You all probably think we're all finished here with KareKano (and in truth, last week all I had to talk about was our partying).
However.
We are currently totalling up our KareKano survey. We're currently making a digest version of the series for videocassette and laserdisc, and it was decided to show the results of the survey we conducted last year for the purposes of making this video digest. I'm computing the percentages showing how interesting people found different elements, but... I don't like this... I've never been good at arithmetic. All these numbers are making my head spin.

The thing that keeps me going in the face of these trials is the KareKano Music Box (made by Movic) which decorates my desk.
The sight of PeroPero dancing so madly in accompaniment to the music is just so funny. The music itself is loud, however, and thus annoying to those around me. If you hear it, you'll understand, because it plays the series ending theme, but more strongly than is necessary (grin).

That's all for now. Love Love Happy. (Muramatsu)

As briefly touched on last week, we went on out hot spring ski trip. There were about 45-46 of us in all, totaling up the Gainax KareKano staff and the voice actors, and we went collectively as the "Gainax KareKano Production Team and Voice Actors Cast". We took the Shinkansen from Tokyo Station to Yamagata Prefecture, changing to a chartered bus at Yamagata Station for Zao. There we had a good time skiing, soaking in hot springs, , slipping, falling, wearing ourselves out, getting drunk, singing karaoke, and just generally raising the roof.

Speaking of hot springs, the hotel had mixed outdoor facilities, as well as separate ones for men and women. Of the girls, Noda Junko, who played Maho, apparently took the open-air challenge on the first day of our stay, only to beat a hasty retreat. To get to the springs, you had to go down a path through a valley, where there was another hotel. The hot spring itself had a fence around it, but in getting there (from the changing room) one had no cover whatsoever (grin). Enomoto Atsuko (the voice of Miyazawa Yukino), however, who joined us on the second day showed her courage by telling us that she had indeed gone in!
Not to be outdone, upon hearing this, I went in as well. It felt great, ) and later I heard that the men's bath was also exposed to view. I wonder, though.

We all had a good time, and when we got back, there was even more good news. The videocassette and LD release of "Kareshi Kanojo no Jijoo Term 1", which only went on sale last week, entered the charts at No. 1, and we owe it all to our faithful fans. Thank you, and we hope you like Term 2 as well.

That's all for now. Love Love Happy.
(Muramatsu)

There was a model condominium next door to us, but it was taken down a little while ago, apparently having served its purpose. Since then, we've had a vacant lot there, but within the last couple of days, we've been seeing rows of cinderblocks in that lot. At first, they were just lined up in a square, but today, we saw blocks placed in a portion of the otherwise empty space that the previous blocks had encircled. In color and shape, they looked for all the world like they had been brought there for land reapportionment. Rumors are flying around here about what will be built in that space now, considering how limited space is in general (grin).

Anyway, the anime staff are all walking on air today, because tomorrow, we're going skiing. Following last week's drinking party, the staff are going skiing and to hot springs to celebrate the series's conclusion. We'll be gone two nights and three days. It may seem like all we're doing is playing around, but we're really keyed up, seeing as how we're meeting at 6:50 AM to take off. Basically that means that if you're not going to be able to get up in time, you better just stay up all night. Takahoshi Harumi just went home a little bit ago. I envy her from the bottom of my heart, because I too have to manage to get up at that ungodly hour somehow.

Anyway, I'm basically higher than a kite right now. Love Love.

(Muramatsu)