On Rascal’s Teriyaki Grill

I had just finished my IS 380 midterm, which focused on Normalization, basic SQL inputs, and relational fluff. IS 380 is a course I had to retake this semester, mainly because I flunked the semester project in the Spring. My main goal this Fall was to redeem for my shortcoming in the project. That is the product of wasteful time management, to keep a long story short. I had snacked on some chocolate treats: brownies that Tina of Disabled Student Services baked for the folks there, as well as a Palmer chocolate, a Snickers, a Twix, a fudge eyeball or two, a CRUNCH bar, and so on. I went over to the Beach Pride Center to redeem a ticket that saw the women’s volleyball team dismiss Fullerton in a hurry, and then straddled over to the Walter Pyramid to the sounds of Oingo Boingo’s “Little Girls” to fill out an application for the Monson Maniacs, and drop in $5.00 dues. My apologies to whomever I asked for the extra buck. I originally said that I was going to use it for printing, but it went to another cause. At least she can rest assured that it will stay on campus. Call it a serendipital good deed.

All of a sudden, my mind wandered off to a place I had never been before. Before the match with Fullerton, some representative from Rascal’s Teriyaki Grill handed me a coupon for a free chicken bowl or small chicken salad. With plenty of time to spare before the next class, I took the Passport D to Rascal’s, located near the corner of Bellflower and Atherton. Now this Rascal’s was actually a small franchise. The Kiyomine brothers founded Rascal’s about a couple decades ago, give or take, in a small yogurt shop in Gardena. As the waves of time passed, eventually what used to be another establishment on the same spot became Rascal’s Long Beach.

As I passed through the doors, one of the attendants there recognized me. I decided to go for the chicken bowl, because it would fill me up and hold me down a bit longer. As I looked around the restaurant (which I classify as fast-casual, along the lines of Chipotle [owned by McDonald’s, as my friend Ian of my university’s anime club pointed out]), I took photos of recent articles about this Rascal’s branch, and savored their teriyaki chicken bowl dish. I quickly approved of it, as ESPN talked about Joe Torre, and future Pro Football Hall-of-Famer Brett Favre, and the upcoming football game between Arizona State and Oregon, and a meaningless rally down in Denver (I mean, who would want to hold a rally for a team that didn’t stand a chance against the curse-free Red Sox? I’d save the money used for the rally for finding quality talent…somewhere).

By the way, Gardena was where my big sister took me a few months ago. I was able to buy a Galaxy Angel doujinshi collection, along with the usual Pocky boxes, and maybe a daifuku or two. God bless that Marukai.

As I left, I saw a tree riding a bicycle. Actually, it was a guy dressed as a tree with a pie tin for a hat wearing a bicycle. I just had to laugh like the mad scientist I was in my 666^th life. It was Halloween, after all.

...rapper's delight?

i said a hip hop the hippie the hippie
to the hip hip hop, a you dont stop
the rock it to the bang bang boogie say up jumped the boogie
to the rhythm of the boogie, the beat

now what you hear is not a test--i'm rappin to the beat
and me, the groove, and my friends are gonna try to move your feet
see i am wonder mike and i like to say hello
to the black, to the white, the red, and the brown, the purple and yellow
but first i gotta bang bang the boogie to the boogie
say up jump the boogie to the bang bang boogie
let's rock, you dont stop
rock the riddle that will make your body rock
well so far youve heard my voice but i brought two friends along
and next on the mike is my man hank
come on, hank, sing that song

check it out, i'm the c-a-s-an-the-o-v-a
and the rest is f-l-y
ya see i go by the code of the doctor of the mix
and these reasons i'll tell ya why
ya see i'm six foot one and i'm tons of fun
and i dress to a t
ya see i got more clothes than muhammad ali and i dress so viciously
i got bodyguards, i got two big cars
that definitely aint the wack
i got a lincoln continental and a sunroof cadillac
so after school, i take a dip in the pool
which really is on the wall
i got a color tv so i can see
the knicks play basketball
hear me talkin bout checkbooks, credit cards
more money than a sucker could ever spend
but i wouldnt give a sucker or a bum from the rucker
not a dime til i made it again
ya go hotel motel whatcha gonna do today (say what)
ya say im gonna get a fly girl gonna get some spankin
drive off in a def oj
everybody go, hotel motel holiday inn
say if your girl starts actin up, then you take her friend
master gee, am I mellow
its on you so what you gonna do

