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peachy-rambles · 4 years ago

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Kikis delivery service au? 👀 Please go on, that’s one of my favorites of the ghibli movies and I would love to hear your thoughts on it

(Also really dumb idea but Tommy as Gigi but he’s a raccoon. Who for? Yes. Regardless of who is Kiki- oooooh and there’s that artist lady with the crows-)

-inky

Ok so here's some thoughts I have about it off the top of my head:

When Phil was 13, he left home as young witches do (with his dove familiar, Wilbur) to find his way in the world and whatever his special talent was because every witch has a special talent. He finds his way to a big city and settles there, finding work at a garden centre. He was always good with plants and he enjoys his job, even if it's a lot of work. There's even a bakery down the street he often visits and becomes friends with the owner.

One day when Phil visits the bakery, he notices that the owner is acting different and seems much more quiet and closed off. It doesn't take much pressing from him to get her to tell him what's wrong.

"It's my son. He's sick and I can't afford the medicine he needs," she eventually admits.

Phil gets more details from her about her son and he heads back to where he's staying, pulling out an old book he'd packed before leaving. It's an ancient journal written by one of his ancestors about herbs, potions and brewing medicine. He gets to work, figuring out which potion he needs to make and collects the plants he needs to it from the garden centre. It takes a few trial and errors but eventually he successfully makes the potion he needs.

He brings it to the bakery's owner and gives her the proper instructions on how to give it to her son before leaving.

A few weeks later when he visits the bakery, the owner is delighted to see him and tells him that his potion worked! Her son is still recovering, but he was no longer sick and almost healthy again.

The owner brings Phil to meet her son, Techno, who just turned 3. Techno loves Phil right away, especially because he knows Phil is the one who helped him get better. Over the next few years, Phil often visits the bakery and will sometimes babysit Techno, spending time with him.

Eventually though, Phil figures it's time for him to leave the city and to head back home. Techno is naturally distraught and is angry at Phil, thinking his friend is leaving him for good. But Phil promises he'll send Techno letters and definitely visit whenever he gets the chance.

Phil returns home and makes good on his promise, sending Techno letters at least twice a month and Techno always writes him back (well, he tries his best, being only 5 and all).

But then...Phil's letters slow down to once a month. Then once every few months.

The last letter Techno receives from Phil is wishing Techno a happy 6th birthday, and how Phil will try to visit in a few weeks if he can.

He never does.

Despite this, Techno keeps sending letters, hoping maybe if he sends enough Phil will reply. But as more time passes, he realizes that's it's probably useless and knows that Phil won't reply. Techno doesn't give up completely however and once a year, he'll send Phil a letter, telling him about all the things that have happened to him in the past year. He always ends the letter by saying how he misses Phil and hopes he's okay.

Years pass and Techno grows up, eventually inheriting the bakery from his mother who passed away when Techno was 18. Techno is an amazing baker, but because of his giant size and generally terrifying appearance+social anxiety and awkwardness...he isn't good at running the bakery and interacting with people. So, he hires another local baker named Niki to help him out. They're both great bakers and work well together, but Niki is usually the one manning the front and interacting with customers while Techno stays (hides) in the back.

Eventually, Techno (and Niki) take on an apprentice named Ranboo. He's not the best at baking yet, but he has a genuine interest in it and is great at making cookies and decorating cakes.

One day, while Ranboo is helping closing up the bakery with Techno, he's notices a little yellow raccoon with a green bandana tied around it's neck, digging through the trash. It hisses and runs away as soon as it spots Ranboo, but it's back the next night. This time though, Ranboo is prepared and has a spare loaf of broad to offer the raccoon. The raccoon still hisses at him and runs off, but not before nabbing the bread from Ranboo.

This becomes a routine for about a week, Ranboo feeding the raccoon any spare food from the bakery. At the end of the week, Ranboo decides to follow the raccoon. Because it's clearly going somewhere with the food and the bandana around it's neck probably mean it belongs to someone.

That's how Ranboo meets Tubbo - a witch in training, who wasn't able to find a place to stay and has been wandering the streets for the past week. His raccoon familiar, Tommy, was taking the food that Ranboo gave him and giving it to Tubbo to eat since he had no money or food left.

Ranboo listens to Tubbo's plights and after thinking it over, Ranboo comes up with an idea: Tubbo could live with Ranboo in the spare attic above the bakery that Techno let's Ranboo stay in!

Tubbo doesn't hesitate and accepts Ranboo's offer. They do attempt to hide Tubbo's presence from Techno, unsure of how he'll react to a witch (or you know, just a strange random teenager living in his attic), but Techno catches them on the first day when Tubbo sneaks into the bakery to steal some desserts.

Techno isn't heartless so he let's Tubbo continue to stay with Ranboo, just as long as he helps around the bakery and doesn't get in anyone's way. Even though Techno seems to not mind Tubbo's presence, the others in the bakery still can't help but notice that Techno very much avoids Tubbo and they have no idea why.

Maybe Techno dislikes witches or is scared of them? But if he does, why would he agree to let Tubbo stay.

Of course we know why Techno is hesitant around Tubbo: it's because of Phil.

Techno doesn't hate Phil or hate witches because of Phil, but he is...hesitant to trust them or get close to them. Which is why he's so wary around Tubbo and does his best to ignore and avoid him. Afterall, Techno has no idea what happened to Phil or why he stopped sending letters and why he broke his promise to Techno.

The truth is, when Phil returned home all those years ago, it turned out that while he was gone his parents had made an arranged marriage for him to another witch from a powerful family. Phil didn't really have a choice and went through with the marriage. He didn't tell Techno any of this through his letters because Techno was just a child and Phil didn't think it was relevant to tell him.

All of Techno's letters that he mailed were all sent to Phil's family's house, which Phil no longer lived at (now living with his spouse) and Phil would always send Wilbur over to deliver any letters from Techno to him.

As time went on, Phil became more and more depressed with his living situation, especially because his spouse and their family weren't...the nicest.

Eventually, something happens with his spouse, which makes Phil snap and he runs away, leaving everyone behind. He travels for a very long time until he finds a little abandoned cabin at the edge of some woods, nearby a small quaint little town. Phil decides to make the cabin his own and it becomes home to him. He eventually builds a greenhouse and garden, turning his little cabin into an apothecary, where he makes and sells potions and medicines (he will also sell his plants if people are interested, but it's mostly the potions).

He eventually earns the nickname "the Crowfather" by the town and surrounding area, due to the amount of birds (mostly crows but other birds as well) that tend to hang around his cabin and shop. Sometimes you can ever catch him talking to the birds (usually scolding them for whatever reason).

Phil enjoys the life he's made for himself and avoids thinking about his past, but sometimes he'll remember Techno and feel some regret. He sometimes wonders if maybe he should send Techno a letter and tell him that he's okay, that he misses Techno and had full intentions of visiting him, but life had other plans. Phil has written many letters over the years to Techno, but whenever he tries to send one, he always backs out and ends up throwing the letter away.

Techno was just a child when he last saw Phil and has probably long forgotten Phil already, so there's no need to send him a letter. That's what Phil believes anyway.

Phil pushes any thoughts of Techno out of his head and tries to focus on the life he has now.

Eventually, Phil finds and takes in a toddler named Tubbo, who Phil recognizes as another witch. Phil raises Tubbo and trains him in the ways of witches, until the day Tubbo turns 13 and heads off to go on his own journey to find his special talent.

Phil has no idea that his apprentice ended up in the same city Phil did all those years ago, and somehow found the same bakery Phil did and is now living under Techno's roof and being looked after by him.

But Phil will find out when Tubbo sends his first letter to Phil, giving him all the details of his journey so far, including the bakery he's staying in and the owner - Techno.

#techza #technophil #asks and replies #peachy said a thing #peachy fic prompts #inky anon

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writtenbyliliana · 5 years ago

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I’m impatient so I’m answering all of these rn... sorry to those who don’t care lol

Hello newcomers tho~!

Okay let’s do this *cracks knuckles*

1) Lilian Rose Marcella DeReu

2) Capricorn (why does everyone hate us? We’re bossy, sure, but it’s only cuz we know best lol)

3) thunder & lightening, going back to being suicidal, and the ocean (tho it’s super pretty a magestic, it terrifies me)

4) knowledge/learning, frogs, and memes (especially frog memes)

5) the ability to hold a deep conversation, the ability to be both silly and serious on separate and appropriate occasions, butts, and beards

6) being rude to waiters, people that spit in public (like stop that’s nasty af), people that shame others for having mental illnesses or other disabilities (this includes learning disabilities, racists/homophobes

7) myself or my sister (too many issues with other people rn to claim someone to be my best friend)

8) bisexual/pansexual and I think I’m gender fluid or at least androgynous or non binary (I’ve been contemplating all of this since I was 10 and yet I’m still confused somehow)

9) I went to a farmers market with my first love (who turned out to be fake but whatever)

10) I’m only 4’9” :((( (but good things come in small packages lol)

11) I miss the lavender festive a farm would put on in Skaneateles, NY (they had the best honey and lavender flavored sweets ever!!!)

12) I was either born at 5:30 am or pm (no one remembers which it was lol)

13) either lavender or sanguine

14) hell yeah I have a crush but I dunno what to do about it (they’re super cool and cute and we’ve been talking a lot recently but I dunno how to make a move aah help!)

15) “There are some things I know for certain: always throw spilt salt over your left shoulder, Keep rosemary by your garden gate, plant lavender for luck, and fall in love whenever you can.” -Practical Magic

16) Salem, Massachusetts!

17) sweet potato sushi from Sakura Sushi in Buffalo, NY!

18) pffft nah, I never use sarcasm😗😉

19) my ceiling fan and the ringing in my ears

20) their hair tbh (I love different hair cuz I used to be a cosmetologist, not cuz I’m just a weirdo lol)

21) an itty bitty 6

22) sometimes green hazel other times auburn (depends on the weather)

23) natural ginger baby!

24) light wash blue mom jeans and white chunky sneakers with various tops (yes I know I’m a basic white girl)

25) Ive never done a prank call and I can’t say I’ve ever had the desire to tbh

26) grey ;o

27) my nickname is Liliana and my posts are written by me (and this blog is for snail mail and other written arts)

28) Studio Ghibli’s Kiki’s Delivery Service

29) Blue Ridge Mountains by Fleet Foxes

30) probably Fleet Foxes

31) exhausted but happy :)

32) my sister❤️

33) I’m single as a Pringle and ready to mingle~!!

34) used to be pretty rocky but definitely on the way to getting better

35) Halloween~!

36) no tattoos yet but I have my ears pierced and a septum piercing

37) oh gosh all the tattoos and my ears pierced a few more times

38) tbh I joined it again cuz of the new animal crossing game coming out, then I discovered snail mail tumblr, and then discovered academia tumblr so I made a new side blog for the last two (go follow my animal crossing blog @islandkahunaliliana )

39) Meditations by Descartes

40) Nope :’)

41) yes but not in a romantic way (aka my mom lol)

42) couple months ago :’) (I’m totally not salty about the breakup... no no, you’re salty, not me... jk jk I’m not actually salty just sad I’m alone again)

43) when I’m more masculine and don’t do makeup probably about 10 minutes, but when I’m more feminine and do makeup it takes me 30 minutes to an hour

44) nope! (I’ve been feeling more masculine lately so I don’t feel the need to shave my legs rn)

45) in bed lol

46) probably my roommate? Or maybe my sister if she’s with me?

47) loud af, I’m practically already deaf cuz I listen to my music so damn loud lol

So that was it!! I hope y’all enjoyed getting to know me! It’s always fun doing these, it’s almost like a journaling prompt!

If anyone wants to do this too, feel free to tag me in it! I wanna get to know y’all better!

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theangrypokemaniac · 5 years ago

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There's a sneering attitude that the dub is inherently inferior solely for being a dub, and when I say 'dub' I mean the American one. No one attacks the South American interpretation, funnily enough, or the variety that exist globally.

Why not if foreign languages are so abhorrent? Do you think it's kewl to hate America?

That's so original you know.

