Damn, I thought summer at work would be slow - and I was well mistaking! But at least I can look forward to a week holiday next week! I'm only gonna be gone for a day to Lyon - I'm planning to stay in Geneva and around the rest of the time. But I'm actually quite looking forward to be abe to just be at home without the stress of work always around the corner *g*

I got started on Japanese lessons with teachers, which is a huge step for me. So far I had learned everything on my own, but I figured I had come to the limits of what I could learn that way - I really felt lately that I needed to start using the language beyond just passive comprehension if I wanted to get to the next level. So I've looked at the possible options and online school was definitely the only feasable one, both because they are more flexible in terms of schedules and because of the costs involved

I've enrolled at JOI (that is "Japanese Online Institute") and so far I have only praise for their system. You don't pay any fee to enroll and you can test their lessons system by taking three 50 minutes classes for 900 Yen (that's around $9 - for all three!), then the price depends on how many lessons you buy in advance, and whether you want private classes or take classes in groups (of maximum 7 people). I've bought 20 tickets and paid an average of $8 per lesson for group lessons. Teachers have all been very nice and helpful , and I can already feel the improvement as the grammar points I go through with them really stick with me, instead of being forgotten after a day or two as it had been the case when studying the same material on my own.

I've started at Beginners level 1, which is for people who already have some basics (you don't need to be able to read kana or kanji though), but I know they even offer introductory classes for those who have no previous knowledge whatsoever, and lessons go all the way to advance (for people who are studying at JLPT 1 level - the equivalent of Advanced/Proficiency Cambridge examination for English as a foreign language)

Oh yeah, and a few things I've promised and actually got done:

Japanese magazines: Shel'tter Summer is available for download - post is comm-lock, but if you're not a member yet still interested, leave me a comment and I'll email you the download link. Madame Figaro Japan and interior design/zakka mags are next up (hopefully I'll have something ready sometime in the next two weeks)

movie reviews: the review for the second movie in the Sasori series is up here, with an alternate version including some more caps over at AW; I've also watched the first in the Yakuza Papers series, as well as received the Red Cliff part 2 Japanese LE box - planning to watch that one during the holidays *g*

Oh yeah, and the Masaya Kato related stuff: I've posted the videos (not hi-res, but the quality is decent enough) of all three of his interventions during his appearance in Downtown DX last month on Youtube - you can watch them all from my account page. I've also posted all the caps from KiraKira Kenshuin over at nekomi815 and huddlebubble's forum in seperate threads for each episode - I'm posting all the links below the cut.

Oh yeah, and he appears in this month's edition of Uomo - again! - so expect new mag scans pretty soon (saw low-res preview at a girl's blog yesterday morning and let's just say I couldn't focus properly at work for the whole day.....)

( this way for the goodies )

Sorry for not giving news in so long. Just been busy really *s* Between work, crossing fingers for Federer at Wimbledon (try typing while you do that, I dare you! Oh, and while I'm at it: Dear Roger, thank you for the wonderful fortnight and for this great victory but please, no more 4 hours+ thrillers in finale, I had stomach cramps the whole evening and my nerves were all but shot for the following days. Thank you.) and getting somewhat back at Ancient Worlds (sort of, really, I'll see where this whole thing gets me). Oh yeah, and I'm back in the saddle for the FF XII walkthrough which I have abandoned somewhat over the last couple of months....

Anyhoo, a few things that I am about to/ have ticked off my list:

- I'm almost done with scanning the latest issue of Shel'tter which should be online this weekend

- The review for Red Cliff part 1 is online (thank you Beth for the beta-reading!), along with the picspam (here for the complete - but access-restricted - one and there for the somewhat smaller, but public one)

- Just posted the picspam for the second installment in the Sasori (Female Prisoner: Scorpion) series here (I'll make a smaller, public picspam alongside the review when I have that one ready)

- Started translating the first book in an illustrated history of Japan series. I am still wondering if it will be worth making longer summaries of what's in there, but at any rate, I'll posting short notes in English about it and the first one, on Paleolithic Japan, is here; threads will change according to the period, but I'll post links here anyway

- Am currently posting Masaya Kato picspams from the KiraKira Kenshui series over at a chinese discussion board dedicated to him. But the access is public so I'll post the complete list of links (there's one thread per episode) here if anyone wants to have a look ;-)

Oh yeah, one of the other things I've been busy with IRL is that I found out early this month that Nara (Nara Prefecture, Japan) will celebrate next year its 1300th anniversary of becoming capital of Japan. They will hold events throughout the year. And since it's been a while I've been thinking of going to Japan within the next few years, I thought I might just change my plans and go a bit earlier than first planned *g* : Nara was definitely a place I wanted to visit (I am a history geek, after all) and it will be easy to travel to Osaka and Kyoto from there. I will probably stay in that area for a week and in Tokyo for another one - at least that's the early plans I have in mind

