the very butcher of a silk button

I love Batman Beyond so much.

cloud_wolf — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 21:27:08 GMT

It totally cracked me up how Robin is a girl in this musical. I think I would die of happiness if Batman: The Musical ever happened.

Terry: C'mon, it took me weeks to get tickets for this show. It's schway!
Bruce: It's schwarbage.

I love cranky old Bruce. I love Terry! I just really love this show. Its badass intro. And its villains (Okay, so they weren't the original Batman villains. They were still pretty good.). And Terry's supporting cast. ♥

1. Would you ever want to visit Iran, or have you already visited? If you have, how did you find it, considering its rather painful place in your family's memories? If that question is too personal (and I'm sorry if it is), substitute this one: where does your LJ name ("the very butcher of a silk button") come from?
I've never visited Iran but all my family members there want me to. My parents can't go back, which is why I've never gone before because I'd always stick with my parents but the family in Iran thinks I'm old enough to go on my own. I'd really like to go, but I admit I would be scared. In a way Iran is so incredibly important to me and who I am, but I don't know the place all that well. My parents have seen that place in more than two decades. The country from their stories isn't the same as Iran is now. There is this huge gap between me and Iranian teenagers. I also don't want to know what people there will say about my Farsi. But still, I feel like I should go.

As for my LJ name, the explanation is here. :)

2. For one week, you are only allowed to do ONE of the following for entertainment: read books, listen to music, or attend social events with friends. Which do you pick?
Haha, ouch. I think I'd go with the last option, simply because I should do more of that. Not reading any books isn't that difficult but not listening to any music? Man, that would be ridiculously hard.

3. Do you think the Dutch monarchy should be abolished?
Theoretically I'm a republican. But the Dutch monarchy doesn't seem worth the trouble of abolishing it. I do think that the last vestiges of power left to the queen should be removed. And I'm very petty about this but I'd wish people would stop gushing about the Oranjes. They don't deserve it and it makes my skin crawl. But I know that most Dutch people love the royal family, so I don't think they're ever going to go away. The only Oranje I've ever remotely liked is Prince Claus (and perhaps Juliana. And maybe Constantijn, but that's mostly his name and that one interpretation in that one tv series where he was a secret republican).

4. Martin vs. Pratchett vs. LeGuin: which is the best, and why? (Saying "They are all special in their own way" may be true, but is still cheating and therefore not allowed).
You are so mean. But okay, I'm going to say Pratchett. His output (I mean, over forty Discworld books. That's crazy!) combined with the high quality makes him the winner for me. ASOIAF is way more epic, but Discworld just has so much brilliant humor, and it's amazing how pterry touches upon certain universal themes (just look at Small Gods). And personally I think that Pratchett is also the best when it comes to his own image. He is just made of class and awesome. Le Guin is great but her books aren't as close to my heart as ASOIAF and Discworld.

5. Why the viola and not, say, the cello or the bassoon or the ocarina?
Well, I started out as a violinist, but came to the horrific conclusion that high notes weren't really my thing. In which case the viola is the best, because the sound is lower and warmer (so much warmer, just lovely). I like the cello just fine, but I don't think I'd play it. And the harp is amazing but let me tell you, it's so incredibly difficult, you really have to have talent for that one, and the harp isn't as much of a teamplayer.
The sucky part is that the violas get shafted a lot in the orchestra because the middle tone is always the hardest to hear. We depend a lot of composers who love the viola on their own to get good parts. That and we're the butt monkeys of the orchestra. Well. It depends, in quite a few orchestras the second violins have that honour.
Here is a viola solo, in case you're wondering.

Which File Extension are You?

I'm so tired. But pleased! I handed in my scientific review and did the presentation and they got a 8,5 and 9 respectively (and got a prize for it!). I handed in my interview with a geriatric patient. I did my body examination test today (had to show all the ways you check the head and neck) and got an Outstanding (I also had to go to the library and copy all the bowing directions for the symphony we're going to do next, which took way too long). Now I just have to wait for my exam grade. Tomorrow is my day off but I know I have to do so much homework. I just can't afford to get behind, now that our new semester started (Infections and Immune diseases, which started off with HIV week). Boo.

Also, I've been giggling over this sporking of Frank Miller's All Star Batman and Robin (the source of the "I'm the Goddamn Batman" panel). I'd read the original in the bookshop and was baffled about how bad it was (and sad because Jim Lee is a good comics artist) but this just makes it all better. Part One, Part Two and Part Three (contains the most WTF image in comics ever). You don't have to read the comic to read the sporkings. They're understandable (with pictures!) and the guy who did the mocking did it in a brilliant way.

ETA: OMG, Young Justice Animated Series?! \o/

Books, books, books, we love them! we love them!

cloud_wolf — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 17:37:57 GMT

Meme from violaswamp:

Reply to this post, and I'll tell you one reason why I like you. Then re-post this and spread the love.

Uni won't stop torturing me with work. ;_; (But for what it's worth, tomorrow I'll have finished my very first scientific article ever. About gene silencing therapy for Huntington, even. It sounds riveting, no?)

I did find some time to visit the annual book festival. They always have a pretty big stand with English pockets which was satisfying. They also had row upon row of paper-related knickknacks. Usually I avoid those but the product at the end of the aisle caught my eye. I am now the proud owner of a wax seal set. I can make stamps like Tommen now! I just need someone to write a letter to so I can actually use it. XD

The SF/F section was pretty lacking this year, but I managed to find Gifts by Ursula Le Guin, Beyond the Deepwoods (I'm only missing one Edge Chronicles book at the moment) and Melusine by Sarah Monette. The last one surprised me because that book has been out of print for ages. Oh well!
I also got:
Gentlemen of the Road by Michael Chabon
A book about (drawing) Celtic patterns
The Little Prince (I've seen this one mentioned so many times, felt like I should read it)
Orlando by Virginia Woolf
The Plays of Oscar Wilde (to complement my book with his short fiction! And I totally need more of his plays, I've only read The Importance of being Earnest.)
The Communist Manifesto (Only seems fair seeing how my parents keep mentioning it *shrug*)
The Prince by Machiavelli (actually read this before, on the computer but I thought a paper version would be nice)

There are always so many classic on the book fair but I decided to be realistic. They'll still be there next year and I didn't want to buy too many books. When I payed the cashier asked me whether I go to university college because a lot of the books I bought were on their booklist. Oops. XD
But I only spent 30 euros. *preens*

Hilarious videos, found thanks to journalfen communities:
Hornets from Hell. You may have heard about the Japanese Hornet (if you haven't, let's just say that they're horrible and leave it at that). Bees have figured out a really sweet way to kill them. By baking them.
Pachelbel Rant. Eloquent and funny explanation on why Pachelbel's Canon in D SUCKS. And I don't even play the cello (I've always felt really sorry for the cellists though. It doesn't often happen that the cello part is even more boring than the viola part). I just had to play the first violin part over and over and aaargh-
I don't even know how to describe this. It's a violin cadenza and it makes me want to pick up my violin again.

Also, I haven't watched Pokemon in years but this is so awesome: Pokemon drawn in sumi-e style. Holy shit, Jigglypuff is so freaky. And she (?) is not the only one.

If you'll excuse me, I'm going to finish watching Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman on YouTube. I hope it won't depress me like Return of the Joker did (poor Tim...)

OMG

cloud_wolf — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 12:47:50 GMT

INTERNET HAS BEEN ACHIEVED! It only took about two weeks of whining to get my dad to do something about it. BUT NOW WE HAVE IT! (no more going to uni or cycling through the snow to the old house, yay)

1. I read To Kill A Mockingbird yesterday and I thought it was perfect. Kind of heartbreaking (The trial, Boo Radley, "Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father's passin'") and well, awesome (ZOMG Atticus! Calpurnia! Miss Maudie!). But I might be wrong. I mean, I'm not really knowledgeable about American Lit. WHY didn't we get to read this book in English classes instead of, I don't know, Like Water For Chocolate? But my teacher would've probably ruined it (like she ruined Pride and Prejudice and Beloved. Too. Much. Analysis.)

2. I need to see the movie. Gregory Peck as Atticus? Yesplz.
(My mother also wants to see it.
My brother:"Who is Gregory Peck?"
My mother: "A wonderful actor."
Me and mum at the same time: "He was so handsome!"
Me: Wow, this is awkward)

3. I so get Terry Pratchett when he mentioned (in Hogfather) how people don't love winter, they love the protection against the cold. It's really easy to see this when you don't have any heating in the living room and kitchen (floor heating problems. Will be fixed in a few weeks). I really wish this hadn't happened in the coldest winter in 15 years. :(

4. Lack of internet led to me devouring an insane amount of books. I just want to say that when it comes to London phantasmagoria: China Mieville's Un Lun Dun >>> Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere. Sorry Neil, but Neverwhere was kind of boring and mediocre. It took a while to get used to Mieville writing a YA book (I'm still baffled about this) and the start wasn't the best but ZOMG, it became awesome very quickly. (Also, I think it's nice to note that the main character is the UnChosen, an awesome London girl named Deeba Resham and it passes the Bechdel test a thousand times.). The book was genuinely funny and imaginative and the characters are frankly more interesting than the characters in Mieville's adult books (still love them, though).

5. We had to hand in our Tchaikovsky music. The next piece we're going to play is... Rodeo (by A. Copland). It's for the annual Mother's Day concert. I, uh, had to get used to the idea of playing rodeo music (after all the Romantic music we played) but it's actually pretty good. It also has several viola sole! (This always factors into how much I like a orchestral piece. XD)

6. We have cable again! This means we have BBC 1 and 2 again! My brother and I think Total Wipeout (hosted by Richard Hammond and Amanda Byram) is one of the most hilarious shows we've seen recently. (Seriously)

7. Sorry to the westerosorting people for not being there during Family Feud. Couldn't make it and didn't expect it to happen so soon. :(

Happy Belated New Year!

cloud_wolf — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 12:15:21 GMT

First of all, happy new year! I don't do new year resolutions (I'm happier that way) but you do have them, good luck! :D

We've moved to our new house! It might've been smart to realize that getting wifi would be very low on my dad's to-do list (What with having to clean the entire house and try to fit everything in). So I haven't had any internet since Monday and probably won't be getting it soon (so I still have to catch up on my flist). (I"m now in my old house which does still have internet) I guess I'll have to do all my work in the medical library the next month. Our new house is so much bigger and so neat, like one of those white picket fence houses, and I miss our old cozy little apartment. I feel like such a class traitor, LOL.

