Loving what you blog

There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God.

-Ecclesiastes 2:24 (KJV)

The saddest thing that could happen to anyone is that you realize that you hate what you do.  Be it your profession, blogging, even something as mundane is reading and eating, once you hate what you do, it’s not fun anymore, it’s a JOB. Like what happened to WoW to some players. Penny Arcade humorously says it well.

It’s a shame when you realize that you hate what you do. It means you have lost not just the passion to do what you did, but also the determination to push on. Each post you make is like torture, and the only joy you find in making it is when you finally finish what you had to say. Sooner or later, you will give up, making silly and hateful excuses and blaming everyone and everything but yourself for giving up.

Can people hate what they do? Well, yes. I’ve heard people complaining about studies, their job, even about blogging. They’ve realized that it either doesn’t suit them or they hate the subject matter. Some even go so far as to blame other people for making their experience full of coldness and hate.

Going about with a giant chip on your shoulder does not make for good blogging experience. I will admit, being fueled by hate makes for popularity, but it doesn’t make for great posts. Hate has a great way of multiplying itself, becoming bigger than you could control.

If there was one thing I have promised myself (and most probably lived/blogged by), it’s to have fun with whatever I do. Be it trolling Jason Miao, screaming like a yaoi fangirl with a yaoi paddle when it comes to shows I like, making fun of certain drama whores and flamers, I have had a ton of fun doing it. Some would even say I enjoy doing it.

It all goes back to verse I have chosen for today’s article. I’d like you to pay attention to the last part of the first sentence.

and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour.

What is so good about “making our soul enjoy good in our labor?” Or in this case, love what you do? For one thing, it makes the whole process easier. Thinking positive makes anything better. Another thing is this: it does not feel boring or like a chore to do. If you love what you do, it wouldn’t matter if the fate of the world lies in your hands; you’d do it not because you have to, but because you’d LOVE to.

The words of King Solomon rang true in his day, and it still rings true today. If one does not love what he or she does, he or she then hates what he or she does. King Solomon sums it up exactly in Ecclesiastes 2:17 (NIV):

So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

There were times I poured out my bitterness and hate, and there were times I became hateful to validate a point. I did not enjoy those times, and when I look back, I wonder with curiosity what fueled me to do what I had done. But most of the time, I’ve never felt that this whole thing was a big burden.

So I guess what I’ve been trying to drive home is this: Love what you do. Positive thinking makes everything a bit easier and less stressful. Don’t be a Kaioshin, who flamed himself to oblivion. (Dude, seriously, you sow hate, you reap hate back, IN SPADES. And TWUCKS.)

Special feature: WEEK OF LOVE~~(to the power of infinity)

Well, it’s time I realized something.

I’m an idiot. A complete idiot. A massively colossal Itou Makoto class idiot.

I’ve been moving in the wrong direction with some of my posts. True, the hate is justified, but in my eyes, it was rather unnecessary.

Being partly inspired to make some amends for my mistakes, partly being inspired by this, and partly because the History Channel will be airing “Hippies”, I’ve decided to embark on an editorial week filled with nothing but the Love of the One Whom I call Lord and the Grace of Jesus Christ (yeah, expect a ton of inappropriately cherrypicked Bible verses).

It was originally meant to be a week of epic hate and lulz. Go figure.

Starting tomorrow, I’ll be posting on how Love and Grace can be used in issues concerning issues pertaining to our little corner of the Internets. If you want warm fuzzies, I’d like to ask you to step away from the monitor and do something else. While one of the core tenets of Love and Grace is Forgiveness, the offender has to realize that he or she has offended people. I will do my best to soften any unnecessary blows, but before one can forgive, one has to convict. And the truth hurts plenty.

Unfortunately, this is not the whole “Forgive and Forget” thing the world is so fond about. What Forgiveness really means is this: “Even though I will remember and be grieved by your wrongdoing, I will not speak of it. I will not use your past wrongdoings to browbeat you, to belittle you, or to shame you. The matter is dead and buried, water under the bridge.”

See you tomorrow then. I’ve got a show to catch.

I nuclear facepalmed. Hard. And then I lol’d. Harder.

From the creator of School Days And Summer Days (and the animated series) comes… … …

A chainsaw-wielding giant robot that is being controlled by a loli and her pretty, but absolutely deranged older sister with knockers the size of baby bears. With nipple controllers. Yes, you heard me right.

