Abstormal Cave ⛈️

Welcome to the Abstormal Cave!

Formerly Toyger. I had the username Toyger from February 2017- February 2023

The story about a specific WaniKanier, so yes, put in the WaniKani category (please have mercy, I want to be able to link it as my topic, and can’t be linked in Campfire :pensive: )

I love to make lists and collect things, and have had some various lists here and there. Some drowned on big threads, some of my own but got closed cause I got back to post just after it had been a year…

So I want to have a little corner for my stuff, so I can have it all in one place!
Most of it might be interesting for others, some might be more for my own sake.
All lists and collections are here in the first few posts. After that is random updates and anyone can reply with anything they see fit! :grin:

I’ll make any random updates here, from WK to life stuff, to random “look what I founds”.

This is not a “Personal space for me only”. It is for my benefit, but as always, I’ll love to have others come visit and join in the conversation! So never be afraid to post!


A quick bit about me:


Name: Storm Sebastian Vågshaug
Prefer to be called: Storm
Nicknames: Abstormal, Toyger, Zuno, Stormageddon (Dark Lord of All)
Gender: Transmasculine Non-Binary (Or trans man for short) :transgender_symbol:
Legal Gender: Man :male_sign:
Pronouns: He/Him :tophat:
Sexuality: Chaotic (panromantic asexual)
Religion: Lokean (Norse god Loki, genderfluid god of mischief)
Age: 37
Nationality: Norwegian
Work?: Nope, on a Disability Pension
Cause: Autistic, ADHD, Chronic Fatigue
Education: Illustration (bachelor degree)
Housing: Homeowner (inherited), 2 flats on separate floors (one to live in (2nd floor), one to rent out to make ends meet (3rd floor). Someone else owns 1st floor (two flats) and we share basement (storage))
Live with: Lots of pets! No humans
Pets: 5 Cats, 3 Dogs
Hobby Animals: 13 snakes, 6 other reptiles
Feeder Colonies: Mice, Rats

21 Likes

Link List

My pet and art accounts outside WaniKani:

YouTube: Abstormal
DeviantArt Art: Stormartic
DeviantArt Photos: Abstormal
DeviantArt LOTS of Photos: CatStock
DeviantArt Arts and Crafts: Storm-Maker

WaniKani Topic List

https://community.wanikani.com/t/our-beloved-furbabies/28217

https://community.wanikani.com/t/creative-share-christmas-advent-calendar-2022/59540

https://community.wanikani.com/t/out-of-context-pictures/50314

https://community.wanikani.com/t/reality-check/50133 (My WK progress Updates. Only lvl 51+ can see)


I’ve become an affiliate for Japan Shop (Clay and Yumi)
I love and adore all their stuff already, so when they asked for affiliates I gladly signed up!

So if you want amazing low price reading material, and want to support me as well, please look at their site through my affiliate link: TheJapaneseShop
I highly recommend the Reader Bundles! That is a lot of reading material for very low price. The stories comes generally come with translation notes, a short summary in English, an the text without the distraction of translations. So you both get immersion, translation and some trivia (tell more than just a = b) The stories are also very enjoyable. The new bundles have few items at a lower price. When new items are added you get them for free by email. Also any revisions done later they will send you the updated version, which shows how dedicated they are.


Finding my (user)name

Ended up with:
Abstormal - Here, YouTube, FB, gmail, PokemonGo, dA Photo account
Stormartic - dA art account
Stormartics - secondary Pokemon Go (Stormartic was taken, and everything else I tried XD )
Storm-Maker - crafts account on dA

Note on Bay/Bayhill - it’s a direct translation of my last name, Vågshaug (Våg - Bay. Haug - Hill)

Available on DA:

Abstormal
Stormartic

Storm The Weather
Photo-Storm
AbaxialStorm
AbnormalStorm
AbeamStorm
AbientStorm
StormSeba
Storm Meistro
Becoming Storm
StormyBay
StormBay
StormBayHill
Storm of Mischief
Mischievous Storm
HjerteStorm
Storm Enigma
Divergent Storm


Taken on DA:
Silent Storm
Storm Wind
Storm Song
Storm Brain
Mind Storm
Storm Beast
Storm Saga
Stormatic
Mystic Storm
Master Storm
Storm Master
Storm Breaker
Storm Maker
Lord Storm
Storm Lord
Mythical Storm
Enigma Storm
Deviant Storm
Chaos Storm
Storm of Chaos
TordenStorm
ThunderStorm
IamStorm
HeartStorm
InnerStorm
BlueStorm
TrueStorm
StormSpirit
SpiritStorm
Maelstorm
MaleStorm
WildStorm
The Coming Storm
Coming Storm
Calm Storm
Storm Cast
Storm Cat
Storm Son
Passing Storm
Storm Dance
Lonely Storm


8 Likes

I am probably best known for my pets.

I will make a list of them all, with names and some short info.
I’ll sort them by pet type =)

Here is a master list just by numbers:
5 Cats
3 Dogs
13 Snakes
6 Lizards

Also Breed:
Rats
Mice

I have 8 pets, and 19 “Hobby Animals” + colonies

12 Likes

CATS!
My masters!

