I first became acquainted with anime my freshman year of college. Since then, I have been hooked. When I lived in Madison, I was blessed to live near a library branch with an anime club. While I didn't go to the club showings, it did mean the library had one of the best anime collections in the country. There are some classic anime movies I greatly enjoy and own. Others are series I would only ever enjoy once. I no longer live near the awesome library branch with the anime club so YouTube has become one of my top choices for viewing new series.
There are a few other sites which are reliable but I appreciate the lack of pop-up adds on YouTube. Another item I appreciate is subbed vs. dubbed videos. Subbed refers to subtitled. Dubbed refers to English voiceovers. I am one of those odd people who would rather watch the subbed version of an anime. Most people understand this preference for live action forgein films because the mouths don't line up. With anime that is not a large issue. Generally, the voice actors in the original languages have a more convincing voice inflection. Even when I don't understand many of the words, the inflection promotes understanding in spite of some poor subtitles. The acception I will make with dubbing are those related to Princess Mononoke. Ghibli studio in general does an excellent job of employing very talented people for dubbing.
Each time issues are brought up about copyright and YouTube I cringe a little. I understand the difficulty of the laws but I also know I (and many others)would lose out on many great anime series without the site. Why would there be a loss? Contrary to popular belief, some people in America live within their means. For me this means not purchasing every anime series I have ever heard of and not subscribing to cable television. Often anime I know I will want to watch repeatedly I put on my Christmas list. Other anime I just enjoy for the moment as I stream the video.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Guitar Anyone?
Tra la la la laaaaa!
Earlier this week my guitar arrived. I never played a guitar before in my life. Some people may think it is crazy to purchase such a thing at the age of 31. I feel that is the view of those with the cup half empty. With the way modern medicine operates, I will likely live to an age beyond ripeness. I look at getting a guitar at 31 as perfect timing. I have over 30 years to figure the thing out and enjoy some laughs along the way.
Learning to read music all over again is the hard part about this new adventure. I haven't read music since I stopped playing the trombone after sophomore year of high school. The trombone...that all started when I was in fifth grade. My parents heard kids who play instruments get better grades, learn responsibility etc etc. I went to the local middle school during the instrument open house. By the end of the night I picked three different instruments I wanted to learn to play: violin, piano and guitar. My mom told me none of those were in the budget based on instrument rental amounts and lessons given by the teacher at school did not include any of those instruments. Lessons from a private source were too expensive. So...trombone it was.
The best part about the new guitar is my hubby is learning to play it too. We take turns. If I really need to get work done, I don't feel bad about not practicing; the guitar is still in use. Why am I writing this? Well...I figure there might be someone else out there making the "age excuse" when considering a new task. Don't. I may die later today; I may die 60 years from now. Each day is a gift, not a promise. Make the best use of it!
Earlier this week my guitar arrived. I never played a guitar before in my life. Some people may think it is crazy to purchase such a thing at the age of 31. I feel that is the view of those with the cup half empty. With the way modern medicine operates, I will likely live to an age beyond ripeness. I look at getting a guitar at 31 as perfect timing. I have over 30 years to figure the thing out and enjoy some laughs along the way.
Learning to read music all over again is the hard part about this new adventure. I haven't read music since I stopped playing the trombone after sophomore year of high school. The trombone...that all started when I was in fifth grade. My parents heard kids who play instruments get better grades, learn responsibility etc etc. I went to the local middle school during the instrument open house. By the end of the night I picked three different instruments I wanted to learn to play: violin, piano and guitar. My mom told me none of those were in the budget based on instrument rental amounts and lessons given by the teacher at school did not include any of those instruments. Lessons from a private source were too expensive. So...trombone it was.
The best part about the new guitar is my hubby is learning to play it too. We take turns. If I really need to get work done, I don't feel bad about not practicing; the guitar is still in use. Why am I writing this? Well...I figure there might be someone else out there making the "age excuse" when considering a new task. Don't. I may die later today; I may die 60 years from now. Each day is a gift, not a promise. Make the best use of it!
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
The Origin of Names
What a long time since I last posted a blog! My family has settled in fairly well to our new city. Today was full of details since Tuesday is my "day off". Some minor maintenance was completed on our rental home today; the hubby and I got our library cards (much to the delight of our children); grocery shopping happened; insurance was finally updated; ice was slowly chipped away from our walk (it was over 4 inches thick!) and I attended a meeting for work.
I also spent some time reading emails from friends and realized how many I know from online gaming. I used to play Asheron's Call and more recently I enjoyed Azeroth in the World of Warcraft. The screen name I used for my gaming characters was "Saucy". The name got started in a rather unimmaginative way. When my husband and I were dating, I said something (I don't ever remember what anymore) and he said, "You're so saucy!" The name is a rather fun one.