Their enemy? A loli (yes, for some reason, it’s always a loli) wearing what seems to be the wizard suit (worn by Raquel duh) from Scrapped Princess. my guess is that her motivation is her bust size. (IT’S OKAY SETSUNA-CHAN WE STILL LOEV YOUR DELICIOUS FLAT CHEST).

Clocking in at a whopping 24 minutes and 55 seconds, this comedic trainwreck of a magical girl show, entitled “Magical Heart Kokoro-chan” leaves little to the mind about who is the loliriffic Magical Girl. Almost as destructive an the White Devil herself and surrounded by people who obviously need therapy for post-traumatic stress disorder related to school relationships, she does her best to defend her city AND hold a steady job at the same time, all while trying to dodge the lecherous eyes of Itou Makoto himself, that sick nutjob. I bet he likes cosplay rape too, that sicko.

The show itself is in a nutshell, horrible, hilarious, and chock full of fanservice. I mean, naked females and actual nipples. I kid you not. There were nipples. Gee thanks 0verflow, I didn’t want to see that.

Horrible, yes. I nuclear facepalmed a few times while watching the show. While not reaching the point that it becomes epic fail, it still feels like a D-Grade horror movie on crack. How did funding for this show get approved? No sane director would have approved of this. Unless it’s JAPAN. Yeah, I should have guessed as much.

Funny, yes. And it’s most probably the most redeeming point of the show. Chock full of references and even the NICE BOAT meme at the end, man, one could even begin to fathom to think of forgiving the show for being like a horrible D-grade horror show on crack. I mean, MAGICAL HEART IS A FRIGGEN PRETTY CURE RIPOFF. FRIGGEN PRETTY CURE. A KID’S ANIMATED SERIES IN JAPAN.

Is this watchable, you ask? I’m fairly tempted to say no, but yes, it does have this trainwreck-like quality that made School Days so watchable. Only with more funny and fanservice.

Excuse me. I feel the urge to cleanse, purge and kill. Probably not in that order.

tl;dr: I nuclear facepalmed. Hard. And then I lol’d. Harder.

The actual CLANNAD review

The other CLANNAD review was meant to be a bit of a joke. No srsly, I did that one for the lulz. And lulz was had.

But since Apparently CLANNAD is SERIOUS BUSINESS, I need to have a serious review, or else people are going to think I am some crazed fanboy (crazed yes, fanboy, a lot less so.). Why? because CLANNAD is SERIOUS BUSINESS.

Also coincides with the announcement that After Story is being animated, and the fact that I’m waiting for that really awful Magical Heart Kokoro-Chan OVA to arrive (I’m giving my first impression of it by the OP, and holy nuclear facepalms, that is one OP destined for EPIC FAILANDIA.).

CLANNAD is a very beautiful animated series. From the first episode to the last (of Season 1, DUH), the first and most significant thing I noticed was that it was very beautiful. And it’s not just the looks, that much I can say.

But if we’re going to talk about the visuals, then yes, CLANNAD is rather pretty visually. I’ve got not much to say about the visuals, it’s mostly excellent KyoAni work, so not much to write about if you’re not interested in fanboy screaming.

The main draw of CLANNAD is in the story. In this case, there’s a whole lot of ground to cover, and you do not have a lot of time to cover them all. The original visual novel is pretty likable, I mean, I have yet to hear anyone complain about CLANNAD, so there’s nothing wrong in THAT department. But we’re not talking about the original visual novel, so we’ll wait until I play through the game for that review.

The way KyoAni adapted the game for the show, well, it’s a work of art. Really beautiful, extremely well-executed, even up to the end. Classic KyoAni work. You’ll never find screenplay more beautiful, an ending so fitting. Gurren Lagann is probably it’s equal in that sense.

But like any great work of art, there will always be criticisms. And even I have to admit, CLANNAD has a few flaws, and most of them could distract the casual viewer from noticing the raw beauty of this series. Fuuko’s and Kotomi’s arcs took way too long. Fuuko has overstayed her welcome (Yes she has!). They cut out Misae’s (Fairly unimportant, but I really wanted to see epic tears), Sanae’s (mildly unforgivable), Ryou’s (okay, this is rather unforgivable) and Yukine’s (I know she’s irrevelant to the real story, but… T_T) paths. No Kyou and Tomoyo paths, and they didn’t wrap up all the loose ends with Kyou and Ryou. The ending was a bit weak. Yes, even I felt the ending was a bit weak. It could have ended on a stronger note, but that would man giving the finger to After Story, and that is an even more unforgivable crime than not covering Yukine more. And even I felt at times, the show was getting boring. Hey, it does happen.

