Life, Words and the Pursuit of Sanity

If you are from X-Men Entropy: The 198 and need to get a hold of me. Reply to this post, please.

( Game Day 8 )

The following is a list of my web-published works.

( Triond )

Associated Content:

Stepping Out

Failing Standardised Tests

How to Live on $600 A Month

Name: X-Men Entropy: The 198
Genre: X-Men Comic AU
Format: Message Board
Contact: Mods - xe.admins@googlemail.com
Minimum Age Requirement: 17
Deadline: None

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X-Men Entropy: The 198

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Muppets being Classical:

Chickens and Gonzo do Strauss

Beaker does Ode to Joy

... Because the Muppets are just THAT awesome.

I know Katie'll love it. :P

Also; Habanera

My faith in humanity? Is restored! Why?

A Colorado Doctor is reversing Female Genital Mutilation, for FREE

Meaning, that women who have suffered through having their clitoris chopped off, may have some hope.

Newsweek article, and At Shakesville.

I want to be this woman when I grow up.

Dear Doctors of the world:

THIS is your standard. Beat it.

Benjamin Franklin is rolling in his grave and is going to come back and smack a bitch.

Philadelphia closes libraries

I... am stunned.

Go. Bid. I can't really afford it, but for the cause? It's worth it.

Also, Jim is hilariously funny and a decent guy.

( Still lots! )

Okay, That's the last one!

( More! )

( Trust me LOTS )

Just... OMG...

Michael Jackson dead at age 50

Just... Man. I remember when Thriller was a big deal.

I'm just o.o

BUFFY vs EDWARD CULLEN

BWAHAHAHAHA

Pixar grants dying girl's wish

Warning: Tear jerker.

Well done Pixar, well done.

I've remained silent, up until now.

In the world, though, there have been those that have not been silent. They've taken to the streets. They've braved police, military, and plain-clothes assassins to get their message out to the world. They've attempted, in a way that most Americans need to sit up and take notice of, to take control of their country.

Iran, for children of the 80s, has always been a "bad" country. They harbour terrorists, and during the Cold War sided with the Russians, and other communist countries.

Does anyone remember Iran-Contra? I was only nine when it came to light, and all I ever knew was that Iran had done something "bad", and so had high level Americans.

These stereotypes remained with me, when a few short years later, my cousin, my brothers, and others, were sent into Saudi Arabia to defend Kuwait from Iraq. To me, there wasn't any difference.

When I began reading about ancient Persia, and other ancient empires, I realised that a lot of these things were hidden behind the iron curtain of Iran.

In my naivete, I believed that the people of Iran wanted their government the way it was. After all didn't everyone hold elections like we did?

As I grew older, my ignorance was relieved, and I learned more about the area, and I came to realise that while they may want change, it would be a hard fight, and I didn't have a clue as to how to start it.

These past few days, I didn't have to start it.

I didn't have to do anything, save sit back, in the comfort of my American Freedoms, and watch.

I thought, in some portion of my mind that shortly the small amounts of protesters would just go home, and Iran would go back to being the Iron-curtained hell-hole of my imagination.

I am humbled and ecstatic to be proved wrong.

The Iranian people are telling the world that they are not the backward or terrible people that some believe them to be. They went to the polls, just like we do, and they elected someone.

And when another attempted to take that vote away from them, they got angry and they took to the streets, and they became loud. They made their choice and how dare someone attempt to take that away from them.

Would we be any different?

Would we? Would we sit idly by while our votes were discounted and our government yanked from our hands?

Hell no we wouldn't. We'd march on Washington, on State Houses, on anything we thought would help, and we'd protest loudly.

Look at what they're doing in Iran.

Iran has banned foreign media from publishing the story happening right there in front of them. They are evicting the media from the country.

What can be done?

From 6000 miles away, there are very few options to us. But that does not mean we are powerless. The Iranian people, despite the government attempting to silence them, are finding proxy servers from all over the world, as they try to make themselves heard. Videos are still being found on YouTube. Twitters are still getting out and retweeting all over the world.

