The shortest month of the year has come to an end and I am not sorry to see it go. Without the greeting card holiday of Valentine’s Day, I suspect that most people would hate it or maybe they do because of that day. Besides that point, February is an odd month, because winter is firmly here throughout the state, but people are already starting to think about spring. Everyday I hear someone complain about the snow and or cold. Now that March has begun I know that the complaining will reach new heights of annoyance.
On Thursday I reached the end of the anime series Ergo Proxy and I have to say that the ending did not disappoint me. I might even go so far as to say that it my favorite series yet. First of all, I love the female lead of Re-L Mayer. She is confident and has some great one liners that make her come alive. This strength of will is a refreshing change to the usual angst ridden teenage male lead that is quite popular in mecha series. Plus her interaction with Vincent and Pino was priceless.
Some points in the final three episodes were hazy for me, but overall, I liked what I saw. What pleased me the most was that the three strongest characters at the end of the series were not only alive, but all of them had had some form of epiphany. There was actual character growth without it being forced.
]]>I had two informal goals for this year. One of them was to read more than a book every couple of months and the second was to exercise more than I usually do. Of those two goals, I seem to be about two thirds of the way on both of them. I read a book in January and immediately started another one for February, but sabotaged my momentum on the second book by leaving it at work this week. Sigh. So to compensate for this mistake I started another book from my pile at home. I chose Mark Helprin's book Winter's Tale. The title alone made it an appropriate choice in my mind. Snow can still be measured in feet instead of inches outside and above the freezing mark on the thermometer has not been a reality in a while. Now a mere forty pages into the book, I have to say that I made a good choice. I like the overall cadence of the book and it reminds me how well the English language can be used to describe people and places.
Back to the exercise front, I tend to better at keeping my routine when I am at work than at home. Having easy access to a room full of exercise equipment is better for me than doing something more basic at home. I need to work on that side of the task more than I have so far this year if I want to increase my weekly days of exercise from three to five.
I have yet to be disappointed by Lost this season. Unlike other people who like the program, I do not search the web looking for clues. Nor do I seek out any rumors and or discussions on as to what might happen next. I am content to let the story unfold from week to week. Instant gratification is not a vice of mine.
Having watched about four episodes of the anime series Eureka 7, I have come to the conclusion that season four might not be the best place to start with a program. I like what I have seen, but I have many questions. Plus the frenetic action of Eureka 7 seems almost silly in comparison to the internal monologues of Ergo Proxy, where an entire episode took place inside the mind of one character. I find Re-L to be of the best characters anime characters ever and am very curious as to how her story will come to an end.
Yesterday I wrote out a large check to cover the cost of the bridge loan that I took out last fall to act as down payment on my current residence. I knew that it was coming, but still does not eliminate the fact that paying two mortgages at the same time is not an ideal situation. Besides writing the check, I also stopped by at my former dwelling place to make sure that all looked well after the most recent showing on Saturday. It did. It also looked sad being cold and empty. One might even say neglected, but not too severely. It was just empty not abused in any way. I enjoyed the six years that I lived there and hope that the next person who buys it will appreciate the place as much as I did.
Having completed three of the six discs in the series, I am seriously considering purchasing the set of the anime series Ergo Proxy. I love the characters of Vincent, Re-L and Pino. The three of them together are a very interesting group of personalties and I would enjoy seeing the series multiple times to see what clues I missed on earlier viewings. Now my only concern is that the ending will disappoint me somehow.
Another quiet night at work has come to an end and I could not be happier about it. Now my concern is the return trip back into work tonight. At the moment a steady rain is coming down and flooding the streets. With the ground frozen and snow blocking sewer drains there is little place for it to go. Then later this evening the rain is supposed to shift over to snow. So I suspect that there will be ice covered roads with snow to obscure my vision as I make my way. I would prefer to stay home.
Even though I have two discs of the anime series Ergo Proxy to watch I enjoyed two episodes of Full Metal Panic at work. I enjoyed every minute of Panic and want to see more as soon as I can. Streaming video is a wonderful thing.