UK readers?

[Marsipanne]

Wtih manga, there's something for everybody. Honestly. You just haven't found one you've liked yet. You will in the future, promise. By solid do you mean muscle etc.? I kick very hard, but that's it.

Actually, one thing I can do with my legs most people can't is the splits. I'm very flexible (arms, shoulders, everywhere--I think I'm rather double-jointed actually)

eta: CELEBRATE!!! Page 100!!!!

 

[Guinevere]

Evening peeps, hope you are all partying the weekend away?

And Marsipanne your legs look fine to me

 

[phar]

did a full day yesturday (sat) and got loads on today (sun) so no partying for me.....unfortunately

trying to stay up to watch Lolita, apparently its a really good film. But i have a feeling i'll just dose off

 

[Nemasis Enforcer]

Morning all!!!

Have a great day!!!!!

 

[Marsipanne]

hiya, hope everybody's doing all right.

I've been watching the Olympics a LOT recently. I keep on hovering around the tennis to see if my favourite is going to coming up (Juan Carlos Ferrero--absolutely GORGEOUS guy). I know he's competing cos I saw him in the opening ceremony. China's won (I think) 5 gold medals, so far. 2 for shooting, 2 for diving, and 1 for judo. Very good work so far from the team! Incidentally, for the 10m synchronised diving, the three medal-winning doubles were all trained by Chinese coaches!

 

[xxxyz]

evening marsipanne, how are you?

 

[Nemasis Enforcer]

Hi everyone,

I've been watching the Olimpics too Marsipanne, yep China are doing well with the medals.. unlike UK

Hope your well as I do everyone else too..

Gonna be busy so won't be posting much but will be back!!!

 

[Marsipanne]

I'm doing fine, I watched 'Greek Gods and Goddesses' on BBC1 just now. I've always been obsessed with Greek mythology. It's kinda annoying that after Ian Thorpe's major success in Sydney, all the swimmer's have been copying his suit and covering up more. At least divers and gymnasts show a lot. I saw some male gymnastics the other day. Bulging biceps or what!

 

[bobbyrock]

Hey Marsipanne. how's it going? Hope you had a good weekend.

What did everyone get up to? I've been watching the olympics as well. The womens volleyball hsa been a particular favourite. Although I have to say, are britain looking for an extra medal for getting the ugliest women's olympic team in the whole competition? it certainly seems that way. Predictably though, i'm enjoying the chinese and japanese squads.

I find it odd about the swimming costmes as well . I was a national swimmer between 12 and 15 but we had back then were tiny speedos that we wore a size too small. now it's odd. I actually mistook a man for a women in the backstroke final yesterday. very strange indeed.

Watched my team today as well. We lost so I'm not too happy about sport today

Edit: can't beleive I forgot the best news. Got my appointment boked for my back tattoo. I've waited ages for it. If anyone is interested, this is what i'm having. And if your interested after that, i'll explain the meaning behind it.

tattoo

 

[Nemasis Enforcer]

I'm doing fine, I watched 'Greek Gods and Goddesses' on BBC1 just now. I've always been obsessed with Greek mythology. It's kinda annoying that after Ian Thorpe's major success in Sydney, all the swimmer's have been copying his suit and covering up more. At least divers and gymnasts show a lot. I saw some male gymnastics the other day. Bulging biceps or what!

I know I watched that Gymnasics too.. boy do I wish I had bodiy like that!!!!!

Also watched that God's and Goddeses program, have loved anything mythalogical since I could first read!!

Never really thought about the meaning behind the tails tho.

Hope everyone is well, don't know how much i'll be around, waiting for a call so have to get offline!!

 

[Marsipanne]

Please do explain the meaning, I'm interested. I've always kinda wanted to get a tattoo, but I'd never be able to decide what to have. Probably end up doing my own design or something.

Nem, what's your favourite Greek myth? Mine is rather obscure--the tale of Eros and Psyche. I hate the fact that Eros/Cupid is portrayed as a baby, much prefer the pretty-boy teenager look for him.

Quite a Chinese thing, I suppose, but I used to be into diving. I was going to join a team when I was about 10, but I didn't have enough time, so I never took it further. Still, I can do a proper dive, though only one sort. I used to want to be a gymnast actually. I suppose I had a bit of an affinity with the sport because of my flexibility. However, it was another thing I didn't go further in. When I was very young, I wanted to do ballet too (again because of flexibility) but I didn't have enough patience for that kind of thing. A few years ago I realised that I could, without any training or shoes etc, go on pointe. I do have a few regrets about not going further into ballet, but I would have stopped once I got too tall and heavy anyway (I'm 167 cm, and 60kg--which is probably way over for a ballet dancer).

 

[Nemasis Enforcer]

Please do explain the meaning, I'm interested. I've always kinda wanted to get a tattoo, but I'd never be able to decide what to have. Probably end up doing my own design or something.

Nem, what's your favourite Greek myth? Mine is rather obscure--the tale of Eros and Psyche. I hate the fact that Eros/Cupid is portrayed as a baby, much prefer the pretty-boy teenager look for him.

My brother has got lots of Tattoo's and for my 21st (in 2 years) im getting on on my arm... snake wrapped around a sword through a heart..

Fave greek myth... let me think about then and get back to you, like them all really.

 

[Marsipanne]

I really dislike the story of Athena and Arachne, because it made Athena appear bad. But then, that isn't a Greek myth per se cos it was made up later by the Romans. So I choose to ignore that particular story!

 

[Nemasis Enforcer]

I really dislike the story of Athena and Arachne, because it made Athena appear bad. But then, that isn't a Greek myth per se cos it was made up later by the Romans. So I choose to ignore that particular story!

