I really want a Nintendo DS. The PSP looks cool, but I really love Nintendo. One of the reasons is because they always have some really innovative and creative games, for instance Animal Crossing for the Gamecube. Electroplankton is another strange and original concept for a video game. You control small plankton creatures and create music. I know it sounds silly, but that’s just the sort of thing I really find interesting. Electroplankton is probably not going to be sold in the U.S., but since the system is region-free, a Japanese game will work on a U.S. DS. Another neat game is Nintendogs, which is like Tamagotchi, where you have to take care of a virtual pet. And later, Animal Crossing DS will be released! The Nintendo DS is really neat, I wish I had one! 

Last night my friend Mikey and I went to see Hayao Miyazaki’s latest film, “Howl’s Moving Castle”. It was excellent! The visuals were amazing as usual, and the music was wonderful. There were many signature Miyazaki elements, which looked like they were adapted from his other movies. For instance, in one scene Howl does a little wave with his hand as he flies off, just like Nausicaa did. The castle itself moved on legs that looked similar to No-face (Kao-nashi) in Spirited Away when he was in his monster form. And then some of the flying machines were reminiscent of the airships in Laputa. Also, when Howl and Sophie were flying in the beginning, it looked like Baron and Shizuku in Whispers of the Heart. Lots of similarities, but they didn’t detract from the movie, but rather gave it a familiar feel, at least to me.

The story itself started out great, but it sort of got a little to long and drawn out towards the end. And then at the very end, it got a little goofy, and I was thinking to myself, “What the heck? What just happened?” If you see the film, maybe you will think that as well. Maybe it was because we saw the 10:20pm showing, so we were kind of getting pooped towards the end of the movie, but it was a little too over-the-top. I thought that Spirited Away’s ending was too abrupt and short, but Howl’s Moving Castle got a little too long, and then at the last minute or so several things happened that seemed to up loose ends seemingly instantly. I think they could have devised a more elegant ending, even if it strayed from the original story.

Overall, I was impressed by the film, and it was cool because the version we saw last night was the original Japanese version, with English subtitles. I forgot that it was Kimutaku (Takuya Kimura) providing the voice of Howl, but I must say, the voices were perfect! I do want to see the dubbed version as well, just to hear how Billy Crystal acts as Calcifer, the fire demon. Plus, if they show the movie in a larger theater with a better sound system, that would be great. This movie is definitely one to add to the dvd collection.

One of the original artists for the D&D manuals and modules has died... I actually preferred the other artists, but some of David Sutherland’s works were classic, like the cover of the monster manual. We used to pore over those classic tomes as kids. It really is a sad day for us D&D freaks. He apparently died from liver failure. As my friend Tony pointed out, he failed his saving throw this time…

[link via Tony]

My friend sent me this photo of a Michael Jackson doll. It’s one of the most frightening things I have ever seen. 

Sometimes I hate playing Fantasy Baseball. I guess this is a common thing among Fantasy Team owners, but it always seems that when I pick up a player for my team, he immediately starts playing badly, and conversely, as soon as I drop or bench a player, he does great. For instance, I dropped Dodger outfielder J.D. Drew from my team, and that same day, he hits two home runs. In the pitching department, I have Kevin Brown on my team, and he loses four straight. As soon as I drop him, he wins his next four… Aaaarrrrggghhh!!! But, all-in-all, Fantasy Baseball is lots of fun, and completely addicting.

Yesterday I wanted to go for a quick ride, but was disappointed to find my front tire without air. I got a new tube, and am waiting on a tire, but I need to figure out a way to lift up the bike…

Koa’s getting a couple of molars on the bottom, and he’s been miserable. It started last weekend, and he has been up the past couple of nights, bawling his head off. We give him some Infant Tylenol, and it works great. But, we try not to give him medicine too often. I always forget to get out my Pocket PC and record his screaming at night, so we can tell him about it when he gets older. Hopefully the pain in his gums will go away soon, and we can get back to sleeping though the night!