Hello people of Neocities and the greater web in general. I believe I mentioned this in my last entry, but here's a look back on my 2024 in terms of collecting. 2024 was a pretty exciting year for me, and I truly delved back into it. I think I've mentioned previously that I had to end up selling most of my collection due to some financial turmoil due to an accident that happened. I don't really want to go that into that, but it sucked to sell everything I had previously. For a while, I was convinced that I'd never have a collection again. But enough doomer talk for now, let's look at the positives that the year brought for me.

I do want to make a quick tangent though, before I really get started. The first is the state of my collection prior. So let's go back in time, since I've never really shown off my collection. For a while I had sold pretty much everything I had. And while I didn't have like a lot (I honestly really have kept most of my collection contained to a single detolf as it's all I felt I had room for). It was really just 2 prize figures, some older nendoroids I failed to sell due to Love Live declining in popularity, and a Maplestory figure. It was in a pretty sad situation until I got into IDOLiSH7. From there, I ended up going in on my Yamato shrine, considering he was my main Oshi, and then also attempted to start collecting the Nendoroids when I saw they were releasing Tamaki, the 2nd i7 Nendo. Normally, I wouldn't really bother trying to collect stuff that wasn't my oshi, becuase committing to a collection from a series has always seemed kinda hard for me. But with i7, I was ready to make the leap. So I preordered Tamaki, and was able to grab a Sogo along with him as well off Amiami. That was 2018. 2019 I was able to get Riku and Tenn off of GSC's English site for the preorder bonuses. So my collection was beginning to grow again, and I was super happy and--And then the pandemic hit. Needless to say, outside of getting a single Sandalphon Nendoroid, my desire to collect kinda tanked along with my ability to sustain my hobby as the pandemic brought a lot of bad things. So 2020 was my last orders I got in, and that was it. Hell, I had to cancel a lot of stuff, actually. And so my cabinet sat there, looking pretty empty.

Seriously, it went from this, from before I sold it all (Though, some stuff is missing in this photograph still,) to this. I don't think I had a picture of how things were before I started collecing i7 though.

I'm not saying the 2nd one is bad, it's definitely very clean in the end. But it went from feeling very loved (and to be honest, that first shot is still lacking some stuff) to a bit on the sterile side. Almost lacking. Though, I did get a fair share of praise for that design, the Yamato shrine ended up being a double edged sword. Some people called it "dedication" but it was closer to "obsession" than anything. In the end, it ended up being very toxic, where my collection was just becoming more of a check list of what I had rather than how I actually felt about the character. And that's never a good sign. It began to just pile up in the closet instead of being displayed because I was buying for the sake of buying. I told myself I had locked in and I didn't want to give up on something I had committed to, especially at this level.

I'll wait to get into my choices on what I did with the Yamato shrine. It's not completely gone after all. But I feel like it's a story worth sharing for those who might want to read. After all, another user on MFC shared their story on decluttering and how holding onto the idea of treating this kind of hobby like it's your responsibility rather than something you do for fun can just get overbearing. They described it as eventually feeling like a prison, and I definitely felt that over the time of the pandemic. It was a bit easier to ignore when I was raiding, but as things passed by and I had skipped 2 of FFXIV's raid tiers recently, it was getting a bit more obvious how much of a toll the shrine and "locking in" had taken on me.

Needless to say, I came across a local store during 2023 around my birthday, and ended up buying 2 prize figures that were completely unrelated to i7. This was just a much needed break, and I feel like if I hadn't caved and bought 2 impulse buys, I would have never mentally allowed myself to collect again. So thanks to the Rei-Q & Miku figures of 2023 that got me to 2024.

