📚📚 Read every day challenge - Summer 2022 🏖 ☀

Japanese Language Reading
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August 4 :blossom: Home Post

As promised, I got curious and checked out 囚獄(しゅうごく)のヴァニタス and I have no idea how I managed to nail my brand so well without knowing really anything about it :joy: I’m very intrigued! The base concept so far is that the main guy is a homicide detective and there have been some real weird murders happening lately, and he meets a mysterious boy with cool boots and a cape who apparently no one else can see? And main guy is also able to see the monstrous forces behind the murders for some reason :eyes:. So yeah it’s some more wild murder mystery nonsense, love to see it!

It’s also a shockingly easy read for me, it’s like all the VNs I’ve read have prepped me for this specifically :joy: There’s really no furigana but that’s been a non-issue since I’ve known basically every word in it :man_shrugging: I’m not reading it super fast but that’s more because of enjoying the art and trying to pick apart the mysteries than any language difficulties. I think for me going slow is a sign that I’m really enjoying a manga so yay!

Yesss I love it!! It’s the same kind of matte texture ヴァニタスの手記(カルテ) has, obsessed :heart_eyes:

Yeah everything you posted from it looked so fun! It’s perfect for when I just wanna have a good time :grin: Very relatable on the reading speed front haha, absolutely drowning in content I wanna consume :sweat_smile:

As you can see I’m enjoying 囚獄(しゅうごく)のヴァニタス a lot thus far, though I will warn that there’s some disturbing imagery if that’s not your thing. I’m not super far yet so can’t speak for all of it, but it hasn’t been super bad so far, just the sort of thing you’d expect from like murder cases with :sparkles: monstrous presences :sparkles:, but just a fair warning!

Thank you!! See the trick to that is I’m stubborn :joy: The serotonin I get from having a physical book outweighs the inconvenience I suppose :stuck_out_tongue: (hopefully バディミッションBOND has prepared me at least a little bit for the influx of cooking words haha)

Oooh good to hear! I’m definitely intrigued by it, though as it turns out the one I got is the second book lmao so future adventure! :joy:

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If it’s anything like 八雲 you probably don’t need to read them strictly in order, but I say this as someone who occasionally skips first episodes of TV shows because I find the initial build up and character introductions to be the worst part :sweat_smile:

EDIT: I actually once started a TV show on the second season by accident (streaming service) and was so thrilled by how fast everything was moving and how you just had to suss out character relations based on how they talked to each other with no fluff whatsoever. :joy:

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Home

For my birthday (either the weekend before or the weekend after, we’ll see), I should be getting to go to the big 紀伊國屋 in Carrolton! Dunno how much money I’ll be getting to spend there, but. Also right now the first 宝石商リチャード氏の謎鑑定 drama CD is only ￥313 on Amazon JP and I dunno how long that’s gonna last… I gotta read some of these hundred-plus books I’ve got lying around so I can buy more…

I had wanted to read more today, but I spent most of my free time writing and editing, so I only read ch 5 of キミに言えないことがある. Hopefully now that this fic’s finished (3400 words, holy smokes), I’ll be able to start reading more again! In any case, I’ve just got one more chapter plus the 描き下ろし left of this one, so I should finish it tomorrow.

Some vocab of note:

ブレスト [noun] brainstorming. An abbreviation of ブレーンストーミング.
適切 (てきせつ) [noun, な-adj.] appropriate; suitable; fitting; apt; proper; right; pertinent; relevant
出来レース (できレース) [noun] fixed game; rigged bid. An abbreviation of 出来合いのレース.

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:spiral_calendar: Day 35: August 4th :parasol_on_ground: :shell:

spacer:ribbon: ふだつきのキョーコちゃん Volume 5 (41% ➨ 50%)

spacer:mag: 名探偵コナン Volume 11 (16% ➨ 22%)

After a week of minimal reading, here’s looking to a weekend filled with book club chapters to read.

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Started この素晴 and it’s hilarious so far. After this I’ll go back to 青ブタ. READING IS FUN! WOOOOO!

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Aug 5, Fri of Week 6 of Summer :beach_umbrella: 2022

So, I continued reading JoJo Part 2 Vol 4/4 of monochrome version.

