Transcript
Speaker: Greetings friends. Thank you for joining us on the Mentally Oddcast where each week our guests regale us with tales of the creative process through the lens of addiction, recovery, mental and emotional health, trauma, treatment, medication, all that there because we believe that no matter what you are going through, you are not alone and you can make art about it.
Speaker: Art helps. Find us on Ko-Fi, that's K-O-F-I, to support the podcast and get all the back issues of Sometimes Hilarious Horror Magazine.
Speaker: You are listening to the Mentally Oddcast. My name is Wednesdayly Friday. Do find us on Ko-fi, that's K-O-F-I, and show us a little support.
Speaker: This week, we have Miss Mimi Yu, who is an overseas J-pop style idol getting ready to debut an original song. She is a Midwesterner who also lives with autism, OCD, and chronic anxiety.
Speaker: Mimi has been my friend for about 10 years, and I can already hear my dog barking in the background. Can you hear that?
Speaker: Oh, maybe not, but I can definitely hear her. who Welcome, Mimi. Thanks for having me here. Well, it is my pleasure. um We always start by asking guests to tell us about the first horror movie that they ever remember seeing. And I have no idea what yours is.
Speaker: Well, if we're talking straight horror, i think that would have to be a little shop of horrors recording I saw when I was, i think about, I'm going to say 11.
Speaker: Yeah, it scared me to pieces. Was it the original movie or the musical? The musical. Because the original is black and white, doesn't have any songs. Okay, so the Rick Moranis one.
Speaker: Yeah, I could see it being pretty scary if you're young. Absolutely. But I'm aware... I'm aware that you are not really a horror fan per se. So what is your favorite genre for films and books and TV and such? My favorite genre?
Speaker: Well, do you mean movies or like in general? the car Well, we can do both. Well, my favorite genre of movies is usually fantasy movies. I love the way they can picture those magical worlds and make them look realistic.
Speaker: Okay, like which ones are your favorites? Which ones are my favorites? Well, I can't really pick a favorite right now. and I'm worried that the ones I do pick will be a bit too controversial.
Speaker: For example, I really like the Nutcracker in the Four Realms, but everybody says that's a really bad movie, so... Huh. ah Well, that's interesting. Yeah, I just saw Supergirl.
Speaker: And that's another one that I don't know if I'd call it controversial, but the MAGA boy dude bros are losing their minds over it. So I guess it's controversial in that strict sense. I thought it was great. Have you seen it yet?
Speaker: No, I haven't. You should come over and watch it. I bought it. um So now I am aware that you are on the autism spectrum, which is something that presents a little bit differently for everyone. So I would like to hear what it's like for you.
Speaker: Well, honestly, autism hasn't as much, excuse me, hindered me as helped me because it means I'm a bit more creative than a neurotypical person would be But there are downsides, such as I find it hard to control my emotions sometimes.
Speaker: Okay. yeah Yeah, but I do have a unique way of looking at the world, and I really do like that. So if there is a cure for autism, I wouldn't take it Interesting. Interesting. That's, that's, um, I'm curious to know how old were you when you were initially diagnosed?
Speaker: I think I was about five or six. I had been having these outbursts at school and mom and dad were really worried.
Speaker: So they got me checked out and I, and they found out I was autistic. Huh. So you were pretty young. So that would have been like kindergarten, first grade, right?
Speaker: Okay. So, wow. So that's, that's amazing. So it seems like you got help before your educational career was, was truly underway. Um, and then you had what's called an IEP, which is, uh, is that an individual education plan? Is that what that stands for?
Speaker: Individual or individualized? I so, or individual environment plan. I don't necessarily remember, but it was a while ago, so i might not remember everything in detail.
Speaker: Sure, sure. um Now, my understanding is that Project 2025 and the new Secretary of Education have eliminated IEPs.
Speaker: um I did not know that. i yeah that that I am honestly disturbed by this this news. Yeah, i was I'm curious to know how you think that's going to impact students coming up.