If the moan centres on the dub changing certain things, well that's a pointless stance, because it's impossible to do otherwise.

What's accepted in one country is not always permitted elsewhere, so either you make those alterations or it's never shown. I'd prefer seeing a slightly toned down version rather than have it never reach the West at all.

This is without considering the technical obstacles that a direct translation brings. The words do have to fit the mouth movements, and if they don't, truncation must follow.

America and Japan are different; the population of the former are not going to comprehend the references to the latter's history and culture, which necessitates some divergence from the original to give it mass appeal.

Anime is a branch of entertainment. It has to attract the public's good will to stay in business. If impenetrable, it'll fail, with all the resulting unemployment and finacial losses that brings.

Those in charge of dubbing understandably think they're on safer ground promoting familiarity rather than the strange, but that's not to say Pokémon was stripped of its identity. On the contrary, it was like nothing I'd ever encountered before.

I may have watched Western cartoons then, but the idea of doing so now is silly. I won't give time to any modern animation unless it's Japanese. Growing up on the dub has not produced an ephemeral fan less serious or 'true'.

The 4Kids dub had wit, humour, deep emotion, suggestive comments and flights of fancy. The voices fitted the characters well.

Unlike the current one, where everyone sounds on the verge of vomiting, but then they're clearly working with substandard material on a miserly budget. You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear after all.

Dubs can be bad, but the very state of being a dub doesn't confer worthlessness automatically. Considering the work gone into them, attempting to gain your favour, it seems rude not to appreciate the time and energy spent in production.

Knowing a little about history, sub-only fanatics remind me of the kind of folk who opposed an English Bible, because it was too good for the oiks to read the word of God.

Of course it was alright for them, rich enough to be taught Latin, but not so much the ordinary man.

It amuses me how dozens dismiss the dub, but see no hypocrisy in using its evidence to further their ship or anti-ship arguments, so it can't be that revolting.

It's also bizarre that so many hold sacred the sub of a series currently in a frenzy to shed every aspect of its anime and Japanese origins, leaving a vague, rootless ghost, supposedly making it easier to slip down the gullet of the masses.

Pokémon I've seen referred to as a 'gateway drug', as in the anime that introduced a generation to the entire concept. This means the dub. You would not have got enough kids in the late Nineties to read a screen rather than watch it, and even today most would lose interest rapidly.

Where would you be without that dub? Unless you're Japanese, your first experience of Pokémon will have been a dub, and if not the American, the one where you live, which was only made because there was the funds available.

You may have then progressed to watching the sub, but only because that dub stirred love in your soul.

Where would the franchise be without that dub? You think Pokémon would've grown to be a world-wide obsession raking in billions by itself? No, it'd still be a solely Japanese phenomena, and most likely never lasted this long.

Its decades of supremacy rests on the quality of that dub. It sold games and merchandise to kids by the ton, giving an incentive to keep the series going. If you're not a fan from the first wave, then your favourite era would have never existed had it not been financially attractive carrying on.

The team who wrote the first film actually preferred the dub, moved to tears by its emotive use of music, therefore they aren't so precious as the fans.

Where would anime be without that dub? Pokémon brought it to the West. A handful slipped through previously, but made minor impression.

To those who would dismiss Pokémon entirely in favour of more 'worthy' output such as Studio Ghibli, I would say that Pokémon, first the games, then the programme they inspired, must have an integral quality to have caught on in Japan, which isn't exactly short on similar concepts.

To have gained popularity in a crowded market, and so fervently a dub became an option, can only have come about because it held a certain magic.

It was the dub that smashed a hole in the cultural barrier, setting free the tidal wave to engulf the world. In Pokémon's trail followed Digimon, Cardcaptors, Monster Rancher, Yu-Gi-Oh! et cetera.

Without Pokémon, I doubt they'd have been translated, and definitely never broadcast on mainstream television. That came about as channels desperately hunted down anything Japanese to serve as the next craze.

I really appreciated the effort made by 4Kids in converting every aspect of the series to suit American tastes, including changing text on signs, letters and books into English. I assumed this was standard practice until I watched others.

I could never be as involved in them as I was Pokémon because of that block. It was like being denied access to the deeper waters, fenced into the shallows, and implied a rushed dub, with little care shown but to chase the same crowd and money.

If personified, the dub 'n' sub wouldn't be one human being, but rather identical twins: the same to a casual observer, but easy to tell apart by the more attentive.

It's like the games: Red and Blue are versions of a single adventure, but not totally one. Take the dub and the sub the same way. They are parallel dimensions running on separate rails, and beyond reconciliation, and that's before we consider that, sub and dub alike, each generation has only a faint relation to its predecessor, working on its own whims.

Everyone has a favourite, or can like both, and there's nothing wrong in that, but so many are proud of the fact they hate the dub, as if it conveys a revered status of supremacy.

When Disney films are shown abroad, they too are translated, and I'm sure references and jokes are redesigned to make sense to the locals. It's no use selling yourself as a comedy then being surprised when the audience refuses to laugh, having no idea what you mean.

If people prefer that one, for being what introduced them to Disney as a whole, or as a fond memory of childhood, then so what?

I don't mind if their view of a character is minutely at odds with mine, having seen the original, because what they think is canon to their version, so can't be wrong.

I don't go round declaring every Disney dub to be pathetic by its nature, that viewers of them are of a lesser breed of fan for preferring their own tongue, even though more of the world's population understand English than they do Japanese.

If you enjoy one tailored to your country there's no crime in it, just as I like one at least comprehensible to mine. It's not even my culture, but I pick it up mostly.

The choice must be made on which to follow, and this blog runs on dub canon, as that has a claim on my heart. Just because I don't acknowledge what takes place in the sub doesn't mean I'm unaware of it, but it has no bearing on what I write.

The idea that the dub alters things willy-nilly without rhyme nor reason is also mistaken. Often it does it because the original does not make sense.

In the sub, I know Nanny and Pop-Pop are just a couple of old duffers taken at random and dropped in to a castle, supposedly as James's far away nannies.

Oh yeah, that's a cushy position. You doing a lot of child care from miles off?

Mind you, it used to describe 'em as 'caretakers' on Bulbapædia, as if Nan serves as housekeeper whilst Pop tends to the garden.

That's right. Ma and Pa finally got some work out of this pair of freeloaders.

They're not related, remember? No, no, absolutely not, no way. Of course their style reflects that. They just gave Pop a 'tache, thick eyebrows and a bigger nose, and Nan got a bun and lines in her hair, but there's certainly no connection. Oh no. Such a thing is ridiculous.

They're NOT family. No. Yet Hoenn James still panics they might learn he's joined Team Rocket, spending the whole episode trying to hide the truth.

Why? Who are servants to criticise the son of their employers? Why should their opinion be of any consequence to Hoenn James, especially when his parents, fiancée and butler are cognizant of reality?

Children of aristocrats are usually brought up by governesses, thus develop a stronger attachment to these figures rather than their parents, but that isn't the case here.

James lived with Ma and Pa, not the codgers minding the castle. He would have very little contact with distant employees compared to those who waited on him daily, so why seek out their approval?

Hoenn James apparently was permitted visits to Nan 'n' Pop, which is strange considering they're not relatives. Why them and not any other house-stters?

That's right, Ma and Pa sent their son to one of their properties without them, entrusting him to the care of two shrivelled pensioners of his size that he barely knew, and who could keel over at any minute. There are no other servants present. Apparently Nan and Pop clean an entire castle by themselves.

Oh, and they run a makeshift Pokémon sanctuary, but since it's not their home it has to be done with Ma and Pa's blessing, who also have to pay for it, but they're eevul aren't they?

The idea that somehow Nanny and Pop-Pop have not cottoned on to James's occupation by now is risible.

Servants gossip about their masters. I bet the entire household of his home know, and so in turn does the county. That Nan and Pop remain oblivious proves how isolated they are, for no one's thought to inform them.

When it came to dubbing it, they were made his grandparents, removing all the above nonsense. Of course he visits his nan and granddad, it's their gaff and their money funding the place, and it is likely his mother or father would keep James's job a secret, for fear the shock would finish 'em off.

It should do really. If they're not bothered by it that's a sign of where his rapscallion ways were inherited.

They aren't facially akin to Ma and Pa, but display the same additions, so if staff it's bloody lazy, as if nannies have to resemble your parents, but inventing a blood link excuses the slothful characterisation.

Every reference I've seen on Tumblr relating to the coffin-dodgers calls them Nanny and Pop-Pop. Apparently the dub decision is met with universal approval. It does have redeeming aspects then.

Now the sub writers, rather than ignore this development, took to it too. They aren't exactly bursting with ideas these days and are probably grateful for the lifelines offered.

Remembering James had parents, they forced a likeness between them and Nanny and Pop-Pop. How else do you explain the inexplicable ageing, even when Sinnoh Ma and Sinnoh Pa are younger than Ma and Pa?

I've also known for years that the sub has this woman as Jessie's foster mother, not Ma Jess, but that's stupid.

I can grasp the idea that Jessie and Ma might have endured extreme deprivation, considering that's what Team Rocket has brought to Jessie anyway, and that they may have lived at the bottom of Mew's mountain prior to Ma's death.

What I find difficult to take in is that social services (or as they're known where I live, the S.S.), however notoriously awful they are, would give a child to a mad bitch in a shack with no running water.

Come on, they have to at least pretend to be concerned for Jessie's welfare.

As Jessie is very young, bereavement can't have befallen her in the distant past, so how can she be happy this soon after becoming an orphan? How could the grieving period be a cherished memory?

If that woman's creaming off the money, why hasn't she fixed the place up by now? Where do the payments go, sniffing glue?

Then there's the depiction. If this is just some daft bint never to be mentioned again, why do they conceal her face? Who cares what she looks like when she's unimportant?

Here's another figure from Jessie's past. She isn't disguised, and why not when she too briefly appears and is then forgotten?

Who was she?

The only sort of characters they tended to hide were other members of Team Rocket:

During the early scenes featuring Giovanni, he was enveloped in shadow, adding both intrigue and a sense of menace.

Madame Boss also got this treatment, even though there was probably no intention to ever feature her in the anime. What's the use in keeping an appearance a mystery if it'll remain masked?

With that pattern, it implies this woman is in the same category, like Ma Jess.

When it came to animation, it definitely was intended to be a foster mother. Not her real one. No.

What did they do?

They gave her Jessie's skin tone and purple hair hanging down her back!

You know, like Ma Jess?

Any colour would've done. Any at all, and being anime I do mean any colour, but no. The choice was made to give her the looks of the exact person she's not meant to be!

Is it that surprising the dub simplified things?

I don't mind if you like the dub, sub, both, or any from around the world, but I'm tired of the smug condescension, as if we all agree the sub is the only one that counts, and that dub fans are grunting troglodytes, or not 'proper' aficionados.

None of us would be here were it not for the dub. Pokémon would not be here. I think it deserves some respect for how much of a difference it made, to my life and to yours.

#pokémon #team rocket #nanny and pop-pop #ma jessie #jessie's mom

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stickystarspectrumtroll-ocs · 6 years ago

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AU where my OCs are all ordinary kids in an ordinary school going from 6th to 12th grade

Luna: 8th grade. Always wears blue boots, a rainbow striped scarf, ripped-up baggy worn-out jeans and a gray hoodie. Dyes her long curly hair bright colors. Has a pet turtle named Rupert. Sits in the back of the class. Cheats on tests when she hasn’t studied enough or paid attention in class. Will also sneak a copy of the answer key to somepony else who’s struggling if they’re not a jerk person. Brings lunch from home and smiles at the little notes inside from her parents. Never misses a chance to pull the fire alarm, throw a paper airplane, start a food fight, shoplift something, vandalize something, etc. and somehow almost always manages to get away with it. Is an absolute mastermind when it comes to pranks, and will prank anycreature who messes with her or bullies people. Especially if they make fun of her for the notes from her parents in her lunchbox.

