OH MY GOSH I HAD SO MUCH FUN MEETING MY FANDOM FRIEND IRL😍❤️❤️❤️
R was just as easy to talk to IRL as she is over discord! At first we had that moment of "oh my god you're real" weirdness but it melted away like ice cream on a hot summer's day as we explored Shimokitazawa, a boujee district known for its thrift stores and cafés.
First off, we went to Bear Pond Espresso, a super cozy and cute café. Here, I HAD MY FIRST CUP OF COFFEE. Yes, you read that right: the first of my life! Ya'll, I took one whiff of coffee when I was ten and promptly decided "nah not for me". But omg I've been missing out! I had the sweet ice milk latte and I looooved how it tasted. I fear I may have unlocked something new in me lol...
I asked the barista recommendations for lunch, so we followed their rec and ended up at a soba place! It was very yum. Afterwards, we went ✨shopping✨. I bought a cute cat tote bag and some cat earrings hehe.
We still had some time on our hands before I had to go home, so by my recommendation, we went to Jimbocho, the book district of Tokyo😍❤️
Truly, I recommend Jimbocho to any book lover, even if you can’t read Japanese! There’s a lot of secondhand places that sell vintage/classic Western books. I’ve found gorgeous editions here that I treasure to this day.
R and I entered a very stylish bookstore that sold a lot of children’s books. I myself bought the second book in the Kiki’s Delivery Service series (fun fact: it was a book series before it was a movie!).
Then we went to Nyankodo, a cat themed bookshop that is a MUST VISIT for any cat lover😍❤️!!! They only sell cat related goods, whether that be books, tote bags, water bottles, pins, postcards, etc. It’s, like, my personal heaven.
On my recommendation, R bought a graphic novel about an old lady and her cat that made me ugly cry when I read it lol, while I bought a badge and two books. One was a photography collection about an old lady and her cat (I’m seeing a theme here lol). The second was a beautifully illustrated picture book about a teeny tiny black kitty named Toto. I’m so excited to dig into these.
We were feeling pretty tired at this point, because boy, was it humid! So we stopped by a bookstore/café I'd been to before and had a rest. I ordered an ice cream and hot chocolate. Oh my god was the ice cream heavenly. Like. So so good. The hot chocolate too was very yum.
Here, my friend and I talked about what brought us together: Sylvgrid 🤣❤️! We talked about our WIPs, what we love about our ship, and inspired each other to get back into it! After our chat, I felt sooo motivated to get back to my Sylvgrid longfic, Ludus/Eros/Storge. So galeheart folks, if you don't see me around in bg3land, you know what's up…
After our café break, it was time to say our goodbyes. We went to the station together and rode our respective trains, but not before giving each other a big old hug, of course!
During the train ride back, I was soooo giddy, and when I got home, I told my grandpa all about my day! He was very happy for me hehe.
I hope I get to see R again before she leaves Japan...today was the bestest day EVER🥰❤️❤️❤️
Thanks for reading my journal. Tomorrow will be a quiet day, cause I have to study, ugh. But see you next time🤗❤️
With love,
Emi xoxo
P.S mutuals pls come to Japan I wanna hang out so bad
P.P.S pls look at my new favourite hat (yes ofc I bought it🤣❤️)
Gosh but I’ve been so busy! There’s so much to do for such a little town. Then again, I do have a lot of connections here😁
On Day 2, I went to the local 7/11 to buy brekkie…but also to say hi to the cuuuuutest dog who chills there every morning😍❤️. I’m friends with the owner’s family so I easily found out her name, which is Tasha. She looks like a border collie but I think she’s just a mutt🤔
Anyway! I met her on Day 1 when I arrived and just about fell in love. She’s so sweet and absolutely loooves belly rubs. I couldn’t wait to see her after that, but when I did go again, she was already being pet by other customers…a heartbreaker, that one is😔💔
For lunch, I visited I-san (not her real name), who is an old lady I befriended in 2022 when I was living here as my grandpa’s caretaker. She had a cat named Nyanko-sensei, who saw me reading in the next door park, and ran to my side for pets😍❤️
Unfortunately, Nyanko-sensei passed away last year after a long battle with mouth cancer😢. I-san has been sad ever since because she raised him from when he was small enough to fit in her palm. He was her baby. When we reunited, she hugged me and cried and thanked me for the photos of Nyanko-sensei I sent her earlier in the year. I also saw her calendar, which had my name written on it😭❤️. How sweet.
