By Shonan no Kaze. This was the Jdrama Zero no Shinjitsu's theme song. While listening to and reading the lyrics of the full song, it really fits the show. Mao was constantly trying to find out how her mother died. She was so fixated on it, she forgot how to really live. She pushed people away, didn't trust anyone, even pushed aside her own emotions, overworked herself, didn't listen to orders from her boss, etc. She changed quite a bit after finding out what happened during the last episode. It didn't turn out like she expected. The song is basically talking about how life is a giant puzzle. The future's unknown, you can find your answers along the way, but remember to enjoy it. Don't get too caught up in the details, or life will pass you by. It's powerfully sung, and sounds really cool. Upbeat, yet slightly sad. Shonan no Kaze are a Japanese hip-hop 4-member group. The band was formed in 2 of the members' hometown, Shounan. Kaze means wind. So, putting the particle 'no' in there the band's name translates to: Shonan's Wind. Or, Wind of Shonan. Apparently it's a popular resort town in eastern Japan. They debuted in 2001. They are also influenced by reggae. They're a very interesting band. I might look more into them in the future.
Today seemed to get a bit warmer than what they predicted in the forecast. But, it still wasn't as high as what it was before. Managed to get another 2-mile walk in after dinner. It was still pretty warm. Nice to get out there, though.
Hopefully, I can get back to doing 2 of those walks soon. I'm glad I seem to be getting at least one in each day for the last couple of days. Much better than none. The drama version of Death Note was finally up today.
They changed a lot of the story line. Not sure if I like that or not.
I was surprised they showed Near at the end of the episode. In the anime he doesn't show up until close to the end. L seems to have a slight personality shift. He doesn't seem nearly as anti-social, awkward, lanky, eccentric, etc. Kind of takes away parts of what made him 'unique'. Yes, he still is careful as to who sees him, he still loves sweets, is very intelligent, and some other qualities that carried over. But, it seems like he's kind of lacking this way. Light looks nothing like the character in the anime. Seems like he has a bit more of a heart, too. I do love the actor who plays him, though.
That guy seems to be able to pull off a lot of different characters well. The last one I saw him in his character was the complete opposite in personality. It shows how good he is. Not sure if I like the actor for L. Light's father is played by an actor who I've seen in many many different dramas. He seems to be a regular on TV there. I think the majority of the time he plays someone in law enforcement. He has a lot of depth, too. I think no matter how they show Ryuk, he'd look awkward and cheesy.
He's one of the main Shinigami (lit. Death Gods) or Grim Reapers. I think the only way he'd look decent is in the anime. He doesn't translate too well in the real world. At least not the way they portray him. He wasn't bad looking, but just not quite right. So far it's interesting, and I'm willing to see where they take this new way of looking at it. Gintama started another arc about Shinigami. Seems to be in right now...
Only, technically they aren't really Shinigami in this arc. When people commit seppuku there's usually someone standing right behind them with a sword. Their job is to lop off the person's head just after that person stabs themselves. Kind of so the person doesn't suffer much, but they also make sure the 'deed' is done. There's apparently a family who specializes in that 'execution' style. They do it for criminals who are forced to commit seppuku. They got the nickname Shinigami from the locals. They also keep the heads and display them in their living room. (They apparently like to eat heads of animals, too.
) Anyways, one of them ran away, and tried to ask Gintoki to aid her in committing suicide. He was just a passerby on the street to her. He was really drunk and scared about the whole thing. He had heard about a serial killer who's been on the loose that's cutting heads so cleanly that only part of the skin is keeping it together. There was no blood found, or any other sign of trauma. The shinsengumi, or police of that time, think that one of the family members of those executioners is the killer. Later, Gintoki, Kagura, and Shinpachi took her back home. Her brother ends up threatening Gintoki at the end, saying if he uttered anything that was said there, he wouldn't hesitate to chop his head off. Plus, he found out he's on the list of criminals that they're trying to find and execute. Another way for them to threaten him. We still don't know who the real serial killer is. Another question is why is Gintoki on the list? This is an interesting, yet gruesome one. Kind of up my alley. Although, seppuku is really scary to me. Especially right now...
