What Was the Last Video Game You Played?

[Akazora 293]

I became familiar with natures after derping around on Serebii mid to late middle school. Whoa, I have the same problem! After discovering that natures had an effect on stats, I just couldn't enjoy the games as much anymore. I always felt compelled to soft-reset until I got a Pokemon with a decent nature, and I can't catch legendaries anymore in fear that I'll end up with less than stellar IVs even if they have good natures (especially roaming Pokemon, oh god). As for the Primal Kyogre/Groudon theme, if you're not sure whether you can hear snippets of the RSE soundfont, see if you can catch them around 0:15-0:19, 0:26-0:28, and 0:55-0:59. Try to listen to a minute straight through, and just keep an eye (or ear) out for them while you're listening! 

 

I only had one girl friend who actively played Pokemon, but she goes to a different school and I only met her through those card parties I sometimes went to. Aside from her, all of my friends who've played Pokemon are guys. Yeah, a few of my girl friends are familiar with Pokemon and have watched a few episodes when they were little, but they never actively played the games though. I recently discovered that there are a few people in my comp sci class who openly play on Pokemon Showdown during their free time. So yeah, I guess I made a couple of new friends, lol. I can't completely geek out with them though since most people don't know about this side of me. It sucks that I have to suppress this urge, but at least I have some new friends to talk to, haha.

 

Ahaha, oh my gosh, I've always wondered how they managed to fit those puzzles into such small buildings. Buildings like the Pokecenter also come to mind. In RSE, they were about four Brendan/Mays in length on the outside, but on the inside? They're huge?? They did a better job with the proportions in the later games, but I still like making fun of this, haha. Well, at the very least, Game Freak needs to allow repels to work on Route 13. Or you know, make those Pokemon easier to avoid by taking out the wind or something. I think it's a pretty creative route, but these annoyances are a bit much. And I thought Sky Pillar was a pain, lol.

 

I love Yoshi's Athletic theme so much! It brings back so many memories, ahhh... I remember downloading the sheet music at one point and even listening to dozens of covers of it... it's such an adorable tune! Haha no worries. I actually want to thank you reminding me to revisit the OST again, hehe.

 

But doesn't this have the same layout as RSE's Mirage Island? Of course, ORAS is not merely just a remake since the games also incorporate a bunch of new additions, but couldn't this be considered as an "enhancement" to the original Mirage Island instead of an entirely new area? I guess it's true that the differences are far too great to simply brush off, but why are they still called the "Mirage Islands" then? Surely they could've come up with a different name, right? I think it coincides with the idea of RSE's Mirage Island appearing and disappearing. Don't the new Mirage Islands follow a similar mechanic? I'm not really siding with anyone on this, but I still think the new Mirage Islands are similar enough to be connected to the original, even if they are vastly different. Good on Serebii for not completely categorizing them as new areas, and good on Bulbapedia for acknowledging the differences enough to give the new Mirage Islands a separate page.

 

What on earth, the 3DS has been around for nearly five years already?? Geezus, wtf wow, I'm really late to the party. I probably wouldn't have been able to wait until 2018 for the new console to be released so I'm glad you pushed me to get one back in August, ahaha... Hehe, yup, I think 2+ years is plenty of time to get through the games I want to play. Yeah, I'm also pretty confident that they'll reveal the new console soon. Wasn't the 3DS revealed just after the DSi was released? They seem to be following the same pattern after releasing the New 3DS XL not too long ago. But you're right. It's not like the 3DS is going to die out anytime soon, lol.

 

Oh wut, I actually didn't have that great of an impression after playing Black even though I wasn't playing it very critically either. Best Pokemon game ever made? Ehh, it was fun, but it was still a pretty underwhelming game aside from the music and graphics. Honestly, I was really disappointed with the Battle Subway. It was pretty boring in comparison to Platinum/HGSS's Battle Frontier. Bianca was just a really annoying character in general (apologies for bringing back the unwanted memories, gomen), and Cheren was also relatively bland. I never used the Entralink either, so I don't have an explanation for you there, haha. Even after looking at the game critically, I still don't see too many merits. Same with B2W2. Black 2 was a good enhancement to the originals though. I honestly expected a Pokemon Gray instead (or Grey, depending on how you want to spell it), so good on them for throwing that curveball. It was a creative twist, and I enjoyed that. Also, I'm curious; what do you mean by the music wasn't very "Pokemon-ish"? Ahaha, Hugh has fangirls? N too? I... I didn't realize people actually fangirled over Pokemon characters, lol. I jokingly spazzed about B2W2's Cheren with a friend if that counts as anything. Though I guess I've seen Professor Sycamore gain some attention from people...  

 

But I thought most high schools had pools... I mean, even a few of the middle schools I visited had pools... Barely any high schools would have swim teams if schools didn't have pools, lol. I mean, where would they compete? They can't just hog those public pools and water parks for all of their practices and competitions, after all. So yes, I do find it rather surprising that your school doesn't have a pool, haha. I'm guessing that swimming wasn't part of your P.E. curriculum then? 

 

Ahaha, I know right?? Who would've thought they'd include a character from Final Fantasy. And oh my goshhhhh I remember Brawl Taunts! I used to think it was the funniest thing (well, the first one at least). Yush, Mickey Mouse is very much possible use Kingdom Hearts as justification, huzzah. I watched a video reaction of one of my favorite YouTubers (a recording of his stream) and I could feel the hype coming even though I've never played Final Fantasy. Ohh, what a game changer, this is so exciting! Barriers have been broken and any character has potential to get into Smash! Sakurai still has to be careful though. With great power comes great responsibility, heh. Haha yeah, I figured the Fates Special Edition was a really good deal, so congrats! Hopefully you'll have time to play it over spring or summer break! 

 

I'm not the biggest fan of streams, but I love watching people getting hyped up over stuff, so I can see where you're coming from, hehe. Ahah, I don't follow the social media aspects of the campaign either, and I only happened to stumble upon Fiorina attacking Trump when I typed her name into the google search bar. One of the first "news" articles I saw displayed this petty argument between them. Fiorina was defending Carson and basically implied that Trump had no brains. Bad idea. Reallyyyy bad idea. It was a bit immature of both of them to attack each other like that--even if they're not exactly on good terms with each other either.

 

Haha yeah, I don't plan on not making new friends in college, and I guess I can always visit my old friends during break, lol. Hm, well figuring out stuff by myself is always fun, so I can relate, but you rarely approached teachers or friends for help? Oh geez, I regularly asked for help for my math and science classes. Before school during the day of every quiz and test in AP Chem, the classroom would be completely flooded with students asking questions and helping each other out. Same for days after school when labs were due by 3pm for all students. For the calc midterm last year, a couple of friends and I stayed at the library for nearly ten hours straight trying to cram for it. For Physics C, students sometimes stop by the classroom after school whenever they need help with these soul-sucking Webassigns. We call them "physics parties" to delude ourselves. People also sometimes chat me up asking for help, and sometimes I chat up others for help as well. What better way to learn than by offering and exploring different approaches or perspectives to a problem? I love having epiphanies and discovering things on my own, but I could never go without asking questions. Gosh, I know you keep insisting that you're fine, but I still find it hard to believe that long lasting relationships don't work out for you. You gotta have some people who'll be there for you through thick and thin, haha. Ah, well, you seem to be doing fine, so I'll take your word for it, eheh... 

 

Ahhhhhh, eat some food! Don't do this to yourself! :c Go place a jar of pretzels on the corner of your desk and munch on them when you're up late (quietly though since you wouldn't want to wake up your roommate, haha). You can't just come back from the gym late in the evening and not eat anything! You can't build muscle without eating either; your body needs the nutrients, after all. So when you eat, you barely eat anything more than average, yet you get stuffed anyway? Oh dear, I didn't realize how difficult it must be to address hunger as a college student. Isn't it also harder to pay attention in class feeling like this? You're kinda scaring me, eheh... Regardless, I hope you'll be able to fix this soon! Well, now that you're on break (and the fact that it's Thanksgiving), hopefully you'll take the time to treat yourself and eat something nice, heh. Haha, whether or not I'd use my meal swipes probably won't matter to me. I'll eat when I'm hungry, and I won't eat when I'm not. Unless I'm allowed to take food out of the dining hall or something. No point in eating when I'm not hungry, lol. I'll bring a few packages of ramen and maybe an electric kettle for days when I gotta stay up late though. 

 

Haha, yeah, I've learned to appreciate the normality of my name after realizing how inconvenient it was for one of my friends to have an oriental name (which she eventually changed). Well, I'm not sure what I would've expected your name to be, lol. I was so used to referring to you as "Akazora" that any name might've taken some getting used to, haha. And whaa... how was I trying to "get anywhere" with a simple compliment? W-What's wrong with me liking your name...? Oh gosh, I really have been taking my eyes for granted for so long... Contacts seem like such a pain--especially night contacts that physically push back on your eyeballs (which honestly sound really painful, even if you say you're already used to it). And the fact that lack of prolonged use can cause your eyes to revert back to their original shape. Geez, your analogy comparing vision with video quality really helped me gain a new perspective. Hmm, I guess not being forced to wear vision correctors is another thing I should be grateful for this Thanksgiving. Also, the eye doctor may not have mentioned this, but I'm pretty sure that my left eye is worse than my right eye. It's not a very noticeable difference, but I'm certain it's there. Nah, my ears actually aren't that great. I completely trashed them after discovering the magic of headphones. I'm trying my best to keep the volume at a reasonable level, but gah, I can't help it sometimes, eheh... Ahah, "glorious chromosomes" seems like a bit much. I'm really no different from the average person you pass by on the sidewalk (20/15 isn't as uncommon as you may think). Thanks though, haha.

 

Ehh, I'm not going to get a "good" night's sleep on 4-5 hours no matter how you look at it. So I may as well make the process of waking up easier, lol. I've been feeling all right so far, and weirdly enough, I'm not dozing off in my classes anymore. Hm, I will be continuing for the time being then. If anything, you need to look after yourself more since you'll be taking extra classes next semester, haha. Cleveland winters should be pretty rough since you guys are right beside a lake. Even though the amount of snow you received a few days ago was a bit underwhelming, I'm confident that you'll be able to experience a real winter soon. Hopefully you guys have good heating in your dorms! You'll need it, heh.

 

Ohh, so you're planning to take on six classes? And calc is only one semester? Geez, you guys move fast, haha. I also didn't know that colleges offered courses on Excel. Is it one of the required classes for that Integrated Study program you're in? Oh poo, so if I went to Case and had to enroll in some SAGES courses, I can't just focus on the more science-oriented ones? Aw, that's no fun. I guess I could always brush up on some history, but shouldn't the SAGES courses you take be tailored to the major you're planning to pursue? If someone wants to go into kinesiology, why should they be forced to enroll in some random course that focuses on languages or the environment? It's one thing if someone wants to take the class, but what if they don't really want to? Whoa, so the class you're taking focuses on politics in plays and literature? Oh dang, what the... that actually sounds kinda interesting, haha. I'm willing to bet that Shakespeare's Julius Caesar might make an appearance there, heh. Let me know how it goes! Also, is there a reason your econ class is split into three classes instead of two? And best of luck to you this upcoming semester! You'll be taking more courses than usual, so be sure to look after yourself as well!

 

Oh whaa, ahaha, I'm just like your brother then. I also moved into my sister's room right after she left for college, lol. I've gotten into the habit of calling it "my" room even though it's still technically hers (which I feel kinda bad about, ahah...). I keep the window exposed for the majority of the day and only cover them during the nighttime so the light coming from my window at 2am won't disturb any neighbors, eheh... Wow, you really are just like my sister. She also turns her laptop brightness up to the max and insists that she'd rather be working under artificial light. She never bothered taping the blinds though (dang, I didn't realize you were willing to go to such lengths, haha). We have those fabric blinds, so she wouldn't have been able to anyway, lol. My laptop brightness is always on the lowest setting since the highest setting is way too bright (plus it saves battery). The glare usually doesn't bother me, but I can always turn the laptop brightness up a notch or two when it does. The reflection you see on your laptop is likely caused by backlighting. If you worked beside a lamp situated in front of you rather than behind you, you probably won't experience as much glare. I'm not sure how your workspace is arranged, but that might help a bit. Oh geez, what's the point of having a YouTube account if you're not going to bother commenting or liking any videos, or subscribing to anyone? Haha, I can understand the part about not wanting to comment on (damn google+) or like anything (since I don't enjoy how it clogs my like history), but it's a lot easier to keep track of people by subscribing. And if you stumble across a video you enjoyed, you can always add it to a playlist. There are a couple of people I regularly follow who I'm not subscribed to, so I guess I can kinda understand where you're coming from, but how do you keep track of all of the people you follow without subscriptions?

 

I'm actually not entirely sure myself what Humans of New York is, lol. I have a pretty good idea though. I think it originally blew up as a Facebook page run by one person (Brandon) who went around NYC interviewing everyday people, and I guess his aim was to show people the everyday struggles (or profundities) these people were willing to share about themselves. And it worked. "Wow, I never realized the people I walk past everyday had such amazing stories and advice to share." I think that's the reaction HONY wanted from followers. It's a very powerful Facebook page that has garnered a lot of attention. If you haven't read some of HONY's Facebook posts yet, I highly recommend you dig through a few of them just to get an idea of what it is. It's a very diverse page as well (as you would expect from a place like NYC). There are people of all ethnicities, ages (so yes, little kids too), and occupations featured here. Brandon is a very generous man with wholeheartedly good intentions, and despite the popularity HONY has gotten, he's still the same man he was years ago. He has managed to raise thousands of dollars, and has truly changed people's lives for the better through this Facebook page. There are homeless people who end up getting noticed and hired by corporates because of Brandon. Seriously, it's absolutely incredible. Oh gosh, nope, lockers were godawful. You could ask any of my friends and they'd give you similar answers. And pfft, algebra II wasn't that bad. Couldn't possibly have been any worse than those summer school history classes I took (lol, I'm kidding; I know you love your history, hehe). I'm actually more surprised that the state decided to make the pledge mandatory for all schools (as opposed to only K-8 in years prior). I mean, I don't think it was required for any schools back in NYC. Gosh, what a waste of fifteen seconds that could be used to fill in a few answer bubbles on a test! But in all seriousness, it really is kinda pointless. It's not nostalgic for me at all. It feels like more of a nuisance nowadays, to be honest. Elementary and middle school were fun times, but the pledge isn't one of those things that evokes and warm and fuzzy memories from those days. As for why the pledge and announcements are recited and displayed during second period and not first period, I'm not too sure myself. It's probably so the kids who arrive late to school for first period (who might've skipped the pledge and announcements as a result) aren't left in the dark or something, lol.  

 

Wow, that's actually kinda depressing. Why bother staying in college longer than you have to? It's a waste of time, money, and if they really hated college enough to not want to try in classes anymore, well, they're going to have to continue to stay in college until they pass those classes anyway. So why not just pull through during that last stretch? Ahh, well, good luck to them, I guess.

 

Ohoho, I beg to differ. Can't you express inaudible gasps through gifs? Also, it's possible for someone to gasp very quietly. You might be able to see it in their facial expression even though you may not be able to hear it, heh. Yesss!! Frog and Toad was the bomb! Haha, I figured you probably haven't read Olivia since it doesn't seem like something guys would read, but I guess it didn't hurt to ask, lol. Ohh, yes, The Polar Express was also really nice. Hmm, so your teachers mainly read Jan Brett books to you guys? Back in NYC, we read a lot of Louis Sachar books. You remember Sideways Stories from Wayside School, right? Absolutely loved that book to pieces. We also read books like Lexi's Tale and PeeWee's Tale, haha. No David was also fun, oh and Shel Silverstein! Hmm, I dunno. Maybe I have read some of Jan Brett's books before. They do seem like books that little me would pick up, haha. What about The Little Engine That Could? Patricia Polacco? I remember reading quite a few of her books, and she even visited our school back when I was in fifth grade! Or was it fourth, I actually can't remember... It was quite inspiring and I remember each one of us got to touch a chunk of a meteor she brought in and make a wish (from her book Meteor!). I'm not even sure why I still remember these kinds of things, but I guess talking about some old books really brings back some old memories, ahah. So what did you do during that summer program you read To Kill a Mockingbird for?  

 

But we don't have subways around here... or any public transportation... I'm more likely to derp around with that 3DS on an airplane, heh. Ahhhh, whaaatttt, so your school's orchestra conductor never incorporated band members into the orchestra? Geez, but playing with the band is so much fun! Oh my gosh, they're so loud sometimes I can't hear myself play, ahahaha... (and this is only a small chunk of the entire band). It's nice to see that your school formed a special club where both band and orchestra members got together though, haha. Oh nono, I'm not planning on taking actual online classes over break (I already learned my lesson after taking online chem, urgh). Just some basic courses to help me learn a thing or two; stuff I can learn at my own pace, lol. Learning doesn't always have to be torturous you know, hehe. Eheh, whenever my parents confiscated my DS, it was always my dad I had to look out for. He was annoyingly good at hiding it. My mom, on the other hand, was pretty predictable and I knew all of her hiding spots. I don't think my parents ever locked it away though. But that still didn't stop me from attempting to pick locks with a straightened paperclip (except it never worked, lol). Once high school started, my dad finally decided to take away my laptop one day. Well, I had to seriously up my game since I actually kinda needed my laptop for schoolwork and because I didn't want my backlog of graphics requests to get any bigger. I've seen him take away my sister's laptop before, but I don't think she's ever found hers so I couldn't ask her for help. So I had this epiphany when my dad was calling for me one night. I decided to "disappear" in hopes that I could scout out where he hid it (so I never answered when he called my name). I figured one of the places he'd go looking for me was the very place he hid my laptop (probably to see whether or not the laptop was still there). He went into my room first. Not very surprising. Then I heard footsteps walking down to the basement, which was a bit suspicious since there's no reason why I'd be down there. Even more suspicious was the fact that the basement was the second place he searched even though the lights there were turned off. Of course, I eventually had to run back to my room so that he didn't get too worked up or frustrated trying to find me. My dad eventually found me in my room again, then brushed off the "incident" and went to bed after I told him I was in the bathroom and couldn't hear him when he was calling my name. After digging through the basement, I found my laptop inside a dusty shoe closet. It's honestly the last place I would've thought to look. I'll give him creativity points for that. I think that was the first time I was able to find something he hid from me. It was also one of the most exhilarating hunts I'd ever been on, haha. I think I've gotten a lot better at finding my confiscated stuff in recent years, though I don't think I've ever found the need to hide my stuff from them.

 

If you're perceptive enough to deduce my city location (I'm still baffled), school, and full name without any deliberate hints, you have the skills to find a picture of me, lol. Hmm, you know what... if you do happen to correctly identify a picture of me, I'll confirm it for you if it helps put your mind at ease, haha. 

 

Aw geez, you're too much. I'm quite flattered that you're willing to put aside your anime and video game time just to talk to me. If you ever feel that typing these up is too time consuming, please don't hesitate to take days off as well! Don't think you're going to leave scot-free either if you're putting these responses above schoolwork and times for unwinding (seriously, if you need to catch up on work, anime, or video games, that's totally fine, lol). I'm already touched by the fact that you were willing to put up with me for this long, ahah.

 

Oh geez, finals are coming up for you guys already?? Holy... gosh where did the time go wtf, it's almost December already?? Be sure to study hard! Just don't forget to take a small break this Thanksgiving, hehe.

 

Dang, Smash isn't up there for the Black Friday deals. Well, that's not unexpected though since it's only about a year old, haha. Oh there's no need to consult me for this! Do whatever you want; you're the one who's experiencing it, lol. If you think playing Cave Story on a handheld will give you a better impression, then by all means go for it! 

 

Happy Thanksgiving to you as well! Relax a bit and go catch up on some sleep and anime and video games!

You first learned about natures mid to late middle school, hm?  That might have been around when I first learned about natures as well.  I remember already being aware of natures by the time Black and White first came out, since I soft resetted for a good natured Snivy.  Or at least, I thought it was a good nature at the time; I don’t think it ended up being great for the moveset it had, but I was still learning back then, eheh.  Oh man, I’ve left so many legendary and stationary Pokemon scattered throughout my games untouched.  And event Pokemon too, jeezus.  I just picked up Hoopa from my local McDonald’s yesterday, but I really doubt I’m going to actually receive it from the delivery girl any time in the near future, if ever.  Ohhhh, I hear it now!  Pffftt, how can anybody hear that without being told what to listen for [nervously laughs] my hearing isn’t that bad right…? ……right??

 

Hmm, you don’t want to completely geek out just because most people don’t know that hidden side of you?  I didn’t expect that to be a problem for someone like you.  You always seemed really open about yourself and your interests, but then again, I’ve only met you online and generally people are bit more honest with themselves behind a digital persona, heheh.  I never really geek out like some people do either, despite my intense passion for video games and anime, but at the same time I always just attributed that to my reserved personality.  I feel like it’s a bit of a shame you have to suppress your urges like that, but hopefully you get the chance to start off completely fresh in college!

 

When you say Sky Pillar was a pain, do you mean the original one or the new one?  The original on was a bit annoying with those holes you had to bike over, but much like the Team Aqua Hideout puzzle it gets easier with each passing playthrough.  The new Sky Pillar seemed to have an unusually high wild Pokemon encounter rate, though that may have just been my imagination.  There was also this TM among the rubble that I could see from multiple angles, but it took me far too long to find the path that actually led to it.  That was a bit of a time waster and ruined the mood of Zinnia giving her floor by floor explanation of the lore, but oh well, eheheh.

 

Ohh, I didn’t realize you liked Yoshi’s Athletic theme that much!  Well then, I’m glad I was able to help you relive some of those memories!

 

Oof, after all this time conversing, the thing that we seem to disagree on the most is Mirage Island(s), ahah.  They probably kept the name “Mirage Islands” as a reference to the original Mirage Island, but I really don’t feel that the new Mirage Spots are just an upgraded version of the original.  In the Delta Episode, the device that was going to be used to teleport the meteor into an alternate dimension was called a “Link Cable”, but that doesn’t mean they were going to use an actual Game Boy link cable.  It’s a neat little reference, but nothing more.  Also, the mechanic behind Mirage Spots appearing and Mirage Island appearing are completely differently, apart from the whole 24 hours thing, which is already a recurring theme with a lot of things like the Berry Master and the lottery tickets.  If anything, Mirage Spots work more like upgraded versions of Hidden Grottos.  Mirage Island and the Mirage Spots only share one substantial similarity, and that’s that they disappear and reappear.  But even then, it’s a bit different, since Mirage Island physically affects the route surrounding it, while Mirage Spots are technically off-the-map locations and cannot be walked to, only soared to.  And of course, even if you surf or walk by an activated Mirage Spot, there is no indication that it’s there unless you soar.  All I am willing to concede is that Mirage Spots are the spiritual successor to Mirage Island, but no more.  In the same way Brawl’s Ike, Lucario, and Yoshi’s Island were spiritual successors to Melee’s Roy, Mewtwo, and Yoshi’s Story, Mirage Spots are a completely new addition to Hoenn that replaces and alludes to the original Mirage Island.

 

This is only something that occurred to me after the fact, but the one thing that concerns me slightly is that Nintendo has always released their handheld console before their home console for the past three generations at least.  It’s no secret the Wii U has sold terribly (it’s Nintendo’s worst selling console I believe, even worse than the GameCube), and there aren’t honestly many games lined up for it in the future.  We have Star Fox Zero and the new Zelda game both coming out next year but… that’s it.  If they stick to releasing their new handheld before their new home console, and if they decide to milk the 3DS for all its worth putting its release in 2018 if I’m predicting correctly, then the next home console could potentially be released in 2019.  Geez, that’s going to be three to four years from now!  I love the Wii U and there are still tons of games for the console I’m interested in getting, but the general public doesn’t think so and it doesn’t help that there’s not much fuel to keep the system running with the relative lack of major titles even announced for the future.  Of course, since this is all speculation, Nintendo could always just change up their formula by releasing the home console first, or having a simultaneous release, or banking on the success of their upcoming mobile games to carry them in the upcoming year and maintaining a 2019 release date, and so on.  There are a lot of things this new president could do, and I’m interested in seeing how he handles the company!

 

I actually never entered the Battle Subway, not even once.  White was an exhilarating ride for me, but once the hype settled down after the credits played for the first time, I completely lost interest in it.  I don’t know if it was because of school or because of the game itself, but since I similarly dropped White 2 like a rock after beating the Champion I’m assuming it was probably the latter.  It’s a bit of a shame too, since there seemed to be a lot of post-game content in the form of exploring the remaining routes and towns and cities of Unova, which is something ORAS didn’t even have.  I would have loved ORAS even more if it pulled an FRLG and added in random islands somewhere off the coast that you could explore postgame, like the Sevii Islands from Kanto.  I loved the remixes of GSC themes used for those islands, and though they were a bit lonely and sometimes too empty, if Hoenn got their own set of islands with remixed DPPt music I would have lost my mind.

 

Ah yes, I definitely liked the idea of B2W2!  As you say, it was quite the curveball and definitely was a breath of fresh air, even if I ultimately didn’t entirely like the games too much (same complaints as BW).  I wonder what they’re going to do with the extra installment(s) to XY?  Z just seems obvious, but almost too obvious.  Then again, if they did X^2 and Y^2 that would just seem cheesy and forced.  I guess it depends on where they want to take the series.  The two alternate versions of Kalos didn’t have any conflicting towns/cities like Unova’s Opelucid, so consolidating the two games into a Z wouldn’t provide any more trouble than the first fourth generations did.  And correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t some bigwig from Nintendo tell Game Freak that unless the addition to Black and White was something more creative than the predictable Grey that it wouldn’t be made?  The DS was already at the end of its lifespan, and in fact the 3DS was already revealed months prior to Black and White’s announcement, let alone Black 2 and White 2’s release in the not-too-distant-past of late 2012.  Their reasoning was that “Gray” would ultimately be a complete failure if it was overshadowed by the 3DS and thus needed something “different” about it to make it sell, which is why they made a sequel as opposed to an alternate reality of Unova.  Since “Z” is not under those same restraints (not that we know of, at least) there wouldn’t be any need for Game Freak to go out of their way and make a sequel as opposed to an alternate reality.  “Z” would be easier to make, since the plot is already there and just needs to be tweaked and adjusted for the better, while an “X^2 and Y^2” would require significantly more changes, potentially resulting in unwanted costs for a game that is destined to sell well on an already very well received and established console.  While all signs point toward “Z”, I’m trying to imagine how XY sequels would work, and I personally wouldn’t mind getting one or the other.  I just hope Game Freak can change my opinion on Kalos for the better, eheh.

 

Okay wow, what’s wrong with me?  I keep on getting sidetracked speculating over release dates and stuff like an idiot.  Look at all that space I used up, urk.  I’ve split thing into separate paragraphs to make them easier to visually digest, sigh.  Anyway, continuing…  I guess what I mean by not very Pokemon-ish probably just has more to do with the atmosphere of the games as opposed to just the music.  Since Unova was the first region not based on an area in Japan, something about it just felt… off, you know?  I really can’t describe it, but in true American, or I suppose New York-ian fashion, the songs were such a hodgepodge of different styles.  It was even more prevalent with Kalos and their blatantly use of French words and phrases scattered throughout the region.  While I appreciate that they’re trying to diversify the world of Pokemon, when real life cultures are so shoehorned in there it just doesn’t sit very well with me.  Kanto through Sinnoh were all based on Japanese regions, but heck you could’ve fooled me.  Despite certain real-life landmarks and locations matching up with in-game towns and cities, it was all done in subtle ways that you wouldn’t have guessed it had Japanese origins. The only region that was “obviously” Japanese was Johto, with its Bell/Tin Tower, kimono girls, etc.  But at least the localization team named all the towns after flowers/foliage as opposed to Kalos’s so-Frech-it-hurts names for routes.  And people don’t break out into random Japanese phrases in Johto either, unlike in Kalos where apparently French is everyone’s second language.  The Pokemon world was so appealing because it was always so much like our world, and yet completely different.  All the regions had universal appeal and could be connected to real life in any way you wanted.  Goldenrod?  Man, that could be New York or Toronto or London or Madrid or Bueno Aires or Sydney or Hong Kong or Mumbai!  It’s the hub of life, the heart of the country!  Oh, Lumiose?  Well that… that… that’s Paris. That’s goddamn Paris.  You can’t even pretend it’s Shanghai else risk feeling really silly.  And Geosenge?  Seriously…?  I just feel that a lot of the magic is lost when Pokemon is tied so strongly with the real world like that.  It all started with Unova, during which part of me felt a bit uneasy with the American vibe of the region, but I just chalked it up to modernization and figured Kalos would bring me back to how Sinnoh felt.  Unfortunately that wasn’t the case, and if you want me to be honest, I would really like Game Freak to either go back to their Japanese roots or just completely make up a region with no ties to the real world for 7th gen.  …………I’ve rambled for far too long, again.  Sorry for complaining like that, just wanted to let off some steam.  I don’t even know if this kind of criticism is justified; it probably just makes me sound like some kind of deranged, conservative, xenophobe.  What do you think about this whole issue?  Aaaanyway, I’ve also seen Professor Sycamore get some attention.  It actually shocked me a bit since I avoided XY spoilers until I finished the game, so I only just recently, uhhh, started seeing how some girls feel about him.  It puzzles me quite a bit, but then again, that kind of stuff is none of my business, and I don’t think I'm very good at understand how girls think, soo, eheheh……

 

B-But why would most schools have swimming pools?  Most schools didn’t have a swimming team, not the other way around…  Is New Jersey’s entire school system really that bad??  Goddammit Christie, I believed in you!  Why can’t you be more like Michigan’s governor, hmm???  Hahah, I’m just joking, I know it has nothing to do with Christie, I’ll cut the guy some slack, especially since he’s lagging in the polls and I feel kinda bad for him (though admire his tenacity).  And no swimming reqs for phys ed either, thank god.  And JP probably won’t get one for years, especially since A/C has been in demand for decades and takes priority (over everything save for greenhouses apparently).

 

Watching people’s reactions over new character reveals is always absolutely amazing.  This guy created a mashup of a few popular reactions (there were so many he even had a part 2 and part 3), which Masahiro Sakurai himself tweeted out on his officially Twitter.  Do mind the volume though; wouldn’t want to hurt your ears any more than you already have!  I didn’t completely lose it like I did with Mewtwo’s reveal or Lucina and Robin’s reveal, just because I didn’t have an emotional attachment to Cloud, but going back and watching everyone else get excited gets me smiling like an idiot and hyped as heck anyway, ahah.  I cannot wait until December.  If it’s anything like the 50 Fact Extravaganza, the broadcast is going to kill me.  I don’t think my body is ready for hype of that level again.

 

Eck, you’re right, that was a rather petty attack and counter attack.  Come on Fiorina, just because you’re trailing in the polls to the likes of Cruz and Bush (admittedly, those are rather demeaning prospects…) doesn’t mean you should do something like that!  If she falls too low in the polls to be salvageable, I may have to give my vote to another candidate come March when the primary elections are held.

 

Woah, what a studious bunch of kids you have at your school!  I don’t know if people did anything like that in my high school.  I know certain groups of friends obviously studied together, but I don’t believe the entire class ever arrived early in the morning to corroborate on last-minute studying and review.  Or maybe, they did but I was never aware of it?  Hmm, I dunno, there were definitely Facebook pages through which notes were shared and compiled on occasion, which I pretty much always missed out on, but that’s it I think.  Eheh, things could get a bit too cutthroat for my tastes, so flying solo usually worked out.  It got me as far as I have, so I definitely have no complaints or regrets.  It does sound nice that your school was so open about helping each other out!  Hm, perhaps I should have looked into forming study groups in college, but before I knew it tests and exams were underway and I had acquainted myself with almost no one in any of my classes.  My grades are fairly good though (a bit too borderline to be lax about, however) so it didn’t prove to be entirely disadvantageous.  Ahh, people who’ll be there for me through thick and thin, huh?  There’s my family, though I suppose that goes without saying.  Apart from that though…… hrmmm.  I guess you’d fit the bill too, eheh, you crazy person who’s taken a liking to me.

 

B-But I don’t really like pretzels…  Ahah, I know that’s irrelevant, but perhaps I’ll look into purchasing some snacks to munch on when my stomachs starts to rumble.  And don’t worry, my roommate is a heavy sleeper.  He falls asleep fast, and once he begins to snore there’s nothing that can wake him up, not even his alarm clock on occasion.  But I know, I know, in order to promote muscle growth I need to make sure I stay fed.  I wouldn’t say staying full is difficult in college though.  You have to understand that I’m quite the night owl, so I spend a lot of my waking hours at night, when everything is closed and I can’t stop by someplace to grab a bite as a break from work, unlike someone who studies efficiently during the day.  And because I wake up late almost every day, there’s no guarantee I’ll have time for breakfast.  I almost always have time for lunch, but in order to stick to my five o’clock dinner routine, eating in close proximity to five would feel like a waste of effort, which is why I always choose not to.  Ultimately, my hunger stems from my stubbornness and penchant for sticking to schedules too strictly as well as my poor sleeping habits.  I’m sure there are plenty of people out there who are more than well fed (the freshman 15 exists for a reason after all, even if some people are affected in the completely opposite way).  Oh gosh, speaking of Thanksgiving, the gym is closed this entire weekend, and this past Thursday was the first day of working out I had skipped since I began my regimen.  The guilt… the guilt I’m feeling is so strong oh my gosh, you have no idea.  I’m going to work myself to the cartilage in my bones on Monday to make up for it, ahah.  Can’t let myself flab up during these days off after all.  And by the way, I believe electric kettles are banned in Case dorms.  There was a list of banned items we received prior to arriving, but I can’t find it right now, though I’m fairly certain electric kettles or stoves of any kind are not allowed.  You can just use the common kitchen area in the dorms for all your cooking needs anyway.

 

Ahaha, nah, I was just kidding.  I guess instinctively I don’t really expect anyone to “like” my name.  It’s not exotic or very interesting, nor does it roll off the tongue well, and to me it just seems kinda… there.  So when you said you liked my name I guess it caught me a bit off guard.  Erm… but I’ll admit it did make me happy to hear, so… thank you, eheh.  I guess the idea of night contacts can be somewhat frightening to someone who doesn’t know what it’s like to use them, but I hardly think anything of it nowadays.  I’m trying to remember how I felt when I was younger, and I was probably against the idea as well.  What was so wrong with glasses?  Lots of people have glasses.  That’s what I think I thought at the time, but I’ll admit that I’m grateful for my contacts now.  It gives me a heightened sense of appreciation for the beauty of vision, since it’s something I can very easily lose and gain in the blink of an eye (ayy you see what I did there??).  Of course, if you have such good vision naturally, then you should treasure that as well.  Walking around half blind is quite the experience, but it’s not one I would recommend, ahah.  Hm, I think my left eye is worse than my right as well.  Most people are like this though, if I’m not mistaken, though I’m not sure why.  It’s very noticeable too; switching between the use of both of them makes it clear that my right eye is superior.  I think you mentioned how you turned the volume up whenever you listened to music, or at the very least that you really liked your headphones.  I’m not much different; I can sometimes turn the volume up a bit too much.  Though, my ears can get really irritated really fast if I wear either headphones or earbuds for too long, so I try not to if I can help it.  Whaaa 20/15 isn’t rare??  B-But 20/20 is norm— ohhhhhhhhh…… that’s right, it’s almost like I forgot that “normal” entails a fair number of people are both worse and better than the status quo.  D-Does that mean my genes are just plain bad??  Oh woe is I, or at least, woe is my chromosomes……

 

The heating in my dorm is really good!  Perhaps, even too good.  A couple nights, er… mornings ago, it was pretty chilly.  I turned on the heating for the first time, and boy it really kicked into high gear.  Before long I was a bit too warm, so I had to turn it back off.  It’s especially nice since it doesn’t make any noise while it runs, surprisingly enough.  It was quite the stark difference from the A/C.  It clanked and clicked in the beginning as it started up, which freaked me out a bit, but once that settled down you wouldn’t even realize the heat was on unless you put your hand over the vents.  I can’t speak for the other dorms, but Taplin’s heating system is quite nice!

 

Well, calc is normally more than just one semester, but I got out of the first half with my AP credits.  And accounting doesn’t require any more than that, though I’m sure there are some majors that require more advanced levels of calculus of course.  The Excel course is required for accounting majors (and minors probably) in general.  I haven’t started any of the Integrated Studies-specific classes yet, mainly because I’m not allowed to until I officially apply for the program at the end of my sophomore year or something and because I have to get the general courses out of the way first before focusing on specifics.  Ahahah, come on now Kenzi, as much freedom as colleges have, every university has gen ed classes of some sort.  You’ll have plenty of time to specialize in later semesters.  You can use APs to get out of some of those classes, but not all (I mentioned before that SAGES cannot be opted out of).  However, you should be grateful that there is such a wide variety of SAGES courses to choose from.  No one forces you to take any specific class.  You’re forced to take one class from each section, but the class you take is up to you.  I honestly doubt you’re going to hate everything offered by the Symbolic World category.  And in fact, you proved that yourself by showing an interest in the Protest Drama course I’m taking.  So even if you just want to go ham on the physics in the labs, I’m sure there’s a part of you that will be drawn toward at least a handful of the varied and intriguing topics SAGES offers.  Some three credit hour courses are just split into three sections on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays instead of just Mondays and Wednesdays or just Tuesdays and Thursday.  I don’t really know why either; guess that’s just how the professor’s schedule worked out.  The individual MWF classes are shorter than the two-day classes of course, so it balances out in the end.  It sucks I won’t be able to enjoy perpetual three-day weekends next semester, but I’ll get my chance some other year, heh.  Thanks, I’ll definitely make sure I’m on top of my game this upcoming semester!  Six classes isn’t an insane amount, but it is a bit of a strain, so I’ll have to give it my all!

 

Oh man, what is it with younger siblings inhabiting the room of the older sibling once they leave the nest?  Do you think you’ll absorb some of that older siblings smarts if you do?  Cute as that may be, I hope my brother realizes I’ve spent many a distracted night in that room wasting my time when I should have been studying.  I don’t think he’s going to absorb much good from me…  Is your sister’s study room the same as her bedroom?  I know she probably doesn’t come back home very often, but during the holidays, assuming her study and bedroom are one and the same, where does she sleep if you’re occupying her room during the majority of the day?  Whaa— you keep your brightness all the way down??  Oh man, I can’t see anything when it’s turned down like that.  I actually always have my lamp behind and off to the side of my laptop, facing me.  I think it was mainly the natural light from my window back when I was home that really caused the problem.  The window was directly to my right.  I’ve tried turning the brightness on my laptop way down to test, and though there’s the new problem of just not being able to see anything because it’s so dull, I suppose I can’t really see my reflection.  However, even though the window is across the dorm room from me and blocked by this nifty little desk alcove, I won’t open the blinds.  After all, I’m paying to be here so why not waste as much of Case’s utility money as I can, ufufufufufufufufu!!  Hm, YouTube isn’t a huge source of entertainment for me, since anime and video games pretty much limit how often I can just lazy around watching videos, but when I want a quick break there are a few channels I check out.  I’m not subscribed to hundreds of channels like some people are, but there are a handful I have in the back of my head that I know to check out on occasion.  Some of them upload predictably, which is nice and makes checking easier, and others don’t, which causes some trouble.  I don’t really forget the channels I follow either.  If I’m in the mood for something that only they can provide one day, I usually remember them even if I’ve failed to check their channel for the past few months to catch up on what they’ve done.  It’s not a hassle at all, which I suppose is probably a bit strange, since I never thought I had much of an impressive memory.

 

Huh, that’s interesting, though I’m not entirely sure if it’s entirely my cup of tea.  It seems like a bit of a time sink if I tried starting from the top and reading as many HONY posts/stories as I could until I got bored.  If everything else I usually do to waste time fails, then I suppose I’ll keep HONY in mind.  Good on this Brandon guy for doing what he has and I’m glad to hear that a lot of people have benefitted as a result!  I’ll give it credit where it’s deserved.  The pledge wasn’t mandatory in NYC?  That’s certainly the first I’ve heard of that.  It’s always been mandatory where I lived, and the surrounding areas as well.  It wasn’t really a waste of time in middle school and beyond since it always took place during homeroom, during which you’re not really doing anything anyway (maybe cramming some last-second review or scribbling out homework, I suppose).  I guess it does seem a bit pointless, but it’s a tradition that some people are determined to maintain, especially since today’s youth are generally liberals and as a result less patriotic in the ways that were traditionally considered patriotic decades prior.

 

Hrmm, getting technical with me now aren’t you Kenzi?  Well fine, I’ll let it slide, though I’m awfully disappointed you were so lazy that you didn’t even bother to insert an actual gif and instead just typed up an ambiguous and debatable phrase instead, tsk tsk.  Ooh, I almost forgot about Sachar; yes I remember Sideways Stories from Wayside School, ahah.  I know I was impressed by it, but I can’t quite remember what was so good about those books.  I never read Lexi’s Tale or PeeWee’s Tale (in fact, I’m almost positive I haven’t heard of those in my life until just now) but I remember No David, ahah.  Oh goodness, Shel Silverstein.  His poems were creative and funny, but I’ll always consider “The Giving Tree” to be his best work.  When I’m in the mood for it, and paired with some sad music, reading through it gets me all emotionally messed up inside, eheheheh.  I never read The Little Engine That Could though I’ve heard of it.  On the other hand, yoooooooo woooooaaaaahhhhh I completely forgot about Polacco’s Thank You, Mr. Falker!  Holy— I must have read that in 2nd grade and remember thinking it was a pretty good book.  Sheesh, good times, back when I thought my town’s education system was still alright.

 

Ahh, no wonder you don’t consider your city much of a “city” since it doesn’t have any public transportation.  Cleveland’s public transportation system was a bit scary at first because I didn’t know how the buses and stops worked at all, but after intuitively figuring it out and using it a few times (for the sole purpose of, uhhh, video game purchases…) it wasn’t so bad.  I obviously don’t have all the lines and bus stop locations memorized, so I’m always the only one sitting there with Google Maps open on my phone to ensure I don’t miss my stop.  Ehh, I must look like such a college kid to the locals.  Since I’ve played in a fair number of orchestras, I do agree that playing with the strings can be rather fun.  Oh gosh, I never felt like the wind instruments overpowered the strings though; if anything, it was always the other way around.  I suppose it’s different depending on perspective.  

 

I learned how to pick locks, the real way, but only conceptually.  I had planned on putting it into practice, but the locked cabinet the games were in was very flimsy and I was able to manipulate it another way to get it open.  Goodness, your dad hid your laptop?  That sounds awfully unreasonable.  My parents only put a passcode on my laptop so that I was forced to ask them for permission whenever I wanted to use it, but after a while (many years…) they got pretty lax with when I was allowed to use the computer so it was like the passcode wasn’t even there.  Good on you for finding where he hid your laptop though, even if you used underhanded tactics!  Don’t worry, I’ve done similar things.  Most of the time I just relied on scouring every single inch of the house to eventually uncover where they hid the goods, but once they got better and the obvious hiding spots were all used up, I had to use tactics similar to the one you used on your dad to give me an edge.  I only needed to hide stuff from my parents when I had the guts to take the games from their own hiding spot.  This was only when I was sure they weren’t checking the hiding spot daily.  For example, if they put my games in their bed stand drawer, even if it would be easy to find, it’s something they’d check every night, even by accident.  Whenever they open the drawer to put away jewelry or something, they can see the games and ensure it’s been untouched.  This is an active hiding spot.  An inactive hiding spot would be putting the games in the empty cooler beneath the Lego box underneath the old dining table in the basement.  Once they placed the games there, after enough time had passed, they would eventually stop checking and even, more often than you’d imagine, forget that the games were there at all.  It’s safe to then take the games and stash them in my own hiding spots, usually in the empty space at the bottom of my clothes cabinets when you pull out and completely remove the lowest drawers.  This makes playing games at night much easier, heh.  There are also thin gaps between walls and furniture I can slip a few game boxes in.  This can be a bit dangerous though, since those boxes might slip too far back and end up out of reach.  I have to maneuver it out with a ruler or other long, thin object.  At least I know my parents will never find them back there, ahah.  And of course, since I’ve purchased games and consoles behind their backs, even if I didn’t touch the games they had in their possession, I’d need to hide the ones I’d bought, eheheheh…

 

Well, speaking of purchasing games… I bought a ton for Black Friday.  I went to Target on Thanksgiving to take advantage of their “Black Friday” deals which started at 6 pm on Thursday.  I wasn’t one of the fortunate ones eating a warm, tasty meal with family and friends, soo… why not join the discount driven masses in some early Black Friday festivities?  I got to Target early.  Over 2 hours early.  I messed around with my phone to keep me busy and chatting it up with the folks next to me.  When the doors opened, I rushed to the video game section to secure Omega Ruby ($25, nice!) for my brother and Mario Kart 7 ($15, sweet!) for myself.  I was about to leave but saw that there was a copy of Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright on display.  This game is pretty rare now since production has stopped and it can only be bought from Amazon, where it goes for $45 new, yikes.  I was completely shocked to see Target still had one, since it was already taken off of their website when it sold out online.  I asked an employee to unlock and rescue it from its plastic prison.  It was the original $29.99 price, so it wasn’t part of the Black Friday deals (I’m surprised it was even still in the system) but it’s technically a huge discount from the inflated Amazon prices.  I’m really happy with my very first “Black Friday” hunt!  The store was a fustercluck though; I wouldn’t recommend it.  Everyone was there for the televisions and Apple products; almost no one paid the game section any heed, let alone the 3DS and Wii U section, which worked in my favor.  But if you’re not shopping for niche items like that, I’m not sure it’s worth the hassle.  It reminds me of the crazy demand for amiibo at MSRP, phew.  

 

When I got back to the safety of my dorm, I decided to take advantage of Best Buy’s buy two pre-owned games and get one free deal.  I purchased Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D, Code Name: STEAM, and Shin Megami Tensei IV, which were all listed as $19.99 pre-owned.  Three full games for only forty bucks is quite the deal, especially with the provided free shipping, heheh.  And of course, when I found the time yesterday, I purchased Cave Story from the eShop for the reduced price, and now it’s sitting amongst my other apps looking nice and pretty.  Just seeing it makes me want to play it, ooo!  But other games take priority, so I have to control myself.  Goodness, so when all is said and done, I had purchased seven 3DS games.  They were nearly all for a reduced price, but golly, seven games is a ton.  Even if you disregard Omega Ruby since I’ll be giving that to my brother when I get back home, I believe that nearly doubles my initial 3DS library, geez.  Ahhh, that doesn’t even include the Fates Special Edition I preordered, which is the length of three games in one!  The holiday spending bug bit me big time…  All those games I purchased (save for Cave Story of course, hehe) were ones I was interested in but wasn’t determined to get.  If I never found the chance to play any of those, I wouldn’t have minded.  But since Black Friday had such good deals I just couldn’t resist…… Heh, just as I start to clear out my 3DS game backlog, I fill it back up.  If you’re wondering how I afforded all of this, well… I’m practically broke now.  I hardly have any digital or physical money left.  The physical money was mostly what my parents gave me.  You know, to purchase any extra food or other necessities of life with.  Welp, looks like I’ll be making some excuses and cutting back on the food I was initially planning on buying this weekend, eheheheheh, whoops…  When I go back home, I’m going to have to restock on my finances with the help of my brother (he’s still doing the whole lunch money trick I detailed earlier).

