I think I'm dying of the plague. *sneezes more*

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Oh my my my, some of my pals might not think so, but I thought THIS was fabulous, Gackt decides to do techo-dance song with naughty lyrics about hostesses, and then goes to the top clubs to recruit dancers.

'We are good girls yes?' just channel your inner Tom Jones, Gacchan.

(but Gackt still the prettiest!)

Hubby and I have been sick for he past couple days with  Kidlet's cold #32564. How is it that the little ones get sick and are up the next day just as chirpy as ever, and grownups end up snorting snot and dragging asses for a week? So unfair.  Anyway, I should finally have my art computer back today.  That is, if Hubby can get out of bed after staying up most of the night snorting snot.

I plowed through most of Metalocalypse, but didn't quite finish.  It was beginning to feel like homework. So much dark humor at once is not good for my system! I did not hate it. It was very well done, and the music was not as bad as I feared.  You have to realize I mostly listen to harmless stuff like McKennet and Enya. Metal is rather...different. Charles is my favorite character, hands down.  I do think I probably would never have gotten into the fandom at all without the Magic Rat. But then, she is a bad influence like that.

By the way, Kidlet was not too impressed with the Metal boys. His comments after watching one snippet,"Why are those people embarrassing themselves like that?" "How come they don't like their families?" Ah, just wait until you hit the teen years, Kidlet. 

I will pick back up with Metalocalypse after I go through some more of the Christmas stack of movies. So far I have seen "Up," (breathtakingly gorgeous), "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs,"(mostly meh, with some cool shots), an old movie called "Bill and Coo" featuring a cast of trained little birdies, and re-watched "GI Joe"(improbable, but lots of eye candy). I still want to watch "Coraline," "9" and rewatch "Star Trek" to oogle Spock's perfect complexion. Being sick and unable to do much does become more pleasent with new movies and books.

PS I just came back from feeding the wild turkeys.  Sam I Am literally hid behind my skirt as I was tossing corn at those scary, scary birds. He would peek out once in a while, then hide his head again...never minding that the rest of his big fluffy orange self was quite visible. XD

It's hard to pick from among so many great moments this year, but I particularly LOVED when GACKT appeared twice on VS ARASHI. Because if GACKT's my fave idol, ARASHI is my fave group! 

Not only did GACKT's appearance win one of the highest ratings for the show this year, it showed an easy-going side of our Gacchan to Arashi fans, making him more approachable and more loveable, if that's possible.


And if Ohno's response to GACKT giving him a ring for his birthday is anything to go by, we'll see more of this particular 'Team Arashi + 1'.

Artist  Karadin
Rating PG
Subject Gackt works out with AbRoller and Friends
Warnings n/a
Pencil on paper colored in Photoshop
Critique welcome yes

(click for postcard size)
DO NOT REPOST - arigato!


characters from left to right
Riderman- GACKT - Lau Wong - Yoshi - Kamui Gakupo - Gladiator - TakagamiTeijirou - Uesugi Kenshin - Genesis - Camui Lucy - Gundam Pilot - Sho -Gide Bellecourt - Camui Gakuen Student Council President - Zero - Proto- Eneru (GACKT's dog)

Please consider donating to help dogs like Adonis, who is healing well and has been adopted! tinyurl.com/ydy3xwg

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Сандро Ботічеллі


Він так стоїть, немов лежить, стояти,
примусивши себе, од всіх в юрбі
віддалений, як та дбайлива мати,
що почала дитину годувати.
Вінком зв'язав себе він у собі.

А стріли йдуть: умить разять, умить
і кінчиками вільними тріпочуть,
немов з цих стегон видертися хочуть.
Всміхнувшись тьмяно, дужий він стоїть.

Лиш інколи страждання і розпуку
пізнать по ньому, глянувши увіч.
Зневажив він, як щось дрібне, цю муку,
і з глумом зір його відкинув пріч
того, хто знищує прекрасну річ.

Райнер Марія Рільке
(переклад Миколи Бажана)

Like my home! I'll start this Christmas update with the bad stuff. Because they're still ongoing.

I got home on the evening of the 25th to an icy cold flat. The heating was off. Or rather, it was on but the radiators were dead. Not even semi-dead, sputtering and making the occasional shambling hiss like a zombie in some bad horror movie. Nope. Stone dead, with a stake through the heart. Turned to ashes and crumpled into nothingness kind of dead.

