Sakky's Sailor Moon Blog - Mirror

I've been staying off eBay for a while because I've been pretty broke. But the other day I ventured back on again!! Here's some of the stuff I'm watching right now:

A Blue Box 17" Mercury - I really do want to get all of these. Right now I only have Moon so this is pretty tempting. But I have a bid on something so I can't swing this now. I'm hoping it might get relisted...
This Stallion Reve - I'm watching mostly to see how high it goes. Call it morbid curiosity! I'd like to know what it sells for in a real auction to have a better idea of what I'd be willing to pay when I do actually try to find one for me
StarFighter Doll - I have this already, I'm just waiting to see if anyone's actually going to pay that much for it. I got mine for $48
PGSM Venus - I have her, but not in the box. And I have the other inners in the box so it would be nice to have Venus too... but I've got money tied up elsewhere so I'm hoping for a relist, again. :P
Mars Petite - I also have this already but not with the Mars card.
Super Moon Gashapon - one of a few that I don't have T_T
Super Chibi Moon Gashapon - another of the few I don't have D:
This wicked cute Serenity plushie - really? That's too friggin' cute!
This pink fabric - Does anyone have a small swimsuit pattern? ^___^;
Another Infinity Volume - in case I happen to come across $500 somewhere to offer...

That's it for now. The item I have a bid in on is at $70. I am not going to bid again if someone out bid's me. In some ways, I'm hoping someone does because I've realized there are other things I think I want more. D: However, since 'un-bidding' is SUCH a pet peeve of mine, I refuse to do it!

I'm rewatching the SMR Movie because I am planning on introducing some friends to Sailormoon with it.  I figure it's a nice introduction because it shows the main characters really well, deals with Mamoru and Usagi's relationship, and it has closure as a stand alone story.

Unfortunately, they prefer to watch it dubbed.  Gosh.  I am watching it dubbed with subtitles now to see how bad it is.  Once thing I notice is that the dub adds a lot of extraneous voice lines.  Mamoru can't walk out into the flowers and just look like he's thinking about them, we have to actually here him think, "Ah, the flowers are so beautiful.  This place is so nice!"  Are American audiences just too dumb to get that's implied by his content expression?  And when Fiore dissapears, why does Usagi have to say "He's going!" as if that's not terribly obvious.  "Yeah, but where to?!" Mamoru replies.  Honestly, it sounds so forced.  Like, "Here let me hold you hand through every little thing that happens." 

This is why movies like UP are awesome.  They don't assume kids are stupid.

Can I really show this to my friends?  I hate to ask them to read the subtitles when they don't want to, but I can't imagine them watching to dub and being impressed. xD

Of course watching this has reminded me that Terri Hawks isn't my least favorite Sailormoon, but I still like Tracey better.   ^_^

This is where I will list stuff I'm selling.

I have nothing for sale right now, please check back soon <3

At least, that's what my Japanese friend says the box says.

I bought one. I finally got a Star Locket. You know, a plastic toy painted gold that plays a little tinny tune when you open the top. You know, $250 dollars later.

I'm rather excited.

No more eBay for me for a while. Going to have to do quite a few commissions to pay this sucker off. :D

I also recently got a 17" Mars and a 17" Venus. I think I also bought another of the re-released manga volumes. I finally have all of the Japanese manga, though 4 or 5 are not first edition.

I LOVE THIS HOBBY

PS.  My price check list still needs love, so please love it?

I recently made an Excel Sheet with all my merch to try to keep better track of what I have, how much I've spent, and what stuff is worth.  I have a column for Estimated Value and I've put a lot of guesses in there.  The prices listed here are my 'Estimated Value' but I would appreciate any feedback you guys might have if any of these seem off.  I know there's a lot, so even if you just have feedback on a few it's helpful.  ^_^  Thanks for your time.

