Madoka KEY ANIMATION NOTE Vol.2 - preview & other rambling thots

I'm going to have to go to bed in 5 mins.  Have to try and crawl out of bed at 5.30am so that I can try and get to the studio by 7am to begin work.  The shot I'm working on is really not easy and I need to get it ready by Monday for the prep artist.  Yeah... it's getting a little hot under the collar.

Ah well... at least it's yet another day which I can claim pay or toil for.  It'll definitely come in useful because it looks like I may go to Hokkaido before my trip to Tokyo where I'll hopefully be able to attend the 3 day Kajiura Yuki vol. 9 Live.  We'll see... I'm always nervous when it comes to obtaining tickets.  I always think that I may not get them which would suck since now that I've decided I'm going to... I think I would be massively disappointed if it screws up.

I also forgot about the Kalafina ustream from BayFM 78 till Kajiura Yuki mentioned it on twitter this afternoon.  In the end, it probably doesn't matter since I wasn't going to be able to watch it anyway as I was at work and trying to get that shot out.  Kajiura Yuki also has a twitter event which took place tonight to watch the Kalafina After Eden blu-ray / dvd together.  I like it that she holds these events relatively often.  Unfortunately, I have never attended one and had decided not to attempt to attend this one too.  Firstly, my Japanese is truly not great and it takes time for me to work out what is being said, also I returned home late from work & dinner after that and I didn't even watch the Everton match.  I am dead tired and wanting to sleep soon.

But first, I would like to say that I started preparing photos for my upcoming post on the Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica Key Animation Note vol.2.  Yes, I know that photo is soft... that's why it's a preview. :p  Well, I'll probably re-do that photo.  I just want to say quickly that I vol.2 is nice, very nice and, in my opinion, nicer than vol.1.  It's making me really excited about vol.3 which I haven't ordered yet because I was previously undecided as to how I'm going to bundle them etc.  I will probably order it tomorrow as I've decided to bundle it with vol.4 to save on shipping.

Finally, I'm feeling kind of bummed too since Everton lost the FA cup semi-final to Liverpool. :( :(  Well... still it was a good job getting there considering that Everton's team is a lot less expensive than Liverpool's and yet were still able to get to the semis and put up a good fight too.  Here's hoping that we'll remain above Liverpool at the end of the Season. At least that will be something.

Alrighty... my not very focus rambling post is done... off to bed... tomorrow I go to battle. =)

p.s.  oh btw, I checked my cdjapan account and it's showing that my Kalafina to the beginning singles order is "in stock"!!!!  Cool!!!!! Can't wait for it to come. :)

to the beginning [w/ Blu-ray, Limited Edition]

Everton - Reading 1-1

(courtesy premierleague.com)
Everton's Gary Naysmith tackles Reading forward Shane Long.

Sylvester Stallone's walk-on appearance on the pitch before kick-off at Goodison Park was perhaps the only thing home fans had to cheer about in the first 45 minutes after a rather poor first-half performance from Everton. The Toffees were given a morale booster with the return of forward Tim Cahill after a two month injury absence and while the home side began brightly, they never really looked menacing.

After some rather boring football from both teams, things took a turn for the worse for the Blues when Reading was awarded a freekick near the half-hour mark after James McFadden's foul on Kevin Doyle. Everton chose unwisely to pack the six-yard box with tons of players, giving Reading the opportunity to place their own players in the aread too. Once the ball came flying in, it seemed almost inevitable that it would somehow make it into the back of the net. Reading's Stephen Hunt rose to meet Nicky Shorey's ball which was saved by Tim Howard only for it to hit teammate Joleon Lescott's feet and deflect in to make it 1-nil for Reading.

It was pretty much Reading all the way for the rest of the half as Everton seemed only capable of defending. Even after Reading's top scorer Doyle was stretched off for what seemed to be a hamstring injury, Everton just seemed unable to capitalize.

Everton manager David Moyes made a positive move by trading McFadden for Victor Anichebe and his youthful eagerness coupled with what was certainly a stern dressing down by Moyes in the dressing room saw Everton play more decisively and with more urgency in the second half. Still, even though they dominated possession, they created precious few opportunities and as the match entered the last twenty minutes they were still unable to find the equalizer. In a surprise move and in a show of his determination not to let Everton continue its losing streak, Moyes chose to take a gamble by taking Andy van der Meyde off in the 72nd minute and replacing the midfielder with a fourth forward, James Beattie. This move must have at least surprised some fans who have been critical of Moyes saying that he is often too conservative or too pragmatic.

Everton kept pressing forward and they finally managed to get their equalizer in the 82nd minute. Joseph Yobo's long pass was flicked on by Cahill for Andy Johnson who headed it into the net and Everton manage to salvage a point.

Although I jumped around and cheered when the equalizer went in, I really wanted a win. And although I know the team tried hard, they were really unable to create many chances at all and in the end, it seems to be the same story again and again. Everton always seem to work hard but they just seem to be lacking especially in the middle of the field. And with Mikel Arteta out on suspension, the flaws in the mid-field just seemed to be more obvious than usual. =(


(courtesy premierleague.com)
Everton's Lee Carsley and Reading's Leroy Lita battle all night at Goodison.


(courtesy Everton FC.com)
Andy Johnson's expression sums up Everton's first half.


(courtesy Everton FC.com)
Everton's Tim Cahill's return from injury after two months helped the Toffees earn a draw after a string of losses.


(courtesy BBC.com)
Even Sylvester Stallone's presence was unable to help Everton deliver the knockout punch at Goodison Park.


(courtesy BBC.com)
Everton's unfortunate Joleon Lescott was unable to get out of the ball's path and inadvertently puts his side 1 goal behind in the first half.

