Cigdem Göle

Dan, Thanks for the links...they're very nice. Here's another link to Miyazaki and his films. The Hayao Miyazaki Web http://nausicaa.net/miyazaki/

You're as dark as the ocean As cold as the rain You've got me weak with emotion You're such a beautiful pain Such a beautiful pain Beautiful Pain - The Tears

There are a lot more names I cannot remember now, but some that I'll never forget are, Matt Bellamy Morrissey Brett Anderson & Bernard Butler Paul Banks (from the band Interpol, not from Shed Seven) Tom Chaplin Jonsi Birgisson Jarvis Cocker James Mudriczki Teemu Brunila Fran Healy

If I had to choose only one poem, it would be one of Robert Frost's and most probably I'd say, The Road Not Taken. It is the poem that has the most influence on me. I also like Coleridge, Tennyson, Hardy, Plath, H.D. and Wordsworth's poems. And...of course, the wonderful Annabell Lee by Poe. The Road Not Taken Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for that, the passing there Had worn them really about the same, And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back. I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: two roads diverged in a wood, and I -- I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. Robert Frost

I forgot to add The Tell Tale Heart by Poe and Far From The Madding Crowd by Hardy.

It's difficult to limit the choices but here is my top ten list, 1. Spirited Away - Hayao Miyazaki (2001) Japan 2. Howl's Moving Castle - Miyazaki (2004) Japan 3. Strings - Anders Klarlund (2004) Denmark 4. Dr. Strangelove - Kubrick (1964) UK 5. Pink Panther Series - Blake Edwards UK 6. Donnie Darko - Richard Kelly (2001) USA 7. 50 First Dates - Peter Segal (2004) USA 8. Pan's Labyrinth - Guillermo Del Toro (2006) Spain/USA 9. Sky Captain and The World of Tomorrow - Kerry Conran (2004) USA/UK 10. Finding Neverland - Marc Forster (2004) UK/USA

I don't know what you're referring to that I should be warned against, Cigdem. Yes, sure I always liked Elvis too much to make fun of him, in spite of doing occasional impressions. And in the end it's too pathetic a story, what with the middle-aged, bloated, drug-addled, sequined-spandex-wearing self-caricature and self-destructiveness of the Vegas Phase. (But those were the '70s, back when everyone was bent on destroying themselves.) I'm thinking maybe we won't have much to talk about if you've "never been into the Beatles' music much." That surprises me, since they were the original worldwide "boy band" phenomenon -- you know, the kind young girls go crazy about. There you go! I knew you'd bring up the "boy band" issue... (And I can remember listening to "Hey Jude" on a little white, one-speaker AM radio when I was 4 or 5 years old.) But at least we share some interest in art. Take care, Dan

Dan, It would be good if you could add the artist and the song title to your post. It sounds a bit intriguing.... Jesus! Are you that young? Kathy C No. I was uninterested.

Guillermo Del Toro paints a portrait of a mixture of the horrors of real life and fantasy in his allegorical fable, Pan's Labyrinth ( El Laberinto Del Fauno). The film's heart-sickening story is set in Spain in WW2. It is told through the eyes of a little girl, who finds herself right in the middle of the disturbing atmosphere of the war and the only thing she can do to get her mind off of the tragedy she is witnessing is to create a fantastic adventure in her mind. The movie's official website provides extensive information about the film as well as free downloads such as wallpapers and screensavers. And it has an impressive design. http://www.panslabyrinth.com/

Cigdem, That would be from an obscure band out of Liverpool, England and the song title is the same as the first line. Off of the album The Beatles, also known as "The White Album" (1968); possibly one of Mr. Lennon's experiments in "free association" with Ms. Ono. Take care, Dan Oh well...I've never been into the Beatles' music much. I was a huge Elvis fan..still am. I can imagine what your next post will be like...but Dan, I warn you...don't ever think about it!

Dan, You're welcome. I'm glad you liked Nakasawa's art. Thank you for the links, the first one is very powerful indeed.

Dan, It would be good if you could add the artist and the song title to your post. It sounds a bit intriguing....

Curiousity becomes a heavy load, Too heavy to hold, too heavy to hold. Curiousity becomes a heavy load, Too heavy to hold, will force you to be cold. Arctic Monkeys - Do Me A Favour http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5AahFXSqz4

When I finished reading The War of The Worlds (H.G. Wells) at the age of 10, I asked my father to get me a few Jules Verne novels and he returned home with a set of six books. I read all of them in 3 weeks because my interest in the science - fiction was growing rapidly, which led me to 1984 (Orwell) through my English teacher. In later years, I became more interested in the Romantic Literature, especially the Victorian fiction.

Unfortunately, young female teachers and also pupils suffer from such behaviours more and more each day. The schools' administrations (especially in private schools) do very little about the problem. When a teacher reports harrasment, the student(s) often gets away with a warning given orally or gets a few days' rustication, which is generally seen by these students as a reward, as a few days' holiday. When they return to school, the teacher observes that the student/students suspended continue their abusive behaviour. I totally agree with the mass media and internet having great negative effects on students' behaviours towards each other and their teachers. This is a big problem and unless severe measures are taken about it, the issue will get worse.