An excellent post can be found HERE

What can we do? We can keep talking. We can spread the word of the Iranians in the street that refuse to go quietly. We can use the power of this immense tool that we take for granted and refuse to allow them to be silenced. We can pray. We can urge help from the UN, Amnesty International, the Red Cross, and anyone else we can think of. We can listen to the powerful thoughts and fears of a people trying desperately to become more than they were.

The most powerful thing I have read about this is that these students, these protesters, continue to stand even when the threat of murder hangs over their heads. I have seen the women -- in a country where women are most often thought of as less -- stand up and say "No More."

The world may be divided, by governments, by religions, into separate countries. We are all still humans, however, and we owe it to our fellow humans to allow their voices to be heard.

I was wrong about Iran, and I hope my voice can join theirs. Let us raise the volume just that little bit. Let us help deafen those that would silence the shout of freedom, no matter where that shout comes from.

GUESS! Tis Zombie day!

Details here!

... Go ahead and try to guess which blog I'll be using. *CACKLES*

D. Gray-Man

I have to say, that the first few episodes promised a lot. The rest delivered.

D. Gray-Man is set within an alternate end to the nineteenth century. It's very steampunkish, and melds both reality (such as Japan being shut off for several hundred years) and their own twists.

It's the story of 15yo Allen Walker. He was abandoned by his parents for having a deformed left arm. He's taken in by a travelling clown, Mana Walker. When Mana dies, unexpectedly, Allen is met by someone called the Millennium Earl who brings Mana back from the dead as an "akuma" or demon.

Surviving that, however, is just the beginning of his troubles. You see, Allen can control an ancient substance called "Innocence" that acts as a holy weapon against Demons.

Those who can control Innocence are called Exorcists and work for a group called "The Dark Order". They wear black clothing and come from just about any background.

Opposing them, are a group called "Noah". Supposedly people who inherited things from... Noah. As in Noah's Ark? Yeah, that guy.

The Earl is the leader, and the creator of Demons.

The battles are, of course, epic. The characterisation is good. And it doesn't get so convoluted you can't follow it. Everything happens for a reason, meaning no superfluous anything. Whether it's pushing forward the characters or the plot you know, eventually, something's going to make sense.

Even the secondary characters have depth, even when they only show up in the last twenty or so episodes, you can grow to like them, and enjoy having them around.

All in all? I highly recommend this. It's steampunkish Victorian Earth, with several nice twists on both faith, and friendship.

Fuck you, California.

Just, fuck you.

Because I want to be sure that it gets read (VALIDATE ME DAMMIT)

catrood_dw

Now, go follow it dammit.

This is public because there are some things that I think people seemed to have forgotten.

The internet is not a safe place. It's not.

It's a fucking scary place. People are assholes. No one here is going to coddle you, or hold your hand. Some people are even going to disagree with you.

No one has to be nice to you. Yes, common courtesy is nice, and some people actually practice it, but they don't have to be nice to you.

The internet is big. People are from different countries, different conventions, have different religious beliefs, different social beliefs, and think, shockingly, that their beliefs are just as valid as yours.

Yes, hate is wrong.

Yes, prejudice is wrong.

Yes, all of these things should be eradicated.

I, personally, don't think that they ever will. Someone will always hate someone else. Whether it be out of jealousy, or out of fear, or out of some other emotion.

Humans have free will. And we're going to exercise it, no matter what.

All of this culminates to one thing:

You want to be 'safe' on the internet? You need to take your own safety into your own hands. You need to take steps to make sure that you are safe. Guess what? No one else is here to coddle you, or hold your hand and tell you it'll be okay.

This is something that President Obama talked about in one of his speeches. Personal responsibility. It is up to us to make sure we are safe.

If you don't like what someone is saying, and you've argued your side, and you feel the insults rising? Take a step back, shut the screen off. Take a walk.

Basically? Get over yourself, internet. None of you are a special snowflake.

Insta TV reccs people. You love me.

Two of them tonight:

1 - Lie To Me - A scientist has spent his life learning how to tell when people lie. He's turned it into science. He solves crimes, he advises world leaders. He's the strange guy from the Hulk movie that got enhanced. It's kinda awesome in that CSI-y way. GO WATCH.