Jewel: 8th grade. Wears a lot of sparkly and colorful clothes, mainly with long flowy skirts, and clips sparkly accessories in her long blonde hair. Has only just moved to this town/city from someplace far out in the country by a forest with very very few people living in the area, and just started at this school. Is autistic. Finds it very hard to adjust to her new school and perhaps even harder to make friends. Is a quick learner but can’t focus much in class. Sits near the window and stares out of it a lot. Is surprisingly sporty. Very outdoorsy. Is in gardening club. Gets targeted by a few bullies within the first day or two, either because she’s the way she is or because she tried to defend another kid from them (probably both). Punches/kicks them hard after they give her a shove, then manages to hold her own in the fight that ensues (surprising everypony).

Allets: 10th grade. Parents are super rich and spoil her to some degree but mostly pile her down with a ton of extracurriculars, strict rules, and a lot of pressure to get straight A grades. They also restrict a lot of her personal freedom and put down many of her interests. Wears the designer clothes her parents buy her, but really wants to dress more casual and with some fun accessories, like stripy fingerless gloves and toe socks, sparkly sneakers, or a Tacocat t-shirt. Might secretly buy clothes like that but just barely work up the nerve to wear them (and never more than one at a time, and always discreetly). Long dark hair always neatly brushed, wishes she could dye it pink or orange or green or blue. Some people think she’s stuck-up but actually she’s really nice, her parents just don’t let her have much of a social life because of wanting her to focus on other things like grades and extracurriculars. Sits in the front of the class and struggles to force herself to pay attention and take notes, occasionally slipping into daydreams and doodles anyway. Begs her parents to let her go to parties, might eventually work up the nerve to sneak out to one while giving her parents some excuse about where she’s gonna be.

Eliote: 10th grade. Wears beat up sneakers and jeans, gray or black hoodies (NEVER seen without those), baggy grumpy t-shirts, black fingerless gloves, and long messy dirty-blonde hair. Doesn’t care where in the room she sits. Keeps her head down, does her work, doesn’t socialize with anyone. Grumpy and sarcastic as heck. Gives pretty hardcore eye-rolls, glares, or snarky comebacks when people bother her, which is common. Reads a lot. Is really REALLY good at drawing (mainly uses pencils and colored pencils) but doesn’t show her art to anypony. Secretly plays guitar and sings, and is actually very good at both. Parents died in a car crash seven years ago. Still hasn’t fully recovered from it, and really REALLY doesn’t like to talk about it. Has one heck of a sweet tooth. Listens to a lot of emo music. Secretly also a Swiftie.

Maddie T: 9th grade. Short, bouncy, curly hair dyed yellow and red and purple. Wears paint-splattered t-shirts and sometimes purple leather vests, fun-patterned tight under shorts (sometimes overalls), and fingerless gloves. Is a theatre kid ALL the way, doing the actual theatre club productions AND sometimes just being overdramatic for the heck of it and spouting quotes and songs from shows she’s seen. Is also super into art, especially spray-painting street art. Constantly makes book/movie/cartoon/theatre references nopony understands. Likes to sing (and is good at it). Class clown. Gets made fun of a lot, and used to respond by physically attacking her aggressors, but now she always brushes mean comments off with silly ones and never lets it get to her. Is very VERY disorganized, but insists she knows how to find things in her mess.

Finley: 9th grade. Blonde hair dip-dyed pink and green. Wears glasses that actually look really stylish on her. Large wardrobe of various cute outfits. Interested in fashion. Straight-A student. Neat freak. Unhealthy levels of perfectionism. Can get really frazzled about things she can’t quite get right, or activities she’s having trouble balancing at the moment. Absolute favorite class is science. Does a lot of scientific research and experiments outside of class. Plays the flute in band and also sings in choir. Once in awhile she gets a mean comment about being a geek, a teacher’s pet, or “four-eyes,” but always replies with a smart comeback--think Erin’s line in that episode of Camp Camp: “Why don’t YOU make like an overactive sebacious oil gland cell, and get out of my face?”

Penny: 10th grade. Black hair just past her shoulders. Clips different brightly colored hair extensions over it to give herself a different combination of colored streaks each day. Wears a lot of brightly colored clothes and at least one thing on her outfit every day is super glittery. Decorates her locker with motivational quote posters and sparkly stickers. Really into arts and crafts. Sings a LOT (and is good at it). Always cheerful and upbeat, which some people find annoying. Is part of the welcoming committee, art club, and cheerleading club, all of which she’s very dedicated to. Goofy sense of humor. Had a really REALLY rough time transitioning into middle school, especially having been through some traumatic incident (probably assault) AND developing an eating disorder around that time, which had her in a really bad emotional state for a year or two, but learned to look for the positives in life and use humor and optimism to pull her way through the bad times.

Twig: 6th grade. Thick brown shoulder-length hair with a few purple streaks. Freckles. Wears unicorn t-shirts and pikachu hoodies and light-up sneakers. Likes Disney and Pixar and Studio Ghibli movies, pokemon, and MLP. Is a bookworm. Writes fanfiction, including self-insert stuff. Doodles in class. Secretly still brings a stuffed animal to school for comfort and company. Enjoys singing, as well as climbing around on playground equipment, both of which she is good at. Goes ham when playing dodgeball in gym, has deadly aim and is quick at dodging, often getting out lots of people and being one of the last ones standing. Likes to play pretend. Gets bullied a LOT. Misses elementary school.

#middle school/high school au #all ocs #personal favorite #au for my oc squad

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idontlikesummer · 7 years ago

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Japan Trip 2018 (Kansai)

Back from Japan again!

This time I went with my family went to Kansai!!

There were so many things we did in the span of 10 days that everything had passed by in almost a blur. The entire vacation was quite thrilling because we landed in Japan right when the flooding was taking place in Osaka. We stayed at my hometown in Nagano for about three days, and by the time we reached Kansai, most of the flooding had disappeared!

As with the previous travel post, I took pictures of almost EVERYTHING I saw. Some of my brother’s and dad’s photos will be in this log, and I will highlight them accordingly!

Please enjoy!! :’D

(Warnings: Lots of photos of pretty things, my sparse commentary and my occasional photobombing totoro)

Day 1: Travel to Nagano

ACK. I ate salted salmon with rice on the plane but everything was shaking and I forgot to take a picture.

We arrived in Japan but I could only take a photo from the middle seat! The ride was crazy – the pilot said there would be clear skies but the rain was near torrential so the landing had a lot of drops. The woman behind me screamed, so naturally I, being terrible with turbulence, screamed as well.

The floor was wet so the plane skidded a little when we landed!

NARITA EXPRESS to Tokyo station. Unlike the previous two trips, we managed to be on time for the train, so we didn’t have time to stop by the Starbucks ;w;

I napped throughout the flight since I didn’t manage to sleep a wink during the plane ride, therefore missing most of the awesome view. Totoro’s enjoying it in my stead but he’s separated from his natural habitat by a glass panel.

We reached Tokyo Station and went past GranSta!

There was an AI robot called Pepper greeting us there! This is my first time seeing an AI, but I didn’t have much time to find out what he was used for

Eventually, we stopped by Beer Hall to eat (this restaurant was located right next to Character Street!) I tried their mentaiko spaghetti and I was blown away by how light and delicious it was! This is something I can eat two helpings of before I become full!

Time to go to Daimaru, the place I can’t afford unless I’m with my parents. We bought Tops cake from there before heading off to my grandparents’ house!

I’M LEAVING TOKYO STATION AND I DIDN’T EVEN EXPLORE HALF OF IT. (Spoiler alert: I’ll be back here a few days later)

My brother ate some Shumais we bought from Tokyo station along the ride! I dozed off because the seats in the bullet train are better than my bed

Dropped off at Sakudaira! Since we were surrounded by mountains the weather was freezing despite it being mid-summer. Even though it’s only been a year I missed this place so much

COUNTRY ROAAAD TAKE ME HOOOME to the PLAACE I BELOOONG

(the car ride back to my grandparents’ home was super enjoyable since my brother kept blasting 70s music that my parents love)

On the way we stopped by a Seven Eleven! I got carried away with buying the cup noodles (Santouka and Ippudou) since they only cost 4USD while they would have caused 18 USD if you ate them in a restaurant in Singapore!

[First photo by my brother] Home away from home I missed you so. Most of what we had to do for the next few days were family stuff that I won’t go into detail about. But basically we had a whole lot of relatives to greet and a ceremony to prepare for! So there was a lot to do

View from my grandmother’s garden!! I love the mountains and I wish I could plant one where I live. I hope the tectonic plates in Singapore converge in five years

[Last photo by my brother] Like a good girl, I slacked off from cleaning duty to walk around the neighbourhood. This place always calms me somehow. If I lived here permanently I would probably want to walk at least twice a week! Here are some of the stuff that I photographed. I’ve always associated this place with good things and I feel like I go through some sort of emotional and spiritual cleansing each time I come here.

Here’s what we ate for dinner [photo by my brother]! Loads of protein and no carbohydrates. The chicken in particular was really nice and it was from this restaurant called Big Ben!

[First photo by my brother] Since my grandparents’ house was pretty much completely occupied, we stayed at our uncles’ place instead! It was so huge, almost like a Ryokan, and could afford at least 3 guest rooms. I can’t believe they live in something so grand it’s like a hotel

Day 2: Nagano

Honestly I live in an apartment so for this entire section to be the guest room just blows me away. IT’S HUGE.

We went back to my grandparents’ house for breakfast and ate matsutake gohan with fish! I’ve always loved eating cheap and healthy food. The fried eggplant was probably the best eggplant dish I ever ate! Countryside food is so different from Tokyo food

Ate this for lunch during the ceremony! It was really filling!!

We had more time in the afternoon so I went to scale one of the mountains to a satisfying height!

Our grandmother came to join us in the afternoon, and before we knew it, it was dinner time and many of our relatives joined us with their food! [photo by my brother] It felt a lot like the Summer Wars sort of dinner gatherings, where everyone just sat along a long table and drank alcohol while chatting

We went back to my uncle’s place and our aunt made us mango pudding! She’s a really good cook.

Day 3: Nagano

The next morning she gave us cherries and grapefruit! Today we would have to leave her house for good, and it makes me a little sad. But I hope to return one day!

The next day was a day of loafing around at my grandparents’ place, but we did find some goodies! Namely my dad’s baby photos and we teased him relentlessly about it. We also tried the Ippudou and Santouka noodles and it was really good! The soup tasted just like the way it did in the restaurant!

Later in the afternoon, we went to a friend’s house! I haven’t been here for five years so it was really nostalgic to come back here! It always had a really western-decorated interior which I was fond of.

We had really delicious cake! The cream was super fresh and sweet *p*

It was blueberry season so we went to pick some blueberries from the garden! The one I picked was pretty but sour lmao. I have no green thumb

Mini eggplant! Too young to eat!

These were leeks!

Some of the flowers I really liked in the garden!

Good old chimney I always know where I stand with you

After that, we came by this area to buy our train tickets for Ise! [First photo by my brother]. I used to eat at a ramen shop here nearly ten years ago. I’m amazed how it’s been so long and everything still looks the same!

EON MALL I MISSED YOU SO [Photo by my brother]

Even the stores are the same as five years ago!! I’m on a nostalgia trip

They ACTUALLY sell uniform sweaters here! I really wanted to buy the red one but they were so expensive!! I will reserve my gakuen dreams for another day

Each time I step foot into a supermarket I realize how fortunate I am that I don’t live here, because I’d probably be bankrupt within the first week or so from attempting to buy half the stuff in the market. I mean, LOOK AT THAT BEEF.

Obon festival lanterns!

I’ve been eating at this Yakiniku house all the time since I was a kid. Until recently, I haven’t been able to return to the village, so I did miss this place a lot. Up until today it has the best yakiniku I’ve ever eaten ;w; For the curious it’s called Chikumaya (千曲屋)!

I’d probably make it a point to come by here every now and then! My favourite beef was the Karubi beef!

Cozy Corner cake for supper!! I was so full that when I lay down on my back, I felt like a turtle

That night I saw a starry sky for the first time in my life!!

[photo taken by my brother]. The phone camera quality does the scene no justice. But it was REALLY amazing, since all around, the silhouettes of the houses and mountains were actually blacker than the night sky. There were so many stars that the sky seemed more GREY than anything. The clouds also parted in a way that almost made it seem like there was a galaxy in the sky.

