durendal

Continuing on.... I'd like to feature a phrase that many people might have heard everytime a character swears revenge. 許せない [ゆるせない] (Yurusenai) - Unforgivable. To give you an insight on Japanese culture, not forgiving is a very grave action for a Japanese. Not forgiving might be an equivalent to a "damn you" in english culture, or even harsher. Which is why when we see the loved ones of an anime character get killed, you always hear the word "yurusenai". The way I see it, it seems most english speakers treat the "unforgivable" line rather lightly, as the phrase itself denotes a much heavier meaning. Thus adding "zettai" 絶対 before the phrase gives a much more extreme expression, as this means "absolutely unforgivable". This is also why when people makes mistake, you always hear them say "yurushite" 許して, or "please forgive me" putting their hands in front in a choping position (pinky in front, thumb inside). This is also one of the mannerisms that Japanese have. The root word for this is "yurusu" 許す or "allow".

Kenji, if you want to ask me to translate from Japanese to English, then I don't think I would mind, since the fanfic would be beneficial to most people. However, if you want me to translate the fanfic from English to Japanese, then I guess you would have to convince me really hard first before I proceed with that kind of undertaking, as I don't see the point in translating it into Japanese.

Yes, you wrap them like how you would wrap a taco, then twist the edges to seal all the openings. I've done some research and I found out that Chinese Leeks are also called Garlic Chives. I may have made a mistake in calling them leeks, but what we really use are garlic chives. We usually call it "Kuchay" so I sometimes get confused on what its equivalent name in english is. The chives gives it the distinct aroma when you eat it. And yes, chicken powder is dried chicken stock. We ordinarily use the commercialized one than make it the traditional way, which is very time consuming and inefficient.

Hmm... okay, but I'm not sure if the ingredients would match as to what you call them, but here goes. Also, the ingredients I use will usually make 100 pcs of dumplings. So it's up to you to divide it down to how much you want. Also, the amount of the ingredient is approximate since I don't use any measuring instruments when I do this. Just use how much you feel is right. Here's what you need. For the wrapping 800g all purpose flour A pinch of salt half cup of water For the fillings 1kg ground pork 1/2 kg chinese leek 4 tablespoon vegetable oil 2 tablespoon chicken powder 1 teaspoon black pepper powder First you need to make the wrapper. Add water and salt to the flour to make the dough. You'll probably need only 3/4 of the 800 grams since you will need the rest of the flour when you put the fillings on. Mix the dough until you get the right consistency. It should be a little sticky but firm. When small portions stick to your hand, it means you have too much water, thus you add more flour. After done mixing thoroughly, it should be one big lump of dough. When your done, set aside and cover with a moist tower (not wet, as it will ruin the consistency. Just a little moist so it won't dry off). Then for the fillings, dice the chinese leek into very small pieces and mix it in with the ground pork. Also put in the chicken power and black pepper. Make sure that they are evenly mixed. Set aside and heat the 4 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a pan. When heated, pour the hot vegetable oil into the ground pork and mix it again. This will semi-cook the fillings, turning the red color into a light grayish color. Now this would be the difficult part. Slice off a small portion (roughly around 2 inches in diameter) of the dough and make a wrap out of it. What I usually do is roll the small part until it becomes a long stick with around half inch in girth. Slice off around a half inch thus making a dough roughly half inch in diameter. remember the unused flour I mentioned earlier, you're going to need it here. Sprinkle the flour to the dough to prevent it from sticking in the table. Use a rolling pin to flatten the small dough until you find the right thickness for the wrapper. Ideally, that small lump will turn into a flat circular dough roughly 3 inches in diameter. Then put a teaspoon of filling into it and wrap. Take note that this part of the process needs a little skill. It's very difficult to explain in writting but much more easier to demonstrate. I've taught it to some people and they have difficulty putting it together. But since we're not looking into aesthetics here, you could just wrap it how you wish. As an alternative to the preparation of the wrappings, when you cut off a small portion from the main dough you can simply flattem it with a rolling pin to the right thickness and use the mouth of a cup to cut out the wrapper, like how you do in baking. This takes lesser time but uses up more dough. You can recycle the unused dough back into the main dough but it is not recommended. Repeat the third process until you use up all the dough or fillings. You can boil this or fry it, but don't steam. Boiling this is fairly easy, but for frying, just put a small amount of oil, cover and occasionally whisk some water on top to cook the top part. If you've seen how a gyoza is cooked, it is similar. Depending on the amount of dough and fillings you use, you will usually end up with excess fillings or excess dough. For the excess dough, simply flatten it and mix with a little chinese leek, add some butter and and then fry. it makes a good substitute for pancakes. For excess fillings, simply mix it with an egg, and turn it to something like a omelette. Well, I do hope you understand my explanations. It's much easier to show it to you than to explain it. Feel free to ask if there is anything you don't understand.

