Monthly Archives: June 2020

The Lockdown Tag

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I wasn’t nominated for this, but I saw this on Hilary’s blog and it seemed fun. You can read the rules on her post since I’ll just be answering the questions.

It looks like there are two sets of questions on her post so I’ll just answer them all. LOL.

1. What country do you live in?

I live in British Columbia, Canada.

2. Favourite book?

I think my favourite book is Japanese Tales of Mystery and Imagination by Edogawa Rampo. My favourite short story from the book is The Human Chair. It’s a horror short story collection.

3. How do you spend your time during lockdown?

I work from home. When I’m not working, I watch a lot of YouTube. Lately, I’ve been watching Chuang 2020 clips, Guardian fanmade edits, Zhu Yilong interviews, and cooking videos.

Earlier during the lockdown, I watched many Thai dramas and a bunch of other stuff.

4. Have you tried cooking a new dish because of lockdown?

I’ve tried cooking a lot of new dishes and drinks. I’ve made dalgona coffee, strawberry milk, Thai milk tea, pasta, spicy cold noodles, kimbap, coffee jelly, and more. Since I like to watch cooking videos, I like to try out new recipes as well.

5. Early riser or Night owl?

I am a night owl. I detest mornings and rely on coffee. In fact, I’m writing this at 1:30 AM. I wish I was an early riser but I like the peacefulness and silence of the night.

6. Holiday dream destination?

Japan. I wonder when it will be safe to travel to Japan. I want to go to the popular anime destinations like Ikebukuro (Durarara!!).

7. Favourite food?

I have a lot of favourite foods. I love Asian food the most. I love xiaolongbao, hot pot, noodles (pho, ramen)… the list goes on. I like spicy, savoury, and bitter food and drinks.

I do not like sweet food or drinks.

8. Instagram or Twitter?

Instagram.

9. Favourite cartoon as a child?

Death Note. It’s actually rated 16+ but I watched it when I was in elementary school.

10. What do you prefer on a Saturday night? Netflix or Partying?

Of the two, I would pick Netflix. A lot of the shows I watch aren’t on Netflix, though.

1. Overall, how are you handling the quarantine?

I’m doing okay, but I miss eating out a lot. I miss hanging out with my friends and dressing up. Kind of sad, to be honest.

2. Have you violated any of the restrictions? If yes, what rule(s) did you break?

No. Peoples’ lives are on the line. Now is not the time to be irresponsible.

3. What viral recipes have you tried during the lockdown?

Dalgona coffee.

4. What activities have you missed the most during quarantine?

Celebrating friends’ birthdays and also my graduation. I also miss drinking bubble tea. I used to drink it every week.

My friend surprised me with a paper bouquet on the day of my virtual grad! I didn’t even attend my virtual grad but my friend did. T_T

5. Do you wear a mask when you leave the house?

Yes.

6. Are you an essential worker? If yes, what is your job title?

No.

7. How do you exercise during the lockdown?

My friend shares her screen and we watch a 20-minute workout video every other day. We follow the trainer in the video and we help motivate each other.

8. Have you subscribed to any new subscription services since the lockdown started?

No.

9. What did/does your daily schedule look like before the pandemic started?

I was at practicum 4 days a week and at the university once every two weeks. On the days I went to campus, I went to Anime Club. I attended weekly online Anime Club exec meetings and went to work on the weekend. I also worked from home for my other job. Since I didn’t have many assignments, I watched shows when I got home.

10. Do you think that the pandemic is getting better or worse?

I’m not the most informed person on this topic. I don’t know because Wave 2 is approaching and I don’t know what to expect when it comes. Restrictions have been lifted so I think it’s better than before. However, I don’t know if things will change for the better or worse. 2020 is very unpredictable.

After the rain

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The hydrangeas have not fully bloomed but I thought I would take photos to mark the first day of summer (yesterday). Click here to see the hydrangea photos I look last year.

Taken with Canon EOS 600D. The photos are not edited.

This is from my Instagram story. The lyrics are from the song Ref:rain by Aimer.

The original photo.

Saiki Kusuo no Ψ-nan 2 Episode 12 Impressions

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Another amazing episode. Episode 11 impressions post here.

Synopsis: Saiki is a psychic. He can do pretty much anything, but there are limits to his powers. He hides his psychic abilities from his friends and his life is full of disastrous moments that he has to deal with. The English title of this anime is “The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.”

Even though this was staged, I like the gyaru the most out of the girls in the show. I think that her and Saiki are cute together.

Does this mean that Saiki was behind the recaps all along?

Saiki looking cool.

… Not creepy at all. That smile though.

This is true. Saiki actually knows so much about people. High EQ.

Pfft, this greeting… I love it. (Saiki is able to talk to animals.)