I was tired and confused and didn't know what to do about it, it being Christmas weekend and all and no one working. So I went to bed, with my clothes on to try to not die from cold in my sleep.

Next day, Boxing Day, I sent an email to maintenance guys at the company I rent my place from. Not that I expected a reply, but I did send them a description of what weird sounds the radiators had been making on the 24th before I left home. My mum asked late that night if I'd called the emergency number. And I hadn't. In fact, after the last time I tried to call them about something I can't remember anymore a few years ago, I didn't expect them to make an effort to listen. Which is probably why I didn't even think of it... Also, phone phobia is very good at making me not remember that making a call is possible, because for me, it isn't actually possible. So.. yeah. Mum offered to call, but I didn't have a number to call.

Found the number the next day (Sunday), so I rang my mum (yes, I can call her and a few select other people with no problem) and gave it to her. She called me back a little later, very angry. They had been rude, and uninterested. They would not send someone out to check on the heating just because I had a cold flat, since I didn't have a thermometer indoors and could tell them just how cold it was. They also said that maybe, just maybe, they'd consider sending someone out if I talked to the neighbours AND they also had no heat.

Let's just say that that treatment did not encourage and inspire me to intrude upon my neighbours (whom I don't know and barely know what they look like) just to ask them if their heating was on. There's nothing like having your basic need for warmth during the cold winter months ignored that says "you are not important, and we don't care what happens to you".

I decided to just wait it out until Monday came, with normal work schedules.

Today there's been guys checking out the heating in the basement, and then they left. At this point, I did actually manage to call the maintenance guy assigned for this house (I was angry, that usually helps, I did try my best though to not be sarcastic or nasty, because it's not his fault I've lived in a fridge for three days) to ask what was going on. He explained that they'd found that there's been a LEAK IN THE HEATING SYSTEM! A PIPE SOMEWHERE ON THE WAY TO THE HOUSE HAS BURST!!! Hello emergency hotline guy who was rude to us? *waves*

Maintenance guy, I'll just call him Vincent okay, said, a little dryly, that if we'd called the emergency hotline this could have been started getting fixed sooner... I interrupted him and told him that yes we had, and no they hadn't been interested. Vincent was not happy to hear this, asked who we'd talked to and when. And then he said he's trying to get some guys here to first find the leak and then dig up the frozen ground to replace the pipes. He was worried I'll be freezing a lot tomorrow though... because tomorrow we'll have a nice and crisp -20 C outside.

Just checked outside. They're working overtime! It's 5 pm, and usually their workday ends at 4. Heh. Now they're digging up someone's garden. :D (That house is also owned by the same company as mine is. But the poor elderly couple who lives there had a very nice garden. With trees and a nice little place where they were growing vegetables. No more...)

Now I don't understand why I am the only one in these buildings who does not have heating??? If the leak is over there somewhere? Or... they haven't found the leak and are digging along the pipes to find it? O.o Wow. This is going to be expensive!

Oooops.

Okay... that was this little horror story. Have I mentioned in my LJ that I hate being cold? To give you an idea, get up from the computer and go into the kitchen, open the fridge and squeeze into it. Close the door behind you. That's my flat. Apart from being a little roomier. ;)

I think I'll get to the actual Christmas report later. Now my fingers are frozen stiff. And I have a headache.

bluetourmaline's beloved books were thrown out (not by her), and her friends are trying to replace them for her. This is the list of books that needs to be replaced:

1) Michael Swanwick's The Iron Dragon's Daughter thetimesink
2) Scott Lynch's The Lies of Locke Lamora ms_danson
3) The collected works of Peter S. Beagle
4) All of the Earthsea books, from A Wizard of Earthsea to The Other Wind goth_hobbit
5) Dragonquest
6) Patricia McKillip's The Forgotten Beasts of Eld kickthehobbit
7) Life of Pi, lupabitch
8) World War Z by Max Brooks (already purchased?)
9) Larry Niven's N-Space (with introductory notes) en_ki
10) Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar books (some from kickthehobbit & waterspyder, unsure which ones)
11) Stroud's The Amulet of Samarkand goth_hobbit
12) Robert J. Sawyer's Calculating God m41
13) The Mote in God's Eye dracodraconis
14) Barbara Hambly's poetic Darwath Trilogy kareila

I'm offering myself as a drop box for collecting these books. If you wish to offer one, leave me a comment with your book name(s) and I'll send you an LJ private message (check your messages Inbox) with my mailing address. Once the books are collected I'll have them shipped (or hand delivered) to bluetourmaline. Anybody who wants to help is welcome to do so.

