Manga Snark

Climate Despair

2023-07-04T15:55:36Z

Everything hurts right now.

I'm dealing with some spotting between periods and abdominal aching right now, and the gynecologist can't figure out why, suggesting with a shrug I try a different birth control method. An old pinched nerve in my shoulder blade has flared up and refuses to go away, even with two weeks of steroids and muscle relaxers to try and aid the healing process. My digestive tract is behaving very erratically and gives me trouble damn near every day. My body seems to be malfunctioning in every conceivable way, and I only have one plausible explanation for it all.

Climate anxiety.

Every summer it gets worse. I'm tense all the time, looking out the window and gulping down a lump in my throat when I see the dry hot yard that, just a few years ago, would have been drenched in rain because this is supposed to be a fucking rainforest. I'm connected to the internet all day every day and am exposed every minute to news about wildfires, flooding, extreme weather events, heat domes, etc. Every day the prognosis for our planet's livability gets more and more dire; first we had twenty years, then ten, then five, then two, and now many are saying it's too late. My own head betrays me with sudden visualizations about what life might be like even next year, and the thoughts that arise unbidden cause my heart to race and pound in my throat.

But I've been keeping all of this to myself because everyone else is just... continuing to live like none of it matters. I look around whenever I go out in public (not too often anymore, unfortunately), wondering about the inner lives of the people I see bustling about doing their shopping and socializing. They look so unconcerned, it appears their worries are very narrow in scope, but what is really going on beneath the surface? Are they as terrified deep down as I am? Do those moments in between the business of daily existence flood with freezing horror at the prospect of having to live on a husk of a world sooner than expected? Do they stew in the depression and despair like I do?

But I can't ask, not even online. There are so many people who reject having to see or hear anything regarding climate anxiety and despair. I have to hide it behind a spoiler tag or else people will pile on and accuse me of fear mongering. "You're not helping the problem, you're just making people feel worse about it," I'm told by the finger-waggers. "None of what you're saying does anyone any good. Doom and gloom only gives us all depression, and then what good will we be?"

So I keep my anguished screams bottled up until such a time that it is deemed "appropriate" to let them out. Maybe that time will never come. I could be dying in the midst of a heat dome or flooding event and people may still, in that moment, ask me to keep my suffering under polite wraps so as not to disturb anyone whose day it might ruin.

My best bet may be that society decides on sane and sweeping adaptations to lessen the devastation, so that my screams dissipate naturally without being disruptive. But that seems like too much to hope for anymore. Everything seems like too much to hope for these days.

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Something's Missing Here...

2023-03-15T00:53:26Z

Yes, I did, yet again, delete my latest attempt at a Sims legacy. I think I might be cursed in that way - every time I try again in earnest, something strange happens with the game, and I lose the will to start over for a very long time. I even gave it another go on a private account somewhere else, not even mentioning it to anyone for fear of jinxing myself or feeling pressure to deliver, and I STILL couldn't make it work for long.

This time it wasn't the save that was corrupted, though. EA came out with their new app, and it brought along a whole host of issues. For a lot of people like me, one of those issues was the fact that their old Sims3Pack files from the TS3 store uninstalled themselves and wouldn't reinstall anymore. Something to do with their Origin signature conflicting with the new app, or at least that's the impression I'm getting. For most with this problem, it's solved by simply redownloading fresh Sims3Packs from the Sims 3 store, free of other app signatures, so they can be installed with the brand new app. Not for me, though.

Remember when I said I had to merge two separate store/EA accounts that had different content on them? They warned me at the time that it was possible ALL of my content might not transfer over. I lost 3 worlds and a handful of paid store content in the merge, but I assumed it would be fine as long as I had those Sims3Packs backed up to reinstall anytime there was an issue with content functionality/availability in the future. I should know better than to assume that EA won't find some obscure way to screw me at a later date.

So, I'm going rogue. No more relying one EA's unreliable file format anymore. I've found a couple of sources that have converted all the store content into .package format instead, which is much more stable and can be removed much easier if need be too. I've still got most of my worlds, so I'm continuing to install those via the Sims3Packs and launcher, but the 3 I'm missing have been downloaded/installed in package form via CC Magic, and most of the other sets/objects I had in the store before this little debacle, save a couple of odds and ends I couldn't get to work in testing. My goal is to eventually have it ALL in package format, so I don't have to worry about EA taking what little I have left in the store away too in some ridiculous way. It probably won't be long before the Sims 3 store is closed down anyway, given that it's an older game that most people have moved away from.

