Without Tom Baker, there is no Doctor Who *sobs*, Little Brother, When the Last Sword is Drawn

It's taken me three days of sheer bloodymindedness, but I managed to to fix my Dell Inspiron 600m (ie, my old laptop) since it broke down right before Dad and I left on our trip. It's pretty old and the original software was for Windows XP service pack 1, which caused me no end of grief. I only got it installed properly around noon and will spend the rest of the day installing stuff (mostly windows updates since I've decided not to overload the poor thing. It only has 30GB of memory after all).

Postgrad search is interesting. So far, my only options are the University of Hawaii, Berkeley, and possibly the University of Toronto (one of these things is not like the other...). I'm more partial to Hawaii or Berkeley because of the programs on offer, but we shall see. My only other option is waiting another year and hoping they hire some new Japanese archaeology people at other universities. This is, of course, leaving out the problem of funding and money. o_o

Finished reading Cory Doctorow's Little Brother and have decided that it mostly reads like a low key guide to what to do when your government goes 1984 on your arse. I found the book strangely soothing, but that might be because I dream about revolutions all the time and this book was exactly like reading one of my dreams (only, there's usually more fighting and death in my dreams, natch.) Currently reading The City of Ember.

Watched When the Last Sword is Drawn last night. It's one of those movies I've owned for ages (because you snap up cheap Japanese movies when you can get them) but didn't get around to watching until now. I liked the idea behind it, of Saitou wandering into a clinic and spotting a picture of a dead comrade and then telling the story through various people's flashbacks. There were lots of references to history and it was interesting to see, though the idea of Saitou killing Ryoma Sakamoto is ridiculous. I would have liked more on Saitou to tell the truth, rather than the long, drawn out death scene of the other guy (I have no doubt Japanese audiences were sobbing their eyes out during this scene cause I've seen it happen while watching dramas with them. Dad was crying but I was annoyed cause I have no patience for pre-seppuku soliloquies no matter how good the actor is.). Oh, and the movie totally glossed over the Boshin war and the actual final battles of the Shinsengumi. The side roles in the movie which were only glancingly portrayed like Okita were excellent, as were the main actors. Also, those were some nice fight scenes and it was fun to listen to what we'd now consider overly formal Japanese being used by the servants and women, etc.

What else has Ariana been doing? Watching Survivorman. Rewatched Casino Royale, The Hunt for Red October, Practical Magic, and Kung Fu Hustle. Searched in vain for my own copy of Emperor's New Groove (surely I own this, right? right?). Finished watching the first season of Pretender. Went to the comic book store, spent too much money, and was hit on by the clerk. Read parts of Kurosaki Corpse Delivery Service in Japanese. Made some lj icons. Stared more at my book. Read Bleach fic.

Without Tom Baker, there is no Doctor Who *sobs*, Little Brother, When the Last Sword is Drawn

It's taken me three days of sheer bloodymindedness, but I managed to to fix my Dell Inspiron 600m (ie, my old laptop) since it broke down right before Dad and I left on our trip. It's pretty old and the original software was for Windows XP service pack 1, which caused me no end of grief. I only got it installed properly around noon and will spend the rest of the day installing stuff (mostly windows updates since I've decided not to overload the poor thing. It only has 30GB of memory after all).

Postgrad search is interesting. So far, my only options are the University of Hawaii, Berkeley, and possibly the University of Toronto (one of these things is not like the other...). I'm more partial to Hawaii or Berkeley because of the programs on offer, but we shall see. My only other option is waiting another year and hoping they hire some new Japanese archaeology people at other universities. This is, of course, leaving out the problem of funding and money. o_o

Finished reading Cory Doctorow's Little Brother and have decided that it mostly reads like a low key guide to what to do when your government goes 1984 on your arse. I found the book strangely soothing, but that might be because I dream about revolutions all the time and this book was exactly like reading one of my dreams (only, there's usually more fighting and death in my dreams, natch.) Currently reading The City of Ember.

Watched When the Last Sword is Drawn last night. It's one of those movies I've owned for ages (because you snap up cheap Japanese movies when you can get them) but didn't get around to watching until now. I liked the idea behind it, of Saitou wandering into a clinic and spotting a picture of a dead comrade and then telling the story through various people's flashbacks. There were lots of references to history and it was interesting to see, though the idea of Saitou killing Ryoma Sakamoto is ridiculous. I would have liked more on Saitou to tell the truth, rather than the long, drawn out death scene of the other guy (I have no doubt Japanese audiences were sobbing their eyes out during this scene cause I've seen it happen while watching dramas with them. Dad was crying but I was annoyed cause I have no patience for pre-seppuku soliloquies no matter how good the actor is.). Oh, and the movie totally glossed over the Boshin war and the actual final battles of the Shinsengumi. The side roles in the movie which were only glancingly portrayed like Okita were excellent, as were the main actors. Also, those were some nice fight scenes and it was fun to listen to what we'd now consider overly formal Japanese being used by the servants and women, etc.