So sorry I went AWOL for almost two weeks, but I caught a cold. In June. After I went through winter without even sneezing *sigh* I just CAN'T do things the way normal people do, it seems. It was pretty nasty and for all I know, it might have been Swine flu. If it was though, it doesn't seem I've passed it on to anyone. I have a good idea when I caught whatever I got, and after that I've only been with colleagues and a few friends, and haven't been in close quarters with other people until I was really ill, and the couple of people I know who also got ill actually became so before me. Anyway, whatever it was, I must have had a touch of hay fever thrown in the mix, because I would feel worse at my workplace (my eyes start to sting, my nose runs constantly, etc.) and I know from experience there must be something growing there that I'm more sensitive to, as I've had hay fever symptoms at work around this time of the year since I've been there. And of course, the whole thing would block my sinuses which led to heachache after headache.....


Anyway, I'm better now. I've managed to scan the whole of Madame Figaro Japan February issue which is in answer to a few requests made over at jmagazinescans - I just need to photoshop the lot and upload it, so the matter of a couple of days, normally *fingers crossed* Started also taking screencaps from Red Cliff part 1 which I have now seen two times; I must say I've come to really love Nakamura Shidou (Japanese kabuki and movie actor) in this: he just has these great facial expressions that had me laugh and want to hug him simultaneously. Generally speaking, I found the generals more entertaining than the leads (I think John Woo seriously overindulged in his "men coming together" fetish to the point that it becomes distracting in the middle section of the movie) with the exception of Chang Chen who has a more complex character and plays the nuances well


I've also seen Female Prisoner #701 - Jailhouse 41 again which I'll probably review right after Red Cliff part 1. And I've seen the last part of North and South over on BBC Four and must say it was one great episode! I know I owe salimbol to write at least some details about it but it will come in another post - it's already getting pretty late :p

Another thing that I'll owe her and quite a few other people are more Masaya Kato pics - I WILL get to it, in fact I *am* getting to it *hint hint* especially since I have more dvds coming in over the next couple of weeks AND he'll be in a new tv show starting next week already (in a guise we haven't been used to see him in so far, as he warned in his blog. Unfortunately I don't have any good quality picture to show, but let's just say that when I saw a tiny illustration of what he meant by that, I spit my tea all over the keyboard :p). Now let's hope that KeyHole TV does its job this time around and that I actually get to see it when it is broadcasted on TV Tokyo *shake fist*


( Because I'm such a tease and it's just too funny not to share )

First a word of apologize to everyone who's asked me to scan the Shel'tter Spring 2009 issue. I am sorry but my scanner gave up on me, and it took a month before I could have it more or less fixed. I have now re-started scanning this mag but can only spare about two hours a day for it, which means 20 pages scanned, and this one has more than 240, so you do the maths :s Anyhoo, I'm now past halfway so with a little bit of luck, I may get around to upload the whole thing sometime this weekend *fingers crossed*

Still, I HATE promising something and not being able to deliver, and I did say I would have it up last month *hang head in shame*

I've finally gotten around to watching the first in the Sasori series, Female Prisoner #701 - Scorpion, a couple of times now (they've released the complete boxed series in French which I bought....last year :p). Maybe it was because I was expecting it not to be as good as the one that made me discover this series (Female Convict Scorpion: Jailhouse 41) that I was so pleasantly surprised. Now, I don't think it quite as good as "Jailhouse 41", but it is nonetheless very much cult material, and for mostly good reasons. Yes, it is a Pinky eiga, (S)exploitation, WIP movie, which means you'll see plenty of naked women and blood spilling, but it is done in a way that's hardly shocking. Instead, Shunya Ito, the director, has chosen to be disturbing (the early rape scene, which is filmed in a way that shows you little more than heads and arms, yet will be burned in your brain for years to come, especially if you're a woman) which, coupled with stunning visuals and clever camera work (only topped by "Jailhouse 41") allow the movie to elevate itself way above your average exploitation fare

And then of course there's Meiko Kaji. She's in almost every scene, and close-ups on her face abound, but who can blame Ito? She's the stuff legends are made of

I hope to have screencaps (plenty of interesting stuff to show with this one *g*) and a full review up around the weekend as well. Especially since I have the first two parts of 実録・広島四代目 (実録 - meaning "Authentic Accounts" - are a series of Japanese Yakuza V-movie, and this one, made in 2004, stars Masaya Kato) as well as the Samurai 7 stage adaptation DVD and photobook (and Goemon promotional material) in the post and on their way from Japan (hopefully soon to be joined by 激動の1750日 - "The 1750 Terrible Days" - another V-movie for which I've only found positive reviews so far). Between that and the special drama airing on TBS next Monday, which also guest-stars Kato, I'll probably be too busy drooling and squeeing to be much use at anything else really *whistle*