Speaker: Well, for one thing, i think there's going to be a lot more unstable behavior that isn't mitigated because or treated because there's no aid there to support them.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: And that actually makes me pretty sad. Yeah, I would... I i find it sad as well. um It seems like... Kind of like policing. It's a situation where we don't necessarily give students what they need to thrive. And then we turn around and punish them for not thriving. You know what I mean?
Speaker: Yeah. It's kind of punitive... I don't know if you're familiar with when they talk about the the the prison pipeline and how some, like, I don't know if you know this, there are certain states where the budgets for schools are determined by the property taxes.
Speaker: So rich kids get better schools and poor kids get less supplies and fewer teachers and fewer counselors and and generally worse schools. And so they're the ones that have lower graduation rates.
Speaker: A lot more kids go to the military rather than college because they can't afford school yet, you know, that sort of thing. And it really just sets kids up for a bad time. Now, between that and not giving kids the individual attention that they need,
Speaker: that seems like a recipe for disaster for me. But, you know, I'm not a teacher and I don't have any kids. So I'm very much on the outside looking in on this issue. But you are not because you've been through it.
Speaker: So what what do we do? What do we do about that? I i am not what one might call big political change maker. try to stay on I try to be politically correct when possible, but i try not to delve too deep into politics.
Speaker: Okay. All right. Yeah, we we do have that on the show sometimes. People, especially people that are trying to make a name for themselves, they don't necessarily want to adhere to one particular sociopolitical philosophy. So, you know, that's an individualized thing. I wonder, um a lot of our listeners are not going to know you. Would you like to tell people how old you are? I'm 22, just recently turned
Speaker: ah And I am an overseas idol, which basically means I'm a J-pop style idol who doesn't live in Japan or isn't Japanese ethnically.
Speaker: So if folks are not familiar, what exactly is J-pop idol? Well, if you're familiar with Korean idols, it's similar to that. Let's pretend I'm not.
Speaker: Okay, okay, okay. So, if you're not familiar with any kind of idol, it's basically a young performer who is trained to perform at at usually a young age, but is, but what I really like about it is that the themes they tackle are often more cutesier, more innocent sounding themes, and I really like that because a lot of music these days just seems to really lean into the hardcore or themes, you know? Don't get me wrong, I like music like that, but
Speaker: Sometimes you just want to smile, you know? Okay. All right. um And are you fluent in Japanese? um i am not fluent. However, I am trying my best to learn. Okay.
Speaker: And what about writing Japanese? Is that... can write basic hiragana and a few kanji. Wow. That's really impressive.
Speaker: so I can also write katakana, but... Oh, wow. That's sort of like being able to write the alphabet. It's not a big deal, really. Well, it would be a big deal for me. I certainly couldn't do it.
Speaker: um Well, do you have, like, pen pals in Japan? Do you have people that you practice with? No, not at the moment. I do have a few friends of my mom's that live in Japan.
Speaker: Oh, yeah, because you talked to, us well, i probably shouldn't say, but our friend from the company that your mom and I worked at together. Yes, that's correct. won't say it's very mysterious, but yes, I know the person to whom you refer. Okay, so now you're working on a new project. Tell us about it. Yes, well, I am working on an original song And I'm doing it in collaboration with my uncle, who is music producer and overall a musical artist.
Speaker: So, okay. ah So wait, is this, is this a person I know? Yes, I think so. Okay. So we can actually say the name Tom Smith because he's famous and has word. Oh, okay. Yes. so we're allowed to say his name.
Speaker: Yes. My uncle is Tom Smith, the filker.
Speaker: I'm not going to ride on his coattails or anything like that. No, of course not. But we do have a rule on the show that we don't call out ah people who are not famous, who are not public figures and don't have a name for themselves. But yeah, Tom Smith seems like an average average everyday guy because we know him. But in real life, he's he's pretty famous and well-known in his field. so Yeah.
