This week I have seriously considered dropping out of university. This is because the university I attend announced that it will be closing down the campus which I am currently attending. This basically ruins my plans for the next year, as I don't even know where I will be going to uni next year, hence I can't move out like I planned to later this year. The extra time that I will also need to travel to my new campus also limits my ability to work and make money to fund me moving out of home. The most frustrating part is that my university claims that the closure of the campus was needed for the growth of the university. Last time I checked, growth meant growing larger, not downsizing. Essentially, I pay thousands of dollars a year for my higher education to be flushed down the proverbial toilet. It gets worse though, those affected are offered counseling to deal with the transition. No offense, but counseling is going to do f*** all in this situation. Anyway, click >>HERE<< to read the entire article of false promises my uni offers. It's like finding out Santa isn't real all over again.
Moving on, I have read Youth Gone Wild by Lee Nicky. For anyone who doesn't know, this is actually a Taiwanese series, and by the same author as the currently popular series 'The One' so something a bit different. I found this quite enjoyable, it is about music, somehow I find that series about music are fairly enjoyable to read. Anyway, the story is about Ya-Ting, a girl who dreams of becoming a top entertainment manager and her quest to create and manage a band to international success. It chronicles the formation and development of 'The Death' and the barriers that they need to overcome not only to succeed in the local music market, but also on the international market, something that is still very difficult for Asian based musicians to achieve (with the exception of fan and niche audiences). I like how the series is somewhat realistic. It emphasizes the role the media plays in the promotion and demise of artists in the entertainment industry and the backstabbing nature of corporations in order to make more money and generate a greater status amongst society. I also like the references to iconic bands such as Guns 'n' Roses, U2 etc. One criticism I do have is the open ending. The story ends with the beginning of the new year, which is being celebrated by the main characters. I found out that at the time of publication, there was a possibility that a sequel to this series may have been commissioned, however, turns out there isn't, so that's it, slightly disappointed.
I have also read Orange Marmalade by Seok-Woo, which is a Korean webtoon series updated weekly and currently ongoing. It is about a female vampire, Ma Ri, who must hide her identity in order to live discreetly amongst human society. She chooses that it is best to shut herself from interacting with others in order to protect herself after a horrible experience in the past. Thus far she has successfully concealed her identity after transferring to a new school, until her cover is nearly blown when she is enticed by the scent of Jae Min and his sweet blood and she attempts to bite his neck (sounds kind of wrong, but apparently his blood lures vampires lol). This is the start of a series of events which lead to Ma Ri to interact with others, eventually befriending a few of her classmates with whom she shares her secret with, while also developing feelings for Jae Min. The series deals with segregation in society, as known vampires are vanished from particular regions upon discovery. In terms of vampires, I find this a realistic scenario if this were an alternate reality, given the scenario that the vampires were suppressed by the humans, that they would slowly adapt to a point that they are indistinguishable from other humans as is the case in this series. Also, this is a webcomic, so the the entire thing is in colour, which i absolutely love!!
Currently, I have started reading Handsome Girlfriend by Yoshizumi Wataru. It is complete at 9 volumes in both English and Japanese. I have thus far just finished the first volume, so we'll see how that goes over the next few days.
Anyways, that's about it for now, until next time :)
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