Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! Today, I am making a much lighthearted post this time. It deals with Wheeaboos.

I bet you are wonder, “What the heck is a wheeaboo? Why are you doing this post?” or “Not this again!” Well, the reason why I am doing this post is that it seems like some people are kind of including the usual anime fan in the wheeaboo category and it is kind of sad. For those of you who don’t know what a wheeaboo is it’s a person who is over obsessed with anime and/or denounce their culture wherever they are or what they were born as to say that they are Japanese and perceive what they see in most anime as actual Japan. Also, they tend to butcher Japanese especially mixing it in with normal speak like the pronoun “desu” or use the expression “ne.”

I do have to confess that I used to have these kinds of tendencies when I was with THEE X (I use this name towards him since he is the only ex-boyfriend I really only had and I named him this in the first book too.) It was all because he and his family lived in Japan due to his dad being in the military and was happy about that but things did get a bit rocky during our second year together especially when he got mad at me when I said I prefer the American version of Power Rangers over Super Sentai since I couldn’t get into it when he gave me episodes of Dekaranger which turned into SPD when it came to the states and I did see it when it got brought over and it was awesome and better than the Japanese version, heck Doggy Cruger was even better in the American version. Besides the point, I did grow out of it and did change while dating and being engaged to Gondras.

Lately with watching people’s stories with their encounters with Wheeaboos, I never thought that there were more out there and that people have met them or were friends with some of them and after watching a video that Ahki Deareest and Gaijin Gumba did together and talking about how anime fans are being looped into this group, this made me think and this post is a way of how to not only tell the signs but how to get out of it before it is too late! Heck, would help with the people you know who became one, especially the young ones who got into anime!

