You know, I actually don't mind being here. That much. I mean, before I actually experienced moving to another country, I thought it was a big deal. But it's not. I think I've adapted my needs to live here effectively enough, and with it's proximity to Japan, I can get access to a lot of local Japanese sites. Namely, the robotics and engineering sites. I still feel like everywhere I go, people are looking at me weird, though. It's probably for several reasons:
They can't figure out what country I'm from. They look at my dad, Automatic american. Look at my mom, automatic Taiwanese. Look at me? ...I've been called spanish(!), portuguese(?), hawaiian(!?), never American. But I suppose that's a good thing, considering how low america has sunk these days... I'd rather be in beijing taking apart radios (which can get really boring once you've figured out how they work) than being outside, being looked down upon because all americans are the same lazy hamburger-eating blonde-haired... Not all american are blonde haired, you ignorant people! I'm brown-haired, and I identify myself (somewhat reluctantly) as an american... And there are plenty of countries everywhere with blonde-haired people, not just america. England, for example. There are brown haired people there, too.

Okay, and what is with these people?! Can't they tell I'm a girl? I must have gotten asked nearly a dozen times so far, whethere or not I was a girl or a boy. Or no, It's was like this:
Lady: Ni shi nan-shen, mah? ( you're a boy, right?)
Me: ... (...)
My mom: *sweat* Bu shi. Shi ni shen. (No. She's a girl.)
Lady: Wah! Tah shi ni shen? Ni tre ding, mah? (Oh my god! It's a girl? Are you sure?)
Me: D<(Cue my trowing things angrily. Be it a radio, a screwdriver, or whatever I'm working on at the time...)
I don't think I look all that much like a dude. Just becasue I've got short hair and no boobs does not mean I'm a guy, yo. And sometimes they'll even ask my gender when I'm wearing a skirt! Isn't a skirt the international symbol of "female"?
I think I'm overreacting. I'll go read something. (Seriously, When I wear skirts I look like a crossdressing guy? Is it the hair? Those people are really wierd. And most women here have short hair too. of course, there all middle-aged too...)

Manga Critic Series: episode 1 (Katekyo Hitman Reborn)

Manga Critic Series: Episode 1 (Katekyo Hitman Reborn)

Katekyo Hitman Reborn is one of those manga series that really should get more attention. I picked it up a couple of weeks ago, and was almost immediately pulled into it. the characters are all likable, even the villains. The story's original and very well thought out. though it takes a while to get going, the first chapters are crucial to character introduction and without them, you would sympathize with the characters a lot less. This series is one of those rare gems of manga that can find favor within all ages and genders.

The Reborn! story revolves around a boy named Tsunayoshi "Tsuna" Sawada, who is chosen to become the Vongola mafia family's boss due to him being the great-great-great grandson of the first Vongola boss, who had moved to Japan from Italy during his time. Also, the other candidates for the position of the head of the Vongola Family died. For these reasons, Tsuna is the only remaining heir. As such, Timoteo a.k.a. "Vongola IX," the current head of the family, sends Reborn, an infant hitman from Italy, to train Tsuna. Tsuna then unwillingly undergoes training from Reborn. Reborn's main method of teaching Tsuna is the "Dying Will Bullet", which will make the person be "reborn" with a stronger self intent on fulfilling his dying will. Through his experiences, Tsuna unconsciously becomes stronger and more confident, which ultimately makes him better suited as the Vongola Family's boss despite continuing to reject his Mafia inheritance.

Characters:
Tsuna Sawada
Tsuna is a junior-high student and the Vongola Family's mob boss-in-training. Since Tsuna is the great-great-great grandson of the first Vongola boss, who had moved to Japan a long time ago, he is recruited as the next boss (All other candidates for the position of the head of the Vongola Family had died). His nickname is "No-Good Tsuna" because of his severely low self-esteem and horrible talent in school, but due to the results of various conflicts involving himself and his "Family," his own power matures over the course of the series.
(First appearance chapter 1)

