watching the ocean

things i learnt in tokyo

2009-12-18T03:45:40Z

Woot! Back from a five-day trip to the awesome Tokyo, and here to share the wealth of information I gleamed from it. (Note: My crappy, crappy understanding of Japanese may cause some mistakes only describable as Lost In Translations.) xD

↘ Tokyo is fucking huge.

And by extension of that, incredibly easy to get lost in. And it didn't help that I knew no-one there who spoke Japanese; at least in China I can sorta speak Chinese. Seriously, it was hell on the first day trying to get from the Airport to our hotel. At one point, no joke, I actually thought the streets had fucking moved around when I was asleep like some Cube-esque insanity.

↘ Tokyo trains are insanely complicated.

The problem with the Tokyo train system is twofold. Firstly, the way you buy tickets in Tokyo is vastly different from how you buy tickets in Australia; you don't pick the destination, you pick the price of the destination, and then use that ticket to get there. Example; Shinjuku is 190 Yen from Akihabara. To buy a ticket to Shinjuku from Akihabara, you don't select Shinjuku from a list of stations, you select 190 from a list of prices.

Second, there are so many different train companies, each with their own crazy fucking lines and tickets. Not much more to say on this, but I thank god that Sydney as Cityrail as the monolopy on trains.

↘ Mt. Fuji is invisible.

We went to Mt. Fuji on the second day to see the sights and, later, go to the hot springs. During that 9 hour trip, I didn't see Mt. Fuji once. I even searched on the internet later to see where the fuck it was, and there were these images that showed me where it should've been. Suffice to say, I did not see them when I should've.

It's one big conspiracy. Maybe the North Pole doesn't actually exist as well.

↘ Hotels are freaking awesome.

They are. 'Nuff said.

↘ Shabu shabu is overrated.

So, my sister was all obsessed with finding a shabu shabu place to try it out. You know, to 'try out a slice of Japan". Guess how much the first shabu shabu place we visited costed. C'mon, guess. 3, 300 Yen, which is around $35 AUD. And they gave out three slices of meat.

I demand vengeance.

And, ironically, we found some shabu shabu places in Hong Kong. Much, much more delicious.

↘ Ramen is delicious.

I had ramen for about 80% of the meals in Japan, not joking. Ramen continued to shock me with it's deliciousness and simplistic nature of ordering. Just go into a random ramen shop, point to a ramen that looks tasty on the menu, say "Ichi" and they'll give it to you.

Side note, what the hell is the word for spring onion in Japanese? My parents hate it and always have to order "No spring onions" with their noodles, so it was a hella pain in Japan. If it's "supiringu onionsu", I will fucking knife someone. -_-

↘ Final Fantasy XIII is coming out soon (or already came out.)

When I say I learnt this, I really mean I learnt it. Emphasis on the learnt. Seriously, trailers and posters for FFXIII was EVERYWHERE. There was a train station that only had FFXIII ads. It was ridiculous, and the sad thing is, it is so VERY AWESOME. xD I totally need to get it, but it's on PS3 and I only have a Ps2. Sadness.

And that's what I learnt in Tokyo! Now, back in Hong Kong and getting ready to go back to Mainland China, where sweet, sweet Broadband internet without limits will reveal itself to me. Let's hope they didn't block livejournal in China, though, because afterwards I'm gonig to make another rant post about my going abouts in HK.

Also, side note, I didn't buy you any Hetalia manga satoru_13, because I didn't know if you had any of the manga I saw. I saw the two manga books, and I was going to buy one of them for you (probably No. 2), but if you already had it, it would've been worthless. xD But yeah, I'll see if I can find something awesome in HK for you. ^^

ready to leave~

2009-12-03T06:24:17Z

Packing my bags is such a chore, although I guess the rewards more than cover it. xD

Leaving for Hong Kong tomorrow at noon, to go on a two month holiday that will span China, Japan and, of course, Hong Kong. Hurrah! And, as what would seem to be an added bonus, I get to miss the final two weeks of school. But it's been a pain in the ass lately, since I've had to tie all my loose ends, hand in homework early and just miss out completely on receiving my Japanese test results.

Oh well, accomplished all that, and now ready to hang easy until tomorrow, when I'll be getting on an airplane with crappy meals (I don't know this for sure, but come on, it's an airplane. xD) I've already packed my bags, and since it's now the 3rd of December, the new month of internet is at my disposal (my internet is a monthly plan that starts on the 3rd.) 25 GBs of internet bandwidth and a single day to use it.

I accept that challenge. Time for Glee!

Also, frightened about going to Japan for the 5 days. No, I'm not scared of Japan, I'm scared of being the only one in my family who knows even the slightest bit of Japanese, and being relied on to follow the lightning fast dialect of the people who speak Japanese as a first language. Ha ha ha, I'm so dead. xD

Although the ramen will be nice. As will be the shabu-shabu.

I'm annoyed about the trip, on the other hand, for several reasons. First, I'll miss Episode 13 of Glee. Second, I'll miss out two weeks of school and two weeks of hanging about my friends (Most specifically satoru_13 and shadowlakitu). Third, there is not third, but good things come in threes, so there. xD

I'll be sure to bring back lots of souvenirs back for everyone. Wish me luck! xD

keep losing it

2009-11-13T08:27:53Z

Well, life is being annoying.