I-san was busy cleaning her place, so I went to have lunch without her at the local restaurant, run by a former English teacher, his wife and mother-in-law. I first went here in 2019 and have frequented this place every time I come back. The English teacher always loves it when I visit because he loves to practice his English. His wife was my mum’s classmate in primary school. Small town and all that.
Anyway, I had the tonkatsu set. Soooo yummy!
Afterwards, I visited I-san again. We had tea and ice cream together as I listened to her talk about Nyanko-sensei and life. She cried multiple times when talking about Nyanko-sensei, it broke my heart. Told me how she holds his urn every night and talks to him and cries😢💔
But she shared some good times about him too and we had a lot of laughs. Sometime soon, she’s going to let me wear her kimono that she wore for her coming of age, which was 64 years ago😱! I’ve never worn a kimono before, only yukata, so I’m very excited and honoured🥰❤️
For dinner, two of my mum’s friends came over…AND TWO DOGS, JILL AND TOM😍❤️❤️❤️
They’re both toy poodles. Jill is 9 years old. Tom is four months and they’ve only had him for three weeks. Jill, old lady that she is, cannot stand Tom’s puppy energy lol. But they were both absolute daaaarlings during dinner🥰❤️! For some reason, Jill really went to town on cherry tomatoes and shaved daikon lol. Granny likes her veggies!
Now, onto day 3, which is today!
For breakfast, I had potato chips lol. Afterwards, I went to 7/11 to print photos of Nyanko-sensei for I-san and stared longingly at Tasha as two high school boys rubbed her belly instead of me. Then I went to pick up I-san for lunch. She was all dressed up! Adorable. She said my messy bun would be perfect for when I wore the kimono lmao.
We had lunch at the same place I went on Day 2, since it's only a few minutes walk away and she goes there multiple times a week anyway. I gave her the photos and she was absolutely delighted. While we ate, she talked a lot of nature, and was joyful at the sight of the butterflies working hard to help the plants grow. She hopes her cucumbers will grow soon.
Afterwards, I went home because I had to work on uni stuff, blergh. I sprinted with my friends of the FAW Server who helped me get through it. Even when my American friends went to bed, I kept going. I called it a day when it reached 8pm. Btw, I started at like 12:30 lol which is pretty crazy even for me.
I did have dinner in between, though. My mum prepared me the leftover curry from Day 1 and also made some wonton soup. It was very yum. Then we chatted away until it was bedtime. It's been nice spending time with my mum like this, especially since our relationship has deteriorated as I've gotten older. I hope we have more times like this.
I'm so excited for tomorrow! I'm going to meet a fandom friend in Tokyo. This'll be my second time meeting a fandom friend IRL, since @runetari was my first. Tari and I became friends in 2020 during my Sylvgrid era, and we finally got to meet in April this year. It was so, so fun. I hope I have just as a great time hanging out with my second fandom friend as I did with Tari.
That's all from me today. I hope you enjoyed reading my journal🥰❤️
(Link to Day 1) (Link to Day 2/3) (Link to Day 4) (Link to Day 5-6)
Hey guys,
Wow, it's been a hot minute since I've last journaled! I've just been soooo busy, but I've finally had some time to sit down and write.
Here are some highlights:
I finished my bachelor's degree! Next semester I'm off to post-grad because I am Not Sane! Fandom studies, here I come.
I met up with my fandom friend two more times before she goes home. The first, she came to my hometown, and the second, we went to Yokohama's Chinatown! We've had such a blast hanging out with each other IRL<3
I reunited with Tom, the love of my life. He's a five pound toy poodle who jumps like a bunny. I would die for him.
