Forums / Discussion / Serious Debate

(I apologize in advance for the lack of brevity.)

So, I lived in Japan twice, once from 5-8, and once at 14 (ten years ago). I made terms with moving away a long time ago, and it's not like I was truly ever Japanese. I went to a Japanese preschool and watched some Japanese cartoons and read some Japanese "how to read books" but I also went to international schools, went to the American club to rent American cartoons on VCR, and lived in an English-speaking household.

Yet about once a year, I feel nostalgic for Japan, the kind of nostalgia that's at least as sad as it is happy. And most times, it comes out of the blue. For instance, it just happened today after getting into the weird part of YouTube and watching this:



I have no idea why this of all things makes me nostalgic. I mean, a month ago, a (former) exchange student from Japan visited us (she's going to college in the same state now that she finished high school) for a week and I felt no nostalgia. Yet, this doesn't remind me of any specific memories and yet the emotions come flooding in.

The weirdest thing is, even though this nostalgia makes me feel sad, it's like a "pleasureable" sad instead of a "miserable" one like depression or hopelessness or lonliness. Like, I'm pretty sure it's sadness, technically speaking, and it's not like a "fake pleasureable" sadnesses like self-pity or such; I genuinely feel sad, but in a way that I don't mind or doesn't upset me.

So what do you all have to say about nostalgia? Are there different kinds, like nostalgia boners vs. "sad nostalgia"? Have any of you that moved to different places and cultures have any episodes of nostalgia, and if so, when do they occur and how does it feel and how do you feel about said episodes? Is nostalgia actually a feeling, or something more complex? Or it simple and I'm overthinking things? And lastly, am I basically a weaboo in denial, or does living somewhere (rather than just visiting) during the time you grow up that you can feasibly remember (roughly 5-18) permanently impact you in some way?

I appreciate any input. Emotions aren't exactly my best subject, and nostalgia is one of the more complex ones, it seems.

I've had quite a lot episodes of nostalgia myself. I have two types: short-term (which is 3 months to 5 years from now) and long-term (more than 5 years from now). The main reason for my nostalgia is the music and sounds of the sources that provide nostalgia for me. A lot of the nostalgia I have focuses on summers and winters.

Let's start with short term, beginning with the end of my 2nd college year and ending with the second half of my freshman high school year. In other words, 2016 to 2011.

• While not exactly nostalgia, I still get reminded of my 2 weeks vacation to the Philippines when I watch Wakfu (since I first encountered the show on Filipino TV) and fight my Palutena amiibo (which I got from the Philippines). Had a great time there--my cousin got married, we went to a resort, gone bowling, played Cards Against Humanity (which is very difficult to play if you're in a foreign country since they might not get the American references)

• I do get nostalgic of my days at University (only spent one year, after that we couldn't afford it so I go to community college now) whenever I play Smash 4 (especially the Kalos Pokemon League stage) and Fire Emblem Awakening, especially during winter. My dormmates and I had great times, bringing out the TV in the lounge and Smashing all night.

• Anytime I listen to Pokemon X and Y's OST, the song "Let It Go," the Breaking Bad intro, and watch Zack Snyder's Watchmen, the E3 2014 Smash Tournament, Kill la Kill, Captain America: the Winter Soldier, and even Danny Phantom, I get reminded of my high school senior year. Reason for Danny Phantom is that in summer 2013, I ran across the show again because I hadn't seen it for 8 years. Since then, I DVR'd the episodes and watched them every morning. As a matter of fact, that summer is also the time I entered KYM and got Photoshop.
  And while I'm on the subject of my senior year, this also gets me thinking of an incident that occurred. One morning, I was getting ready for school when I heard a loud boom. I looked out the window and noticed a SWAT team raiding an apartment in front of mine for drugs. I decided to eat my breakfast next to the window instead of watch the news that morning

• Gurren Lagann and Pokémon Black/White2 remind me of my junior year of High School. Oh boy, remember Superstorm Sandy? Yeah, I was in the middle of watching Gurren Lagann when Sandy hit NJ. Ran out of power for five days, didn't have school for two weeks. The only things that kept me busy were Pokemon White 2 and that Frankenstein graphic novel our English teacher had us read. It's a good thing I got White 2 rather than a Halloween costume.