Ok, so, there is this place at my school, where there are two bars, with a nice space between them, that you can swing through. Like a monkey. Anyway, there is another bar in front of the lower bar, and whenever I try to swing through the gap, I always step on that second bar. When I shouldn't, because it's meant to be a fluid movement.

Every. Time. I. Try. I. Fail. I keep stepping on the bar. And after a while, it becomes a muscle memory, a freaking instinct I can't kick.

Why me.

And the biggest problem? I actually did it before. The events are: I get it, lose it, get it back, lose it again, get it back, and then today I lost it.

Everyone else I know can do it, most with only one try. It is a nightmare, because I can't think of anything else, and the weekends are here, so I can't try it until monday.

Which is always the time of the Maths Exam. Ha ha ha ha-*dies*

Oh well, I'll keep trying. I'm thinknig of leaving it for a while and then coming back. Like, after the week of yearlies.

But I doubt it. xD

new day dawns

2009-11-07T03:26:01Z

"This is where my story begins."

My laze is killing me.

My yearlies are coming towards me without fail and the only subject I've studied for is Mathematics (no surprises there. xD). Last Geography class, I didn't take a single note on a case study of the Nile (water scarcity topic, don't ask). I'll probably get them off my friend who did take notes, but still!

On the gaming front, I restarted KH 358/2 Days after getting to Day 72 because my perfectionist attitude is unsatisfied with the 100% completedness of my playing. But now i've postponed all my DS games to replay Golden Sun (and later, Golden Sun 2) on GBA because I heard the new Golden Sun DS is coming out in, like, a year, and I want to jog my memory (like Phoenix Wright.) xD

Bleh, I'm such a jack-of-all-trades that I get swamped way too easily. Just summarising, I'm working on some graphics for a friend's birthday now, got a icon set in the making for KH, got some fanfics and original fics to write (but that's not so much a priority), I've got to finish like 5 games from DS to GBA, working on a advance literacy roleplay on gaiaonline with a few people, and my yearlies studying.

Ha ha ha ha-*dies*.

Oh, and also (I keep forgetting to mention), my birthday came and went 10 days ago, on the 29th of Oct. Woot, I can finally say I'm 14 (although saying it is still a weird sensation in my mouth).

Anyway, I need to change. So, I decided, I'm actually going to do something about my laziness. From the moment I post this, I'm going to organise myself and tackle my jobs. No distractions, no TV, just the sweet songs of my Owl City playlist (Adam Young is seriously badass) as I work through the things I need to do.

Wish me luck, people, because chances are, I'm not coming back without some injuries.

And, note to self, I need to change my lj layout. And spruce up my tags. xD

Let's end this post with a quote I've been working on:

"A new day dawns, a new soul wakes. Color floods this world, and a better day begins."

x plus five equals headache

2009-10-26T06:52:25Z

Well, I'm dead.

They're coming. It may seem like they're weeks off, but that's just their disguise. Slowly and surely, they will come, slap you so hard you see dots, and sulk off to do it again next year. Like the inevitable cycle of the seasons, so too must they come, for the next five - goddamn - years.

I speak, of course, of the yearly tests, the one I am both most anxious and relaxed about being Maths. It is my favourite subject, but that would make the fall from grace all the harder.

And the worse thing is, even though I should study like a dilligent student, I don't. Because I'm lazy. And my priorities are messed up. I mean, for one example, I'm posting this entry when I should be studying for Maths. I've got Photoshop open, as well as three articles on many different, casual subjects (gaming, mostly), a video on youtube on another tab... and I'm talking with my friends.

Working on my next icon set, while simulatenously playing my DS and KH 358/2 Days (ha, guess what's the subject of my icon set. xD)

And I'm scared of the HSCs, a deadly 4 years away.

Also, I've got a book in front of me, and I have to do piano in 10 minutes.

I think I will log off and cry now. Anything to distract me from this haze of things to do and things I actually should do.

Also, check it. That's satoru-13 in the first photo. Hilarious. xD

houston, we have lift off

2009-10-14T00:00:10Z

And... dustflare is established! WE HAVE DUSTFLARE! I REPEAT, WE HAVE DUSTFLARE!

And... rest. *crumples to a heap*

Seriously, I am content with my past two days of work. I've created dustflare, my graphics community (you know you want eeeet.).I took a lovely layout from fruitstyle and edited the crap out of it because I'm such a fickle guy. Loved what came out the other end, and especially since it helped me with a bit of css learningness. So then, after that, I had to do something I was dreading since the beginning: move my icons from here, to there.

Seriously, it was a pain in the ass. I had all those comments over here attached to my icons, so deleting those posts and repostin' was a no-go zone. Livejournal doesn't have a "move posts" option, which I sort of understand, but was still annoying and made my pissed. In the end, I just reposted them and made my original icon posts "Moved". It's my crappy solution, but it's livejournal's fault. ~~So blame them.~~

But after all that, it's finally done... to an extent. I still have to do dustflare's profile, which currently only has a fruitstyle button. Yeah. But at the very least, radicalfire can now be ued for me to just... rant, I guess.