I currently have 5. Used to have as many as 7 at once!
I will focus on my current 5 first, but add a lill section for the past cats here as well =)
Newest addition, Sam, needs to be added

Will copy my info from older posts, and spend time editing later =)


Eevee

Info

Species: Felis Silvestris Catus
Common Name: House Cat
Breed: Moggie (mixed breed)
Full Name: Eevee Wii Miss Fluffy
Nick: Eevee
Gender: Female
Age: 16 years
Born: May 24th. 2006
Owned Since: May 24th. 2006

You shouldn’t have favourites with your babies, but I do. Eevee is by far my strongest bond. I’ve had her since birth, born in my lap!! Her mother Ronja, a stray I took in (and kept till she died 11 years old =( ) was in such need of comfort during birth that she tried to give birth sitting in my lap! I could see Eevee’s tail poking out while she sat in my lap (I managed to make her finish the birth on the floor next to me) I held Eevee in my hands while Ronja gave birth to number two, and then finally managed to lure her to a better spot by moving the babies. Eevee somehow connected to my smell, and would eat with the other kittens and then seek me out even before she opened her eyes. Our bond is so strong she don’t like other humans that much, only me. She is also the only pet of my current pets that I’ve had longer than four years, and the pet I’ve had the longest of any pets I’ve ever had (her mother, whom I had for 11 years, is second highest) She is also my little superstar. She has starred in viral videos “Kitten Composer” (also known as Kitten Keyboard) and “Baby kitten Mom to the rescue”, and actually earned me more than I get in a months salary in revenues. Her photos are also quite popular and the Kitten Smile photo is my most sold print =)
She has been an indoor cat all her life and enjoy going out on a leash or even more sitting in a “baby carrier” strapped to me, just looking without doing the walking ;)


Frodo

Info

Species: Felis Silvestris Catus
Common Name: House Cat
Breed: Toyger
Full Name: Badina Frodo
Nick: Frodo
Gender: Male
Age: 4 Years
Born: February 1st. 2018
Owned Since: May 23th. 2018

I still remember the first time I ever went to a cat show, there was this strange, mysterious meow! When I followed it to its source I found the most beautiful cat I’d ever seen! It was a Bengal. I fell in love with the breed and started researching it. I then found the continuation of the breed in to the Toyger, made to look more like a tiger. But there are no Toyger breeders in Norway. It’s legal, but not accepted by the cat fancy groups, so you can’t take them to shows. Earlier this year I found a breeder in Denmark, and thought, why not, let’s send a mail! The day I sent the mail Frodo was born! <3
She just had a nice sized litter that was bigger than her waiting list, so I could reserve one. I had to pick a name starting with F, so I decided on Frodo =^_^=

Frodo is a great hunter! I’ve had many cats trying to grab flies before, with some success. He gets them more times than not, eradicating the little pests :wink:
He is also a purring machine, just look at him and he purrs. Even at the vets office, even WHILE being stuck with a needle!! O_o


Kili

Info

Species: Felis Silvestris Catus
Common Name: House Cat
Breed: Savannah
Full Name: Kili Vorn Durin
Nick: Kili
Gender: Male
Age: 4 years
Born: August 18th. 2018
Owned Since: December 20th. 2018

After I lost my Savannah kitten to heart failiure November 7th of 2018, when Christmas was nearing I felt my heart aking for a new Savannah. The house was too empty without one. I looked, with low expectations. They are usually few and far away from where I live, and more likely to have to sit on a long waiting list, and it was just a week before Christmas. Thats when I saw him! He was 4 months old, returned to the breeder due to a change in living condition, and she hoped to re-home him before Christmas!!! <3
She was semi close, but out in the middle of nowhere…and I don’t have a car. But I live near a big city so she drove him to me as she had business in town!
So December 20th, just in time for Christmas, I got my little baby! He had a HUGE dad, and it shows! He is currently my largest cat! 7 kilos and growing! Also the biggest social bug! Always near me, preffarabely in my lap.


Mew

Info

Species: Felis Silvestris Catus
Common Name: House Cat
Breed: Elf Sphynx
Full Name: Curiouspinks Simba
Nick: Mew
Gender: Male
Age: 3 years
Born: June 11th 2019
Owned Since: September 10th 2019

I wasn’t supposed to get more cats, I was just gonna look… I just love hairless cats, always wanted one… Then I found this cutey!! <3
I had to take the train all day, about 7 hours each way! He was worth it! <3
He is such a cuddly boy, always sleeping in my lap, purring all the time! <3
The hairless dogs are in love with him! I don’t think they know he is a cat :stuck_out_tongue:


Sam

Info

Species: Felis Silvestris Catus
Common Name: House Cat
Breed: Bengal
Full Name: Samwise
Nick: Sam, Sam-Sam, Sammie
Gender: Male
Age: 4 Years
Born: March (10th?) 2018
Owned Since: February 8th. 2023

Found him on a local sales/give away page. Giving away an adult Bengal due to not getting along with their other cat. I have two other hybrids, so thought it could be a great fit! He doesn’t like females. No problem, my female hates my hybrids so I mostly keep them separate. What does he do when he get here? Bonded with the female, who hates everyones, especially adult hybrid males! :rofl:
He had zero issues with her, so assume the problem was territorial females (yeah, they can be way worse than males!) She is more of a “leave me alone” type, she doesn’t even fight back if others harass her. Poor Sam has scars on his face from beatings, so bonded with the cat who tries to ignore him =P


In Memorium:

Kimba

Info

Species: Felis Silvestris Catus
Common Name: House Cat
Breed: Maine Coon
Full Name: Kimba the White Lion
Nick: Kimba
Gender: Male
Age: 4 years
Born: March 5th. 2018
Owned Since: May 18th. 2018
Died: August 23rd. 2022