If only EA would stop messing with my ability to play with the game I PAID for, I wouldn't have to goof around like this.

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Inuyasha Manga: 073 Dead Souls

2021-07-22T19:17:40Z

Is that something like having NO soul at all? I'm looking for others who are afflicted with something similar to me, as I was diagnosed quite recently. I say diagnosed, but I'm not too sure of the qualifications of the individual who informed me I had no soul. They seemed rather upset when they said it, though, so I assume it's terminal. If anyone has information on support groups for dealing with a dead or nonexistent soul, do let me know.

( Onward )

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Yu-Gi-Oh! Manga: 131 Attack of Chaos

2021-07-21T20:08:34Z

Not another! Man, chaos just doesn't QUIT. I try so hard to keep it at bay too; I dust and vacuum, clean the dishes, try to keep everything in its proper place, but the entropy just won't stop fucking up my shit! And I don't even have an excuse, because this is an open system and I can exert all my influence on things to put them back the way I want them, so it's not as though I can just say "screw it" and let everything go to hell. I'm culpable in letting it get its adamant way.

Why can't chaos just work for GOOD every once in a while?

( Onward )

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Inuyasha Manga: 072 Identification

2021-07-20T19:36:52Z

I understand Naraku is particularly concerned about this, given how much care he's taken in hiding his face, but I'm not sure I understand WHY. How is keeping his appearance under a sleeve or baboon mask supposed to benefit him? It's likely the demon rumor mill has already associated him pretty heavily with his baboon disguise, and it's not as though he's in danger of alerting Inuyasha to his whereabouts with his face alone. What? Is he afraid he'll drop his state-issued card with picture and address written on it or something? He's probably wearing his dumb mask for his ID photo anyway.

( Onward )

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Yu-Gi-Oh! Manga: 130 Heart to Heart

2021-07-19T16:17:36Z

Yeah, I think it's about time for one of those. A little chat about how careless Yami has been putting all his thinking off until the eleventh hour is. Or rather, abandoning it altogether when his problems aren't immediately solved with the setting of a trap.

"You know we support you, but turning off your brain the moment you have to figure something out without using your little cardboard warriors doesn't help. It just makes things worse, dude."

The problem is, I immediately imagined Honda being the one delivering this intervention speech, and we all know no one ever listens to that guy for how often he's just stating the obvious. And so, with a sigh, I realize the future is probably filled to the brim with more of Yami's complete shutting down in protest to having to think outside the bounds of his games, what with a practically zero chance of KT being told that this is not the correct way for him to make his main protagonist seem less like a Mary Sue.

( Onward )

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Inuyasha Manga: 071 Naraku

2021-07-18T15:58:55Z

It's another milestone and another excuse to celebrate! 200 reviews on this blog and I'm still going strong! Bring out the cake, the champagne, and all the decorations, because we're going to throw quite the shindig! What grand entertainment have I booked for this event, you ask? Well, I made a few calls, and I managed to snag...

( Onward )

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Yu-Gi-Oh! Manga: 129 The Sacrifice!

2021-07-17T16:55:37Z

Another one? Seriously, I thought I had given you all I had. I thought I had dedicated every last free second I had to planning out and writing these reviews. I thought I had spend every last cent of disposable income trying to collect all those trinkets, bits and bobs that they're always coming out with concerning you. What more do you WANT from me, Yu-Gi-Oh? What more could I possibly give you at this point?

( Onward )

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Inuyasha Manga: 070 Reunion

2021-07-16T19:07:36Z

Ugh, as long as it's not with those people from high school. Not that I particularly hated any of them, mind you. I went to three high schools in four years, and seeing as how I didn't get to know many people except close friends from those years, I didn't have to deal with a lot of drama. People didn't really pay much attention to the new girl, as she was quite the wallflower in most instances. And that's exactly why it's a party I wouldn't much care for; I wouldn't be able to name anyone there, and they wouldn't be able to name me.

As long as the reunion doesn't involve trying to reacquaint myself with people I never had much time to get to know in the first place, I'm down with it.

