#Bob Sakuma

[yyh4ever]

Yu Yu Hakusho Symphonic Collection I & II

Those two CDs are a selection of theme songs from "Yu Yu Hakusho", performed by the Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra and conducted by Bob Sakuma.

Yu Yu Hakusho Symphonic Collection Vol. I (January/1995)

Cover

Booklet

"Yu Yu Hakusho" (written by Yoshihiro Togashi) has been serialized in Shueisha's "Weekly Shounen Jump" since 1990 and continues to have an overwhelming popularity. The comic books have had a tremendous circulation, and the TV animation, which aired on nationwide Fuji Television network, has recorded an astonishingly high viewer rating, an event that is said to occur once in decades.

The amount of characters' goods sold is enormous, and they continue to be eagerly desired by the fans.

The "Yu Yu Hakusho Symphonic Collection" is a selection of profoundly memorable theme songs from the big hit and masterpiece anime "Yu Yu Hakusho". Conducted by Bob Sakuma with great performance of the Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra, we will present you with a profound and magnificence orchestration.

Track List:

INTRODUCTION

2. Unbalance na Kiss wo Shite (アンバランスなKissをして)

3. Hohoemi no Bakudan (微笑みの爆弾)

4. Kōri no Naifu wo Daite ~ Kokoro wo Tsunaide ~ Tasogare ni se wo Mukete (氷のナイフを抱いて～心をつないで～黄昏に背を向けて)

5. Taiyou ga Mata Kagayaku Toki (太陽がまた輝くと)

6. Homework ga Owaranai (ホームワークが終わらない)

7. Mienai Mirai e～Yasashisa wa Nemuranai～Hikari no Naka de (見えない未来へ～優しさは眠らない～光の中で)

8. Daydream Generation (デイドリーム・ジェネレーション)

9. Sayonara Bye Bye (さよならバイ・バイ)

10. END CREDITS

Bob Sakuma (ボブ佐久間)

Profile:

Composer, arranger, and conductor. At the age of 4, he started playing violin and piano, and at the age of 22, he made his debut as a composer.

Unsatisfied with the smooth sailing of the work as a writer, at the age of 27, he suddenly decided to emigrate to the United States, in order to know more about his own abilities on a global level. He lived in Hollywood, California, for 8 years, where he worked with many famous artists, especially in commercials and live performances.

In October 1985, he returned to Japan and settled there again. He has worked on numerous stages, TV shows, doramas, movies, musicals, etc., and his extensive composition (of music) activities have gained overwhelming support across genres such as pop, rock, jazz, and classical music.

Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra (名古屋フィルハーモニー交響楽団)

Profile

Formed in 1966 by volunteer musicians of Nagoya City and surrounding areas, they gave their first subscription concert in October 1967.

Thereafter, they have steadily enhanced their skills while adjusting their structure as an orchestra. In 1988, they performed for the first time overseas, receiving great acclaim in various cities in Europe such as Paris and Geneva, and performing a great task as a cultural envoy.

T/N: Cultural envoy - figures and artists are sent overseas to engage in activities that will promote Japanese culture and create and reinforce cultural networks.

In recent years, symphonic pop concerts by symphony orchestras have become very popular, so they also have been very active in this area. In 1994, they have attracted attention from various circles with the "Symphonic Suite: The Silent Service," conducted by Bob Sakuma.

T/N: The Silent Service (沈黙の艦隊, Chinmoku no Kantai) is a manga series written and illustrated by Kaiji Kawaguchi.

Yu Yu Hakusho Symphonic Collection Vol.II (June/1996)

Cover

Booklet

Track List:

1. INTRODUCTION "Makai no Ibuki" (「魔界の息吹」, "Breath of Makai") 2. Hohoemi no Bakudan (微笑みの爆弾) 3. Unbalance na Kiss wo Shite (アンバランスなkissをして) 4. Sayonara Bye Bye (さよならbyebye) 5. Daydream Generation (デイドリーム・ジェネレーション) 6. Taiyo ga Mata Kagayaku Toki (太陽がまた輝くと) 7. Homework ga Owaranai (ホームワークが終わらない) 8. Kurayami ni Akai Bara ~Romantic Soldier~ (暗闇に紅いバラ) 9. Dead or Alive ~Toushin~ 10. Kuchibue ga Kikoeru (口笛が聴こえる) 11. WILD WIND ~Yasei no Kaze no you ni~ 12. EYE TO EYE 13. Sayonara wa Mirai no Hajimari (サヨナラは未来のはじま)

All tracks are performed by Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Bob Sakuma.

Profile

Bob Sakuma (ボブ佐久間)

Composer, arranger, and conductor. At the age of 4, he started playing violin and piano, and at the age of 22, he made his debut as a composer. Unsatisfied with the smooth sailing of the work of as a writer, at the age of 27, he suddenly decided to emigrate to the United States, in order to know more about his own abilities on a global level. He lived in Hollywood, California, for 8 years, where he worked with many famous artists, especially in commercials and live performances. In October 1985, he returned to Japan and settled there again. He has worked on numerous stages, TV shows, doramas, movies, musicals, etc., and his extensive composition (of music) activities have gained overwhelming support across genres such as pop, rock, jazz, and classical music. His representative works include the "The Silent Service Soundtrack" CD (Media Remoras) and the "Yu Yu Hakusho Symphonic Collection" CD (Media Remoras).

Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra

Volunteer musicians from the City of Nagoya and the surrounding area founded the NPO in 1966. They gave their first subscription concert in October 1967. Thereafter, they have steadily enhanced their skills while adjusting their structure as an orchestra. In 1988, they performed for the first time overseas, receiving great acclaim in various cities in Europe such as Paris and Geneva, thus performing a great task as a cultural envoy. In recent years, symphonic pop concerts by symphony orchestras have become very popular, so they also have been very active in this area, attracting attention from various circles with the "Symphonic Suite: The Silent Service," conducted by Bob Sakuma, in 1994. Finally, in 1995, they formed Japan's first pop orchestra known as the "Mei-Phil Pop Orchestra". Their future success is greatly anticipated. One of their representative works is the "Yu Yu Hakusho Symphonic Collection" CD (Media Remoras).

[peikonlainen]

I couldn't resist to make my own version of favourite character bingo 🌟 I'll draw you a thing if you actually get bingo out of this!

Character list

Silver from Treasure planet

Hypno potamus from Rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles

Warren Stone from rose of the teenage mutant ninja turtles

Oswald Cobblepot / The Penguin from Batman the animation series

Ricket from Monkey Wrench

Zorglub from Spirou and Fantasio comics

General Skarr from the Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy

Captain Haddock from Adventures of Tintin comics

Papa G from Kid cosmic

Sir Pentious from Hazbin hotel

The Professor from the Puppet history

Bob from Bob's burgers

Oggy from Oggy and the cockroaches

Rowlf the dog from the Muppets

Wander from the Wander over Yonder

Grizz from We bare bears

Demon / Sakuma from Ping pong the animation

Susie from Summer camp island

Hudson from Gargoyles

Zulius from Centaurworld

Entrapta from Shera

Snow queen from the Snow queen (1957)

Tiny manticore from Adventure Time

Muffin from Bluey

[setagaya-division]

There was a present addressed to Yorii Sakuma of Setagaya just in time for his birthday. Gleeful as he was to receive the gift there was something off, there was no card, no indication of who the sender was just a small, neatly wrapped package with a small notecard with "Yorii Sakuma" written on it in cursive.

