Rise and Shine Boys and Girls. It’s a brand-new year and the sun is up and it’s time to grab the bull by the horns and something something awesome!
Now dig yourself out from under that mountain of assorted party favors, empty solo cups and forgotten coats, and get ready to tackle the future! If you feel a little queasy don’t worry – it’s the excitement! That’s how you’re supposed to feel! If you still feel queasy in half an hour maybe check out this post…
Have you figured out where you are yet? Doesn’t matter! Petty concerns like that are for petty people, and you my friend are GRAND! It’s simple fact, after all I refuse to even acknowledge the less than fantastic. Why would I? The fact that we are sharing this moment, is proof absolute of your wonderfulness. Now it’s time to impose it on the world!
Have I lost my mind even more than usual? Am I still drunk from last night? Also, doesn’t matter! Wouldn’t make anything I’ve said so far, any less true. So, while I have you here, and before you become too big to talk to me, let’s make a little bargain. In 2019, we’re going to remember why it’s awesome to be anime fans. Basically, we are just going to keep doing everything exactly as we have so far.
We are going to still welcome new fans and appreciate their awe at discovering great series for the first time. We’re not going to make fun of them for mispronouncing Japanese names or not knowing niche vocabulary. We are way too cool for that! We’ll keep on suggesting new series they can try without telling them it’s so much better than the show they love. It’s ok for more than one anime to be great after all.
And you know, sometime social media can be just as much a curse as a blessing. Some folks, not us, have a tendency to get a little negative at times. Negativity is a bit like a virus. It can get contagious and make you feel crappy. So in 2019 we are going to be careful about disinfecting that stuff. Wash your hands after you touch the rotten parts. Concentrate of the healthy conversations. I know that we all want to be at the party. But some parties are just lame and always the same. You deserve better. Only the most select and exclusive should be graced with your illustrious presence.
We both know that there is no right way of being an anime fan of course. It’s not like the one that has seen the most wins, or the one that has seen the obscurest. Is obscurest a word, my autocorrect sort of gave up on me a long time ago… I know that there’s no point in getting on a high horse because I sat in front of a TV longer than someone. I mean, I’ve probably been alive longer as well so it’s a bit like cheating. And they can still win in the end. Whoa that got grim out of nowhere.
Thankfully, we’re both secure and glaringly fantastic people who simply don’t feel the need to brag or compare ourselves to others. We come together because greatness recognizes greatness and there’s no point in spelling it out.
For those of us with blogs, we are going to keep improving even though we’re pretty great already. We’ll just keep working to hone our skills. Maybe we’ll try something new, offer to edit other people’s posts to develop those skills. Because editors are the very best. We are going to get you some great posts to read in 2019, just you wait!
It’s going to be a wonderful year for anime fans all over and we are going to celebrate it together. By being actively superb as always! I’m so glad to see you here today and can’t wait to tackle this brand new year!
*** You may be wondering what has gotten into me. I’ve read that a lot of you are feeling burned out and exhausted by the anime community and by extension find yourself less enthusiastic about anime itself. So I just thought I’d take a second to remind us all that there are also a lot of great people in that community. For instance, there’s you! And it would be great if you started the year out optimistic and happy. You’ll see, once the hangover wears off, you’ll be much more enthusiastic!
So today, leftovers and comfy blankie on the couch and tomorrow, we start an this lovely journey together!
Hmm you have been an inspiration miss Irina since i started following you and this post saids why 😀
aww Lita – I’ll say it again you are a ray of sunshine in lovely person form!
This. this right here is why I love reading your blog posts. You make reading about anime entertaining my friend. And I love that this is about postiveness. Cause I agree we definitely need some more of that energy around here!
By the way, I would love to collaborate with you sometime! Let me know if your interested 🙂
I am always up for a collab. You can DM me on twitter if you like
Sweet! I’ll definitely do that then. 🙂
All very wonderful, but you really iced the cake with that closing pic of Mako and Chinatsu! Absolutely perfect!
A picture is worth a thousand words after all
There’s a lot of positivity this new year. I hope it keeps up.
