By Way Of

Everything you see here is me. Please, enjoy. IG: @christianrieux Twitter: @BetterByWayOf Mood: "Child's Play" courtesy of SZA feat. Chance the Rapper. (twitter: @sza, IG: justsza)

[betterbywayof]

O.C.T.O.B.E.R. 5.T.H.

I made the mistake of looking through our old messages. I forgot how weary I made your feet, on a journey that I didn’t make worth walking. If only I could reach out to you. If only I could see your face now. Content not available. So now I’m straining to see your face, see your smile, in the tiny circle that holds the woman I once loved.

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#blackouttuesday https://www.instagram.com/p/CA8sm5Qp9KA/?igshid=ntt3nx97djod

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#nofilter #blacklivesmatter #blackout https://www.instagram.com/p/CA7_5kVprk1/?igshid=1t1smmbd2kkxs

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To everyone who came out to see me and support live comedy at the world famous @icehousecc, I appreciate it from the depths of my heart! 🔥 and to everyone who supports me from from near and afar, y’all some real ones ✊🏽 I had a lot of fun at this incredible venue! @icehousecc #comedy #standup #comedian #support #fun #friday #pasedena #october #mic @fos_thursdays #newparent #babyontheway #formybaby #formyladies #letsgo (at Ice House Comedy Club) https://www.instagram.com/p/B3QJFLmFgE8/?igshid=1n5wqfkxaypie

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My Queen. My love. My woman. My rock. I love you baby girl. Have an incredible 25th year! #25isthenew25 #neverjustaday #nameday #love #queen #excellence #chariot #beautiful #aries #25 #letsgetit #makinmoves (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/BwcQGkjFimd/?igshid=1fkwhnlt6r2tk

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The newest addition to the family! Shout out to my man @therealabosee for putting me up on game. 💯🤟🏽🔥 #bmw #granturismo #535i #inline6 #squad #timetostepup #patience #maniloveitmonday #king #carriagefitformyqueen #blackonblack #leather #bayerischemotorenwerke #bavarianmotorworks (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/BvKsKeYFcOA/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=k24xdexm0tsw

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Blessed. (at San Diego, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/BvA773PlqBJ/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=carsdzg9xt3z

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Had an incredible time at the @hahacomedyclub last night! Thank you to everyone who came out to show support and to those who sent it! Can’t wait to see you all again! #comedy #haha #laugh #ladies #internationalwomensday #75hours #wegetit #formymomma #formysisters #formywoman #formyladies #lightskin #backagain #nobelt #fatpants #chunky #buffmosexual @fun_abuse #sounddefense #allforoneaucontraire #sameoutfit #greenthuggin #spotlight #hollywood #noho #comic #fun #love #life #liberty #food #anime #comicbooks #steak #videogames @fivehots #gaming twitch.tv/fivehots (at HaHa Comedy Club) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bu24kr0F452/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=15bv7ny7x2rou

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From, C.A.F.

6 People That Irritate Me, a Casual Anime Fan.

Name Mispronounce-rs

Everyone has known this person before. Should a creator of a manga/anime leave the name ambiguous, which has only happened never, that is the only time for this to make sense. If the parents of a child name the child some ridiculous name, call them their names. In a language that has more syllables and sounds than it needs to, pronounce the names right. If you read Naruto as Naruto, you're right. If you read that as anything other than Naruto, you're wrong. If you say Naruto as Naruto, you're right. If you say that as anything other than Naruto, you're wrong. If you don't know what I means, you're probably the person I'm talking about. It's not Nay-rue-toe. It's Naruto. It's a Japanese name. In a Japanese manga. Adapted into a Japanese anime. How it's said in the Japanese version of show, is how it's pronounced. Roll your R's if you're fancy.

The Expositionary Fan

There's nothing like taking a stroll down memory lane with someone when the topic of anime comes up in conversation. You're feeling elated, as if you've found a new brother or sister in a sea of serendipity.

And then out of nowhere they hit you with the "That's the one with the uh, uh, uh" sentence, complete with snaps and accompanied by the fervent head nodding when you further explain the show. On the flip side, this usually is an indicator if you can beat someone in your favorite fighting game. If they say, the one guy with the sword, and not mention the person by name, you got this.

The Nostalgic Anime Fan

I won't call myself an otaku of all anime, hell, as of recently, I've only been able to sit and view the notable anime (Seven Deadly Sins, Attack on Titan, etc.) However, I feel I make up for that shortcoming by being an avid manga reader. If you've got a manga you need me to read (looking at you "Cell's At Work" fans), shoot me a message and I'll give it a look. Still, I feel like I have an active place in the anime scene, with only the most"bright" anime spurning my attention. I don't like much that's too bright and light.

Still, even I get slightly irritated when anime is brought up, and this person says, "Yeah I really like Dragon Ball Z." Never in my best or worse days, would I ever curse Dragon Ball Z and all that it represents. That said, it's been 30 years. You're not a fan of animated shows because you saw a couple episodes of "ReBoot."

