Anime Expo 2008!

Well, it's almost here! I'm so excited! Each year, the event continues to get larger and larger. This year, it would not surprise me if the event eclipses some 50,000 attendees.

For me, I've been attending continually since 1994, with the exception of one year, making it my 13th attendance at Anime Expo, and 14 years since I started attending. My sincerest thanks to the folks who dragged me kicking and screaming to my first event. ^_-

Eeek! Anime Conventions Around The Corner... Time To Touch Up Your Makeup Skills! It seems that every year, around the same time, I have visions of going to Anime Expo and cosplaying. However, I have several things stacked against me:

• I can't apply makeup any better than I can draw! ;_;
• I can't sew to save my life! x_X
• I have the grace and acting ability of a rock. @_@
• I have no spare time!!! !_!

 read more »

Taking A Stroll Through Yaoi Via "Princess Princess"

For those who need a quick refresher on what Yaoi means, I would suggest a visit to the Wikipedia entry for the term. :)

Yaoi covers a wide range of subjects. Personally, I am using it within the framework of how the Japanese refer to it, ie. along the lines of BL, 801, June, etc.

Hmm... Manga Studio(tm)... Also Known as Comic Studio(tm) In Japan!

Okay, I think it is an understatement for me to make the following statements:

• I LOVE Anime and Manga!
• I SUCK at drawing both

Now, having said that, I very much want to draw manga and anime style, since it really is a beautiful way to represent the world.

Something Funny... and with a bite!

I recently started reading a manga series called "Rosario+Vampire". It's a love comedy with alot of the typical boy meets out of this world girl and gets into alot of trouble, but ends up surviving and acquiring a small harem of girls that want to be his.

At first blush, it seems like the genre has been over done, but I found the manga to be enthralling and I being a big fan of vampires, I was hooked.

However, the Anime version doesn't disappoint either!

DrawSpace.com : Online Drawing Tutorials!

I'm a big fan of the various Draw Manga books. They are well written and for someone who has a basic understanding of how to draw, it aids greatly to converting over to the Manga style of drawing. However, what if you don't know how to draw? Yikes!

This is a personal issue for me, as my ability to draw is limited to rough sketches of boxes and stick figures.

So, imagine my surprise and "where was this then I was trying to learn to draw!?" thoughts, when I encountered: http://www.drawspace.com

Play Those Import Japanese PC Games On Your Desktop!

Over at http://www.faroutgames.com, there is virtual machine tutorial posting, covering how one can play their Japanese PC Games on their desktop/laptop, regardless of whether they are running Mac OS X, Windows, or Linux. This is done through virtualization software, like VMware's. Check out the currently being updated tutorial at http://www.faroutgames.com.

Kira's Game Virtual Machine: http://www.faroutgames.com/content/building-kira-game-virtual-machine

It's A Cyclical Thing!

So, every year or so, I get it into my head to take something that is already working and make it into something else, something better, something... that doesn't work right anymore.

I do this, even though I have sworn that I would focus on the content. But the truth is... change is inevitable. Change is forever. Change is good!