January, 2024

I guess I should get into my collecting for the year proper then. Last year, I had accomplished one major achievement in terms of gaming. I finally decided to sit down and commit to progging the Epic of Alexander. I had let others in old XIV groups that I don't dare to associate with any longer sit there and tell me how I'd never clear savage or ultimate because they couldn't do that, so how could someone who played even less than they had ever clear a savage? Because clearly your play time is tied to your skill level. After being berated with all that stuff, I let that completely overtake me (Honestly, some of that spilled into collecting because right after that is when I got heavily into i7.) For years, I believed I was incapable of clearing stuff, incapable of performing anything well enough, and so unlikable that nobody would have me. But eventually, with Shadowbringers I had started actually doing and attempting savage again and cleared Eden's Verse and then later Eden's Promise. Sure, the clears weren't great or anything, but I felt like I was actually able to do stuff. And then, eventually, I found myself face to face with the Ultimate Weapon. Skip forward to post Pandaemonium, and we got our UwU clear. I found myself attempting DSR & UCOB as well, but didn't quite get where I was. Later in 2023, a friend wanted to do TEA, and thus, we worked hard and eventually got the clear. We continued our clears as far as Christmas Eve and New Years Eve as well. It was honestly great.

Yes, that is the bootleg Futaba & Joker for memes. And yes, I absolutely missed a better achievement pop, but it was too late. It only pops once, after all.

Needless to say, a few months passed but I found myself wanting that Perfect Alex shirt, as well as some friends, so we definitely had to get that. I did also decide to do yet another playthrough of Tales of Vesperia. Tales of Vesperia is easily my favorite of the Tales games. I'm sure people who have played the Tales series are probably sitting there like "WHY?" but hear me out: As Kimi once put it, something being a 10/10 is great, but the 7/10s are the ones that stick with you. Tales of Vesperia is definitely that 7/10 in the series for me. Like there is no excusing how bad that last arc is. It just all fell apart. Everything that could have been is so sad to me lol. Anyways, replaying Vesperia honestly got me to buy a bit of merch again. But this time, I finally went for Altair's 1/8 Raven scale. And that was how I started the year.

February, 2024

So, I usually do one of my big orders either at the end of the year for proxies, or in the middle of the year, when my birthday falls. I had done a group order for Christmas 2023, but it took all the way until February to ship out and then get to my place solely because of one Winston Overwatch Acrylic Stand Preorder that a friend made as a meme. I can't even be mad at it either. It was legitimately funny. Needless to say, with the exception of shipping Raven & the shirt out separately due to weight adding so much more to the box, I got those back in January and got the rest of my order during February. It was a lot of plush. That, plus 1 acrylic stand from the Cystore, and a Doujinshi honestly rounded out what I got. I got quite a few gifts for friends, which I didn't take pictures of. And also got a few gifts as well. I really love the Pikachu, super cute, super soft. He stays on my bed.

March-April, 2024

I don't think I got anything much in terms of like... Anything for March. Nor did I get anything for April. At least not in terms of merch. I did get a new phone, which meant a new phonecase as well. I also got a few fanmade stickers for XIV, but that was about it. It's not a luxurious phone or anything, but I had my old one for like 4 or so years and it was getting slow and having issues with incoming calls, and I had no idea how to fix it, so it was definitely time for a new one.

May, 2024

Oh boy. So, most of this month was similar to the last. I stuck mostly to playing XIV when I wasn't burnt out and had spent a lot of the last 2 months watching YGO with friends. And that was my downfall. All it took was 1 bad day due to an incredibly distressing run in with my dad and a Memorial Day Sale on GSC US's website and I ended up with a friend shoving a wad of cash in my hand and saying "Buy that Pop-Up Parade Seto Kaiba." I didn't think it was that big of a deal, but it definitely got the ball rolling.

June, 2024

So, June is my birthday month. And most times for my birthday, I honestly just get money. This doesn't super phase me, becuase it means I can buy whatever the hell I want. And I sure did buy whatever the hell I wanted. I'm trying to remember the bulk of what I decided to buy, but I'm pretty sure I did a proxy order ontop of buying another scale. But only the scale came in June. And that scale was one of the rereleases of Kotobukiya's 1/7 Seto Kaiba. Uh... yeah. I bought a lot of him this year. And a lot of Miku. In fact, I'd say they're 95% of what I bought. I think ontop of that, I ended up getting a re-ment blind box. One of the little Pokemon terrariums. I got Snivy, but I remember really wanting Marshtomp. I'm fine with Snivy though. Snivy was the starter I chose for BW back when I got them, even though I didn't end up finishing those games (Nothing to burn you out like playing all of Gen4 as if you're playing competitively.) I just wish I didn't sell them, because Pokemon physical copies cost so much these days. Aside from that, I also ended up getting the Legendary Decks around this time of year, I think? It was a YGO collection in a gold box that they sold at target. Mostly because I remember my sister being like "you have to learn how to duel RIGHT NOW." But we never dueled because she lives a state away and we don't see eachother too often. Oh well. Also, I got a Sunday plush as a bday gift from a friend. He's super cute!