• Pulp Fiction, the Avengers, and the Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword reminds me of spring/summer 2012, just after my sophomore year. Needless to say, the Pulp Fiction OST has that summer feel for me, the Avengers was the hit movie of the year, and Skyward Sword kept me busy that time. More on this nostalgia for summer 2012 were Gabriel Iglesias (my friend got me hooked on him, love his stand up) and, funnily enough, the Nostalgia Critic.

• Now THIS gets me very nostalgic: spring/summer 2011, with Pokemon Black/White, Lucky Star, the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Code Geass, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, and yes My Little Pony Friendship is Magic. I had also gotten an iPod touch that time, so I had internet on the go, yay! Anyway, all of those made my summer that year. I don't know what it is, but just thinking about that summer really makes me feel warm and happy. I got into anime and became a brony (nowadays, I'm more of a casual MLP fan, but at the time I was kind of hardcore). I also get reminded of this summer when I listen to Vocaloid music, as well as reliving my childhood by watching Mega Man videos, esepcially from the X series since my cousins mostly played those games.

• The ending of the Pokémon Diamond and Pearl anime always reminds me of the time I went on my high school band trip to Southern California in February 2011. I don't know how I made such a connection, but I think it's because the trip was 2-3 weeks after the Super Bowl, which was when DP ended. I did get feels from that ending (miss u, Dawn and Brock!), but California was a lot of fun. We performed at Disneyland, went on a lot of rides, explored Los Angeles…man I wanna go back! I remember making a huge mistake of wearing jeans and converse to Santa Monica. I had to use the bathroom real bad too, but the pier was so far away from the beach we were on.

I may have to continue my long-term nostalgia on another post, this was quite a lot to go through.

Studying in Australia makes me want to go back to the good internet world of Hong Kong.

Also from 2012: Wreck-It Ralph after Sandy, first 3DS in summer

Now for long-term nostalgia, from 2010 to 2001

• Anytime I play the Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time or the Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess, I always think of when I was going into my freshman year. TBH, that's when I got into playing Zelda for the first time. Trust me, hit me with that Kokiri Forest music and let the nostalgia flow. This also applies to the show Glee since my uncle just came from the Philippines via petition, and he's a big fan of the show. Twilight Princess reminds me of two things: marching band rehearsals and the snowstorm we went through to get the game. I had the game ordered online as a Christmas present, and when it came on Xmas Eve, the disc wasn't in there. Two days later, we went through a huge snowstorm to get it replaced at the mall, to which my uncle realized that GameStop isn't just an online retailer. On our way back, there was huge traffic--I think there was also a road rage brawl going on.

• Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver reminds me of the end of 8th grade, which reminds me of an old friend. This might get a bit sad. I met her in November 2009, which was around her birthday, nonetheless. She's two years younger than me, but strangely she was in fifth grade when she was supposed to be in sixth. She came from Brazil, so if anyone here has knowledge of Brazil's educational system inform me on this. Anyway, we became pretty good friends until in May 2010 when her mother decided that they move back to Brazil. We kept in touch, hell I think we would've been a pretty good couple. However, since 2013 or so, we've had some arguments. I don't wanna go too into detail on what they were about, but all I'll say is that we last spoke to each other in 2015. I honestly miss her, but I feel like if I talk to her again we'd get in another argument. While I enjoy HGSS, I can't help but remember the year I first met her.