What else has Ariana been doing? Watching Survivorman. Rewatched Casino Royale, The Hunt for Red October, Practical Magic, and Kung Fu Hustle. Searched in vain for my own copy of Emperor's New Groove (surely I own this, right? right?). Finished watching the first season of Pretender. Went to the comic book store, spent too much money, and was hit on by the clerk. Read parts of Kurosaki Corpse Delivery Service in Japanese. Made some lj icons. Stared more at my book. Read Bleach fic.

It's Tell a Story Day in Scotland so here's mine

Myron Gormand always wanted to be a pirate, so when the pirate raiders from the Isle of Deeblinde came swooping down on his tiny fishing village, he was overjoyed. This lasted until his mother was run through on a cutlass and his neighbour's son was drowned in a water barrel. Myron could think of nothing better than killing pirates after that and grabbed a cutlass and went after the pirates. Like any good raiders, they were leaving after taking all of value. Unfortunately, Myron wore thick glasses that came all the way from the city of Tellis in the west. They tended to fog over and slip off whenever it was most inconvenient for Myron, and so they did that day. Unable to see, Myron tripped on a cobble stone, rolling over his shoulder and down the hill towards the docks. His cutlass went flying, and by happen stance landed in the chest of the pirate's best navigator. He tipped over and bled out in seconds so that when Myron came to a stop at the bottom of the hill, he fell just short of a puddle of blood and mud and a dead pirate.

"That tears it!" shouted the Captain. His men froze in terror. "We be cursed by the gods of mathematics to never keep a navigator, so I swear! Woolsey - stung by a sea anemone - ten miles inland! Eramel choked on a wheevil! And now Yargus killed by a lucky throw from a four-eyed boy!" His hands were flung out dramatically while his men nodded or murmured their agreement.

Now that he was so close to the pirates and could see their blood and tar stained hands, and more importantly, smell them, Myron was thinking it would be a good idea to let them go unharmed. Accidentally killing one of them was all he could manage for the day. "I dropped the sword. Didn't mean to kill him," he muttered scrambling away. But the movement drew the attention of the Captain.

"You, Boy. Your luck may be just what we need. Can you do mathematics?" His friendly smile showed teeth that had been filed to points then painted black.

It didn't occur to Myron to lie. "If I have my glasses." One of the pirates handed them to him. The only good thing about having glasses so thick was that they rarely broke. Myron was slung over the side of a ship's boat and then pushed up over the side of the pirate's ship. There, he made his mark on their charter, was handed a book on navigation and officially became the navigator to the pirate ship, The Scarlet Blaze. He mourned his mother and town in his free time, which was scant and soon months had passed and The Scarlet Blaze headed back to the Isle of Deeblinde. The Captain had left his mark all over the five seas, and it was time for the crew to spend their shares.

The men were excited to get off the ship, but when they spotted a strange purple flag flying from the highest peak on the Isle, they went berserk, rushing to put in so fast they almost crashed the ship into the rocks of the harbour. Myron tried to stay on the ship, not wanting to see what happened in a town where every pirate had ample money and shore leave, but the Captain refused to let anyone stay on the boat except blind Worthington. "I'll not have any man left behind on this day," said the Captain. "I've a mind to try this time."

"Try what?" asked Myron. He was clapped on the back so hard he almost went over the rail.

"Why for Pirate King! The election is today. I'll have a good chance if certain people can keep their mouths shut." The Captain winked. Myron nodded as if he understood, and followed the Captain onto the shore. Other captains were also converging on the shore, surrounded by their men. They passed three abreast through a natural opening into a huge sea cave, its waters drained by the tide. Captains and their groups ranged themselves over the sharp rocks, while those pirates without captains filled the spaces in between. By noon, it was full and the cave was illuminated by the midday sun.

An old pirate with a black eye patch with a painting of an eye on it stood up upon the shoulders of a giant, red-skinned pirate. "Ahoy! Ahoy!" The cavern went silent. "Ye ole noo de ruzz," he said, and it took Myron a long moment to decipher the sentence so he missed if there really were any rules. The old man said a few more incomprehensible sentences before falling silent. A female captain with long, snarled hair and the glint of a gold ring in her nose leapt onto a rock in the centre of the cavern. "Captain Turlough!" she yelled, and there were many "Ayes!" echoing her yell. She snarled in disappointment and leapt off the rock. Myron was confused.

One by one, the captains leapt on the rock and shouted their names. Over and over the "Ayes!" met them, and sometimes it was the whole cavern who was roaring them, but no matter how many shouted, the captains always left the rock. The Scarlet Blaze's crew seemed to shout without rhyme or reason.

Then it was their Captain's turn. He climb up the rock was followed by murmurs. The Captain waited patiently for quiet before roaring out his name, "Captain Butcher!" Myron was caught in the excitement and thought there could be nothing wrong with cheering for his captain. His lone "Aye!" echoed strangely over the distant murmur of the ocean. The Captain had been facing away but when he turned to see Myron he laughed long and hard. The old man with the eye patch called out another incomprehensible sentence, and the cavern burst into deafening cheers. The crew and everyone else rushed to congratulate the Captain, while Myron hung back, quietly contemplating the lesson he had learned; in the land of Deeblinde, the one aye'd man was king.

