Birthday

Well, i almost survived another year*.  My alleged time of birth was 8:23 or 8:32 PM (i can never remember which one) local time, so not at the time of this post.  Maybe next year is when i finally beat my pesky oxygen habit.  i'm sure the second anything goes right is when the final curtain falls.

i still suspect my "life" was a biggest bomb on this annual day (yes that includes Nagasaki "Fat Man")

Unlike some entity i wrongly convinced myself i knew, at least i won't be turning 50 this year.

* Survival connotes non-cessation of core bodily functions, does not connote any form of happiness or fulfillment.  After all, Paul Young was right "happiness is just an illusion filled with sadness and confusion".

How old am i?  i am essentially 15.77 years old.  Though i might have a few years of experience being that age.  Even though, physically i sometimes feel like i'm in my 60s (kind of hope i never actually am in my 60s).  i am not an, what do you call it, adult.  In terms of life experience, 15.77 might be an overestimation.

When you are younger, people ask your age, you can say it off the top of your head.  When you get a little more calendar experience, it becomes a math problem.  Let's just say "i love the 80s", "i survived the 90s" (but wish i hadn't.  If only i had the guts/tools to do what i should have done in 99), and f* the new millennium (nothing redeeming about it).

Anyway, what did i get this year for my alleged birthday (still believe the i'm an alien stranded on this planet theory.  The alternative is far too frightening to consider.)?  A few dollars, a castle i bought myself (just saying), and a Powerball (save me Powerball, you are my only hope) ticket.

Death Day

This date, X years ago my alleged father died of cancer at home.  It was right before my 16th birthday. Trust me, the image of your father's naked corpse being wiped down by a hospice nurse is not something you want to remember.

There is a big chance here i'll give you a little too much information.

Should the doctor have caught the melanoma sooner?  Definitely.  He had a disgusting large and misshapen mole on his left arm.  When he originally asked the doctor about it, she said something to the effect of "don't worry about it".  Of course, she never even wrote his concerns in her notes.  A few months later, he bumped the mole and it started to bleed.  He had the mole removed, and of course it was cancerous.  Then you get the whole 75% chance they got it.  All well and good until it made it to his lymph nodes.  Another 70% chance they stopped the cancer.  Wrong again.

Anime Musings: Is it Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon

Now, for some thoughts on one of my favorite active anime.  i'm talking about Is it Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in A Dungeon (otherwise known, and i'll refer to it here, as Danmachi).  Though the universe also includes a spin-off Sword Oratoria (and several other set in the same universe, some prequels).

One of the tropes i like in anime is a weak character becoming strong (i "grew up" playing JRPGs).  Other examples of this include Arifureta and Black Clover.

Seasons 1-4 are available on Hulu.

Anime Musings: Danmachi The Hestia Familia

One of my favorite ongoing anime is It is Wrong to Try and Pick up Girls in a Dungeon (otherwise known as Danmachi).  Yes, i'll admit to first watching it on Hulu somewhat for its name.  But it is a series with mutated mythology and a weak adventurer, originally rejected by the big players, becoming one of the strongest.

This is musings about the future hero Bell Canel's familia (adventurer family of a god, kind of like a faction/guild in something like Black Clover or Fairy Tail).  Hestia (Vesta) was a virgin goddess with no children (adventurer followers) until Bell.  As Bell grew, so too did the familia.

Keep in mind, i've only seen the anime through season 4.  Come on Hulu get Season 5.  i have no intention of ever reading the light novels for Danmachi, Sword Oratoria, or its spinoffs. 

So, what does this familia need:

Random Anime Musings Today

i got into watching anime on Hulu when US sitcoms seemed kind of stale.  Some anime have weird stories.  Being animated, they can also touch on certain themes in a different way than traditional TV shows can.  However, there is still a bit of a culture gap between US/European viewer and the target market in Japan.  The naming can get confusing - as the US versions sometimes alternate the order (US version first name then surname vs Japanese version.  ie John Smith vs Smith John).

- Anime are used to prop up sales of books (light novels, manga) in Japan.  As a result, many animes remain in an unfinished state (story stops cold, does not complete).  Viewing this from a US perspective, i would be looking for completed light novels/mangas before i started a show.  Not using continuing series.

i hate reading.  It is not comfortable or fun.  Sustained silent reading forced on me in high school caused me to resent reading.  An hour or so a day of reading books i didn't want to.  That is why i took more literature classes than most.  Another reason to hate reading is how pretentious most of the "modern classics" are.

Gareth from the show non-anime show Galavant said it best: "reading is for morons who don't understand pictures".

MSFT Video Shut Down - Why AMZN Prime Video is not a solution for me

So, MSFT abruptly shut down their Video and TV app on the Xbox.  This kind of sucks, there were a few shows i was going to buy when they went on sale.  If history is something to go on, it is only a matter of time before the videos i have on there are inaccessible.

Most of the stuff i have on the app was anime i bought on sale (mostly $4.99 or less).  It worked fairly well for me and gave me another thing to use my MSFT Reward Points on (now it is only really useful for Game Pass, or a few games i've been thinking of for a while but never go on a deep enough discount).

Why did i get stuff on MSFT Video?  A $5 season is much more justifiable than a $50+ season of 12 or so episodes.  Though that doesn't apply if they are out of print (which since i started watching anime two or so years ago, many are).  $100+ seasons are the norm.  Anime Blu Rays are massively overpriced to begin with, ensuring relatively low sales.

i bought Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's Strongest on sale for $3.99 (plus sales tax, which i shouldn't have to pay for a digital license).  i believe that is out-of-print in Region A.  In general, AMZN Prime sales on anime suck.  Not nearly as good as the $5 semi-annual MSFT Video and TV sales over the past couple of years (which included the English dubbed versions and clearly state what you are "purchasing").

i noticed a few things were on sale at AMZN Prime Video.  But there is a very big problem i have with AMZN Prime Video purchases - the listings are kind of inaccurate.  When i got into the listing, i clicked on information: it said available languages included English - i went through every episode of the season and it said the same thing.  After i bought it, what was the only audio language available?  You guessed it, Japanese.

Random Musings Today: July LEGO Tradition, Black Hole Day, etc

 Another undefined time period, another musing post.

- Saw an Instacart ad - summer like it's 1999.  1999 was one of the worst summers of my life.  Don't want to relive a second of that misery.

Might have actually been worse than when my alleged father died of cancer 2 days before my 16th birthday (funeral was 2 days after).  That one was expected (for a while).  i felt a greater sense of loss in 1999 - more my dreams of the future (normalcy - marriage, kids, etc).  And... die they did, never to be rekindled again.  Both killed any future potential i might have ever had (other than illusions).

1999 was like the "King of Wishful Thinking" by Go West, "Missing You" by John Waite, and "Someday by Glass Tiger" - seem happy on the surface, but deep down come off as self-delusional false hope.

- Did i mention i hate summer?  Well, i do.  Wonder how much a C. Montgomery Burns style sun blocker would cost.