still 1.5 Kilometers away. My grandparents are totally gun-ho about the thing which I understand completely but I dont want to put them out. They talk about putting me on one of their insurances and trying to find me a car so I can drive to work but there is a problem other than me getting to work in the morning hours of 5,6,7. There are closing shifts also ranging from the 2,3,4 hours in the afternoon; no one can take time off of work and play 'Taxi' to me and my job. But knowing my luck, she will probably have the position filled by someone like me who has a car to get back and forth.

This is what happens to me most of the time: A great thing comes along my way, but right then I dont have the resources to use that and it quickly goes to someone else. I like to think that all those missed chances will come back to me, not right away of course but sometime perhaps when Im older. Karma usually shows me something really awesome I could have but then kicks me in the pants and leaves. Im pretty much used to it by now.

But I was told to call her tomorrow between 5AM and 1PM in the afternoon, so I guess I will go to the 7-11 interview tomorrow and see how it goes; and call her afterwords.

Oh, I havent done this in a really long time, but Mental Note: The country of Canada runs on change. ALWAYS carry some. Expect more Notes from now on; I missed doing those.

Interview

So I thought it went pretty well. I like to think I will be the one called back on Monday for the Produce section of Safeway here just a few blocks away from me. It starts at a decent wage and could hopefully transform into something I could look into for long term. But that is still a ways off since I want to get back in school and get a degree and work at a job I love.

It has been crazy for the past several days here. First I baby sat my cousin for a good part of the day, she mostly watched TV and played games on the computer. She was really sweet and nice, and now with my other cousins, they are quite the handful. One is about 4 and likes to smile and talk alot, and run kind of wild around the house sometimes, but hes a good guy. The other one, he is just a little toddeler and he gets into EVERYTHING. Any button that is within his reach absolutely must be pushed; several times for satisifaction. We had him in the high chair close to the stove and he was in the process of turning it on! Myself and Grandma had to react quickly and pull him away from that. Everything from buttons on the remote control for the TV to the Washing machine, every button must be pushed.

Oh, about the post about me traveling to the Canada in 4 weeks and me replying which country I like best? Not to be bias; but I prefer Canada. Sure everything is more expensive, but people don't seem to live in the underlying fear of Terrorist bombings or being invaded by a forigen power or whatever. I believe this was a really good decision for me right now in my life; it gives me some breathing room for things I want to explore and see what I am good at.

Well...It is pretty late right about now, and I am planning on going to bed, but before that; a Mental Note on Canada. Carry lots of change. At least 5 dollars worth.

First Day.

So. First day here in Canada, I managed to get my SIN number all right and I am up and looking for a job. But there are a few more things I need like my drivers lisence and a passport. I have both of those in an American flavour but since I am living here in the Great North I think it would be best to get them.

I took the buses down to the CTrains which is Calgary Trains and transportation. I am making a Mental Note right now: Always carry at least 5 dollars change. Coin change. I found that out the hard way today while the bus driver was very nice. Taking the trains downtown was interesting; its amazing how many people they pack into them and are able to make it almost on time all the time.

Yesterday my grandmother tells me where the Government of Canada building was, telling me it was taking a left and walking two blocks. Getting off the train I started right. However after the first block it came to a dead end where the road stopped. I traveled back to the Municipal building of Calgary and asked for directions. Turns out it was take LEFT two blocks. No problem so I cross the two blocks and get to the Government building; and I apply for my SIN card.

No joke the whole process from me walking in and walking out with a SIN number was about 30-45 minutes tops. I was really impressed with the speed and accuracy of Government of Canada. Comming home on the buses I picked up applications to Superstore, basically a Fred Meyer or a smaller WalMart and plan on filling it out tomorrow. However I would like to work someplace where I can apply my computer knowledge like Future Shop or Best Buy or London Drugs.

Well...My legs are achy from wandering around Downtown and waiting for the bus so I will bid you all goodnight.

Well...

After about 1 day and 17 hours I am finally in Canada. That is correct; I am using my grandmothers computer to make this post. The trip was all right, really long and kind of boring but most Greyhound trips are. I managed to pack most of my clothes into two bags since the carry on consisted of books; mostly of the drawing Manga nature since they are kind of rare and hard to find.

The roads were ok and it was interesting seeing all the stuff along I-5 and going to Seattle. My first thought when I realized I was there was: Oh hey, there is an Anime convention here... and the rest of the trip was mostly uneventful. With the exception of Border Crossing.

Since I was on a bus, the process is sped-up to allow lots of people to get checked and across and waiting for the bus. They asked me the usual questions: 'where you headed, how long, any gifts?' ect. If you ever travel the border use one of my Mental Notes: Always answer honestly. It will make your life easier. We lost one of the passengers there at Nexus because of[I believe] falsified travel documents and a resulting search of his person and luggage.