2 - This is J's fault. Big Bang Theory. LET THE GEEKERY COMMENCE. Seriously. Guys? Hilarious. Also? It's like a Roseanne reunion. \o/

Graphically inclined types?

I need a header image for me DreamWidth account. It needs to be something... writerly. Pen/paper, books, etc. No fandom or anything. Ideas?

I will luff j00 forever if you make me one.

This is public, because HI COME JOIN OUR GAME! X-Men Entropy: The 198. A canon only Comic AU game. I am a MODLING and I will gladly help you through just about everything.

Seriously people. Let's see:

We've had Werewolves, Dinosaurs, Vampires, Blade, Marauders, and several visits from everyone's favourite psychotic Kitty Cat, Sabretooth.

We have many canons open:

WOLVERINE! Angel! Iceman! Havok! Cannonball!

And a lot more!

Don't know much about X-Men? Pfft! Not an excuse! There is:

Marvel.com, UncannyX-Men.net, Wikipedia, AND ComicVine.com

All give great overviews as to what you need to know about most characters!

Alright, now for the real reason I started this entry. Why? Marauders, Vampires, and sometimes Morlocks.

And then... there is Blade.

( Blade under here, if you are too lazy to click )

---

These are the reasons you need to come join XE. We have great fun, relaxed posting rules, and we are NOT NOT NOT all about the shipping. (In fact, I think, if you squint and attempt to look at your eyebrows, there is ONE pairing on the entire board. And that's not even solid yet.) We even have Shipping Laws.

Come join us people! X-Men FTW!

The Hunt for Gollum

... I may have to watch this.

Twenty six episodes long, this follows two high school students determined to be perfect no matter what.

I did not like this one. Not at all. There were funny moments. There were poignant moments.

... Mostly? Mostly there was "And this is what happened so far!" A lot of that, actually.

I'm sorry but I don't need a two episode long review when there's only been thirteen episodes!

So, yeah. This one? Not real high on the recc list. It's got enough angst to shake a large dragon at, but it's not worth all the other stuff.

BAH.

Twelve Kingdoms

This is... it's pseudo-political nonsense with fantasy elements thrown in. As well as alternate worlds, the will of Heaven, and beings a lot like arch angels.

Basically, this is a world where Heaven, in the form of beings called Kirin -- who look a lot like unicorns in their beast form -- chooses Emperors. If an Emperor/Empress is good and just, the kingdom flourishes, and all is well.

If, however, the Emperor/Empress 'sins' and becomes more of a dictator, the Kirin actually becomes ill and suffers for those 'sins' and can, eventually, die from them.

It's an awesome premise, and Youko, the main character is actually believable. She gets taken from modern day Japan, thrust in this medieval/Feudal Japan-like world and does a lot of "WTF?!"-ing and flailing around and basically, screwing up a lot.

... Which makes me like her more.

And if she wasn't cool enough, the Emperor of En, who eventually befriends her, is really, really awesome. Him, and his Kirin, Enki, are constantly arguing and calling each other names, and acting like brothers who really love each other. Enki is always calling Shoukou an idiot, and Shoukou returns the favour by calling him a short, half-sized brat.

I really enjoyed it. I think it's 'incomplete' but that may be because I feel there are story lines still to be resolved.

Ah well.

Some go watch it. Enjoy pseudo-politics with me!

I'm only going to post a link to THIS VIDEO

... You're welcome.

Ghost Hunt, if you like anything paranormal, is pretty much your meal ticket. It was described to me as "A Ghost Hunters High School AU done right" and I can find no fault with that. It's only 25 episodes long, and most 'cases' span several episodes, so you do have to watch it in order.

However, the characters are well written, the story lines are nice, and it delves more into the various Japanese myths and beliefs, not to mention history that I found it both interesting, and informative.

fuzzybluelogic needs to watch this one. Hear me? NEEDS.

It all starts when our heroine, Taniyama Mai, finds a camera in an old abandoned building on her school grounds. She goes to touch it and someone yells behind her, and she panics, damaging the camera, and the assistant of the man she's about to become an assistant to, Shibuya Kazuya.