Ooh, do we see a future queen for the banana empire? I certainly do hope that things would go smoothly for the both of you. But nothing still beats talking in person face to face. Video chat seems so monotonous for me. Well, pardon my butting in.

I'm really sorry Salkafar, but I just can't resist this, but whatever you do, don't let any women go near that collider! BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! Ahem. Anyway, I'm sure as soon as we discover any new source of energy particles, we'd be able to develop new technology around it. Perhaps when we discover the Higgs Boson particle, we might be able to develop boson barriers. (or bossom barrier )

I see. I on the other hand, don't see cooking as a means to prepare what I eat, rather as an art that needs to combine aesthetics and flavor on the finished product. Nowadays, I seldom spend time in the Kitchen, but when I do, I usually take my time to make sure that everything is prepared accordingly down to the last ingredient. I'm quite meticulous when it comes to cooking ingredients. Dumplings are actually my specialty. And I am proud to say that it tastes better than the ones that I've tasted from other restaurants. (We live in chinatown, so you have to imagine how many chinese restaurants there are in the area.) So far, I have only been to 1 establishment that is able to compete with my Dumplings.

We usually use non-stick pans and uses the water from the vegetable to cook themselves. Sometimes, when cooked with meat, the oil comes from meat itself. Button mushroom does look logical here, since Shiitake mushrooms have different uses and wouldn't really match the other vegetables due to its size and texture. Of course unless you minced the Shiitake into strips. Chinese cooking uses very little oil (little in a sense that is compared to deep frying that is). If we do use oil, it's usually vegetable oil, and we start off by frying off garlic, peppers and some herbs, before adding the main ingredients. Oil is most often used when cooking fast meals. But for cuisine type meals, steaming is usually the most preferred method of cooking, or a mixture of multiple cooking meathods. For example, boiling meat to soften it, then fry to give it a crispy texture, then pouring sauteed sauce to give additional flavor.

Transformers 3? Meh, it's not something I would look out for. As long as the leading lady is hot, I'd watch it.

So, how'd it tastes? Also, what kind of mushrooms did you use? Button or Shiitake? I'm somewhat curious since you used oil to cook vegetables. We rarely use oil to cook vegetable.

I'm quite sure that the SIC Stronger was already released. I just saw it in the shop yesterday when I picked up some toys.

If no Megan Fox, that would mean they would replace her with someone hotter.

I think I remember another series that I enjoyed. Nodame Cantabile. It was originally a manga, then there was an anime series for this, then a drama. The Drama recently concluded with the second theatrical version which was released just last april. The series is about Nodame, a girl who is really good at playing piano using widow, but terrible in reading notes. The Male protagonist is Chiaki, a genius pianist that aspires to be a famous conductor. The show highlights the meeting of Nodame and Chiaki and their funny antics of reaching their goal. I would recommend the first season simply because it has a light hearted tone to the series as well as funny as hell. This series made me appreciate more my love for classical music, with pieces from Bach and Rachmaninoff.

Well, even though I have only seen 1 episode of Kamen Rider W, I pre-ordered mine just a few minutes ago. SRP is around $72. And also got me one of these: http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/product.aspx?product=DSG10039&mode=retail

I never really did see all the episodes of Tekkaman Blade. What I liked about the show was the concept and the design of the space knights. As for the story, I really can't say, but based on bits and pieces of episodes that I saw, it was rather gloomy. A bunch of people banding together in their plight for survival in a desparate situation. Yuu Yuu, that I completely watched. That is the series that made Togashi the legend that he is. And publishers already coined up the term "togashism", where authors get ridiculous pay with little output. I just wish he'd stop being lazy and continue with his Hunter X Hunter manga. After watching Yuu Yuu, you might want to try and watch Hunter X Hunter. Even if the manga is not finished, you won't get fillers and the series will not end with a cliffhanger. Unlike other anime, Hunter X Hunter stays extremely loyal to the manga, and ends in the last finished arc of the manga. Any succeeding arcs of the manga are released as original video animation. So far there are 3 OVA that covers the Geneiryodan Arc and Greed Island arc.