Despite the bad feeling in his gut, Yorii decided to open the gift against his better judgment only to be surprised at what he saw.

Inside the present was a necklace with a seashell pendant, which in of itself would be fine if it wasn't for the fact that said pendant was glowing and from the looks of it, there was no LED light to be found.

Happy Birthday Yorii! 💗

Frowning while looking intently at this strange necklace, Yorii turned it over in his hand while looking at it glow with fluorescent blue light. Looking at it once more to see if anything was amiss, the idol brought it close to his face, looking at it as it slowly twirled in the air.

Suddenly, from out of nowhere, the light released a bright flash, as if someone took a picture or something. Temporarily blinding the idol, he, for some reason, found himself blacking out and being transported to a memory in the deepest, darkest corner of his mind, where he kept it locked away...

A memory from long ago...

A lab located somewhere. It's not known where, but the location is most likely somewhere in Japan. The lab... it is obviously not a place for mortal eyes to lay upon. But then again, anyone working in these labs have long ago lost any shred of morality or decency. Their only goal is the advancement of human life, or to create ultimate being by whatever means necessary. And if that means throwing away some worthless morals or love for humanity, then so be it. What good did those things do anyway aside from getting in the way?

In a far side of the lab, a group of what looked like children were standing in a row wearing hospital gowns. Their expressions were empty and their eyes were blank as they stared out in front of them. Though they looked human, they lacked the certain 'spark' that most humans had. They could be considered robots or zombies with how they acted.

What's more, all of them looked exactly the same as the other. From the cheekbones, to the fingertips, to the heights, to the same-colored eyes and hair, and even down to the surgical scar on each of their necks. These scars, obviously, were a result of surgery done on each one of these creatures for an experiment that was, as of right now, obsolete and pointless. It had proven to be a complete failure.

Operation: Siren's Call, it was called. An attempt to use the power of voice to hypnotize and control anyone whose eardrum heard the sound and vibrations that emitted from these creatures' vocal cords. As first, the project looked to work. The subject proved powerful to utilize the vocal cords. That was, up until something inside their bodies started revolting against the surgery, causing all of the children to lose their voices, turning them all into mutes. What a waste of time and resources.

Oh well, it was just another effect of trial and error. Nothing more, nothing less. And seeing as the experiment was a failure, these clones... there was no further need for them. Of course, deposing of them would be a waste. So they would be kept in stasis until there was some need of them. What that need was was something for the future to decide.

Minutes later, the clones were stripped of their gowns and were placed back in their pods, which slowly began to fill with water. All of the clones continued staring out in front of them, none of them aware or noticing that they were being submerged.

...Well, not all of them.

One clone, in particular, he subtly shifted his eyes to look out in front of him. He looked as there was a woman with short, straight black hair that reached above her shoulders in a bob haircut and pale blue-green eyes. She was busy dealing with something. What something exactly? Another one of them. A clone. She didn't so it much, but she treated that clone with more respect and harmony than she did the others.

As the pod submerges the clone and he feels his eyelids getting heavier, only one question protrudes his mind...

"...Why... him...?"

...

...

Reopening his eyes, Yorii looked around as he tried to get a sense of his surroundings. What the hell was that? Was that a... a memory? Looking at the clock, he was shocked that only a minute had passed, yet it felt like an entire day or month had slipped by him.

Looking down, he looked to see the necklace still in his hand. Staring at it, the idol suddenly frowned heavily as his hair and eyes shifted to his 'dark' form. Growling, he threw the necklace at his wall and turned around exiting his room, not giving it a second thought.

"...Damn you..."

[estakes]

What's your opinion about the new characters? I'm curious to know how you feel about each of them

oh~ 4piece! okay, to start off, i barely know anything about them, haha...

sagiri esu. i'll be honest here, my first impression of esu is that i did not like him at all. i don't know why, maybe it's the ugly bob or the eyelashes. but esu freaked me out. neutral with him now though. save him from fuyume.

hanamura fuyume. he's like if you mix ritsu's creepy yandere-ish behavior, izumi's obsession and tori's pre-character development personality, you get fuyume. let it be known that i don't really like him at all. he has his funny moments like his whole calling midori a prince and called him "midori-sama" and calling tomoya "leader of ra*bits-san", but he's a little shit most of the time. and i won't let his tomoya slander pass.

hojo raika. design-wise, i think raika won. other than that, i don't really recall anything else about him. i think he's related to the sakumas? though, he looks like a chiakana lovechild, lol

natsu kanna. he's the cutest out of all of them, i will admit. fuyume who? i just wish he keeps his glasses in his mv outfits though... also, i've seen some theories about him being related to nagisa or gatekeeper, and i think that's such a cool theory, i'm on board.

taki ibuki. he's like the start of an evolution line. ibuki -> tetora -> kuro. lol. he's so fun. and his recent 4* is so cute, he made sushi for everyone! also, i think he has some connections to kanata too? which is super interesting, i love more kanata lore!

and i assume that nice is included here too? so...

nice arneb thunder. i started fucking cackling when i saw him and learned his name. he seems fun. i love the glittery rainbow suit and the tacky nice pin. i like him. nice~☆

[cruger2984]

Shu: This is to save Narukami and Kagehira!

(the four Oddballs sees the whole thing)

Kanata: (playing in the fountain) Wow.

Natsume: (performing a Satanic ritual) Woah!

Rei: (maintaining his Ritsu shrine) Woah.

Wataru: (finds the option in his remote) DVR! DVR!!

[lightspeedrobin]

Dormouse - Sakuma Ritsu X Reader

A/N: Finally back again with a fic on the 1st year anniv of this blog (not that this has been active most of the year lol).

Have some Ritsu fluff and a bit of Sakuma bros bonding!

P.S. This happens after the Scout Story: Tea Party, but you can read this one without reading the scout story.

Title: Dormouse

Characters: Sakuma Ritsu, Sakuma Rei, Reader

Pairing: Sakuma Ritsu/Reader

Genre: Fluff

Word Count: 2512 words

-

“Maa-kun’s busy again today…” You hear Ritsu complain as you two enter town on your way home. With Mao busy with his unit practice and squeezing in the Student Council work that came up today, you two are left to walk home by yourselves.

You cross your arms over your chest and turn to Ritsu, who’s walking listlessly with a faraway look. “Well, we can’t help it if he’s still practicing with Trickstar. I hear they’re getting more jobs lately too since they’re becoming more popular now.”

He lets out a long sigh. “I drank a lot of tea today too during club so I’m beat. I wish Maa-kun would give me a piggyback-ride...”

“Oh, you had club activities today too, huh? No wonder Mao texted me to come pick you up. I had some stuff to do after class too.” You reply, remembering the sudden message you received from Mao at lunch. Sorry, I might stay longer in school today. You and Ritsu should go on ahead without me, it says. 