Annnyway:

Richard Adams - Watership Down

Jim Butcher - Grave Peril (Dresden Files 3)

Jim Butcher - Summer Knight (Dresden Files 4)

Jim Butcher - Death Masks (Dresden Files 5)

Jim Butcher - Blood Rites (Dresden Files 6)

Jim Butcher - Dead Beat(Dresden Files 7)

Jim Butcher - Proven Guilty (Dresden Files 8)

Emily Bronte - Wuthering Heights

Jasmine Brown - Sweet Prince & Orion

Jacqueline Carey - Kushiel's Dart

Suzanne Collins - The Hunger Games

William Faulkner - The Sound and the Fury

F. Scott Fitzgerald - The Great Gatsby

Lynn Flewelling - Luck in the Shadows

E.M. Forster - Maurice (REREAD)

George MacDonald Fraser - Flashman

Mark Haddon - The Curious Incident of the Dog at Nighttime (REREAD)

Dianna Wynne Jones - Drowned Ammet (REREAD)

Diana Wynne Jones - The Pinhoe Egg

Ursula Le Guin - The Left Hand of Darkness

Ursula Le Guin - Lavinia

Scott Lynch - Red Seas Under Red Skies

Daphne du Maurier - Rebecca (REREAD)

Patricia McKillip - Alphabet of Thorn

China Mieville - Perdido Street Station

China Mieville - The Scar

Perry Moore - Hero

Garth Nix - Sabriel

Garth Nix - Lirael

Garth Nix - Abhorsen

Terry Pratchett - Pyramids (7)(REREAD)

Terry Pratchett - Faust Eric (9)(REREAD)

Terry Pratchett - Small Gods (13)(REREAD)

Terry Pratchett - Maskerade (18)(REREAD)

Terry Pratchett - Hogfather (20)(REREAD)

Terry Pratchett - The Last Hero (27)(REREAD)

Terry Pratchett - The Amazing Maurice (28)(REREAD)

Terry Pratchett - Night Watch (29)(REREAD)

Terry Pratchett - Monstrous Regiment (31)(REREAD)

Terry Pratchett - Going Postal (33)(REREAD)

Terry Pratchett - Thud (34)(REREAD)

Terry Pratchett - Making Money (36)

Terry Pratchett - Nation

Philip Pullman - Northern Lights (REREAD)

Philip Pullman - The Subtle Knife (REREAD)

Philip Pullman - The Amber Spyglass (REREAD)

Louis Sachar - Holes (REREAD)

S.D. Tower - The Assassins of Tamurin

J.R. Ward - Lover Enshrined

Oscar Wilde - Complete Short Fiction

Roger Zelazny - Entire Amber Chronicles

Roger Zelazny - Lord of Light

Paul Biegel - Nachtverhaal (REREAD)

Blokker Familie - Nederland in Twaalf Moorden

Paulien Cornelisse - Taal is zeg maar echt mijn ding

W. Elsschot - Kaas

Anne Frank - Het Achterhuis

Arthur Golden - Dagboek van een Geisha

Stieg Larsson - Mannen Die Vrouwen Haten

Jan Terlouw - Oorlogswinter

Collating this list took way too much time. Orange coloured books are books I read in Dutch. The others were in English. Man, I read so much genre. And one of these isn't even published. But I like to believe the person in question will make it big. :P

Feel free to ask me what I thought about certain books in that list. I still have to write down my thoughts on some of these books. But now I have to go. *really rushed*

Sup, folks.

cloud_wolf — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 19:50:35 GMT

It's apparently Student Day in Iran. Or, as my parents said, Beat The Crap Out Of Students Day (They would know, they were the students. >_>)

Finished my third day of working in the nursing home. It's still really awkward sometimes but I'm getting along with the people who work there and the clients. Still a bit insecure, it feels like they tolerate me because I'm going to be an OMGdoctor, but maybe that's just my paranoia. The clients are really nice, and their reactions to my name and ethnicity are hilarious (thankfully not racist). I rather like working hard, but... nursing is not really my thing. I'll stick to the whole ivory tower doctor thing, I think. XD

Apparently my special subject in January is going to be gen therapy. The following macro will show you my med school friends' reaction.

The special mandatory course had 16 different subjects. We have about 380 students in our year. My subject has 10 people enrolled. I'm pretty sure everyone is imagining greasy nerds who toil away over their little test tubes far into the night. Oh well. XD

So, in case you didn't know, 5 december was No To Berlusconi Day. It amused me because it was on the same day as Sinterklaas. It made me happy because more than 150 thousand people protested against Berlusconi. It made me LOL because a Dutch program spent 5 minutes on it, first showing a collage of Berlusconi-moments (and man, he has a few, what a douchebag) with Justin Timberlake's SexyBack as background music. This, my friends, is a stoke of genius. And then came a moment where I was just completely flabbergasted. Apparently some people are lobbying for a Nobel Peace Price for Berlusconi. Just. What. This beats Sakozy's nomination, by a mile. Apparently he stopped a war between Russian and Georgia (I think it was Georgia?) by making a phone call, or some such. I'm pretty sure the Nobel Committee would lose all credibility if they considered Berlusconi.

Every few years I try to get into DCU comics, especially the Batman related ones but... I fail at it. The really weird discontinuity and dozens retcons (not to mention the fact that most characters don't have just one personality) just confuse me. I guess I'll just have to stick to the cartoons (Especially Batman Beyond ♥). Anyway, I was cruising through scans_daily (both the IJ and the DW version) and it made me discover Black Cat's Bat and Sons fancomic. GUYS, YOU TOTALLY HAVE TO CHECK THIS OUT. It's the best thing ever and possibly my favourite version of Batman. Batman and his weird four sons (The three first Robins and TERRY, the Batman in Batman Beyond. This just fills me with glee.). The Rivalry story is so awesome. This is so ridiculously hilarious and cute. And the other JLA members are so awesome too, like Superman and Wonder Woman and, well, ALL of them. (Also check out the Mr. Bat-mom comic. HAHA!)

Also found on scans_daily. Oh man, the part about the camp vs. DARKNESS thing, it's SO true. I guess I mostly like campy Batman with a dash of darkness. Or just darkness with some humour (Hello, Batman Beyond).

Okay, and there is this character meme going around on jesteros. I had to relinquish my Aemon and Samwell award but I got nominated for:

Rodrik the Reader
Asha
Kevan
Sarella
Jon
Loras
Garlan
Tom O'Sevens
Meera
Willas
Jaqen

Okay... What do I do? I suck at this whole campaign stuff. I can only pick two but who do I choose? I got a bizarre amount of nominations for Loras (He's one of my favourite characters! But I'm not really like him! But he's one of my favourite characters!). And people like me for Willas (I mean, I like him. Even though he's a bit of a blank slate, but we see some hints and I like that, I could be like him.)
I also got quite some nominations for Tom O'Sevens! I didn't even consider this, but I guess playing string instruments helps. I rather like this! But I have competition here. XD
I also got a few nominations for Sarella, which I also like, what with her wanting to become a maester, but in a really cool way. I'm going to become a ~~maester~~ doctor!

Okay, and then I got some stray votes for characters who are pretty cool and obviously going to other people. (I admit I'm pleased with the Jon vote. I embrace the angst in me. :P)

I think I'll decide on campaigning tomorrow.

Random post is random

cloud_wolf — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 22:09:29 GMT

Guys, type in "vampire" on DeviantArt. I've been going through countless pages of results and I'm still laughing. (Some are even good! But seriously, café vampires, golden vampires, vampire wolves, vampire demons, vampires based on Cameron from House, vampires traced from Bill Kaulitz pictures, MySpace vampires. The list goes on. This shouldn't be so hilarious.)

Also, I got stamped on westerostamping.

Also got quite some votes for Margaery, Davos and Asha. Which is pretty cool.

And I made this ASOIAF fanart drawing!

Yeah, nothing going on, two more free days till my short period of mandatory working at a retirement home starts. Haven't done much save cycling and squeeing over a skirt I bought.

Oh right. Random: I've been listening to Public Image Ltd for months now but discovered that Johnny Rotten is the lead singer only yesterday. It was kind of a surprise.

EPIC LULZ

cloud_wolf — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:45:27 GMT

In case you didn't know, the Eurovision Song Contest has a Junior Version. I don't actually watch it because watching sugar sweet acts with rabidly smiling kids gives me diabetes. But my mum was channel hopping and we ended up watching the results. Listening to the commentator Cornald Maas flipping out over the Netherlands winning was the fucking funniest thing today.
Cornald: *gasp* TWELVE POINTS?!
Cornald: Belgium THANK YOU FOR THE TWELVE POINTS :D (Me: See, it's not just the Eastern Euros who know something about cronyism ;D)
Cornald: SO CLOSE, BELGIUM AND ARMENIA ON OUR HEELS.
Cornald: ZOMG WE WON. For the first time in 33 years we won some kind of Eurovision Song Contest.
Mum: *dies* It's a kids contest, for heaven's sake.
Sahar: LOL. A terrible wrong has been put right! XD

ETA: Turns out it was Sipke Jan, not Cornald Maas. This doesn't quite stop the funny for me.

And then I saw the act. Man, if this is the winner then I'm glad I didn't watch the acts. Just... look at those clothes. That dance. "Be-dabe-die-du"? (I think I cracked up at "Beetje lazy achterover, dat is me wat te chill"). I feel bad for ragging on kids but it's nice to know that the Junior version maintains that same level of quality as the normal Eurovision Song Contest. (Read: No quality whatsoever. XD)
(Okay, I admit it, I watched some of the others. LOL, the Belgian girl yodels in her song. Ahahahaha!)

P.S. Vote on my stamping app if you're a member of westerosorting. >.>

Quizzes

cloud_wolf — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 19:29:25 GMT

Your result for Guess The Language Test...

The Language Master

24 of 24 Knowledge!

You scored 24 Knowledge. You did Awesome! I hope you had fun, that is all that really matters. The best result you got is a little bit of exposure to some of the many languages of the world. If you liked this send me feedback and maybe I will make another one. If you vote that is appreciated also.

Take Guess The Language Test at OkCupid

I guess being an ESLer finally pays off :P
(Though honestly, the only hard one was East European centered languages. And even that wasn't too hard to do. Mostly it's just knowing the looks of a language, really. Like, Finnish has a ton of umlauts. Middle Eastern languages are so easy to recognize it isn't even funny. I was gratified to see Dutch pass the revenue and Farsi in the first picture. :P)

Your rainbow is shaded indigo.

What is says about you: You are a proud person. You appreciate cities, technology, and other great things people have created. Friends count on you for being honest and insightful.

Find the colors of your rainbow at spacefem.com.

Thank you, Simone Lamsma, for letting me discover Ysaÿe. His violin sonatas are awesome.

In my city of gold the Happy Prince shall praise me

cloud_wolf — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 21:06:30 GMT

Today I saw UP (in 3D! So pretty!), finally, in the cinema with my nerdfriend. It was all I could do to keep the tears (some bits were just so sad) in because I didn't want him to see me crying but it was hard. The dogs were hilarious, though. We just couldn't stop laughing at the alpha dog's squeaky voice. Well done, Pixar, well done. (ALSO, TOYSTORY 3. I WANT.)

Afterwards we loitered around in the city shopping centre and visited the second-hand book store. There I saw Tad Williams's entire Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy for just 10 euros and in pretty good condition. Are there people here who've read those books? Because that's a pretty sweet offer if the books are any good. (I also saw some Storm Constantine and C.J. Cherryh books. *rubs hands*)

I've finished a shitton of books but Oscar Wilde's Complete Short Stories was the latest (You can also find some of them online). Aaaah, Wilde has such a lovely style! Even if the stories weren't really remarkable he'd still manage to make a little artwork out of it. But they were all really sad, so I really can't believe people when they talk of him as a superficial dandy. A shallow person would never write stories like that, he's still more Basil Hallward than Lord Henry, even if he is very witty. I mean, that ending to The Star Child. What the fuck, that was just trampling over my heart. ;_;
Actually, a lot of his stories were like that. I went "NOOOO!" at the ending of The Nightingale and the Rose. And The Happy Prince made me sniff. Though... y'know, homoerotic subtext between a statue and a swallow is a little weird. XD

Bulletpoint time! This is because my thoughts on literature are totally not worthy of review format.

LOL at the Ho Yay between The Selfish Giant and Jesus. Oscar Wilde's ability to put gay vibes in every one of his stories is amazing. Even the stories about inanimate objects and animals.

Oscar Wilde really likes blond fair people with violet eyes, I noticed. Now I want to write a Dany fic in Oscar Wilde style. XD

The Fisherman and his Soul just blew me away. Wow, the imagery. I especially loved the meeting between the Fisherman and the Witch. The Mermaid and the devil were pretty vivid too. And I loved how the Soul was the cause of sin and corruption, not the body.

I want to give Oscar Wilde a really big hug. ;_; (Also, the bit in the introduction with the anecdote about how much he loved his sons just made me tear up.)

The Portrait of W.H. was wicked cool. It's a sort of conspiracy theory in a story about who the person was to whom Shakespeare dedicated his sonnets. It's cool because even if the theory is completely implausible, the arguments (lines from the sonnets) are totally awesome. Also, I love how the main character puts all his passion into finding evidence for his theory and when he sends it off he's like "WTF, this theory is complete bullshit".

His prose poems are actually what I liked best. It has led me to believe that I might also really like his actual poems, so I'll give those a try. The Doer of Good was so lovely, the one that I liked best. And The Disciple was a nice little drabble about the pool in the myth of Narcissus.

When Narcissus died the pool of his pleasure changed from a cup of sweet waters into a cup of salt tears, and the Oreads came weeping through the woodland that they might sing to the pool and give it comfort.

And when they saw that the pool had changed from a cup of sweet waters into a cup of salt tears, they loosened the green tresses of their hair and cried to the pool and said, 'We do not wonder that you should mourn in this manner for Narcissus, so beautiful was he.'

'But was Narcissus beautiful?' said the pool.

'Who should know that better than you?' answered the Oreads. 'Us did he ever pass by, but you he sought for, and would lie on your banks and look down at you, and in the mirror of your waters he would mirror his own beauty.'

