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Did someone say bamboo?! :animesmil I don't consider myself a drinker. I will have a margarita when I go out for Mexican food or have a (yes, singular) drink if I go out with friends. Usually a gin and tonic or if I am feeling like something sweet then a mudslide. I am a lightweight when it comes to drinks. One drink and my cheeks get flushed and I look tipsy even if I am not. :animeangr Speaking of drinking, what is the legal drinking age where you live? In Washington state it is 21 and I know many of my classmates would make a trip across the border to Canada to drink before they turned 21 since, I believe, the drinking age is (or was) 18. Oh and just out of curiosity, how many of you have consumed an alcoholic beverage before the legal drinking age? I admit that I did have a drink before my 21st birthday. How about the rest of you?

I drive a '97 Toyota Camry XLT. It's a nice car and I have never had any problems with it. I bought it new straight out of the dealer's showroom. It has leather seats, sunroof, cd/cassette radio and power seats and mirrors...you know, the normal stuff that comes in the XLT model. As for the flashy stuff the flashy-est thing I have on my car is the "gold package". That just means that the letters and logos on the exterior of the car are in a gold color instead of the typical silver. My husband drives a full sized, long bed Dodge Ram 4x4 truck he got last year. I don't know too much about it except it is tall and I have a tough time climbing into it since it doesn't have running boards. I have to grab the handle on the inside and pull myself up. I really need to have him put a step or ladder...something so I have an easier time getting into that thing. It is nice to ride around in since it is so tall I can see over most of the other vehicles on the road! Of course most of the other trucks are like his. My hometown is a rural farming community so there are tons of trucks on the road.

Welcome to the OtakuBoards sundara_1. This thread was last posted on last year. Please do not bring back old threads. If you think there is still discussion value to the topic feel free to start a new thread. If you have any questions please feel free to PM myself or any of the other moderators on the site. Thanks! -Panda

Welcome to the OtakuBoards! I am moving this thread to the Art Studio since that is where desktop/wallpaper threads have been posted in the past. -Panda

I haven't felt afraid in my home in ages! It could be because I live in a very safe neighborhood where all the neighbors look out for each other. In other words there are a lot of senior citizens who know who comes and goes from the neighborhood. The area I live in has only one entrance and the houses are set up in little culd-a-sacs. We have lots of neighborhood activities and gatherings. It's nice to know people are watching out for each other. I also have 2 very large dogs. Once a security system salesperson stopped by our house and freaked out when she saw my dogs standing behind me! I thought it was funny that the security person was scared off by my "high tech" security system. She jumped of the front porch! My dogs are both big teddy bears but when they bark they are pretty intimidating. When she told me what she was selling I told her that I think my current security system is working well, as seen by her reaction. :animesmil I'm not sure why she jumped off the porch...perhaps she saw this behind me: [IMG]http://www.televar.com/~jkb/bun.jpg[/IMG] But when looked I only saw this: [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v290/Panda_chan_/misc/bun.jpg[/IMG] I am guessing if someone breaks into my house that they will be greeted by the face in the first picture! I really love having big dogs. Nothing in the world makes me feel safe when I am alone at home like a couple of huge dogs sleeping at my feet.

If I were to go to Japan the very first thing I would do (besides all the "legal" stuff like go though customs and get my bags) would be find my friends and/or family whom I will be bumming a room from! Then travel to their home and sleep!! :sleep: Besides visiting friends and family I would probably do all the typical touristy things like watching a taping of a television show at NHK, go to the gift shop and buy a giant Domokun plushie and then eat some tasty food! Speaking of miso, miso is the bean soup base itself. Some of my favorites to make are miso with nasubi (eggplant), daikon (radish), spinach, bean sprouts and the classic tofu!! For me miso is comfort food and is one of my favorite things to eat. Yummy! In addition to eating tasty foods I would definitely love to go to Shibuya and take my picture by the statue of Hachiko! Everytime I think about that story it makes me tear up. Hachiko is an Akita who use to follow his master to work everyday. Hachi would wait everday at the station for his owner to finish work and they would make the trip home. One day the owner became sick at work and died. Hachi, who was only 2 years old at the time waited every day -- for 10 years -- for his owner to return. People at the station started to care for Hachi and when he died they put a bronze statue up to dedicate this dogs unwavering faithfulness and loyality to his owner. Poor Hachi died in the spot which was the last place he saw his owner. :animecry: Oh now I am all sad. I would then go take picture of all the Shibuya kids and their wacky clothes. That would definitely cheer me up. I am sure my schedule would be mostly filled with visiting friends and family which is nice since when you visit someone's home they always feed you! I might be able to survive the entire trip without having to buy my own food!! :animesmil