well it's on n on n on on n on
the beat dont stop until the break of dawn
i said m-a-s, t-e-r, a g with a double e
i said i go by the unforgettable name
of the man they call the master gee
well, my name is known all over the world
by all the foxy ladies and the pretty girls
i'm goin down in history
as the baddest rapper there could ever be
now i'm feelin the highs and ya feelin the lows
the beat starts gettin into your toes
ya start poppin ya fingers and stompin your feet
and movin your body while youre sittin in your seat
and the damn ya start doin the freak
i said damn, right outta your seat
then ya throw your hands high in the air
ya rockin to the rhythm, shake your derriere
ya rockin to the beat without a care
with the sureshot m.c.s for the affair
now, im not as tall as the rest of the gang
but i rap to the beat just the same
i dot a little face and a pair of brown eyes
all im here to do ladies is hypnotize
singin on n n on n on n on
the beat dont stop until the break of dawn
singin on n n on n on on n on
like a hot buttered a pop da pop da pop dibbie dibbie
pop da pop pop ya dont dare stop
come alive yall gimme what ya got
i guess by now you can take a hunch
and find that i am the baby of the bunch
'but that's okay i still keep in stride
cause all i'm here to do is just wiggle your behind
singin on n n on n on n on
the beat dont stop until the break of dawn
singin on n n on n on on n on
rock rock yall throw it on the floor
im gonna freak ya here im gonna feak ya there
im gonna move you outta this atmosphere
cause im one of a kind and ill shock your mind
ill put t-t-tickets in your behind
i said 1-2-3-4, come on girls get on the floor
a-come alive, yall a-gimme what ya got
cause im guaranteed to make you rock
i said 1-2-3-4 tell me wonder mike what are you waitin for?
i said a hip hop the hippie to the hippie
the hip hip hop, a you dont stop
the rock it to the bang bang boogie say up jumped the boogie
to the rhythm of the boogie, the beat
skiddlee beebop a we rock a scoobie doo
and guess what america we love you
cause ya rock and ya roll with so much soul
you could rock till you're a hundred and one years old
i dont mean to brag i dont mean to boast
but we like hot butter on our breakfast toast
rock it up baby bubbah
baby bubbah to the boogie da bang bang da boogie
to the beat beat, its so unique
come on everybody and dance to the beat



i said a hip hop the hippie the hippie
to the hip hip hop, a you dont stop
rock it out baby bubbah to the boogie da bang bang
the boogie to the boogie da beat

i said i cant wait til the end of the week
when im rappin to the rhythm of a groovy beat
and attempt to raise your body heat
just blow your mind so that you cant speak
and do a thing but a rock and shuffle your feet
and let it change up to a dance called the freak
and when ya finally do come in to your rhythmic beat
rest a little while so ya dont get weak
i know a man named hank
he has more rhymes than a serious bank
so come on hank sing that song
to the rhythm of the boogie da bang bang da bong

well, im imp the dimp the ladies pimp
the women fight for my delight
but im the grandmaster with the three mcs
that shock the house for the young ladies
and when you come inside, into the front
you do the freak, spank, and do the bump
and when the sucker mcs try to prove a point