 

Errr, sorry for the ramble, but I supposed before you asked what I did to relax for Thanksgiving I would just straight up tell you…  Well, I actually didn’t do just that.  I finished playing Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies as well as its DLC case (I had started it earlier in the month) and I plan on starting Virtue’s Last Reward after posting this.  I want to finish it before I get back home so I can hand it off to my brother (he also played 999) and he can give me Fire Emblem: Awakening.  I already beat Awakening once, but the game has a lot of replay value and I figured it would be a huge waste to only play it once before jumping right into Fates when it comes out in February.  So I’ll try my hand at beating it one more time on Lunatic mode (which is the farthest thing from a walk in the park apparently) before Fates come out.  I’ll then beat each route of Fates one time before I give the game to my brother during the summer.  That’s the plan at least; it’s a bit of a strict schedule but I’ll try my hand at sticking to it.

 

Anywayyyyy if you haven’t already, check out the PM I sent you, eheh.

 

Alright then, you have my word.  I won’t put these responses to you above schoolwork.  But I can’t promise that I won’t put them above anime and video games.  I love anime and video games dearly, but… there’s something about these responses that really hold a special place in my heart as well, ahah.  I don’t mind sacrificing a bit of those hobbies to converse with you, especially since I spend enough time on anime and video games every week as it is.  And I could say the same about you; thanks for putting up with me and my lengthy responses, especially given my bad habit of rambling, eh.

 

Speaking of which, since I’ve already gone on and on for as long as I have, I’d like to hear about your weekend!  I don’t believe you mentioned before what your Thanksgiving plans were (and if you did, I’m terribly sorry for not remembering).  I’m curious to hear how you spent the holidays, even if recent Thanksgivings for you haven’t been anything too special.  Tell me all about it!

[Kenzi 146]

 

You first learned about natures mid to late middle school, hm?  That might have been around when I first learned about natures as well.  I remember already being aware of natures by the time Black and White first came out, since I soft resetted for a good natured Snivy.  Or at least, I thought it was a good nature at the time; I don’t think it ended up being great for the moveset it had, but I was still learning back then, eheh.  Oh man, I’ve left so many legendary and stationary Pokemon scattered throughout my games untouched.  And event Pokemon too, jeezus.  I just picked up Hoopa from my local McDonald’s yesterday, but I really doubt I’m going to actually receive it from the delivery girl any time in the near future, if ever.  Ohhhh, I hear it now!  Pffftt, how can anybody hear that without being told what to listen for [nervously laughs] my hearing isn’t that bad right…? ……right??

 

Hmm, you don’t want to completely geek out just because most people don’t know that hidden side of you?  I didn’t expect that to be a problem for someone like you.  You always seemed really open about yourself and your interests, but then again, I’ve only met you online and generally people are bit more honest with themselves behind a digital persona, heheh.  I never really geek out like some people do either, despite my intense passion for video games and anime, but at the same time I always just attributed that to my reserved personality.  I feel like it’s a bit of a shame you have to suppress your urges like that, but hopefully you get the chance to start off completely fresh in college!

 

When you say Sky Pillar was a pain, do you mean the original one or the new one?  The original on was a bit annoying with those holes you had to bike over, but much like the Team Aqua Hideout puzzle it gets easier with each passing playthrough.  The new Sky Pillar seemed to have an unusually high wild Pokemon encounter rate, though that may have just been my imagination.  There was also this TM among the rubble that I could see from multiple angles, but it took me far too long to find the path that actually led to it.  That was a bit of a time waster and ruined the mood of Zinnia giving her floor by floor explanation of the lore, but oh well, eheheh.

 

Ohh, I didn’t realize you liked Yoshi’s Athletic theme that much!  Well then, I’m glad I was able to help you relive some of those memories!

 

Oof, after all this time conversing, the thing that we seem to disagree on the most is Mirage Island(s), ahah.  They probably kept the name “Mirage Islands” as a reference to the original Mirage Island, but I really don’t feel that the new Mirage Spots are just an upgraded version of the original.  In the Delta Episode, the device that was going to be used to teleport the meteor into an alternate dimension was called a “Link Cable”, but that doesn’t mean they were going to use an actual Game Boy link cable.  It’s a neat little reference, but nothing more.  Also, the mechanic behind Mirage Spots appearing and Mirage Island appearing are completely differently, apart from the whole 24 hours thing, which is already a recurring theme with a lot of things like the Berry Master and the lottery tickets.  If anything, Mirage Spots work more like upgraded versions of Hidden Grottos.  Mirage Island and the Mirage Spots only share one substantial similarity, and that’s that they disappear and reappear.  But even then, it’s a bit different, since Mirage Island physically affects the route surrounding it, while Mirage Spots are technically off-the-map locations and cannot be walked to, only soared to.  And of course, even if you surf or walk by an activated Mirage Spot, there is no indication that it’s there unless you soar.  All I am willing to concede is that Mirage Spots are the spiritual successor to Mirage Island, but no more.  In the same way Brawl’s Ike, Lucario, and Yoshi’s Island were spiritual successors to Melee’s Roy, Mewtwo, and Yoshi’s Story, Mirage Spots are a completely new addition to Hoenn that replaces and alludes to the original Mirage Island.

 

This is only something that occurred to me after the fact, but the one thing that concerns me slightly is that Nintendo has always released their handheld console before their home console for the past three generations at least.  It’s no secret the Wii U has sold terribly (it’s Nintendo’s worst selling console I believe, even worse than the GameCube), and there aren’t honestly many games lined up for it in the future.  We have Star Fox Zero and the new Zelda game both coming out next year but… that’s it.  If they stick to releasing their new handheld before their new home console, and if they decide to milk the 3DS for all its worth putting its release in 2018 if I’m predicting correctly, then the next home console could potentially be released in 2019.  Geez, that’s going to be three to four years from now!  I love the Wii U and there are still tons of games for the console I’m interested in getting, but the general public doesn’t think so and it doesn’t help that there’s not much fuel to keep the system running with the relative lack of major titles even announced for the future.  Of course, since this is all speculation, Nintendo could always just change up their formula by releasing the home console first, or having a simultaneous release, or banking on the success of their upcoming mobile games to carry them in the upcoming year and maintaining a 2019 release date, and so on.  There are a lot of things this new president could do, and I’m interested in seeing how he handles the company!

 

I actually never entered the Battle Subway, not even once.  White was an exhilarating ride for me, but once the hype settled down after the credits played for the first time, I completely lost interest in it.  I don’t know if it was because of school or because of the game itself, but since I similarly dropped White 2 like a rock after beating the Champion I’m assuming it was probably the latter.  It’s a bit of a shame too, since there seemed to be a lot of post-game content in the form of exploring the remaining routes and towns and cities of Unova, which is something ORAS didn’t even have.  I would have loved ORAS even more if it pulled an FRLG and added in random islands somewhere off the coast that you could explore postgame, like the Sevii Islands from Kanto.  I loved the remixes of GSC themes used for those islands, and though they were a bit lonely and sometimes too empty, if Hoenn got their own set of islands with remixed DPPt music I would have lost my mind.

 

Ah yes, I definitely liked the idea of B2W2!  As you say, it was quite the curveball and definitely was a breath of fresh air, even if I ultimately didn’t entirely like the games too much (same complaints as BW).  I wonder what they’re going to do with the extra installment(s) to XY?  Z just seems obvious, but almost too obvious.  Then again, if they did X^2 and Y^2 that would just seem cheesy and forced.  I guess it depends on where they want to take the series.  The two alternate versions of Kalos didn’t have any conflicting towns/cities like Unova’s Opelucid, so consolidating the two games into a Z wouldn’t provide any more trouble than the first fourth generations did.  And correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t some bigwig from Nintendo tell Game Freak that unless the addition to Black and White was something more creative than the predictable Grey that it wouldn’t be made?  The DS was already at the end of its lifespan, and in fact the 3DS was already revealed months prior to Black and White’s announcement, let alone Black 2 and White 2’s release in the not-too-distant-past of late 2012.  Their reasoning was that “Gray” would ultimately be a complete failure if it was overshadowed by the 3DS and thus needed something “different” about it to make it sell, which is why they made a sequel as opposed to an alternate reality of Unova.  Since “Z” is not under those same restraints (not that we know of, at least) there wouldn’t be any need for Game Freak to go out of their way and make a sequel as opposed to an alternate reality.  “Z” would be easier to make, since the plot is already there and just needs to be tweaked and adjusted for the better, while an “X^2 and Y^2” would require significantly more changes, potentially resulting in unwanted costs for a game that is destined to sell well on an already very well received and established console.  While all signs point toward “Z”, I’m trying to imagine how XY sequels would work, and I personally wouldn’t mind getting one or the other.  I just hope Game Freak can change my opinion on Kalos for the better, eheh.

 

Okay wow, what’s wrong with me?  I keep on getting sidetracked speculating over release dates and stuff like an idiot.  Look at all that space I used up, urk.  I’ve split thing into separate paragraphs to make them easier to visually digest, sigh.  Anyway, continuing…  I guess what I mean by not very Pokemon-ish probably just has more to do with the atmosphere of the games as opposed to just the music.  Since Unova was the first region not based on an area in Japan, something about it just felt… off, you know?  I really can’t describe it, but in true American, or I suppose New York-ian fashion, the songs were such a hodgepodge of different styles.  It was even more prevalent with Kalos and their blatantly use of French words and phrases scattered throughout the region.  While I appreciate that they’re trying to diversify the world of Pokemon, when real life cultures are so shoehorned in there it just doesn’t sit very well with me.  Kanto through Sinnoh were all based on Japanese regions, but heck you could’ve fooled me.  Despite certain real-life landmarks and locations matching up with in-game towns and cities, it was all done in subtle ways that you wouldn’t have guessed it had Japanese origins. The only region that was “obviously” Japanese was Johto, with its Bell/Tin Tower, kimono girls, etc.  But at least the localization team named all the towns after flowers/foliage as opposed to Kalos’s so-Frech-it-hurts names for routes.  And people don’t break out into random Japanese phrases in Johto either, unlike in Kalos where apparently French is everyone’s second language.  The Pokemon world was so appealing because it was always so much like our world, and yet completely different.  All the regions had universal appeal and could be connected to real life in any way you wanted.  Goldenrod?  Man, that could be New York or Toronto or London or Madrid or Bueno Aires or Sydney or Hong Kong or Mumbai!  It’s the hub of life, the heart of the country!  Oh, Lumiose?  Well that… that… that’s Paris. That’s goddamn Paris.  You can’t even pretend it’s Shanghai else risk feeling really silly.  And Geosenge?  Seriously…?  I just feel that a lot of the magic is lost when Pokemon is tied so strongly with the real world like that.  It all started with Unova, during which part of me felt a bit uneasy with the American vibe of the region, but I just chalked it up to modernization and figured Kalos would bring me back to how Sinnoh felt.  Unfortunately that wasn’t the case, and if you want me to be honest, I would really like Game Freak to either go back to their Japanese roots or just completely make up a region with no ties to the real world for 7th gen.  …………I’ve rambled for far too long, again.  Sorry for complaining like that, just wanted to let off some steam.  I don’t even know if this kind of criticism is justified; it probably just makes me sound like some kind of deranged, conservative, xenophobe.  What do you think about this whole issue?  Aaaanyway, I’ve also seen Professor Sycamore get some attention.  It actually shocked me a bit since I avoided XY spoilers until I finished the game, so I only just recently, uhhh, started seeing how some girls feel about him.  It puzzles me quite a bit, but then again, that kind of stuff is none of my business, and I don’t think I'm very good at understand how girls think, soo, eheheh……

 

B-But why would most schools have swimming pools?  Most schools didn’t have a swimming team, not the other way around…  Is New Jersey’s entire school system really that bad??  Goddammit Christie, I believed in you!  Why can’t you be more like Michigan’s governor, hmm???  Hahah, I’m just joking, I know it has nothing to do with Christie, I’ll cut the guy some slack, especially since he’s lagging in the polls and I feel kinda bad for him (though admire his tenacity).  And no swimming reqs for phys ed either, thank god.  And JP probably won’t get one for years, especially since A/C has been in demand for decades and takes priority (over everything save for greenhouses apparently).

 

Watching people’s reactions over new character reveals is always absolutely amazing.  This guy created a mashup of a few popular reactions (there were so many he even had a part 2 and part 3), which Masahiro Sakurai himself tweeted out on his officially Twitter.  Do mind the volume though; wouldn’t want to hurt your ears any more than you already have!  I didn’t completely lose it like I did with Mewtwo’s reveal or Lucina and Robin’s reveal, just because I didn’t have an emotional attachment to Cloud, but going back and watching everyone else get excited gets me smiling like an idiot and hyped as heck anyway, ahah.  I cannot wait until December.  If it’s anything like the 50 Fact Extravaganza, the broadcast is going to kill me.  I don’t think my body is ready for hype of that level again.

 

Eck, you’re right, that was a rather petty attack and counter attack.  Come on Fiorina, just because you’re trailing in the polls to the likes of Cruz and Bush (admittedly, those are rather demeaning prospects…) doesn’t mean you should do something like that!  If she falls too low in the polls to be salvageable, I may have to give my vote to another candidate come March when the primary elections are held.

 

Woah, what a studious bunch of kids you have at your school!  I don’t know if people did anything like that in my high school.  I know certain groups of friends obviously studied together, but I don’t believe the entire class ever arrived early in the morning to corroborate on last-minute studying and review.  Or maybe, they did but I was never aware of it?  Hmm, I dunno, there were definitely Facebook pages through which notes were shared and compiled on occasion, which I pretty much always missed out on, but that’s it I think.  Eheh, things could get a bit too cutthroat for my tastes, so flying solo usually worked out.  It got me as far as I have, so I definitely have no complaints or regrets.  It does sound nice that your school was so open about helping each other out!  Hm, perhaps I should have looked into forming study groups in college, but before I knew it tests and exams were underway and I had acquainted myself with almost no one in any of my classes.  My grades are fairly good though (a bit too borderline to be lax about, however) so it didn’t prove to be entirely disadvantageous.  Ahh, people who’ll be there for me through thick and thin, huh?  There’s my family, though I suppose that goes without saying.  Apart from that though…… hrmmm.  I guess you’d fit the bill too, eheh, you crazy person who’s taken a liking to me.

 

B-But I don’t really like pretzels…  Ahah, I know that’s irrelevant, but perhaps I’ll look into purchasing some snacks to munch on when my stomachs starts to rumble.  And don’t worry, my roommate is a heavy sleeper.  He falls asleep fast, and once he begins to snore there’s nothing that can wake him up, not even his alarm clock on occasion.  But I know, I know, in order to promote muscle growth I need to make sure I stay fed.  I wouldn’t say staying full is difficult in college though.  You have to understand that I’m quite the night owl, so I spend a lot of my waking hours at night, when everything is closed and I can’t stop by someplace to grab a bite as a break from work, unlike someone who studies efficiently during the day.  And because I wake up late almost every day, there’s no guarantee I’ll have time for breakfast.  I almost always have time for lunch, but in order to stick to my five o’clock dinner routine, eating in close proximity to five would feel like a waste of effort, which is why I always choose not to.  Ultimately, my hunger stems from my stubbornness and penchant for sticking to schedules too strictly as well as my poor sleeping habits.  I’m sure there are plenty of people out there who are more than well fed (the freshman 15 exists for a reason after all, even if some people are affected in the completely opposite way).  Oh gosh, speaking of Thanksgiving, the gym is closed this entire weekend, and this past Thursday was the first day of working out I had skipped since I began my regimen.  The guilt… the guilt I’m feeling is so strong oh my gosh, you have no idea.  I’m going to work myself to the cartilage in my bones on Monday to make up for it, ahah.  Can’t let myself flab up during these days off after all.  And by the way, I believe electric kettles are banned in Case dorms.  There was a list of banned items we received prior to arriving, but I can’t find it right now, though I’m fairly certain electric kettles or stoves of any kind are not allowed.  You can just use the common kitchen area in the dorms for all your cooking needs anyway.

 

Ahaha, nah, I was just kidding.  I guess instinctively I don’t really expect anyone to “like” my name.  It’s not exotic or very interesting, nor does it roll off the tongue well, and to me it just seems kinda… there.  So when you said you liked my name I guess it caught me a bit off guard.  Erm… but I’ll admit it did make me happy to hear, so… thank you, eheh.  I guess the idea of night contacts can be somewhat frightening to someone who doesn’t know what it’s like to use them, but I hardly think anything of it nowadays.  I’m trying to remember how I felt when I was younger, and I was probably against the idea as well.  What was so wrong with glasses?  Lots of people have glasses.  That’s what I think I thought at the time, but I’ll admit that I’m grateful for my contacts now.  It gives me a heightened sense of appreciation for the beauty of vision, since it’s something I can very easily lose and gain in the blink of an eye (ayy you see what I did there??).  Of course, if you have such good vision naturally, then you should treasure that as well.  Walking around half blind is quite the experience, but it’s not one I would recommend, ahah.  Hm, I think my left eye is worse than my right as well.  Most people are like this though, if I’m not mistaken, though I’m not sure why.  It’s very noticeable too; switching between the use of both of them makes it clear that my right eye is superior.  I think you mentioned how you turned the volume up whenever you listened to music, or at the very least that you really liked your headphones.  I’m not much different; I can sometimes turn the volume up a bit too much.  Though, my ears can get really irritated really fast if I wear either headphones or earbuds for too long, so I try not to if I can help it.  Whaaa 20/15 isn’t rare??  B-But 20/20 is norm— ohhhhhhhhh…… that’s right, it’s almost like I forgot that “normal” entails a fair number of people are both worse and better than the status quo.  D-Does that mean my genes are just plain bad??  Oh woe is I, or at least, woe is my chromosomes……

 

The heating in my dorm is really good!  Perhaps, even too good.  A couple nights, er… mornings ago, it was pretty chilly.  I turned on the heating for the first time, and boy it really kicked into high gear.  Before long I was a bit too warm, so I had to turn it back off.  It’s especially nice since it doesn’t make any noise while it runs, surprisingly enough.  It was quite the stark difference from the A/C.  It clanked and clicked in the beginning as it started up, which freaked me out a bit, but once that settled down you wouldn’t even realize the heat was on unless you put your hand over the vents.  I can’t speak for the other dorms, but Taplin’s heating system is quite nice!

 

Well, calc is normally more than just one semester, but I got out of the first half with my AP credits.  And accounting doesn’t require any more than that, though I’m sure there are some majors that require more advanced levels of calculus of course.  The Excel course is required for accounting majors (and minors probably) in general.  I haven’t started any of the Integrated Studies-specific classes yet, mainly because I’m not allowed to until I officially apply for the program at the end of my sophomore year or something and because I have to get the general courses out of the way first before focusing on specifics.  Ahahah, come on now Kenzi, as much freedom as colleges have, every university has gen ed classes of some sort.  You’ll have plenty of time to specialize in later semesters.  You can use APs to get out of some of those classes, but not all (I mentioned before that SAGES cannot be opted out of).  However, you should be grateful that there is such a wide variety of SAGES courses to choose from.  No one forces you to take any specific class.  You’re forced to take one class from each section, but the class you take is up to you.  I honestly doubt you’re going to hate everything offered by the Symbolic World category.  And in fact, you proved that yourself by showing an interest in the Protest Drama course I’m taking.  So even if you just want to go ham on the physics in the labs, I’m sure there’s a part of you that will be drawn toward at least a handful of the varied and intriguing topics SAGES offers.  Some three credit hour courses are just split into three sections on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays instead of just Mondays and Wednesdays or just Tuesdays and Thursday.  I don’t really know why either; guess that’s just how the professor’s schedule worked out.  The individual MWF classes are shorter than the two-day classes of course, so it balances out in the end.  It sucks I won’t be able to enjoy perpetual three-day weekends next semester, but I’ll get my chance some other year, heh.  Thanks, I’ll definitely make sure I’m on top of my game this upcoming semester!  Six classes isn’t an insane amount, but it is a bit of a strain, so I’ll have to give it my all!

 

Oh man, what is it with younger siblings inhabiting the room of the older sibling once they leave the nest?  Do you think you’ll absorb some of that older siblings smarts if you do?  Cute as that may be, I hope my brother realizes I’ve spent many a distracted night in that room wasting my time when I should have been studying.  I don’t think he’s going to absorb much good from me…  Is your sister’s study room the same as her bedroom?  I know she probably doesn’t come back home very often, but during the holidays, assuming her study and bedroom are one and the same, where does she sleep if you’re occupying her room during the majority of the day?  Whaa— you keep your brightness all the way down??  Oh man, I can’t see anything when it’s turned down like that.  I actually always have my lamp behind and off to the side of my laptop, facing me.  I think it was mainly the natural light from my window back when I was home that really caused the problem.  The window was directly to my right.  I’ve tried turning the brightness on my laptop way down to test, and though there’s the new problem of just not being able to see anything because it’s so dull, I suppose I can’t really see my reflection.  However, even though the window is across the dorm room from me and blocked by this nifty little desk alcove, I won’t open the blinds.  After all, I’m paying to be here so why not waste as much of Case’s utility money as I can, ufufufufufufufufu!!  Hm, YouTube isn’t a huge source of entertainment for me, since anime and video games pretty much limit how often I can just lazy around watching videos, but when I want a quick break there are a few channels I check out.  I’m not subscribed to hundreds of channels like some people are, but there are a handful I have in the back of my head that I know to check out on occasion.  Some of them upload predictably, which is nice and makes checking easier, and others don’t, which causes some trouble.  I don’t really forget the channels I follow either.  If I’m in the mood for something that only they can provide one day, I usually remember them even if I’ve failed to check their channel for the past few months to catch up on what they’ve done.  It’s not a hassle at all, which I suppose is probably a bit strange, since I never thought I had much of an impressive memory.

 

Huh, that’s interesting, though I’m not entirely sure if it’s entirely my cup of tea.  It seems like a bit of a time sink if I tried starting from the top and reading as many HONY posts/stories as I could until I got bored.  If everything else I usually do to waste time fails, then I suppose I’ll keep HONY in mind.  Good on this Brandon guy for doing what he has and I’m glad to hear that a lot of people have benefitted as a result!  I’ll give it credit where it’s deserved.  The pledge wasn’t mandatory in NYC?  That’s certainly the first I’ve heard of that.  It’s always been mandatory where I lived, and the surrounding areas as well.  It wasn’t really a waste of time in middle school and beyond since it always took place during homeroom, during which you’re not really doing anything anyway (maybe cramming some last-second review or scribbling out homework, I suppose).  I guess it does seem a bit pointless, but it’s a tradition that some people are determined to maintain, especially since today’s youth are generally liberals and as a result less patriotic in the ways that were traditionally considered patriotic decades prior.

 

Hrmm, getting technical with me now aren’t you Kenzi?  Well fine, I’ll let it slide, though I’m awfully disappointed you were so lazy that you didn’t even bother to insert an actual gif and instead just typed up an ambiguous and debatable phrase instead, tsk tsk.  Ooh, I almost forgot about Sachar; yes I remember Sideways Stories from Wayside School, ahah.  I know I was impressed by it, but I can’t quite remember what was so good about those books.  I never read Lexi’s Tale or PeeWee’s Tale (in fact, I’m almost positive I haven’t heard of those in my life until just now) but I remember No David, ahah.  Oh goodness, Shel Silverstein.  His poems were creative and funny, but I’ll always consider “The Giving Tree” to be his best work.  When I’m in the mood for it, and paired with some sad music, reading through it gets me all emotionally messed up inside, eheheheh.  I never read The Little Engine That Could though I’ve heard of it.  On the other hand, yoooooooo woooooaaaaahhhhh I completely forgot about Polacco’s Thank You, Mr. Falker!  Holy— I must have read that in 2nd grade and remember thinking it was a pretty good book.  Sheesh, good times, back when I thought my town’s education system was still alright.

 

Ahh, no wonder you don’t consider your city much of a “city” since it doesn’t have any public transportation.  Cleveland’s public transportation system was a bit scary at first because I didn’t know how the buses and stops worked at all, but after intuitively figuring it out and using it a few times (for the sole purpose of, uhhh, video game purchases…) it wasn’t so bad.  I obviously don’t have all the lines and bus stop locations memorized, so I’m always the only one sitting there with Google Maps open on my phone to ensure I don’t miss my stop.  Ehh, I must look like such a college kid to the locals.  Since I’ve played in a fair number of orchestras, I do agree that playing with the strings can be rather fun.  Oh gosh, I never felt like the wind instruments overpowered the strings though; if anything, it was always the other way around.  I suppose it’s different depending on perspective.  

 

I learned how to pick locks, the real way, but only conceptually.  I had planned on putting it into practice, but the locked cabinet the games were in was very flimsy and I was able to manipulate it another way to get it open.  Goodness, your dad hid your laptop?  That sounds awfully unreasonable.  My parents only put a passcode on my laptop so that I was forced to ask them for permission whenever I wanted to use it, but after a while (many years…) they got pretty lax with when I was allowed to use the computer so it was like the passcode wasn’t even there.  Good on you for finding where he hid your laptop though, even if you used underhanded tactics!  Don’t worry, I’ve done similar things.  Most of the time I just relied on scouring every single inch of the house to eventually uncover where they hid the goods, but once they got better and the obvious hiding spots were all used up, I had to use tactics similar to the one you used on your dad to give me an edge.  I only needed to hide stuff from my parents when I had the guts to take the games from their own hiding spot.  This was only when I was sure they weren’t checking the hiding spot daily.  For example, if they put my games in their bed stand drawer, even if it would be easy to find, it’s something they’d check every night, even by accident.  Whenever they open the drawer to put away jewelry or something, they can see the games and ensure it’s been untouched.  This is an active hiding spot.  An inactive hiding spot would be putting the games in the empty cooler beneath the Lego box underneath the old dining table in the basement.  Once they placed the games there, after enough time had passed, they would eventually stop checking and even, more often than you’d imagine, forget that the games were there at all.  It’s safe to then take the games and stash them in my own hiding spots, usually in the empty space at the bottom of my clothes cabinets when you pull out and completely remove the lowest drawers.  This makes playing games at night much easier, heh.  There are also thin gaps between walls and furniture I can slip a few game boxes in.  This can be a bit dangerous though, since those boxes might slip too far back and end up out of reach.  I have to maneuver it out with a ruler or other long, thin object.  At least I know my parents will never find them back there, ahah.  And of course, since I’ve purchased games and consoles behind their backs, even if I didn’t touch the games they had in their possession, I’d need to hide the ones I’d bought, eheheheh…

 

Well, speaking of purchasing games… I bought a ton for Black Friday.  I went to Target on Thanksgiving to take advantage of their “Black Friday” deals which started at 6 pm on Thursday.  I wasn’t one of the fortunate ones eating a warm, tasty meal with family and friends, soo… why not join the discount driven masses in some early Black Friday festivities?  I got to Target early.  Over 2 hours early.  I messed around with my phone to keep me busy and chatting it up with the folks next to me.  When the doors opened, I rushed to the video game section to secure Omega Ruby ($25, nice!) for my brother and Mario Kart 7 ($15, sweet!) for myself.  I was about to leave but saw that there was a copy of Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright on display.  This game is pretty rare now since production has stopped and it can only be bought from Amazon, where it goes for $45 new, yikes.  I was completely shocked to see Target still had one, since it was already taken off of their website when it sold out online.  I asked an employee to unlock and rescue it from its plastic prison.  It was the original $29.99 price, so it wasn’t part of the Black Friday deals (I’m surprised it was even still in the system) but it’s technically a huge discount from the inflated Amazon prices.  I’m really happy with my very first “Black Friday” hunt!  The store was a fustercluck though; I wouldn’t recommend it.  Everyone was there for the televisions and Apple products; almost no one paid the game section any heed, let alone the 3DS and Wii U section, which worked in my favor.  But if you’re not shopping for niche items like that, I’m not sure it’s worth the hassle.  It reminds me of the crazy demand for amiibo at MSRP, phew.  

 

When I got back to the safety of my dorm, I decided to take advantage of Best Buy’s buy two pre-owned games and get one free deal.  I purchased Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D, Code Name: STEAM, and Shin Megami Tensei IV, which were all listed as $19.99 pre-owned.  Three full games for only forty bucks is quite the deal, especially with the provided free shipping, heheh.  And of course, when I found the time yesterday, I purchased Cave Story from the eShop for the reduced price, and now it’s sitting amongst my other apps looking nice and pretty.  Just seeing it makes me want to play it, ooo!  But other games take priority, so I have to control myself.  Goodness, so when all is said and done, I had purchased seven 3DS games.  They were nearly all for a reduced price, but golly, seven games is a ton.  Even if you disregard Omega Ruby since I’ll be giving that to my brother when I get back home, I believe that nearly doubles my initial 3DS library, geez.  Ahhh, that doesn’t even include the Fates Special Edition I preordered, which is the length of three games in one!  The holiday spending bug bit me big time…  All those games I purchased (save for Cave Story of course, hehe) were ones I was interested in but wasn’t determined to get.  If I never found the chance to play any of those, I wouldn’t have minded.  But since Black Friday had such good deals I just couldn’t resist…… Heh, just as I start to clear out my 3DS game backlog, I fill it back up.  If you’re wondering how I afforded all of this, well… I’m practically broke now.  I hardly have any digital or physical money left.  The physical money was mostly what my parents gave me.  You know, to purchase any extra food or other necessities of life with.  Welp, looks like I’ll be making some excuses and cutting back on the food I was initially planning on buying this weekend, eheheheheh, whoops…  When I go back home, I’m going to have to restock on my finances with the help of my brother (he’s still doing the whole lunch money trick I detailed earlier).

 

Errr, sorry for the ramble, but I supposed before you asked what I did to relax for Thanksgiving I would just straight up tell you…  Well, I actually didn’t do just that.  I finished playing Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies as well as its DLC case (I had started it earlier in the month) and I plan on starting Virtue’s Last Reward after posting this.  I want to finish it before I get back home so I can hand it off to my brother (he also played 999) and he can give me Fire Emblem: Awakening.  I already beat Awakening once, but the game has a lot of replay value and I figured it would be a huge waste to only play it once before jumping right into Fates when it comes out in February.  So I’ll try my hand at beating it one more time on Lunatic mode (which is the farthest thing from a walk in the park apparently) before Fates come out.  I’ll then beat each route of Fates one time before I give the game to my brother during the summer.  That’s the plan at least; it’s a bit of a strict schedule but I’ll try my hand at sticking to it.

 

Anywayyyyy if you haven’t already, check out the PM I sent you, eheh.

 

Alright then, you have my word.  I won’t put these responses to you above schoolwork.  But I can’t promise that I won’t put them above anime and video games.  I love anime and video games dearly, but… there’s something about these responses that really hold a special place in my heart as well, ahah.  I don’t mind sacrificing a bit of those hobbies to converse with you, especially since I spend enough time on anime and video games every week as it is.  And I could say the same about you; thanks for putting up with me and my lengthy responses, especially given my bad habit of rambling, eh.

 

Speaking of which, since I’ve already gone on and on for as long as I have, I’d like to hear about your weekend!  I don’t believe you mentioned before what your Thanksgiving plans were (and if you did, I’m terribly sorry for not remembering).  I’m curious to hear how you spent the holidays, even if recent Thanksgivings for you haven’t been anything too special.  Tell me all about it!

 

I haven't "finished" HeartGold yet because I was reluctant to catch the legendaries for the same reason, haha. I also tried soft-resetting for a good natured Oshawott in Black and Tepig in Black 2 (or was it the other way around; I actually can't remember), but I eventually gave up and just settled for a neutral nature (probably because I couldn't decide whether I wanted them to be special or physical attackers). When I first listened to the Primal theme, something didn't sound consistent. It sounded awfully like the original at some points. I was kinda doubting myself though. I'm sure your hearing is fine. Like you said, you were just concentrating on the battle, haha.

 

Well, erm, I have to test the waters to make sure I'm around people I can geek out with, eheh. But even then, I can't completely let loose since I'm always around people who don't know about this side of me. And I don't think much is going to change when I head off to college. Would "closet nerd" be an appropriate term for this? It's why I sometimes (but seldom) drop subtle references to anime and video games instead of outright asking people. It usually doesn't work, but I have managed to fish out a few people using this method, hah. 

 

Yeah, I meant the old Sky Pillar, lol. I wasted a stupid amount of repels trying to bike over those holes. The holes were so frustrating, argh. I really liked the new Sky Pillar. It was creative how they redesigned its interior to fit the whole Delta theme. And that gigantic mural? Phew, that was awesome! Really great attention to detail! Hmm, couldn't you have finished listening to Zinnia's explanation of the lore before tracking down that TM you saw? It's probably what I would've done since I don't enjoy being left hanging, eheh.

 

Hm, you make a good argument there. I'm going to have to let this one go since you have a ton more experience with RSE and ORAS than I do. I just wanted to get across that Mirage Island and these Mirage Spots are still connected somehow. And you're right. After some thought, these Mirage Spots really are more like Hidden Grottos than the old Mirage Island!

 

I know the Wii U isn't terribly popular with the general public, but wasn't there quite a bit of hype for the new Splatoon update? But yeah, there aren't too many titles to keep the console afloat, and I'll admit that I'd rather invest my money into 3DS games instead of into a console that doesn't have as many games I'm interested in playing. The Wii I have sitting in the basement (technically my sister's though) hasn't seen much activity. I think we actually paid the PS2 more heed than the Wii, so that's also kinda discouraged me from getting a Wii U. Plus, I wouldn't be able to take it with me to college soooo.... Haha, I think it'll be interesting to see what the new president has in store for us, especially now that Nintendo is expanding to mobile platforms. Hopefully they won't disappoint!

 

Haha, I didn't even finish Black since I never fought the champion. And you didn't miss much by dropping White 2. The after game was pretty underwhelming. I guess Reversal Mountain was kinda cool with the lava and stuff (unless you had Black 2 since you'd have water/lakes instead). The Marine Tube was a nice way to showcase those nice graphics, and Black City/White Forest was a good time killer (no incentive to go back after beating it though). But aside from those, there really wasn't much to be excited about because the Battle Subway freaking blows. Hoenn getting its own set of islands remixed with DPPt music? Geezus, I would've been all over that (as I'm sure you could guess, lol). I think it would've been a bit too much to ask for though, haha. 

 

Nah, I'm actually fairly certain that its name is going to be some variation of "Pokemon Z". They already named the new anime series "Pokemon XY & Z" didn't they? Hmm, I don't think I've ever heard of some person discouraging Game Freak from creating the predictable Pokemon Gray, though the scenario doesn't seem too farfetched. I remember stumbling across an article years ago stating that they already obtained the "rights" to the Pokemon Grey title, but I can't track down the article anywhere. Game Freak might've just scrapped the idea after realizing that it'd be in their best interest to catch everyone off-guard as the 3DS release date loomed closer. Would it be worth the money buying something so predictable when you can just save up for the 3DS? Gotta milk out what's left of the DS since it'd be too drastic of an upgrade or change to develop an immediate B/W sequel for the 3DS. There's just so much mystery surrounding Xerneas, Yveltal, and Zygarde that Game Freak won't have to pull another B2W2. It's obvious that "Z" is going to revolve around Zygarde, but I don't see what would compel them to create two "versions" of the same story like they did with B2W2. The shock factor won't appeal as much because, well, it already happened with B2W2. Ohh, I really hope they develop the lore a bit in "Z". I'm sure they will though since there was pretty much nothing in XY. At the very least, if "Z" doesn't appeal, you'll have a more complete story, haha.

 

Hmm, you do have a point there. BW and B2W2 just didn't give off the same vibe as the previous games for some reason. Unova just felt too urbanized; too New York-ish. And despite how much I love NYC, I really didn't like Castelia City. Ironically enough, it actually felt a lot emptier and duller than some of the other towns and cities. The Castelia City music was a bit weak, and is Driftveil City supposed to be based off of Chinatown? Isn't the gym led by some cowboy/rancher guy? It didn't feel very Pokemon-ish either. I just really dislike how urbanized the region was. Subways? Cargo planes? Sewers? A movie studio? And now that I think about it, weren't there heavy-duty construction equipment littered around the region? Sheesh, they're trying too hard. And you're right; it does ruin the magic. When you can associate parts of the region with real world landmarks, well, that's no fun. Even though nearly every vantage point in the Pokemon world is based off of something in the real world, like you said, the earlier regions were more subtle about it. And in turn, we can freely perceive each area to be whatever we want it to be. Once you incorporate blatant references to landmarks like the Eiffel Tower, Stonehenge, Manhattan, Liberty Island, etc. the Pokemon world is no longer a world of its own. But the thing is, you can't be too harsh on the guy. I think part of the criticism stems from the idea that Unova and Kalos were trying to integrate entire cultures into their regions--cultures that we're pretty familiar with (or at least have an idea of), while Kanto through Sinnoh encompassed only small areas of Japan--areas that are pretty foreign to us. Perhaps that's also why a lot is left to the imagination when we explored those first four regions. So yes, I do agree with you to an extent. Also, a little irrelevant, but you can't base every region off of a region in Japan since you'd run out eventually, lol. Well, uh, I actually couldn't understand why Professor Sycamore was getting so much attention either. I never really saw Pokemon characters as characters people would fanboy/fangirl about.

 

Whaa... what do you mean most schools don't have a swim team? We have synchronized swimming, water polo, and a swim/dive team. And they all compete with other schools, which I guess would mean that most schools do have pools... right...? Or else they wouldn't be able to compete...? But by the sound of it, you're implying that most NJ schools don't have pools? There's no way. Yeah, it kinda sucked how we were forced to swim for phys ed (people who were fasting were excused though). The pool was over-chlorinated and everyone still reeked of chlorine even after a quick shower. Haha, you got lucky there. 

 

Holy... geezus, thank you for the volume warning, lol. No really, thank you. Ahhhhhh!! It's like I'm feeling the hype all over again!! Sheesh, I've never played Final Fantasy, but seeing everyone's reactions made me want to jump out of my seat and scream with them even though I've already watched the reveal, ahahahaha.... And what. w h a t. Sakurai tweeted it??? W H A T. Oh my gosh that's insane! Damn, I haven't even played the game yet, but I'm still unreasonably hyped for this special broadcast!

 

Yeahh, I don't think Fiorina's campaign is salvageable at this point since she's falling behind quite a bit. I think the main contenders for this election will end up being Trump, Sanders, Clinton, and Carson. Trump is a mess and Clinton isn't much better, Carson has some pretty debatable views, and Sanders is a bit too left for my taste though he does have some nice ideas. Lesser of two four evils?

 

Actually, it was more like a conglomerate of people from different periods that came to these last-minute cram study sessions. Some people never came either because they naturally excelled at the subject (and even then some of these people still attended these study sessions to further solidify their understanding of the subject) or because they were too lazy to come. Or maybe they just didn't have time. I think part of the reason these study sessions were so popular for chem is because the homework didn't count as a grade in that class. They were essentially recommended problems for you to work on since you were only graded on quizzes, tests, and labs. So rather than just asking the person next to you for the answer just to get homework points, we were basically encouraged to do them for our own understanding. Facebook was also especially useful (for Lang as well). Geezus, thank the lord for these people and this site. It's hard to imagine how everyone would've turned out if we had such a cutthroat environment. Good on you for being able to survive on flying solo, but don't be afraid to approach people for help once in a while! Erm, as happy as I am to hear that, I was referring to any fellow college students you might've been acquainted with, haha. Or possibly some close old high school friends (but I know you're trying to leave that behind you). I guess it shouldn't be a problem though since you're naturally introverted and because you've been flying solo for a good chunk of your life. Sorry for bugging you like that. It's just that your lifestyle is something I'm not particularly familiar with, eheh.

 

What do you mean you don't like pretzels?? Haha, nah, I'm kidding. Pretzels are great and all, but they are pretty tasteless. It's part of the reason why I like and dislike them. It mostly depends on what I'm in the mood for, lol. They can be quite filling though! I'm a bit of a night owl myself, but I tend to snack on these pretzels when I'm feeling famished, and it definitely helps, haha. If not pretzels, what about fruit then? See if you can sneak a few from the dining hall, hehe. Hmm, so you tend to wake up late almost everyday? I know we already had this discussion before, but times might've changed, so what time do you usually wake up nowadays? What on earth, if you're reluctant to eat lunch in close proximity to dinner, how late would you have your lunch...? And I'm sure missing out on one day of working out won't be too big of a deal considering how devoted you are, ahah. Oh wut, electric kettles are banned? Ah, that's fine since like you said, I can always use the common kitchen areas, lol. Are we at least allowed to bring electric fans for dorms without A/C?

 

Haha, it's just that I haven't met anyone with your name. Well, there was this one senior last year who was in band, interestingly enough, but I didn't really know him. Um, the thing with glasses is, aren't they kinda inconvenient? You know, if you have to play a sport or work out or something. I know some people wear sunglasses (I sometimes do), but at least they have the luxury to take them off. Heck, you can't even wear sunglasses if you have glasses on (unless you have those 2-in-1 glasses). Glasses can be bothersome in the rain, and don't they have a tendency to fog up on occasion? There's always the risk of accidentally knocking it off your face and/or breaking it as well. Or maybe this is just me being paranoid and thinking up of worst case scenarios. Either way, I'm just really grateful that I don't need any vision correctors. Contacts sound painful, and my mom and sister have already warned me about the inconvenience of glasses, so I'm going to try my best to stay away from them. Ahaha, same, my ears also get easily irritated with prolonged use of headphones. But that still hasn't deterred me from using them as often as I do, eheh. The sound quality and volume flexibility is much too glorious to just give up. Oh geez, just because you need contacts doesn't mean your genes are bad. I know you're probably joking, but it's not like wearing glasses/contacts is out of the ordinary or anything, lol. 

 

Ohh, so if you guys have such nice heating, I'd assume that getting out of bed in the mornings isn't as rough or difficult? That sounds really nice! Getting out of bed is probably my biggest morning struggle in cold weather, haha. Lucky you!

 

Ahaha, I know, I know. I just wanted to see if there was some way for me to spread out the specifics so that I'm not overwhelmed later on. I don't want to take some random general courses for the first few semesters and then cram all these insanely difficult courses for the later semesters. Hmm, maybe I'll just take some extra classes then. Freshman year is supposed to be kinda chill in comparison to the later years, right? Yeah, I might just take an extra class or two freshman year to even out the workload a bit. Erm, hopefully that's doable. Oh nono, I'm actually quite happy with the variety of SAGES courses (it's a wonder how they even come up with some of these). It's just that I was told by the end of sophomore year, students take SAGES courses within their major. I guess it's not too big of a deal though. Oh, so how much shorter are those MWF classes then? Also, do most college students take around four to five classes? Gosh, if you're planning on completing this program in just four years, I hope you don't overwhelm yourself too much with all these extra classes. There's a reason it's normally completed in five years, isn't there?

 

Haha yup, my sister's study room was her bedroom. She usually kept her door locked when she was in high school so I'm not entirely sure what she did in there. Anime probably? She was pretty into anime, and I sometimes caught her watching stuff like Code Geass (and the occasional DC episode) whenever she forgot to lock the door. Oh, and lots of music. Lots of mainstream lyrical music that was audible even when her door was closed. I like having a door crack rather than a locked door, so I rarely lock or close the door. I dunno, I guess it just feels more inviting, though I don't exactly want the door wide open either. I feel kinda bad for kicking her out. She sometimes still worked here when I wasn't home, and I guess we sometimes slept together. She did want her room back, but my dad actually made an argument for me to stay, so I feel even worse about it, eheh. But it's been a few years, and things have settled down, I guess. Wait, what's wrong with keeping my laptop brightness all the way down? I feel like it's much easier on the eyes. Gosh, whenever I saw my sister's laptop with the brightness cranked up to the max, it kinda hurt my eyes a bit. I also almost never max my phone brightness either for similar reasons (urgh, the colors are way too saturated when the brightness is turned up so much). Unless I'm using it outdoors or something, which, in that case, I'd have to turn it up a bit in order to offset the natural light. My lamp is directly left of my laptop and the window is on my right, but since I almost never move my laptop, there's always this little bit of glare in the daytime. Facing towards the window (laptop screen pointed away) could've reduced the glare, but my problematic powerjack prevents me from doing so. Also, you say that you can't see your reflection when your laptop brightness is way down, but doesn't turning down the brightness of your laptop actually increase the amount of glare/reflection? What the... you can't even utilize the natural light in your room? I probably would've tried to rearrange my workspace so I could expose the window, lol. You seem to be happy about your situation though, haha. I'm not subscribed to hundreds of people, but enough for me to easily lose track of them if I wasn't subscribed to them. Let's see, there are quite a few music channels I'm subscribed to, a few random science channels, RWBY is back, CollegeHumor rocks, Cyanide and Happiness is great, DBZ Abridged is hilarious, oh and I noticed that you also watch Vsauce yay, and there's a bunch of other people I can't remember off the top of my head. I don't have that great of a memory myself, so subscriptions make keeping track of these channels a crapload easier. 

 

Well, the pledge wasn't mandatory for the school I went to. Heck, I didn't even know it existed until I moved here. But NYC is pretty big, so I'd expect that there were at least some schools that made the pledge a requirement. The pledge always took place during second period for us, and occasionally during fifth period if there were technical difficulties or something. I honestly don't see the pledge as an effective way to promote patriotism. The media does a great job of trashing the country with headlines about butthurt nitpickers, school shootings, the election (particularly Trump), racist cops, etc. It's hard not to lose faith in America when this is all that's talked about around here. Implementing the pledge just seems like a futile last-ditch effort to reconcile whatever patriotism is left of today's youth. I feel kinda bad for saying this though since I'm taking a lot for granted (America's pretty great, after all). Patriotism is great for the unity of the country, but blind Patriotism in the form of a pledge is a cheap ploy (and an ineffective one at that) at best. 

