3 Things in my Room

So DJ D did this cool post on his blog about 3 groovy things in his room. Suffice it to say its spawned countless others to do the same. While I feel that 3 things wasn't quite enough, I was able to narrow it down. I picked things that say other things about me, things that most people forget I'm into.

First thing: I love miniatures

What you see here is a "room" I've created for my 29cm ball joint doll May (whom you may remember from about 2 years ago). Its onea those modular Target brand shelve thingys, a 9 cube one. I dedicated one whole cube to May, and furnished it as best as I could w/ the limited space. As you can see, its not too large, but she can stand ok in it. The desk in the back was a gift from a friend who knew I loved miniatures.

Ever since I was young, I loved tiny things. I dunno why. I started collecting mini household items when i was young, and stopped after awhile due to other things (games, cosplay, etc), but I always wanted a doll house to display the tiny things I collected or made. One of my step uncles had a house, but got rid of it due to space, but they always kept the items that went into it, from tiny ottomans to mini table sets. I've always been fascinated by the level of detail put into it.

About 3 years ago, I started buying miniatures from Kinokunya; they had different mini brands of stuff from school lunch sets to household items like dishracks. I still collect them, and I got my little sisters into it too (only they actually have a house to display the stuff cuz their dad made one XD). When I got my first 29cm bjd, I was thrilled to be able to have something to display the stuff with.

One of my favorite things in he room is her bug terrarium in her shelf (in the top left)--cuz it has mini beetles in it--, the modular table in the front (it can stack to make shelves), numerous Japanese fair items (not all shown, but the mask is on the chair and I have a few fans, a bag of takoyaki, a crepe, a water balloon, and a purse), and her mini DS (its an old school pink one, exactly like mine ^^) that I found on a keychain. The stuff I have in there now is a fraction of the many items I own (I swap out stuff in seasons). Minis are fun. ^^

Second thing: the limited edition NiGHTS into dreams storybook

Its worth mentioning again that I love NiGHTS; its one of my favorite franchises, ahead of Fatal Frame, Silent Hill Smash Bros. and Legacy of Kain. Though its taken well over 11 years to get a sequel to a game I've loved since my childhood, I still feel that I'm a pretty big fan of it.

Recently my friend Liltichan (who runs Animeish.com, buy her stuff :3) was getting me various NiGHTS goods like a poster, a mousepad, the T-shirt, and the soundtrack, to name a few. But my most prized possession next to the plushie (which i got for a fraction of its usual price of 3 hundred kajillion dollars) is the storybook here.

I don't know the numbers, but I do know it was a limited run. It follows the story of NiGHTS, his rebellion against Wizeman prior to the game, and Elliot's story (though only the parts in the dreams, not his backstory), ending w/ a brief glimpse of Claris. The illustrations are beautiful, w/ these expressive and flow-y lines and a dreamy watercolor quality. I heart this book to freakin' death, and when I get my friend to translate it for me, I will read this to my children before bed. I paid about $100 for it, which I see as a blessing as you don't find it very often anywhere (except I heard recently they're re-printing it for the NiGHTS into dreams remake on the PS2 -_-).

The book is special to me because even though I didn't know of its existence until about 2 years ago, it still brings me back to my early years, when the Mascot War was raging and middle school seemed to go on forever. When I go through it, I feel a child-like sense of awe, a feeling I haven't had in a long time. Books like these are labors of love, especially for a game series that has been lost in the turbulance of newer consoles. And even if its not the best children's book, it still means a lot to me.

If my house was burning, this is one of the things I'd take w/ me. Even if it were the only thing I could take, I'd be happy.

Third thing: My great-grandmother's music box

I was a little monkey when I was young. My grandmother had all these trinkets and gewgaws (yes, that's a real word, look it up) that she had to put on her highest shelves to keep me from them. Of course it didn't work cuz I love to climb things. XD One of these treasures I'd risk breaking my neck over was this little Sweedish handcarved music box that played "These are a Few of My Favorite Things". It was shaped like a lil house, complete w/ flowers in the windowsills and a shingled roof. The best part of this box was that it had a lil filament that would tug the music box's trigger and play the song. But it was engineered in such a way that it would trigger it only once, and you could close the box and listen to the song play once, then shut off with this click. If you left the roof lid open, it wouldn't keep playing, unlike other music boxes, which play while its open, then shuts off when you shut it.