• Spring/Summer 2009 I can sum up with four things: Mega Man X series, the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Pokemon Platinum, and abridged versions of classic novels. Mega Man X (out of nostalgia because my cousins played X4 and X6), Fresh Prince (to this day, reruns I see on TV remind me of this summer), and Platinum made my summer that year. I was hooked on Pokemon Platinum for all of 2009, especially since I got a blue Nintendo DSi that year. The game also got me very hooked on Pokemon that I played Battle Revolution nonstop with my Platinum Pokemon and got hyped for Arceus and the Jewel of Life. That was also the year I first went to Atlantic City, which was even better for my grandma who had returned to the US from the Philippines since 2004. As for the books, here's the story: our English teacher wanted us to do a monthly book report, and the genre for March was classic novels. I chose to do the Three Musketeers, and I didn't anticipate that the book was 67 chapters. Because of that, my teacher allowed me to buy an abridged version for easier reading. I was successful, and since then I started to read a lot of abridged classics like Prince and the Pauper, Huck Finn, Around the World in 80 Days, and my personal favorite Moby Dick.

• The second half of 2008 had me playing my brand new Nintendo Wii the whole time. The first game I got for it was Ben 10 Protector of Earth, which I happened to beat within the same day I got it. And then came Pokemon Battle Revolution, Guitar Hero III, and my favorite of it all: Super Smash Bros. Brawl. I initially got it because I was all about Pokemon at the time and I heard Lucario was a fighter in the game. If it weren't for Brawl, I wouldn't have been interested in other games like Zelda, Fire Emblem, Kirby, etc.

• The second half of 2007 to the first half of 2008, as I mentioned above, was all Pokemon all the time. Diamond and Pearl were the first Pokemon games I ever played, and as I mentioned when I talked about California, the DP anime was really all it for me. Anytime I hear and think about Diamond and Pearl, I can't help but think of those years. Even when I went on a five-week vacation to the Philippines in summer 2008 I was focused on Pokemon more than my cousins tbh (I'm glad that did not happen when I went there again recently). An example of my nostalgic experience of this is when I got my Lucario amiibo and I decided to listen to the whole Diamond and Pearl soundtrack while doing physics homework.

• 2007 to 2009 were also years I got introduced and hooked on YouTube. We can all agree those years were the golden years for YouTube. This was actually the very first YouTube video I've ever watched
  
  I also remember watching Smosh, the Pokemon spoofs, Potter Puppet Pals, NigaHiga, Is It a Good Idea to Microwave This?, etc. But out of all the stuff I watched on YouTube, Chuggaaconroy is the one that meant the most to me. It was his older Platinum videos that got me interested in him and what kept me glued on YouTube for years to come. While it ain't healthy, at least I got some good entertainment out of him, which is why I was so happy he redid Platinum.

• Diamond and Pearl also reminds me of when I first went to Florida in 2007. I wish we went around Disney and Universal more, but it was a pretty fun trip from what I remember. DP also reminds me of summer camp that year. I remember someone helped me catch Dialga, but it was a cheap way now that I think about it because he made me use a Master Ball. I remember my nephews and I got so hyped about me catching the legendary.

• At the time, I had a black Nintendo DS Lite. Three games that also remind me of 2007 were a licensed game for Pixar's Cars, Ben 10 Protector of Earth (which I'll mention below), and the Super Mario 64 remake. My nephew actually gave SM64 to me because he had his DS stolen. I couldn't beat the game so I decided to give it away with my DS to my cousin in 2009 when I got the DSi. To this day, I regret not giving that game a second chance, and I get nostalgic when I listen to the soundtrack, ESPECIALLY Koopa's Road.

• Remember the original Ben 10 series? Yeah, I was obsessed with that back in fifth grade. I'm glad I have seasons 1-3 of the show on DVD, i'd love to rewatch the show again soon (still looking for season 4 though). I remember collecting the alien figures and having an Omnitrix that made the sound effects. I was also strangely obsessed with Dreamworks' movie Over the Hedge, to the point that a game based off the movie was the first game I got for that Nintendo DS I got for Christmas that year. I also got Ben 10 Protector of Earth for the DS, which is the best licensed game I currently own, and I'll be honest the music in that game kind of kicks ass.

