π Week Notes 078
ποΈ // Jun 21, 2026 - Jun 27, 2026
Summer feels like it's starting to fly by now that we're in the last week of June. Wouldn't say this has been an overly productive week for me, but I have consumed a lot of Japanese media in the last week that has really lifted my spirits.
β½οΈ The USMNT won their World Cup group, but lost their largely meaningless last game against already eliminated TΓΌrkiye in the final seconds to a score of 2-3. Absolutely gross and disappointing switch off moment that will hopefully be a wakeup call heading into the knockout stage against first time participant Bosnia-Hergovizina.
βοΈ We finally got some rain early Thursday morning and some cooler weather to go with it as it's been overcast and about 20Β° F cooler since then. Despite this and regular watering we had some really dry spots appear in our front yard grasp that I suspect are caused by grub damage to the grass roots.
β½οΈ Lots of summer soccer practice this week as my middle daughter's group started up yesterday. The coaches are happy to allow siblings to join into the drills and training as well so it was very much a fun summer soccer camp kind of vibe. My older daughter still has one more week of tryouts to attend next week and then we'll know if she's continuing with that group or not. If nothing else it's been a very good group to train with for a few weeks, but I'm hopeful it will work out for her.
π©π»βπ¦° Mary wrapped up one part time job that's she been doing for about two years this week, and is now moving right into a month of being very busy assisting with Catechesis of the Good Shepherd training, a Montessori-inspired approach to primary school age religious education. Leaving the part time job was bittersweet, as she made a lot of friends there, and was a well respected employee, but in the last year it went from being her main job, to one where she could only pick up a couple of shifts a week here and there. The important thing is that she's getting a lot more paid work in teaching and education roles again.
Playing
- π§ββ The Marvel Super Heroes set dropped this week and I'm really enjoying it so far. My first Premier Draft isn't quite over, but I managed to get to 5 wins already with a red-white deck with some burn and flyers in a couple different Mighty Thor bombs. I also played some Marvel Jump-In games and have enjoyed those as well. They only allow 2 wins or 3 losses per entry and give a random rare reward for each win, so it's much better value than previously. I expect to play a lot of those games in addition to conventional Premier Drafts.
Reading
πΈπ Blue Box: Ch.1-20 ππ This has been a monster manga week for me as I took the plunge and signed up for the Manga Plus iOS app Standard plan ($1.99 a month is an absolute steal). I'm now a quarter of the way through the manga equivalent of the first season of the anime and loving it.
π My Dress-Up Daring Vol. 11-15 ππ Pretty satisfactory conclusion to the overarching storyline with a cute epilogue and some wildly tangential and unnecessary filler material to pad out the final volume. The best part about finally getting more of Marin's largely absentee work-life imbalanced father is that he absolutely loves and appreciates Wakana (as he should!). Do I wish there was more? Yes, and I can absolutely see why a third and concluding anime season will be tricky to execute because there's just a lot less story material in the final four volumes, but I hope they can figure something out.
π»β€οΈ Someone Hertz: Ch. 1-13 ππ Started this one on a whim and was instantly charmed by this offbeat slice of life romance between two teen classmates bonding over their unlikely mutual love for a late night comedy radio show and the challenge of getting their one-liner jokes read on air. Half the jokes probably whiz right by me because of translation challenges and my lack of cultural knowledge, but comedic genius, Kurage makes me laugh (And who is he? Your boyfriend? No. Mimei is my good-looking guy.) and Mimei's earnest try-hard approach to the one thing he loves, but doesn't excel at and obliviousness to Kurage's feelings for him is pretty endearing.
π Cannon Master Ch. 1 π The art style is impressive, the setting is interesting, and I'm kind of intrigued to get in on a new manga from the beginning just to see how it develops. Not fully sold on innocent genius student who doesn't remotely grasp how much he surpasses his master, while still saving the day, as a storyline I can get that invested in.
Watching
πΊ Blue Box S1 ππ Stellar first season of the aspiring badminton player falls for basketball star girl high school romance. Lots of unexpected personal connections, inspiration, and heartbreak on and off the athletic court that had me rooting for the supporting cast just as much as the central couple. Very psyched to work through the manga this summer and see what we have to look forward to in Season 2 this fall.
πΊ Witch Watch ππ Five episodes in, I find this anime cute, surprisingly satyrical, and consistently hilarious. The opening sketch in episode 5 between their Tina Fay-like closet-manga-fan instructor, Ms. Makuwa, realizing her favorite fan artist is one of her students and having a mild breakdown, was a tour-de-force roasting of modern manga and its fandom. Really enjoying the expanding cast of supporting characters as well.