Las Vegas Day 2

Well, got up around 11 AM today and we decided to go to the Chinatown and eat lunch. After that, we went to the Fashion Show Mall and walked around for a bit. There were a lot of shops there, but i think i was mostly following my family around because nothing really interested me. After that, we decided to go eat at the Buffet at the Wynn hotel, but thanks to Thanksgiving, we had to wait in line for literally 3 hours to get in. Waiting in line for 3 hours for about an hour meal doesnt seem like a good tradeoff to me, i'd be content with a burger and some fries...Anyways thats about all we did today. Will definitely hit the strip tommorow and check out some of the shops there. Bai bai!

Lunch

Getting ready for the Buffet...

Three hours later....

Viva Las Vegas! Day 1

Forgot what caught my attention here, lol. Maybe a pretty girl?

Greetings from Las Vegas everyone! I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving. For those who didnt do anything, I hope you at least enjoyed a day or two off. Anyways, my family decided to come to Vegas because we got 3 complementary nights to stay at the Palazzo hotel. I arrived around 7 PM so didnt really do much. Checked into the hotel and grabbed some food. Honestly, i really dont know what to do here as I'm not 21, and we all know if your not 21, there's really not much to do besides shop and eat in LV. But i will definitely enjoy just relaxing and not doin anything. Thats it for now, au revoir!

Gundam 00

Been quite busy this past week, but honestly, i was just a bit too lazy to update the blog. But after watching the latest episode of Gundam 00 s2 (ep 7) just now, i have decided to get off my lazy ass and post something new... and lo and behold, it's about Gundam 00...or more specifically, how AWESOME and EPIC this series really is. So without further ado...





Let me just start off by sayin that the music from Gundam 00, both seasons, just blows EVERY other anime out off the water. Now, if you read my previous post, you probably know how big i am with music and trust me when i say, the music selection of Gundam 00 is as good as it gets. Anyone who has watched ep 7 of s2 has probably heard "Unlimited Sky" by tommyheavenly6 (member of thebrilliant green) when the flashback of Sergei/Soma occured. (BTW, if anyone can tell me where i might be able to dl that song, let me know, PLEASE) That song almost made me cry, literally. Add that with other greats like "Ash Like Snow", "Friends", " Daybreak's Bell", "Hakanaku mo Towa no Kanashi", and "Prototype" and your ears are in a state of umparalleled, orgasmic (yea, i said it) bliss.

Music aside, cuz we know the music alone doesnt make an anime series great (although it does to me), Gundam 00 is simply amazing. What struck me first is just how great and believable (in the context of the genre) the story is. Now, i am no professional critic or anything of that sort, but I know a good anime when i see one. The art and animation is topnotch all the way through. Beautiful to say the least. The characters are all memorable and provide an unique aspect to the overall show (Neil, Ali, Graha...Mister Bushido, Soma, Sergei, Louise... just to name a few), and the developement and background of each character is just awesome.


Yes, this is Gundam, so lets talk about the mech designs. The very first time i saw the promo for 00 a year or so ago, I facepalmed myself and was just utterly disgusted by the mech designs. But the designs grew on me faster than the ebola virus. Both the Gundams and other suits are just superbly designed (GN-X's, Tierans, and the Gundams). Yes, the designs are a radical departure of what we come to see Gundam as, but as Ralph Waldo Emerson says “Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” This kinda reminded of the Chris Bangles BMW designs. Everyone thought they were ugly when they first came out, but look at all the bimmers on the streets now.


Granted, the only other Gundam series i have seen are SEED/SEED DESTINY(please, no rants) and WING. I admit that, unlike most people, i thoroughly enjoyed both seasons of SEED and i think that the mech designs (my favorite by a large margin being Infinite Justice) of SEEED are superb and, along with its music ("Invoke", "Vestige", "Akatsuki no Kuruma", "Shinkai no Kodoku", "Anna ni issho Datta no ni", "Hoshi no Tobira"..etc), can hold its own very well. However, 00 just blows these two previous series out of the water in almost all aspects. Many pro-UC old schoolers believe that the newer suits and characters are too overpowered and too "unrealistic", and i just think that SEED has given them all a bitter taste for 00. While i agree the more recent series of Gundam may have overdone the ability of the protagonists a bit, the fact remains that if you take Gundam 00 for what it is, it is pretty damn awesome. 00 doesnt quite blow the "overpoweredness" of the main characters too out of porportion. After all, though the Gundams are years ahead of its time, they still do rely on tactics a la Sumeragi and they do get damaged a lot.