1000 Editions S Posters	$20 ea.
1992 Japanese Stickers	$10 set
Diana Plushie	$50
Re-release Manga Vols	$10 ea.
Irwin Mars Plushie	$10
Starlight Excellent Models	$60 ea.
Bandai 11" Mercury Doll '94	$30
European 11" Venus Doll	$30
European 11" Mars Doll	$30
PGSM Heart Moon Brooch	$30
PGSM Teletia-S	$25
PGSM 6" Sailor Luna Doll	$50
Pink Moon Stick in Box	$40
World Chibiusa Doll MIB w/Timekey	$50
World Sailormoon Doll MIB	$30
Chibi Moon European Compact	$50
Crisis Moon Compact	$80
"Cutie" Moon Rod	$20
Super Transformation Wand	$40
PGSM Moon Wand	$15
AQ Plushies	$25 ea.
Chibimoon 3D Keychain	$5
Sailor Moon Comforter	$20
Japanese Manga 1-15	$10 ea.
English Manga 1-15	$10 ea.
Artbook V	$200
Artbook IV	$50
Artbook II	$25
Artbook I	$25
Sailor Locket (sticker is a bit torn, no cord)	$25
Bandai Japan in box Tuxedo Kamen 2"	$10
Dressables	$5 ea.
Wicked Lady 6" Doll	$10
Eternal Tier World Edition	$100
World MiniCollection DX2	$120
Sailor Jupiter Plushie	$5
Artbook III	$100
Anime Artbooks	$10
Sailor V Manga Vol 1  + 2	$10
Materials Collection	$150
The Doom Tree Series VHS	$10
17" Sailor Jupiter Doll	$15

Really, it's not. ^_^;

This week has been kind of a mess. It's been a little frustrating at work (though nothing really to complain about) but just a huge emotional roller coaster online. Home is good, so at least there's that.

Anyway, I've learned a lot in the last few days. I learned a lot about myself, a little about my friends, and a lot about what I do and do not want. So here's a list, some self reflection if you will. This will be a check point for me. It will be my place to turn back to when I feel like I'm losing sight of things.  If this seems TOTALLY out of the blue to you, just bear with me. :)

1. If something doesn't directly effect me or something I'm responsible for, then there's no need to get involved with it. Whenever I feel upset by something on the internet I need to ask myself, "Is this significant?" before I get all emotional about it.
2. Misunderstandings are a huge part of why things can go wrong in relationships. Communication is very important and I should always as myself, "Is it possible I have misunderstood?" before I get mad at someone.
3. I'm not going to get along with everyone, all the time. It's unreasonable to expect myself to be friends with EVERYONE and I can't beat myself up every time I find out someone doesn't like me or is mad at me. I can just do my best to be kind to people, be respectful, and learn from my mistakes.
4. This means admitting when I'm wrong. It's a very hard thing to do, but I've learned to do it in other parts of my life (like in art), so its time to learn to do this in personal relationships too. Sometimes, I am going to be wrong.
5. When I am wrong, and I've made a mistake, "I'm sorry" is not always going to solve the entire problem. I have to be patient with people and understand that it takes time to move through certain challenges, and sometimes you break things and they can be fixed. While I really hope that isn't the case this time, I know that I have to come to terms with the fact that sometimes my mistakes are going to have longer consequences.
6. I love my friends and I want to do what I can to be the best friend to them that I can be. Sometimes they have to teach me important things I don't want to learn, but that's what good friends do.

So that's it I guess. That's my 'take away' from my week. I really want to do all I can to avoid becoming swept up into emotional drama, especially online. There are so many important things in our short lives and I know how silly it is to get all worked up over little things. I will be a much happier person if I just go a little slower and think a little longer. I am an optimist at heart, though I find it hard sometimes to hold to that feeling when I feel drawn into negativity. So I have to be strong and remind myself that there is always something good around.  I know I will still make mistakes but I have to just keep going and learn where I can and do my best.

Thanks for reading.  :)

I had another Sailormoon related dream last night. 

I had been invited to participate in a cosplay photoshoot as Eternal Sailor Mars.  In the dream, I arrived at the shoot late and they were already doing action sequences with other characters so they asked me to hurry and get ready.  Apparently, I'd brought the wrong shoes (black boots instead of red heels) and I also had the wrong length for gloves (elbow instead of above the elbow). 

The person organizing the event (the Venus) was like "Does anyone have any extra gloves?  We can just photoshop them red after."  And Neptune ran off to find some.  And then there was some local banquet or something with all these Polish women.  I guess I knew someone there and she asked everyone to take their shoes off and put them out so I could see if any of them were red heels.  None of them were and I said thank you in Polish and everyone seemed sad that they couldn't help. 

