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Thursday, May 18, 2023

Mini Reviews: Everyone Knows I’m a Good Person, Post-Apocalyptic Vegetable Garden Sub-Game, After I Possessed the Tmall Genie of the School Adonis

Title: Everyone Knows I’m a Good Person
Author: 糖尾帅
Chapters: 176 chapters + 1 extra
Publication: 2019
Summary from Novel Updates:

Shi Qing’s task was to be a protector.

It was only after transmigrating to various worlds and eagerly counterattacking the villains there that he realized he was the biggest villain out of everyone.

– A king that liked to conquer other worlds

– A Film Emperor that had a malicious personality

– A Blackened Young Master with deviant intentions

– A Schoolyard Bully that was overbearing to others

Afterwards the gong that initially despised Shi Qing discovered:

– The Machine King that seemed like an invader was really a million-year-old baby

– The Film Emperor that seemed malicious was secretly helping upcoming actors

– The Young Master that seemed to harbor deviant intentions was a pure-hearted young boy

– The Schoolyard Bully that seemed overbearing was secretly in love

In the end….

The entire world: He’s such a good person!

5 STARS - I LOVED IT

MY REVIEW: 

I love Shi Qing. His shamelessness knows no bounds. His internal thoughts to himself and his system were hilarious. I love how he knew how to appreciate the situations and didn't break OOC even though he really wants to at times. His acting skills were top notch, and his ways of whitewashing himself were hilarious or ingenious or both lol.

The film emperor arc was definitely one of my favs just because of how funny it was. I nearly busted my gut at one point! The mermaid arc was also super funny because of the gong. The uncle arc was also super cute. I loved it!

The ending was also satisfactory. Not super rushed, and it explained a lot of details. I'm sad to see Shi Qing and his lover go.


Title: Post-Apocalyptic Vegetable Garden Sub-Game
Author: 西大秦
Chapters: 114 chapters + 3 extras
Publication: 2020
Summary from jjwxc:

In the last days, all matter collapsed, and the whole world was reduced to wasteland.

People do tasks in a game called "Vegetable Garden" in order to obtain all necessities for food, clothing, housing and transportation, and survive with difficulty.

And this game is a face dog, relatively tolerant and friendly to beautiful players, and ruthless to ugly players.

Zuo Ying died in the fourth year of the end of the world, and returned to four hours before the end of the world. At this time, her face had not been taken away.

This is a leisurely farming game.

This is a fun hacking game.

This is an exciting adventure game.

It's also a... brutal hunting game.

3.5 STARS - I LIKED IT

MY REVIEW: 

I saw Post-Apocalyptic in the title and thought it was a zombie apocalypse world because I just skimmed the summary lol. Either way, this was an interesting read. 

I would say the genre is a mix of infinite flow, online gaming, and slice of life world building with a little bit of farming sprinkled in. The dungeons were interesting, and the action and plot were intense. 

I really liked the slow romance and Zuo Ying's character growth.


Title: After I Possessed the Tmall Genie of the School Adonis
Author: 喝口雪碧
Chapters: 84 chapters + 4 extras
Publication: 2019
Summary from Novel Updates:

If life were likened to god rolling the dice, then Lù YúnFēi is a 6. He’s handsome and smart, save for his abysmal proficiency in English. That is until he met Biān JìnYuán — Bian JinYuan is tall and cool, top of his grade in every exam, and his English results definitely destroy Lu YunFei’s twice over. If he’s a 6, then this guy is simply 666!

Since YunFei is already here, why would there be a need for JinYuan? It’s hard for a mountain to accommodate two tigers, unless one is a male while the other is female. Lu YunFei looked at the other party’s gender, and silently crossed that thought out.

However, not long after he started to treat Bian JinYuan as a rival, he found that after 9pm, he would mysteriously possess Bian JinYuan’s Tmall Genie. (A cat mascot similar to Amazon Alexa or Google Home.)

After possessing the Tmall Genie, Lu YunFei realised that his rival is actually a pauper prince. Lu YunFei who possessed looks, height, and wealth looked at his cards which were almost overflowing with money, and decided to establish his friendship relations. Therefore, since Bian JinYuan lacked money, Lu YunFei hired him to be his English tutor.

Bian JinYuan bought a cake and couldn’t bear to eat it so that he could bring it home for his family. Lu YunFei bought him a large slice of cake the next day.

Having done good deeds everyday, Lu YunFei felt that the invisible red scarf on his chest had gotten brighter.

Until there was a hot post on the school forum: 《Exposé on Lu YunFei – getting the top student to be your lackey, do you really think that it’s all that to have money! 》

The original poster listed down various instances: bag-carrying, bringing water, peeling chestnuts; the school genius was ordered about as if he were a servant. Everyone was enjoying the gossip, when Bian JinYuan who had never posted in the forum before, posted for the first time with his real name.

Bian JinYuan: I don’t need the money, I’m willing, why do you care?

Everyone was scared dumb.

Lu YunFei worried about whether he should bother Bian JinYuan less.

“That’s not necessary, I like being bothered by you.”