CHA-LA! HEAD CHA-LA! One of the most memorable opening songs for me.

I think the question would be what kind of energy barrier that can exists. I think there are several kinds of barriers with different theories to their workings. One barrier that I can think of is an electromagnetic barrier. With enough power and the right frequency, it could repel incoming projectiles. Energy barriers could also work with lasers. Focusing an intensified beam of light from various satellite into a pattern with no gaps could weave an energy barrier that could incinerate any object that comes close to it. Gravity could also be a factor in barrier technology. Shockwave can also be used as a barrier. Though the challenge would be in generating a contained and continues wave strong enough to repel most objects.

Just to clarify seom certain points about Tekkaman, "Tekkaman" is the 1975 anime produced by Tatsunoko Productions. Very very old. Perhaps you are referring to "Tekkaman Blade", which was animated in 1992. The opening sequence of the anime also happens to be the work of Masami Obari, the guy known for making the bouncy boobs popular. And speaking of Dragonball, I would not recommend Dragonball GT. The story of this series is originally made for the anime, and the only involvement of Akira Toriyama is limited to the design of the logo as well as the characters and mechanical design. I haven't seen the series so I can't recommend it.

Re-reading Ryuki's thread (#154), I noticed he mentioned Shinigami. Yes, it is true that the kanji for Shinigami is [Death + God], thus the term it implies is the God of Death, or to the westerners, the reaper. This term is prominently used in the manga and anime bleach because, well, they are reapers. This is the reason why some would refer to them in their Japanese calling "Shinigami" or the translated version of "Soul Reaper".

I've been reading up Captain America recently, and I seem to enjoy the story. I like how the story portrayed Bucky in the eyes of the media and how he wanted to make things right. it's not gonna be easy defending the Winter Soldier in court. So what's Nick Fury been up to?

Were you talking about the Hell Arc? if so, I think they specifically made that chapter to tie up with the upcoming bleach movie. If that's not it, sorry, I can't help you.

Good choice. Having seen the full series as well as read the manga, it was very faithful. Although I'm not very sure if Yuyu Hakusho will be in your taste, I for one certainly enjoyed it. Later half of the series deals mostly in tournaments, but the fights are very entertaining and original (for their time). This is actually one of the shows that don't have the pissing contents in terms of power (although they threw this out of the window in the last arc). Yusuke and Kuwabara actually uses their brains to fight opponents that are far stronger than them. Oh, and the music, I especially liked the ending themes. If I remember correctly, I think they have 4 ending themes.

Like I said about the Thanos Imperative, it was anti-climactic. All the build up about Thanos being the savior of the universe, and it turns out he's just a scapegoat. Is Shadowland finished already? I don't want to read it in bits and pieces.

I'm not sure about you, but I definitely enjoyed Siege. Heroic Age on the other hand, I have yet to read. There's nothing really interesting to read about Heroic Age anyway. Shadowland I'm somewhat neutral, but Chaos war? And you have Hercules as the main guy? No thanks. Also, I'm very sure that the infinity gauntlet won't work anymore seeing that the Living Tribunal denied the usage of the gems in unison. Unless of course I missed something over the course of years that allowed the usage of the infinity gems together again.

Aha, another marvel fanboy. I've just finished reading planet X and to tell you the truth, I wasn't a bit impressed on how Grant Morrison portrayed Magneto. I mean the Xorn identity was pure genius, brainwashing the students to follow Magneto. But when things gets unravelled, it went downhill. The methods he used to manage his new group isn't like Magneto at all. Magneto can inspire people, and one of his gifts is his charisma, which was lacking in the story. Good thing it was retconned later on. I'd hate to see Magneto die like that.