We counted loads of constellations, including Virgo, the Summer triangle, and we also probably saw Mars, Jupiter and Mercury or Venus. My brother studied astrology as a module in university, so he was telling me which constellations were which. And we sat there for hours by the roadside, just talking about how to read stars, which constellations were which etc. It was a really refreshing experience!

[Photo by my brother] This gave me a lot of Totoro vibes (the part where the Catbus appeared for the first time while Satsuki and Mei were waiting for their dad)

Day 4: Travel to Ise

The next day, we had to leave early, but my dad brought us to a place we frequented in our childhood since we had a bit of time. There was this mega-large slide which took approximately one minute for us to slide all the way down. We had to climb a large hill just to hitch one ride on it!

We left for Sakudaira station after this to go to Tokyo for a transit to Kansai soon after, but I’m sure I’ll be back here before long!

There was a really long queue for this ramen shop in Tokyo station, so we decided to try it! Apparently, it’s quite famous! It’s called 六厘舎 (Rokurinsha), to those interested! The broth was really good! The egg tasted like it had alcohol in it, but my absolute favourite was the CHASHU.

HARRY POTTER POP-UP STORE (anime style). I COULDN’T BELIEVE MY EYES. I wanted to take the entire stand home!!!! They had many of the popular characters, like Draco, the Marauders, and I think even Regulus Black! I was hoping to get Luna, but they didn’t sell her, so I settled for Hermione and Ron! I think the store owner was amused because I kept running back to the shop to buy new things

CHARACTER STREET! I have come back for you. Since we only had about two hours before the next train ride, we couldn’t really explore anything in detail. So I decided to loiter in the Ghibli shop!

This medal reacts to “Barus!” (words of destruction). The product makers have an interesting sense of humor

The match boxes were AESTHETIC

I WANT EVERYTHING

There were some OSomatsu-san stuff in one of the shops, but I didn’t have time to stay and look! ;w;

Self control….. self control…..

[First photo by my brother]. I ate at Italian Tomato Cafe Jr. a really long time ago at EON Mall (but that outlet has since disappeared), so I was happy to see it in Tokyo Station! Their shortcake was just as good as I remembered!

Hoho. Komeda Coffee. I’ll be back for you one day…

Some of the things that fascinated me in Tokyo Station. Yes. That is a chandelier made up of kitkats, and that is PORK JERKY

TIME TO GO TO KANSAI! We hitched a ride on the Hikari bullet train! This one was slightly bumpier than the one we took to Sakudaira because of the terrain. It was interesting because our ride took place along the Toukaidou, which connected Kyoto to old-time Edo (Tokyo). Apparently, Tokugawa created this system that made the feudal lords move from Kyoto (the emperor’s place) to Edo (Tokugawa’s residence), so the economy of Japan boomed along this area. Stuff like Woodblock art and Kabuki became famous along the road.

We passed by Shizuoka, and we suspect the mountain blocked by clouds is Mt Fuji!

Well, if I can’t see Mt Fuji today I’ll just have to settle for the picture on this bottle

We’ve hit Nagoya!

We took another train to Ise! It seems like we’ll be travelling the entire day today! So I got a Café Latte to stay awake!

On the way we passed by Tsu: a station with only one syllable

The sky has become a lot prettier!

By the time we’ve reached Ise it was evening! This place feels really mystical—all the street lamps had windchimes in them, so each time there was a breeze you get this really lovely chime in the air. To the curious, Ise is where the shrine of Amaterasu (The God of the Sun) is located.

My brother took a really nice photo of the lamps and the sunset, so I’m showing it off

[last photo by my brother]. This is the first time I’ve ever eaten in an Izayakaya and I ordered…. ORANGE JUICE. But the food was super good! My personal favourite was the omelette! Everything tasted home-cooked and the bill was really cheap! For those interested, the restaurant is called とばっこ (Tobakko).

We stayed at a really neat AirBnB! The furniture was sparse (if you ignore our laundry), and it was at a very good location. Our hostess was really helpful in helping us to find places to visit as well!

Found this in the nearby Family Mart! I would buy you if I lived here, Hijikata… At this moment I’m eating five meals almost every day..

Day 5: Ise Jingu

We set off at 5am the next day I was near Death. From hereon we would repeat the cycle of waking up at 5-6am and arriving home at 11pm for the rest of the vacation. The good thing about it is that the streets are completely empty

It was a nice walk to the shrine! One nice elderly man on a bicycle said “Good morning!” to us and that brightened my mood for the rest of the day!

[last photo by my brother] Here we are at 外宮Geku shrine! This one is dedicated to Toyoukeno Oomikami, who takes charge of Amaterasu Ookami’s food, clothing and shelter! The place was really quiet and serene. It felt a lot different from Meiji Jingu, which was always filled with people. There were multiple offering spots in the shrine, and the main gate bans us from taking photos. The vibe here is really mystical and it feels powerful

We waited for a taxi to get to naiku! That’s Amaterasu Ookami’s shrine. The taxi on the sign looked like it was smiling. Our driver spoke in Kansai dialect – I was a little surprised to know that it’s not just the words, but the intonation had also changed!

This was a lot bigger than Geku! Like Geku, we were forbidden from taking photos of the interior shrine. One of the offering places was to the Wind God, Fujin, who apparently helped to expel the Mongols from the Japan seas in the 13th century! There were more people here than at Geku, but it still had that really mystical aura. I might come here again when the weather is cooler!

Well, since we left the house at 5.30am we were finished with Naiku by 11am HAH. We had lots of time to explore Oharai Machi, which is located right outside Naiku. But because of the hot weather, the fact that we didn’t eat breakfast, and the little rest we had, I was about to drop dead at this point

So Oharai Machi used to be a purification and dance/singing centre dedicated to the Gods of Ise Shrine, but today you can find loads of food shops and goodies. The vibe of the place feels super retro and I love it! I caught one or two Halal shops that sell Japanese oden and kushi sticks!

[last photo by my brother] We ate some sweetened ice to cool down after the Naiku trip! They were really generous with the portions and their red bean snacks were DELICIOUS. I don’t usually like this sort of traditional sweets but I couldn’t stop myself from wolfing this down. The restaurant is called Akafuku (赤福) - at least, that’s what the signboard seems to say!

Yeah, I really like the aesthetic of this place. I live for street Udon tbh

We chose to eat at Ise Udon Soba Okadaya (岡田屋)! A sparrow flew into the shop the moment it opened so I guess we were the second customers for the day lmao. THE UDON WAS REALLY REALLY GOOD. It had a really chewy and soft texture and it became more and more delicious the more you ate it; it was surreal. It didn’t taste like all the types of Udon I’ve eaten before. I’m so sad that I can only eat it in Ise and not where I live. I will definitely be back for more argh. 110% WILL RECOMMEND. It’s pretty cheap too and in my opinion, it’s best to eat it without too many toppings. Maybe just an egg with garnishes will do

(The store had a retro telephone booth)

[Photo by my brother] We ate Matsusaka beef and ONE STICK COST 9USD. INSANE. But it was really good and chewy and I’ve never had better beef in my LIFE

Okage Yokocho is an area in Oharai Machi! It looked a little bit like a festival! They had a rifling booth which I wanted to try, but I was trying to save money so I decided against it. Lots of fancy buildings here!

We went to Kaminogo Station because our host recommended another shrine! The weather made me feel like I was swimming in a volcano, but the clear skies make it worth it! I could take photos with my eyes closed and it’d still turn out pretty

Here’s a bit of what was inside of the shrine! It was significantly cooler in temperature than Naiku and Geku. There were bees buzzing around here and there. The walk was less intense than Naiku and Geku but I was starting to get tired around this time

So we returned back to the apartment to pig out.

Only for us to leave about two hours later so we can eat… AGAIN. The sky was really pretty. I guess one good thing about summer is that you get really pretty skies

Guess what we’re having: Matsusaka BEEF! Apparently it’s one of the THREE BIG BEEF along with Oumi Beef and Kobe beef. Which means it’s expensive as hell but you only live once I guess. The restaurant was called Ishikawa 石かわ and it’s famous for Matsusaka Beef!

The restaurant had a really quaint feeling you would get from a sleepy little town. The chef pan fried the beef on a sizzling stove. I WISH I HAD A BIGGER PIECE. The beef was so chewy and the sauce was so good I made it a point to keep the meat in my mouth longer than necessary. The vegetables were also really fresh so it added to the taste! EVERYTHING WAS PERFECT. This was probably one of my favourite things I ate along the entire trip. Top 3 for sure

Ise is just as mystical at night time!

Aaaaaand we went to eat ramen for supper. This is the same restaurant as Tobakko, except it was a Ramen booth instead of an Izakaya. It had the roadside street stall feeling to it, and the ramen tasted really nostalgic! There was only one man running the shop so he must have been very busy

Day 6: Nara and travel to Osaka

The next day we woke up early to go to our host’s café! It was located deeper in the alley where the apartment was situated. I REALLY liked her decorations!

She cooked for us Ise Udon and many other side dishes like salad, omelette, and tofu pudding! It was REALLY cool because we were the only people in the café at that hour, so we could spend a lot of time chatting with her. I’ll miss this place and our hostess when we’re gone! ;w;

We traveled to Nara on a one carriage train called Yamashiro Reccha! [photo by my brother] All the blinds were drawn so the carriage was dark and my dad kept making murder mystery jokes

WELCOME TO NARA. You can almost tell from the staircase what this place is famous for; I’ve never seen wild deers before in my life so I’m really excited!! Unlike Ise, Nara seems to be a town instead of a countryside, so the vibes are pretty different

Here sells nothing but melon bread. I want to live in this stall

[Last photo by my brother] The tourist center recommended that we try 天丼まきの (Tendon Makino) for Tendon since it was a popular tourist destination. I swear to God, this is the BEST TENDON I’ve EVER eaten in MY LIFE. I’m not fond of octopus but I ate everything up in one go. There was a fried egg in the bowl you could crack open and spill all the yolk everywhere. Literally this is something I’d never get sick of. I could probably eat it everyday for the rest of my life.

MISTER DONUT. I will have you one day….

One of the stalls had a sparrow’s nest near its opening gate! While the sparrow chicks were cute as sin, I sort of pity the poor sparrow for making its nest in the middle of a tourist district

We stopped by Kofuku-Ji Nan-en-dou 興福寺 on the way to Nara deer park! The architecture of the tower seemed really old! It seems there are lots of old buildings (dating to before 16th century) in Kansai

A really nice looking hotel called 菊水楼Kiku-sui-rou. It seems they have a very high rating for their hospitality and their food!

We arrived at the gates of 春日大社(Kasuga Taishi)! And I SAW MY FIRST DEERS. I didn’t dare to approach them since I thought they would run off, but silly me, they were probably already accustomed to having people around.

More deer and shrine stuff! The deers are literally everywhere. And there are lots of tourists too! The awkward part was that there were tonnes of deer droppings everywhere, so you could step on them if you’re not careful.

There was a rest stop at the shrine, so we sat here to cool off a bit. Then this deer appeared out of nowhere and started sniffing my dad’s bag. He was sniffing every single human he came into contact with. Then he came up to me and began to sniff my plastic bag.

THEN HE RIPPED IT APART AND ATE OUR MAP.

I hope it was at least a little bit nutritious but now we hae no directions

We had ice-coffee and ice-cream at the rest stop after that!

So we walked down from the hill after that and played with some deers! This one kept following me. I’m sorry, I don’t have a biscuit for you but I can give you attention if you’d like!

Deers crossing the road! And the bus gave way to them

On the way to 東大寺Toudaiji!

Toudaiji houses the world's largest bronze statue of the Buddha Vairocana. The statue was at least ten times taller than me without exaggeration!! I also really liked how old the building seemed to look! It seemed really ancient

We headed out of the temple and this deer stuck his tongue out. What message are you trying to relay, friend?

We returned to Nara station soon after that and took the train to Osaka! We’ve been taking so many trains that the JR Pass is adequately used!