Gokudera Hayato
A transfer student that was placed in Tsuna's class. Gokudera, who had previously studied in Italy, is a dynamite expert nicknamed "Smoking Bomb Hayato". He keeps various explosives hidden on his person and uses those explosives liberally by lighting them with a cigarette (or several) held in his mouth. A hot-headed and short-tempered youth, he continuously gets into fights with Lambo but devotes himself to Tsuna, having sworn to become his right-hand man after Tsuna defeated him in a battle shortly after his introduction.
(First appearance chapter 3)

Takeshi Yamamoto
Yamamoto is a seventh-grader and is the popular baseball star of Tsuna's school. He becomes friends with Tsuna, and Reborn tries to recruit him into the Vongola Famiglia. Carefree and upbeat, he hardly takes anything seriously, and is often "tricked" by Reborn because he thinks that "It's a game". However, he later becomes a dedicated and valuable member of Tsuna's Family, growing to become a fighter who excels at kendo.
(First appearance chapter 5)

Ryohei Sasagawa
Ryohei is one year older than Tsuna, and is a passionate member of the boxing club at his school, which he repeatedly asks Tsuna to join after seeing the latter in Dying Will Mode. In response, Reborn wants to recruit him into Tsuna's family. Every time he sees Tsuna and his family doing something strange, he gets fired up and always wants to be a part of it. Like Takeshi, he doesn't understand the full extent of Tsuna's connection with the Mafia due to his own energetic character, but still does everything that he can to protect him and fights with as much spirit and confidence as the other Family members.
(First appearance chapter 14)

Kyoya Hibari
Hibari is the leader of the Discipline Committee, or Prefects, whose members happen to be a group of delinquents loyal to him. Though he mostly speaks in a calm tone, Hibari is an excellent but violent fighter himself. Hibari uses his status to harass others and cares little for his subordinates, but has great pride in his school and has a soft side towards birds. He prefers to be alone and uses a pair of tonfa as his main weapons.
(First appearance chapter 16)

Lambo Bovino
Lambo is a cow suit-clad 5-year-old assassin from Italy affiliated with the Bovino ("Bovino" means "cow" in Italian) Famiglia. Despite being a hitman, he lacks the emotional maturity and discipline that Reborn has and is also very conceited as well as being a crybaby. His main choice of weapons are hand grenades, and his future dream is to rule the world. Lambo has a huge Afro (which he stores a variety of objects in, such as snacks to weapons) with horns on the sides of his head which gives him the appearance of a bison. He comes to Japan to kill Reborn, so he can prove that he is worthy of becoming his own family's boss, though naturally, he is no match to the Vongola hitman.
(First appearance chapter 7)

Chrome Dokuro

A 13-year-old girl born in Japan on December 5, and wears a Kokuyo school uniform. From what her parents talked about in a flashback, she was a girl known as Nagi and lived a non-social life. After rescuing a cat, she was badly injured in a car accident which lead to the loss of her right eye and some of her organs. The only way to save her life would be to have someone with the same blood type to transfer their organs to her. She did not care whether she lived or not and her parents refused the offer anyway. However, Mukuro Rokudo allowed her to live by creating illusionary organs for her. Chrome has been shown using two of Mukuro's six skills.

(First appearance chapter 113)

Hmm, I like this manga a lot. I find Tsuna very likeable and real, as well as the other characters. So far, there have been 215 chapters, 195 of which have been assembled into tankubon format. The anime series has 114 episodes so far. You know, a whole lot of manga are really good, and the only reason they aren't as big as Naruto or Bleach is that they're not as heavily advertised. I mean, you see Naruto and Bleach stuff everywhere, and look how popular they are! I'm sure that if KHR advertised a bit more, then it would be as, if not more popular than those two other manga. But perhaps it's a good thing that KHR isn't as popular. If it was popular, then it would get licensed and dubbed, and that wouldn't be good. I rate this manga 5 out of 5 stars.