we're treacherous trio, we're the serious joint
a from sun to sun and from day to day
i sit down and write a brand new rhyme
because they say that miracles never cease
i've created a devastating masterpiece
i'm gonna rock the mike til you cant resist
everybody, i say it goes like this
well i was comin home late one dark afternoon
a reporter stopped me for a interview
she said she's heard stories and she's heard fables
that i'm vicious on the mike and the turntables
this young reporter i did adore
so i rocked a vicious rhyme like i never did before
she said damn fly guy im in love with you
the casanova legend must have been true
i said by the way baby what's your name
said i go by the name of lois lane
and you could be my boyfiend you surely can
just let me quit my boyfriend called superman
i said he's a fairy i do suppoose
flyin through the air in pantyhose
he may be very sexy or even cute
but he looks like a sucker in a blue and red suit
i said you need a man who's got finesse
and his whole name across his chest
he may be able to fly all through the night
but can he rock a party til the early light
he cant satisfy you with his little worm
but i can bust you out with my super sperm
i go do it, i go do it, i go do it, do it , do it
an i'm here an i'm there i'm big bang hank, im everywhere
just throw your hands up in the air
and party hardy like you just dont care
let's do it dont stop yall a tick a tock yall you dont stop
go hotel motel what you gonna do today(say what)
im gonna get a fly girl gonna get some spank drive off in a def oj
everybody go hotel motel holiday inn
you say if your girl starts actin up then you take her friend
i say skip, dive, what can i say
i cant fit em all inside my oj
so i just take half and bust them out
i give the rest to master gee so he could shock the house

it was twelve o'clock one friday night
i was rockin to the beat and feelin all right
everybody was dancin on the floor
doin all the things they never did before
and then this fly fly girl with a sexy lean
she came into the bar, she came into the scene
as she traveled deeper inside the room
all the fellas checked out her white sasoons
she came up to the table, looked into my eyes
then she turned around and shook her behind
so i said to myself, its time for me to release
my vicious rhyme i call my masterpiece
and now people in the house this is just for you
a little rap to make you boogaloo
now the group ya hear is called phase two
and let me tell ya somethin we're a helluva crew
once a week we're on the street
just a-cuttin' the jams and making it free
for you to party ya got to have the movies
so we'll get right down and give you the groove
for you to dance you gotta get hype
so we'll get right down for you tonight
now the system's on and the girls are there
ya definitely have a rockin affair
but let me tell ya somethin there's still one fact
that to have a party ya got to have a rap
so when the party's over you're makin it home
and tryin to sleep before the break of dawn
and while ya sleepin ya start to dream
and thinkin how ya danced on the disco scene
my name appears in your mind
yeah, a name you know that was right on time
it was phase two just a doin a do
rockin ya down cause ya know we could
to the rhythm of the beat that makes ya freak
come alive girls get on your feet
to the rhythm of the beat to the beat the beat
to the double beat beat that it makes ya freak
to the rhythm of the beat that says ya go on
on n on into the break of dawn
now i got a man comin on right now
he's guaranteed to throw down
he goes by the name of wonder mike
come on wonder mike do what ya like


like a can of beer that's sweeter than honey
like a millionaire that has no money
like a rainy day that is not wet
like a gamblin fiend that does not bet
like dracula with out his fangs
like the boogie to the boogie without the boogie bang
like collard greens that dont taste good
like a tree that's not made out of wood
like goin up and not comin down
is just like the beat without the sound no sound
to the beat beat, ya do the freak
everybody just rock and dance to the beat


