Anime Vios goes inactive… for now

Hello, old-time readers, newcomers, and passersby!

As stated in the post title, I have decided to be inactive for the time being. I have thought about this carefully for the past few weeks. I haven’t written anything in two months, the longest period I have gone MIA in the aniblogging scene due to some changes in my private life lately.

There’s a beam of light even in the ruins… (Heck, I don’t know what I’m saying but I really wanted to include this screenshot from Grimgar)

Since I’ve never really made some sort of an announcement before, I’ll just take this chance to say it now. At the end of February I finally landed on a job that makes use of my skill sets gained from years of grueling education in college.

It’s my first industry experience. It hasn’t been that long, and I am still adjusting to this working environment. Being a shy and introverted person, it takes some time for me to get to know the hang of things–especially human hierarchies and communication and everything else I can’t bother to list down. Yes, you get the point.

And by “some time”, I meant, a lot of time. Being a noob working with seniors, the pressure to get things done on time is real. I feel like I am always moving fast, but by the end of the day, I was never fast enough. So I still spend a couple more hours to finish my tasks for the day. I go home tired and sleepy. Eat, work, sleep, basically (plus bathe, of course).

And as if the universe has conspired to prevent me from going online, our neighbor decided not to reconnect to the Internet. It was this ultimate blow that wrapped all of this busyness nicely.

But the time has not been completely bad, despite most of the discouraging truths I happen to hear at work frequently and stories that co-workers share with me. Despite the everyday stress I still look forward to get to work and find opportunities to improve in certain aspects I’m not really well-versed. My seniors are kind and thoughtful, teaching me things I wouldn’t know on my own. But, to not discredit myself, I also have fun when I discover things by myself–it’s somehow this kind of situation that reminds me that I’m not useless. That I can do something. And that is a very important sensation for me, as crucial as breathing.

That reminds me, I found myself loving Sia‘s songs lately. I think it started when I just casually listened to Alive. It was so powerful and solemn at the same time, it’s amazing that Sia can sing and compose songs like that. But when I actually read the lyrics intently, I started seeing images of myself, of what I’ve been and still going through. Alive was like a letter for me. I’ve claimed it as my anthem now–I’m on my way to recovery.

I’m still breathing. I’m  alive.

I have also learned to channel my little spare time to reading books. I’m a slow reader and being one doesn’t really hurt with my current lifestyle. For instance, I try to read a chapter of A Cat Called Birmingham: A Biography of Nine Lives by Chris Pascoe every time a manage to take my hour-long break at work. But more lately, I’m occupied by Scott Clark’s Japan: A View From the Bath, yet another rare book I found in my favorite thrift bookshop. With this, I’m about inches deeper to understanding the Japanese and their hot baths. How’s that sound?

As a consequence, I have less and less free time for watching anime. I don’t think I can closely watch this season, too. Tanaka-kun wa Itsume Kedaruge, Joker Game, Sakamoto desu ga, Boku no Hero Academia, and Flying Witch are some of the titles I try to consciously look out for, just in case some of you want to know what’s on my watch list.

By the way, I have finished only three shows from last season: Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu, Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash, and ERASED. They were all great treats–I had a lot of fun in all possible emotions I felt watching them–that I highly recommend, in that order.

This has somehow gotten unnecessarily lengthy, so I thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading the entirety of this post. And thank you all for reading my words, though I know myself I sometimes don’t make sense. Still, I’m grateful for the bonds I’ve forged here and the fun times I’ve had with the people I met through blogging.

I don’t know when I’m coming back, but rest assured I will drop by if I think I have something nice to say. This isn’t goodbye!

Let’s meet again!