 

Heyhey, I still have a bone to pick with you after you inserted "[nervously laughs]" in that first paragraph. You're not exactly coming off as guilt-free yourself, lol. Ahaha, I can't remember the plotline or story for a lot of these books. All I remember is the impression they gave me when I read them. Oh gosh, The Giving Tree was a bit depressing. I don't think I can muster up the courage to read it alongside sad music, eheh (geezus, you're insane). Whaaa... you never read The Little Engine That Could? We had this huge assembly with some guest speaker who read it to everyone so I assumed it must've been an important book for most elementary schools. Were there any books your school made a big deal of? Geez, elementary school was the best. I was digging through the basement over the weekend and I stumbled across this portfolio I made in first grade. The misspelled words and misshapen letters, oh my gosh. It was a mess, but it brought back a lot of memories. I can't believe I still have memories of this. I can't believe how long it's been. Urgh, I really need to start keeping a journal.

 

Ohh, so you've gone on the buses? Even if you only used them for the sake of video games, that still sounds kinda adventurous, haha. What is your impression of Cleveland so far from these trips? Hmm, actually, I think it was mainly the brass and percussion that were really... loud. It was definitely the case for Berlioz and Shostakovich at least. The pieces we're playing this year feel a bit more balanced, though I wouldn't go so far as to say that we've ever overpowered the band. I think it depends more on the piece rather than the perspective.

 

Your parents "only" put a passcode on your laptop? I mean, getting my laptop confiscated was just temporary, so I wouldn't say it was terribly unreasonable (or at least compared to having a passcode on it). I felt like I scoured every nook and cranny of the house whenever I was hunting for my DS, but whenever I couldn't find it, I always assumed that my parents took it with them to work or something. I got kinda desperate at one point and used a flashlight to look into the cracks of locked cabinets after realizing that I suck at picking locks, lol. Oh, my mom sometimes hid my DS in the bed stand drawer. I just made sure to return it before they came home, so it wasn't too big of a deal. Even if I found my stuff in an "inactive" hiding spot, I still made sure to return them in order to prevent myself from getting into more trouble. My dad threatened to break my DS at one point, so uhh... God knows what would've happened if my dad found out how much time I wasted opening and closing drawers and closets trying to look for it. I don't think they've ever forgotten about the stuff they hid from me though. The only way I was able to get my stuff back was by waiting and asking them at the right time when they're in a good mood. Like maybe it's winter break and we're heading off to California or something. If that was the case, I'd ask them if I could have my DS back to keep myself occupied during the plane ride. They'd agree to that. I don't think I'd ever have the audacity to hide what they've hidden from me. It's much too risky, and there's always the threat of getting my stuff "demolished". I'm sure it was an empty threat, but if you saw how firm my dad's yelling and hand gestures were, ohmygosh, I was so intimidated. I think I was on the brink of tears that day. So when/how did you know you were safe to recover your confiscated stuff? 

 

Whoaa, you're willing to drag yourself through those Black Friday shenanigans? Geezus, I've heard stories of people getting trampled in that mess. But I suppose since you were aiming for the video game section, it was okay for you, lol. Still though, you arrived over two hours early? Phew, haha. Ohh, and you also chatted with some strangers next to you? Nice! How did it go? Wait, so I'm assuming that your brother hasn't touched ORAS yet? Aw, what a nice gesture of you to buy Omega Ruby for him! And geez, Mario Kart 7 for $15?? Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright too??

 

Ahhh, three 3DS games for $40?? Even if they are used, that's unheard of! A total of six games for yourself plus the Fates Special Edition you preordered, gosh, I'm quite envious, you know. What an eventful day for you, haha. If I was in your shoes, I might've also splurged since I have quite a few games I want to get through as well, eheh. I could starve myself for a few games, ahah. Hopefully the toll that came from your video game splurge wasn't too drastic!

 

Ohh, so it took you around a month to finish Dual Destinies? What about your first runthrough of FE: Awakening? Haha, that's a nice system you have with your brother there! I don't have the heart to restart any of my games, so I usually only play through them once, eheh. Hrm, if FE: Awakening has a high replay value like you said, I might have to break this inclination of mine. Good luck with Virtue's Last Reward and FE: Awakening on Lunatic mode! 

 

I'll just respond to your PM here. You got a little lucky with that picture hunt of yours, haha. That Facebook picture you saw is the first picture I've ever uploaded of myself, lol. Ahaha, nono, I wasn't embarrassed. I was just a little taken aback that some of those pictures even existed since I don't have any memory of them being taken, hah. Oh, and I only changed my profile picture because December is Pokemon profile picture month. It's like a tradition! If you dig through my timeline, you'll notice that I've changed it to a Pokemon picture at the beginning of every December. Sorry for any confusion it caused. You haven't done anything wrong, ahah. Hmm, I don't think I'm very similar to my sister personality-wise. Friends can usually recognize her as my sister whenever I'm walking next to her though. Probably because it's the only logical conclusion to go to since they rarely see her around, lol.

 

Aw you... ahah, just make sure you're taking care of yourself. Oh, and it's not like I don't ramble on either, eheh...

 

Nothing too eventful went on this Thanksgiving aside from my parents inviting some family friends over to eat dinner. I wasn't feeling too ecstatic about it even though this one girl is a pretty close friend. Despite being well-rested and feeling relatively stress-free (well, kinda), I was exhausted. I wasn't in the mood to socialize, and I just wanted to be alone. It's a feeling that's been getting a lot more prevalent lately for some reason, but it's cool since I can just distract myself with schoolwork now, lol. For Black Friday, my parents decided to take me to the mall to buy some stuff late in the evening (you know, when everyone's angst from Black Friday has died a bit). Apologies for not having much of an adventure to share, but I'm glad to hear that you had a nice Thanksgiving! It'll be quite a feat trying to run through all of those games you managed to get your hands on though, haha.

 

whoops, I made a derp in the paragraph discussing regions

I meant Liberty Island, not Liberty Garden, lol

but! Liberty Garden is essentially the Liberty Island equivalent

fixed it though; just wanted to make that clarification in case any confusion might've arisen

Edited December 5, 2015 by Kenzi

[Akazora 293]

I haven't "finished" HeartGold yet because I was reluctant to catch the legendaries for the same reason, haha. I also tried soft-resetting for a good natured Oshawott in Black and Tepig in Black 2 (or was it the other way around; I actually can't remember), but I eventually gave up and just settled for a neutral nature (probably because I couldn't decide whether I wanted them to be special or physical attackers). When I first listened to the Primal theme, something didn't sound consistent. It sounded awfully like the original at some points. I was kinda doubting myself though. I'm sure your hearing is fine. Like you said, you were just concentrating on the battle, haha.

 

Well, erm, I have to test the waters to make sure I'm around people I can geek out with, eheh. But even then, I can't completely let loose since I'm always around people who don't know about this side of me. And I don't think much is going to change when I head off to college. Would "closet nerd" be an appropriate term for this? It's why I sometimes (but seldom) drop subtle references to anime and video games instead of outright asking people. It usually doesn't work, but I have managed to fish out a few people using this method, hah. 

 

Yeah, I meant the old Sky Pillar, lol. I wasted a stupid amount of repels trying to bike over those holes. The holes were so frustrating, argh. I really liked the new Sky Pillar. It was creative how they redesigned its interior to fit the whole Delta theme. And that gigantic mural? Phew, that was awesome! Really great attention to detail! Hmm, couldn't you have finished listening to Zinnia's explanation of the lore before tracking down that TM you saw? It's probably what I would've done since I don't enjoy being left hanging, eheh.

 

Hm, you make a good argument there. I'm going to have to let this one go since you have a ton more experience with RSE and ORAS than I do. I just wanted to get across that Mirage Island and these Mirage Spots are still connected somehow. And you're right. After some thought, these Mirage Spots really are more like Hidden Grottos than the old Mirage Island!

 

I know the Wii U isn't terribly popular with the general public, but wasn't there quite a bit of hype for the new Splatoon update? But yeah, there aren't too many titles to keep the console afloat, and I'll admit that I'd rather invest my money into 3DS games instead of into a console that doesn't have as many games I'm interested in playing. The Wii I have sitting in the basement (technically my sister's though) hasn't seen much activity. I think we actually paid the PS2 more heed than the Wii, so that's also kinda discouraged me from getting a Wii U. Plus, I wouldn't be able to take it with me to college soooo.... Haha, I think it'll be interesting to see what the new president has in store for us, especially now that Nintendo is expanding to mobile platforms. Hopefully they won't disappoint!

 

Haha, I didn't even finish Black since I never fought the champion. And you didn't miss much by dropping White 2. The after game was pretty underwhelming. I guess Reversal Mountain was kinda cool with the lava and stuff (unless you had Black 2 since you'd have water/lakes instead). The Marine Tube was a nice way to showcase those nice graphics, and Black City/White Forest was a good time killer (no incentive to go back after beating it though). But aside from those, there really wasn't much to be excited about because the Battle Subway freaking blows. Hoenn getting its own set of islands remixed with DPPt music? Geezus, I would've been all over that (as I'm sure you could guess, lol). I think it would've been a bit too much to ask for though, haha. 

 

Nah, I'm actually fairly certain that its name is going to be some variation of "Pokemon Z". They already named the new anime series "Pokemon XY & Z" didn't they? Hmm, I don't think I've ever heard of some person discouraging Game Freak from creating the predictable Pokemon Gray, though the scenario doesn't seem too farfetched. I remember stumbling across an article years ago stating that they already obtained the "rights" to the Pokemon Grey title, but I can't track down the article anywhere. Game Freak might've just scrapped the idea after realizing that it'd be in their best interest to catch everyone off-guard as the 3DS release date loomed closer. Would it be worth the money buying something so predictable when you can just save up for the 3DS? Gotta milk out what's left of the DS since it'd be too drastic of an upgrade or change to develop an immediate B/W sequel for the 3DS. There's just so much mystery surrounding Xerneas, Yveltal, and Zygarde that Game Freak won't have to pull another B2W2. It's obvious that "Z" is going to revolve around Zygarde, but I don't see what would compel them to create two "versions" of the same story like they did with B2W2. The shock factor won't appeal as much because, well, it already happened with B2W2. Ohh, I really hope they develop the lore a bit in "Z". I'm sure they will though since there was pretty much nothing in XY. At the very least, if "Z" doesn't appeal, you'll have a more complete story, haha.

 

Hmm, you do have a point there. BW and B2W2 just didn't give off the same vibe as the previous games for some reason. Unova just felt too urbanized; too New York-ish. And despite how much I love NYC, I really didn't like Castelia City. Ironically enough, it actually felt a lot emptier and duller than some of the other towns and cities. The Castelia City music was a bit weak, and is Driftveil City supposed to be based off of Chinatown? Isn't the gym led by some cowboy/rancher guy? It didn't feel very Pokemon-ish either. I just really dislike how urbanized the region was. Subways? Cargo planes? Sewers? A movie studio? And now that I think about it, weren't there heavy-duty construction equipment littered around the region? Sheesh, they're trying too hard. And you're right; it does ruin the magic. When you can associate parts of the region with real world landmarks, well, that's no fun. Even though nearly every vantage point in the Pokemon world is based off of something in the real world, like you said, the earlier regions were more subtle about it. And in turn, we can freely perceive each area to be whatever we want it to be. Once you incorporate blatant references to landmarks like the Eiffel Tower, Stonehenge, Manhattan, Liberty Island, etc. the Pokemon world is no longer a world of its own. But the thing is, you can't be too harsh on the guy. I think part of the criticism stems from the idea that Unova and Kalos were trying to integrate entire cultures into their regions--cultures that we're pretty familiar with (or at least have an idea of), while Kanto through Sinnoh encompassed only small areas of Japan--areas that are pretty foreign to us. Perhaps that's also why a lot is left to the imagination when we explored those first four regions. So yes, I do agree with you to an extent. Also, a little irrelevant, but you can't base every region off of a region in Japan since you'd run out eventually, lol. Well, uh, I actually couldn't understand why Professor Sycamore was getting so much attention either. I never really saw Pokemon characters as characters people would fanboy/fangirl about.

 

Whaa... what do you mean most schools don't have a swim team? We have synchronized swimming, water polo, and a swim/dive team. And they all compete with other schools, which I guess would mean that most schools do have pools... right...? Or else they wouldn't be able to compete...? But by the sound of it, you're implying that most NJ schools don't have pools? There's no way. Yeah, it kinda sucked how we were forced to swim for phys ed (people who were fasting were excused though). The pool was over-chlorinated and everyone still reeked of chlorine even after a quick shower. Haha, you got lucky there. 

 

Holy... geezus, thank you for the volume warning, lol. No really, thank you. Ahhhhhh!! It's like I'm feeling the hype all over again!! Sheesh, I've never played Final Fantasy, but seeing everyone's reactions made me want to jump out of my seat and scream with them even though I've already watched the reveal, ahahahaha.... And what. w h a t. Sakurai tweeted it??? W H A T. Oh my gosh that's insane! Damn, I haven't even played the game yet, but I'm still unreasonably hyped for this special broadcast!

 

Yeahh, I don't think Fiorina's campaign is salvageable at this point since she's falling behind quite a bit. I think the main contenders for this election will end up being Trump, Sanders, Clinton, and Carson. Trump is a mess and Clinton isn't much better, Carson has some pretty debatable views, and Sanders is a bit too left for my taste though he does have some nice ideas. Lesser of two four evils?

 

Actually, it was more like a conglomerate of people from different periods that came to these last-minute cram study sessions. Some people never came either because they naturally excelled at the subject (and even then some of these people still attended these study sessions to further solidify their understanding of the subject) or because they were too lazy to come. Or maybe they just didn't have time. I think part of the reason these study sessions were so popular for chem is because the homework didn't count as a grade in that class. They were essentially recommended problems for you to work on since you were only graded on quizzes, tests, and labs. So rather than just asking the person next to you for the answer just to get homework points, we were basically encouraged to do them for our own understanding. Facebook was also especially useful (for Lang as well). Geezus, thank the lord for these people and this site. It's hard to imagine how everyone would've turned out if we had such a cutthroat environment. Good on you for being able to survive on flying solo, but don't be afraid to approach people for help once in a while! Erm, as happy as I am to hear that, I was referring to any fellow college students you might've been acquainted with, haha. Or possibly some close old high school friends (but I know you're trying to leave that behind you). I guess it shouldn't be a problem though since you're naturally introverted and because you've been flying solo for a good chunk of your life. Sorry for bugging you like that. It's just that your lifestyle is something I'm not particularly familiar with, eheh.

 

What do you mean you don't like pretzels?? Haha, nah, I'm kidding. Pretzels are great and all, but they are pretty tasteless. It's part of the reason why I like and dislike them. It mostly depends on what I'm in the mood for, lol. They can be quite filling though! I'm a bit of a night owl myself, but I tend to snack on these pretzels when I'm feeling famished, and it definitely helps, haha. If not pretzels, what about fruit then? See if you can sneak a few from the dining hall, hehe. Hmm, so you tend to wake up late almost everyday? I know we already had this discussion before, but times might've changed, so what time do you usually wake up nowadays? What on earth, if you're reluctant to eat lunch in close proximity to dinner, how late would you have your lunch...? And I'm sure missing out on one day of working out won't be too big of a deal considering how devoted you are, ahah. Oh wut, electric kettles are banned? Ah, that's fine since like you said, I can always use the common kitchen areas, lol. Are we at least allowed to bring electric fans for dorms without A/C?

 

Haha, it's just that I haven't met anyone with your name. Well, there was this one senior last year who was in band, interestingly enough, but I didn't really know him. Um, the thing with glasses is, aren't they kinda inconvenient? You know, if you have to play a sport or work out or something. I know some people wear sunglasses (I sometimes do), but at least they have the luxury to take them off. Heck, you can't even wear sunglasses if you have glasses on (unless you have those 2-in-1 glasses). Glasses can be bothersome in the rain, and don't they have a tendency to fog up on occasion? There's always the risk of accidentally knocking it off your face and/or breaking it as well. Or maybe this is just me being paranoid and thinking up of worst case scenarios. Either way, I'm just really grateful that I don't need any vision correctors. Contacts sound painful, and my mom and sister have already warned me about the inconvenience of glasses, so I'm going to try my best to stay away from them. Ahaha, same, my ears also get easily irritated with prolonged use of headphones. But that still hasn't deterred me from using them as often as I do, eheh. The sound quality and volume flexibility is much too glorious to just give up. Oh geez, just because you need contacts doesn't mean your genes are bad. I know you're probably joking, but it's not like wearing glasses/contacts is out of the ordinary or anything, lol. 

 

Ohh, so if you guys have such nice heating, I'd assume that getting out of bed in the mornings isn't as rough or difficult? That sounds really nice! Getting out of bed is probably my biggest morning struggle in cold weather, haha. Lucky you!

 

Ahaha, I know, I know. I just wanted to see if there was some way for me to spread out the specifics so that I'm not overwhelmed later on. I don't want to take some random general courses for the first few semesters and then cram all these insanely difficult courses for the later semesters. Hmm, maybe I'll just take some extra classes then. Freshman year is supposed to be kinda chill in comparison to the later years, right? Yeah, I might just take an extra class or two freshman year to even out the workload a bit. Erm, hopefully that's doable. Oh nono, I'm actually quite happy with the variety of SAGES courses (it's a wonder how they even come up with some of these). It's just that I was told by the end of sophomore year, students take SAGES courses within their major. I guess it's not too big of a deal though. Oh, so how much shorter are those MWF classes then? Also, do most college students take around four to five classes? Gosh, if you're planning on completing this program in just four years, I hope you don't overwhelm yourself too much with all these extra classes. There's a reason it's normally completed in five years, isn't there?

 

Haha yup, my sister's study room was her bedroom. She usually kept her door locked when she was in high school so I'm not entirely sure what she did in there. Anime probably? She was pretty into anime, and I sometimes caught her watching stuff like Code Geass (and the occasional DC episode) whenever she forgot to lock the door. Oh, and lots of music. Lots of mainstream lyrical music that was audible even when her door was closed. I like having a door crack rather than a locked door, so I rarely lock or close the door. I dunno, I guess it just feels more inviting, though I don't exactly want the door wide open either. I feel kinda bad for kicking her out. She sometimes still worked here when I wasn't home, and I guess we sometimes slept together. She did want her room back, but my dad actually made an argument for me to stay, so I feel even worse about it, eheh. But it's been a few years, and things have settled down, I guess. Wait, what's wrong with keeping my laptop brightness all the way down? I feel like it's much easier on the eyes. Gosh, whenever I saw my sister's laptop with the brightness cranked up to the max, it kinda hurt my eyes a bit. I also almost never max my phone brightness either for similar reasons (urgh, the colors are way too saturated when the brightness is turned up so much). Unless I'm using it outdoors or something, which, in that case, I'd have to turn it up a bit in order to offset the natural light. My lamp is directly left of my laptop and the window is on my right, but since I almost never move my laptop, there's always this little bit of glare in the daytime. Facing towards the window (laptop screen pointed away) could've reduced the glare, but my problematic powerjack prevents me from doing so. Also, you say that you can't see your reflection when your laptop brightness is way down, but doesn't turning down the brightness of your laptop actually increase the amount of glare/reflection? What the... you can't even utilize the natural light in your room? I probably would've tried to rearrange my workspace so I could expose the window, lol. You seem to be happy about your situation though, haha. I'm not subscribed to hundreds of people, but enough for me to easily lose track of them if I wasn't subscribed to them. Let's see, there are quite a few music channels I'm subscribed to, a few random science channels, RWBY is back, CollegeHumor rocks, Cyanide and Happiness is great, DBZ Abridged is hilarious, oh and I noticed that you also watch Vsauce yay, and there's a bunch of other people I can't remember off the top of my head. I don't have that great of a memory myself, so subscriptions make keeping track of these channels a crapload easier. 

 

Well, the pledge wasn't mandatory for the school I went to. Heck, I didn't even know it existed until I moved here. But NYC is pretty big, so I'd expect that there were at least some schools that made the pledge a requirement. The pledge always took place during second period for us, and occasionally during fifth period if there were technical difficulties or something. I honestly don't see the pledge as an effective way to promote patriotism. The media does a great job of trashing the country with headlines about butthurt nitpickers, school shootings, the election (particularly Trump), racist cops, etc. It's hard not to lose faith in America when this is all that's talked about around here. Implementing the pledge just seems like a futile last-ditch effort to reconcile whatever patriotism is left of today's youth. I feel kinda bad for saying this though since I'm taking a lot for granted (America's pretty great, after all). Patriotism is great for the unity of the country, but blind Patriotism in the form of a pledge is a cheap ploy (and an ineffective one at that) at best. 

 

Heyhey, I still have a bone to pick with you after you inserted "[nervously laughs]" in that first paragraph. You're not exactly coming off as guilt-free yourself, lol. Ahaha, I can't remember the plotline or story for a lot of these books. All I remember is the impression they gave me when I read them. Oh gosh, The Giving Tree was a bit depressing. I don't think I can muster up the courage to read it alongside sad music, eheh (geezus, you're insane). Whaaa... you never read The Little Engine That Could? We had this huge assembly with some guest speaker who read it to everyone so I assumed it must've been an important book for most elementary schools. Were there any books your school made a big deal of? Geez, elementary school was the best. I was digging through the basement over the weekend and I stumbled across this portfolio I made in first grade. The misspelled words and misshapen letters, oh my gosh. It was a mess, but it brought back a lot of memories. I can't believe I still have memories of this. I can't believe how long it's been. Urgh, I really need to start keeping a journal.

 

Ohh, so you've gone on the buses? Even if you only used them for the sake of video games, that still sounds kinda adventurous, haha. What is your impression of Cleveland so far from these trips? Hmm, actually, I think it was mainly the brass and percussion that were really... loud. It was definitely the case for Berlioz and Shostakovich at least. The pieces we're playing this year feel a bit more balanced, though I wouldn't go so far as to say that we've ever overpowered the band. I think it depends more on the piece rather than the perspective.

 

Your parents "only" put a passcode on your laptop? I mean, getting my laptop confiscated was just temporary, so I wouldn't say it was terribly unreasonable (or at least compared to having a passcode on it). I felt like I scoured every nook and cranny of the house whenever I was hunting for my DS, but whenever I couldn't find it, I always assumed that my parents took it with them to work or something. I got kinda desperate at one point and used a flashlight to look into the cracks of locked cabinets after realizing that I suck at picking locks, lol. Oh, my mom sometimes hid my DS in the bed stand drawer. I just made sure to return it before they came home, so it wasn't too big of a deal. Even if I found my stuff in an "inactive" hiding spot, I still made sure to return them in order to prevent myself from getting into more trouble. My dad threatened to break my DS at one point, so uhh... God knows what would've happened if my dad found out how much time I wasted opening and closing drawers and closets trying to look for it. I don't think they've ever forgotten about the stuff they hid from me though. The only way I was able to get my stuff back was by waiting and asking them at the right time when they're in a good mood. Like maybe it's winter break and we're heading off to California or something. If that was the case, I'd ask them if I could have my DS back to keep myself occupied during the plane ride. They'd agree to that. I don't think I'd ever have the audacity to hide what they've hidden from me. It's much too risky, and there's always the threat of getting my stuff "demolished". I'm sure it was an empty threat, but if you saw how firm my dad's yelling and hand gestures were, ohmygosh, I was so intimidated. I think I was on the brink of tears that day. So when/how did you know you were safe to recover your confiscated stuff? 

 

Whoaa, you're willing to drag yourself through those Black Friday shenanigans? Geezus, I've heard stories of people getting trampled in that mess. But I suppose since you were aiming for the video game section, it was okay for you, lol. Still though, you arrived over two hours early? Phew, haha. Ohh, and you also chatted with some strangers next to you? Nice! How did it go? Wait, so I'm assuming that your brother hasn't touched ORAS yet? Aw, what a nice gesture of you to buy Omega Ruby for him! And geez, Mario Kart 7 for $15?? Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright too??

 

Ahhh, three 3DS games for $40?? Even if they are used, that's unheard of! A total of six games for yourself plus the Fates Special Edition you preordered, gosh, I'm quite envious, you know. What an eventful day for you, haha. If I was in your shoes, I might've also splurged since I have quite a few games I want to get through as well, eheh. I could starve myself for a few games, ahah. Hopefully the toll that came from your video game splurge wasn't too drastic!

 

Ohh, so it took you around a month to finish Dual Destinies? What about your first runthrough of FE: Awakening? Haha, that's a nice system you have with your brother there! I don't have the heart to restart any of my games, so I usually only play through them once, eheh. Hrm, if FE: Awakening has a high replay value like you said, I might have to break this inclination of mine. Good luck with Virtue's Last Reward and FE: Awakening on Lunatic mode! 

 

I'll just respond to your PM here. You got a little lucky with that picture hunt of yours, haha. That Facebook picture you saw is the first picture I've ever uploaded of myself, lol. Ahaha, nono, I wasn't embarrassed. I was just a little taken aback that some of those pictures even existed since I don't have any memory of them being taken, hah. Oh, and I only changed my profile picture because December is Pokemon profile picture month. It's like a tradition! If you dig through my timeline, you'll notice that I've changed it to a Pokemon picture at the beginning of every December. Sorry for any confusion it caused. You haven't done anything wrong, ahah. Hmm, I don't think I'm very similar to my sister personality-wise. Friends can usually recognize her as my sister whenever I'm walking next to her though. Probably because it's the only logical conclusion to go to since they rarely see her around, lol.

 

Aw you... ahah, just make sure you're taking care of yourself. Oh, and it's not like I don't ramble on either, eheh...

 

Nothing too eventful went on this Thanksgiving aside from my parents inviting some family friends over to eat dinner. I wasn't feeling too ecstatic about it even though this one girl is a pretty close friend. Despite being well-rested and feeling relatively stress-free (well, kinda), I was exhausted. I wasn't in the mood to socialize, and I just wanted to be alone. It's a feeling that's been getting a lot more prevalent lately for some reason, but it's cool since I can just distract myself with schoolwork now, lol. For Black Friday, my parents decided to take me to the mall to buy some stuff late in the evening (you know, when everyone's angst from Black Friday has died a bit). Apologies for not having much of an adventure to share, but I'm glad to hear that you had a nice Thanksgiving! It'll be quite a feat trying to run through all of those games you managed to get your hands on though, haha.

 

whoops, I made a derp in the paragraph discussing regions

I meant Liberty Island, not Liberty Garden, lol

but! Liberty Garden is essentially the Liberty Island equivalent

fixed it though; just wanted to make that clarification in case any confusion might've arisen

Haha, for someone who promotes embracing your inner nerd, it’s interesting to see that you’re more of a “closet nerd” as you say.  I guess that would be a good way of putting it.  The thing is, I’m not really going to be super open about my interest in video games and anime either, but at the same time I’m not afraid to wear graphic tees and play video games in public.  Surprisingly, I haven’t actually gotten many people to outright react to the t-shirts I wear.  Of course, some of them are a bit discreet, but others are in-your-face obvious.  Hmm, either most geeks are closet dwellers or they just make up a smaller population of the general public than I think.  Gamers and otakus do tend to have a negative “loser” stigma associated with them, and as regrettable as it is to say there is some truth to that stereotype, so it’s understandable a lot of people would want to hide their interests until they know they can trust the people around them.

 

Aww, I kinda miss how there’s no place in the new Hoenn to just fall through a cracks in the ground.  They got rid of it in both Sky Pillar and Mt Pyre, sigh…  Nah, not really, it’s just curious that they did at all, since those cracks you had to bike over in Sky Pillar were so infamous, at least in my elementary school, ahah.  B-But that bright yellow TM ball was so enticing!  Once I saw it, I kinda stopped paying attention to what Zinnia was saying and tried figuring out how to get to it, eheheh…

 

Splatoon updates nearly regularly.  There are new weapons almost weekly, and sometimes (like with this most recent patch) they add big stuff like new outfits and new maps, and finally on very rare occasions, they add new gameplay modes.  Splatoon is a constantly evolving game and honestly… as much I love what Sakurai’s done with Smash 4, Splatoon is my personal favorite game on the Wii U.  Granted I haven’t even played that many games on the console, but still, ahah.  It probably has more to do with the fact that I’m kinda bored with Smash’s gameplay (it’s the same it’s been at its core for over a decade after all) as opposed to Splatoon’s fresh, unique style.  Objectively, it’s harder to say which is better.  Awww, the poor Wii's sitting in the basement…  I have to agree though, while I loved the Wii, much of that love just comes Brawl bias and Wii Sports nostalgia.  The DS had a better library, or at least a library I took the time to delve into, much like how the 3DS’s library is leaps and bounds above the Wii U’s.  I’d probably recommend waiting for the next gen home console, which is probably the NX, and just playing any Wii U games you want on that since there’s a 99.9% chance it’ll be backward compatible anyway.

 

Looks like I didn’t miss too much by just dropping White 2 after beating the champion after all.  Aha, that’s good to know.

 

Ahhh, true true, I nearly forgot that the anime is called XY & Z or something along those lines.  With the way the anime is going, Pokemon Z is all but guaranteed.  I can’t recall where I heard that Game Freak was practically forced to make B2W2 as opposed to Grey, but I believe it was a reliable source.  But I remember when Black and White were first announced thinking “Oh man, is this for the 3DS or the DS because there’s no way my parents are getting me a 3DS?!” and being really relieved that I didn’t have to buy a new console just yet.  It was the same story with B2W2, ahah.  I still would have purchased the game(s) regardless of whether it was B2W2 or Grey, since I was just a kid who didn’t have to funds or freedom to migrate over to the 3DS yet, but I can imagine those who already made the change probably wouldn’t have chosen Grey, an alternate version of BW, over the growing number of 3DS titles.  I know for a fact that Pokemon obtained the rights to Delta Emerald as well, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to make it.  They obtained rights to WaterBlue and ThunderYellow and some Crystal remake as well, or at least were rumored to, just to cover their bases.  Since they’ve done this in the past, the Pokemon Grey trademark was probably to avoid any potential legal infringement.  True, the lore behind the Kalos legendaries was a bit weak.  The focus was less on the Pokemon and more on the war, AZ, the ultimate weapon, etc.  It was an interesting change of pace, but the Pokemon felt so hollow as a result.  If they can balance things out in Z, then even if the “vibe” of Kalos still rubs me the wrong way, I might end up liking it more than Y.  Probably not more than ORAS though, ahah.

 

Funnily enough, I actually didn’t mind Castelia City.  My brother didn’t like the music even though I thought it was catchy enough.  My biggest complaint about the city isn’t the music or the population, but rather the controls.  Because the floor was still grid-based but a lot of areas were curved or angled, it just made exploring the city awkward.  Hmm, I suppose since we’re just not familiar with the layout of Japan, we probably just don’t notice the connections to real life in the earlier regions.  But I still think the references were more subtle in Kanto to Sinnoh as opposed to in Unova and Kalos.  As you said, they tried a bit too hard with Unova, and Kalos wasn’t much better.

 

No way?  Trust me, way.  New Jersey public schools are really meh and even our private schools can’t compare at all to the ones you apparently have in Michigan.  You have to remember that JP was actually considered one of the better schools, ahah.  I don’t really mind though; unlike A/C a pool sounds like more of a pain than a luxury, and from your description it seems that was the case for schools that implemented swimming.

 

I’m glad that my warning saved your eardrums, ahah.  Yeah, Sakurai lives for the hype; you can tell with the way he reveals things about Smash.  This isn’t the first time he’s retweeted live reactions to a character reveal, so it’s not much of a surprise this time around, but it’s still really awesome he’s so enthusiastic about his fans!  He’s put so much work into this game, and it’s leaps and bounds above Brawl.  I may prefer Splatoon over the Wii U version, but the 3DS version is still really fun to pick up every once in a while for my 3DS.  It’s not my favorite 3DS game either, but that’s only because the game has stiff competition.

 

Ohh, that’s rather fascinating how those cram sessions worked.  Even if I was struggling in that class, I don’t know if I’d find the time to go to those sessions only because my inability to wake up in a timely manner in the mornings is something not to be underestimated.  The world could be ending outside my window and I still wouldn’t be able to get up if I was tired enough.  My wombo combo alarm does nothing for me; it’s earsplittingly loud, but I sleep through it more times than not.  Hmm, that’s usually a good indication I need to find a new alarm…  And don’t you worry, I haven’t been afraid to ask people for help when I’ve needed to.  I don’t rely on it though, and apparently nobody finds me particularly helpful because people rarely ask me for help, eheheh…  And there’s no need to apologize, I wasn’t bothered by your “bugging” at all, haha.

 

This is going to sound really unhealthy of me, but I’m not really one to just eat fruit by itself.  It’s fine if it’s used as an ingredient in a dish, but just eating pieces of fruit individually is a bit too strong for my tastes.  As for when I usually wake up, it really depends on how late I go to sleep.  And even then, there are a lot of factors that determine how long I sleep.  Sometimes I go to sleep really early and still wake up crazy late, and other times I go to sleep super late and have trouble staying asleep, leading to my waking up early.  Hm??  What do you mean how late would I have my lunch?  I’ve mentioned it before, but I don’t make it a habit of eating lunch, not even if I have a time.  Two meals is just right for me and lunch is a bit redundant.  I suppose skipping a few days of working out isn’t too bad in the long run, and when I finally went back to the gym earlier in the week my body could still handle the exercises that I usually do, so you’re right, there wasn’t much to worry about.  Oh yeah, fans of pretty much any kind are fine, it’s just that electric kettles can pose a fire hazard is why I believe they’re a banned item.

 

I can’t remember much from when I used to wear glasses, but I know that I got used to them pretty fast.  They narrow your field of vision a tiny bit, but that was probably because I wore glasses with smaller lenses and not one of those really large ones.  They didn’t fall off your face unless you were doing some crazy gymnastic somersault and they didn’t usually break either.  Glasses are studier than you think, ahah.  In the rain they protect your eyes from the falling water I suppose, though of course you have to wipe them off once you’re under a roof.  They didn’t fog up too easily either.  In fact, the biggest hassle involved with glasses stems not from any of the worries you listed but from how easily they smear.  Maybe it was just me, but the glass smeared really easily and even when I wiped it off it left either dust from whatever I wiped it with or residual oil streaks that made light bend in weird ways.  That may make absolutely no sense to you, but any glasses-wearer out there knows what I’m talking about.  I only use headphones when I’m watching an anime I care about or listen to music I like.  Otherwise, I opt out of it just to preserve my ears.  Ahahah, yeah, I’m just joking.  I’m no perfect human being of course but I’m not going to get bummed out over what I’ve been born with.

 

Getting out of bed isn’t any more difficult now than it was during the summer, though that’s probably only because it hasn’t gotten too cold yet.  I haven’t used the heater in a long time, but my blankets are so thick that sometimes I even wake up feeling a bit too warm, eheh.

 

You could probably take more classes earlier on, just as you don’t overwhelm yourself in the very first semester or anything, ahah.  I personally don’t mind getting through all these basic gen ed classes done early and saving all the major specific classes for later.  It may seem like a lot of work, but the classes build off of each other, so I it shouldn’t be too bad, right?  Hmm, by the major-specific SAGES class, that person was probably talking about the Departmental Seminar.  After your First Seminar and your two University Seminars, you have to take a Departmental Seminar which is either a class required by the major you’re taking or one at least related to your major in some way.  And I believe the professors are the ones in charge of choosing what the First and Universal Seminars are about.  If a professor woke up one day and decided to plan an entire semester long course on the history of sandals and their significance in western culture, as long as Case approves it, then he can do just that.  Two-day 3 credit hour classes are an hour and fifteen minutes long each while three-day 3 credit hour classes are fifty minutes long each, so either way it totals to 150 minutes of class per week.

 

Oh gosh, I’m even more like your sister when it comes to my room setup; I also keep the door closed and almost always have it locked when it’s possible.  That’s usually because I’m watching anime and I don’t want the immersion to be ruined by someone just randomly walking in (knocking hasn’t been invented yet in my household).  Huh, I never felt that having the brightness way up on either my laptop or my phone made the colors oversaturated.  If anything, having the brightness down makes things dull and especially difficult to see.  Perhaps our different preferences stem from our drastically different vision qualities?  Or… maybe the differences in our eyesight is a result of our brightness settings??  Ahahah, oh dear, I wouldn’t be completely surprised if that was the case.  My room actually had exactly the same layout: lamp to my left behind my laptop and my window directly to my right.  For me though, there was a lot of glare, not just a little.  I don’t know if this is because the sun set in my window or if I’m just more sensitive to seeing reflections in my computer screen.  If I can hold my hand right up to screen and still see its reflection, then the brightness isn’t high enough.  Ohhh, I don’t really watch any of the channels you do.  Vsauce doesn’t make videos very often so I don’t actually check his channel much.  I used to check out Bestamvsofalltime before they kinda stopped uploading, and I have a few AMV channel replacements.  I follow a couple gamers(?) like Etika and video game related channels like Did You Know Gaming and Game Theories.  I also check out Honest Trailers and Everything Wrong With when I have time.  That’s pretty much it though; everything else I watch doesn’t come out often enough for me to check very often like Epic Rap Battles.  That’s usually enough to keep me entertained, between video games and anime.

 

Well, the pledge has been around for decades, and if anything it should be a surprise that certain schools don’t already have it mandatory and are only now implementing it.  If schools stopped making it mandatory, that would make more sense, but it’s a bit weird your school is doing it the other way around.  I figured most, if not all, schools still required the pledge, but I guess New Jersey isn’t much of a sample size, eheh.  It’s easy to get discouraged with how America is doing because of the media, but the media is so hard to trust that none of the headiness I see around the Internet even bother me.  They say all these negative things, but that doesn’t change how I see this nation.  Call it being ignorant, but I don’t see how it can be any worse than absorbing sensational misinformation.

 

Pfftt, at least [nervously laughs] isn’t ambiguously worded!  Nope, my school never made a big deal out of any single book.  Maybe Charlotte’s Web was “the big thing” for second graders, but that’s about it.  If anything, people made a bigger deal about historical figures like Martin Luther King Jr. and Helen Keller, so that kids had role models to look up to at an early age or something.  Ahh, I remember finding some old elementary school “writing” a couple years back.  It was pretty funny to go back and see how I used to do things as a little kid.  Oh my gosh, as you say, I actually remembered doing some of that, like drawing those “pictures” and writing those “sentences”.

 

I actually never traveled to the good parts of Cleveland and just sort of took the buses to places in the opposite direction of downtown, so the areas I “explored” were a bit… cruddy.  It kinda sucks, but that’s where the nearest GameStop, Target, and McDonald’s are located, ahah. There’s not much to say, it’s pretty normal apart from the relatively high population of African Americans.  It doesn’t feel very safe at night (waiting for the bus after the Black Thursday shopping at Target on the side of the road late at night was all kinds of frightening, not going to lie) but it looks pretty normal during the day.  I believe downtown Cleveland is a lot nicer and feels more like a legit city.

 

Ahaha, my parents sometimes threaten to break my games, but those are just empty threats.  Worst comes to worst they’d just sell them, as they care about money enough to not break them.  And even if they did sell something, they don’t realize that I have backup consoles (things my friends have given to me for free after they grew out of their DS's) and they don’t know about all the DS and GameBoy games I have.  Like, legit, they don’t keep track of how many games I have and where they are.  They just assume all the games they’ve purchased for me are located in that single bag they put all the games in, but there are so many they wouldn’t notice if there were five extra games or five missing games, even if they peered in to check.  And as for when I could tell they stopped checking inactive hiding spots, I guess it was once when I asked if we could bring the games with us for a long trip and they agreed but spent a while finding them because they themselves had forgotten where they hid them.  After that, I could just feel when they’d forgotten about hiding spots and took nearly full possession of my games.  tl;dr my parents are forgetful, if you couldn’t already tell, ahah.  It’s too bad that you weren’t able to take advantage of your parents like I did……………  That sounded awful, I am a bad influence, don’t listen to me……

 

Those Black Friday tramplings are the minority and usually only really happen at stores that don’t take the precautions to prevent such incidents.  This Target handled everything really nicely, and everyone in line was a decent human being so there was no pushing, only quick walking and slight jogging.  All in all, it was a good experience.  I talked to the person behind me, and he was there for a television (like most people).  Unfortunately he wasn’t close enough to the front of the line to get a ticket for the specific television he was interested in, but I saw him run up ahead in an attempt to snag another television instead.  Yeah, my brother was planning on getting the Pokemon game released this year but… that never actually happened, so he figured he might as well get Omega Ruby in the meantime.  He would have gotten it himself, but being around my parents he obviously didn’t have the chance to take advantage of the Black Friday deals which is why he asked me for help.  I had my eye on Mario Kart 7 for a mere $15 anyway, so going to Target wasn’t much of a hassle.  All in all though, I was really happy with how things turned out!  The pre-owned games from Best Buy just came in the other day, though I’m not in much of a rush to start them.  Ahahah, starving myself for video games is pretty much just an extension of what I did in high school with my brother, so I’m used to it.  You might have to start doing that yourself too if you want to get all the 3DS on your to-do list, eheh.

 

Yup, Dual Destinies was pretty good.  It wasn’t the best Ace Attorney game, but it was a fun game.  I can’t remember how long it took me to beat my first Awakening run through.  It was the second 3DS game I had ever beaten after Ocarina of Time 3D, so this was a while ago.  My brother has the game right now, but once I get it back I’ll check my records and see how many hours I put into that game.  Oh, and don’t worry, Awakening has three save slots, so unless you want to run through the game four or more times, you won’t have to delete your save files.  Awakening has a lot of replay value and is a fun game, but goly it would require quite a bit of dedication to run through the game that many times.  Woo and thanks!  I’ve been making quite a lot of headway with Virtue’s Last Reward and am set to finish it on time, before break starts.

 

Ohhhhhhh pffffttt wow, I must not be very good of a detective if I didn’t even notice that you changed your profile picture to a Pokemon every December.  For some reason everyone seemed to be able to tell my brother is related to me and I’m related to my brother, even when we’re not with each other.  In high school, kids I had never seem before occasionally came up to me and said “Hey, aren’t you _____’s brother?” like whaaaaaa how I am different than any other Asian guy off the street; how did they know I was my brother’s brother?!?  It’s really weird, since I don’t believe I look like my brother at all, but apparently others can tell we’re related.

 

You weren’t in the mood to socialize and just wanted to be alone?  Eyyy, what a coincidence, that’s how I feel every day!  Hahah, guess that’s just the introvert inside of you stretching a bit.  Hm, well, even though your Thanksgiving was a bit bland and you didn’t do anything too special, it’s still nice that you got a chance to relax a bit.

 

Anyway, sorry that my response this time was a bit shorter than usual, since finals week is upon us for Case Western!  I have my math final on Tuesday and my accounting final on Thursday this coming week.  The week after, on Wednesday the 16th of December, I have my econ final and it’s also the day I hop on a plane back to New Jersey.  I have quite a bit of studying to do, but the good thing is, classes are finally over!  So unlike in high school, you don’t have classes or any other obligations like homework during finals and can spend all day if you wish focusing on the exams you have to take.

[Kenzi 146]

 

Haha, for someone who promotes embracing your inner nerd, it’s interesting to see that you’re more of a “closet nerd” as you say.  I guess that would be a good way of putting it.  The thing is, I’m not really going to be super open about my interest in video games and anime either, but at the same time I’m not afraid to wear graphic tees and play video games in public.  Surprisingly, I haven’t actually gotten many people to outright react to the t-shirts I wear.  Of course, some of them are a bit discreet, but others are in-your-face obvious.  Hmm, either most geeks are closet dwellers or they just make up a smaller population of the general public than I think.  Gamers and otakus do tend to have a negative “loser” stigma associated with them, and as regrettable as it is to say there is some truth to that stereotype, so it’s understandable a lot of people would want to hide their interests until they know they can trust the people around them.

 

Aww, I kinda miss how there’s no place in the new Hoenn to just fall through a cracks in the ground.  They got rid of it in both Sky Pillar and Mt Pyre, sigh…  Nah, not really, it’s just curious that they did at all, since those cracks you had to bike over in Sky Pillar were so infamous, at least in my elementary school, ahah.  B-But that bright yellow TM ball was so enticing!  Once I saw it, I kinda stopped paying attention to what Zinnia was saying and tried figuring out how to get to it, eheheh…

 

Splatoon updates nearly regularly.  There are new weapons almost weekly, and sometimes (like with this most recent patch) they add big stuff like new outfits and new maps, and finally on very rare occasions, they add new gameplay modes.  Splatoon is a constantly evolving game and honestly… as much I love what Sakurai’s done with Smash 4, Splatoon is my personal favorite game on the Wii U.  Granted I haven’t even played that many games on the console, but still, ahah.  It probably has more to do with the fact that I’m kinda bored with Smash’s gameplay (it’s the same it’s been at its core for over a decade after all) as opposed to Splatoon’s fresh, unique style.  Objectively, it’s harder to say which is better.  Awww, the poor Wii's sitting in the basement…  I have to agree though, while I loved the Wii, much of that love just comes Brawl bias and Wii Sports nostalgia.  The DS had a better library, or at least a library I took the time to delve into, much like how the 3DS’s library is leaps and bounds above the Wii U’s.  I’d probably recommend waiting for the next gen home console, which is probably the NX, and just playing any Wii U games you want on that since there’s a 99.9% chance it’ll be backward compatible anyway.

 

Looks like I didn’t miss too much by just dropping White 2 after beating the champion after all.  Aha, that’s good to know.

 

Ahhh, true true, I nearly forgot that the anime is called XY & Z or something along those lines.  With the way the anime is going, Pokemon Z is all but guaranteed.  I can’t recall where I heard that Game Freak was practically forced to make B2W2 as opposed to Grey, but I believe it was a reliable source.  But I remember when Black and White were first announced thinking “Oh man, is this for the 3DS or the DS because there’s no way my parents are getting me a 3DS?!” and being really relieved that I didn’t have to buy a new console just yet.  It was the same story with B2W2, ahah.  I still would have purchased the game(s) regardless of whether it was B2W2 or Grey, since I was just a kid who didn’t have to funds or freedom to migrate over to the 3DS yet, but I can imagine those who already made the change probably wouldn’t have chosen Grey, an alternate version of BW, over the growing number of 3DS titles.  I know for a fact that Pokemon obtained the rights to Delta Emerald as well, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to make it.  They obtained rights to WaterBlue and ThunderYellow and some Crystal remake as well, or at least were rumored to, just to cover their bases.  Since they’ve done this in the past, the Pokemon Grey trademark was probably to avoid any potential legal infringement.  True, the lore behind the Kalos legendaries was a bit weak.  The focus was less on the Pokemon and more on the war, AZ, the ultimate weapon, etc.  It was an interesting change of pace, but the Pokemon felt so hollow as a result.  If they can balance things out in Z, then even if the “vibe” of Kalos still rubs me the wrong way, I might end up liking it more than Y.  Probably not more than ORAS though, ahah.

