~ Anime: Origin - Spirits of the Past ~

I am not having a good day today, having issues with Asiana airlines and trying to find a flight for my dad to come back from China.  *sigh*  I am very frustrated, but I have decided not to tell the story here.  I am going to try to keep my blog as rant-free as possible.  :)

Ok....main topic:  Origin - Spirits of the Past.  I recently watched this movie on Hulu and I was amazed at the artwork.  Everything is animated very well and the story is good.  Not the most original story ever, but it was good.  It's not very new, released in the US in September 2006.  But, hey, I haven't seen it before so it's new to me :)

Here's the summary from wikipedia:

This is the story of Agito, a young boy living in a dystopian Japan set 300 years in the future. This apocalypse was brought about by extensive genetic engineering on trees, conducted at a research facility on Earth's moon, in order to produce trees capable of growing in harsh, arid conditions. The trees became conscious and spread to Earth in a fiery holocaust, wiping out most of modern civilization and fragmenting the moon. Agito's world is covered mostly by the Forest, a huge expanse of living trees, ruled by the tree-like Druids, which now inhabit the earth and control the water supply of both trees and humans. Agito and his father Agashi, as well as his friends Cain and Minka, live in Neutral City, a city carved out of the ruined skyscrapers of an old metropolis. Neutral City acts as both a buffer and a bridge between the Forest and the militaristic nation of Ragna. While the people of Neutral City co-exist peacefully with the trees of the forest, the nation of Ragna aims to destroy the Forest in order to return the world to the way it was before the mutant trees invaded.

The graphics look pretty CG sometimes.

So...just another well-drawn story about how people are going to destroy their own world and nature is going to take over. The only way to survive is to coexist with nature. Is it me or are there a lot of animes like this? It's a good theme though and I like how it was portrayed in this movie.  Watch it on Hulu!  It's in English and the voices are not bad at all.

~ Momo's New Girlfriend: Bailey ~

My friend has the cutest little shih tzu and she brought her all the way from Chicago for Momo.  For 2.5 days, they were the happiest couple in the world.  

The first kiss......so sweet!

Her turn....Momo was so happy that he closed his eyes....

They even wanted to share a crate together....

Ok....I lied.  They were at each other's throat 95% of the time.  hehe  

And of course there was inappropriate behavior....bad Momo!!

Momo is not a gentleman....he stole Bailey's toy...

Look how sad she was!

Bailey is still young....only 7 months....  next time they meet, she'll probably be bigger than him.  Momo is going to be in so much trouble.  Watch for the Momo and Bailey Saga in a few months!

~ My Treasury: Magical Worlds ~

Wow it has been a while!  I was busy because my friend visited.  I took a little break from everything and it felt so good!  More details about my mini vacation to come later.  Now, it's treasury time!  I know I skipped last week, but here it is!

Aren't these terrariums so cool? They are like little magical worlds all wrapped up in a jar. Add some mushrooms for extra magic :)

~ Anime: Skip Beat ~

I am a big anime fan. I grew up on anime because Hong Kong plays Japanese cartoons instead of having their own. They also had stuff like Ninja Turtles and He-Man, but they didn't appeal to me.

So, I have been really busy and haven't kept up with the anime scene for a while, except for Bleach and Naruto. I want something light hearted and funny to help me destress. My friend recommended Skip Beat.

Here's the summary from Wikipedia:

It is the story of Kyoko Mogami (最上 キョーコ Mogami Kyōko?) a 16-year-old girl who discovers that her childhood friend and romantic goal, Sho Fuwa, only keeps her around to act as a maid and earn his living expenses, as he works his way to become the top pop idol in Japan. Furious and heart broken, she vows to get revenge by beating him in show business.

At first, I wasn't so sure about this. But, I love the way they switch from the pretty anime drawing style to the funny one. It's so smooth and adds so much humor to the scenes. Now, I can't wait till I brush Momo, 'cause that's when I watch it.

All serious and pretty!


Then funny!


I think I also like it because it's about revenge. Yes, I am a Scorpio.


And there's the heart throb. Tall, rich, famous, nice..... *drool* Am I the only one that drool over anime guys?



There are lessons to be learned here about revenge, pride, love and self-discovery. I hope this ends well. A lot of anime endings are weird....

Want to watch it? Go to animeready.com :) Japanese with English subtitles.

~ Another Etsy Purchase ~

It's almost summer time!  Time to wear my awesome sundresses.  In the summer, unless an activity requires wearing pant/shorts, I only wear dresses and skirts.  I am that kind of girl.

Ok, I am not that kind of girl.  I am a girl with .... big..... thighs.  I admit it.  My friends call it the "child bearing hips".  So, skirts and dresses are just much more comfortable.  So, I was talking to my Etsy friend Ashley from BlueNostalgia, going through her shop and fell in love with the yellow jade that she uses.  So, I ordered a necklace from her.  

Yes, I make jewelry and I still ordered a necklace from her.  Her work is wonderful.

So, here it is.  Just beautiful.  It's going to look great with my yellow dresses!

Here are the two other necklaces that I wanted:

Her newest creation:

And she's having a 15% off sale on earrings this weekend (mention April Showers when you check out)!  Also, $5 off when you buy a matching set.  And free international shipping!  

You have to check it out!  :)

http://BlueNostalgia.etsy.com

~ Another Sneak Attack ~

I am sponsoring another sneak attack.  I had so much fun last time that I volunteered again.  This time I picked out 3 shops, one from UK, US and Canada.  They all have very, very cute stuff and are blissfully unaware of the attack.

What is a Sneak Attack?

Three days per week, an Etsy shop with few or no sales is chosen as a "victim,” and at a given time multiple buyers all visit the site and buy one or more items each, resulting in a whole slew of surprise business in a very short time. It’s a great way to give a big boost to a new Etsy shop!

Here are the shops for tonight!!

RosyUndPosy: A collaboration of unique designs by a mother and daughter duo located on Vancouver Island in beautiful British Columbia.

Reusable snack bag. I am going to get one.

happynotes: Feel the warmth with my colorful original designs. All my designs are illustrated, printed, cut and scored by me.

pippibean: "Kawaii" means cute in Japanese. This is the style I base most of my items on! Hope you love them!

~ Beads Heaven ~

Bad news:  I have been sick so I didn't post a treasury yesterday....sorry!  I'll make it up next week :)

Good (really good) news:  Look at these pictures!!!  My dad sent me these from China.  I wish I am there with him~!

Glass figurines...Love the whales

Look at this kitty~!  Isn't it the cutest thing???

These mannequins are sooooooooooooooooooooooo beautiful~!  I hope he got me one.

These little ones are cute too!  I sold a bunch of them in my other etsy shop over Christmas.  I still have a few left if you are interested :)

Now...the beads~!  Look at all these glass beads....so cute.  I love the bunnies and monkeys.

Holy Cow!

*Drool*

He sent me 100s of pictures like these.  He said he'll get me some :)  I am itching to go back to Hong Kong and China to look at more.  We were planning on going in November, but I think we may just end up going for Chinese New Years in February instead.  Can't wait!!!