Non-Manga Readers

I do not like spoilers. In any sense. A trailer for a movie may only reveal seconds of a movie, however, those are seconds I'd like to experience in my ignorance. That being said, I am an avid manga reader. Most anime shows do not start out as anime. Much like movies start off with scripts or books, usually for every anime, there is an accompanying manga. Again, I am a casual anime fan. Still, you won't hear me ask about an anime without inquiring if there is a manga I can read. In the time it takes for a Naruto episode to cover three chapters, I'm already in Shippūden (a stretch, but you understand). As much as it feels me with glee that people like to talk about anime, it's also slightly irksome, that I can't delve into further talks about the anime because they're waiting for Season 3 (looking at you anime only "Attack on Titan" fans).

Cosplayer For Views

We've all seen it before. She's attractive. She's yellow. And she has a tail. She's a sexy Pikachu! There are probably more cosplays of girls in Pikachu costumes, than there are Pikachu's in Pikachu forest.

Now by all means, I'm all for people making their money. Hell, if I could culturally appropriate something for views and money, sign me up. I would then be the very person as seen above, but I might as well make a pretty penny from Uber-Casual fans.

Can't Make a Good Live Action Film-er

Why is it that directors/producers/higher ups can't make a damn good live action movie?m Full Metal Alchemist probably would have gotten +2 points on any fan's scale if they included the sound of the clap and added the accompanying electricity. The introduction was great, and the CGI Al wasn't the worst. So why did the movie make such a spectacle of his first clap, while removing the whole essence of the clap from the action?

The sounds of that echoing clap, the electricity that came from using alchemy are just as synonymous with the FMA name as is alchemy. It's not merely about adopting nuances, it's about capturing the essence of the show. If the alchemy felt as empty as the live actions did, I don't think people would be as on board for the anime. I'm all for artful interpretations, however, you've got decades worth of source material. Stop trying to be original.

The "Hey this is something anime related, you might like this" Person.

I love memes. I love anime. I love geeky merchandise. Probably more than the next guy. But sometimes less. Still, as much as I like Dragon Ball Z, I'm not a fan of everything in the show on the same level. My favorite character in the show is Gohan (we are legion), and most things having to do with him. His story arc, the four star dragon ball, Cell, one bang with spikes, etc. That being said, as much as I love DBZ, I don't want a shirt with Goku on it, or an "Over 9000" sweater. Once something passes into the realm of public domain, it's sometimes becomes cringy because of how just apparent your blind, or lack of, adoration for something is.

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Inflection

"It's either going to be one of those things, or one of THOSE things."

-Christian Rhea

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Promises

It’s okay, to end the day, to go ahead and cry. In the tears, hide the lies, the pain, Let it fall in silent rain. Wipe the tears upon your sleeve, use your heart to dry the water. Never forget that what you’re feeling, means you’re alive.

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"Not as good as some, but better than most."

I was depressed for a while. Enough so that I think I forgot chunks of my life because of it. However, I remember the root cause of that, and that was because I cared a lot more about myself than I cared about others. Yet, I still used to look at others and compare them to myself.

"Why don't I have what they have?"

The what in this situation could be anything: money, cars, happiness, friends, etc.

I realized that I was always asking myself the same questions, and answering it with something that wasn't an answer, rather a feeling that served as a placeholder.

It took so long for me to realize that the further and further I tumbled into comparing myself to the world, the more and more I sank into that pit. Answering questions with envy, sadness, regret, and anger. I saw my self worth in what was not around me, in the where's that I've never been. I judged my life based on what I felt I should've had when.

And then there was a day where someone asked me how I was. An older gentleman, fresh off of the 105. It wasn't a game changer then, it was just passing conversation. Those talks that just glance off of you, and you respond with what you've always responded with. It's how you get those:

"Hey, how's your day going?"

"Nothing much. You?"

*Awkward silence*

Conversations.

Luckily, I was on point with the rock paper scissors game that is small talk. I responded with, "I'm okay. And yourself?" And he said, which I've yet to hear since then,

"Not as good as some, but definitely better than most."

This was recent, about 4 years or so ago, so I definitely had some time to grow. Which is probably why that was so profound. And when I got on the same 105, I thought. And thought. And I thought about that response. About the most he was better than.

I realized, almost in that moment, that I was so focused on the some I wasn't as good as (subjectively), I never paid attention to the most he, and I, were better than (also, subjectively). I mean, I'm broke, and some days were harder to bear than others, but at the very least, my problems, all of them, I'm lucky enough to deal with as an American. I'm lucky enough to be down on my luck, in a country billions of people aren't fortunate enough to be in.

And as time went on, I really started to appreciate the most that I was better than. On my days that I'm hungry, I know there are people out there starving. On the cold nights, I have walls.

