Summertime Projects and Steps

I don't remember when I last made a post in my blog. Well, anyways, a little update:

I've been given the task to create a DVD of my sister's friend's Las Vegas weekend. This will give me a chance to make full use of Final Cut Express, which I just got a few months back. Other projects I have in mind are a new Anime Music Video using the series Sister Princess, Kanon, and AIR. Speaking of Kanon, I was really happy when I found out that a new version of the anime series was in production and will be broadcast this fall in Japan.

That leads me to my next piece of news, which is that our fansub group will be working on Kanon TV 06. This will be a big project, but I'm ready to put a lot of work into it, since I really like the series. Wer're finishing up To Heart 2 and the Memories Off #5 OVA, which we kind of got delayed on for awhile for various reasons.

Step 2 I will be taking this summer. Hopefully, I'll stay on schedule with the material that I want to cover and I'll do well on this one. I'm so close, so I refuse to give up.

Recently, I had the opportunity to go to Houston, TX for the Shiokazecon convention and met some great people. It was so much fun, and I'll definitely be making plans for it next year. I probably won't go to Otakon this year, since that one was big and expensive for me. Next convention will possibly be Anime Vegas. If not that one, then AnimeUSA again in Nov.

This summer is definitely going to be busy for me. Let's see how well I can keep up with everything.

Current series viewing list: The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzimiya, Disgaea, Kagihime, Higurashi, UFO Ultramaiden Valkyrie.

August 1st: Negima US DVD release by Funimation! Yay!

Fansubs and next Steps

One thing I'll say about fansubs. It's one thing to watch them, but it's something completely different to do them. Our fansub group has finally gotten off the ground with the help of the members of Avalon. A lot of work, but the end result turns out to be rewarding. New series that I'm watching this season are Lamune, Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha A's, Canvas 2, To Heart 2 (which our group is subbing) and finishing up on Shuffle and a few other series.

Back in August, I had finally passed my USMLE Step 1 exam, which was a very big step forward for me. Studying for that was a pain. Recently, I took Step 2 CS in Atlanta and Step 2 CK a few days ago. Good news is I have a residency interview next month, so if all goes well, I will be starting at a program in July.

I recently got to attend AnimeUSA again, which was the first convention I went to last year. This is my 4th convention so far and as always, it was a lot of fun. Got to meet some new guests such as Hilary Haag, Caitlin Glass, and Vic Mignogna. All very nice people. And of course, always a pleasure to talk to Greg Ayres and Monica Rial. Next convention for me will probably be Katuscon which is in my area once again.

It feels nice now that I have a lot more free time. I can basically do whatever I want and not feel guilty about not studying. Last order of business for the end of 2005 is to get Itsudatte My Santa released for Avalon and our group before New Year's, which I know we can do.

Two Christmas presents I got were Final Cut Express HD and Macromedia Studio 8 upgrade. Definitely very good for my website maintenance, and since I have free time now, I'm in the planning process of creating an anime music video (AMV). May go for an AMV contest at a convention.

One more day left in 2005. Happy New Year and here's to good things to come in 2006!

End of summer and turning 28

As the end of August approaches, it'll be approximately one year that I've lived here in the D.C. area. It's nice out here, and I hope I can stay out here. In good news, I passed my USMLE Step I, which I'm very happy about. The news came right before the weekend that I went to Otakon in Baltimore.

Otakon 2005 - this is one of the largest conventions in the US, with over 22,000 people attending this year, and it was a blast. A good friend of mine from the time that I was living in the Domincan Republic came to the US to visit some relatives and to go to this con with me. So much stuff to do and buy, and for him espeically, it was an experience he would always remember as he got to meet the English VAs or different anime series, including his favorite, Luci Christian. I had a chance to talk to Greg Ayres, Monica Rial, Luci Christian, and Michelle Ruff, though only briefly, since this was a large scale con. Still, it was a lot of fun for us. It was great to see familiar faces once again with my friends from AnimeOnDVD.com and of course the voice actors, who are some of the coolest people you'll ever meet as an anime fan.

You know, after you reach a certain age, your birthday seems to become less important. In about 5 days, I'll turn 28. I don't think anything significant happens when you turn 28. Hopefully, I can go out with some friends and have some fun, even though my birthday falls in the middle of the week this year.

It looks like AquaStar Anime has established itself as a scanlation group. Hopefully, we'll look into moving towards the realm of fansubs. I think that numerous fans are waiting for the anime version of Negima to see a US release. I'm not worried as I'm sure it will happen, given the popularity of Ken Akamatsu's series.

Running 3 sites is definitely work, but when I get a creative streak going, updates and designs are very easy to put together, just like when a writer gets inspiration for his/her story. I just hope that I can get more content added for Kanon/AIR, since I'm really looking to push the series to fans. Will I open another site? Well, that might be awhile before that happens, but it's possible.

New series to recommend? A bunch. Futakoi Alternative, Da Capo Season 2 - DCSS, Shuffle!, AIR TV and Movie, Kodocha, Daphne in the Brilliant Blue, Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha, etc. All very good series.

Next step for me? More exams and moving forward. In regards to how far I'll get, we'll see soon enough.

Site Expansion and All Things New

I'm not sure how long it's been since my last entry, but a lot has happened since.

