[Status Report] My first note in 5 months. Work, fandom, kimonos, and stand.fm.

It has been a while. I am Nanyo, also known as illustrator and designer Kuzuha Seto.

Before I knew it, it had been about 5 months since my last note update...! Actually, I had written a few drafts, but I couldn't pull them together to post them. I'm sorry, I've returned to note at a leisurely pace (bitter laugh).

During this time, I have been continuing to broadcast on stand.fm (stafm) in a small way.

Actually, over these past 5 months, I have been occasionally sharing my voice on the audio streaming platform "stand.fm (stafm)," and thanks to your support, I have also been busy with illustration and design work, so I have been spending my days feeling quite overwhelmed.

On stafm, I talk about comedy, my fandom activities, "things I'm feeling right now," and "stories as an illustrator" while they are still fresh. Although my speaking is clumsy, I talk about them as I please. However, I still want to leave them behind in writing and illustrations as a "record (database)" that I can read at my own pace and look back on later, so I am facing note again like this.

Today, I would like to write down the stories of my fandom activities and work during those turbulent 5 months as a loose archive.

I have been receiving power from my fandom activities and kimono life.

1. The passion of "fandom activities" that saved my overwhelmed days

Actually, I was exhausted every day from being chased by work, but my heart's oasis was, as expected, "comedy."

I was truly saved by the existence of Suehirogarizu in particular, and occasionally going to their live shows and diligently drawing fan art became my greatest relief.

Last month, I had an experience that I will remember for the rest of my life.
I participated in a studio training session at "Crystal Gym," a training gym run by Magical Lovely's Noda Crystal, and experienced a dream-like small-group training session where I sweated in the same space as my favorite performer...!

I am a person who sits at a desk to work, and I suffer from chronic lack of exercise (& dislike of exercise), so I don't have much stamina. I wanted to resolve my lack of exercise, but I hate exercising. However, I thought that if it was Crystal Gym, which claims to be the "world's most fun" gym with comedians as trainers, then maybe... so I took the plunge and applied, and miraculously, I got a spot.
Even though I got a spot, when I thought about it, I had signed up for a "training session that makes your brain glitch" where you exercise with your favorite performer, despite having a chicken heart (bitter laugh), all thanks to a friend's encouragement (laughs). I also tremble at the thought of myself, a plump citizen, entering the field of vision of my favorite performer...
When I actually went, the trainers were kind, and I found myself talking to them normally as trainers without being too conscious of the fact that they were comedians. (My brain was already glitching here (bitter laugh)).
Also, the fact that I was exercising with my favorite performer was already making my brain glitch (laughs). The distance between me and my favorite performer, whom I usually watch on stage, was so close that it was a strange time (laughs) where I held my breath and couldn't keep up with what was happening.

I received power from this strange experience (laughs) of having my distance perception glitched, and it still serves as a source of my power today.
The strange experience (laughs) of having my brain glitch while exercising with my favorite performer had such great power that it even moved me, who is bad at exercising.
Even without my favorite performer, Crystal Gym is the "world's most fun gym" where comedians are the trainers. If you are interested, please check it out.
It was so much fun that if it were closer, I would want to join an unlimited plan. Even if you hate exercising, this makes you want to exercise, and it increases your desire to lose weight (laughs).
(To be honest, I wanted to lose some weight before going to the gym, but I couldn't say that; I had to go if I had the chance! My friend pushed me, so I went for it despite my plump body 😅)

The Tokyo performance of the Suehirogarizu solo show "Tonbo," which starts this August, is also coming up, and I can't wait for it!
I'm going to get more power from my fandom activities!

2. A new pleasure that spread from comedy: "Kimono Life"

Since I started going to Suehirogarizu's comedy shows, in addition to being able to exercise, there has been one more happy change. That is, "the number of opportunities to go out wearing a kimono has increased."

I have always liked Japanese-Western eclectic styles and Japanese culture, but by having the goal of going out in a kimono to attend Suehirogarizu's live shows, I have started incorporating kimonos into my daily life again like I used to. (There was a time when I was away from kimonos, but I have always loved kimonos themselves, and I still love them now.)

Just by walking around town in a kimono, the usual scenery looks a little different, and I get inspiration for my illustrations and designs. I am still enjoying the feeling of my "likes" expanding further, triggered by my fandom activities.
Since I stand out if I'm always in a kimono, I wear Western clothes except for kimono gatherings or solo shows, but I am grateful that I have more opportunities to wear kimonos.
Expeditions in a kimono are tough, but I am managing to go on them 😅

How I'll be using note and Stand.fm from now on

Stand.fm (Staf) for audio streaming, and note for text and photos.
They both have different ways of broadcasting, but from now on, I'm thinking of using them like this.

• Stand.fm (Radio): Stories about illustration and design, comedy-related topics (real-time enthusiasm), and casual daily chats (prioritizing freshness!)

• note (Writing): Fandom summaries, stories about illustration and design, fan art stories, kimono stories, and work-related topics that might be useful to someone (prioritizing a database!)

I plan to steadily accumulate content here on note, such as image-accompanied explanations of things I've talked about on Staf, and columns that incorporate my perspective as a creator.

Whether you're someone who listens to Staf or someone who found me for the first time here on note, I'll be updating at my own pace, but I'd be happy if you'd stick with me. I'd also like to write paid note articles, but that will be for later...💦

Well then, see you in the next article!

You can find Stand.fm (Staf) here.
Illustrator Kusuha's Shoyo Jizai Kyokuban
https://stand.fm/channels/66b7976823b8a447788b6deb