Valdemar books (I'm not 100% sure if this is the full list, perhaps someone more familiar with the series could confirm?) as stated on wikipedia:

Take a Thief, 2001
Exile's Honor, 2002
Exile's Valor, 2003 noxcat (rough condition)
Arrows of the Queen, 1987
Arrow's Flight, 1987
Arrow's Fall, 1988
Winds of Fate, 1991
Winds of Change, 1992
Winds of Fury, 1993
Storm Warning, 1994
Storm Rising, 1995
Storm Breaking, 1996
Owlflight, 1997 (ISBN 0-88677-754-2)
Owlsight, 1998 (ISBN 0-88677-802-6)
Owlknight, 1999 (ISBN 0-88677-851-4)
Magic's Pawn, 1989 (ISBN 0-613-63053-X) noxcat (rough condition)
Magic's Promise, 1990 (ISBN 0-613-63055-6)noxcat (rough condition)
Magic's Price, 1991 (ISBN 0-613-63054-8)noxcat (rough condition)
The Oathbound
Oathbreakers
Oathblood
By the Sword
The Black Gryphon
The White Gryphon
The Silver Gryphon
Foundation
Brightly Burning
Sword of Ice and Other Tales of Valdemar, 1997 (ISBN 0-88677-720-8) noxcat
Sun in Glory and Other Tales of Valdemar
Crossroads and Other Tales of Valdemar, 2005 (ISBN 0-7564-0325-1)
Moving Targets and Other Tales of Valdemar, 2008 (ISBN 0-7564-0528-9)
Changing the World: All-New Tales of Valdemar, 2009 (ISBN 0-7564-0580-7)

siderea's post with further information on circumstances.

I was done scratching Daven's (aka sweet, adorable, and stupid cat) belly and I needed him to get off the bed so I blew in his face. He wiggled. I tried again. Wiggle, wiggle. I gently gave him a shove and...

The damn cat tasered my face with his butt.

I could still feel pain from the static zap a few minutes later. Daven just went back to "I'm cute, wiggle, rub my belly" as if nothing had happened and wiggled happily over to where I was clutching my face.

2 albums
(REBORN and GLADIATOR EVOLUTION)

9 singles
(GHOST, LOST ANGELS, KOAKUMA HEAVEN, FLOWER, FARAWAY, SETSUGEKKA, JOURNEY THROUGH THE DECADE, THE NEXT DECADE)

*56 Concert Tour Lives
(RR2 Visualive and Visualive Arena)
(*5 shows performed Dec 2008, 1 show canceled Ashikawa, added Birthday Concert Dears only)

14 Fanclub Tour Lives
(Camui Gakuen Paradise + Singapore Fanclub Event)

In 5 compilation albums
(Daremo Shiranai Nakeru Uta Official Gaiden, Kamen Rider Decade: All Riders vs. Dai Shocker Movie, Kamen Rider Decade Complete OST, Kamen Rider Theme Songs OST, Gundam song OST)

Produced and appeared in 2 Concert DVD's
RR2 Visualive, (in progress) and Animelo Live 2009

Produced DVD
Platinum Box X

Voice work
REBORN Drama CD.

Produced 2 photobooks
(GACKTIONARY, VISUALIVE Documentary 2009)

Produced 6 theme songs
Kamen Rider Decade, All Riders vs Great Shocker Movie, Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles (airing in Japan) Sengoku Musou 3 (game) Gladiator Evolution (game) Kamen Rider Double Decade Taisen Movie.

Produced 5 official pvs
FLOWER (2 versions), SETSUGEKKA, JOURNEY THROUGH THE DECADE, THE NEXT DECADE, STAY THE RIDE ALIVE,

Took part in
Asia Song Festival Korea
Animelo Live
Thanks for Music WOWOW
Gundam Green Project and Gundam the First Stadium Event
All Riders vs Great Shocker Roadshow (premiere)

Appeared in
Mr. Brain drama
Tsutaya Discas Cm
All Riders vs Great Shocker Film
*119 magazines/newpapers
*48 radio shows (comments and interviews)
*87 televison appearances (clips, performances)

*these are approximates

Baker friends - oh my gosh, I got another one!  You've got to check it out. 

