So, I'm actually really mad at myself about the last Blog Spotlight post I made. I wanted to go into much greater detail about the blogs and why I liked them, but they ended up getting little more than extended annotations. I had some great blogs there, but I squandered the opportunity to properly "put the spotlight" on them, so to speak. While I may end up going back over those blogs, I figure that for now the best I can do to remedy that error is to just stop making it. As such, I've decided that I will focus on only one blog for each spotlight. The other difference is that I will be looking at these blogs and the effect they've had on me. This whole thing was spawned from me wanting to continue the Liebster Blog Awards thing, so I've decided that since I'm talking about the blogs I love, it's okay to do so from my perspective. So, without further ado, let's start the Blog Spotlight, and properly this time.
The blog I'm looking at this time is KANPAI!, which is run by my good friend Sabishii Miruku. I first found KANPAI! (I'll drop the exclamation mark and italics from here on out) on March 4th by following a link from someone's blogroll. Within a very short period of time, I was sold. Ever since then, I've followed the blog religiously, and I'm always looking forward to new content. So what is it that I like so much about KANPAI? Well, a lot of things, really, like the compact design and the annotated blogroll (those are really classy). But I think what I like the most is the posts, or just as likely the tone with which they are written. The very first post I read on KANPAI was one about 2D and 3D "lives" and how they can bump into each other, sometimes with bad results. It was the first blog post of that kind I had read, and I was able to connect with it on a personal level. While Sabishii's experiences with the two lives colliding were (or seemed to be) much worse than my own, I still felt like I had something in common with him as a person. This post has always felt kind of special to me. Sure, it contains some grammar errors and one of the most confusing header images of all time (what are those things in the middle? Are they hands/arms?), but it's always felt so genuine.
Now, I'm a rather...angsty person. I don't have a particularly high opinion of myself, and I sometimes let that out and have other people hear it. I feel awful when I do. It always feels like I'm saying it out of self-pity or some wish to make others sympathize with me. Even now, I feel awkward and ashamed of myself for bringing it up. Whenever I read my post on inferiority (which I will not be linking to), I always cringe when I see one particular section, because my writing makes it feel like I'm bidding for the reader's affection, even though it was more to provide context for a bigger message. And this is probably why I loved Sabishii's post so much. He mentioned a few...less than stellar situations he was put in. But he did it in a way that was, if anything, endearing. He freely talked about some of his faults and his virtues, and about some tough times he had, and all the while he seemed honest, forthcoming, and not at all piteous. It all felt, if you'll pardon my reusing the word, genuine. I always find that very admirable and inspiring on a personal level.
This blog has done a lot for me as a person. Whenever I get depressed, I often go to KANPAI and remind myself that I'm
just going to feel worse if I foist my problems on others. Then I
re-read some of the posts, which always cheers me up, and I walk away
feeling much better. So yeah, that's the impact KANPAI has had on me. It's a place where I can cheer up, hang out with people I can relate to, and have fun reading about someone else's experiences/perspectives on things. So basically, it's like an online bar I can share with drinking buddies. Kanpai indeed!
So, there's the first (good-ish) blog spotlight! I hope you read the blog and get as much out of it as I did! Here's the link again so you don't have to scroll to the top: http://kanpai.kokidokom.net/
