Wow. I just found out about this guy after watching House of Flying Daggers... and he is seriously sex on legs. haha. :P He's a mix of Taiwanese and Japanese... ahhh... he's so handsome. *__*

*drool* This stuff is soo good, especially on a hot summer day.

Ingredients:

1 package of buckwheat noodles from a Korean grocery store - ask for naeng myun - the list of ingredients may read "buckwheat noodles," or may include a few other ingredients like "sweet potato starch", "wheat," and "salt."
1 carton of organic chicken or organic beef broth
Sea salt
Vinegar (brown rice vinegar is best, white vinegar will do)
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded with a spoon, then sliced into thin strips about 2 inches long
1 Asian pear, peeled and thinly sliced
Soft boiled egg - one for each person
Ice cubes

Directions:

Traditionally, the broth for mool naeng myun is made with about 1/3 beef broth, 1/3 chicken broth, and 1/3 kim chi brine. But because few people have the time or expertise to include all three components to make this broth, most Koreans use just beef broth or chicken broth.

1. Pour organic chicken or beef broth into a large bowl. Add 5 tablespoons of vinegar, stir gently, and taste. Imagine drinking this broth while eating chewy buckwheat noodles and add more vinegar if you prefer more tang. This is the step that requires a previous encounter with well made mool naeng myun. Add a small amount of sea salt, to taste. If there is enough time before mealtime, put this bowl of broth in the refrigerator to chill.
2. Put buckwheat noodles into a large pot of boiling water and cook for 2-3 minutes. They should be taken out as soon as they are al dente - chewy, but not too soft. At this point, put noodles in a large colander and rinse two to three times with cold water. Allow noodles to rest in the colander for a few minutes or until excess water has been drained.
3. To serve, place a large handful of noodles in a large eating bowl. Add a small bunch of cucumber strips, a few pear slices, and one soft boiled egg (cut in half right before serving) to the bowl. Then use a ladle to add a generous amount of cold and tangy broth to the bowl, enough to cover about 75 percent of the ingredients.
4. Right before eating, use scissors to cut the noodles a few times to allow for more convenient mouthfuls.

Hm.... I think I may experiment with this little recipe. :P

I was just thinking right now that I tend to lose all the rings that I really like.

Like the one that I got as a gift from sharon and frannie as a birthday present, I lost that... and it was a really nice simple silver band that I truly liked. ...This was my fault thought because I always take it off when washing my hand, so I was bound to forget it once. >_<

Then I just recently lost the ring I bought from Japan :( That really sucked because it was so unique and it was a memento from the Square Enix store in Japan... I know that fretting over something lost is useless, but I can't help but want it back right now. I loved it a lot. And the thing is... I didn't even take this one off. Must have just slipped off somewhere.

Maybe when I get married I should seriously just exchange like ring pops or those plastic 50 cent rings, cuz with my track record right now I know that if I get a fancy shmancy wedding ring I'll PROBABLY end up losing it within the next year...=__= And boy would that stink.
Uhh... this is really random, but I just felt like letting out what was on my mind at the moment. :P

That's what these blog thingies are for right?

Whoooo.... ~

Pheeeww... I know it's not that outstanding or whatever, but I like it and I feel accomplished that I finally was able to ink something for once... O_O

Well this here is what I like to call the Pail List...which is basically a corny play off of the "Bucket List" that me and Sam thought up of one day ^__^.

It's not things I want to do before I die, but things I want to accomplish by 25.

OK, well here goes! And anyone who is reading this that would also like to post their own pail list, I would love to hear (see) it! :)

1) Graduate (I sure hope so!)
2) Study abroad in Japan
3) Have a tablet (Actually, I can cross this one off now because I just purchased one yesterday on the wonderful Amazon.com :D *crosses fingers* I sure hope it's worth it!)
4) Finish at lease ONE of my mangas
5) Sing in public (I'm not talking about karaoke.... I'm talking about in front of an audience)
6) Have a steady job
7) Find true love (corny... I know -_-)
8) Have my license (I'm hoping to accomplish this pretty soon---been procrastinating WAAY too long with this...)
9) Have my own apartment (or somehow just be out of my house...)
10) Go on some kind of trip with friends to another country :)
11) Be able to have the courage to do something bold---like tell someone my feelings straight out, face to face, or just go up to someone and tell them that they're sexy or something...*shrug* Something basically that I would never do.
12) Blog on Youtube (LOL)
13) To be more comfortable in my own skin and be more social
14) Improve in my drawings

