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Beaky
My World Otacon's Diary
My Gaze My Choice |
Charshy Shar-shee, n. f, slang - nickname given by little sister.
Describes less-than-average gamer-girl-geek with an obsessive streak
and passion for writing.
Alt - Weirdo. |
04/06/2003 - 4:03 pm
~ BROTHAAAAAAR! ~
Oh, little week, how ye did fly. I had a wicked time at Faye's. Where do I begin?
I felt ill, like I said, I have no idea why. I'm feeling a bit better now, its weird. Keeps coming back once in a while, I feel sick for no good reason. Mainly after I eat, and I can't figure why, and I'm not actually being ill. X_x
Anyway.
Faye, can I steal the quote on your blog? Yes I can, I’m evil that way: holy mother of god, A-Kon rocked.
^_^; Val after a 10 hour flight is not a pretty sight. Truuust me. Which is probably why I just slept 13 hours straight earlier. O_O
So we got off at the airport (natch), Auntie Mor, Nanoo and I. And our flight – I swear, miracles happen – was early into the airport. So we were supposed to be meeting Faye at 2pm and we were there at 1pm. Or something. I forget the times now. Then I find my mobile phone doesn’t work on American soil. Never helpful, that. So I used the callbox to be like… "Faaaaaaaaaaye, we’re at D/FW airport and we dunno where to go…" and I got her voicemail. I thought at this point: help.
So anyway, a very helpful couple who'd come back to Texas from an English holiday on our flight told us about the sheer enormousness of the airport, but also told us where we were. So I called Faye again with more helpful information.
Anyway, I had a rough idea what she was wearing and later I saw an orange shirt in the far-off distance, and Nanoo and I are like, "is that person wearing glasses? Do they have short brown hair???" *panic* But yay, it was her. ^_^
And she was a darling. So's her Mom and Dad. And so we went to the motel and stuff and agreed to meet up for dinner, but I was absolutely DEAD by 9pm US time – 'cos, it would have been 3am back home, and I’d started my day at 4am UK time O__O;
So anyway, we went to the Renaissance fayre the next day. That was funny. It rained and we all got covered in mud, including all the very lovely (and some very weird) outfits people had worn. It was about as Olde English as french-fries, but it was fun. ^^;; And I found out what fried icecream was. And tried beef jerky. It's like beef-flavoured plastic, in my opinion.
I went back to Faye's that night, now that my mother's conditions had been met and it was really quite OBVIOUS the family were really really nice. And I can't remember the rest of the day, because I was dead. x_x Can you tell I spent a lot of time being dead?
Anyway, I learnt several things before Friday:
1. American flags breed from the sides of buildings. They were EVERYWHERE.
2. "Jiffy Lube" and "Kinko’s" are really wrong things to call a business XD
3. Road signs sometimes say, "Drive Friendly" in Texas. *snicker*
4. Not to climb into the driver’s seat, me being used to it being the OTHER side of the car.
5. Malls are big. Very very big. And shinahy!
6. That America in general is about 50x cleaner than England. My town is so skanky it hurts.
7. Americans don’t use "skanky" in the same context.
8. How to say "sucks" in many different contexts.
9. "Condoms To Go" invokes some disturbing mental imagery. ("Yes, I’d like a McCondom to go, please...")
10. PANTS! I started to use "pants" in the correct context by Thursday. Be proud. (*whispers* trousers.)
11. And gasoline instead of petrol.
12. Schools are big. 1700 graduates in Faye's grade: my whole school had 1000 students O_o
13. Graduation robes are cute. ^^
14. Texas is hot. And I love it. <3
15. Pocky is actually easy to get hold of.
16. Arcades are cooler.
17. That Faye and Alex could be professional dancers if their DDR skills prove anything.
18. NTSC grinds PAL to dust in terms of speed on the PS2.
19. That it’s not only me who thinks Liquid has a stoopid accent ("progrim!" XD)
I'll think of more later. Ahem. So... you wanna know about how the Kon went?