Naru, as Mai calls him because his a narcissistic jerk to her, is the president of Shibuya Psychic Research, and is aided by Koujo Lin, who is a very interesting character.

Along the way, we also get to meet Takigawa Houshou, a former Buddhist monk turned professional bassist (No, I'm not making that up!). He's offset by Matsuzaki Ayako, who is stuck up, rude, and honestly I didn't really like her much.

Also, we get Hara Masako, who seems to be the equivalent of our John Edward. And to round out the merry bunch there is John Brown. No, I'm not making that up, either. He's a Catholic exorcist from Australia, at 19.

Again, I really did enjoy this one, even if only one of the cases truly made me twitch. That's okay. It had some good moments, and some nice sarcasm.

Also, Shibuya reminded me of Kyouya from Ouran. Scarily a lot. (Lin was totally Mori. Shush.)

Alright, I know I said I'd do Ouran next, but I just finished this, and I wanted to get it down while it's fresh in my mind.

So, this is 30 episodes long (26+ 4 OVAs).

It's about the end of the world, finding Paradise and incorporates an old legend that wolves brought about the first humans. It's also about a flower girl, who is supposed to lead them to Paradise.

I really liked this one. It got a bit muddled (when skipping from character to character) but it was good.

Now, onto the characters:

Kiba - alpha wolf, and main character. He's a white wolf, and the anime opens with him struggling through the snow having been injured. He's really the driving force behind the others.

Tsube - Gangster, all around bad boy. He's the cynic and the cranky one (there's always one). He tends to be the Beta of the pack.

Hige - The one who saves Kiba from humans, and the jokester of the group. He's got a big part to play, but I don't want to spoil it.

Toboe - He's the youngest, the most impulsive, and, honestly the sweetheart of the bunch.

Cheza - The Fabled Flower Girl.

There are nobles, humans (good and bad), redemption, and the good, bad, and the damned ugly.

Honestly, go watch this. It's awesome and the ending is just... *flaily*

Note: I watched the subbed anime, so I don't know the quality of the dub.

Perfect Girl Evolution/Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge/Wallflower

This anime is just pure crack and brain candy. Why? Man.

Take four pretty, stereotypical boys. Add one insane Oba-san who wants to turn her niece into a 'lady'. Add said niece who's best friends are a pair of anatomical models, and a pair of skeletons, plus her idea of an awesome Friday night is watching slasher films, the scarier/gorier the better.

Mix together with fangirls and random kidnapping attempts, and shake well!

Okay, so our four pretty boys are stereotypes:

Takano Kyohei - pretty blond bad boy. Bad attitude, swearing, and totally a jackass. He also has the most trouble with being 'pretty'. It got him kicked out of the house, and fired from countless jobs.

Oda Takenaga - Stoic, deep, and studious, and emotionally repressed.

Toyama Yukinojo (aka Yuki) - sweetheart, sensitive, gentle, caring and highly innocent. He also seems to end up in girl's clothing a lot.

Morii Ranmaru - the playboy who merely has to reach for his phone to get anything he wants.

Our heroine, Nakahara Sunako was once hurt by a boy in middle school, and afterwards swore to "live her life in darkness" and foreswear all the typical things that girls do.

And then there's the other girl. Kasahara Noi (aka Noi-chi) who is pretty, perky, and so utterly girly that of course she's the prettiest/smartest/most liked girl in school. (She also fights with Kyohei a lot.)

Anyway, Oba-san opened her house to the four boys. Then, cut them off from all familial support. "to give them character". So, they have to pay rent, etc all on their own. HOWEVER, she will give them free rent, if they can turn her niece, Sunako, into a "proper lady".

The boys set out to do just that. There's a lot of poignant moments, but there's also some that'll have you cracking up with a big "WUT?!" because, honestly, it's hilarious.

A big message about it is "enjoy being yourself", which I think is a good one.

Highly recommended, just for the brain candy and watching Sunako and Kyohei have UST at each other.

Next time: Ouran High School Host Club