“Yeah, we got caught up in playing those characters from Alice in Wonderland that I didn’t notice how much tea I had.”

“Oh, which character did you play as?”

“The Cheshire Cat.”

You place a hand under your chin and try to imagine it. Oh, that actually suits him, you think. “Well you do seem like a cat sometimes. Wanting to be spoiled, napping in unusual places and all. Plus you can get a little mischievous sometimes...”

“But if we’re talking about napping, wouldn’t the Dormouse be a better character? I just need to lie down and do nothing else. Easy, easy...” He says, bobbing his head up and down as if to satisfy himself of his own reasoning.

“I guess”, you reply. The two of you make your way through town, occasionally engaging in some small talk. Ritsu talks about his clubmates and unitmates and you talk about a big play your class is preparing for. 

On the way, you see Ritsu yawn for the nth time since you two started walking home and you begin to wonder if he’s been sleeping his usual amount lately. Knights must be slumped with idol work recently, as expected from one of the top idol groups in the school. 

Ritsu has been silent for a while now and you wonder if he’s starting to get sleepy. Just when you are about to ask him, he collapses on your back and his hands fall on your shoulders, half of his weight shifting towards you. He gives a satisfied hum. “Ritsu, come on. You know I can’t carry you all the way home like this.” 

“Nnn...” He only groans in response and nuzzles his head on your shoulder. You put a foot forward to accommodate the sudden weight and to prevent the both of you from tumbling down the sidewalk.

“Is this how Mao carries you home everyday? You’re too heavy, Ritsu!”

“How rude. I’m not even eating too much.”

“Well, you’re taller than me so that’s more body mass!”

“...Nnnn...”

“Ritsuuuu….”

With all the strength you can muster, you manage to drag Ritsu to a nearby bench. He curls up as soon as you lay him down. “Okay now you’re acting like a cat who just found a nice napping spot.”

“...I told you… I’m a mouse… a dormouse...” He mumbles, sleep clearly taking over from his tone. He must’ve been tired from his club activity if he’s being extra sluggish on the way home. But then again, the sun’s already way down the horizon that you assume he should be getting more active by now. Either way, without Mao, you two aren’t going anywhere. 

You turn to him. “Ritsu do you need to rest a little? I really can’t carry you the whole way.”

“Mmhh...” He mumbles something you can’t make out as you sit down on the other end of the bench. The next second, he wiggles over your lap to use as his pillow. “You’re so warm… I think I might stay here foreeeveeeeeer...” 

Seeing a content smile on his face as he once again drifts off to sleep, you lean back on the bench and look up at the sky. As expected from being in the city, there are fewer stars visible and he only bright object you can see is the moon as it begins to rise.

Ritsu shifts a little on your lap and makes a little noise. You can feel his steady breathing, the sight of him sleeping peacefully almost lulls you to sleep but you quickly turn your attention elsewhere so as to not nod off too. 

You don’t know how much time has passed since then when you feel your phone vibrating from your pocket. You quickly fish it out, careful not to move too much to wake Ritsu.

A message from your mom. Saying that she’ll be a little late for dinner. Wait. Dinner?

“Oh no!” You nearly jump in your seat but the sudden cry wakes the sleeping idol on your lap. Ritsu starts to groan. “...You’re too loud… Don’t shout...”

“We need to get home! Now!” you exclaim, hastily tapping his shoulder. 

“Whaaaat? Let me rest a bit more… It’s not like I need to be home early today. ” 

“But I need to be home right away. I need to make dinner!” you spell out. You still need to take out the meat you planned to use from the freezer to defrost it, and the other ingredients would also take time to prepare. You were excited to try out a new recipe today, too.

“You know, it’s not bad to have takeout every once in a while.” Ritsu comments, not moving an inch on your lap. 

“Yes, and we already had that the other day. Now would you please sit up so I can get my stuff?” 

Ritsu doesn’t move. “...Five more minutes.”

“Ritsu...” you call one more time.

“...”

After giving up trying to wake him, you consider carrying him again so you two can get moving, but carrying a sleeping Ritsu would feel much heavier than a half-awake one from a while ago. And you’re already struggling to stand up the first time.

“That’s it. I’m calling him.” Pulling out your phone from your blazer jacket, you easily find the number you’re looking for and tap on the dial button.

Shifting from your lap, you feel Ritsu’s head perk up. “Him. You mean Maa-kun?” You didn’t get to reply though, as you hear the voice from the other line picking up.

“O-Oh, um… sorry for suddenly calling. I was wondering if you’re around the park by the convenience store… Yes, the one on the way home.” Ritsu sits up and leans closer to try and listen. He doesn’t hear much though except for your voice humming in response to whoever’s on the phone. 

“I have Ritsu here with me but he’s too tired to walk and I can’t carry him all the way back and— Oh you’re coming over? That’s a great help, thanks!” Ritsu strains to filter out the noise so he can hear his beloved Maa-kun even for just a few seconds. 

However, to his absolute horror, he hears a familiar giggle, the unmistakable deep voice sending warning signals through his entire system that finally jolted him awake. 

“Just you wait, my adorable Ritsu! Onii-chan’s on the way to get you~.” 

And the call drops.

You return your phone to your pocket as he watches you in shock. “You called my idiot brother?!”

“Well, who else am I supposed to call? Mao’s probably still practicing with Trisckstar.” You retort, expecting that reaction from him. His eyebrows knit together in displeasure.

“No one. We could’ve gone home by ourselves.”

“No, we couldn’t. You’re heavy and we still have halfway to go before we even get to our neighborhood. You didn’t even want to get up.”

“Tell that bug to go back.”

“No can do. And even if I tell him to, there’s no stopping him now from any opportunity to spend time with his cute little brother.”

“Ughhh....” He falls again onto your lap. Happy that he’s finally given up, you exhale a relieved sigh. You don’t notice, though, the sneaky hands crawling to your sides until they began tickling you. 

“As punishment, I’m gonna torture you until you send him away.”

You try to push him off you but you’re too distracted from all the tickling that you can only jolt from side to side. “Ritsu—! Stop!” You try to say in between laughs. 

“No can do.”

You attempt again to swat his hands away and throw him off your lap. You raise your knees alternately to force him to sit up and he does, and you immediately edge yourself away from him on the bench.

Ritsu slides from his seat to follow you, though. “Oh no, you’re not getting away.” He says in a clearly playful tone. 

You reach the end of the bench and almost fall off when your hands landed on nothing beside you, and you know you’re doomed to another tickling. Your reaction didn’t go unnoticed by Ritsu and he lets out a mischievous laugh. 

“Got you~.” 

But just as he got close enough for his hands to reach you again, a sing-song voice grabbed his attention.

“Oi~! Ritsu~!” Ritsu snaps his head at the distant voice approaching. He clicks his tongue in annoyance. “Oh great. He’s here.”

Recovering from the tickling session, you wipe a tear on your eye as you see Rei come into view. You stand up to greet him. “Rei-san. Good evening!”

“Good evening, little lady. Thanks for calling.” Rei flashes you a grateful smile before turning to Ritsu. “Now, is my precious little brother too tired to walk home? Come here to Onii-chan and I’ll carry you~” And, without waiting for a response, Rei easily scoops him up.