It's a remix of Redrawing Borders, from Bjorn's POV: Shrinking Maps.

It's wonderful.  I can't believe I received two Baker fics! I feel so blessed ;-)

Thank you so much, anonymous author, for writing theses for me.

Kidnapped Ethiopian girl saved by lions

http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/7523

Actually it is still a holiday over at my house, since Kidlet's birthday is today.  He got an embarrassing amount of stuff already, plus cash for all the games he wants to buy for the DS Lite. Hubby and I just got him a couple small things each...we hold off because we know he will get buried with tons of gifts from relatives.

Hope you all had a nice holiday!  It was just the three of us again.  I did a small turkey and smaller portions of the sides so we would not be eating leftovers for a month.  It struck me as Hubby was carving the turkey, that back when we first got married I had no clue how to cook. I did not even know how to cook spaghetti. Yesterday I cooked a perfect garlic and bacon seasoned turkey without even looking up a recipe. I have come a long way!

One of the things I got for Xmas was the first 2 seasons of Metalocalypse. I watched 3 episodes so far.  Here are my first impressions:
1.Did I just see what I thought I saw? (small animals! Dismembered!!! Erkh!!!)
2. I need to quit sending portfolios to Titmouse because my chances of getting on a show like this is similar to Murderface getting a job at the Build-a-Bear store.
3. Dude, those boys are so totally gay. XD

Сімейна ідилія - це коли на вихідних прокидаєшся зранку, а твої донька і бабуся ріжуться в карти. При тому, що різниця у віці у них - рівно 80 років.

(Засудження азартних ігор відкладемо до наступного разу).

@silicon_master Which video? The bullfighting one?

2010, you had better be less sucky than 2009.

@silicon_master I didn't read the comments. Seems like people who comment on YouTube are the mental dregs of society.

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-Last week, I finally received my confirmation for appointment letter from the NHS gender clinic.
-I sent the form to them Monday.
-I came home Wednesday and instantly sprained my arm by slipping on ice. I'm on the mend now.
-My butt still hurts from the fall though.
-My mother has voiced how difficult everything is for her; especially relating to sorting out my room. I noted everything female was removed from my cupboard while I was away. She says 'The persona you are leaving behind is very much loved, and so is this one, but its like mourning.'
-My father seems resistant still, despite now knowing its a biological issue. He still refuses to use my chosen name and commented on leg hair as if I shouldn't have it because I'm... yanno, the G word I can't bring myself to refer to myself as.
-I'm trying to be understanding of my family's feelings; 19 years of habit is hard to replace, but sometimes it seems like they don't realise how difficult it is for me, especially when everyone important back at university refer to me in the male pronoun and by my chosen name only. When I get home, I don't feel like a whole person and that I am so horribly guarded I can't relax.
-EVERYONE will have to stop using my birthname soon, I am legally changing it by Deed Poll in the near year (to go with my renewed passport)


I found out that it can be a min. of two consultations before T can be recommended. I do not believe there are any other underlying psychological issues it could be that are effecting me; I am not a girl, and I have never truly been one. I know I am a BOY.

...Keep slipping to and from depression over the whole thing recently. I won't be sorry to not see Christmas with my family next year. I will be in Japan, enjoying being a boy with people who know it as much as I do.

Susan Boyle to sing on NHK's 'Kohaku'
Singer Susan Boyle, who made a sensational debut in April on popular TV contest "Britain's Got Talent," will perform on "Kohaku Uta Gassen" ("Red and White Singing Battle") on Dec. 31, NHK announces.

What the SHIT?!

For those of you who are part of the Baker cult like me, hurry over and read this wonderful fic I received for Yuletide!

Nothing smutty but just...well, it's better if you read it for yourselves. It's perfect.

The writer either already knows me or did a good job on researching what I like.  I can't say enough good things about this story.

Redrawing Borders

Oh, and Merry Christmas to everyone who celebrates!

(I think we're killing the server over there, so if  you can't see the story right away, be sure and try again later.)