July, 2024

July is where most of my birthday loot came in, ontop of me buying more stuff on a whim. Man, around this point in the year, it feels like things became so hard to track, but it's because the buying ramped up so much.

So, I remember getting a haul of mostly Miku stuff & YGO stuff, as well as another Koto 1/7. I wish I remember what else I got, because I feel like without a wall of pictures, it's a bit hard to navigate. Which isn't good! I'm out here constantly thinking "Wow, I should cut back on my consumerism," but then I end up buying large hauls. I guess the only thing that's positive is that I get most of the stuff I buy from Japan second-hand, but that doesn't mean I don't need to cut down, probably. Oh well, before that becomes another tangent, I suppose I'll let the images talk for themselves. I do regularly try to keep things to birthday hauls and christmas hauls normally though. Basically, what I'm trying to say is, this year was a bit of an anomaly for me.

Aug-Sept, 2024

I don't think I got anything related to my hobbies until late September, to be honest. August is a birthday month in our family. Right after it, in the start of September, is another birthday. I usually tend to put a decent amount of my money toward that, outside of the basics. But I did get some stuff later in September. Another small Miku prize figure order. Honestly, the prize figures are so addicting. A long time ago, I used to be very against buying prize figures. However, when I started collecting DIO, I kind of gave up on that position. Also, since then, prizes have improved a lot, so I don't mind it as much. They're a great way for people to get into this hobby on a budget. Why break the bank on scales when you can get some of these for 10-15 USD average?

I think during this, I also ended up getting the Cinnamoroll BEWDs off Mercari. I didn't really want to give my money to McDonalds directly, but I also feel like turning around and paying someone for giving McDonalds money isn't a good look either. I feel like every time I end up buying is due to some bad encounter with family. Not a good habit, to be honest. That, and retail therapy is just an issue on its own, I know. I'm bad when it comes to spending in that way. IDK, I feel like this blog post is just telling on me and where my mental state was this year. Basically, outside of the hobby, stuff wasn't good.

This picture made it to the front page of MFC one day.

Oct, 2024

October was yet another proxy order. A friend wanted to do one, and he ended up gifting me a few prize figures. I always feel so bad when I can't give an equal gift. Honestly, the instant I get a job and have better spending money, the instant I'm getting him something really cool. I had a few ideas, but I have no final choice yet. It'll probably be one of the Pokemon Center exclusives though. Or who knows, maybe I'll get all 3 of the ones I had planned for him. Getting gifts is fun, but seeing people love what you give them is another thing entirely.

Either way, this order was more Mikus & DMG. I love the HereDitail DMG. She's so cute. I feel like that's all I say about my figures though. But her colors are so vibrant, the base is super cute, and for a prize she's super nice. The size of her is pretty impressive as well, and the pose is fun. Generally a great figure for a really affordable price. One day, maybe I'll be able to compare her to a scale DMG, but I'll worry about that later.

I also got that really cute Kaiba plush that came out. I love this little (big) guy. What a friend. Absolute unit. I had to have him.

Nov, 2024

I'm sure anyone who's looked at this site might remember me bringing up how bad November was for me. I don't really want to go into detail about it, there's other posts on that topic already. But, I did get some stuff. 2 of which were scale figures. First, I finally got my 1/8 Koto Yukari! She's so nice! I'm so happy to finally have a Touhou scale of a character I love. Touhou has always been really special to me, even if I fell off it at some point. There's something about it I just love, especially when it comes to the music. Either way, this Yukari is stunning and I feel pictures don't do her justice. They just never capture the pearl on her gloves and stockings and make her seem kind of flat, which is a shame. I was so surprised, finally seeing her in person. Either way, I got her for a steal. She was B/B on Suru due to box damage and I ended up getting her for 22 USD. I'm a bit sad she didn't come with her puzzle preorder bonus, but I'm fine without it. I don't know why I wanted it so bad. Probably due to the novelty, but I eventually gave up on it. I mostly told myself "When are you going to build an anime girl puzzle anyways? You don't even have the space for it." It is true though.

