8th Birthday

Hey yo @ll ... (^_^)/ ...

last year was like an emotional rollercoaster ... (^_^;;;) ...

the year started awesome ... well that's what I thought in the beginning ... I got one of the “once in a lifetime” chances to buy a whole collection and was for several days the happiest person on the planet ... (*_*) ...
but I never even got told the total price ...
out of the blue I was called a liar because my usage of the subjunctive in a question might not be perfect in English since it is not my native language and my try to clarify the misunderstanding ended in telling me that what I asked in the question was correct and that is how the conversation ended ... (O.o) ...
I felt totally pranked ... (>.<) ...

that reminded me sadly of a mail I got the year before from another collector telling me that I shouldn't communicate in a foreign language ... (-.-) ...

I always give my best and translate everything at least twice (that is also why my answers sometimes take a few days) of course my English is not perfect and if I'm excited about an email I may make even more mistakes especially because I try to answer as fast as possible to not miss a chance ... (-.-) ...
that might be the key problem!!!

anyhow ... the year was much better after that ... (^_^) ...
and that's where my thank-list starts this year ... m( _ _ )m ...

1st of all a big thank you to Alielle for my new Cathexis Cel ... (*_*) ... I asked her in 2004 about it and suddenly she wrote me that she would sell it now ... *does still the super happy dance* ... I got the matching Douga in the meantime ... (*_*) ... so another happy reunion!!!
2nd big thank you to a Yahoo auction with a great Zetsuai Douga ... (*_*) ...
3rd big thank you goes again to Mandarake for the great signed Bronze Cel for auction there ... (^_^) ...

I went again to conventions this year ... (^_^) ...
the MMC in Berlin/Germany (a last minute decision because Makoto Tateno was in my hometown, got several Manga signed, won a Meet&Greet where I got a drawing), the AnimagiC in Bonn/Germany again (was able to meet Kanan Minami and Shouji Satou and got several items signed, but sadly no drawing) and then I was for the first time at the AniNite in Vienna/Austria (was able to meet Nao Yazawa, Yuna Kagesaki and Yoshiki Tonogai and got several drawings and thanks to Frosty also the possibility to meet Nao privately a day before the AniNite, made me an even bigger fan!!!
thanks to the relatively bad organized AniNite I had the possibility to ask all the questions I ever wanted to ask in a nearly private Q&A session ... LOL ...)

the only convention I couldn't attend was the Connichi in Kassel/Germany ... (T_T) ... there were no special guests announced by the time I planned my vacation and so I skipped this one ... one month before the convention was held they announced Hinako Takanaka and Ayano Yamane!!! ... (T_T) ... I was so sad to miss that chance ...
at the weekend of the convention my computer stopped working which made me even sadder ... (>.<) ...
some days later Janniboy1980 told me that he was not only there but also took on the burden of standing with nearly only female fans in a long row to get a Shikishi signed just for me ... (*_*) ... you can't imagine how happy I was when he told me and showed me a picture of him with Ayano Yamane holing my Shikishi ... (*_*) ... thank you so much again Janniboy1980!!! ... m( _ _ )m ...

and last but not least a big thank you to the anonymous informant telling me about the greatest news ever, that Minami Ozaki will be at the Cartoonist next year in Nice/France ... (O.o) ... first thing I did the next day was to apply for leave at work so that there will be no way that I will miss that chance!!! ... LOL ... I know, crazy ... (^_~) ...

that was my last year of collecting ... I have the feeling that the next year will be awesome ... (already searched for my French books, haven't used them in years, but now I have a very good reason) ...