Everyone needs to stay on topic here. The topic is what deep thought or quote do you think of regularly...not why I think your quote or thought is stupid. Everyone who has gone off topic is being warned. If you continue to break the rules and take this thread off topic and/or insult other members your account will be banned. This is going to be my only warning in this thread. Please stay on topic. -Panda

I have always felt that "otaku" means what you want it to mean. As we all know words change meaning all the time. Otaku in Japanese is a bad thing to be called. Think about how many women call themselves "a word that means female dog", like the Meredith Brooks song. It isn't a bad title to them, it is a badge of honor. That is the way I feel about the word otaku. I see it as meaning someone who enjoys anime and gaming culture. After all, when listening to "The Flintstone's " song you don't really think the line "having a gay ol' time" means that they are homosexual now do you? Words change meanings and otaku I think now means something different than what it started as. If someone calls me an otaku I am not offended, I just chalk it up to the fact they have never seen the people who are up at 3am in the anime viewing rooms at a con! :p

I am not sure if it is my age or that I only have one sibling but I really love my big brother. As kids we were the typical big brother and little sister. I wanted to hang out with him and he just tried to escape me. Anything he could I do I knew I could do too...which resulted in several visits to the doctor for me. When you are little motor skills just aren't as good as your older sibling's. I was following my brother on some monkey bars when I fell and broke my arm. Oops. I just wanted to prove to him that I could do what he could so that way I would be "accepted". I can't speak for all little siblings but that is what it was for me. I looked up to him and wanted to be like him. I am not sure what it was like for him but I am guessing as an older sibling he didn't like me tagging along since he knew I would get hurt and he was suppose to be "responsible" for watching out for me. I can understand now that the responsibility of being the older sibling must have really been a burden...especially with a tomboy little sister with an "I can do anything" attitude. Looking back at it, I feel bad for him having to look out for me. As we got older our relationship changed. He and I became friends. Now he comes by my house just to visit. He will "dog sit" for me when I go out of town and we support each other through difficult times. The things in the past that we had fought over are now topics to laugh about. Like when he shot me with a BB gun. "Ricochet"...yeah...I believe that. lol :p He is my one and only brother. We had our fights when we were little but now as adults we are friends. He has known me for my entire life and that is something very special. It's said that your relationship with your siblings is the longest one you will have during your lifetime. Friends come and go, parents and older family members will probably pass away before you...but your siblings who are the closest to your age will be there the longest. I am lucky my brother and I get along so well. Hopefully all of you with sibling problems will someday become friends and enjoy each others company.

Threads concerning anime need to be posted in the Anime Lounge. I am going to move this thread over to that forum. When starting a thread make sure you make them well thought out, care given to spelling and that you give reasons, such as why they are your favorite characters -- otherwise the thread will be closed for lack of quality. On topic: My favorite anime characters seem to have similar traits. For instance, right now two of my favorite characters are Genjo Sanzo from Saiyuki and Eiri Yuki from Gravitation. Both are tall, thin, very bishonen blonde monks who smoke too much and have bad attitudes. But that is not the reason I like them so much. Well, it's part of the reason. :animeswea The reason I like both of these characters is because they are so bold. They have both gone through very difficult times in their pasts that have shaped them into the guys they are now. Being hurt in the past has made them build a wall up around themselves to protect against from getting hurt again. I can relate to that. Even though they are rough around the edges they do have moments when they let their guard down and you can see that they really are nice guys underneath that tough guy exterior. It really makes them much more human. Plus, they are really cute too! :animenose