1) Wacom Intuos3 6 x 8 Pen Tablet

COST: $283.89
I've heard many raves about the Wacom tablet... and now I must have it *eyes fill with greed* >:] Then I wouldn't have to use my pesky scanner and have my stuff come out with crappy quality. And apparently it would do wonders with inking and lineart, etc., *sighs dreamily* Ahhh... I will save up my money for you one day. *stares longingly at it*

2) Microsoft LifeCam VX-3000 (68A-00001)

COST: $30.31
This one is much more attainable than the tablet... obviously because the cost is only 30 bucks... I would only want to use this to skype with people through and blogging stuff---possibly gain some notice on youtube (lol) xD Don't know if it's completely worth it though since webcams depend on computer speed... and my computer's speed is not something to brag about. (in other words... it sucks). Oh well... don't hurt to try right? After all it's not like 100 bucks or something...

Oh man, I just saw that the Starbucks in Douglaston Plaza is closing down! O_O Out of 600 of them that are closing, that one is one of them unfortunately. :( So much for working there.

Ahh, but mostly I will miss not being able to hang out there! It was such a comfortable place to study or chat with people. *shrug* It sucks ass, but I can't do anything about it.

They had better replace it with something even awesomer then! And maybe something easier on the wallet too---oh, and It had better not turn into some stupid hardware store or some boring ass bull shit. >:O

I'm hoping for a restaurant!! xD

jeezzz, I just realized how much I don't even watch my money sometimes and the fact that I don't have a job is not exactly helping out on my bank account.

On Thursday after karaoke-ing I had 110 dollars... and today I looked in my wallet and realized I only had like 13 dollars left. How did I use up 97 dollars in TWO days?!!! That's nuts... I really gotta start watching the wallet, especially since I'm not making any income---oh, and I seriously gotta get a move on with getting a credit card! O__O

Hm... let me see, I will try to rehash what I bought in the past two days that made me so damn poor all the sudden.

After karaoke I went to Oyama with Frannie and Steph to get sushi, and I paid for the frannie's bill too since it was her birthday, and I guess that's about 23 dollars? Then we got bubble tea which was about like 3-4 dollars?

Hm... and then after that the next day I went to that club which was 20 dollars, and then bought a drink which was 5 dollars.

Then today it was about 11 dollars for dinner, 3 dollars for ices, and then 11 dollars for karaoke and then that was about it I think.

Oh and I had to keep buying metro cards so that was like around 10 dollars too...

I guess that does kind of add up...

Gahh... =_____=

Okay... I really have to cross my fingers on getting a job somewhere.... somewhere that I don't hate for once.

If I had my own restaurant I would serve mostly noodles... big bowls of piping hot noodles that coincide with an emotion---kind of like the whole jamba juice concept of boosting a certain mood that you are in need of, but in restaurant noodle form.

Like there would be the happiness noodles which have foods that are scientifically supposed to boost you and make you feel more energetic and giddy; the bowls would be yellow and the dish would just spring you with energy and make you feel chipper. Then there would be calming noodles which are in like a light blue bowl, or lavender, and has like a calming effect on you after you sip the broth and there would be a cup of chamomile tea to go with it (good for stressful moments) and then there'd be strength noodles (packed with meat) and have a strong red colored bowl which would be great for whenever you're feeling low on fuel and need to overcome a weakness. There would also be the love noodles for couples and even for single people who are just in a romantic mood and need to feel comfortable. They'd be served in pink bowls and come with hot chocolate or something (chocolate is supposed to make you feel in love right?)

I just love noodles...

Rurouni Kenshin


This manga, I think is pretty damn amazing... it really keeps me on the edge of my seat and has just enough drama in it to make it work. The artwork is pretty impressive and the fight scenes are amazing. I love the whole sword fighting business and all the fight scenes were REALLY intense. Honestly though, the anime gives the fight scenes more life...the manga is still great but it just doesn't convey it the same way since the anime adds music and movement, etc., Anyway, there is also romance too which is always a pretty important factor to me. I don't particularly like manga that JUST revolve around romance either, but I like it to have a healthy mixture of many things and that is what this manga does. It mixes drama, action, comedy, and romance all into one---to put it simply, this manga is phenomenal. It really made me cry at some points because it really pulls at the heartstrings, and it definitely has it's comedy in it too, especially with Kenshin's ridiculous expressions and mannerisms.