“Forget it,” Lu YunFei rejected.

Bian JinYuan thought for a bit: “Then let me rephrase — that’s not necessary, I like you.”

Lu YunFei: ???!!!

Lu YunFei never expected that the mountain is wide and holds many types of tigers. Together, two male tigers can not only run fast, but also fall in love!

3.5 STARS - I LIKED IT

MY REVIEW: 

A fluffy, slow burn, slice of life high school romance with lots of communication and supportive boyfriends.

Sunday, May 14, 2023

Bout of Books 37 Wrap-up

Time Devoted to Reading

I read during the whole week.


My Goals

I want to read at least two physical books off of my TBR list!


Books to Read

  • Wotakoi Love Is Hard for Otaku vol. 1 by Fujita
  • Wotakoi Love Is Hard for Otaku vol. 2 by Fujita
  • I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokpokki by Baek Se-hee
  • Scum Villain's Self-Saving System vol. 1 Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
  • Scum Villain's Self-Saving System vol. 2 Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
  • Bailin and Li Yun by Jayessart
  • Graceling the Graphic Novel by Kristin Cashore & Gareth Hinds
  • Home Body by Rupi Kaur
  • I Name Him Me by Ma Yan, translated by Stephen Nashef
  • The Sun Will Rise & So Will We by Jennae Cecelia
  • The Girl Who Kept Winter by Giao Chi

Updates

Monday
Chapters read today: 78
Currently reading: Little Mermaid Dressed as a Scientist by 顾无痕
Total number of books read: 1
Books finished reading: She is Coquettish and Poisonous [Quick Travel] by 顾无痕

Tuesday
Chapters read today: 49
Currently reading: Little Mermaid Dressed as a Scientist by 顾无痕
Total number of books read: --
Books finished reading: --

Wednesday
Chapters read today: 17
Currently reading: Little Mermaid Dressed as a Scientist by 顾无痕
Total number of books read: --
Books finished reading: --

Thursday
Chapters read today: 19
Currently reading: Little Mermaid Dressed as a Scientist by 顾无痕
Total number of books read: --
Books finished reading: --

Friday
Chapters read today: 12
Currently reading: Little Mermaid Dressed as a Scientist by 顾无痕
Total number of books read: 1
Books finished reading: Little Mermaid Dressed as a Scientist by 顾无痕

Saturday
Chapters read today: 21
Currently reading: How To Raise The Devil’s Child by Lee Eowon & Choi Nuri
Total number of books read: --
Books finished reading: --

Sunday
Chapters read today: 9
Currently reading: The Result of Being Reincarnated Is Having a Master-Servant Relationship with the Yandere Love Interest by Yagi
Total number of books read: --
Books finished reading: --

Total

Chapters read: 205
Number of books read: 2

Welp, I completely ignored my whole reading list and read webnovels and manga instead. Wasn't really in the mood to read during the second half of the week either, so it was pretty light reading. 

Wednesday, May 10, 2023

Active Shooter Situation

Last Wednesday, there was an active shooter on the loose near my office. It was such a surreal experience.

It started out with what seemed like a simple lunch break. Brooks and I were heating up our food on the 21st floor and ate our lunch at a high table next to one of the floor to ceiling windows. I had noticed an ambulance was parked in front of the hospital diagonal to our building, but thought that they were dropping off a patient or something. It wasn't until two more ambulances showed up with their sirens on that we realized something was going on over there. 

Then, one of our teammates stopped by to chat. The next thing we knew, a bunch of State Trooper cars started parking on the road in front of our side of the building, and another cop was taping off the entire road leading to the hospital. 

Directly diagonal to our office is the entrance to Whole Foods. That soon became the epicenter for all of the cops that arrived. More cop cars arrived. More cops running down the street with their handguns and rifles out. A motorcade arrived. Found out an hour or two later that a senator was in the area having lunch, which is why the motorcade was mobilized. 

Meanwhile, we're all refreshing news sites and Twitter trying to figure out what's going on as more and more of us look out the windows. Then, one guy stops by our area and tells us that a mom and her son went to the hospital for a mental health evaluation, he became angry, and pulled out a gun and shot four people!

Not long after that, our building lets out an alarm and statement saying that there's an active shooter situation nearby and that we were currently under lockdown. No one could leave or enter the building. And we're just confused at what is happening. Could we leave this floor? Was the shooter in our building? What's going on outside??? 

So many questions, while armored cars are driving by and more cops and SWAT teams are running around with guns outside.

Meanwhile, we're checking in with our team online to see if everyone's accounted for. Turns out our managers and director went out for a working lunch and were stuck at Grecian Gyro for the next 3-4 hours! Luckily, everyone else on our team was accounted for.

But every 30 minutes, we would get texts from our company updating us on the situation, so that was nice. Apparently, this was a first for our company. Also found out from my teammates that in the past 2 years they've worked here, this was the FOURTH active shooter situation that's happened nearby. This is fucking crazy!