... I'll make a separate post for it. >D
- Valentine Angel
| Mood: Happy |  |
26/05/2003 - 11:47 pm
~ *nosies in someone's sketchbook* ~
I'm at Faye's! She's a darling! I'm not feeling well - but who cares! ^___^;;;
Yesh. I'm happy. Be back in a week.
- Valentine Angel
| Mood: Happy | |
24/05/2003 - 10:42 am
~ Just remembering ~
Goddammit. I've gone through all the coding on the diary and I STILL can't figure out what bit is causing an error in I.E. I got rid of the tracker, and I'm still getting something off. Graaaah.
Okay, so I better blurb before I leave tomorrow, eh? ^____^;;;
On Wednesday I went to college to have my morning exam.... and found it wasn't on. It was Thursday. x_x So I walked around to Nanoo's, and so we went shopping (I had planned to go shoppering with her the day after anyhow).
I got new trainers. They're a blue/grey colour and pretty funky. I also got a haircut. It's weird. My hair's shorter and easier to brush. I'm so used to my hair being a bird's nest. ^^;; The hairdressers of course nagged me about my hair, "is it ALWAYS this knotty?" yes it damn well is. T_T You try living with it.
So after that fun day, I had my exam Thursday - easy as pie, but I still wanted to be sleeping in bed. I called Spayley on my mobile and she and Seanathon went shoppering with me. We had fun. I bought a shirt and some other stuff. And sushi. And Seanathon ATE A LUMP OF WASABI. o_______@ Without screaming.
We walked everywhere - especially as I went straight out from college, I musta walked several miles over the day non-stop. My legs hurt. We went to Starbucks because Spayley and Seanathon like coffee. But I don't. x_x So I had hot choccy. Which I managed to spill everywhere - why oh why was I born with the clumsy gene? XD
But the weird thing about Thursday were these little snippets of the past... I always try not to remember school - I have this mental block on the whole shitty experience. But I kept seeing people I knew from school working or shopping, and we stopped to talk about what we were up to nowadays.
I felt quite... healed, for lack of better wording, for talking to them. I saw Zoe and Leanne, who used to be my best friends, but they too turned to the "boys and makeup" side of the Force, and then we had so little in common we didn't go out anymore. I miss their friendship. Zoe quit college and works as ASDA for the time being - she's gonna enrol next year. Leanne is doing Social Services at her college.
I met Plum (Sarah), who is working as a sales advisor in Wilkinsons. She didn't want to go to college. If she's happy, I'm happy for her.
I met someone special though downtown on the way to meet Spayley - JULIE! I hadn't seen her for ages, nor Gemma. Julie hasn't changed a bit, but she seems a little bit more rational than she used to be... I say a little bit. ^^ She's still crazy. I still remember fondly the two weeks in which Spayley, Gemma, Julie and I terrorized the world on study leave. I think those two weeks were some of my happiest.
Julie and I talked about old memories. Dame Judith before she died, the day so-and-so set the fire alarm off, the time she thought I had a crush on her XD and so on.
Seeing a past I've tried to forget has been making me think. It was bad. Hell, the majority was bad. But there were still those small moments where I hadn't care in the world, and was happy. And I must remember those.
So... enough of the past. Onward to the future:
My suitcase is packed, more or less. I'm excited, can't wait to see Faye/Nekura Otacon/Caitlin... and you know you're a darling for having me stay, right???
Getting up at 4am tomorrow to get taxi to Gatwick airport. Flight's at 10am. We get over mid-afternoon. Whee! I get back at 7am UK time tho :P With an exam the next day!!! >_<;
I better go shop now... I need a camera to take with me. Shame my camcorder is still dead. Hm. Maybe I can get it fixed today...