Speaker: So yeah, so you're working on a project with Tom. Yes, we are collaborating. it i think the overall melody might be finished by now, but we're still going to have to record the... We're still going to have to record the vocals and get some overall kinks out of the recording, so...
Speaker: Yeah, it's going to be difficult, but pretty fun, I think. Cool, cool. And when can we when can we hear it? I don't really adhere to a strict schedule, but I would like it to be ready by let's say, October, maybe?
Speaker: okay cool. Cool, well, that's good to know. Now, I would like to get back to your diagnosis a bit, if we can. course! I guess my first... I guess, um, we'll...
Speaker: What I'm wondering is what there is about your diagnosis that you think people are ignorant about? Like if someone has never met a person with autism or they don't know that they have, what's something that you would like them to know that they probably don't know? Well, the first thing I'd like them to know is that autism does not always hurt someone.
Speaker: It can hurt someone, one but it but it doesn't have to. two for someone to be autistic. Sometimes autism just means seeing things in a different way. And to me, it's not necessarily a at least a disability.
Speaker: That might be different for other people. I know it's different for everyone, but that's personally how I see it. Now, I don't know if you've ever heard of Greta Thunberg, but she once said something like,
Speaker: Autism is not a gift, but it can be a superpower. And can I say something a little strong? Yes. I honestly think that's garbage.
Speaker: Huh. Explain Because is autism can be a gift for some people. It can be a whole new lens on life, if you want to put it that way.
Speaker: Okay. I've never really hated my autism, so... Maybe I'm just a weird exception. I don't know. Well, it sounds like what you're saying is that we can't assume anything about anybody just because we know that they have autism.
Speaker: Do I have that right? Yes, that's correct. Okay. Okay. Well, that makes a lot of sense to me. i found out very late in life that I have autism. That's something that I think would have made my life very different if I had known about it as at a younger age, if people hadn't thought that I was just undisciplined or dumb or whatever.
Speaker: I think things probably could have gone pretty differently for me because I just didn't know. You know, there was, um, people guessed what might be my issue, but they kept guessing wrong. And so if you get the wrong treatment for something, sometimes that can do more damage. It's, it's all a rich tapestry, but, uh,
Speaker: One thing I think you and I have in common is intrusive thoughts. And some of those yeah can can get pretty disturbing. um What are some coping skills that you found helpful?
Speaker: Well, with my intrusive thoughts, they don't necessarily come from the autism, but from the OCD. And most of them m go along a pattern of if blank, then blank. For example, if i say this word out loud, there'll be a tornado tomorrow or something crazy like that. And what I usually do is remember that it's a disorder and it's trying to mess me up.
Speaker: So what I do is just think to myself,
Speaker: ah myself, okay, that's the disorder talking.
Speaker: Okay, so just recognizing that logically what is happening is part of a disorder and not part of objective reality. Yes.
Speaker: Okay. And does that typically work or mostly sometimes? It mostly works. I mean, there are some days when I'm super stressed and so i can't really argue with my brain all that much so i just don't have the energy so sure
Speaker: okay all right um is there anything else that you want to tell us about autism or ocd that you think we probably don't know Well, I'm sure a million different people have said this, but OCD is not about cleanliness or over-organization.
Speaker: It is about cause and effect, or rather seeing cause and effect where there isn't any, or shouldn't be any.
Speaker: Interesting. So it's it's something that prevents you from seeing situations objectively. Yes, exactly.
Speaker: Huh. That's really interesting. i had I'm not really that familiar with that. um So what advice would you give to someone who's having difficulty with intrusive thoughts?
Speaker: How would you advise them? Well, the first thing I'd say was your intrusive thoughts are not real. They are nonsense.
Speaker: And if somebody was actually saying that to you, of course you'd ignore it. But if it's really hard, i just say that these thoughts are not your own.
