Backtrack

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 During my elementary (grade school), I had a female best friend that I'll hide behind the name "Breezy". She led me and her other friends to lots of fun adventures [smirks in amusement], which included a fair amount of trouble (that thankfully weren't made known to our parents).

 Breezy smiled a lot and she shared a lot of my hobbies such as reading and watching cartoon TV shows as we approached our teens. She gave me a book when we graduated on the 6th grade since we were going to different High Schools. Sir Walter Scott's Ivanhoe wasn't a first in the genré since I was given an abbreviated portion of part of Le Morte d'Arthur when I reached the 3rd grade. However, Ivanhoe opened a lot of doors as it had a lot of "thee" and "thou" while introducing new concepts that I was only able to appreciate years after.

 Breezy and I kept in touch during the first two years of high school. I'd ride my bike to her house, we'd exchange stories and be ourselves. She gave me another book, Robert McKinney's Homecoming (4th in the novel adaptation of the Macross saga). Of course, since she attended a Science High School, the academic pressures prevented further interaction until we met again while we prepared for the College Entrance Exams.

 I was happy to see a familiar and friendly face in those preparatory classes. We made a mutual friend (who sadly didn't make it into the University of the Philippines like we did), re-affirmed bonds and learned. [tilts head to the right] Well, I learned more than she did since most of the topics covered in the classes have already been discussed during her classroom hours.

 Upon getting admitted to the University of the Phillipines-Manila (hers was direct while mine was more circuitous), we managed to keep in touch. Sure, her course was taxing as it was the accelerated Medical Course (designed to turn you into a doctor within seven years, provided you don't go mad or depressed along the way) but she managed. I, however, had to leave the University as my skills weren't up to the task.

 A year passed in the school that I transferred to. I was walking home with my first girlfriend when I met her on Padre Faura. I introduced my girl to her then I was surprised that she rebuffed me, saying that it's all fine and dandy but I forgot that the day was also her birthday.

 At least a decade has passed since that event. True, the sting has passed. I still am confused that she was annoyed that I didn't remember her birthday when she didn't bother to greet me on any of mine before that occasion. I mean, you forgot mine so shouldn't it be fine that I forgot yours when both of us meant no malice [tilts head to the right]?

 Anyhow, ever since the social networking websites have taken root (which would be after that incident), I've taken to hiding my birthday. When Friendster was in vogue, I would move my birthday a month behind whenever it approached. Now that Facebook is the rage, it took some time but I eventually found a way to hide my birthday.

 Just recently, only my blood family and some of my adopted sisters were able to greet me. It was satisfying [smiles like a well-fed cat].

 So, yeah, if Breezy crosses my path again, what would I do? On the spot (while I'm writing this), I've decided to greet her with a genuine heartfelt smile. She was my best friend then. Should she want to leave things in the ditch, my hands would be clean.

Shirogane

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 Last Tuesday, I was surprised to see that my Nokia X2 (which I've named Shirogane) was turned off. Concerned, I turned it on after ejecting the microSD. Inserting the microSD card after Shirogane finished booting, I was surprised when it didn't show that it was updating the media library.

 Numerous restarts passed until I got home. There, I swapped cards, putting in another card that I knew was working. The card was read and I was able to play the stored songs; which lead to the conclusion that the installed card is dead.

 It wasn't the first time that the card died so it wasn't surprising that it eventually gave up the ghost [sighs]. Unfortunately, IF I'm not listening to music during my off hours, my aural memory plays back pieces of the various conversations I've had with the customers.

 So, I've had to suffer through 3 pre-sleep-cycles of hearing those recorded voices.

[shudders in remembered pain]

 Thanks to my adopted twin sister and her bro, I was able to resurrect Shirogane's MP3 playing capabilities. That meant I had to have only 3 hours of sleep but I was able to get a LOT of the songs I wanted plus some of those that I've lost. [shrugs] I still have a lot of songs to recover but that's par for the course.

