Eleven(th) heaven?

So... 2010 is on its way out. And good riddance to it too, I say, it stuck around too long.

Sorry, 2010, but I found someone new. She's younger and fresher, and she's already treating me a lot better than you ever did. With her, I feel more hope for the future than you gave me.

OK, yes, it's your sister 2011. Don't look at me like that.

Anyway, yeah, last blog post of the year. Didn't think it'd go like that, but with less than thirty minutes to go, I thought I might as well say something. It's just... I don't know what.

It was a long, weird year. It had its ups and downs in all kinds of extremes, but I persevered. I pulled through. I survived. Some things were lost, some things were gained. But that's just life for you. I'm still here, so I guess that means I'm still winning. And 2011 promises a lot of good things already- new Pokemon games in English, a semester in London, all-new Doctor Who, hopefully Anime Iowa in the summer, and I can't help but shake the feeling that my romantic luck may finally turn around.

Well then, 2011. Are you ready for it? The only way to do it is to jump in headfirst, and in keeping with tradition...

GERONIMOOOOOO!!!!

MARCH 6 MARCH 6 MARCH 6

...it's the date that Pokemon Black and White come out in English.

*dusts off blog*

Yeeeaaaahhh, another one of those long hiatuses. Quite a lot has happened- got more stuff ready for London, exploring ideas for things I want to do while there. I gave into weakness and now can play Black and White on my laptop... I'm doing White first, then Black- reverse of my English-language plans, basically. Yeah, I'm playing in Japanese, but Bulbapedia's a big help. It's also a good opportunity to use some of the Pokemon I didn't quite get to choose for my proper playthroughs.

Finished Terry Pratchett's "I Shall Wear Midnight" today. Yet another awesome Discworld novel. I wonder if I can find cool Discworld stuff in the UK. Hopefully...

Being home for break is nice. Got to see the Doctor Who Christmas special a couple days ago- actually on Christmas day! Go BBC America, finally working hard to deliver what the fans deserve.

I see have three followers now. I don't even remember getting the third, so... hi to you! Although I doubt many people will see this post. Hrmm.

Don't really feel like typing much at the moment... perhaps I will be back tomorrow or another time to relate some more. See y'all next time.

SPY SAPPIN' MAH BLOG ENTRY

I get distracted. A lot.

Dragon Quest IX, Dragon Quest Monsters, Pokemon, schoolwork, theater stuff, personal life, study abroad forms, trying to catch up on sleep... it's a wonder I even do this anymore.

Technically I haven't for a while but whatever.

Hmmmmm... where were we last time? Well, things are still going well for me, at least mood-wise. Yeah, things didn't work out with the last girl, we're still friends, however. That's progress for me. Been talking to a girl in a couple of my English classes, though, a fellow major... hrm, perhaps things could happen there? It's worth a shot. Although the rather imminent nature of the whole London thing is a bit of a pain.

Did I ever mention? I got accepted! I'm going to London in the spring, and much like myself, and yourselves, dear readers, it shall be awesome. It will be scary as crap too, but the opportunity is something I can't pass up. This, at least, I have earned.

The Team Fortress 2 Halloween event was really fun. I got the achievements for killing the Horseless Headless Horsemann (TF2's first boss monster!), and eventually I will craft his awesome axe so that I have a reason to use the Demoman more often. I'm getting better, I actually get some kills with stuff I'm not as good at. I got every Pyro milestone, and so I decided to switch to Soldier for a little bit, though I still do whatever I feel like at the time. Only about 15 kills from the 1000-total "Hardcore" achievement. I've gotten over 25% of those available already. Methinks my game time will be severely limited overseas, but at least it'll be for an extremely good reason.

Still trying to find time to restart Ruby and LeafGreen. XD may have to wait, I think. Also, along with using Squirtle for Ruby, I'm going to change my mind on Dodrio and go with Delibird instead, who I've recently taken a liking to and pity toward. Go check his ability, and then his Dream World ability. See what I mean?*

My DSes have Wi-fi, which is extremely exciting. First of all, bonus quests and items for Dragon Quest. Second, at LONG LAST, I can get Wi-fi Pokemon events. I have two legitimate Mew now! HUZZAH!

I plan on going to Anime Iowa this summer, for real this time. I may be there just to show off my Yu-Gi-Oh Abridged impressions, but I'm sure it will be fun, and a little more relaxing than being overseas. Since the trip costs a lot vacation will be mostly at home as it is, which is OK with me. Study abroad basically is a vacation, but for school.

Things just keep getting better and better for me. I've still got a chance for a happy ending after all...




*If you don't feel like checking, Delibird's normal ability is Vital Spirit, which prevents sleep. His Dream World ability is Insomnia, which... yup, prevents sleep. Don't care if he sucks, I've used Farfetch'd and Sunflora, and I go with my favorites.

Honorificabilitudinitatibus

...you know, they cut that line out of the play.

So yeah, another post. The play ended... on a fairly good note, I'd say. People really seemed to like it, at least according to what I've heard. I got nothing but good comments, and apparently there are people who thought I was one of the community players and not a student. Some say I was better than the seniors! SUCCESS.

This Friday, Central's new president is being inaugurated. I got invited to sit in the VIP section for my accomplishments as a 'student organization leader'... whatever that means. I never thought I was one. Personally, my belief is that Putnam liked my play performance so much he said "Get me Wilkins! IN A SUIT!"

That is my belief and I am sticking to it.

Midterms are done and over, fall break just ended, I haven't got nearly as many obligations now, and generally things seem to be looking up for ol' Troy. Also, we rearranged our room. Now I have a Troy-Cave. And also completely randomly, Team Fortress 2 is going fantastically as well. I'm getting good at this game, especially as the Pyro and Sniper. Ironically, my highest one-life point record is with the Spy, but that's because somebody used an exploit to build dozens of sentries and I sapped as many as I could. Fun, yes, until the server crashed.

You may ask how things are going with the girl I discussed last time. It's good... I think? I don't have enough experience to judge these kinds of things. I hope they're going well, at least. I'm trying my best, but I constantly worry of screwing things up like I have with others. I'm not going to let than on to anyone else, but it's a genuine fear. Look, I've earned my turn, okay? I deserve happiness too, moreso than a lot of people do. People may say "the universe doesn't owe you anything," but I will MAKE it repay me if I have to.

I can actually believe I can do that now. That's the kind of person I've become...

Oh look, another update

So the play's first performance was last night. With one tonight, that makes it two down, two to go. Here's hoping for some free time soon!

Saturday class meets for the last time this week. Thankful for that one, I am.

Beat the main DQIX storyline, but haven't played much after due to actually prioritizing and all that jazz. Amazing, I know, but I still have much to do in the next 24 hours or so...

Life has been... good as of late. Yeah, I think it has.

I'm glad I met her that day.

Just being around her makes me happy...

You showed up one day just when I needed someone like you, and you make my life so much better. That's the only way I can really put it, so thanks. You're the best thing that's happened to me in a long, long time, and I hope it stays that way.


(if you're gonna dig, dig for the heavens! I won't stop! once I've dug through, it means that I've won!)

LIVE FROM PELLA, IT'S WEDNESDAY NIGHT!

You know, I should have realized that her not laughing at my jokes was the first sign she was stupid and crazy... but that was another time, another life.

So, I promised to talk about the (way cooler and nicer) girl that I met on Wednesday, which is... a week ago today. Odd, that. Anyway, so it turns out there's one other person on campus who plays DQIX, and one of her friends just so happened to catch me playing it, and let me know she was looking for someone to do multiplayer with... fastforward a week or two, and I met her!

It's kind of weird, because she shares a lot of my interests. She get pretty much all of my random, obscure, geeky jokes. I don't think anyone's understood anywhere near that amount before. It's almost like I'm mainstream. But yeah, she likes Doctor Who, Pokemon, Firefly, music, anime, reading, practically everything short of Terry Pratchett, though I intend to introduce her to his books one of these days. She has Pokemon White on a flash card. So... yeah. Almost identical wavelengths there.

She's kind of shy, though given she was homeschooled and lived quite a few varied places when she was younger, it makes sense that she's kind of quiet. Sometimes conversations can get hard, though, when I can't think of something to say and she doesn't really say anything unless spoken to first, but that's not a huge problem.

On Wednesday night we played Dragon Quest outside, and then when our batteries ran out, stayed up until close to 4:00 am just talking. It was one of the better nights of my life, especially when it had come so soon after one of my worst. Perhaps someone up there is looking out for me after all.

So, long story short, I've learned more from my latest defeat that I can use to make a good attempt this time around. I like her lots, hopefully I can make this work for once. It's about time, wouldn't you say?

I have almost decided my teams for Pokemon Black and White... and the third version as well. Seriously, I'm one decision away from having all three teams. I will post them later on once I figure them out.

Got to see some preliminary pictures for the third series of collectible LEGO minifigures. I particularly like the elf (think Legolas, not Christmas) and the gorilla. Hopefully they will all end up being pretty cool.

Basically, life is pretty good at the moment.

A lot can happen in two weeks

So... yeah, been a while since I posted. A LONG while. No real excuse other than "wasn't really feeling like it." One heck of a recap ahead.

First off, culture trip. It was great, absolute fun. Saw some really cool shows, saw a few nice museum pieces, got to go to a two-floor Barnes & Noble, and had some awesome pizza. Oh, and some long bus rides. Stayed up late, played a children's card game, got my swag on, went to Target (also two floors!), walked through the rain, read the Onion, went to Jimmy John's, had my heart broken and repaired...

Yeah, that happened. Second night in, actually. Yes, she hates me, exactly what I didn't want. I will admit that, for a while, I was in horrible shape. I can honestly say I was closer to the despair event horizon, the point of no return, than I've ever been, and frankly I have no problem with never going back there. Thank whatever god(s) you care to believe in for my mother, though. I talked with her and... things got better. Mothers make everything better, mine most of all. Yeah, I cried a lot, for a while, but I got rid of years' worth of backlogged sorrow and am so much better off for it. Plus, getting over her let me get my life back.

