On the Verge of Lunacy

Childhood best friends Tsukimoto Makoto and Hoshino Yutaka have a passion for table tennis. Tsukimoto is nicknamed Smile, the complete opposite of his cool and calm personality. Hoshino or Peko on the other hand is carefree and confident. The coach of the Katase High School table tennis team, Koizumi “Butterfly Joe” Jou, took an interest in the unpolished talent of Smile. Smile was not interested however. He just wants to play but has no dreams of doing competitive table tennis. Butterfly Joe was able to convince Smile later on and a lot players and coaches looked forward to matches with him. Peko slowly faded into the background although he initially started as the best player in the Katase team. His nonchalant attitude towards training and competition resulted in a loss against the Chinese student Kong Wenge. Instead of training harder, Peko decided to spend his time eating junk food and skipping practice matches. Best friends Tsukimoto Makoto and Hoshino Yutaka ...

It’s been months since Tim Duncan announced his retirement this year. As you may have guessed I have been avoiding the subject for a long time (look at the date of the last article I posted on this blog). When I watched the San Antonio Spurs play on opening night for the 2016-2017 season, I was not sure how I felt. With Tim gone, I did not have a reason to keep watching. And yet, not watching would also mean an insult to what he had built for 19 years. The team is still a top competitor, although it gets more attention now than it used to when Tim was still at his best. I feel both sad and grateful. Sad because it took years and then a heartbreaking loss in 2013 for Tim to be recognized. Yes, he had multiple awards in the past, but he was snubbed and even dubbed the most boring superstar. The recognition came in so late. I am happy because he had built a foundation of winning that has rubbed off on the younger roster. I am glad we have a Kawhi Leonard but I’m not sure if he’d stick to...

The Mizuho High School men's basketball team was non-existent when Aikawa Kazuhiko transfered from Tendouji High. Mizuho had only four members in the team after the previous coach left when he was attacked by one of the players, Fujiwara Takumi. The team was banned from competing in any tournament for a year as a consequence. Aikawa's persistence gave hope to the four remaining players Fujiwara, Miura Ranmanru, Ishii Tsutomu and Dobashi Kenji. They would have to face opposition from school officials however who are wary of another embarrassing incident. But Aikawa was not just a good player. He was rumored to be a genius and can jump higher than most people. Perhaps there is hope yet to redeem the basketball club's image. Mizuho boys' basketball team would have to overcome personal issues, face confrontations from hurt upperclassmen and most especially endure the ridicule of other teams. Mizuho now has five players but they are inexperienced, undermanne...

Set in Li Heng, this first installment of the Path to Ascendancy series follows the story of Dorin Rav, an ambitious young assassin, who is stumped by an elusive young mage proving to be an annoyance. An earthquake in the Seti Plains exposed a cave and Dorin wanted to be the first to discover its secrets. To his dismay, he learned someone has been lurking about in the shadows. No one has ever beaten him yet until now. He watched for a time, waiting for the person to appear. When he finally got inside the cave he found that it was occupied by a talking corpse and a monkey-looking thing. To Dorin's surprise, the person he was following was just standing behind him. A young Dal Honese mage, Wu, who professed he was the one following Dorin. When they got out of the structure, the mage Wu suddenly disappeared. Since then, Dorin called the mage his rival and vowed he would find and eliminate him.  Li Heng is ruled by a mage known as Protectress who has a cabal of five. Li Heng...

Perhaps the most popular source for Greek and Roman mythology is Edith Hamilton's book. However, Hamilton had covered only the stories that are already popular and did not emphasize the different versions from various sources. EM Berens's Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece and Rome offers a wider variety of stories, is more organized and has a lot of material that are not included in Hamilton's. The book included the various myths of Greece and Rome and is organized according to the most important figures to the demi-gods and mortals. The first part is about the creation of the world according to Greeks. The last part is about the Trojan war and its aftermath. Those already familiar with most of the Greek and Roman myths will find a lot of new information in the book not cited in others. If, however, you wish to find analyses of myths, this volume can serve as a starting point for further research. I like this book more than the popular ones because of its...

The Golden Bough was first published in two volumes in 1890. It is a must-read for those interested in comparative mythology and the study of religion. Sir James George Frazer attempted to explain the succession of the priests of Diana in Nemi known as the King of the Wood. The succession is unusual for its violence. The priest who represented Virbius (or Hippolytus) must stand vigilant lest someone attack him and take his place. To understand this problem better, the author delved into the history of magic, examined ritual and mythology and cited various beliefs and practices from across the world that were similar in function. He first examined the principles of magic; tree worship; the different taboos particularly those taboos involving the nobles; religious ceremonies; the fertility cults, etc. The King of the Wood at Nemi was "probably regarded as an incarnation of a tree-spirit/spirit of vegetation and is endowed with the magical powers to make trees bear...

The Mistborn Vin released the power in the Well of Ascension even after the mist spirit that tried to help her and Sazed before had wounded Elend Venture so she would keep the power. The prophecies of the Hero of Ages claimed that a savior would one day find and then give up the power in the Well. Believing this to be the right thing, Vin released the power to save the world from the Deepness. But the prophecies were tampered with. A force named Ruin was trapped in the Well and in its desire to destroy the world it had altered the Terris prophecies so that the Hero will be tricked into releasing it. Elend was saved when Vin gave him a nugget of pure Allomancy which contained the power of Preservation, Ruin's opposite. It turned Elend into a Mistborn. Vin and Elend would have to find clues how to save the world from Ruin. The Lord Ruler had apparently prepared for such an event knowing he would one day be defeated. He had stored food and other supplies in various cities. Their ...