I Miss School

Those are the only words for it. I miss school, the very thing that has plagued my life since I was 5. I miss it, the anxiety of getting report cards, the excitement of first day, the sadness mixed with freedom you get on the last day. I remember feeling depressed over bad grades, annoyed at teachers, griping over too much homework. But despite all of this, I want to experience the happiness of it all, the joy of eating lunch with your classmates, the smile of the teacher when you turn in your homework, and most of all the smelly little brats I shared classes with. I miss them all, the group of harpies whose minds seemed to only be on fashion, the small but annoying little jerks, the sporty, sarcastic, smiley boy in my Spanish class that I developed a small crush on, all of those kids. I miss getting good grades. I miss wishing for death to come for me during gym class exercises. I even miss the extra work and detentions, the awkward slow dances and boy-girl partners for projects. The prearranged seating arrangements. The schedule. Looking back, It's all so beautiful, all of it. The bad, the good, all of it. In Beijing, the only schools I can go to are international schools, privately owned and costing more than any parent would spend for their child. Seriously, though. I may not be a parent, but I can kinda see. I mean, even though my sister and I are still kids ourselves, Don't think we don't notice the fact that we're brats. Mom and dad act like money isn't a problem, but I can see the looks on their faces. I can tell when people are stretching the truth a bit. Besides, I don't want to go to that school. Mom and dad say that the reason they thought it was it a good idea to bring their two monsters along to China was because they wanted me to learn Chinese. Sure, I'll learn Chinese, but only because I have started to become competitive. it's weird, when I was in elementary school, I was the least competitive kid on the planet.
Gym Teacher: "don't you want to win the baseball game?"
Me: ... noooooo...
Gym Teacher: "Why?"
Me: ...I always lose.
Gym Teacher: "Who knows, maybe this time you'll win."
Me: "No, I wont. Because I don't feel like winning the game today."
Gym Teacher: "But with that outlook on life, You won't win, even when you want to.
Me: "But it's haaaard..."
Gym Teacher: "Somebody's gotta win, right?"
Me: "Somebody's gotta lose, too."
Gym Teacher: "You have a loose tooth?"
Me: "Not yet. When the ball hits me I will."
Hardy har har. A bundle of joy, I was. Compare my second grade self to Chrona from Soul Eater. Seemingly depressed, I walked around with an expressionless face and did whatever anyone told me to. I was the epitome of pitiful. Aww, how Cute~ I know, what kind of Seocnd-grader has pink hair and a weird monster-soul-type-thing coming out of her back, but You get the idea. Focus on it's expression. Yes, I say it, becasue if any readers are familiar with the manga Soul Eater, and have read as far as to where Chrona appears, You'll know waht I mean. And I mean this. IS CHRONA A BOY OR A GIRL!?!?
Honestly. I think the mangaka wanted to keep it a secret. It loks like a girl to me, though. Although there are a lot of womanish guys in manga. See, I'll list some.




Take Count D from Petshop of Horrors:
















Agito/Akito from Air Gear:

















A couple from Naruto: *coughSASUKEANDNEJIcough*













All of the ghey hosts in Ouran High School Host Club:















Kurama from Yu Yu Hakusho:



















and who could forget Tsuna and Mukuro (pineapple-head) from Katekyo Hitman Reborn:
(Hibari's just randomly there. He's a manly man, He doesn't count as a womanish guy. But can you say Guy-version-tsundere?)













All of the people I've listed are womanish guys. Oh, and I almost forgot Akito and Yuki from Fruits Basket:
















And Kurapika from HunterxHunter: (HunterXHunter is actually where I got the term "Womanish Guy" from. Thank you, Leorio (AKA Hanekoma's twin)













And Mello and Nea from Death Note:

But you get my point right? And How did I go from talking about school to talking about feminine (possibly ghey) manga characters? I mean, That's waaaaay off topic. It's all your fault, Chrona. Bwahahaha. (I'm just kidding, I could never wound cute little Chrona's delicate girlish heart. Unless she was a dude. Then the relentless teasing would start, and god knows where it would end.)

Anyway, School! See, that's why I never became a very good student. My mind is constantly wandering. Good for about an hour, and then I start thinking about manga, or Pizza, or where I'd like to go for vacation this summer, or something like that. but that's what I hated most about me. If I got good grades, I could get on the honro roll. ANd if I got on the Honor Roll... oh whatever. Let me explain with a diagram, those are fun. And it alos provides a look into how I can go from one subject to another in the blink of an eye.