First of all is from その3 to the end of ワムウ , which takes 8 chapters. This part is OK, I guess; about some people with special abilities, in an interesting set-up. (And Hamon counts as a special ability.)

Then, the last antagonist…

I don't really like this one when.
  • A seemingly important protag’s comrade falls so quickly.
  • Too many other die-hard comrades. くだらん!

Anyway, regarding reading, I feel that I am quite used to manga, so I can look up vocabularies less to read faster, but then, I would need to know more vocabularies in advance, or infer from context (or sometimes from Kanji / sounds). There are mangas that I found difficult to read as well.

I am not used to novel or non-fiction of a book length type. Reading an article is fine, as long as it’s not too long, and I know enough vocabularies and structures. But not too long.

I can fix somehow with highlighting in Bookwalker (for non-mangas only), so that I can still notice the position when I switch between a tablet and a smartphone.

I might try to read quicker for manga (as long it’s still possible and fun), to clear the 積読 pile; but of course, remembering well, for recurring vocabularies, would be helpful.

I know I skipped 2 weeks of progressing here, but now I should rejoin. (I don’t read as fast as volume levels, so perhaps not Extensive Reading yet.)

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Yep, noticed that too :joy_cat: Looking forward to welcoming you in the F&B and S&M clubs :hugs:

I‘m just a bit surprised about the cover of すべてがFになる, is this a special edition?

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On one hand, I absolutely agree with you – a lot of things don’t know how to start well; I feel like saying something gets good by a certain episode or even season is just the standard refrain with most TV. Though I don’t watch much TV anymore, I’m not sure I’d be aiming for episode 1 personally, hmm… Often I feel like shows want to hook you so they pull out all of the stops to make attempts at being thrilling right at the beginning, but it’s the following few episodes that slam on the brakes.

Still, on the other hand, I’ve got a particular neuroticism about starting things from the beginning that makes it almost impossible to jump in late, sometimes even in series where things are 100% unrelated. I don’t think I’d even dream of intentionally doing something like that. I self inflict so many likely less enjoyable times!

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:books: :video_game: :thong_sandal: :sunny: August 4

Hopefully the last busy day in a while. Read ビブリア (13% → 16%). I really like being able to track percentages since it really shows how doing a little bit everyday quickly adds up. Too bad I usually can’t do the same with games/VNs.

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Day 35 :heavy_check_mark: :crab: :

化身 ~ 23-25%

Day 36 :heavy_check_mark: :crab: :

化身 ~ 25-28%

Finished the titular story, just in time so that I can take a break and do my book club reading before proceeding to the next one. There are two more stories in the book, of which I know nothing at all. Strange that the titular story, and the one that won the Horror Award (I think it’s the story and not the whole book, but I’m not sure), was less than a third of the book. It certainly felt much longer.

My thoughts: I really liked it. And I insist this was no horror story at all. In fact it was surprisingly life-affirming, an ode to life, nature, and adaptability. It was basically a survival story with a twist. I’m pretty sure the author must have been a great nature enthusiast, give the subject matter and the way he writes about it.

Fairly full story summary for those who have no plan to read it but are still curious. Full spoilers of course, but I've spoilered everything but the beginning, so it's safe to open

The main character, tired from his job and daily routine, boards a plane to a tropical island country on a whim, and enters the rainforest. He soon falls into a lake in the rocks. The vertical rocks surrounding it are too high and smooth for him to climb, and there’s only a tiny rock in the middle of the lake for him to stay dry on. He first struggles with hunger, but soon he starts to explore his environment and adapt. The lake is a surprisingly idyllic place and a well-balanced eco-system. The clear water is constantly renewed by both underwater springs and a fissure in the rocks, and water flows out from another fissure. There are crabs, shrimp, fish, and birds also visit to drink. Soon he finds ways to survive and make use of his surroundings.

His attempt at making alcohol out of fermented fruit ends in tragedy when one of the monkeys that are drawn to the smell of alcohol and start frequenting the top of the hole he’s in, accidentally falls to his death. Those monkeys were the only living creatures he had some connection with, and he’s shocked by that development. From then on he abandons his efforts at replicating human activities.