1. Learn the culture: First tip is of course learn the culture! What you see in anime is not always what it is in real life, yes there is historical fiction anime such as Rurouni Kenshin which is based on an actual samurai but anime like Naruto, Bleach, even manga like Chronicle of the Cursed Sword, do show some cultural aspects but understanding the actual history, the folklore, and the influences from other countries would help know the culture. Here is an interesting fact about anime that WHeeaboos hardly know and that is America actually influenced the Japanese in creating anime with how they drew their cartoon characters like Bugs Bunny, Mickey Mouse, etc. That is how come you see how much anime and manga is drawn by looking at them to get the idea of anatomy in characters and how to make them move, etc. Not only that, knowing the folklore with Japan is also important because when you visit the temples they do have statues that link to that folklore as well. I bet you’re wondering who you should watch on YouTube for more stuff on Japan’s history and culture? I would suggest CanadaJin3 who is a Canadian woman who lives in Japan and she goes to the many locations to talk about the history, especially with temples, the many hot springs in case if you want to visit them, and how to take the trains to the places, and etc. Also Charla In Japan is another person that does go around Japan even in Tokyo to different temples during holidays or just tourist attractions to show on YouTUbe. I also recommend an Asian Humanities course to help know the different parts of Asia before Japan since they also helped Japan in some of the language and food! Speaking of which…
2. There is More to Japanese food than ramen and Pocky: What do I mean by this? Well, I did use to eat nothing but ramen and Pocky when I was younger to fill my Japanese food need but when I met Gondras I was introduced to more of the cuisine. As in, I got to try other things outside of ramen since we had Japanese places that are amazing! If you are here in Orlando around November there is a Japanese festival and one place that does serve food for you to purchase is Ahki which is located near the Wyndham here in town, that was where we first celebrated our first anniversary together and I still remembered having Katsudon which is a rice dish with scrambled eggs, a kind of sauce, onions, and normally pork but they have other versions like Tendon which is Tempura veggies and shrimp which I had once and enjoyed but one thing I do love now is Udan noodles! And towards Pocky, there is other snacks to enjoy that is not just Pocky such as mocha which is a marshmallow like snack that is made when rice is mashed up and rolled over until its sticky and it is mostly found as ice cream which tastes amazing! There is also red bean cakes, buns, and stuff made with geen tea and taro, which is a sweet potato found in sweets. And of course, our beloved Hi Chew which is almost like taffy in a way. A good example of finding a lot of snacks besides the usual Pocky is either in Asian markets in your town or at the Japanese Pavilion in Epcot at Disney World.
3. Learn the language: This is one important tip to know and kind of obvious and that is learning the language. Yes, we know the simple words from anime but some people don’t use it in the right context of a sentence. I have seen it a lot in fan fiction and I can’t read it because of that since I did take Japanese classes in college. One big thing about a language is of course sentence forming and that was hard at some points and I did pass with B minuses but the language is complicated to learn like most languages. I do suggest taking a course if you are at a university or go the Rosetta Stone route. In case if you are wondering, “ne” is a way of agreement in sentences if you hear someone using it in English, it is the Japanese saying, “Right” at the end and goes the same with “desuyo” and “desu” is a form of “I am” which is normally at the end of sentences. (Was pointing back to earlier since those two words are the most used by a Wheeaboo along with kawaii and sugoi.)
4. When visiting Japan, know the customs of the country: This is a major tip because there are things different that people do in public in Japan versus how we do it here! I did see this one Wheeaboo story where someone went to Japan with an actual Wheeb and she was loud in temples, the subway, and was cosplaying while visiting which is frowned upon unless if you are going to an event or if it is Halloween. Some of these customs would include bowing, certain table manners like wait until the entire group gets their drinks before taking your first drink and even slurping your noodles loudly. (That is okay actually, I did hear it is a compliment to the chef.) Also, another interesting fact is that we as tourists do stick out like a sore thumb and I can imagine with a Wheeb it would be even more since Japan is always more about the group when we are more about the individual so I would read up on some customs before traveling and try to get your Wheeaboo buddy to read as well since they can get some dirty looks.
5. SHOWER! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD! SHOWER! Yes, I put this in caps because in some of the Wheeaboo stories I have seen, especially with Vivid Barnacle, wheeaboos like most convention goers don’t shower either! One story that dealt with a group of university students met one really annoying one that turned extra crazy smelled like sweat and only went to brush her teeth in the communal shower rooms. I admit I smelled worse and had to spray the elevator with room refreshner spray when the stench of one student in Daytona was left behind. (Not kidding!) As we all know that showering is a major part of any routine especially while working at a convention or a normal 9 to 5 job. Heck, even deodorant and perfume is also important to keep that stench away. You shouldn’t be smelling like convention funk on a normal day since hygiene is very important.
6. We tend to use the same school supplies as Japan even if it has some cute stuff! I have to mention this one since one video had one story where someone meant a Wheeaboo that had a backpack with school supplies from Japan and was like, “Oh look! This is my Japanese eraser!” I know it’s nice to get school supplies even if it is Hello Kitty school supplies like I have before one of the Sanrio stores closed down in town and an art store stopped carrying it but there are times when a Wheeaboo just collected it and says it is better or gets it because it is Japanese. For instance MagicalPockyUsagi was trying to sell “Japanese pens” for thousands of dollars. Why the quotes is that people who commented on her video said they can get the same kind of pens at WalMart. I kind of agree because some of the pens I got came from Dollar Tree and when I used to draw, back to the eraser bit, I found a lot of my erasers at art stores and in WalMart and Kmart when we had it at the time. So in other words, we do use the same kind of school supplies that Japanese students use even if they have cute stuff on them. Heck, I even tend to use my Kerroppi and Kuromi pencil cases as makeup bags time to time to make it easier for storage or travel with my makeup.
7. Getting into other fandoms doesn’t hurt! What I mean by this is that a great way of breaking the Wheeaboo tendencies is that there are other things to enjoy besides anime and JRPGs. I will tell you other stuff I do like and that includes Doctor Who, Mystery Science Theater, Marvel, and of course since I am going into the career field of it, access technology. Heck, besides my Fiary Tail wallscrolls, I do have a Doctor Who print on my wall of one of Matt Smith’s quotes since I am a writer myself and it deals with stories. I think Clara did recite it in the last episode of Season 9 when Capaldi was talking about her. And can’t forget, I do love beauty stuff which it doesn’t hurt to like many other things outside of anime whether it is tv, film, books, etc. It kind of gives you more of a healthy balance in life to like other things and opens your mind to other things that might be out there.I admit I didn’t like the idea of podcasts at first but when I got my Victor Reader Stream I have over twenty of them I have subscribed to and let you explore and think when listening to them. Again, liking other things outside of anime and Japan doesn’t hurt, just give it a try.
8. Finally, listen to more music! A lot of Wheeaboos like to listen to a lot of anime music and Japanese artists. I did admit I went through this phase and had tons of CDs burned with the same song or two and listened to it in the car a lot! Then when I got my MP3 player, it was the same way, then IPod…now IPhone but I do have my fave artists from here in the states this time around and goes the same way as my I Heart Radio lists and my Top Ten songs! I am admitting that I have grown out that stage of life. My music taste does still have Gackt, L’arc~en~Ciel but I do love Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Hawthorne Heights, Sleeping with Sirens, sometimes I do listen to Barenaked Ladies, They Might Be Giants, and more! And of course, local bands from here in Florida do rock as well like Leaving Haven, Mr. Bella, and my boys of Soul Switch and Traverser. Like the last tip, listening to other artists new and old doesn’t hurt either since listening to the same thing over and over can be a bit boring at times and having something new to listen to can give a nice bit of variety.

Well, I think that is about it! If you guys want to hear some of the stories I mentioned above, I would suggest Mindless Gonzo for his Wheeaboo Horror Stories and Vivid Barnacle since people like to submit their own stories. If you have a tendency to go WHeeaboo, I would say blast some Avenged Sevenfold before you get trapped in it since it may help!

Well, that is it for this post! I would like to announce that I did submit a new panel for Holiday Matsuri. They haven’t announced press yet since I was glad they got my form a while back when they put up the form (gotta love it when they are early) and they did put up their panel form at the beginning of this month if you are wondering. It was an idea from Nerdy Shirts since I did mention my convention experiences in my first book why not talk about how I went from being an attendee to press and then an author? So, hoping this will be selected for this year but if not, there is always Omni after all! So, next post will be the Top Ten Songs of June and my faves of May and June! Until next time!