Oh goodness, it has been a while again... That is so typically me, I'm afraid.

I will start with a quick recap of today. I went to a coffee shop by the beach this afternoon to relax. I also watched the first episode of the new Ranma 1/2 anime on Netflix. I've never seen the original (save for a commercial for one of the movies at the end of one of my Pokemon VHS tapes back in the day), but as someone who got into anime at the tail end of the 90s, I was of course aware of it and knew the general premise. I enjoyed the first episode, and can definitely see why it was so popular as the characters and their interactions are fun.

I watched the first episode of Nobody Wants This as well, which was cute! I love Kristen Bell so much. ♥

A while back, I watched the first season of the Interview with the Vampire series and loved it.

Hope to be back with more when my brain isn't so tired!

I was up half the night reading a Night Vale fic. I can't even remember the last time that I was so addicted to a fic. I'm guessing it was back in my POTO fandom days because I don't think I've read anything as long since then. This one was over 50K, and IMHO, Cecil was a little OOC in parts, but I still enjoyed the heck out of it. I read all of the available chapters, but it's a WIP, so I'll probably be reading it for time to come.

( Fic Under here )

Despite being up late, I managed to miss Hunter x Hunter twice on Toonami. Unfortunately, I had to go out and eat Mexican food with family at the time I would normally watch it. I just decided to wait until it is rerun instead of recording it. I have really been enjoying it for the past few weeks, though. The dynamics between the characters are really starting to remind me of YYH, which is always a good thing.

My presence on the web has been almost nonexistent as of late. Sure, I'll pop in every now and then to answer a writer's block question or post a status update on facebook, but overall, my online activity has severely dimininished. Life has neen uncommonly complicated and troubling
for awhile now. Fortunately, it seems the bright side has revealed itself! I could be in college before this year is through. So, why don't I take these quiet moments while cat-sitting to illuminate what my life has been like for the last year or so? After all it has been many moons since this journal has seen a proper update! :3

yes, I am cat-sitting for my aunt's old neighbors. This means staying at their house with my grandmother to keepthe kitties from getting lonely while their owners are in Europe. It is the ideal time to focus on my reading, but I haven't even felt up To that now. Staying with the cats is a definite plus, though! I just hope that I can feel good enough to enjoy my little vacation before it ends.

I appreciate this little vacation very much because my own travelling has decreased. Don't get me wrong, I still love to travel, but this is not a good time. I will admit that I miss the anime cons. I still want to attend them and even cosplay for once, but I foresee less chances for that in the near future. I doubt I will attend many cons outside of California anytime soon.

I seem to be remarking about change a lot, but some things have stayed the same in good ways. Although anime is no longer my priority or greatest obsession, I still find myself in love with the medium. I think that, besides writing, anime is the one art form that expresses my inner self best. I can’t think of a day when that style of art or storytelling won’t appeal to me. Moreover, I’ve been getting into FMA: Brotherhood big time! It’s such a treat to have adventures in the world of alchemy with the Elrics again. Out of all the anime I’ve watched, this story seems to take place in the world I like most. It’s encouraging to know that this world can still be so enthralling that it takes my breath away. I hope to talk more on this subject at a later date.

I also got back into Inuyasha! :D Yes, the endless sage still holds fascination for me. I won’t deny that a good chuck of that fascination comes in the form of one Sesshomaru. I think I might like him more than I did when I first watched Inuyasha all the years ago. Not that I was ever too disdainful of his type of character back then, but he suits my tastes even better than before. I should probably turn to the manga instead, but I’ve just been watching Adult Swim’s reruns for the time being. Anyway, I hope to finally watch all of the original anime and get my hands on the Final Act as well!

In other news, I’ve been focusing on reading more than anytime in recent memory. This is ideal because reading provides a comfort for me like nothing else. What’s more, it is a great help to spark my imagination for my own writing. There is nothing quite like finding someone who tells the stories that seem to come right out of my own dreams. I have a dishearteningly long list of books that I should read, and I want to get through all the classics eventually. I had a nice schedule worked out for this year, but I’ve only managed to conquer Sense and Sensibility, Jane Eyre, and Twilight. The latter modern offering was obviously gobs of fan girlish delight, but I get annoyed with myself for liking ti when I think about it too much. There is really not enough that I can say about Jane Eyre besides this: it deserves its own entry, and I am still kicking myself for missing the chance to see the 2011 movie adaptation in theaters. As for Sense and Sensibility, I prefer the movie version! I never thought I’d say that, but I’m afraid that Jane Austen’s writing is just not my cup of tea. I do like her, but I doubt that I can rave about her the way that every other girl can. I don’t see enough of myself in her work, especially when you consider the story and character of Jane Eyre. I want to finish off the rest of her works sometime soon and return to them at a later date to see if my opinion has changed. Until then, I will search for what I’m looking for in the writing of other authors.

In the end, I recognize that life can and will improve. Still, I feel everything is in a very precarious situation right now. One mishap could set me back seven years. The only defense against this is to be ready and to trust…