 

Funnily enough, I actually didn’t mind Castelia City.  My brother didn’t like the music even though I thought it was catchy enough.  My biggest complaint about the city isn’t the music or the population, but rather the controls.  Because the floor was still grid-based but a lot of areas were curved or angled, it just made exploring the city awkward.  Hmm, I suppose since we’re just not familiar with the layout of Japan, we probably just don’t notice the connections to real life in the earlier regions.  But I still think the references were more subtle in Kanto to Sinnoh as opposed to in Unova and Kalos.  As you said, they tried a bit too hard with Unova, and Kalos wasn’t much better.

 

No way?  Trust me, way.  New Jersey public schools are really meh and even our private schools can’t compare at all to the ones you apparently have in Michigan.  You have to remember that JP was actually considered one of the better schools, ahah.  I don’t really mind though; unlike A/C a pool sounds like more of a pain than a luxury, and from your description it seems that was the case for schools that implemented swimming.

 

I’m glad that my warning saved your eardrums, ahah.  Yeah, Sakurai lives for the hype; you can tell with the way he reveals things about Smash.  This isn’t the first time he’s retweeted live reactions to a character reveal, so it’s not much of a surprise this time around, but it’s still really awesome he’s so enthusiastic about his fans!  He’s put so much work into this game, and it’s leaps and bounds above Brawl.  I may prefer Splatoon over the Wii U version, but the 3DS version is still really fun to pick up every once in a while for my 3DS.  It’s not my favorite 3DS game either, but that’s only because the game has stiff competition.

 

Ohh, that’s rather fascinating how those cram sessions worked.  Even if I was struggling in that class, I don’t know if I’d find the time to go to those sessions only because my inability to wake up in a timely manner in the mornings is something not to be underestimated.  The world could be ending outside my window and I still wouldn’t be able to get up if I was tired enough.  My wombo combo alarm does nothing for me; it’s earsplittingly loud, but I sleep through it more times than not.  Hmm, that’s usually a good indication I need to find a new alarm…  And don’t you worry, I haven’t been afraid to ask people for help when I’ve needed to.  I don’t rely on it though, and apparently nobody finds me particularly helpful because people rarely ask me for help, eheheh…  And there’s no need to apologize, I wasn’t bothered by your “bugging” at all, haha.

 

This is going to sound really unhealthy of me, but I’m not really one to just eat fruit by itself.  It’s fine if it’s used as an ingredient in a dish, but just eating pieces of fruit individually is a bit too strong for my tastes.  As for when I usually wake up, it really depends on how late I go to sleep.  And even then, there are a lot of factors that determine how long I sleep.  Sometimes I go to sleep really early and still wake up crazy late, and other times I go to sleep super late and have trouble staying asleep, leading to my waking up early.  Hm??  What do you mean how late would I have my lunch?  I’ve mentioned it before, but I don’t make it a habit of eating lunch, not even if I have a time.  Two meals is just right for me and lunch is a bit redundant.  I suppose skipping a few days of working out isn’t too bad in the long run, and when I finally went back to the gym earlier in the week my body could still handle the exercises that I usually do, so you’re right, there wasn’t much to worry about.  Oh yeah, fans of pretty much any kind are fine, it’s just that electric kettles can pose a fire hazard is why I believe they’re a banned item.

 

I can’t remember much from when I used to wear glasses, but I know that I got used to them pretty fast.  They narrow your field of vision a tiny bit, but that was probably because I wore glasses with smaller lenses and not one of those really large ones.  They didn’t fall off your face unless you were doing some crazy gymnastic somersault and they didn’t usually break either.  Glasses are studier than you think, ahah.  In the rain they protect your eyes from the falling water I suppose, though of course you have to wipe them off once you’re under a roof.  They didn’t fog up too easily either.  In fact, the biggest hassle involved with glasses stems not from any of the worries you listed but from how easily they smear.  Maybe it was just me, but the glass smeared really easily and even when I wiped it off it left either dust from whatever I wiped it with or residual oil streaks that made light bend in weird ways.  That may make absolutely no sense to you, but any glasses-wearer out there knows what I’m talking about.  I only use headphones when I’m watching an anime I care about or listen to music I like.  Otherwise, I opt out of it just to preserve my ears.  Ahahah, yeah, I’m just joking.  I’m no perfect human being of course but I’m not going to get bummed out over what I’ve been born with.

 

Getting out of bed isn’t any more difficult now than it was during the summer, though that’s probably only because it hasn’t gotten too cold yet.  I haven’t used the heater in a long time, but my blankets are so thick that sometimes I even wake up feeling a bit too warm, eheh.

 

You could probably take more classes earlier on, just as you don’t overwhelm yourself in the very first semester or anything, ahah.  I personally don’t mind getting through all these basic gen ed classes done early and saving all the major specific classes for later.  It may seem like a lot of work, but the classes build off of each other, so I it shouldn’t be too bad, right?  Hmm, by the major-specific SAGES class, that person was probably talking about the Departmental Seminar.  After your First Seminar and your two University Seminars, you have to take a Departmental Seminar which is either a class required by the major you’re taking or one at least related to your major in some way.  And I believe the professors are the ones in charge of choosing what the First and Universal Seminars are about.  If a professor woke up one day and decided to plan an entire semester long course on the history of sandals and their significance in western culture, as long as Case approves it, then he can do just that.  Two-day 3 credit hour classes are an hour and fifteen minutes long each while three-day 3 credit hour classes are fifty minutes long each, so either way it totals to 150 minutes of class per week.

 

Oh gosh, I’m even more like your sister when it comes to my room setup; I also keep the door closed and almost always have it locked when it’s possible.  That’s usually because I’m watching anime and I don’t want the immersion to be ruined by someone just randomly walking in (knocking hasn’t been invented yet in my household).  Huh, I never felt that having the brightness way up on either my laptop or my phone made the colors oversaturated.  If anything, having the brightness down makes things dull and especially difficult to see.  Perhaps our different preferences stem from our drastically different vision qualities?  Or… maybe the differences in our eyesight is a result of our brightness settings??  Ahahah, oh dear, I wouldn’t be completely surprised if that was the case.  My room actually had exactly the same layout: lamp to my left behind my laptop and my window directly to my right.  For me though, there was a lot of glare, not just a little.  I don’t know if this is because the sun set in my window or if I’m just more sensitive to seeing reflections in my computer screen.  If I can hold my hand right up to screen and still see its reflection, then the brightness isn’t high enough.  Ohhh, I don’t really watch any of the channels you do.  Vsauce doesn’t make videos very often so I don’t actually check his channel much.  I used to check out Bestamvsofalltime before they kinda stopped uploading, and I have a few AMV channel replacements.  I follow a couple gamers(?) like Etika and video game related channels like Did You Know Gaming and Game Theories.  I also check out Honest Trailers and Everything Wrong With when I have time.  That’s pretty much it though; everything else I watch doesn’t come out often enough for me to check very often like Epic Rap Battles.  That’s usually enough to keep me entertained, between video games and anime.

 

Well, the pledge has been around for decades, and if anything it should be a surprise that certain schools don’t already have it mandatory and are only now implementing it.  If schools stopped making it mandatory, that would make more sense, but it’s a bit weird your school is doing it the other way around.  I figured most, if not all, schools still required the pledge, but I guess New Jersey isn’t much of a sample size, eheh.  It’s easy to get discouraged with how America is doing because of the media, but the media is so hard to trust that none of the headiness I see around the Internet even bother me.  They say all these negative things, but that doesn’t change how I see this nation.  Call it being ignorant, but I don’t see how it can be any worse than absorbing sensational misinformation.

 

Pfftt, at least [nervously laughs] isn’t ambiguously worded!  Nope, my school never made a big deal out of any single book.  Maybe Charlotte’s Web was “the big thing” for second graders, but that’s about it.  If anything, people made a bigger deal about historical figures like Martin Luther King Jr. and Helen Keller, so that kids had role models to look up to at an early age or something.  Ahh, I remember finding some old elementary school “writing” a couple years back.  It was pretty funny to go back and see how I used to do things as a little kid.  Oh my gosh, as you say, I actually remembered doing some of that, like drawing those “pictures” and writing those “sentences”.

 

I actually never traveled to the good parts of Cleveland and just sort of took the buses to places in the opposite direction of downtown, so the areas I “explored” were a bit… cruddy.  It kinda sucks, but that’s where the nearest GameStop, Target, and McDonald’s are located, ahah. There’s not much to say, it’s pretty normal apart from the relatively high population of African Americans.  It doesn’t feel very safe at night (waiting for the bus after the Black Thursday shopping at Target on the side of the road late at night was all kinds of frightening, not going to lie) but it looks pretty normal during the day.  I believe downtown Cleveland is a lot nicer and feels more like a legit city.

 

Ahaha, my parents sometimes threaten to break my games, but those are just empty threats.  Worst comes to worst they’d just sell them, as they care about money enough to not break them.  And even if they did sell something, they don’t realize that I have backup consoles (things my friends have given to me for free after they grew out of their DS's) and they don’t know about all the DS and GameBoy games I have.  Like, legit, they don’t keep track of how many games I have and where they are.  They just assume all the games they’ve purchased for me are located in that single bag they put all the games in, but there are so many they wouldn’t notice if there were five extra games or five missing games, even if they peered in to check.  And as for when I could tell they stopped checking inactive hiding spots, I guess it was once when I asked if we could bring the games with us for a long trip and they agreed but spent a while finding them because they themselves had forgotten where they hid them.  After that, I could just feel when they’d forgotten about hiding spots and took nearly full possession of my games.  tl;dr my parents are forgetful, if you couldn’t already tell, ahah.  It’s too bad that you weren’t able to take advantage of your parents like I did……………  That sounded awful, I am a bad influence, don’t listen to me……

 

Those Black Friday tramplings are the minority and usually only really happen at stores that don’t take the precautions to prevent such incidents.  This Target handled everything really nicely, and everyone in line was a decent human being so there was no pushing, only quick walking and slight jogging.  All in all, it was a good experience.  I talked to the person behind me, and he was there for a television (like most people).  Unfortunately he wasn’t close enough to the front of the line to get a ticket for the specific television he was interested in, but I saw him run up ahead in an attempt to snag another television instead.  Yeah, my brother was planning on getting the Pokemon game released this year but… that never actually happened, so he figured he might as well get Omega Ruby in the meantime.  He would have gotten it himself, but being around my parents he obviously didn’t have the chance to take advantage of the Black Friday deals which is why he asked me for help.  I had my eye on Mario Kart 7 for a mere $15 anyway, so going to Target wasn’t much of a hassle.  All in all though, I was really happy with how things turned out!  The pre-owned games from Best Buy just came in the other day, though I’m not in much of a rush to start them.  Ahahah, starving myself for video games is pretty much just an extension of what I did in high school with my brother, so I’m used to it.  You might have to start doing that yourself too if you want to get all the 3DS on your to-do list, eheh.

 

Yup, Dual Destinies was pretty good.  It wasn’t the best Ace Attorney game, but it was a fun game.  I can’t remember how long it took me to beat my first Awakening run through.  It was the second 3DS game I had ever beaten after Ocarina of Time 3D, so this was a while ago.  My brother has the game right now, but once I get it back I’ll check my records and see how many hours I put into that game.  Oh, and don’t worry, Awakening has three save slots, so unless you want to run through the game four or more times, you won’t have to delete your save files.  Awakening has a lot of replay value and is a fun game, but goly it would require quite a bit of dedication to run through the game that many times.  Woo and thanks!  I’ve been making quite a lot of headway with Virtue’s Last Reward and am set to finish it on time, before break starts.

 

Ohhhhhhh pffffttt wow, I must not be very good of a detective if I didn’t even notice that you changed your profile picture to a Pokemon every December.  For some reason everyone seemed to be able to tell my brother is related to me and I’m related to my brother, even when we’re not with each other.  In high school, kids I had never seem before occasionally came up to me and said “Hey, aren’t you _____’s brother?” like whaaaaaa how I am different than any other Asian guy off the street; how did they know I was my brother’s brother?!?  It’s really weird, since I don’t believe I look like my brother at all, but apparently others can tell we’re related.

 

You weren’t in the mood to socialize and just wanted to be alone?  Eyyy, what a coincidence, that’s how I feel every day!  Hahah, guess that’s just the introvert inside of you stretching a bit.  Hm, well, even though your Thanksgiving was a bit bland and you didn’t do anything too special, it’s still nice that you got a chance to relax a bit.

 

Anyway, sorry that my response this time was a bit shorter than usual, since finals week is upon us for Case Western!  I have my math final on Tuesday and my accounting final on Thursday this coming week.  The week after, on Wednesday the 16th of December, I have my econ final and it’s also the day I hop on a plane back to New Jersey.  I have quite a bit of studying to do, but the good thing is, classes are finally over!  So unlike in high school, you don’t have classes or any other obligations like homework during finals and can spend all day if you wish focusing on the exams you have to take.

 

My friend started asking for help on those Webassign problems that were due at 11:59pm half an hour ago while I was in the middle of posting this, so I had to delay the response a bit. Sorry about that, ahah...

 

Haha, it's kinda funny that I mentioned something about eventually embracing my inner nerd when my younger self was actually a lot more open about it. Eighth grade was when I began retreating to my little "closet", and it was only recently that I was able to accept that I'm a closet nerd. But at the same time, being a closet nerd also means that I'm just not comfortable flaunting these interests anymore--which kinda includes wearing graphic tees and playing video games around most people I know (if I'm on vacation by myself for a few days, I wouldn't care less who sees me playing these games). I'm normally not very uptight about my self-image since I've done some pretty silly things (plus, uh... that Facebook profile picture you saw, lol), but my inner nerd is an exception since it's something I'm rather self-conscious about. I don't want to give off the impression that I'm ashamed of it or anything since I've met some pretty awesome gamers and otakus, but like you said, the whole stigma that comes with it can feel somewhat degrading. It's honestly quite admirable that you're comfortable displaying your interests in public like that. The internet is still my main outlet for expressing these interests of mine, but hopefully I can change that eventually, eheh. 

 

A bit off topic, and kinda random, but I thought it was really neat how you can see the reflection of the sky in bodies of water. Oh my gosh, it's gorgeous. I'm surprised you haven't commented on it, haha.

 

Oh dang, Splatoon > Smash? I didn't realize that Splatoon updated so frequently! I didn't think that you'd place it above Smash either, but I can see why now, though it still comes as a bit of a surprise to me, haha. I don't plan on purchasing any home consoles since I'm afraid they'll end up suffering the same fate as the Wii sitting in the basement, eheh. I might change my mind after seeing what the new gen home console has to offer, but I probably won't. It's not like I'll be able to bring it with me to college, so there's a good chance it'll end up sitting in the basement collecting dust just like I feared, even if I really do want to play with it.

 

Haha yeah, I was also really relieved to see that the BW sequels were made for the DS. It wouldn't have made a difference if the sequel turned out to be Grey since there'd be no way my parents would've bought me a 3DS at that time (after all, I received the DS only a few years prior). I would've gotten the sequel(s) regardless if it/they turned out to be Grey or B2W2. Honestly, I never really understood why they bothered to put so much emphasis on the war for XY. It was a nice change in pace, well sorta, but they really should've given the legendaries a bit more purpose; something for the fanbase to go off of for speculation. Even if they planned on developing the lore in Z (which, I'm sure they will), leaving behind such empty, purposeless legendaries in XY, like you said, did make the Pokemon (and even the games themselves) seem hollow. I dunno, maybe they did this on purpose. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt since Z looks pretty nice (urgh, Ash Greninja though). 

 

Ehh, nope. I still think the Castelia City music is one of the worst soundtracks in the game. I always shut off my DS volume whenever I went into the city. The entire city was so dull. The music, color scheme, concept, everything. Even some of the towns felt more vibrant. I didn't mind the grid-based layout too much (it did make navigating a bit more tedious though; "was Game Freak's HQ in this path or this one, hm").

 

Actually, Troy is also one of the better schools in Michigan. A lot of the schools in Detroit are dirt poor, so I honestly don't think Troy is an accurate representation of the schools around Michigan. Heck, one of the schools that's frequently searched for drugs made it on the top list. While the drug problem isn't necessarily a indication of how solid of an education you'll get there (apparently it's actually pretty solid), it just goes to show that everything isn't exactly rainbows and gumdrops around here. Seriously, I've seen some pretty effed up stories about what happens in Flint, and the city's actually not too far from here. And uh, I recently learned there are schools that don't have A/C. Cranbrook being one of them (it's a pretty old school, so some of the buildings only have heaters). The pool was only a pain for summer school, but aside from that, its existence hasn't bothered me since I haven't stepped foot in there ever since. 

 

Oh trust me, going to school as early as 6am was not fun. Well, I still have to wake up at 6am for those biweekly sectionals, I guess. Those aren't fun either. Yeah, it was a struggle trying to force myself out of bed. I honestly don't know how I did it. I sometimes stayed up past 4am trying to do those chem problems, and still dragged myself to those cram sessions on 1-2 hours of sleep. Maybe my sophomore self was just a lot more motivated because I definitely don't have the endurance for those kinds of stunts anymore. Despite those early morning struggles, sophomore year was a pretty decent year. Actually, you probably should change your alarm if it's something your ears have adjusted to too much. It might turn out to be unreliable after a while if your ears begin perceiving it as white noise instead of an alarm (especially now that finals are upon you, ahah).

 

Whaaaaaaatttt, no fruit??? Geezus, my sister was the same way. She hated fruit back in high school, and I don't think she's changed much since then. She's fine eating fruit if it's on a pastry or in a smoothie or something, but you'll almost never see her eating fruit by itself. Same with vegetables, and I'm not sure why. Hmm, so fruit is just too strong for your tastes? Huh, that's kinda weird. Are they too sweet? What about dates? Dates tend to be pretty bland. They sorta taste like apples, but are softer in texture and are not as sharp in flavor (the raw/fresh dates, not the dried ones; specifically jujubes). Avocadoes are also very light in flavor, but make up in their rich texture. Um, what about vegetables? If you have a mini fridge in your room, you can store some celery or some pre-packaged baby carrots in there. Oh hey, that used to be kinda how I slept! Except that I almost never had trouble falling asleep, ahah... My sleep schedule used to be really out of whack, but I've been a lot more consistent lately. During the weekends nowadays, I tend to wake up before I reach seven hours of sleep for whatever reason. Sleep at 2am, wake up ~9am. Sleep at 12am, wake up ~7am, which, for the record, is before my parents typically wake up. Sometimes I can sleep as late as 3-4am and still wake up before 10am. This new... "tendency" of mine completely took me by surprise, and it's scaring me. Who on earth naturally wakes up at 7am?? It's unheard of!! Heck, it scared me so much that I don't even get out of bed when I wake up that early. I just force myself back to sleep again until my usual waking time around 10-11am. I asked you how late you "would" have your lunch because you don't eat lunch, lol. Ah, sorry if my wording wasn't clear enough. Here: If you were to incorporate lunch into your schedule, how late would it be? I also heard somewhere that extension cords aren't allowed? Gosh, that sounds like a pain.

 

I don't know if the same is supposed to apply to sunglasses, because based on my experience wearing sunglasses, I've never really had a problem with smearing. Maybe it has something to do with the quality of the lens or the material its made of, but the only times I've had to wipe it were when I could see fingerprints. They were surprisingly durable/stable when I wore them to tennis, but there's always the risk of being inattentive to your surroundings and getting the glasses knocked off by a ball or something. Oh yeah, and my dad confiscated my headphones a few days ago. He always has this bitter facial expression whenever he sees me wearing headphones, so I knew it was going to happen eventually, lol. It's not too big of a deal though since I can live without headphones, but I'm still a little bummed about it, ahah...

 

Yeah, it should be a lot colder in January. This "winter" feels a lot more mild compared to the one from last year and year prior, but maybe it's because of the polar vortex, lol. Ohh, I love waking up nice and toasty! Everything's cozy and comfortable and snug, yet I still feel refreshed and ready to get out of bed! Well, on the condition that I also feel well-rested, heh. Haha, don't you love that feeling?

 

No way am I going to take a bunch of ridiculously hard classes as a freshman, but I don't want to blow everything off either. I just want to avoid jamming all of my hard classes into my last couple of years. But at the same time, how well would I adjust to the transition from high school to college? Receiving a rude awakening from taking these difficult classes doesn't sound very appealing. I guess you can't always have the best of both worlds, so I'll have to make up my mind eventually, lol. Ohh, so the professors kinda choose what they want to teach the students? Does that mean I'll have to look out for the professor more than the actual class's subject matter then?

 

Haha, that's kinda why I only watch anime when my parents aren't home or when they're sleeping. My parents don't allow me to lock the door, which can be a bit annoying at times when I actually don't want to be disturbed. I still like having a door crack, but gosh, constantly getting interrupted while doing work or listening to music can really... just.. build up. So, as you can guess, knocking hasn't been invented in this household either. I honestly really dislike working when my parents are around, so that's kinda fed into my habit of doing my work late into the night when they're sleeping. Hmm, maybe it's just the fact that my eyes have adjusted to my laptop and phone being so dim. My parents and sister have also frequently complained about how they have trouble seeing the stuff on my phone and laptop (and tablet whenever I forget to turn the brightness back up). I don't have as much of a problem working in dim lighting either, really. It's also why I enjoy having my light all spread out as opposed to being concentrated in one area, if that makes sense. And I have to adjust the brightness of my phone for my friends sometimes, so I don't think it's a matter of our vision qualities. I think it's mainly just preference. Y'all are crazy. Ohh, the sun also sets from my window. I can easily see my reflection on my laptop screen when I focus on it, but most of the time I'm able to ignore it. If I recall correctly, Vsauce used to make videos weekly, but now he's kinda fallen into this irregular pattern of uploads. I don't mind though since he's still good ol', same ol' Vsauce (maybe it's because his videos have gotten a lot longer... and tend to stray more, lol). I'm actually not subscribed to a single AMV channel. I'm not too big on AMVs for anime I haven't watched yet, and I haven't watched enough anime to enjoy these AMV channels, so that's kinda discouraged me from subscribing to them even if the content's really good. I've definitely seen Etika commenting on videos I've watched, but I'm not subscribed. I'm not subscribed to Did You Know Gaming or Game Theories either, but I've watched quite a few of those Game Theory videos. Honest Trailers is pretty great, and so is Cinema Sins. Out of those two, I'm only subscribed to Cinema Sins, but I still rarely click on the videos they make unless it's a "critique" on a movie I've watched before. Oh yeah, and Epic Rap Battles. I'm actually rather surprised that you aren't subscribed to any comedy or parody channels. Some of them honestly make my day, haha. 

 

I also found it a bit strange that the pledge was implemented into the school only recently, but it's because the state made it mandatory--which I still find strange. I take most of these headlines with a grain of salt, but it's pretty difficult to ignore what's constantly in your face. I swear it feels like I'm seeing Facebook posts on some random shooting on a weekly basis. Like sheesh, when did coverage of these shootings become so widespread? It's depressing for sure, but half of the time all of these negative headlines just feel like exaggerated bs.

 

Ohh, we weren't too big on historical figures. We definitely spent a bit of time on Houdini and did projects on people like Ben Franklin, but I don't think it was to give us role models to look up to or anything. I remember The Gates being displayed in Central Park was a huge deal back when I was in NYC, so we did a lot of work on Christo and Jeanne-Claude. Field trips, research, and everything, haha. Ahh, I love rummaging through my old stuff and looking back. I wish I could go give little me a big hug. Gosh, elementary school was a blissful time; back when my only worries were talking too much in class and trying to not get scolded by my teachers and parents, ahhhhh...

 

I remember driving through Cleveland back in August, but I wasn't sure which part of the city I was in. Since it was like a mix of Detroit, Pittsburgh, and Queens, I can imagine how frightening it must've been at night. I've never wandered through those cities/areas by myself (some parts of Detroit are pretty... sketchy), and honestly, I'm not sure if I'd ever have the courage to be there by myself at night. Geez, you're gutsy, haha.

 

I don't feel as intimidated by my mom's threats, but phew, my dad can be absolutely terrifying. I still wholly believe that he would've thrown my DS into some garbage disposal if I ever effed up badly enough. It may have been an empty threat, but it sure didn't sound like one. Whaa, you have backup consoles?? Your friends grew out of their DS's and just gave them away?? Sheesh, lucky you, haha. I have all of my DS games lined together on a shelf, but I'm sure my parents wouldn't notice if I happened to add a couple of new games there. Hmm, how long did you wait before asking for your games back? Maybe your parents just forgot if it was a long period of time. I usually waited a few weeks before asking for my DS back. 

 

Haha, I'm still not willing to put myself through that Black Friday mess just to get some luxuries I don't really need, but it's good to hear your experience was relatively nice! Also, I still bring lunch to school, so I'm not going to gain any money by starving myself, lol. It's something I'd definitely look into if it was an option though.

 

Awakening has three save slots?? Ahhhhhhhhh, that's great! I have so many games I want to play, but I want to get the ones with highest replay value and post-game material first (and Pokemon also gets top priority). But I also want to play Virtue's Last Reward and I still need to experience the greatness of OoT and argghhh kfjdlhgsdjhsklghjsdfkg. Oh, and speaking of which, how was VLR? You finished it pretty quickly, haha.

 

You must be glad you got a Facebook now, otherwise you might not have been able to gather such solid evidence, ahah. Oh, hm, maybe it's because of your last name. Most people assume someone's related to someone else because they share the same surname. I know a few of my sister's friends came up to me and asked if I was her sister even though we look nothing alike and aren't very similar personality-wise. But at the same time, I had/have a few of my sister's teachers, and none of them seemed to question whether we're related. Then again, it's been five years (give or take a few years for certain classes), so... 

 

Best of luck for finals week(s)! Be sure to study hard and finish strong! Apologies for the relatively short response as well. This week has been pretty hectic, urghh... why are all the due dates and tests piled on this week...

 

...and next week apparently.

 

so uh, I received an email stating that Case is pushing back decisions to the 19th

just wanted to give you a heads up

added a few lines towards the end

Edited December 12, 2015 by Kenzi

[Akazora 293]

My friend started asking for help on those Webassign problems that were due at 11:59pm half an hour ago while I was in the middle of posting this, so I had to delay the response a bit. Sorry about that, ahah...

 

Haha, it's kinda funny that I mentioned something about eventually embracing my inner nerd when my younger self was actually a lot more open about it. Eighth grade was when I began retreating to my little "closet", and it was only recently that I was able to accept that I'm a closet nerd. But at the same time, being a closet nerd also means that I'm just not comfortable flaunting these interests anymore--which kinda includes wearing graphic tees and playing video games around most people I know (if I'm on vacation by myself for a few days, I wouldn't care less who sees me playing these games). I'm normally not very uptight about my self-image since I've done some pretty silly things (plus, uh... that Facebook profile picture you saw, lol), but my inner nerd is an exception since it's something I'm rather self-conscious about. I don't want to give off the impression that I'm ashamed of it or anything since I've met some pretty awesome gamers and otakus, but like you said, the whole stigma that comes with it can feel somewhat degrading. It's honestly quite admirable that you're comfortable displaying your interests in public like that. The internet is still my main outlet for expressing these interests of mine, but hopefully I can change that eventually, eheh. 

 

A bit off topic, and kinda random, but I thought it was really neat how you can see the reflection of the sky in bodies of water. Oh my gosh, it's gorgeous. I'm surprised you haven't commented on it, haha.

 

Oh dang, Splatoon > Smash? I didn't realize that Splatoon updated so frequently! I didn't think that you'd place it above Smash either, but I can see why now, though it still comes as a bit of a surprise to me, haha. I don't plan on purchasing any home consoles since I'm afraid they'll end up suffering the same fate as the Wii sitting in the basement, eheh. I might change my mind after seeing what the new gen home console has to offer, but I probably won't. It's not like I'll be able to bring it with me to college, so there's a good chance it'll end up sitting in the basement collecting dust just like I feared, even if I really do want to play with it.

 

Haha yeah, I was also really relieved to see that the BW sequels were made for the DS. It wouldn't have made a difference if the sequel turned out to be Grey since there'd be no way my parents would've bought me a 3DS at that time (after all, I received the DS only a few years prior). I would've gotten the sequel(s) regardless if it/they turned out to be Grey or B2W2. Honestly, I never really understood why they bothered to put so much emphasis on the war for XY. It was a nice change in pace, well sorta, but they really should've given the legendaries a bit more purpose; something for the fanbase to go off of for speculation. Even if they planned on developing the lore in Z (which, I'm sure they will), leaving behind such empty, purposeless legendaries in XY, like you said, did make the Pokemon (and even the games themselves) seem hollow. I dunno, maybe they did this on purpose. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt since Z looks pretty nice (urgh, Ash Greninja though). 

 

Ehh, nope. I still think the Castelia City music is one of the worst soundtracks in the game. I always shut off my DS volume whenever I went into the city. The entire city was so dull. The music, color scheme, concept, everything. Even some of the towns felt more vibrant. I didn't mind the grid-based layout too much (it did make navigating a bit more tedious though; "was Game Freak's HQ in this path or this one, hm").

 

Actually, Troy is also one of the better schools in Michigan. A lot of the schools in Detroit are dirt poor, so I honestly don't think Troy is an accurate representation of the schools around Michigan. Heck, one of the schools that's frequently searched for drugs made it on the top list. While the drug problem isn't necessarily a indication of how solid of an education you'll get there (apparently it's actually pretty solid), it just goes to show that everything isn't exactly rainbows and gumdrops around here. Seriously, I've seen some pretty effed up stories about what happens in Flint, and the city's actually not too far from here. And uh, I recently learned there are schools that don't have A/C. Cranbrook being one of them (it's a pretty old school, so some of the buildings only have heaters). The pool was only a pain for summer school, but aside from that, its existence hasn't bothered me since I haven't stepped foot in there ever since. 

 

Oh trust me, going to school as early as 6am was not fun. Well, I still have to wake up at 6am for those biweekly sectionals, I guess. Those aren't fun either. Yeah, it was a struggle trying to force myself out of bed. I honestly don't know how I did it. I sometimes stayed up past 4am trying to do those chem problems, and still dragged myself to those cram sessions on 1-2 hours of sleep. Maybe my sophomore self was just a lot more motivated because I definitely don't have the endurance for those kinds of stunts anymore. Despite those early morning struggles, sophomore year was a pretty decent year. Actually, you probably should change your alarm if it's something your ears have adjusted to too much. It might turn out to be unreliable after a while if your ears begin perceiving it as white noise instead of an alarm (especially now that finals are upon you, ahah).

 

Whaaaaaaatttt, no fruit??? Geezus, my sister was the same way. She hated fruit back in high school, and I don't think she's changed much since then. She's fine eating fruit if it's on a pastry or in a smoothie or something, but you'll almost never see her eating fruit by itself. Same with vegetables, and I'm not sure why. Hmm, so fruit is just too strong for your tastes? Huh, that's kinda weird. Are they too sweet? What about dates? Dates tend to be pretty bland. They sorta taste like apples, but are softer in texture and are not as sharp in flavor (the raw/fresh dates, not the dried ones; specifically jujubes). Avocadoes are also very light in flavor, but make up in their rich texture. Um, what about vegetables? If you have a mini fridge in your room, you can store some celery or some pre-packaged baby carrots in there. Oh hey, that used to be kinda how I slept! Except that I almost never had trouble falling asleep, ahah... My sleep schedule used to be really out of whack, but I've been a lot more consistent lately. During the weekends nowadays, I tend to wake up before I reach seven hours of sleep for whatever reason. Sleep at 2am, wake up ~9am. Sleep at 12am, wake up ~7am, which, for the record, is before my parents typically wake up. Sometimes I can sleep as late as 3-4am and still wake up before 10am. This new... "tendency" of mine completely took me by surprise, and it's scaring me. Who on earth naturally wakes up at 7am?? It's unheard of!! Heck, it scared me so much that I don't even get out of bed when I wake up that early. I just force myself back to sleep again until my usual waking time around 10-11am. I asked you how late you "would" have your lunch because you don't eat lunch, lol. Ah, sorry if my wording wasn't clear enough. Here: If you were to incorporate lunch into your schedule, how late would it be? I also heard somewhere that extension cords aren't allowed? Gosh, that sounds like a pain.

 

I don't know if the same is supposed to apply to sunglasses, because based on my experience wearing sunglasses, I've never really had a problem with smearing. Maybe it has something to do with the quality of the lens or the material its made of, but the only times I've had to wipe it were when I could see fingerprints. They were surprisingly durable/stable when I wore them to tennis, but there's always the risk of being inattentive to your surroundings and getting the glasses knocked off by a ball or something. Oh yeah, and my dad confiscated my headphones a few days ago. He always has this bitter facial expression whenever he sees me wearing headphones, so I knew it was going to happen eventually, lol. It's not too big of a deal though since I can live without headphones, but I'm still a little bummed about it, ahah...

 

Yeah, it should be a lot colder in January. This "winter" feels a lot more mild compared to the one from last year and year prior, but maybe it's because of the polar vortex, lol. Ohh, I love waking up nice and toasty! Everything's cozy and comfortable and snug, yet I still feel refreshed and ready to get out of bed! Well, on the condition that I also feel well-rested, heh. Haha, don't you love that feeling?

 

No way am I going to take a bunch of ridiculously hard classes as a freshman, but I don't want to blow everything off either. I just want to avoid jamming all of my hard classes into my last couple of years. But at the same time, how well would I adjust to the transition from high school to college? Receiving a rude awakening from taking these difficult classes doesn't sound very appealing. I guess you can't always have the best of both worlds, so I'll have to make up my mind eventually, lol. Ohh, so the professors kinda choose what they want to teach the students? Does that mean I'll have to look out for the professor more than the actual class's subject matter then?

 

Haha, that's kinda why I only watch anime when my parents aren't home or when they're sleeping. My parents don't allow me to lock the door, which can be a bit annoying at times when I actually don't want to be disturbed. I still like having a door crack, but gosh, constantly getting interrupted while doing work or listening to music can really... just.. build up. So, as you can guess, knocking hasn't been invented in this household either. I honestly really dislike working when my parents are around, so that's kinda fed into my habit of doing my work late into the night when they're sleeping. Hmm, maybe it's just the fact that my eyes have adjusted to my laptop and phone being so dim. My parents and sister have also frequently complained about how they have trouble seeing the stuff on my phone and laptop (and tablet whenever I forget to turn the brightness back up). I don't have as much of a problem working in dim lighting either, really. It's also why I enjoy having my light all spread out as opposed to being concentrated in one area, if that makes sense. And I have to adjust the brightness of my phone for my friends sometimes, so I don't think it's a matter of our vision qualities. I think it's mainly just preference. Y'all are crazy. Ohh, the sun also sets from my window. I can easily see my reflection on my laptop screen when I focus on it, but most of the time I'm able to ignore it. If I recall correctly, Vsauce used to make videos weekly, but now he's kinda fallen into this irregular pattern of uploads. I don't mind though since he's still good ol', same ol' Vsauce (maybe it's because his videos have gotten a lot longer... and tend to stray more, lol). I'm actually not subscribed to a single AMV channel. I'm not too big on AMVs for anime I haven't watched yet, and I haven't watched enough anime to enjoy these AMV channels, so that's kinda discouraged me from subscribing to them even if the content's really good. I've definitely seen Etika commenting on videos I've watched, but I'm not subscribed. I'm not subscribed to Did You Know Gaming or Game Theories either, but I've watched quite a few of those Game Theory videos. Honest Trailers is pretty great, and so is Cinema Sins. Out of those two, I'm only subscribed to Cinema Sins, but I still rarely click on the videos they make unless it's a "critique" on a movie I've watched before. Oh yeah, and Epic Rap Battles. I'm actually rather surprised that you aren't subscribed to any comedy or parody channels. Some of them honestly make my day, haha. 

 

I also found it a bit strange that the pledge was implemented into the school only recently, but it's because the state made it mandatory--which I still find strange. I take most of these headlines with a grain of salt, but it's pretty difficult to ignore what's constantly in your face. I swear it feels like I'm seeing Facebook posts on some random shooting on a weekly basis. Like sheesh, when did coverage of these shootings become so widespread? It's depressing for sure, but half of the time all of these negative headlines just feel like exaggerated bs.

 

Ohh, we weren't too big on historical figures. We definitely spent a bit of time on Houdini and did projects on people like Ben Franklin, but I don't think it was to give us role models to look up to or anything. I remember The Gates being displayed in Central Park was a huge deal back when I was in NYC, so we did a lot of work on Christo and Jeanne-Claude. Field trips, research, and everything, haha. Ahh, I love rummaging through my old stuff and looking back. I wish I could go give little me a big hug. Gosh, elementary school was a blissful time; back when my only worries were talking too much in class and trying to not get scolded by my teachers and parents, ahhhhh...

 

I remember driving through Cleveland back in August, but I wasn't sure which part of the city I was in. Since it was like a mix of Detroit, Pittsburgh, and Queens, I can imagine how frightening it must've been at night. I've never wandered through those cities/areas by myself (some parts of Detroit are pretty... sketchy), and honestly, I'm not sure if I'd ever have the courage to be there by myself at night. Geez, you're gutsy, haha.

 

I don't feel as intimidated by my mom's threats, but phew, my dad can be absolutely terrifying. I still wholly believe that he would've thrown my DS into some garbage disposal if I ever effed up badly enough. It may have been an empty threat, but it sure didn't sound like one. Whaa, you have backup consoles?? Your friends grew out of their DS's and just gave them away?? Sheesh, lucky you, haha. I have all of my DS games lined together on a shelf, but I'm sure my parents wouldn't notice if I happened to add a couple of new games there. Hmm, how long did you wait before asking for your games back? Maybe your parents just forgot if it was a long period of time. I usually waited a few weeks before asking for my DS back. 

 

Haha, I'm still not willing to put myself through that Black Friday mess just to get some luxuries I don't really need, but it's good to hear your experience was relatively nice! Also, I still bring lunch to school, so I'm not going to gain any money by starving myself, lol. It's something I'd definitely look into if it was an option though.

 

Awakening has three save slots?? Ahhhhhhhhh, that's great! I have so many games I want to play, but I want to get the ones with highest replay value and post-game material first (and Pokemon also gets top priority). But I also want to play Virtue's Last Reward and I still need to experience the greatness of OoT and argghhh kfjdlhgsdjhsklghjsdfkg. Oh, and speaking of which, how was VLR? You finished it pretty quickly, haha.

 

You must be glad you got a Facebook now, otherwise you might not have been able to gather such solid evidence, ahah. Oh, hm, maybe it's because of your last name. Most people assume someone's related to someone else because they share the same surname. I know a few of my sister's friends came up to me and asked if I was her sister even though we look nothing alike and aren't very similar personality-wise. But at the same time, I had/have a few of my sister's teachers, and none of them seemed to question whether we're related. Then again, it's been five years (give or take a few years for certain classes), so... 

 

Best of luck for finals week(s)! Be sure to study hard and finish strong! Apologies for the relatively short response as well. This week has been pretty hectic, urghh... why are all the due dates and tests piled on this week...

 

...and next week apparently.

 

so uh, I received an email stating that Case is pushing back decisions to the 19th

just wanted to give you a heads up

added a few lines towards the end

No worries at all!  I had to stay up late studying for my accounting final (because ya know, procrastination and all that) so it’s not like you kept me waiting or anything, ahah.

 

Hmm, until you brought it up, I realize that I didn’t even notice the little discrepancy between your words and your actions.  I suppose it certainly is a lot earlier to embrace that inner nerd on the Internet as opposed to wearing your interests on your sleeve for the world to judge.  That’s understandable though, and even though you say that you might try to open up more in the future, you really shouldn’t feel pressured to if you’d rather not.  There’s nothing wrong with being a closet nerd, and I honestly don’t think it’s that impressive I’m open about my hobbies either.  I’m self-conscious of other things, and video games and anime just don’t happen to be one of those things.

 

Ohh, I only realize they implemented that after I had completed the game and saw some pictures online myself.  I believe it only occurs in Route 120, as all the other bodies of water are rougher and therefore don’t reflect the sky.  Unfortunately, I believe I zipped through Route 120 as fast as I could during the day, so I completed missed that little addition.  I’ll have to remember to check it out in person when I’m in the mood for some Alpha Sapphire in the future.  It is absolutely gorgeous though, as you say, and it’s just another reason why ORAS are the best Pokemon games, hehe.  Speaking of Pokemon though, my Pearl Battle Tower team is 100% ready!  They’re all level 100, have their correct movesets, are at max friendship (I know this doesn’t mean anything in battles, but my OCD…), and have all three expensive Sinnoh ribbons (leveling them up gave me a ton of money, even without using an Amulet Coin).  Once I have the time for it, I’ll begin my Battle Tower challenge!  I’ll keep you posted with that, I suppose.  It’s a bit sad though, thinking about how close I am to finally “beating” the game.  I remember making it my goal to get a black trainer card way back in 7th grade, which felt like yesterday, and now I’m already halfway through my freshman year of college, geez.  I’ve put it off for as long I as I could though; all good things have to come to an end eventually.

 

Thinking more about it, the only reason I say I prefer Splatoon to Smash 4 for the Wii U is because I’m actually a bit tired of Smash.  Back when I first discovered the games, during the age of Melee, I thought I’d never get tired of it.  I thought I could play for hours and hours on end and never get bored or lose interest.  And for the longest time, this was the case.  I clocked hundreds of hours into both Melee and Brawl, and I truly believed Smash was a game that would never cease to entertain me.  I only started realizing I was getting a bit bored with the series when I first started playing Smash 4 with my brother and cousin(s) and to a lesser extent my sister.  It was a brand new game with completely new characters and 8-player Smash and gorgeous graphics but…… for some reason the relatives I played with just weren’t really into the game like they used to be with Brawl and Melee.  Was it because they were getting older and growing out of video games, even my brother?  However, not too long after that, I also started to tire of Smash 4.  It was a fantastic game, but if I played it too much I would lose interest.  I realized that the timelessness I felt with Melee and Brawl was gone; I had finally gotten to a point where the game just didn’t ignite that burning passion I used to feel.  I haven’t grown out of Smash or video games in general, and I still enjoy playing it, but I can’t overdose on the series like I used to.  I only can say I prefer Splatoon to Smash 4 because Splatoon is so new and fresh.  When I play it, I feel like I could play for hours on end and not get bored.  And honestly, I probably could, just like I did with Melee and Brawl.  My body will probably grow accustomed to the game in time, but not for a while.  In order to get back into Smash 4, I’ll just have to spend my time working through my massive backlog of other 3DS (and I suppose Wii U) titles, and once I get that Smash itch back I’ll relieve it accordingly.  Anyway, I rambled on for far too long on that, so I’ll get back on topic.  It kinda sucks you wouldn’t be able to get a home console of any kind, but hopefully that changes once you’re officially on your own!  Not just in college, but later when you’re living by yourself with a stable occupation.  At that point, as long as you manage your money correctly, your parents can’t really stop you from buying a television and Wii U/NX.  It’s not like they can use the whole “you need to study to bring up your grades” excuse anymore.

 

Ughhh, I had completely forgotten the anime introduced Ash-Greninja until you just mentioned it, and now my expectations for Z have been completely shattered.  That’s it, I’m packing my bags and moving on over to 7th gen, at least I’ll be first in line.  Joking joking, I’ll still anticipate the upcoming game, but still… Ash-Greninja……. oh gosh…  Hopefully my expectations are so low that I’m pleasantly surprised.

 

Well, apparently I could also make the claim that JP is rolling in the dough when compared to a lot of other schools.  New Jersey’s got cities like Camden (which is hot mess, just Google those pictures), Trenton (which is NJ’s capital but such a shell of its former self that more people remember its historical significance than anything it’s contributed in the past century), and Newark (the poor Jerseyman’s Cleveland, I suppose), all of which have their own shoddy school systems.  Of course, there are definitely some really nice schools I’ve been to because of regions and all-state (Montgomery Township has a fantastic high school), so I guess some parts of New Jersey are okay… but it’s expensive to live in those areas, so ehh.  It would probably be unfair to say New Jersey sucks, since I’m sure there are plenty of other states out there with problems just like ours or even worse, but at the same time it’s hard to find a lot to be proud of.  It’s nostalgic and it’s raised me well enough though, and that’s good enough for me, ahah.

 

Pfft, early morning sectionals, man I remember how those were for band.  Absolutely brutal, ughh.  Thank god I don’t have any obligations like that at Case.  I do believe some of the smaller and more hardcore clubs/sports have practice super early in the mornings, but that’s mainly a nationwide kind of problem since college students in general have trouble consistently getting groups of people together with how varied everyone’s schedule is.  Huh, I probably should change my alarm, though I’m not sure to what.  I need something obnoxious again…  Hm, perhaps Etika screaming or something……

 

I dunno, I guess fruits and vegetables are just too one dimensional for me.  It’s just… nutrition in its purest state, and it really bothers me.  There’s no flavor to fruit and vegetables.  No, that’s not quite right, in fact that doesn’t even make any sense.  In better terms, there’s only one flavor to fruits and vegetables.  With a dish, there’s always a variety of ingredients.  Whether it’s something simple like a sandwich or something complex like a beef bourguignon, there are layers and complex complementary and contrasting flavors that really give eat bite of whatever the food happens to be a kind of special story to it.  I rarely like eating anything that’s just one food, with exceptions being cheeses (the fancy European-styled kinds, not the sliced kinds) and smoked salmon.  And even then, I’d prefer them as part of a dish.  I don’t know if I’m making any sense, but that’s how food is to me, eheheh.  It’s not that I’m against eating healthy, I’m just against eating pure fruits and vegetables.  Salads are cool though, but even then it has to be well-made and blended in a way that it doesn’t taste like a random assortment of individual plants but a cohesive dish.  I-I realize typing this all up makes me sound like some kind of food elitist/expert…  I hope that doesn’t make me sound snobbish.  I’m actually typing this up really late and I’m hungry and I could seriously do with a full three course meal right about now, ughhh, so that probably explains it.  Mmmm, speaking of food, I suppose avocados are pretty good, but I definitely prefer them as part of a dip, like guacamole.  Celery and baby carrots would be really good right about now, but only with ranch dressing, eheh.  I actually don’t really like the taste of dates much, to be honest, though I haven’t tried any in a long time so my preferences might have changed.

 

It’s good that your sleeping is more consistent now!  You may think it’s weird that you’re waking up so early when you go to sleep early, but it’s better than me who’s so inconsistent that going to sleep frightens me because I don’t even know when I’ll wake up.  To give you an example, on weekends it’s common for me to try and go to sleep early (you know, to readjust my sleeping pattern) at around midnight and wake up at……… 2… pm…… That’s right, you’re counting correctly, 14 hours of sleep.  My alarm is a nonfactor; I can turn that thing off in my sleep at this point.  Other days, seemingly randomly, I fall asleep at 3-4 am and then shoot up awake at 8 am for no good reason.  My alarm isn’t even set for that early; why did I wake up?  Then I have trouble falling back asleep so I force myself out of bed.  This unpredictability is honestly pretty crippling.  It’s hard to plan in advance when you don’t know when your day starts or ends, sigh.  Man, if I could wake up consistently like you that would make my life so much easier.  Eheheh, well, I’m saying all this, but my procrastination tendencies are the main cause of this, so hopefully I find the opportunity to actually fix this weirdness over winter break.  I do have nearly a full month after all, so don’t you worry about me!