Speaker: If they disturb you or if they... or if they impediment you, they are from, then the chances are they're from the disorder and not from you or your personality. Okay. And I think I really would have liked to hear that back when I was first diagnosed with OCD. Okay.
Speaker: Yeah, well that makes a lot of sense. Now one thing that I notice you doing is personifying these conditions, saying things like they want to mess you up or you know they're they're trying to to stop you. um And that is a philosophy that finds its way into a lot of different kinds of mental health treatment and also addiction treatment. ah Personifying addiction is a very common way of of dealing with it. And I find that when I'm depressed and I'm having negative self-thoughts, if I put the name of someone I don't like on those thoughts, because if I'm sitting in a room by myself and I think, oh my God, I'm such a failure, You know, my books come out and nobody cares and I feel so sad. What am I doing this for? If I envision someone that I hate, like my abuser or Donald Trump, and I envisioned them saying that to me, it's much, much easier for my brain to be like, hey, F you, man. You can't talk to me like that. You're a piece of crap. and
Speaker: And just really not have to pay attention to that. because I pretend like it's coming from someone that I don't care about instead of my own brain giving me crap.
Speaker: Well, honestly, I don't necessarily c think of it as personification. I used to personify it. I gave it the name that was similar to mine, but different.
Speaker: Okay. But that ended up giving it too much power. So what no one tells you about personifying your disorders is that it it can actually give it more power over you if you and view view it as a being instead of an impediment.
Speaker: So I'd say what I do is more like othering the the disorder. Okay. Like, it's not you, it's just a misguided part.
Speaker: Okay. So it's not necessarily something that you are battling against, but that you want to kind of compartmentalize so that you can...
Speaker: Okay, that makes sense. I get it. i understand. ya me. um All right. So let me ask you this. Now, you and i our viewing habits are pretty different from each other.
Speaker: And I wonder... If there is something, if you've watched a portrayal of autism or OCD, like either one, actually, if you've seen a portrayal in a movie or on TV that you find to be particularly accurate or helpful.
Speaker: Well, I don't watch it nowadays because it's kind of sad, but I used to watch a show called everything's going to okay.
Speaker: Or something like everything's going to be all right. And there was an autistic character who I really saw myself in, even though she was a little less affectionate than I used to be when I was little.
Speaker: i used to want to hug people all the time. Yeah, I remember.
Speaker: And I understand that some people aren't exactly comfortable with that. Some autistic people, I mean. Sure, sure.
Speaker: Well, there's there's a societal thing about kids being forced to hug people that they don't like. And when that happens, you know, like your weird aunt that you see twice a year or some crazy old grandparent in the nursing home or whatever, like as a kid... people like that seem scary and intimidating. And, you know, there's a lot of talk now about making kids hug and why that's bad, takes away their body autonomy, and it can put them off hugging forever. Like if you're forced to hug somebody that you don't like, you might think about that every time you try to hug for the whole rest of your life, you know, and then you just don't want to hug anybody.
Speaker: I'm not really sure if that really applies to me because I was an extremely... I wouldn't think you. yeah I wouldn't think you, but I think that that is, that's a factor, I think, when you meet somebody who who doesn't want to be hugged. It's like, well, I had a bad hugging experience in the past.
Speaker: You know, okay that sort of thing. So maybe it didn't have anything to do with the autism or maybe it was just a stereotypical trait that was assigned to this otherwise good autistic character. Okay.
Speaker: All right. Any other ones? Any others? Well, I do like autistic coded characters, like characters that people oh' think could be autistic.
Speaker: not necessarily because as they have stereotypical traits, but because they they sort of identify with the character.
Speaker: Among the autistic coded characters I like, Mabel from Gravity Falls Vanellope from Wreck-It Ralph have always been, well, not always in Mabel's case, but in Vanellope's case, they've definitely been my muses.
Speaker: ah Nice.
Speaker: At least Vanellope from the first movie, we don't talk about the sequel. I didn't even know there was a sequel. Oh my goodness.