It's Tell a Story Day in Scotland so here's mine

Myron Gormand always wanted to be a pirate, so when the pirate raiders from the Isle of Deeblinde came swooping down on his tiny fishing village, he was overjoyed. This lasted until his mother was run through on a cutlass and his neighbour's son was drowned in a water barrel. Myron could think of nothing better than killing pirates after that and grabbed a cutlass and went after the pirates. Like any good raiders, they were leaving after taking all of value. Unfortunately, Myron wore thick glasses that came all the way from the city of Tellis in the west. They tended to fog over and slip off whenever it was most inconvenient for Myron, and so they did that day. Unable to see, Myron tripped on a cobble stone, rolling over his shoulder and down the hill towards the docks. His cutlass went flying, and by happen stance landed in the chest of the pirate's best navigator. He tipped over and bled out in seconds so that when Myron came to a stop at the bottom of the hill, he fell just short of a puddle of blood and mud and a dead pirate.

"That tears it!" shouted the Captain. His men froze in terror. "We be cursed by the gods of mathematics to never keep a navigator, so I swear! Woolsey - stung by a sea anemone - ten miles inland! Eramel choked on a wheevil! And now Yargus killed by a lucky throw from a four-eyed boy!" His hands were flung out dramatically while his men nodded or murmured their agreement.

Now that he was so close to the pirates and could see their blood and tar stained hands, and more importantly, smell them, Myron was thinking it would be a good idea to let them go unharmed. Accidentally killing one of them was all he could manage for the day. "I dropped the sword. Didn't mean to kill him," he muttered scrambling away. But the movement drew the attention of the Captain.

"You, Boy. Your luck may be just what we need. Can you do mathematics?" His friendly smile showed teeth that had been filed to points then painted black.

It didn't occur to Myron to lie. "If I have my glasses." One of the pirates handed them to him. The only good thing about having glasses so thick was that they rarely broke. Myron was slung over the side of a ship's boat and then pushed up over the side of the pirate's ship. There, he made his mark on their charter, was handed a book on navigation and officially became the navigator to the pirate ship, The Scarlet Blaze. He mourned his mother and town in his free time, which was scant and soon months had passed and The Scarlet Blaze headed back to the Isle of Deeblinde. The Captain had left his mark all over the five seas, and it was time for the crew to spend their shares.

The men were excited to get off the ship, but when they spotted a strange purple flag flying from the highest peak on the Isle, they went berserk, rushing to put in so fast they almost crashed the ship into the rocks of the harbour. Myron tried to stay on the ship, not wanting to see what happened in a town where every pirate had ample money and shore leave, but the Captain refused to let anyone stay on the boat except blind Worthington. "I'll not have any man left behind on this day," said the Captain. "I've a mind to try this time."

"Try what?" asked Myron. He was clapped on the back so hard he almost went over the rail.

"Why for Pirate King! The election is today. I'll have a good chance if certain people can keep their mouths shut." The Captain winked. Myron nodded as if he understood, and followed the Captain onto the shore. Other captains were also converging on the shore, surrounded by their men. They passed three abreast through a natural opening into a huge sea cave, its waters drained by the tide. Captains and their groups ranged themselves over the sharp rocks, while those pirates without captains filled the spaces in between. By noon, it was full and the cave was illuminated by the midday sun.

An old pirate with a black eye patch with a painting of an eye on it stood up upon the shoulders of a giant, red-skinned pirate. "Ahoy! Ahoy!" The cavern went silent. "Ye ole noo de ruzz," he said, and it took Myron a long moment to decipher the sentence so he missed if there really were any rules. The old man said a few more incomprehensible sentences before falling silent. A female captain with long, snarled hair and the glint of a gold ring in her nose leapt onto a rock in the centre of the cavern. "Captain Turlough!" she yelled, and there were many "Ayes!" echoing her yell. She snarled in disappointment and leapt off the rock. Myron was confused.

One by one, the captains leapt on the rock and shouted their names. Over and over the "Ayes!" met them, and sometimes it was the whole cavern who was roaring them, but no matter how many shouted, the captains always left the rock. The Scarlet Blaze's crew seemed to shout without rhyme or reason.

Then it was their Captain's turn. He climb up the rock was followed by murmurs. The Captain waited patiently for quiet before roaring out his name, "Captain Butcher!" Myron was caught in the excitement and thought there could be nothing wrong with cheering for his captain. His lone "Aye!" echoed strangely over the distant murmur of the ocean. The Captain had been facing away but when he turned to see Myron he laughed long and hard. The old man with the eye patch called out another incomprehensible sentence, and the cavern burst into deafening cheers. The crew and everyone else rushed to congratulate the Captain, while Myron hung back, quietly contemplating the lesson he had learned; in the land of Deeblinde, the one aye'd man was king.