It was a habit of mine to write a short post on what I am thankful for on Thanksgiving (in the USA,) for many years on Okazu, but I fell out of the habit when I became very ill, then lost my job just before the holiday. This year I find myself with some time and energy and I wanted to take a moment to not only be thankful, but specifically to be thankful for Yuri.

Tomorrow I’m going to write up a post on something amazing – the celebration of 30 years of Yuri manga with Rica Takashima’s Rica ‘tte Kanji!?, the first Yuri manga to be published in English and it occurred to me that Yuri manga has so profoundly changed my life for the better. I have been able to travel to world to speak about Yuri and see Yuri manga and related events, I’ve met amazing people—including so many Okazu readers!— and tons of folks in the manga and anime industries. 

It is entirely due to Yuri that I am currently able to write for Okazu, ANN, Anime Herald and have some extraordinary manga over the years. And because of Yuri I have been able to publish manga and pay writers and even launch a few  artists’ and writers’ careers.

I am extremely grateful Okazu Patrons and Supporters for everything you do for Okazu and Yuricon. Thank you all. And thanks to Rica Takashima and Yuri manga for changing my life forever. ^_^