It was literally only three weeks ago that I was writing about how I was going to continue with my Anime Archivist project. In the weeks after that post I had written three new articles. I found this quite amazing as I had just come off a really rough period where I had spent a year trying to sort my parents lives out as both of them had to be put into a nursing home almost simultaneously. In the process I had to have a fair few weeks off work just to get things sorted out and for my own mental health as things began to unravel for me back in February just as was in the final stages of sorting everything out.
It's amazing how things change in such short time. My father got quite ill in the last three weeks and eventually died on Monday. While that's bad enough, sorting everything out in the wake of that is even more draining. Legally, financially, logistically and emotionally it's all a bit of a mess. It's pretty hard trying sort all that stuff out as well as the pressures of work (I will be off work for approximately three weeks just to sort stuff out) and the demands of some family members.
Even though it's only around nine weeks away, I'm still going on my two and a half week trip to Japan. I think I really need it. However I still have a lot to plan for that trip. I am a little down to say the least at the moment and am finding rather difficult trying to get motivated to complete what I need to do.
In the midst of all of this, I have decided to quit my twitter account. It's really not doing myself any good. To a large degree I find that a lot of the (alleged) "influencers" on that platform to be mostly wankers and some are rather divisive figures. What I don't understand is why some of these people target other sectors of fandom such as idol fandom and those who like moe elements in anime. Due to this and the utterly appalling way things like the recent Flying Colors Foundation nonsense were handled (or more correctly not handled) by supposedly professional people who call themselves journalists, well I wasn't all that impressed. As a result I think in the future I'll me limiting my exposure to fandom at large just for my own mental health. The drama really tires me out.
I was in the middle of writing up a couple of articles in regards to two issues I have with the way those in the upper echelon of anime fandom conduct themselves, but with everything that's going on, I've decided to put those on hold for a while. At this stage I'm not sure I'll even publish them at all. For now, I wouldn't expect much out his blog until after August. Hopefully by then things will have stabilised for me.
I hope things get better for you. It's really sucks things went down in a short time.
ReplyDeleteBeen following this blog for several months along with some other (like Zimmerit) through rss. I find these blogs are much more useful and educating than "anitubers".
Be well.
Thanks for that. Certainly hasn't been easy. At times the fandom drives be barmy. I don't get them. There is a lot of navel gazing which does my head in. A lot of misinterpretation of what is very Japanese material using western ideas and values as well.
ReplyDeleteA lot of Japanese pop culture is really silly throw away stuff anyway. It's not to be taken seriously. I think a certain sector of fandom want to attach their own dogma or morals to it and end up disappointed when it doesn't match them. e.g they surprised that an entertainment coming for a highly patriarchal and sexist society is patriarchal and sexist. Who'da thunk it?
Sean's Zimmerit stuff is good. I wasn't a big fan of the attitude of the Colony Drop staff. I don't understand how or why people make fun of certain elements of anime fandom when collecting robot kits or anime laserdiscs is just as dorky and weird to those outside the fandom as those who like dakimakura and animegao kigurumi, or god forbid, follow Danny Choo.