You know that feeling? The one where you’re just feeling a bit weighed down with how unremarkable you are… And then, lo! Someone does something nice and sweet as tagging you with an award like this! That is a fantastic feeling, and I thank the Crow for letting me feel it! 😀

What is this Eximius Blogger Award? Well, quoting previous nominating bloggers in this tag:

“The Eximius Blogger Award is an award which symbolizes the exceptionality of every blogger. Eximius is the Latin word for exceptional, and this award is created to honour the exceptionality or uniqueness of every blogger out there. This award is for all those bloggers who put an insane amount of effort and thought into all of their posts and come up with exceptional content! This award is all about you!”

Rules

1. Use the official logo/graphic of the award and display it on your blog post.
2. List the rules
3. Tag the original creator: Riddhi at Whispering Stories and the person who nominated you (which was T. Crow from Crow’s World of Anime)!
4. Mention the most exceptional thing about you and your blog (One about you and one about your blog).
5. Mention one thing you find exceptional about the blogger who nominated you (To show love for the blogging community!)
6. Answer the three questions posed by the person who nominated you.
7. Share your favourite blog post that you’ve written.
8. Tag 7 people! (Because 7 is such a magical number!)

What is exceptional about me?

Why that would be… ME! Of course! 😉

Like the Tigger from Winnie the Pooh, there is only one me and I love it! 😀

Whatever my issues may be, whatever difficulties I endure as a result, I still love to be me. To be unique. To have a different view from others, with which we can challenge all of our standing preconceptions, and learn to become just a little bit better than we were before. Together.

To be “normal,” by comparison, just strikes me as… dull. And even worse: stagnant. I could never live without the freedom to be everything that is me. Sit down and shut up? NEVER! 🙂

What is exceptional about my blog?

Well, there’s how broad my topics are – I still preen a little at having once heard my blog described as “truly diverse” – but, ultimately, I think the most distinguishing feature of this, my humble blog, is Sunday’s Wisdom.

I love to write, so very much, and I love to talk about stories, but, in the end, I feel that it would not be worth my efforts if I did not do something – just something, no matter how small and humble – to spread a little bit of light into the darkness of the world. That’s what Sunday’s Wisdom is really all about: taking lessons from our stories and exploring them, briefly, to say something good that other people may need to hear, which I may need help to remember myself at times.

There are, of course, a number of other inspirational bloggers out there, but, to my knowledge, no one else does it quite like me. I am unique! 😉

And I have rarely felt so gratified as when my weekly little nutshells of inspiration have been answered with gratitude, because someone out there did truly need to hear it. It is a wonderful, humbling feeling to know that I, in my small way, have done at least some good for someone out there. 🙂

Something exceptional about T. Crow?

Heh, I have to admit, I very much appreciate his weekly roundups of anime-related posts! It’s just so neat seeing a little something of our community all knit together. I’ve found some very interesting posts and blogs because he does this! 🙂

My favorite post?

Well, I have a lot to choose from, many of them quite fun, but, I have to say, easily my most favorite is Why I Still Love Anime. It was not only fun, but I actually got a chance to articulate the why of something I love, something which my family doesn’t really get. (despite my best efforts!)

Questions

Why is your favorite anime genre?

…was that supposed to mean “what it is” or “why is it your favorite?” Eh, I’ll just answer both at once! 😉

I tend to like a lot of things, genres included. I have very eclectic tastes, in that way. If I were to pick a favorite genre of anime, though, it would probably be action and adventure! I am a man who loves watching a good fight! Battles and explosions, that’s me! It could have mecha or magic, I don’t care, I just like a good tussle! Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war! And bring popcorn! 😛

If you had to add a new regular feature to your blog, what would it be?

My own work.

I’ve talked about all sorts of stories that other people have made. I also want to make my own. I can easily envision writing and posting poetry. And if I ever complete a story to publish, I would absolutely try to stoke interest in it by posting the first few chapters! 🙂

I’ve actually been tinkering a bit with this already, both the poetry and the novel-writing, but in the rush and tumble of Real Life, I just haven’t managed to actually do it.

My last question has two parts, and they’re integral to each other, so I don’t feel guilty for apparently cheating!

1. 1. What question would you most like me (or anyone else) to ask you about anime?
   2. How would you answer that question?

Why does anime matter?

I would say it matters because every story we tell matters.

It can be fables, myths, books, cartoons, TV shows, miniseries, movies, entire cinematic universes, video games, tabletop RPGs, songs, poems, stories from history, from scripture, from sports, from our own lives… anything that is a story we tell has meaning. They reflect us, and teach us, and shape us. They examine the whole of humanity, its nature and history, its hopes and triumphs and failures, and bring sustenance to our very souls.

That is why anime matters, because of the stories it tells, and because it is part of our collective story.

I tag/nominate the following exceptional bloggers:

Irina of I Drink and Watch Anime
Lynn, the Otaku Author
Scott with his Mechanical Anime Reviews
Never Argue With a Fish
The Spooky Redhead
Matt in the Hat
Anime Hanabi (one I’ve only recently come into contact with, and look forward to hearing from! 🙂 )

My Three Questions:

1. If you could pick one technology (or magic) that is currently fictitious and make it real, what would it be?

2. In all the stories you’ve read or watched, what is the most exceptional heroic moment you can recall right now? Like, what’s your favorite moment that defines someone as a hero?

3. From three different genres, pick your favorite story. They can all be the same type of medium (animated, TV show, movie, game, book, etc.) or they can be different types, but they must be of distinctly different genres.

Have fun! 😀