You and I both
What an awesome and inspiring post to start off the new year! Thank you and I wish you a great year in 2019. Myself, I’m looking forward to reading your posts and watching more anime!
Seems like I have some great company to look forward to in 2019
“So today, leftovers and comfy blankie on the couch and tomorrow, we start on this lovely journey together!”
Thanks for such a warm and uplifting start to the year!
Always a pleasure Crow
What a post to kick off the new year. I know I’m guilty of being negative, but I do need to be positive while being genuine about it in whatever I do.
We all get down sometimes but that’s why the rest of us are here o lift you up!
Thank you very much, Irina.
I’m going to continue to maintain a positive blog. Negativity and nitpicking has ruined so much in the land of fandom, and I won’t let it get near my own work. I’ll be critical when I feel I have to, but I’m not going to pick any bones or air any grudges.
If you want a 40 min essay on the failings of the Isekai genre, or how there is too much Moe (There is never enough) go to youtube.
YouTube seems scray. I have not heard great things…
In general, youtube seems to be kinda in a tranformation period, but in terms of anime youtube? I don’t know much. I don’t care for anitubers, never have so I’m probably not the person to ask for it. Mother’s basement is ok, but the others often come off as smug, dismissive, or way too focused on nitpicking. But hey, if that’s how they do thier fandom, more power to em.
I’m afraid I know even less.
Hello. I just saw this comment while reviewing posts for my weekly round up. I think I love you. There need to be more people like you. Thank you. Please continue to go about your day. It’s like I was never here.
Happy to serve, my blog will always be authentic.
It sounds like you take a very similar attitude to me with regard to positivity and a desire to avoid unnecessary nitpicking. I could rant for hours on this, but I will spare you and Irina’s comment section that indignity for now :3
I’ll only go on a rant about Shinmai Maou, but I’ve already done that (pluggity, plug plug)
Ooh, I still need to watch that…
I won’t clutter Irina’s blog with my thoughts about that show.
It’s all good, make yourselves at home. Can I get you something to drink?
Hear hear!! The perfect post to start the new year. Irina, you are amazing! I’m glad we have you to remind us of how it should be when things just goes dark and dirty.
My pleasure Lina! You’ll do the same for us with your brave honesty I’m sure!
It’s my goal at least. 😊
Ah, anime. I’ve probably forgotten more anime than some of the people who drop by here have watched in their lives, and yet I’m a mere mote in the eyes of the true anime gods, who – for one thing – don’t know how to forget anime. Googling on a whim, for example, I found out that there’s a Lensman anime (a TV series and a movie), that the Smith estate hated it, and that it’s hard to find, and that even should I find it, I couldn’t watch it, because my VHS player’s broken and I have no means to play a laser disk. But the alien designs are awesome. (VHS… if I were to go back in time far enough, and die there, I could turn into crude oil, be refined and become part of an anime VHS tape. Then someone could watch me over and over again, and due to the surplus of emotional energy I could turn into a tsukumogami and… watch more anime. Did New Years Eve leave me a little strange? Maybe, but maybe I’ve just always been a little strange, and I’m too tired and too scared of drunk people to hold back. If the anime industy were to die and no new anime were ever to be made, there’s enough around to last me for the rest of my life. But I’m fairly sure new anime is going to be added onto the pile month after month after month.)
I hope someone releases Penguin Highway around here in the near future, so I can see it. How’s that for a conclusion to a rambling post.?
Perfect! I saw Penguin Highway at a festival this summer. It was o.k. I hope you get to see it soon as well!
Great, a healthy dose of energetic positivism is precisely what’s needed to kickstart a great new year.
P.S. the last picture couldn’t be any more fitting (or maybe I just like Flying Witch too much).
“P.S. the last picture couldn’t be any more fitting (or maybe I just like Flying Witch too much).”
Is it even possible to like it too much? 🙂
When it comes to liking stuff – I prefer to err on the side of too much in general
I dunno. But I’m trying my best.
I also love that pic! It makes me comfy just to look at