Ritsu pushes away as he’s forcefully made to lean against his brother’s chest. “Put me down, stupid brother! I didn’t ask for you to come! Let go of me!” He kicks his legs up and tries to wriggle off him.

Rei pouts at his little brother’s rejection. “Aw, but you used to love me carrying you like this home.” 

“Can you please not talk about that embarrassing past? It’s disgusting!” Ritsu spats, feeling Rei’s hold on him loosening. “How are you here already anyway?”

“Whenever my dear brother’s in need, I’ll always arrive at the speed of light.” Rei proudly says, obviously not the answer anyone is looking for. After seeing the irritated look from Ritsu and the nervous laugh from you, he finally explains. “I just finished a job with Undead in the area and we’re staying at a cafe nearby at Kaoru’s suggestion.”

“Oh, you were with your unit mates, then?” you say, beginning to feel guilty. “Sorry for calling you so suddenly when you had a prior appointment.” 

“Oh so you apologize to him but not me?” Ritsu grumbles, still holding on to the small grudge from earlier. You pretend to not hear him.

Rei adjusts his hands under Ritsu before he replies. “It’s quite alright, little lady. It’s just a detour we made before we part ways and go home.”

You hesitate but with how Rei is close to rubbing his cheek against Ritsu’s, who is still trying to push him away, you think that he was glad he got the call too. You giggle at the rare sight of these two brothers.

“Hey! Don’t just laugh at me, help me get off of this idiot.” Ritsu calls out. 

You try to hold another laughter in but it spills out when Rei starts rocking Ritsu to maybe try and get him to fall asleep. “I’m sorry, Ritsu. It’s impossible to not watch this!” 

Ritsu pouts at you in betrayal. Oh, how you wish to take out your phone and quickly snap a photo of his face.

“Now, now. Come on, Ritsu. Onii-chan will carry you home so you can sleep here in my arms~” Rei smiles wide, another rare sight. Ritsu continues to struggle in his brother’s hold, but then suddenly stops and drops his head down, his bangs covering his eyes.

Rei stops as well. Did Ritsu give up resisting? “Ritsu?” Rei hesitantly tries to meet his eyes, and then you see him flinch.

“Put. Me. Down.” Ritsu shoots Rei with a murderous glare. His tone clearly shows he’s had enough of this. “Or I’ll report you.”

Rei, taken aback by this brother’s warning, frowns but still moves to set him down. Ritsu dusts himself off and glares at Rei.

Seeing the clear rejection from his younger brother, Rei starts to sniffle, rubbing the corners of eyes in fake tears. “Oh Ritsu, you’re so mean to your dear big brother!” 

Almost immediately, Ritsu snaps back. “My only family here is Maa-kun and...” He steps closer to you and, without warning, latches onto your arm. 

You were surprised by the sudden gesture, not sure how to react. You hesitantly call his name but he’s busy sending death glares to his brother, who now wears a distinct pout.

Finally, Rei gives a defeated sigh. “Well, it seems i’ve been rejected yet again today. I’ll head back to the cafe. You two be careful on your way home.” 

You feel bad now for calling him out here. He must’ve been looking forward to spending some time with Ritsu. But Rei must’ve sensed your growing guilt and smiled at you, as if assuring you that it was no problem at all. He did get to carry Ritsu, after all, even if it was for a short time.

You smile back at him. “Thank you and sorry for the trouble! Please be careful as well!” And you give a small bow before he turns and walks back the direction he came. 

“Finally he’s gone.” Ritsu speaks, voice starting to tone down. “Now I can rest in peace.” He lets go of your arm and sits back down on the bench. He pats the spot you were sitting on earlier. “Come on.” 

But you don’t move and as he looks at you in confusion, you smugly grin at him. Calling Rei might’ve been a good move after all. “Oh good, you’re wide awake. Now you can get home by yourself, right?” You say and turn on your heel to start walking.

You hear Ritsu make a surprised noise from behind you. “What? Noooo… don’t leave me heeeeereee...” He quickly rises from his seat and reluctantly trails after you. You can’t see his face but you’re sure he’s sulking right now. Just that image of him in your head is enough to make you giggle. You slow your pace down though so he can catch up, but as soon as he does he hooks an arm around yours.

“Ritsu, if you’re thinking of having me carry you again—”

“This is fine as long as I’m walking, right?” 

You sigh. This one really is a handful, but he can be cute sometimes.

“Okay, fine.”

—

Heya! I’ve also started uploading my fics on AO3. You can follow me @lightspeedrobin​ !

[manjuhitorie]

Shinoda’s Instagram Q&A July 18th 2020 - Part 1

👋How are Retro Tone’s Saddles? 🗣The steel saddles are way worth a shot　 　👀 http://astronauts69.com/retrotone/ - https://twitter.com/sho_do_teki/status/1019548356383682561

👋What bandsmen have you been keeping in touch with? 🗣I got calls from Hiroki-san of Lego Big Morl And Adam Touch Takahashi of Bed In (honorifics omitted) I’m usually never the one to hit people up first... 

👋What are you doing awake this late? (approx 3AM JST) 🗣Listening to Audrey on the radio 　👀 Audrey are a manzai comedy duo! https://wow-j.com/en/Allguides/other/tips_manners/02304_en/#2

👋 Have you eaten any pudding lately? 🗣I deeply apologize for waiting so long to make this clear. The pudding phase has long ended. We had a good run everyone.

　👀 https://twitter.com/sho_do_teki/status/1245973638550917121 Shinoda had found a pudding recipe on cookpad which requires only a microwave, a single egg, then milk, sugar, and a sprinkle of vanilla essence! This discovery sparked a trend among Hitorie fans, as many were giving it a shot themselves and joining in on the sweetness!

👋 What is your favorite? 🗣My favorite what?

👋 Are you sleepy? 🗣No problems here

👋 What’s your opinion feeling on cicadas? 🗣My opinion is that they’re dogshit

👋 I’m knee-deep in depression right now, what do I do.. 🗣Watch Audrey videos on youtube You’re bound to laugh and whisk the time away, it’s ideal

👋 How are you? 🗣Physically I’m healthy. Mentally I’m so-so.

👋 Did you get ygarshy any presents for his birthday? If you did, what did you get him? 🗣I can’t tell ya bastards.

👋What happened to your smoke machine? 🗣I still have it 　👀 https://twitter.com/sho_do_teki/status/1269167465499521025 
For SND’s birthday, ygarshy had gotten him a smoke machine. The kind commonly seen at concerts to add effects.
 To quote Shinoda’s reception, he said, “I’m sure y’all got a taste of the level of insanity our bassist is, judging from the MC chat reports of last year’s tour but… This should really set in stone just how insane he is.” 

👋Any new song recs? 🗣SUTENEKO by Siamese Cats 　👀 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVSBarQH6ZY

👋Are you still working out? 🗣If it’s okay to say that I’m still at it then.. Yeah I’m still at it.