 

Hmm, if I had to incorporate lunch into my schedule that would mess up a lot of things.  First of all, I’d realistically probably have to drop breakfast.  However, since skipping breakfast in favor of lunch probably makes this hypothetical situation moot, I suppose I’ll just say I’ll make it the earliest I possibly could, at 7 am when Leutner first opens.  That means I’d have to wake up really early, obviously.  Then, I’d have lunch at around noon perhaps, or whenever I have time between my classes.  Since that’s pretty close to 5 pm, I’d have to push dinner back.  If I do that though, I won’t have much time for my food to digest before working out.  That being said, if I perhaps pushed my dinner to 7 pm, I could actually go to the gym at around 5 pm, which is sufficient time after my noon lunch.  Then, I could have dinner nearly immediately afterwards to satiate my newfound hunger.  That’s probably how it would map out, though a lot of things like my classes and how much I eat during meals and how it would affect my studying/free time aren’t taken into consideration.  Hahah, all in all, it sounds like a hassle, so though I know you’re advocating that I eat a lunch, it would only inconvenience me.  Thanks for the concern as always though!  Oh, yeah, extension cords are banned, but since there aren’t enough outlets you definitely need a surge protector.  If you don’t have a surge protector with a long cord, you’re going to have to buy one, which I did.  Apparently extension cords are a fire hazard and don’t meet the safety regulation standards, especially when paired with surge protectors.

 

Now that I think about it, I don’t think I’ve ever had the same problems with sunglasses.  That’s probably because the lens quality of vision glasses and sunglasses are completely different, as you surmised.  I’ve only ever had to wipe my glasses because of fingerprints as well, but that’s how they smeared and messed up the light.  It’s hard to explain, but to help you imagine it, it was like seeing these types of lens flares whenever you looked at a light source of any brightness.  I’m guessing the oil from the skin smeared over the lenses by the fabric caused this, since where there are fingerprints there is skin oil, even if it’s just a trace amount.  Wow, your father is so easily peeved.  You weren’t wearing your headphones 24/7 or something, like listening to music on your phone while you went about your daily activities or anything right?  As long as you weren’t plugged in during dinner or whatnot, then I don’t think it should have mattered too much.  Oh well, I hope you get your headphones back soon!

 

Huh, I suppose it’s technically not winter yet so I shouldn’t really have expected much, but then again this feels like New Jersey, if not warmer, which definitely was not what I expected from the famed Cleveland.  I guess the mild kind of cold is nice as well.  Not very Christmas-y and more Thankgiving/Halloween-y, but nice nonetheless.  B-But sometimes I wake up and I feel a very very light, clammy sweat over my body, and since I usually don’t remember my dreams I just sit there cooling down wondering what kind of nightmare I must have slept through to get so worked up.  It usually leaves me feeling a bit confused and uncertain with how the day is going to go; it’s rather unsettling.  I know what it’s like to be nice and toasty, but with how warm it is outside it’s almost too stuffy inside.  Maybe I should take off a layer of blankets and see if I can avoid that sweating business…  This has never happened to you?

 

The transition from high school to college was smooth sailing for me.  I know some kids freak out and completely lose it and are forced to get a counselor (not an academic advisor, but a legit psychiatrist type of person) to help them adjust.  Those are just the very small minority though, and eventually they get into the flow of things.  As for course load, it’s not much different from high school as long as you don’t procrastinate.  If you procrastinate it’s significantly harder than in high school though, probably because you’re without adult supervision.  I’m doing well in classes with nice, reasonable professors and “struggling” in classes with professors who are hard graders and expect an unreasonable amount from first years.  I’m not actually struggling in any classes, I’m just borderline in those, is all.  All in all, it’s really hard to predict how the transition will be.  In senior year of high school, no one is planning or expecting to get a counselor for homesickness or a professor who usually gives out C’s; those are just things that happen and you have to work with it if they do.  Ohh, for SAGES First Seminars you don’t actually “pick” the class you want to join.  You’re given a big list of everything that’s offered, without professor names attached but with the class times and dates available, and you select your top four picks, ranked in order of preference.  Case Western then assigns you a class from your choices, probably to make sure there’s a balance of students in each class as well as an even amount taking courses from the three different categories.  Since you can’t see the professors for First Seminar selections, just choose topics you’re interested in and hope that the professors behind those ideas aren’t bad ones, eheh.  For University and Departmental Seminars you can see the professor’s name, so if you so choose to do so you can make a decision based on the professor and not the actual course, though it’s generally best to strike a balance between the two, obviously.

 

My parents don’t allow me to lock the door either, but closing it is fine.  It at least gives me a false sense of privacy, heh.  Hahah, I’m not the only one who gets really annoyed when I’m constantly interrupted by random people coming in and out of my room, huh?  I suppose that’s a natural feeling most people would get, though since my parents barge in all the time they must not share those sentiments to the same degree as we do.  I don’t really mind working with my parents around though.  I can’t watch anime or play video games with peace of mind, so I might as well save those for the nighttime and just get my work done when my parents have their eyes on me.  Pffftt, see??  I knew it, you were the crazy one.  Crazy Kenzi.  Crazy Curious Kenzi.  Huh, that’s certainly an odd title to have…  As long as you aren’t straining your eyes, then I suppose having the brightness down should be fine.  It would probably be better than having the brightness turned up all through the night like I do, bleh.

 

Since your library of watched anime is so comparatively shallow and you don’t even follow seasonal anime, AMV channels wouldn’t do you much good as you say.  Occasionally they introduce me to shows I now plan to watch, but if you’re specifically looking for AMVs of anime you’ve already then it might be easier just to Google.  Those channels do highlight the general best of the best though, so it’s in a sense more efficient than just blindly YouTube “[anime title] amv” which will usually provide pretty bad AMVs up front.  It’s probably best you aren’t subscribed to them though, as that would be overkill if you could just search them up when you’re specifically looking for AMVs.  Woah, you’ve seen Etika comment on videos?  I’ve seen him too, but only because I follow his activities and therefore stumble upon the same videos he does.  What videos do/have you watch/ed that he’s commented on?  Oh, and I like Gigguk and Douchebagchocolat a lot, too.  They’re anime-ers but they don’t make videos very often anymore.  Reddit loves them both, so I know when they do rarely upload when a new video of theirs makes it to the front page.  Angry Video Game Nerd I kinda follow as well, but he’s sort of stopped making the types of videos that I originally discovered and enjoyed years ago.  Hmm, what do you mean comedy or parody channels?  There’s only so much time I’m willing to spend on YouTube and the channels I mentioned above seem to cover my bases nicely (there are others I also haven’t mentioned, but I don’t want to drag on for too long), but if there are any others you’d think I’d enjoy I might check them out if there’s a dry spell from the people I actively follow.

 

Houdini’s a strange fellow for elementary schoolers to focus on, but I can see how they might try to push Ben Franklin.  The Gates?  Goodness me, I had to Google that.  I’ve never heard of those before, and naturally nor have I ever heard of Christo and Jeanne-Claude.  I guess it must have been a NYC thing, eheh.  Ahaha, I can’t even begin to imagine how cute you must have been as a little kid, always talking in class, heheh.  That just sounds absolutely adorable!

 

Fufufu, the things I would do for video games.  I’ve pretty much cleared out my 3DS backlog though, and the only other games that are going to be released in the foreseeable future for the 3DS are Zero Time Dilemma, Ace Attorney 6, and Pokemon Z, all three of which I indeed to get on launch date.  Oh, and Fates as well, if you don’t consider my pre-order as an official purchase.  With this past Black Friday purchasing spree behind me, I believe I’ve bought all the released 3DS games I’m interested in getting.  Unless I get an inexplicable craving for some Bravely Default or Monster Hunter in the future, I won’t really need to take advantage of next year’s Black Friday deals. That’s a relief, because as interesting of an experience as it was in retrospect, shopping like that on my own terrified me in the moment. 

 

One of my neighbors (technically not a neighbor; he’s the neighbor of my neighbor) lost his DS charger, and since the console was rendered a useless scrap of junk to him as a result, he just gave it to me.  He was in middle school at the time, so it’s not like he could have sold it online.  Another DS was given to me by a friend in high school, junior year I believe.  It’s one of the original DS’s; it’s even the silver coloration, so this little sucker goes way back.  The top screen is already half de-hinged from the bottom, but it’s fully function regardless so I borrowed it from.  He hasn’t asked for it back and I don’t think he even wants it back; even if he sold it, who would pay anything more than a couple of bucks for a snapped in half DS?  With the rise of emulators and 3DS’s, a broken original DS is worth close to nothing.  I suppose I did get pretty luck with those spares, ahah.  One of the pros to being a shameless video game nerd, I suppose.  Ohh, I’ve failed to mention this before, but my parents took my games away indefinitely years ago, back when I was first playing on the GameCube and the Game Boy Advance SP.  They confiscated them and told me and my brother we were not allowed to play them except on holidays (even then they we weren’t guaranteed any time to play).  I must have been five at the time.  With that stipulation established, for the next thirteen years, all of my video game playing has been done while working around that rule.  If you took the time to do the math, I’m guessing 99.999999% of the time I spent on video games was done without my parents’ knowledge.  Thousands of hours were spent during those years, virtually all of it covert.  So if you’ve wondered why I’ve gone to such extreme lengths to play video games and why I have nearly no qualms about pulling the wool over my parents’ eyes, it’s because my parents said “no” all those years ago and never allowed me full access to my games for more than very brief periods of time, not even to this day.

 

Virtue’s Last Reward, oh gosh…  Yes, I finished it a lot faster than I expected, at the expense of my sleep of course, heh.  There’s so much I want to say that I obviously can’t.  You may not be happy with this response, but I’ve decided that since you don’t need any motivation to play the game (as you’ve already played 999 and liked it a lot) I won’t try to convince you since I know you’ll eventually get to it.  In fact, there is very little I will say at all.  I won't say what I liked about or what I disliked about it or even whether or not I felt it was better than 999.  I’d rather not skew your expectations with anything I say.  When you have the time, just play it and after that we can talk, ahah.  As for when you should play it, that’s really up to you.  I know you want to give Pokemon and games with replay-ability priority, and since VLR has just as much replay-ability as 999, that’s naturally lower on your list.  Since I doubt you’ll get Zero Time Dilemma on release date, there’s no rush to finish VLR either.  Ocarina of Time has a Master Quest mode you can unlock after completing the game, which is just a more difficult version of the same game, so there’s kinda some replay-ability there.  Definitely not as much as Awakening though.  You also have to find time for the Ace Attorney series on that DS emulator as well, so there’s that to think about as you plan what you want to do with your free time.  Hmmmm, since Christmas is in less than two weeks, why not ask your parents to buy you your first 3DS game?  Would they be willing to or is purchasing the 3DS still too fresh in their minds?  If I knew your address, I could have had a 3DS game of your choice sent your way lickety-split, as I have the free student trial version of Amazon Prime activated as well as plenty of Amazon gift cards accumulated through Swagbucks.  This is just an offer, so you don’t have to take it, but if you’re comfortable with sending me your address through a PM then I’ll definitely buy you whichever 3DS game you want.  If you refuse this offer, do so because you’re not comfortable revealing your address, not because you don’t want me to spend my money on you.  It’s Christmas after all, and I want to give my best friend a gift, hahah.

 

Anyway, it looks like this response wasn’t yet up to length with our past responses either, but that’s fine.  I don’t mind your noticeably shortened reply either.  We’ve already gotten a bit overboard with the word counts before, and taking a step back might not be such a bad idea.  I do have to say though, that short response you sent got me nostalgic remembering how we first started conversing.  Or no, that’s not quite right, our very first responses were even shorter, and they weren’t weekly either.  I suppose it reminded me of when we first started falling into a regular pattern, around early January.  To think we’re already a few weeks away from January of 2016 boggles my mind, ahah.  Thanks for the wishes of good luck and I wish you the best as well!  Especially since you’re getting Case Western’s results back soon, huh?  It sucks they're pushing it back to Saturday, but I guess that also gives you the chance to watch the final Smash broadcast live on Tuesday with a clear mind!  Whether you update your Wednesday response with the results on Saturday or send me a last second PM or even if you wait until the following week to let me know how you did is fine.  Either way, I once again want to wish you the best of luck and though it seems like you have quite a bit of work scheduled for this coming week I hope it isn't too stressful!

[Kenzi 146]

 

No worries at all!  I had to stay up late studying for my accounting final (because ya know, procrastination and all that) so it’s not like you kept me waiting or anything, ahah.

 

Hmm, until you brought it up, I realize that I didn’t even notice the little discrepancy between your words and your actions.  I suppose it certainly is a lot earlier to embrace that inner nerd on the Internet as opposed to wearing your interests on your sleeve for the world to judge.  That’s understandable though, and even though you say that you might try to open up more in the future, you really shouldn’t feel pressured to if you’d rather not.  There’s nothing wrong with being a closet nerd, and I honestly don’t think it’s that impressive I’m open about my hobbies either.  I’m self-conscious of other things, and video games and anime just don’t happen to be one of those things.

 

Ohh, I only realize they implemented that after I had completed the game and saw some pictures online myself.  I believe it only occurs in Route 120, as all the other bodies of water are rougher and therefore don’t reflect the sky.  Unfortunately, I believe I zipped through Route 120 as fast as I could during the day, so I completed missed that little addition.  I’ll have to remember to check it out in person when I’m in the mood for some Alpha Sapphire in the future.  It is absolutely gorgeous though, as you say, and it’s just another reason why ORAS are the best Pokemon games, hehe.  Speaking of Pokemon though, my Pearl Battle Tower team is 100% ready!  They’re all level 100, have their correct movesets, are at max friendship (I know this doesn’t mean anything in battles, but my OCD…), and have all three expensive Sinnoh ribbons (leveling them up gave me a ton of money, even without using an Amulet Coin).  Once I have the time for it, I’ll begin my Battle Tower challenge!  I’ll keep you posted with that, I suppose.  It’s a bit sad though, thinking about how close I am to finally “beating” the game.  I remember making it my goal to get a black trainer card way back in 7th grade, which felt like yesterday, and now I’m already halfway through my freshman year of college, geez.  I’ve put it off for as long I as I could though; all good things have to come to an end eventually.

 

Thinking more about it, the only reason I say I prefer Splatoon to Smash 4 for the Wii U is because I’m actually a bit tired of Smash.  Back when I first discovered the games, during the age of Melee, I thought I’d never get tired of it.  I thought I could play for hours and hours on end and never get bored or lose interest.  And for the longest time, this was the case.  I clocked hundreds of hours into both Melee and Brawl, and I truly believed Smash was a game that would never cease to entertain me.  I only started realizing I was getting a bit bored with the series when I first started playing Smash 4 with my brother and cousin(s) and to a lesser extent my sister.  It was a brand new game with completely new characters and 8-player Smash and gorgeous graphics but…… for some reason the relatives I played with just weren’t really into the game like they used to be with Brawl and Melee.  Was it because they were getting older and growing out of video games, even my brother?  However, not too long after that, I also started to tire of Smash 4.  It was a fantastic game, but if I played it too much I would lose interest.  I realized that the timelessness I felt with Melee and Brawl was gone; I had finally gotten to a point where the game just didn’t ignite that burning passion I used to feel.  I haven’t grown out of Smash or video games in general, and I still enjoy playing it, but I can’t overdose on the series like I used to.  I only can say I prefer Splatoon to Smash 4 because Splatoon is so new and fresh.  When I play it, I feel like I could play for hours on end and not get bored.  And honestly, I probably could, just like I did with Melee and Brawl.  My body will probably grow accustomed to the game in time, but not for a while.  In order to get back into Smash 4, I’ll just have to spend my time working through my massive backlog of other 3DS (and I suppose Wii U) titles, and once I get that Smash itch back I’ll relieve it accordingly.  Anyway, I rambled on for far too long on that, so I’ll get back on topic.  It kinda sucks you wouldn’t be able to get a home console of any kind, but hopefully that changes once you’re officially on your own!  Not just in college, but later when you’re living by yourself with a stable occupation.  At that point, as long as you manage your money correctly, your parents can’t really stop you from buying a television and Wii U/NX.  It’s not like they can use the whole “you need to study to bring up your grades” excuse anymore.

 

Ughhh, I had completely forgotten the anime introduced Ash-Greninja until you just mentioned it, and now my expectations for Z have been completely shattered.  That’s it, I’m packing my bags and moving on over to 7th gen, at least I’ll be first in line.  Joking joking, I’ll still anticipate the upcoming game, but still… Ash-Greninja……. oh gosh…  Hopefully my expectations are so low that I’m pleasantly surprised.

 

Well, apparently I could also make the claim that JP is rolling in the dough when compared to a lot of other schools.  New Jersey’s got cities like Camden (which is hot mess, just Google those pictures), Trenton (which is NJ’s capital but such a shell of its former self that more people remember its historical significance than anything it’s contributed in the past century), and Newark (the poor Jerseyman’s Cleveland, I suppose), all of which have their own shoddy school systems.  Of course, there are definitely some really nice schools I’ve been to because of regions and all-state (Montgomery Township has a fantastic high school), so I guess some parts of New Jersey are okay… but it’s expensive to live in those areas, so ehh.  It would probably be unfair to say New Jersey sucks, since I’m sure there are plenty of other states out there with problems just like ours or even worse, but at the same time it’s hard to find a lot to be proud of.  It’s nostalgic and it’s raised me well enough though, and that’s good enough for me, ahah.

 

Pfft, early morning sectionals, man I remember how those were for band.  Absolutely brutal, ughh.  Thank god I don’t have any obligations like that at Case.  I do believe some of the smaller and more hardcore clubs/sports have practice super early in the mornings, but that’s mainly a nationwide kind of problem since college students in general have trouble consistently getting groups of people together with how varied everyone’s schedule is.  Huh, I probably should change my alarm, though I’m not sure to what.  I need something obnoxious again…  Hm, perhaps Etika screaming or something……

 

I dunno, I guess fruits and vegetables are just too one dimensional for me.  It’s just… nutrition in its purest state, and it really bothers me.  There’s no flavor to fruit and vegetables.  No, that’s not quite right, in fact that doesn’t even make any sense.  In better terms, there’s only one flavor to fruits and vegetables.  With a dish, there’s always a variety of ingredients.  Whether it’s something simple like a sandwich or something complex like a beef bourguignon, there are layers and complex complementary and contrasting flavors that really give eat bite of whatever the food happens to be a kind of special story to it.  I rarely like eating anything that’s just one food, with exceptions being cheeses (the fancy European-styled kinds, not the sliced kinds) and smoked salmon.  And even then, I’d prefer them as part of a dish.  I don’t know if I’m making any sense, but that’s how food is to me, eheheh.  It’s not that I’m against eating healthy, I’m just against eating pure fruits and vegetables.  Salads are cool though, but even then it has to be well-made and blended in a way that it doesn’t taste like a random assortment of individual plants but a cohesive dish.  I-I realize typing this all up makes me sound like some kind of food elitist/expert…  I hope that doesn’t make me sound snobbish.  I’m actually typing this up really late and I’m hungry and I could seriously do with a full three course meal right about now, ughhh, so that probably explains it.  Mmmm, speaking of food, I suppose avocados are pretty good, but I definitely prefer them as part of a dip, like guacamole.  Celery and baby carrots would be really good right about now, but only with ranch dressing, eheh.  I actually don’t really like the taste of dates much, to be honest, though I haven’t tried any in a long time so my preferences might have changed.

 

It’s good that your sleeping is more consistent now!  You may think it’s weird that you’re waking up so early when you go to sleep early, but it’s better than me who’s so inconsistent that going to sleep frightens me because I don’t even know when I’ll wake up.  To give you an example, on weekends it’s common for me to try and go to sleep early (you know, to readjust my sleeping pattern) at around midnight and wake up at……… 2… pm…… That’s right, you’re counting correctly, 14 hours of sleep.  My alarm is a nonfactor; I can turn that thing off in my sleep at this point.  Other days, seemingly randomly, I fall asleep at 3-4 am and then shoot up awake at 8 am for no good reason.  My alarm isn’t even set for that early; why did I wake up?  Then I have trouble falling back asleep so I force myself out of bed.  This unpredictability is honestly pretty crippling.  It’s hard to plan in advance when you don’t know when your day starts or ends, sigh.  Man, if I could wake up consistently like you that would make my life so much easier.  Eheheh, well, I’m saying all this, but my procrastination tendencies are the main cause of this, so hopefully I find the opportunity to actually fix this weirdness over winter break.  I do have nearly a full month after all, so don’t you worry about me!

 

Hmm, if I had to incorporate lunch into my schedule that would mess up a lot of things.  First of all, I’d realistically probably have to drop breakfast.  However, since skipping breakfast in favor of lunch probably makes this hypothetical situation moot, I suppose I’ll just say I’ll make it the earliest I possibly could, at 7 am when Leutner first opens.  That means I’d have to wake up really early, obviously.  Then, I’d have lunch at around noon perhaps, or whenever I have time between my classes.  Since that’s pretty close to 5 pm, I’d have to push dinner back.  If I do that though, I won’t have much time for my food to digest before working out.  That being said, if I perhaps pushed my dinner to 7 pm, I could actually go to the gym at around 5 pm, which is sufficient time after my noon lunch.  Then, I could have dinner nearly immediately afterwards to satiate my newfound hunger.  That’s probably how it would map out, though a lot of things like my classes and how much I eat during meals and how it would affect my studying/free time aren’t taken into consideration.  Hahah, all in all, it sounds like a hassle, so though I know you’re advocating that I eat a lunch, it would only inconvenience me.  Thanks for the concern as always though!  Oh, yeah, extension cords are banned, but since there aren’t enough outlets you definitely need a surge protector.  If you don’t have a surge protector with a long cord, you’re going to have to buy one, which I did.  Apparently extension cords are a fire hazard and don’t meet the safety regulation standards, especially when paired with surge protectors.

 

Now that I think about it, I don’t think I’ve ever had the same problems with sunglasses.  That’s probably because the lens quality of vision glasses and sunglasses are completely different, as you surmised.  I’ve only ever had to wipe my glasses because of fingerprints as well, but that’s how they smeared and messed up the light.  It’s hard to explain, but to help you imagine it, it was like seeing these types of lens flares whenever you looked at a light source of any brightness.  I’m guessing the oil from the skin smeared over the lenses by the fabric caused this, since where there are fingerprints there is skin oil, even if it’s just a trace amount.  Wow, your father is so easily peeved.  You weren’t wearing your headphones 24/7 or something, like listening to music on your phone while you went about your daily activities or anything right?  As long as you weren’t plugged in during dinner or whatnot, then I don’t think it should have mattered too much.  Oh well, I hope you get your headphones back soon!

 

Huh, I suppose it’s technically not winter yet so I shouldn’t really have expected much, but then again this feels like New Jersey, if not warmer, which definitely was not what I expected from the famed Cleveland.  I guess the mild kind of cold is nice as well.  Not very Christmas-y and more Thankgiving/Halloween-y, but nice nonetheless.  B-But sometimes I wake up and I feel a very very light, clammy sweat over my body, and since I usually don’t remember my dreams I just sit there cooling down wondering what kind of nightmare I must have slept through to get so worked up.  It usually leaves me feeling a bit confused and uncertain with how the day is going to go; it’s rather unsettling.  I know what it’s like to be nice and toasty, but with how warm it is outside it’s almost too stuffy inside.  Maybe I should take off a layer of blankets and see if I can avoid that sweating business…  This has never happened to you?

 

The transition from high school to college was smooth sailing for me.  I know some kids freak out and completely lose it and are forced to get a counselor (not an academic advisor, but a legit psychiatrist type of person) to help them adjust.  Those are just the very small minority though, and eventually they get into the flow of things.  As for course load, it’s not much different from high school as long as you don’t procrastinate.  If you procrastinate it’s significantly harder than in high school though, probably because you’re without adult supervision.  I’m doing well in classes with nice, reasonable professors and “struggling” in classes with professors who are hard graders and expect an unreasonable amount from first years.  I’m not actually struggling in any classes, I’m just borderline in those, is all.  All in all, it’s really hard to predict how the transition will be.  In senior year of high school, no one is planning or expecting to get a counselor for homesickness or a professor who usually gives out C’s; those are just things that happen and you have to work with it if they do.  Ohh, for SAGES First Seminars you don’t actually “pick” the class you want to join.  You’re given a big list of everything that’s offered, without professor names attached but with the class times and dates available, and you select your top four picks, ranked in order of preference.  Case Western then assigns you a class from your choices, probably to make sure there’s a balance of students in each class as well as an even amount taking courses from the three different categories.  Since you can’t see the professors for First Seminar selections, just choose topics you’re interested in and hope that the professors behind those ideas aren’t bad ones, eheh.  For University and Departmental Seminars you can see the professor’s name, so if you so choose to do so you can make a decision based on the professor and not the actual course, though it’s generally best to strike a balance between the two, obviously.

 

My parents don’t allow me to lock the door either, but closing it is fine.  It at least gives me a false sense of privacy, heh.  Hahah, I’m not the only one who gets really annoyed when I’m constantly interrupted by random people coming in and out of my room, huh?  I suppose that’s a natural feeling most people would get, though since my parents barge in all the time they must not share those sentiments to the same degree as we do.  I don’t really mind working with my parents around though.  I can’t watch anime or play video games with peace of mind, so I might as well save those for the nighttime and just get my work done when my parents have their eyes on me.  Pffftt, see??  I knew it, you were the crazy one.  Crazy Kenzi.  Crazy Curious Kenzi.  Huh, that’s certainly an odd title to have…  As long as you aren’t straining your eyes, then I suppose having the brightness down should be fine.  It would probably be better than having the brightness turned up all through the night like I do, bleh.

 

Since your library of watched anime is so comparatively shallow and you don’t even follow seasonal anime, AMV channels wouldn’t do you much good as you say.  Occasionally they introduce me to shows I now plan to watch, but if you’re specifically looking for AMVs of anime you’ve already then it might be easier just to Google.  Those channels do highlight the general best of the best though, so it’s in a sense more efficient than just blindly YouTube “[anime title] amv” which will usually provide pretty bad AMVs up front.  It’s probably best you aren’t subscribed to them though, as that would be overkill if you could just search them up when you’re specifically looking for AMVs.  Woah, you’ve seen Etika comment on videos?  I’ve seen him too, but only because I follow his activities and therefore stumble upon the same videos he does.  What videos do/have you watch/ed that he’s commented on?  Oh, and I like Gigguk and Douchebagchocolat a lot, too.  They’re anime-ers but they don’t make videos very often anymore.  Reddit loves them both, so I know when they do rarely upload when a new video of theirs makes it to the front page.  Angry Video Game Nerd I kinda follow as well, but he’s sort of stopped making the types of videos that I originally discovered and enjoyed years ago.  Hmm, what do you mean comedy or parody channels?  There’s only so much time I’m willing to spend on YouTube and the channels I mentioned above seem to cover my bases nicely (there are others I also haven’t mentioned, but I don’t want to drag on for too long), but if there are any others you’d think I’d enjoy I might check them out if there’s a dry spell from the people I actively follow.

 

Houdini’s a strange fellow for elementary schoolers to focus on, but I can see how they might try to push Ben Franklin.  The Gates?  Goodness me, I had to Google that.  I’ve never heard of those before, and naturally nor have I ever heard of Christo and Jeanne-Claude.  I guess it must have been a NYC thing, eheh.  Ahaha, I can’t even begin to imagine how cute you must have been as a little kid, always talking in class, heheh.  That just sounds absolutely adorable!

 

Fufufu, the things I would do for video games.  I’ve pretty much cleared out my 3DS backlog though, and the only other games that are going to be released in the foreseeable future for the 3DS are Zero Time Dilemma, Ace Attorney 6, and Pokemon Z, all three of which I indeed to get on launch date.  Oh, and Fates as well, if you don’t consider my pre-order as an official purchase.  With this past Black Friday purchasing spree behind me, I believe I’ve bought all the released 3DS games I’m interested in getting.  Unless I get an inexplicable craving for some Bravely Default or Monster Hunter in the future, I won’t really need to take advantage of next year’s Black Friday deals. That’s a relief, because as interesting of an experience as it was in retrospect, shopping like that on my own terrified me in the moment. 

 

One of my neighbors (technically not a neighbor; he’s the neighbor of my neighbor) lost his DS charger, and since the console was rendered a useless scrap of junk to him as a result, he just gave it to me.  He was in middle school at the time, so it’s not like he could have sold it online.  Another DS was given to me by a friend in high school, junior year I believe.  It’s one of the original DS’s; it’s even the silver coloration, so this little sucker goes way back.  The top screen is already half de-hinged from the bottom, but it’s fully function regardless so I borrowed it from.  He hasn’t asked for it back and I don’t think he even wants it back; even if he sold it, who would pay anything more than a couple of bucks for a snapped in half DS?  With the rise of emulators and 3DS’s, a broken original DS is worth close to nothing.  I suppose I did get pretty luck with those spares, ahah.  One of the pros to being a shameless video game nerd, I suppose.  Ohh, I’ve failed to mention this before, but my parents took my games away indefinitely years ago, back when I was first playing on the GameCube and the Game Boy Advance SP.  They confiscated them and told me and my brother we were not allowed to play them except on holidays (even then they we weren’t guaranteed any time to play).  I must have been five at the time.  With that stipulation established, for the next thirteen years, all of my video game playing has been done while working around that rule.  If you took the time to do the math, I’m guessing 99.999999% of the time I spent on video games was done without my parents’ knowledge.  Thousands of hours were spent during those years, virtually all of it covert.  So if you’ve wondered why I’ve gone to such extreme lengths to play video games and why I have nearly no qualms about pulling the wool over my parents’ eyes, it’s because my parents said “no” all those years ago and never allowed me full access to my games for more than very brief periods of time, not even to this day.

 

Virtue’s Last Reward, oh gosh…  Yes, I finished it a lot faster than I expected, at the expense of my sleep of course, heh.  There’s so much I want to say that I obviously can’t.  You may not be happy with this response, but I’ve decided that since you don’t need any motivation to play the game (as you’ve already played 999 and liked it a lot) I won’t try to convince you since I know you’ll eventually get to it.  In fact, there is very little I will say at all.  I won't say what I liked about or what I disliked about it or even whether or not I felt it was better than 999.  I’d rather not skew your expectations with anything I say.  When you have the time, just play it and after that we can talk, ahah.  As for when you should play it, that’s really up to you.  I know you want to give Pokemon and games with replay-ability priority, and since VLR has just as much replay-ability as 999, that’s naturally lower on your list.  Since I doubt you’ll get Zero Time Dilemma on release date, there’s no rush to finish VLR either.  Ocarina of Time has a Master Quest mode you can unlock after completing the game, which is just a more difficult version of the same game, so there’s kinda some replay-ability there.  Definitely not as much as Awakening though.  You also have to find time for the Ace Attorney series on that DS emulator as well, so there’s that to think about as you plan what you want to do with your free time.  Hmmmm, since Christmas is in less than two weeks, why not ask your parents to buy you your first 3DS game?  Would they be willing to or is purchasing the 3DS still too fresh in their minds?  If I knew your address, I could have had a 3DS game of your choice sent your way lickety-split, as I have the free student trial version of Amazon Prime activated as well as plenty of Amazon gift cards accumulated through Swagbucks.  This is just an offer, so you don’t have to take it, but if you’re comfortable with sending me your address through a PM then I’ll definitely buy you whichever 3DS game you want.  If you refuse this offer, do so because you’re not comfortable revealing your address, not because you don’t want me to spend my money on you.  It’s Christmas after all, and I want to give my best friend a gift, hahah.

 

Anyway, it looks like this response wasn’t yet up to length with our past responses either, but that’s fine.  I don’t mind your noticeably shortened reply either.  We’ve already gotten a bit overboard with the word counts before, and taking a step back might not be such a bad idea.  I do have to say though, that short response you sent got me nostalgic remembering how we first started conversing.  Or no, that’s not quite right, our very first responses were even shorter, and they weren’t weekly either.  I suppose it reminded me of when we first started falling into a regular pattern, around early January.  To think we’re already a few weeks away from January of 2016 boggles my mind, ahah.  Thanks for the wishes of good luck and I wish you the best as well!  Especially since you’re getting Case Western’s results back soon, huh?  It sucks they're pushing it back to Saturday, but I guess that also gives you the chance to watch the final Smash broadcast live on Tuesday with a clear mind!  Whether you update your Wednesday response with the results on Saturday or send me a last second PM or even if you wait until the following week to let me know how you did is fine.  Either way, I once again want to wish you the best of luck and though it seems like you have quite a bit of work scheduled for this coming week I hope it isn't too stressful!

 

Ahaha, I just thought your idgaf mentality about your hobbies was kinda neat. And you have to remember that this is coming from someone who's afraid of openly expressing these interests, so I still stand by my word. Perhaps I'll never grow out of being a closet nerd. If it's a side of me I'm not comfortable with most people seeing, I suppose it'll probably stay that way. I'm curious though, what compelled you ignore these social stigmas?

 

Ahhhhhhhhhh, it's such a shame they didn't incorporate that feature in other bodies of water. It's not just that little lake though. It's in the ponds too!! Oh wow, you had the goal of getting a black trainer card since seventh grade? Six years?? Dang, I gave up on getting a black trainer card a longgggg while ago when I realized it'd be much too time consuming. My initial goal was just to get a streak of 49 (basically just beat Palmer twice), but I was cut off at 48 since I wasn't able to beat him despite the preparation beforehand, so I figured getting 100 would be completely out of reach. Plus, I think the stress would've been too much for me to handle. Imagine getting cut off at 99! I'm fairly certain I've mentioned this already, but still! Oh gosh, I'd be infuriated. You seem quite determined (even after six years), so hopefully all will go well for you! Hmm, I don't think I bought many ribbons for my Pokemon. I might've for my Infernape and Kyogre though (never really saw a point to them). But since this is pretty much your dream team and quite possibly your last runthrough in Pearl, I can imagine you'd want the ribbons to symbolize as much, haha.

 

Oh dang, what you experienced with Smash is almost how I felt about Pokemon for a brief period of time. Maybe it was because of the lack of involvement (enviously staring at my computer screen for the past few years didn't really help), but I was beginning to feel kinda detached after a while. The release of ORAS reignited my zeal (spoiling bingeing on the soundtrack was pretty exhilarating), but of course, I knew I wouldn't be able to experience the games for myself, so I fell back into that slump after a few months. And to be perfectly honest, I'm not terribly excited for Pokemon Z. I don't have very high hopes for the game, and seeing the "leaks" didn't invoke much of a response out of me, but I still intend to play it to make up for the lost years. I really wish I can indulge in something fresh. Undertale has been on my mind for a pretty long time. I was confident the game was going to be huge after seeing the trailer a few months ago, and geezus, it's freaking huge--far bigger than I anticipated it would be. So yeah, I missed out on the opportunity to hype about playing the game despite it being on my agenda since January (also happened to spoil one of the best soundtracks of the game for myself during the week of release, rip my life it's so goddamn eargasmic). And you know, I'm also going to be late to the party with a lot of other games I plan to get, so I guess I'll be stuck in this downward spiral of playing catch-up for a while. The more I think about it, the more daunting my backlog seems. Will I really get the opportunity to play all the games I plan to get? Will I have time? Will I have time even if I'm able to land a stable occupation? Kinda makes me regret not starting sooner (doubt I would've been able to change the outcome), but better late than never, I suppose. Oh, and now that the final DLC characters have been released, erm, "revealed" for Smash, would you consider your passion for the game revitalized?

 

Pfft, Ash-Greninja can't possibly be that bad. It's still an interesting concept, isn't it? A Pokemon resembling... its trainer. Um, it's a pretty original idea. I know there was a lot of uproar with the Fairy type, but it's all died out now. Maybe Ash-Greninja will be the same! Maybe it's really not that bad of a concept! Maybe the same can apply to all Pokemon... or maybe they're running out of ideas and have finally gone off the deep end...

 

I haven't been to too many places in Michigan, so I don't think I have a fair perception of Michigan. A lot of it is skewed from living near cities like Detroit, Flint, and Pontiac--all of which seem to be in complete shambles. It's honestly a wonder how Troy is holding itself up so well. I've heard that Flint is actually a lot more dangerous than Detroit, and wow, the last time I went to Detroit, my mom told me to close the car windows while we were on the road for safety measures, sheesh. And you know, looking at the graffiti and tattered infrastructures didn't exactly give off a good impression either. It was a little terrifying even in the safety of a moving car, and it's times like this when I'm really grateful we ended up moving to a city like Troy. I still can't get over how you had the guts to walk through the streets by yourself for some leisure Black Friday shopping, and in a city like Cleveland, no less. Troy may not be the most stimulating city (everything you can think to do here is exhausted pretty quickly), but I'm damn glad this place is secure enough for me to drive through the streets at night without any worries of getting assaulted or something. I suppose the same goes for most states though, seeing as NJ is in similar shape based on what I've gathered from your experience. I also intend to get out of Michigan as soon as I can. This may come as a surprise to you, but I'm a little sick of living here, ahah... 

 

Speaking of clubs, how are you doing with that physics and astronomy club? Oh yeah, and newspaper too! Has there been anything else you've pursued or plan on pursuing? Haha yeah, waking up for sectionals kinda sucks (especially since it cuts into my time for last minute cramming/homework), but I guess that's the price I have to pay for being in orchestra. Same can be applied to any club or sport though. Not gonna lie, going to practice can really take a toll on my productivity when I have to go home with another splitting headache, urgh. Also, would you mind telling me what inspired you to make wombo combo as your alarm? Of all things you could've chosen, ahaha.

 

Whoa, that's quite a fascinating counterargument you have there. Fruits and vegetables are too one-dimensional for you, hm? That's an interesting way to put it. I've never seen that kind of reasoning before, but I can see where you're coming from. And it's funny because the reason you dislike eating fruits and vegetables by themselves is the reason why I love eating them. You said it yourself; it's nutrition in its purest state! It gives you this cleansing feeling--this guilt-free feeling of knowing exactly what you're eating. No strings attached. No added sugar, no random chemicals or preservatives (why is xanthan gum in every ingredients list), no artificial flavorings, no "natural" flavorings like castoreum, which, by the way, is beaver secretions (kinda gross if you think about it too long, but still technically "natural", right?), etc. This is more of a problem in packaged food than in prepared food, but you really don't know what's in your prepared food either unless you explicitly ask the chefs for the ingredients they used (and even then, it's not like they'll tell you whether or not they used flavor enhancers like MSG). Of course, you could always put up the argument that these fruits and vegetables are all GMOs, but I won't be bothered by it. It sure beats consuming beaver secretions, that's for sure--and they must've realized that, so I'm confident that's why they created this academic-sounding name in replacement of its crude informal name (same applies to a bunch of other "natural" ingredients, so be wary of that label). I guess the reason why I'm so hung up on eating fresh/raw fruits and vegetables is because I'm pretty sick of the greasy and salty dishes my dad constantly makes for dinner. I swear it feels like everything is oozing with oil and soy sauce. And the restaurants my dad enjoys going to also tend to marinate everything in oil. I am far from a connoisseur (and I don't think I'm much of a picky eater either), but overly greasy and salty foods are not in the least bit palatable. I love chilled carrots and celery (just avoid the leaves and white parts since they tend to be the most bitter). Ranch dressing is pretty good, but it's too heavy in flavor in big doses. Hooray for Italian dressing. Oh, and despite what my little tangent may have insinuated, I actually don't mind eating packaged food, lol. I absolutely love eating fresh fruits and vegetables. There's nothing like that sharp sound of your first bite into a crisp, fresh apple or celery. Hmm, so if you don't like "one dimensional foods", does that include foods like plain bread or yogurt?

 

Well, there was this one time I took a "nap" at 5pm and woke up at 9am. Yeah, you can do the math. Apparently I was out cold because my parents tried jerking me out of bed for dinner that day, yet I have no memory of it. I was pretty sleep deprived that week, so thank goodness that was on a Friday, eheh. Of course, that was last year since I've been pretty good about my sleep lately. Part of the reason is definitely because my classes aren't as tough this year (so very incredibly grateful that my friend pushed me into taking comp sci despite how much of a pain it is). Kinda makes me wish I swapped out one or two of last year's classes with this year's so I could've eased up on the workload. Or maybe I should be thankful that I can kinda kick back a bit this year, hm. Oh geez, my summer sleep schedule was far from consistent. Sometimes I'd wake up at 8-9am, sometimes I'd wake up just before 12pm. I think waking up around 10-11am is pretty reasonable, so maybe you can try setting up an alarm around that time to ensure that you don't find yourself getting out of bed at 2pm, haha. 

 

Or, or, or you could bring a sack of bread or a granola bar to class as some pseudo-breakfast so you can enjoy lunch without having to worry about these time issues! Because, you know, breakfast is the worst meal of the day and everything, ahahah....hah............ha...... Have you thought about brunch instead of just breakfast? Haha dang, I didn't realize scheduling lunch into your day was such an inconvenience. You have a pretty strict schedule, so I guess it's not too much of a surprise. I'm more of a person who eats when my body tells me to. If I feel like having dinner at 5pm, I'll eat at 5pm. If I feel like having dinner at 7pm, I'll eat at 7pm. I also usually eat right before playing tennis, so I don't really give time for my food to digest, eheh... Well, you know yourself best, so if you decide that eating lunch is too much of a hassle, just make sure you have a snack to munch on! I have every intention of bringing a surge detector, don't you worry, lol. My laptop is actually plugged into one right now, and it's also within reach so I can cut off the power before I go to bed (basically to minimize trickle charging). 

 

Oh geez, what a bother. Maybe the magnification of the glasses plays a role in that effect because a fingerprint on a sunglass lens looks like, well, it just looks like smudge really up close. And it's not too hard to clean off either. Just take a shirt sleeve and make circling motions on the lens, and voila, it's gone! Ahaha, no wonder you need specialized fabric to clean off vision glasses. Actually, my headphones were plugged into my laptop, so I only listened to music when I was on my laptop. I don't have any music on my phone, lol. My dad just really hates it when he sees me listening to music because, apparently, you can't productively work while listening to music. So now I have to keep the volume down really low to prevent him from bugging me about it (my room is right by the staircase so he can peer in whenever he wants to). But like I said before, it's not a big deal. I can live without headphones, haha.  

 

Actually, I take that back. This year's El Nino is killing our winter. Since when did December have such mild temperatures? Why is everything in the 50s?? Why is it raining??? Sigh, I guess we'll be seeing a lack of snowdays this year. It hasn't snowed since November (solid foot of snow, damn), and all of it melted within a few days. We're probably not getting a White Christmas this year. Urghh, this better not be like 2012-2013--the most underwhelming winter I've ever experienced. Hmm, either you have too many blankets or your heating is too high. Then again, yeah, this winter's not really living up to expectations. Nightmares too? Geez, I don't think I've ever had a legitimate nightmare in a long while. The closest things I've had to nightmares lately were more or less shockingly vivid dreams at best. Wait no, there was this one "dream" I had not too long ago. I can't remember what it was about anymore, but I woke up to a single tear streaming down my face. I guess it must've affected me a lot seeing as the emotion I felt in the dream seemed to manifest into reality. I don't know if that counts as a nightmare since I just went about my day without paying much heed to it. It didn't seem too serious; it just felt kinda random. My skin only feels clammy in bed when it's too hot. So, mainly in the summer in 80-90* conditions when the A/C is off. But at that point, I just throw off my blankets and sleep with just the clothes on my back. 

 

Oh wow, really? It must vary depending on the school or classes you're taking then, because a lot of people seem to be complaining about the difficulty of college compared to high school, and just college in general. A friend told me that he'd rather be back in high school, interestingly enough. I don't think it has much to do with the social life though since he claims that he was pretty antisocial as a high schooler. Maybe it depends on the high school everyone's raised in? Everyone keeps saying "enjoy high school while you can" and ahhhhh I don't know anymore. I've seen people say that college is better than high school, but most people here seem to prefer high school over college. Granted, a lot of these people also go to UMich and MSU, so maybe that kinda skewed people's perceptions? Apparently college classes are a lot harder?? Well, that's to be expected, but I've been getting varying responses from various people, so I don't really know what to expect anymore dfklsjdlfkghdlgsdg. I've been told to look out for professors when picking out classes, so it kinda sucks that I can't see them for First Seminars, eheh... Is there a reason why the professors are hidden for First Seminars, but not for University and Departmental Seminars?

 

Well, the thing is, I don't mind working in front of friends, but I have a real problem working or doing anything productive in front of my parents. I get really fidgety and distracted thinking about it for whatever reason. Even when they're not watching me, just knowing that they can barge in my room at any moment is enough to put me on edge. But when situations are dire, I head off to the bookstore to help me focus. It's a pretty silly inclination to have, and honestly, I don't even know how it developed. I even feel uncomfortable with idea of them watching me eat. Hmm, doesn't the brightness of your laptop or phone ever bother you though? Isn't the contrasting brightness with a pitch-black room kinda irritating to your eyes? It can't be just me.

 

Etika tends to comment on playthroughs and reaction videos, so I've seen him around a few times. Oh my goshhh, I love Douchebagchocolat! I absolutely adore his dry humor. Gigguk is also hilarious, ahah. I'm not subscribed to either of them though (for the same reason I'm not subscribed to any AMV channels). A friend of mine introduced me to Douchebagchocolat's review of Tatami Galaxy, and I think that's what sold it for me. Same with LWA. Hmm, I don't think I've ever watched Angry Video Game Nerd before. Ohh, by parody channels, I mean channels like TeamFourStar and LittleKuriboh that upload DBZ Abridged and YuGiOh Abridged (LittleKuriboh is also responsible for Naruto Abridged, which is also gold). As for comedy channels, CollegeHumor has its ups and downs, but this was one of my favorite videos by them. Oh, and this too. Cyanide and Happiness is great with dark humor if you're into that kind of stuff.

 

Looking back at it, I'm not sure why Houdini was emphasized so much for us. Like sheesh, we went very deep into his history, read a biography, watched a documentary, and even learned about his wife. And I still remember more than I should for something that was taught such a long time ago. Haha yeah, I didn't expect you to recognize The Gates. In fact, I couldn't even remember the artists' names until I googled it, lol. Eheh, I talked way too much back in elementary school. I frequently got held back during recess as punishment (also got a note sent home to my parents at one point for talking so much), but I still hugged my teachers. Geez, I was a strange kid.

 

Ohoho, I'm sure all the games you managed to haul in (plus the three you're planning on getting) will keep you occupied for a pretty good amount of time! I'm actually a little envious, lol.