Jeez... Kenshin really sounds like a woman in the anime and he isn't exactly the most attractive at first glance, but boy, when he puts on that angry expression and starts kicking major ass, he turns super hot. ^___^ I give this manga 4 stars.

Ranma 1/2

I used to watch this anime while growing up and started reading it too... and you just gotta love Rumiko Takahashi's wacky humor and zany situations that she creates. This manga is one crazy ride that goes on for like 30 something volumes (one of Takahashi's major flaws is over drawing out her manga *cough* Inuyasha *cough*) I love the storyline though, it's just so ORIGINAL and fresh. I've never heard of anything like this, and I'm not usually a fan of gender bending, but the way Takahashi portrays all the characters, it makes you fall in love. I was always rooting for Ranma and Akane, although it does get annoying sometimes because both of them absolutely refuse to confess to one another even though they KNOW they're both madly in love with one another. =__= Unfortunately, the ending wasn't that great, but oh well, I loved it anyway. It's just so fun and crazy that you can't help but keep reading. And I think it's awesome that a woman wrote a really great shonen manga... you don't see that that much these days and it's kind of discouraging. Also I think Takahahi's artwork is not phenomenal but it's pretty distinct, which is really good, because I can tell it's her artwork pretty quickly, because her drawing style is very different from others.

I would give this manga 4 stars because I do think that Takahashi kept drawing it out too long... I mean cmon, 36 volumes? O_O Yeah, she needs to learn to condense sometimes. And also the whole every girl loving Ranma and every guy loving Akane got a little tiring sometimes.

Immortal Rain

This manga is pretty good. The thing is I mostly liked it because of the drawings. I like it because it's so simple and clean... just very standardly well drawn. The storyline is pretty good too, but the problem with this manga is that is kind of gets boring sometimes and I feel like skipping, which is not good. I think it's because of the dialogue and how it lacks depth. I like the main male character, Rain, because he has some personality, but the rest of them seem not so interesting and lacking in charm and layers. It's not filled with life this manga, but it has a nice storyline to it...

I would give this manga about 3 stars. Not the best, but still a decent read. The romance is pretty good too... although a 15 year old hooking up with like a 100 year old dude is a LITTLE creepy...

Love Complex

Hmm, I liked the beginning volumes of this manga a lot. It was really cute and funny... a romance that I never really hear about (a tall girl and a short boy). At first I was kind of hesitant about reading this because I didn't think it would be that interesting since the storyline sounded kind of dull, but it's really funny sometimes and just an entertaining manga to read. I enjoyed it, until about like volume 8 or so.. that's when I started to get tired of it because the relationship between the two main characters starts off hilarious and charming, but then it just starts to get really really irritating and tiresome---I don't want to spoil anything, so I won't say exactly why.

I'd give this manga 2 1/2 stars as well because it's just plain entertaining sometimes when you're bored. Other then that though... it's not that riveting or anything. Nothing that kept me over the edge of my seat. And the characters aren't super interesting either--and honestly, her chasing the guy gets a little old after a couple of volumes...

Vampire Knight

I sat down and read the first volume all the way through, and then I started to kind of skim through the rest because it didn't really grapple my interest. Not that the art is bad, in fact her artwork is really beautiful, but I guess it's the fact that all the men have that beautiful bishoujo look... I mean look at the two main guys. Glue the other guy's hair onto the other, and you won't be able to tell who's who anymore---and girly men are EH for me. The girl is also waaay too normal looking... I guess the thing is that nothing stands out like crazy, personality wise or feature wise with any of the characters. They're all just really beautiful looking, but they have no oomph (if that makes any sense...) The story is okay too, a tad too serious though, and it was pretty predictable. I could also totally tell that the main girl was going to have two beautiful men after her because... it's just that predictable, and the main girl is one of those typical innocent, pure, good-hearted, brave, and kind blah blah blah girls (ick).

So let me see... I guess I would give this manga 2 stars for it's gorgeous artwork. Nothing super original about it though---but I guess I can't judge it too harshly since I only read like four volumes (and only one of them I REALLY concentrated on).