I used to be so absorbed in what I wanted because others had, I didn't stop to realize that there are be people who want what I have. The chance to be depressed in America. A country that is so focused on the what's, we've stopped fostering individuality, over the more acceptable norm.

But I'm me, ya know? I was young. I didn't care about why I wanted it, which is a much more important question, I just cared why I didn't have it. Which may seem like the same question, but I know there are some of you that know those are two very different questions. So I broke the same questions down, piece by piece:

"Why don't I have what they have?"

"Why don't I have what they..."

"Why don't I have what..."

"Why don't I have..."

"Why don't I..."

"Why don't..."

"Why?"

But once I boiled the Why questions to just that word, it allowed me to chop and change the rest of the questions.

So,

"Why dont' I have what they have?" Turned into,

"Why do I care that I don't have what they have?"

And then that became the million dollar question. That spurred into, "Well, if I want it, what work do I have to put in get it?" How do I acheieve the happiness that I so longed for. Being happy isn't easy. There is so much ugly in the world, that it's easy to lose out on the beautiful things around us. Getting past that depression is a fight, and like Uzumaki Naruto said, "You only lose the fight when you give up."

It seems rough sometimes, and other times, it's rougher than the time before. But it's about keeping the fight up. Epiphanies happen over time, then they happen overnight. It took so long to realize why I have worth, and what that worth meant to me, as an individual.

"Not as good as some, but better than most."

The most that I'm better than are the reason why I'm thankful for where I am. It can always be worse. And this helped me realize how selfish my depression really was.

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Freedom

Reflected in her eyes, gleaming, was the violent crashing of waves..\ And all around her in splinters lay, the place she had called home..\ Scattered all about, the bodies of strangers, her loved ones, and friends..\ And she alone could see them all, pulled down to the darkness below..

In the sky there was a break, the serene, clear, blue eye of God..\ And in her eyes there was relief, an acceptance of the end..

She was bound to her brothers.. And to her sisters at her left..\ Though their lives had escaped them before the plunge into the cold..

The chill of the water, the still of the air, the once so violent sea..\ Had now calmed the heart of just one girl, and finally given her peace..

And the eye of God closed to her..

Tears cascaded down her dark brown skin, forever lost in the ocean.. \ Her kin began to pull and tug, and she knew it was her time to go..\ For she was bound not by honor, nor by the blood coursing through her veins..\ But by the lies of men that promised a world, a world she did not know..

Enveloped by the wet embrace, into the darkness retreated.. \ She closed her eyes, and in the darkness found the calm she needed.. \ She now felt like never before, while being pulled beneath the waves.. \ She drew a breath, her last breath, now free, now no longer a slave..

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Young kings stuck like cavemen, spitting fire bars like dragons at metal bars that keep them caged in so they play men. Just kids with wrong directions to the same destination. a way in. to meet ends.

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Get You Home

Hey now, I've been thinking for a while, Now, Of how much I don't see her smile Of how I realy miss her smile Whether she's at work or whether I'm here asleep, I think about my baby all through the week Cause she's just a girl with beautiful brown eyes chocolate brown skin Wonderful soft thighs I can't wait to get her home No, I can't wait to get her home.. Hey now, I've been thinking for some days, Now, I wonder why she stays when I get mad, Of all the peace she could've had, I promise If I had the choice, I proll'y wouldn't raise my voice I'd give her all that she deserves And take back all the things she's heard Cause she just a girl with A heart of gold Thin blood She still comes to me whenever she feels cold I can't wait to get her home, No, I can't wait to get her home I know, That resevoir runs dry And I know, I'm usually just why But I promise, All of me justly, If you don't pack up and just leave I'm just a boy who's loves you, and sometimes it doesn't show, But if you believe me, Trust me, Scuttlebutt I need you to know That I can't wait to get you home No, I can't wait to get you home.

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Ol’ Kit Kat

Now don't go messin aroun' with my ol kit kat. See, I swat flies away With baseballs bats, imagine that? Big tan hands bounce gnats off gnats when they gather in packs, looking for warmth in a buschel at the runnin' track. Picture that? Hear me, harken, For my Queen, my Khaleesi, though to tempt her is tempting, I bring fire and fury, On the backs of dragons, As her man, and as her king. But that's just me.

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B.r.u.s.h. S.t.r.o.k.e.s.

I used to get lost in dull lanscapes. Landscapes covered over in bland paints. I’d paint, and paint and paint away. Just to make, and make, the same mistakes. Used to say sorry right away before I learned it’s okay to make mistakes. Because they’re all hand made, made by my hands, and I’m just a man a man made by chance. Making mistakes means still to create. I say, what is the value of a man with no stakes, a man afraid to seize the day because he’s made mistakes? Now what do I say of the man who does create? The man that does not take par but the man that partakes? What of the man who lives not for the things made by man but the values that the man made? What kind of man does that man make? It makes a man that can’t break, which is a man who takes the day to just be great not on some days, but great on days just like today, a day just like every day