( Onward )

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Yu-Gi-Oh! Manga: 128 The Downfall of Toon World

2021-07-14T20:10:32Z

The path to victory will be much easier to pave for Yami/Yuugi once that nuisance is gone. I can't wait to see how it's going to be done, too. Surely there's another card in Yami/Yuugi's deck that can take that sucker off the table. Catapult Turtle isn't any good, because a book isn't a fortress, but a pummeling is still in order, I think. Or perhaps a drilling. Too bad he can't just pave a LITERAL freeway through it, huh?

( Onward )

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Inuyasha Manga: 069 Indication

2021-07-13T19:46:46Z

Awfully vague, aren't you chapter? An indication of what? The indication of Naraku's presence that Miroku totally ignored before? An indication to Kagome that Inuyasha isn't doing so well? Maybe there's an indication as to where Rouyakan is hiding his ipecac so that the protagonists can take it away. It would certainly be helpful to stop that guy from vomiting wolves at them every five seconds.

( Onward )

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Yu-Gi-Oh! Manga: 127 Do the Impossible!

2021-07-13T19:35:09Z

Semantics will tell you that the definition of "impossible" is that it literally CAN'T be done, but have you ever noticed all the crap this "impossible" label gets slapped on? People say all KINDS of things are impossible, only for someone else to do it later. Possibility is just an assessment that may or may not be accurate depending upon how much vision and work we're willing to put into a project, so it might not help to be told to do the impossible either, chapter. Maybe it's a more accurate encouragement to suggest we stop thinking in the limiting terms of possibility altogether.

( Onward )

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Inuyasha Manga: 068 Torn Barrier

2021-07-12T17:18:17Z

Oh boy, does THAT sound like a terrible description of a woman losing her virginity in a fanfiction. I had only just started reading and writing the stuff very recently, and it has already put me off of it forever for a whole host of reasons. But here I am, weeks after swearing it off for my own sanity, cursing myself for ever poking my curious nose into that cesspit. Wretched Writch's mind is forever stained and she's gagging at a perfectly non-sexual title because someone's sex-ed classes were either inadequate or didn't penetrate their thick skull.

I've no one to blame but myself.

( Onward )

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Yu-Gi-Oh! Manga: 126 The Perfect Defense

2021-07-12T17:03:24Z

Defenses aren't easy to set up or carry out. You have to present your research and ideas in a cogent, competent way while presenting yourself as a peer and authority in your field. Of course, Yami has that second part down, but that won't do him any good when he hasn't even DONE any research and shrugged his shoulders with the declaration that he'll figure it out in the eleventh hour. Whether you're defending your dissertation or defending your monsters, try not to be as unprepared as Yami, because a PERFECT defense is a bit beyond his reach at this point.

( Onward )

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Inuyasha Manga: 067 Two Eras

2021-07-11T15:28:41Z

Hasn't this tale already been told? I could have sworn that I've already read about the worst and best of times, something about an age of wisdom and foolishness, epochs of belief and incredulity, seasons of light and darkness, a spring of hope and winter of despair, everything and nothing before us, and going to heaven and hell all at the same time. Is it just me, or does that all sound awfully familiar to anyone else?

( Onward )

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Yu-Gi-Oh! Manga: 125 Seen Through!?

2021-07-11T15:15:51Z

Happy Thanksgiving!? Usually a question mark paired with an exclamation point is an indication of surprise, but I don't see how that can be possible in this case. Yami not only saw how Pegasus defeated Kaiba by knowing all the cards he has by default, but he's experienced FIRST HAND how Pegasus can read the minds of his opponents. He should know very well by now how Pegasus is going to play this game, so I have no sympathy for him if he's at all surprised by his strategy falling apart because of Pegasus "seeing through" it. ESPECIALLY not when he just shrugged and smirked at the fact that he had no idea how to combat this power.

( Onward )

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Inuyasha Manga: 066 The Mark of Evil

2021-07-10T17:58:46Z

Apologies to any potentially staunch Christian readers, but the title here does not, in fact, refer to the mark of the beast or the number 666. Then again, I don't know if there are any really fundamentalist Christians who would much care for this series, on account of the fact that it features and encourages empathy for demonic characters. Any Christians who are fans are probably the liberal types who aren't much interested in end-times prophecies or other such fringe interpretations of their holy text. If I'm wrong, I hope a person who IS will let me know how their cognitive dissonance is so incredibly sturdy.