Maine Coon has always been high on my list, I love big fluffs! But top of all is the Toyger. When I found my Toyger kitten Frodo I knew he needed a companion to play with, since he is a high energy kitty. I found his play mate, a Savannah kitten, my precious heart breaker Anakin. After just a short time I found Anakin had a serious heart condition, and thus knew Frodo would need another friend as Anakin didn’t have the energy to keep up with him. Little did I know my biggest fear would come true; Anakin passed away at merely 11 months old :cry:

Kimba was the youngest of the three, all three were big breeds but it didn’t take long for him to outgrow them! Kimba is now a huge monster!
7 kilos, and still growing! And they don’t really stop growing until 3-4 years, which is when they are considered fully grown :wink:
The breeder did warn me his parents were huge, I never asked just how big that was, so time will tell =P

Kimba has stolen my heart! He has the gentlest soul and biggest heart! <3
He will groom the others and has the most sing songy meow for when he calls for us. And he LOVES walking on a leash! Whenever I’m going out with the dogs he will beg to come along =P
I do let him come at times, but end up carrying half the time since he doesn’t keep up (just want to explore everything =P ) and that is one heavy cat :wink:

Death: Kimba was seemingly healthy and all was fine. He was playing and running around as always. I picked him up and held him for a cuddle, when I felt him tense up. It lasted for only a few seconds, and then he was dead! He must have had an unknown heart defect, and died of a sudden heart attack. These things happen. They are dead before you even know anything is wrong. I just by chance was with him when it happened. I’m so glad I got to be there for him, and having witnessed it is still better than finding him dead and not knowing what happened. I know he didn’t suffer, and I know there is nothing I could have done. I did try to resuscitate him, but he was gone.
He was only 4 years old. Way too young, and also feels impossible, cause he was my baby for what feels like so much longer! I can still hear him singing, it will echo in my mind for a long time.


6 Likes

Dogos!
My wild pack of cat sized dogs (List by size, large to small: Cat, cat, dog, cat, cat, dog, cat, dog)


Nala

Info

Species: Canis Lupus Familiaris
Common Name: Dog
Breed: Chorkie (Chihuahua/Yorkie)
Full Name: Nala Marina
Nick: Nala
Gender: Female
Age: 5 years
Born: December 21st. 2016
Owned Since: February 24th. 2017

She is so smoll! Only 1.5 kilos! My cats are over 6 kilos, largest is nearing 8 :stuck_out_tongue:
Nala is a very happy doggo, hardly ever barks (and when she does it is almost always during friendly play) and loves everyone! I’d hate for her to be a “one person dog”, so I’m happy she loves anyone and everyone =^_^=
She is a Chorkie, Yorkie - Chihuahua mix.


Zelda

Info

Species: Canis Lupus Familiaris
Common Name: Dog
Breed: Chinese Crested
Full Name: Princess Zelda
Nick: Zelda
Gender: Female
Age: 3 Years
Born: March 3rd, 2019
Owned Since: April 28th. 2019

I got my dream dog! A beautiful Chinese Crested hairy hairless, named Zelda!
I put down deposit at about 2-3 weeks old, and the breeder kept sending me photos and film clips of my new baby, and her tiny little true hairless sister. I fell so deeply in love I decided; if no one picks her by week 7 I will take them BOTH!!! And here I am :wink:
Zelda is much larger than her sister. Size is linked with amount of hair. Midna is half her size! (3 kilos vs 6 kilos)
I’m so glad I got then both, my family wouldn’t be complete without it =^_^=


Midna

Info

Species: Canis Lupus Familiaris
Common Name: Dog
Breed: Chinese Crested
Full Name: Princess Midna
Nick: Midna
Gender: Female
Age: 3 years
Born: March 3rd, 2019
Owned Since: April 28th. 2019

I got my dream dog! A beautiful Chinese Crested hairy hairy, named Zelda! This is not her! :wink:
I put down deposit at about 2-3 weeks old, and the breeder kept sending me photos and film clips of my new baby, and her tiny little true hairless sister. I fell so deeply in love I decided; if no one picks her by week 7 I will take them BOTH!!! And here I am :wink:
Midna is much smaller than her sister. Size is linked with amount if hair. She is half the size! (3 kilos vs 6 kilos)
I’m so glad I got then both, my family wouldn’t be complete without it =^_^=


4 Likes

SNEEEEKS! :snake:

6 Ball Pythons

Han Solo

Info

Species: Python Regius
Common Name: Royal Python (also known as Ball Python)
Morph: Bumblebee (Pastel + Spider), Mojave, het Clown
Full Name: Han Solo
Nick: Han
Gender: Male
Age: 3 Years
Born: 2017
Owned Since: February 2018

Reptiles only became legal late 2017 here in Norway, and I got my first Royal python in February 2018. It was supposedly a Female Bumblebee Champagne. I found the morph I was told was not only wrong, it was impossible O_o (deadly combination)
So I checked the papers, and it said Bumblebee Mojave het Clown… male…
So I had it checked, and someone looked at photos and confirmed the morph while I got him sexed and it was indeed a male.
Turns out my pretty Princess Leia Organa is a boy =P
I decided to rename him Han Solo instead, and call one of his mates Leia =)

Han is a very friendly snake. He is used to handling and will come out on his own if I open his cage =)


Leia

Info

Species: Python Regius
Common Name: Royal Python (also known as Ball Python)
Morph: Mojave Het Clown
Full Name: Princess Leia Organa
Nick: Leia
Gender: Female
Age: 3 Years
Born: 2017
Owned Since: October 2018

Leia was my second ball python. I bough her to breed with Han Solo. Their morph, mojave, will interestingly produce white babies!! <3


Amidala

Info

Species: Python Regius
Common Name: Royal Python (also known as Ball Python)
Morph: Phantom + Fire or Yellow Belly
Full Name: Queen Padmé Amidala
Nick: Amidala
Gender: Female
Age: 3 Years
Born: 2017
Owned Since: November 6th. 2018

My first ball python was Han Solo, a bumblebee mojave het clown. I wanted some females for him.