 

Haha, I guess that's one of the perks of having gamer friends. Wait a second... why did your neighbor just give away his DS when he could've just bought another charger? Geeezzz, you had consoles since you were five?? I don't think I received my SP until around 3rd grade-ish, and even then, it was my uncle in China who offered to buy me one. Hey man, if it's any consolation, I'm pretty sure the majority of us play video games without our parents' knowledge. I can imagine my parents blowing their tops off if I ever told them about the hundreds of hours I've clocked into playing video games, haha. Same for watching anime and surfing the internet in general, lol.

 

Oh geez, you're really teasing me, aren't ya. You're making me want to prioritize VLR now, eheh. I do have some rather high expectations for the game after playing 999, and you seemed to like it a lot (based on your OMM post at least). So for now, I'm thinking of Smash, then Pokemon (assuming that it comes out mid 2016 or something), then Awakening? Let me know if I should rearrange that or if I should add/replace anything. This is what I have in mind at the moment since I still need a 3DS game to play, so I haven't thought too far ahead yet. I've been thinking about asking my parents for a game, but I'm still waiting for the right moment. I'm going to have to persuade my mom somehow since it'll be pretty hard trying to convince my dad. Maybe during winter break...? One wrong move and I'm going to have to wait another few months. I don't want to keep pestering my parents, after all. Ahaha, as much as I appreciate the offer, I don't think I'm comfortable revealing my address or accepting such a gracious gesture. Thank you for being so considerate though!

 

Phew, it's almost January already? Gosh, time flies. Not too long ago (probably about a week ago, if I remember correctly), I forgot that I was a senior. It just completely slipped my mind that I don't have any high school upperclassmen to look up to anymore. My friends and I were reminiscing some bittersweet middle school memories, and wow, it's hard to wrap my mind around the idea that it was such a long time ago. Even crazier is the fact that we've been conversing for just a little over a year, yet it feels like I've known you forever. My life has been a real rollercoaster, haha. Geez, what a ride. As for the Smash broadcast, I... I-I don't how how to react. Okay, so I'm not familiar with either Corrin or Bayonetta but holy geezus, they look freaking badass. What on earth... ohmygosh, I'm going to need a moment to process this. So Corrin has these dragon themed attacks (damn, that's pretty awesome), and why does Bayonetta's smash attacks remind me of the mom from the Binding of Isaac. But hey, these characters were delivered well, so I don't have complaints. Just questions, lots and lots of questions. I dunno, there's just such an excessive amount of FE characters, so I kinda want to know what compelled Sakurai to put Corrin in the game. Also, lolololol Tails and Knuckles costumes, these people ahahahahahaha. Oh, and I hope your finals went well for you! And try to catch up on some sleep to give your immune system a boost! Hopefully you've been feeling better, haha.

[Akazora 293]

Ahaha, I just thought your idgaf mentality about your hobbies was kinda neat. And you have to remember that this is coming from someone who's afraid of openly expressing these interests, so I still stand by my word. Perhaps I'll never grow out of being a closet nerd. If it's a side of me I'm not comfortable with most people seeing, I suppose it'll probably stay that way. I'm curious though, what compelled you ignore these social stigmas?

 

Ahhhhhhhhhh, it's such a shame they didn't incorporate that feature in other bodies of water. It's not just that little lake though. It's in the ponds too!! Oh wow, you had the goal of getting a black trainer card since seventh grade? Six years?? Dang, I gave up on getting a black trainer card a longgggg while ago when I realized it'd be much too time consuming. My initial goal was just to get a streak of 49 (basically just beat Palmer twice), but I was cut off at 48 since I wasn't able to beat him despite the preparation beforehand, so I figured getting 100 would be completely out of reach. Plus, I think the stress would've been too much for me to handle. Imagine getting cut off at 99! I'm fairly certain I've mentioned this already, but still! Oh gosh, I'd be infuriated. You seem quite determined (even after six years), so hopefully all will go well for you! Hmm, I don't think I bought many ribbons for my Pokemon. I might've for my Infernape and Kyogre though (never really saw a point to them). But since this is pretty much your dream team and quite possibly your last runthrough in Pearl, I can imagine you'd want the ribbons to symbolize as much, haha.

 

Oh dang, what you experienced with Smash is almost how I felt about Pokemon for a brief period of time. Maybe it was because of the lack of involvement (enviously staring at my computer screen for the past few years didn't really help), but I was beginning to feel kinda detached after a while. The release of ORAS reignited my zeal (spoiling bingeing on the soundtrack was pretty exhilarating), but of course, I knew I wouldn't be able to experience the games for myself, so I fell back into that slump after a few months. And to be perfectly honest, I'm not terribly excited for Pokemon Z. I don't have very high hopes for the game, and seeing the "leaks" didn't invoke much of a response out of me, but I still intend to play it to make up for the lost years. I really wish I can indulge in something fresh. Undertale has been on my mind for a pretty long time. I was confident the game was going to be huge after seeing the trailer a few months ago, and geezus, it's freaking huge--far bigger than I anticipated it would be. So yeah, I missed out on the opportunity to hype about playing the game despite it being on my agenda since January (also happened to spoil one of the best soundtracks of the game for myself during the week of release, rip my life it's so goddamn eargasmic). And you know, I'm also going to be late to the party with a lot of other games I plan to get, so I guess I'll be stuck in this downward spiral of playing catch-up for a while. The more I think about it, the more daunting my backlog seems. Will I really get the opportunity to play all the games I plan to get? Will I have time? Will I have time even if I'm able to land a stable occupation? Kinda makes me regret not starting sooner (doubt I would've been able to change the outcome), but better late than never, I suppose. Oh, and now that the final DLC characters have been released, erm, "revealed" for Smash, would you consider your passion for the game revitalized?

 

Pfft, Ash-Greninja can't possibly be that bad. It's still an interesting concept, isn't it? A Pokemon resembling... its trainer. Um, it's a pretty original idea. I know there was a lot of uproar with the Fairy type, but it's all died out now. Maybe Ash-Greninja will be the same! Maybe it's really not that bad of a concept! Maybe the same can apply to all Pokemon... or maybe they're running out of ideas and have finally gone off the deep end...

 

I haven't been to too many places in Michigan, so I don't think I have a fair perception of Michigan. A lot of it is skewed from living near cities like Detroit, Flint, and Pontiac--all of which seem to be in complete shambles. It's honestly a wonder how Troy is holding itself up so well. I've heard that Flint is actually a lot more dangerous than Detroit, and wow, the last time I went to Detroit, my mom told me to close the car windows while we were on the road for safety measures, sheesh. And you know, looking at the graffiti and tattered infrastructures didn't exactly give off a good impression either. It was a little terrifying even in the safety of a moving car, and it's times like this when I'm really grateful we ended up moving to a city like Troy. I still can't get over how you had the guts to walk through the streets by yourself for some leisure Black Friday shopping, and in a city like Cleveland, no less. Troy may not be the most stimulating city (everything you can think to do here is exhausted pretty quickly), but I'm damn glad this place is secure enough for me to drive through the streets at night without any worries of getting assaulted or something. I suppose the same goes for most states though, seeing as NJ is in similar shape based on what I've gathered from your experience. I also intend to get out of Michigan as soon as I can. This may come as a surprise to you, but I'm a little sick of living here, ahah... 

 

Speaking of clubs, how are you doing with that physics and astronomy club? Oh yeah, and newspaper too! Has there been anything else you've pursued or plan on pursuing? Haha yeah, waking up for sectionals kinda sucks (especially since it cuts into my time for last minute cramming/homework), but I guess that's the price I have to pay for being in orchestra. Same can be applied to any club or sport though. Not gonna lie, going to practice can really take a toll on my productivity when I have to go home with another splitting headache, urgh. Also, would you mind telling me what inspired you to make wombo combo as your alarm? Of all things you could've chosen, ahaha.

 

Whoa, that's quite a fascinating counterargument you have there. Fruits and vegetables are too one-dimensional for you, hm? That's an interesting way to put it. I've never seen that kind of reasoning before, but I can see where you're coming from. And it's funny because the reason you dislike eating fruits and vegetables by themselves is the reason why I love eating them. You said it yourself; it's nutrition in its purest state! It gives you this cleansing feeling--this guilt-free feeling of knowing exactly what you're eating. No strings attached. No added sugar, no random chemicals or preservatives (why is xanthan gum in every ingredients list), no artificial flavorings, no "natural" flavorings like castoreum, which, by the way, is beaver secretions (kinda gross if you think about it too long, but still technically "natural", right?), etc. This is more of a problem in packaged food than in prepared food, but you really don't know what's in your prepared food either unless you explicitly ask the chefs for the ingredients they used (and even then, it's not like they'll tell you whether or not they used flavor enhancers like MSG). Of course, you could always put up the argument that these fruits and vegetables are all GMOs, but I won't be bothered by it. It sure beats consuming beaver secretions, that's for sure--and they must've realized that, so I'm confident that's why they created this academic-sounding name in replacement of its crude informal name (same applies to a bunch of other "natural" ingredients, so be wary of that label). I guess the reason why I'm so hung up on eating fresh/raw fruits and vegetables is because I'm pretty sick of the greasy and salty dishes my dad constantly makes for dinner. I swear it feels like everything is oozing with oil and soy sauce. And the restaurants my dad enjoys going to also tend to marinate everything in oil. I am far from a connoisseur (and I don't think I'm much of a picky eater either), but overly greasy and salty foods are not in the least bit palatable. I love chilled carrots and celery (just avoid the leaves and white parts since they tend to be the most bitter). Ranch dressing is pretty good, but it's too heavy in flavor in big doses. Hooray for Italian dressing. Oh, and despite what my little tangent may have insinuated, I actually don't mind eating packaged food, lol. I absolutely love eating fresh fruits and vegetables. There's nothing like that sharp sound of your first bite into a crisp, fresh apple or celery. Hmm, so if you don't like "one dimensional foods", does that include foods like plain bread or yogurt?

 

Well, there was this one time I took a "nap" at 5pm and woke up at 9am. Yeah, you can do the math. Apparently I was out cold because my parents tried jerking me out of bed for dinner that day, yet I have no memory of it. I was pretty sleep deprived that week, so thank goodness that was on a Friday, eheh. Of course, that was last year since I've been pretty good about my sleep lately. Part of the reason is definitely because my classes aren't as tough this year (so very incredibly grateful that my friend pushed me into taking comp sci despite how much of a pain it is). Kinda makes me wish I swapped out one or two of last year's classes with this year's so I could've eased up on the workload. Or maybe I should be thankful that I can kinda kick back a bit this year, hm. Oh geez, my summer sleep schedule was far from consistent. Sometimes I'd wake up at 8-9am, sometimes I'd wake up just before 12pm. I think waking up around 10-11am is pretty reasonable, so maybe you can try setting up an alarm around that time to ensure that you don't find yourself getting out of bed at 2pm, haha. 

 

Or, or, or you could bring a sack of bread or a granola bar to class as some pseudo-breakfast so you can enjoy lunch without having to worry about these time issues! Because, you know, breakfast is the worst meal of the day and everything, ahahah....hah............ha...... Have you thought about brunch instead of just breakfast? Haha dang, I didn't realize scheduling lunch into your day was such an inconvenience. You have a pretty strict schedule, so I guess it's not too much of a surprise. I'm more of a person who eats when my body tells me to. If I feel like having dinner at 5pm, I'll eat at 5pm. If I feel like having dinner at 7pm, I'll eat at 7pm. I also usually eat right before playing tennis, so I don't really give time for my food to digest, eheh... Well, you know yourself best, so if you decide that eating lunch is too much of a hassle, just make sure you have a snack to munch on! I have every intention of bringing a surge detector, don't you worry, lol. My laptop is actually plugged into one right now, and it's also within reach so I can cut off the power before I go to bed (basically to minimize trickle charging). 

 

Oh geez, what a bother. Maybe the magnification of the glasses plays a role in that effect because a fingerprint on a sunglass lens looks like, well, it just looks like smudge really up close. And it's not too hard to clean off either. Just take a shirt sleeve and make circling motions on the lens, and voila, it's gone! Ahaha, no wonder you need specialized fabric to clean off vision glasses. Actually, my headphones were plugged into my laptop, so I only listened to music when I was on my laptop. I don't have any music on my phone, lol. My dad just really hates it when he sees me listening to music because, apparently, you can't productively work while listening to music. So now I have to keep the volume down really low to prevent him from bugging me about it (my room is right by the staircase so he can peer in whenever he wants to). But like I said before, it's not a big deal. I can live without headphones, haha.  

 

Actually, I take that back. This year's El Nino is killing our winter. Since when did December have such mild temperatures? Why is everything in the 50s?? Why is it raining??? Sigh, I guess we'll be seeing a lack of snowdays this year. It hasn't snowed since November (solid foot of snow, damn), and all of it melted within a few days. We're probably not getting a White Christmas this year. Urghh, this better not be like 2012-2013--the most underwhelming winter I've ever experienced. Hmm, either you have too many blankets or your heating is too high. Then again, yeah, this winter's not really living up to expectations. Nightmares too? Geez, I don't think I've ever had a legitimate nightmare in a long while. The closest things I've had to nightmares lately were more or less shockingly vivid dreams at best. Wait no, there was this one "dream" I had not too long ago. I can't remember what it was about anymore, but I woke up to a single tear streaming down my face. I guess it must've affected me a lot seeing as the emotion I felt in the dream seemed to manifest into reality. I don't know if that counts as a nightmare since I just went about my day without paying much heed to it. It didn't seem too serious; it just felt kinda random. My skin only feels clammy in bed when it's too hot. So, mainly in the summer in 80-90* conditions when the A/C is off. But at that point, I just throw off my blankets and sleep with just the clothes on my back. 

 

Oh wow, really? It must vary depending on the school or classes you're taking then, because a lot of people seem to be complaining about the difficulty of college compared to high school, and just college in general. A friend told me that he'd rather be back in high school, interestingly enough. I don't think it has much to do with the social life though since he claims that he was pretty antisocial as a high schooler. Maybe it depends on the high school everyone's raised in? Everyone keeps saying "enjoy high school while you can" and ahhhhh I don't know anymore. I've seen people say that college is better than high school, but most people here seem to prefer high school over college. Granted, a lot of these people also go to UMich and MSU, so maybe that kinda skewed people's perceptions? Apparently college classes are a lot harder?? Well, that's to be expected, but I've been getting varying responses from various people, so I don't really know what to expect anymore dfklsjdlfkghdlgsdg. I've been told to look out for professors when picking out classes, so it kinda sucks that I can't see them for First Seminars, eheh... Is there a reason why the professors are hidden for First Seminars, but not for University and Departmental Seminars?

 

Well, the thing is, I don't mind working in front of friends, but I have a real problem working or doing anything productive in front of my parents. I get really fidgety and distracted thinking about it for whatever reason. Even when they're not watching me, just knowing that they can barge in my room at any moment is enough to put me on edge. But when situations are dire, I head off to the bookstore to help me focus. It's a pretty silly inclination to have, and honestly, I don't even know how it developed. I even feel uncomfortable with idea of them watching me eat. Hmm, doesn't the brightness of your laptop or phone ever bother you though? Isn't the contrasting brightness with a pitch-black room kinda irritating to your eyes? It can't be just me.

 

Etika tends to comment on playthroughs and reaction videos, so I've seen him around a few times. Oh my goshhh, I love Douchebagchocolat! I absolutely adore his dry humor. Gigguk is also hilarious, ahah. I'm not subscribed to either of them though (for the same reason I'm not subscribed to any AMV channels). A friend of mine introduced me to Douchebagchocolat's review of Tatami Galaxy, and I think that's what sold it for me. Same with LWA. Hmm, I don't think I've ever watched Angry Video Game Nerd before. Ohh, by parody channels, I mean channels like TeamFourStar and LittleKuriboh that upload DBZ Abridged and YuGiOh Abridged (LittleKuriboh is also responsible for Naruto Abridged, which is also gold). As for comedy channels, CollegeHumor has its ups and downs, but this was one of my favorite videos by them. Oh, and this too. Cyanide and Happiness is great with dark humor if you're into that kind of stuff.

 

Looking back at it, I'm not sure why Houdini was emphasized so much for us. Like sheesh, we went very deep into his history, read a biography, watched a documentary, and even learned about his wife. And I still remember more than I should for something that was taught such a long time ago. Haha yeah, I didn't expect you to recognize The Gates. In fact, I couldn't even remember the artists' names until I googled it, lol. Eheh, I talked way too much back in elementary school. I frequently got held back during recess as punishment (also got a note sent home to my parents at one point for talking so much), but I still hugged my teachers. Geez, I was a strange kid.

 

Ohoho, I'm sure all the games you managed to haul in (plus the three you're planning on getting) will keep you occupied for a pretty good amount of time! I'm actually a little envious, lol.

 

Haha, I guess that's one of the perks of having gamer friends. Wait a second... why did your neighbor just give away his DS when he could've just bought another charger? Geeezzz, you had consoles since you were five?? I don't think I received my SP until around 3rd grade-ish, and even then, it was my uncle in China who offered to buy me one. Hey man, if it's any consolation, I'm pretty sure the majority of us play video games without our parents' knowledge. I can imagine my parents blowing their tops off if I ever told them about the hundreds of hours I've clocked into playing video games, haha. Same for watching anime and surfing the internet in general, lol.

 

Oh geez, you're really teasing me, aren't ya. You're making me want to prioritize VLR now, eheh. I do have some rather high expectations for the game after playing 999, and you seemed to like it a lot (based on your OMM post at least). So for now, I'm thinking of Smash, then Pokemon (assuming that it comes out mid 2016 or something), then Awakening? Let me know if I should rearrange that or if I should add/replace anything. This is what I have in mind at the moment since I still need a 3DS game to play, so I haven't thought too far ahead yet. I've been thinking about asking my parents for a game, but I'm still waiting for the right moment. I'm going to have to persuade my mom somehow since it'll be pretty hard trying to convince my dad. Maybe during winter break...? One wrong move and I'm going to have to wait another few months. I don't want to keep pestering my parents, after all. Ahaha, as much as I appreciate the offer, I don't think I'm comfortable revealing my address or accepting such a gracious gesture. Thank you for being so considerate though!

 

Phew, it's almost January already? Gosh, time flies. Not too long ago (probably about a week ago, if I remember correctly), I forgot that I was a senior. It just completely slipped my mind that I don't have any high school upperclassmen to look up to anymore. My friends and I were reminiscing some bittersweet middle school memories, and wow, it's hard to wrap my mind around the idea that it was such a long time ago. Even crazier is the fact that we've been conversing for just a little over a year, yet it feels like I've known you forever. My life has been a real rollercoaster, haha. Geez, what a ride. As for the Smash broadcast, I... I-I don't how how to react. Okay, so I'm not familiar with either Corrin or Bayonetta but holy geezus, they look freaking badass. What on earth... ohmygosh, I'm going to need a moment to process this. So Corrin has these dragon themed attacks (damn, that's pretty awesome), and why does Bayonetta's smash attacks remind me of the mom from the Binding of Isaac. But hey, these characters were delivered well, so I don't have complaints. Just questions, lots and lots of questions. I dunno, there's just such an excessive amount of FE characters, so I kinda want to know what compelled Sakurai to put Corrin in the game. Also, lolololol Tails and Knuckles costumes, these people ahahahahahaha. Oh, and I hope your finals went well for you! And try to catch up on some sleep to give your immune system a boost! Hopefully you've been feeling better, haha.

Soo, here's the response.  After reading over this again, given the current circumstances, the tone doesn't feel quite appropriate.  I'm sorry about that...  I've done my best to "fix" things up.

 

Hmm, what compelled me to ignore these social stigmas?  I don’t really know; I don’t think there was anything that particularly “compelled” me, it’s just something that happened naturally as time passed, ahah.  I love anime and video games, and while I may occasionally have harsh words for them, I’m still proud to be a fan.  If other people judge me, then so be it; I’m an introvert anyway so I don’t really mind if I lose any potential friends.  And friends of mine aren’t people who’d judge someone based off of their interests anyway, so there, heh.

 

Hahahah, I suppose that you could say that I’m determined, but I’ve always just felt that I’m too stubborn for my own good.  When I make commitments, I stick to them, though I often have the problem of making too commitments and get bogged down by a massive and never-ending to-do list. Thank you though, I’m definitely going to need quite a bit of luck to have RNGesus bless me.  It would definitely suck if I lost my streak at 99, though hopefully it doesn’t come down to that.  I’m not one to usually buy Ribbons or actively go out of my way to obtain them, but for Pokemon I especially treasure I make exceptions.  And not to mention, my pockets were overflowing with money and I didn’t know how to spend it all, so I figured why not?

 

Yeah, it definitely sucks to be burned out by a series that’s been such a big part of your childhood up until now.  It doesn’t help that you haven’t even had the chance to even play the most recent games and instead were forced to watch from a distance.  I’m glad you’ll get the chance with Pokemon Z, and hopefully Game Freak can deliver an impressive experience.  Oh my gosh, yeahh, I didn’t expect Undertale to blow up like it has either!  The demo was pretty interesting, but it wasn’t enough to convince me to actually play the game when it came out.  I’m not the biggest fan of RPGs in general, so despite the praise it’s received I’m not too sure I’ll go out of my way to try the full version.  You’re quite the trailblazer though; the first I had ever heard of the game was from you, so though it’s a shame you weren’t able to ride the hype train with everyone else you can at least have the satisfaction of being the very first person to tell me about the game, ahah.  Are you going to play it eventually though?  Aww, I wouldn’t recommend getting yourself all bummed out just because you’re behind on video games and by extension anime.  You’ll definitely find time in the future; high school life was pretty restricted.  It may not seem like you’ll find the time for anything now, but once you start chipping away at your backlog things will start to seem much more manageable.  As excited as I am for the two newcomers, it’s going to take a lot more than just that to get me back into the game.  I’ll probably have to take an extended break from the games for a few years and learn of Smash 5’s development to fully recover from my slump.  Luckily, I have a lot to keep me occupied in the meantime.

 

Closing the car windows for safety, huh?  Do you usually keep the car windows open then?  Isn’t that like, not aerodynamic and therefore not fuel efficient when driving?  And doesn’t that ruffle up your hair and get it all messed up?  Ah, well, I guess that second concern is more of just a problem specific to me, eheh.  My parents don’t keep the car windows open, though they occasionally and temporarily crack them open in the summer to air out heat from the car.  Edison’s a nice town too, and it’s generally perfectly safe to walk around and drive at night as well.  There are never any reports of crime or vandalism or anything.  There’s not much to do here either, same as Troy, but it’s not like I ever want to go out and do anything anyway.  Without public transportation I suppose it’s harder to purchase video games in person if I ever needed to, but getting my shopping done in Cleveland hasn’t proved to be much of a problem.  Hm, I don’t think it’s too surprising to learn you’re a bit sick of Michigan.  You’ve been living there for a while now, and because you’re merely a few months away from starting college, you’ve probably got that itch to get away from home for a bit.

 

Errrr, well, about that…  I haven’t been keeping up with my extra-curriculars at all.  After that failed attempt at trying to view the moon, I haven’t attended a single astronomy and physics meeting or event.  I also haven’t written anything for the newspaper for the longest time.  Ughhh, I know I know, this isn’t good, but it’s hard enough as it is keeping my grades up while finishing my video game backlog at a reasonable pace.  I feel kinda bad for not writing much anymore, and I don’t see my schedule freeing up any time soon with my packed class schedule this coming semester and all the Fire Emblem I need to get done in the coming months as a result of Fates’s release in February.  Wait, so are you saying waking up early to go to orchestra practice can cause headaches for when you head back home that day?  I just chose wombo combo because it was something loud that represented my interest in Smash Bros, eheh.  I like to incorporate my hobbies into anything that I can customize.  My phone’s wallpaper is Kino no Tabi and its lock screen is an Ace Attorney reference.  My ringtone is also an Ace Attorney reference (I changed it from UBW’s Brave Shine now that the hype has died down) and the notification sound is an Ocarina of Time reference.  My computer’s wallpaper is Zero Escape, the lock screen is ORAS, and my little Windows profile picture is Deemo.  My Chrome theme is Splatoon, and the background image I use for my main Gmail account is The Dog of Flanders.  As my interests change and develop, so do my customizations.  They usually reflect what’s current, meaningful, and hype, ahah.  What’s your alarm?  And I know you don’t like to show your interests so blatantly, but have you customized your phone and/or laptop in any way to reflect your hobbies?

 

Ohohoho, for someone who hasn’t identified as much of a health nut, you’re rather well versed in the intricacies of healthy eating!  At the very least, you’re conscious of what you put in your body and made decisions accordingly, even if you’re willing to indulge in some packaged foods on occasion.  That’s better than me, eheheh, I just eat what tastes good.  I’m not fool though; I obviously don’t consume a ridiculous amount of greasy and oily foods, but as I long as I don’t think something is too bad for my health I’m perfectly fine with eating it in moderation.  Ah, so your dad likes his food with lots of soy sauce or oil.  The food that my parents make isn’t that greasy, or at least not much greasier than what you find at your average Chinese restaurant.  Let’s see, as far as bread goes, I generally don’t like it alone.  I need something on it, like butter or cream cheese, or I need it to be flavored like garlic bread.  As for yogurt, I don’t actually mind yogurt too much.  It’s kind of like ice cream; even though it’s one dimensional it generally tastes good enough alone.  It doesn’t hurt if there’s granola in the yogurt though, much like ice cream topped with sprinkles and fudge sounds rather good too, eheh.

 

Phew, gotta love that feeling of sleeping at some weird time during the day and waking up all confused and disoriented.  Now I just wake up in the afternoon out of habit, but that’s only because I stay up until it’s five or six in the morning…  Setting up an alarm at 10:30 am or so would probably only help once I actually get my act together and not sleep so late, hahah.

 

My classes were all so relatively late that I ended up having brunch even when I wanted breakfast.  I generally just call the first meal of the day “breakfast” so long as it’s still before noon, even if it’s at 11:30.  That’s also probably why I don’t have lunch, eheh.  I would have liked to eat whenever I want to, but with my gym schedule and Leutner’s hours I figured the best way to go about things would be to establish a schedule of sorts.  They say it’s good for your health, though my sleep schedule is so messed up I’m not too sure how beneficial a meal routine is at this point.

 

Ohh, wow, your dad really has a low tolerance for this kind of stuff, sheesh.  He sounds rather frightening, and as annoying as it might be, I guess you could always think of it as him looking out for you in his own way…

 

I knowww, this weather sucks!  It’s very un-Christmas-like, and even though I’ve been blasting Christmas all day every day when I’m not playing video games or watching anime, it’s hard to get in the mood when it’s all rainy and mild outside.  Actually, now that I think about it, it won’t matter if Cleveland has a white Christmas, because I’ll always be home for the holidays!  So it won’t even make a difference; unless Edison delivers and gives me snow when I want it, I won’t be seeing a white Christmas for at least the next four years, ughh.  Ah yes, and I believe the heating was up too high, even though the actual heater by the window in my room wasn’t turned on.  There must be some central heating system that runs through the walls or something to prevent us silly college kids from accidentally freezing ourselves to death.  I only think this because now that I’m back home (and yes, I don’t know if I mentioned this before, but I’m back in Edison!), because though it’s no colder here than in Cleveland, my house feels significantly colder than my dorm building.  I sleep with really thick blankets now, but instead of feeling clammy and uncomfortable I actually feel warm and toasty.  Huh, who woulda thunk it.  I guess I’ll just have to sleep with less layers on when I get back to Case in January.  I haven’t had a nightmare in a looooonnng time up until that point, so it was a bit unnerving to wake up remembering something unpleasant.  I don’t really think much of it, but you know how people say perhaps dreams are an alternate reality of sorts and all that……

 

Pfffttt, it’s ‘cause all y’all come from that swanky Troy High, check yer privilege, hurhurhur!  Ahahah, nah, I’m just playing, I’m not too sure what those guys are on.  I mean, I suppose college classes can be pretty tough, and professors are obviously huge factors in determining how much you’ll enjoy a class.  My First Seminar professor was amazing, and I absolutely loved her class.  She’s one of those grandmotherly type people who treats all her students like her children and she was so sweet and nice!  There was a lot of work involved, but she was a fair grader (if you put in effort, you got an A; she doesn’t nitpick every little grammar mistake you made) and I wanted to do well in that class not just for the sake of my GPA but also for her sake, to show that I cared about her class and appreciated her as a teacher.  My accounting professor on the other hand… ughh.  What a nightmare, that was one of the most stressful classes I’ve ever taken, even if just for the project alone.  Some parts of college classes are harder than high school classes, but a lot of it is up to the professor.  That being said, how difficult you find high school classes is also mostly attributed to the teachers, so it’s not like that should be anything new in college.  I know I said I was joking before, but maybe Troy High really does have amazing teachers.  I’ve had my fair share of deplorable teachers in JP (and Edison schools in general) so though I lamented the situation I was in with accounting it’s not a scenario I was entirely unused to.  Did the people who are complaining about college now just, like, not have bad teachers in high school?  You seem to have a lot of good to say about your teachers and experience at Troy, and if your classmates are in the same boat they may just be recoiling from the experience of an unfair professor.  As for why you’re not allowed to see the professors for First Seminars but not University Seminars, I’m not too sure.  I’m not even entirely sure why you’re designated a First Seminar from a selection of four but are allowed to specifically choose a University Seminar.  There’s probably a logistics reason I’m just not seeing, ahah.

 

Woah, you run off to the bookstore?  Well, I suppose if your parents being around make you that uncomfortable, eheh.  By bookstore do you mean a big chain like Barnes and Noble or a small local shop?  And do you drive or just walk there?  The brightness of screens only bothered me if it was pitch black, in which case I turned down the brightness of my Game Boy or (3)DS iPod or phone, but of course that’s only because I’d be using that device in bed when I should have been sleeping.  Those screens are otherwise kept at moderately high levels of brightness during the day.  I rarely use my laptop in pitch blackness, but when I do it’s because I’m watching an anime with the lights off and am looking for a cinematic atmosphere and therefore don’t mid keeping the brightness all the way up.  I never turn the brightness of my laptop down, but for the smaller devices I listed above I do in completely dark rooms.  Eheheh, maybe I’m just weird, or maybe my eyes are so fried and abused from years and years of mistreatment that high brightness contrast doesn’t affect me nearly as much as it might others.

 

Ohhhh, that explains it, I should have noticed sooner!  No wonder you watched Tatami Galaxy and LWA!  You heard about them from Demo!  Since you haven’t watched much anime and don’t even follow seasonal shows, I was a bit puzzled you found “obscure” works like those two.  They’re well known around the fandom, but only to those that follow the anime subreddit and browse through MAL and ANN on a daily basis, scouring for any hidden gems that lie just below the surface of the mainstream shows.  That someone like you discovered them was a bit strange, but if it was as a result of Douchebagchocolat’s videos then that would make sense.  Demo doesn’t make videos too often, but his sense of humor is on point and I occasionally check out his Twitch live streams (which he hosts relatively often).  He never plays games I’m interested in, as he’s not too interested in Nintendo games or consoles, but listening to him ramble on wittily is entertainment enough.  One of his more recent streams was absolutely hilarious.  It had me in tears from laughter, but that may have also been a result of my sleep deprivation that night.  Ah, parody channels I don’t usually watch too much.  I watch Fate/Cero, which is a Fate/Zero abridged series, but it’s not finished yet and it probably won’t be for a while.  I recommend checking it out after you rewatch Fate/Zero, not before.  Ohh, I remember finding If Google Was a Guy a while ago but didn’t really pay any of the other content CollegeHumor made much heed.  It’s pretty good!  And I recognize Cyanide and Happiness, but didn’t know that’s what it's called.

 

Oh my gosh… you actually got held back during recess and got a letter home??  Goodness, just how disruptive were you Kenzi???  No one in any of my elementary school classes talked that much!  Did you just… not listen when they said to stop talking??  Was talking something of a reflex for you?  Awww, but you still hugged your teachers, that’s adorable!  You might have been strange, but you were cute!

 

Ah, I’m not too sure why he was so ready to give his DS away either.  I think he had lost interest in it, and you know how middle schoolers are; he may not have had any way to buy a new charger and his parents may not have been willing to purchase one for him.  Yup, my very first video game ever was Star Fox Adventures for the GameCube and I absolutely love it to this day.  Nostalgia aside, the game was a gorgeous and fantastic Zelda-like title that a lot of people initially dismissed because it was a departure from the regular Star Fox games.  My second video game was Donkey Kong Country for the Game Boy Advance.  I’ve finally gotten back into that series, and gosh DKC Returns 3D, which I had just recently purchased pre-owned from Best Buy and have finished playing a couple days ago, was amazing!  The original DKC is such a source of nostalgia, and seeing how creative the levels are now while still retaining that same atmosphere was quite exciting.  Not to mention, the music composer who worked on Star Fox Adventures composed the music for DKCR3D, and his style is still recognizable, so there were two layers of nostalgia while playing that game!  Over winter break I want to finish Tropical Freeze for the Wii U, which I got free from Club Nintendo, and maybe after that I might buy DKC 2 and DKC 3, the more obscure and forgotten GBA titles that I wasn’t able to play when I was younger, to officially complete the series.

 

Smash and then Pokemon and then Awakening, hm?  That sounds pretty good to me!  Honestly, it shouldn’t really matter what I say, at the end of the day you should buy whichever game you want to buy.  But if you want to take personal preference and replayability into consideration then yes, those games should probably be the first ones you buy.  Smash gives you something you can quickly pick up and play with no plot or narrative to worry about, Pokemon gives you something light-hearted to play through that can be either laid-back or intense depending on how you want to go about it, and Awakening gives you something more story and strategy-based to think through when you have extensive consecutive hours of free time.  Ahh, I should have guessed that you'd reject my offer, though I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask.  I hope you're just saying no because you're honestly not comfortable with revealing your address, and not because you don't want me to spend any money for your sake.

 

Oh geez, sometimes I can forget I’m in college as well.  You may think that’s ridiculous; how do you wake up hundreds of miles away from home without parental supervision every morning and not realize you’re not in high school anymore?  Shouldn’t the sheer amount of freedom be almost overwhelming?  For me I guess it wasn’t.  School is school, when it all comes down to it.  Call it college or call it high school, but you’re still taking tests and studying and doing homework.  I have to occasionally take a step back and realize just how much my life has actually changed between this year and last to fully appreciate how different it is, ahah.  

 

I’m actually pretty familiar with both Corrin and Bayonetta.  I’ve been following Fates since it was first revealed during the Direct many months ago.  I’ve been avoiding spoilers of any kind and am only getting my info from official announcements though, so there’s only so much that I know.  The moment that saw the red lobster samurai man (I don’t even know his name, oh my god) I went crazy.  I knew it was going to be Kamui, or rather Corrin, in that instant.  His gameplay looks really unique, so though he’s a sixth Fire Emblem rep I’m far from unhappy with his inclusion.  Better to get a character I can, or at least will, relate to in Smash than not, right?  Bayonetta I know because she was one of the more popular characters people speculated about back when Smash 4 was still in its infant stages.  People eventually dismissed her because they felt she was too sexy for Smash, especially with the game’s eventually revealed E10+ rating.  I haven’t played any of her games nor have I been particularly interested in them, but she’s bringing a lot of fresh mechanics to the table which is awesome!  There’s a Bayonetta anime movie apparently, and though it isn’t very good I may check it out in celebration of her inclusion.  Same goes for the FFVII: Advent Children movie for Cloud, ahah.  I can understand why a lot of people are angry that Sakurai added in another Fire Emblem character.  If he added another Mario rep, I’d be pretty upset too.  But since Corrin is so unique with his moveset and transformations into his/her dragon form, I can (and think other people should) overlook the Fire Emblem saturation.  I’d much rather Kamui than Shovel Knight, who’d just hit people with a shovel no different than Ike whacks people with a sword.  Significantly less people are pissed about Bayonetta though.  Only people who are upset with her inclusion are salty veteran/indie character supporters who have more rage than Corrin alone can receive, and SJWs.  It’s too bad Wolf couldn’t get in, but his gameplay style isn’t too unique.  We already have three returning veterans in the form of DLC anyway; any more past that magic number and people would start complaining Sakurai is lazy and charging us extra for characters that should've been included from the start.  Some say instead of Roy we should have gotten Wolf, but then the Roy fans would have ended up crying just as loudly as the current Wolf fans.  Only exception to the veteran rule is Snake, given his “mature” status and unique moveset, but since there’s been a lot of controversy with Konami recently (see the #FucKonami movement and Kojima joining Sega) negotiating with them was most likely not possible.  Ice Climbers were shafted as an unfortunate result of the 3DS and 8-player Smash limitations, and I suppose it’s a bit sad to see Charizard shut out Squirtle and Ivysaur as well.  Not everyone will be happy with the final roster, but all things considered it’s been an incredible ride on the hype train and I couldn’t have asked for more!  Sakurai definitely deserves a rest!

 

As I mentioned in my PM, feel free to take as much time off as you need.  You definitely need to refocus and collect your emotions.  Whenever you're ready to come back, I'll be right here waiting for you.  And I'm patient, so don't worry about me, eheh.  Anyway, despite all this, I hope you enjoy your winter break, as difficult as that may sound.  Christmastime is so magical; it would be a shame to have it ruined because of this.  Good luck when school starts back up in January and with the finals that will soon follow.  May you be blessed with headache-less days and not-too-frigid mornings.  I'll be thinking about you every day.

 

[CoolKid94 2]

I guess mine would be either Assassin's Creed Syndicate or Xenoblade (not X - I don't have X). I don't play that often. 

[strikeforceheroes3 0]

 I found lots of interesting information here.Great work. The post was professionally written and I feel like the author has extensive knowledge in this subject. Nice post.

[machine 52]

Dragon Age Origins

I like it a lot so far. I'm playing as an elven mage and it's been an enjoyable ride so far. The only problem is that games in 3rd person apparently make me a tad motion sick   And I can't decide who I want to romance. The straight guy's a partially emotionally compromised dork, but the bi girl... I like her a lot too though. ...gonna have to decide soon

[Asaso 0]

Just Cause 3

It is a really fun game. Well designed and a big leap from the previous games.

[Kenzi 146]

 

Soo, here's the response.  After reading over this again, given the current circumstances, the tone doesn't feel quite appropriate.  I'm sorry about that...  I've done my best to "fix" things up.

 

Hmm, what compelled me to ignore these social stigmas?  I don’t really know; I don’t think there was anything that particularly “compelled” me, it’s just something that happened naturally as time passed, ahah.  I love anime and video games, and while I may occasionally have harsh words for them, I’m still proud to be a fan.  If other people judge me, then so be it; I’m an introvert anyway so I don’t really mind if I lose any potential friends.  And friends of mine aren’t people who’d judge someone based off of their interests anyway, so there, heh.

 

Hahahah, I suppose that you could say that I’m determined, but I’ve always just felt that I’m too stubborn for my own good.  When I make commitments, I stick to them, though I often have the problem of making too commitments and get bogged down by a massive and never-ending to-do list. Thank you though, I’m definitely going to need quite a bit of luck to have RNGesus bless me.  It would definitely suck if I lost my streak at 99, though hopefully it doesn’t come down to that.  I’m not one to usually buy Ribbons or actively go out of my way to obtain them, but for Pokemon I especially treasure I make exceptions.  And not to mention, my pockets were overflowing with money and I didn’t know how to spend it all, so I figured why not?

 

Yeah, it definitely sucks to be burned out by a series that’s been such a big part of your childhood up until now.  It doesn’t help that you haven’t even had the chance to even play the most recent games and instead were forced to watch from a distance.  I’m glad you’ll get the chance with Pokemon Z, and hopefully Game Freak can deliver an impressive experience.  Oh my gosh, yeahh, I didn’t expect Undertale to blow up like it has either!  The demo was pretty interesting, but it wasn’t enough to convince me to actually play the game when it came out.  I’m not the biggest fan of RPGs in general, so despite the praise it’s received I’m not too sure I’ll go out of my way to try the full version.  You’re quite the trailblazer though; the first I had ever heard of the game was from you, so though it’s a shame you weren’t able to ride the hype train with everyone else you can at least have the satisfaction of being the very first person to tell me about the game, ahah.  Are you going to play it eventually though?  Aww, I wouldn’t recommend getting yourself all bummed out just because you’re behind on video games and by extension anime.  You’ll definitely find time in the future; high school life was pretty restricted.  It may not seem like you’ll find the time for anything now, but once you start chipping away at your backlog things will start to seem much more manageable.  As excited as I am for the two newcomers, it’s going to take a lot more than just that to get me back into the game.  I’ll probably have to take an extended break from the games for a few years and learn of Smash 5’s development to fully recover from my slump.  Luckily, I have a lot to keep me occupied in the meantime.

 

Closing the car windows for safety, huh?  Do you usually keep the car windows open then?  Isn’t that like, not aerodynamic and therefore not fuel efficient when driving?  And doesn’t that ruffle up your hair and get it all messed up?  Ah, well, I guess that second concern is more of just a problem specific to me, eheh.  My parents don’t keep the car windows open, though they occasionally and temporarily crack them open in the summer to air out heat from the car.  Edison’s a nice town too, and it’s generally perfectly safe to walk around and drive at night as well.  There are never any reports of crime or vandalism or anything.  There’s not much to do here either, same as Troy, but it’s not like I ever want to go out and do anything anyway.  Without public transportation I suppose it’s harder to purchase video games in person if I ever needed to, but getting my shopping done in Cleveland hasn’t proved to be much of a problem.  Hm, I don’t think it’s too surprising to learn you’re a bit sick of Michigan.  You’ve been living there for a while now, and because you’re merely a few months away from starting college, you’ve probably got that itch to get away from home for a bit.

 

Errrr, well, about that…  I haven’t been keeping up with my extra-curriculars at all.  After that failed attempt at trying to view the moon, I haven’t attended a single astronomy and physics meeting or event.  I also haven’t written anything for the newspaper for the longest time.  Ughhh, I know I know, this isn’t good, but it’s hard enough as it is keeping my grades up while finishing my video game backlog at a reasonable pace.  I feel kinda bad for not writing much anymore, and I don’t see my schedule freeing up any time soon with my packed class schedule this coming semester and all the Fire Emblem I need to get done in the coming months as a result of Fates’s release in February.  Wait, so are you saying waking up early to go to orchestra practice can cause headaches for when you head back home that day?  I just chose wombo combo because it was something loud that represented my interest in Smash Bros, eheh.  I like to incorporate my hobbies into anything that I can customize.  My phone’s wallpaper is Kino no Tabi and its lock screen is an Ace Attorney reference.  My ringtone is also an Ace Attorney reference (I changed it from UBW’s Brave Shine now that the hype has died down) and the notification sound is an Ocarina of Time reference.  My computer’s wallpaper is Zero Escape, the lock screen is ORAS, and my little Windows profile picture is Deemo.  My Chrome theme is Splatoon, and the background image I use for my main Gmail account is The Dog of Flanders.  As my interests change and develop, so do my customizations.  They usually reflect what’s current, meaningful, and hype, ahah.  What’s your alarm?  And I know you don’t like to show your interests so blatantly, but have you customized your phone and/or laptop in any way to reflect your hobbies?

 

Ohohoho, for someone who hasn’t identified as much of a health nut, you’re rather well versed in the intricacies of healthy eating!  At the very least, you’re conscious of what you put in your body and made decisions accordingly, even if you’re willing to indulge in some packaged foods on occasion.  That’s better than me, eheheh, I just eat what tastes good.  I’m not fool though; I obviously don’t consume a ridiculous amount of greasy and oily foods, but as I long as I don’t think something is too bad for my health I’m perfectly fine with eating it in moderation.  Ah, so your dad likes his food with lots of soy sauce or oil.  The food that my parents make isn’t that greasy, or at least not much greasier than what you find at your average Chinese restaurant.  Let’s see, as far as bread goes, I generally don’t like it alone.  I need something on it, like butter or cream cheese, or I need it to be flavored like garlic bread.  As for yogurt, I don’t actually mind yogurt too much.  It’s kind of like ice cream; even though it’s one dimensional it generally tastes good enough alone.  It doesn’t hurt if there’s granola in the yogurt though, much like ice cream topped with sprinkles and fudge sounds rather good too, eheh.

 

Phew, gotta love that feeling of sleeping at some weird time during the day and waking up all confused and disoriented.  Now I just wake up in the afternoon out of habit, but that’s only because I stay up until it’s five or six in the morning…  Setting up an alarm at 10:30 am or so would probably only help once I actually get my act together and not sleep so late, hahah.

 

My classes were all so relatively late that I ended up having brunch even when I wanted breakfast.  I generally just call the first meal of the day “breakfast” so long as it’s still before noon, even if it’s at 11:30.  That’s also probably why I don’t have lunch, eheh.  I would have liked to eat whenever I want to, but with my gym schedule and Leutner’s hours I figured the best way to go about things would be to establish a schedule of sorts.  They say it’s good for your health, though my sleep schedule is so messed up I’m not too sure how beneficial a meal routine is at this point.

 

Ohh, wow, your dad really has a low tolerance for this kind of stuff, sheesh.  He sounds rather frightening, and as annoying as it might be, I guess you could always think of it as him looking out for you in his own way…

 

I knowww, this weather sucks!  It’s very un-Christmas-like, and even though I’ve been blasting Christmas all day every day when I’m not playing video games or watching anime, it’s hard to get in the mood when it’s all rainy and mild outside.  Actually, now that I think about it, it won’t matter if Cleveland has a white Christmas, because I’ll always be home for the holidays!  So it won’t even make a difference; unless Edison delivers and gives me snow when I want it, I won’t be seeing a white Christmas for at least the next four years, ughh.  Ah yes, and I believe the heating was up too high, even though the actual heater by the window in my room wasn’t turned on.  There must be some central heating system that runs through the walls or something to prevent us silly college kids from accidentally freezing ourselves to death.  I only think this because now that I’m back home (and yes, I don’t know if I mentioned this before, but I’m back in Edison!), because though it’s no colder here than in Cleveland, my house feels significantly colder than my dorm building.  I sleep with really thick blankets now, but instead of feeling clammy and uncomfortable I actually feel warm and toasty.  Huh, who woulda thunk it.  I guess I’ll just have to sleep with less layers on when I get back to Case in January.  I haven’t had a nightmare in a looooonnng time up until that point, so it was a bit unnerving to wake up remembering something unpleasant.  I don’t really think much of it, but you know how people say perhaps dreams are an alternate reality of sorts and all that……

 

Pfffttt, it’s ‘cause all y’all come from that swanky Troy High, check yer privilege, hurhurhur!  Ahahah, nah, I’m just playing, I’m not too sure what those guys are on.  I mean, I suppose college classes can be pretty tough, and professors are obviously huge factors in determining how much you’ll enjoy a class.  My First Seminar professor was amazing, and I absolutely loved her class.  She’s one of those grandmotherly type people who treats all her students like her children and she was so sweet and nice!  There was a lot of work involved, but she was a fair grader (if you put in effort, you got an A; she doesn’t nitpick every little grammar mistake you made) and I wanted to do well in that class not just for the sake of my GPA but also for her sake, to show that I cared about her class and appreciated her as a teacher.  My accounting professor on the other hand… ughh.  What a nightmare, that was one of the most stressful classes I’ve ever taken, even if just for the project alone.  Some parts of college classes are harder than high school classes, but a lot of it is up to the professor.  That being said, how difficult you find high school classes is also mostly attributed to the teachers, so it’s not like that should be anything new in college.  I know I said I was joking before, but maybe Troy High really does have amazing teachers.  I’ve had my fair share of deplorable teachers in JP (and Edison schools in general) so though I lamented the situation I was in with accounting it’s not a scenario I was entirely unused to.  Did the people who are complaining about college now just, like, not have bad teachers in high school?  You seem to have a lot of good to say about your teachers and experience at Troy, and if your classmates are in the same boat they may just be recoiling from the experience of an unfair professor.  As for why you’re not allowed to see the professors for First Seminars but not University Seminars, I’m not too sure.  I’m not even entirely sure why you’re designated a First Seminar from a selection of four but are allowed to specifically choose a University Seminar.  There’s probably a logistics reason I’m just not seeing, ahah.