Since this topic is anime related it is best suited for the Anime Lounge. I'm going to move it over there. :catgirl: -Panda

Here is some info about the cool places in my little hometown. [img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v290/Panda_chan_/misc/MosesLakeDune_10.gif[/img] "These dunes are dark because they are made of mostly basalt sand. Basalt is the dark, iron-rich volcanic rock found in places like Hawaii and Iceland. Much of Central/Eastern Washington State is covered by the Columbia River Basalts. Toward the end of the last Ice Age, these basalts were eroded in the catastrophic Spokane Floods. These floods deposited much sand near Moses Lake; and this sand has since been reworked by wind to make dunes." Pretty much if you are into quads, dirt bikes or other types of ATV's the Dunes are the place you want to be in Washington State. We get tons of tourists to visit the dunes. The lakes here are very popular for water sports and outdoorsmen. [img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v290/Panda_chan_/misc/GCIAIPsign.jpg[/img] The Grant County International Airport is on my list since this is where my daddy works! He works at the Japan Airlines Flight Training Facility. When I stop by to visit him I can have free range to check out the planes, including all the new Boeing planes before the head over to Japan. Planes, like cars, have that "new" scent to them. The office also has a library that all the employees and their family bring books and magazines to share with each other. That means manga too! Free manga that hasn't been released in the states, it's in Japanese of course, but you can't beat that! [img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v290/Panda_chan_/misc/ashclds.jpg[/img] The picture above is of the ash clouds over Moses Lake in 1980. Moses Lake got an incredible amount of ash when Mt. St. Helens erupted back in May of 1980. You can still find pockets of ash laying around in fields. That in itself is kinda cool since it's not everyday a volcano dumps tons of ash on your house in Washington state! Moses Lake is a pretty fun little town if you like being in the outdoors. Hunting, fishing, water sports, the Sand Dunes...heck, there is a great rock climbing area just 45 minutes away. If you are looking for the "night life" or "high culture"...ML is not the right town. We pretty much have farmers, ranchers and the like.

Please do not resurrect long dead threads. This thread was last posted on back in 2001! If you feel the topic is worth discussion again please feel free to start a new topic INCLUDING the reasons why you enjoy to read. Just posting random titles with no explainations is not acceptable and does not add to the discussion at hand. If you have questions concerning this please feel free to PM myself or any of the other moderators for the site. Thanks! -Panda

The quote I think of most regularly is "Don't sweat the small stuff because it is all small stuff." When I was in grade school the major problems in my life, like not having the "in" toy, is now just silly to look back at. As I go through life I realize that the things that were major stresses in my life weren't really that major. Math tests in elementary school. At the time, major worry. Did getting some of the problems wrong really change my life? Nope. But at the time it sure felt like the world was crashing down around me. Breaking up with my boyfriend in high school. End of the world? Nope. Life just keeps on a truckin' along. In the cosmic scheme of things, there are very few things that really need to be that concerned about. ;)

Welcome to the OtakuBoards Kyoko Makashiro! The last time this thread was active was way back in 2003. Please do not bring back really old posts. If you feel the topic is worth further discussion please feel free to begin a new thread instead of posting in a long dead thread. Because of the old age of this post I am going to lock this thread. If you have any questions about the site feel free to PM myself or any of the other moderators. Have fun posting! -Panda

SunfallE- Go ahead and re-submit the missing 5th wallpaper. Currently all the submissions have been approved or denied. As always, make sure that the submission is in line with the guidelines (not a distorted image, not stolen [It's mind boggling how many stolen wallpapers from other sites are submitted!], does not use someone's fan art...etc.). As for the stats, that is a question Justin will have to answer since I don't deal with the "nuts and bolts" of the site. Hope that helps and I will keep an eye out for your wayward submission. :catgirl:

I truly admire you James. I strive to be like that but if someone gets under my skin I dwell on it...thinking evil thoughts. :animeangr Most of the time I just let thing pass on by. I chalk it up to them having a sad life and they lash out at me since, for some bizarre reason, decided that I was the one they were going to vent at. There are a few hot buttons when it comes to me and when they get pushed I tend to sulk about things and want to get back at them for annoying me. All and all I would have to say I am not hot tempered, but if my hot buttons are pushed then I get pretty warm under the collar.