　👀 He had been developing aches/feeling like he had muscle atrophy due to drawing so much manga. Thus, after even Hitorie’s manager urged him about the necessity to work out, he finally picked it up. Though he did tweet “I was working out while I slept last night, and now I can’t stand up… Fuckkkk thissssss!!” https://twitter.com/sho_do_teki/status/1264486160211951617  So… Fight on, SND!

👋I want to know what you’ve been eating lately! 🗣I’m cooking hamburgers and hotdogs at home

👋What have you been up to? 🗣Listening to Audrey on the radio

👋What are you up to right now👀 🗣Listening to Audrey on the radio

👋 Do you create distortion by using your amp, or by stomping around by your feet? 🗣By my feet

👋 What’s next after the pudding phase? 🗣I’m in a hamburger phase now

👋 Who manga artist you especially like 🗣I’ve always loved Douman Seiman sensei 　👀 https://myanimelist.net/people/12266/Sayman_Dowman

👋 What’s good about Jaguars? (*the car I think) 🗣They look all robotic

👋 What cigarettes have you been smoking? 🗣Marlboro gold

👋 You strike me as the type who talks to himself a lot, so I ask, do you talk to yourself a lot? 🗣Kinda, yeah

👋 What Hitorie songs are best to start out with? 🗣Like Senseless Wonder Or any relatively simple one

👋 What shampoo do you use? 🗣The Seven Eleven one

👋 I can’t make a song.. The day is going to end in vain again..

🗣The day you finally make it will answer everything Or at least we can hope...

👋 How’s your kitty? 🗣I don’t fucking have one

👋 I want to go to a concert 🗣I wanna go tooo

👋 Any RPG recs? 🗣Landstalker You can play it on a SEGA Genesis Mini, go ham on the ungodly maps

👋 I like you? 🗣What?

👋 Do any movies hold a special place in your heart? 🗣9 Souls probably  Chihara Junia is so awesome 　👀 https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0370244/

👋Please take a selfie 👣 🗣I can’t right now fella

👋What onigiri filling do you like? 🗣Spicy cod roe and/or tuna

👋I just want to give up on studying for entrance exams. But I can’t. How do you achieve that which you don’t want to do? 🗣I feel like I’ve never ever even achieved that which I don’t want to do.. 👋 Any recent purchases?
 🗣 *https://www.jimdunlop.com/cry-baby-mini-wah/

👋 Who’s the greatest genius you know? 🗣Shimoyaka 　👀 Check them out here: https://twitter.com/simoyaka - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9qsoxiPKaY - Tanaka Bunko is the name of Shimoyaka’s doujin group.

👋 Do you ever have troubles or worries? 🗣I do

👋 Which do you recommend out of the great Ghibli 4 playing in theaters? 🗣Well, anything but Mononoke Hime..

👋 My ex girlfriend introduced me, so when I listen the memories come flooding back... 🗣What are you talking about?

👋 I’m torn on whether to cut my hair or not, should I? 🗣Enough already, just cut it.

👋 Do you have a favorite Tanaka Bunko song? 🗣High Score Girl (👀 https://ch.nicovideo.jp/simoyaka/video/so36488388) It sounds like Dinosaur Jr. ( 👀 The western band)

👋 Have you gotten good at any cooking recipes lately? 🗣Do hotdogs count as cooking?

👋 What to do when you can’t sleep 🗣Listen to the radio and stuff

👋 Why don’t you get a kitty?
 🗣Laziness and allergies as a joint force are preventing my kitty endeavors

👋 Will you sleep after this? 🗣I don’t know

👋 For my Coming of Age Ceremony, I’m not sure if I should cut my hair into a short bob or let it grow long so I can style it. Which suits your tastes more Shinoda-san?
 🗣The short bob 100%

👋 So you like girls with short hair.. Then, what hair color do you like? 🗣I don’t really care as long as it looks good

👋 I slept as this time yesterday, but I woke up at this time today. I want to be reborn as a Marlboro gold cigarette.

🗣It may be wise to not aspire to turn into consumables much

👋 What kind of gear is on your current pedal board? 🗣 *A picture consisting of a BOSS TU3W, Xotic EP Booster, WEED MDW-1 wah, Crowther Hotcake, Electro-Harmoni Nano Bass Big Muff, Arion SCH-Z Stereo Chorus, and BOSS DD-20.

👋 I just woke up, good morning 🗣Good morning

👋 Then I want to be reborn as a bed or sofa 🗣Chill

👋 Time to go to work! Cheer me on! 🗣Have a swell day

👋 I’m job-hunting right now, tell me something 🗣I hope it all works out…

👋 I’m a fan from Taiwan and a guitar newbie, do you have any tips and tricks for pressing chords? 🗣Make sure you’re pressing cleanly, I think

👋 Good morning~ Due to various circumstances I’m living in Tokyo for one month starting today, cheers to our battles to come 🗣Battles!?

👋 After drinking all night yesterday, I fell back to sleep 3 times before finally waking up just now. I woke up out of fear after remembering the news about the man who’s bladder exploded. 🗣That shit’s scary as hell? 　👀 https://nypost.com/2020/06/23/mans-bladder-explodes-after-holding-pee-for-18-hours-after-beer-binge/

👋 As a guitarist/vocalist what are you most careful of? 🗣Don’t wiggle around too much and wear yourself out

👋 Alco and Peace’s radio segments are just too damn good, ain’t they…? 🗣I’ve listened to the skit about Ichiru at an international tournie so many times that I’ve lost count, they’re seriously the best 　👀 They’re a manzai comedy duo too!

👋 What temperature do you keep your air-conditioning at? 🗣It depends but, when I do use it I’ll bring it all the way to 24 degrees celsius.

👋 What are you going to do now? 🗣No idea

👋 Have you ever been approached by fans at festivals or out in town? On that note, is it okay to approach you? (；.Д.) 🗣I have. It depends on the time and place.

👋 I love you. Time to go to work… 🗣Have a nice day

👋 Do you ever go to cat cafes and stuff? 🗣I’ve been.

👋 I’ve been job hunting with no resolution in sight, please give me words of encouragement! 🗣You can do it~

👋 Good morning,,, I bombed my mock exams and would love a picker-upper,,, 🗣Well, mock exams aren’t the end so

👋 What do you think of girls who cheat? 🗣I think they’re girls who cheat

👋 I keep doing Hitorie cover bands but I can’t seem to improve the skill* (I’m the drummer) 🗣I’m amazed that you’re even trying at all

👋 Good morning.. Please cheer me on,, 🗣You can do it~

👋 Can you tell me what entertainer you like! 🗣Kamomental 　👀 Another nother manzai duo!

👋 How to restore absolute exhaustion 👀Find something immersive, or laugh-inductive, or just go to sleep…

👋 What’s your favorite out of all the Hitorie merch released thus far? 🗣The album art pins

👋 What is the philosophy behind men who have affairs? 🗣They’re the type who can do it and stomach it, so they just do it, I think

👋 The album cover pins are so cool that I hesitate to use them, Shinoda-sensei what pins do you use? 🗣I always lose pins in a matter of minutes so I’m too scared to use them..