- Valentine Angel
23/05/2003 - 10:45 am
*packs clothes*
You are a solumn, stubborn, calm and quiet person who displays attraction towards hyper and genki people. You tend to hide your inner and true feelings and prefer to use verbal irony instead of being direct. You are good at what you do but when it comes to love, you couldn't be less clueless. XD Take the quiz at Dare to Dream |
That's really kinda odd, but quite true in some respects. I'm hyper and apparently expressive in my emotions - which often gets me hurt or in trouble - but I keep a lot of my innermost feelings locked up - I'm not truly expressive as I don't trust people with most of my feelings. :P
Wow. Self-analysis. From an Internet quiz. O_o
I had a fun coupla days Wednesday and Thursday... heck, Friday too. A lot to write, but also a lot to do... off I skip!
- Valentine Angel
20/05/2003 - 11:22 am
~ Ow. Ow ow.
3 hour exam in under 2 hours. poop. >_<
My hands ache from typing/writing too much - and none of it was for personal pleasure, joy and happiness either. :P
They accccccchhhhhhheeeeeee.
So, I'll stop typing now.
- Valentine Angel
16/05/2003 - 9:54 am
~ More exams, more MGS 3 :S ~
First announcement: I put the full E3 MGS 3 trailer on Kazaa. I stole it offa Scott with his Gamespot Complete account, and then... sent it to at least 20 people yesterday. Hope Gamespot doesn't find out... XD
But DAMN. Is that video good? It's goooooood.
I got a deadline for my Graphics work today, 12:00. It's nearly 10am, so I got 2 hours to stick down all my work and mount the exam work to a large sheet of mount-card. Shouldn't be a problem, except I'm missing my photographs - ack! O_O;;;
I've nearly completed Substance now. 98%. ^__^ I have 5 more missions to complete of MGS-1 Snake. I submitted some clear codes and I'm top scorer for Europe, MGS-1 Snake Elimination level 10. Whee! ^^;;;; *brag brag*
I got past my writer's block last night. And Faye showed me she got 5555 hits. O___O; Oh my goddess, I had THAT many visitors? I'm kinda proud. So now I must write something. Preferably before I go see her after next week. ^____^
Lots more exams next week. But after that, there's one more and I'm done. College official end of term is July 18th, though dammit! >_<; So I still have lessons after the exams in prep for the A2 year next year... which I won't be going to anyway, 'cos I'll be in Japan. But I have to turn up anyway to complete the AS course.
Right, I must get back to work. Seeing Dad tonight, always makes my week. ^_^ Nanoo is gonna help me bank all my cash, so I can write out that cheque. Still scraping for cash... I'll do that when I get home tonight. >:D
Daddy! *hugs* ^^; I can't wait to see him.
- Valentine Angel
| Mood: Cheerful | |
14/05/2003 - 1:13 pm
~ Exam! Exam! MGS 3! Ramble! ~
Waaah... first break from my all-day exam. Lunchtime. But I ate my lunch at break so I could hurry off and print more exam work and stuff... so! I now relax with a diary entry. ^^
So far the exam's going good. Printed out my final piece, and apart from a few photography problems (noise and scanner-stripes on the A2 image), it looks pretty damned spanky. Even my graphics teacher praised it, and he's so amazingly fussy.
I got a letter from YFU, a nice official letter about my host family. A bit late considering I'm already writing to them. I hope I get a reply soon. ^_^; But then again, I did send mine late the first time, maybe they're angry with me. >_<;
But at least I know who the mysterious fifth family member is: I have a host brother too, who is 14. My host sister Ai is 16, and I have a younger host-sister who is 12. ^_^ And my host-father's name is Tatsuka and my mother Kaori. Eee.
Suddenly I realize how short amount of time I have until I go. I don't feel scared. I don't feel upset... it's like the beginning of a very big adventure.
It's sunny outside - nice considering I've been rained upon most of this week. Sun and rain keep alternating at the minute, so I'm either freezing or boiling, no matter what I wear. I've stopped wearing jumpers to college though - I just sit in my coat when its cold ^^;;;
Half an hour until end of lunch and back to the exam. Once that's done, I got two hours tomorrow to make up the full eight hours of exam. I'm quite enjoying myself, to tell the truth. Six hours today of pure creativity has been a great outlet, it's relaxing.
