Life?You Mean The Outernet?

- i’m socially exhausted - i don’t have the time right now - i don’t know how to reply - i have a bad memory and got distracted - i’m having a depressive episode and don’t have the energy to socialise

not reasons i haven’t replied back:

Ok about this firstly I want to say that I am aware that the term otaku has a different meaning depending on where you come from.

I realise people in Japan and in the western countries attribute different,well not meaning as much as they see it differently.

In Japan this is in no way a positive thing where in the west it may just mean you love anime,manga and such…  and I am taking this term in the western sense of a person just really loving anime and manga…not the doesn’t leave house and is a total failure at life meaning (well I might be…maybe…*existential crisis intensifies*)

So I am taking this term as kinda an umbrella term for people who like anime,manga and other stuff like that (visual novels,gal games and so on)

I am writing this mostly to share with you my experiences with always being pretty open about watching anime,reading manga and enjoying it a lot.

I’ve ,when asked,always flat out admitted what I like and dislike,and have always been pretty open and honest about answering questions about it,however I have noticed when you do say this people tend to ask much of the same questions and treat you a bit differently.

This list of reactions and questions is pretty much the standard of what I usually get when talking about this subject.

Where I live when I say I like anime and manga and I’m excited about it most people:

a)Don’t know what it even is

The amount of times I have been asked these questions is both staggering and painful:

-,,What is this anime thing about?” -like its one thing and not a collective and you asking me that is akin to me asking you,,What is this movies thing about?”

- ,,Why do you watch manga?”-*massive facepalm*…first of all you don’t watch manga you read it, and second why do you read books,or watch films? Because you find it entertaining,it provides for a form of escaipism ,it brings you joy and is pleasing to you….same thing

-,,Oh that Naruto thing?My little brother watches that”-anime does not equal Naruto in the same way moves do not equal Spy Kids, ok?

  b)Automatically think hentai

And think I am a massive pervert and just wont listen to me when I try to explain that NO all anime does not amount to hentai in the same way that all films do not amount to porn.

They also will not let go of the fact that they think its weird porn,probably with tentacles and pedophiles and furries and god knows what else… so they continue on thinking I watch weird porn all the time and try to engage me in conversation about weird porn they watch like I can relate or something, thinking that all my denials are just me being shy,or trying to be funny or something, when I try, for the up tenth time ,to explain to them that no me liking Berserk does not equate in me wanting to discuss the finer details of two girls one cup with you and thank you for mentally scaring me for life with that….

Also there is always that ,,Wow I didn’t know girls watched porn” comment that is as ignorant and sexist as it is unavoidable

 c)Automatically think cartoon and that anime is just for kids

And believe me to be a weirdo man child who watches a weird Japanese equivalent to Tom and Jerry (ironic considering its about attempted murder but oh well what do I know?) all the time and find it so fascinating and intellectually engaging I feel the need to talk about it with my other weirdo friends…of course completely disregarding the fact that a lot of adults enjoy watching anime and reading manga and that showing your kid something like Monster, Hellsing or,say Berserk would completely fuck them up.Adding to this the above hentai thing,if anime was only for kids why is there hentai?

d)Automatically give the Weirdo label

 People who have vaguely,maybe hard of this ,,anime” stuff and put people who watch it right between people who murder small animals for fun and alien abductees.They think you’re weird and a freak and will not hesitate to ask you questions they would   not have asked you if you were ,,normal” .

Those questions may range from the above mentioned porn questions to the ,,Do you think your anime characters are real?”Questions….

Like you are some retard or social deviant….

This is not how all people react,there are some who genuinely want to know and do not approach the topic like a weird five legged neon green cat,and who are cool about it and treat you the same (as it should be,its an interest not a plague), and there are even those who share your interests and with whom you usually like to talk to about it (and I like talking to other people about it,its always fun to hear their opinions and discuss favourite shows as well as having someone with whom you share an interest in the same way finding someone you share similar tastes in music is)

Mostly I think that the weirdo tag comes from being a little different from the norm,like there is a little check list of all things socially acceptable and liking animated shows or reading comics past a certain age is not acceptable…

My friends for one are pretty awesome about it and are if not interested themselves ,cool with it.

These are,however just my experiences,and I would love it if you commented if you share them or if its different for you.What kind of reception do you get?What kind of questions?

when they’re cleaning their feets and spread all their little toes out

when they smelled something weird and make a stinky face

when they walk up to you making little chirpy purrs of inquiry

when they get distracted by a noise mid-lick and a tongue blep occurs

when they see a bird and do that ekekekk thing