 

Woah, you run off to the bookstore?  Well, I suppose if your parents being around make you that uncomfortable, eheh.  By bookstore do you mean a big chain like Barnes and Noble or a small local shop?  And do you drive or just walk there?  The brightness of screens only bothered me if it was pitch black, in which case I turned down the brightness of my Game Boy or (3)DS iPod or phone, but of course that’s only because I’d be using that device in bed when I should have been sleeping.  Those screens are otherwise kept at moderately high levels of brightness during the day.  I rarely use my laptop in pitch blackness, but when I do it’s because I’m watching an anime with the lights off and am looking for a cinematic atmosphere and therefore don’t mid keeping the brightness all the way up.  I never turn the brightness of my laptop down, but for the smaller devices I listed above I do in completely dark rooms.  Eheheh, maybe I’m just weird, or maybe my eyes are so fried and abused from years and years of mistreatment that high brightness contrast doesn’t affect me nearly as much as it might others.

 

Ohhhh, that explains it, I should have noticed sooner!  No wonder you watched Tatami Galaxy and LWA!  You heard about them from Demo!  Since you haven’t watched much anime and don’t even follow seasonal shows, I was a bit puzzled you found “obscure” works like those two.  They’re well known around the fandom, but only to those that follow the anime subreddit and browse through MAL and ANN on a daily basis, scouring for any hidden gems that lie just below the surface of the mainstream shows.  That someone like you discovered them was a bit strange, but if it was as a result of Douchebagchocolat’s videos then that would make sense.  Demo doesn’t make videos too often, but his sense of humor is on point and I occasionally check out his Twitch live streams (which he hosts relatively often).  He never plays games I’m interested in, as he’s not too interested in Nintendo games or consoles, but listening to him ramble on wittily is entertainment enough.  One of his more recent streams was absolutely hilarious.  It had me in tears from laughter, but that may have also been a result of my sleep deprivation that night.  Ah, parody channels I don’t usually watch too much.  I watch Fate/Cero, which is a Fate/Zero abridged series, but it’s not finished yet and it probably won’t be for a while.  I recommend checking it out after you rewatch Fate/Zero, not before.  Ohh, I remember finding If Google Was a Guy a while ago but didn’t really pay any of the other content CollegeHumor made much heed.  It’s pretty good!  And I recognize Cyanide and Happiness, but didn’t know that’s what it's called.

 

Oh my gosh… you actually got held back during recess and got a letter home??  Goodness, just how disruptive were you Kenzi???  No one in any of my elementary school classes talked that much!  Did you just… not listen when they said to stop talking??  Was talking something of a reflex for you?  Awww, but you still hugged your teachers, that’s adorable!  You might have been strange, but you were cute!

 

Ah, I’m not too sure why he was so ready to give his DS away either.  I think he had lost interest in it, and you know how middle schoolers are; he may not have had any way to buy a new charger and his parents may not have been willing to purchase one for him.  Yup, my very first video game ever was Star Fox Adventures for the GameCube and I absolutely love it to this day.  Nostalgia aside, the game was a gorgeous and fantastic Zelda-like title that a lot of people initially dismissed because it was a departure from the regular Star Fox games.  My second video game was Donkey Kong Country for the Game Boy Advance.  I’ve finally gotten back into that series, and gosh DKC Returns 3D, which I had just recently purchased pre-owned from Best Buy and have finished playing a couple days ago, was amazing!  The original DKC is such a source of nostalgia, and seeing how creative the levels are now while still retaining that same atmosphere was quite exciting.  Not to mention, the music composer who worked on Star Fox Adventures composed the music for DKCR3D, and his style is still recognizable, so there were two layers of nostalgia while playing that game!  Over winter break I want to finish Tropical Freeze for the Wii U, which I got free from Club Nintendo, and maybe after that I might buy DKC 2 and DKC 3, the more obscure and forgotten GBA titles that I wasn’t able to play when I was younger, to officially complete the series.

 

Smash and then Pokemon and then Awakening, hm?  That sounds pretty good to me!  Honestly, it shouldn’t really matter what I say, at the end of the day you should buy whichever game you want to buy.  But if you want to take personal preference and replayability into consideration then yes, those games should probably be the first ones you buy.  Smash gives you something you can quickly pick up and play with no plot or narrative to worry about, Pokemon gives you something light-hearted to play through that can be either laid-back or intense depending on how you want to go about it, and Awakening gives you something more story and strategy-based to think through when you have extensive consecutive hours of free time.  Ahh, I should have guessed that you'd reject my offer, though I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask.  I hope you're just saying no because you're honestly not comfortable with revealing your address, and not because you don't want me to spend any money for your sake.

 

Oh geez, sometimes I can forget I’m in college as well.  You may think that’s ridiculous; how do you wake up hundreds of miles away from home without parental supervision every morning and not realize you’re not in high school anymore?  Shouldn’t the sheer amount of freedom be almost overwhelming?  For me I guess it wasn’t.  School is school, when it all comes down to it.  Call it college or call it high school, but you’re still taking tests and studying and doing homework.  I have to occasionally take a step back and realize just how much my life has actually changed between this year and last to fully appreciate how different it is, ahah.  

 

I’m actually pretty familiar with both Corrin and Bayonetta.  I’ve been following Fates since it was first revealed during the Direct many months ago.  I’ve been avoiding spoilers of any kind and am only getting my info from official announcements though, so there’s only so much that I know.  The moment that saw the red lobster samurai man (I don’t even know his name, oh my god) I went crazy.  I knew it was going to be Kamui, or rather Corrin, in that instant.  His gameplay looks really unique, so though he’s a sixth Fire Emblem rep I’m far from unhappy with his inclusion.  Better to get a character I can, or at least will, relate to in Smash than not, right?  Bayonetta I know because she was one of the more popular characters people speculated about back when Smash 4 was still in its infant stages.  People eventually dismissed her because they felt she was too sexy for Smash, especially with the game’s eventually revealed E10+ rating.  I haven’t played any of her games nor have I been particularly interested in them, but she’s bringing a lot of fresh mechanics to the table which is awesome!  There’s a Bayonetta anime movie apparently, and though it isn’t very good I may check it out in celebration of her inclusion.  Same goes for the FFVII: Advent Children movie for Cloud, ahah.  I can understand why a lot of people are angry that Sakurai added in another Fire Emblem character.  If he added another Mario rep, I’d be pretty upset too.  But since Corrin is so unique with his moveset and transformations into his/her dragon form, I can (and think other people should) overlook the Fire Emblem saturation.  I’d much rather Kamui than Shovel Knight, who’d just hit people with a shovel no different than Ike whacks people with a sword.  Significantly less people are pissed about Bayonetta though.  Only people who are upset with her inclusion are salty veteran/indie character supporters who have more rage than Corrin alone can receive, and SJWs.  It’s too bad Wolf couldn’t get in, but his gameplay style isn’t too unique.  We already have three returning veterans in the form of DLC anyway; any more past that magic number and people would start complaining Sakurai is lazy and charging us extra for characters that should've been included from the start.  Some say instead of Roy we should have gotten Wolf, but then the Roy fans would have ended up crying just as loudly as the current Wolf fans.  Only exception to the veteran rule is Snake, given his “mature” status and unique moveset, but since there’s been a lot of controversy with Konami recently (see the #FucKonami movement and Kojima joining Sega) negotiating with them was most likely not possible.  Ice Climbers were shafted as an unfortunate result of the 3DS and 8-player Smash limitations, and I suppose it’s a bit sad to see Charizard shut out Squirtle and Ivysaur as well.  Not everyone will be happy with the final roster, but all things considered it’s been an incredible ride on the hype train and I couldn’t have asked for more!  Sakurai definitely deserves a rest!

 

As I mentioned in my PM, feel free to take as much time off as you need.  You definitely need to refocus and collect your emotions.  Whenever you're ready to come back, I'll be right here waiting for you.  And I'm patient, so don't worry about me, eheh.  Anyway, despite all this, I hope you enjoy your winter break, as difficult as that may sound.  Christmastime is so magical; it would be a shame to have it ruined because of this.  Good luck when school starts back up in January and with the finals that will soon follow.  May you be blessed with headache-less days and not-too-frigid mornings.  I'll be thinking about you every day.

 

 

Ignoring them just happened naturally as time passed? Hrmm... that's kinda interesting. You'd think it'd be the other way around because people tend to become increasingly aware of these social stigmas as they get older. Ahh, well, no matter. It's nice to hear that you're so comfortable in your own skin! 

 

The amount of Pokemon Z news has been lacking lately. The most recent update is this one mechanical man-made Bakugan-like Pokemon. It doesn't look like anything too promising, but the thing could possibly have a connection to Diancie? I think? I'm not really feeling it right now. Ahhh, but I guess it turns out that you eventually caught up with the Undertale hype train despite your initial doubts! And you also seemed to like it quite a bit, hehe. I've been trying my hardest not to spoil myself, but fkdfldhsfklajhfkadjf it's every.where. Mark my words, I will play the full version one day. Hmm, so you're not too big on RPGs? Have you ever heard of Chrono Trigger? That's been on my list for a looonnngg time now (since middle school, damn). Oh gosh, my list of games to play and anime to watch just seems to get bigger, it's a bit overwhelming. I haven't had the opportunity to chip away at it like I wanted to, and I keep telling myself that I'll get to it eventually, but arghhhh, the world just wants to do everything in its power to prevent that from happening. I did, however, get around to watching that one Steins;Gate 0 OVA. I've been hearing rumors that Steins;Gate 0 might be even better than the original (apparently the VN was really good), and ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh I can't contain myself! Oh yeah, and I've begun watching Monster. I know you told me to read the manga, but I decided to go with the anime after looking at a few reviews. I kinda wanted a somewhat long-running, episodic anime to cozy up with; something I can just watch one or two episodes of and then leave alone, and Monster fit the bill (or at least compared to the rest of my backlog). I guess I was just craving something to fill the DC void, eheh. I haven't gotten very far though, and I'm not entirely sure when I'll finish it either. It's kinda like a leisure anime at the moment. I was considering watching Hunter x Hunter instead, but I figured I didn't need my backlog to get any bigger, lol. Also, I know that Monster isn't as episodic or as laid back as DC is, but as long as I'm not getting gut-wrenching cliffhangers after every episode, I'm good, ahah. 

 

Yeah, I've stumbled across several articles claiming that it's more fuel efficient to just turn on the A/C rather than open the car windows, but we normally don't open the windows unless we're driving at low speeds. As for whether or not it ruffles up my hair, pfft, of course it does, but that's only when we're driving at 30+ mph. Actually, after the car reaches that speed, we just close the windows because that wind noise is pretty obnoxious, lol. Also, hear me out, if the car's been parked outside for a while, we sometimes open the windows and turn on the A/C. Screw fuel efficiency. Ahaha, jkjkjk. It's just to air out the car faster. We close the windows a few minutes afterwards, don't you worry. Oh yeah, it's pretty hard to get anywhere around here without a license. The biggest inconvenience seems to be whenever I'm forced to stay after school without a ride until two hours later, but that's mostly attributed to the fact that my parents need their cars to drive to places during the school day. Even though I usually can't drive myself to/from school, having a license is still pretty liberating! Speaking of which, have you gotten around to getting behind the wheel yet?

 

Maybe just commit to one activity you're really enthusiastic about then! There's bound to be something out of the dozens of clubs/organizations out there, haha. If not the anime club, maybe pick up the oboe again and join the marching band? Obviously you wouldn't want to overwhelm yourself with classes and the anime and video games you plan to watch/catch up on, but I think joining a club/organization is one of the best ways to be involved and make the most out of your college experience! And since time can be an issue, just join one you can really get into rather than a bunch that you're feeling kinda meh about. Quality over quantity, right? Oh nonono, when I said "practice" I meant tennis practice, not orchestra practice, lol (I normally call those "sectionals"). See, now if I got headaches from playing my violin, that would be a problem. I don't think I'd be able to handle all of those headaches on top of the ones I occasionally get from tennis, urgh. Oh wow, you're quite active in incorporating your interests into your everyday life! I kinda wish I had that freedom. My phone wallpaper has this aurora borealis feel to it, my ringtone is some generic pre-programmed ringtone, my laptop wallpaper changes every thirty minutes (most are just random scenic pictures anyway, some of which are truly eye-candy, might I add, heh), my main Chrome theme is a navy blue gradient (not even sure why I chose this, but it's been like this for years and I don't have the heart to change it), my "New Tab" theme is controlled by a Chrome extension called Momentum (it's worth checking out if you ask me, haha), and the background image I use for my main gmail account is a picture of some random celestial body that automatically changes daily. Truthfully speaking, you wouldn't be able tell what I'm interested in at all from just looking at my laptop or phone (though I do have a bunch of random images stored in the depths of my laptop). Well, part of this is due to fear of my dad, who sometimes uses my laptop when I'm not home. I'm not allowed to put a password on it since he'll just accuse me of "hiding" things. And you know, if I do change it to some random anime/video game wallpaper, I'll probably get reprimanded for investing my time in such trivial matters. I'm a closet nerd anyway, so using generic wallpapers doesn't bother me too much. My alarm is a random tune that gradually increases in volume. It's nothing special, really, lol. 

 

Ahah, about that... I'm not really much of a healthy eater. I have pretty bad eating habits, eheh. I'm hungry after I get home from school, so maybe I'll open up an avocado and a bag of crackers or something. Weirdly enough, after eating that (or something equally as filling), I'm usually not hungry at all once it's dinner time. If I don't eat enough during dinner, my parents just accuse me of snacking too much, and they're not wrong, eheh. But once it's 10-11pm, I'm hungry again and I have to microwave some leftovers. (Of course, I risk receiving the I-told-you-so lecture from my parents if they catch me though.) If the leftovers are too salty or greasy, I just dump some of it into a boiling vat of water and drain it. It removes the "flavorings" and makes the food more edible. So yeah, the only consistent meal I have is lunch. Hmm, so you don't like plain bread? What about toast then? Toast is pretty good, haha. Also, have you ever tried freezing fruit? Frozen bananas are great! Just peel one open, slice it, and freeze the pieces. They can get pretty cold though, so I wouldn't recommend it if you have sensitive teeth. Oh, or you can freeze yogurt! It's pretty great for the summertime! I sometimes put cereal in my yogurt when I get tired of milk. Cereal's usually a good substitute for granola, haha. I've also heard that you can make carbonated fruit using dry ice, which sounds freaking awesome. I haven't tried it yet, but it's definitely on my to-do list, heh.

 

Whoa whoa whoa... is staying up till five or six in the morning a regular thing for you now? Geez man, I know you have the luxury of waking up later in the day, but that's still insane. I hope that habit of yours has changed now that it's the start of a new semester, eheh... If getting out of bed is really that difficult, I recommend setting an alarm about 1-2 hours before you wake up, then set another one for your actual waking time. This way, you're given a real lag time to wake up as opposed to smashing the snooze button to oblivion. (The pun was unintentional, I swear.) This has been working a lot better for me than breaking up my REM sleep, so this is what I've been resorting to lately, haha. 

 

If I recall correctly, you said that this semester's classes were going to be earlier in the day, right? I guess that means you won't be able to skip lunch anymore, heh. How has college been going for you so far?

 

Oh, and speaking of sucky weather, the weather here still sucks. It was almost 60* a few days ago! How and whyyyyyyyyyyy. Barely any snow either. What the heck, Michigan. This is the second time you've let me down. Like geez, sometimes I don't even need to wear my winter coat. It's been so warm around here that I don't even need to turn on the heating in my room! Heck, it's raining at this very moment while I'm typing this. Hmm, and judging by the looks of it, you seemed to be pretty happy about the amount of snow you've received, and here I am, sitting enviously behind my laptop screen praying for an eventual snowday or cold day even though I'm certain we're not getting any this year. Hmph. Haha, don't worry, I'm kidding. ...'cause you know, the twenty inches of snow the East Coast got also contributed to some of this salt. But yeah! I'm glad you were able to experience what a real winter's like! Hopefully all of that good heating you have in your dorms is put to use now, heh. 

 

Ahh, actually... while Troy has some awesome teachers, I've also come across some pretty unpleasant teachers. My overall experience with them has been pretty mixed, but I've had enough awesome teachers to overshadow those that I didn't agree with. The teacher's job is to teach, and sometimes the teaching style just doesn't uhh... resonate with me, to say the least. Sometimes they're "unreasonable" or "biased" but there's no use in me constantly complaining about them since students usually don't have much say in anything, as irritating as that may be. At best, I'll be able to let off some steam, which sometimes helps when I'm around friends in similar predicaments. I haven't heard many complaints about college professors lately, so maybe those students have already adjusted. I'm not sure about the teachers they had back in high school since schedules tend to be pretty flexible around here, but I'm fairly certain that their experience with teachers wasn't entirely rainbows and gumdrops either. Yeah, I completely agree with you. It's even kinda disheartening how much the difficulty or your enjoyment of the class is dependent upon the teacher. Like geezus man, sometimes I've been learning more from outside reading (not just supplemental reading) and watching videos than from actual classroom instruction. Thank goodness we live in an era where information is so readily accessible. They don't call this the Information Age for nothing. I hope the professors you currently have are treating you well! I don't think I've ever had a teacher as unfair as your accounting professor (hopefully you won't have to deal with that kind of stress again), but judging by what you've written, were these kinds of teachers commonplace back in JP? Sheesh, that must've been awful.

 

We don't have any small local shops (or at least none that I know of), so I normally head over to Barnes and Noble. It's a few miles away, so I have to drive. Gosh, I love it there. It's almost like a haven where I can avoid my classmates and parents. I know it sounds bad when I put it that way, but I guess I just really like the idea of being alone by myself, undisturbed (with the exception of fellow bookstore visitors, of course). I can read and study whatever I want with minimal fear of being approached by someone I know. I'm surrounded by loads of resources and pleasure reading books I can indulge in (most of which are in mint condition as well). It has more up-to-date books than the library too! And while the books at the bookstore can't be checked-out, there's almost always a stock of them in the back (so they probably won't run out and you won't have to go through the hassle of waiting for books you've put on-hold). In other words, most books are readily available even during exams and for summer reading! But the main reason I prefer the bookstore over the library is because I rarely run into classmates at the bookstore and because I like its atmosphere a lot more. I prefer a bit of white noise to complete silence. It can be a little hard for me focus in complete silence sometimes, lol. Do you have some sort of haven you also frequent? Ohh, I'm not comfortable using my laptop in pitch darkness. I only have to shut off the lights when I'm approaching 6am (when my parents wake up for work) so that they don't catch me up so late early. Haha, I never thought to use darkness as a way of creating a cinematic atmosphere. I might have to try it sometime!

 

Actually, Tatami Galaxy and LWA were recommendations from a friend, ahah... I just happened to stumble across Demo along the way, lol. I wouldn't be surprised if that's how my friend discovered these anime though. Demo kinda reminds me of VideoGameDunkey for some reason. Or maybe it's just the dry humor. Hmm, obscure works? That's an interesting way to put it. Okay, so maybe Tatami Galaxy doesn't necessarily fit everyone's general perception of an anime, but don't tell me something like this doesn't pique your interest, haha. It's definitely obscure, but if you just happen to come across something like that during some mindless surfing, surely you'd want to look into it, right? It's what initially got me to watch it, lol. Oh, I've heard of Fate/Cero! I actually watched the pilot episode a while ago (so I wasn't able to catch your warning) and it had some good moments, haha. 

 

Yeah, I was pretty disruptive during class as a little kid. I just loved initiating conversation, eheh. Sometimes I was so absorbed in my conversations that I didn't realize the teacher told me to stop talking. It's no wonder why I got in trouble so often. But a lot has changed since then. If you asked each of my current teachers how sociable I am in class, you'd probably get a very wide range of answers.

 

I've definitely heard of Star Fox Adventures and DKC, but they were never titles I considered looking into. Is there a reason why you're so fond of them? Aside from nostalgia, of course, haha.

 

Smash, then Pokemon, then Awakening is definitely subject to change since I've also been meaning to get around to playing VLR (and the following game) ever since 999 blew me away. Ahhhh, so many games to play! Thank you for helping me through this process! The only thing I'm worried about is the lack of time, not that I plan to completely binge on these games or anything (I like to play through them gradually anyway, haha), but between these games and the anime I plan on watching, I'm admittedly a little afraid about whether I'll be able to make room for them.

 

Similarly, I'm still trying to process the fact that I'm in my last year of high school. Heck, I'm already in my last semester. Like geez, 2012 was four years ago?? I don't know why, but 2012 seems a lot more recent than it actually is for whatever reason. Breaks don't feel nearly as long as they used to be, oh and do you remember those times when summer seemed to last forever? You know, back in elementary school when we had all the time in the world? It's just strange to me that everything is so relative. I recently read an article stating that time goes by quicker the fewer things you do. Because it takes time for the brain to process information, the longer it takes for the brain to process this information, the longer time seems to stretch out. The more familiar everything is, the less you have to process, so time just flies by. Your comment about "school is school, when it all comes down to it" kinda reminded me of this. Apologies for the random tangent, but it's just a little disturbing how our experiences can affect our perceptions of time so greatly, especially considering how routine school can be nowadays.

 

Now that Corrin and Bayonetta have finally been released, how have they been working out for you? I'd never even heard of Bayonetta until she was announced, so it came as a surprise to me how popular she was. Corrin as well, but the fact that there were already so many FE characters made the announcement even more shocking. Perhaps it's because I hadn't followed the ballot too closely. I'm not at all disappointed that Pokemon Trainer/Ivysaur/Squirtle was shut out. Six Pokemon characters is more than enough, lol. I know that implementing Ice Climbers was a stretch, but I'm still a little bummed, eheh. Oh, and I'd also love to hear about your progress with FE Fates! Or rather, in fear of spoilers, your impression of the games so far, haha. 

 

Once again, I'm really sorry about this super delayed reply. Thank you for being so patient, and thank you so much for your kind words. I'm not sure how regular my replies will be for the time being though. I've decided to direct my attention towards school. And a lot of it, because it finally dawned on me that I need to prepare for six AP exams once May rolls around, urgh. That being said, I won't mind if you take some extra time writing these instead of cranking them out every Saturday. After all, you have some extra classes to focus your attention on! So yeah, this also means that I haven't gotten around to playing games or watching much anime, aside from what I've already told you, oh and a few episodes of Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso with my sister over break, despite your warnings, eheh. It actually wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Could've done without that middle school drama/angst and some of those melodramatic monologues though. Also, the pacing was awful (even worse than the first half of Steins;Gate, geezus) and the ending was pretty cringey. So while the anime wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, it was still... well, I guess I can see why many seem to tout this as some towering masterpiece, but wow, Shigatsu had so much potential, what a letdown. It had such a nice premise too... It did have some good moments though, haha. And the music, kfhaldfhdlfdfkjha it was really good. Oh my gosh, I'm such a sucker for piano and orchestral OSTs, oomph. I'm so unreasonably biased towards this kind of stuff it probably ended up skewing my perception of the anime to be better than it would've been otherwise. Oh, and the art/animation was also great! Hmm, I'm not too sure how to end this paragraph. I actually forgot what I was going to write next after going on that little tangent about Shigatsu, lol. Maybe I'm getting old. Sooooooo... how have you been?

 

--

 

well color me surprised

school ended early yesterday and we just got a snowday today

...and just as I said we weren't going to get any this year

 

 

well played Michigan, well played

 

oh yeah, also the fact that a new Pokemon Direct is coming out tomorrow just as I said that we haven't been getting any news lately

 

so if you'll excuse me, I'll be eating my words now

not that I'm complaining, really

 

also, I fixed a grammatical error in the third to last paragraph

I'm not a grammar nazi or anything, but something sounded really funny and it was bugging me, lol

Edited February 25, 2016 by Kenzi

[Akazora 293]

Ignoring them just happened naturally as time passed? Hrmm... that's kinda interesting. You'd think it'd be the other way around because people tend to become increasingly aware of these social stigmas as they get older. Ahh, well, no matter. It's nice to hear that you're so comfortable in your own skin! 

 

The amount of Pokemon Z news has been lacking lately. The most recent update is this one mechanical man-made Bakugan-like Pokemon. It doesn't look like anything too promising, but the thing could possibly have a connection to Diancie? I think? I'm not really feeling it right now. Ahhh, but I guess it turns out that you eventually caught up with the Undertale hype train despite your initial doubts! And you also seemed to like it quite a bit, hehe. I've been trying my hardest not to spoil myself, but fkdfldhsfklajhfkadjf it's every.where. Mark my words, I will play the full version one day. Hmm, so you're not too big on RPGs? Have you ever heard of Chrono Trigger? That's been on my list for a looonnngg time now (since middle school, damn). Oh gosh, my list of games to play and anime to watch just seems to get bigger, it's a bit overwhelming. I haven't had the opportunity to chip away at it like I wanted to, and I keep telling myself that I'll get to it eventually, but arghhhh, the world just wants to do everything in its power to prevent that from happening. I did, however, get around to watching that one Steins;Gate 0 OVA. I've been hearing rumors that Steins;Gate 0 might be even better than the original (apparently the VN was really good), and ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh I can't contain myself! Oh yeah, and I've begun watching Monster. I know you told me to read the manga, but I decided to go with the anime after looking at a few reviews. I kinda wanted a somewhat long-running, episodic anime to cozy up with; something I can just watch one or two episodes of and then leave alone, and Monster fit the bill (or at least compared to the rest of my backlog). I guess I was just craving something to fill the DC void, eheh. I haven't gotten very far though, and I'm not entirely sure when I'll finish it either. It's kinda like a leisure anime at the moment. I was considering watching Hunter x Hunter instead, but I figured I didn't need my backlog to get any bigger, lol. Also, I know that Monster isn't as episodic or as laid back as DC is, but as long as I'm not getting gut-wrenching cliffhangers after every episode, I'm good, ahah. 

 

Yeah, I've stumbled across several articles claiming that it's more fuel efficient to just turn on the A/C rather than open the car windows, but we normally don't open the windows unless we're driving at low speeds. As for whether or not it ruffles up my hair, pfft, of course it does, but that's only when we're driving at 30+ mph. Actually, after the car reaches that speed, we just close the windows because that wind noise is pretty obnoxious, lol. Also, hear me out, if the car's been parked outside for a while, we sometimes open the windows and turn on the A/C. Screw fuel efficiency. Ahaha, jkjkjk. It's just to air out the car faster. We close the windows a few minutes afterwards, don't you worry. Oh yeah, it's pretty hard to get anywhere around here without a license. The biggest inconvenience seems to be whenever I'm forced to stay after school without a ride until two hours later, but that's mostly attributed to the fact that my parents need their cars to drive to places during the school day. Even though I usually can't drive myself to/from school, having a license is still pretty liberating! Speaking of which, have you gotten around to getting behind the wheel yet?

 

Maybe just commit to one activity you're really enthusiastic about then! There's bound to be something out of the dozens of clubs/organizations out there, haha. If not the anime club, maybe pick up the oboe again and join the marching band? Obviously you wouldn't want to overwhelm yourself with classes and the anime and video games you plan to watch/catch up on, but I think joining a club/organization is one of the best ways to be involved and make the most out of your college experience! And since time can be an issue, just join one you can really get into rather than a bunch that you're feeling kinda meh about. Quality over quantity, right? Oh nonono, when I said "practice" I meant tennis practice, not orchestra practice, lol (I normally call those "sectionals"). See, now if I got headaches from playing my violin, that would be a problem. I don't think I'd be able to handle all of those headaches on top of the ones I occasionally get from tennis, urgh. Oh wow, you're quite active in incorporating your interests into your everyday life! I kinda wish I had that freedom. My phone wallpaper has this aurora borealis feel to it, my ringtone is some generic pre-programmed ringtone, my laptop wallpaper changes every thirty minutes (most are just random scenic pictures anyway, some of which are truly eye-candy, might I add, heh), my main Chrome theme is a navy blue gradient (not even sure why I chose this, but it's been like this for years and I don't have the heart to change it), my "New Tab" theme is controlled by a Chrome extension called Momentum (it's worth checking out if you ask me, haha), and the background image I use for my main gmail account is a picture of some random celestial body that automatically changes daily. Truthfully speaking, you wouldn't be able tell what I'm interested in at all from just looking at my laptop or phone (though I do have a bunch of random images stored in the depths of my laptop). Well, part of this is due to fear of my dad, who sometimes uses my laptop when I'm not home. I'm not allowed to put a password on it since he'll just accuse me of "hiding" things. And you know, if I do change it to some random anime/video game wallpaper, I'll probably get reprimanded for investing my time in such trivial matters. I'm a closet nerd anyway, so using generic wallpapers doesn't bother me too much. My alarm is a random tune that gradually increases in volume. It's nothing special, really, lol. 

 

Ahah, about that... I'm not really much of a healthy eater. I have pretty bad eating habits, eheh. I'm hungry after I get home from school, so maybe I'll open up an avocado and a bag of crackers or something. Weirdly enough, after eating that (or something equally as filling), I'm usually not hungry at all once it's dinner time. If I don't eat enough during dinner, my parents just accuse me of snacking too much, and they're not wrong, eheh. But once it's 10-11pm, I'm hungry again and I have to microwave some leftovers. (Of course, I risk receiving the I-told-you-so lecture from my parents if they catch me though.) If the leftovers are too salty or greasy, I just dump some of it into a boiling vat of water and drain it. It removes the "flavorings" and makes the food more edible. So yeah, the only consistent meal I have is lunch. Hmm, so you don't like plain bread? What about toast then? Toast is pretty good, haha. Also, have you ever tried freezing fruit? Frozen bananas are great! Just peel one open, slice it, and freeze the pieces. They can get pretty cold though, so I wouldn't recommend it if you have sensitive teeth. Oh, or you can freeze yogurt! It's pretty great for the summertime! I sometimes put cereal in my yogurt when I get tired of milk. Cereal's usually a good substitute for granola, haha. I've also heard that you can make carbonated fruit using dry ice, which sounds freaking awesome. I haven't tried it yet, but it's definitely on my to-do list, heh.

 

Whoa whoa whoa... is staying up till five or six in the morning a regular thing for you now? Geez man, I know you have the luxury of waking up later in the day, but that's still insane. I hope that habit of yours has changed now that it's the start of a new semester, eheh... If getting out of bed is really that difficult, I recommend setting an alarm about 1-2 hours before you wake up, then set another one for your actual waking time. This way, you're given a real lag time to wake up as opposed to smashing the snooze button to oblivion. (The pun was unintentional, I swear.) This has been working a lot better for me than breaking up my REM sleep, so this is what I've been resorting to lately, haha. 

 

If I recall correctly, you said that this semester's classes were going to be earlier in the day, right? I guess that means you won't be able to skip lunch anymore, heh. How has college been going for you so far?

 

Oh, and speaking of sucky weather, the weather here still sucks. It was almost 60* a few days ago! How and whyyyyyyyyyyy. Barely any snow either. What the heck, Michigan. This is the second time you've let me down. Like geez, sometimes I don't even need to wear my winter coat. It's been so warm around here that I don't even need to turn on the heating in my room! Heck, it's raining at this very moment while I'm typing this. Hmm, and judging by the looks of it, you seemed to be pretty happy about the amount of snow you've received, and here I am, sitting enviously behind my laptop screen praying for an eventual snowday or cold day even though I'm certain we're not getting any this year. Hmph. Haha, don't worry, I'm kidding. ...'cause you know, the twenty inches of snow the East Coast got also contributed to some of this salt. But yeah! I'm glad you were able to experience what a real winter's like! Hopefully all of that good heating you have in your dorms is put to use now, heh. 

 

Ahh, actually... while Troy has some awesome teachers, I've also come across some pretty unpleasant teachers. My overall experience with them has been pretty mixed, but I've had enough awesome teachers to overshadow those that I didn't agree with. The teacher's job is to teach, and sometimes the teaching style just doesn't uhh... resonate with me, to say the least. Sometimes they're "unreasonable" or "biased" but there's no use in me constantly complaining about them since students usually don't have much say in anything, as irritating as that may be. At best, I'll be able to let off some steam, which sometimes helps when I'm around friends in similar predicaments. I haven't heard many complaints about college professors lately, so maybe those students have already adjusted. I'm not sure about the teachers they had back in high school since schedules tend to be pretty flexible around here, but I'm fairly certain that their experience with teachers wasn't entirely rainbows and gumdrops either. Yeah, I completely agree with you. It's even kinda disheartening how much the difficulty or your enjoyment of the class is dependent upon the teacher. Like geezus man, sometimes I've been learning more from outside reading (not just supplemental reading) and watching videos than from actual classroom instruction. Thank goodness we live in an era where information is so readily accessible. They don't call this the Information Age for nothing. I hope the professors you currently have are treating you well! I don't think I've ever had a teacher as unfair as your accounting professor (hopefully you won't have to deal with that kind of stress again), but judging by what you've written, were these kinds of teachers commonplace back in JP? Sheesh, that must've been awful.

 

We don't have any small local shops (or at least none that I know of), so I normally head over to Barnes and Noble. It's a few miles away, so I have to drive. Gosh, I love it there. It's almost like a haven where I can avoid my classmates and parents. I know it sounds bad when I put it that way, but I guess I just really like the idea of being alone by myself, undisturbed (with the exception of fellow bookstore visitors, of course). I can read and study whatever I want with minimal fear of being approached by someone I know. I'm surrounded by loads of resources and pleasure reading books I can indulge in (most of which are in mint condition as well). It has more up-to-date books than the library too! And while the books at the bookstore can't be checked-out, there's almost always a stock of them in the back (so they probably won't run out and you won't have to go through the hassle of waiting for books you've put on-hold). In other words, most books are readily available even during exams and for summer reading! But the main reason I prefer the bookstore over the library is because I rarely run into classmates at the bookstore and because I like its atmosphere a lot more. I prefer a bit of white noise to complete silence. It can be a little hard for me focus in complete silence sometimes, lol. Do you have some sort of haven you also frequent? Ohh, I'm not comfortable using my laptop in pitch darkness. I only have to shut off the lights when I'm approaching 6am (when my parents wake up for work) so that they don't catch me up so late early. Haha, I never thought to use darkness as a way of creating a cinematic atmosphere. I might have to try it sometime!

 

Actually, Tatami Galaxy and LWA were recommendations from a friend, ahah... I just happened to stumble across Demo along the way, lol. I wouldn't be surprised if that's how my friend discovered these anime though. Demo kinda reminds me of VideoGameDunkey for some reason. Or maybe it's just the dry humor. Hmm, obscure works? That's an interesting way to put it. Okay, so maybe Tatami Galaxy doesn't necessarily fit everyone's general perception of an anime, but don't tell me something like this doesn't pique your interest, haha. It's definitely obscure, but if you just happen to come across something like that during some mindless surfing, surely you'd want to look into it, right? It's what initially got me to watch it, lol. Oh, I've heard of Fate/Cero! I actually watched the pilot episode a while ago (so I wasn't able to catch your warning) and it had some good moments, haha. 

 

Yeah, I was pretty disruptive during class as a little kid. I just loved initiating conversation, eheh. Sometimes I was so absorbed in my conversations that I didn't realize the teacher told me to stop talking. It's no wonder why I got in trouble so often. But a lot has changed since then. If you asked each of my current teachers how sociable I am in class, you'd probably get a very wide range of answers.

 

I've definitely heard of Star Fox Adventures and DKC, but they were never titles I considered looking into. Is there a reason why you're so fond of them? Aside from nostalgia, of course, haha.

 

Smash, then Pokemon, then Awakening is definitely subject to change since I've also been meaning to get around to playing VLR (and the following game) ever since 999 blew me away. Ahhhh, so many games to play! Thank you for helping me through this process! The only thing I'm worried about is the lack of time, not that I plan to completely binge on these games or anything (I like to play through them gradually anyway, haha), but between these games and the anime I plan on watching, I'm admittedly a little afraid about whether I'll be able to make room for them.

 

Similarly, I'm still trying to process the fact that I'm in my last year of high school. Heck, I'm already in my last semester. Like geez, 2012 was four years ago?? I don't know why, but 2012 seems a lot more recent than it actually is for whatever reason. Breaks don't feel nearly as long as they used to be, oh and do you remember those times when summer seemed to last forever? You know, back in elementary school when we had all the time in the world? It's just strange to me that everything is so relative. I recently read an article stating that time goes by quicker the fewer things you do. Because it takes time for the brain to process information, the longer it takes for the brain to process this information, the longer time seems to stretch out. The more familiar everything is, the less you have to process, so time just flies by. Your comment about "school is school, when it all comes down to it" kinda reminded me of this. Apologies for the random tangent, but it's just a little disturbing how our experiences can affect our perceptions of time so greatly, especially considering how routine school can be nowadays.

 

Now that Corrin and Bayonetta have finally been released, how have they been working out for you? I'd never even heard of Bayonetta until she was announced, so it came as a surprise to me how popular she was. Corrin as well, but the fact that there were already so many FE characters made the announcement even more shocking. Perhaps it's because I hadn't followed the ballot too closely. I'm not at all disappointed that Pokemon Trainer/Ivysaur/Squirtle was shut out. Six Pokemon characters is more than enough, lol. I know that implementing Ice Climbers was a stretch, but I'm still a little bummed, eheh. Oh, and I'd also love to hear about your progress with FE Fates! Or rather, in fear of spoilers, your impression of the games so far, haha. 

 

Once again, I'm really sorry about this super delayed reply. Thank you for being so patient, and thank you so much for your kind words. I'm not sure how regular my replies will be for the time being though. I've decided to direct my attention towards school. And a lot of it, because it finally dawned on me that I need to prepare for six AP exams once May rolls around, urgh. That being said, I won't mind if you take some extra time writing these instead of cranking them out every Saturday. After all, you have some extra classes to focus your attention on! So yeah, this also means that I haven't gotten around to playing games or watching much anime, aside from what I've already told you, oh and a few episodes of Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso with my sister over break, despite your warnings, eheh. It actually wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Could've done without that middle school drama/angst and some of those melodramatic monologues though. Also, the pacing was awful (even worse than the first half of Steins;Gate, geezus) and the ending was pretty cringey. So while the anime wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, it was still... well, I guess I can see why many seem to tout this as some towering masterpiece, but wow, Shigatsu had so much potential, what a letdown. It had such a nice premise too... It did have some good moments though, haha. And the music, kfhaldfhdlfdfkjha it was really good. Oh my gosh, I'm such a sucker for piano and orchestral OSTs, oomph. I'm so unreasonably biased towards this kind of stuff it probably ended up skewing my perception of the anime to be better than it would've been otherwise. Oh, and the art/animation was also great! Hmm, I'm not too sure how to end this paragraph. I actually forgot what I was going to write next after going on that little tangent about Shigatsu, lol. Maybe I'm getting old. Sooooooo... how have you been?

 

--

 

well color me surprised

school ended early yesterday and we just got a snowday today

...and just as I said we weren't going to get any this year

 

 

well played Michigan, well played

 

oh yeah, also the fact that a new Pokemon Direct is coming out tomorrow just as I said that we haven't been getting any news lately

 

so if you'll excuse me, I'll be eating my words now

not that I'm complaining, really

 

also, I fixed a grammatical error in the third to last paragraph

I'm not a grammar nazi or anything, but something sounded really funny and it was bugging me, lol

Heh, well, about that Pokemon Z…  I guess there’s not really any chance of it happening now.  We’re moving on to a new generation with Sun and Moon, woohoo!  The official website says it’s for the 3DS generation of consoles, so much like 5th gen we’re not moving on to the next generation of handhelds just yet.  That’s good news for you, since it looks like either Sun or Moon will be the 3DS Pokemon game you get to experience as it releases, right with everyone else!  I’m sure you’re excited.  Heck, even I’m so excited that I’ve already pre-ordered Moon for me and Sun for my brother off of Amazon, eheheh…  Since Kalos’s history seems to still have a lot of holes, especially regarding Zygarde and that new (7th gen?) Pokemon, Magearna, I’m guessing SM will be a “sequel” of sorts to XY.  I’m thinking a cross between GSC and B2W2: a new region with new Pokemon but with Kalos explorable post-game and a plot related to XY.  I could also see them pull a “Z Episode” akin to the Delta Episode we got with ORAS, if they want SM to be its own separate thing but still have something to appease the XY fans.  Whatever they end up doing, I’m excited for it!

 

Ahah, well, I only decided to get into Undertale because Etika started streaming it.  I thought to myself, well I can just do homework while I have the livestream playing in the background.  It saves me time if I multitask right?  Unfortunately, Undertale drew me in a bit too much, and I found it difficult to get much of my homework done.  Would it have been more efficient if I just studied hard when I had to study and played Undertale intensively when I had the time instead of attempt both at the same simultaneously?  Errr… maybe.  But I don’t regret watching Etika’s playthrough; it was really great!  I’m just a sucker for watching things live and interacting with a borderline (if not completely) cancerous chat, so that’s probably why I got a kick out of it so much.  Not to mention Etika is awesome as a person and he got really invested in the game after a point which made his reactions really genuine.  You should definitely play the game yourself as soon as you can, just so you don’t have to worry about stepping on anymore spoiler landmines.  It’s a game that can be experienced rather satisfactorily via a let’s play as well, so if you end up resorting to that I wouldn’t stop you (and it would be hypocritical if I did anyway, ahah).

 

Yeahhh, I’ve tried getting into classic JRPGs before by emulating Dragon Quest IX for the DS and Final Fantasy VI for the Game Boy Advanced but I lost interest in both of them before very long.  Something about the games just didn’t really click; hard to put my finger on what exactly though.  I’ve definitely heard of Chrono Trigger though, not sure in what context.  I’m guessing maybe people wanted some sort of Chrono Trigger representation in Smash, not sure though.  What made you want to play the game so long ago?

 

Oh damn, you mean that alternate episode 23 of Steins;Gate that acts as the prequel to Steins;Gate 0?  I need to get around to that, I keep on forgetting to.  It might be best to watch it right before S;G 0 comes out, just so it’s fresh in my head.  Pfft, actively going against my advice Kenzi?  Jeez, what a rebel.  I know you haven’t seen much of Monster, but hopefully you’re liking it so far.  It was perfectly paced as a manga but I can imagine it’s a lot slower in anime form, so hopefully you don’t lose interest in it.  Feel free to switch over to the manga if you ever want the pace to pick up.  Oh and geez, you’re ignoring your MAL!  Hmph, you made it for a reason so be sure to update it occasionally, yeah?

 

B-But my hair doesn’t follow basic properties of physics, so when it gets ruffled by the wind it really gets ruffled.  It never falls back to its original position like normal hair does, actively counteracting gravity.  It’s more of a rebel than you, to be honest.  Paired with my OCD, and it seriously bothers me knowing my hair is in disarray on windy days, eheheh.  And my lord, just listening to the bad habits of your family when it comes to window and A/C usage is rustling my jimmies, hah.  You know, I learned in my accounting class that most pollution is caused by normal people, not large factories.  Regular people have atrocious conservation habits, when it comes to trash disposal, water usage, and electricity abuse.  Factories on the other hands are generally all very eco-friendly, since businesses have been receiving benefits for adhering to stricter guidelines these past few years.  Factories may have been the bigger culprits back when Al Gore was still popular a decade ago, but times have changed.  People may look toward government to push for sustainability efforts, but if those same people aren’t pulling their own weight and pitching in to save the environment, then we’re not getting anywhere.  Just a little food for thought, I guess.  Ohhh, uhh, and about driving, you see……  I didn’t practice at all during winter break.  I’ll definitely (probably) start this spring break, which is this coming week for me, so I’ll let you know just how bad I am at driving in reverse once I try it.  I'm actually taking a flight back home tomorrow at around six in the afternoon.  It's certainly strange having such an early spring break...

 

Hrmm, well this semester I’ve participated in absolutely no clubs or extracurricular activities.  I feel kinda bad about it, but with the classes I’m taking and the video games and anime I want to get around to, I have no time for anything else.  Heck, I’ve even been going to the gym less frequently and less regularly as well (though that’s in part due to the winter weather killing my motivation).  Ugh, everyone else has already made friends and established connections and decided who their suitemates will be for next year, and I’m just like…... woah, room selections are starting soon, wut?  I’m so out of the loop, oh gosh.  I don’t mind though; I’ll just apply as a single applicant for the room lottery.  It may seem like it would be better for me to be more active, but I really am an introvert, more so of one now than I was in high school, just because I’m in an unfamiliar place with strangers.  I’m perfectly content just getting by like I have been.

 

Ah, so it’s still only the tennis that gives you headaches like that.  Speaking of which, how did January and February treat you?  I believe you’ve mentioned in the past that you generally dislike those months because they’re so cold and you’re more prone to headaches and waking up in the morning is significantly more difficult.  Hopefully it wasn’t so bad this year.  Aww, yeah, your alarms and wallpapers and stuff are pretty standard.  Hm, it would have been nice if you were allowed some more freedom in that regard.  Hopefully when you go off to college you’ll have that chance.  Customizing things so they really fit your personality and style is a lot of fun.  The more you make yourself the better it usually is.  That being said, I’ve changed my laptop’s wallpaper again.  It’s 999-themed, but this time it’s interactive.  I used Rainmeter to make it, a highly customizable program that optimizes desktops.  I wish I could share my desktop with you, but there are some moving parts to it that are better experienced in person or via a video or gif.  If I find the time to learn how to record my desktop and convert it to a gif, I’ll be sure to show it to you.