Then I told Venus that I had a pair of red heels at home and it would take me an hour to drive there and back.  She told me to go, and on the way home animals kept running out in front of my car.  @_@

It was a really weird dream.  I usually dream about things I am afraid of, but I have no idea what was up with this dream since it's not like I'm going to a convention anytime soon :P

My other dream last night had to do with a new mole I found yesterday next to my blistering sunburn T_T  In the dream it became huge and mutated and I had to go to the Emergency Room.  D:

I'm really really really REALLY excited about the new layout that SailorAstera.com is going to be getting, though it might be a long time before anyone sees it.  My husband hasn't even really started making it yet, but I just know it's going to be amazing.  He did one mock up before I had decided on art for it and it came out looking a lot like The Oracle's layout.  I like their layout of course, but I don't want SA.com to look too similar.  I want it to have it's own feel, you know?

Incidentally, I will be re-branding the site as SailorAstera.com instead of Sakura's Senshi Circle.  It just makes sense to me now that the site has expanded to include the forums, my blog, CYOOS, and hopefully more stuff in the future.

Maybe I can get that new arc of Astera's story written by Jan to celebrate 10 years :3

This item is for trade only right now.
.
Looking to trade my PGSM Mercury in box for any of the following items:

• Lunatia L
• Irwin 2000 pretty face Sailor Pluto w/ gloves (doesn't need staff)
• Irwin Sailor Moon 11" pretty face Black Lady
• Any Irwin 17" dolls other than Moon or Jupiter (blue or yellow box)
• Moon World Set #1 Jupiter (must be in great condition)
• Moon World Set #2 any one of the following: Saturn, Moon, Chibimoon, or Pluto
• Moon World Set #4 Chibimoon (w/Artemis is preferred)
• Tuxedo Mask plushie
• Any outer senshi plushie
• Any two of Moon, Uranus, Saturn, and Pluto 3D DiC 3" yellow card keychains from this set

eBay feedback
LJ feedback
SeraSell feedback

I know it's something we fans talk about a lot, but I was laying in bed this morning thinking about Sailormoon (like ya do), and I came to this conclusion: Seiya is great and all, but she's not the one for Usagi.  

Fans love it.  Seiya is passionate, fun and outgoing.  She's very affectionate and sweet and thoughtful.  In contrast, Mamoru seems plain, even boring.  Seiya seems to be totally infatuated with Usagi, ready to do anything for her.  Like I recently read from one fan, their relationship developed naturally through their interaction with one another - no pre-destined plan.   Seiya seems to truly, deeply care for Usagi.  In contrast, a lot of fans see Mamoru as cold and not very understanding.  Maybe they even see him as forced to her side against his will because of some predetermined fate.

But there's one super important thing missing from this:  Usagi loves Mamoru.

Sure, she totally cares about Seiya, maybe even has a crush on her, but Usagi's affection for Seiya is a result of her longing for Mamoru.  Seiya reminds her of Mamoru.  Clearly, we don't see the resemblance! xD  But Usagi is looking for comfort when she is alone and scared and she finds that comfort in Seiya.  Unfortunately - and I think regardless of destiny - she's not in love with Seiya.   When the time comes, when things are very hard for her, she longs for Mamoru.  How can anyone forget that scene on the roof in the rain?!

Seiya reminds me of an ex boyfriend of mine.  Actually, since I never officially 'dated' him, that term might not be totally appropriate.  But the feeling is the same.  I was lonely and he was charming.  He was there for me, romantic, did all the right things, said all the right stuff.  I didn't have a Mamoru that was away, but in the end it was clear that he and I were not going to end up together.  I thought he was cute and sweet and all that but I didn't love him the way I think you ought to love someone you're going to make a babeh with :3

The anime did a botch job on Mamoru and Usagi, but they ARE in love on their own accord.  Just because he lets her take the lead doesn't mean he's not there for her.  In fact, I think that's what people often struggle with.  Usagi is the strong one - she is front and center.  Mamoru plays her support; he's the great man behind the powerful woman.  Just because he doesn't fill this superman role always stealing the show, doesn't mean he isn't in love with her.  And certainly Usagi is totally in love with him.  Even in the anime, her friends see it and warn her that she will hurt Seiya's feelings by leading him on.  They know that she's truly in love with Mamoru.

I understand fans liking Seiya and enjoying her relationship with Usagi because it's a fling, it's exciting, and it's a little scandalous.  For me though, what it all comes down to is that Usagi and Mamoru are definitely, totally in love.  Even if Seiya made Usagi happy for a while, Usagi did not love her.  In the end, their relationship was going to fail - perhaps maybe, in a similar way that Usagi and Mamoru were going to stay together through all the crap they went through.