I'm moving on and perfectly happy with it. Something suggests to me she's not though, because of the whole "refusal-to-talk-or-make-eye-contact" thing. Also, she blocked me on Facebook. Reeeeeeaaallll mature there, kiddo. Or are you just a coward who can't face that maybe you're the one who isn't good enough? Because, I have to be honest, come what may, I'm the one who decided to go on to better things while you're acting like a six-year-old, and when I have to be the mature person in this that's looking pretty sad for you.

And the funny thing is, now that I have the power of perspective, I can see you for how sad you are, really. You have a tendency to make stupid decisions and ignore the advice of friends who care about you, and you're rather shallow and wishy-washy. You're apparently bitter and spiteful, because it seems you're still trying to inflict some sort of emotional damage, but it's hilarious because I now understand something you don't. I'm not angry or depressed. I pity you. And no matter how hard you try...

YOU WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO HURT ME EVER AGAIN.

Suck it, bitch.

But wait, that's not all! Beyond the aforementioned character development, I've started reading Scott Pilgrim, out of order because I have to get them where I can find them. I've got the first, fourth, and sixth (also final) volumes and my mom found three and five today. Huzzah! It's fun stuff, I started reading it after thinking about the movie and decided I liked it and want to see said film. It makes me laugh but it also has a lot of heart.

Dragon Quest IX is still going well. My hero has mastered the sword 100% as of tonight, but last night I got the ultimate sword move. I will admit I whisper "finishing move... GIGAAAAASLAAAAAASSSSSH" under my breath when I use it. Looks cool as heck too. It's an amazing game, and I'm glad I bought it (I haven't even TOUCHED Metroid: Other M yet!).

Classes... mostly boring but OK. Lots of reading, not as much writing as I feared. Always good. Lots of doodling time. I feel like I need to do something but I'm not sure. There's a shapeless, formless idea at the back of my brain that I feel is going to gestate into something interesting soon.

The theater show is coming along nicely too. Lines are... mostly memorized... accent is doing okay, I guess. I got a nice hat tonight, a black fedora. Before they'd been making me use this ratty old white hat, but this is a massive improvement. I haven't seen any other costume pieces except for boots that were two sizes two small. Had a flask for one night, but they scrapped the idea. Shame, I was doing some really funny stuff with it too.

Oh, and I met someone new and interesting on Wednesday. Perhaps I shall talk about her next time.

Kings and Queens

This is War.

It's only 30 Seconds to Mars, you know.

...okay, so in case you don't get it, the title and first two lines of this post reference the title, album, and artist of a song I've been looking for as of late. You know that really epic tune they have in the trailer for that CGI movie with all the owls? Yeah. That song. I finally figured it out. Huzzah!

Anyway...

Been a while since I've posted. I've been busy. Besides the obvious Team Fortress 2 stuff (going to break from that for a while though, otherwise I'll be up playing every night), there's been play rehearsal, the usual personal problems, and having to deal with sick friends who needed to be taken to the hospital. I'm worn out from the last three days. Just... yeah.

My mom sent me a picture of something interesting she found. Turns out the second series of collectible LEGO minifigures is in some stores here. Apply forehead to wall, repeat ad nauseum.

Still, glad they came when they did. It's nice to have the whole set... just staring at me right now... perhaps I should put the Spartan a little closer to the mime just in case...

Pokemon Black and White come out in two or three days. Around culture trip time, I guess, which is funny since I first found out about the games on the last one. I will be sure to post about it. The trip, I mean. The games too, probably. But hopefully I won't have a hotel room separate from almost everyone this time.

Last culture trip, the second Eleventh Doctor episode came out. Now it's only a few months til the Christmas special. Just... wow. All the stuff that's happened since then, and I don't just mean TV-wise. Everything. I may very shortly need a lie down.

And since I'm really tired, I think I'll go do that.

In memory

Nine years ago today were the September 11th attacks on New York City. Amazing how much the world and humanity as a whole have changed since then.

I haven't posted in a while for various reasons, and while I've had some difficult times as of late, I don't feel that now should be the time to discuss that.

Instead, I want to remember the heavy losses people suffered, and that we haven't fallen apart at the seams like the evil, intolerant people who initiated the attacks hoped we would. I also hope for a future that can be more peaceful and understanding than what we have now.

Remember when, right after the attacks, everyone was helping everyone else out regardless of religious or cultural differences? What happened to that?

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...

Right now I'm having one of the "worst" times. Just... one of those melancholy days. At least it's only one, and the first in quite a while. Hopefully tomorrow will feel better. Today I felt rather low though.

We played some Brawl in the room just a bit ago, played Subspace Emissary up to right before the Rayquaza battle. It's fun to do the co-op version, I find that a little more enjoyable. Especially with someone who doesn't know the game quite as well, it's fun to be helpful and guiding.

My LEGO guys should be coming tomorrow or the next day. Hopefully will get my form turned in tomorrow. Official moving, here I come.

Dragon Quest IX is still fun. The story is a bit predictable at points, but still interesting. The gameplay is really where it's at, but either way it's a good game for any RPG fan, and even if you're a first-timer like me.

Ran the improv table at the student activities fair tonight. I was the only available (or willing, I suspect), only found out it had to be me last night, and oh, they didn't make any signs or stuff for me to use. So it was mostly talking with the other theater-related groups, interjecting "and watch some improv!" into conversations, and... playing DQIX.

Life goes on.

Spy sappin' my web connection

So I finally gave in and downloaded Steam so I could play Team Fortress 2 at long last. I'm... still waiting for it to finish downloadin. Over four hours ago, the download begin, and it's not yet half done. Probably because so many people are on Central's wireless right now, which would explain why my connection seems to have crapped out on me. Oh well, I can wait a little longer to erect dispensers and backstab enemies and all that. It shall be worth it, I am sure.

Inception was yesterday. Brilliant, brilliant movie. I loved it. It made me think, and I like it that I finally saw a movie that expected me to be intelligent for once. The acting and concept was great, the actors were amazing to watch (Tommy from Third Rock From the Sun is Arthur!), and the end... mystifying but cool. Also, Ellen Page. Just saying.

Also, I went to Best Buy, since my parents somehow picked up a gaming magazine, published by Best Buy (I think) that had coupons for games. So I picked up Metroid: Other M and Dragon Quest IX for $15 off apiece. I haven't started either yet since I got back and got more settled into the new room today, and I will attempt some Dragon Quest tomorrow. I look forward to it, it's a classic series that I've never explored before. It's supposed to be a really deep game with some great character customization, so I have a feeling it'll be fun. As for Metroid, my only prior experience is Fusion and Smash Bros. So... yeah. But people with similar tastes to mine like it, so I have a feeling I will enjoy it as well.

Improv auditions were tonight. It was a little odd being the person looking for talent instead of trying to prove my own for once. About nine people showed up, and the whole thing was only about two hours. They were... interesting, to say the least. There were ups and downs, and there was one really annoying guy we all gave a big resounding "NO!" to ASAP. Well, not in person, but it was a unanimous decision even before we were all done. Some people were genuinely good, or had good potential though. My two favorites made it in, so I'm pleased, although I think we should have taken just one more person. We will see how it works out.

No class until 2:15 tomorrow. Technically Labor Day weekend isn't over for me yet.

Oh, and I got another jacket yesterday. With elbow patches. Life is bliss.

Current TF2 progress: around 2970 MB out of over 8300. If this count makes it to another post I'm gonna scream.

Like Nero on the hill

Except instead of Rome, I'm sort of watching Pokemon message boards burn. If you're not a fan or somehow haven't heard, some rather controversial pictures of purported starter evolutions came out a day or so ago. There's no definitive proof of it being real or fake yet (though based on the evidence, Occam's Razor would point toward it being fake), and as a result flame wars are starting all over the place, rather than just, y'know, waiting for any actual confirmation.

Home for Labor Day weekend. Nice to be back, again. Play practice is going great, I enjoy it (even if I stumbled backward over a bench and winded myself pretty badly last night, I'm surprised at the level of concern I saw, but I only have a slightly sore neck today). Classes are good too, the Saturday one as well- even though I got up at seven o'clock and we didn't get out until one.

I've got a little homework to do, but not much. I think I can actually get it done beforehand for once. And of course, Inception tomorrow! I'm actually kinda excited for it, I've heard nothing but good things about it yet. I don't think I've even spoiled myself for it. And did I mention the LEGO version of the street-bending scene from the trailer?

Improv auditions Monday. Should be interesting.

I want to come up with theme songs for all my Pokemon team members. Perhaps I will start with my proposed Black team. Right now it's the fire pig, the big eagle, the drill mole, and the plant monkey. Maybe the fish thing if it was real, I dunno. Just a couple weeks until they come out and we know everything for sure.

Man, I remember the first time I saw the second-generation starters. It was in a magazine at a grocery store, and I was so excited. My, how the web has changed things...

Rain rain... don't go away, it's better than the heat

Like really. I can't stand much more humidity, it's just horrible sometimes. The rain's a welcome change, and hopefully I will have an awesome new rain jacket/trenchcoat thingymabobber to wear for the rainy days.

Central's web connection has been a bit iffy as of late, so I couldn't post last night. As a result, I'm doing it now. I have some spare time, and I won't be leaving the theater for most of the night... I love my part, I get to be hammy and loud and jump around while doing silly monologues, and I spend part of my first scene sitting in a lounge chair. Sometimes I love my life. Oh, and I got my costume fitting today, I look forward to seeing what I wear. For some reason I'm hoping for leather pants, but I'm not entirely sure why.

Acting class is kinda tough sometimes (yoga drains my energy pretty quickly), but we started a partner project a couple days ago, where we have to work on a scene with one other person. I got lucky and got a good partner, we end up doing our scene a few times and then talk for the rest of the time. It's good practice for socializing, and she's fairly pretty too, so it's not something I dread when it gets close to our meeting times.

Well, yes, I know what I said earlier, but I guess I'm expanding my horizons or some other cliche. At least I'm having fun.

SUN used HEAT WAVE! It's super effective!

It's really hot in the room I've moved to. Well, at least fall isn't too far away. And yes, we have the windows open. Just... ugh. Need a fan. Or a well-stocked fridge, I kinda wish I'd chosen to move mine anyway. I miss bottled water more than I thought I would or could.