So this is the first female I found. I went to a website where you can see all their available snakes with their morph, gender and a photo. I checked what would work well with my boy and decided on this lovely lady! The dark colours are the Phantom morph, and the mohave, when not mixed with others, also looks dark and very similar to this. But for some odd reason if you mix these two very dark colours you get something almost white called Purple Passion! I am so fascinated by how this works! And such a lovely colour both on her and what she can produce. I will try to breed her this season.


Batman

image

Info

Species: Python Regius
Common Name: Royal Python (also known as Ball Python)
Morph: VPI Axanthic, Possible Het Genetic Stripe
Full Name: Batman
Nick: Batman
Gender: Male
Age: 2 Years
Born: 2018
Owned Since: September 2018

I fell in love with the Axanthic Royal Python and ordered one from my local pet shop. He is so beautiful and so tame! I’m planing on mating him with my pastel pinstripe phantom pied (Lois), to get Axanthic pieds down the line. I’m also mating him with an axanthic spider (Kara) and a sterling leopard Pos het clown (Moana)


Lois

Info

Species: Python Regius
Common Name: Royal Python (also known as Ball Python)
Morph: Pinstripe, Pastel, Phantom, Pied
Full Name: Lois Lane
Nick: Lois
Gender: Female
Age: 2 Years
Born: 2018
Owned Since: November 20th. 2018

Reptiles only became legal late 2017 here in Norway, and the first “reptile expo” was this November 2018.
When I had a look at the reptiles for sale, I saw this perfect 4 gene snake… if only it had been a girl… I told this to the guy selling them, and he just “Oh well, I have one!” and pulled this girl out! <3
She was in shed, so she wasn’t on display. She had the exact same genes as the boy, and even the same amount of white! (caused by the pied, this is randomised, so even if siblings this is weirdly similar!)

They say Pied is the whitest you can get, and it is pearly white!
There is something about her, just love at first sight! She has a very calm nature, yet inquisitive enough to explore. Some of my others ball up if you touch them, she doesn’t! She has grown SO much inna year! My best eater and fastest grower! I’ll breed her with my Axanthic, to make Axanthic Pied down the line. His name is Batman, so he “stole” Superman’s girlfriend! :rofl:


Moana

Info

Species: Python Regius
Common Name: Royal Python (also known as Ball Python)
Morph: Sterling Leopard pos het Clown
Full Name: Moana
Nick: Moana
Gender: Female
Age: 1 Years
Born: 2019
Owned Since: October 2019

My newest Ball Python, bought at a local mini reptile expo. Bought from the team I have gotten most of my reptiles, looked over their booth and picked up my favorite girl! Unlike the other ball pythons, which where chosen for specific breeding program, she was picked for being beautiful in and of herself! Will still breed her though, she will make beautiful babies :slight_smile:


2 Carpet Python

Starlord

Info

Species: Momelia Splitona
Common Name: Carpet Python
Morph: Caramel Granit
Full Name: Starlord
Nick: Starlord
Gender: Male
Age: 3 years
Born: June 25th 2017
Owned Since: August 14th 2017

Carpet python has been on my wish list for a while, but they can get so big! Then I found this little guy! Two years old and SO tiny! He is one of the smallest subspecies, or mix there of! The large ones gets twice as long! (And weight wise so much much more!) For now he is pet only, but maybe he’ll get a girlfriend some day. He has grown a bit, but I’ve met big CP now, he looks like a hatchling compared to them =P


2 Boas

Wolverine

Info

Species: Boa Imperiator
Common Name: Boa
Morph: Leopard
Full Name: Wolverine
Nick: Wolverine
Gender: Male
Age: 2 Years
Born: 2018
Owned Since: September 27 2019

My first boa! He is a beautiful black with some brown patterning. He is a very calm buddy, and my best eater :stuck_out_tongue: (but he has never bit)
He is so very shiny! <3


Yuriko

Info

Species: Boa Imperiator
Common Name: Boa
Morph: Hypo Motley dh Leopard Blackberry
Full Name: Yuriko
Nick: Yuriko
Gender: Female
Age: 1 Years
Born: 2018
Owned Since: December 18th 2019

I was looking for a girl for my male boa, Wolverine. She is such a beauty. One of my bigger snakes. A bit feisty, but never bitten me (yet =P )

She looks like she has mustaches =D


3 Snok

Snok is a Norwegian common name for King, Milk, Coral snake as well as other tiny snakes.
It was either that or the latin Lampropeltis, Snok was cuter :wink:


Darth Vader

Info

Species: Lampropeltis Getula Nigrita
Common Name: Mexican Black Kingsnake
Full Name: Darth Vader
Nick: Vader
Gender: Male
Age: 3 years
Born: April 2017
Owned Since: December 1st 2017

I’ve always loved snakes, but due to strict rules they only became legal to own as pets recently O_o
They told me he will outgrow his spots and become jet black. He has become MUCH darker since I got him, but you can still see a good bit of pattern on him.