Probably the story of Jason is my fave, but there are others too, the trials of Hurcules are great I find

 

[Marsipanne]

Oh, I LOVE Jason and the Golden Fleece, the way it brings together some of the greats of the heroic world and stuff. It's like a sort of fan favourite. I don't like what happens with Medea and stuff though. Heracles is great, I especially love the 'Battle with the Giants' at the end--that's soemthing that very rarely is written about Heracles, but after all, he was created to battle the giants and he did.

 

[Nemasis Enforcer]

Oh, I LOVE Jason and the Golden Fleece, the way it brings together some of the greats of the heroic world and stuff. It's like a sort of fan favourite. I don't like what happens with Medea and stuff though. Heracles is great, I especially love the 'Battle with the Giants' at the end--that's soemthing that very rarely is written about Heracles, but after all, he was created to battle the giants and he did.

yep well those are my fave's,

All women in greek myths are portaid the same, evil plotters or monsters etc...

 

[Marsipanne]

Psyche wasn't, and that's something I like about her. Who else wasn't.... hm, hard to think of one. Iphigeneia, but she was too young to be scheming. Hmm, Clytemnestra is the ultimate plotter, I suppose. Athena is good, but she's Goddess of Wisdom. Nope, can't think of anybody other than Psyche. Oh, Atalanta, I think she was called. A girl who was a really fast runner. Promised to marry anybody who could outrun her. She was quite a nice person.

 

[bobbyrock]

It's a haida design. They were the american natives who lived in the north and were famous for totem poles and the like. I always had a real interest in american indians. I think it's why I like Japanese and chinese culture, that sense of honour and valour. A very medieval outlook which seems to have disappeared in this part of the world.

Anyway, it's the sun, which is a guardian meaning protection and vitality. The rays of the sun are made up of bear claws and bear heads. That's another guardian which means strength.

The big meaning for me around it though is the fact that the image was traditionally used a lot on drums (which I play). The best thing was that I found the design, liked it and then found out the meanings which made me love it even more. I'm booked in for the 18th september.

I'm getting into mythology I normally prefer a more historically grounded read but I've started reading The Aeneid by Virgil. It's basically the story of oddyseus's son and the birth of the roman empire. I think oddyseus is my favourite character, though I think i've become biased due to Sean Bean playing him. Ever since watching him in Sharpe as a kid (and reading every Bernard Cornwell book published) I've always had a soft spot for him.

 

[bobbyrock]

My brother has got lots of Tattoo's and for my 21st (in 2 years) im getting on on my arm... snake wrapped around a sword through a heart..

Fave greek myth... let me think about then and get back to you, like them all really.

Sounds good. Any particular reason for that design?

 

[Nemasis Enforcer]

Sounds good. Any particular reason for that design?

Family tradition dad has it, grandad had it, brothers got it

 

[bobbyrock]

Cool. I'm a sucker for tradition. We do it with names. I'm named after my dad and he is named after lots of people in the family. thee are about 40 james's in our history.

 

[Marsipanne]

I don't have an English name, only a Chinese one (two, actually). I don't think our family has any particular tradition regarding names. My dad's family history is pretty non-existent--we know very little about it other than one of his ancestors was a powerful general during some dynasty and that they were probably one of the Manchu people--my brother and dad both have Manchu birthmarks, as well as Han birthmarks. On my mother's side, both my great-grandparents were orphans, and adopted, so we have no history at all. My great-grandfather was a super-rich nationalist landowner, who got told by a fortune-teller that he was going to die at the age of 28. He panicked and decided to enjoy what he had left to the full and sold everything, spent all his money etc. He didn't die until his 80s though. However, if he hadn't got rid of all his riches, he probably would have been executed (along with his family) by the Communists. My best friend's (Chinese) great-grandfather WAS actually executed, during the revolution. He was a landowner.

 

[bobbyrock]

really? Thats harsh to say the least. People do strange and horific things in the belief of a cause.

How do you mean birthmarks? Actual marks on the skin or just characteristics? My family are descendents of Captain cook. I assume that's why james is so popular. Apparently though, a huge scandal happened years later and my family changed their name from Cook to what it is now. I guess i'm a born sinner.

You didn't say what you thought of my tattoo by the way. Not quite sure why but i'd like your opinion. you seem like a switched on kinda girl. (not sure why I just turned into Austin Powers).

Anyone got any interesting plans for the week? I've now got only 12 days til my first ever holiday. " weeks of sun, scuba and surfing in Gran Canaria.

 

[Marsipanne]

Your tattoo is very cool. Are you going to have it done in those colours? I like the fact that it has meanings behind it. It looks very nice too.

You're a descendent of Captain Cook?!! How cool! I can't imagine what scandal it would be...unless it was him masquerading as the god Lono.

I have 1 birthmark, that marks me in the 'Han' tribe (there are 56 ethnic groups/tribes in China--Han make up like 80% of the population though). A little marker on the nail of little toe. My feet are too small for it to be obvious though. It shows up better on my dad's.

My brother and my dad share a birthmark, which I think only goes to men, which is called the 'Mongolian bruise'. I'm northern chinese, so it's very likely that we've got Mongol or Manchu blood in us. The mongolian bruise is something that looks like a bruise which is permanent. It appears on the bum. It's about 2 cm diameter. This bruise caused some trouble when my brother was in nursery, because when his nappy was being changed by one of the nursery workers, she noticed the bruise and we had to prove that it wasn't actually a bruise, and was a birthmark. The mongols/manchus were horse-people, which is why they have this bruise, apparently.

 

[Nemasis Enforcer]

Afternoon everyone,

Hope your al lhaving a great day so far!!!