Speaker: It's okay. i think didn't Didn't we watch Wreck-It Ralph together? Yeah, we did. I think we did because, man, I think I was supposed to be babysitting you. And, you know, i think part of being a good babysitter is not to burst into tears while you're watching a movie. But I failed.
Speaker: I definitely failed. when i wreck ra I think Big Hero 6 is another one that we watched together that I'm just like, okay, don't be sad. This movie isn't that sad. But I was...
Speaker: Well, I am kind of a lightweight when it comes to crying during movies, not so much horror movies, but you know, like the first 20 minutes of up. It's not possible for watch that and not cry. It's just impossible not to cry at the first 20 minutes of up.
Speaker: Yeah, I agree. i concur. And I think, yeah, I think Mabel from Gravity Falls actually is a great example because she is such a wonderful, lovable character. But then sometimes you watch and just think, wait, stop, stop doing that. Do you not see that you should not be doing that?
Speaker: Yes, i think she really it portrays how emotions can get the better of us. Mm hmm. And yeah honestly, I really like the Pines twins dynamic because one let sometimes let's reason get the better of them and the other let's emotion get the better of them sometimes.
Speaker: Dipper let's reason get ahead of himself sometimes. And Mabel let's emotion get ahead of herself. And I really like that dynamic, honestly.
Speaker: But it's funny because that dynamic is the same dynamic that exists on an older show called The X-Files, which I don't know if you're familiar with or not, but it's about David Duchovny, who's this super hot FBI guy. And he, I guess the hotness isn't relevant, but he is though. and um And he very much believes in aliens and magic. He is the big believer. And then his partner, Scully, who is Gillian Anderson, who's also insanely attractive.
Speaker: is the skeptic. Sounds to me like you really like the X-Files. Yeah, i was I was a great fan of X-Files back in the day. And then when they brought it back, I got paid to review it. So that was fun. I love when I get paid to watch TV that I was already going to watch.
Speaker: Yeah, it's very handy. Okay. Very handy. um okay so But anyway, you were saying? You... Well, I mean, that that was kind of the guts of it. But like, Vanellope, I think is interesting because I didn't really consider her being autistic just because it wasn't on my radar at the time. I wasn't thinking about it. But that makes so much sense.
Speaker: um Because she's so focused. Yeah. Like, so focused on what she does. But then when something happens, and I mean, I think what happened, like when her car got wrecked, spoiler alert, when her car got wrecked, that's something like, you don't have to be autistic for that to break your heart.
Speaker: Yeah. car that but but i But I think that, I mean, her reaction seems extreme, I suppose, but I don't know. I didn't i didn't really feel that way.
Speaker: I think because... My own upbringing is such that I very much identified with working really hard on something and then having it taken from you for reasons that seem mean or make no sense.
Speaker: Yeah, I totally get that. To be fair, Ralph was being slightly manipulated, but yeah, he shouldn't have done that. Yeah. Vanellope actually became a popular girl's name. Not, like, wildly popular, but there were, according to the name list, I think, like, two dozen girls that ended up with it the first name Vanellope.
Speaker: That's so ridiculous, but cute, too. Yeah. Yeah, I mean, I actually have strong feelings about You have strong feelings about people being named after characters. I know, I know.
Speaker: Well, and just weird names in general, referential names. Like some things were real names and then they became referential because of a specific character. you know, a name like Kermit or or Popeye, you know, that were legitimate names, but then they became so associated with a particular character that now they seem silly. People don't name their kid Kermit anymore because there's really just the one, ah or even Linus.
Speaker: There's an actor on Law and Order and his name is Linus, but for the most part, people don't use the name Linus anymore. So getting onto a new topic, actually, you have done something recently that I have never done, which is travel to a foreign country by yourself.
Speaker: um So what inspired you to take a trip like this? Well, it's honestly always been a dream of mine. Ever since I was...
Speaker: i first discovered that one of my favorite shows was actually anime, i sort of became obsessed with it.