• My fourth grade year started in Pennsylvania, which I'll talk about below, but my favorite part of fourth grade was going back to New Jersey in November 2005. Oh man, the snow was beautiful. I remember bringing my DVD of the Incredibles and buying a DVD of Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at the time. We stayed at an inn until we saw our new apartment, which was in the same complex I lived in since I was a kid until 2001. The 10th anniversary of my return passed, so it felt fitting I get nostalgic about all this.

• For 2005, there are a lot of things that remind me of that year, but it was a significant year because that was the year I returned to the US after living in the Philippines from 2001. We lived in Pennsylvania at the time, and I can still smell the air fresheners plugged into our apartment at the time. I found an old collection of Thomas the Tank Engine railroad parts and trains, as well as Mega Blocks, so I made a faux Las Vegas in the living room. I used to pretend that many disasters struck the city (my parents watched a lot of disaster movies like Armageddon at the time).

• Some of the other things that do remind me of my return here were the Simpsons, the movie Robots, Austin Powers, Law and Order's theme song, Camp Lazlo, Aladdin, Madagascar, Harry Potter 1 and 2, and my clarinet. When I moved back, my dad got me a clarinet. It was out of tune, so I replaced it with a newer one. I still have the old one, but I really enjoy playing the instrument.

• A bit of 2003-4 here is that I briefly returned to the US. I remember my cousins playing Harry Potter games and was pretending I was Harry Potter. I also remembered watching the original Pokemon anime and Sheep in the Big City on TV every night. Then I noticed my mom and grandma crying a lot--apparently, my grand-aunt passed away that time. I didn't know what was going on that I couldn't conjure a reaction, not even at the funeral. It's pretty much my first encounter with death.

• Only way I can sum up 2001 to 2004 are that I was obsessed with Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Disney Channel, three movies I never stopped watching (Johnny English, Sound of Music, Shrek 2), my GameBoy Advanced in which the games I had on it were cartridges that had retro games on it like Super Mario Bros. That GBA also reminds me of my first earthquake, which I think cased that tsunami in the Indian Ocean. Of course, there was watching my cousins play Mega Man X4, X6, Half-Life, Counter Strike, GTA Vice City, Digimon, and even fucking PepsiMan. There were also BeyBlades, Yu-Gi-Oh cards, and Crash Gears.

• Finally, just looking at pictures of me as a toddler really makes me want to go back in time and revisit those times in the pictures. I also remembered I was obsessed with construction as a kid, I had a lot of toy construction trucks and construction games on the computer.

Oh man, I think I wrote a reverse autobiography in this thread XD
I think I got too nostalgic when writing this. This is why I want time machines or memory machines like in Meet the Robinsons.

Occasionally I feel very nostalgic about Syria. I used to regularly visit Damascus to meet with some of my family, and I would stay for up to a month. The last time I went there was in late 2010 which was about a year before the uprising started. Considering that the city got caught up in the nationwide civil war, a visit back looks near impossible to make for the time being.

I also feel nostalgic about other cities I’ve stayed in like Bangkok and Honolulu, and sometimes even parts of Australia outside of Sydney but nothing matches how I feel about Damascus in terms of nostalgia.

I have never left this shithole of a country, but I did leave my hometown two years ago.
While there wasn't much to see over there, it was a bit more "peaceful" than where I live now.

I often look back at my childhood in USSR Moldova, where there were a lot of fond memories. A LOT. I frequently recall the frozen rivers and streams during winter, the hot summer days hanging out with my chums near the giant tank statue in the town square. Then I look at the state of Moldova and the city I am from, Bel'tsy, post collapse of the Soviet Union, and realize I can never really ever go back. The crime is astronomical, they no longer use Russian as a language (it's Romanian now), the infrastructure looks dirty, and a lot of the neighborhoods I was in look radically different.