I agree that young teachers are more enthusiastic and have more up to date knowledge on their subjects than experienced teachers. However, not being taken seriously by students (because of the teacher's age) is always a disadvantage for young instructors.

Two old men were sitting next to each other on the London subway (tube). Their hearing wasn't so good. One says, "Is this Wembley?" "No," the other says, "It's Thursday." The first replies, "No thanks, I already had a drink." ------------ A student, who is studying English as a foreign language, was confused when he saw the words "open here" on a box of laundry soap, so he asks the clerk, "Can't I wait until I get home to open it?" --------- Teacher: Are you nervous? Student: No, I am not. I am single. ---------- A true story (happened in my class) In a grammar pop quiz for the beginner level students. Q : Give an example for comparative adjectives. A : teach - teacher

There are many characteristics that make Manga very distinctive. The largest thing that Manga art is known for is its characters. Manga characters almost always have large eyes, small mouths, and they also usually have abnormal hair color. These things give their characters a very western look to them. Manga like Akira, however, has gone against this grain. Manga characters usually show over exaggerated emotions. When a character cries, it usually pours out in buckets, when they laugh, their face seems engulfed by the size of their mouths and their eyes become slits. An angry character will have rosy cheeks and steam rolling from around their body. This use of emotion would most likely be categorized as cartoonish. http://comicbooks.about.com/od/manga/ss/manga101_3.htm

Bloxorz is a challenging puzzle game. The aim of it is to get the block to fall into the square hole. It has 33 levels most of which are difficult and brain twisting. Careful...it's addictive!!! http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/games/bloxorz

It's beautiful and also one of the cheapest places for a nice holiday.

Some drawings from Nakasawa's Barefoot Gen.

I would call you up every Saturday night And we'd both stay out 'til the morning light And we sang, "Here we go again" And though time goes by, I will always be In a club with you in 1973 James Blunt - 1973

Uwe, Nice game. Congratulations. http://images.habervitrini.com/haber_resim...aglayan_kiz.jpg

Anime is an abbreviation of the word "animation" originating in Japan through the roots of manga.Although the term is used in Japan to refer to animation in general, in English usage the term most popularly refers to material originating from Japan, a subset of animation. Anime is traditionally hand drawn, but computer assisted techniques have become quite common in recent years. It is used in television series, films, video, video games, and internet-based releases, and represents all genres of fiction. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anime Some examples of popular anime series, Basilisk The story takes place in the year 1614. Two ninja clans, Tsubagakure of the Iga and Manjidani of Kouga, battle each other to determine which grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu will become the next shogun. The deadly competition between 10 elite ninja from each clan unleashes a centuries-old hatred that threatens to destroy all hope for peace between them. Full Metal Alchemist The story follows the adventures of two brothers, alchemists named Edward and Alphonse Elric, who want to recover parts of their bodies they lost in an attempt to bring their mother back to life. Sailor Moon The story of the various metaseries revolves around the reincarnated defenders of a kingdom that once spanned the solar system, and the evil forces that they battle. The major characters—called Sailor Senshi (literally "Sailor Soldiers"; frequently called "Sailor Scouts" in the North American version)—are teenage girls who can transform into heroines named for the moon and planets (Sailor Moon, Sailor Mercury, Sailor Mars, etc). Basilisk

One of Japan's remarkable manga artists and writers, Keiji Nakasawa was standing behind the wall in his school's garden when the Atomic Bomb was dropped onto Hiroshima on 6 August 1945. It was the wall that saved his life that day. He was only six years old. He lost all members of his family except for his mother and an infant sister, who also died a few weeks after the bombing. Nakasawa's commonly known manga series "Barefoot Gen" deals with the life in Hiroshima before the bombing ,the aftermath and the suffering that follows. In 1961, after moving to Tokyo with his mother, he began his first drawings. When he lost his mother in 1966, due to the terrible effects of the atomic bomb, he decided to create a manga series related to his memories of the bombing. In the Foreword of the first episode of Barefoot Gen, Nakasawa writes, "When I went to the crematorium to gather the ashes of my mother, I was shocked to see there were no bone particles left from her body. The radioactive residue of the bomb had destroyed even the smallest bit of bone in her body. The bomb had taken away everything from me, including my mother's bones. I was so full of anger that I swore I would never forgive the Japanese who started the war and the Americans who dropped the bomb." In Barefoot Gen, the reader sees the life in Hiroshima before and after the bombing through the eyes of Nakasawa's alter ego, Gen. Nakasawa's depiction of the destroying effects of war upon people is amazing. He questions the sides (Japan & the USA) who caused the sufferings of the war they are in as well as the hypocrisy of the people in his hometown. What is told by Nakasawa in Barefoot Gen causes the reader to wander away from the dreamy atmosphere of a comic strip and forces them to remind themselves that the story is real, which results in "a pain in the stomach" feeling. An interview with Nakasawa http://www.tcj.com/256/i_nakazawa.html