November Nonsense

Greetings, fellow readers!  It's almost turkey day in the U.S.  Who is ready to stuff their face?  XD  But let's not forget the main reason for Thanksgiving--giving thanks for the things we have.  Though I'd be extremely greatful if I got to see my bias in person.  ^^;;  From the last part of October to now there have been quite a few suprising stories in fandom.  Let's get to it! 

Celebrities on Twitter
After his departure from KAT-TUN back in late October that left fans devistated, Koki has come back via Twitter~!  There was a fake account before his, so when his was actually found there was a little speculation.  But since two of his brothers had followed that account, fans did the same.  Koki is the second KAT-TUN member to make an account after Jin (who doesn't use his anymore) and it's enjoyable to read his tweets--even though they're in Japanese.  :P  He's quite the chatterbox, and I like that.  ^^    Also to join Twitter is SNSD member (and one of my biases from the group) Seohyun!  She may not tweet often, but I'm glad that she's entered the world of Twitter.  I also came across Taiwanese singer and actor Ken Chu as well as Barbie Hsu and Vic Zhou.  Slowly but surely I'm finding the F4.  I follow a whole bunch of Kpop, Jpop, and Cpop stars that it's crazy.  >__<  But there are a few that I'd really enjoy seeing on Twitter, and I'm pretty sure that you can make a few guesses as to who they might be.  :P  But aside from Twitter, you have quite a few of them on other social networks--Instagram being a big one followed by Chinese site Weibo.  Of course there is now LINE and a few still use Cyworld.  So alot of stars are feeling out to the world through alot of different places.  It's really nice to see them talk about things that the general public would (to some degree), take a whole bunch of pictures of themselves or the food they're eating or their pet or their house...etc.  And it always brightens a fan's mood when they do mini fan-talks.  I have yet to get a response from anyone though.  ;A;  But one thing (though it's perfectly normal) is seeing them when they're sad or mad.  Most of the time it's due to someone hacking their accounts and whatnot.  Of course that can be avoided with stronger passwords (like a set of cryptic numbers and letters).  But then there are events that make them upset and they take to Twitter like the rest of us.  ^^;;  A while back, Jaejoong had such an issue where someone made him upset and he made it known through Twitter.  I've not seen any of my favorite celebrities get upset (probably never will on camera), but it made me wonder how scary they'd look if they got really mad.  Some of them it's hard to imagine getting really mad: Yunho and Junnosuke are just two that come to mind almost immediately. 

Dongho calls it quits
U-KISS's maknae decided to call it quits from idol life it seems.  And while it's sad to see him go, I can understand his reason for doing so.  He said it was not good for his health, and if you think about all the schedules, lack of sleep, and not enough time to eat that celebrities--especially of the Kpop variety--go through you might not even want to keep going either.  The ones that do are troopers.  ^^  But Dongho also had a health issue with his lungs, so I think he made a good decision.  Best of luck to you, Dongho.  Though this is a second blow to KissMe's as they've lost Alexander and Kibum previously, I don't think that will stop them from loving all the members no matter what they're doing. 

It's that time of year again...
Yes...awards shows.  =____=  These tend to be a reason for fanwars to start.  And I am certain that a good amount of cheating goes on in them as well--at least in the past there may have.  These things also seem to bring out the ugliest parts of fans.  Of the latest there was the YTMAs (Youtube Music Awards).  I was really glad that SNSD's 'I Got A Boy' won the Video of the Year Award.  But quite a few non-Kpop fans were not too thrilled with that.  Then there was the recent EMAs (European Music Awards).  Now, I don't know how EXO managed to make it on there, but they did.  I usually don't participate in these things, but I did try to help them to win whatever they were nominated for.  Unfortunately, they were pitted against fans of One Direction and Justin Bieber.  And it didn't help that some fans of other Kpop fans also didn't want them to win.  It was apparent on my Twitter list.  And when EXO didn't win, they jumped for joy...and I found that to be totally unecessary.  >__>  But EXO, One Direction, and Justin Bieber all lost to a Chinese singer.  And that is fine by me.  The award show I tend to keep from voting in is the MAMAs (Mnet Asian Music Awards).  I've been doing so since HoMin was nominated...that year was crazy.  .___. 