I loved that music box more than anything in the world. Its a lovely piece of work, and its one of those things that instantly takes me back to my younger days when I would spend time at my grandparents' house (they live in Vallejo, which is only an hour or so away, but w/ the way gas is....). My grandparents, in an effort to reduce inheritance drama in the inevitable time of death, told the grandchildren (and my dad and his sisters) to put their names on a piece of paper and put it on, or around the object they wish to take later. I fought my aunt over the music box, and I've won cuz I made sure to hide the music box in my granny's room XD. My granny said I would get it because of all the years of me nearly breaking my neck trying to play with it. Woot.

The one here in my room is another one bought at the same time as my grandmother's. It was a gift to my great-grandmother a long time ago. They have similar designs, only this one has a different paint job, and it plays a different tune (i haven't a clue as to what it is at this time). I don't know who bought the boxes or when, but I do know they have to be the same age. When my great-uncle passed away, my great-grandmother descended into Alzheimer's and fell hard. My grandfather moved her out here to California from their hometown of Davenport, Iowa. She lives in a home, and doesn't remember us very well. Its heart breaking because I remember her so full of life. Its amazing what can happen to a person in only a few short years.

When they moved my great-grandmother here, they had to sell the house and collect her things, from furniture to personal effects like clothing and other things. Knowing how much I loved hers, my grandmother gave me my great-grandmother's music box as a girt for my birthday. I keep a few things in there, not much because the compartment is tiny. Its very special to me. It doesn't play exactly he same as the other one (it takes longer for the music box clasp to click, so that it sounds like an aging egg timer when the song finishes playing), but that's just fine. I like it all the same.

Well, those are 3 things that I deem worthy of showing. Next post may or may not cover what was cut. XD

*til next time, Lunies*

Good Morning World, and All Who Inhabit It!

Well, now that its in the open, I guess its time for reflection. i type this as my bright and shiny new wallpaper sits prettily upon my desktop. Ah, NiGHTS. Its been 11 years, my friend. Welcome home.

Jokingly, I once said if Nintendo gets NiGHTS on the Wii, the console war was over. That was when the Wii had a much more imposing name, and the price of a single PS3 game was speculated to be in the $80 range. Now, well, I guess its a moot point. It no longer matters to me.

What does matter now was that after 11 years and false alarms and disillusionment and scant cameos, NiGHTS comes home again. 1997 was a wonderful year for me, and so was '96. But '97...man, the black market Sailor Moon trading racket, anime still a niche market, and games games games, baby. The Playstation was the new kid on the block, wowing others with its slick and shiny Final Fantasy 7. I loved that PS like my brother. But Saturn...my Saturn was my baby. I would charge into a burning house to save it, NiGHTS, and the memory cartridge (OMG, remember the memory "card"? Thing was like a Genesis cart....XD).

Naka had gold then. Sure, fully 3-D rendered games were big then, but remember when it was a treat, rather than the given norm? Say what you will of pop-up, bad polygons, fog effects, the fact that NiGHTS itself flew on a 2-D track while the kids ran around in full 3 dimensions. I still say that the graphics aren''t too bad compaired to today standards. look at the FMVs in Silent Hill. They were like silk. They still fool newbie gamers today ("THAT'S a PS game??"). That was when it was ok to have mascot games, rather than these wann-be badasses who think their god's gift to girl gamers.

Remember the fun we had, running pell mell into danger as Sonic, running so fast that even the screen couldn't keep up sometimes? That's what it still feels like for me and NiGHTS. The glory of flight, dive bombing hapless Nightopians (or, as my cousin called them "FAT people"), paralooping the shit out of non-sensical nightmaren. No, I'm not hardcore enough to brag I had a SuperPian. I only wish. Only the hardest of the hardcores have a SuperPian and the SuperPian castle.

I? I was earning straight A's (the only straight A's I'll ever earn in real life), racing the clock, and surviving what my sister called "SURVIVAL MODE" in which we simply ran amuck as the kids, dodging the clock and running into things that knock us over, scoffing at the "tips" at the end of a game over when we finally were caught (TIP: try survival mode in Spring Valley, Splash Garden, and Frozen Bell. Come on, ride the train; come ride it). I left the game running on the sound test, just to listen to the music. I'd crank the volume, straining to hear what Jackle says when in his death spiral to nothingness.

