Friday 26 February 2010

It has been Confirmed!!!!!!

It was just confirmed this morning that The FlaminDessa will be speaking on Medical Manga for 20 minutes at the Comics and medicine Symposium on June the 17th!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CELEBRATE!!!!!!!!!

Okay, now that the jubilation is here, I've decided to do lots of (relevant) manga reading and hopefully I'll be able to concoct a not-so-overly-excited presentation.

I don't want to burden my friends, but if some of them want to go, then you have to book a place and tickets for students are 25 pounds. I don't want to make them pay that much just to hear me talk manga when it's all free on my blog. But contact me if you want to come along (you know my e-mail address).

http://graphicmedicine.org/#/conference-2010/4536634000

Thursday 25 February 2010

A meal between Life or Death

So when the rare opportunity for me to go out during revision occurred. I took my time and went to a Japanese restaurant for some noodles, as is my form of rebellion.

The menu did not state that the noodles would have sesame seeds, and so I was shocked when the plate came with freshly garnished noodles with sesame seeds. I should have asked for a new plate, but I the genes that I inherited from my mum where screaming 'THAT'S A WASTE OF PRECIOUS FOOD!' So the waitress got the sesame off, which was well done, but I ended up nervously searching each portion of my noodles for sesame seeds.

My form of rebelliousness had turned into a life or death situation.

I managed to extract about 10 seeds, I did not get a reaction, but I had a huge dose of adrenaline just from the fear. When I asked for the bill, the waitress said £4.90, and I didn't correct her.

Tuesday 16 February 2010

I Remember

I remember when we used to drive back home from visiting my grandmother's house, it was late at night so me and Miss. Short Fuse lay down opposite each other in the back seats so that our feet were facing each other, I used to tickled her feet and she hated it! By the time we reached home, I always remembered someone carrying me into the house...

I remember when Miss. Short Fuse was so angry one morning when she was 7 or 8 that she threw a kitchen knife at me (a small one), it hit the bridge of my nose and nothing else, she got toooooold!

I remember when i dared to try and wake up Miss Pain in the Ass one morning for school... she slapped me with her windmill arms in her sleep.

I remember when my mum played with me after she brought me home from nursery.

I remember glazing a hand made pot with PVA glue in Year 6.

I remember laughing hard during one cold sahoor during Ramadan, while still trying to stuff food into my face.

I remember my mum asking me questions like 'What day is it today' and 'what is 9 plus 14' in a bid to make me wake up for school.. it was painful thinking.

I remember when me Miss. Short Fuse and Miss. Pain in the Ass made a sort of victory dance when we heard my dad finished his PhD, it was odd cus I didn't know he was doing one at the time, nor what a PhD was.

I remember crying for so long when Miss. Hepburn's mum told my mum over the phone that Miss. Hepburn couldn't come to my 8th birthday party.

I remember being really surprised when I was awarded 4th prize for best 'Wood Project' when I was 10, I still have the prize.

I remember listening to 'Numb' by linkin park in the year 11 common room with Miss. Eyebrows and Miss. Nozi jumping up and down to it.

I remember drawing to pass the lunch hour, I always forgot to eat my lunch.

I remember when Miss. Short Fuse got so mad when I threw her pen down the staircase, that she threw my Harry Potter book down the staircase too...

I remember being so nervous during my Year 3 Quran Competition, especially when the panel asked me to recite a sura I didn't know. I got second place, a Saudi girl got first. It was a Saudi school after all.

I remember openly reading Harry Potter 6 at the back of biology class during year 13 to a punch of listeners, I couldn't have been anymore obvious, I somehow got an A in that module.

I remember when Miss Short Fuse and I, from as early as I can remember, would fight tooth and nail for absolutely no reason, for hours on end. we ended up with red patches on arms and legs as well as several scratches. Mum just carried on washing the dishes. She once looked up when Miss. Pain in the Ass knocked out Miss. Short fuse's tooth.

I remember when mum would force all three of her daughters to wear matching clothes.

I remember learning how to do wadou at school through a song that I've forgotten.

I remember dad making me start writing arabic from the margin as I had a habbit of wandering from the page, making sure my 'rih' was appropriatly round so it didn't just look like a straight line. I remember how he tried to teach me how to pronounciate the vouels like the Dumma, i couldn't stop laughing when he tried to teach me that! I was 4 :D

I remember not being able to sleep before my first day of uni, I remember being completely mad that year. I now cringe in embarrassment everytime I remember those times.

I remember when me and Miss. Short Fuse were playing 'restaurant' with a bunch of mixed toys, and Miss. Pain in the ass asked to join, I said yes as long as she helped clearing up, she left almost immediately after we all finished playing.

I remember how much fun me and Miss. Short Fuse had when we made crowns and wands with super octagons and played 'Queens and 'babies' I was the queen, she was the baby. We had a parade in the living room with random blankets made as capes, not forgetting to wake our wands and keep our crowned heads high.

I remember racing with Miss. Pain in the Ass to pick up the ringing phone, mum always made sure she got there before us.

I remember so much more.... but I can't remember now.

Wednesday 10 February 2010

Manga of the Month- Febuary

So, manga time! I know everyone is waiting in so much anticipation for this post! So lets begin:

This month I want to write about a manga that was drawn by the same mangaka as 'Otoyomegatari' (see manga of the month January) it is called 'Emma' and is surprisingly set in 1895 London! The story is about a maid (named Emma) and a gentleman falling in love and the hardships they face to get recognised and marry. Okay so I'm being ultra girly here with the whole 'love trasgresses all bounds' but I really did enjoy this story very very much, the romance was not cheesy or overly 'magical' like some other mangas and novels like to portray. The drawings were very dedicated to the setting of turn of the century britain, showing the mangaka did her research very well, despite being a self-proclaimed london addict. The picture below shows all the merchendise that was how it looked like in 1985, something I never thought a manga would show me. visit this link for more info http://www.mangafox.com/manga/emma_bangaihen/v02/c010/32.html

So why should you read Emma? not only are the drawings very beautiful (though not as great as otoyomegatari) but the setting is a faithful adaptation to the actual late victorian life. Add a controversial romance with background storylines of the hardships of orphans, and presto! You've got a hit manga!

Monday 1 February 2010

Manga Block

I've made a promise to Miss Short Fuse that i won't read manga until the exams are finished, that's one month away! it's been 2 days and I'm already crabby. :( I don't know how I'll survive this.

On the other hand: Egypt won the African cup of nations for the 3rd time in a row, we get to keep the cup! It was a grueling match against Ghana and they played very well. We on the other hand didn't behave too well.