Speaker: And through anime, I also learned about other aspects of Japanese culture such as such as idols. I found out about different aspects of Japanese culture and I said to myself, hey, I would really like to go there someday.
Speaker: And was a pipe dream of mine for a while But
Speaker: then i was suggested, it was my dad who suggested it, that I save up for a trip to Japan.
Speaker: got I hard. And yeah.
Speaker: And how long did that take to save up? Less than I thought it would. I thought it would take three years, but it actually took like two and a half.
Speaker: Okay. And how long were you there? I was there for four days. Still, that was, it was an amazing trip. I loved it.
Speaker: Well, what's the scoop? Like, I've never traveled internationally. The thing about... I've to Canada, but, you know, I'm from Michigan. What'd you say? Sorry you cut out. Well, um, I mean, I've only traveled to Canada, so I don't know anything about real international travel. You need a passport for that, right?
Speaker: Yeah, you do, but I made sure to get my passport early. Okay. Yeah. So I think I got it a year in advance, maybe. oh wow. Okay.
Speaker: So where did you stay while you were there? I stayed in a capsule hotel. It's sort of like, it's sort of like a, this might not sound attractive, but I promise it is a beehive for people.
Speaker: yeah Okay. Yeah, I mean, I've seen, like, you know, little documentaries about those and how they work. Did you have roommates or was it just you? Not in my room. However, I did have cellmates, like other cells on either side of me.
Speaker: They were people who had the room, or I guess cell, on the other side of me, and also below me, since I had a top cell and not a bottom cell.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: I see. I see. And then what did you do when you got there? I imagine restaurants? Um... mostly shopping actually there was so much cute stuff that actually i didn't go to many different restaurants
Speaker: oh i have a friend who lives in japan and he's always telling me about amazing little restaurants that he finds that give these enormous meals for like three and four dollars american it's crazy Well, let me tell you a little something about those hidden gem restaurants. They do not like foreigners at all, at least not the one i went to.
Speaker: i went to this little ramen place, and i guess I did something kind of silly. i let's just say i put my money pouch in the wrong spot, and...
Speaker: When I got it out to pay, i looked really embarrassing.
Speaker: So I guess it was partially my fault, but yeah, they did not like me. oh no. They served me, but they didn't like me. Well, that's uncomfortable.
Speaker: Yeah. guess that is one of the risks of going to another country is that some of the social mores are going to be a little different. Yeah, you may not know that until you get there and find out the hard way. So that's that's unfortunate that they made you feel unwelcome.
Speaker: That's yeah good hospitality. um Oh, oh gosh, I forgot. it's ah we we have to We're doing a ah thing on the show that we didn't used to do because we used to print our donor names.
Speaker: um People that donate at the 10 and up level for us, we used to put them in the magazine, but we don't do the magazine anymore. We closed it out because it was bankrupting me.
Speaker: And I was selling too many collectibles to keep it running. So now we are announcing donor names. And, oh, there's just a few this month. There is Allison Huff, Nemu, Ravenfall, Loki, and Brianna Simmons. So all of those folks are donating at one of our premier levels. And if you want to support us, which you totally should, um...
Speaker: You can do that on Ko-fi. That is ko-fi.com. I think we're still listed there as sometimes hilarious horror, but if you search for the Mentally Oddcast, we totally come up. If you can spare us a dollar or two every month, that really helps us pay our bills and keep the lights on around here. Sometimes we have to send a microphone to a guest so that they can participate. And just having a little bit of extra scratch lets us do that.
Speaker: So do show us some support if you can. If money is not something you can spare right now, we totally get it. Maybe tell a friend about us. Get us a new listener because we love what we're doing around here. And it is our hope that more people will give us a listen and get to these perspectives.
Speaker: And because, I mean, I think we have a lot of valuable perspectives on the show. And it's a great opportunity to learn and understand things that you might not have before. Okay, so there, sorry, interruption, but now we're back.