Katsucon 2005 - this was my second anime con to go to and it was a blast. It was great to see some familiar faces from AnimeUSA who made my anime con going experience very friendly and really show why so many people are anime fans in the first place. It was such a great time as I got to hang out with the AnimeonDVD.com group again along with Greg Ayres and Monica Rial, who I'll say again are some of the niceset people you will ever meet. BTW, if you have not watched DNAngel yet, I highly recommend you do so (and Sister Princess of course). Luckily, I had already done most of my DVD shopping a week before the con, so it was less damage to my credit card this time around. I picked up some Negima stuff, a full set of figurines of Da Capo and Girls Bravo for myself, some magazines, and some other cool stuff. And for my friends in the Domnican Republic, some Ghost in the Shell, Gundam SEED (great series), and Mai Hime items. Also had some of my artboxes and stuff autographed by Greg, Monica, and Jonny Yong Bosch for his character in Please Twins (Onegai Twins).

As far as the exam, well you know the feeling when you are just a little below the mark and you are soooo close? That's what happened to me. All it came down to was probably just a few questions. I plan to try it again soon, and I'm not that disappointed since I know that it's something that definitely isn't impossible for me to do.

I'm really impressed with the amount of time, devotion, and energy the more active members of the forum have. I think because of them, the forums and the sites have gotten big in terms of it's presence when it comes to information on Negima, Sister Princess, and other anime series. There has been talk about an IRC channel. It would be the next step, and I would definitely need a lot of help since I have my hands full with studying, about to start a research position soon, and with the web sites. I'm really happy about all of the support the more prominent members of the forum have given me, and I hope that we'll continue to be a success as a team. One thing is for sure: no matter how much someone tells me that the web sites/design is a waste of time, I personally don't see it that way. In fact, someone recently told me that not only do I have the knowledge that I've gained through my medical education, but I've made myself more versatile and a stronger and more unique candidate with my background as a programmer and web page designer.

Lastly, today the Sony Playstation Portable was released. I was lucky enough to be able to snag one at a Best Buy near my house. I do have to wonder how much of a demand there was for this thing as it's a pretty big deal with how advanced it is in comparison to the other portable systems that are out there.

That should do it for now. To end this entry, a cute little pic from the Sister Princess RePure artbook that I scanned for the site and for a fellow fan. Looks like the girls are spying on Wataru.

Exam coming up...almost there!

With the studying I've been doing for the past 5 months, I can finally get this USMLE Step 1 exam over with. After that, I'm going out to have some fun, especially with Katsucon occurring the week after.

Anime: Series that have left a good impression so far include Ah! My Goddess TV, AIR, and Negima! Magister Negi Magi. It was nice to see Negima become an anime series, however, the animation quality needs a little work. Otherwise, still an entertaining show. I'm waiting for Girls Bravo Season 2 to start broadcasting, since that was a cute and funny series to watch, reminding me of Love Hina style humor. I have heard reports that since its the first series ever to receive an R-15 rating, that they do let loose with some things they couldn't show in the first season, besides just the fanservice. We'll have to see what they did this time with the censorship issue gone this time.

Currently playing a guessing game that ADV is hosting for the English cast of Madlax. I'm hoping that Maburaho will be the next game up to play, as I really liked that series. I remember that it was one of those series this past year that people initially thought sounded lame for a series (I even tried to recommend it to several people), and after watching a few episodes were pleasantly surprised by the humor, style, and the story itself. Kind of reminded me of Ai Yori Aoshi a little bit with the main character Yuna when you first meet her, and the fact that it was produced by J.C. Staff.

Well, back to studying. Just 6 more days left 'til I can finally put this exam behind me.

4 weeks til exam...Katsucon coming up!!

After having some vacation time in Las Vegas (man that was crazy...over 400,000 people on the strip), it's time to get ready for the USMLE Step 1. I officially have 4 weeks remaining before the big day. All I know is that I'm celebrating with Katuscon which will take place a week and a half after the exam. I'm really excited. I've made some friends and had an awesome time at AnimeUSA in Oct. and I'm hoping for that with Katsucon. It'll be good to see some familiar faces and hopefully meet some new people.

As far as new anime goes, there's just a lot of new series that have just started in Japan that I've been anticipating including Negima! Magister Negi Magi, Ah My Goddess TV, AIR TV and movie, and even a bunch of new series including Mahoraba, Magical Kanan, Ramuiro Senkitan X, and more Girls Bravo.

First, I have to get through a bunch of my backlog of series on both fansubs and DVDs. Luckily, I can squeeze in anime and some TV shows as my study breaks. I'll feel relieved though once I finally take my exam.

Catching up on anime

This proves to be somewhat difficult for me to do for these past few weeks since I have a huge backlog of series and a limited amount of free time since I will be taking the USMLE Step I exam which is really a pain in the butt to deal with. In the little amount of free time I've had, I've managed to watch Volume 2 of Sister Princess, Volume 2 of DNAngel, Volume 5 of Azumanga Daioh, and a few episodes of Galaxy Angel Z Vol. 1. That's a small amount as I seem to accumulate more, due to new episodes of different series on fansubs coming out on a daily basis and DVD releases as well. Well, I look forward to just doing a marathan to finish off a bunch of series after my exam is over.

Getting ready to leave for vacation next week out to Vegas and LA which will be a lot of fun. I'm really one for card games, especially the poker rooms. Game of choice is Texas Hold Em which I've been playing for about 5 years now. I'm looking forward to a good time out there.

I really hope that everything web, anime, and video game related will be easier to catch up with after this exam. I feel bad for the visitors to the sites since i haven't exactly been very good about getting updates done.

That's it for now.