Now, onto the nitty gritty!
May 30th: Emi the Host
On Day 8, my fandom friend R visited my hometown!!! I was soooo friggin' excited that she was coming, especially since it was the first time a friend had ever visited me here.
Wearing my favourite sunhat, I went to meet her at the station. When she arrived, we walked to one of my favourite cafés, Chako. It's a loghouse with a super cute interior & exterior. Every time you go, they serve you a different tea cup. I just love it.
I had the margherita pizza and Vienna coffee (my second cup of coffee in my life!), while my friend had curry and an iced latte. It was very yum. And I paid, because in Japan, it's polite to let the host pay, because we're the one responsible for you! So let me pay, boy🫵🤡
Afterwards, we ordered bubble tea and visited the local shrine. My friend insisted on paying for a small keychain I wanted, and while I resisted, I lost the battle when she brought up the strong USD lol. I just can't resist a good bargain...
I initially wanted to take my friend to a park, but it seemed like it was going to rain, so we went back to my place. When I asked Jiji (grandpa) if he wanted to say hi, he said he was feeling too weak, so we went to the granny flat where I live without introducing them to each other.
While in the granny flat, we cooled down with the aircon on, snacked, and chatted about WIPs. My friend freaked the fuck out when I showed her my 90k draft for the longfic that made us friends LOL it was so cute and motivating. We also chatted about potentially co-writing a Sylvgrid fic together! Very exciting stuff.
While we were chatting, my grandpa came in! And he said he cooked for us motsu-ni (offal stew)! And oh my goodness it tasted so good and my friend loved it! And then he chatted with her with me as the interpretor, bragging about how handsome and cool he was in his youth. Oh Jiji XD!
I then walked my friend back to the station and waited with her until her train arrived. We said our goodbyes and promised to meet up again, which you will read about soon hehe!
June 1st: Tom, Beloved
On June 1st, I reunited with Tom the Toy Poodle. Guys, I'm in love with this dog. I want to kidnap him and take him home with me to Australia, he's just that cute! God, he's making me remember my Dog Person phase, which lasted until I ended up having my own cats. Now I love dogs, but worship cats.
Just look at him. HOW IS HE REAL???
June 2nd: And So It Ends
June 2nd was Hardcore, baby, for I worked on my last assignment for my bachelor's degree. I fought shitty weather, shitty wifi, and recorded my presentation inside the truck because the reception inside the granny flat is God Awful, but I did it. I did the damn thing. I Finished University.
But because I’m a clown I’m doing post-grad to study fandom wish me all the luck you have besties LOL🤡
For my thesis, I’m hoping to explore the cultural tensions between Eastern and Western fandom, specifically in terms of how religion has an impact on it. You know, what with antis mirroring the mindset of conservative cultural Christianity. We’ll see how I go with that!
For dinner, I went out with my mum and her two friends. I became so shy because they couldn’t stop gushing over how cute I was lol I am not kidding or bragging they just would Not Stop😅. Is this how Apple Pie feels when I smother her? Lol.
I'm starting to reach the age where my perpetual singleness is Notable. So of course, developments in my love life were inquired after. I told them I'm not that interested in romantic relationships. Which is true! My ideal life partner is a platonic one, since I'm aspec. I do have crushes, though, so I can see myself being in a romantic relationship. But I'd be perfectly happy never being romantically partnered for the rest of my life. I think I'd also be happy partnered with children. Either way, nae bother!
But yes, one of them definitely seems to have clocked that I'm surely some flavour of Queer, since she was like "so, you're not that interested in having a boyfriend–or whatever else–but it's friendship that's important to you?" and I was like "yep :D" and she was like "that's okay! you're still young after all" and I was like ":)".
But we shall see how my love life, whether it be platonic or romantic, turns out.
June 3rd: It's So Flyday, Flyday, Chinatown!