HELLOOOOO OSAKA

We arrived at our new AirBnB destination and I slept so soundly here!! Maybe it’s because I had my own room, but I love that we had the entire floor to ourselves! I also really liked the decorations she put all over the place! It’s really close to the station and Namba City so it was pretty convenient! Here’s the link if anyone is interested!

By the time we reached Namba it was already rather late! So we scoured the place in a rush. There was a Takashimaya somewhere in there which sold nice cakes!

The store Rope Picnic sold lots of cute clothes at 70% off because of summer sale! I felt like I held myself back from spending money just for this moment!! I would be coming here repeatedly over the course of the next few days!

Meanwhile my brother ate some Milk Ice-cream that’s so smooth it looks almost like a toy [photo by my brother]

We decided to eat at 百十Momojuu since it’s a crime to go to Osaka and not eat Okonomiyaki! That is, we ordered Monjayaki instead because we didn’t know there was a difference. THE BEST DISH WAS THE TONPEI (Omelette with meat inside)! The Okonomiyaki (second last picture) was not ours, but the cook accidentally placed it on our grill. Overall the meal was pretty affordable! If I were to go back to Osaka, I’d definitely come by here again.

(The air ventilators seemed to suck smoke up in the air, so people could smoke in the restaurant without bothering the other customers!)

Day 7: Kyoto

Some things I noticed and liked on my way to the station. Today we would be going to Kyoto. I haven’t been there since I was five but I remember bits and pieces of it!

THE ESCALATOR AT OSAKA STATION IS SO TRIPPY. Apparently people in Osaka seem to stand on the right hand side of the escalators rather than the left? That’s really interesting!

The escalators in Kyoto station have handles which are actually decorated!

We’ve reached the gates of the famous Fushimi Inari Shrine(伏見稲荷大社)! This one’s well known because of all the red gates and the impressive climb you need to take to the summit of the shrine. Inari is the God of rice, and you see lots of fox statues throughout the climb. Each of the gates have been donated by a Japanese businessman apparently.

It seems that at each of the gates, the fox on the left has a scroll in its mouth, while the fox on the right has a ball.

[Photos taken by my brother]. At the base, there were tons of people, but the numbers dwindled as we hit the summit. I had to stop at every rest stop because I was just that unfit! But the climb was good and hitting the summit made me feel healthy! One thing I was surprised about was how un-summit- like the summit seemed. We didn’t realize it was the summit until we had to climb down the stairs on the opposite end of the hill!

Down we go!! My legs hurt. I probably won’t be able to stand tomorrow agh

We reached the base and ate some oden and shaved ice to cool down! The lady in charge of the shop told us that tourists only came by Fushimi Inari about four to five years ago. It appears that the shrine was a pretty recent tourist destination!

Eventually we headed back to Kyoto station and checked out the restaurants in Isetan! There was a restaurant which specialized ENTIRELY in omurice! Naturally, I was very excited!!

...Though we ended up eating at永寿案 “Washoku” Restaurant Eijuan since we were at Kyoto!

They serve really fresh and delicious grilled fish dishes with tons of mini side dishes on the tray. The restaurant is also located on the top floor of the shopping center so you’re treated to a killer view of Kyoto! For Washoku, this restaurant is pretty affordable and the quality of the food is really good! It’s something to look for if you like light meals :��) The service staff were also really helpful in helping us to find places we can visit in Kyoto.

We took a bus from the station and headed to Kiyomizudera Temple! We have to walk up a hill again but thankfully it wasn’t as insane as Fushimi Inari. We did a lot of walking today and my legs are tired

SCENIC

We paid about 400 yen to see the rest of the temples, but I thought it was really worth it! Most of the trees in the mountain change colours really quickly when it hits autumn, but for now all the trees are green since it’s summer. The view is really breathtaking and worth the climb!

It was a long way down from the temple, but there was a shopping district with aesthetic houses nearby!!

I’m marrying this Ice cream melon soda shake you’re invited to our wedding

TOTORO SHOP KYOTO STYLE. I LIVE

This No-Face Piggy Bank will EAT YOUR MONEY so WATCH OUT

Some other things that caught my eye!

We took the bus to Gion-Shinbashi next! Gion’s the Geiko district with lots of Geiko and Maiko (geiko apprentice) running about!

The street is really pretty! I think you can’t enter any of these shophouses since they usually cost a bomb to go into. Lots of the second-storeys of the houses are covered with some sort of curtain. I wonder why

I MANAGED TO CATCH SOME MAIKOS

Before they boarded a taxi

I wonder if they’re used to tourists gawking at them each time we pass them by..

There’s a Lipton café at Kyoto station I don’t believe my eyes

I wanted to eat here but our train is departing soon!

We’ve arrived back at Namba!

Don Quijote is going to be my best friend for the rest of my days

There’s literally an alcohol called “Do your best, Daddy!” I can’t stop laughing

In the end, we decided to eat at a Yakiniku store since Osaka seems to specialized in grilled and pan-fried foods! We ate at牛角 Gyuu-Kaku, which is apparently expensive where I live, but pretty cheap here.

[second last photo by my brother]. The meat was really good! I swear everything we’ve eaten on this trip is good. The dish in the last picture was especially good—they put some sort of cotton candy and boiled the meat in sauce, and the cotton candy just melted into the sauce after that. I have no idea how it works. All I know is that it was GREAT

THEY HAVE GRILLED MELON BREAD WITH ICE CREAM. I went to town on this one. You grill the melon bread, cut it open and shove ice-cream into it. It’s SO GOOD I can die. This is the highlight of my trip

Then we ate takoyaki after that! We eventually headed back to Don Quijote for grocery shopping

ATTACK ON NOSE HAIR

We had dessert when we went home again! This one came from CRAMERCY New York!

Day 8: Osaka

My dad went to 高野山Koya-san while we rested at home for the day. Apparently, it was first built by monk 空海Kukai, who founded the Japanese calligraphic system! Here are some of the pictures he took!

Apparently, you would sit on a monorail that wasn’t shaped horizontally to get to the top of the mountain like you see in the last picture! It seemed really cool!

Guess what we had for breakfast the next day!!

1. Cake

2. Cake

3. Cake

I can’t believe they made Takoyaki cream puffs and sold it in Takashimaya

We headed to Namba City and ate a buffet meal at GOOD SPOON! I really enjoyed the décor of this place. Apparently it specialized in Italian food, especially their cheeses! The huge bag on the bolognaise in the fourth picture is in fact a huge chunk of cheese! Honestly, everything we’ve eaten on the trip has been really worth it and delicious!

On our way to Osaka Tower!

There seems to be tons of Billiken motifs in the tower. He was dreamt up by an American artist, and is said to bring good luck!

A scene from Osaka tower! Apparently you can see Universal Studios here somewhere!

The history of this place seems a little interesting. Apparently it was built and opened in 1912 along with the amusement park, Luna Park, which included arcades and rides. Unfortunately the original Tsutenkaku and Luna Park burned down in the 1940s, but they rebuilt it under Hitachi in 1956, so the tower is still around today!

The Tower also hosts the Glico museum! Glico was the company which made Pocky!

I’m honestly scared of how much weight I’m going to put on

Eventually we headed back to Namba Area as a cut through to Dotonbori!

[last photo by my brother] Doutonbori has so many lighted billboards I LOVE IT. The giant crab in the first picture actually MOVES. It reminds me of Tokyo a little, but has more of a night life feeling to it! Lots of shops that I love here, but I only had four hours to run through the place before everything closed!

There was a festival taking place along the river while we were there

We eventually went to eat Kushiyaki at だるまDaruma because that’s another thing Osaka is famous for! It was really good! My favourite dish was the Dotemiso and the quail eggs! So far, it seems like Tokyo has a larger variety of food, but Kansai’s food is more flavorful!

Gintama sale at Marui. I’ll patronize your store another time, Elizabeth….

Day 9: Kobe

We’ve arrived at Kobe! The weather was CRAZY HOT today! I really like the port towns in Japan since they seem to have a lot of delicious Western food, history and architecture! It reminds me a lot of Yokohama in a way! Plus it’s located on a hillside facing the ocean, just the sort of thing I like!

We went ahead and took the Kobe City Bus! It looked really fancy and there was an announcer giving us a rundown of the historical importance of the routes we were taking.

Our first stop was Ijinkan! AKA the street with all the old Western houses that rich foreigners used to live in or use for their recreational activities! The street here was REALLY pretty! Since Kobe was a hill, we would have to climb around to get to just anywhere. The England House apparently had a Sherlock Holmes exhibition on the second floor, and I could see Watson’s silhouette through the curtains!

We bought the tickets to go to the Trick House! Albert Einstein greeted us from the window it was surreal

Many art pieces would look REALLY TRIPPY if you took a photo with a person in it, but I’m camera shy. Here are just some of the exhibits which don’t require you a person to be in the picture. The third one was probably my favourite since it looks like a mirror but actually isn’t! They arranged two rooms to look perfectly symmetrical and you could only tell if a person is walking on the other side. It’s a lot like that one room in the Witch’s House…

You have paintings like these too.

It was fun to walk on air :^)

Next we had to climb a steep hill to Uroko House!! It was a struggle in the hot weather but at this point I’m so used to sweating. I wonder how the staff come here to work everyday…

Kobe tiles!!

Uroko House! …..’s café

There’s a wild boar in front of it called Porcellino which brings good luck if you touch its nose! I kept getting distracted by its name because of Porco Rosso’s nickname…

The REAL Uroko house! Apparently they named the house as such because the tiles used to decorate the mansion look like scales (uroko). This house used to be luxury rental houses for wealthy foreigners. The exhibits include not only the rooms, but also antique utensils, tableware, and a small art museum!

If I were a doll and these houses are completely furnished I’d live in them.

Some of the stuff we ate in the café! I really liked the ice-cream. We accidentally spilled our drink and the waitress was nice to refill it for us for free

Here are some of my favourite rooms!! I’m glad I came here. It looks a lot like the dollhouse in The Secret World of Arrietty

The view and some of the nice artworks in the museum!

Now we’re off to Yamate 8Ban Kan

Yamate 8Ban Kan! It’s oriented to the sea with trapezoidal bay windows in a row. Inside the building, the “Saturn’s chair” which is believed to grant your wishes if women sit on the right and men on the left. I was having a stomachache so I might have wasted my wish by wishing it to be gone

FUJIKO MINE CLORETS! I love her she’s such a role model

Now we’re going to try Kobe Beef at Steak Land! While we were taking a lift to the restaurant, a man stumbled into the elevator with us. We suspected that it might have been someone important since the restaurant continued to serve him after its closing hours

I’M SO EXCITED!

THE BEEF WAS REALLY GOOD! They cooked the vegetables first and saved the beef and beansprouts for last!! I can’t help but think that everything that we’ve eaten on this trip was really delicious! As far as Kobe beef goes, this was one of the more affordable options!

SCORCHING SUMMER SUN. You can see how hot it is. I could write a song about how much the weather makes one suffer

We continued to take a bus trip around and passed by the maritime museum! I didn’t manage to go in this time, but there will always be future trips that I can plan for :P

Kobe is so scenic!!

Nishimura’s Coffee looks really fancy and I really like the exterior décor despite not eating inside.

We headed to Mosaic Mall! Which seemed to be an outdoor shopping centre!

We meet again, Donguri Garden.

SMILING TOTORO BAG. How can something so perfect exist

My brother tried some chocolate ice-cream from Frantz! Though I didn’t manage to try it to tell if it was good or not

We took the bus back to Kobe station and headed to Namba again!

MY FIRST CREPE ON THE TRIP. I have found you at last

I seem to come across a lot more kittens than full grown cats while I’m in Namba, but this brave warrior didn’t seem afraid in the midst of all the people walking around.