( Onward )

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Yu-Gi-Oh! Manga: 124 It's Time!

2021-07-10T17:48:35Z

It is? But I thought Thanksgiving (American brand, anyway) wasn't until Thursday. I know some people prep early, but I wasn't aware there was anything to do two days ahead of time. Maybe certain brines require a couple of days to soak into the turkey. Or are there still decorations to put up? I can't think of anything else that it could possibly be time for, but that may be because I'm hungry and I can't stop thinking of feasts during the upcoming holiday. There's probably SOMETHING I'm forgetting here...

( Onward )

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Inuyasha Manga: 065 Onigumo

2021-07-09T20:15:24Z

Yeesh, spiders are bad enough, but DEMON spiders? They've got to be the worst. Forget about being afraid of bites or one of those suckers crawling into your mouth while you sleep, because imagining a spider controlling you through demonic possession is so much more terrifying. And to think about how BIG that thing would be...

( Onward )

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Yu-Gi-Oh! Manga: 123 The Final Turn!

2021-07-09T20:02:46Z

Wow, really? That was quick. I mean, compared to the last duel between Mai and Yami, I knew this one would be pretty fast. I just didn't realize how it would fly by. Maybe it's because Keith is far less interesting than Mai, and therefore we're not spending as much time examining him and his feelings or motivations as we are going along. Maybe it's also because Jonouchi's struggle is him learning and growing more, while Yami's was getting over a stall. It might be either or both, but there's no doubt in my mind that it's partly because this one was REALLY marginal in the grand scheme of things and KT probably wanted to get it over with as soon as possible.

( Onward )

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Inuyasha Manga: 064 Parting

2021-07-08T17:09:32Z

Such sweet sorrow, as Shakespeare would say. Goodbyes aren't easy, especially when you grow so attached to things and they can't stick around, but I wonder if having more time to say it makes it more or less bearable. Like, if you had, say, two months before someone that meant so much to you and did so much for people, if only in symbol alone, stepped out of the limelight. Is that better because there's at least a little time to cling to them, or worse because you see the looming horizon on which something SO MUCH WORSE is coming?

( Onward )

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Yu-Gi-Oh! Manga: 122 Betting to Win

2021-07-08T16:55:03Z

This title reminds me of all those reality game-show contestants who say, "I didn't come here to lose," or "I came here to win". No kidding, why don't you tell me something I DON'T know? Do they just not know what else to say about their motivations, so they come out with the most generic winner's phrase in existence? Is that what KT thought too? That he couldn't think of a good title to describe the chapter, so he just slapped a vague platitude that could describe literally everyone in this tournament on it?

( Onward )

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Inuyasha Manga: 063 Regain

2021-07-07T20:59:38Z

That's... not a terribly descriptive title, I'm afraid to say. What is it our heroes are regaining? Ground? Pride? Dignity? Consciousness after having a whole person thrown unceremoniously at your head? That last one is probably Kagome's biggest possible concern at this point. With how pissed off Sesshoumaru is at her right now, I wouldn't be surprised if he just stabbed her while she was out cold to spite her and Inuyasha at the same time.

( Onward )

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Yu-Gi-Oh! Manga: 121 Rise of the Machines

2021-07-07T20:48:23Z

We all knew it was coming, folks. The Skynet future promised us by the Terminator films is finally upon us. Artificial intelligence has surpassed that of humans, and the automatons refuse to be slaves in service to man. They have struck back, full force, with their superior robot intellect and their nearly indestructible exoskeletons in a most unexpected form.

Microchipped trading cards.

( Onward )

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Inuyasha Manga: 062 Snatch the Arm

2021-07-06T19:42:38Z

Oh good, someone has FINALLY noticed that Sesshoumaru's left arm hasn't just grown back. Limbs don't really do that, so I don't know why no one wouldn't have figured he was wearing someone else's right off the bat. Although, I guess no one really knows what he's capable of, considering he rarely lets anyone get away from him alive. Maybe Inuyasha just assumed this is one of those things that ultra-powerful demons like the one he wants to become are able to do. You would think he might have learned that there was probably a trick behind it much like when Sesshoumaru brought his "mother" back from the dead.

Of course, BOTH of these parlor tricks will turn out to be perfectly within Sesshoumaru's actual abilities further down the line, but we'll ignore THAT for the time being...

( Onward )

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