Kuramasgrl, if you are going to link to your myO site please use your signature versus the post itself. Your guestbook has nothing to do with the topic you want to discuss, that's what the signature area is for. Thanks! Now for my favorite teacher: Mr. Joseph Rogers. He was one of the professors in college. He is extremely popular amongst the student body. After the first day of class he had memorized each and every one of his students. Even today, 10 years after I was in his class, he remembers my name! It really makes you feel special to have an instructor who has hundreds of students remember each and every person's name. He has this wonderful teaching style that makes learning fun and easy. He was very approachable and never made you feel stressed out durning finals. Each and every one of his tests, quizes and finals all the students went into confident. They weren't easy tests mind you, but as long as you attended class and did the assignments you would be fine. After class his office door was open to just go and hang out and visit. I wished all my college professors were as cool as Mr. Rogers. He totally rocked. :D

I wish I were just a bit taller. I am only 5'2" and I hate shopping for jeans and pants since they all seem to be made for tall people! My mom is only 5' and my dad is about 5'4". The other day I went shopping with them at an Asian grocery store. In one of the isles there was about 15 people, including myself and my family, and I was the tallest one in the isle!! Too funny! My mom usually asks me to reach things for her since I am "so tall". :p Being 5'2" pretty much is in line with my screen name though. The average height (lenght if you want to be technical) of a Giant Panda is around 5 feet. So I am above the average panda height! :animesmil

It is true that kittens are one of the cutest things in the world. Many cats are pure evil and they do make you question why you have them. I chalk it up to them stealing our souls. I have the yin and yang of cats. Ana, the Siamese, is 100% evil. When she was a kitten her only saving grace was her cuteness. She single handledly (pawedly?) destroyed a sofa. It was to the point where we just had to throw it out...it was beyond repair. :animeangr As an adult Ana is really a gorgeous cat. When she is sitting in the sunbeam she is just like a picture postcard. But try to touch her and she will scream at you. If you continue to touch, she bites and scratches. The only reason she puts up with us is because we are "useful domestic pets" to her. We live only to serve her. Feed her, clean her litter box...that sort of thing. Otherwise we aren't a part of her life. In the pecking order of this household she rules from the top with an iron paw. Now Harrison our orange tabby cat is just Mr. Mellow. He will instantly start purring when you walk in a room. It's like just seeing us makes him happy. He loves to be affectionate and cuddle. He never bites or scratches. At night he likes to sleep right by my head. I have used him as a pillow and he doesn't mind. He just lays there. The only bad thing is when he starts to purr...it's really loud! Harrison loves the dogs. He will waddle (he's pretty plump) up to the dogs and groom their faces. It is really cute. The dogs in turn will groom him back. Sometimes I wonder if the reason he likes the dogs so much is because he thinks he is one. :animeshy: Besides my pets there were the hundreds of animals I worked with at the vet clinic. I will say this: I only have scars from cats. Dogs, birds, snakes, lizards, monkeys, rodents....none of them hold a candle to the injuries an angry cat can do. Given the option I would rather work with a large angry dog than one feral cat!

I am not going to merge these threads together. This old thread didn't need to be brought back in the first place. There is a current thread of the same topic active on the front page that members can post their responses in. Since the creation of the original thread it is more than likely anyone who posted back in 2004 has since had another weird dream. They are more than welcome to share their weird dreams in the current thread. Please do not bring back long dead threads, especially ones that have a current thread in progress. -Panda

