Disappearance Diary

nathandouglasdavis Jan 20, 2020

6

An autobiographical portrayal of how, multiple times, the author upends feir life and then settles into new routines and social circles in feir new location. The first routine comes from when fe abandoned all feir responsibilities in 1989 and willingly became homeless. It shows how fe slept in the open air and scrounged through garbage for foodstuff, blankets, alcohol, and cigarette butts. Months later, fe is found by the police and taken back home to feir wife. Then in 1992, fe once again abandoned all feir responsibilities and re-entered this routine of homelessness, this time living near a park. Then fe decides to get a job and we see fem settling into a new routine with feir coworkers fitting gas pipes. Eventually, fe is found by the police and taken back home to feir wife. After about a year at the piping job, fe quits and then returns to being a manga artist. Feir life as a manga artist is feir third routine, with fem worrying about deadlines and not wanting to appease feir editors. Finally, we see feir fourth routine from when fe was admitted to a hospital for alcoholism and has to adjust to feir new life on the ward. I definitely liked the non-judgmental portayal of homelessness and manual labor. And I liked how fe didn't come across as ashamed of feir actions; it's just what happened. It makes clear the shackling nature of social expectations (not that it idealizes living as a "free spirit" or anything).