Lmao R18 gacha-gachas

We headed back to Namba City for dinner! There’s this shop called C3 Baked Tiramisu which is ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS. I’m not sure if you can find it in Tokyo but this is hands down the best Tiramisu I have ever eaten in my entire life. We bought a dozen back home to finish

MIX FRUIT JUICE SHAKE IS GREAT! I should make this on my own next time! It probably had mango and orange inside, maybe even pineapple, but I’m not too sure

Eventually we headed to Shabu Nabe Udon Noraya のらや, which specialized in Udon and Shabu-Shabu. I had the Udon and tempura set while my brother and mother shared the Pork Shabu Shabu. HOW CAN SUCH A PINK PORK EXIST. I guess the reason why the food here’s so great is because of the quality of the ingredients as well. I really like non-greasy food so this has to be one of my top 3 meals in the entire trip! Definitely would recommend this! And it’s pretty affordable as well. They are really generous with the portions!

We had more cakes for supper

Day 10: Leaving Japan

Tiramisu for breakfast! It’s over so soon and I don’t want to leave Osaka so soon ;w;

We stopped by Tully’s Coffee at Osaka station and my mother tried a pancake! It would take a few hours before we reach Tokyo…

We had lunch at 矢場とんYabaton at Tokyo Station!! The Pork cutlet was really good since they cooked it with their own miso! The staff were really nice too! They helped to warm up my food since I took such a long time to eat because of my stomachache ;w;

We took a Monorail to Haneda Airport! I didn’t know that monorails would tilt to the side when they turned!

Might that be rainbow bridge?

Amuro Tooru seems to be really popular in Japan now! It’s probably because of the new Detective Conan movie in Japan but he’s always been intriguing! I hope they release more on his backstory soon.

Agghh I don’t want to leave but I will definitely be back

The sky was really pretty! Overall the ride was way better than the initial one, since much of the rainy season has cleared up. I actually managed to sleep so that was impressive!

It’s good to be back!!

I guess on the whole Kansai has a pretty different vibe from central Tokyo. Both had their fair share of cultural landmarks and city areas, but Kansai used to house the really old capital of Japan, so they had much older monuments compared to Tokyo. Osaka’s city also seems to be a lot more night life-ish compared to my experience with Tokyo! In terms of food, I’d say that Tokyo has more variety, but I really think Osaka’s food has more flavour. Literally everything I’ve eaten on this trip is delicious and worthy of a recommendation!

On the other hand, I’m really proud of myself since I managed to control myself from overspending this trip :^)

If you make it a point to visit the cultural landmarks instead of going to shop, you really can save a lot of money when travelling in Japan! There are also many more Halal food options compared to what I’ve seen last year, so it should be possible to find good Japanese food for those who have to adhere to a religious diet!

#japan #kyoto #osaka #food #ghibli #photography #travel #scenery #other stuffs #ise #kobe

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awkwardanime · 7 years ago

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Awkward Anime Episode 11: The Secret World of Arrietty

Hayao Miyazaki turned 77 on January 5th, 2018. The number of masterpieces that he has created and produced has rightfully gained him worldwide popularity and accolades, but more importantly, respect.

2008. 40 years on from when he first expressed his desire to adapt the famous children’s fantasy novel The Borrowers by Mary Norton and do it justice on the big screen, the green-light was finally shown and so the writing and production began. Yet surprisingly, although having a major role in planning and writing the screenplay for the adaptation, Miyazaki willingly stepped aside to give key animator Hiromasa Yonebayashi the chance to shine with his Directorial debut. The youngest Director of a Ghibli film took his opportunity with The Secret World of Arrietty in what is, in my opinion, perfection in its simplest form.

“I wanted to capture a beautiful world that is full of vigour, just like the fresh sprouts springing to life.”

Ghibli has constantly shown the importance of creating an atmosphere that is engraved into the tone of the film from the very first shot, whether it is one of anxiousness, inevitable sadness, coming of age, or wonder. Yonebayashi certainly saw this animation as his chance to show his strengths in creating a vivid atmosphere and he did so in great detail. What was produced, without a doubt, exceeded my expectations when I first witnessed this film 1 year ago. Re-watching it for the 4th time does not waiver my opinion in the slightest. In fact, it only enhances my belief that this is a phenomenal piece of heartwarming artwork, which certainly expressed the Animator-turned-Director’s message:

“Animation is created for the children, therefore it is important to depict with care that the characters in the stories are living righteously”

The story is very simple. That’s exactly it. Somehow Ghibli manages to portray this fantasy adventure as a simple story, but in the most expansive and detailed way. It’s funny how looking on it, the plot is very threadbare and simple. Yet I never felt that way while I was watching. I was enthralled and engaged throughout. This is the true beauty of animation; where, if done right, it is possible to create density in simplicity. The Director stated that working as an Animator he was always dealing with short individual shots and understanding Hayao Miyazaki’s thought process improved his own thinking behind a narrative to the point where he would not look over any frame:

“Each small shot is complete with storytelling, visual and aural elements”

The one aspect of this 94 minute animated feature that gave me goosebumps throughout and really enhanced this story into a great adventure was the use of sound and music. The timing and usage of silence as we see Arrietty and her Father scatter across the walls of the house on her first “borrowing” emphasised Pod’s (The Father) sense of inevitable danger, with the visual representation of the dark chasm below filled with scurrying rats done well. Knowing when to add and reduce sound within a movie is a difficult factor to perfect. As Arrietty stops and gazes at this wonderfully bigger than life Kitchen, her senses are expressed to the point her shock and awe is shared with me as the viewer. We see the open wide shot of the kitchen, along with what seems to be loud yet muffled footsteps. This one scene is simply perfect. Amplifying the footsteps above in a hollowed way helps us as an audience not only understand the importance of what this tiny being is surrounded by but also feel her amazement. Adding that ambience to the atmosphere without screaming it out at you. Density in Simplicity.

Director Yonebayashi expressed his desire to take care of each individual shot and include the smallest details so that the visualisation from the eyes of the Borrowers is put across to the Audience. Small prickles around the leaves as Arrietty runs through the Garden, the bumps on a brick’s surface and the emphasis on tools used to help navigate and live life. In all their animated features this is one constant I notice. Focus on the little things that make up the inner workings of characters and story. Using double sided tape as a way to climb up a table. Ingenious.

“If you look at the background of Arrietty, you can see that the hand-drawn artwork is not inferior to computer generated at all.”

Once again the hand-drawn elements in a Ghibli film asserts itself as truly significant to adding to the overall atmosphere. As the characters moved through the backgrounds, they were walking in the field of art. It never fails to amaze me how bold colours give the more emotional scenes that extra kick, while the darkness in the inner workings of the home perfectly depict that sense of danger.

The one and only negative I have towards this film is that it simply ends too soon! I was expecting a few answers to questions that were raised, expecting a good-feel ending scene or at least an epilogue. What ended the animation was a very bittersweet moment, which definitely did wrap up a wonderfully told emotional relationship between the two main characters.

This is subtle done at its very best. Silence. Adventure. A simple story maximised to its very best. Perfection in its Simplest form.

“I was ecstatic even in animating water and schools of fish, which is an emotion that perhaps only an animator would comprehend”

Fun Fact! French singer Cécile Corbel sent a promo album to the Studio as she was a huge fan for years. Producer Toshio Suzuki wanted a Celtic-inspired film score and within 10 days she received an email from Ghibli stating the Director’s admiration for Corbel’s voice and her playing of the harp. Corbel eventually was assigned to compose the whole score, recording songs and more with a small orchestra. The first time a non-Japanese composer had worked with the Studio!

Please share if you enjoyed this analysis and remember to eat those tiny trees!

Check out previous Eps:

Ep 10 - Tokyo Godfathers

Ep 9 - Garden of Words

Ep 8 - Kimi No Na Wa

Ep 7 - The Boy and the Beast

Ep 6.2 - Fading innocence of Ame

Ep 6.1 - Wolf Children Poster

Ep 5 - My Neighbor Totoro

Ep 4 - Summer Wars

Ep 3 - Spirited Away

Ep 2 - Koe no Katachi

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chroma-asks · 7 years ago

Text

The Sensory

Name: Chara (kah-rah)

Pronouns: they/them

Age: 10 years

Birthday: (Scorpio)

Species: human

Source(if any): Undertale

Family: Asgore,Toriel, and Asriel Dreemurr(adopted family)[not in system], Zero(surrogate mother)

Likes: cinnamon, hot cocoa, knives, adrenaline, fighting

Dislikes: losing, feeling weak, being underestimated, other humans, milk

Name: Damon (day-mun)

Pronouns: he/him

Age: ???

Birthday: August 15th (Leo)

Species: deep-sea siren

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Draco(son...? Technically...?)

Likes: water, singing, fun, swimming, love, goofing off, jokes, cooking, baking, playing with the kids, music

Dislikes: leaving people behind, silence, being bored, negativity

Name: Draco (dray-co)

Pronouns: he/him

Age: ???

Birthday: March 23rd (Aries)

Species: Dragon

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Emerie(wife), Leviathan(son), Damon(technical father), Salem(technical mother), Zero(surrogate mother)

Likes: storms, flying, his family, jewels, gold, meat, caves, solitude, Zero, sleeping

Dislikes: fruit, annoyances, invasion of privacy, socks(FOR WHATEVER REASON), being woken up

Name: Emerie (eh-mer-ree)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: ???

Birthday: December 20th (Sagittarius)

Species: Hydra

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Draco(husband), Leviathan(son)

Likes: fashion, sewing, love, her family, water, flowers, gardening

Dislikes: bigotry, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, racism, really any kind of discrimination that harms and degrades others

Name: Glitch

Pronouns: they/them

Age: 6

Birthday: (Aries)

Species: Unknown

Source: n/a

Family: Zero(surrogate mother), Aurora(actual mother)[Standby]

Likes: playing, learning new things, friends

Dislikes: feeling hated, hurting others

Name: Gwenevere (gweh-neh-veer)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: ???

Birthday: (Virgo)

Species: arachne

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Freya(technical mother)

Likes: Octopi, knitting, sewing, fighting, hunting, teasing people she thinks are cute, helping out with cooking by cutting things

Dislikes: molting, when her fuzz is dirty, loose threads

Name: Jelose (jel-ohss)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: ???

Birthday: (Leo)

Species: shoggoth

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Gnideria(older sister)[Standby], Zero(surrogate mother)

Likes: hugs, candy, slime, water, dark places, mud, playing, friends, kids

Dislikes: negative emotions, being alone, being feared, being poked in the eyes

Name: Kai (rhymes with pie)

Pronouns: he/him

Age: ???

Birthday: September 2nd (Virgo)

Species: Cerberus

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Weiss(technical mother)

Likes: sweets, screamo music, the shadows

Dislikes: bitter food, bright lights

Name: Karma

Pronouns: he/him

Age: ???

Birthday: December 3rd (Sagittarius)

Species: Ghoul

Source(if any): n/a

Family: n/a

Likes: puns, cooking, baking

Dislikes: things getting stuck between his bones

Name: Koishi (koh-ee-shee)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: ???

Birthday: (Sagittarius)

Species: satori

Source(if any): Touhou

Family: Satori(older sister), Zero(surrogate mother)

Likes: friends, playing, exploring, making friends in general, roses, animals, tea, coffee, gifts, being remembered, her sister

Dislikes: being shunned, staying in one place for too long, numbness

Name: Lavender Pearl

Pronouns: she/her

Age: ???

Birthday: (Cancer)

Species: gem

Source(if any): Steven Universe(non-canon)

Family: n/a

Likes: dancing, cleaning, water fountains, music

Dislikes: being yelled at, feeling worthless

Name: Leviathan (leh-vai-ah-than)

Pronouns: he/him

Age: 5 in dragon years

Birthday: February 16th (Aquarius)

Species: water dragon

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Emerie(mother), Draco(father)

Likes: water, bugs, fish, watching science videos about nature, playing with the other littles, the beach, Zero, exploring

Dislikes: wearing shoes

Name: Lexa Fae (lex-ah-fay)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: ???

Birthday: (Aquarius)

Species: faerie

Source(if any): n/a

Family: n/a

Likes: flowers, forests, mushrooms, butterflies, moths, being pampered, milk, pastries, alcohol, baths, scented lotions

Dislikes: disrespect, being insulted, unkempt hair, dry skin

Name: Mina (mee-nah)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: Unknown

Birthday:

Species: Monster of some kind

Source: n/a

Family: n/a

Likes: shopping, cute things, fashion

Dislikes: eating

Name: Morgana (mor-gah-nah)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: ???