They have to cut out their abdomen/stomach. Or, disembowel themselves to put it in a not so nice way. Pretty gruesome way to go.Midori no Ou has been interesting to read. It's kind of dragging right now. Shin has really changed since he was injected with that plant stuff. Kind of cool to see him evolve. It seems the humans are worse than the plant like beings. That's probably the message the mangaka (manga creator/artist) wanted to send out. Kind of similar to how the anime Parasyte was towards the end.
In the manga version of Tegami Bachi or Letter Bee, I'm at the Honey Waters arc. The 'water' in town is poisonous. It's honey-colored, hence the name. A couple took over it, and they're against the government. They claim that the Letter Bees work with the government and are the ones that bring the gaichuu (giant robotic looking bugs that feed on people's emotions) into town to pick on the townspeople. The whole town has bought into their lies, except for one girl and some of the elders. They've been making a huge pile of letters underground, hoping one day that a Letter Bee will come by and deliver them. When Lag tried to pack up some of them, a giant gaichuu comes out from under him. They're also attracted to the 'heart' or feelings people put into letters. He makes it back to the surface with the girl, but the gaichuu follows them. The town rises up against them, and holds them back so they can't kill it. Zazie comes out of nowhere to save them. (Connor came with Lag, and couldn't do anything either.) Apparently, the translators were confused at this time as to if Zazie was a girl or a guy. Zazie is a guy, but it's interesting to see how that confusion might have shaped the story slightly. He's one of the snarkiest and funnier characters. Also, he's very strong as a Bee. Lag had gone to Honey Waters to find out if there was any info about Gauche being or traveling there. There are slight hints so far. I think in the anime they do find something.
Brainstormed some more on a title for my nightmare anthology. I might have narrowed it down to 3 or 4 options. That's really good compared to how many I started with.
With the one I was feeling strongest about, I found another book online with the same title. Even if it's just one, I kind of want it to stand out. I'm still undecided if I should use that or the other 2 or 3. I'll go over it next time, and hopefully pick one for it.
日本語
Studied the kanji: 景. It only has one common pronunciation: けい (kei). It means: vista, view, scene; counter for scenes in a play. 景品 or けいひん (keihin): gift, premium, freebie, giveaway, something additional, an extra; prize (lottery, pachinko, etc.); party favor. 景観 or けいかん (keikan): scenery. 景気 or けいき (keiki): state, condition, business (condition). 景色 or けしき (keshiki): scenery, scene, landscape. (That one's apparently the exception to the common けい or kei pronunciation. With that part just being け or ke.) 背景 or はいけい (haikei): background, scenery, backdrop, setting, circumstance, context; backing, support (from behind the scenes). 夜景 or やけい (yakei): night view, night skyline. Practiced a bit on JapaneseClass' site. I was surprised by how much I still remember. Did well enough to make it to the top 20 rankings for the day that are displayed on the front page. I think I was 13th or 14th. Still, there are a lot of people that are really into it on there, and to make it to those rankings for the day is pretty awesome!
I've moved up to being at the 311th rank overall. That's out of about 80,000 people. (Most of them are active.) Not bad at all. If I was more of a regular, I'd be much further up. But, I'm glad with how well I did today. Translated a bit more of another article that's a part of a special in You Maga. Decided I might not continue that section. The subject is rather tough for me to sit through.
So, next time I'll most likely start translating the next section. Should be interesting.
I've moved up to being at the 311th rank overall. That's out of about 80,000 people. (Most of them are active.) Not bad at all. If I was more of a regular, I'd be much further up. But, I'm glad with how well I did today. Translated a bit more of another article that's a part of a special in You Maga. Decided I might not continue that section. The subject is rather tough for me to sit through.So, next time I'll most likely start translating the next section. Should be interesting.