Speaker: Okay, okay. Let's see. Okay, so Studio Ghibli, you like it, right? Yes, I do. okay what's your favorite? My favorite would have to be Spirited Away, though that's my current favorite.
Speaker: I had a period where it was Howl's Moving Castle for a while, but once I saw Spirited Away, I was like, nope, this is my favorite. Mm-hmm.
Speaker: I would have to pick Howl's Moving Castle. Yeah, it's a pretty amazing movie. Yeah. Yeah, I think so too. I think I saw, i think I've seen Spirited Away the most times because we had it at a movie theater that I used to work at.
Speaker: So I'd come in early and watch it like a lot. Yeah, well and that's such a great one to see on the big screen because it's so visually appealing. Mm-hmm.
Speaker: Now I'm looking over. So what was your favorite thing you bought while you were in Japan? My favorite thing I bought. That's kind of toughie because I bought so much cute stuff. But I think that my favorite thing that I bought was an outfit from Shibuya 109, which is like this girls department store in the Shibuya district of Tokyo.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Yeah, it is just filled with cute stuff and I got an adorable outfit from there. Sweet. um the The purchase power. like yeah I mean, obviously you go there with American money and then you have to exchange it, but like did you feel like things were pretty expensive compared to what you would pay in America?
Speaker: I honestly not find it that expensive. i i was sometimes surprised that what I had could buy more than what then i expected it to.
Speaker: Though maybe it was just because I saved up a lot. I'm not going be someone one who says, oh, Japan was so cheap, because I know that people living in Japan might find it the same as here. Okay.
Speaker: All right. all right Well, we are getting to the end of our question list. um i Was there anything that you wanted to talk about that we did not talk about?
Speaker: Well, we didn't talk about... Well, last time i was at your place, you ask you we watched some anime, and you had some interesting takes on idols. Yeah.
Speaker: Okay, yep, that's true. um i i find um the idol culture, and and now let's let me preface this by saying I'm on the internet a lot, so I hear about and from a lot of adult men who are very into Japanese idol culture, and to me, a lot of it comes across as fetishistic. Yeah.
Speaker: and and And honestly, dangerous for for young women and and girls to be involved in. That it's it's kind of a pervert magnet. And that is not the fault of the media, but that, I think, is where my discomfort comes from when I see it. I think, oh my gosh, look at all those gross men with their bed pillows of of girls on them and just, you know, ew, ew, ew.
Speaker: but I agree that that some fans can get gross. However, i don't think the culture itself is a bad thing. Like I said in the beginning of this podcast episode, i i really do think that That cute visuals and occasionally frivolous lyrics are actually kind of refreshing in today's music climate.
Speaker: Okay. And maybe that's what draws people to J-pop and K-pop. It's certainly what drew me there. Okay. Okay. Yeah, and I think that because you and I sort of disagree on on the overarching part of that, I think we also talked about horror.
Speaker: Because you are not a horror fan, and I am very much a horror fan because i think horror is extremely socially relevant, that it helps us tackle a lot of like personal and societal issues. and It's one of the only genres that does both ah so thoroughly.
Speaker: um But at the same time, there are bad people who do bad things because they're imitating horror movies. There are people that, um you know, it it makes them depressed and they watch anyway. So like a lot of genres that people feel strongly about are going to have people that are like very good and some people that are are poor representations of the genre. So I think that's that's certainly a fair statement that if...
Speaker: If the overall climate of of J-pop culture is possible and good, then... Oh! No, I didn't. I'm still recording. But, um...
Speaker: Yeah, if if the overall culture is positive and good and the people that are like pervy and gross about it are the minority, then yeah, that's a net good. I would say it's certainly true of horror that the overarching majority of people that are involved in horror are crazy people.
Speaker: Well, I mean, you would know better than I would. That's true. Indeed. Indeed. um toward the end of the show, we also want to give guests an opportunity to ask me a question if they have one. So if you have one now is the time.