👋 I miss Shinoda-san’s girl and cat drawings 
🗣I haven’t been drawing much huh

👋 Do you listen to anything besides Audrey on the All Night Nippon radio station? 🗣Not much, only like Creepy Nuts (👀 They host a hip-hop/rap battle station!) or Sakuma (👀 He takes letters from listeners and digs into various hypothetical or real events)

👋 What’s the most recent movie you’ve watched? 🗣Lost Paradise in Tokyo 　👀 https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1519647/

👋 It’s Sunday yet I have to wake up early and go to work, please put my heart at ease,,, 🗣I pray for your health…

[sophelia-moon]

Heroine Complex

Here’s my drabble for Day 5 of MikaYuu Bingo 2020! Today’s prompt was “vulnerable.” Also, I was looking at my list of ff ideas to see if I could work anything in during the bingo, and one of my ideas was just “fem!Mika” so...that’s what happened this time 😂

Rating: T (Warnings for: guns; swearing; murder; suicidal thoughts)

                                                  Heroine Complex

The stranger’s hands are shaking on the gun. She must have stolen it from Sakuma’s car.

The back half of the warehouse is filled with crates, packed close as pigs in a slaughterhouse. Sakuma is slumped against the side of one, nailed straight in the forehead. The stranger’s haloed by lamplight in the doorway: an angel of vengeance come to make good.

Yuu swipes a hand over his face, smearing the droplets of blood that landed on his cheek.

Oh, right—the body.

“Is he dead?” he asks her.

She nods.

He’d say let’s call the police but he really can’t afford that. He gets the feeling she can’t, either.

The whole warehouse reeks of fish. They’re less than ten meters from the dock; easy enough to drag and drop him in the water.

“We have to clean this up,” he says at last.

“I’m from here,” the girl says. “My house is only ten minutes away. And you’re—”

—not.

“I’m with the smugglers,” he confesses. No need to hide anything now.

“Right,” she says. Her eyes sharpen, blue like crystals of ice. “I’ll get supplies. Be back in thirty.”

She hands the gun to him. She’d been wearing gloves, of course; it’s cold as sin.

Even if there’s no prints, the action stuns him. He could shoot her in the back, sell her out.

Whatever faith she has is unshaken. She flees the crime scene, blonde curls streaming from beneath her wool hat.

                                                            ***

Yuu decides to keep the gun for himself. He doesn’t plan on staying in this town long enough to get caught up in the aftermath.

He could ditch this hellhole right quick, but he’s no amateur. He’s the one who found Sakuma at the bar, playing hooky. He’s the one who saw him argue with some girl, then let her into his car anyway. Why he fucking took her to work, Yuu couldn’t fathom.

It didn’t matter now. Sakuma chose the wrong date. Yuu had trailed them here, dragged Sakuma in the warehouse, and told her to scram. If he’d just shut up and did his job—but he was drunk and surly. He’d argued with Yuu and then—

—she’d shown up out of nowhere and shot him. Guess she hadn’t taken his advice, after all.

Whether Yuu made the right call in letting her live remains to be seen. What can he say? He doesn’t have the will to backstab his “savior” like that, no matter how much Guren would bitch if he knew.

Her reappearance jolts him out of his thoughts.

“Let’s dump the body,” she says, prepared to put him to work without ceremony. Fine with him.

He peeks at the pack she’s carrying on her shoulders, her expression strained.

“What’s in there?”

“A lot,” she says shortly, and then: “A literal anchor.”

Yuu raises an eyebrow.

“To make sure the damn thing sinks,” she says.

“Good thinking,” he replies. “A collector of nautical shit?”

“My mom is.”

He takes the head. She takes the feet.

They heave.

                                                            ***

The night air is clean and cool. The dock is mercifully deserted, boats bobbing on black water. There’s no sound but the waves and their labored breathing.

“Let’s take him out on my boat,” Yuu says once they get to the pier, sparing her the embarrassment of being asked.

“Your boat?”

“Property of the business. Once we’re done here, I’ll make a call and they’ll take care of the rest.”

“Won’t you have to tell them what happened?”

“Oh, they love me,” Yuu says. “Don’t worry. You won’t come up in conversation.”

“Why would you do that?” she says.

They ease the corpse in nice and gentle.

“We’ve come this far, haven’t we?”

                                                            ***

On the ocean, they’re the only two in the world.

The stars glimmer overhead, distant and lonely. The girl is looking away from him, at the thin line where the sky meets the sea.

They’ve stopped rowing. The body’s still with them.

“Why’d you pick up a guy like him, anyway?”

She glances at him, startled.

“He looked like danger,” she says. “Looked fragile.”

“Huh,” Yuu says. “That’s accurate.”

Everyone’s fragile, he doesn’t say. They’re all bags of blood and meat.

“We should hurry up.”

“Fine, fine. Here’s good.”

Loops of rope marry Sakuma to the anchor. He sinks.

“Ever killed before?”

“Just myself.”

“It’s no comfort now, but it does get easier. And—”

“Yes?”

“Thank you.”

She turns to look at him.

“What’s your name?”

“Yuu,” he says.

“Michaela.”

[madamhatter]

toneofdarkness inquired: “Sooofeeee! Pizza!!" Have this 14" pizza with ham, tomato, bubbling molten cheese, and pineapples. UNPROMPTED ASKS | ALWAYS WELCOMED | @toneofdarkness​​​

It was an early afternoon spent calmly in the garden. Seated comfortably on an ivory garden chair, Sophie had an opened binder resting on top of her lap. Her pointer finger skims through the text, muttering numbers to herself. A pen twirls between her fingers as she begins marking corrections, reviewing smaller writings that needed her final approval.

The heiress swings her crossed ankles front and back, humming to herself. A rare occasion for someone not quite openly as a virtuoso, but it’s a childhood habit that finds a way to come out. She skims through more documents, content with the flowers blossoming around her and the quiet chirps of the birds from the hanging branches. 

At the first ring of her ‘nickname,’ one she still wasn’t sure why she had it, Sophie raises her chin from her paperwork. There was only but one person responsible for such a nickname and that was the same person who’d use it. 

Too confident in her assumption, she looks in the direction of where the voice originated from, and she hums a greeting, “ “Oh, good afternoon, Mr. Sakuma.” Tucking back a silver lock behind her ear, she finally turns her head in his direction, already smiling. 

Brows slowly raise when her eyes gauged past the excited, beaming expression on the vampire’s face and decided to her routine inspection. Her smile vanishes but her mouth opens softly, unable to find any sound in any language that could fit what was going on in her head. 

But, should she be surprised by what Rei creates? 

“Oh, let me--” The young woman jumps onto her feet, placing away her binder into the suitcase beside her chair, which was agape. Hurriedly, she walks over the sun-baked porch and picks up a companion chair for the table. She quietly settles it on the opposite end of the table and she makes minor adjustments to ensure its perfection.

“Come now,” the ‘host’ gestures to the vampire, a hand extending out. However, she waits for no answer. She already jogs behind the taller, patting the back of his shoulder blades, encouraging him forward. “Take a seat, there are quite a bit of new blossoms in the garden. You’ll enjoy them.” Before leaving him alone to his own devices, she promptly removes the ‘creation’ from his hands.

