7 Things better than anime

The answer to the question: 'are there things better than anime?' is obvious... YES! How many things are better than anime you might ask? LOTS! I'll name only 7 but there are a lot more I'm sure.

Feel free to disagree with my opinion, criticize me or just troll me in any way you can. You might feel, after all, that an anime lover as myself, that professed my passion for anime so many times is a little out of my character saying these kind of things.

However, the plain and simple truth is that LIFE ITSELF is better than anime!

Maybe you don't quite get what I'm saying now, but I think you'll get a clearer picture after I explain to you, in detail, all the seven things that surpass anime.

Your family is certainly better than anime. I'm talking, of course, of your REAL FAMMILY - the ones that care about you deeply, be them your father, mother, sibling or even a distant aunt that raised you since you were a little child. I don't need to mention your own sons, do I?...

You should cheris and love them with all your heart. They are the most important thing in your life, the foundation of your being. Don't even consider choosing them over Anime - your family is on a upper level!

Been seeing too much anime series lately, have you? Forgot your grandmother birthday date? Haven't payed a visit to that cousin that's always nice to you for years? Shame on you! The anime serie will be there waiting for you. It doesn't age, or get sick, or get distant like what can happen with someone from our family...

Don't ever forget your roots! They are a big part of you! Don't ever be so selfish to only enjoy the present, when you can be having a good time with the ones that helped you in the past and will be by your side in the future too.

Be really there with them and you'll see you'll enjoy it way more than watching another Naruto movie!

If you are a teenager you will surely disagree with me. If you just started working and your parents still full support you (aka. being carried around) you will deny my claims with all your heart. But those that know how hard is life and all the trouble that the world we live in can bring us knows that our studies in school and the job we work on hardly are way better than anime.

Our education provides us culture and the essential tools to live in our society. Our work provides us with money (yep, it's basically what really matters given our consumption-driven society) which enable you to live a comfortable life, with all the essential things (yes, I'm talking about food and clothes here) and, for the fortunate of us, some luxuries as well (that includes your favorite mangas and animes ^_^').

So, basically give priority to your school or work everytime. You can always watch that anime series later! Never compromise your future for some hours of entertainment!

This is a no-brainer, but it's incredible how many anime lovers prefer to be sitting in a couch or in front of their laptops instead of interacting with the world around them. And this includes getting yourself handsome, available and go hunting for your loved one. And, if you already have one, good for you!

But don't get your guard down. You should still put your anime aside sometimes, in order to continue to impress him/her. Because no one is another one's property. If you get sloppy or you stop caring enough you can bet you gonna lose your companion. There are other people hunting out there, you know...

So, don't ever be so obsessed about anime to the point you will stop taking pleasure from one of the best things in life - having sex! And for all the closet otakus out there I have news: it's way better doing it with somebody else!

When we watch anime we discover new worlds, we see things we never imagined possible, we have fun! But did you know you could do it in your own planet? In your own continent? Even in your own country?

To travel is one of the best things we can and should do. We leave that dreadful flat that squeezes so much time out of us and we're off to discover our own world. Instead of being a passive spectator in a chair watching some cartoony characters having all the action, we are the actors doing exciting thins and going to strange and wonderful places. We are living when we travel! And that, my friends, is very important!

Forget anime for a second. Avoid taking your laptop - if you want you can take with you a manga book or two but just to kill the waiting time in the transports. Just take a break from the routine and live! Go places, meet new people, take lots of pictures, laugh and create good memories! LIVE!

No, I'm not talking about that TV show. I'm referring to your real, actual friends. You know, the really good ones - the few we manage to have during a lifetime, the ones that are there during our worse (which is so much harder than our better), the ones that count, the ones that, even if they are thousand of miles away, are nearby, because they really live close to our hearts.

Watching that Bleach episode is good. But how many hours have gone by idle - empty hours really - where you sit there eating fast food and watching at a screen when you could be hanging out with your friends? Oh it's boring, you might say!

If they are really your friends - and you theirs - it will never be truly boring. And if you're not... time to go make new friends! Because, in the end, when everything else fails, it's not gonna be Excel Saga that will cheer you up. It's gonna be that friendly shoulder to whom you can talk to!

Being healthy beats being wealthy by far. Health is the true currency of our body and spirit. If we have our health (and being young also helps a lot, eheh) we can do anything! Including watching all the anime we want!

I don't know how many of you have been very sick. If you had the experience you know that when you have a disease you normally don't take pleasure on pretty much anything. Your illness prevents you from being fully open to the world around you. You need to get well in order to go along with your normal life (including watching anime - and enjoying it!).

Of course, sometimes we can't really do nothing about what ails us. But most of the times we can. In our everyday life, we can try to have healthier habits - sleep well, eat well, exercise, don't smoke... We all know these things, but how many of us really do them?

The ones who do tend to live longer and happier. And watch more anime! Think about that for a second...

Shocked? You shouldn't be! One of the best things in life is to rest... And I'm not talking only about sleeping 8 or 12 hours. I'm talking about taking breaks from long periods of activity - even if you only have 30 minutes, don't forget to rest! Take your mind of troubles and just go sit below a tree or something.

If it helps you, you can always read a nice manga while resting. But if you spend too much of your time in the manga / anime realm, don't ever forget to rest from it too! Everytime we exaggerate we strain our body and mind and it will have consequences on us - sometimes sooner, sometimes later.

Watching anime can be your way of resting. If it helps you relax from a stressful day kudos to you! But let it be your hobby, not your main occupation... unless you work in the area (like you're a mangaka or an animator). In that case I don't think you'll be trully relaxed by it anyway...

I didn't add to the list but another great way to relax is just to have a great meal with your friends / family. A good meal beats a good anime anytime! You just can't surpass humans basic necessities with entertaniment, believe me!

So I named 7 things that are better than anime but I could have mentioned much more. Basically, what I'm trying to say is LIFE ITSELF is better than an animation series. YOU are better than any manga or anime!

Be yourself, live your life, with anime, but not for anime!

Find your balance, because happiness lies that way, I assure you!

Until my next hub, farewell!