Only a few weeks until Black and White are out in Japan and we learn everything about them. The recently-revealed combo attacks in triple battles sound interesting, although I hope they're only for certain moves. I have a feeling it'll just be the "Oath" moves of various types besides what we've seen, and of course the starters can learn them. Why wouldn't they show them off as such?

Play practice is going OK. Got to actually play my own character this time. Did I mention that before? I think I did. Also, I went home Saturday night and part of Sunday, because, well, I could. It was nice to be back for a while.

A number of the freshmen girls are quite pretty this year. *sigh* Ah, to not be dedicated to the pursuit of one woman alone.

It's been a hard day's night

I am moving out of my room. Why? Well, the people I got saddled with like being up late. Like, really really late. Three AM or so... yeah. I got hardly any sleep in there, so I'm going to go somewhere else so I can finally get some rest. I hadn't posted in a while for such reasons, but I'm staying in another room currently where my rest has greatly improved.

I have a class this morning. A Shakespeare class, and it will be a long one. Only a half-semester class, though, so that's good.

Also, I got a part in Love's Labour's Lost. A very nice one, I play a fantastical Spaniard. That's actually the term old Will used in his list of characters. Although at the readthrough last night, I didn't get to do it, because for whatever reason, we all read someone else's part. It was kinda weird, to say the least. But the show should be fun.

College: blink and you miss it

First day of classes... went by really fast. That's weird. Just one tomorrow, thankfully.

Auditions for Love's Labours Lost were tonight. It was rather different, there was no script-reading in lieu of a lot of exercises and on-our-feet acting with little prep time. It was good, I think I did well. Also, the freshmen this year seem to be a good batch. There were quite a few talented ones, hopefully they'll have fun with it. I hope they'll try out for improv as well, we have five people left.

Placed an order for series 2 of the collectible LEGO minifigures. Also, I found a mostly-complete list of what series 3 is expected to be. An alien, a gorilla, a samurai, and a hula girl, plus a lot of others, but those are the most intriguing to me. I look forward to pictures, and also to my own order coming soon. I want that witch and vampire and disturbingly Miley Cyrus-like pop star and... okay, yeah, all of them.

Auditions put me to the ultimate test of my newfound inner strength today: doing small group work with the girl I like. I passed. No freakouts, no depression, nothing bad. I got through it. This is a relief. And that sentence was an understatement.

It's only the third day of school, we have plenty of time to work this out. Should talk to her BFF about it sometime. No failure, not this time.

If I haven't used it before, this post's title is "School Daze." But I think I've used that.

I'm back at college, somehow. A couple days off until classes start, but at least it's only four days (Saturday class, but oh well). Unpacking was easy, but I got kinda snappy at my parents right before they left, for some reason. I apologized later and things are better, but I still feel bad.

Room is okay. Won't be spending much time here, probably, so I can endure until London. Internet reception is lousy, though.

I just heard someone yell "Suit up!" outside my door. Yep, it's college all right. But this first day seems a bit better. I just got back from the annual luau. By this time of night one year ago, I was in bed already, but now... it helps that people I know are here and are talking to me this time, and that I already know some people here too. It was a good night, at least.

And of course, I saw a certain someone at the luau. I was hoping she wouldn't show up. I wasn't ready to see her yet, after last year making me so depressed, and her breaking up with that jerk, and me never knowing what to say past "hi" in any social interaction... she left when I wasn't looking, I think. I kept looking out for her so I could figure out where to not look, which sounds really stupid in retrospect. I just don't want to force anything, and while my self-worth has astronomically increased, my shyness in public is still the same. Still... I have something to build on from last year. I'm not the same person I was even just a few months ago. Now I have the hope and will to make things work out for me, for once. No more depressive fits, no more tears. No more, never again.

I've said GERONIMO! at the end of a few posts before, so instead, I leave you with two words that express my attitude toward the coming year:
Let's rock.

And now for something... not COMPLETELY different....

Tired tonight. Electricity was off for a while again, we're all tired and frustrated here. Trust me, you'd be annoyed too, so... short post tonight. I think.

You might be aware that I'm one of those rare people who genuinely likes Pokemon and Digimon... chalk it up to being born at the right time and having an open mind. Besides some base similarities, they're very different, so it's hard to compare the two. So! I've been playing Digimon World Dawn/Dusk, and I thought to myself "what do I do when I complete this game? How could I get my Digimon fix then?"

And then I went online.

Japan recently got this game called "Digimon World: Lost Evolution." It uses basically the same engine as Dawn/Dusk (and the DS game before that which I never played), but with some improved mechanics and menus, and different monsters. Believe it or not, there's actually less in this game than Dawn/Dusk. They more or less trimmed the fat- got rid of a lot of cannon fodder or less popular mons, and especially pointless recolors. I went to an Internet message board to see the public opinion, and surprisingly, it's overwhelmingly positive. Basically, some of the dropped guys will be missed, but the new ones are more than awesome enough to make up for it. Let's see, more Royal Knights, the Sovereigns (the digital equivalent of China's Four Gods), previously unplayable villains from Dusk and Dawn, and the Ancient Warriors (who I can't be bothered to explain, look it up yourself if you're curious). If the game is localized in English, the expected release date is sometime in December. Huzzah!

Was that a short post? Eh, whatever. Long day, I've said my fill. G'night.

BLOGZAKU

I've spent a sizable chunk of today downloading music from the anime Code Geass with Firefox's YouTube-to-MP3 converter. I've only watched part of the first season, but really, it has amazing music. I also downloaded some other stuff...

First of all, I got Relient K's "Must Have Done Something Right" off iTunes. I found this Doctor Who video (spoilers for the end of Series Fnarg) and... well, it's a great video, and the song is practically tailor-made for it. Especially the first line. That just works so well, I laughed pretty hard the first time I watched the video.

I got a parody of Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" based on the game Team Fortress 2 off YouTube. Check out "Spy Romance" for something pretty darn funny. And well-sung, at that. I want somebody to be Scout's mom to my RED Spy... *sigh* Well, we've got a whole year ahead of us, time to put my new self to work. And hopefully there will be London to work on that as well.

Looking forward to going back. College has been surprisingly good to me so far. Never thought before that I could miss a place and people like I do now. I'm... glad things have changed from those days.

She's the bloody queen, mate- she rules

I haven't posted in a while, and I realize that- however, I got busy. In between the stuff going on at our house... yeah, there's that, and yesterday we went to the Iowa State Fair for the first time in several years! Huzzah!

That was actually part of the reason I didn't post the night before last, so I could have stuff to talk about yesterday. But we got home really late- after midnight, at least, maybe after one- and I was pretty beat. A lot of things happened, a few of which I'll go over.

*We saw a number of animals that had been displayed. Of course there were the traditional cows and horses, but there were also some huge pigs (quick anecdote- my mom tried her hardest to snap a picture of the biggest, 1200-lb hog. When she took a look at it, she said it was "just a blob" to which I pointed out that was sorta what it was anyway), pygmy goats (which are just adorable), an elk with friggin' huge antlers, some kind of crested duck whose crest looked like a powdered wig, and an ostrich who was all too happy to pose for a good photo. I may make that one my Facebook display photo.

*Saw Jeff Dunham perform. It was a great show, he debuted a new dummy, which wasn't too bad for being a new bit, and great fun was had listening to Walter, Peanut, Achmed, and Jose Jalapeno on a Stick. We were pretty laughed out by the end of it. The audience just loved it, it was amazing to hear some of the reactions for these little puppets on a stage. For example:
Achmed: "Shut up!-"
(massive cheers from the audience)
Achmed: "Waaaait for it... I KEEL YOU!"
(and the audience goes wild!)

*Met the Fair Queen ever so briefly. We were passing through one of the animal stables when we happened to pass by her talking to some people. My mom convinced me to go get my picture taken with her... of course, she doesn't seem to realize (or is perfectly aware) that Troy + pretty girl= recipe for disaster. I was, well, rather nervous, but I composed myself masterfully and got through it unscathed. Looking at the picture, though, I wish someone had lent me a comb first. Stupid wind.

So that was our day. We got there around two in the afternoon, and the Jeff Dunham show started around 8:00, but the day went quickly and it was dark when we left. We went through McDonald's and got home, exhausted but happy with the day. Also I finally drew something. So that was good.

Like a hotel, but much cheaper

That's how the living situation has felt to me the past few days. I spend most of my time in my parents' ro om, where normally I hardly went in there. I sleep in my room, eat in the kitchen, and shower and stuff in the bathroom. And that's all there is. Other than Casey's donut runs I haven't left the house in a few days. Unless you count when I went to get mail.

We are going out tomorrow though, thank goodness for that. Just... yeah.

The other day I heard from somebody I hadn't heard from in a while, and had missed quite a bit. It's certainly made more than one day for me. Sometimes I forget how important having other people in my life is. Being me is weird sometimes, especially after coming out of some of the worst stuff one can go through emotionally. Now I have an altered perspective, which I didn't even really notice til I thought about it.

I got a comic idea. Some of the characters playing New Super Mario Bros. Wii, and some gags about the game, with the characters in the game costumed as their respective avatars. Time to make the magic happen.

Cue the choir

Fans removed from downstairs! Things are almost... starting to get back to normal. Yeah, it's gonna be a while.

Not a lot to say about what I've been doing, just hanging in there. I do, however, want to point your attention to something amazing I saw on TV tonight. You see, my parents somehow got into watching America's Got Talent, and I watch it with them for the sake of entertainment. Tonight they had a special where people found on YouTube got to perform, and the ones who get the most votes move on to the competition proper. So... they saved the best for last. Go do yourself a favor and go look up Jackie Evancho. She's a ten-year-old girl with an amazing voice that really has to be heard to be believed. I think everyone thought she was lip-synching to something at first, but no- she's really just fantastic. With kids like her around, there's still hope for the future of music.

I haven't drawn anything yet. Artist's block? I'm just not in the right mindset or something. Wish I could get back to those points when ideas and pencil lines just flowed out without stopping...

Hey. Hey, you. Yeah, look over here!

WE HAVE INTERNET, KIDS!

So it got plugged back in today, my parents decided to try it out just to see if it worked. Well... you can guess the result. We kinda needed our wireless by this point, at least I know I did.

My hair is already starting to grow back a bit. I swear the song "Hair" by The Grass Roots is the personal theme song for my follicles.