Ahhhh I love this story. <3 USAGI + MAMORU 4EVA!

My Materials Collection arrived today! OMG It's BEAUTIFUL! I knew it was a paperback, but for some reason I was picturing this flimsy thing, but nooooo it's big like the regular artbooks. OMG IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL! *_* I am totally in love. It's in a great condition too! Just the tiniest bend along the top of the dust jacket but inside it's PERFECT and SO AWESOME. D: I AM SO HAPPY! *joy!*

I have gotten a ton of stuff through trades in the last few days and I will be posting pictures soonish. Just waiting for a few more things to arrive before I do a SakkysMoonBag update. I won't be buying anything for a while (mainly because I have to pay back the cost of the new book >_>) but I should be back into hunting down gashapon in a few weeks.

Looking forward to hitting eBay again and making a list of all the things I don't have! :D

If we've done business before on LJ or anywhere else, please feel free to leave a comment here about your experience with me as a buyer or a seller.  Thank you for your time!  ^_^

See my SeraSell feedback thread here.

CC'ed from smcollector

This fandom is havoc, I say! Havoc! D:

It's hard to focus when there are so many cool toys out there. I've only been collecting seriously for just under two years, and I'm just now starting to realize that if I don't FOCUS and make a PLAN then I am just going to end up with a ton of junk. 

Actually, I have to rephrase that because nothing Sailormoon is junk to me.  I will just end up with a ton of it.  :D  Having a lot of Sailormoon stuff is great, but having great Sailormoon stuff is better.  If I spend all my time and money buying up every little shiny that catches my eye on eBay, I will never be ready when THOSE ITEMS come along.  

Hey, it's already happened to be before.  I had a few hundred dollars in my PayPal account last year and I went on a spending spree.  I bought any little thing that ticked my fancy.  What happened?  The Materials Collection showed up the next week and sold for $170, well within my range a week before.  Tragic, really.  And that's not the only time I've seen one of THOSE ITEMS show up at the most inopportune times.  

I'm getting organized.  I made a list of the items I want.  I am going to prioritize this list and focus on the items that I really want the most.  Will there still be purchases of opportunity?  Will there still be impulse buys for that "OMG too cute" plushie?  Sure there will be.  But at least I will FEEL like I know what I'm doing.  At least maybe this time, when one of THOSE ITEMS shows up for sale I just might be ready.

Put on your game face, it's eBay time!  *dance*

My extensive Wish List is here.  Serenity help me :P

CC'ed from smcollector

I wonder how many of you can relate.  I recently become pretty good friends with a few other active Sailormoon merch collectors.  It really feels good to know that I'm not the only one that goes through physical pain in the process of this journey.  It's a real emotional roller coaster ride I've gotten on, and sometimes I wonder if it's even very healthy.

I'm very passionate about my hobby.  I can understand why a person who has never had this level of devotion to something would think me mad.  However, having recently discovered that so many others share the same enthusiastic vigor as I, it's become something of a badge of honor for me.

Yes, I get stomach aches during eBay auctions.  Yes, I cry with tears of joy when I FINALLY get a long sought after item.  I coo it and show it to everyone and give it a special place, on a special shelf in a SPECIAL room in my house.  Yes, it hurts me to think of all the beautiful things I will likely never own.  I dream about finding and owning these things.  I watch things on eBay that I don't have the money for just to TORTURE MY SOUL.   Do I sound like a materialistic psycho that is unhealthily obsessed with a cartoon show from the 90s?  YES!  YES I DO! ^_____^

I've considered therapy, but in the end I know I don't want it to go away.  I want to feel the joys and pains of collecting Sailormoon stuff.  It's a metaphor for life!  I work hard to achieve those things I want.  Sometimes those things are not there to have, and sometimes I don't have what it takes to get them, and sometimes SOMEONE ELSE gets them!  BUT I PLOW ON!  Determined to make the best of every auction, every yard sale, every dollar store.  I will seek out new Sailormoon toys in new locations.  I WILL BOLDLY GO WHERE MANY OF YOU HAVE GONE BEFORE.

And I will not refinance my house to buy toys. 

Is there anything more you could ask of me!?

This is SkankinSarah here with a new more applicable account! :D

This LiveJournal will be a mirror of my Sailormoon Blog, and occasionally for some other things.  Mostly I will be posting about Sailormoon toys, collecting, Sailormoon art and other such frivolities!  Looking forward to a fresh start, in the name of the Moon! ;P