Birthday: (Virgo)

Species: dullahan

Source(if any): n/a

Family: n/a

Likes: witchcraft, moonlight, night flying, researching physics and magic, candles

Dislikes: impatience, not having the freedom to practice her craft

Name: Naraku (nah-rah-koo)

Pronouns: he/him

Age: somewhere around 70 if you include his human years

Birthday: Literally No One Knows

Species: half-demon

Source(if any): Inuyasha

Family: Aurora(in-system incarnation)[Standby]

Likes: literally any kind of drama, strategy games, Weiss

Dislikes: his human side, losing

Name: Paka (pah-kah)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: over 10,000

Birthday: (Gemini)

Species: phoenix hybrid

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Weiss(technical mother)

Likes: food, cats, beanies, big jackets

Dislikes: dying

Name: Polaris

Pronouns: she/her

Age: 6

Birthday:

Species: Princess-class Battleship

Source(if any): Kantai Collection

Family: 25 older sisters(all of which are in the Secondary Branch), Zero(surrogate mother)

Likes: french fries, the beach, playing, wearing big shirts like dresses, playing with people’s hair, carnivals, piggyback rides from literally anyone who can carry her without dying(she is MUCH heavier than she looks), boats, skating, lighthouses

Dislikes: sinking in water, being alone

Name: Salem (say-lehm)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: over 5000

Birthday: November 13th (Scorpio)

Species: oni

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Zero(younger sister), Draco(technical son)

Likes: dolls, gothic lolita fashion, solitude, dark places

Dislikes: humans, romance, being caged, being told what to do, Chroma’s family

Name:Sasha

Pronouns: she/her

Age: 6

Birthday:

Species: chimera, probably??

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Zero(surrogate mother)

Likes: crackers(the sweet kind)

Dislikes:

Name: Shrii (shree)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: permanently 7

Birthday: (Leo)

Species: ghost

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Zero(surrogate mother)

Likes: small fluffy animals, stuffed animals, pjs, blue raspberry icees, juice, her friends, Blueberry(her stuffed bunny), disney movies, studio ghibli, naps

Dislikes: clowns(terrified, yet she seems to handle LJ somehow), the dark, loud noises, scary movies, darkness

Name: Terezi (teh-reh-zee)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: 16

Birthday: (Libra)

Species: troll

Source(if any): Homestuck

Family: Zero(surrogate mother)

Likes: drawing, coloring, watching FNAF playthroughs while eating Mac n Cheese, candy(cherry-flavored ones are her favorite), justice, her friends

Dislikes: memories of abuse, clowns(laughing jack is an exception)

Name: Torture

Pronouns: he/him

Age: somewhere around 670-680

Birthday: June 30th (Cancer)

Species: undead

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Weiss(technical mother)

Likes: hospitals, experimenting with chemicals and cells, mint, ice cream, cold, tormenting Weiss

Dislikes: his past(has PTSD), slavery, his inability to grow, not being able to sleep(though he’s used to it now)

Name: Umbra

Pronouns: he/him

Age: 4

Birthday:

Species: werebat

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Zero(surrogate mother)

Likes: Veirus, fruit, playing games

Dislikes: being the seeker in hide-and-seek(he finds everyone too easily with sonar), flashlights

Name: Vague

Pronouns: he/him or xe/xir

Age: ???

Birthday: (Scorpio)

Species: void angel(but actually he’s basically a god)

Source(if any): The World Ends With You (surprise, he’s Joshua in disguise, the Bastard)

Family: n/a

Likes: space, city nightlife, his room, fixing things, Chroma

Dislikes: losing

Name: Weiss (rhymes with ice)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: uhhh if I go by outer world years I’m like almost 12 bruh (good thing I don’t). I’m basically ageless in here

Birthday: June 29th (Cancer)

Species: glacie

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Kai, Sato, Same, Torture, Tyfia, Paka, Zetsumei, Tripp(technical children), Freya(technical mother)

Likes: snow(obviously), drawing, singing, video games, fictional things, socks(ironically), food, space, tiny replicas of things that aren’t usually tiny

Dislikes: bugs(more of a fear, but I’m working on soothing that), abusive people, loud noises/yelling(trigger), hot temperatures, humidity, needles, surgery, eye gore, pain, mint, coconuts

Name: Yulie (yoo-lee)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: “somewhere over 100, I lost count”

Birthday: February 22nd (Pisces)

Species: werewolf/succubus hybrid

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Casimir(father), Marie(mother)[deceased], Freya(grandmother), Killer(great-grandfather)[not in the system]

Likes: romance movies, fanfiction, matchmaking, wolves, the moon, night flights, valentines day candies, cakes, science, philosophy, writing

Dislikes: really anything morally wrong relationship-wise, ageplay, hate, swearing(doesn’t mind if others do, though)

Name: Zero

Pronouns: she/her

Age: over 5000

Birthday: January 3rd (Capricorn)

Species: oni

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Salem(older sister), surrogate mom to basically everyone in the system

Likes: kids, fighting, alcohol, sunlight, human history

Dislikes: child predators(more like a seething hatred), people bad-mouthing literally anyone she’s adopted

Name: Zetsumei (zeh-tsoo-may)

Pronouns: she/her

Age: ???

Birthday: February 15th (Aquarius)

Species: death scythe/shapeshifter

Source(if any): n/a

Family: Weiss(technical mother)

Likes: Halloween, bugs, weaponry, horror movies/games, haunted houses, really anything considered weird or spooky, sour candy

Dislikes: ?????

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brunhiddensmusings · 8 years ago

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Witchy ways

for a while ive been kicking around an idea for a video game i would like to see made, with the protagonist being a 13 year old girl. i would like to share a basic outline, and if people like it add on to it. if anyone has the ability to actually make such a game id love to see it made opening credits come over a cinematic introduction to the world and the characters, a lightly victorian era style countryside of a small quaint town and scattered houses in the green hills by the forest as you see a young girl spending time with her grandmother. the grandmother is a kindly looking old woman, soft around all her edges and with a good natured smile and a majestic witching hat, the young girl can be seen cheerfully helping her clean the kitchen and make cookies. as the cinematic plays you can see the young girl progress from 6 or so to be steadily older, receiving a hug and a kiss from her grandma as the game proper begins you play as the girl, being addressed by her father the clockmaker with bad news. grandma has passed, and has some things she left you. he knows how close you two were and thought youd like to travel from town to her house by the woods to say goodbye. as you are 13 he knows you can make the journey easily enough and can stay a few days, hands you some money and a overnight bag, he will be out of town for a few days as he was called to repair some gearwork for a household in another town. as you ride a steam trolley to the edge of town a light internal narration accompanies your journey, saying how youve missed spending time with grandma, you were close because your mother had passed when you were very young the two of you comforted each other. when you reach the cottage you meet the mayor of the small village grandma officially lived in as he was closing up the house for legal papers. he tells you the community will miss her warm smile, she left you several things including the house itself, her witching hat, broom, a picnic basket, and an odd wooden item that looks like a small shield you recognized as a small magic item of hers. you sit quietly in the mostly empty house, deep in thought and trying to say goodbye. but you will never truly be without her, you put on the witching hat, the internal narration admitting you never actually learned magic from grandma. you pick up the broom, the only charms she taught you was magical cleaning and you while playing around as a kid accidentally learned how to make wind, the other things she taught you was how to make cookies and various baked goods. which is fitting, the magical wooden object you saw is a portable oven, you can place it against stone surfaces of suitable size to create an oven door. the picnic basket you also recognize as being magical, it will hold impossibly large amounts of food without getting heavy or letting the contents spoil game mechanics- your only magic abilities are cleaning or creating gusts of wind by waving your broom. as you play and gain experience the things you can do with these two skills become more powerful and gain new applications but you never actually learn ‘real’ magic. you have the power of wind and the power to cleanse. you also have a near infinite inventory space for food items and can find several places around the world as you travel where you can use your portable oven to create cookies, cakes, pies, and other treats. the making of and gifting of baked goods are actually crucial game mechanics. there is no killing, you never learn fireballs or gain a weapon, despite there being real dangers in the world you exit the house, feeling.... something, things dont add up. grandma wasn't that old for a witch, and was very healthy yet nobody says how she died, and on some level you now feel your witch heretege telling you the world is not right so you decide you need to look around. some of your grandmas neighbors are acting odd. some of them are ill, some of them are complaining of a very unusual blight thats befallen their gardens or animals, many of them speak that the woods are oddly darksome and spooky of late. one mother says their son is missing, they have not seen them in over a day and begs that if you see him you let her know. you decide to look into this. maybe, just maybe you can clean the sickness off those gardens? surprisingly it works, you cleanse them of what was befouling them. you get the idea to try it on the sick villagers, they do seem to be unnaturally ill, not a normal sickness. you can also tell that your cleansing is making an effect but isnt strong enough. the schoolteacher taking care of the sick (your grandma was the local healer, so theyre making do) also asks you to go into the forest and collect some herbs so she can make a tea to help ease the sick when you enter the forest the tone of the game changes pretty quick, you can tell youve stepped out of the studio ghibli tone small town and walked into the outskirts of what feels closer to the twisted background of a darksouls game. everything is off, twisted, just slightly wrong and too dark. luckily you have the ability to clear small obstacles and hazards with your air gusts, and can cleanse some of the plants and animals that look threatening as you explore deeper into something that you are realizing is bigger then you expected as the miasma of the forest and twisted plants begin to move around you so you play as a young girl of 13 with no combat ability trying to uncover a mystery. your only skills include cleansing that which is sick or tainted, making wind gusts, and making wholesome baked goods. somehow you must find a missing person and find out what is going on in this forest, its a whole lot bigger then blighted blackberry bushes and you could use some help to be continued if there is interest

#witch #witchy #game #videogame proposal

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ddrkirbyisq · 6 years ago

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Aaand we're back! I was out all last week for a trip to Asia with my best friend and am finally posting about it now. Since I've been back it's been a quite strange mix of fast and slow, with the days both rushing by quickly yet also seeming to drag on at times. The flow of time has been really strange for me this week as I'm dealing with some jetlag and some of the strangest sleeping hours I've had in recent history (sleeping from 3-10....PM). I've had some times when I crashed in the afternoon and set an alarm for one or a couple hours later, only to end up snoozing it a billion times.

I've got Friday off work this week, which is nice, though it also contributes to feeling that the flow of time is weird -- did a week really pass? I've had what feels like some "extra days", especially after sleeping from 3-10PM and waking up and having so much extra time at night, yet somehow the week still passed by relatively quickly. Thankfully, I've been able to start catching up on various things, such as putting away all of the things that I bought on the trip and even running some errands including a trip to the DMV (yay..........). Physically I am still definitely recovering though -- I don't have the strongest constitution and the trip definitely got me a bit sick.

Anyways, enough about all that -- I know you're all here for the photos anyways! This was a ~10-day trip to Asia, first stopping by Beijing where my friend was visiting family, and then to Tokyo where we met up and stayed with another friend (with a side trip to the Hakone area for hot springs).

I'll admit I'm not usually a huge photo-taker (anymore?) but I tried to be good about snapping some every so often. Even if I don't actually end up looking at them later, I've found that they're at least good for showing to other people, and for recounting some various things that happened (e.g. for this post itself). I took more photos than just the ones below, of course, but somehow I'm feeling like it's better to just post the more relevant ones rather than dump a whole bunch at you guys. Well, let's get to it...

Beijing was like an weird mix of SF and Tokyo, though the smaller and more old-fashioned streets were a bit unique in their own. Whenever I travel I'm always a little struck by how nice the trees and foliage are, I think it's because the areas I frequent here in California don't really have that much of that.