Right after I thought that the ending was a bit weak, it hit me. Watching Nagisa and Tomoya affirming their feelings, it made me realize I was looking at it through the wrong side of the telescope. It wasn’t about the individual flaws that shows up in the show, it’s to be expected in anything made by human hands. It’s about how you see the series as a whole, and looking back at how much I enjoyed the whole 22 episodes, from the laughs, to the tears, and everything in between, what I was really looking at was a glimpse of the way we were supposed to see everything.

True, even the most beautiful thing has flaws, but even then, are you willing to look past the flaws to see the hidden beauty inside? Because some series are actually unpolished diamonds, waiting for the viewer to find it and polish it. Not all series have it though. Gurren Lagann is like a polished diamond in the rough. Eva is ugly through and through, no matter hw many remakes it has. Haa Roo Hay, eh, it’s closer to a semi-precious stone.

My point stands, though. CLANNAD is still beautiful, if only in my eyes. And well, I actually enjoyed my time with the show. I haven’t enjoyed myself this much since Gurren Lagann or Overman King Gainer.

Hey, I’m not asking anyone to change their opinions, I’m just asking everyone to give CLANNAD another chance. I mean, if we can have CERTAIN people (no I did not just flame Kurogane, so put down your pitchforks and torches and whatnot.) idiotically fanboying True Tears to the point of hyping it like Haa Roo Hay, and I’ll actually give it the full treatment, why not give CLANNAD a second chance?

I mean, since we all know that After story is being (or going to be) animated, shouldn’t we be glad that KyoAni is saving the best for another season and appreciate CLANNAD more instead?

PS: YUKINEEEEEEEEEEEEE T_T BAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

PPS: If both episodes are the Sunohara BAD END route, then WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!

An epic CLANNAD review flies in through YOUR window.

If only because people can’t let their deep-set perceptions go to enjoy themselves.

WARNING: Hueg file is hueg

And that’s my Clannad review.

It is amusing to read, sometimes, how people pin their all too human hopes on either fictional characters, masterwork idols, or even fallible human beings. It doesn’t matter whether you are the cream of the crop or the bottom of the trash heap, people around the world pin their humanist hopes and dreams for a better future on maybes, somewhats, and probabilities. It’s a rather amusing form of idolatry, really.

What’s even more amusing is this: These people turn to the what-ifs and maybes the world provides, instead of realizing that they are indeed saved from sin and this amusing idolatry.

Today is Easter. Not the corrupted bunny with an egg fetish mutant of a capitalist event, that one is merely an excuse to sell chocolates and give us all sore throats. I’m talking about the real event, the one that happened over 2000 years ago, where a rather special man was nailed to a tree for supposed blasphemy. And then he died, but got better. A lot better. In fact, he became so healthy, people till this day still do not believe it.

I’m talking about Jesus here. Son of Man and Son of God, King of Kings, the Messiah, Shiloh, the Lamb of God, [insert name here].

So, Jesus. We Christians attach “Christ” behind his name. Why do we hold Good Friday and Easter with such regard, respect and hope?  It’s rather strange for a group of people to revere a succession of days where this special man died, yes? Actually, there’s more to it than meets the eye.

You might wonder: Why did Jesus die? Did he die for a purpose? Was he a failed rebel? What could move a man to die for the world? And why would anyone dare to pin their hopes on His death? Such questions have boggled man for centuries. Heck, it puzzles me sometimes too.

We know this much. Jesus was not a rebel. He knew that he was to die. Even the knowledge of this overwhelmed the messiah. He prayed to God to take away the bitter cup meant for him, if it was His will. Shocking, is it not, to realize that the Messiah was not all that willing in the first place. We all know what happened after this. Shocking betrayal, shocking hate, and then Jesus was nailed to the Cross at Golgotha. Where he was mocked by the people he was saving.