At this point, no one's working. Everyone's pulled up news sites to see what's happening. They finally released the suspect's name and BOLO, and we know what happened to the victims. Meanwhile, the active shooter is still on the loose going towards The High museum. 

Next thing we hear is that he hijacked a car and was heading towards Smyrna, so our lockdown was finally lifted around 3pm. People started leaving the office asap and some had to wait it out because the shooter was heading towards their home! 

I also booked it. I had to cross the street to get to my parking deck, and a lot of the surround roads were still blocked off with lots of cops around. There were also news reporters in surround street corners.

I told my family the latest news and found out that Shelle was in her office in Smyrna that day, so she also went home shortly afterwards. This was good news because we later found out that they blocked off the roads near the Braves Stadium not long after that to catch the shooter, so she could have been stuck for hours if she hadn't left so soon.

They later caught the guy in Smyrna around 8pm, which was good news! The bad news is that my company still expected us to come into the office the next day because we had a town hall. Ridiculous! 

But yeah, it was pretty surreal and scary when everything happened. It really hit me that I only know how to use dark humor to distract myself and my friends when intense situations occur. The whole day seemed like a fever dream. I can't believe it happened, and I feel so bad for all of the victims and their families. 

Monday, May 8, 2023

Bout of Books 37

I'm really trying to get back into reading physical books and making a dent in my TBR pile, so I'm joining the Bout of Books readathon again!

Bout of Books

The Bout of Books readathon is organized by Amanda Shofner and Kelly Rubidoux Apple. It’s a weeklong readathon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 8th and runs through Sunday, May 14th in YOUR time zone. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are reading sprints, Twitter chats, and exclusive Instagram challenges, but they’re all completely optional. For all Bout of Books 35 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

My goal is to read at least four physical books this week!


Here's a list of potential books I'll read this week:
  • Wotakoi Love Is Hard for Otaku vol. 1 by Fujita
  • Wotakoi Love Is Hard for Otaku vol. 2 by Fujita
  • I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokpokki by Baek Se-hee
  • Scum Villain's Self-Saving System vol. 1 Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
  • Scum Villain's Self-Saving System vol. 2 Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
  • Bailin and Li Yun by Jayessart
  • Graceling the Graphic Novel by Kristin Cashore & Gareth Hinds
  • Home Body by Rupi Kaur
  • I Name Him Me by Ma Yan, translated by Stephen Nashef
  • The Sun Will Rise & So Will We by Jennae Cecelia

Wednesday, May 3, 2023

Books I Want to Read This Month

I don't think I read any physical books since this year started. I'm planning on doing a reading challenge this month, so I want to try to read some of the books off of this list!

  1. Wotakoi Love Is Hard for Otaku vol. 1 by Fujita
  2. Wotakoi Love Is Hard for Otaku vol. 2 by Fujita
  3. I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokpokki by Baek Se-hee
  4. All of Us Villains by Amanda Foody & Christine Lynn Herman
  5. Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation vol. 1 by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
  6. Scum Villain's Self-Saving System vol. 1 Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
  7. Scum Villain's Self-Saving System vol. 2 Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
  8. The Reaper and the Waiting by Jayessart
  9. Bailin and Li Yun by Jayessart
  10. Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? Familia Chronicle Novel vol. 1 by Fujino Omori
  11. Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? Familia Chronicle Novel vol. 2 by Fujino Omori 
  12. I Name Him Me by Ma Yan, translated by Stephen Nashef
  13. The Anatomy of Being by Shinji Moon
  14. Home Body by Rupi Kaur
  15. The Sun Will Rise & So Will We by Jennae Cecelia

Monday, May 1, 2023

April in Retrospect

This month flew by so fast! I read a lot and finished a lot of anime!

I read: 

  • Too Bad Master Died Early by 治病神仙水
  • I Don't Deserve This Rich Man by 林绵绵
  • Master, May I Suck It Up? by 핥넝쿨
  • Using a Wok to Reorganize Life and Fly to Immortality by 盐焗大龙虾
  • Senior Green Tea Turned Into an Abused Heroine by You Ying
  • I Just Want to Be in a Relationship by 连朔  [reread]
  • The Artist and the Beast vol. 1 by Koda
  • The Artist and the Beast vol. 2 by Koda
  • The Artist and the Beast vol. 3 by Koda
  • The Artist and the Beast vol. 4 by Koda
  • The Artist and the Beast vol. 5 by Koda
  • Hakui no Kedamono ~Sensei no Yubi de Kanjichau~ vol. 1 by Rion Nanao
  • Hakui no Kedamono ~Sensei no Yubi de Kanjichau~ vol. 2 by Rion Nanao
  • This Venerable One Really Didn’t Abandon My Familiar by 池翎
  • A Villainess Needs to Have the Ability of a Villainess by 苏钱钱


I watched: 

  • The Reincarnation of the Strongest Exorcist in Another World (2023)
  • The Iceblade Sorcerer Shall Rule the World (2023)
  • BOFURI: I Don't Want to Get Hurt, so I'll Max Out My Defense Season 2 (2023)
  • Recovery of an MMO Junkie (2017)
  • Worst Roommate Ever (2022)