Not a whole lot has happened, thanks to our recent water troubles... I've been playing games a lot, Dad's been reading, Mom's been doing- well, a lot. She took a nap for about three hours or so today. She definitely needed it, though. It was right after lunch, anyway, so Dad and I entertained ourselves by listening to game shows in the background while we did whatever.

Ah, yes, having my parents' room as our current living room is nice. Since all the furniture from upstairs- including the TV- was removed, and most of it is in the upstairs sitting room, we all congregate in Mom and Dad's room to watch TV. We moved a couple of chairs in there as well, so it's a comfy little retreat. I've actually grown to enjoy it in there.

Tomorrow's Monday, right? Hmm... not sure what to do for sure. I'm not certain I want to keep playing DS or Mario all the time. Maybe I'll try to nap, or draw, or find a book.

Yeah, it's quiet here, but not as boring as you'd think.

Earth! Fire! Wind! Heart! ...sorry Linka, we've replaced you with Soy Beans.

Was Linka the one for water? I never actually watched Captain Planet. I've seen the opening on YouTube and that's about it.

So we had our carpet pulled up today to see if there was mold underneath. Apparently there wasn't, but it still required us to move everything up from downstairs (REALLY EXHAUSTING) and disconnect our net... I'm at the public library right now, which is how I'm posting, and why it's so early.

It's been pretty boring otherwise, but things are OK, I guess. Games are going well, not only have I gotten to World 7 in Mario Bros., but I've gotten pretty far with Digimon World Dusk as well. I'm playing more of my old Dawn file now that I've realized I got a special quest you can only get after doing wireless communications. This means more training, and I got the original team I used together (last time I played Dawn I was trying to collect every Digimon, which theoretically I can now do with both versions), which includes two holy angels, a pixel dragon, a Royal Knight, a Greek God, and a couple others. Legend Tamer quest, you're going down. Oh, I've also got some drawing ideas, at long last. I have plenty of time now...

I'll try to post again in a couple days, or whenever I'm next on. Things are a bit improvised from here on out, so if you don't see me it's because I can't get online. See you whenever!

Water water everywhere... in our basement

Bad weather over the past few days. Electricity went out twice, which is why I didn't post last night. Also, heavy storms+disabled sump from lack of electricity+LOTS OF WATER=flooded basement. And lots of cleaning work. So I am still exhausted. Also, can't wait to get back to college now. Getting a bit smothered here.

I'm getting good at New Super Mario Bros. Wii, however. Partway through... World 5, I think? I love Copter Caps.

My new sketchbook... still unused. Thinking of things to draw, may finally have a worthwhile idea soon. At least I hope, the book itself is so beautiful it's begging to have all its pages drawn upon.

Tired now. Sorry, short entry, with broken English. More later. *yawn*

T-minus one month and counting...

I have a lousy haircut now. I just wanted to get that out of the way.

Not much has happened in the last two days- we went out and got some stuff. I found a sketchbook at Cedar Rapids' Half-Price Bookstore (it's near Best Buy. In the area with the theater and the hobby shop). It's a full-size thing, too, spiral-bound (SPIRAL POWER, you say?) and a hardcover to boot. I've wanted to do some big full-size drawings for some time now, this may just be what I'm looking for to practice on. Plus, drawing big things is good practice for drawing them smaller. Probably. Yeah, I just made that up...

Back to school soon. Huh. Summer's been both really long and really short. I'm not entirely sure how to feel about that. Hopefully my streak of good moods won't get C-C-C-C-COMBO BREAKER'd and I can show off the new improved me. Plus my hair will likely grow back by then.

Did I mention my new sketchbook can be weaponized? My old one was only good for a projectile. If the need should ever arise, however, this one could likely be an effective makeshift melee weapon. Only in self-defense, of course.

I want to draw some poster-like art. I did a parody of one of the original Star Wars posters for a school project (it was the cover to a full-sized comic book I did). I have some ideas, some parodies/tributes, some original, some just plain weird. Yes, there shall be Gurren Lagann homages. If I can figure a good one out there shall be plenty of Doctor Who goodness as well, and Pokemon if I figure out the whole Power Rangers thing.

I have a lot of interests, why do I usually only mention just those three?

For some reason it feels like there's more to say, but... I've got nothing. So I'll probably remember it in about twenty minutes and feel like an idiot, but that's life.

Piercing the heavens, one day at a time

I've resolved to drink more water and less soda recently. I think I've gotten a little dehydrated, unfortunately, but now I'm working to prevent that. Yay healthiness!

Pokemon Yellow is going slowly because I'm playing a lot more Digimon Dusk, but it's still fun, if not a little more difficult. Perhaps because it's still early and I don't have any really strong Pokemon? Well, I should say I didn't, as I only just evolved Spearow and Rattata. Having an underleveled Venonat along with that, not to mention a Sandshrew with only two damaging attacks (I'm keeping him anyway, I've grown attached and I like Sandslash) and a fragile freshly-caught Diglett doesn't help either. Oh, and the starter Pikachu, who will likely be boxed. Finally, there's that waiting-to-be-resurrected Helix Fossil. Omastar will surely pierce the Elite Four with his Spike Cannon. Or something.

If I were capable of making hack games (and spriting), I'd make a Pokemon game where Simon of Gurren Lagann is the true final boss. His Pokemon would include Beedrill, Omastar, that big mole with the drill attack in Black and White, possibly Rhyperior, and... I'd have to think about the rest, but a drill/spiral theme would be awesome. AND THEY WOULD ALL KNOW HORN DRILL.

I talk about Gurren Lagann a lot (Pokemon too, but that's not relevant at the moment), but I genuinely like the ideals the show promotes, at the heart of it believing in those who have faith in you, but more importantly believing in yourself. In the last few weeks I've really come to understand how important that can be. My emotions, self-esteem, confidence, and general attitude about life have improved greatly. Remember a while back when I posted a link to an English fandub of the show's opening theme? I've been listening to that quite a bit lately. It's pretty much a good summation of how I'm feeling, and for real this time. I always liked the sound of the Japanese version (well, versions, I think I have around six renditions of the song now), but now that I can understand and personally comprehend the meaning of the lyrics, it's become much closer to my heart.

"We evolve beyond the person we were a minute before! Little by little, we advance a bit further with each turn! THAT'S HOW A DRILL WORKS!"

I'm on the road to Viridian City!

Yesterday... I found a copy of Pokemon Yellow. And it was awesome. IS awesome, I should say. I started playing it, and I've just beaten Brock and am just out of Pewter City. Current team: Pikachu, Spearow (here to stay!), Mankey, Rattata, and Butterfree. Oh, man, this brings back memories. Especially of how dumb I was back in the day. Also, Yellow's sprites are so much better. Gone are the days of horrific Golbat and Exeggutor! Back sprites are still a little iffy, but hey, it was first-gen! They got better!

Also, I've been playing Digimon World Dusk (cue gasps). Yes, a Digimon game. Actually, I've always loved both, but Pokemon's had a stronger presence and has been there more consistently, and has overall better games, so it has the top place in my heart. But man, I love Digimon. Just... so many options. Dusk is a decent game too, and now replaying it I actually have a clue as to what I'm doing, as compared to Dawn version where I was winging it whilst still in Poke-mode. Unlike in Pokemon, no clue what team I'll have. Again... the options. Dear lord.

I recently had a bit of an epiphany, about who I am and what my place in the world is. I was thinking about a certain girl, wondering if she's still hurting, and wishing so badly I could see her just to make her smile. I was a jumbled mess of thoughts at the time, and also thought about my comics and how people loved them, how they told me how funny I was and how I brightened up their day- then it hit me. I have a great gift, and it's great because I can so easily share it with others. I can find the joke in any situation, always come up with some amazing quip or pun, I impress people with politeness and caring, I have so much imagination, love and compassion, and making other people smile is one of my greatest rewards in life.

I have the gift of laughter and sunshine, brightness and smiles, and I can extend that to others in the form of my words and ideas. I'm the guy who makes things better. I make people better. There's not really much else you can aspire to, is there?

I've finally gotten it. I know where I belong. And that's wherever I'm needed most to bring light back to someone's dark day.

Back to witches and wizards and magical beasts...

I finished "A Very Potter Sequel" today. Just... fantastic stuff. I also stalk- er, follow, most of Team Starkid on Twitter now. Hopefully I will know ASAP if there's a sequel, or another show or something.

Ugh, I really want to be in a musical again now. It's a lot easier to watch than perform, though. A theater major's work is never easy.

I'm getting ready to go back to Central. I'm looking forward to it, and to meeting my new roommates and seeing old friends. I've been practicing New Super Mario Bros. Wii a bit, and I'm getting better at it. I'm at World 3 and haven't had to continue once yet, so that's a good thing. I less than three Copter Caps, incidentally.

I have a lot of gaming to do. Besides the Pokemon games I already have to finish, I have a few more to start as well now. I also got a copy of Digimon World Dusk, since I had the other one since quite some time ago, so I think I have... seven games to play now? At least? Sheesh, I need to just finish up one at a time and not switch back and forth.

As of late, things seem to be going my way, for the most part. It's just... a really positive feeling. I'm growing more and more, evolving past the person I was a few months ago... and I don't think it's going to stop. My confidence and self-esteem are soaring, and I wonder who I'm going to be once I finish this metamorphosis?

It's a fez. I wear a fez now. Fezzes are cool.

I think someone is screwing with the timestream because I could swear I posted just yesterday. Ugh.

Anyway, got a copy of New Super Mario Bros. Wii, two used Wiimotes, a GCN/GBA connector cable, and a GBC connector cable that was falsely marked as a GBA one. So yeah. Anyway, I'm going to be redoing Pokemon Ruby, LeafGreen, and XD eventually. I came up with a plan- use Squirtle in Ruby. It'll be funny. Also frees up room on my Black team. I'll use mostly the same teams for LeafGreen and XD. Let's compare the current vs. the planned changes:

LeafGreen: Venusaur, Raichu, Kadabra, Lapras, Aerodactyl, Dragonite (changed for... I dunno, Dugtrio or something)
XD: Espeon, Ampharos, Houndoom, Walrein (changed for Cloyster), Salamence, Tyranitar (changed for Ursaring)

My Ruby team will consist of Blastoise, Camerupt, Cacturne, Dodrio, Aggron, and Wobbuffet. I like Wobby, he's pretty cool. I almost used him once, in Sapphire, I think. Time to remedy that.

