Water Power

How more superfluous AND green can you get at the same time as a rain powered led umbrella? Not very I can promise you that, the LightDrops Umbrella designed by Sang-Kyun Park uses a special membrane to keep you dry, but also captures the potential energy of rain and uses it to power LEDs. Dark rainy nights won't be so dark any more with this little device, and would be a must have for residents of places like Seattle. Oh yeah did I mention that it glows brighter when it Rains harder?

LightDrops Umbrella


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Mass routine power.

So it seems that everywhere you go there's a some type of news about needing green energy these days. While I don't really keep my ear to the ground when it comes to green technology I am a supporter of alternative energy means.

Of all the people out there the most fitted to discover a great way to generate new energy (in my opinion) is easily the Japanese. And just as I would suspect they have found a very unorthodox means of generating energy, but none the less effective. Just last year the East Japan Railway Company installed piezoelectric flooring in Tokyo station. Piezoelectric flooring is a type of system that gathers the vibrations people emit when stepping on the ground and turns it into electricity. Using this technology in traffic heavy areas can generate massive amounts of energy, and companies like eJRC can truly reap some of the maximum benefits from it. The main benefit for Tokyo station being that they no longer have an electric bill, because their customers generate an estimated 1,400kw per day.

Ironic isn't it? Paying people and then giving them free profit at the same time?

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Moribito shirīzu

So nearly two years ago to date (just four days off) I spoke of an anime series called Seirei no Moribito. My interest in it came from the fact that Production I.G. made it, which is the same house that did Blood Plus. I very much so looked forward to the show but tacking it down was difficult, as it was licensed in america before it even aired in Japan. Well, pass two years and while I was successful in acquiring the show; my time to watch anime dwindled. After a two to three month period I was able to view the entire series; and this is what I have to say.

Seirei no Moribito is good, and I mean GOOD. The animation and art were on par and exceeded what I expected, while the story was deeper than I anticipated. However it had a hollow ending that left me feeling like there was more story to be told.
Well this is where my interest and curiosity benefit me. After doing some looking I discovered that the show was an adaptation of the children's novel by the same name. Even more exciting is that I found out it was only the first volume in a series of ten books.
Now comes the good part; As I've stated before, with the Haruhi series; If I like a show enough I'll follow the original media to get the entire story. That's less and less true the closer you get to text only media, but once in a while there are stories that I like enough to pursue regardless of how they were originally told.
The Moribito Series is one of those few series.

The original novels are already in translation; The first is out and the second to be released in April. I have all intentions of asking for this as a holiday gift, and if I don't receive it than I WILL purchase it myself.

Original Trailer I posted two years ago

Now I watch it again this show really changed by the time it aired.


Here's to hoping they animate Yami no Moribito, the sequel.
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Double Negative

If you've read any of my early posts you would know that I have a great deal of respect for music regardless of where it comes from. Even though I'm like any other person and I have my own preferences, All music is worth listen to at least once... even... country... maybe. Anyway of all the music I listen to, my favourite has to be plain instrumental. The feelings that notes alone can carry is, in my opinion much more powerful than that of which lyrics can hold; Notes are international and all encompassing to so there exist no boundaries to them. However I digress, back to the point of this post.

With the somewhat recent announcement of the YouTube Symphony Orchestra contest, I've been reminded that classic music needs just as much respect. For a period of time I liked instrumental music only if it had a certain sound to it. I can't really explain it but if it didn't sound like it could fit to a visual element (like a movie) I just didn't have a lot of care for it.
Well that all changed when I decided to watch an anime called Nodame Cantabile. It made a connection with me. So being a person that likes instrumental music to start with, It pushed me to understand classical music better. By the end of the show I gained a significant amount of respect for classic compositions and all the music written in it's style.

I guess all I'm trying to say is that odd things can influence how you grow. I never thought an anime would make me appreciate classics but it did.

Nodame Cantabile opening


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