finally saturday, or the ramble for the week

Well, this week rather sucked (again). I just might (at least temporarily) turn into a weekend LJ-er from lack of time and energy...these next two weeks will be very very busy at work. I have almost given up keeping up with my flist...sad how even reading seems to be an effort. *sigh* Basically instead of being online I've been either lying around like the dead or reading. I usually read really fun stories or really depressing dark ones when I feel like crap, the former because, well, it's happy and will cheer me up, the latter because I can feel better knowing my life isn't as screwed up and horrible as that. Half the time that second category is fulfilled by Zetsuai/Bronze because it's manga and thus easier to get through and so damn full of angst and pain and messed up-ness. This week the happy thing I read was Komatta toki ni wa hoshi ni kike! because I downloaded the first two drama CDs and I refell in love with the series again. Damn, it's good. I wonder how the scanlations are? I hope they don't suck. :P The depressing story I started reading was Mirage of Blaze book 11 (because something was very very wrong with me). Since I keep falling asleep while reading it I haven't gotten very far, but I did enjoy rereading Takaya and Yuzuru wandering about the city, Nagahide giving Takaya a piece of his mind about the situation with Naoe, and most of all, the cheesy hotel scene with Naoe and his fuck for the night. Just the conceit of identifying them as "the man" and "the woman" made me laugh. The actual conversation made me laugh even more, especially like when the woman asserts that he can make a woman orgasm by just whispering in her ear. XD

I have to make a amazon japan order soon! Found out that the Fujimi Orchestra Premium Book came out April 1! It was published for the 10 year anniversary of the series, it has character and series data AND short stories not published in the novels!! The manga Kanreizeisen Conductor was also published for the anniversary...

However, I'm torn because I know a bunch of stuff will be coming out later this month and I don't know if I should wait for them or not. The second Sono Yubi dake ga Shitteiru (Only the Ring Finger Knows) drama CD, Hidarite wa kare no yume wo miru (The left hand dreams of him), comes out April 28. I do want it since I think the voices were great in the first one. One bonus (for others if not myself) is that there has to be sex in it, since in the novels they have sex after the first half of the first book (which is what the manga covers).There should also be a new manga Toumei Ningen volume 1 by Odagiri Hotaru coming out from Chara Comics on April 25, but amazon japan hasn't updated with the April Chara Comics releases.

There was an article in my local newspaper that was syndicated from the New York Times about the mainstreaming of the Elegant Gothic Lolita style. I couldn't find it on that newspaper's website, but I did find the same article (edited differently) at another newspaper's site. I had to laugh at the mention of the indignation of the early adopters of the mainstreaming of their hobby and the resulting corruption that will ensue because it reminds me of the noise made when some anime is picked up to be played on Cartoon Network and people bitch about the clueless hordes who will join the fandom.

The article mentioned an lj community, egl so I decided to check it out (if it wasn't locked, which it apparently isn't). On a post about the "Boy Lolita" style they have links to a bunch of images of Japanese people dressed up both in the "boy lolita" and regular lolita style. Fascinating stuff...I've mostly seen this style in anime and manga, not on real people. :P

I spent some time reading reviews on amazon for the Nausicaa DVD. One reviewer was a fan of the first English dub "Warriors of the Wind" which she kept calling the "original" version, and made comments like how "the dialogue is so completely re-written"--it's been restored, damnit! I know it isn't her fault she was exposed to the evil the first dub, nor is she putting down the actual "original" feature, but my trauma stemming from that evil dub makes me react to such statements with much indignation. :P But my good humor was restored reading this line: "this movie is beautiful, despite any gripes about massive plot compression (read the manga!), voice dubs (watch the japanese version!) or comparisons to later ghibli films (watch them all!)." Yes, watch them all! Ah, nothing like fannish enthusiasm to make me happy. XD

I'll eventually get around to replying to comments...I really wish I could have a day just lying around doing nothing at home. Today I have to take my mom to the doctor for a follow up, and tomorrow is work all day. >_