Vader can be a bit bitey, he loves “long pig” more than mice XD
I actually struggled to get him to eat. Had to scent the mice with chicken for him to want them. Now he eats great! =D


Lucifer

Info

4 Likes

My Other reptiles will be posted here.
Under a drop down too.

6 Likes

Sowing/knitting and so on. Mostly for the animals but also some for myself :grin:
Sorted by time, oldest first.

2020

First suit



Christmas Dress



First Sweater

First snow suit




Star snow suit



Old photos:





2021

17 Mai



Green coat



Fall


Magic Skull



Dog suit

Note knitt

Buff knitt

Snow



Halloween



Halloween 2




Pink heart



striped dress



Christmas dress





Blue Christmas



Santa



Begunder



Deer dress



hat knitt

Old images:














































Fall jackets made using a somewhat stiff fabric from Ikea. Most for cold fall evenings if not raining.

Pattern: Simplicity 3939 - Yuppy Puppy (altered)
Fabrics: Ikea + fleece blanket inside



Pattern: Simplicity 3939






5 Likes

2022










Pattern: Simplicity 3939 - Bark Avenue
Fabric: Jersey





First test on a new pattern made specifically for my dogs!!
Pattern is litterally named «Zelda Fleece» and «Midna Fleece» :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:
Made from their measurements, I then make them and take photos for the talented pattern maker to use on etsy where she sells the pattern. Amazing deal for both! :grin:
Zelda Fleece Jumpsuit
Midna Fleece Jumpsuit
Nala Fleece Jumpsuit

She will do Nala too, after a few others.
Mew is same size as midna, so just need a much longer tail and a bit shorter neck, which was easy to adjust on my own :grin:

Test made in simple fleece blanket bought for a lick of nothing! Nice and soft and warm though!

Pattern: Zelda Fleece, Midna Fleece
Fabric: Fleece Blanket





Pattern: Zelda Fleece and Midna Fleece
Fabric: Jersey









image

Got new sowing patterns tailor made for my dogs :grin:
Same person, so similar style. This time only legs on front (optional, can be made with no legs, no tail)
My first try of the pattern
Zelda Fleece Sweater
Midna Fleece Sweater
Nala Fleece Sweater

Zelda





Midna





Nala





5 Likes

Knitting

My first big knit clothing: Poncho





First shawl: Virus Shawl, patern by FiberSpider


Starburst Shawl, patern by FiberSpider, trans colors.




6 Likes

open

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open

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open

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open

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Reading List 2023


Bookmeter: Toyger


Now Reading:

Type Title
Book [A Dictionary of Japanese Grammar
Manga Death Note

Completed in 2023:

Books: 0

Mangas: 6
Death Note 7
Happiness 6, 7, 8, 9, 10


English:

Mangas:
Death Note 7

Books:


Any Time

Graded Readers

App Lvl 0 1 2 3 Toyger
Ask Lvl 0 1 2 3 4
Taishukan Volume 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Oxford Lvl1

Clay And Yumi:
Japanese Reader Collection 1
Volume 1: Hikoichi -
Volume 2: Momotaro

The Obasan Vol 1

Makoto: 3/50

1 Like

Reading Part 2: Past Years/All time

2022

Reading List 2022


Bookmeter: Toyger


Now Reading:

Type Title
Book -
Manga Death Note
Manga Happiness
Manga Boruto

Completed in 2022:

Books: 1
チーコのくれた宝物

Mangas: 13
Death Note 1, 2, 3
Happiness 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Yotsuba 15
Boruto 4
FukaBoku 3, 4
Black Butler 1


English:

Mangas:
Death Note 1, 2, 3
Yotsuba 15
Boruto 4
Love Me For Who I Am (FukaBoku) 1, 2, 3, 4
Black Butler 1

Books:
What’s the T
Loki: 9 Naughty Tales
Chiko’s Precious Gift
The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue
Pagan Portals - Loki: Trickster and Transformer
The Gentleman’s Guide to Getting Lucky


Any Time

Graded Readers

App Lvl 0 1 2 3 Toyger
Ask Lvl 0 1 2 3 4
Taishukan Volume 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Oxford Lvl1

Clay And Yumi:
Hikoichi -
Makoto: 3/50


2021

Completed in 2021:

Books: 0

Mangas: 8

Chi’s Sweet Home 13
Chi’s Sweet Adventures 1
Chi’s Sweet Adventures 2
Chi’s Sweet Adventures 3
Chi’s Sweet Adventures 4
Fruits Basket 3
Fruits Basket 4
Fruits Basket 5
FukaBoku 1
FukaBoku 2


2020

Completed in 2020:


Books: 0


Mangas: 19
Chi’s Sweet Home 3
Chi’s Sweet Home 4
Chi’s Sweet Home 5
Chi’s Sweet Home 6
Chi’s Sweet Home 7
Chi’s Sweet Home 8
Chi’s Sweet Home 9
Chi’s Sweet Home 10
Chi’s Sweet Home 11
Yotsuba 11
Yotsuba 12
Yotsuba 13
Yotsuba 14
Naruto 1
Boruto 1
Boruto 2
Boruto 3
Fruits Basket 1
Fruits Basket 2


English Books: 1

Roswell High 10


January:

February:

March:

April:

May

June

July

August

September

October

November
:x:

December
:x:


2019

Non book club reading: (Book Club books and mangas will count toward the yearly goal total though)