And the pool answered, 'But I loved Narcissus because, as he lay on my banks and looked down at me, in the mirror of his eyes I saw ever my own beauty mirrored.'

OH SNAP

Also, I'm kind of in love with the music of Peter Fox. My life is so much better now that it has German dancehall music in it. SWING! Who says white people can't rap? XD. And I looove this song. I totally need to improve my German, it would be such a shame to let years of German lessons go to waste.

Nothing much to say except that some people in this country are severely pissing me off with their vaccination mass hysteria. Yeah guys, the government and the medical industry are totally injecting you with lethal doses mercury and tracking nano chips. Especially the lady from verontrustemoeders.nl (worried mothers) with her "Don't believe everything people tell you! Do some research and then make your own conclusions!". Um, I'm sorry lady, but I don't think reading conspiracy theory sites is going to beat 20+ years of scientific research.

Oh, and I made a choice regarding Free Subject Month. Decided to go with "infectious diseases in the big city". Partly because I think HIV/AIDS is a fascinating subject. I then got depressed because some people told me they thought it was a stupid subject. But now I have my confidence back, because it is a very important issue in today's medical world. Besides, I heard (granted, after I made the choice) that it was a really easy course, so go me! XD
(Also, apparently there are whole organisations dedicated to promoting the idea that AIDS isn't caused by HIV. With the Foo Fighters supporting them. The mind, it boggles. Musicians should make music, not promote wildly insane theories related to subjects they know nothing about.)

Ik ben behoorlijk vrolijk, zo vrolijk was ik nooit!

cloud_wolf — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:42:09 GMT

Decided to change my default icon to something less political. Well, actually, it's Alfred J. Quack, the show with characters like Dolf the Nazi crow and Winnie the black duck. So maybe not that neutral. But certainly very cute.

... Yeah, I got nothing. This used to be one of my favourite shows when I was small (It was a joint Dutch-German-Japanese project) but I totally forgot about all the serious themes (fascism, apartheid, growing up) until my mother told me about it. It even has a character reminiscent of Michael Jackson. I think I need to watch it again. Here's the intro! Children cartoons were so much better in those days.

*wanders off*

I'm in a p-pretty cheerful m-mood.

cloud_wolf — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 17:13:29 GMT

It's International Stuttering Awareness Day! As someone who occasionally stutters and sometimes experiences great trouble at formulating sentences (sentences that make sense, that is) I am quite amused that this happened. But hey, at least I'm in good company! Like Aristotle, Charles Darwin, Isaac Newton and Rowan Atkinson. And Samwell Tarly! :P (And Moses, LOL)

I have to admit, some part of me smarts at the idea that perhaps some people think I can't talk very well because I'm not native Dutch. I hope they don't and that it's just my anxiety. >.>

Random linkage time!

This summary of Harry Potter 7 has amused for quite a while. So, I've only read Deathly Hallows once and not in a serious mood so this brought back the hilarity. I rather like Ron but that didn't stop me from laughing at the way Mighty God King makes fun of him.

I really want some beatonna shirts, especially the Curies, the Brontës and the Victorians ones. But I'm really hesitant about ordering clothing without trying them on. Ah well.

Who knew slugs could be so pretty. Okay, I think slugs are disgusting (especially after I visited Vienna and had to walk over a utterly slug infested path, yuck) but look at the pretty colours!

Can I just mention how much I love the Dutch satire program Koefnoen? Because I love it lots. This parody of Lady Gaga cracked me up, even though I think Lady Gaga is a damn good pop artist. I'd link to more stuff but most of it is in Dutch. Special mentions to Playmobil: Mass Firing and Foodbank (in Dutch, but I think it's funny even without understanding) and to the utterly awesome weekly Rapservice, in which gag-MC T-lex summarizes the week's happenings in a rap, using scraps of music which were used in TV programs that week. Not only is it hilarious, it actually sounds really good. I especially liked the epic one in which he used the Soldier of Orange theme. And it made me aware of this tango scene featuring Rutger Hauer. Hee!

Okay, I know I have some people on my f-list who've read Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel's Legacy trilogy, so I guess I can share my random musing on the first book and the first 200 pages of the second.

So, I started reading this series after I discovered the worldbuilding included a sort of fantasy Europe, which did seem very interesting. I decided to just breeze over the fact that Terre D'Angle = Country of Pretty Mary Sue Bishonen and Bishoujo people with Angel Blood. France, LOL. It also had the obligatory Eire and Alba and places like La Serenissima (Venice), Marsilikos (Marseille), Tiberium (Rome) and so on. I got most of the references without help, go me! No Persia yet, only a character named Persia. Apparently the entire Middle East is like one big country (I get that the focus is on faux-Europe but this kinda bothered me >.>).
Also, the Benelux is ignored yet again. *pout*

Re: Religion in these books. I can only say: LOLOL. So here's the breakdown: When Jesus (Yeshua ben Yosef in these books) died on the cross, his blood mingled with the tears of "the Magdalene" and thus Elua was born out of the womb of the Earth. Elua is pretty much Jesus v.2, only he shags everyone and walks around playing with flowers and stuff. His companions are seven fallen angels, who all (except one) also like to do everyone in Terre d'Angle, so much that just about everyone in Terre d'Angle has a bit of their blood in their veins (That's a lot of people). And everyone in Terre d'Angle worships them (their religion instead of Christianity). Anyway, this is why everyone in this country is zomg stunning and way prettier and more cultured than people in other countries (I cannot count the number of times Phedre mentioned this and I couldn't help rolling my eyes a bit).
Oh, and then there's the Yeshuites. They puzzle me. They worship Jesus as the One Messiah so you'd think they're Christians. Yet their appearance is utterly Jewish (They have Rebbes (Rabbis), Haribu (Hebrew), those sidelock thingies, they're the small mercantile shrewd minority to the majority D'Angelines and all that.) So... the people of Israel all miraculously converted to Christianity? They're Christjews? (to use hamsterwoman's words, I believe.). Maybe it'll become clearer if I read on.

It lead to weird things like this:
Rabbi: Blah blah blah, Jesus is the one saviour, etc!
Me: ...What.

Random shipping thoughts: I'm okay with Phedre/Joscelin but I can't help but be really fond of Drustan and Ysandre. I can't help it, they're just too cute! She's a rather distant queen and he's a clan leader/king and they're in love, d'aww. I really liked Drustan's appearance. I'm not much a fan of Picts in fantasy fiction (overdose on Zimmer Bradley?) but I rather liked this one, with Drustan having blue whorl tattoos and torques and clothes and all that. And I liked how he had a clubfoot yet still kicked ass in battle.

Some random things that just cracked me up, but probably weren't supposed to crack me up:
1. Phedre despairing about Joscelin who thinks about becoming a Yeshuite. Oh noez!
2. "Wrapping around three walls is Le Cavaillon's gorgeous fresco of Elua and his Companions at banquet". Not so subtle reference to Da Vinci's Last Banquet?
3. The pr0n scenes.

I feel much better now.

cloud_wolf — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 13:10:13 GMT

I honestly thought it was April Fools Day when I saw that Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize. I mean, I like him just fine but... what? That was unexpected. Still, congradulations! I think it's time to check out the frothing this will cause.
ETA: LOLOLOLOL, SARKOZY was under consideration? *dies*

Unrelatedly, the discoverers of telomerase (one of them Elizabeth Blackburn) won the Nobel Prize for Medicine. Clap you hands, people, because that was an amazing discovery! Also, it happens to be one of the subjects I've had to learn about this year, what with everything being about oncology.

Speaking about oncology, I'm sure you know it's Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I fully realized how horrible this disease is when we talked about it in uni and saw some really horrifying examples. Not just present cases but also pictures from centuries-old textbooks (You're lucky he didn't put the lecture slides on the uni website or I would've posted them). All the girls in the lecture room had the same expression on their faces (D:) when we got to see a drawing of a lady whose breast was cut off with pliers. Without anaesthetics. And then cauterized with a hot iron. Another way of removing the breast was by sticking pins in it and sawing it off. D: (This was also the expression on the patient's face.)

Also, breast cancer victims have their own saint, St. Agatha. I went O_o when I saw the paintings of her with her cut off breasts on a plate. Apparently she's also the saint of bakers because her breast look like loafs? (Sorry, weird things like this interest me immensely.)

Anyway, I'm leaving in a few hours with my orchestra to the other side of the country (granted... it's only a two hour trip), it's the annual ~~band camp~~ orchestra weekend. I'm actually not really looking forward to it but I hope that'll pass. It was depressing to hear that the violist next to me (one of my best friends in the orchestra) is leaving because she'll be too busy doing a double maths and physics course in a university far away (for Dutch standards). :(

And when I come back I have to deal with some job interviews. One is for a place on the Gynaecology student team and the other one is for a spot on the IC Thorax student team. I'm so nervous, aaaaah. D:

I've been listening to Karajan's performance of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony for days now. The awesome starts when the tenor starts singing (17:54). I love singing "Freude schöner Götterfunken, Tochter aus Elysium". :D

cloud_wolf — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 18:09:24 GMT

*hack*

*cough*

*whimper*

Man, the common cold always turns me into a whiny wimp, I know, but combined with PMS and Exams = X_X (Waaah, I don't want to do an exam tomorrow!)

Okay guys, did anyone see the 60 years People's Republic of China military parade? Anyone? Because it was CRAZY. Me and my dad watched it and it was basically "Holy shit!" after "JESUS". Did you know they cleared the smoggy skies with chemical rockets? And that they had jets with rainbow smoke trails, manned by really young female jetpilots? The way those really handsome young men and women marched in exactly the same way? The HUGE parade wagons? Let's not even talk about the firework. You can say what you want about China but they sure know how to host a show.

They're wearing pink miniskirts and white boots! Toting guns! They're exactly the same shape and size, omg. You just know they measured every one of them to get exactly the right bunch of girls. And guys, because those guys look like clones too.

I'm pretty sad for the Uygurs, though (Yes, I know, predictably I'm talking about them and not the Tibetans). They don't deserve the treatment they're getting, the way they're branded as radical Muslims, especially when their men and women lined up side by side next to the Silk Road.

Glockgal drew Beyoncé the Vampire Slayer + Kanye the Watcher. The VMA Awards just keep on giving.

On Sunday we got a surprise visit from Iranian family members. Well. They're siblings of my uncle's wife, but they're really cool and nice! One came from Canada, one from Iran and one already lives here. We then went to a garden home to eat some Iranian barbeque, yummy (Although in hindsight I should've worn a jacket when we were eating outside). The one from Canada brought his grandchildren, and omg so cute. The youngest was two years old and his name was Daniel and he kept playing with me. He cried when we had to say goodbye. It really made me feel like a douche. XD
Anyway, it reminded me of a picture I took last summer when other family members visited. We have these really weird cubical buildings and Rotterdam and we took a tour. And there I discovered an entire closet full of Lord of the Ring busts and helmets.

meme from chisakami

cloud_wolf — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 22:07:38 GMT

My username is: Cloud Wolf. Edge Chronicles reference. Cloud Wolf was the distant, somewhat cold, yet completely badass dad of Twig, the protagonist of the first trilogy. He was a sky pirate with his very own floating ship. The books had tons of illustrations so you could see him in his piraty glory. (He also had great big black sideburns). I loved those books when I was a young teen. Haven't read the latest installments, though.

My journal name is: "The very butcher of a silk button" It's what Mercutio (yes, from Romeo and Juliet) said of Tybalt. I'm not at all like Tybalt but I think Mercutio and Tybalt are awesome (and I not so secretly ship them :P) and Mercutio's wordplays/lines are rad (One of the best parts of R&J). The Prince of Cats can whoop your ass and do it completely by the sword-fighting book. :D

My title is: "In the gutter, looking up at the stars". Paraphrased from Oscar Wilde's quote: "We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking up at the stars." It's a typical lovely Wilde quote and I think you could apply it to me. Besides, I also love the stars and am going to do quite a lot of social climbing (it comes with becoming a doctor :P) so there.