I also ended up getting my first NSFW figure, Clumsy Maid Lily. I had never ordered an NSFW figure. Originally I thought she was cast off, but no, her parts are just straight up interchangeable. It's really funny having a spare naked butt and boobs sitting around in my stuff, but like, I'm honestly never going to use them outside of reviews. Honestly, more of the reason I wanted her had to do with the similarity to my old Mabinogi character, with the light pink hair and the fact that one of my main glamours was indeed a maid dress for a while. I thought for a long time on whether or not I wanted her. She legit didn't leave my thoughts for like 3 months, I feel. I also admittedly put a modesty skirt on her, crafted with tulle and lace while watching One Piece. I really didn't want her entire underwear showing. Really glad I did because when my mom stepped in my room on Christmas she was like 'OH, WHAT'S WITH THE ONE WITH HUGE BOOBS?' It was incredibly awkward. Sometimes you just need a girl with big boobs. That's all.

I believe I got a few other things, but when we did an order, most of what we got was my friends. I still need to ship some of it to him. Honestly, that's the first goal for the new year. But I'm hoping that if I ask him (and if I get around to all the other things I do), he'll let me do a review on one of his, before I send it out. But I told myself not to ask unless I get all the other things I need to finish done first. And here we are, where I'm not done. Other than that, I got a CC & a black friday deal on the Bakura Nendo. I admittedly signed up for Cashapp to get that paid for, because I don't trust GSC US much anymore. Truth be told, after I finish paying off my preorders, I will probably not use their site again.

Dec, 2024

Finally, we are at the end of the year. December was pretty decent to me, until the end of the month. I'll be missing Oscar for a while, as he's kinda been most of what I think about lately, and how his abscence has impacted everyone's life around him. Notably Felix, but honestly, everyone is just so sad. I guess that's why I've tried to keep this blog really positive. But truth be told, I've just been having dreams about walking him. It's weird. I always have vivid nightmares, but when a dream is allowed to just be a dream and not some horrifying vision of the worst possible outcome, it's only something mundane. Just a memory.

Okay, moving on before I make myself depressed.

I only got a few things, December. I dedicated most of my money towards Christmas shopping. I did finally pay for a preorder on the Futaba Pop-Up Parade that I had made a while back on a whim, but she's pretty cute. I also got a set of Yugi & DMG prizes from a proxy order. My friend got them as a set of 2 each, and gave the other 2 to me. They look so nice considering we paid like 2000 yen total for 4 figures. My only complaint is how they stay on the base, but it's not the worst. It can always be fixed with a bit of blue tack, after all.

Last but not least, I did get a new PC. My friend helped me pay for it after the absolute meltdown of the hack. I don't think I could ever express how grateful I am, even if I told him that through tears after we got it. Everything was so nervewracking and honestly, my biggest fear was not being able to get into contact with my friends again after the hack. I felt like if I lost them, then somehow nothing was worth it at all. But I got lucky. The positive thing about raiding with people for years is the times you exchange phone numbers with the pleas of "wake me up before raid!" So I had 2 of their numbers.

With that said, I had a really good year, looking back on it. 2024 really wasn't that bad. Yeah sure, there were some absolute downers, but I generally feel incredibly fortunate. For 2025, I hope it can be just as good, despite what's going on in the US. I won't let my year be robbed by a hateful politician and all the hate his cult breeds towards people just trying to live their lives. I'm going to strive to have a great 2025 in spite of his... orageness. And I hope you all have a great 2025 as well.

Anyways, I'm off for now. I'm going to go do my 2kki expeditions before returning to all my back-end changes I need to do. If I'm lucky, I'll get a few other things formatted here as well. Originally I was going to do a room tour, but I decided to keep that out of this one. I'll aim for that after the Ikea trip, once I get the bookshelf I've been dying to get for the last few months.

While editing this and checking everything before putting it up, a kitty came to our door. We thought we heard our gate outside and when I opened the door to check, I saw him. He stared at me for a little while, meowed, and ran off. First visitor of 2025.