Still working on the “What’s wrong with City Employees?” post. It’s a lot more complicated, detailed, and difficult to lay this out for non-employees than I expected. I may have to break it in two, but hope to have it out before New Year’s, either way.

In personal notes, I just got word that another aunt has died. Not blood kin, she was wife to my namesake uncle (who passed from Alzheimer’s a decade ago). And Mother’s doctors are dragging their feet; I don’t know if the problem is the insurance or if they just think cancer takes a holiday too. She finally demanded and got an appointment with the oncologist… for after New Year’s. They still haven’t decided on a treatment, dammit; the oncologist was talking about getting a second opinion on surgery. Hey, no problem, I’m sure those cancer cells aren’t going anywhere while you jack around. Assholes.

It’s beginning to look like 20 years ago, when I lost a slew of relatives over a two year span, finally stopping with my father’s death, just seven months before I graduated high school. My older brother noticed that too.

Enough of that crap, it’s time to make this post utterly schizoid.

In happier (whatever…) news, the Great Anime Binge of 2005 will soon draw to a close. I’ve blown a hella lot of money and picked up more for Xmas too. As of mid-November I owned the full set of Rune Soldier, Project A-ko, and volume one of Sol Bianca, The Legacy. Since then, I’ve added:

All-Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku Dash

Crest of the Stars
Banner of the Stars
Banner of the Stars II (Thus, I have full sets of all three “of the Stars series)
Hanaukyo Maid Team La Verite (vol. 1 & 2; vol. 3’s on order)
Lost Universe (vol. 1 & 2; not bothering to complete set)**
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (full set)
Mars Daybreak (vol. 1 & 2)
Plastic Little
*
Sister Princess (vol.3, vols. 1 & 2 on order)
Those Who Hunt Elves (boxed set, seasons 1 & 2)

I have viewed all of these except Sister Princess. I’m waiting on the first two to arrive before I view it. That will give me about half the series, after which I’ll decide on picking up the rest.

The linked items above go to Steven Den Beste’s reviews. It may seem odd, but Chizumatic is usually the first place I look to determine whether or not I’m going to like a given piece of anime. After reading his anime (and non-anime) stuff for a while, I have an idea of what SDB does and doesn’t like — in short, I know the reviewer’s biases, and since I share some of them, I have a better idea whether I’ll like something or not. As I’ve spread my reading out somewhat though, I’ve started getting some ideas of other reviewers’ tastes.

I’ll be posting some reviews of my own for Mars Daybreak, and Banner II over the next several days. Already did Nuku Nuku & TWHE, but I’m going to rewrite both.

Anyway, here’s hoping my readers (both of you!) had a happy Christmas! Eat, Drink, And Make Merry. And if she won’t cooperate, try her sister Alice.

–Ubu Roi

*Edit: I forgot to put in the links; when I went back to do so, I found that he’d done this review, which I somehow never noticed. I had picked this title up because it was on sale at ADV and I vaguely remembered it from a con years ago. I like it a bit more than he did, but don’t expect much from it but jiggles and adventure. Logic? What’s that?

**Update/Edit II: forgot this one. It’s that forgettable. Oh, and a full review of Nuku Nuku Dash will post tonight. Completely rewrote the earlier review.