have you ever went over a friends house to eat
and the food just aint no good
i mean the macaroni's soggy the peas are mushed
and the chicken tastes like wood
so you try to play it off like you think you can
by sayin that youre full
and then your friend says momma he's just being polite
he aint finished uh uh that's bull
so your heart starts pumpin and you think of a lie
and you say that you already ate
and your friend says man there's plenty of food
so you pile some more on your plate
while the stinky foods steamin your mind starts to dreamin
of the moment that it's time to leave
and then you look at your plate and your chickens slowly rottin
into something that looks like cheese
oh so you say that's it i got to leave this place
i dont care what these people think
im just sittin here makin myself nauseous
with this ugly food that stinks
so you bust out the door while its still closed
still sick from the food you ate
and then you run to the store for quick relief
from a bottle of kaopectate
and then you call your friend two weeks later
to see how he has been
and he says i understand about the food
baby bubbah but we're still friends
with a hip hop the hippie to the hippie
the hip hip a hop a you dont stop the rockin
to the bang bang boogie
say up jump the boogie to the rhythm of the boogie the beat
i say hank can ya rock
can ya rock to the rhythm that just dont stop
can ya hip me to the shoobie doo
i said come on
i go to the halls and then ring the bell
because i am the man with the clientele
and if ya ask me why i rock so well
a big bang, i got clientele
and from the time i was only six years old
i never forgot what i was told
it was the best advice that i ever had
it came from my wise dear old dad
he said sit down punk i wanna talk to you
and dont say a word until i'm through
now there's a time to laugh a time to cry
a time to live and a time to die
a time to break and a time to chill
to act civilized or act real ill
but whatever ya do in your lifetime
ya never let a mc steal your rhyme
so from sixty six til this very day
ill always remember what he had to say
so when the sucker mcs try to chump my style
i let them know that i'm versatile
i got style finesse and a little black book
that's filled with rhymes and i know you wanna look
but there's a thing that separates you from me
and that's called originality
because my rhymes are on from what you heard
i didnt even bite and not a god d--m word
and i say a little more later on tonight
so the sucker mc's can bite all night
a tick a tock yall a beat beat yall
a lets rock yall ya dont stop
ya go hotel motel whatcha gonna do today (say what)
ya say im gonna get a fly girl gonna get some spankin
drive off in a def oj
everybody go hotel motel holiday inn
ya say if your girl starts actin up then you take her friends
a like that yall to the beat yall
beat beat yall ya dont stop
a master gee am I mellow?
its on you so whatcha gonna do

well like johnny carson on the late show
a like frankie croker in stereo
well like the barkay's singin holy ghost
the sounds to throw down they're played the most

its like my man captain sky
whose name he earned with his super sperm
we rock and we dont stop
get off yall im here to give you whatcha got
to the beat that it makes you freak
and come alive girl get on your feet
a like a perry mason without a case
like farrah fawcett without her face

like the barkays on the mike
like gettin right down for you tonight
like movin your body so ya dont know how
right to the rhythm and throw down

like comin alive to the master gee
the brother who rocks so viciously
i said the age of one my life begun
at the age of two i was doin the do
at the age of three it was you and me
rockin to the sounds of the master gee
at the age of four i was on the floor
givin all the freaks what they bargained for
at the age of five i didnt take no jive
with the master gee its all the way live
at the age of six i was a pickin up sticks
rappin to the beat my stick was fixed
at the age of seven i was rockin in heaven dontcha know i went off
i got right on down to the beat you see
gettin right on down makin all the girls
just take of their clothes to the beat the beat
to the double beat beat that makes you freak
at the age of eight i was really great
cause every night you see i had a date
at the age of nine i was right on time
cause every night i had a party rhyme
goin on n n on n on on n on
the beat dont stop until the break of dawn
a sayin on n n on n on on n on...
like a hot buttered de pop de pop de pop
a saying on n n on n on on n on
cause i'm a helluva man when i'm on the mike
i am the definate feast delight
cause i'm a helluva man when i'm on the mike
i am the definate feast delight
come to the master gee you see
the brother who rocks so viciously

Saimoe 2007 Semifinal 1

Saimoe 2007 Semifinal 1

We now get to the penultimate rounds of this epic Saimoe 2007 competition. Upsets, voter fraud, and close finishes to go with early blowouts have been the main story of this competition. But now we wrap up the first of two semifinals.

The results are in.

100% precincts reporting

Rena Ryuuguu 1209









Nagi Sanzenin 1301

Nagi Sanzenin advances to the Saimoe 2007 Final

Analysis:

From this point on, this tournament is Nagi's to lose. She can claim the honor of defeating Shana, Konata Izumi, and now Rena Ryuuguu in succession. This is a quality moekko, and in spite of her shortcomings, a renaissance girl. She is a mangaka. An artist. A cosplayer. An experienced gamer. A devoted lover. A debutante. A wealthy, yet humble rich girl. Nagi is someone who can read between the lines so easily, and so quickly, that it's second nature for her.

Obviously the voters did not want an all-Higurashi final, but one would think that some Rena sympathizers would ride on Rika Furude's ticket as she faces Shinku. But, we have seen stranger things happen throughout this tournament, and the madness isn't over just yet. While conventional wisdom would make this tournament Nagi's to lose, conventional wisdom can also be seen as a lie and, perhaps a jinx.

