24th Musing: Tokyo!

RLN:
So I really couldn't think of anything to post about! Actually, I had a couple ideas, which I forgot, of course! That tends to happen when you think of things while you're half-asleep...
But anyways, this came to mind, so here it is! (well, after the RLN).
Current obsessions: 1. still TWEWY and playing the "Another Day" section, 2. I need to make ramen!! or Tamago Kake Gohan (look it up lol), 3. blogging..., 4. The Avengers!! yes, again. Maybe add the individual heroes to the list too.
currently listening to: Chopin's Revolutionary Etude (op 10 no 12). It's awesome! (usually don't use this adjective, but I guess it fits...and trust me, I really don't listen to classical music that often because I'm so picky about it!)
Is that really all? I thought there was more...
RLN over.

Recently, I watched some travel show special on Tokyo for Japanese class with a stereotypical Australian guy for a host. When people imitate Australian accents, it sounds just like his--like Steve Irwin! (Who seemed like a much better guy, though). It was actually kind of funny! ...Well, I thought so!
Anyways, he was like a typical, clueless tourist who couldn't speak a word of Japanese, but he seemed at least fascinated by it. Though, I could tell he was pretty arrogant, but amusing. Very ESTP, too XD.

Anyways, he went to different places in Tokyo (including Shibuya!) and it made me want to go more!
(Jeez, I feel like my Japanese "sensei" :D should see this and, like, give me extra credit or something). Anyways, the fashion looked so strange, but most of the time, it was pretty cool! Of course, the streets of Harajuku had a generous share of unique fashions that one would only find in Tokyo. I feel like Shibuya fashion is generally a bit more mainstream.

Another place that looked really nice was the inn, which was very traditional--futons, decorated screens, and all. I really liked the isolated, tranquil feel of it. I really appreciate it when countries still honor their culture like that....and I really wanted to sleep there! Though I'm not exactly introverted, I would love to squirrel away in that small little room and just...do whatever I wanted with no disturbances in such a nice atmosphere!

Speaking of hotel-like places, there's a hotel that's popular with business who missed their train (it stops running at a certain time), so they just go into this cheap, but cool-looking place where the rooms are literally capsules. I wonder if I would feel claustrophobic or like it?

The city is just so lively and interesting! Before I thought of Tokyo as just another metropolis, but it really has a distinct flavor about it. Someday, I'll get there.

So currently, I decided to watch "Durarara!" (can't forget the ! at the end, which is actually part of its title) because it reminded me of "The World Ends With You" (and whoever translated it to the dub version uses the exact same slang ("Gotta bounce!"), which is more nostalgia (but not nostalgia because I'm still playing it...
on a random note, Izaya is just so...interesting.
Here's the fun scene I talked about before!: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKEaf3bpJB4

It depicts Tokyo as less safe than TWEWY, but overall, it's a pretty similar perspective. And it's weird how they both talk about realities changing with the person, which is something I've always thought of but never heard voiced until I played "The World Ends With You".
Maybe that will be my next (or somewhere around there) topic!

captioned as: Harajuku's main strip

Harajuku girls!

(photo cred (because I should start doing that): Wikipedia for all of them coincidentally).

20th Musing: Characters I Admire (IV) (Though perhaps I really shouldn't this time...)

Random Life Note:
I learned that philosophy and psychology do not necessarily mix and just because I like the former does not mean I will like the latter. As I was discussing with a couple people earlier, I realized that psychology really should not be a science. That's what I've been annoyed with lately.
Current obsession: Izaya cell phone smashing scene...I just really want to watch Durarara!! I think I'll make it a dub this time (I've been watching so many subs). It must be because of this whole TWEWY-Shibuya thing... However, I wouldn't call wanting to watch it an obsession yet...I just didn't have anything new to put on here.
I recently just watched a short movie called "5 Centimeters Per Second" that's supposed to be really fantastic, but... well, the animation's beautiful and it does leave me with a certain melancholy because it was good, but I didn't love it.
RLN Over.

This has some TWEWY (The World Ends With You) spoilers...
So this character is...odd. Yes, odd, because he's neither a hero nor a villain and I still am not sure whether he is an anti-hero or anti-villain. Because I have good judgment, I'm going to stick to anti-hero though. Our character this time is.....

Joshua Kiryu!