Speaker: Oh, you meant guests as in me. Okay. Yeah. All right. I will ask you a question. Okay. All right.
Speaker: What are your overall feelings on anime?
Speaker: um I think that the anime that I have seen, i have enjoyed. I liked a Death Note. I liked Attack on Titan.
Speaker: um But I think that it one of the things, and this isn't just anime, but Japanese films as well, they don't...
Speaker: have a soundtrack that sort of holds your hand and guides you through. um And that makes it less impactful for me. I think that the way that that the content is presented is not as to my taste as a lot of other genres. Like I'd rather watch, ah you know, like a Pixar movie.
Speaker: Than an anime. um and And certainly. i think that part of that is that. I am not deeply immersed. In Japanese culture.
Speaker: i feel like. I don't know enough. To enjoy it fully. You know. I understand. I could certainly see. The the artistry there. i mean again. like Studio Ghibli. like All of those movies are breathtakingly beautiful.
Speaker: You know, so I certainly have an appreciation for that. Mm-hmm. All right, cool. Well, it is actually time for the Mad Lib. So I hope you're ready for this. oh yeah, the Mad Lib.
Speaker: Yes. So we're going to start with some plural nouns. I need one, two, three plural nouns. I feel a bit like a one-track mind, so if i Okay, plural nouns. Here we go. ah Mice. Idols.
Speaker: And kittens. and Okay. All right. And we're going to need some singular nouns. Looks like one, two, three, four, five, six. Wow. Lots of them. Okay.
Speaker: All right. um Caterpillar. Doctor.
Speaker: All right. Bear.
Speaker: Let's see. Dice. Dice.
Speaker: No, wait, that's a plural now. up too late. I already wrote it down. Three more. And let's say pillow. All right. Two more.
Speaker: Oh, yeah. Two more. ah Book and pen.
Speaker: All right. I need some adjectives. I think two adjectives. Pretty and sparkly. Three. Pretty, sparkly, and disgusting.
Speaker: And a verb?
Speaker: Uh, danced. A number? Seven. A place? Tokyo.
Speaker: A part of the body, plural. feet
Speaker: Okay, a celebrity. oh geez. A celebrity. Uh...
Speaker: Katy Perry. All right. And finally, a person in room is always the guest. so That's me, then.
Speaker: All right. So this is called Traffic Report. folks i hate to be the bearer of bad mice it's a slow go on today's pretty roadways everyone seems to have forgotten how to dance behind the wheel there is a seven doctor pile up on route 86 that's got traffic backed up all the way to tokyo Damn.
Speaker: Police and emergency idols are on the scene. What'd you say? Those sparkly drivers craning their feet to see what's going on aren't helping matters.
Speaker: A car with a flat bear is causing a slowdown on Katy Perry Highway. a disgusting semi-truck headed downtown has jackknifed, spilling its load of frozen kittens.
Speaker: And here's something you don't see every day. 200-pound dice by the name of Mimi escaped from the zoo and wandered into the path of an oncoming pillow, which then swerved Oh man, that is one awful traffic report!
Speaker: today is a day where you need patience a sense of humor or a flying pen and there you have it the maddest of libs
Speaker: oh man that is one awful traffic report It really is. I hope that never happens to me. Although I could crash into a pillow. That wouldn't be so bad.
Speaker: Yeah. And who named a pair, a wild pair of dice after me? well that's just the joy of the Mad Lib. You just never know what you're going to get.
Speaker: So, but seriously, Katy Perry Highway sounds awesome. You think so? Yeah. Yeah. All right. Well, um that is pretty much our conclusion. So thank you so much for being here. I think we covered a lot of good ground.
Speaker: Mm-hmm. All right, and we want to remind everybody to see us on Ko-Fi, where you can find out, oh, you can actually get information on past episodes, um links to transcripts, because we always have transcripts for our episodes, and all that there. So, yeah, that is all for now, and we will see everybody next week.
