I’m curious. How do flies usually die? Is it a slow, drawn
out process wherein they slowly lose function until their last twitch, or is it
instant? Does a fly keep buzzing around until it runs out of life and drops
like a stone? I know it’s probably the former, but imagine what it would be
like if people just died instantly. Granted, it’s a morbid thought, but it
would probably be more entertaining, especially if it happens at a very
inconvenient time. Imagine if a heart surgeon is flown in to perform some
critical surgery on a patient, but keels over after cutting the sorry sod open.
Would that force the orderlies to improvise something? “Okay Mr. Graham, we
managed to perform the bypass surgery with a piece of medical hose and
electrical tape. Please sign here.” See? Way more entertaining (for everyone
else, at least). Imagine a faith-healer, those loud nutjobs on TV that channel
the power of God for healing purposes. He would have his hand on the customer’s
forehead and about to yell into the sky for God’s grace then topple on top of
the guy. I wonder what would go through a faithful’s head at a time like that.

Okay everyone, it's time to bring all of the rumors and mutterings into one place. I present to you now, the American release dates for several Harvest Moon games. Note that these dates are subject to change with very little notice (because Natsume is crazy like that).

• Innocent Life (A Futuristic Harvest Moon) ~ It's out now! If you have a PSP, go and get it.
• Rune Factory (A Fantasy Harvest Moon) ~ 2 July 2007 (just a little longer!)
• Harvest Moon: Boy & Girl ~ A remake of the Back to Nature games for the PSP will be released 3 September 2007
• Puzzle de Harvest Moon ~ October of 2007, but that's what they said last year.
• Harvest Moon: Tree of Peace (Wii) ~ November 2007 (delay likely)
• Harvest Moon: Kimishima (Island) ~ November 2007 (delay also likely)

Keep those eyes open and be ready to preorder. I do hope they start giving out those plush sheep again!

BIG NEWS!
4:14pm update!
It seems that for the Wii Harvest Moon game, Natsume is not the one who is translating it! This task has been given to the small-time game company Crave Entertainment. By the looks of it, they are also developing Rune Factory, but Natsume will be publishing it. I can only hope that, as a smaller company, they can devote all of their effort into making these entries in the Harvest Moon series the best they can be. Other good stuff includes... GAME TRAILER!

I am getting sick and tired of hearing people use the
cliché "I don’t get paid enough for this." It’s getting old, and is not
particularly menacing. First off, I think that just getting paid is enough to
deal with almost anything. It’s your job
to deal with problems that arise. If you don’t like what you do, why don’t you
get another job in, say, septic tank drainage (no ill-will meant towards septic
tank drainers). Well, okay, let’s just say that your views are right and you
don’t get paid enough. To put it another way, no one gets paid enough. No
matter what, doctors have to help whoever comes through their door (and pays
them), even when the patients have such problems as “shot nail from nail gun
into forehead.” They simply can’t turn these people away for besmirching the
population. Movie stars have to deal with their own whack-job fans. “If you
don’t autograph the nail on my forehead, I will find out where you sleep and
MAKE you sign it.” Even a mighty corporate CEO has his or her own problems.
They’re always getting news about some schmuck suing them because they failed
to put a warning label on their product that explicitly says not to point
product at head. See? Everyone has to deal with stupid people. It’s a fact of
life. Even housewives, who work for free, have to deal with husbands several
hours a day. That’s why I say, suck it up! Bunch of babies.

(in order of priority)

Lovely Complex
Genre: Romantic Comedy

Ah… Lovely Complex. It took this anime very little work to
make its way to the top of the list. It’s one of the best romantic-comedies
I’ve seen in a while. It is about this emotional wreck of a girl who’s far
taller than the average girl who falls for this dense (and I mean dense) guy who is significantly shorter
than his peers. Every week, I look forward to the next release of this anime
just to see what their relationship will develop into.

sola
Genre: Drama
From the creators of Kanon comes sola. Is it good? Yes, you
should watch it. It is a strange story that has yet to be fully explained, but
is gripping enough to keep you wanting more. Plus, it has a catchy theme song.

Nagasarete Airantou
Genre: Harem Comedy

This is the current harem-anime that I am watching. Let me
set the scene. A guy gets washed up onto an island that is inhabited only by,
naturally, beautiful women. All of them want a piece of him, and have their own
humorous ways of trying to snatch him up. It has all of your basic harem scenes
that, for me anyway, never get old.

Lucky Star
Genre: Slice-of-Life Comedy

Okay, this anime was all hype. It certainly isn’t bad, but
it is far from great. It’s just your basic school-life comedy, in the same vein
as Azumanga Daioh. It is a fun comedy with a variety of characters that fans
can latch onto. Really, there isn’t much to say about it.

Seto no Hanayome
Genre: Romantic Comedy (mostly comedy)
So, this guy runs into a mermaid, and now must marry her or die. Then, it suddenly becomes a school-life comedy. In a blink of an eye, it turns into a post-apocalyptic war drama. Honestly, this series jumps around so much, it's hard to tack down. But it's all good and comes recommended to fans of the nutty.

Bokura ga Ito
Genre: Drama

Why am I watching this again? Beats me. I don’t agree much
with the art style, but it has an interesting enough story. This certainly isn’t
a major anime I’m watching, but it’s on the sidelines.

Use the telephone - I can't really explain this one. I just don't like to use the telephone. I
would sooner go over and meet the receiver in person than call him or her. I
remember one time, when I forgot to print out the schedule for work, I actually
drove all the way to work just to ask if I needed to come in that day (I didn't).
I only use the phone if all other lines of communication are cut or
unreasonable. You can also forget about trying to reach me with the phone. I
leave my cell phone in my car where it usually lasts for about three days until
it dies. Only then do I bring it inside, but that's when I leave it off and
charging. I also don't answer my house phone. Nobody I know knows my house
phone, so I have no reason to answer it.

Use drive-thrus -
This one has a reason behind it. I used to use drive-thrus, but they would always
(read: always!) mess up my order. It
was around the tenth F-up that I decided to stop doing it altogether. I always
go inside to order, even if it's just for a soda. That way, I can only put in a
tiny amount of ice to maximize the amount of soda in the cup (I wish restaurant
servers would learn this). Besides, going inside takes almost as long as in the
drive-thru anyway, plus you can check your food, and if they messed up the
order, then you can throw it at them in person.

Drink coffee - It
tastes like dirty water, which is basically what it is. I tried to drink coffee
and tea on several occasions, but all I taste is water that was sitting in a
gutter too long. It is certainly "not my cup of tea."

Allusions:
Robin Hood: Men in Tights
Lucky Star

Stop me if I'm wrong about this, but... wasn't your mole... on the other side?

I have a mole!?