What?? (For context, Saiki, Nendou, and their friends were stranded on an island in a previous episode. The hamster was there all along but we never knew.)

Tsundere confirmed.

Some context: Satou is an ordinary guy. I like how Saiki has Satou’s physical education scores.

Uh… not creepy at all…

UHH…

SAIKI!!!

……………..

……………..

……………..

This is the first time Saiki has wanted to be friends with someone! Usually, he thinks that people are too bothersome or too much trouble. I like how no one else notices Satou except for Saiki.

Thoughts: I adore Saiki but the stalking was… It was a little too creepy for me.

Saiki Kusuo no Ψ-nan 2 Episode 11 Impressions

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Episode 1 Impressions here.

Originally, I was going to write about every episode. I’ve already made folders of screenshots from each episode. But I’ve changed my mind and have decided to only blog about my favourite episodes. Episode 11 was too good.

Synopsis: Saiki is a psychic. He can do pretty much anything, but there are limits to his powers. He hides his psychic abilities from his friends and his life is full of disastrous moments that he has to deal with. The English title of this anime is “The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.”

I actually notice when shows do this.

I knew he was going to talking about handholding. Still, it was a cute scene.

Unpopular opinion, but I don’t like Teruhashi. Another unpopular opinion: I love Saiki’s brother, Kusuke. If you didn’t know, Kusuke is exactly the kind of character I like in anime. This scene was very satisfying.

Saiki’s life is anything but ordinary. It’s disastrous. Seeing Saiki so excited about an ordinary guy is so funny and cute.

Saiki is so nosy! Just look at him hiding behind the pole watching the ordinary guy. He’s a very caring and protective person though so I think it’s okay.

A little context: Saiki wears thin gloves at all times. If he touches an object with his bare hands, he will see the history behind the object. If he touches a book, he will probably see a flashback of a previous reader spoiling the book’s ending. His glove tears and he sees a love story between two people who borrowed the same book. However, he only sees little snippets of their love story and it keeps ending on a cliffhanger. He has no choice but to keep touching the rest of the books in the series (which also means spoiling the books).

I told you Saiki is very nosy.

He’s talking about the pacing of the love story between the readers, not the actual book plot hahaha.

It’s all about the IRL love story now. Who cares about the book series?

I left out screenshots of the love story on purpose, but it’s actually wild. You should watch the episode for yourself!

My Favourite flumpool Songs

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flumpool is a Japanese band. I’ve liked them since 2009! They did the theme songs for the 2008 Jdrama, Bloody Monday. In 2010, they did the theme song for Bloody Monday Season 2. flumpool’s new songs are still amazing. I love them soo much! I especially love Ryuta Yamamura. He’s the vocalist.

Another thing I like about flumpool is that they have songs in Chinese. I don’t know any other Japanese band or singer that have songs in Chinese. Ryuta recently posted a lot of videos of him speaking in Chinese and practising Chinese. He even asked fans to help him learn. T_T

Over the rain (2008)

This is the theme song for Bloody Monday.

残像 / Zanzou (2010)

This is the theme song for Bloody Monday Season 2.

花になれ / Hana ni Nare (2008)

I love the violin in the beginning! I can’t believe this song is from 2008.

証明 / Akashi (2011)

Ashin from the Taiwanese band, Mayday, wrote this song. This is one of flumpool’s Chinese songs. There is also a Japanese version. It’s so beautiful. T_T

HELP (Chinese ver.) (2020)

This came out just a few weeks ago! The Japanese version was released in 2019. I love it.

君に届け / Kimi ni Todoke (2010)

This was the theme song for the Japanese film, Kimi ni Todoke. It’s based on a shojo manga. I think this is one of their more popular songs.

素晴らしき嘘 / Subarashiki Uso (2020)

This is a new song from 2020. I love it.

明日への賛歌 / asu heno sanka

I think this is from 2014. I love the music video so much.

OAOA (2013)

flumpool sang a Japanese cover of Mayday’s 2011 song, OAOA.

These are my favourite flumpool songs. Please give them a listen, their songs are so good.

Parasyte Episode 14: The Selfish Gene

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In Parasyte episode 14, we watch a university lecture that talks about a legitimate topic: the “selfish gene” theory. I have a BA in Psychology and one of my course books was the famous book, The Selfish Gene.

Sorry, I Stuttered. — Parasyte Episode 14 The Selfish Gene

I transcribed the lecture because I find it easier to absorb information when it’s in one space (rather than looking through minutes of subtitles).