My friends page is called: "the immortal passado! the punto reverso! the hay!" Also by Mercutio. He mentions the Italian sword fencing moves Tybalt probably knows: passado—the forward thrust—the punto reverso—the backhand thrust—and the hay—the thrust that goes straight through. Look, do I need to explain? It's a really cool whimsical quote, I love Mercutio and the way it's done in the movies. :D
(Talking about the title of my friends page here. My friends page is still just called Friends.)

My default userpic: Iranian protester. I probably wouldn't have kept this if it weren't for the great colouring and the text on her hands. Translated from Farsi: Woman = Man. Yay, fighting for equality! (Also, I could read it without help. I'm pretty proud of that. XD)

I'll try to break up my entries in normal length entries next time, guys.

cloud_wolf — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 21:20:12 GMT

So, I entered some asoiaf-related contests and I have to show you my comic entries. :D

We had to make a stick figure comic. This won first place! :D
Actually, I totally hated it when I made it (a few hours before the deadline) because I'd already made 6 panels when I suddenly realized I didn't have a punchline. So I just slapped some sparkles on Tommen and called it a day.

This was for a menu contest. It won second place but I thought the winner deserved it so I won't complain.
Anyway, I stupidly decided that my menu couldn't include rice (because it doesn't seem to exist in Dorne/Westeros, even though it was so obviously a Mediterranean/Middle Eastern equivalent) but this bothered me immensely because I'm Middle Eastern and I eat rice basically every day. Not even including hummus/desserts made up for it. It was like "I would hate to eat this with bread instead of rice *brain hurts*"

I also made some really silly asoiaf icons with Queen lyrics but those didn't won anything so I won't show them. :D

***
For some reason I watched quite a few Israel related movies in the last two weeks. One is an animation, two of them were LGBT related and one is a musical 'cause that's how I roll.

First on the list was The Prince of Egypt. Nice tight story and cool characters (Moses is not a jerk and Ramses is not pure evil). The animation is freaking gorgeous. Just scene after scene of Scenery Porn. The soundtrack was awesome as well. My favourite song is when the children start singing in Hebrew:

But Ofra Haza singing was awesome too (she has an amazing voice) and so was Ramses and Mose fighting/singing about the plagues.

Then I watched West Bank Story (get the pun?), which won an Oscar for Best Short Movie. It's a 20 min. musical about two starcrossed lovers (an Israeli guy and a Palestinian girl) and their families' feuding falafel huts. It's as awesome and silly as it sounds. You can find it here. I LOLed. Some funny quotes (but not the funniest):
"YOUR side of the screen is encroaching on MY side of the screen"

"Do I look like a suicide bomber? Like I'd be caught dead in this outfit."

"Let me come to your balcony tonight where I will annoy your parents and neighbours by singing you a really overdramatic song about feelings and love." "What?"

Just don't take it seriously, eh? :P

Next up was The Bubble (HaBuah). A movie about three Israelis and a Palestinian in Tel Aviv. So I will admit that my interest was piqued when I found out it was a gay love story between an Israeli and a Palestinian. But it's a really good movie! The title refers to Tel Aviv and the fact that people behave like in a bubble, safe from the violence in the surrounding region. I thought it was pretty interesting to see free young people, behaving much like we do, but in such a place. Rather startling. I guess the genre is sorta "tragicomic slice o' life". Well, I thought some scenes were seriously hilarious, pretty much thanks to Lulu (assertive straight girl) and Yali (a Jewish Emmet from Queer as Folk). The very last scene made me bawl (but for a really random reason so don't ask). Watch if you like to look at lots of pretty pretty people. I mean, wow, the four main characters are hot. So was the random lesbian couple.

Then I discovered that the director who made The Bubble, Eytan Fox, also made a movie about gay Israeli soldiers and I thought "Why the hell not? Lets watch it."
Yossi & Jagger is the name of the movie. It's a pretty short movie (barely an hour) and I didn't think it was as good as The Bubble but it wasn't bad either. Pretty good. You get to see life in the army barracks (and the barracks made me go D:. I'm so not cut out to live as a soldier) and I guess it was realistic because it proved popular in Israel and military bases. I guess there's not much to say here. It was pretty straightforward. But I really thought that Jagger (Yehuda Levi) was freaking pretty. So it wasn't surprising to find out that the actor is a model. Pretty eyes. *_*

And today a newspaper I picked up in the train had an article about Palestinian cinema and some really interesting directors (quite a lot of women) and their movies. COINCIDENCE OR NOT? Will have to look into them.

***
I'm busy with uni once more.

There's a genetic disease called FAP. I snickered. Yes, I'm 12 years old. Mind you, it's a horrible kind of colon cancer which kinda kills the funny. (This semester is about oncology)

There's this Turkish dude in my year I worked with today. He's a pretty nice guy and he even remembered my name even though we don't talk much (like, the last time was half a year ago). But he sometimes misspeaks when he talks to me.
Hussein: Hey Sarah, I-
Me: Sahar
Hussein: Shit, did I say something else? Oops.
*later*
Hussein: Hey Hagar, I-
Me:... Sahar.
Hussein: Again?! Sorry, Sahar. I swear I know your name. D:
Me: You're such a muslim. XD
People systematically butcher my name, both verbally and on paper, so I'm used to it. It's actually pretty surprising to me. It's not like my name is that hard, heh.
But it was rather hilarious how he kept calling me Hagar and Sarah. *is easily amused*
***

I decided I should read more lit. So I read the Great Gatsby. It was okay but I'm a bit miffed because some people consider it the greatest bestest novel ever and now I feel like I'm missing out. Ah well.
I'm also busy in Wuthering Heights. I did try to read it four years ago but I stopped when the crazy started hitting the fan. But now I'm reading it again, mostly inspired by beatonna's Brontë comic (You can tell she likes Anne, LOL). I need to finish one Brontë novel in my life, goddamnit (also unsuccessfully tried to read Jane Eyre after watching the new BBC miniseries). ~~Actually, I just really want to read Anne's books but I feel like I can only do that after reading one of her sisters' books. Thanks, beatonna.~~

Random: I rather liked this quote from Charlotte's preface to the novel:

For an example of constancy and tenderness, look at the character of Edgar Linton. (Some people will think these qualities do not shine so well incarnate in a man as they would in a woman, but [Emily] could never be brought to comprehend this notion: nothing moved her more than any insinuation that the faithfulness and clemency, the long-suffering and loving-kindness which are esteemed virtues in the daughters of Eve, become foibles in the sons of Adam. She held that mercy and forgiveness are the divinest attributes of the Great Being who made both man and woman, and that what clothes the Godhead in glory can disgrace no form of feeble humanity.)

RUN AWAY LINTON SIBLINGS, RUN AWAY BEFORE HEATHCLIFF AND CATHY RUIN YOU. But it's too late. *sigh*
***

Geert Wilders and his lovely party want the government to make a cost-benefit analysis of the presence of non-Western immigrants and their offspring in the Netherlands. He wants to know the worth of a human being. As the child of non-Western immigrants, this really pisses me off. X_X
***

In case you're sick of evolutionary psychologists and their lolrape ideas: Can We Blame Our Bad Behaviour on Stone-Age Genes? The answer, you'll find, is no. Really cool article with nice rebuttals of evo psych arguments.
***

Twilight has been sent to the cornfield.
Just... LOL.

12 HOURS. NEVAR AGAIN.

cloud_wolf — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 18:25:23 GMT

I'm absolutely wiped. We had the concert today and it was so much fun. The weather in the harbour was slightly overcast but it didn't rain, so a lot of people came to watch. Our program was pretty light, but it had to be, it was a junior concert. You can't exactly give people a Shostakovich symphony.

1. Some pieces from Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet, including the famous Knights scene, but I've talked about that one approximately a dozen times so moving on...
2. Some really weird modern/country solo piece for violin by Loevendie. I thought the solo violinist was precious (and really good) but the music was just way weird. Also, he had bells on his feet, to add to... god, I don't know. I discovered a YouTube vid of the song, performed by our artist, so see for yourself. (Don't listen to it for long, though. >.>)
3. The third movement from Dvorák's eighth symphony. Talked about this one before.
4. A trombone concert by Nino Rota. Actually, this one was really awesome. In case you didn't know, Nino Rota composed the music for The Godfather and Zeffirelli's Romeo and Juliet (♥). You can notice he's a score composer, because the music really sounds cinematic. Trombones are dang awesome instruments, especially in classical works. We did movement one and three. (But they were really short, which was a blessing because we only had yesterday to work on it >_>)
5. Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. I'm guessing just about everyone has heard it before. We did a shortened version because we already had three solo artists and we couldn't afford another (piano) artist. But our resident clarinet and trumpet really rocked their parts. Our conductor told us a funny story about this piece at the concert: Apparently Gershwin was really young when he was asked to compose something classical for a performance in Carnegie Hall (Which was unheard of because people were used to old stuffy classical music). He said yes and then he promptly forgot. Three weeks before the premiere he noticed the posters (spread all over town) with his name on it and went: "Shit, need to compose something quick D:" (and succeeded) And thus the era of American classical music began. I keep thinking of those really old Tom and Jerry cartoons when I hear this piece.
6. Zimba Zamba, a salsa-ish piece with a solo marimba (a sort of xylophone). The solo artist was/is THIRTEEN. I mean, just listen to that, so superfast (That's the kid playing in the YouTube vid, with another orchestra). The kid also opened the Prinsengrachtconcert and won basically every price you can win as a young classical performer in this country. Also, he's so tiny in RL. I just wanted to pat his head.

We may not be the best youth orchestra but we do know how to be funny. Our ex-concertmaster was this year's presenter (together with a famous Dutch person who is a classical music noob) and he truly asked/said the weirdest things. To which the orchestra replied with the weirdest answers :P ("So what did you think of when you were playing this piece?" "Nothing. I was too busy spazzing over flipping the page and playing the music. :|")

Sorry guys, for being a complete linkwhore, but I like being detailed. :P

And to achieve this we had to spend TWELVE HOURS (from 10 till 10) working on all the pieces yesterday (with 15 min. breaks every one and a half hours, plus some time for lunch and dinner). I was so dead when I came back home. X_X
Anyway, our new practice location is Rotterdam's oldest secondary school and it's always hilarious when you go to the girls restroom because they write the weirdest things on the toilet doors and it's entertaining to read. We never had this in our school. I guess it's because the doors in our school were too far away from the toilet so people weren't as motivated to write on it. They wrote things like "My best friend gave my boyfriend a blowjob, please give me advice????" and "I'm in love with my best friend's boyfriend, what do I do??" with following raucous replies. Also, there was some really random Hebrew graffiti, which seemed to be a [girl] ♥ [boy] thing. I wanted to write something underneath it in Farsi for the lulz (because writing graffiti in foreign alphabets is something I should've thought of before XD) but alas, no pen.

Re. ASOIAF and grrm's latest teaser posts. Apparently the hints point towards Rory McCann being the Hound. Guys, I couldn't stop laughing when I saw the face that goes with the name: It's Lurch from Hot Fuzz! Yaaaarrp.

And on a random note, this song. Done by a Dutch artist. It's pretty cool and almost makes up for hearing Jan Smit on Dutch radio all the time.

Uni starts tomorrow. D:/:D

Memes

cloud_wolf — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 12:48:41 GMT

Tagged by jesatria

First: If you've been tagged, you must write your answers in your own LJ. Replace any question that you dislike with a new, original question.
Second: Tag eight people. Don't refuse to do it. Don't tag who tagged you. (Yeah, whatever.)

1. Lots of pillows or just one?
Just one, but it has to be fluffy and big.

2. What kind of books do you read?
SF/F but I don't mind the occasional thriller/historical/classic/lit book.

3. What are your most awesome skills?
I don't really have a talent that jumps out, I think, but I'm really good at remembering trivia, which can be useful if I want to impress people with random knowledge.

4. What's your occupation?
Med school student. But I'm trying to get a job in the hospital. The pay is pretty good for med students. And like, I have to get off my behind.

5. What's really creepy?
Zombie/monster babies. They're tiny. They crawl. They will scare the shit out of you. Thanks, Neil Gaiman, for grossing me out with that formaldehyde cannibal baby in the Sandman.
Moths are really creepy and gross. They spazz and fly in your face (and that hurts, okay). But I'm guessing this is just me.

6. What's the last thing you ate?
Rice with Iranian stew (tomatoes, zucchinis, little chunks of meat and onion and tons of spices) and salad. Good stuff, good stuff.