Wow, what a completely new feeling. Feels... so free, and yet so scary.

Haha, but before I do begin to rant (although I have begun, haven't I?), I have some other stuff to do. New layout for radicalfire, at the very least. xD Also, homework. Oh my fucking god so much homework, neglected in the dark corners of my mind. *cries* And my writing, my ds games and least of all my next icon set. xD

Oh well, I'll pull through. That's all I really can do, isn't it. xD

Also, I abuse the italics too much. Must control that. xD

52 icons - phoenix wright (MOVED)

2009-10-11T12:01:12Z

❤ MOVED TO DUSTFLARE ❤

Claims and Crews

2009-08-23T12:10:47Z

Wow, never expected myself to have claims, but my awesome friend azurewhite had created a blogcrew just as I had begun to read Hetalia and fall in fanboy with Lithuania, so I decided to myself, why not? And thus came this post, where I shall archive my blogcrews and claims. xD

Will possibly make a banner for this later. xD

Making world peace happen
One country by one.
Along with『LITHUANIA』
❝Nothing is impossible.❞

Ho My God, The Effin' Hugeness

2009-08-23T00:57:14Z

Hey peoplez! Big news, and even bigger graphics.

See, one day while I was sitting around, neglecting both my current icon set and homework (since I'm so lazy it's ridiculous), I decided to make a graphics that would be like a history for me. A kind of Wall of Fame, of good memories and bad (as you'll read if you check it out). A graphics thats bigger than all of my icons I've ever made put next to each other (hint hint).

Yes, I made an icon portfolio, which you can check out at my deviantart here.

My first, in fact. It's titled Recap, since it recaps my time making icons. About half of it is comprised of my icon sets here, and the other half are made up of icons that I made for myself personally and for icontests. Measuring 600 x 4000 pixels, it's possibly the most badass thing I've ever done. xD

In the Artist Comments, I talked about a dark event in my icon making history, so you have to check it out, if only to see my fail. xD

Farewell Icons of Smash! '09 (MOVED)

2009-08-15T08:07:13Z

❤ MOVED TO DUSTFLARE ❤

Another award, back to back!

2009-07-17T09:23:54Z

Crazy awesomeness! Well, because of my crazy posting skills, I started the post in the cut, and then added this part in when I realized the post would be too big to be un-cut, so...yeah... Go into the ~~Light~~ Cut!

Ha ha ha ha ha! I post again with another place banner from pokechallenge, this time for best crop. Let's roll out with the icon and banner~

The banner is as followed!

But that's not all!

AUDIENCE: Le ghasp! What? That isn't all!?

Oh no, my audience. For that banner you see, was made by MEHZ!

AUDIENCE: *furious whispering* What? That, by him? Dear god! That man's a genius!

And here are the rest:

As well as the link to the post in pokechallenge where I presented them! xD

3rd place, woot woot!

2009-06-21T01:13:32Z

Beneath the cut because it looks ugly outside! xD

Hey thar! Been too long since I've posted here, and this is pretty much the last thing I would have thought would compel me to post an entry, but it's just too awesome not to show people! I entered the 31st challenge of the awesome pokechallenge community, and I got third place with a Brock "nuhz" icons.

xD Ridiculous, I know, but with that slight hint of Brockness we all know and love. xD Anyways, as per the customs of pokechallenge (which is awesome, by the way), I also got to snag an awesome bannerific banner.

Ain't that just the bestest? Well, that's all I've got to say for now, folks! Be sure to check in for my next batch of icons, which will have (spoilers ahead!) Mahou Sensei Negima and Phoenix Wright as it's main attractions! Ain't that just dandeh?

73's my lucky number (moved)

2009-05-09T01:50:31Z

❤ MOVED TO DUSTFLARE ❤

pokemon episode 467 (moved)

2009-04-23T03:55:16Z

❤ MOVED TO DUSTFLARE ❤

oh snazzle, is that a batch of icons? (moved)

2009-04-10T12:13:38Z

❤ MOVED TO DUSTFLARE ❤

introductions to insanity

2009-04-02T06:39:19Z

Salutations! (I know, it's a ridiculous greeting. It's also awesome. So deal with it. xD)

I'm RADICALFIRE, otherwise known as Lanxal, and I have decided to create a livejournal. And if you're reading this, it must mean that I didn't screw up somewhere during the overly complicated and just downright annoying sign-up (email? the heck is an email?).

Well, I guess this is where I'm going to be uploading my graphics (mainly icons), and possibly journal layouts when I get good enough at the codings. Which might be a long time, so just be content with the icons for nowz.

I could drag this on about this and that, but I don't want to. Mainly because of me not wanting to bore you, and really because of me being a lazy ass. So, I bid you farewell with one note: you may take the icons, graphics, and most of what I upload, but please don't take credit for them, or I'll get mad.

And you won't like it went I get mad. NOM NOM NOM.

-Lanxal