Day 20: October 20th
What did I read?: 夜の名前を呼んで Vol 2
How much did I read?: 50 pages
How long did it take me?: 1 hour 31 min
Today’s chapters were a retelling of when Mira first arrived at Rei’s house - I had only planned to read one chapter but I HAD to finish the second one too, like omg, it was so good.
They meet in like, the most perfect way, like he is just beyond sweet and charming skjdfhsdjjskvck how can you not fall in love with him instantly
Vague spoilers but also like 90% incomprehensible rambling, I'm sorry, my words cannot do justice to these chapters whatsoever so I'm just screeching incoherently because I loved it so much, like there's just so much to process here and it's still being processed
I am SCREAMING
I LOVETHEMMMMMM
I-
This manga got SO REAL for a sec Like holy whoa, I’m still like…REI YOU REALLY WENT THERE, JEEZ, you really just went all the way down there without any hesitation omg, there’s this one thing he said in particular, I was like…damn Idk why but it just struck me as so raw and like…true. I feel like it’s something people just don’t usually say out loud, especially to a kid. But it was like he went there with her, instead of trying to brush off her feelings and pain with empty encouragements, and that is like…so golden. Like, he went right into her darkness without any fear whatsoever. I guess he knows because he’s BEEN there. That felt like…way more of a raw, unflinching moment than I ever expected out of this manga But in the best way
I’m not going to try and paraphrase because I’m probably going to do it wrong But like
AHHHH
My words fail me but DANG
Also we see the moment where Mira starts calling him 師匠 and I just-
I can't stop screaming when I think about this part ksdjhfkjsdhjkvxn THEY ARE SO CUTE
Sorry, thank you for coming to my TED screech fest
Here’s a pretty picture of Rei, it’s just a random chapter title page but I love it so much, look at how PRETTY
This reading challenge, through its daily occurrence, made me face my Japanese skills as they truly were in practice. Which is good! I’m going to keep reading along with the challenge, but I realized that a lot of my grammar skills from textbooks studies have slipped away from me – at the least, consciously. I ordered the Quartet textbook from my library, and in the few days before it arrives I’m gonna be working on reviewing grammar from Genki II.
Today I read the last 12 pages of バレーボールの神様. It was good, and I liked the message that what matters isn’t whether you win or lose, but the journey and the things you learn along the way. Even though the team got eliminated before the quarterfinals at HaruKou, it’s not a sad story.
I think I’m gonna consider translating and reading two separate things for this book, because I wanna read the other four stories and not be limited by my having finished translating this one first. And not just because this is a novel that I can finish without taking months to do it.
I also read 3 chapters of HQ, finishing vol 30! Which means I’m 2/3 of the way done with the series… I don’t want it to end though?
They really are omg, I really need to get this series, so much. Also idk if it’s just because I’m listening to one of Miyano Mamoru’s songs rn, but I read Rei as having his voice
Today I read… volume 5 of ブルーロック, like the whole thing it’s been a while since I’ve done that so it felt really good! This volume was just wild though, once I got into it it was so hard to put down haha. ブルーロック always manages to go like one step farther than what I expect and it’s amazing, what a fun time
At work I sometimes have a scheduled desk hour, during which I’m usually too busy to read (on my computer) but sometimes manage a bit here and there. My previous book for that was 君の名は, and now I’m using ハリー・ポッターと不死鳥の騎士団.
Reminder to self: if you don’t read manga, you won’t finish any manga volumes.
I think all the energy I put into my assignment yesterday burned me out a little… Not a big deal; I kind of suspected that might happen. I’ll try to get back on the saddle (or perhaps broom, in this case) with Kiki tomorrow.
Yes, I read through to the end of chapter 8. Incidentally, in my edition there’s an explanatory endnote for the 出鱈目 at the end of chapter 7, which says that the reviewer mentioned was a real well-known critic and poet who had written a review of 吾輩は猫である that had been published just before Soseki wrote chapter 7. The reviewer apparently wrote that Soseki knew too much about the taste of jam and not enough about the taste of sake, and that he should spend less time shut in his room in the company of his cat and more time outside in the company of women. So that bit at the end of chapter 7 is put in there as a joke/riposte for readers who’d read that review.