On June 3rd, I met up with my fandom friend in Yokohama's Chinatown for one last meet-up! As ever, we had an absolute blast together. We explored the main road as well as the more hidden alleyways of Chinatown, until we found a cozy looking restaurant that was away from the hustle and bustle and the tourist crowd. My friend speaks some Mandarin, so it was really cool to see her talk with the waitress, haha. Now I know what my friends feel like when we go to Japanese restaurants together!
We had dim sim, this super yum fried tofu dish, and these chive pancakes. I loved it all, honestly!
After lunch, I got to pet the dogs who belonged to the people behind us. When we were eating, I kept sparing glances at the doggies lol (a dachshund and a jack russell) because omg were they so well-behaved and adorable in the dog pram. Just so so cute.
To sign off our day in Chinatown, I asked my friend to get a caricature of us drawn, which she thankfully said yes to! While I can't show you the art because, well, it looks just like us LOL, do know that it's suuuuper adorable. I have a collection of caricatures for whenever I visit a new place, but this is the first one I've had drawn with another person. I'm kinda hooked lol now I want caricatures drawn with all my loved ones.
My friend and I said our final goodbyes, since she's leaving soon. I am so, so glad I got to meet her IRL, and I'm sure we'll see each other again, whether it be in Japan, the States or Australia<3.
(Side note: My grandpa needs to go under another round of radiation therapy, so my mum will be staying in Japan until the end of the mouth, instead of the planned June 4th. While I'm sad Jiji's gotta go through it again, I'm glad mum will be around! It's been nice spending time with her, for both me and Jiji.)
June 4th: Chillin' & Catchin Up'
June 4th was chill! What with uni being over, I find myself with a lot more free time. I went into Chichibu to browse the local BOOK-OFF, a secondhand store which sells books, CDs, figures, video games, you name it, they got it. I found a Sanji figure that I thought my dear friend @homelygrantaire would like and so I bought it on his behalf, before I then sent it off to their address. I learned a lot about international shipping in Japan from that experience, which is good for me to know, since I'm sure I'll need to send stuff back because Japan is shopping paradise right now LOL.
For lunch, I had this super average savoury crepe at a Gelato place. I should've just ordered gelato lol but I wanted a proper lunch and for some reason, most places are closed on Tuesdays here. But to make up for it, I got my favourite bubble tea and tried out a bakery I'd never been to before. I chatted with the elderly owner and found out that they'd been in business for 40 years. Wowza!
Once I got home, I caught up on my belated crit letters for the Fanauthor Workshop. Thanks for your patience, guys! I loved reading all your pieces.
(Btw, writerly mutuals, you should totally sign up for the asynchronous summer session so you can join us and make soooo many friends. Applications end June 14th!)
June 4th: I...WROTE?!
And so this brings us to today! Not much happened. Mum and I went to this AMAZING Chinese restaurant that is world class quality. Seriously, the owner trained as a chef in Ginza, Tokyo's luxury district. The man knows how to cook!
Once I got home, I helped my mum and Jiji spread weed-killer lol which was a first. Then I had an afternoon nap. Night time, I realised I had free time...AND SO I WROTE!
Yes, besties, you read that right: I'm writing again! Woo!
I don't think I've written in like a month and half so it's been great getting back into it. I ended up revising my galeheart fairy tale au, which I hope to have finished sometime soon. I'm so sick of it living in my drafts, unposted, when it's so close to being done ugh. Hopefully it'll be out by the end of this month!
Thanks for reading my journal, guys. Each entry is getting longer and longer lmao but I hope you enjoy reading them, nonetheless. See you next time!
I've had such a fun few days! Days full of good food, nature, and animals. I can't wait to tell you all about it.
But first, here are the highlights:
I posted a new galeheart fic! It's a fairy tale au I wrote for the galeheart first times event way back in late April, but I finally posted it. It has, predictably, ballooned into a multichap lol but I'm happy with the result :)
My mum and I discovered a local café that's only opened on the weekends. We loved it so much we went both days!
Goats, cats, and even more cats, oh my! Went to an agritourism farm and an open shelter cat rescue. Very fun. Very stinky.