I'm now just listening to my Gravi CD in the college computer room, checking e-mails, checking up on MGS 3 news. When I get home, I'm downloading more trailers and whatever tidbits of info I can get my grubby, PVA-glue coated hands on. (damn Graphics exam).
OHOHOHOHO.... Gamespot.com have a 10 min trailer... must have.
Mee... 10 mins to go. Multi-tasking makes diary entry write slowly. x_X Too tired to grammarify properly.
Must go prepare self for final half of exam! MUST GET MGS 3 STUFF!
Off I fly!
- Valentine Angel
| Mood: Yay! |  |
13/05/2003 - 5:58 pm
~ £137. The trauma of money management. ~
Time to squeal!
Nanoo and I talked business-like about the finances of the holiday. I said I wouldn't be breaking into my £500 Japan-money, 'cos I already had money. She asked where. I had £60 in my purse, £90 in a penny-jar (except I've bank-bagged them now) and I knew I was owed over £50 in tax return. Nanoo pursued the tax returns thing, and so I got dropped off at OfficeWorld to collect my wage slips, and dissapear to the tax office to collect £50.
Oh ho ho ho, fortune favoured the Val.
OfficeWorld conveniently held MY TAX REPORT for the year, which stated quite clearly I HAD BEEN TAXED...
£137.06.
And I was like, "holy shit!". Grandad and I went straight to the tax office, they set me up my tax records so I actually exist now ^^ And promised I'll have a cheque in the post next week. WOO! I get all that taxed money back. I was thinking, "yessss!"
But, uh, then the bad thing happened. That £280 flight had been snapped up, and the only one left now is £330. >_< D'oh! Plus Nanoo suddenly reminded me I need travel insurance, should I keel over and die on American soil. D'OH!
The best theory I got so far to make up the £50-odd I'm gonna need is to scrape behind the sofa at Mum's, ask for her to cough up some babysitting money, and hope for the best. It's not like I can't break into my £500, but Mum had a go at me when I said I'd use that money, "how ungrateful, you should pay for your Japan scholarship etc etc" ...
Hm... £50+ in under two weeks. Or a cheaper flight to Dallas. Or possibly BOTH. Any ideas???
Damn, I got my Graphics exam tomorrow; that's gonna cost me at least £5 in printouts. What to do what to do...
But.... £137! ^____^;
I need that money. I know Nanoo would give it to me in a second, and she's damn well already offered - but as generous as she is, I would never, EVER accept that offer. She's already trying to persuade me I should write the cheque for only £300...
... and if she thinks she's paying for the airport taxi, she's got another thing coming! Nope, this is my holiday, therefore I should pay the expenditures. I hate not doing my bit.
I'm doing lots of housework at home to try and improve my relationship with my Mum (ahh, the ways to a mother's heart, housework). And she's still asking, "Why can't you be nicer to Lee? He's lost his job!" I tolerate him, and I'm not rude to him. As I say to her many times, I don't like him. "It's not like he's like "that" anymore.", she said. I don't forgive and forget. I just don't like that man's attitude. See previous entries.
Whoa, I gotta get ready for D of E and all its insane, torret syndrome kids. Bai bai.
- Valentine Angel
12/05/2003 - 7:42 pm
~ Gay! College peeps, please don't read. ~
I'm gay! Tra la la! ^^;;
Your anime hair color is green.
What is your anime hair color?
brought to you by Quizilla
I want blue hair. I am obsessed with blue hair. Although admittedly this description fits, I like bluuuuue.
A boytoy? Bah. *hides the naked and bound Otacon from view* XD
As for this quiz below... if you're reading this and from my college, I'd like to state I MADE UP THE ANSWERS. I AM A GOOD GIRL. Thank you. ^^;;;
... If I find a large proportion of guys start talking to me after this, I will be worried.
- Valentine Angel
11/05/2003 - 12:50 pm
~ [Otacon pun concerning "Snake Eater" here] ~
Whee, you know you're sad when you spend a whole evening listening to the Darkwing Duck theme.