Concentration --> Good Grades --> Honor Roll --> Popular --> Friends --> Loyalty --> Class President --> Student Council --> Supreme Power --> Rule The World

There, see? That's how my brain works. So confusing.

And I wonder why I put "Rule The World" there. Oops. Kufufu...
(By the way, sorry for some of the shonen-ai pics. I tried to not use them, but they were the best out of all of the ones with two of them in one pic. Besides, they were mild anyway. >< Except for maybe the Death Note pic.)

Beijing, at last

Well, not really... I've been in Beijing for, what, since June? That makes it 5 months in this country. Yes, that's right. I'm in Beijing. China. Why? Because my dad had to work. I'm really happy that he's got the opportunity to go to work in such a cool place, but that also meant leaving all my friends behind, my school, even my relatives. Well, I've got a lot to say, considering I've been spending five months in limbo with life. Lemme start with the very beginning.
It started at the breakfast table, one weekend in spring. I forget what month or day it was, all I remember that the day was really bright and sunny. "We might be moving." Those words hit me like a punch to the face. At first, you feel shocked. Then you ask the famous question. "What the heck was that?" Except in my case, it was like this.

Daddy: "Guys, listen up. We might be moving."
Me: "What?"
Daddy: Moving. To china."
Me: ...
Daddy: "Um, I know how you feel, and I-"
Me: "THAT'S TOTALLY AWESOME, DAD!!!111!!!"
Daddy: "O...k then. Maybe I don't know how your mind works..."

Yep, I was so excited. Moving? A dream come true. Truth was, I was longing for something new. I had spent 5 years in Massachusetts, in a small community where the headline new was nine-times-out-of-ten "Town hall announces rise in School Funds" or something totally awesome and exciting like that. After five years though, seeing the same faces in your class, spending every summer riding bikes down to the ice-cream store, heaven gets boring. I was hoping I would at least move to Washington, or Texas, or Alaska, or someplace that wasn't where I was right then. So it came as a pleasant surprise when, a few months later, we were all packed up and ready to go. After tearful goodbyes with my friends, exchanging of email addresses, and promises to stay "Friends forever, tied to bind, forget or fall, memories inside", and loads of pictures, I embarked the plane that was my ticket to a new world. And what a new world it was. My dad grew up in Connecticut, in a small town too. My mom was from Taiwan. Two people from very different, and my favorite family story. So, growing up, I was a globally-interactive kid. I've moved at least five times in my life, and spent ten years in the U.S. The rest, my infant years, was spent in Taipei. I frequently had summer vacations to Taiwan, Japan, and Canada. When I was in grade school, I was quite the little braggart.
Emily: "Guess where I went over the summer?"
Me: "Where?"
Emily: "New York City. It was the longest car ride ever! it took four whole hours!"
Me: "Wow. I went to Japan. It took 23 hours to get to Osaka from Detroit."
Emily: "Wow!"
Me: "What?"
Emily: "That's a long car ride! all the way to Japan, that's cross-country!"
Me: "..." *facepalm*

So you can see how amusing this was. Moving on...
I was always going to some exotic place or another. But moving was an entirely different story. I began to have my doubts about moving to China. I wouldn't be entirely mute, because I spent 10 years listening to my mom speaking in her beautiful, enchanting Taiwanese accent. So I could speak some Chinese.
When I finally arrived in Beijing, it was still daytime. (har-har, jet lag for the next couple of weeks) I was sleepy though. So I became a vampire and slept the next couple of days away. When we moved into our apartment, I discovered (to my horror) That I had to share a room and bed with my little sister. Oh, kill me now. I declined sleeping on the couch though. I flopped down on the bed and nearly broke my skull because the mattress was made out of something that felt much like wood. I would have been more comfortable sleeping on the floor. The bed, the computer, the store, and lots of walking was what my world pretty much consisted of (and still does, kinda. although a lot less walking). That concludes the summary of the beginning of Beijing. More to follow, be patient!