My real name is Jenny. When I attended grade school, there were 3 "Jenny" in my class of 24. Ones legal name is Jennifer; another is Jenni; mine is legally Jenny. My mother named me after her maternal grandmother, Jennie Lunstra. Mom didn't know the spelling at the time of my birth and I got the default "Jenny" spelling. I met many more Jenny, Jennifer and Jen as I grew older. I won't say I dislike my real name. I simply find my screen name to be more unique so when I decided to blog...Saucy was the name I chose to use.
I also spent some time reading emails from friends and realized how many I know from online gaming. I used to play Asheron's Call and more recently I enjoyed Azeroth in the World of Warcraft. The screen name I used for my gaming characters was "Saucy". The name got started in a rather unimmaginative way. When my husband and I were dating, I said something (I don't ever remember what anymore) and he said, "You're so saucy!" The name is a rather fun one.
My real name is Jenny. When I attended grade school, there were 3 "Jenny" in my class of 24. Ones legal name is Jennifer; another is Jenni; mine is legally Jenny. My mother named me after her maternal grandmother, Jennie Lunstra. Mom didn't know the spelling at the time of my birth and I got the default "Jenny" spelling. I met many more Jenny, Jennifer and Jen as I grew older. I won't say I dislike my real name. I simply find my screen name to be more unique so when I decided to blog...Saucy was the name I chose to use.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
A Lesson in Trust.
I am in the process of packing and moving back to my beloved home state of Wisconsin. After years of telling myself my dream profession was out of my reach for a multitude of reasons, I am submitting myself to "life under the microscope" and embracing the responsibilities and challenges of becoming a Director of Youth and Family Ministry. I know a portion of the time between school and now was me maturing as a person of faith and as an individual. Even now, as I am boxing up the household, I am being taught a lesson in trust. I have not yet found a place to live and I have one week to find that place and move to it. I pack knowing I must strive to accomplish a great deal of logistics in the next week but also knowing God is in charge of the details.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
A Shattered Dream.
I'm burning the midnight oil (as the saying goes) to write this blog tonight. I just heard about the 10 year old in Evanston, IL who was hanged by himself or someone else in the school bathroom and died. As a parent, I feel deep sorrow knowing a family is grieving tonight.
A parent begins to dream for their child from the moment one finds out a baby is on his or her way. First, there are thoughts of health. Prenatal vitamins are consumed; moderate exercise occurs; doctor visits to check on prenatal health are made. Later, many of us wake in the middle of the night just to go check if our new baby is breathing. We marvel at the perfectly formed, delicate, tiny fingers and toes. We try to ignore reports of terrible day cares and hope we find suitable care for our children. Others, like myself, stay home with our children.
The first day of school was different for each of my children. My daughter wanted to go to school. My son did not want to get on the bus and I told him he had to. We parents hope our children are kind to others, build friendships with people who will be kind in return and enjoy learning. We worry about how fast or slow they are absorbing various subject's material. We work to raise funding for education to be better. We ask them what they want to be when they grow up. Hannah wants to be a librarian. Josiah wants to be a race car driver. We try to support their dreams and encourage learning.
What none of us thinks about is our child dying at school. We assume our children are vigilantly observed (at least in elementary school) and accounted for. We know there are bathroom passes, lunch room supervisors, recess helpers and fairly consistent routines to follow. As parents, we assume children will "taddle" on one another if someone does something overtly dangerous.
Whether or not this boy dying is an isolated case is beside the point to me. Knowing there are broken hearts tonight; broken dreams...reminds me of how much we each take for granted every single day. My heart and prayers go out to that mom tonight. May she find strength.
A parent begins to dream for their child from the moment one finds out a baby is on his or her way. First, there are thoughts of health. Prenatal vitamins are consumed; moderate exercise occurs; doctor visits to check on prenatal health are made. Later, many of us wake in the middle of the night just to go check if our new baby is breathing. We marvel at the perfectly formed, delicate, tiny fingers and toes. We try to ignore reports of terrible day cares and hope we find suitable care for our children. Others, like myself, stay home with our children.
The first day of school was different for each of my children. My daughter wanted to go to school. My son did not want to get on the bus and I told him he had to. We parents hope our children are kind to others, build friendships with people who will be kind in return and enjoy learning. We worry about how fast or slow they are absorbing various subject's material. We work to raise funding for education to be better. We ask them what they want to be when they grow up. Hannah wants to be a librarian. Josiah wants to be a race car driver. We try to support their dreams and encourage learning.
What none of us thinks about is our child dying at school. We assume our children are vigilantly observed (at least in elementary school) and accounted for. We know there are bathroom passes, lunch room supervisors, recess helpers and fairly consistent routines to follow. As parents, we assume children will "taddle" on one another if someone does something overtly dangerous.
Whether or not this boy dying is an isolated case is beside the point to me. Knowing there are broken hearts tonight; broken dreams...reminds me of how much we each take for granted every single day. My heart and prayers go out to that mom tonight. May she find strength.
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