We saw some stray meowmies, and even got to pet and play with a meowmie at the tea house we went to, which was really nice :3

Sitting and having tea at the teahouse was a pretty cool experience, not really because the tea was amazing (though it was quite nice), but because of the atmosphere. Time seemed to flow differently, I'm not so sure it was the place itself but more just the circumstances...It's almost never that I just sit around letting time pass by so freely without really a care as to what I need to do next. Thinking about that was a bit elucidating for me, I think. Speaking of tea, I used to be super into white tea but currently am pretty into grain-based flavors, like genmaicha and barley or buckwheat tea.

The air quality was actually not too bad, or at least not bad enough to bother me noticeably, though of course I ended up getting a bit sick at some point over the course of the trip (not surprising really, but it wasn't terrible thankfully). Around the airport area it was quite bad though, enough to bother me -- couldn't tell whether it was just that area or maybe just the construction they were doing in the airport itself.

The food we had was quite tasty! The mapo tofu and other sichuan-style dishes were really yummy, and the pork belly + mustard greens were really great too, and of course the Peking duck. It wasn't wholly different from Chinese food back here in CA though, so it's sort of nice knowing that I'm not really missing out on all too much when I'm at home either.

I'm not a huge fan of la zi ji (sichuan style spicy chicken -- which basically just looks like a plate of dried chili peppers), but gotta have it while I'm here right? Definitely had a lot of sichuan peppercorn numbing flavor...

We spent a day walking around the Summer Palace, which is an imperial garden with a bunch of trees and lakes and really old buildings. Some parts were nice, others were more crowded with tourists.

The weather was nice for the most part on our trip, but we got hit by one or two unexpected rainy days, which I definitely had not packed for. Fortunately it worked out OK in terms of the timing and the weather at the Summer Palace was quite nice.

Lots of red and gold and green everywhere -- and all the ceilings had fancy designs like these.

Lots of water rock formations everywhere...

Some pretty flowers.

Some of them looked quite nice!

Lots of these long corridor-like walkways, too.

More flowers...

Gold-colored roofs...

Got to try some candied Bingtanghulu (candied hawthorn).

Lots of extra high bridges over the water too.

Suzhou street, a shopping street with river running through it.

Having some homemade zha jiang mian, a common beijing dish made of noodles topped with ground meat and fermented soybean paste, along with various veggies.

Cow followed us on the trip! Was borrowing him from a friend to use as a pillow pet.

Of course Hello Kitty shows up in Asia all over the place. Here she is as some sort of robot in the Beijing airport...

Sometimes the simple food is the best. This bowl of porridge we got at the airport really hit the spot...

Finally off from Beijing and taking the air to fly to Tokyo! I noticed that there were all these green-colored areas that we could see from the air, wondered what they were. Maybe tarps to cover the dirt?

Cow~

It was cold and raining when we landed in Tokyo...luckily our friend was so gracious to meet us at the station with some umbrellas, and they also had a kotatsu at their place :O We were really in their debt for much of the latter half of our trip...

Tsukemen dipping noodles! We have them here in the states as well but I don't think I've ever gotten them before.

Putting Little Twin Stars on your product is a surefire way to get me to buy it. These cookies were yummy~

We were in time to catch the tail end of the Sakuras blooming, though we had missed peak viewing time. Still, it was nice to finally get to see these famous ephemeral flowers that is such a big deal in Japan's culture.

Potato corn dog! It's like eating a corn dog and some french fries at the same time...definitely much better than your average corn dog.

While in Tokyo we mainly went around the Harajuku/Shibuya area, filled with a lot of shops and fashion establishments, both upscale malls and more hole-in-the wall places alike. There were also a bunch of just...very interesting places, including this place with a whole bunch of bath bombs arranged in a mesmerizing display. It really felt more like an art installation than anything else. Lots of tourists and foreigners around these areas too, which is unsurprising.

One of the more fun things we got to do was go to Harry hedgehog cafe in Harajuku -- where you get to pet live hedgehogs!!!

They are apparently nocturnal, so a lot of them were kind of just sleeping or dozing around. They just look like fat hairy blobs!

We had a more active one that we played with a lot. Here it is drinking some water...they give you some little mealworms to feed to the hedgehogs too :3 So cute...

The other one was sort of just sleeping there for the most part...

You wear gloves to pick them up and play with them! They were really fun <3

Some more of them just sleeping together in the corner.

Such good product marketing...we of course bought one of these little plushies to take home with us.

Here we are in the top floor of Kiddy Land -- a place I've been to all 3 times I've been to Japan now! They've got the Sanrio/San-X goods on the top floor of Kiddy Land, as well as other various things on the other floors (Ghibli/Disney/Marvel/Peanuts)

We also got to check out the "Kawaii Monster Cafe", which definitely feels like something you wouldn't see anywhere other than Japan. It was pretty interesting seeing this end of the broad "kawaii" spectrum.

Sort of a creepy + cute vibe all around.

The food was super interesting, especially this dish, which looks disgusting but actually tasted not too bad. It was like a sort of beef curry with rice, and the pink frosting-looking thing is some cheese-based sauce. The mysterious red candy balls are actually quail eggs!!! Was so impressed by that...

I also got to try some monjayaki for the first time! It's kind of like okonomiyaki, except with more of a watery broth, so it's more runny. You spread the raw ingredients around on the grill and then pour in the broth, which sort of thickens as it heats up from the heat. It ends up looking.......like barf, really. Not the most appetizing thing, but tastes quite alright despite that, lol.

Some more close up photos of the sakura.

Now just imagine that all of them were still pink lol.

Apparently Sanrio was doing a collaboration with It's Demo, a sort of fashion/convenience store. This is a beautiful Pochacco design! The best I've ever seen out of this pup. Real props to whoever did the designs for this. It's super refreshing to see that this sort of aesthetic is still going strong over there in Japan, even though it has basically disappeared from the US -- you can only really find these things online now or maybe at Kinokuniya / Maido-type stores, and even then, you don't see such great stuff. Ah, really, that is one of the greatest things about being over there in Tokyo -- such great aesthetics. So many pretty people and cute things, great designs and good fashion. Definitely something I miss every time when I have to leave.

While we were in Hakone we took a side trip to the Petit Prince museum!

Some more sakura at the Little Prince museum.

They had lots of little quaint pretend building setups like this one.

Along with figures of the titular character.

Some japanese explanations of some things from the story.

The fox that the prince befriends by "taming".

A pretty cute place! It was fun to go through, though also definitely made me a bit sad.

Last time we stayed at a ryokan we had traditional new year's food (Osechi ryori) which was....sort of weird. This time we had more of a standard kaiseki dinner which was much more tasty! Had so many different foods (more than what is in this photo, this is just the first set), including some really fatty steak, sushi, pickles and rice, sake, fish, miso soup with clams, soba noodles, tofu, and more.

Window leading out to the balcony of our room.

Private bath out on the balcony of our room, which had a view overlooking the river. Of course, I couldn't really take a photo of the public baths for.....obvious reasons.

Same window, in daylight this time.

More awesome food, this time for breakfast. Don't know if I've ever had such a fully-featured breakfast lol, goodness. Had everything from soba, grilled fish, miso dengaku egglant, tamagoyaki, fruits, more rice and pickles, sushi, ...

Nice aesthetic in the other room...

We decided to write something sort of silly in the guestbook lol.

The rest of the Hakone area was very pretty, lots of river scenery with many trees growing all over the hillsides.

We even got to see a glimpse of Mt. Fuji in the distance while we were taking the train back to Tokyo (didn't notice until the group of westerners on the car all stood up and started snapping a whole bunch of photos omg)

Closer look at the Sanrio x It's Demo collaboration -- ended up going there and buying a keychain :)

Finally made it to Takeshita Dori, the sort of "main" fashion street in Harajuku! It was WAY more crowded this time, dunno if it's just gotten more crowded over the years or maybe we had gone during a weekday last time (it was a Saturday this time). It was packed with people but not actually too bad. Many of the shops were super cramped (in terms of the amount of space there) though, nothing like the La Foret mall we had gone through which was more in the Shibuya direction.

Of course no visit to Harajuku is complete without some yummy crepes from one of the famous crepe places! Mine had banana, nutella, and of course an exorbant amount of cream...

Made it to Sanrio Vivitix in Harajuku, which had quite a great amount of stuff that I ended up buying, including a bunch of Sanrio shirts/tops (!) and a whole bunch of really nice Cinnamoroll merchandise. Yay Cinnamon!~

Put in all my votes for the Little Twin Stars! Pom pom purin was actually the most popular character at this store -- kind of interesting to see him making such a comeback, as he was also featured in Sanrio Danshi (which I still have not finished watching lol). Though it may also be because the Pom pom purin cafe is on the upper floor of the same building...

Here's the Pom pom purin cafe! Didn't actually eat anything here unfortunately -- had other things I wanted to get to, and not the hugest fan of Pom pom purin, but he is definitely cute!

Looks really nice :)

Went back to Kiddy Land to see if there was any more stuff we wanted to get, haha.

Just look at these Cinnamoroll designs!!! Gah! Miyuki Okumura is the designer and character illustrator for Cinnamoroll and she really does a great job. She is the designer for Wish Me Mell too!

More collaboration stuff -- this time Little Twin Stars x Gintama.

Eating some yummy sushi after another day of shopping! Last time in Japan we had some amazing sushi at one of the big name places in Tsukiji fish market, but this time just had some at a place in Harajuku. Like with Beijing, it's sort of nice knowing that the sushi over here in CA isn't super far off from what is in Tokyo. Which is not to say that it wasn't good, of course :)

Yay shopping~

Had some very yummy fluffy pancakes as well before getting ready to leave :)

Some food from the grocery market too :)

The haul of all the stuff I got :D Lots of clothes, including some interesting (and expensive!) stuff that I didn't expect to bring back, but am very glad I found -- I'm always craving more good Asian styles for my fashion, so I'm super happy to have brought back some nice clothing in my haul, since it's so hard (basically impossible) to find over here in the states. Also a metric ton of stationery, a bunch of assorted cute things, a nice water bottle, and some other random odds and ends. Success! Assorted thoughts on the trip overall... - Being in Tokyo was super nice. I could never live in Asia I don't think, because of a lot of things, but there are things about Japan and Tokyo that I definitely appreciate a lot. I already mentioned the aesthetic and good design sense, and of course public transit is awesome, but also just the efficiency of everything is great. If I was there for too long I would probably just feel like a cog in a machine, but for a short bit it was certainly nice. - I did alright overall with nausea and airsickness...my flight over there was relatively fine, but I didn't end up catching any sleep on the way back, so I was pretty tired and fatigued, ugh. - Having an epipen on me definitely made me feel a lot safer about eating things. I luckily didn't end up having to use it for anything -- caught quite a few things with disciplined awareness and care -- but it's something I definitely will always have for any future overseas trip. (not such a big deal for here in the states) - The experience involved quite a bit of ups and downs, but was smooth overall. I got stressed out a few times though. Nothing new really, just the same old types of things. I don't think there is any way to really improve at it except by trying again and again, and perhaps sucking a bit less every time. - Came back from the trip overall with some assorted thoughts on people and life. Nothing revolutionary, nothing mindblowing, just some refreshed perspective. - I actually got some nice chunks of work done on Rhythm Quest done during the flights and some of the downtime lol. I guess I really do decompress by.....doing more work.....sigh. - Traveling with a wifi hotspot was infinitely easier than the past two trips where we traveled completely offline lol, especially when it came to trying to meet up with people who were also traveling, yeesh. Traveling offline is definitely more than possible, but maybe there's not really a good reason to do it anymore. Since coming home I've been up to a variety of different things, including work, putting away all the stuff that I bought, reorganizing my wardrobe, running some various errands, One Hour Compo, playing Risk of Rain 2 (has been fun so far!), etc. I also reorganized and revamped my soundfont collection and converted quite a bit of them into .wav files (much easier to work with) so it should be much easier to make SNES-styled music in the future -- I'd like to try to make an album like "SNESQUE" at some point. Cooking at home again has been lovely, as well as simply just being home in general. It was a good trip but I definitely was excited to be back. This Saturday I'm hosting a little celebration for 30 -- side note, I went over to disable timeline posting only to find that it was already disabled since last year lol. Should be fun! Until next time...

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