Type Yearly goal Weekly goal Current book Current page
Manga 13/52 1 Manga Fruits Basket Another p35/191
Book 2/5 1 Chapter Kiki p201/265
Study Complete Genki 1/2 Chapter Genki 1 p58
English Book 3/∞ Extra Roswell High 10 P135

Book clubs:
| Type | Weekly goal | Current book | Current page |
|-|-|-|-|-|
| Book | 1/2 Chapter |キノの旅 Vol 1 | p28/215 |
| Manga | 1 Chapter | 少女終末旅行 Vol 1 | p42/159 |
| Manga | 1 Chapter | Yotsuba Vol 9 | p31/222 |
| Manga | 1 Chapter | Aria Vol 5 | p35/175 |


Success Rate
- Got Nothing done
[*] - Read Manga or Book
- Read Manga AND Book

2019:

February: (18th-28th)
[*][*][*] [*][*]

March:
[*] [*][*] [*][*] [*][*][*][*] [*][*][*]

April and May: :x::bangbang::scream:

June:
[*] [*][*] [*]

July-December: :x::bangbang::scream: :dizzy_face:

I did read some, but not much and forgot to jot it down =P


Completed in 2019:


Books: 2
Girl Who Leapt Through Time
Naze Doushite


Mangas: 13
Yotsuba 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Aria 1, 2, 3, 4
Chi’s Sweet home 1, 2


English Books: 3
Roswell High 7-9


Any Time

Any Time:

Picture Books Age 0 - 2/75


Graded Readers

App Lvl 0 1 2 3 Toyger
Ask Lvl 0 1 2[*] 3 4
Taishukan Volume 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Oxford Lvl1

Clay And Yumi:
Hikoichi -


Full List of Completed Books/Mangas

Books: 3
Girl Who Leapt Through Time
Naze Doushite (World)
Cat Detective 1


Mangas: 19
Yotsuba 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14
Aria 1, 2, 3, 4
Chi’s Sweet Home 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Chi’s Sweet Adventure 1
Naruto 1
Boruto 1, 2, 3
Fruits Basket 1, 2, 3, 4

Graded Readers

App Lvl 0 1 2 3 Toyger
Ask Lvl 0 1 2[*] 3 4
Taishukan Volume 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Oxford Lvl1

Clay And Yumi:
Hikoichi -


Thoughts

I want to finally get around to do my Genki books. Might do others once finished =) (I have a ton ^^; )

Actually read ALL of my Graded Readers and similar! Won’t have a schedule for them, just check of which I’ve completed.

Other goals, outside the ongoing reading groups, is to go back and finish Kiki. Maybe read the second book too. I’m still hoping Scary Stories could win so I can read those with others, if not I might start cracking them on my own =P

For fun I also want to list what English books I’ve read this year. Not making a schedule, it will be an extra, depends how much time I got left.

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A Hoarders Loot!

This used to be a separate thread. It got closed cause I failed to update in a year.
It contains lists, pictures and thoughts about a good portion of my Japanese books.
Note: Needs updating to add more stuff, but a good start =)

This post is so big I separated them in 5.

This is Part 1

Photos will be updated to more recent photos at some point =)
Have not added any of my new purchases for a year in the lists either.
Will fix when I have time.

Original Description

I’ve been trying to learn Japanese now for many years. I keep finding new materials to try out, hording all the stuff :wink:
My library grows faster than I can possibly read :rofl:

Nothing has worked as amazingly as WaniKani though, but it has also sparked my collection to grow even faster! I’ve joined all the book clubs and keep finding books and mangas I want to read on my own as well :wink:

Want to know more about any one, see an inside photo (I’m not willing to scan, but can show photos of random pages for an idea of how the book works) just ask and I will do my best =)

And you can also share your bookshelf/specific items too! =D


To start of, a quick look of my Bookshelves:


All my Bookshelves

Note: There are English ones in there as well

Manga:

Close up of Japanese section (few exceptions)


Full Manga shelves:


Full bookshelves: (might include a separate photo of each later)

2 Likes

Hoarders Loot part 2


Study
Workbooks, grammar, dictionaries and similar

Workbooks

I’ve seen more people toot Genki than any other books, so got them despite having all the ones listed below already :rofl:
I will put all my focus on actually doing these first too. Will try do a chapter every 1-2 week, finish in about 6-12 months =)
image


The Japanese from Zero series has so far been the best at retaining my concentration and interest. I have actually finished the first two books completely! Planing on finishing the rest after completing Genki

image


Japanese the Manga Way is highly interesting and was able to read through it, but the lack of exercises means I’ve probably forgotten most of it again… ^^;

Japanese in MangaLand I just got cause they looked interesting, but I haven’t tried them yet. They do look very similar to the Manga Way, but with lessons where you have to do it, try it out and thus actually end up learning it better. the Kanji in Manga Land gives you little help in learning it, just “here it is, now answer the questions”, but you get Mangas with furigana ONLY on kanji’s yet learned! With focus on using Kanjis you have learned, thus giving you stories based on what you should be able to read now. So sort of like a “Graded Reader” that grows with your progress! =D

(image still contains the Zero books. Will make new photo without it)


These are my oldest ones, and honestly, the top row I don’t like much. The fast and fun way is neither fast nor fun, keeps asking for words they haven’t presented and are in ROMAJI XD
The paper is glossy and hard to write on too O_o
The for Busy People I liked more, but also asked for words I couldn’t find in the glossary we had been given. Has both Kana and romaji version, so I could avoid the romaji at least. It’s an OK book, but didn’t work for me.
The bottom left ones I really enjoyed, though they don’t go past the most basic. I’ve only done the first few chapters though, cause it felt too basic.