This is...This is pizza, right? As her back is turned towards the conversation partner, her brows press together, nose wrinkling. Bubbling cheese decorated by full slices of tomatoes, chunks of ham, and these yellow chunks (she didn’t know precisely what this was), Sophie’s encyclopedic knowledge hadn’t had this type of pizza stored. The range of thoughts, memories, and experiences barely found any recollection of pizza happening most of the time. Though, a bigger question festers: Since when did Rei Sakuma know how to make a pizza? 

The young woman settles the pizza on top of the ivory garden table. Her mind remains reeling with questions. Was this something from his one of his ancestors’ cookbooks? Perhaps there was an interesting, most likely indigestible ingredient, that she couldn’t see with the naked eye. Maybe it was an alchemist’s specialty to make the most delectable dishes made from the worst ingredients known to man. 

Frown disappearing, she turns back to the vampire, nodding her head with a polite smile. “The weather is lovely, isn’t it?” 

[ . . . ] 

Accommodations made, Sophie returns to her seat, fanning out her hands against the shape of her a-line skirt. Both of her hands rest on top of her lap as her attention wavers between the chef and the pizza. Her lips part, a question forced out, as her mind couldn’t keep up with locking up her curiosity. 

“What inspired you to make this, Mister Sakuma?” If Sophie’s sisters were here, they would’ve been causing a ruckus with how loud their laughter would be. There were several unspoken truths about the eldest Hatter and how her life was lived up to this one. One of them happens to be a genuine disconnect from the generation around her -- or, simply, what most experienced was all the newer and more puzzling for the young adult. 

She raises a closed fist against her chin. Tilting her head, and looking to the opposite side, she murmurs to herself (though, it was unknowingly loud), “Is it appropriate to eat pizza when it’s summer-time?” Her head bobs to the other side, unable to conclude. However, she returns herself back to the conversation, hand resting back on her lap.

“You know, it is quite nice to see you cooking--” She begins on the tangent, though, her face grows flushed, at the sudden realization. “Be it if you made this pizza or not, it’s still nice thinking of it. It won’t mean any less if you didn’t make this pizza--” Oh, how ‘pizza’ rolls so awkwardly off her unfamiliar tongue. 

“However, ah, yes. What inspired you to bring, or create, this?”

[rebeccahpedersen]

“Creating Your Own Narrative”

TorontoRealtyBlog

I used this term in Tuesday’s blog as I discussed a buyer who simply didn’t “get it,” or wasn’t “with it,” in the context of the 2018 real estate market.

Many buyers out there don’t get it, and many of them try to create their own narrative, by hoping, waiting, wishing, dreaming, and eventually convincing themselves that the market fantasy they’ve created for themselves, is, in fact, the reality.

Today, I’ll give you a few recent examples of interactions I’ve had with people who create their own narrative, and you can tell me if their thoughts have merit, or if they too just don’t “get it,” as the saying goes…

Over the weekend, something happened that perfectly illustrates what happens when a disappointed, frustrated, and uninformed Toronto buyer meets reality.

What happened?

I got fired.

I use that term somewhat loosely, and at times, facetiously.

I always take the high road, and unlike many agents, I don’t feel the need to be “right.”  I don’t need to have the last word, and I don’t burn bridges.

A few weeks back, a young couple contacted me about potentially buying a home, and even from our initial email correspondence, I knew they were out of touch with market reality.

We met at a property that would surely have significant action, and they liked it.  They said they “wanted to move forward.”

The property was under-priced, and had a hold-back on offers.

But the more I explained this to them, the less they seemed to care.

One of the buyers was scheduled to go away on a business trip, and so they determined that submitting a “bully offer” that day would be the best course of action.

I told them what they needed to know – about the deposit cheque in hand with the offer, asked them about potential closing dates, went over terms, and then almost as an afterthought, said, “….and obviously, no conditions.”

One of the buyers replied, “What do you mean, ‘no conditions?’  We want a condition on financing, and a condition on home inspection.”

I was confused, but perhaps this was my fault.

I often take it for granted that not every buyer knows everything about the Toronto real estate market.

I explained, “Well if you’re submitting a bully offer, and you expect the seller to forego the offer night, your offer would have to be unconditional.  They would never sell their home conditionally, and give up the potential multiple offers five days from now, as scheduled.”

I’ll save you the rest of the dialogue, but I went on to explain the idea of a bully offer, in the context of today’s market, as well as how the seller would see it from their perspective.

My buyer responded, “We don’t care how the seller would see it.  We only care about how we see it.”

That, right there, is a willful ignorance.  It’s a growing trend, and it stems partially from dissatisfaction, and partially from a lack of common sense.

I said, “Even if you blew them away with a price so far over the asking-price that it exceeded their wildest expectations, they would still have to take on the risk that you don’t waive your condition(s) – plural, and I don’t see them taking that risk.  I don’t recall ever seeing a seller take on that risk.”

Amazingly, she responded, “Who said we’d be going ‘wild’ over asking?  We were actually thinking about coming in at the list price, or below.”

I didn’t waste any time here; “You want to make a bully offer, with not one, but two conditions, at or below the list price, for a property that will probably sell for 15% over asking on offer night?  I’m sorry guys, but there’s absolutely zero chance here.”

She calmly responded, “We disagree.”

And then she stood there, with a matter-of-fact look on her face, and a slight smile.  It was like she was proud, or had something to prove.

“We think we have a chance.  And a chance is all we need.”

And suddenly I was reminded of…

There’s a reason that movie has the title it does.

I left the young buyer couple that day, and gave them a choice; I told them that I was happy to represent them and work with them on their purchase, but they had to revise their expectations to adhere to something even remotely resembling market reality.

They told me that this is how they were going to be successful in the market, and I wished them the best of luck.

Fast-forward a couple of weeks, and they reached out to me again.  I was surprised to hear from them; there are 50,000 real estate agents in the city, and they could have found any number of willing agents who would serve as the “yes-men” (or yes-person) they were looking for.

This time, they were looking at an $800,000 listing, which of course, made zero sense, given their maximum pre-approval of $750,000.  And given my target for this house was over $900,000 when all was said and done, it made even less sense.

I emailed back and told her that this would probably fetch over $900,000, and asked if they’d obtained a new mortgage pre-approval since we had last spoke.

She simply said, “Everything is the same as it was.”

I didn’t understand.

I mean, I knew that the first time around, they wanted to make a conditional bully offer, at or below the list price.  But surely having seen that house sell for $100,000+ over asking, firm, via bully offer, and my encouraging them to adjust their expectations and approach, some of that would have sank in.

It didn’t, as it turns out.

The young buyer said they wanted to see the house regardless.

She said, “We don’t think that every house is going to sell over asking.  In fact, we think many houses will sell below asking.  We’re hoping this one sells significantly below asking, and we’d like to see it and plan ahead.”

This is one of the best examples I’ve seen in a while of wishful thinking.

And having gone through this exercise once already, I thought they would have learned.

As luck would have it, we never did tour the house in person.  An odd series of scheduling conflicts led to the idea that time wasn’t on our side (even though we had four days before offer night…), and the offer day came and went.