I'm not Astrima. I faltered when Sega needed me most. I was angry at the Dreamcast (which is, BTW, a great system; PLAY SAMBA DE AMIGO NOW). But I still dream of flight. My dream guide is garbed in purple. He dances with the stars, and laughs at my pathetic attempts to fly. Didn't you wish to have your own Dream Jester? Didn't we strive to fly? Perhaps not all of us were touched so deeply. But I will stand proud as one of many of the old fans, and dream.

My best Christmas gift? No, it wasn't my dog, though that was a wonderful present. No. I received a copy of Christmas NiGHTS from the love of my life. Yes, he had to pay $35 for a game that was in '97-'98 FREE, yes, its just a demo, and yes, it had a crappy graphics compaired to today (well, not crappy, just old...like granpa). You know what it did have? Chirstmas Cake Palaces, x-mas themed outfits, ringing bell wreathes, Reala as a playable maren, Dreams Dreams in a capella, concept art, Link Attack, Kareoke mode, Nightopians and A-Life. Why do I love Animal Crossing? The same reason I love Christmas NiGHTS. Holiday triggered mini-events. Boo-ya.

Some fandom dies. Others branch out and become Hot Topic bitches. Still others remain underground. Ours...ours slept. It dreamed. And today, it awoke to a world where Opportunity was knocking. It gave us a chances to stretch and blink sleepily to a new day. Our fandom is ready. Bring it, Nintendo. Bring it.

Do you still dare to dream?

Oh...And EDIT:

Its Time to Go Outside

Well now, it has been a long time? I half considered retiring RL...prolly becuz most blogs of reccent are like every other online diary/journal deal and I grow weary of the emo approach. Life w/o Belle Du Jour and new I am a Japanese School teacher is a very boring one indeed. I have also quit most of the forums I used to haunt when I had no summer job and was bored out of my mind. Where am I now? You can check Beyond the Camera's Lens, Silent Hill Talk, and the personal one my friend Tsubasa runs. Not online chatting as much, prolly becuz of 2 very important reasons: 1) I actually go out to do things nowadays, and 2) I play far too many video games, with my DS out at front. BTW, I got my Saturn working, so everything has been HappyHappyNiGHTSNiGHTS lately. Super whee fun.

What's new? My sis graduated from FIDM, so that means I have an ass-kickingly cool, certified fahsion designer in the house. XD My dad plays a lot of WoW. ^^ I enjoyed the Silent Hill movie, despite what naysayers and critics may say. But then...I really like Japanese Horror (yeah, I know, SH's American, but Konami made it, and they are, despite what naysayers say, Japanese...lol). I eagerly wait with baited breath for a chance to pre-order a Nintendo Wii, cuz lord knows I don't have the cash to support Sony (and the X-Box, while pretty and very powerful, still has no games I even remotely wanna play).

I started building a webpage, but its not online yet. Gotta get me an account, then my cosplay bonanza-o-rama will be gracing (or infecting...XD) the web. Speaking of cosplay, I retired last year as a performer, and Fanime '06 (which was pretty lame all things considered) was a year I was able to watch every skit and relax cuz I didn't need to reherse or anything. Not that the masq was any good, mind you. It was pretty bad, but the fortunate part was that there was a relieveing lack of any "exhibition skits" that were a billion hours long. Plus, Traveling Valentine put together a sweet cosplay video of past Fanimes that was pretty cool. But other'n that, we had hard to hear pre-recorded skits, a smattering of good ones (an Avatar skit, a dancing Guilty Gear skit, a neat lil FF11 skit w/ a Mithra, a Blue's Clues skit with Gloomy Bear), and a one really bad singer....it was like a Citibank commercial, the one w/ the chick in the big black dude. I'm being harsh, but so was the audience.....

But it was at Fanime that I met this girl.... I fell in love with her immediately. Her name is May.



XD I got you. Yeah, I'm into the super-customizable, Asian Ball-Joint Dolls fad. I bought her at the Junky Spot booth at Fanime. She's an Obitsu model (not a Volks, heaven knows I can't afford a Volks doll...tho I am eyeing that Dollfie Dream starter body), with black, rooted hair (middle part). I'd say she was a B-cup, with a skin over her whole torso, so she can wear bikinis without showing joints. I loooooove you May! XD

*You know the drill*