Welcome to the OtakuBoards! Discussions dealing with anime need to be posted in the Anime Lounge. Since there is a similar thread of this topic in that forum currently on the front page I am not going to move this thread but lock it. You can post in that thread by clicking [u][URL=http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=45071]here.[/URL][/u] We here on the OtakuBoards have a very high standard when it comes to our post quality. Make sure when you start a thread and/or respond to an existing thread you make them well thought out with care given to your grammar. A mispelling here or there is ok, we just want to make sure the posts are easy to read. Random lists are not acceptable. Be sure to explain why you listed the items you did. For example: My favorite anime series of all time is Robotech. The reason it is so special to me is for several reasons. When it first came out in the mid-1980's there was nothing else like it on television. Animation on television was limited to Hanna Barbera and didn't address adult issues like war, death, interracial relationships and love. Robotech was the first time I had seen an animated series that didn't talk down to kids but addressed these issues head on. I also have a soft spot for the series since it reminds me of my childhood when things were much easier than they are now! After you read through several threads you will get the hang of the type of posts we like here on the site. If you have any questions please feel free to PM myself or any of the other moderators. Have fun posting! -Panda

Though amusing, we need to make sure we add a little more substance to responses in this thread. Please share with us what turn of events lead you to meet the stars you list. Oh and Justin, looking in the mirror doesn't count...unless a celebrity is standing behind you. :p I have met some stars during the travels in my life. I've crossed paths with lots of voice actors and people in the anime, gaming and comic book industry. I also met Steve Largent back in the 80's when he was still playing football with the Seattle Seahawks. I went to their training camp and he saw my brother and 2 of my cousins watching them practice. After they were done he came over to sign autographs and pose for pictures with us. It was really sweet of him to do that for us. I, for some strange reason, have the ability to make friends with people who are related to famous people. For instance. Matt Groening, the creator of The Simpsons and Furturama, his cousin is a family friend. When she tells family stories it's interesting to hear stories about her Uncle Homer and Aunt Margaret (not Marge, she hates being called Marge!). I also hung out with Jack Black's little sister at their dad's house. Jack's sister rocks, she is an anime fan. It's weird going into the bathroom since that is where the "shrine" to Jack is at in the house. He wanted it that way. Pictures of Jack and even one of Tenacious D gold records hangs by the door. Nothing like using the facilities and having Jack Black watching you. :animeblus Oh, one of my friends is now working as the sport newscaster at a television station in Spokane, Washington! His name is Derek Deis. Does he count as a star? He's on television so that should count for something!

Remember the saying, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree? Don't forget that when you answer this question! :p In some ways I feel like I am smarter than my parents, but I am also smart enough to know that in life experiences they are far wiser than I am. My mother didn't go to college and my dad went to trade school, he later took over the family farm. My brother and I both continued our education and went to college and that was from the support of my parents. They always wanted more for us than they had for themselves. When it comes to the English language, computers and other electronics I am far ahead of my parents. When it comes to things like raising a family, the Japanese language and farm management they are far and away more knowledgeable than I will ever be. I know they don't really understand how the internet works or even how to turn on a computer, but they are wise in other areas of life. As for picking up extra duties because of my parents' lack of knowledge one thing I can think of off the top of my head is their answering machine. I recorded the message on the machine since they didn't know how to work it. When it finally died they bought a new phone/answering machine. They didn't know how the new digital machine worked so that is where I stepped in. They were really excited over caller ID too, it was actually kinda cute to see how excited they got every time the phone would ring and they could announce who it was calling! It's funny, my dad loves getting all these new electronic toys but I, or my brother, have to explain how to use them. Parents, just gotta love them. :love:

When good showers go bad...I have two showers in my home, one good the other one evil. The shower in the master bath is just one of those shower stalls with a frosted glass door. The kind that has a magnetic latch. The latch decided it didn't want to open. Sometimes it was when I would be outside the stall...other times inside. Eventually one day when I couldn't get into the shower my husband and the door had a tug-o-war to the death. Death of the handle. The handle broke but the magnet stayed put! Evil shower door... :animeangr The other shower is the main bathroom. It is a full tub with shower head. This is my favorite bathroom. I decorated it in a "lodge" theme. So the curtain has little trout curtain hooks and the curtain has bears, moose, trout and evergreen trees on it. I never have issues with the shower curtain. It's very friendly and doesn't lock you in or out. This is the way showers should be, nice and friendly.