7. What's been making you smile lately?
Terry Pratchett. I'm rereading a lot of the Discworld books and they never fail to make me smile/howl with laughter. He's a genius and totally worth it if you like parodies, because his parodies are not only amazing and hilarious but also poignant and touching. ILU, pterry.

8. What websites do you always visit when you go online?
LJ. Journalfen (the wank communities). My email accounts. Google and Wikipedia, because I like searching up stuff. I try to tone it down when it comes to TVTropes.
Also, I’m spending way too much time on TruTV Crime Library. I now know more about notorious serial killers and murderers and kidnappers than I should. Luckily it doesn't come back to haunt me when I try to sleep.

9. What was the last thing you bought?
The med school books I need this year. That's about 550 euros down the drain. :[
But now I own books about cancer, urology, cells and body examination and shit (figuratively)! Also, I had to buy a (dark green) stethoscope, with which I've been goofing around (It made my parents squee. They totally loved me having a stethoscope). I so can't wait for body examination lessons. The ones where we don't have to stand around in our underwear, so people can paint on us, that is. XD

10. What's the cutest thing you've seen today?
They have giant water lily leafs (Victoria Amazonica) in Blijdorp Zoo and TV was showing us how they have an annual baby-on-leaf picture shoot, because those leafs can carry up to 40 kilos. The babies were soooooo cute, all smiley and cuddly. Me and my dad were like "D'awwwww, how precious!"

11. Do you get cravings? If so, what do you crave?
I get cravings for stuff covered in mayonnaise and garlic sauce. Like, it could be bread or fries, or crackers, or rice, it doesn't matter. Sauce makes everything better. It also makes me fat, so I can't indulge. :(

12. Who would you go gay/straight for?
I'm bi. I think a lot of people are pretty/cool/hot.
I used to joke with my friend that I'd go Christian for Jesus from that Judas Gospels documentary. Pretty eyes are pretty (Around 4:59). *_*

13. What is your zodiac sign?
Gemini. I think it's a pretty cool sign. And aesthetically pleasing. I don't think it totally fits me (not that I believe in astrology) but the description sounds cool.

14. Do you want to learn another language?
YESSSS. I need to polish up my Farsi and I so want to get better in German. I was pretty good at it but I forgot a lot. But German is so close to Dutch, it can't be hard to get good at it again. I would also like to learn a South European language, like Spanish or Italian. But that's just a pipe dream.

15. Can you do any accents? If so, which?
I'm hilariously inept when it comes to accents.

16. Favorite place you've ever been?
I've visited a lot of cool places, like half the capitals of Western Europe, but Ghent will always be close to my heart. It's like Bruges, like a fairy tale city with amazing buildings and churches and cute squares. Also, people speak my language. :D

17. Shoes or barefoot?
Shoes. But barefoot in the house.

18. Say something to the person who tagged you.
You make me want to read Tamora Pierce books but I wouldn't know where to start.

19. What are you reading right now?
I'm busy in a Kushiel's Dart book, which I enjoy, though many things are boggling/annoying me (This is to be expected when you're reading about a country full of Mary Sues descended from fallen angels). The intrigue is cool but the porn is... not cool. Pretty shitty, actually. XD

This was basically my explanation for the books in chat: "Weeeell. Jesus sorta kinda has a baby with the Earth and this dude becomes the main deity in France. Mostly it has angels and crap. And different names for countries. Like Terre d'Ange for France. Or Le Serenisisisisima for Venice."

20. What is your favorite animal?
God, I dunno. Birds are rad. I also rather like mongooses.
If I'd have to pick between cats and dogs, I'd go for rodents. But I'm not really a pet person, anyway.

21. What is your favorite vacation destination?
Any cool European city will do. But like I said, I like Ghent.

22. What are you going to do next year?
Study. Work in a senior home as a nurse (med students have to do this at some point, I've already heard tons of horror stories). Study some more.

23. Does the weather affect your mood?
I get a little depressed when the weather is overcast but I love rain. It feels nice. I hate humid hot weather, I get a little tetchy when that happens. Winter weather is cool, but early spring is the best.

24. What song is in your head right now? If the answer is none, what's the last song you had in your head?
The Prince of Egypt soundtrack. What a lovely animated movie and what a soundtrack.
Also, The Nutcracker. ♥ Tchaikovsky.

That other meme: Ask me my fannish Top Five [Whatevers]. Any top fives. Doesn't matter what, really! And I will answer them all in a new post.

Top 5 songs you associate with your fandoms
1. I'm on a Boat/Jizz in my Pants. There was this great Star Trek parody based on I'm on a Boat and it was rad. Jizz in my Pants because I would only see such a term in fandom.
Also,misstopiasaid Jizz in my Pants is such a Theon song and now I can't get that out of my head. XD
2. Pretty When You Cry by VAST. It's connected to Tokyo Babylon/X fandom for me. The ultimate Seishirou/Subaru song (Either that or that stalker song by the Police. You know the one).
3. You made me the thief of your heart by Sinéad O'Connor (Ignore the fact that it's a Guy/Marian vid. It was the best version of the song I could find on YouTube). I think matitablu once recced it as a Sansa/Sandor song, and it's a pretty good fit. But I mostly like it because it's so... Sinéad. Heh.
4. Wolf at the Door by Radiohead, because someone in a Harry Potter meta post once recced it. I then listened to it approximately 300 times.
5. GRRM is not your bitch. >.>

Top 5 Mediums Besides TV You'd Adapt ASOIAF In, for greyfable

I cheated. This started as Top 5 Media but ended up as Top 5 Adaptations. Because WTH was I going to pick? ASOIAF: The Telegraph version? I don't think my definition of mediums is as clear as it should be. >.>

1. Radio Series. Not like an audiobook with only one narrator but like the famous Lord of the Rings radio series with many many voice actors being involved. And sound effects.
2. Okay, you said beside TV, but I don't want to mention Live Action, I want to mention Animation. An animated ASOIAF would be SO sweet. The Prince of Egypt Style or Batman: tAS style or even certain anime styles would be freaking rad too.
3. ASOIAF: The Musical. Nuff said.
4. ASOIAF: The Comic. But not American style, but Euro style or indi comic company style. I always thought that those have more character than some of the bland stuff DC and Marvel produces.
5. ASOIAF: The Computer Game. I'm not even a game geek but it would be so sweet.

Top 5 plot twists in a book/movie/series, for hamsterwoman
SPOILERS, OBVIOUSLY.
1. Maurice by E.M. Forster. Maurice gets the boy. So fluffy and cute. *sniff*
2. Perdido Street Station by China Mieville has a shitton of plot twists but the ones that hurt were Lin being mentally stunted and Yagharek being a rapist. I was kinda sorta spoiled for the book but it still hurt.
3. I read the Goblet of Fire before the Prisoner of Azkaban and was duly spoiled, which is a shame because I think 11 year old me would flip out and gasp at the Shrieking Shack chapters.
4. The Edgeworld series was of my favourite fantasy series. The part where Twig finds his father Cloud Wolf again, to see him dissolve in the ether was just really sad and unexpected. Cloud Wolf :((((
5. Granny by Anthony Horowitz, where it turns out the main character is at an Evil Granny convention (where grannies exchange how-to-annoy-younger-people tricks and hand out prizes for the most evil grannies). Guys, I read this book just about 30 times when I was a kid. I loved this book soooo much. Actually, many plot twists by Anthony Horowitz are totally awesome. Now I want to reread them again, but I'm afraid that would ruin my fond memories.

The orchestra has a performance on Sunday, the junior version of the Veerhavenconcert (Rotterdam's feeble attempt at Amsterdam's junior Prinsengrachtconcert). The problem is that we haven't practised in ages. We've only done Gershwin one time through. So tomorrow we have to practise from 10 AM till 11 PM. My period just started and I'm doubling over in pain. *clutches head* WE ARE SO DOOOMED.

My icon is embarrassingly applicable to this post.

cloud_wolf — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 17:28:56 GMT

Kay guys, I'm leaving for Rome tomorrow morning so I won't be online for about two weeks (!)

Man, my parents are always like this. They're like "Nah, we'll figure something out" every time I ask them what our plans are for the holidays. So I though, hey, if we're going it won't be a long trip, right, maybe to Belgium for a few days? WRONG.

*one week ago*
Mom: We're going to Italy. Chose your destination now. Rome (and Florence) or Venice.
Me + Bro: Bu-
Mom: No other choice.
Me: FINE. Rome. Please tell me we're not staying long.
Mom: Oh sure, only a week or five days.

*a few days later*
Mom and dad: OMG, so much to see in Rome, we must go for THREE WEEKS.
Me + Bro: This is never going to end well.

So I managed to haggle it down because I also have to do a performance with my string quartet on the 18th and I cannot miss that. And if you're wondering, we're going by car and we're camping. Tomorrow is going to be driving only. My parents told me I can only bring two books. I told them that three is the minimum and they're not going to be small either. So I suppose I'm bringing Watership Down (never read it before but people rave about it, also in RL. Well, at least they told me the movie scared them shitless when they were kids), Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (because the book is huge, heh) and The Count of Monte Cristo (I was halfway when I kinda dumped it because Maximillian and Valentine's romance is SO BORING, OMG. Man, even the guy who wrote the introduction thinks so. I believe "Vapid and verbose just about sums it up" are his exact words. So maybe I'll get past that and get to the exciting parts, like I don't know, the Count actually doing something again.)

Anyway, I've got my reservations about going to Italy. I feel rather uncomfortable, especially because I don't speak the language, I suppose. Also because my parents planned this one week in advance. Also because my parents always dress like tourists, like really badly. Why do I feel like something is going to go horribly wrong? On the other hand, I'm pretty excited about seeing all the cultural hotspots ~~and getting ripped off, no doubt~~.

Oh, and I heard that it's going to be boiling there, like 33 degrees? I can't even survive in 25. D: (I blame my dad, for not handing me his survive-in-the-desert genes.) But then again, that's in the Netherlands, where summers are notoriously humid. So maybe Italy will be dryer. In which case my eyes are out of luck, because they get irritated by dry weather (I know this because my eyes turned red every. single. night. when I went to Tuscany with my orchestra). I never win, guys. XD

Not much going on 'cept that. My mother still nags how I should study for my driver's license (Which I'm doing, really!), multiple times a day. I'm learning how to cook things we eat a lot (pasta, including ender839 's amazing pasta salad, different kinds of khoresht, rice, hutspot, etc) Also, I made a key lime pie and a carrot cake. And man, the carrot cake was great, even if I say so myself. Pfff, I'm so going to make that one again. Here's the recipe I used.

And I also read seven Dresden Files books, 3-9. Also some other books.

I heard from quite a few people that books 1 and 2 aren't really worth it and that you don't miss much if you read some summaries and start with three. Which is true. I read the Dresden books in about a week or more, they're seriously fast reads.

Anyway, they're pretty funny, I think the most memorable passage in that respect is the beginning in book 6, where Harry and Thomas are on the run from purple monkey demons. I mean, they're funny in a totally pulpy and cracky way, don't expect high literature here.

Anyway, in case you don't know, they're urban fantasy/mystery novels, in which Harry Dresden, the main character (it's 1st person POV) has to solve mysteries/save lives. For what it's worth, Jim Butcher's world is nicely put together, his werewolves, wizards, faeries and vampires, they all have pretty interesting cultures. Also, Thomas Raith > many tween vampires. His wizeassery was quite hilarious and ~~sparkly~~. Harry himself is okay, though he's kinda dumb sometimes, and often sexist. I'm guessing a lot of that is done on purpose, by Butcher, but I bet that a lot of it isn't done on purpose, which is a shame (and therefore really noticeable because I don't tend to be a person who keeps an eye out for sexism), but the sexism did spoil the fun. :[ (On the other hand, Murphy is a pretty kickass female character)

I also read The Assassins of Tamurin (rec by haremstress ) which was fun. Weird to have a fantasy version of China populated by redheads, but the characters were cool.
And I also read Perdido Street Station (by China Mieville). WOW. It was an amazing book. The world he came up with was amazingly put together, I especially liked the non-human races, for not being boring catpeople or something like that (no, he has bugpeople, cactuspeople, frogpeople and birdpeople and they're really really awesome). CM's vocabulary is quite unique, very interesting word use, though I guess that some people will find it pompous at times.
Oh, and some of the creatures, especially the otherwordly huge Weaver and the slakemoths, were awesome. I loved how they thought and how Mieville wrote the Weaver's dialogue, this neverending flow of words. And the slakemoths were just plain icky but the descriptions were mesmerizing. A+, Mieville, A+

link-o-rama and my cousin from Iran

cloud_wolf — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 20:10:08 GMT

Hey, guess who is done with uni? YES, THAT WOULD BE ME! Our last test was about the whole year; we got a few cases (40 cases to be exact) and then we had to solve something about it (what kind of medicine do you have to use? and questions like that). I think I did okay, but the results aren't in yet. Pretty sure I passed.