One of Nagi's rivals and Saimoe 2007 participant, Hinagiku Katsura, who was eliminated in the second round, won the Korean version of the competition this year (there is also a Thai version, and other regional competitions similar to Saimoe). A victory in the November 3 final will make it a successful coup d'etat for Kenjiro Hata and the Hayate campaign.

The Mack attack...is back.

From Stephen Tsai of the Honolulu Advertiser

Greg McMackin was defensive coordinator when the University of Miami had the nation's No. 1 defense in 1993 and 1994.
McMackin also was the coordinator when the Seattle Seahawks were a fantasy-football owner's dream, scoring an NFL-record 14 defensive touchdowns in 1998.
He was at the defensive helm in 1999, when Hawai'i produced the greatest single-season turnaround in Division I-A history.
But in all of those years and through all of those stops, his defenses never had a better game than the Warriors' 50-13 victory over New Mexico State Saturday.
That was the first time in 14 years that his defense checked off every box in a nine-goal list.
"I'm so proud of them," said McMackin, who returned to UH this season after spending the past eight years with Texas Tech and the San Francisco 49ers.
While his Miami defenses were topping NCAA statistical charts, McMackin decided he wanted a more precise barometer. That's when he crafted a list in which the goals are: to win; hold opponents to no more than 17 points, 3.4 yards per rush, and 37-percent-conversion rate on third down; not allow a rush of more than 19 yards or a completed pass of more than 29 yards; not relinquish a touchdown after a UH turnover; force at least three turnovers, and score a defensive touchdown.
"He's been using that since he was No. 1 with Miami," head coach June Jones said. "To finally meet all of the goals is an impressive deal."
Defensive tackle Michael Lafaele said: "I know coach Mac is excited, and that he's proud of us. I knew our defense was playing well, and guys were making big plays. It was a testament to how hard we worked in practice and during the summer."
McMackin said he came up the points-allowed limit because "17 is two touchdowns and a field goal. You figure if you don't give up more than that, you have a good chance to win."
He said it was a better gauge to use rushing average instead of rushing total. It is noteworthy that none of the goals involve total yards.
"Turnovers are the big thing," said Adam Leonard, who has scored on two of his four interception returns this year. "We put a lot of focus on how we play on third down, and making those key stops."
McMackin never changed the goals even though college offenses are more prolific than the NFL's.
"It really puts into perspective how well our defense is playing," Leonard said.
This season, the Warriors are holding offenses to 2.9 yards per rush and 30-percent conversions on third down. They have intercepted 16 passes, five of which were run back for touchdowns, and forced five lost fumbles.
The goals are listed on a large grid posted in the locker room. "H" stickers are used to fill in the blanks, like chips on a bingo card.
The Warriors had reached eight of the nine goals twice in the first seven games.
"If we didn't give up that late touchdown in Idaho, we would have had enough," Jones said.
Like an in-progress no-hitter in baseball, nobody talked about a perfect score during Saturday's game. But the last puka was filled when JoPierre Davis scored on an interception return with 3:42 to play.
"I'm happy we accomplished it," defensive tackle Fale Laeli said. "We came, we saw, we conquered."

...men.

Reamed tenfold

botchii's a hungry MFer.

That's the name of the approval bot of MiniTokyo that either announces that I have been given membership, or (more frequently) if a submission I sent to MiniTokyo has been deleted. What surprised me the past few days was that out of about 14 submissions (monochrome and color scans) that have been submitted to Minitokyo, only four of them survived the first 24 hours of being posted.

Actually, one of those four is still going through the first 24 hours of being posted. Now, let's be honest: the moderators at MiniTokyo are looking for quality submissions that have been uploaded and deserve to stay on MT for the long haul. On MT, I am known as Hachiko, and on AnimePaper, another site I frequent, they know me as jsalazar.