Also, Doctor Who finale again. I would love a fez for my own, especially for my Eleventh Doctor costume. Can't wait for the Christmas special, I really hope it's going to be the implied "Egyptian goddess on the Orient Express IN SPACE" story. That would be so cool. Dumbledore's gonna be in it either way, so that's pretty nice too.

Totally awesome!

"A Very Potter Sequel" came out tonight.

Talk later. Hilarious musical parody now.

Schedule keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin' into the future...

Blarg. Forgot to post again. OK, it's been a stressful couple of days, to be fair- my grandma was in the hospital from Sunday afternoon up until noonish today. We visited her yesterday, and almost went Sunday after a long day trip, but long story short: she wouldn't be moved from one hospital to the other until late Sunday night so Mom and I went yesterday. I won't go into the details because it'd bore you and thankfully she'll be fine.

I've been getting urges to play or replay about four Pokemon games now. Besides Red, which I've mentioned in the past, I want to get Yellow, and also replay Ruby and XD Gale of Darkness. I'm gonna need to buy some new stuff if that's the case.

Found out that I'll have two roommates this semester. Did I mention? I'm bringing my Wii and N64. Perhaps I should consider getting some more Wiimotes and New Super Mario Bros. or something like that... I've wanted to play NSMBW for some time now, but doing it myself doesn't seem half as much fun. I should probably ask them about it.

Still waiting for my LEGO shipment to come, but it's arriving from Germany so I'm not getting impatient yet. It's more of anticipation than anything.

KA-ME-HA-ME-.....whaaaaaa?

So we saw "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" today. Very fast-paced, entertaining, action-packed movie. I loved it, but I couldn't help but notice that the hand position for firing their "plasma blasts" looked like... well, a certain famous anime move.

They couldn't have made movies like this when I was younger, with all the CGI and the like... it's mind-boggling at the thought of what they may be able to do in another ten years' time.

I watched the final part of the Parody Rangers movie today (if you don't know what Parody Rangers is, it's a series of Flash cartoons spoofing Power Rangers. Not suitable for kids but it's hilarious, look for it on Newgrounds) and thought, "hmm, maybe I could draw a parody like that of my own for Graphing Mercury." Just what we need, a team of Super Sentai knockoffs! With Pokemon Megazords!

Actually, I do need to get back to drawing eventually. Maybe I can do that tomorrow, if we don't go somewhere for Dad's birthday. He's 59 tomorrow.

Yesterday, I checked online about the LEGO collectible minifigures. They're sold out, even on the online store. AND THEY'RE NOT MAKING ANY MORE. But wait, there's a happier ending! I registered on a LEGO-buying/trading site called Bricklink earlier in the year just in case, and I managed to buy a complete set from a very reputable vendor in Germany (over 2000 reviews and not a single negative one), so within a week or two I'll start getting impatient. Ha!

Oh, and since I didn't see your comment until recently (I've gotten lax checking my email), good to hear from you again, garnetash. I'd missed hearing from you! And thank you, I really mean it.

Upgrade complete

So. Positive feeling. Definitely here to stay. Excellent.

I have been searching for those collectible minifigures for some time now and still don't have any. They're even sold out online. Well, isn't that just dandy? It'd be really nice if I could find some soon...

Besides that, I feel optimistic. Exuberant, even. I'm beginning to understand the "you have to learn to love yourself" advice I got. It may have sounded cheesy, but that wisdom was pretty gouda.

...if you leave now I won't blame you...

Anyway, it's like I've made a real advancement for once. I think I may be able to actually get the girl for once. It might take a while, but I know I can do it. ...I do worry about her, though. She broke up with a jerk of a guy, but although I don't understand how she ever liked him I know that she must be hurting right now. I know all too well what it's like to be rejected by someone you don't automatically realize isn't good enough for you... If there was a way for me to be there for her right now, I'd do it, but I can't think of anything her close friends couldn't do better. It's them that she needs right now, not some other guy who wants to be with her. She needs to heal, and I have to respect that. So I will. I've waited a long time to find someone like her, I can wait a while longer. Then I can work on doing things the right way this time.

Some people might say that I don't need to look for a relationship now, that there's no harm in waiting. Those people don't quite understand... I've spent a lot of time being alone. I refuse to deal with that anymore. Living for just myself isn't fulfilling for me... I see and understand so much on a level different from other people, and I want to share that with someone. Nowhere does it say I need to wait thirty years for that, because I'm not going to. I'm as good as anyone else, in fact, there are a lot of people that I'm better than. They get their chances, well, it's time I got mine.

An era of sadness, self-pitying, and loneliness is over, and good riddance to it. It lived long past its welcome. I've finally stopped holding myself back unintentionally. Nobody's seen what I'm really capable of yet, because even when I tried my hardest before, there were always those black clouds on the horizon, but no more. It's clear sailing ahead. This time, I'm going to live my life how I want to. I have the power to improve my life, and I'm the only one who can do that- nobody else chooses for me.

Right here, right now, is the perfect time for this new life to start. The path to tomorrow is the one I choose, not the one anyone else does. Trust me. I've finally got it figured out.

And it feels good!

So our enemy is an MI5 operative? We're screwed

I dunno if you read, friends, but we have clearer scans of recent Pokemon magazine info. It's pretty cool, too.

So, main points, in order for me to not ramble the whole time:
*Two rivals, a guy named Cheren and a girl named Belle. You get given starter Pokemon as a gift from the professor, who asks you share them with the other two, your childhood friends.
*An antagonist named N. Yes, that's his name. His goal is to separate humans and Pokemon altogether. Why? We don't know yet. But hey, an improved storyline is definitely acceptable.
*More Pokemon, including an evolution of weirdo-pink-thing Munna which looks much cooler, new moves and abilities, another character or two, and some info about the games connecting to the computer.

It was a good haul, and the eagle that we're getting looks very nice indeed. The last week or two have been good, not just game-wise, but just life-wise. I'm pretty content where things are at right now...

Just another Pleasant Valley Sunday

I feel content right now. Everything seems to be the way it should be.

Life is good right now.

"Draco was banging his goblet on the table. It was a nauseating sight..."

So I've been playing LEGO Harry Potter over the past few days. I actually got it earlier but put off playing it for whatever reason. And... it's pretty fun. Exploring Hogwarts with a giant world hub is pretty cool, and fans of the series would definitely appreciate all the continuity nods. Sometimes the puzzles are a little unintuitive, but not so bad as the Batman game. Seriously, some of those puzzles made no sense at all.

My only problem is that you really have to get deep into the game before you can truly explore. Among the things you need for a lot of puzzles to get 100% are a character with a key, a spell to destroy metal, and a character that can use dark magic. I'm partway through Prisoner of Azkaban's story and haven't got any of those. The spell and the dark magic character? Can't get any of those until Goblet of Fire. A character with a key? Only one, and you need that metal-destruction spell... ugh.

The character select is huge, I haven't played every LEGO game, but this is the biggest one I can remember since the combined Star Wars cast... and a lot of those slots cycle through variations of characters. Yeah, it's pretty big. One gripe, though, is that most of the characters I've unlocked are... boring. Lots of generic stuff like "Hufflepuff Prefect" or "Ravenclaw Boy" or just the generic "Boy" and "Girl." Huzzah. When do I get Dumbledore and the interesting characters? Oh, and they forgot Lavender Brown. You can get nearly every named character except for her. And Luna, who isn't until the fifth book (this game is only over the first four), but I really say that because, as I've said before, I have a massive crush on Evanna Lynch like every other reasonable person on the planet.

Perhaps it's something about a geeky, smart, head-in-the-clouds, yet incredibly pretty girl that hits the right buttons. That... that actually sounds about right.

It's our problem-free philosophy

...okay, I'm really bad on the updates. Sorry about that. Though I had a good excuse last night. My dad came down with some serious back pain and was really ill, so at around nine my mom decided to take him to the hospital. Result? Kidney stones. Yeah. They got home at around one o'clock, and I figured it would be late, so I stayed up for them.

Dad slept most of the day. He's been quiet so I'm not entirely sure how well he's doing, but he's making an effort to get better. It was a big sleeping day for me too, got up around eleven o'clock. I'm glad college taught me about self-reliance because she needed the rest too.

Despite the tiredness factor, I've been feeling pretty good lately. Chatting with, and getting along with, people I'd never met whilst watching the Nuzlocke Livestream was a good experience, and certainly confidence-boosting. I have a feeling next year will be pretty good (and I just got my rooming assignment, I have two roommates. Should be interesting), especially if/when I got to London.

I was thinking about the girls who hurt me in the past, and how I thought I wasn't good enough for them. Then I turned it around: I can do better than them, but they can't do much better than me, not where it counts. And thinking that felt good.

When you lose everything that matters, if you're broken and bleeding on the ground, that's the worst time to give up. Keep fighting, and claw towards the future like your life depends on it, because it does. If you give up, then it was all pointless, but when you keep going, you can make things better, and only then will the suffering have been worth something.

I'm not weak because I fail. I'm strong because I keep trying. Sometimes people give up. I know, I've seen the results of people who surrendered everything. There's something different in me that keeps me going. I don't know what it is yet. I think I'll find out once I finally succeed.

Gotta catch 'em all... by buying both versions!

I found my old copy of Pokemon Red a few days ago. I want to replay it for the fun before Black and White get released, and I'm working on a team. Going with solely first-gen guys is pretty interesting, or at the least a challenging prospect given what we have to work with now. Snorlax or Tauros, hmmm... how to decide...

The concept of nostalgia is a curious thing. I saw Toy Story 3 yesterday, and I can't ever remember being moved to tears in such a way while in the theater. It was a great movie, and a great way to finally close the series. Also on the summer viewing shortlist: Despicable Me and The Sorceror's Apprentice. Both of them look like they will at least be funny, and the latter's special effects and action look fantastic.