Again, the rest of the trip was uneventful, I kept thinking to myself: right. Everything is in Meters and Liters... No joke there were Tim Hortons(for those not in the know, Tim Hortons is a wonderful delicious donut shop where they create wonderful little donut balls called Timbits.) at every single little town we stopped. And it made me smile.

I encountered rain, snow, sunshine, and even overcast on my way there. I had forgotten the beauty of the Rockies covered with snow. Now I can say I have pretty much traveled the West coast.

Well...its pretty late here my time with the hour change and all so I am going to turn it in for the night. Letting you all know that I am not dead in a ditch somewhere or stranded at some bus depot. I have made it. Now starts a whole new chapter of my life.

Mental Note: Showering

Bear with me on this one. Its been really hot where I live like around 90-100 degree weather for quite some time now. Dont get me wrong; I absolutely LOVE it, but sometimes I need to cool down and what better way then a shower.

"What!?" you say, "How can you cool down with a shower of all things?!" Well the answer is quite simple: Cold Showers. At first I was not down with the whole cold shower thing, but after trying it a couple of times...I cant think of a better way to get cooled off. Unless you have easy access to a lake or river or another large body of water to swim in. I just go with whatever works, and cold showers do it for me. Only in the summer time though; I wouldnt even think about doing cold showers in Winter-time.

OH! I will have a Video Game review of Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People (or SBCG4AP) probably tomorrow, I plan on gifting a copy to my brotha TIMMAH! So look forward to that comming pretty quickly.

Another thing, My review of Xam'd will have to come at a later date, since I still need to watch EP 2 and 3 to get the ghist of the series. Talk to you all soon!

Sadness...

My headphones of about 2 or 3 years died on me today. They are echoing or not producing some of the channels in the output. They are a nice pair of Koss over ear headphones...They've been with me...seemingly forever. Its kind of sad to see them go. So, I went to Wal-Mart to find a pair of new ones. I get to the electronics section and I ask where the headphones are. The guy shows me and goes off about the 'gummy' headbuds; about how comfortable they are, they noise canceling effect and so on. I wasn't 100 percent sold but they were inexpensive compared to the rest of them, so I thought, "meh, why not? they have the little earplug gummy end to them." Oh how wrong I was...

Leaving the store, I open the package to find...simply a pair of headbuds. No 'gummy' end like it says directly on the box and the electronics guy repeatedly told me. I was kind of disappointed and I went back to the electronics depot and kindly explained to the cashier my situation. "OH! don't worry, they're awesome! I use them all the time!" This was her basic response. I asked her about the return policy and I have 90 days to decide if I want to keep these...things.

Truthfully, I should have just returned them right then, but...Ill test them out for a couple of days and see if I want them. Now...Mental Note of the day...ALWAYS, ALWAYS get a different opinion from a different worker. Better yet, just trust your gut.

Immigration.

Its no secret I was not born in the United States. I know everyone is making a big deal out of the Immigration movement. Seemingly everyone is worried that 'Spanish will replace English' with the influx of Spanish speaking peoples. I recall debate if English should be the official language of the US; historically, when immigrants from other countries where English was not their first language, they have gathered in various communities like Little Tokyo or Little Italy. The point I am trying to make is that peoples from those various countries settle into portions of cities where their heritage takes precedence.

Although that was just a round-about way of saying: it will take care of itself. It has for the pat 232 years this country has existed.

Mental Note: Customer Service

I want to take this minute here and let me announce something to the entire world: Nintendo has the best customer service. After finding out the cost of my repair, I wondered if my system was still under warranty, and when I called their 800 number after the menus, I found myself talking to the customer assistant and together we found that in fact my console was still under warranty and told me that they would try and keep the system data in tact; like all my Miis and my various saved games and what-not. After the pleasant conversation, she also told me that shipping it to the repair center would be free. Yes free. The best things in life are still free. Anyway, all I had to do was pack up my Wii into a box and drop it off at a local FedEx building and it was picked up on Monday, so its off on its way to Repairland.

In other news, I am feeling pretty good about my Mathematics. After being away from school for a year, I managed to get As on my homework and a 70% on a quiz. I love the fact that my head retains information for quite the long period of time, and I feel pretty good about myself as stated previously. Programming on the other hand...is like a living nightmare...

Im not doing too well in that area...I can copy code all day and write Algorithms that will work on paper, but as soon as I sit down and try to write real code...it all falls apart. Its kind of disheartening. But, I will keep on trying and I will pass this semester of Java...although some of the questions are getting quite hard already...though they seem easy enough on paper; actually coding them is another matter entirely.

Mental Note: Air Guitar

What can I say? I love to strum on my Air Guitar from time to time, shutting my eyes feeling like Im really there, playing my heart for the crowds, their screams piercing the heavens above...its quite the rush. But, I will admit, when Im walkin' down the street and I start wailing on my Guitar...I get some stares. However, the fine folks over at Thinkgeek have provided an end for their stares: Air-Musician Virtual Guitar. I think this would bring the entire world closer together, in harmony as we all rock out on our Air Guitars...