Ailee/Allkpop scandal
*sigh*  In what might be the biggest scandal of the year (aside from the pain I felt towards the whole 'ChangToria' thing) is the whole fiasco between Kpop star Ailee and Kpop gossip news site Allkpop.  I may not know the whole issue, but from what I'm gathering the thing started when Allkpop posted an article about nude photos of Ailee being posted.  That led to serious backlash for the site as fans found it extremely improper of Allkpop to do.  The site had already ruffled many fans' feathers numerous times before, but this might just be the icing on the cake.  I say that because it's caught the attention of actual Korean media who didn't know about the site's existance until last week.  What makes this issue so tough is that the apparent leaker of Ailee's photos was an ex-boyfriend of hers and the photos were taken before she became a star and while she was living in the U.S.  And that ex-boyfriend works at Allkpop so...yeah.  My thought on the issue (and while some may totally disagree with me) is that this is a lesson learned on Ailee's part.  One should be careful of what they do or say in the time before they become someone in a position of fame because someone is bound to dig it up.  I was suprised that she admitted that those were photos of her to begin with because most would just deny it.  And while it was pretty bad of Allkpop to post those, I'll still continue to follow them on Twitter.  Sure, they may have said some awful things about Kpop stars before Kpop became global, but I doubt they're the only site out there that trolls like that.  I had been visiting a site called POPSEOUL! in my early fangirl days that also was a bit of a troll.  But I can't help wondering if this whole mess would've been different if the leaked nudes were of a male idol instead...  Well, all I can say is that I hope things will get cleared up soon. 

Aside from all that there were the pictures that Kpop collaboration duo Troublemaker had released that were a bit too sexy and a clip of a movie called 'Rough Play' (starring Lee Joon) that was nothing but sex.  :P  I wonder how he felt filming it?  Well, that is all for now.  Until next time!    

Tidbits Of News

Lately, I've been kind of seeing a couple of things related to swimming (well, only two things).  And all I can relate them to is the anime that became quite popular, 'Free!'  But I could be wrong.  They could've been for summer.  One is an upcoming Korean movie called 'No Breathing'.  From the link, the plot seems to be about swimming rivals and the both of them falling for the same girl.  It's kind of like the anime with the exception of falling for a girl.  ^^  And it looks like one of my favorite SNSD members is in it!  The other swim-related show is the next segment to 'Cool Kiz on the Block'.  I really do enjoy this show--and not just because Changmin is in it.  After the sport of badminton, they're going to go swimming.  I wonder if that'll include diving, synchronized swimming, or competitive swimming.  And now that I think of it...what if they do make a reference to 'Free!'?  XD  Pictures of Changmin in a pool (with a shirt on) are already coming out and some fans are really excited for this segment because of possible shirtlessness, speedos, or whatever.  While I'd also most likely enjoy this segment as well, I was really hoping for a different sport.  I really wanted them to play billiards.  Why you ask?  That way I could possibly see another JunnoMin interaction.  Junnosuke is really good at billiards, and maybe Changmin would've called him up to be on the Cool Kiz team.  Then I would've seen several weeks of interactions.  *o*  But I'm also certain this may not come to pass because Junnosuke is a Johnnys, and the company might not let that happen.  Then there's the slight issue with the realtionship between Japan and S. Korea already.   *dreams are shot*  OTL

I also heard about Yunho and Changmin having a fanmeeting with Cassiopeia.  While I'd love to be there, I'd feel quite melancholic about it at the same time.  Because I want to be at one that has all five members.  :x  Also, I heard that Junsu sang a little of 'Stand By U' and 'Forever Love'.  That makes me quite glad.  I know it might sound contradicting as I said I was uncomfortable with Yunho and Changmin singing their old songs.  Junsu did say, however, that he would rather have sang it as five.  Additionally (and it will sound contradictory again), I heard a clip of Changmin singing a bit of 'HUG'.  And that made me sad.  I really don't want them to sing 'HUG' or 'Stay With Me Tonight' unless they're going to sing it as five.  Those two songs just don't work for me unless there are five voices.  :/

Now, onto more pressing matters in fandom...

