꒰ Wednesday 08.23.23 ꒱

For the past week, the temperature has been over 100 degrees every single day! It's hot out, so today I wore my light, lacy, linen dress. It's a babydoll-style dress from the defunct mori-kei brand, Wonder Rocket. It pairs nicely with my oversized cream cardigan (for indoor wear..), and a pair of mary janes.

I accompanied my mom as she ran some errands. It's one of my favorite ways to spend quality time with my mom.. we almost always get distracted and end up window shopping or driving around rich neighborhoods to marvel at the huge houses. Today we made a stop at the local Korean grocery store operated by our family friends, a Korean husband and wife pair. I always make it a point to visit them at least once when I'm back in town. They're just the sweetest people, always eager to catch up with my mom and I. And they never let us leave without a free snack or two... Today my mom and I ordered a bibimbap to share. My mom brought along a bottle of sweet tea, while I bought a can of lychee milk to help me deal with the bibimbap's spiciness. (my mom likes to put extra sauce in it..) We drove to a river-side park, where we sat in the shade by the water and enjoyed our meal together. After some errands, we went to a bookstore, where we had fun flipping through history books together.

In the evening, I met my best friend at the theater where we watched The Wind Rises. We've been catching every Ghibli Fest screening this summer. Just yesterday we watched Porco Rosso together! The Wind Rises will be my last Ghibli Fest movie while I'm still in town. Maybe I'll try to catch the rest when I travel back to school. Porco Rosso is my best friend's favorite movie, and for good reason. It's a delightfully charming film, with an enjoyable style of humor. Every character has a loveable quality to them. But at the same time, the tone of the film isnt completely a lighthearted one. It's clear that the peace and merriment being enjoyed by the cast is impermanent, and an impending period of hardship looms in the horizon, lurking in the edges of the narrative. The characters are really well fleshed out, and Porco's character is especially compelling.
As for The Wind Rises, it was a bit different from what one might expect from a Hayao Miyazaki work. It's a biopic that invites you to consider the morality of its protagonist-- it isn't as fantastical as his previous works, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. I really enjoy the contemplative, subtly melancholy tone. It's a story about dreams, and overall the film has a hopeful message, but I couldn't help but feel somber as I was watching it.

I returned home from the theater and got to work writing a letter for my friend. I was full of emotions as I mulled over the themes of The Wind Rises... The wind is rising, you must live your life to the fullest and all that. I ended up writing my friend a long-winded letter that made me a little teary eyed. My fingers were sticky with bottled glue as I tried to decorate the letter with cute paper and stickers.