For the first time in a Pokemon game, I won't use a starter... I'll use Squirtle as tribute to an egg that I will send over to use in Black, but my final team will include Fearow, Exeggutor, Gyarados, Dugtrio, and... well, not sure yet. Tauros and Snorlax look likely at the least, and I'll figure something out for sixth. I always do.

Mom gave me a pill to help me sleep. I'm fighting off the drowziness to finish this post. I have stuff to do still tonight, and plenty of random stuff to sift through...

I never mentioned this before, but she's single. I found out from a friend who told me that the jerk in question is now listed as single (and still is, I checked for myself). This is... good. But I hope she's doing okay. Especially working all the time and away from college... maybe I'm overthinking. One day at a time, then. That's easy enough.

That's all for tonight, in between sleepy and lack of bad stuff to complain about. Things are pretty good right now. Let's hope it stays that way. I feel a bit more like I'm going to make it to the end of this race somehow. I need to grab hold of that and never let go. So, I'll see you all next time. Hopefully on schedule, but let's be honest here.




Hmm, Venomoth, perhaps...? Oh, wait, I forgot Jolteon was a top pick... grr...

I really gotta keep on a better schedule

That, or do this earlier. Electricity in town got cut off last night, so... yeah, can't really help that, but it stopped me blogging.

I don't really have a lot to say anyway. Although I am currently watching some live Nuzlocke runs online. They're doing it over three days (yesterday through tomorrow) and it's for charity. It's fairly entertaining, especially for a boring Friday at home. The one I was on yesterday was really good but the whole electric shutoff thing interrupted it. Alas. Still, apparently it's recorded online so I can still watch it! Huzzah!

On Sunday we'll likely be going to see Toy Story 3. I look forward to it. I hear The Last Airbender wasn't too good, though. Shame about that.

Two months until Black and White come out. Man, I can't wait to hear all about them. These games are going to be great...

"I remember you, raggedy man, and you are LATE FOR MY WEDDING!"

Okay, so I'm a day late on the blogging. Vacation took a lot out of me, but it was absolutely fantastic, so it's worth it. Anyway, got to see the Doctor Who season finale just a day or two ago, and...

~WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD~

Okay, you still with me? Fantastic. Let's talk about "The Big Bang"...

First off, it strikes me just how much different it is to other finales of the revival. There's no big change in the TARDIS team at the end, for one. That's right, we have our same team of three jetting off into time and space for the Christmas special... yes, three. I'll get to that in a bit.

Also, while there is a bit of a reset button, it actually works because it makes sense in the context of the season. Bits and pieces from throughout all twelve previous episodes were included in some way, or contributed to part of the finale. Oh, and the arc doesn't end. We never find out who the Big Bad is, and the reason as to why the TARDIS exploded, and why on the day of Amy's wedding, is still unclear. So next season we'll be getting a continued plot, which actually seems as though it'll work better in the long run. Basically, Moffat streamlined and improved the formula from the RTD years, with his own touches added. For example, no real big, epic battle. A Dalek is in it, and it's mostly incidental to the plot. It's a lot more plot-and-character-driven than running off the Rule of Cool, which worked in the past but would naturally get stale for some...

Now, I have to talk, absolutely must talk about, it would be unforgivable if I didn't talk about... Rory Williams. That's right, the Boy Who Waited. So he was revived as an Auton with Rory's memories but still all the love and devotion to Amy. So just to make sure she'll be safe for two thousand years in the Pandorica, he guards her for all that time, taking the slow path while the Doctor zips forward in time. He totally succeeds (not at staying out of trouble, though), even dragging the Pandorica out of a fire. Oh, and did I mention since he's made of plastic, any damage he takes can't heal? And he's really weak to fire because he's plastic? And yet he still succeeds- not to mention stays sane, which the Doctor implied would likely not be the case. And while Human Rory is back at the end, he's still got the memories of Auton Rory, which means all that awesomeness and love in him. Let's face it, he's a contender for best companion ever. I am so glad he's back... Arthur Darvill needs to be there full-time for Season 32, and it looks like he will be. A married couple traveling with the Doctor! Brilliant!

We also got some River Song coolness (a Dalek begged for mercy when it found out who she was), adorable young Amy, and the Doctor wearing a fez. Even if only briefly. And Amy gets her parents back! Her dad's name is Augustus! I will name a Pokemon that one day, mark my words. The continuity nods, by the way... great stuff. "From now on, Amelia, I am leaving the kissing duties to the new Mr. Pond!" "Wait, no, that's not how it works." "Yeah, it is." "...yeah, it is." The fact that Rory doesn't seem to mind so much is icing on the cake.

Really, just the last fifteen or so minutes. The Doctor going back through time, his story to young Amelia and subsequent sacrifice, then Amy's wedding and realization of the Doctor, his epic reappearance in a suit with tails (not a tux, bad things happen when the Doctor wears a tux), hilariously bad dancing (like the Doctor is someone's dad, WHICH HE IS!), River's unwillingness to give a straight answer, the "goodbye!" scene, and hopefully the tease that the Christmas special will involved an escaped Egyptian goddess on the Orient Express IN SPACE!

Am I gushing about it? Yeah, I am. Do I have a good reason to? Duuuuuuuuhhhh. Of course I do. It's Doctor Who, the best idea in the history of forever. Of course it's brilliant.

So, one excellent season down, and it looks like we can only go up from here. Like I said one hundred posts ago...

GERONIMOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

100

So if I'm correct, this is my hundredth blog post! Hooray, I guess! Not that it means anything, really, but hey, I've stuck with it this long. Here's to an unspecified number more...

Yesterday I didn't post, we took a break from pretty much everything and got some rest after exploring Mackinac Island a little. Incidentally, some places around the area are spelled Mackinac while some are spelled Mackinaw, but they're always pronounced with the "aw" ending. THE MORE YOU KNOW.

The Doctor Who finale is today, but I can't see it yet. I really want to, though, so I am doing my best to avoid spoilers at all costs. I hate being spoiled, it ruins the emotional involvement if you know what's going to happen. Plus, the Matt Smith series has been great so far and I really want to keep the steam going for my own sake...

I type tonight from the house of a friend of my mom's, who lives in Kalamazoo. My computer can't connect to the Internet so she graciously let me borrow hers. This keyboard is a bit different so if you see any errors blame it on that, OK? It's a very nice house though, very large too, so I get my own room! Wahoo!

Pokemon Black and White come out in Japan in September. Holy cow. I dunno if that means they'll be not long after in English. I certainly hope so. Wouldn't it be nice to get them before I go to London? Then again, I'd hardly have the time to play them... oh well, we'll get there when we get there. Which is really the only option, I suppose. That's the only time you can get there, after all. So... yeah.

While I still have feelings very deeply for the girl who's been causing me so much trouble, I have to admit that I've developed a crush on another girl from college. It's funny, because I don't actually know her in person. Somehow I was browsing Facebook, and she's friends with several of my friends, and we have some interests in common and she's really cute and... oy. I dunno if I'm trying to increase my chances for success or failure here. I've always been of the opinion Murphy's Law should be renamed for me.

I need to sleep in for once. Tomorrow we head home so I can then, but since my grandmother is house-sitting (and cat-sitting) I dread being stuck in the Bed That's Way Too Small For Me. Look, I don't want to complain, but why does Grandma have to sleep in my bed again when the parental units have a bigger one...?

I like the house here in Kalamazoo, though. We need to visit again. Hopefully sooner than in seventeen years next time.

Haven't talked to people much in the last week. Too much traveling, too much time spent on other stuff. Downloaded a bunch of music off iTunes last night after going through some Doctor Who fan videos on YouTube. Left my connector cable at home, of course. I really gotta start planning things better. Like Batman. He's a great planner.

Actually, of late my favorite superhero is starting to be Green Lantern. The whole "emotional spectrum" thing they introduced was a great idea. If you can make the rainbow cool, that's a darn clever concept in my book.

So, nothing else of too much interest to say, and I'm tired as it is. That's the hundredth installment for you all, turn the lights out when the party's done, thanks. See you next time.

ROMA ROMA-MAAAA, CANADIANS SAY EH

Actually, that's not so true. Two days that I've been there and I've heard it about twice, so I have no idea where the stereotype comes from. I saw a mug about it in a tourist center, though, so I suppose they kinda embrace it.

That's right, in case you hadn't heard, I'm in Canada. Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, to be precise. Sault is pronounced "soo," incidentally. It's French. Anyway, I would just like to say... I LOVE THIS COUNTRY. Maybe it's just the novelty of being in somewhere that's not the United States, but it's been a blast, even in just this one town. This town's also part of Michigan, separated by a river. If you ever end up in the Michigan half, find the restaurant "Karl's Cuisine." It's a little family-owned-and-operated business on a street corner, but they have some of the best food I've ever eaten. I recommend the cheesecake.

So far, though, our experience with Canadian cuisine... is mostly fast food. McDonald's isn't much different (the fries aren't nearly as oversalted, though) and Subway is still excellent, though they lack the spicy mustard I so love. Regular mustard's a decent substitute. Temporarily.

We went to this large mall, about 110 stores, which is where we've been eating, mostly (okay, so we started with dinner last night, still counts), and among the things you'd expect- bookstore, video games, movie/CD store, etc.- we found a bulk store. As you might guess, it sells foodstuff in bulk. Lots and lots of it. Especially candy. Chocolate-covered coffee beans, sprinkles in every rainbow color plus black and white (wait, is this a Blackest Night reference...?), and some chocolate ones, graham crackers, Smarties which happen to be called the far superior name of Rockets in Canada, every kind of sugar imaginable, and EDIBLE BALL BEARINGS. Well, OK, they're silver ball things, but I am certain they're the things from that one Doctor Who episode. Didn't see any jelly babies, though, do they even sell those anymore?

Today was mostly taken up by a very long train ride across the Canadian wilderness to Mount Agawa. We left around, oh, 7:30ish our time, and got back around 5:45. Yeah. That wasn't all train ride, of course, we got a couple hours or so for a picnic and walking the trails, which was nice but extremely exhausting. Unfortunately, despite extensive Pokemon playing on my part (three gyms in one day, seriously) it was a very boring ride, and the whole passenger group was made up of middle-aged and older people.

