On obsessions

Lately, I’ve been having a hard time getting through an entire day without spending a reasonable chunk of time thinking about either Fire Emblem or SK8 the Infinity. Luckily, Summer is in pretty much the exact same boat, so we always have each other to talk to about our passions. But! I won’t lie—I would love to have the ability to neatly put my thoughts and feelings about video games and anime into a little box and open it up only when appropriate. It’s not easy to be productive on a Monday morning when all you can think about is the Sylvain Gautier bag. That said, I guess if I had to choose between never loving anything and never being distracted by the things I love, I’d choose the latter. It feels good, if sometimes distracting, to be so into something that it’s all you can think about.

– Jillian

I’m currently going on over a week of some really awful body pains. I’ve been doing my best to manage, but it gets to a point where it’s all I can think about–which isn’t super helpful when it is likely aggravated by stress! I’ve always struggled to control my thinking, whether it’s good or bad. I remember being so fixated on Ouran High School Host Club that it felt painful when I couldn’t load my little YouTube episodes. I’m not super sure what that says about me? Anyway. I do love my little fixations, though. Waking up to FE3H texts from Jill & always being able to fall back into one of the many worlds I adore at the drop of a hat is prettty nice.

– Summer

We recommend

📖 Casual Conversation by Renia White

This was a great poetry collection! I’d been looking forward to it since reading the poem that was part of the contest-announcement (this book is part of the BOA series that Aracelis Girmay edits), and my goodness! It is an absolute delight. There is an incredible warmth that is present in these poems, even when the subject is more intense — each poem is so grounded, confident. Highly recommend.

– Summer

📺 SK8 the Infinity

Summer and I both watched this anime for the first time recently and we’ve spent a lot of time talking about it together. It’s a very good, very fun show about extremely unrealistic skateboarding and I kind of can’t stop thinking about it. If you’re looking for something quick and lighthearted to watch, I very much recommend watching the first season—and I’m eagerly awaiting the second one.

– Jillian

🎶 Reading Etel Adnan

My friend sent me this playlist many months ago; it has really pretty/eerie/weird instrumental music on it and feels exactly like reading an Etel Adnan book! I listen to it while I write, while I read, and when I just kinda wanna feel a vague sense of unsettlement.

– Summer

📽️ The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf

After watching all of The Witcher on Netflix and starting to play Witcher 3, I obviously was feeling very starved for Geralt of Rivia content. This animated movie is, I think, a good introduction to the story outside of the Netflix series for people who want more Witcher lore—it follows the life of Vesemir, how he became a witcher, and what happened before he became like a father figure to Geralt. Also, it made me cry.

– Jillian