As Hachiko, I have been a proud member of MT for over three years, and I have seen members come and members go. But based on the bad news from that hungry botchii, I have made a startling, yet eye-opening discovery: Galaxy Angel as a manga is not providing consistent excellent hi-quality scan opportunities. Contrary to the submissions from Galaxy Angel 3rd Volume 2, Volume 4 is proving to be more miss and less hit. The only ones the mods on MT are looking for to stay are full page monochrome sketches, and color scans that feature the characters shown in the full.

Regardless, as of now, I have posted over a hundred scans on MT, to go with a wallpaper and several doujins, and a bevy of credits that followed. But I compare to the process at MiniTokyo to an American Idol audition: only a select few can go through to the next round, while the majority will be sent home.

Not that I have any complaints about a majority of my recent self-scanned monochrome submissions being removed. The last thing I want is botchii to munch up my entire gallery of contributions to MiniTokyo. All the hard work..eaten, eaten.

Bloody hell.

Saimoe 2007 Quarterfinal 4

Saimoe 2007 Quarterfinal 4

And then there were four...

Shinku 1697









Tsukasa Hiiragi 1639

Shinku advances to the Saimoe 2007 semifinals, and will face Rika Furude.

Analysis:

Believe it or not, the Rozen Maiden cause is still alive. But it isn't Suiseiseki that is delivering the goods. It's the Reiner Rubin, Shinku, who is flying the flag for the dolls, dismissing Lucky Star's best to also-rans.

This year's Saimoe 2007 contest will go down as one that was marred by proxy votes, also known as "fake votes." Vote fraud from all corners of the globe claimed the fates of many a competitor at Saimoe. Three of the semifinalists, Rika Furude, Rena Ryuuguu, and now Shinku, have benefited from the adjustments that followed. Personally, I do not know if I had played a part in it, but this adds to the mystique of Saimoe 2007. And we're not even done yet!

This is why you follow the rules when voting. Nothing is certain. Conventional wisdom can be thrown out the window. And cheaters will never prosper, so winning at all costs can be thrown out the you-know-what as well.


So now we have our semifinal rounds set.

October 31
Rena Ryuuguu vs. Nagi Sanzenin

November 1
Rika Furude vs. Shinku

Saimoe 2007 Quarterfinal 3

Saimoe 2007 Quarterfinal 3

The results are in, and the prospects of a one-series final are looking very good.

100% precincts reporting

Rika Furude 1473









Louise Francoise Le Blanc De La Valliere 1191

Rika Furude advances to the Saimoe 2007 semifinals

Analysis:

The chances of the Saimoe 2007 final being a one-series showdown between Rena and Rika are looking very, very good. In Rika's way will be either Tsukasa Hiiragi or Shinku in the semifinal on All Saints Day.

We're down to five, with one spot to be determined. Vote now, because you make the call.

Saimoe 2007 Quarterfinal 2

Saimoe 2007 Quarterfinal 2

The results are in for this epic quarterfinal...

100% precincts reporting

Konata Izumi 1272








Nagi Sanzenin 1334

Nagi Sanzenin advances to the Saimoe 2007 semifinals, and will face Rena Ryuuguu.

Analysis:

If you are going to have separation, you'd better hang on to it, or it can disappear in a hurry. Luckily for the flagship character from Hayate the Combat Butler, that never happened.

Rena Ryuuguu's going to be feeling the pressure in the semifinal that will be held in a few days. She is facing Nagi Sanzenin, one of the big stories of this tournament. With victories over Shana and now Konata Izumi, can the Level 5 Fighter with the cleaver slash her way into the November 3rd final? Or will Milady take it from here? You make the call.

Two more semifinal spots to be determined...

Saimoe 2007 Quarterfinal 1

Saimoe 2007 Quarterfinal 1

And here we go again with the results from the quarterfinals…

100% precincts reporting

Rena Ryuuguu 1474

Nanoha Takamachi 1436

Rena Ryuuguu advances to the Saimoe 2007 semifinals

Analysis:

And the flagship yanderekko from Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni continues her march toward the Saimoe title in a close race between veterans to kick off the quarters. She will face either Konata Izumi or Nagi Sanzenin.