MBTI type: INTP

I actually saw him for the first time in KH3D and fell in love with him. His voice actor so perfectly captures his tone, which mixes amusement and smarminess at the same time (good job, Aaron Spann!). I love his dialogue too...
He could potentially have come off a little creepy, but once again, the actor voices him brilliantly. Joshua is extremely intelligent (always a couple steps ahead) and a very complex character, so you never quite know what's going on inside his head. Even though he comes off as arrogant and, to Neku, strangle-able (new word), he's just a lonely kid who feels like he's on the outside looking in. (Then again, I always seem to get suckered into characters with secret vulnerabilities). I could see why Neku would be annoyed at him, but I think Joshua is just so amusing and I would probably laugh at his jokes even if they were directed at me XD. Honestly, I think the two of us would get along quite well as I can see a few similarities between us (that perhaps other people will never see, but that's generally how it goes), although my conscious is far more...in use?
Also, I don't know why but this dialogue is my favourite (and only the people who have played this will find this funny or at least understand this, I think...):
*on the back city streets
Neku: I thought you were looking for the Shibuya river
Joshua: I am.
Neku: Uhh...I don't see any rivers
Joshua: Thank you, Neku.

Like I said, one of those "you had to be there" jokes, except it's more of "you had to play there". Yeah.
The one reason I was thinking about not liking him is because of the whole (spoilers!!!!) murdering the main character thing, but it was just to use him as a proxy to decide whether to destroy Shibuya or not. But later, he doesn't destroy Shibuya because Neku doesn't shoot him because he trusts Joshua and they're friends now, maybe?
I found it ironic how all this time when you think you're doing worthless missions like helping a business man sell these pins to all of Shibuya to make them popular, you're actually contributing to the major plot (assimilation plot, that is!). Something like that happened in 358/2 Days when you just thought you were installing a couple random machines (but they led to your potential demise later on!).
Hmm...okay, I think my rant is finished. Fellow Joshua fans, I would tell you to comment!
(But no one ever does.....)

Here he is!!

Ok, but more seriously...

14th Musing: In Which I Talk About Fashion...

Yes, nothing deep this time! Just me...musing! All my blog posts are basically things in my head that I ponder from time to time and this is one of them.
For awhile now, I've wanted to make a fashion blog, but I think I'm just too lazy to actually implement this idea because I don't feel like taking pictures of myself or people on the street or clothes I see on the internet, etc. but that might change...
This new game I got called The World Ends With You has sort of resparked my interest (Shiki's love for fashion, especially really cool Japanese fashion, is rather contagious lol). I'm not very interested in American fashion for some reason, though British fashion can be pretty cool. Maybe it's Western culture in general that interests me less than the East.
But seriously, after playing that game and looking at all the clothes in Shibuya, I think I'm starting to dress a little like someone off the street of Tokyo (though I suppose it's nothing new). I do tend to be inspired by characters (for example, Yuna who wears a scarf as a sort of crossover shirt with her obi sash over it. I made my own scarf into a shirt, then put a big black waist belt over it (not to mention with black lace fingerless gloves as an added accessory) and received a lot of compliments. One comment was...I couldn't quite tell what it was, but I was quite entertained when someone passing in the school hallway called out "your scarf is really intense!" and literally ran away and up the stairs. Whatever she meant, I enjoyed the whole scenario either way! XD
Oh, but also in the game the character Shiki Misaki wants to be a designer and she's a very talented seamstress. That really made me want to get back into cosplay and sewing again! Just recently, I had material I never used and some scrap ribbon and lace and decided to make a skirt out of it. No one could tell I made it! I was very pleased, as many of my projects are less than successful...though that may be because I get a bit impatient with the details.
On a random note, I realized that the way I write is very much like the way I think, but very different from the way I talk. Yes, I know that's only interesting to me. Thought you all should know...
Alright, that concludes this post!

Okay, I lied, quick note: I think I'll try to put in a picture to go with the post more often. Nothing excessive though. I read this one article about a woman who was a dentist, or in that field, who pulled out all her ex-husband's teeth and the article writer had to put in a picture so he put one that was a random dentistry picture and labeled the caption: and here we see an unrelated picture of a dentist and her patient. I thought he had a sense of humour.
Okay, tangent over.

And here we see Shibuya street fashion!

And here we see an uncomfortable-looking dentist patient!