Also, my mum went to Austria to meet some of her family (from Germany) and her nephew (my cousin) Sina (named after Avicenna, pretty sweet, eh?) who came to Graz from Iran with a few other kids to compete in a robotics competition. She spent time with them in Graz and Vienna and then she came back with Mozart Kugeln (delicious) and a lot of praise for my cousin, who is seriously one of the sweetest and most mature teenagers on the planet. I already suspected this when another aunt showed us footage of his birthday where he kept helping and cheering up my sick grandma (who had a TIA) and hugging her. But apparently he is also like that in RL!

Mom: He's just the sweetest kid ever, and he was so upset when I had to go and he hugs everyone, and everyone in his team adores him, and he makes friends with boys and girls. And he knows so much, he's like a walking encyclopaedia!
Me: You mean like me? ¹
Mom: EXACTLY. He knows bands like Coldplay and knows everything about Iranian and European politics, stuff like that, it's amazing. And he says Dorsa² is an amazing cook!
Me: You mean, like I'm not?
Little brother: Sahar SUCKS at cooking³.
Me: Thanks, pal.
Mom: And she can drive! She drives Sina everywhere!
Me: You mean, like I can't?
Mom: Welllll, you do need to be able to drive if you want to be a docter, dear.

Anyway, then me and my brother started to insult each other like we always do, and bash each other's skills needlessly, because that's the way things work ("Boohoo, so my cooking isn't perfect, at least I didn't sit on my ass all day" "LALALALA, I so did not do that!"). Sina and Dorsa never fight, and we do. Sometimes I feel sorry for my mum for getting stuck with the hotheaded bitchy kids who can only speak crappy Farsi and do nothing/always mess things up. I wish I were as good as my cousins, they're really sweet kids.

Oh right, then this happens.
Mom: And he says he never want to go back to Iran because the internet is super quick here. He downloads everything.
Me: Hehe.
Mom: He's a know-it-all but a sweet one. He then started talking about Bryan Adams and Bob Dylan and his son and - I'm not sure - Hotel California?
Me: Oh, you mean the Eagles.
Mom: Yeah, and I said you heard about it (and that you know everything about modern music) and he was all "PFFFF, no way, that was all in the 70's, she doesn't know about that!"
Me: WHAT? WHAT?! Like the 70's was so long ago?? It's not like BOB DYLAN is so obscure, you know? So this dude thinks he knows more than I do when it comes to useless pop culture knowledge? Bring it on, bitch, I'll kick your ass.
Mom: Next time you can show him your skills, okay?

¹: My mother always mentions how amazed she is about my knowledge about culture, music (contemporary and classical), history, pop culture, etc. It's all pretty useless >.>
²: Sina's sister, who is one month younger than I am (19). Sina's 16.
³: I had to cook while my mother wasn't here. Needless to say, my brother didn't think my spaghetti bolognese was as perfect as my mother's.

Cakewrecks just posted this entry about a Dutch holiday, Sinterklaas (on 5 December in the Netherlands, apparently 6 December in Belgium). It's when St. Nicholas celebrates his birthday and comes here from Spain with his companion Black Pete. Boy, is it painful >.>
I have to say, I did fall for the "He's called Black Pete because of soot from the chimney! It's not racist at all!" But the red lips don't really match, do they? It really does look like blackfacing and it's making me sort of uncomfortable :| (Because I really enjoyed Sinterklaas as a kid)
I mean, Sinterklaas did change a bit these years, because this show for little kiddies (de Club van Sinterklaas) made Black Petes pretty popular with the children (traditionally he's the dude who throws bad children in the sack to punish) but that doesn't really erase the issue, especially because those Petes are goof balls with no table manners. I'm pretty sure the black population here doesn't really like it at all. This short documentary got linked in the comments section and it isn't pretty

Random linkage:

The 40 Worst Rob Liefeld Drawings. I'm sure you all heard of Liefeld, the worst comic artist ever, right? Well, it turns out that a character he came up with (and only wrote for like 6 issues) came out of the closet (after 10 years) and now he's wanky about it. That 40 Drawings link came up and it is seriously comedy gold. Those guys totally rip his art to shreds.

A commission of Corwin of Amber. For the three Amber fans on my flist. :P

A blog pointing out all the fail of British newspapers. Man, that's a lot of fail. So I guess now I really know why people don't take the Daily Mail seriously.

This Russian Art Blog. Seriously, check that out, the Russians are amazing when it comes to art, and versatile and diverse too.

Maz Jobrani, an Iranian-American comedian, from the Axis of Evil Comedy Tour (thanks esc_key, this still cracks me up!). You know, his Iranian caricature was spot on. They really do talk slow (My dad is the prime example). And they do like to call themselves Persians (That part made my parents laugh so hard, you have no idea). Now I have the urge to introduce myself as "Persian, like the cat, miaow!". It reminded me of Omid Djalili, who is a Iranian-British comedian, who had his own show. His Pride and Racial Prejudice sketch (With him as Mr. Farsi) was hilarious. More: Lucky Arab Golfer, Home Video Guide, Taarof and Crusaders.

And this because I'm bored: Name a fandom, and I'll give you the scoop on at least three of my unpopular opinions related to that fandom.

I'm going to watch the next part of Torchwood: Children of Earth. See ya, guys.

ETA: Hey guad, do you have the music you want me to play? I'm all up for it! :D

cloud_wolf — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 21:19:58 GMT

So, how was my week?
1. I've barely had any sleep because I've been obsessively following the happenings in Iran. This is basically the only thing I can do, I suck at networking or I would've done something with Twitter.
2. I've been sick. I think I have the flu. I'm wearing a fleece sweater over another sweater. Yesterday I almost got violently sick. Ick.
3. Did a grammar test.
4. Watched a lot of Iranian vids on YouTube with my parents.

A video with pictures from the last couple of days. The song is a popular revolution song from 1979. My dad was shocked when he heard it, because he hadn't heard it in years. But he could still sing along. I can actually understand the lyrics and it's pretty heartbreaking. (Found through The Daily Dish)

My elementary schoolmate.
You are with me and my comrade all the way.
We’ve suffered together.
Your tears and sighs are mines as well.
Engraved on this blackboard are our names.
Remaining on our bodies are still the scars of the lash of tyranny and injustice.

This uncultured landscape of ours is covered with weed instead of the green of grass.
Either good or bad, dead is the hearts of all its people.
Your hands and my hands must rip these veils apart.
Who else, except for you and I, could cure our wounds?

But he said that this was the song everyone sang to celebrate the revolution (Spring, congradulations. That's a sucky translation but there isn't a phrase that comes close.)

Anyway, icons.

#1 inspired by a comment esc_key made. Yeah. Art is by Amok.
The rest is made with art from Mike Miller's Hedge Knight comics. They're really cool so buy them.

Don't hotlink, credit, blah blah. You know the drill.
ETA: Replaced the Disco Ned one with one which doesn't exceed LJ limits.

1	2	3

4	5	6

7	8	9

10	11	12

13	14	15

16	17	18

19	20	21

22	23	24

Also, some older icons I never posted here.

1	2	3

4	5	6

7	8	9

10	11	12

13	14	15

16	17	18

19	20	21

22	23	24

25	26	27

28	29	30

31	32	33

34	35	36

37	38	39

It's my birthday

cloud_wolf — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 15:56:52 GMT

It's my birthday! I turn 19 today.
Yeah, nothing much to say here. I'm not really a party animal so my day till now went like this:
1) Get woken up by my parents singing Happy Birthday in Farsi. (I found the tune my parents sing it to, too, haha. It's the first 20 seconds of this vid. Don't ask me what happens in the rest of the vid. A Persian Pop/Rap version? It's kind of hilarious.)
2) Eat apple pie in my pyjamas. Get white flowers from mum.
3) Clean house. Take out trash.
4) Get money from my parents for presents.
5) Gleefully pet new Moleskin weekly planner. Haha, it's professional.

You might've heard of the Iranian elections. The latest news isn't really making me happy. >.>
I really don't know what to say. So here's a picture of cute campaigning Iranian women. (Who will not stop fighting this battle. Iran stands out amongst other Middle East countries by having a really high percentage of well educated women (60 % of university students is female) but they still don't have equal rights. One day they will.)

But at least Obama told the mainstream media that the US government is to blame for the Iranian coup d'état. Yeah guys, we actually did have a reasonably democratic government until it got overthrown. Poor Iran.

Meme:
YOU'RE ON MY FRIENDS LIST and I want to know 28 things about you. I don't care if we've never talked, never really clicked, or if we already know everything about each other. I really don't. You are obviously on my flist, so let me know with whom I'm friends! (Feel free to only answer some of them if you like!)

1. Your Middle Name:
2. Age:
3. Single or Taken:
4. Favourite Film:
5. Favourite Song or Album:
6. Favourite Band/Artist:
7. Dirty or Clean:
8. Tattoos and/or Piercings:
9. Do we know each other outside of LJ?
10. What's your philosophy on life?
11. Is the bottle half-full or half-empty?
12. Would you keep a secret from me if you thought it was in my best interest?
13. What is your favorite memory of us?
14. What is your favorite guilty pleasure?
15. Tell me one odd/interesting fact about you:
16. You can have three wishes (for yourself, so forget all the 'world peace etc' malarkey) - what are they?
17. Can we get together and make a cake?
18. Which country is your spiritual home?
19. What is your big weakness?
20. Do you think I'm a good person?
21. What was your best/favorite subject at school?
22. Describe your accent:
23. If you could change anything about me, would you?
24. What do you wear to sleep?
25. Trousers or skirts?
26. Cigarettes or alcohol?
27. If I only had one day to live, what would we do together? (If you have no idea, just say something crazy, it'll entertain me!)
28. Will you repost this so I can fill it out for you?

Fantasy writer quiz

cloud_wolf — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 19:25:03 GMT

Quiz stolen from etrangere

Your result for Which fantasy writer are you?...
Ursula K Le Guin (b. 1929)

3 High-Brow, -19 Violent, -1 Experimental and 17 Cynical!

Your result for Which fantasy writer are you?...

Ursula K Le Guin (b. 1929)

3 High-Brow, -19 Violent, -1 Experimental and 17 Cynical!

Congratulations! You are High-Brow, Peaceful, Traditional and Cynical! These concepts are defined below.

Ursula Kroeber Le Guin is definitely one of the most celebrated science fiction and fantasy writers of all times. Her most famous fantasy work to date is the Earthsea suite of novels and short stories, in which Le Guin created not only one of the most believable societies in fantasy fiction, but also managed to describe a school for wizards almost three decades before Harry Potter. Although often categorized as written for young adults, these books have entertained and challenged readers of all ages since their publication.

Le Guin is no stranger to literary experiments (see for example Always Coming Home(1985)), but much of her story-telling is quite traditional. In fact, she makes a point of returning to older forms of story-telling, which, at her best, enables her to create something akin to myth. One shouldn't confuse myth with faerytale, though. Nothing is ever simplified in Le Guin's world, as she relentlessly explores ethical problems and the moral choices that her characters must make, as must we all. While being one of those writers who will allow you to escape to imaginary worlds, she is also one who will prompt you to return to your actual life, perhaps a little wiser than you used to be.

You are also a lot like Susan Cooper.

If you want some action, try Michael Moorcock.

If you'd like a challenge, try your exact opposite, C S Lewis.