Wagahai-cat continues his description of the surrounding grounds (then starts going on a tangent like he usually does).
Japanese found under the leaves
Meowords
蚕食「さんしょく」ー Encroachment
Replies
Thanks for sharing! I’m missing all these little endnotes on mine so don’t get to learn any of this cool stuff. Always amusing when authors make jokes/stabs like these.
How long until Kiro will be making his own read-everyday posts?
I started reading rather late yesterday, and while I only had a bit left in my story I just couldn’t keep my eyes open - and it wasn’t the story’s fault. I finished it today, as well as the next one. Being overoptimistic I started one more, but I probably won’t have time to complete it today.
I continue loving the stories. Yesterday’s was very mysterious, no answers even attempted to be given. Brief summary: The narrator is overtaken by another hiker, who briefly talks to him before continuing ahead, after which he feels like he’s being followed, even consumed, by an incredibly bad smell. He’s almost going crazy by that smell, until he finds a couple of hikers he had met before. He stops to chat a little, then leaves them behind. As he leaves, he hears the woman ask her husband about a horrible smell, and he realizes he can’t smell it any more. Much later as he’s resting at a mountain hut, he hears there has been an accident involving that specific couple. We are left to connect the dots as we see fit. .
The next one was almost heartwarming in its eeriness. Brief summary: He keeps hearing a voice calling out as he’s hiking, without seeing anyone. When he sees a woman and child talking about what that voice is saying, he assumes it’s the father who walks ahead. But when he asks them, they are very surprised he can even hear the voice. Apparently it’s the voice of the father alright, but he had died three years ago in these mountains, and no one else hears when he calls out to them. The voice is happy, by the way, and points out interesting bits of the scenery. They said it always keeps them company until they’ve reached a safe place.
I should excuse that I don’t feel quite well today, with muscle soreness and sore throat since morning, up to right now. However, reading on a smartphone while waiting, and keep at it after that is doable.
Was a bit busy with something, only had time for so much reading today.
Also yawned so much my nose became runny. Thought it was because I’m tired as heck, but then I realized I had forgotten to open the window this whole evening Letting in fresh air, no more yawns
Playing with my secondary FFXIV character again since the other day, loving every second of it. I’m taking it extremely slow, reading everything and doing every side quest I find which is definitely not something I did with my main character back then. I did read the whole story but I never bothered with side quests because unless you’re specifically interested in them they’re for the most part completely pointless. With the language learning approach and curiosity though, it’s fun and also nice little lore about every area and whatnot. I won’t be done any time soon that’s for sure, it will be a looooooong, long journey…
Priority: 青桐. The main character is ever so good at both acting normal and keeping secrets, mmhmm.
Free choice: 硝子の塔の殺人. I nominate 加々見 as the next victim because he is irritating me.
Extra: A very little bit of ダンジョン飯 4. All the ways you might not be resurrected successfully even if where you die is the dungeon.
Snatches of: ハリー・ポッターと不死鳥の騎士団. Manipulating Hagrid into telling them all about where he’s been.
Read-aloud: 伯爵と妖精 1 with Bri and @rodan. This is about the point when, the first time I was reading this, I started to be surprised by how dark it could be.
Like holy whoa, I’m still like…REI YOU REALLY WENT THERE, JEEZ, you really just went all the way down there without any hesitation omg, there’s this one thing he said in particular, I was like…damn 
But in the best way
But like
Home Post
it’s been a while since I’ve done that so it felt really good! This volume was just wild though, once I got into it it was so hard to put down haha. ブルーロック always manages to go like one step farther than what I expect and it’s amazing, what a fun time 
青桐.
硝子の塔の殺人.
ハリー・ポッターと不死鳥の騎士団.
君の名は, and now I’m using 
Not a big deal; I kind of suspected that might happen. I’ll try to get back on the saddle (or perhaps broom, in this case) with Kiki tomorrow.
October 19
Oct 21 
ダンジョン飯 4. 
伯爵と妖精 1 with Bri and