I need positivity.

Too often, I fear, I surround myself with negativity. Bad news; Bad people succeeding; Humanity failing to cooperate... Partially, this is because there are a lot of bad things happening all the time, and a lot of bad people succeeding, and humanity constantly fails to cooperate. Really, it's not so much me surrounding myself with negativity as it is a fact that I am surrounded by negativity!

I'm not sure that's wholly a bad thing, though. After all, if the negativity is there, then maybe it would be best to tackle it head on. Address it, solve it.

Then again, I also fear I may become paralysed. I already don't do much and do feel quite powerless, most of the time, but if I keep stuffing my mind with horribleness, I might truly forget how to act.

As such, I've decided to share some things I'm liking, right now!

1. Nikolai Gogol

Recently, on a friend's advice, I started reading some Nikolai Gogol. I started with "The Overcoat", then also read "Old-Fashioned Farmers", and will be reading some other short-stories before diving into "Dead Souls". I liked "The Overcoat", but that that much... It was a nice enough story, but I didn't really get it. I guess this happens with classics sometimes: they're so influential that, decades after they're written, their messages and style have become so prominent that the originators no longer seem particularly striking. Might be that. I liked "Old-Fashioned Farmers" much more; It felt a little bit like an exercise in description, but, well, Gogol is good at describing things! It was a more enjoyable read. "The Overcoat" has stuck with me more, but I wonder if that's just because I had higher expectations, since I read that it was very influential.

1. Frieren, Season 2

I'm watching Frieren again! Season 2. It's so, so good. I love the animation, I love the voice acting, I love the story... I just love it. I love all of it. It's a fantastic anime; The first season was amazing, and this one is yet to disappoint. We'll see how it will end, yes, but for now, at least, it's absolutely living up to the hype.

1. Journal with Witch

This is what's been consuming me most, lately. The emotional weight that each episode of Journal with Witch carries is simply indescribable. I feel like my heart doesn't fit in my chest, like my lungs are pushing against my ribs, like my neck can barely hold my head up just thinking about it... This anime is a dull sort of pain; An overwhelming hum that takes over your senses so evenly that you almost forget it's even there -- or you would forget, if you didn't remember the way it was before. The colours slide to grey, the songs fall flat, your tongue is dead meat. It's grief, that pain. It's your life stolen away, and yet you keep living. That's the grief of Journal with Witch.

I also think it's a pretty good representation of neurodivergence. That hits me quite hard as well, though it's not as much of a focus for the show.

1. In the Clear Moonlit Dusk

This is a recent watch, for me. I binged it today. It's good! A little frustrating... The latest 2 episodes were a little underwhelming, really; It's a sort of drama that I don't really like. I wonder if people are actually like this. One must assume that they are, teenagers at least. I know that there's a lot of silly drama. Yet, it annoys me nevertheless. It's the sort of show that makes me yearn for love, and dread it at once. I wouldn't necessarily recommend it, but if you're looking for a romance, maybe give it a try.

1. Momose Akira no Hatsukoi Hatan-chuu

So. Freaking. Cute!!!!! This manga is so freaking cute!!! I dread the morning, for I know a new chapter has likely not yet come; I dread the evening for the same reason. Yet, every morning I smile with the hope that it may, and every evening I dream that it has. Sometimes, it does! It's so freaking cute!!! The art is great, the humour is great, the chemistry between the characters is great. It's a little bit of a slowburn, but it has probably felt slower than it actually is simply because it's still coming out and the next chapter can't ever come soon enough.

For now, that is it. There are other things on my TBR and TBW, other things I'm reading and have been reading, but, honestly, those are just good. Some of them aren't even good, they're actually mid. The ones I shared, though, are really amazing, IMO.

That is it for me today!

I wore jeans, actually.