Compared with other anime, Gundam 00 should be near the top of the chain. Now, i may be biased for saying this, as I am indeed partial to Gundam, i dont think anyone who has seen this series can honestly disagree with me (if you do, i dont really care) when i say 00 is plain old awesome. I am not intelligent enough to explain in painstaking detail why or how as i have just tried to do that, but avid anime watchers or newcomers alike can judge themselves when they see it.


The bottom line for me is: This series is amazing. period. watch it.

While we're on the subject of 00, here's my Exia taken a few weeks ago, supposed to be Trans-Am:

Harmonious Discord

Nakashima Mika ^^

Ok, for those of you wondering what the hell i meant in my title, all i meant was Music. For me, music is a huge part of my life everday. Im almost always listening to music when im not in class and definitely listening whenever i drive anywhere.

So, for my first "real" post, i will shed a little light on the types of music i listen to and why. A few years ago, if you asked me what type of music i like and listen to, I would say rap and hip-hop. Since then, I rarely, if ever, listen to any mainstream hip-hop music anymore. Why? i'm not too sure, maybe getting a little older changed my taste for music or maybe i've gone back to my asian "roots." Regardless, I think that a lot of hip-pop music has strayed too far from what it once was and has become very redundant, all the beats and tune is the same. Some songs rely entirely on a few good chorus lines that follow the formula of girls, money, and cars...

Now, I find myself listening to Taiwanese music with some Japanese and Korean as well. I enjoy music by artists such as Jay Chou (周杰倫), Wilber Pan (潘瑋柏), Mayday (五月天), Landy Wen (溫嵐), Cyndi Wang ( 王心凌), and even some old school Wu Bai (伍佰). I also like japanese and korean artists such as UVERworld (ウーバーワールド), L'arc En Ciel(ラルク アン シエル), T.M. Revolution, Nakashima Mika (中島美嘉), Utada Hikaru (宇多田 ヒカル,), Nami Tamaki (玉置成実), Stephanie(ステファ),BoA, Se7en (세븐), Rain (정지훈) and such. I think these artist (s) seemingly put so much passion and emotion into both the lyrics and the music and part of the reason that im partial to Taiwanese songs, aside from being pretty damn good, is that its my way of retaining the culture, that I personally love far more than American culture, i have been raised in. Songs by these artists endear to me, even after I've listened to them thousands of times, i dont get tired of them. I dont think I can say the same for a lot of mainstream American music.

How about you all? What types of music do you like and find endearing? Why?

BTW, i tried loading a song onto my blog, does it work? I think only those with Firefox and the necessary plug-ins can play it, don't know why. Regardless, the song is "Hakanaku mo Towa no Kanashi" by UVERworld. I love it and recommend anyone who is into J-rock to check it out. For those who watch Gundam 00, you will recognize it as the opening for season 2.
ciao

Curtains Up

Hows it going everyone? Thanks for visiting my newly created blog. I guess i should start off introducing myself eh?


Well, I'm gsquared, aka Allen, and im 18 years old. Im an ABC (technically ABT cause im from Taiwan...) and im currently in my senior year in high school. Anyways, i made this blog to share with people my hobbies and to blog about my what goes on in my mind. Not much need be said about me personally and what i'm like, I think as I post more and more stuff, it will become evident. Wtih each post, i will try and reveal a little bit more about my background and who I really am. Thats really what i want anyways, for people to see me through my actions, or in this case, my thoughts rather than me directly telling them. More often than not though, I will just be talking about my hobbies and the things I do or think about from day to day.

Feel free to drop any comments, flames, or questions and I will get back to you.