April Round-Up '24

This was the busiest month of the year yet - so many things changing and happening, from good things like special birthday celebrations, to extremely painful medical visits and my first jury duty summons... it was an extremely mixed bag. Lots of things to talk about, so here we go!

What's Been Happenin'

  • First and foremost, most of you know that I was in a jam when it came to being able to afford what's likely my last big piece of dental work: removing two wisdom teeth. I'm incredibly grateful to everyone who helped me reach my $2.5k goal and I'm set to get the teeth removed next week!!! I'm very, very anxious, but confident that it's all for the best. I won't be in nearly as much pain once I heal from the extraction. Thank you so much, everyone!!!

  • Related to my dental work, I took on a large amount of commissions to make the money needed and had some doodle streams where I drew quite a few characters and animals. I'm grateful for all the interest! My commissions are now closed indefinitely as I prepare for healing from surgery. I'm not sure if/when I'll be opening them again, but I'll let people know if I decide to do so!

    • Here are just a few of the many, many commissions I did this past month!

  • A big project of mine that I didn't really share too much of was specifically for my own birthday celebration (on April 19th)!! Because I've been loving FF7: Rebirth, I knew I wanted to have a "Rebirthday"-themed mini party and made lots of decorations AND a little game of "pin the tail on the Chocobo" for Chris and I to play together! I also came up with tons of food dishes themed after foods in the game, which was fun and delicious! We had Korean BBQ Bites (nigiri-style Vegan Beef Bulgolgi with homemade teriyaki sauce on rice), The Midgar Special (vegan cheese pizza bites), Eggs and Chips (fried eggs with steak fries and malt vinegar), Moogle Buns (rolls with homemade honey butter inside, cotton candy nose, drawn-on eyes, and a cherry on a toothpick for the pom), "The Sauce" (homemade Cajun aioli), Da-Chao Beans (steamed edamame), Gysahl Greens (mixed salad with sugar plum tomatoes), Dumbapple Slices (Envy apple slices), and The Cosmo Canyon (black cherry and plum juice in a volcano salt-rimmed glass).

  • Chris' birthday happens after mine (on April 20th), and we did some fun things to celebrate! The most exciting thing we did was check out RATNEST, which is quite honestly THE coolest shop ever been to: the store is plastered with old-school game and anime posters which lends to an extremely 00's aesthetic, there are retro and new games galore, a unique selection of arcade games (we played on cabinets with Touhou Imperishable Night, Cardcaptor Sakura Tetris, Umineko: Golden Fantasia, and the latest Pop 'n Music), and lots of cool anime and music. We finally got our own SEGA Genesis and a couple games - I'm looking forward to building up our collection!! Afterward, we checked out the Sonic Speed Cafe, which had the cutest decorations for their food. It was a blast, and I hope Chris felt especially loved as we did these things together.

    • The vibe at RATNEST was soooo perfect... as was the packaging at the Sonic Speed Cafe!

  • Some other assorted life things... Chris got some work!! And my Dad came to visit unexpectedly! Chris and I saw my sister and her husband for some games to celebrate our birthdays, and we went rollerblading with some of our good friends at a super cool retro rollerway! These were all nice surprises, and helped keep my sanity as this month rolled on.

    Another nice memory from this month: seeing Carlos and Mr. President at Geeky Teas!


    Games

  • Freedom Planet 2 is now out on all consoles!! I did a little art of the protagonists to celebrate!! I actually hadn't finished the game before, but a friend gifted me a copy for the Switch (thanks Argo!!) so I can play it! I haven't gotten too far yet, but I've enjoyed what I played.

  • Okay this is the last time I'm talking about FF7 Rebirth because I just wanted to say that - after 104 hours - I'm FINALLY PUTTING IT DOWN!!! I keep wanting to replay it for the story but I'll resist so we can move on in our library. I'm already the ultimate party animal. I can be at peace.

    • Shout out to Chris for completing most of the Queen's Blood side quests! It was a very nice birthday gift since I had zero interest in doing them!!


    Anime

    The Spring season has officially started! Here's what I've been watching:

  • Train to the End of the World had the most interesting opening episode that I've seen in a long time... I highly recommend giving it a shot without looking anything up about it first!! Trust me.

  • Spice and Wolf has a reboot and it's very pretty so far! I've only seen half of the original anime series (I was very busy when I originally watched), but I'm enjoying the pace this reboot has. Holo is very fluffy, the music is beautiful, and it seems like the retelling of the story fits in line with how it should be. I really like that it features a merchant as the main character and focuses on his work, since that's not the kind of job that's typically in the spotlight.

  • Speaking of reboots, another is airing this season of a show I feel was very under-appreciated when it first released: Bartender: Glass of God! I actually don't think this version of the story is as captivating as the original anime so far, but I'm still enjoying it well enough. It's only a few episodes into the season so we'll see where it goes.

  • I've been looking forward to Tonari no Yokai-san for a little while because I love yokai stories and cute monsters! The story started a little slow, but it ramped up by the end of the first episode. I love how the yokai have integrated into human society and coexist there - I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of stories this show tells!

  • There's a new season of Yuru Camp airing, and it's probably the prettiest the show has ever been. It's also.... very.... VERY slow. Like slower than the first two seasons? I don't really feel like this season is necessary, especially after the movie, but I'll watch a little longer before potentially dropping it since I do like the imagery and how they present different ways of camping.

  • Original anime Jellyfish Can't Swim in the Night is eye-catching and sparkly but I'm not really sure how to feel about its characters yet-- UPDATE I finally had a chance to see past episode 2 and I love its Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken vibes! I like the idea of characters with broken dreams pursuing a new one together while invigorating their inner passion, and they way they put their ideas together to create feels very real and natural. It makes me wish I could pursue creative projects with friends just as intensely. I also appreciate that the characters have struggles that feel believable, and respond to them appropriately. I'm enjoying it!

  • After seeing a compilation of older anime openings, the one for Tomorrow's Nadja caught my eye for how fluid and charming its animation was. I appreciate that even though it's meant to be for audiences of any age, it doesn't dumb down the story even for younger viewers. Since it follows a circus troupe it feels adventurous, plus I LOVE that there are two adorable lion cubs named Chocolate and Cream... this'll be something we watch when the currently airing shows are slow to release.


    • Onward to May!

    Don't expect to hear from me much for awhile. I'm preparing for my big surgery and completing a ton of work so I can recover without worry, and I probably won't be looking at a computer screen for a little while as I heal. Streams will potentially be back near the end of May, or possibly even in June, depending on how my healing goes. I hope everyone has a nice month - I'll see you eventually!

    Here's a giant Cirno I spotted while outside of Touhou-Fest to wish you well!!

    • Neko