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- Momo Mail #1 - Feb/Mar Edition 2024
Momo Mail #1 - Feb/Mar Edition 2024

Hey friends! Thank you so much for taking interest in my newsletter! I want to send you guys updates on my life and things that I enjoy! I hope that you find this newsletter fun to read, and I hope that you will want to submit your own content to be featured in future ones! (More on that below)
Something I learned this month is the “peak-end rule.” Essentially, people will remember how good an experience was based on the most intense moment and/or the moment at the end. (I think we can all agree that a movie that we may have started to like that fell completely flat at the end put a sour taste in our mouth). I think that we can apply this in our lives: making sure that we end things on a positive is more likely to leave people with a better lasting impression!
A Day in the Life

Giant Robot Store in Sawtelle (Feb 17, 2024)
The Giant Robot Store is a cute hidden gem in Los Angeles. It features plenty of cute artsy knick-knacks, apparel, and prints. The store also functions as an art gallery that cycles through different themes, and showcases local artists! The exhibition when I visited was “Neko”.

A selection of cat-themed local art pieces for sale (Feb 17, 2024)
Although it is considerably smaller than Little Tokyo, Sawtelle is another ethnic enclave of Japanese-Americans in Los Angeles, located near Santa Monica. If you are ever in the area, Sawtelle is a cute place littered with cute shops like Giant Robot and more tasty noodle shops off the main street than you could count with your fingers! My girlfriend and I had delicious udon noodles after shopping. Yum!
Giant Robot started as a bimonthly magazine that showcased Asian American pop culture in 1994, but now has two shops, a gallery (located across the street from the store in LA), and website to purchase items and art.
You can find more at: https://www.giantrobot.com
Evan’s Picks:
All The Same [single] by The Voidz is an experimental electronic/rock song released on February 20, 2024. The Voidz and Julian Casablancas fans first heard this song when the band played an earlier version live in 2020. Although the band hasn’t released an album since Virtue (2018), three singles (Flexorcist ((my favorite of the 3)) and Prophecy of the Dragon) have been released within the past year - hopefully we hear more from them soon! The song features auto-tuned vocals with a looping and addictive guitar line that accurately addresses the theme of the song: repetition. Each of the verses address a different terrible truth about world, which all resolve in the repeating chorus that whines things are, “all the same,” giving the chorus a slightly different meaning each time.
Millennium Actress (2001) is a Japanese animated film directed by Satoshi Kon (Perfect Blue) and recounts the career of a retired actress. The film masterfully weaves her own story and the films that she acted in into a beautiful narrative about doing what you love, recollecting treasured moments of your life, and how beautiful but fleeting life can be. Luckily, the film manages to not be confusing as it juts between reality and fiction, and expertly delivers on the overall themes. Highly recommend.
Stardew Valley was originally released in 2016, and on March 19, 2024 received the 1.6 update. The developer ConcernedApe created every asset and string of code, and still manages to surprise us with large free updates (while working on another game btw). This update adds a lot of small upgrades to many sprites and animations, and to not spoil anything for those yet to play it, I’ll just say there are many new features worth checking out!
Dear Future Self:
Same as prior years, Studio Ghibli films will be playing in theaters throughout 2024. I’m looking forward to seeing Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989) in October! I was able to catch Howl’s Moving Castle (2004) last year and it was magical!
I’m looking forward to playing Penny’s Big Breakaway, released in February of 2024, on my Switch!
I have been watching the ongoing anime Delicious in Dungeon (Studio Trigger) on Netflix every Thursday! The show has been a delight and is faithful to the amazing manga by Ryōko Kui. The manga was suggested by my friend Nate. I can’t wait to watch the anime to the end!
Your Picks:
I’d love to hear from you guys! In each newsletter I want to feature things that you guys submit. Each issue I will provide a prompt in case you don’t know what to submit, but I want to hear about anything.
The next newsletter will be music themed! Here are some prompts for you: What are you up to? What is your favorite song right now? What concert(s) are you looking forward to this year?
One randomly selected submission will receive a $5 Amazon e-gift card sent to your email, so don’t miss out on that!
The last day to submit a response will be April 21st.
Thank you again for reading and being a part of this newsletter! This will become a monthly or bi-monthly occurrence. I hope that you read future issues, and I look forward to hearing from you soon.
You can also expect to see music related news, my favorite albums of all time, and an interview with a good friend and an amazing musician in the next newsletter! Stay tuned.
With love,
Evan (Momo) <3