Collectibles sans picture

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 I've looked at my older posts and I've seen that I originally intended to get Miku's figma. That was around 2009 and I think I can trace the change's reasons. First is that Miku Hatsune's figma's price is OUTRAGEOUSLY affected by supply and demand. Would you believe that her figma's SRP is PHP 1800 BUT supply and demand bumps it up to PHP 2500! The second reason is aesthetic. Comparing Miku and Luka, Luka has long pink hair, is voluptuous and looks more mature.

 [tilts head to the right] Am I going after a certain persona with those choices? Perhaps. It's quite possible I'm just a tight-fist but that doesn't make sense since it would be contrary to a tight-fist's description.

 Anyhow, Luka's figma has a somewhat limited range of motion. Her hair limits her head's overall motion and her arms' upward and sideward motion. Her arms have extensions to the sides that further increase the limit on the motion. Her flared skirt only allows limited flexion of the left hip [smirks wryly] which is better than the 20 or so degrees of flexion achieved by the right hip.

 Of course, the limitations are something that I can live with. Obviously, the action figure's designer took those factors into consideration and had no choice about it since Luka's character design is set in stone. Besides, I've chosen Luka over Miku. Yeah, it sucks that she only has 2 singles and a duet in Project Diva 2 [smirks].


 I finally have a respectable Mobile Suit to hold MAGENTA. My primary gripe is that it doesn't have any ranged weapons installed in the torso. I'm still working on installing the HG 00's arms on the HG Strike Freedom's torso. It's possible that if I modify the 00's arms so it can interface with the Strike Freedom's shoulders, I'd get what I want. Of course, such a modification would require plastic cement, sawing off parts (both on the arms and at the hip joints) and an hour or so of effort for each modification; add the cost of replacements if breakage happens.

Neko thoughts

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About five days ago, I saw a little kitten on the concrete island, right between 3 lanes of traffic. It was around midnight so there were few vehicles; one passes by every 7 minutes. The kitten, from the little that I know about cat anatomy, is perhaps no more than a month old. While it was already reasonably mobile, it wouldn't have enough speed to run across the lane to its left much less reach the middle of the 2 lanes to its right.

Sentiment and concern told me to pick up the little feline and adopt it. The markings were average and her mask was pleasant to look at. I'd have had to do some checks to confirm the kitten wasn't infested with internal parasites or perhaps consult with a veterinarian at the most. Besides that, it would be nice to have a fellow feline to keep me company; me being more feline than canine. 

Common sense told me that I don't have the financial security to even start taking care of anyone beside myself. I'd have to strictly regulate my circadian rhythm so the kitten can eat on time. I'll have to secure most of my equipment as cats are territorial (i.e. they mark stuff they consider theirs, stuff being everything they can reach). The room I'm renting doesn't have a way that would freely let a cat move in or out of it. While I could provide a scratching post (as there's a lot of places where I can get driftwood or scrap wood), that's the most that I can do for the kitten.

I do hope the little kitten is fine. I did walk to the same place the day after and I didn't see any little-kitty-shaped street pizza. Of course, it doesn't mean it wasn't run over but I do pray that the little kitten is safe and has been adopted by now.

Mascot!

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I've recently constructed the standard/vanilla kit of Hoihoi-san manufactured by Kotobukiya.

For a kit that is roughly the size of one of Bandai's 1/144 HG Gundam kit (not counting the Kshatriya or Psycho, among others), its price (like its peers from the Rockman series) is just a few (2-4) hundred pesos away from the price of a 1/100 MG Gundam kit.

The articulation is limited by the hair and skirt. The hair limits the arms and the neck rotation. The skirt doesn't let the hips fully flex but that's fine. Posability is limited by the joint and weight distribution; the head is heavy enough that its position greatly affects the kit's available positions or poses. The shoulders are limited by the hair. The elbow joints are limited because of the surfaces, it doesn't have two axes nor does it have a large enough clearance. The lower extremities' range of motion is reasonably good, acceptable even; it's just that the skirt limits it a bit.