The next two are picture dictionaries for children, look and point type books. I enjoy these a bit TOO much I think! :rofl:
Sure, don’t really learn much and doesn’t help me retain what I saw, but still found them fun.
The Flash Card kit I basically bought for the CD, with children’s songs on it =^_^=


You get PDF and audio version of it too, and I have listened to a good bit of it already. I found it very interesting so far and has a good recording. Focus more on word structure and grammar than vocab, in a good way.


Other Study Material

Remembering the Kanji is the reason I love WaniKani and went straight for lifetime!
When I first tried it out I was able to do 100 kanjis per day O_o
Only meaning though, second book about reading you are supposed to do after finishing book 1.
It used mnemonics very well, until it doesn’t… it wants YOU to make up your own after a while… now this is where I fell of, completely and utterly. And the readings don’t seem to use them at all. Way to go WaniKani, taking what works with Remembering the Kanji, amplifying and perfecting it! This wonderful magical bible of Kanji is now the false prophet compared to WaniKani :wink:

The book on the bottom line is very interesting though. Rather than actually teach you the kanji they talk more about the history. I found it an interesting read.

The flash cards on bottom row are beautiful. I wanted them for years and then when I finally bought them I found WaniKani a few months later… so they are now collecting dust ^^;


Kanji de Manga are very cute and fun! Can’t say I learn much from them, but lets you try read small manga strips using the kanji in context =)
The Yojijukugo I like most, they are phrases and sayings made up of 4 kanjis, idioms. I have a fascination with those and might try to memorize some of them =^_^=


Books about the essentials. All of these are rather small, some of them even pocket size. Makes it easy to take back and forth, reading on bus and so on. Which I did a while back, and actually read most of these through and through. I think they are very interesting, though you have to work to retain it (which I haven’t done ^^; )
The 13 secret ones I believe was the most interesting of those books, while Making out and Dirty I’ve had a lot of fun looking through (and I promise you, the Making out one is a LOT dirtier than the Dirty book :wink: )


These are interesting! They have all the readings and translations in red, so when you put that red paper over (you get one with each book) you only see the Japanese part and kanjis with no readings. Such a good way to test yourself without having to flick back and forth to different pages! I love that it does both meaning and reading, and as a little bonus you can also see the Chinese and …Korean?.. translation as well. I like how you can see just when the Chinese is the same and when it is completely different :wink: It also gives you example sentences. You have to work on it yourself though, it doesn’t give you any other way to test yourself as this is a vocab book, not a work book. They are sorted in to JLPT though as well as topic chapters =)


These are my current dictionaries. I must admit I’m bad at using them. I’m more likely to use my Japanese app on my iPhone (yeah, the app is simply called Japanese. It is amazing though, but is not free)
The Kanji one is the only one that doesn’t feel or even say it is basic. But they have worked their purpose I guess. The bottom right one was my very FIRST book about the Japanese language. It has a good amount of phrases too, and will probably be a good book to bring to Japan if you don’t know the language well, or even then.



2 Likes

Hoarders Loot Part 3


Reading:

I love Graded Readers and Parallel texts so much I made a club for them! link

Graded Readers

I absolutely love these books! They are made for the Japanese student, tailored by level. They don’t give you any English translations though, and even ask you not so use a dictionary. But, the best thing about these books is being able to see you CAN actually read them, you are not as bad as you thought :wink:


White Rabbit Press Graded Readers, digital version. They are made by the same people, but not the same stories as the Ask books. I actually love these even more!
I wish they made more, there aren’t that many of them. They promised they had more coming late 2018… still waiting! (March 2019)

All Available Stories





Ask Graded Readers


(temp image, will put one of all the outsides once I get last volume)

Ask Graded Readers Booklets





I have ordered the lvl 4 volume 3 too, waiting for arrival =)


Taishukan

Taishukan Graded Readers Booklets




image




Oxford Graded Readers
(have ordered lvl 2 volume 1 as well)


Parallel Texts

So next step was getting them parallel texts :wink:
The first ones are meant for bilingual children. Short and sweet, not really meant for us. Worth the read, but maybe not really worth the money, unless you are a hoarder like me :rofl:


Now these are the more proper ones, meant for us. Some are quite challenging, only giving you kanji reading on first time seeing it, then you need to know it for the rest of that story; which leads to a lot of flipping back and forth at my current level. They will be great practice later on.

The bottom 5 to the right are my favorites so far though. They are a series, and I’m still on book 1 (Hikoichi). The stories are just so interesting and fun, with furigana and explanation word by word, story repeated (though not as extensive) in English and then giving you the full story yet again in Japanese with none of the English. After reading through just once I am now able to read the Japanese only part of the book without really questioning any of the words or phrases. So these are perfect for my current level.


