A Day in the Life of a Hikikomori

me:

me:

(This is a summarized translation of “Keypoint 3: Action” in Ginmaku no Touken Danshi, the behind the scenes special of the Touken Ranbu movie. The comments were made by Hibari Daisuke, the movie’s stunt coordinator.)

♔ Mikazuki Munechika - Fights with grace and beauty. His movements are akin to Nichibu (which, according to Wikipedia, “refers to a few dance genres such as kabuki buyō performed in theatre, and Kamigata mai that encompasses the style of dancing performed by geisha .”). And even when he’s in a pinch, he still seems like he’s got a handle on the situation.

♔ Yamanbagiri Kunihiro - Has a sword and a metal scabbard; He’s not exactly dual wielding but he could cut down enemies with his sword and use his scabbard to deal a blow. Some Battoujutsu (a combative quick-draw sword technique) was also incorporated into his fighting style.

♔ Yagen Toushirou - He’s a tantou so he’s a close combat fighter. He gets into his opponent’s space to take them down. His actor is very nimble, so hthe coordinator gradually added in more soaring jumps to being out more of his potential.

♔ Fudou Yukimitsu - He’s done somersaults and aerial stunts before, so the stunt coordinator incorporated the stunts the actor could do, and some moves similar to Druken Boxing but for a tantou.

♔ Heshikiri Hasebe - At first, the stunt coordinator had a totally different image in mind for Hasebe. Given the sword’s lines (“Oshikiru!” or “Pressure slash!”) and history, he had pegged Hasebe as the epitome of a Japanese period drama (Jidaigeki). When he first presented his idea to his actor, Wada rejected it, saying, “This isn’t what Hasebe’s like. He’s more cavalier, like a knight.” So he decided to rethink the concept. It didn’t feel enough to just make Hasebe’s moves knightly, so he incorporated so Chinese-style sword fighting into Hasebe’s repertoire, and he whirls his sword round and round as he fights.

I found these tags on that post asking adults to list their age. This is one of many who seem to agree with OP’s sentiment.

I think kids on the internet these days–and by “kids” I mean anyone under 18 honestly–need to be re-taught about internet safety and keeping your personal life away from your internet life, for safety reasons. I’ve been noticing this a lot lately, but I’ve found that the younger generations just never learned about Internet safety and keeping your personal information… well, personal.

Listen. I am a 90s kid in my late 20s. Yes, I do list my age on my description, because I feel comfortable doing so. But lately, there’s been an alarming trend where you, the younger generations, expect us to cater to all of your needs and keep you safe. And more, even.

The internet is a big, scary place. People my age and older, and some a little younger, grew up with the internet. We grew up with the dial-up noise and “get off the internet so I can use the phone!” and being limited in the way we interacted with the internet because it was expensive and strange and modems were not a thing. We also grew up with massive internet safety campaigns and worried parents scared of the unknown. Scared of the predator on the other side of the screen. It was normal for parents to be worried and assume predator until proven otherwise. 

As such, everyone in my generation and older grew up with a massive internet safety awareness. Don’t give out your personal information, don’t tell them where you live, your name, your age, where you study or what. Say nothing. Share nothing. Most of us have created for ourselves internet personas, much in the way that I am Saku on the internet but someone else in real life.

Yes, the line has blurred somewhat, and over time people have lost the alarm and concern that the internet caused in them. But most of us still remember what it was like back then. Most of us remember the safety rules, remember the techniques and tactics to tell if someone was or wasn’t telling the truth, remember the golden rule about not sharing personal information on the internet.

Because the internet back then was a big, scary place. And the internet now? It still is a big, scary place. It’s just more…. normal. More a part of our everyday lives that we all just sort of take for granted. 

What you kids are missing now is that we, as the older generations on the internet, the generations that grew up with the internet, still remember what it was like back then. And we still abide by our internet safety rules.

You all may think that sharing your age on the internet is not a big deal, but it is. Whatever you post on the internet can be used against you, regardless of how “safe” you feel. And one way or another, we are not responsible for you or your internet experiences. We protected ourselves back then, we policed and monitored our own internet content and use, and so should you.

The internet is not yours, it’s all of ours. And we got here first, way before you were even born, in some cases. I’ve been on the internet since I was 9, and that’s well over a decade and a half ago. If anything, fandom spaces are made up primarily of adults. Who do you think writes the good content that you consume? Who do you think produces the best art and the best fics? Who do you think writes the well-written, hot, sexy smut you shouldn’t be reading at 3 in the morning?

When we got here, we all assumed that everyone was older than us on the internet. For some reason that’s changed, and now people assume that everyone’s younger, or their age. But we’re all still here. We’ve been here for the past 15, 20 years. Even longer.

There is nothing wrong with us. We don’t owe you anything. You make your own safety on the internet, and you are the one responsible for making sure you’re safe. That’s not on us, it’s on you. 

If you’re uncomfortable talking to an adult on the internet, then you’re more than welcome to unfollow, or block, or whatever. But it’s not our responsibility that you do so. If you want to know something, ask.

also me:

Indeed, I am!

The other three replies, including the original, are serious. 

Jello, Popsicles, and Soup Broth are my legit triggers. I would never joke about that. 

I know it sounds bizarre. But trust me, I’m serious. 

Yeah, yeah, I know it’s Saturday, but learning is fun.

I’ve had seven surgeries in my lifetime and will probably have many more in the future. And one such surgery, which happened about nine years ago, involved really fun (*sarcasm*) things like tubes that are shoved up your nose and end up in your stomach (I know, I didn’t think it was possible either until they did it), eight gallons of really disgusting fluid, pain, lots of pain, and the direct order that I had to evacuate every single bit of food that was inside me.

And that was before the surgery even began!

After the surgery, I had to stay in the hospital for about a month.

And I was on what’s called a clear-liquid diet.

What’s a clear-liquid diet?

For this particular hospital:

Water, Jello, Popsicles, and Soup Broth.

A meal that was delivered to my hospital room three times a day.

That’s all I was allowed to eat.

For those of you who enjoy doing math: I was in the hospital for a month, which is roughly 30 days. I had to eat this meal three times a day. That’s 90 bowls of soup broth, 90 containers of Jello, and 90 Popsicles. Ninety times I had to eat these things. In the span of a month. 90.

Which means that nine years later, I am actually physically unable to eat these three items without vomiting. It’s a sensory trigger.

So why didn’t I talk about this from the beginning instead of enduring four death-threats, six unfollows, and nineteen messages/comments (not including the death threats and the ones that just said ‘Popsicles, Jello, Soup Broth’ over and over again)?

Well, there’s two reasons.

A.) I don’t have to. People don’t ever have to explain why something is triggering to them. Once they say that it is, it should just be a given.

And

B.) The above comment is right. I am a disability advocate. And part of that advocacy includes advocating on behalf of people with triggers. And so, you’ve all been part of a social experiment for the past few hours - an experiment to see how people react when they see that someone has really bizarre triggers (out-of-context).

And I’m a bit sad to say that many of you have failed. Even other people with triggers and/or other advocates. 

So listen because this is really important:

I know that triggers are a sensitive subject and I know that there are people out there who do joke about them.

But there are even more people out there who have triggers that seem really bizarre and even silly.

And you know what?

You cannot invalidate those triggers.

You cannot assume that someone is joking, you cannot assume that they’re mocking other people with triggers that are more commonplace or ‘sensible’, you cannot assume that they are anything less than genuine.

If someone tells you that they have a trigger, you need to believe them, no matter how bizarre it might seem.