Additionally, the edges of the parts that connect aren't flush with each other. It's easily seen in the kit's hands and hair where you'd actually see gaps in between. Arii (a company that once produced kits of Macross' Veritechs and Battloids) produced kits that required cement BUT the parts' edges are flush with each other, leaving no gaps.

So, the kit that I've christened Momoiro (or Momo-chan) is a reasonably good buy. Yeah, the price is a bit steep. Yeah, some of the parts aren't flush with each other. Yeah, the articulation and posability is a bit more limited than expected.

Will I buy other Kotobukiya kits? Probably not. Will I treasure Momo-chan? Most definitely. Stock Hoi-hoi-san photo of (the slip's not visible) courtesy of http://www.robotempire.org/.

Making sense

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 Once in a while (if at all), you get in a situation where thoughts don't make sense, when you think in a certain pattern with no known reason.

 Being attracted to women is natural, at least if you're a straight guy. Me, I was inexplicably hooked to a girl I met for the first time. Yeah, she had the right parts: proportional bosom, height at par with mine, not slim or fat [nods]. Yep, all the right parts, I tell you.

 She was in a relationship, which was fine 'cause I was just looking. But I couldn't stop myself from looking at her. She wasn't -THAT- pretty, truth be told, but I'd always look.

 So, I dug.

 And after all the passive digging, I discovered that my attraction was based on the fact that she resembles another Lady in my life. Said Lady wasn't a romantic interest but she was someone special as she pointed out the right directions to take. Said Lady is/was sensible, pretty and perky (unless she's in one of those moods) and what makes/made her attractive was her panache. She was kinda short, a bit on the skinny side and was quite flat but she has left an impression, one that is making itself known.

 It's nice to know the reason behind the ill-proportioned attraction I felt. Such things tend to mess up other things. Knowing is half the battle.

And the Wheel of Time turns once again

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 Upheavals are expected in a life; it would be boring otherwise.

 So, we have an ended relationship [shrugs]. It matters little how it ended, as it is over and done regardless. What am I keeping from it? Good memories, a 1/100 MG Wing Zero Custom with silver wings named Samurai Excelsa, the affirmation that some people are really stupid but they still bear and raise twisted children even if they shouldn't and a persistent drive to move forward.

 I finished painting Samurai Excelsa's wings and it's [pouts] aggravating that the spray can of silver paint is malfunctioning. Granted that the can malfunctioned AFTER the wings were painted, I still had Melodia's swords to paint (among other things). That's another expense since I do have to finish those projects that I wanted painted a specific color. There's also the repair of overpainted parts, which means I have to sand away the error and repaint. And ... Yes, the list does go on. There's a specific mecha I want to create and it'll mean some kit-bashing. And painting. [sighs] Painting is troublesome but it's the only way to get what I want so I have to suck it up.

 I have a PSP. That's something that I'm very pleased about. I can watch movies (albeit on a smaller screen) and play the games I like. Yes, I've ignored Final Fantasy Tactics in exchange for Tactics Ogre: Let us cling together. Hopefully, the FF fanboys won't notice and lynch me [smirks in amusement]. Yes, I'm" grinding" earlier than expected that the story battles just aren't challenging. The process, however, is more a product of wanting dragons at an early enough stage. To get dragons, one must have functional dragoons. You'd get where it's going if you've played enough games.

 I have songs, new songs from my twin. Kalafina has great songs. Plumb, too. There's also CHEMISTRY's "Merry-go-round" for Gundam Unicorn and it's great!

 Gunslinger Girl is still at the top 5 of my manga list. The stories it weaves about the girls are so heart-wrenching and real. I absolutely love it that it's making me cry some more (was already crying since Beatrice died).

 Yes, life moves on. Moving on without Irene ... [shrugs] could be worse, I think.