I hereby reserve this space for a long MGS 3 Snake Eater rant. Gotta eat food now. Bai!
[Edit]
Okay, so I got in from shopping having bought my new "mad cow" t-shirt (which is cute, and very me. ^^;) and pre-ordering my copy of Order Of The Phoenix, and find an e-mail from Chibz posting to the MetalGearSlash ML concerning MGS 3!
So I bounced and downloaded the preview video, and man oh man oh man, I am really worried about the next game. It looks just like MGS 2, and whilst MGS 2 graphically is jaw dropping, I did expect more.
It's in a jungle setting, and Snake is eating raw snake. He's also shirtless and wearing fatigues. I am hoping this game is set in his past or something, because Snake going back to war is something my mind refuses to process. He hates killing! Of course, as someone quoted on the ML, the MGS 2 demo vids were pure testosterone, and this demo movie for MGS 3 is the same. But still... Synth thinks its like Rambo, and whilst I know its gotta be about sneaking (MGS will never be an action game! Never!), I don't want to think Snake quit Philanthropy and went back on all he said...
I think its Big Boss in the video, particularly after what I've heard. Someone online told me "Snake Eater" is a reference to the Vietnam war, and that happened before Snake was born. As Snake is genetically identical to Big Boss, and the bandana is standard-issue with FOXHOUND, its quite possible...! It would explain a lot. As I keep saying, if Snake was on a mission in the jungle, Otacon would give him a packed lunch instead of watching him eat raw snake flesh. Geez, at least cook it first, dude!
I think I said enough.
- Valentine Angel
09/05/2003 - 11:03 am
~ Spayley and the Charshy, what do they do? ~
Spayley and Charshy are heading out tonight! ^_^ Yay! I haven't heard from Spayley in a bit. I feel like going noodle-huntering with her.
That's all for now. I'm off for lunch.
- Valentine Angel
08/05/2003 - 10:34 am
~ Here's hoping ~
Why do I just make myself a nuisance to others?
Mum cried the other night over the whole me going away thing, saying she was only looking out for my welfare etc etc... dammit I know she is, but I'm not nine years old, and I know my Mum, once she starts crying she doesn't stop 'til whatever got her upset changes. And I feel guilty whenever she cries; it's like a second nature. So. Somehow I need to stump up an extra $50-$100 so I can stay in the motel, with Nanoo and completely wreck her holiday.
Geez, Nanoo and Auntie Mor are gonna be staying right around the corner; they're gonna know if I get killed or something (sorry Faye. I'm pretty certain you're not a mad evil geek-snatcher, really)! But I guess I gotta just swallow this bitter pill if I wanna go at all. -.-;; Maybe I could just stay in the motel the first night and call on Faye next morning. I sure as hell can't afford to pay for accomodation for a week.
I'm gonna call Nanoo tonight and get things sorted once and for all. It'll only be a week left after that, gulp! Gotta get plane booked by the weekend. And it's not fair of me to mess Faye about. *pettles* I'm sorry!!!
But anyway. Exam on Monday for Computing. O_o I am so dead.
And guess what, guess what (good news). I nearly HTML'ed site update! *tapdances* I'm tackling the fics now; but you have no idea how much my hand aches from copying and pasting paragraph tags. <_>
I've nearly finished Substance's VR missions too. 82% of MGS-1 Snake, making it 97% overall. Can't do the first Variety mission or Weapon - Grenade level 05 though (GRENADE LEVEL 5 IS EVIL!)
But I'm storming through everything else though. Elimination mode's proving to be a little tricky. But I've also got my writing spark back to do that Mantis fic I never finished... I keep redrafting chapter two, though. It feels too slow-paced.
But I'm feeling a little chirpier now, y'know. Maybe this weekend I could see Dad if I asked. I won't get to see him the weekend after if I go to Faye's. ^^;
Back to work, a la college. Ta ta!
- Valentine Angel
| Mood: Feeling better |  |