Years pass, and the main character gradually adjusts so well to his environment that he even undergoes bodily changes to accommodate his new circumstances. Moss grows on his skin and insulates it, his arms atrophy while his legs stick together to form a sort of fish tail. He can now close his nostrils at will, and lower his heart rate enough that he can dive to the 10 meter bottom and stay there for very long without drowning. All of this is presented in such a calm, relaxed manner, and the environment is so bright and friendly, that I found no horror in his transformation at all. He finetunes his hunting techniques to mimic other animals: the anglerfish of the deep or the orca for example.

Having defeated a giant snake that accidentally fell in the hole, he makes a clever but unsuccessful escape attempt. But it’s only much later, when life in the lake presents no more challenges for him any more and boredom starts draining his will to live (symbolized by a black vulture that starts watching him menacingly), that he miraculously manages to escape the lake. By now he is a water creature, though, and it seems like it was an ill-advised move: His moss-covered skin dries out and hardens, paralyzing him. He can hardly move when he is attacked by ants, of all creatures. All things seem to point to an agonizing death, but then a miraculous thing happens: Water retained in his body oozes out of his sweat glands, separating the moss layer from his own new skin underneath. He breaks out of his shell much like an insect or a snake changing skin, and is back to his human form. From human to something like an otter (a fish or a kappa), and back to human. A triumph of survival and adaptability.

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Well I didn’t catch up completely with Tugumi, but I figure reading 5 pages today is also not bad - just leaves 3 to finish the chapter. I’m certainly not needing to look up as many words, and I do get what’s happening with regards to the plot, which is a big jump forward from a few days ago.

The challenge tomorrow - finish this chapter, if possible start the next. Also start the second book of 夜カフェ with the offshoot club. And pack for the next 3 weeks for a work trip (to be fair, that won’t be difficult, I hardly unpacked from the last one).

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:house:
5th of August

Missed another day yesterday. I told myself I would take a short nap at 8:30pm and ended up waking up four hours later at 12:30am :grimacing: stayed awake for half an hour then went back to sleep lol.
Today I only read page 143 (40%) of かがみの孤城.

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Read half of この素晴 today. I’m not trying to rush. I just genuinely enjoy it that much. I am looking forward to returning to 青ブタ on Monday or Tuesday though. 双葉’s arc is calling me!

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:tiger2: :books: The Tanuki Beach Resort: Date 20220805 :beach_umbrella: :raccoon:

Tanuki Scroll of NGC 4013 :milky_way:

Random article - about the galaxy NGC 4013

:beach_umbrella: Japanese found in the sand :beach_umbrella:

Galacticwords

棒渦巻銀河「ぼううずまきぎんが」ー Barred spiral galaxy
長時間露光（写真）「ちょうじかんろこう（しゃしん）」ー Long-exposure (photograph)
銀河円盤「ぎんがえんばん」ー Disc (galaxy); galactic disc
超新星「ちょうしんせい」ー Supernova
赤方偏移「せきほうへんい」ー Redshift

Whoaa, so many books, impressive haul! :books:
Good luck getting through them all!

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Today: p. 180-186 of よつば&!

Newish or forgotten but now remembered stuff:

プロ級 (ぷろきゅう): professional rank
略して (りゃくして): for short
途中 (とちゅう): on the way
金持ち (かねもち): rich person
一走り (ひとっぱしり): short run, short ride
発進 (はっしん ): takeoff, start (of a car)
何だか (なんだか): somehow
逃げる (にげる): to escape
捕まえる (つかまえる): to catch

As we move into August for real, and the end of my summer vacation looms, I wanted to mention how inspiring this thread has been for me. Seeing the reading activities of people who were surely at my very basic level at some point in the past but are now able to fluently read texts that I can only dream about is really motivating. And the accountability means that so far I haven’t skipped a day even when I’ve been a bit tempted to. So thank you all, especially @windupbird for starting the challenge! It’s been a major part of my summer study success.

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:star2: Home :star2:

ジョジョの奇妙な冒険23

136 - 164

I wanted to finish off the but my eyelids conspired against me :joy: maybe I’ll finish tonight?

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Home post

REDC 月 火 水 木 金 土 日
Week 6

８月５日
Chrono Trigger

I keep posting these lazy half updates because it’s either too late and I’m too sleepy or like today I have to update early and leave :joy: . I also don’t have anything interesting to add lately worthy of discussion that isn’t just spoiling the story and I generally don’t like spoiling things unless it’s a common discussion place like a book club. Also not sure if anyone is interested in Chrono Trigger or has played it before :eyes: . I’ll make sure to write a spoiler-free review once I finish it though.