Your score

This is how to interpret your score: Your attitudes have been measured on four different scales, called 1) High-Brow vs. Low-Brow, 2) Violent vs. Peaceful, 3) Experimental vs. Traditional and 4) Cynical vs. Romantic. Imagine that when you were born, you were in a state of innocence, a tabula rasa who would have scored zero on each scale. Since then, a number of circumstances (including genetical, cultural and environmental factors) have pushed you towards either end of these scales. If you're at 45 or -45 you would be almost entirely cynical, low-brow or whatever. The closer to zero you are, the less extreme your attitude. However, you should always be more of either (eg more romantic than cynical). Please note that even though High-Brow, Violent, Experimental and Cynical have positive numbers (1 through 45) and their opposites negative numbers (-1 through -45), this doesn't mean that either quality is better. All attitudes have their positive and negative sides, as explained below.

High-Brow vs. Low-Brow

You received 3 points, making you more High-Brow than Low-Brow. Being high-browed in this context refers to being more fascinated with the sort of art that critics and scholars tend to favour, rather than the best-selling kind. At their best, high-brows are cultured, able to appreciate the finer nuances of literature and not content with simplifications. At their worst they are, well, snobs.

Violent vs. Peaceful

You received -19 points, making you more Peaceful than Violent. This scale is a measurement of a) if you are tolerant to violence in fiction and b) whether you see violence as a means that can be used to achieve a good end. If you aren't, and you don't, then you are peaceful as defined here. At their best, peaceful people are the ones who encourage dialogue and understanding as a means of solving conflicts. At their worst, they are standing passively by as they or third parties are hurt by less scrupulous individuals.

Experimental vs. Traditional

You received -1 points, making you more Traditional than Experimental. Your position on this scale indicates if you're more likely to seek out the new and unexpected or if you are more comfortable with the familiar, especially in regards to culture. Note that traditional as defined here does not equal conservative, in the political sense. At their best, traditional people don't change winning concepts, favouring storytelling over empty poses. At their worst, they are somewhat narrow-minded.

Cynical vs. Romantic

You received 17 points, making you more Cynical than Romantic. Your position on this scale indicates if you are more likely to be wary, suspicious and skeptical to people around you and the world at large, or if you are more likely to believe in grand schemes, happy endings and the basic goodness of humankind. It is by far the most vaguely defined scale, which is why you'll find the sentence "you are also a lot like x" above. If you feel that your position on this scale is wrong, then you are probably more like author x. At their best, cynical people are able to see through lies and spot crucial flaws in plans and schemes. At their worst, they are overly negative, bringing everybody else down.

Author picture from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:UrsulaLeGuin.01.jpg

Take Which fantasy writer are you? at HelloQuizzy

Awesome! \o/ I really should get to buying The Left Hand of Darkness, I did love Earthsea. And maybe look into this Susan Cooper person.
I liked that quiz, the person who made it really thought it out, though some question were very much high fantasy orientated.

Not much to say on the RL front. I basically fell asleep today on top of my homework about kidney stones. So I missed my violin lessons. I blame my exhausting weekend, in which I had to practice with my orchestra from 10 AM till 5 PM on Saturday and from 10 AM till 12 on Sunday. After which my friend Rian had a birthday picknick at her place. It was loads of fun especially because I got to see my dear friend Susie (and her cool girlfriend), whom I barely see because she studies in the UK.

*Everybody's lounging, Rian on Susie's one side, me on the other with my head on her shoulder*
S: I feel like a pimp. Or some dictator or ruler.
Me: All you need is a white fluffy cat.
S: No, I mean like Alexander the Great.
Me: Ha!
S: I've got my Persian *points at me*, and a lover and a friend *points at girlfriend Christina and at Rian*
Me: Haha! Don't expect any backflips from me, okay? But wait, who is Hephaistion?
S: Chris is the lover aspect, Rian the friend aspect.
Me: Nonono, that doesn't work, Chris can be Hephaistion, let's come up with something better for Rian. Hmmm... Cassander doesn't work, does he?
S: He's Jonathan Rhys Meyers right? Nah, he doesn't.
Me: I know! She can be Ptolemy!
S: And rule Egypt!
Me: and have incestuous kids!
R: What? No!
S: Cleopatra descends from you!
Me: At least she can have kids, I'm Bagoas the eunuch. Though I do have an awesome book written about me.
S: Yeah, I really need to get The Persian Boy.

Haha, I love Susie, we can squee about everything. She's half the reason the reason I'm going to watch Robin Hood again (the other half is haremstress). Both came up with the same reason (TOBY STEPHENS AS PRINCE JOHN, OMGOMG) but Susie had the advantage of acting out Prince John's scenes. It helped that she's a Brit so she was really good at it too.

S: *acts out Prince John's whiny petulant scenes*
Me: Robin Hood sucks ass. The show is so bad. I didn't want to see the third season but... you're persuasive.
S: Pretend you're Guy of Gisbourne.
Me: Okay.
S: *sidles up close* Do you love me?
Me: That is so gay.
S: Which is why you need to watch it!
Me: I know! :D

And that's it. P.S. Alannah Myles has a hot voice.

This is an excuse to squee about opera

cloud_wolf — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 17:51:16 GMT

It's Hansel and Gretel! (Glad to see that there are more f-listers who think the same)

Mostly it's because of the Opera Hansel and Gretel, by Engelbert Humperdinck (the German composer, not the British singer), who knows how to make awesome leitmotifs. It's an opera written for children. Perhaps that's the reason this is one of the cutest operas ever. I have it on a CD and I've listened to it countless times. It always cheers me up. I've also played it! :D It was pretty damn hard, but amazing, especially because we had two lovely sopranos singing it with our orchestra.

The most famous extract is Abends will ich schlafen gehn. It's where Hansel and Gretel are put to sleep by the Sandman, who has a supercute aria before that, Der kleine Sandmann bin ich. Mind you, that's not the version I got, my CD has Elizabeth Schwarzkopf (♥). Still, very beautiful.
They are woken up by the Dew Fairy, Der kleine Taumann heiss ich. The viola part here was so hard, can you hear it? XD
Oh right, and the Hexenritt was absolutely amazing. This opera is so German, it's like being in the Black Forest, or something.
And there is this adorable part where Gretel is trying to Hansel to dance with her (Bruderchen, komm, tanz mit mir, around the second half) and Hansel is all "Nuh-uh, I'm too awesome for dancing >:|" and Gretel is all "Dummkopf!"
And I loove their mother and father, they have some really sad solos but also some really rowdy German stuff. Like Ra la la la. Awesome.
And the witch is so awesome, haha. Well, in my version it's a mezzo soprano, but here it's done by a tenor and the result is rather hilarious (Also check out the second part where Gretel kills the witch and they're like, Juchhei, the witch is dead! Campiest waltz ever XD).

Also, I like Hansel and Gretel because of this really crappy cd-rom I had in the 90's. You had to figure your way out of the forest and you had to eat through the house and at the end you got a lot of big fat jewels. I suppose a computer game isn't as romantic as a storybook, haha.

ETA: Also, from a meta PoV Hansel and Gretel is very interesting.
And there was this part in American Gods (by Neil Gaiman) which really reminded me of Hansel and Gretel, for some reason. I won't spoil for those who haven't read it but it's about a small boy in the Black Forest back in the old days and I thought it was heartbreaking. It was one of my favourite parts in AG.

***
I voted today for the first time ever! Yay! It's the European elections, but for some reason the Netherlands is one of two countries voting today. On a Thursday. I wonder why it's not Saturday like the rest of Europe. :|

I'd better get back to figuring out what the differential diagnosis is for a person with chronic diarrhea. *le sigh*

Movies! :D

cloud_wolf — Sun, 31 May 2009 22:40:12 GMT

So, this weekend I saw two movies, Star Trek and Coraline (based on the book by Neil Gaiman).

I saw Star Trek with my nerd buddy because I had the feeling he'd dig the spaceships and special effects. (I was right, he basically gasped when he saw Spock Prime's spaceship, LOL)

Awesome! I came in for space ships, adventure, special effect and the entertaining characters and I got all of those. Wow, I got a lot. Solidly entertaining.

Also, I totally get why people are saying we should ditch the name rebootverse and just call it sexyverse, because heh, it's just true. Also, I think you could ship everyone with everyone in this movie, so yeah, multishipping for the win! (Fandom wins, there are tons of fic so I'm voraciously reading a lot of it.)

Ahahah, I just loved Kirk and his douchy but awesome attitude. You could see how he came across as a bit desperate and lost, despite his huge ego. Also, Chris Pine is very pretty, really a cupcake. >.>
Also, this movie finally made me see why people love Karl Urban so much. He was pretty awesome as Bones, and I did love "Space is disease and danger wrapped in darkness and silence!"
As far as bitchy and crochety doctors go, I'd rather be McCoy than House. XD
(And I thought Kirk and McCoy had great chemistry. Take that whatever way you like.)
Spock didn't get me all fangirly and squeeing but I did think he was awesome. Especially when he does all those mean things because it's logical. Emotionally compromised, indeed. I don't exactly ship him with anyone, but I'm game for anything.
Uhura was also pretty awesome (In a scary and "Mess with me and I will cut you" kinda way) though I didn't think her relationship with Spock was noteworthy, but fleshing out is what fic is for. :D
Simon Pegg as Scotty. Win win win. That is all. Man, I love Simon Pegg. *hugs Hot Fuzz*
Chekhov was adorable, I just wanted to pinch his cheeks and pat his curls. Sulu was pretty awesome for a minor character, especially in the sword fight. I kinda ship these two. You know it's adorable and cute and squee. Also, seems to inspire quite a lot of fic.
Leonard Nimoy was awesome as Spock Prime. Also, I kinda ship Kirk/Spock Prime, I feel so dirty, haha.

I need to quote what cyshobbitlass said, because it's true: "I love when Eomer goes about in space with Sylar, Harold, Shaun of the Dead and that Pirate woman from POTC 1 and has to fight a Romulan Henry the eighth."

Also, I discovered this icon:
I don't know who made it, but it is awesome.
And, haha, I love the cracky fanart this fandom makes. Haha!

When I came back my mother asked me about what the movie was about. I said it was a Star Trek movie.
Mom: Oh, I heard a lot about that, what's it about?
Me: Blah blah, based on a 60's sci-fi series with iconic characters like Kirk and Spock, blah blah *goes into detail about Spock's appearance*
Mom: Wait, are you talking about Mr. Spock? :O
Me: Um, I think so?
Mom: OMG, I saw that in Iran when I was a wee lass. I loooved it.
Me: Why didn't you recognize the Live Long and Prosper thing?
Mom: Well, they synchronized it in Farsi, dear.
Me: O_o *head implodes as she imagines William Shatner speaking Farsi*
Mom: Hey, Iranian dubs were of great quality!
(Apparently she was right? etherealmonkey said his Mideast Politics teacher claimed the same. Wiki also agrees.)
Mom: But Mr. Spock and Doctor McCoy weren't the main characters, you know. Kirk was, he was really tough and a ladies man. :D
Me: Umm. Let's just stop right there, okay. *edges away*

Now I can be elitist and call myself a second generation Trekkie! \o/
(Haha, I kid. I've only seen a few eps of TOS and Voyager and the animated series. Most things ST I know thanks to pop culture osmosis.)

Also, I made these icons for haremstress and I need to show off.

And I saw Coraline (trailer link) with my little brother because I wanted to, and because I like to drag my brother around. And this time he let me. XD

It was a really cute and beautiful movie! The stop motion and 3D effects were amazing and I just loved the character designs. The scenery was so pretty, which makes sense; the director also did the Nightmare before Christmas. And her world was pretty much a Neil Gaiman world: it just sucks you right in with its whimsical and amazing elements.

I didn't think Dakota Fanning was really great as a VA but she did okay, I suppose. Coraline herself was cool, though. Not just her design (I wish I could look as awesome with blue hair and a yellow raincoat) but also her outgoing attitude.

I particularly like Wybie. He wasn't in the book but was added so that Coraline wouldn't be talking to herself. He was a cute awkward kid but what I also liked was the fact that he was mixed race (His grandmother is black but he's a lot lighter and he has frizzy hair). You don't see a lot of mixed race people and that's just sad. Though it was rather depressing to see that some fanartists don't seem to get that he's not 100% white and also doesn't have straight hair. *sigh*

Also, what the hell, here's the video of the Russian interval act during the first semi final of Eurovision. It's kind of precious: The Red Army Chorus teams up with t.A.T.u., singing "Not Gonna Get Us" and in the meanwhile showing off their pink tank (seriously, it's a pink tank) and jet fighter aircraft. My mother seriously thinks this was a FU from Russia to Russia's "adversaries". I just think they tried too hard, heh. It also has some rad traditional dances and break dancers. The second semi final interval act was pretty cool too, with dances from all over Europe, done by the State academic ensemble of popular dance.