Anyway! Onto the details:
June 7th
June 7th was pretty chill! My mum and I went shopping in the morning. I bought a very handy dandy bag where I can store my wallet, pocket wifi and phone in, that straps around my body. Super convenient for going out with just my necessities.
Here’s a photo of me and the bag, on another day! I just love it.
Afterwards, we went to a sushi train place. Each plate of sushi cost around 100 yen. How cheap is that?!
When we got home, I think we just napped lol. I dedicated my evening to writing, which went well! I was so nervous to post fic since it had been a while, but then I got such lovely comments! I’m glad I pushed through my doubt and just posted the damn thing :)
June 8th
In the morning, my mum and I went to this local cafe that only opens on the weekends. The walk over was so refreshing, with the weather being just perfect. We walked past farms, old Japanese houses, the river my mum nearly drowned in when she was four before my grandma pulled her to safety lol, and finally, we arrived at the cafe.
We took our seat on the porch. I’m so glad we did: we were right in front of the flower garden where we could watch the little butterflies and bees do their job. It was so relaxing. I must read here sometime.
Mum ordered the soup set, which came with veges and onigiri, as well as a cup of coffee. I had the waffle set with the ice cream and red bean. For my drink I had the best iced tea I’ve ever had in my life, oh my goodness it was so good! Apparently, this cafe specialises in herbal teas. I’ve got to try it some of these days, if even their iced tea was this good!
Anyway, here are some pics of the cafe:
On our walk home, we passed the local agritourism farm and decided to go in. Since it was Saturday, there were so many tourists from Tokyo. It’s quite popular among families. It’s kinda like if you as the farmer of SDV were real lol because it’s SUCH a money-maker for our town here. And the rest of us are just NPCs lol🧍
While there, I fed a scary ass goat some carrots and had a grape-vanilla mixed ice cream.
And that concludes Saturday!
June 9th
Sunday (today) was such a blast too. In the morning, we took I-san (crazy old cat lady ((affectionate)) from older entries) to the cafe we went the day before. As ever, she talked our ears off and we learned a lot about the neighbours lmao. But also, she came all dressed up with her make up done, which was adorable🥰❤️. I’m so glad she enjoyed it.
When we dropped her off, she forced me to accept 5000 yen from her (50 AUD)😭😭😭!!! You might be like “emi you could’ve just said no” BUT YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND!!! When old Asian grannies give you money you must accept it there’s no escaping their determination😭😭😭
Now I gotta think of a way to repay her, non-monetarily. I’m actually quite decent at drawing realistic portraits (especially old people for some reason lol) so maybe I’ll draw her or her late cat as a present. We shall see!
Also, we made plans for her to dress me in her kimono on Tuesday. I’m very excited!
After breakfast, we headed off to visit an open shelter/cat rescue. I’ve been here before and I was very excited to go again. There’s around 100 cats, spread across three floors (with sealed off balconies), and there are soooo many affectionate cats omg. So many will just flop onto your lap and chill there for like twenty minutes it’s great. I fell in love with so many cuties today…but none of them fell in love with me back lol they all wanted my mum instead aha😭💔
So yeah. There’s no pictures of me with the cats because they were all over my mum so I became designated photographer🤡
But in the end, I did get to pat many cutie kitties, so I still had an adorable time🥰❤️
For lunch, we ate at the neighbouring restaurant, that was cat-themed. I had the nyangherita pizza lol while my mum had a warabi-katsu set.
The pizza was disappointingly average, but my mum liked her food. So all around wins for her today😂 (though, a cat did pee on her bag, so…)
And that was my past few days! I can’t believe I’ve been here close to three weeks now. Time just flies, doesn’t it? Next Saturday, I’ll be off to Osaka. I’ll be sad to say goodbye to my grandpa’s hometown, but I’ll be back at the end of June anyway, before I return to Australia…where I’ll then reunite with my own cats, Apple Pie and Leon🥹💖
GOD I'M SO BUSY. Busy with uni, busy in Japan, with no time to write fanfic and little time to read (to fanauthor workshop people, I swear I will catch up!)