What could move a man to endure such inhuman humiliation, pain and finally, death? Indeed, why did Jesus utter “Forgive them Father, for they know not what they have done?”?  would you believe that Jesus loved us so much he was willing to die for us? Yes, it was love that drove Jesus to the Cross. It was also Love that made God send down Jesus to die for our sins.

Yes. Up there, higher than the stars and the sky, is an Entity so powerful, so omniscient, and so full of love, He could not bear to smite down His beloved creation, even though he could have (and did so a few times in the past. Satan was a bad boy.). Instead, he sent down Jesus, who died on the Cross for our sins, and rose again on the thrird day to give us all the hope of eternal life, should we believe in him. Would Suzumiya Haruhi dare do such a thing? Would she?

Fellow readers, it is still not too late. God’s greatest gift to you does not require anything special. All you need to do is ask Jesus to come into your heart. Cheesy and incredulous yes. Is there a catch? Yeah, sort of. Once you believe, you’re no longer allowed to act like you were before. You are now held accountable to God for your actions, whether good or bad. Even though you believe, you will still face temptations, but if you truly believe, you will be able to overcome these temptations.

I’m not guaranteeing a bed of roses here. To earn the true liberty and peace that comes with the package, you gotta work for it.

But I’m pulling away from the message. God still loves us so, even if all we do is break His heart over and over. He still waits for for us to accept His gift and be one with Him. He’s still waiting. It doesn’t matter if you have done wrong, or are faultless. He loves us so because of who we are, not what we have done.

If you’ve managed to get this far, I’m surprised. I’m not very good at this. Well, at least let what you’ve read digest in your head. No one is forcing you to make the decision now. Ponder about it. Think hard, and search the truth.

I hope that everyone will mak ethe right choice.

When I read it, I shat bricks. Tons of bricks. And not the Lego kind.

Kadokawa Shoten to print a TYPE-MOON spinoff magazine, TYPE-MOON fans everywhere shat epic bricks.

Hospitals were overflowing with people with bleeding butts due to epic brick-shatting.

…There goes 22 dollars I could have used for a better purpose. Like food. I guess it’s time to actually be serious about Learning Japanese.

LOLWUT

UBW patch out?

LOLWUT

Nothing on toaster compatibality, though. It runs of Vista, though, for anyone who cares.

CLANNAD: 2 EPISODES TO THE END

Yes, Clannad is going to be 22 episodes long. Now to the highlights.

• Yukine :3 is moé :3
• Fuuko appears… … … in a non-threatening manner that does not deserves epic purging with bolter, sword and holy fire.
• LOL WE CAN HAS NAGISA END?
• Sunohara gets REJECTED!

…Actually, I’m out of highlights.

NEXT WEEK: 1 MORE EPISODE TO THE END. WILL TOMOYA FIND OUT THE TERRIBLE SECRET OF NAGISA’S PAST? WILL FUUKO APPEAR AGAIN? WILL THE ORDO MALLEUS HUNT HER DOWN AND PUT HER OUT OF HER MISERY? ARE SANAE AND AKIO GENESTEALERS FROM THE FUTURE? IS FUUKO TRULY A FOUL HERETIC WITCH? WHAT ABOUT YUKINE AND HER MAGICKS? IS SHE A ROUGE PSYKER? WHY AM I EVEN CROSSING CLANNAD AND WARHAMMER 40K? FIND OUT NEXT WEEK!

lolwut

AnimeBlogger.net’s DONATE OR DIE 2008 DRIVE

No srsly guys, Maestro needs a lot of money to pay his taxes and all… so don’t be a dick (like Eldrad Ulthran) and donate sum monayz. Or AB.NET has to scale back it’s operations.  And if it does, AB.NET will slowly and surely DIE. No we don’t want it to die.

Reimu sez, DONATE PLZ :3

OSHI NOT THE DENTAL MARINES THEY DEMAND THAT YOU DONATE IN THE NAME OF THE EMPEROR (I swear they’re making me do this, I’m being forced to here :V)

This is what happens to all those who don’t donate. YA RLY.

There’s a link to the donations page on the blargroll to the ab.net DONATIONS page, so click on it. I’m serious. AB.NET needs DONATIONS for PROMOTIONS. So donate.

(And yes I liberally ripped off 4chan and Tako just to shamelessly ask for donations for someone else.)