Late-night musings on romance

If there's one thing I appreciate about anime and manga, it's a specific approach to love and romance that they have.

I mean, there's definitely a lot to argue with, as well; there's a hell of a lot of unhealthy relationships, and there's probably dozens upon dozens of essays about the "tsundere" phenomenon, and that's not even getting into Takahashi. But something I've seen at least twice in anime and manga is the idea that you can love someone without needing the love to be returned, and without your love for them being a burden.

Tomoyo from Cardcaptor Sakura is the first and primary representative of this for me, to the point where I've got an appreciative akoiromantic!Tomoyo post half-outlined, but Ascot from the Magic Knight Rayearth anime also touches on it. And, lest you think this is a CLAMP-only phenomenon, I've finally gotten around to watching Petite Princess Yucie, and the same subject comes up in the mermaid episode.

It's a nice idea, that unrequited love can be healing and non-invasive, that you can celebrate love even when it's not returned, or not returned in the same way you feel it; the idea that you can feel unrequited romantic love for someone and not suffer from it. In Western media it's all angst and bemoaning, and when it's not it tends to be tragedy and/or martyrdom. But the concept that you can be happy just loving someone is an important idea, I think, and I'd love to see it more often.

(That said, I do like a good pining narrative; I just don't want it to be the only represented possibility, especially for all the akoi-attracted folks out there.)

Bad Decisions

[Content warning: Blood mention (in the context of donation)]

So I went out to donate blood yesterday afternoon, and finally made the iron cutoff! Hooray! The center switched machines recently, and the new ones aren't as fast as the old ones, which was a bit irritating, but I got the job done and made it home a pint lighter.

Almost as soon as I get settled in, this conversation occurs:

Dad: So, Socchan, what's tomorrow look like for you?
Me: *already suspicious* It's pretty wide open.
Dad: Think you can help me move a heavy couch into the house? :D?
Me: *...facepalm* Can it wait until the afternoon? I don't remember if it's twelve hours or twenty-four hours after donating that I'm supposed to wait to lift heavy things, but I'd rather play it safe.
Me: *thinking* I'd rather play it really safe and not do any heavy lifting at all for at least three days, but that's not gonna happen.
Dad: Sure, whenever you're ready!

So this afternoon I went out and helped Dad move the old couch out, and the new, much heavier (as advertised) couch in. It was a huge chore that took well over an hour and included a break for me to go to the store to get Poweraide. I don't normally go for sports drinks, but after drinking probably a quart of water and still feeling sluggish, it was very well justified. Worked wonders.

I still told Dad that he's getting someone else to move the couch the next time he wants to make a switch.