Rattling Around

I was asked for my favorite anime fantasy, and realized I hadn't thought about one. So here's one on the spur of the moment. An oil-wrestling match between Ritsuko Kübel Kettenkrad and Chii, cheered on by a bunch of 猫耳 and 眼鏡. Who would win?? (Well, we all know, don't we?)

In reality, I have no anime fantasies. Well, perhaps it would be nice to have some cyborg implants to help out this aging body. And just once go through rush hour traffic driving a giant robo (メカ). And go surfing with Major Kusanagi. And of course have a tachikoma for a pal. Which anime character do I think I'm closest to in nature? Probably Aramaki Daisuke (Motoko's boss). Except nobody works for me.

Incidentally, a Kettenkrad is also very cool. Andreas has three of them!

Hillary stating "If I knew then what I know now, I would not have endorsed the Iraq war amendment" is such a lame excuse. If she knew what Bill would be like, she wouldn't have married him, and would not now be a Senator and presidential candidate. For that matter, if she had known about the hijackers, she would have prevented 9/11! Ah, if I had known the stock returns for the past twenty years, I'd have retired as a billionaire many years ago...

1. Where were you run over? On the beach, at Cocoa Beach... my youth minister was driving!
2. How many astronomers do you know? I guess just two. I don't really remember Kip Thorne when we were both in Blacker Hovse at Caltech.
3. What was your sport in elementary school? Turning the rope for the girls.
4. Have you ever seen a California Condor in the wild? Yes, in 1958. How about an Ivorybill? Nope.
5. Have you ever killed anyone? Not yet, though I almost pulled Rune into the Devil's Sinkhole.
6. Ever been close to death yourself? Hmmm... been shot at, pulled out to sea, fallen out of a tree, been in a fight with a much bigger guy, bitten by wild animals, and had my nose, mouth and throat packed with furnace ash so I couldn't breathe. But no, not ever really close, I guess... though it seemed like it.
7. Did you enjoy driving a forklift? Yeah, it was a ball. And I never poked the forks through the side of an airplane!
8. Ever had an occult experience? At least once. Rick Ferber and I discovered an ominous stairway into the depths, at midnight in San Francisco, that totally disappeared the next day. And no, we weren't under the influence at the time! A very creepy event.
9. Been baptised? Yep.
10. Related to any US Presidents? Woodrow Wilson, according to my grandmother. I think my wife knows the actual connection.
11. Were any relatives in the War Between the States? One direct ancestor and his three brothers, all in North or South Carolina units. All four died during the war. None of them were slaveholders, before you ask. And no, I'm not a member of the Sons of the Confederacy, though one uncle was.
12. Is your wife an illegal alien? No, she was born in Oklahoma. Have to go back a few more generations to get to Mexican nationals.
13. So, do you speak Spanish? Alas, neither of us do. My language for college requirement was French. I keep telling myself I'll learn Spanish, and maybe I will. I can understand football games (i.e., soccer), and can more or less follow news and telenovelas.
14. Do you know how many publications you have? Not really. Some in biology, a lot more in games, and many reviews. Not counting stuff in newsletters and newspapers, or on the web. Also not counting documents I have written at work, which is a bunch by now. And not counting things at home that never got published (screenplay, poetry, stories, erotica, and a never-to-be-finished novel).
15. (and at least one FAQ...) Dogs or cats? Dogs to live with, cats to watch (including 猫耳).

I really enjoy anime music, and listen to it now more than any other genre. I love anything by Yoko Kanno, Kow Otani, Joe Hisaishi, Yuki Kajiura, Ichiko Hashimoto (the composer, not the pop singer). I never get tired of listening to the soundtracks of Ghost in the Shell and Stand-Alone Complex, Earth Girl Arjuna, Rahxephon, Noir, Cowboy Bebop, Haibane Renmei, and any of Miyazaki's films. I also like the music of Serial Experiments Lain, FLCL, .hack, Full Metal Alchemist, Eureka Seven, Madlax, Samurai Champloo, Record of Lodoss War, Trigun, and Vision of Escaflowne. If there is a composer I missed that is really, really great, please let me know!

The anime radio I listen to most right now is the Anime Academy Radio Network. Feel free to add comments about other good internet radio stations.

George R.R. Martin is the best fantasy writer today! And I say this in spite of loving Robin Hobb, Tad Williams, JV Jones, Greg Keyes, Garth Nix, Sean Russell, Carol Berg, Steven Erikson, and Nina Kiriki Hoffman. Not to mention a bunch of great SF writers. The Song of Ice and Fire series has been simply wonderful. Some have complained that he is publishing them too slowly, but I think it's been perfect. The result has been that I re-read the previous one before starting the next one, and I get to enjoy them all over again. I read A Game of Thrones, then read it again before A Clash of Kings. Read that again before A Storm of Swords, and re-read that before A Feast for Crows. So when people complain that not all the major characters are included in Crows (since it was divided, with A Dance with Dragons), I don't feel that, because Storm was so fresh in my mind. Maybe before The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring, I'll go back to the start and read the whole series again! Oh, if I could write even one chapter with his skill...

Pretty bad quarterfinal predictions there... On the other hand, I'm very happy to see Italy and France in the finals! I'll pick France to win, and Germany to come third. Of the four teams, I like Italy's national anthem the best. Of the old bald guys, I like Zizou the best. Of the amusing and bumbling keepers, I like Barthez the best (he never fails to alarm the fans). For the diving championship, I've gotta go with Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal. And I like the new ball... :)

Oh, and I love those Adidas ads for World Cup. They are simply charming. And their website has more fun stuff to do (and you can watch the ads as well).

First, how were my predictions? Which advancements did I miss?
Group A- I picked Poland, but Ecuador looked great and advanced. No longer around...
Group B- I was correct
Group C- I was correct
Group D- I was correct
Group E- I picked the Czechs, but was delighted with Ghana's performance! No longer around...
Group F- I thought Croatia would go through, but Australia squeaked by. No longer around...
Group G- Did Korea stage an upset? Nope, the favored Swiss went ahead. No longer around...
Group H- I was correct

So I missed four picks, but none of those teams survived the knockout round.

Time for my quarterfinal predictions, now that everybody left is a potential WC winner. Each of the remaining matches promise to be great! (and I only have to skip two more days of work to watch them all...)

Germany-Argentina: Although Germany has looked good so far, and has that wonderful host country support, this year Argentina is just too strong.

England-Portugal: No doubt that Portugal is a hard fighter, but Rooney looked very healthy, Beckham can still do set-pieces, and I have to go with England.

Italy-Ukraine: Ukraine has done admirably to get this far, but the Azzurri are simply wonderful, and will survive the challenge.

Brazil-France: Now this is a tough one. Brazil has so many wonderful players, and Cisse is missing; though Zidane is not quite ready to retire and both Ribery and Henry looked good. If everything clicks for them, Brazil would be unstoppable, but France will be so fired up after their excellent victory over a really formidable Spanish team. I suppose I have to pick Brazil here, but would also be happy if France won one more.