The day after offers, seeing the house sell for $927,580, I emailed the young buyers to tell them.

It wasn’t an “I told you so” moment.  As I said, I wasn’t chasing these guys, and I had already turned them away once.  I was trying to educate them, and bring them closer to reality.

Having told them in an email that they needed some “tough love” from me, and saying, “With a $750,000 budget, we can’t be looking at $800,000 listings, that are going to sell for $925,000,” they wrote back, and told me where to go.

Something to the effect of, “We have a perfect understanding of the market, but we also have faith.  Thanks for your help, but we’re going to look elsewhere.  Take care.”

And with that, I was technically “fired.”

Most agents wouldn’t be able to control their egos, and write back something like, “Happy Renting!”  But I simply wrote back and wished them luck, and told them to have a great weekend.

I feel bad for them, to be honest.

They’re creating their own narrative, and as a result, they’ve accepted their fantasy version of the Toronto market, as a reality.

As I alluded to in Tuesday’s blog, I met a lot of dreamers a couple of weeks ago when I had a North Toronto home up for sale.

It’s no coincidence that the cold-callers, who are proud to announce, “We don’t have an agent,” are always the most out of touch with the market.

On Saturday night, around 9:30pm, I got a page from our answering service to call “Bob Johnson,” and the message said, “You showed his son a house today.”

I knew exactly where this was going, of course.  Jimmy was interested in a house, and Dad had to call the agent and suss things out.

Bob was very cordial, courteous, and kind, for what it’s worth.  He was gracious, and thankful – let’s not get that wrong.

But was not in touch with the market, and I believe that part of that was his own doing.

He too was guilty of creating his own narrative, as everything that he said was a wish, hope, or dream.

“The market is terrible out there!” he said, to which I replied, that although house prices are down from the peak in April of 2017, they’re on the rise thus far in 2018.

“There’s way too much inventory!” he said, to which I replied that this was the only house for sale in the neighbourhood, and the only one in this price point in six months.

Everything out his mouth was a preemptive strike against a seller’s market for the home!

“A house like this isn’t going to sell quickly,” he said, which solicited an immediate response of, “Offers will be reviewed on Tuesday, and I would expect at least 3-4 at this point.”

“The house needs too much work, nobody will buy it.”

No word of a lie, folks – he just kept going, and going!

“Read the newspapers!  It’s a buyer’s market!”

“Nobody is going to make an offer without conditions!  The house needs to be inspected!  Buyers need approvals from their banks!”

I explained to him that in this market, a good listing agent will provide a pre-home inspection, and that any buyer at this price point has already obtained a mortgage pre-approval.  Furthermore, buyers know that sellers won’t accept conditional offers, in competition, so they don’t bother with conditions.”

“That’s just not true,” he told me.

“People aren’t buying before selling anymore!  They’re all buying with conditions!”

Every sentence out of his mouth was just yet another argument in favour of a poor market; one in which his son could purchase the house, for well under-asking, all according to his own timeline.

One of my colleagues ended up taking the father to the property, on the day offers were being reviewed, and the son showed up shortly thereafter.

They spent two hours at the home, going back into rooms they’d already seen, over and over.

They walked the lot, they inspected the yard, they scoped out the inside of the garage.

And by the time they had finished, it was 5:30pm, and there were already six offers registered on the home.

“We’re interested,” the father said.  “But we’re going to want to negotiate.”

My colleague is a lot like me, and getting right to the point, he rhetorically asked, “There are already six registered offers on the property, how the do you expect to negotiate?”

The father and son were on the same page; they didn’t even need to look at one-another.

“We don’t care how many offers there are,” the son explained.  “We’re going to do what’s best for us.”

Sure, I get that.  Do what’s best for you, absolutely.

But that doesn’t change the reality of the market, and if you mean “We won’t pay $2.7 Million, because it’s not what’s best for us,” then don’t offer $2.7 Million.  Just walk away, if you don’t see the value.  But that’s not what they were thinking.

“We would be buyers at two million flat,” the dad said.

My colleague shook his head, and said, “You guys aren’t listening.  There are going to be 6-10 offers, and the house is going to sell over the asking price.  Coming in $300,000 under the asking price is pointless.”

“We could go to $2.1 Million,” the dad said.

“Now you’re negotiating with me?” my colleague asked.

The dance went on for a few minutes, and eventually it ended.

The father and son scoffed at the idea of providing a certified cheque for the deposit, as they didn’t deem it “necessary,” and then said, “We’ll take our chances.  Let us know if it’s still available tomorrow.”

I don’t understand the father’s position, nor do I understand his motivation.

I can’t figure out if he was truly out of touch with the market, or if he felt that if you put something out into the universe, it might find its way back to you.  Perhaps by making all these absurd claims about the real estate market, and the process of buying and selling, he thought he could convince the market participants, or the aforementioned universe, to see things his way.

Last story here, folks, but this one might be the oddest.

Another couple who saw the house, loved it, and were highly interested.

But on the day of offers, they took a different approach, and emailed the following:

The house is lovely, it’s a great fit for our family, and we could see ourselves enjoying the warmth and cozy confines of the home for years to come.  But at present, we’re in no position to act.  We have yet to list our house for sale in Boston, and we’d ideally like to have it sold before we make an offer in Toronto.  We aren’t going to list the home until the end of the school year, as we don’t want the kids to have to deal with the emotional toil of the sale.  If the sellers would like to see the home go to a family that will cherish it dearly, please let them know that we will be back house-hunting again in June, and if they’re willing to wait a little while for us, we would love them to consider selling to us at that time.

I’m not being insensitive here, but I just can’t understand how somebody could put that in writing.

And this has nothing to do with them being from Boston, and not understanding the Toronto market.  They saw many houses during their stay, and they know each one has an “offer night.”  They’re not stupid.

But how in the world could somebody suggest that a seller, with nine offers on their home on the scheduled offer day, would put that aside, on the off-chance that one buyer makes an offer, four months down the road?

This isn’t another example of “creating your own narrative.”  It’s just really misguided.

Dare I say that with a very small portion of Toronto buyers, there’s almost this willful ignorance.  And as you saw in the first story above, the willful ignorance often comes with a hint of pride, and that, I just don’t understand.

Look, I get it, folks.  The Toronto market is expensive.  Prices continue to rise, and people want what they can’t afford.  Buyers are disappointed, and frustrated, to say the least.

I’ve never denied any of that, but pretending that reality doesn’t exist, is not the answer.

Creating a fantasy in your mind, and then trying to play it out in the real world, is not the answer.

Acting cavalier, and refusing to accept what’s given, is not the answer.

I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, and I don’t enjoy giving tough love.  But creating your own narrative, and then getting caught up in what you hear yourself say, is simply never going to help you in this market, no matter how badly you want to believe it…

The post “Creating Your Own Narrative” appeared first on Toronto Real Estate Property Sales & Investments | Toronto Realty Blog by David Fleming.

Originated from http://ift.tt/2BIBOwv

[cruger2984]

Koga: The fair will get you out of the doll-drums!

Rei: Pretty sure it's doldrums, Wanko.

Koga: No, doll-drums. Sad little drums, playing with their sad little drums. Aw...