154. My Communities

Like anyone who has been acquainted with the internet for a few years, I belong to quite a number of online communities. Most of them I have abandoned due to lack of interest or inactivity, but I took a look at a few places that I still pay visit, and thought about why I continued to visit. The following is a summary of all of the communities to which I call myself a member and which accepts me as one.

1. Detective Conan Forum (ProBoards)
I first stumbled upon the forum in 2005, from another website called DC's Mystery Files hosted by an administrator called Pound. Perhaps it was due to the main website losing popularity, the forum became the main place for a group of Detective Conan fans. When I joined, the fan art section was very busy with new uploads daily. The average age of the members were around 16 years old, and so we spoke in a similar demeanor and got along. The board began to become inactive when most of the moderators went off to college or began to work, and by 2008 it was almost abandoned. Some of the members, like me, continue to check the forum once every few weeks to leave a note of greeting. For holidays, we would also wish each other well.

2. Sora-mado (Weathernews Network)
The first time I saw Weathernews was on Youtube in early 2010, where they posted daily videos of their 24-Hour weather channel. I followed the Twilight program for a few weeks, listening to my favorite weather girl Ms. Arisa. I was also learning Japanese, or so I told myself. I joined the mailing list soon after and then joined the live-chat community, Sora-mado, when I lived in Japan. It was very liberating to pop into the chat at anytime, and leave a message commentating on whatever is showing on screen, or exchange greetings with random members. Sometimes, the weather reporters would set polls in which community members could vote by the press of 1 out of 4 buttons. I do not check it as often now, but each time that I do, I feel very much welcomed.

3. Team-B no Fan yori (チームBのファンより on Goo)
This blog is a special little community of its own. The main writers are two older Japanese businessmen in their 50s, who would comment on the Japanese pop industry, especially relating to female idol groups. It opened my eyes to a subculture of idol-writing, where the old men are 100% serious about their hobby. In some of their pieces, they analyze TV ratings with statistics, pasting pages of numerical charts into their writing. It was here that I learned of many recent events by the AKB idol group, and also where I met my friend B, who hung out with me in Akihabara after only one email exchange. I check the blog weekly to see what the old men are interested in, to learn proper Japanese writing, and to sometimes submit some of my own opinions on the entertainment industry in Japan.

4. YouTube
I am ashamed to admit, but I have attempted to become a respected member of YouTube from 2008-2009. I did not leave messages or upload video replies to videos made by popular users, instead, I made very crude videos of myself singing in a dark room, and made a lot of them. Some of my real-life friends loved them, but soon I began to dislike them for their low quality and boring composition. I then made most of them unavailable to the public. However, from time to time, I would still upload videos taken with my crude camera, but I would intentionally leave myself out and have something else become the subject. Surprisingly, the videos receive consistent views. I am not a truly active YouTube videomaker, but I am still a member.

5. Last.FM
I installed the Last.fm program on my computer in 2008. As of today, I have around 45,000 songs played. I've heard that Last.fm was the most popular between 2007-2009. I've never joined any heated music-related debates or uploaded videos or pictures of performances (it would also be illegal to do so), but I have used the concert listings to visit bands, as well as having found many musicians that I would not have found otherwise. Some of my best friends in real-life are also connected with me on this website. Aside from all of the above, Last.fm is special to me for two reasons: It was the first website in which I used my current web-handle --- micr0q; It was also the place where I further explored my personality in show, since my most played songs would be displayed for all members of the website to see. I then crafted a profile page full of bands which I thought gave a very positive impression of me as an avid listener as well as someone knowledgeable in Japanese music, before I even went to japan!! Of course, I've embodied the truths until today, and I've tried to abandon the falseness. Today, I still use the program to track my music playback, although the reason is more for record-keeping.

I was inspired to write this summary-blog because I've been isolating myself from the rest of the world, including my online communities, for almost one week, since before New Year's Day. I've been watching classic films such as All About Eve and Japanese dramas such as Karei naru Ichizoku (華麗なる一族). This morning, I awoke from my slumber, and connected with my friends. I spoke to my fan communities about the J-drama, since they were always the ones who watch drams and I was not. I spoke to my high school friends about having dinner tonight. I greeted my Weathernews friends. I read books. It was a very productive day, with a very fun evening ahead. Most importantly, I felt the happiness of being in a connected, human community again. I do not even want to spend time analyzing the significance of that happiness, or if it goes against my philosophical beliefs to sink back into this cycle. I enjoyed today and I hope to enjoy tomorrow equally.

Until next time, when I finish pondering about my trip to Boston and the winter of Toronto.

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Written by micr0q. Copyright 2012. Image completely unrelated to content and does not belong to me. No infringement intended. This is a non-profit blog.