Well, not entirely. There was a young couple whose picture I took for them, some kid in a stocking cap who kept running around the train, a couple little kids, and one rather pretty girl who was roughly my age and I never talked to. *sigh* My parents, I have realized, tend to stifle me. I'm much more open and comfortable around other people when they're not there. It doesn't help that they were dragging me up and down hills and steps I had little interest in climbing when I'd like to go and talk to this girl. Look, I'm not gonna pretend that I think something interesting might have happened, but it would have been better than nothing, right? Instead, I got stuck in shyness mode lock and will never know her name, where she's from, any of that. I could have at least made a new friend. Maybe even a foreign one! Who knows what might have occurred? Well, nobody, and we never will. That makes me sad, I guess. Disappointed, at the absolute least.

It reminds me of the idea of parallel universes- one simple decision can change the course of history for dozens of people, and that's a conservative answer. Depending on what you might do, you could meet an entirely different set of people, choose a different career, marry someone else, have entirely different kids, live to a different age... even a simple decision like going right or left could lead to a whole other world with an entirely alien version of you. Not a space alien, I should specify. Well, probably not a space alien.

If I can find the alternate universe where I'm a total Casanova who can get any woman I want with a snap of my fingers, I will rip through reality itself to get there and force that version of me to swap places for a couple weeks. FOR SCIENCE!

Okay, nah, I didn't think you'd believe that. I'm nineteen and still single, I have a libido the size of Belgium, okay?!

Wish you were here

I almost added "because I wish I wasn't" but... A, not how I feel, B, some things are too cynical even for me.

Not to mention it's a very nice vacation thus far.

Yes, I write to you from Michigan. Sault Ste. Marie, to be specific. Yesterday we made it to Iron Mountain (awesome name, I know) and now we're not even in the same time zone. Lots of driving, as you can guess, and lots of wilderness. Trees, all over the place. Broken up by some rocks. Oh, and water, lots of water after a certain point. I've seen two of the Great Lakes just today (Michigan and Superior, if you're curious).

Not a whole lot else to say on that front... to be fair, we're just getting started, so I'll have more to discuss later. The weather's been beautiful, though. And I had a random depressive spell at one point today. Apparently seeing happy couples of my approximate age magnifies my loneliness issues, who knew?

Playing SoulSilver has been a boon so far, a wonderful distraction and an actual challenge, since... well, one of my Pokemon has evolved. And that's my starter. Right now I have Croconaw, Growlithe, Tyrogue, Aipom, Sunkern, and Farfetch'd, and I'm working on the fourth gym. I had a Beedrill for a while for filler until I got the later guys, but its nature was one that lowered Attack, which is sorta vital... so now he's on the Pokewalker. I also had a Kangaskhan I got from the Pokewalker (long before Beedrill went there) for a longer period, and frankly she was excellent, being a go-to for any tough situation. She was half the reason Whitney was ridiculously easy for me, and I hope to use one full-time one day. I had to box her, though, once I got my full planned team, and she was sorta stealing experience.

Incidentally, I have great names for my team members. See if you can get the references for them (some of them don't necessarily make sense and are just cool):
*Croconaw: Kamina
*Growlithe: Fenris
*Tyrogue: Stark
*Aipom: Dastan
*Sunkern: Horatio
*Farfetch'd: Miyamoto

I can't wait to draw the comic for this and give these guys personalities, even if it is comedic. Kamina and Miyamoto have very clear characters in my head, the others... kinda vary. Beedrill and Kangaskhan were there for a while so they'll probably get some development as well. Maybe even that traded Machop you get for a Drowzee... always planning to do...

What can I say? Gaming is good for my brain.

Tomorrow there will be a boat ride, and that's all I know for now. Insert obligatory Lonely Island reference here.

Pose as a team 'cause CRAP JUST GOT REAL

...you know, the stuff I say would sound so much cooler if I was the swearing type. Oh well.

Anyway, yes, been working on my future Pokemon comic, my drawings have gotten increasingly better. Last night, in particular, I got some good practice in. Our electricity went off due to the weather, and it didn't come back until after midnight. So we turned on the flashlights and sat in my parents' room, mostly. Dad read, Mom finished packing, and I continued drawing. I got a good start on Totodile and greatly improved my Aipom. That monkey looks freaky when you don't draw it quite correctly.

By the way, I was at Wal-Mart today, and decided to flip through the HeartGold/SoulSilver guide, and realized I can't get a Tyrogue (to evolve into Hitmonchan) ingame until beating the eighth gym. So, there's another egg to trade... on the plus side, I'll now have something to completely own Whitney with.

Doctor Who's newest episode (the first half of the finale) was pretty good. All the callbacks and enemies appearing were great, and the end... yeah, now that's how you do a cliffhanger. The discovery of exactly what's in the Pandorica... I don't think anybody quite saw that coming. At least not the way it turned out... I also love one part where the Doctor shouts down about a million starships with quite possibly the best boast about his sheer awesomeness ever. Sometimes I get the urge to punch the Matt Smith haters in the face.

The next episode will have a lot of explaining to do. I mean, we don't even know who the villain is yet. That's pretty rare, to be halfway through and have no clue who the big bad of the season could be. Ahh, and to think that this time next week I'll probably be in Canada.

Vacation tomorrow? Yes please. I'll see you guys somewhere that isn't Iowa.

World of cardboard

Feeling quite good about myself today. Overconfident, maybe a bit, but I am actually getting stuff done. I'm feeling better after a quick bout of sickness, all my latest med upgrades are working fantastically, and oh yeah, I'm actually getting work done on that Pokemon comic project.

Right now, I'm taking it slowly, trying to work out the how of the comic, mainly getting back into drawing habits, and finding my own style to draw in. I've found that when I just use official art as a base, it tends to look better in the end, and yet still recognizable. I suppose it makes sense that imitating the genuine article would look worse than doing it your own way. My takes on Beedrill and Sudowoodo are my favorites, and when my mom decided to take a peek at it, chose Sunflora as hers. I'm also fond of my Farfetch'd.

I've made my current goal just learning some of the techniques I'm using, and then after I get the foundations set, start working on the guys I'll be drawing most. I still have to design how the player character avatar will look. I'm a bit excited, because a new project means I'm overflowing with new ideas for once.

Oddly enough, some are harder to draw than you think, and others easier. Hitmonchan gave me far less trouble than I thought, once I got the head shape down it was a breeze. Aipom, on the other hand... I loathe the thought of having to draw that face. Difficult stuff. Will have to practice more there...

Speaking of, I've gotten a bit ready for the actual game I'm playing. I bred off a couple of Growlithe eggs, the second being backup, and also caught a wild Farfetch'd carrying a Stick (held item that boosts its critical hit rate, for those not in the know) which I'll transfer over and give to the one I'm using rather than hunt for one for who knows how long. Even with my easier method it took a while. (hint: Compoundeyes + Frisk = Success)

I have most, if not all of my clothes packed. Now it's just toiletries and the Bag O' Awesomeness (my laptop/electronics bag) and I'll be set.

Michigan? Canada? Here I come.

TONIGHT, SOMEONE DIES

And given that the choices are down to you and me, I'd say it's not looking too good for ya, buddy.

Okay, just kidding. Though the title does segue into something I would like to talk about, and as you can guess, it's either Pokemon or Doctor Who. It's the former, this time. Today, I came across this site. I was already familiar with the concept of the Nuzlocke Challenge, having read about it on forums, but until stumbling across its Bulbapedia article today, I had no clue that it was also a popular webcomic as well, detailing the author's exploits during his self-imposed game challenge.

I won't explain the rules of the challenge here, as it's pretty simple and explained in the first comic (people do variations on it though). The series itself is a quick read, I zipped through the whole thing and all the fan comics today (which vary in length and quality, though generally the longer ones tend to be better).

So then, now that I've wasted two paragraphs explaining with what I did with about ninety minutes of my day, where does that lead us to? Well, I've got a brand-spanking-new copy of Pokemon SoulSilver just waiting to be played (I'm taking it on vacation and want a fresh start, as I have done for the last few years now). While I am not masochistic enough to do a Nuzlocke run, I was thinking... the art style is fairly simplistic. I do simple stick figure art. Logically, I could draw something like this. So, any opinions? Anybody think they might like to see me draw a comic of my game journey in the style of those comics? I'm willing to, and have ideas, as long as I knew I'd have even an audience of one.

And... yeah. That's pretty much my thoughts on the topic. I've asked a few friends and they liked it, any other comments? I might as well just take my drawing stuff with me on vacation...

That's actually all I have to say today.

You are the reason we can't have nice things

Yeah, that should have been last time's title. Oh well.

So, last night was the play that we went to. Neil Simon's "Rumors," incidentally, and it was very well done. I had a good time, not just at the play, but with the other people who came along. But as for the show... the actors were fantastic and funny, the set was great, and it brought back a warm nostalgic feeling that is usually reserved for Pokemon and when I see Beanie Babies in a store.

I actually saw some at one of those "Stuff" stores the other day, incidentally, which segues us nicely into my next point. Yesterday... I found my dream jacket. Yes, for my Eleventh Doctor costume. Now, it doesn't have elbow patches, but that's currently my lowest priority. Right now the bow tie is first, and my mom should be getting on making it soon enough. Then it's the boots, and technically I'd be done unless I really want the elbow patches. Otherwise it's almost there, and I wore what I have last night. Not only did it all fit together nicely, it actually looks pretty good regardless of the whole Doctor Who bit.

And since yesterday was Saturday and I missed it, I got to wake up to "The Lodger" this morning. A good, funny episode. Left a couple questions unanswered, but I expect they'll be answered in the finale. Which, now that I mention it, is looking to be quite good in itself. It's odd to think the first series of Matt Smith's era is almost over. Heck, I may not even be in the US when it ends. That's weird. But I hope we have many more episodes starring him to come, because he's been a great Doctor.

We leave a week from today. I'm psyched. Expect posts from, well, not Iowa. Maybe pictures as well. I'll work on it.

Gears of... well, not war... might cause a flame war...

A group of new Pokemon were revealed today. Check out all that and more info. So yeah, fifth gen is shaping up, at least in my opinion.