KOKI IS NO LONGER A MEMBER OF KAT-TUN!!!!!!  ;A;  This makes me really sad!  I wonder if this is why KAT-TUN hasn't been doing much these past few months.  Koki isn't even a bias of mine, but it is really upsetting to see him leave.  He was the one who came up with the fandom's name, Hyphen (which stood for the 'link' keeping KAT-TUN together).  He was the one who said he loved the fans very much and during concerts would tell them to stick with KAT-TUN forever.  The reason for the termination of his contract is due to his breaking of the rules Johnny puts in place for the artist.  And Koki's latest scandal was...crazy, so I can see why the company would do it.  But at the same time, I really wish they could've suspended him for the next promotional album or something.  Here are the messages left by the company, Koki himself, and the other members.  From the way it sounded it's like Koki will still remain in Johnny's Ent. but only as a solo artist or he might get demoted to Jr. status (as I've read some other artists have done when they got in serioius trouble).  This is like a second blow to Hyphens.  I believe it will be much harder to replicate the sound of their old songs as Koki was their only true rapper and he usually had a part to himself in alot of the songs.  And while I know Nakamaru or Junnosuke could do it, it still just wouldn't be the same.  To be honest, it was hard for me to listen to them sing their old songs and have to sing Jin's parts.  *sigh*  It's good, however, to see some fans say that they'll continue to support Koki after his departure, but I wonder if there will be ones that will treat him like they do Jin.  :/  I'm sure there are some fans that even might think "At least isn't not my favorite member" or commentors that might say "At least it's not happening to my favorite group".  >__>  To me, I'll continue to consider him as part of KAT-TUN like I do for Jin.  It's also the same thing I do for many of the other groups that I've come to know that also have members to leave--case and point being TVXQ.  Koki, you shall be truly missed as being a part of KAT-TUN.

 

Well, that is all for now.  Until next time...

The Beauty of New Mexico

 

Greetings, fellow readers!  Today, I shall tell you about my interesting moments in the state of New Mexico.  :D  I've been there twice now, and it's really different from where I live right now.  But it's also really cool.  The climate is drier than here, which is great because you don't feel like you're sweltering.  I've visited lots of cool places while in New Mexico as well!  Note: Pictures in links as well as the one below are not mine. 

White Sands
I visited this place on my first trip to New Mexico.  This area is a national monument and is quite a huge area in my opinion.  And it's really white!  XD  While visiting, you can rent out some disks to sit on and slide down the dunes.  That is really fun, but it's tiring walking up the dunes just to slide down them.  Oh, and when I was leaving, I saw a camel there as well. 

Organ Mountains

Next to the place I was staying in is the Organ Mountain range.  It's been a long time since I've seen mountains, so I was really suprised the first time I saw them.  They looked like they were photoshopped into the area.  ^^  And when clouds were going over them, it made them look really creepy.

 

Roswell

Just a good drive away is the famous town of Roswell.  I didn't think I'd be able to see this town with my own eyes.  XD  But everywhere was alot of alien memorabilia.  I visited a museum about the alien crash site back in the 1940s and all the conspiracies that followed.  It was pretty fun. 

 

Ruidoso

I also went to a casion/resort that was in the mountains.  The ride was fairly long, but looking at the scenery change from arid desert to green mountains was really interesting.  Never had I thought that New Mexico is as green as I had previously thought!  On my way there, I rode past a reservation for the Mescalero Apache Indians.  And it was my first time seeing tipis!  ^o^

 

Billy the Kid

The main reason for my second trip to New Mexico was for Billy the Kid who was a famous outlaw that traveled in New Mexico alot.  I visited the area he was caught in, the area he was tried in (called Mesilla), and the place he is now buried (Fort Sumner).  It's rather ironic because there is a cage around his (and his buddies) grave.  It's like they ultimately ended up in the place they tried to avoid--jail. 

 

As an added bonus, I went to a pistachio shop and actually saw hot air balloons floating in the sky!  New Mexico is known for flying them, and it was also another first for me to see them.  Also, the pistachio shop has a statue that is the world's largest pistachio.  ^^  I've been to it once before, and let me tell you...the licorice is amazing!  Nothing like Twizzlers.  *o*

 

New Mexico was a really nice place to visit on both accounts, and if I ever get the chance to go back again, I just might.  I also recommend you all to visit this state as well.  By the way, the main question that you might get asked is "Green or red?"  ^^