This set is a bit mixed. The first one is same style as Graded readers, made for us but has no translations. Next two are made for Japanese first graders.
Next is a random book I picked up, cause… cat :durtle_cat:
The bottom line are books translated to Japanese, with their Norwegian/English partner, so basically turning them in to parallel texts of sort :wink:
The Troll books I found in a local store, and are our myths and legends about trolls and other woodland fairy creatures. Most of which are either different or completely separate from stories I know in English, most of them I don’t even know what you call if you even have a name for them.
Both the Troll and the Twilight book are without furigana, making it harder. I can read and understand them partly, but it is more of a chore than it is worth currently, but I’ll get there =^_^=


4 Likes

Hoarders Loot Part 4


Native Material

Fairy Tales

So I decided to get something…easier :wink:
Fairytales aimed at the younger kids. These are so much easier than the first grader books, though they are probably aimed at same age group O_o
And just to make it easier; These are OUR fairytales! Yes, just look at the image and see how many you can recognize! They have furigana and easy repetitive language. I’m able to read and understand these fairly well, though not all. The images help a lot though! I’ll probably read these once I’m done with my ever growing Graded Readers :rofl:


The first set is the same as the above, just Japanese tales! And they are also an Anime! Which means I already know the ones I’ve seen, and that helps me understand them better =)
The other set looks fairly good too, being similar in language and stories. I haven’t gotten around to read them yet though. I do think these will be very good for reading practice =)


These did not impress though. They are small, thin and flimsy, and a bit hard to read due to colors of the image behind the text interfering with readability at times (though mostly not) Wouldn’t recommend these, go for the other ones instead.


Books

Thanks to the lovely book clubs here on WaniKani I have also started reading some proper books now!
Some we are doing, others have been suggestions that might be done later =)


The Beginner Book Club did first book of Kiki’s Delivery Service. I fell of mid way, but have just recently started reading it again. I WILL make it! =D
I bought a set of 6


Autumn Prison and No6 are past books from the Intermediate Book Club, they were both way above my level though, but I managed to read quite a bit of it (not sure how much I understood though…).

The first two on bottom are collection of short stories, we did the red one. Again, above my level… I did the first two stories or so before focusing elsewhere.

The top right was read by the Intermediate group, I bought it even though I had a feeling it was above my level like the rest (I can read it later I hope :wink: )
Last one was supposed to be read with a separate group, they made it sound like an easy read… It is the hardest book I own and most likely to NEVER be read! XD


These are meant for Japanese School Children, grade 1 and 2.
Makes them somewhat easier in language, but so much Kana makes it harder than expected XD


I wanted the Harry Potter illustrated books, but couldn’t justify buyign them since I already have them all.
Well… if I buy them in Japanese… :rofl:
Reading a book I already know the story of should make it easier since I already know what is going on =)
Bought book two too, will update when it arrives =)


We did the first Kitty book together as a group, and I will read the rest on my own =)
These are beautiful!


Book club books!
We read Girl Who Leapt Through Time, and will be doing the bottom two soon! (the other two, Wolf Children and Your Name, had enough votes that they just might win later)


The Scary Stories collection have also been suggested, and I hope we chose it one day, they seem so much fun and might be good for the Beginner Book Club! =D


These I stumbled across when we were doing suggestions, and they did get added to be voted on too. I’m glad they didn’t win cause the text is all in handwritten type and so hard to read because of it ^^;
image


Other

Other:

I don’t have too many books about the culture though. These are basically it.
The two first ones are meant for children, but they are 100 times more interesting than the two first on bottom row!
Xenophobe series rules, but know from reading the one about Norway their facts are questionable :wink:
Top right one is amusing facts that you probably didn’t know already, short and interesting with fun images.
Bottom right is an English version of tales from Japan. Not just fairy stories for children. They are often very bizarre =P

I got this book suggested because of the books in the above set:
image


I want to get better at Needlefelting and found these AMAZING books!
When me and my friend looked through these books we kept failing to see who was needle felts and who was the photo of the animal they where based of (several times we found it was opposite of what we first thought) These are just THAT incredible! =D
Most of these are how to do it too, even though the text is in Japanese I think I can follow fair enough (cause it has lots and lots of photos =P )


Games: DS
These are my Japanese DS Games. The first two are actually about learning Japanese while the other two are Japanese copies of Pokemon games.
The first one, My Japanese Coach is actually very good! It drills you on vocabs, but best of all, teaches you the kana where you have to write it and get scored by your writing! This is where I actually learned kana! <3
The second one sucked… end of story XD Played it 10 minutes…
I also have lots of games you can chose Japanese text and/or voice on, especially all the new Nintendo games. I do pick Japanese on some, currently playing Pokemon Ultra Sun in Japanese. Decided to only include the actual Japanese games =)

image


Digital: iPhone apps

Though I have tried many, these are the only ones I still keep on my phone.

The Human Japanese (HJ) is a very interesting written course =)
It is not free, but well worth the money. The others I haven’t used as much yet, but supposedly good apps.

In the Kanji folder, the two bottom ones belong to remembering the Kanji. I got them after giving up on that way though, so not used them much. The first two I like better. You get to drill all readings and stroke order of kanjis, as well as meaning. Sorted by Japanese Grade and uses repetition systems =)
Not used them at all after finding WaniKani though :wink:

In the dictionary folder there is an app simply called Japanese. It is the app I have used the most by far! First place I go to look up words, and it also has flash cards systems, with pre-made folders or make your own. It uses a repetition system too. Whenever I come by words on WaniKani that I’ve seen there I recognize it and already more than half know it :wink:

In the culture folder I’ve mostly only used the radio, but seen the others recommended =)


Wow, so this is the END! …for now :wink:
My collection is ever growing, even by the time I completed making this it had grown some more =P

I want to hear your thoughts. What you have, what you’d recommend (both from these and others)
And want to know more about a specific book, just ask =^_^=

I have a good bunch of new items to add too, and more still on the way :wink:

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