Do you want to know what really gets me angry, though? Those insane "fans" who claim every new design is terrible, that the franchise is going downhill, every new thing revealed is proof that it's the end days... and still buy the games. And the ones after. And so on and so forth... why do you stay with the series if you hate it so much?! And exactly what is the rule for what looks like a Pokemon?!

We had a freaking ball with eyes in the first generation! It flipped upside-down when it evolved, and you accuse the new guys of lacking creativity? What psychedelic substances are you people on?! That gear thing is pretty darned awesome, in my opinion.

I am very happy with what we've got. Today my alarm clock went off really early for some reason (I didn't even turn it on, at least not to my memory), so I got the news pretty much as it came out.

I've started exercising some, so I can stay in shape. I was on the exercise bike for about 15-20 minutes today... it's a start. I somehow gained around ten pounds without noticing (or it becoming too physically apparent), so time to move that back down to a slightly lower BMI. Hey, geeks can care about their health, too!

Going to see a show tomorrow. More info on... Sunday, I think? And I leave for vacation a week from then. I'll have my laptop, so expect updates even then. Maybe even... FROM CANADA. Stay tuned, fearless readers.

...does anybody even read this anymore?

Nor am I an IHOP

I was looking at the main page and somehow misread last post's title as "I'm just a man, I'm not an IHOP." Which I'm quite glad for, honestly, IHOPs are depressing. Or maybe I've just had depressing times in IHOPs.

...their food is nice, though.

I hate Facebook chat. Nobody is ever on anymore. Certain people keep trying to chat with me when I really don't want to. It annoys me. Almost as much as Twilight annoys me, which is saying something. Speaking of, I read a list of "100 reasons why Twilight is better than Harry Potter" today, written by a Twilight fan of course, and most of them had to do with physical attractiveness of various characters/actors. Amazing how many girls these days judge solely on...

Suddenly, it becomes very clear why I am still single.

Later this week, at least I think so, I'll be going off with a group of other alums of my high school to see a professional production of a show we kinda-sorta did. Long story, but it got canceled by the school board two weeks before we had to go on and... yeah... school boards also annoy me.

I still haven't drawn anything yet. I have ideas but no motivation to do much of anything. Hey, it happens. Deal with it. I have to deal with things. Dealing with things also annoys me. Why yes, I am in a rather ticked-off mood today. Could it be nothing in my life is getting better? Could I be getting frustrated with the stupidity of so many people in the world? Maybe I have a right to get angry about things and not just bend over and take what life shoves up my-

Well. You get the point. I'm just not satisfied with anything. Nothing has gone right for me in quite some time, and I would like something good to happen in my life eventually. I hear it happens to a lot of other people. Why should they get to have all the fun?

Oh hey, one of the comic ideas I had? Going back to Twilight... imagine: a pair of fangirls fighting: "Team Edward!" "Team Jacob!" They go back and forth, then a guy walks in, trying to break them up. "Ladies, please..."

Close-up as he puts on a pair of orange pointy sunglasses.

"Team Dai-Gurren."

Zoom out to show the Dai-Gurren in all its glory terrorizing a horde of Twilight fangirls as the guy stands in an epic pose on its bow. End comic. Cheers. Applause. The Pulitzer. Women throwing themselves at me for once in my life.

...*sigh*

I'm just a man, I'm not a hero

I think I put it best when I said that life has been kicking my butt recently. Which it has been. I fell into a pretty bad funk yesterday. Next time I go in, I'm asking about changing my meds, because right now what I'm taking isn't helping... I seem to fall in and out of bad moods. Sometimes I get horribly depressed, like yesterday, and sometimes I feel like I've whipped myself up into a rage somehow. When I listen to music it can help, but my iPod has a tendency to die quickly or do other things that tick me off.

I haven't drawn anything in a long time. Tomorrow, I want to do something comic-related. Maybe that would help. It certainly used to, and I should have no short supply of ideas after the mood I've been in. Odd how pain helps creativity. Which reminds me, "Vincent and the Doctor" made me cry. That's two episodes in a row now. I'm hoping the next one is happier. Not to say the last two weren't, I would just like a more laugh-inducing story.

Chrono Trigger is still going well. I do not regret buying it at all. However, I am getting ticked off at not being able to find the blasted collectible LEGO minifigures anywhere. Seriously, even Toys R Us does not have them. If you can't trust TRU, who can you trust? And I don't want to buy them online, either. Then I risk getting five crash test dummies or something.

Maybe it's just me, but it feels like something's missing in my life. Okay, yes, there is one obvious answer, but it feels like... something else should be there as well, and heck if I know what it is. Maybe it is chocolate. Chocolate is good.

Do or die, you'll never make me, because the world will never take my heart, though you try, you'll never break me...

Low level, high badassitude, total gaming awesomeness

So as you may have guessed from my recent posts, I've been playing the game Chrono Trigger as of late. I had heard of it in bits and pieces over the years, and when I read a Let's Play of the original SNES version (found here, and a great funny read) I decided I had to play it. I knew there was a DS remake, but hadn't gotten it the chance I get, so finding a brand-new copy was a rather lucky event for me.

And then I got Magus.

Here's the thing, for those of you who haven't played the game. Long story short, at first it seems like Magus, a powerful magician, is the villain of the story, having cursed one of your party members with the form of a frog and apparently trying to summon the planet-destroying monster Lavos. But as it turns out, he was time-shifted from his home era as a kid to OVER NINE THOUSAND years in the future where he was raised by fiends, but not before witnessing his mother's corruption and sister's death at the hands of Lavos. So his entire motivation was getting revenge on the giant spiky bugger.

So once you get most of this figured out due to the plot progressing at a very well-written pace, you can either fight and kill Magus or do what anybody with any respect for coolness would do and have him join your team. He has powerful magic and wields scythes.

Let me provide a quote for y'all:
"If history is to change, let it change! If the world is to be destroyed, so be it! If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!! I'm coming, Lavos!"
...yeah.

The only problem is that he's a bit low-level when you get him, and while I find his stats to be otherwise good his hit points are kinda low. Presumably that'll fix itself in time, but for now... kind of a glass cannon.

Because of this game I have another valid reason to use the "time travel" tag, and that's pretty cool.

I have to admit that as cool as Magus is, though, Robo is probably my favorite character. I always get excited when I find a new weapon for him, and he has healing lasers. HEALING. LASERS. Plus most of his sprites look really cool. And his theme sounds like "Never Gonna Give You Up." No, seriously, it does, go look it up on YouTube.

No wonder this game is popular.

Thank you for bein' a friend

Rue McClanhan is dead. Only one of the Golden Girls is left... it is a sad day indeed. You know, one of my speech coaches, who used to be an actor, was actually ON The Golden Girls once...

Anyway, back to our regularly scheduled blogging.

Well, not quite regularly, I missed last night due to the connection at home randomly crapping out on me. In the middle of chatting on Facebook too, which leads me to believe these things happen on purpose.

Yesterday, I felt rather badly. Today, I'm a bit better. Chrono Trigger helps a lot with that. Man, that's a good game. I just recruited the optional seventh character, and now it's really just... taking care of the rest of the game and then getting strong enough to beat Lavos.

Fortunately, vacation is in a couple weeks. Off to Canada, eh?

...something has been bothering me recently. I should probably talk to someone about it... no, not the usual thing. Something else. Something from the past that I thought was over, but...

But I don't even HAVE a league to be out of

Today I became a little more familiar with the concept of the Japanese "harem manga," which is a style rather unique to that imaginative country... basically, a regular, usually kinda nerdy guy (much like myself) gets found attractive by a huge number of beautiful girls who all fight each other over who gets him, even if he's only interested in one or none of them.

*sigh* Sometimes Japan makes me hate my life. I wish mine were like that...

Oh, and the one I read a bit of to get an idea of what it's like? Yeah, it's got a bunch of monster girls after a human dude. And not the freaky kinds of monsters, either. Like the actual human-ish ones. Vampire? Check. Ice maiden? Check. A freakin' succubus? ...check.

*sob*

I had my phone off for a few days. Nobody even texted. This does not surprise me in the slightest. Oh well.

I don't like being alone, but I know I'm going to have to be whether I want to or not. Learning to accept that is the hard part. It's not fair when you have a lot of love in your heart but usually have to hide it because it always gets rejected...

Can you tell I'm not feeling that great? Yeah. Oh, and I've no idea if you're reading this, but seriously, don't talk to me out of the blue at one grad party and give a flirty wave to me at the other, then completely ignore me the next day and not invite me to your own party. It confuses me. And makes my self-esteem hurt. Some people don't like playing mind games. Especially with someone they figured they had lost any possible chance with during their final year of high school, partially being one of the things sending them into the deepest depression they'd ever been in, finally requiring them to go into therapy and take medication.

That sentence got out of hand. Sorry. But you get my point.

Raise a glass to fallen friends

So. Just finished watching Doctor Who a little bit ago- specifically, "Cold Blood," the newest episode as of this writing. And, well... wow. Just... yeah. It's a traditional new series adventure for most of the episode, but then the last few minutes...

Total tearjerker. I don't want to spoil it, but... I am not ashamed to admit this episode made me cry. Not as much as Ten's regeneration, but definitely one of the saddest moments in Doctor Who history for me. And then once the tears subside, there's a big WHAM moment at the very end when you get slapped with something big and unexpected, and suddenly you know the finale is going to have a lot at stake for the Doctor.

The upcoming Vincent van Gogh episode looks to be stunning too. Given that van Gogh was a genius afflicted with severe depression all his life, and really just the preview, which is brilliant in itself... yeah, I have high hopes for it. Plus, it's the only one left before "The Lodger," in which the Doctor apparently loses the TARDIS and has to spend a while sharing a flat with a regular bloke. Hilarity will likely ensue.

Chrono Trigger is still going excellently, just to remind you all. Just got back from the End of Time (the Doctor Who parallel makes me laugh there) and got back to human civilization! Off to the Middle Ages once more...

I went to a rather large number of graduation parties today. At least six, I think. I don't feel much like counting (I'm pretty tired- there was GREAT food, however), and besides, a couple odd things happened that make me want to rethink how I've seen things the last couple years of my life.

What's going on when someone you thought couldn't stand you gives you a kind farewell when you didn't even say hello to them?

I'm confused. Who knows, maybe I'm overthinking again...