Day 5, I walked to a local café I often frequented when I lived here for lunch...ONLY TO FIND IT WAS CLOSED! So then I sadly skulked over to the local 7/11 for some combini food lol.
Afterwards, I had online class. It was such a struggle with my shitty pocket wifi, but I made it work. I studied until 4pm before I left to attend a kōdan showing at the local community centre.
My friend (T-chan) invited me, and it was my first time even hearing of kōdan, let alone seeing it. While it wasn't quite my scene, it was interesting.
The performer started off with what was essentially a RPF about Ludwig Beethoven and his pal Hans. In the story, they're traveling across Vienna, when they hear piano. They follow the sound and find a blind girl and her brother. She's desperate to hear a true master play Beethoven's Symphony No. 8. Of course, Beethoven and his pal Hans come on in, with Beethoven playing the piece. Of course, he reveals himself to be Beethoven. And so the story ends.
Next, the performer played a story about Oda Nobunaga. I do confess, I started to space out lol. But after that, he read aloud three stories some locals wrote for the purpose it being performed as kōdan. As a writer, this was SUPER fascinating, especially as he gave feedback on each piece in terms of "how to make this suit the medium of kōdan". There was a lot of "less exposition, more dialogue pls" haha. It made me want to write a story for it too, but writing in Japanese is too much of a challenge for me lol. It's a struggle enough in English!
When I got home, I studied. That's it. That's all I do in my spare time as of late lol this project is killing me🫠
Now, onto Day 6, which is today!
For lunch, me, mum, and I-san went to the usual place. It was the first time my mum and I-san had talked, so it was lovely seeing them get along. I-san is one of those people who will talk for hours on end, so if you prefer to listen, she's your gal lol. But boy is she a character. I learned a lot about her today...like how each of her three children had different fathers but she drove them all off because of her strong personality LOL! I cannot emphasise how unheard of this is for a 84 year old Japanese woman. Like, at that age, getting divorced even once is scandalous enough, but THREE? Damn girl😂
When we went to pick her up, she wasn't feeling too well, but by the time we dropped her off, she was perky and chirpy. That was such a relief. I'm going to call her on Sunday to see if she's well enough to go on another lunch date with me🥺❤️
After lunch, I studied. I just fucking studied I am so sick of studying I want to be done with this project I WANT TO BE FREE😭😭😭!!! Thankfully, what made it easier this done was studying remotely with a uni friend🥰❤️
In all my years at uni, it's been a struggle making and maintaining those friendships, but with this friend, it comes so naturally a part of it is because she's also on discord lol. I feel like we'll keep in contact, even after this semester ends!
And so, this brings me to the end of another day. What will tomorrow bring, I wonder?
...I DON'T HAVE TO WONDER BECAUSE I ALREADY KNOW!! MY FRIEND R IS GOING TO VISIT ME IN MY HOMETOWN AHHHH I'M SO EXCITED😍😍😍❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
I'll tell you guys all about it tomorrow, okay!? Keep an eye out for my next entry hehe!
Yesterday, I arrived at my grandpa’s place after much travel! It was so nice to settle in, cause boy, was I exhausted.
On the flight, I did sleep, but not very well. Economy will never be comfortable. One highlight though was my neighbouring seat-mate. She watched The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and she was adorable throughout it lol. She gasped so many times during the movie (once, so loudly I jumped in my seat) and would cover the screen with her hands when it got violent in the arena. It was lovely witnessing someone’s first time reaction.
When I reunited with my grandpa, I gave him a big old hug. He always gets so bashful and happy when I do lol it's so cute. He's doing well, post-cancer treatment, even working in the field. But he told me he's feeling a lot weaker than before, which was sad to hear :(
Last night, we celebrated my cousin's birthday with some Indian curry and an assortment of cakes. I wish I took photos, alas, I forgot. Expect me to say that a lot LOL.