Altruism is action undertaken for the benefit of others. It’s the opposite of self-interest, and would seem to have no benefit for oneself. If anything, this action tends to help others while being disadvantageous to the actor. While this may not be surprising, among human beings, altruistic behaviour has actually been reported in several animal species. For example, honeybees will sacrifice themselves, one after the next, to protect the hive if predators appear. While this could just be instinct, some actions would not seem to preserve the species. The prime of example of this could be said to be… infanticide. Why kill the offspring of one’s own species? In recent years, what’s often brought up is… the “selfish gene” theory. Put simply, all animals are manipulated by their own body’s DNA. What’s important is the self, and the offspring that will inherit that DNA, rather than the species as a whole. If we expand on this theory, we can explain all altruistic behaviour, such as caring for others in one’s “pack,” familial love, marital love, and even maternal love. This would mean that love and compassion don’t actually exist. All behaviour appearing to be love is just behaviour to aid to transmitting one’s own DNA. Of course, this theory is not without its problems. There have been countless examples of animals helping others completely unrelated to their DNA strain, or protecting those of a different species altogether. What’s more, can a theory like this fully encompass the complexity, the depth of human consciousness? In which case, it’s interesting to consider whether human efforts in environmental and natural conservation are altruistic or selfish.“

It’s pretty long! I’ve bolded the parts I thought were most thought-provoking. Having learned this before, I can say that the professor gave a really good lecture. I don’t know any other anime that actually teaches the audience something for this long. Usually it’s a 15-second explanation or something like that. Parasyte is an amazing anime and it’s also one of my top 5. Consider giving it a try.

Honestly, I’m not quite sure what the point of this post is. However, it’s here for anyone who is interested LOL.

Saiki Kusuo no Ψ-nan 2 Episode 1 Impressions

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I binged Saiki Kusuo no Ψ-nan and really enjoyed it. Now that I’m on Season 2, I thought that I would write my thoughts about each episode. I did this with Shield Hero and it was a lot of fun. This is a comedy anime.

Synopsis: Saiki is a psychic. He can do pretty much anything, but there are limits to his powers. He hides his psychic abilities from his friends and his life is full of disastrous moments that he has to deal with. The English title of this anime is “The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.”

There’s a lot of “Breaking the fourth wall” scenes.

Saiki being cute.

The classic “running to school with toast in mouth” trope. Normally, this would feel overused but when you have the context (hoping to bump into her crush, Kaidou, it becomes a lot funnier).

This is the third Christmas but I’m pretty sure it hasn’t been three years…

You can really understand Saiki’s feelings by looking at this frame.

Commercial bumper (signals the start and end of the commercial break). Why is the art style so different!? I’m not complaining though.

I really like this shot. Maybe this is what life is about…

To Saiki, bliss is eating his favourite desserts and watching television without interruptions. He just wants a simple life. I’m starting to really resonate with this.

Saiki being cute again.

When the anime references the mangaka.

When the TV starts playing the anime’s opening theme!

Now it’s referencing other anime. This show is too much… but I love it.

I planned to post my impressions of several episodes together but as you can see, there’s so much content in just the first episode. This anime helps you relax and watching this is a nice break from everything that’s going on.

If you like Sakamoto Desu ga? then I think you will like this anime. It’s a little like Mob Psycho 100, but it’s more focused on comedy rather than a coherent storyline. If you’re interested in Saiki K, start with Season 1!

I’ll be continuing my episodic impressions.

That Anime That Will Always Have a Special Place in Your Heart

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Well, there are a few anime that are special to me. One of them is Death Note. Another one is Vampire Knight. I got into Vampire Knight in 2009, when I was 12 years old. It was also the first manga I bought. I’ve watched the anime and read all of the manga.

I will never watch or read Vampire Knight again. I rarely rewatch anything to begin with (Click here for more context) but I just don’t think I will enjoy rewatching/rereading it. It’s also because I hate Yuki Cross, the female lead.

Even so, this series has a special place for me. Because I didn’t like Yuki, I’ve read a ton of fanfiction where Yuki was a minor character.

I still love the art style of the manga. Toga Yagari and the entire Night class are so attractive, especially Kaname Kuran. The opening and ending songs are still amazing and the soundtrack is really good.

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Do you have an anime that has a special place in your heart? Let me know in the comments!

A Moment of Inspiration in My Hero Academia Season 4

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In Season 4, Episodes 16-17 (or Episodes 79-80) Katsuki Bakugo and Shoto Todoroki attend a course because they both failed the second phase of the Hero exam.

I think that Bakugo and Todoroki are amongst the top five strongest students in the class. Even though they’re so strong, they still failed the exam and had to take an extra course.

Season 4, Episode 17.

I really liked this scene because it’s true that we sometimes feel stuck. It’s true that we sometimes have to go backwards in order to move forward. Some people seem to be moving forward so quickly, while others are moving slower. Even when we feel like we are not moving anywhere, it’s still part of the process. Improvement is not linear.

This scene was a good reminder for myself as I’ve been feeling this way for the past couple of days.