You Americans are so missing out

cloud_wolf — Sun, 17 May 2009 19:38:26 GMT

BEST. EUROVISION. IN. YEARS. Andrew Lloyd Webber! LOTS of Balkan entries! (I love those.) Folksy songs! Dramatic chansons! Elvira in fluorescent colours! Dita von Teese! (XD)

Short intro for all those who don't know about the Eurovision Song Contest. Well, the name says it all, really. Each European country sends a song-entry to the capital of last year's winner. The first one was in 1956 and the contest has been broadcasted live on tv ever since. It started out with seven countries, went up to twenty and now has a whopping total of 42 contestants (thanks to the entry of a lot of East European countries end 90's and begin 00's). The format is: two semifinals and one final (with 25 entries). People get to vote on which country is best (but you can't vote on your own, duh). This year the judges account for 50% of the votes.

Fun fact: ABBA became famous thanks to "Waterloo", winning Eurovision 1974.

I look forward to it each and every year, ever since I was seven. I'm not even embarrased about it. I know it's really campy and often shitty and whatnot, but I don't care. I like all kinds of music genres and that includes camp and badwrong. But people were complaining a lot. About the entries being of low quality (kinda true. I keep saying the songs are good, but I'm talking about Eurovision good, not actually good.) but also about all those East Europeans voting on each other (showing a lot of xenophobia, let me tell you). Well, fuck that, they've shown that they do have a lot of fine entries this year. As for voting on each other, that has been the standard course for decennia. Like Scandinavian countries giving each other 12 points. Or the Netherlands and Israel giving each other top points. Or Spain and Portugal, and Ireland and the UK. Don't lie, this has been going on for forever.

ANYWAY. This year was great! (For Eurovision) Campy but not really crappy (though some acts... yowza. I couldn't stop laughing. This includes the Netherlands. But those acts didn't go to the final.)
Norway won, with Alexander Rybak. It was a really cute act ("Fairytale"), and the guy had charm. I didn't think he was the best but I didn't mind him winning. My mother thought he was adorable ("the cutest guy" according to a lot of people) so she was really happy when he won. Oh mamo. XD
Second place was Iceland, with Yohanna. I didn't like that much, but I'm sure Iceland's very happy at not having to host the next Eurovision (what with being broke). I thought the UK entry, written by Andrew Lloyd Webber, was the same kind of song but much better. They ended up on the fifth spot (Surprise! The UK doesn't suck! This hasn't happened in years!).
Third place went to Azerbaijan. I don't even know why they get to enter Eurovision but it was totally awesome that they got third place (my mum claims it's because they have loads of oil and therefore also enjoy a degree of independence). The song wasn't that original but catchy and the male singer was an Iranian Swede (See, thedls_sword! We both kinda rock!). I got some pleasure out of this act ending above Turkey, which always gets a high spot because of Turkish immigrants voting like mad. Heh. XD

I really want to review and link to every song (in the final), so here's a cut, to spare most of you. But really, I loved a lot of the entries. They truly put their language and culture into their songs and it shows. So if you dig Europe and europop, take a look! (Or listen to the CD, it's easy to find on the 'net.) Especially Russia, Bosnia & Herzegovina and Estonia. Those were my favourites (But I know I'm the only one who likes Russia).

To make it easier for you (and for myself to remember), I have decided to add a few labels:
GOOD
BAD
OKAY
MEH
LOL!

1. Lithuania. MEH. Sasha Son with "Love". Think Alicia Keys meets the Baltics. It's not a bad song. I know the guy is a good singer and not unpleasant to listen to. But not really my thing, it depends on my mood really. (ETA: Decided to update this to OKAY)
2. Israel. MEH. Noa and Mira Awad with "There Must Be Another Way". A Jewish singer and an Arab singer with a Palestinian dad, singing about you-know-what. Made quite the scandal in Israel: rightwings didn't want the Arab in it, the leftwings (they exist) thought it was a cheap ploy to get votes. As for what I think of the song: not bad, reasonable voices but the chorus is repetetive. So there. (ETA: Decided to update this to OKAY)
3. France. GOOD. Patricia Kaas with "Et s'il fallait le faire". France is back with a good ole dramatic chanson (they tried last year with an English song. Didn't work and some politicians wanted to stop it. That's how proud they are of French). Patricia Kaas is a famous singer and she's really good: part Edith Piaf, part cabaret.
4. Sweden. OKAY. Malena Ernman with "La voix". I've seen a lot of hate for this song, but whatever. Malena Ernman is a bonafide opera singer and though the low parts are rather weak she still rocks the high opera parts in the chorus. It's a catchy song and that's okay for me. It's Eurovision.
5. Croatia. GOOD. Igor Cukrov feat. Andrea with "Lijepa Tena". This is such a Mediterranean summer ballad. The song is good (though maybe it's because I only listen to these kinds of songs during Eurovision) and sad. The performance cracked me up, though. The background singers tried to appear mysterious with their flowing sheer dresses but it was a bit too melodramatic for me.
6. Portugal. OKAY. Flor-de-Lis with "Todas as ruas do amor". Portuguese folksy song. I debated about whether it was Meh or Good, but went with Okay, despite the overtly cheery grins. It's a cute summer song in their home language so it comes across as a genuine song. People who sing in their home language always get a thumbs up from me, even if the song sucks.
7. Iceland. MEH. Yohanna with "Is It True?". Bleh, tasted like diabetes. Yes, the final performance is just a cheesy as the vid I just linked to. Her dress was so DISNEY PRINCESS (a gofugyourself link. Scroll down for the dress). The song is mediocre. Her voice is okay but it isn't going to save this song for me.
8. Greece. BAD and LOL! Sakis Rouvas with "This Is Our Night". LOLOL. Look at those thrusting hips. This guy really thought he could win with sex appeal. Too bad that a) it's not sexy but hilarious and b) not a good song. So there. He looks like the horny golf teacher the desperate housewife always runs off with. I watched gleefully as he became more and more disappointed during the televoting. He was sooo sure of himself, haha.
9. Armenia. OKAY. Inga and Anush with "Jan Jan". This is so Middle Eastern. The outfits they wore at the finals were really impressive. My mum said they looked like Iranian outfits. I said I was surprised Iranians were okay with that much boobage. My mother said that no, there was no boobage in Iranian dresses. Sadly. The voices aren't that good but it's forgivable, they gave a good show.
10. Russia. GOOD. Anastasiya Prikhodko with "Mamo". I really thought this was a good song (in Russian and Ukrainian). The dramatic low voice totally worked and it was catchy. One of my favourites. Didn't deserve the flak it got, IMO, but I know I'm the only one who thinks so. (also: wah wah, it's a Ukrainian representing Russia, oh noez)
11. Azerbaijan. OKAY. AySel and Arash with "Always". I actually didn't think this deserved third place over acts like Estonia but rather this than Turkey or Iceland (or Norway, now that I think of it). Also catchy but the lyrics were a bit stupid. But I do really like it. (ETA: Decided to update it to GOOD)
12. Bosnia and Herzegovina. GOOD. Regina with "Bistra Voda". I loved this song. The guy has emo hair and the napoleon coats are a bit eh, but the song was heartfelt and beautiful. I liked the marching drums and the way it sounded like a national anthem. The language is beautiful.
13. Moldova. GOOD and LOL! Nelly Ciobanu with "Hora din Moldova". I really liked the song despite the fact that her voice isn't the best. I like it because it's a folk song meant for rural dances. And it's really cheerful. And the dancers and their outfits are cool.
14. Malta. GOOD. Chiara with "What If We". This is the third time she entered Eurovision. Last time she got second place. This time she didn't do so well but she still has an amazingly pure voice. Solid Eurovision fly-high ballad. Not that special but her voice really makes it.
15. Estonia. GOOD. REALLY. Urban Symphony with "Rändajad". One of my favourites! Sorry Norway but this was the better violinist! The singer has such a beautiful voice and the song is in Estonian and I love those East European languages. The accompanying string instruments are also really good. She should've ended up higher than the sixth place.
16. Denmark. MEH. Niels Brinck with "Believe Again". This is Ronan Keating, only Danish. The song is even written by Ronan Keating. In case you didn't know, Ronan Keating is an ex-member of BoyZone. Yes, the Irish boyband. Yes, I know, life is a rollercoaster. XD
17. Germany. BAD and LOL! Alex Swings Oscar Sings! with "Miss Kiss Kiss Bang". The singer is from California. LOLOL, why hello there, Dita von Teese. Sorry, you didn't help, did you? Another bottom position for Germany. This song sucks, sorry. "Do the he-de hi-ho, Sing he-de hi-ho"?
18. Turkey. MEH. Hadise with "Dum Tek Tek". I don't know, I didn't think this song was anything special but the Turkish diaspora is huge and they vote like mad. So no matter what they send in, Turkey always gets a top place. Standard harem stuff.
19. Albania. OKAY. Kejsi Tola with "Carry Me in Your Dreams". Haha, poor thing. She's only 17 years old, so I felt a bit bad for her. She looks like a complete Barbie but she has a good voice. The chorus isn't that good but I love the Albanian flavoured melody.
20. Norway. OKAY. Alexander Rybak, the winner himself, with "Fairytale". Okay, this guy had all the ingredients for winning Eurovision: Scandinavian, Belarussian background, so that's two voting blocs in the bag. Also, A violin, a cute face, and memorable chorus. Only I thought his voice was a bit weak and at times his grin became forced. But he seems like a sweet chap, so I don't mind him winning. My mum was ecstatic and I became a bit contrary for the sake of it. Anyway, Europe voted for him unanimously and that's good, I think.
21. Ukraine. BAD and LOL! Svetlana Loboda with "Be My Valentine! (Anti-Crisis Girl)". OMG, this was almost the worst act in the finale. It's only redeeming feature was the fact that it made me laugh like a hyena. Please note the poledancing, the hooker outfit, the really gay gladiator dancers (who were actualy wearing less than the singer, heh), the backflips and the drums. I lost it at "You're my sexy bomb!"
22. Romania. MEH. Elena with "The Balkan Girls". The dancers are supposed to be fairies using their seductive power over the menfolk. That is all.
23. United Kingdom. GOOD. Jade Ewen with "My Time". Written by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber himself! (I am a Jesus Christ Superstar fan). It's a real musical song and pretty cheesy but I like it, so there.
24. Finland. BAD. Waldo's People with "Lose Control". THIS was the worst song in the final (there were some in the semifinals that were even worse). It wasn't even funny. Here's what a Fin has to say about it: "My country's theme was 'homelessness and poverty' which was illustrated by the artful use of skinny buxom women in sexy clothes."
25. Spain. BAD Just no!

There were a lot of sucky songs in the semifinals, so I was glad about them losing. But also some pretty good and lulzy ones.

1. Serbia. GOOD and LOL! Marko Kon and Milaan with "Cipela". It's a big Balkan dude with a blond afro singing about a SHOE. WIN! I cracked up so hard and the song is actually catchy too.
2. Czech Republic. OKAY and LOL! Gipsy.cz with "Aven Romale". It's a gipsy superman (because the Roma need a hero too, aww). I really like Gipsy.cz, I've liked them for years, but they're so not Eurovision material and this is not their best song. They're a really innovative band, mixing Roma music with Czech rap. Just listen to Romano Hip Hop and Jednou. They didn't win prizes for nothing. So actually, it's GOOD.
3. Hungary. BAD and LOL!. Zoli Adok with "Dance with Me". ROFL. This is extremely bad disco. The outfits are horrendous. Teal tight pants and a silver shirt, really? The dancers look like they arrived from Hugh Hefner's Playboy Mansion. The dancing? Hilarious.
4. Belgium. BAD and LOL!. Patrick Ouchène with "Copycat". It's an Elvis Copycat. Nuff said.
5. Bulgaria. BAD and LOL!. Krassimir Avramov with "Illusion". HORRIBLE, AUGH. The medieval outfits only with glitter! Elvira in neon colours! The HORRIBLE BANSHEE SINGING.

That's it, I'm done. *wipes forehead*

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