Sakura of DOOM

Not that I was gone long...

I finally went to my library knitting group on Friday, whereupon I learned that Saturday was Worldwide Knit in Public Day. (I am guessing that like so many worldwide and international things, this one is largely "worldwide" in America? Have not seen many knitting blog posts to the contrary.) And I actually went and knit in public with a local yarn store group (ok, largely because it meant I got a discount at said yarn store, and possibly that means I have increased my stash again, but I will not admit that).

And I ventured out to the farmer's market! The peaches are getting sweeter, so I bought some, and I got cherries and peas and white corn (!! finally out!) and blueberries, which are sadly nearing the end of their season. This farmer's market is smaller than my usual one, but it was still nice.

Then I headed up to visit sophia_helix, watched many, many episodes of Honey and Clover, knit a lot, and admired her many socks. And now, I think I shall collapse like Nomiya because my eyes hurt from the TV watching and from concentrating on the road.

Also, apparently I missed another fannish kerfuffle, but I am ok with that.

Hi! I spam you all with completely content-less posts lately because uhhh... yeah, that thing I mentioned before about not doing anything except rewatch Honey and Clover? Still true (though I made it to swing dancing).

• hecatehatesthat on racism and Friday Night Lights (I can't really comment on the issues raised, as I have yet to see the show, but I figured the people here who are watching might be interested!)



• cupidsbow has a fascinating essay on feminism and fanfic, as informed by Joanna Russ' How to Suppress Women's Writing.
  ETA: with an interesting follow-up post by ellen_fremedon on authorship and fanfic



• Finally (and you thought you had escaped!), rilina has a spoiler-free pimping post on why she loves Honey and Clover and vonnie_k supplies gorgeous screencaps from the series.

I think about two people will be even tempted to use any of these, given the number of people who have watched this, but that is ok. I love this show so much that I icon it anyway!

Also, it's just so pretty and watercolor-y and going through all the screencaps reminded me of the show again and made me feel all happy and warm and fuzzy inside.

1. 2. 3. ( More icons )

Feel free to take! Credit is highly appreciated, and I don't mind if you modify the bases or if you want me to put custom text on for you. All icons are for sharing, unless I custom-make something for you.

Waaaaaaaaah! It's over =(. I didn't cry, but I have a giant grin on my face, just because oh, that was so lovely. And now I want to go back and rewatch the entire thing, just to recapture the feeling of peacefulness and joy and creating things and learning and living.

( Spoilers for whole series )

I just... oh. I wish more people had seen this. It's such a comfort show, not because it's happy, but because it feels so real, and yet has such compassion and understanding for its characters. I watch it and feel better because it's about change and friendships and growing apart and coming together and trying to figure out what you want, trying to be the person you want to be and do the things you want to do. And it understands that the last two are even more important and earth-shaking than almost anything else.

I also rewatched episode 3, which is still excellent. I am, in fact, planning on rewatching episode 3 tomorrow after I finish my homework as a reward (homework! I have homework! How weird!).

Eeeeeeee! My love of the series is growing exponentially in season 2, which is saying something, given how much I loved this after only five episodes of the first season.

( Spoilers )

Oh, it's over =(. Well, not really, because I still have the two specials and all twelve episodes of season 2 to go, but I spent all of the last episode holding my breath, desperately wanting it not to end.

I luxuriate when watching episodes of H&C; something about it is so soothing. It's the gorgeous watercolors in the animation, the gentle voiceovers, the quiet realizations that are so close to ones that I've experienced. It makes me feel at peace with myself, even when I don't know where I'm going or what I'm doing, because that's how the characters feel as well.

( Spoilers for both eps. )

For those of you not watching this series, it is a series on five art students and what they do in life, how they fall in and out of love, find jobs, try to figure out a purpose and all those other things you do when you're graduating from college. I love it so much; I fell in love with it around episode 4 or 5, and the more I watch, the more I love it.

It's a comfort watch for me; it's so quiet and still, despite its silly moments.

( Spoilers for all 8 eps. )

I am now officially in love with this series. I still can't keep some of the characters straight in my head, but there's something about the quietness of this show that really moves me.

It reminds me most, strangely enough, of Neon Genesis Evangelion. Not the giant robots, obviously, but the moments in which characters sit on a train, reduced to silhouettes because of the brilliant sunset, and watch the telephone poles whiz by. All you hear is the sound of cicadas humming and the clanging of the train.

Honey and Clover doesn't have the train scenes, but there are so many tiny moments that I love, that are done so carefully, that it would have been hard not to fall in love with it.

A small girl sits by herself on the floor, feeling alone and lonely. After a few moments pass, she slowly reaches out to her sketchbook, and we know she'll be all right. The pavement is speckled by a few drops of rain, then suddenly, the entire area darkens as you hear the downpour. A man stands on the balcony smoking, the light coming through the curtain illuminating him.

I feel these episode write-ups are going to be particularly vague, just because it's really a series driven by moments and not by general plot. The six people live and go to school and fall in love and have their heart broken and worry about money and create art, and it sounds so boring, but because the writers and animators have such a delicate, sure touch, it's fascinating to watch. The series knows about the peace found in small moments.

I will say that I am gritting my teeth at the romantic triangle, even though it's handled fairly well and not sporkily. But I wish the two women on the show had more moments than they currently do -- I wish there would be more on Yamada aside from her brashness and her crush on Mayama, and while I very much adore Hagu and her eccentricities, I want more of her as a subject, not as an object of affection.

I now want to show this to everyone because it is so lovely and so quiet and sad and still and happy.