Slam Dunk

Oh man... this manga is friggin' amazing. I seriously didn't think I'd like it since I was all like, "Oh, it's just about basketball... and I'm not really a sports fan," but after watching and reading this manga, my mind completely changed. This manga is so much more than just basketball, it's about never giving up, friendship and striving for a goal. It teaches so many life lessons and the artworks is AMAZING. I've never seen art as good as Inoue Takehiko's work... his drawings are so detailed and realistic and each character has a distinct look and characteristic to them that it makes them unforgettable. Who can forget Sakuragi's crazy arrogance? I love the whole underdog who rises up to become something great... and that's pretty much what Slam Dunk is about---surpassing the limits and crossing over boundaries. It also has a hilarious love side story as well with Sakuragi's extreme obsession with Haruko who is unfortunately in love with the overly cool Rukawa.

And this manga even made me enjoy watching basketball more. It's not just throwing a ball in the hoop, it's so much more dramatic and filled with teamwork and strength.

I couldn't stop turning the pages of the manga or watching the episodes! I could watch like ten episodes in a day because it was that addicting. It made me crack up like crazy too because it's really well written and the actions are just really hilarious sometimes.

I think I'll give this manga a 4 and 1/2 stars too... really leaning towards the 5 more though... just don't think I can bear to give it PERFECT. But yes... I recommend this amazing manga to anyone. :P

One Piece

This manga is purely entertaining and filled with laughter and fun. The biggest thing that this manga is missing though is romance because there really isn't much of it between any characters. I know it's a shonen manga, but cmon put SOME romance in it... gotta appeal to a bigger audience right? Anyway, the storyline is madly original---I mean who woulda thought of devil fruits? Each power is unique and how the story expands is amazing. Also, the back story of each character is crazy because each character has a story and each one you get to know and love. I absolutely love love love Chopper because his story makes me bawl like a baby everytime I read it... I was even tearing up in Barnes and Noble one time after reading it... O___O It has good morals to it too, it's basically about how one should always put friends first and about overcoming weaknesses and other stuff like that.

I give this manga 4 stars because I think every manga NEEDS some romance... and this one just didn't have any which was kind of disappointing. I'm hoping to see some in the future.

HunterxHunter

I've actually never read most of the manga (only like one volume), but I have watched all of the anime that has been released. This, like One Piece, is also lacking in romance---even more so than One Piece, which is a con for me and the artwork is not very wonderful, but his storyline and character development totally makes up for it. This guy is COMPLETELY original and his ideas are so unbelievable that I don't know how he comes up with them sometimes. The way he made up the powers and such is just simply amazing and I am stunned by this guy's ability to develop story and keep you on your toes. This is just an amazing manga and it's really really interesting.

I give it 4 stars too... since it lacks in romance and also has a lack of girl characters! (do I sense sexism anyone?) But the storyline really makes up for most of it. :)

Fruits Basket

I gotta say... this is my all time favorite manga... I love it to death and I am still collecting them now---up to volume 19! Of course my love for it is not as strong as it used to be when it first came out, but I still love it and always will. It has so much heart int it... and Takaya is able to portray the drama and morals so deeply and so well. She really knows how to pull at one's heartstrings and she really knows the right words to say. It's so deep and wise this manga that it makes me laugh and cry at the same time. I loved this manga so much... it really teaches you a lot and I love all the characters because they're unique to me and have so much depth. They're not just one dimensional... they all have deep layers. Also the storyline is not standard shoujo that I expect like boy and girl fall in love, etc., etc., the storyline is so wacky and original and I have no other words to describe Takaya's masterpiece... I used to be madly obsessed with this manga, like I would immediately go out on the first day a new one would be released and if I didn't have it I would be so devastated. I'm not like that anymore, but Fruits Basket will always be number one for me! The love story was so well done too... not annoying at all... it kept me at the edge because love triangles are always like that for me! I was always so scared she'd end up with Yuki and yeah that definitely kept me reading the manga too. I love each and every Tohru and Kyo moment. :)

Anyway... I guess I'm going to give this manga 5 stars...because even though there were some moments I didn't like as much, like Hanajima's story and the Yuki fan club's side story... I can't get over how incredible everything else came together. Also Takaya's artwork is pretty good, even though after a while a lot of her characters start to look a LITTLE similar. O__O

Ahhh... I love this manga so much though. ^__^ Really enjoyed reading it---it's the only manga I've been collecting all the way through.