*TekkieBrek

Well, after coming out of my latest bout of the cold, which had me out for a week (luckily during a reading week so I'm not too behind in my work), my Japanese classes will begin the preparations for going to Japan later this year, which I'll need in all fairness because...well...it's beginning to look pretty daunting.

Now, spending a while in a foreign country is generally a bit intimidating, particularly when the country in question is almost entirely different from your nation, i.e. spending a week in, say, the Phillipines is a different situation than spending a week in America if you're a Brit. With Japan however, I'll be there for a full uni year maximum, and it seems there's a lot more to getting there than a 1-year Student VISA, money exchange and flight. A lot of it is pretty bureaucratic- application forms, passport photos, papers and whatnot- which is pretty much the area that concerns me most. The culture shock will come with the destination and is something I will have to adjust to, as well as learning the different customs and habits, but it's just settling my rut when I'm there that irks me- gaining and maintaining a bank account, what to buy and what not to buy, which airport to fly to, how to get to my destination from the airport (none of JMU's partner uni's in Japan are that close to Tokyo, so it's not really a case of flying to Narita and jumping on the subway) and so on.

With all that in mind, I still have 3 months and the rest of February to prepare via the classes, which should hopefully answer my anxieties. After all, all the people who have been on my course in the previous years managed to get over there and back fine, so there's no reason for me to falter after their stead, or at least not deliberately. That said, once the uni year is over, and once all questions have been answered, my mind will be at ease...though it'll feel much more at ease once I find myself there alive, well and with luggage and bank details (hey, cash is cash) accounted for.

After that, any other challenges I may encounter over there will seem like a doddle...and may actually help my grade via the Language Learning Log I have to submit to JMU per semester ('what words/phrases do you hear most often?', etc), as well as the oral dossier- find something to form a presentation about (given solely in Japanese) based on the year over there. But we'll soon see what happens there.

Aside from that things have been relatively fine on my end, though haven't had a good long chat to my MSN friends in a while *cue a tiny violin*. Will have to catch up with them ASAP. I've also been planning a little holiday for myself and my luscious lovely Leanne for June. I won't say where just yet- let's just say we're getting someone a birthday present . Once we're on holiday we'll take plenty of photos, so you'll see the sights and sounds of the place on here soon enough. No doubt you'll get plenty of images of Japan too if all goes well

REQUEST LIST SO FAR:
Feel free to make a request!

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1- Full figured harem/school girl pin-up - DONE
2- Giantess Series -
1st Pic- DONE- WIP Preview
2nd Pic- DONE -WIP Preview
3rd Pic- DONE -50% Finished WIP Preview
4th Pic- DONE - Rough Draft
5th Pic- DONE
6th Pic- DONE
7th Pic- DONE
8th Pic- 18% Complete
9th Pic (Conclusion) - Pending

- Sandstorm line-up
1- Kyoden Hayami - DONE w/ original scrap image
2- Yumi Kawashima - DONE
3- Solaris Salinas - DONE
4- Dave/Damon Heat - DONE
5- Adikkt - DONE

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1- Alexandra Kraven OC corset pin-up - DONE
2- Ryu Hayabusa and Ninja Marta - DONE
3- M. Haylo - DONE
4- Kill Bill Style: Ryu Hayabusa and Ninja Marta- 15% Complete - 15% WIP Preview
5- Kristel Ninja Marta w/ Hayabusa- Pending

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1- Jay OC drawing - DONE
2- Demon Fia OC horror colour pic. - DONE


1- Jean-Genie - DONE


1- Selected Photo:Lust As A Drawing - DONE


1- The Manga-Off; Ouran High School Host Club- Tamaki w/ Haruhi In Ichigo Mew Mew outfit- Pending


1- Portrait - DONE


1- Pencil Sketch - DONE

Josh (Uni Friend)
Vulcan Raven- DONE

Leanne (Uni Friend)
Kyoto Temple- Pending

Paula (friend of Leanne)
Spider-Man Mosaic- DONE - 50% WIP Preview

PROJECTS:
James Clephane-Cameron, an old high-school and 6th form friend, has provided me with an interesting proposition- something which should interest fantasy fans out there (Tolkien-D&D-Warcraft ones, not Final Fantasy ones). He requires someone to illustrate some character races for his RPG project and, well, guess who he asked? Here's how it breaks down (like requests, it'll have a progress rating beside it).

Viking (standard viking complete w/ horned helmet) - Pending.

Celt (tartan-clad warrior)- Pending.

Elf (tall, jewellery-covered forest folk)- Pending.

Troll (Orcs in Romanesque outfits- yeah, this time, the green guys are the supposedly civilised, not the typical barbarians- this is gonna be fun to draw)- Pending.

Vampire (Romany/Russian look rather than Castlevania Bishie)- Pending.

Beastkin (Middle Eastern Anthro's)- Pending.