Stay with me on this one....

Its quite the dozy. All right, Schrödinger's cat is a thought experiment trying to explain a certain aspect of Quantum Mechanics the thought process goes like this: A cat is put into a box that detects subtle motions of a subatomic particle and it kills the cat[thats the sad part, but not the point I'm leading to] what Schrödinger tries to explain is that until the box is opened, the cat is in a state of both living and dead.

Think about that for a moment: Something both living and dead at the same time? Its physically and practically impossible[Not to mention sad for the kitty!] So, until an observer comes and opens the box the cat is alive and dead at the same time. I've racked my brain trying to understand how something could be in both states of being at the same time...Until something recently came back into my memory: the pseudo-vampires of I Am Legend.

Although its not the most logical conclusion to come from my mind, I believe it makes the most sense of the thought exercise: Schrödinger's cat is a Zombie.

Clouds....

I came to a realization when I was flying to Vegas. Clouds make me hungry. Its quite a stretch but stay with me: Clouds are white and fluffy, and cotton candy makes me hungry. So...I know this not a 'real' post in any sense, but it works for me.

Mental Note: Anime Vegas

hello All! I know its been quite a while since I posted here, but its official: I am going to Anime Vegas! if you want to take a few photos of me cosplaying Phoenix Wright and Kyon, then you better show up! Also, the reason why ive been away from the blogging stuff lately is making my AMV for Anime Vegas! so! If you attend, you can get to meet me in person, take photos of my cosplay and watch my AMV. How cool is that?

Ahem, aside from that, I really dont have much to say.

Mental Note: Something You Love...

I came to a realization. I am Otaku. I obsess over when the next Anime Convention is, who I am going to Cosplay as, and more importantly, I want rather pricey figurines that I cant afford right now. There is one catch to this however; I love being an Otaku. It makes my heart all fuzzy when I think of how much stuff I have collected. Upon my volumes of Anime and Manga, and growing number of figurines with two more in the processes of being added; I am not ashamed. This is what I love.
I constantly listen to various opening themes of Anime that I like and download AMVs made by other people and have made videos as well. if I did not have Anime...I really don't know where I would have wound up. All I know is this: Anime is my passion and anyone who does not like it; take a hike.

Mental Note: Anime Expo 2007

This entry doubles as a con-report. I have been attending AX for the past four years, and I must say, this is one of the best ones I have ever been to. First off, the registration line was quick, it took me less than an HOUR to get my badge and get to wandering around. The Artist Alley was amazing, as they gave them lots of room to spread out their tables and such; it was kind of hard wandering through there with the Video Game, and Workshop room right there but we managed. The Dealer's Room was neatly organized by rows separated by numbers, making finding a certain dealer a snap.

Of course with the good, must come the bad. I realize that there are things that happen outside one's control. Waiting in the AMV line for over two hours was brutal. Until the sun went down under the buildings, then it was all right.

As for the Cosplay this year, there were lots of really stunning Costumes that people made and wore. It made me really happy that I was also able to attend in costume. I cosplayed Phoenix Wright from the Capcom game series and people responded extremely well to it. I think Ive found a costume I can wear anywhere, since its a nice suit outside of Cosplay as well. I also did a first at this years Anime Expo: I made a gathering. Whats a gathering you ask? Well, quite simply, its a group of people who get together from the same game/anime/manga. We had a really good turnout, I counted at least 42 people in one shot.

Well...this is my AX con report, I know its still 300+ days away, but I'm excited for next year's AX!

Mental Note: Late Night Wendy's...

If you can, try and avoid it. Its not too healthy for you and most of the time they will get your order wrong. This is especially tough when your driving down the freeway in the late night and you chomp on your burger, and find a dry tomato in between the bun and the lettuce. When its not supposed to be there.

Mental Note: Car Horns...

I hear people all the time use their car horns to honk at people...it really irritates me, and I have a little saying that I always say to myself when I hear someone do it: Your Horn is to be used as a cautionary device, not as a substitute expletive.

Mental Note: Snaking...

Is the practice of achieving ungodly speed using a power-slide. I feel this is all right for making the Time Trials on Mario Kart DS, but when people use this tactic online using the Nintendo Wi-Fi; it kills the online experience, making people defect from this really fun game. Which is what I have done now. I am, as of this moment, defecting from Mario Kart DS. Only when I am really bored out of my mind will even consider coming back to play online. It saddens me that people are not using the tools that the developers gave them, like Items, but are rather bending the system to their own will. Doing this smashes Noobs and kills experienced players from having fun of an unpredictable race.

Mental Note - James Brown

James Brown will always be known as the 'Godfather of Soul', I mean...His work is legendary, Its catchy no matter who you are, you will start grooving and movin' and no matter how advanced we become, James Brown's music will still be on our portable audio players.