But anyways, here we keep exploring this sea of Japanese :sailboat: . Endless sea of pain and suffering, when does it end, there’s no end in sight please help. Lovely sea of fun and rainbows :slight_smile: .

I’m just kidding it’s great fun. Mostly.

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:sunny: :beach_umbrella: Memoria’s Summer Readin’ :beach: :sunny:

August 5th:

10 pages of 好きっていいなよ today. I’m feeling a bit feverish, so turning in early. This is hopefully the last night in my old room. I just hope I can stay healthy a little while longer. :melting_face: why is this my favorite emoji

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:infinity: :star2: August 4-5 :star2: :infinity:
(home post)

Super Mario Odyssey :star2:
Loopers :infinity: 17% → 23% (6%)

Didn’t end up with an update yesterday, didn’t really have anything to say. I just played some SMO. Turned out that reading the tourist pamphlet for the desert kingdom was harder than the story related dialog. But I guess that isn’t surprising. The most interesting Japanese thing is to read the name of the moons I pick up, because they can be funny but also they only show for a short time. So it is training me to read fast and maybe figure out anything a little confusing after I’ve taken it all in. There are ways to check it after it has disappeared, but honestly the challenge is fun and so far I’ve caught more or less all moon titles. ^^

Today, I started the new chapter of Loopers, chapter 4. And to see how many look ups I do for this chapter I made a new folder to save the words too. (I use Midori as my dictionary app.) I do not however add these kinds of words: looked up just to check the reading, words looked up to double check the meaning (unless it turns out I was wrong), and I can’t really note when I look up something a second time for the same chapter.

However, I should still have an idea of vocabulary I had trouble with (or didn’t know at all).

And once again I can’t record % as I go through because it only shows % when I finish a chapter, but I’ll guess how much I read today whenever I finish the chapter. So far today I only read the very first section, and as soon as I finish this message I’m planing to keep reading for a bit.

Edit: Ended up finishing the chapter (Loopers) so added % above.

Replies

I read your summery of the plot and I agree. A horror story that could have ended with the protagonist’s horrible death by ants, and instead he doesn’t die at all but miraculously walks away? Doesn’t sound like horror to me either.

I agree. It is so very inspiring and motivating. And honestly, just knowing the difference in my own reading flow from April this year to now. I can’t imagine picking up some things to casually to read. I can however imagine all the hard parts. :joy:

I relate hard to this. :joy:

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Home post :bookmark: Aug 5th :beach_umbrella:

・ わたしの幸せな結婚 6 (86% → 100%)

This book… points at book. yes! It good book. nods in satisfied

Blurbed summary

So, one thing about the ending (fun language thing, but spoilery!), our favorite couple goes on a date, but not just any date! No no no, it’s a デヱト. :eyes: It’s fun because in the setting of the book, the kana ‘we’ ヱ is still not obsolete. I’d love to have this part unspoilered for everyone to see, but it’s too major of a turn of events. The word “date” is a spoiler 0: …or? :thinking: … :woman_shrugging:

So the reason book 5 and 6 should be read together is because, (spoilery plot stuff) with this volume, the Usui arc reached its final stage. The cult went down. It ended abruptly imo, but this is a story about happy marriage after all, not superpowers and world domination. It’s a bit mottainai that Miyo went through all that stress and suffering to awaken her highly-revered powers to then decide that she will basically never use it again after she’s done rescuing her mans Kiyoka. She doesn’t want to carry big responsibilities, she simply wants to enjoy her happy simple days in true slice-of-life fashion. As mentioned, this is happy marriage series, not superpower series. Ah, I hope someone will write an AU to explore that noble path xD But it is such a Miyo-like decision. And I like it.
At the end of date, Miyo finally called Kiyoka by his first name uwu :cherry_blossom: And apparently it is a bad omen to plant sakura tree in your garden as a momento? But sakura tree is special to Miyo, so they plan to do so anyway. Aaaah, so many good moments x3

Then there’s the next volume :eyes: There will be marriage :eyes: !! (most likely). いよいよ, I tell you.

Can’t wait for the next volume! Whenever that will be released! tanoshimiiii~

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