On a more serious note...

I'd like to take a break from manga for a sec to write about something that's been on my mind.

For those who don't know, a long time ago I have had problems with my blood sugar, When it was low I'd be spacey and a little...stupid. Around the end of march I had my first fainting episode. All I remembered before I had it was my leg cramping, my heart racing, and my blood pressure was going up and down creating a pulsing sensation in my body and head. I said "I don't feel well" and I closed my eyes. I woke up on the floor a minute later to my sister holding an icepack to my face. Apparently I had passed out and hit the wall with my face (I even left a little bloodstain). The EMT's (or paramedics) took my blood pressure and said it was extremely low, so they gave me oxygen to raise it. I was crying because I was scared to go to the hospital but my sister comforted me and said it would be ok. I went to ER and I had an IV and blood test. Everything was normal. They diagnosed me with a fainting spell. After I had been monitoring my blood sugar by snacking frequently and having occasional glucose tablets as told by my doctor. We thought everything would be ok. Until last Thursday where I fainted again.

I had woke up early because it was my niece's picture day, so we had to get her ready. I went to the bathroom first and was then going to eat but I had to watch her for a sec. Both my legs were cramping and my heart was racing. I was scared. I then felt pulsing in my head and I said "My blood pressure is going up and down" and I closed my eyes and woke up 5 minutes later on the floor to my sister saying I passed out, again. What really shook her up was that my brother was smacking me trying to wake me up and it wasn't working. My arms were huddled up and I was groaning, my lips had turned white and my sister was afraid I stopped breathing. I felt so bad for her. I thought "Ok I'm never gonna scare my sister like that again!", so much for that. This time four police officers came because they thought that a four-year old had passed out. Not a nineteen year old (soon to be twenty). The EMT's took me to the hospital were I was taken to pediatric ER (it goes up until 25). This time I had no IV but I did have my first CT scan of my head. Thankfully nothing was found, but it still didn't explained why this happened again. I had an interesting experience this time, the nurse brought me back from radiology and I asked in a polite, adult-like manner. "Excuse me miss but is it possible for me to go to the bathroom?" She then replied to her fellow nurses "Ms. Kayla wants to go Pee-pee!", I was a bit embarrassed. So I went back home where my family and I were still shooken up. My sister, who had a history of seizures and my brother believe both times that I had fainted, I've was also having a seizure. I was frustrated with my self that this was happening and that now, I couldn't travel or be left alone. Now when I was in middle school I worked hard to gain the privilege of traveling alone to school and in high school I gained the privilege of traveling alone (but not at night, for safety). So I felt like I had a major regression where I couldn't travel or be left alone and I do understand why. I just hope I can get this stuff sorted out before I go into college... So now this week I'm awaiting both my birthday and my neurology appointment. Wish me luck!

Breaking the gender barrier

Hey guys, How you doin'? Let's see, I'm FINALLY finished with my art portfolio and next Monday is my portfolio presentation, and tuesday is my birthday :). I'm really exited that I'm going to show off my work to the college I really want to go to. So wish me luck! So lately I've been reading some shoujo manga. For those who don't know, Shoujo is another word for Girl, just as Shonen is another word for boy in japanese. Shoujo manga is basically manga for girls. Shoujo manga often has themes of Romance and slice-of-life. They also can go into fantasy and adventure. Shoujo manga is also characterized by a very pretty, elegant art style. One that focuses on beauty and flowing images. I'm not putting it down cause I do like shoujo manga. Like Moyocco Ano's "Sugar Sugar Rune", or Kiyoko Arai's "Beauty Pop". Shoujo manga is typically done by Female artists and Shonen manga is typically done by Male artists. I thought that was natural in the manga world, but then I realized that there are a few shoujo artist who dare to break this barrier. Nowadays I've been seeing shonen manga done by, get this, Female artists. Here are some prime examples, Rumiko Takahashi is a legendary shoujo AND shonen artist. She is known for manga that use styles from shoujo art and uses them for shonen works. Like "Urusei Yatsura", "Ranma 1/2" (yeah you thought a GUY drew that) and the super popular "Inuyasha". It blew my mind, that it was a female artist behind this boy (and girl) centered wonders. It blew my mind more when I discovered that a manga artist from Shonen Jump was rumored to be a man but was really a woman! That woman is Katsura Hoshino, most known for her super shonen manga, "D. Gray-man". The translators thought she was a man too. But he was really a she! And I look at her style now and I see slight, hints of shoujo in it, but I do like her stylized shoujo/shonen art style. I want to be that kind of artist. I want my comics to appease to both genders. I don't want to be bound by gender to only do Girly comics (no offense). I like to make a style that isn't bound by gender, which is why I'm focusing on making my girls feminine and my guys manly at the same time (see previous posts for more info). Recently I've stumbled upon a comic book who's creator broke the gender barrier for the first time.

MANGA REVIEW: Arata: the legend

Story and art by: Yuu Watase

Now for those who don't know who Yuu Watase is, Watase is a well-known Shoujo artist, most known for her works like "Absolute boyfriend", "Imadoki" and her super popular "Fushigi Yugi". "Arata: the legend" is her first Shonen comic. It's about two Arata's in two worlds. One Arata lives in one world where he is the male heir to the matriarchal Hime clan who keeps peace among the land, who usually pass down power to girls. However, Arata was born a boy and raised as a boy, until his grandma listed him as a girl when he was born and forces him to cross-dress as a girl and succeed the current matriarch to maintain balance in the land. His friend Kotoha, a nice girl, still stands by his side as his aid and friend. All goes well until Arata is caught in the middle of an attempted murder of the matriarch and is framed. In our world, Arata Hinohara is a boy starting high school who has constantly been bullied since middle school. Arata some how encounters a weird occurrence where another Arata has come from his world and the two meet and switch places. Now Arata Hinohara has come to the other Arata's world in his place and must set things right in the land. The style still has alot of shoujo in it but it's simplified and action heavy enough to be a shonen comic. The story is well written as Watase is a well known manga artist and writer. I like it because it's a different direction in Watase's work. This time the protagonist is male and the story itself is more action heavy than watase's other works. It's also a big deal that a shoujo artist has decided to do shonen work. The story though is not limited to boys as alot of girls read it also. It has less action than some other shonen works I know, so it's in between shoujo and shonen. Like a tomboy of manga. It's still a really good work. I like that it's a different direction that still holds the essence of Watase's works. Because it's hard to transition to another genre without completely changing everything about the style and way of writing. If you want to go into another direction in your work or another genre, It's good when it still has a bit of you in it. It's hard to explain. But Watase has successfully done that very thing and I applaud her for it. It almost makes me want to try something out of my league...hmmm....