Rocky, Becks and La La Land...

Today's been a funny day for football news. First I learnt that Sylvester Stallone will be making an appearance at Goodison Park before the match against Reading. That's just weird. =)

Well, I guess while Stallone may not be much of a football player, at least his Rocky had a lot of spunk and heart. I think after the last two losses and the dismal performance against Rovers in the FA Cup, they're going to need some of that Rocky spirit if they are to delivery that knockout punch they seem to be lacking. I know there have been a lot of grumbling among the fans and they want to see David Moyes go and I like Moyes, I think he's done a lot with very little and Everton is in much better shape than they were these past few years. But I really am beginning to think that, while probably not now, but sometime in the future, a change maybe good as Everton is seldom exciting these days, even when they win.

Then I hear from ESPN (later confirmed by several news reports) that David Beckham aka Becks will be signing for the LA Galaxy. So that's it, no more Bend it like Beckham for us in Asia since we get virtually no coverage of the MLS here. Not that I really care, unless the standard has really improved, the last time I watched MLS matches, they were pretty boring. This kinda sucks. I'm not a huge Becks fan but I still rather like him and felt that Steve McClaren should have kept him in the England squad. England's failure to reach the finals of the World Cup was really a team failure and if anything Beckham to me was England's best peforming player.

Right, that's it for tonight. =)

Manchester City vs Everton 2-1

Man City's Richard Dunne and Everton's Andy Johnson.
(courtesy evertonfc.com)

Once again, no live telecast of the Everton match on cable but this time I was glad as Everton lost 2-1 to Man City and now I know I don't have to watch the delayed telecast of the match. =(

Everton really need Tim Cahill to return. According to the match report at the ToffeeWeb, Everton started brightly then faltered but the tide really turned when they conceded the first goal in the 48th min and then the second after they conceded the penalty later in the second half. Leon Osman pulled one back 6 minutes from regulation time but it was too little too late.

Apparently, Toffeeman James Beattie who made a rare start exhibited a distinct lack of confidence and would pass instead of strike on goal when he should have.

Ah well... I guess it was too much to hope that Everton would keep on winning. =(

On the plus side, I saw a fantastic Liverpool - Bolton (3-nil) encounter. Splendid goals from Peter Couch, Steven Gerrad and Dirk Kuyt. And then I saw the 6-nil slaughter of West Ham by Reading. So I guess it was a goal filled night... just wished Everton had won though. Sigh. =(

cheers

Everton vs Newcastle 3-nil

Anichebe scores in the 10th minute after some messy Newcastle defending.


Newcastle's Scott Parker and Everton's Andy van der Meyde battle it out.


Everton celebrate.
(pictures courtesy of http://www.premierleague.com)

A well deserved 3-nil win over Newcastle in the last match of 2006 is just the way to get over the disappointment of the goalless draw against Middlesborough on Boxing Day. Even though the Toffees played well against Boro they were unable to turn their dominance of territory and possession into goals and had to settle for a point.

No such misfortune this time. A scrappy 10th min goal from Nigerian Victor Anichebe was only the beginning. Anichebe then added another one to his tally in the 58th min. Andy Johnson glanced a header his way and after striking the cross-bar, Anichebe pounched on the rebound to make no mistake before Phil Neville put the outcome beyond doubt with his 61st min goal. Of course Everton got a little help from the Magpies when Obafemi Martins scooped his penalty effort way over the bar in the 42th min. =D

But the most satisfying goal in this match for me is definitely Phil Neville's goal in the 61st minute. Maybe it wasn't the prettiest of goals as the captain mis-hit the ball but it still made it into the back of the net to send the home fans wild with happiness. Neville's return from suspension is certainly one of the biggest reasons why Everton was on fire today. So I was happy that Neville finally gets one. I think this is his first goal for Everton too.

Once again they didn't show this match on cable and I had to be contented with replays of the goals. Not that I was complaining since, they replayed the goals several times and I cheered each and every single time. =)

I ended up watching the not very inspired Liverpool 1-nil victory over Tottenham Hotspurs and have just finished watching Arsenal's 1-nil lost to Sheffield United. Granted that Arsenal was without several key players but still that was a terrible performance them and it proves once again that Arsenal can be just so horribly inconsistent when they play. When they play well, they are really fantastic to watch but very often they play terribly as well and today was just one of those days.

Anyway, I'm a die-hard Everton fan and I'm happy that the club's moved up to seventh place on the table. Maybe we'll be able to book a spot in Europe after all. =D

And on the plus side, Man U won their match against Reading by 3-2 and Chelsea draw again against Fulham 2-2. =D

Oh and congratulations Steven Gerrad on being awarded an MBE.

cheers

Everton vs Reading 2-nil

Yay yay yay... Everton win today 2-nil and one from Andy Johnson too!!!. Eat this Jose Mourinho. Pity Everton weren't able to beat or at least hold Chelsea last week. 3-2, almost had them though. Too bad Everton weren't able to field a fully fit squad last week but with so many players coming back into the squad, things should be looking up.

This is a much much better season than last year. I almost couldn't bear to watch them sometimes last season because they were playing so badly especially at the beginning of the season that I thought they were going to get relegated. Thank goodness they played much better in the second half of the season if not they would have gotten relegated and I would be heartbroken.

Pity I couldn't watch the match, it wasn't on telly. =( Just caught the end of the Arsenal - Blackburn Rovers match. 6-2... that's an amazing scoreline and Henry isn't even playing. Watching the sports roundup now, hope to see the two goals.

Here we go, here we go, here we go
Everton is the best we all know
We're the one
We're supreme
Number 1
And we love you Everton!!!!! =D

Right, it's 3:33am and I'm really tired of starring at photographs and working on them so am off to bed.

cheers