 

Well, it’s a new semester and my eating habits have altered.  I’m eating more now, so don’t worry, I haven’t fallen into a state of skins of bones in your absence.  I’ve taken up almost always eating breakfast (except when I oversleep and have to run to class, of course) even though my earliest classes start at 9 am or 10 am depending on the day.  If you’re wondering how I manage it, it’s because I’ve tried getting into better sleeping habits as well.  It’s kinda working, though I’ve dozed off more than I’d like in class so I still need some work in that aspect.  Along with the breakfast I almost always have, I’ve still maintained my 5 pm dinner.  I’ve also invested in keeping a box of granola bars in stock.  They’re pretty bland, but they’re cheap and I don’t want to keep anything too tasty in the room else I risk over snacking or not taking advantage of my breakfast and dinners.  Oh, and I guess bread is fine with like, butter on it or something.  Toast is generally better though.  And though you say you have bad eating habits, I’m fairly certain they’re still better than mine.  Only thing I have over you is the fact that I eat the most important meal of the day which you skip, ahahahaha! just playin just playin  Thanks for those little snack suggestions though.  I don’t have the liberty of keeping a huge stock of perishable foods in my dorm room, so granola bars will suffice for now.

 

Ahh goodness, staying up that late last semester, good times (even if they were only a few months ago).  Of course, if my previous paragraph wasn’t reassurance enough, I’ve gotten into better sleeping habits.  I’ve been doing a pretty good job of doing my homework and studying efficiently, at the expense of going to the gym (can’t sacrifice my anime and video game time after all, not in the wake of Fates’s release, fufufu).  I’m also not having as much trouble waking up on time, which is good.  Thanks for the advice though, I’ll keep that alarm trick in the back of my mind if I ever need to use it.  

 

And you thought Akazora would be eating lunch this semester, but it was me, breakfast!  Ehem, but yeah, I’m still not eating lunch; a four-year-old habit of skipping a certain meal of the day is hard to break, heheh.  As for how college has been going so far, I guess it’s been fine.  I’ve already explained how my social life and eating and sleeping habits are going, so all that’s left to cover is classes.  Despite that I’m taking more classes, they’re all going well so far.  That Excel course can sometimes entail quite a bit of work, but my professor gives out pretty easy “A” regardless so I’m not complaining.  My accounting 102 professor is really nice.  There’s a lot of work involved in the class though, but she’s a really good teacher (much better at teaching than my accounting 101 professor was at least) and as long as I put in the work, I believe I’ll be able to pull off an “A” so I’m pretty content with that.  There’s barely any homework for my econ class (only one small assignment a week) but there isn’t much room for error either so every grade counts.  As long as I do pretty well on every exam, I should be fine.  My political science class is interesting.  There’s quite a bit of homework every week, less than accounting though, but the class material is fascinating and the grading is fair, from what I can tell so far.  My SAGES course on protest drama isn’t as good as my First Seminar, though that’s probably because my first professor spoiled me and got my expectations skewed.  It’s not a bad class, but my professor isn’t the easiest grader of essays and protest drama isn’t as interesting of a topic as I had hoped it would be.  And finally, my management class is super chill.  There’s hardly any work involved and the professor is a pretty cool guy, so I think it’s going to be another easy “A” along with my Excel course.  Enough about my classes though; how has school been on your side?  You took a nice long break to focus on your academics, and I’m really hoping things went well.

 

Ahaha, I wouldn’t be too envious about my situation here.  There were some days when the snow was really nice, but there were also days even warmer than the ones you had.  A couple of days ago, I believe it peaked at 68 degrees at some point during the day, and it got so hot in my dorm room since neither me nor my roommate ever leaves that I had to turn on the A/C.  That’s right, the A/C in February.  And of course, we haven’t had a day when just an absolutely massive amount of snow was dumped on the ground yet, which is something I look forward to every winter.  It looks like this winter is pretty much wrapped up though, so I guess I’ll have to wait for next year for a real Midwestern winter.

 

Oh, well I guess it would have been weird if all the teachers you ever had were all saintly or something, hahah.  It’s only reasonable to assume that there’s a fair share of bad teachers in every bunch.  And I guess the teachers at JP weren’t bad as much as they were, just… not good.  Which I guess means they were pretty bad, hah.  I dunno, from what I remember, your grade often hinged on which teacher you got for a subject.  Some people cruise by with an easy teacher while others have all of their other grades negatively affected by this one relentlessly difficult teacher.  It was this unbalance in teacher difficultly even within a single course paired with the noticeable lack of memorable or good teachers that made the environment of JP suffocating.  The teaching situation is a lot better here at Case, save for a few exceptions.

 

Man, Barnes and Noble is awesome!  I love the smell of the place especially, ahah.  I also really liked the layout of the B&N in my hometown, with its two escalators leading up to the second floor that rings around the edge of the building.  It certainly gives the store a spacious feel.  The one in my town is also a few miles away from home, so if I ever desired to go there I would have had to have someone drive me there, which is why I hardly ever went.  I used to go there a lot for my summer reading books back in middle school, but of course we’ve since defaulted to Amazon since my parents couldn’t be bothered to go all the way to the mall just for a couple of books.  It’s nice you have a little haven just for yourself though.  My haven is my room, or dorm room for when I’m not home (which is most of the time now).  My dorm room isn’t exactly an ideal private space anymore because my roommate is here almost all the time, but I don’t really want to go out of my way to find some other place to be alone either.  As long as I have a locked, relatively private room to either relax or study in, I’m good.

 

The Tatami Galaxy is still pretty hard to stumble upon even by chance, and you’d be surprised by how often people will judge an anime by its cover.  If people didn’t, I’m sure anime like The Tatami Galaxy would be much more mainstream.  I still haven’t gotten around to Tatami Galaxy or Ping Pong, but I definitely will eventually, don’t worry.

 

I probably only really like the games because of nostalgia.  DKC is a fun platformer, but I only really prefer it over Super Mario Bros because I happened to get into it first.  Star Fox Adventures is sometimes called the poor man’s Zelda, so if you really want me to be objective then I’d recommend you invest your time into Ocarina of Time rather than Adventures.  SFA does have some redeeming qualities though.  For one thing, it looks gorgeous.  The graphics and lighting are amazing considering it came out in 2002, and the scenery is magical.  The soundtrack is also really good.  It was originally called Dinosaur Planet and was supposed to be released for the N64 instead of Game Cube, but it was changed to fall under the Star Fox series late in development.  As a result, the plot kinda falls apart in the last quarter of the game.  There was a lot of potential for a new Zelda-like IP, but unfortunately the original game will never see the light of day.  I’ve replayed the game a lot for nostalgia’s sake, ahah.  It’s a good game, but it’s not worth your time considering all the other stuff you need to get around to.  And DKC is just a fun little platformer, not really much to say about it, hahah.

 

Hmm, upon further consideration, maybe you don’t need to get Smash.  The DLC makes the game a lot more expensive than it is on the surface, and since you pretty much get the gist of what the game is like by watching it on YouTube, it may not be worth the monetary investment.  Smash is still best experienced with friends, after all, and the 3DS version doesn’t really promote much of that, even if you could always play with me, hah.  It’s up to you whether or not you still want to get it though.  I’d recommend something like VLR or Ocarina of Time in its place, or any of the other 3DS games I recommended you play before (to be honest, I’m starting to forget what I recommended, oh dear…).

 

Ahh, that’s interesting, I’ll try my best to vary up my schedule and make things different whenever I can, just to avoid falling into too heavy of a routine.  I don’t want to take my time for granted and wonder where it all went when I’m older after all.  I know when I say that, it seems to suggest I really ought to get out of my room more often and socialize, but ehhhhhhh……

 

Corrin and Bayonetta are pretty fun!  I don’t know or think I’ll be maining them though.  If I do main one of them, I’ll have to put in a lot of work.  That’s the case with every character I guess, but it’s especially the case with Bayonetta since you won’t be pulling off those crazy combos she has without some serious labbing.  Corrin feels a bit janky, but not in a bad way, just in a way I’m going to have to get used to if I main him.  As for Fates, I’m having a lot of fun with it!  Some people are blazing through all the routes, and I guess I’ll do my best not to completely fall behind the majority, but at the same time I don’t want to rush the experience.  This is the first game ever that I played on the actual day it came out; I’ve never done that before so it certainly has a special place in my heart even if just for that.  It’s a completely different monster from Awakening and is a very experimentative FE game all around, so you should definitely still play Awakening first just so you know what a “normal” FE game is before experiencing something a bit more unorthodox like Fates.

 

Pfffttt okay, so your sister decides to watch Shigatsu of all anime even though she claims not to watch anime anymore?  This is the same person who watched Free, right??  Okeeeyyy, I think she may be a closet-fujoshi, just sayin’.  Shigatsu would have been a lot better if it was the length of a song, like a regular 4:30 minute song or something.  The characters are so dislikable and the plot is so generically predictable from the premise alone, I think any longer would ruin it.  Even 12 episodes or a full movie would be too long.  Songs can be very effective at telling a simple story when done right, like this (all the ones with higher quality audio have worse subs, and be sure to watch to the end; it’s the best part).  Man, I really must have missed something, because I don’t remember any of the soundtracks from Shigatsu.  They all seemed pretty generic to me.  Like, Shigatsu’s “Again” just sounds like a remixed version of Rei Kagaya’s “Running Through the Stars” which was composed over a decade ago. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

Hmmm, how I’ve been?  Oh gosh where to start…  I’ve covered a lot of stuff already so I’ll do my best to hit up things I haven’t yet mentioned.  This is probably going to be a bit unorganized as I try to remember what I’ve been doing the past two months, bleh.

 

I suppose a good place to start would be with all the purchases I made.  I bought the original Kino no Tabi collector’s edition box which came with a mini display license plate off of eBay.  The box holds four DVD’s containing all the episodes in both sub and dub.  The discs also have menu options to view slideshows of promo art and character design sketches.  The collector’s box was the very first method through which people in America could watch the series.  Kino no Tabi has since been reprinted on more compact discs (most recently on just two DVDs in a single case which is strangely in stock on Best Buy’s website) but I wanted to get rarer merchandise than just normal DVDs to help represent my love for the series.  That wasn’t the only thing I bought off of eBay though.  I also imported a promotional pamphlet for The Dog of Flanders, which was apparently handed out in Japanese theaters when the movie was first screened in 1997.  This makes the magazine-like booklet literally as old as I am.  It’s in amazing quality for its age and contains artwork and a lot of text covering the production and planning of the movie.  It’s all in Japanese naturally so I have no idea what they’re saying, but it’s nice to have anyway.  The Dog of Flanders is so discrete that scans of these don’t exist anywhere online, so this is quite the rare merchandise I managed to get my hands on.

 

Shifting away from anime, I also purchased some video game merchandise.  To celebrate Pokemon’s 20th anniversary, I bought this limited edition Poke Puff Pikachu plush from Toys “R” Us.  This was during a special Pokemon sale they were hosting, so it wasn’t as expensive then as it’s listed as now.  I wanted something that could be immediately identified as unique, hence why a got this specially patterned plush as opposed to one of the monthly event legendary plushes.  The amiibo collector in me wants to maintain its rarity, which is why I haven’t taken it out of its “box” yet.  The box acts as a nice little holder for the plush, and is open-topped and open-sided so I can still touch Pikachu directly.  Additionally, I pre-ordered a 999 fanzine, which I posted about on DCW but I’m not sure if you saw.  There’s so little merch for this series, and the zine looked pretty cool, so I secured myself a copy.  You can still buy it here, if you’re interested, but it won’t come with the free bookmark unfortunately.  It looks like it ships in April, so I don’t have it yet, but I’m excited to receive it!  And finally, to represent Undertale, I pre-order an official Toriel plush, also something I posted about on DCW.  I felt bad for only watching a playthrough and not actually buying the game myself, so I bought it as a token of my appreciation to Toby, ahah.

 

Actually, no, I kinda lied, that isn’t all I bought.  I haven’t placed the order yet, but I’m planning on getting two small binders to hold my and my brother’s Pokemon cards.  We’ve amassed a decent collection through the years (some of them, uhh, illegally as you already know…) and I want a good way to display them since currently they’re just sitting in the basement all stacked on top of each other.  My free Amazon Prime membership expires soon, but before it does I want to take advantage of the free 2-day shipping and get those binders.  Speaking of which, video game pre-orders are really cheap on Amazon right now for some reason; I think there’s some kind of special deal going on.  For Prime members only, pre-ordered 3DS games are $31.99 as opposed to the regular $39.99.  As such, I’ve pre-ordered not only Sun and Moon as I mentioned earlier but also Zero Time Dilemma.  Though they don’t ship until after my Prime membership expires, as long as you place an order when you still have Prime you’ll still reap the Prime benefits of free 2-day shipping and reduced price when the products are released.

 

Oh, and I have a funny story to tell about buying Fates!  When I went to the GameStop to pick up my copy, I paid entirely in cash.  And by cash, I mean mostly singles and coins.  You see, I paid with the money my brother had saved up leaching away at his lunch money (he handed off the money to me during winter break), but since it was just lunch money change it was mostly singles.  I had also accumulated a lot of excess coins during the past few months whenever I paid with cash.  So I figured, might as well use up all my singles and most of my coins to pay the exact amount at a slow paced store, and there was no better place than my local GameStop which is out in the middle of nowhere.  I phoned in the day before the 19th to learn that GameStop charged 8% tax.  The special edition was $79.99, and with tax it would be $86.39.  However, I also made a $25 down payment when I pre-ordered in-store all those months ago, so the amount I was expected to pay the next day would actually be $61.39.  Taking all the physical money I had into consideration and aiming to maximize the use of singles and coins, I ultimately decided to use the following combination: 47 one dollar bills, 2 five dollar bills, 10 quarters, 9 dimes, 16 nickels, and 19 pennies.  You can imagine it was quite the sight dumping all that money on the counter and having the cashier verify I was paying the right amount like we were living in the 1950s.  Paying in cash like that is a lot more satisfying than swiping a card though, gotta admit.

 

Sooooo, uhh, yeah for real this time, I’m fairly certain I’m done talking about the random stuff I bought.  My nerd collection is expanding, and the worst part about it is that my parents don’t know about any of this.  Sighhh, oh well, when they pick me up at the end of the semester I’m not even going to try and hide all the trinkets I purchased.  They gave me a bunch of Christmas money and when I asked them if I could buy anything I wanted with it they gave me the green light, soooo…… they can’t yell at me, right??  I’ll just have to downplay the prices of everything I bought, or else the numbers won’t add up.  I’ll just have to curb my spending tendencies for the rest of the semester; I’m only going to spend my digital and physical money on special time-sensitive limited edition video game and anime merch, assuming anything of the sort is released.

 

Let’s see, so as far as video games go, I never actually finished Awakening on Lunatic mode like I originally planned.  Lunatic is insanely difficult, mainly because succeeding is reliant on lucky RNG, tenacious soft-reseting when it’s required, and a lot of time.  That’s not the way I wanted to experience Awakening, so I scraped the Lunatic run and started a Hard run instead.  It’s been a much better experience and to make it special I decided to support grind all the characters with each other to at least A rank.  That doesn’t mean much to you since you haven’t played the game yet, but all you have to know is that supports are fun little conversations between two characters that are unlocked by having them fight adjacent to each other.  Unlocking all of them requires grinding, which is what I’ve spent a majority of my time on in Awakening.  Unfortunately, as a result I ended up not finishing the run, but that’s fine.  I definitely want to wrap it up at a later time, after I finish Fates.  Ahh, and speaking of unfinished games, I never finished DKC: Tropical Freeze either.  I certainly made progress with it, but it’s not the easiest platformer and I found myself gravitating toward Splatoon whenever I had time to play the Wii U.

 

Ohh, and I finally played Cave Story!  I, uhh, “finished” it right before Fates came out.  I guess to say “finished” would be misleading, since I never technically completed the game.  Truth be told, I’m stuck.  Stuck really bad.  I looked up how to unlock the best ending, and in my foolishness I decided to go for it, not realizing how brutally difficult it would end up being at the end of the game.  I’m playing on Easy Mode, and I’m still getting rekt.  I’m stuck in the hidden Last Cave.  And when I mean stuck, I mean reaaaalllllyyy stuck.  The game locks you there, so I can’t go back and just do the regular Last Cave anymore, I never seem to make much progress before dying, and I’m seriously considering restarting the game.  And to make matters worse, this isn’t even the hardest part of the game.  I’ve met all the requirements for the Blood Stained Sanctuary, which comes later and is apparently even harder??  Oh lawd, I’m not cut out for this at all, nope nope nope.  This game was fun, but damn I don’t have the hours to spend on something as difficult as the best end.  I might just watch a playthrough of the last few bits and call it a day.  But that aside, I enjoyed the game!  I can see where Toby took inspiration from this game when making Undertale.  Speaking of which, Undertale has inspired me to play the games it references, most notably the Mother series.  I’m thinking of playing the whole trilogy, starting with a fan translation of Mother 1 (or Earthbound Beginnings/0, depending on the translation), then moving on to Earthbound (or Mother 2 in Japan), and finishing with a fan translation of Mother 3.  This will also allow me to relate to Ness and Lucas more as Smash characters.  Ugh, I just need to find the time for a series like this.  But anyway, I digress.  I also really liked Cave Story’s soundtrack.  This goes without saying, but dayum that main theme/plantation theme is real clean.  There were probably other good soundtracks as well, but I still feel the main theme is the best.

 

Anyway, considering how difficult Cave Story’s best end was, at least to me, I’m probably going to have to pass on Super Meat Boy.  I’ll just watch a playthrough of it or something.  I’ve never been that great at platformers anyway (the original DKC took me years to beat and even DKCR got me stuck on this one part of some random level for hours) so I’m going to have to avoid the especially difficult ones.

 

I didn’t watch much anime while you were gone, but I checked a few things off of my unofficial plan to watch list.  I posted about everything elsewhere on the forum, so I guess if you’re really curious about the details and you missed the posts you can just go back and find them.  There’s not much else to say, and I fear this response is getting a bit lengthy so I’ll try to wrap up soon.  Dennou Coil was good, but since you already have so much else on your plate I wouldn’t recommend you go out of your way to watch it.

 

As for how I’ve been in general these past two months, I guess I’ve been fine.  Winter break went by really fast.  This is the longest winter break I’ve ever had, but it felt shorter than last year’s which was only a little over a full week long (and I had college applications to complete).  Maybe it has something to do with your absence, heh.  My family and I did the same stuff as usual this break as we did last break: watch movies together, go to New York City for fun, hang out and relax, etc.  We didn’t watch as many movies together as we did last year; that might have also contributed to the brevity of this break.  Ah, and the fact that it wasn’t very cold; that certainly put a damper on the mood even though we had the Christmas tree strung up and I blasted Christmas music from my laptop whenever I had the chance to give the house a cheery soundtrack, ahah.  Last winter break is still my favorite, or at least my favorite in recent memory, but this year’s wasn’t too bad… just a bit underwhelming at times.  How was your winter break?  You hardly ever alluded to it in your response, and I’m guessing that’s because you were working on college applications, but I’m sure more than just studying happened while you were away.  I want to hear all about it!  You’re finally back and I’m so happy, you could just sit there talking about the time you dropped a pencil on the ground and I’d be excited to hear about it.  You don’t need to hold back at all!

 

That just about does it for this response.  Sorry for rambling at times; there’s just a lot I’ve been meaning to tell you.  I’m fairly certain I’ve forgotten some things as well, so if I randomly say something like, “Oh, that reminds of something that happened over winter break…” in August, you know the reason why.  I’m sorry again, for being a nuisance, and feel free to take as long as you need getting back to me.  Don’t feel pressured to write too much; even though I may sound eager to hear all the details about how you’ve been, if writing about it would get in the way of your AP exams then I don’t want you to sacrifice your academics for my sake.  And that being said, I wish you the best of luck on anything you may have coming up, be it orchestra or tennis or school related!  I hope you enjoyed the snow day, and don’t forget to take care of yourself! 

 

--

Wow, I can't believe I initially forgot to rep your post...

I believe we can agree both of us have practically become senile old farts before even truly pushing 20.

Edited March 4, 2016 by Akazora

[machine 52]

Just finished Nageki's route in Hatoful Boyfriend... my poor pigeon son

If anything, the game's certainly unique. You play as the only human in a world populated by birds. You attend a prestigious high school, and the characters you can 'romance' are mostly classmates, but for some reason, the narcoleptic teacher and creepy school nurse are available routes too. (I think there's a route available outside the school too with a female bird, but, to be honest, I have no idea what that route entails yet). As the days you go by, you can improve your stats through any of the three electives, participate in both in and out of school festivals, and learn more whichever bird you're pursing. The art's alright, nothing special, but it suffices. The text sometimes feels like it lags and I have to press buttons twice but it's not a huge problem all in all. The music is kinda weird though. Some of it is very generic, but then one or two pieces I've heard thus far are like well known pieces of classical music. Like Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairly from The Nutcracker plays when you meet with the school nurse. It's a weird combination, but not a bothersome one.

Had to use a guide because on my first run through. I ended up dying from just choosing what options sounded most appealing since those didn't result in any specific route. Didn't realize there were so many paths in this game, I'll try to do all of them because if you speed through the text you've already seen and only read the dialogue with your bird of choice, you can get through it in about 30-40mins. Some birds apparently have two endings though, and the guide's kinda vague, so hopefully I'll be able to get those too, but it looks like the birds that have those, are some of the characters I'm least interested in, so it's nbd if I don't get to those. My only complaint so far is that you don't find out why Nageki committed suicide in HB. You can find out why in the dlc, Bad Boys Love, probably along with other characters' more detailed backstories too, but I'm not gonna buy that because... that title, , ,, , no thnx i'll pass on that

Like it so far. Its weird atmosphere is kinda charming in a way to be honest. Don't necessarily know if I feel it was worth the $10 yet, but I've only seen a fraction of the content, so maybe that opinion will change soon. Hopefully the other routes will be just as, if not more enjoyable. I heard this game was kinda sad, and if Nageki's route is as sad as it gets I'll be a little disappointed. Looking forward to playing the rest of it though!

[Kaito Natake 4]

Undertale demo :3

[sashanksrikar 1]

Assassin's Creed Black Flag

[Kaito Natake 4]

Fun o3o

[machine 52]

Fantasy Life 

The character customization is neat, the writing's quirky, and there's a nice variety of enemies. There's a ridiculous amount of quests though (like 300 if I'm remembering correctly)

[Kenzi 146]

 

Heh, well, about that Pokemon Z…  I guess there’s not really any chance of it happening now.  We’re moving on to a new generation with Sun and Moon, woohoo!  The official website says it’s for the 3DS generation of consoles, so much like 5th gen we’re not moving on to the next generation of handhelds just yet.  That’s good news for you, since it looks like either Sun or Moon will be the 3DS Pokemon game you get to experience as it releases, right with everyone else!  I’m sure you’re excited.  Heck, even I’m so excited that I’ve already pre-ordered Moon for me and Sun for my brother off of Amazon, eheheh…  Since Kalos’s history seems to still have a lot of holes, especially regarding Zygarde and that new (7th gen?) Pokemon, Magearna, I’m guessing SM will be a “sequel” of sorts to XY.  I’m thinking a cross between GSC and B2W2: a new region with new Pokemon but with Kalos explorable post-game and a plot related to XY.  I could also see them pull a “Z Episode” akin to the Delta Episode we got with ORAS, if they want SM to be its own separate thing but still have something to appease the XY fans.  Whatever they end up doing, I’m excited for it!

 

Ahah, well, I only decided to get into Undertale because Etika started streaming it.  I thought to myself, well I can just do homework while I have the livestream playing in the background.  It saves me time if I multitask right?  Unfortunately, Undertale drew me in a bit too much, and I found it difficult to get much of my homework done.  Would it have been more efficient if I just studied hard when I had to study and played Undertale intensively when I had the time instead of attempt both at the same simultaneously?  Errr… maybe.  But I don’t regret watching Etika’s playthrough; it was really great!  I’m just a sucker for watching things live and interacting with a borderline (if not completely) cancerous chat, so that’s probably why I got a kick out of it so much.  Not to mention Etika is awesome as a person and he got really invested in the game after a point which made his reactions really genuine.  You should definitely play the game yourself as soon as you can, just so you don’t have to worry about stepping on anymore spoiler landmines.  It’s a game that can be experienced rather satisfactorily via a let’s play as well, so if you end up resorting to that I wouldn’t stop you (and it would be hypocritical if I did anyway, ahah).

 

Yeahhh, I’ve tried getting into classic JRPGs before by emulating Dragon Quest IX for the DS and Final Fantasy VI for the Game Boy Advanced but I lost interest in both of them before very long.  Something about the games just didn’t really click; hard to put my finger on what exactly though.  I’ve definitely heard of Chrono Trigger though, not sure in what context.  I’m guessing maybe people wanted some sort of Chrono Trigger representation in Smash, not sure though.  What made you want to play the game so long ago?

 

Oh damn, you mean that alternate episode 23 of Steins;Gate that acts as the prequel to Steins;Gate 0?  I need to get around to that, I keep on forgetting to.  It might be best to watch it right before S;G 0 comes out, just so it’s fresh in my head.  Pfft, actively going against my advice Kenzi?  Jeez, what a rebel.  I know you haven’t seen much of Monster, but hopefully you’re liking it so far.  It was perfectly paced as a manga but I can imagine it’s a lot slower in anime form, so hopefully you don’t lose interest in it.  Feel free to switch over to the manga if you ever want the pace to pick up.  Oh and geez, you’re ignoring your MAL!  Hmph, you made it for a reason so be sure to update it occasionally, yeah?

 

B-But my hair doesn’t follow basic properties of physics, so when it gets ruffled by the wind it really gets ruffled.  It never falls back to its original position like normal hair does, actively counteracting gravity.  It’s more of a rebel than you, to be honest.  Paired with my OCD, and it seriously bothers me knowing my hair is in disarray on windy days, eheheh.  And my lord, just listening to the bad habits of your family when it comes to window and A/C usage is rustling my jimmies, hah.  You know, I learned in my accounting class that most pollution is caused by normal people, not large factories.  Regular people have atrocious conservation habits, when it comes to trash disposal, water usage, and electricity abuse.  Factories on the other hands are generally all very eco-friendly, since businesses have been receiving benefits for adhering to stricter guidelines these past few years.  Factories may have been the bigger culprits back when Al Gore was still popular a decade ago, but times have changed.  People may look toward government to push for sustainability efforts, but if those same people aren’t pulling their own weight and pitching in to save the environment, then we’re not getting anywhere.  Just a little food for thought, I guess.  Ohhh, uhh, and about driving, you see……  I didn’t practice at all during winter break.  I’ll definitely (probably) start this spring break, which is this coming week for me, so I’ll let you know just how bad I am at driving in reverse once I try it.  I'm actually taking a flight back home tomorrow at around six in the afternoon.  It's certainly strange having such an early spring break...

 

Hrmm, well this semester I’ve participated in absolutely no clubs or extracurricular activities.  I feel kinda bad about it, but with the classes I’m taking and the video games and anime I want to get around to, I have no time for anything else.  Heck, I’ve even been going to the gym less frequently and less regularly as well (though that’s in part due to the winter weather killing my motivation).  Ugh, everyone else has already made friends and established connections and decided who their suitemates will be for next year, and I’m just like…... woah, room selections are starting soon, wut?  I’m so out of the loop, oh gosh.  I don’t mind though; I’ll just apply as a single applicant for the room lottery.  It may seem like it would be better for me to be more active, but I really am an introvert, more so of one now than I was in high school, just because I’m in an unfamiliar place with strangers.  I’m perfectly content just getting by like I have been.

 

Ah, so it’s still only the tennis that gives you headaches like that.  Speaking of which, how did January and February treat you?  I believe you’ve mentioned in the past that you generally dislike those months because they’re so cold and you’re more prone to headaches and waking up in the morning is significantly more difficult.  Hopefully it wasn’t so bad this year.  Aww, yeah, your alarms and wallpapers and stuff are pretty standard.  Hm, it would have been nice if you were allowed some more freedom in that regard.  Hopefully when you go off to college you’ll have that chance.  Customizing things so they really fit your personality and style is a lot of fun.  The more you make yourself the better it usually is.  That being said, I’ve changed my laptop’s wallpaper again.  It’s 999-themed, but this time it’s interactive.  I used Rainmeter to make it, a highly customizable program that optimizes desktops.  I wish I could share my desktop with you, but there are some moving parts to it that are better experienced in person or via a video or gif.  If I find the time to learn how to record my desktop and convert it to a gif, I’ll be sure to show it to you.

 

Well, it’s a new semester and my eating habits have altered.  I’m eating more now, so don’t worry, I haven’t fallen into a state of skins of bones in your absence.  I’ve taken up almost always eating breakfast (except when I oversleep and have to run to class, of course) even though my earliest classes start at 9 am or 10 am depending on the day.  If you’re wondering how I manage it, it’s because I’ve tried getting into better sleeping habits as well.  It’s kinda working, though I’ve dozed off more than I’d like in class so I still need some work in that aspect.  Along with the breakfast I almost always have, I’ve still maintained my 5 pm dinner.  I’ve also invested in keeping a box of granola bars in stock.  They’re pretty bland, but they’re cheap and I don’t want to keep anything too tasty in the room else I risk over snacking or not taking advantage of my breakfast and dinners.  Oh, and I guess bread is fine with like, butter on it or something.  Toast is generally better though.  And though you say you have bad eating habits, I’m fairly certain they’re still better than mine.  Only thing I have over you is the fact that I eat the most important meal of the day which you skip, ahahahaha! just playin just playin  Thanks for those little snack suggestions though.  I don’t have the liberty of keeping a huge stock of perishable foods in my dorm room, so granola bars will suffice for now.

 

Ahh goodness, staying up that late last semester, good times (even if they were only a few months ago).  Of course, if my previous paragraph wasn’t reassurance enough, I’ve gotten into better sleeping habits.  I’ve been doing a pretty good job of doing my homework and studying efficiently, at the expense of going to the gym (can’t sacrifice my anime and video game time after all, not in the wake of Fates’s release, fufufu).  I’m also not having as much trouble waking up on time, which is good.  Thanks for the advice though, I’ll keep that alarm trick in the back of my mind if I ever need to use it.  

 

And you thought Akazora would be eating lunch this semester, but it was me, breakfast!  Ehem, but yeah, I’m still not eating lunch; a four-year-old habit of skipping a certain meal of the day is hard to break, heheh.  As for how college has been going so far, I guess it’s been fine.  I’ve already explained how my social life and eating and sleeping habits are going, so all that’s left to cover is classes.  Despite that I’m taking more classes, they’re all going well so far.  That Excel course can sometimes entail quite a bit of work, but my professor gives out pretty easy “A” regardless so I’m not complaining.  My accounting 102 professor is really nice.  There’s a lot of work involved in the class though, but she’s a really good teacher (much better at teaching than my accounting 101 professor was at least) and as long as I put in the work, I believe I’ll be able to pull off an “A” so I’m pretty content with that.  There’s barely any homework for my econ class (only one small assignment a week) but there isn’t much room for error either so every grade counts.  As long as I do pretty well on every exam, I should be fine.  My political science class is interesting.  There’s quite a bit of homework every week, less than accounting though, but the class material is fascinating and the grading is fair, from what I can tell so far.  My SAGES course on protest drama isn’t as good as my First Seminar, though that’s probably because my first professor spoiled me and got my expectations skewed.  It’s not a bad class, but my professor isn’t the easiest grader of essays and protest drama isn’t as interesting of a topic as I had hoped it would be.  And finally, my management class is super chill.  There’s hardly any work involved and the professor is a pretty cool guy, so I think it’s going to be another easy “A” along with my Excel course.  Enough about my classes though; how has school been on your side?  You took a nice long break to focus on your academics, and I’m really hoping things went well.

 

Ahaha, I wouldn’t be too envious about my situation here.  There were some days when the snow was really nice, but there were also days even warmer than the ones you had.  A couple of days ago, I believe it peaked at 68 degrees at some point during the day, and it got so hot in my dorm room since neither me nor my roommate ever leaves that I had to turn on the A/C.  That’s right, the A/C in February.  And of course, we haven’t had a day when just an absolutely massive amount of snow was dumped on the ground yet, which is something I look forward to every winter.  It looks like this winter is pretty much wrapped up though, so I guess I’ll have to wait for next year for a real Midwestern winter.

 

Oh, well I guess it would have been weird if all the teachers you ever had were all saintly or something, hahah.  It’s only reasonable to assume that there’s a fair share of bad teachers in every bunch.  And I guess the teachers at JP weren’t bad as much as they were, just… not good.  Which I guess means they were pretty bad, hah.  I dunno, from what I remember, your grade often hinged on which teacher you got for a subject.  Some people cruise by with an easy teacher while others have all of their other grades negatively affected by this one relentlessly difficult teacher.  It was this unbalance in teacher difficultly even within a single course paired with the noticeable lack of memorable or good teachers that made the environment of JP suffocating.  The teaching situation is a lot better here at Case, save for a few exceptions.

 

Man, Barnes and Noble is awesome!  I love the smell of the place especially, ahah.  I also really liked the layout of the B&N in my hometown, with its two escalators leading up to the second floor that rings around the edge of the building.  It certainly gives the store a spacious feel.  The one in my town is also a few miles away from home, so if I ever desired to go there I would have had to have someone drive me there, which is why I hardly ever went.  I used to go there a lot for my summer reading books back in middle school, but of course we’ve since defaulted to Amazon since my parents couldn’t be bothered to go all the way to the mall just for a couple of books.  It’s nice you have a little haven just for yourself though.  My haven is my room, or dorm room for when I’m not home (which is most of the time now).  My dorm room isn’t exactly an ideal private space anymore because my roommate is here almost all the time, but I don’t really want to go out of my way to find some other place to be alone either.  As long as I have a locked, relatively private room to either relax or study in, I’m good.

 

The Tatami Galaxy is still pretty hard to stumble upon even by chance, and you’d be surprised by how often people will judge an anime by its cover.  If people didn’t, I’m sure anime like The Tatami Galaxy would be much more mainstream.  I still haven’t gotten around to Tatami Galaxy or Ping Pong, but I definitely will eventually, don’t worry.

 

I probably only really like the games because of nostalgia.  DKC is a fun platformer, but I only really prefer it over Super Mario Bros because I happened to get into it first.  Star Fox Adventures is sometimes called the poor man’s Zelda, so if you really want me to be objective then I’d recommend you invest your time into Ocarina of Time rather than Adventures.  SFA does have some redeeming qualities though.  For one thing, it looks gorgeous.  The graphics and lighting are amazing considering it came out in 2002, and the scenery is magical.  The soundtrack is also really good.  It was originally called Dinosaur Planet and was supposed to be released for the N64 instead of Game Cube, but it was changed to fall under the Star Fox series late in development.  As a result, the plot kinda falls apart in the last quarter of the game.  There was a lot of potential for a new Zelda-like IP, but unfortunately the original game will never see the light of day.  I’ve replayed the game a lot for nostalgia’s sake, ahah.  It’s a good game, but it’s not worth your time considering all the other stuff you need to get around to.  And DKC is just a fun little platformer, not really much to say about it, hahah.

 

Hmm, upon further consideration, maybe you don’t need to get Smash.  The DLC makes the game a lot more expensive than it is on the surface, and since you pretty much get the gist of what the game is like by watching it on YouTube, it may not be worth the monetary investment.  Smash is still best experienced with friends, after all, and the 3DS version doesn’t really promote much of that, even if you could always play with me, hah.  It’s up to you whether or not you still want to get it though.  I’d recommend something like VLR or Ocarina of Time in its place, or any of the other 3DS games I recommended you play before (to be honest, I’m starting to forget what I recommended, oh dear…).

 

Ahh, that’s interesting, I’ll try my best to vary up my schedule and make things different whenever I can, just to avoid falling into too heavy of a routine.  I don’t want to take my time for granted and wonder where it all went when I’m older after all.  I know when I say that, it seems to suggest I really ought to get out of my room more often and socialize, but ehhhhhhh……

 

Corrin and Bayonetta are pretty fun!  I don’t know or think I’ll be maining them though.  If I do main one of them, I’ll have to put in a lot of work.  That’s the case with every character I guess, but it’s especially the case with Bayonetta since you won’t be pulling off those crazy combos she has without some serious labbing.  Corrin feels a bit janky, but not in a bad way, just in a way I’m going to have to get used to if I main him.  As for Fates, I’m having a lot of fun with it!  Some people are blazing through all the routes, and I guess I’ll do my best not to completely fall behind the majority, but at the same time I don’t want to rush the experience.  This is the first game ever that I played on the actual day it came out; I’ve never done that before so it certainly has a special place in my heart even if just for that.  It’s a completely different monster from Awakening and is a very experimentative FE game all around, so you should definitely still play Awakening first just so you know what a “normal” FE game is before experiencing something a bit more unorthodox like Fates.

 

Pfffttt okay, so your sister decides to watch Shigatsu of all anime even though she claims not to watch anime anymore?  This is the same person who watched Free, right??  Okeeeyyy, I think she may be a closet-fujoshi, just sayin’.  Shigatsu would have been a lot better if it was the length of a song, like a regular 4:30 minute song or something.  The characters are so dislikable and the plot is so generically predictable from the premise alone, I think any longer would ruin it.  Even 12 episodes or a full movie would be too long.  Songs can be very effective at telling a simple story when done right, like this (all the ones with higher quality audio have worse subs, and be sure to watch to the end; it’s the best part).  Man, I really must have missed something, because I don’t remember any of the soundtracks from Shigatsu.  They all seemed pretty generic to me.  Like, Shigatsu’s “Again” just sounds like a remixed version of Rei Kagaya’s “Running Through the Stars” which was composed over a decade ago. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

Hmmm, how I’ve been?  Oh gosh where to start…  I’ve covered a lot of stuff already so I’ll do my best to hit up things I haven’t yet mentioned.  This is probably going to be a bit unorganized as I try to remember what I’ve been doing the past two months, bleh.

 

I suppose a good place to start would be with all the purchases I made.  I bought the original Kino no Tabi collector’s edition box which came with a mini display license plate off of eBay.  The box holds four DVD’s containing all the episodes in both sub and dub.  The discs also have menu options to view slideshows of promo art and character design sketches.  The collector’s box was the very first method through which people in America could watch the series.  Kino no Tabi has since been reprinted on more compact discs (most recently on just two DVDs in a single case which is strangely in stock on Best Buy’s website) but I wanted to get rarer merchandise than just normal DVDs to help represent my love for the series.  That wasn’t the only thing I bought off of eBay though.  I also imported a promotional pamphlet for The Dog of Flanders, which was apparently handed out in Japanese theaters when the movie was first screened in 1997.  This makes the magazine-like booklet literally as old as I am.  It’s in amazing quality for its age and contains artwork and a lot of text covering the production and planning of the movie.  It’s all in Japanese naturally so I have no idea what they’re saying, but it’s nice to have anyway.  The Dog of Flanders is so discrete that scans of these don’t exist anywhere online, so this is quite the rare merchandise I managed to get my hands on.

 

Shifting away from anime, I also purchased some video game merchandise.  To celebrate Pokemon’s 20th anniversary, I bought this limited edition Poke Puff Pikachu plush from Toys “R” Us.  This was during a special Pokemon sale they were hosting, so it wasn’t as expensive then as it’s listed as now.  I wanted something that could be immediately identified as unique, hence why a got this specially patterned plush as opposed to one of the monthly event legendary plushes.  The amiibo collector in me wants to maintain its rarity, which is why I haven’t taken it out of its “box” yet.  The box acts as a nice little holder for the plush, and is open-topped and open-sided so I can still touch Pikachu directly.  Additionally, I pre-ordered a 999 fanzine, which I posted about on DCW but I’m not sure if you saw.  There’s so little merch for this series, and the zine looked pretty cool, so I secured myself a copy.  You can still buy it here, if you’re interested, but it won’t come with the free bookmark unfortunately.  It looks like it ships in April, so I don’t have it yet, but I’m excited to receive it!  And finally, to represent Undertale, I pre-order an official Toriel plush, also something I posted about on DCW.  I felt bad for only watching a playthrough and not actually buying the game myself, so I bought it as a token of my appreciation to Toby, ahah.

 

Actually, no, I kinda lied, that isn’t all I bought.  I haven’t placed the order yet, but I’m planning on getting two small binders to hold my and my brother’s Pokemon cards.  We’ve amassed a decent collection through the years (some of them, uhh, illegally as you already know…) and I want a good way to display them since currently they’re just sitting in the basement all stacked on top of each other.  My free Amazon Prime membership expires soon, but before it does I want to take advantage of the free 2-day shipping and get those binders.  Speaking of which, video game pre-orders are really cheap on Amazon right now for some reason; I think there’s some kind of special deal going on.  For Prime members only, pre-ordered 3DS games are $31.99 as opposed to the regular $39.99.  As such, I’ve pre-ordered not only Sun and Moon as I mentioned earlier but also Zero Time Dilemma.  Though they don’t ship until after my Prime membership expires, as long as you place an order when you still have Prime you’ll still reap the Prime benefits of free 2-day shipping and reduced price when the products are released.

 

Oh, and I have a funny story to tell about buying Fates!  When I went to the GameStop to pick up my copy, I paid entirely in cash.  And by cash, I mean mostly singles and coins.  You see, I paid with the money my brother had saved up leaching away at his lunch money (he handed off the money to me during winter break), but since it was just lunch money change it was mostly singles.  I had also accumulated a lot of excess coins during the past few months whenever I paid with cash.  So I figured, might as well use up all my singles and most of my coins to pay the exact amount at a slow paced store, and there was no better place than my local GameStop which is out in the middle of nowhere.  I phoned in the day before the 19th to learn that GameStop charged 8% tax.  The special edition was $79.99, and with tax it would be $86.39.  However, I also made a $25 down payment when I pre-ordered in-store all those months ago, so the amount I was expected to pay the next day would actually be $61.39.  Taking all the physical money I had into consideration and aiming to maximize the use of singles and coins, I ultimately decided to use the following combination: 47 one dollar bills, 2 five dollar bills, 10 quarters, 9 dimes, 16 nickels, and 19 pennies.  You can imagine it was quite the sight dumping all that money on the counter and having the cashier verify I was paying the right amount like we were living in the 1950s.  Paying in cash like that is a lot more satisfying than swiping a card though, gotta admit.

 

Sooooo, uhh, yeah for real this time, I’m fairly certain I’m done talking about the random stuff I bought.  My nerd collection is expanding, and the worst part about it is that my parents don’t know about any of this.  Sighhh, oh well, when they pick me up at the end of the semester I’m not even going to try and hide all the trinkets I purchased.  They gave me a bunch of Christmas money and when I asked them if I could buy anything I wanted with it they gave me the green light, soooo…… they can’t yell at me, right??  I’ll just have to downplay the prices of everything I bought, or else the numbers won’t add up.  I’ll just have to curb my spending tendencies for the rest of the semester; I’m only going to spend my digital and physical money on special time-sensitive limited edition video game and anime merch, assuming anything of the sort is released.

 

Let’s see, so as far as video games go, I never actually finished Awakening on Lunatic mode like I originally planned.  Lunatic is insanely difficult, mainly because succeeding is reliant on lucky RNG, tenacious soft-reseting when it’s required, and a lot of time.  That’s not the way I wanted to experience Awakening, so I scraped the Lunatic run and started a Hard run instead.  It’s been a much better experience and to make it special I decided to support grind all the characters with each other to at least A rank.  That doesn’t mean much to you since you haven’t played the game yet, but all you have to know is that supports are fun little conversations between two characters that are unlocked by having them fight adjacent to each other.  Unlocking all of them requires grinding, which is what I’ve spent a majority of my time on in Awakening.  Unfortunately, as a result I ended up not finishing the run, but that’s fine.  I definitely want to wrap it up at a later time, after I finish Fates.  Ahh, and speaking of unfinished games, I never finished DKC: Tropical Freeze either.  I certainly made progress with it, but it’s not the easiest platformer and I found myself gravitating toward Splatoon whenever I had time to play the Wii U.

 

Ohh, and I finally played Cave Story!  I, uhh, “finished” it right before Fates came out.  I guess to say “finished” would be misleading, since I never technically completed the game.  Truth be told, I’m stuck.  Stuck really bad.  I looked up how to unlock the best ending, and in my foolishness I decided to go for it, not realizing how brutally difficult it would end up being at the end of the game.  I’m playing on Easy Mode, and I’m still getting rekt.  I’m stuck in the hidden Last Cave.  And when I mean stuck, I mean reaaaalllllyyy stuck.  The game locks you there, so I can’t go back and just do the regular Last Cave anymore, I never seem to make much progress before dying, and I’m seriously considering restarting the game.  And to make matters worse, this isn’t even the hardest part of the game.  I’ve met all the requirements for the Blood Stained Sanctuary, which comes later and is apparently even harder??  Oh lawd, I’m not cut out for this at all, nope nope nope.  This game was fun, but damn I don’t have the hours to spend on something as difficult as the best end.  I might just watch a playthrough of the last few bits and call it a day.  But that aside, I enjoyed the game!  I can see where Toby took inspiration from this game when making Undertale.  Speaking of which, Undertale has inspired me to play the games it references, most notably the Mother series.  I’m thinking of playing the whole trilogy, starting with a fan translation of Mother 1 (or Earthbound Beginnings/0, depending on the translation), then moving on to Earthbound (or Mother 2 in Japan), and finishing with a fan translation of Mother 3.  This will also allow me to relate to Ness and Lucas more as Smash characters.  Ugh, I just need to find the time for a series like this.  But anyway, I digress.  I also really liked Cave Story’s soundtrack.  This goes without saying, but dayum that main theme/plantation theme is real clean.  There were probably other good soundtracks as well, but I still feel the main theme is the best.

 

Anyway, considering how difficult Cave Story’s best end was, at least to me, I’m probably going to have to pass on Super Meat Boy.  I’ll just watch a playthrough of it or something.  I’ve never been that great at platformers anyway (the original DKC took me years to beat and even DKCR got me stuck on this one part of some random level for hours) so I’m going to have to avoid the especially difficult ones.

 

I didn’t watch much anime while you were gone, but I checked a few things off of my unofficial plan to watch list.  I posted about everything elsewhere on the forum, so I guess if you’re really curious about the details and you missed the posts you can just go back and find them.  There’s not much else to say, and I fear this response is getting a bit lengthy so I’ll try to wrap up soon.  Dennou Coil was good, but since you already have so much else on your plate I wouldn’t recommend you go out of your way to watch it.

 

As for how I’ve been in general these past two months, I guess I’ve been fine.  Winter break went by really fast.  This is the longest winter break I’ve ever had, but it felt shorter than last year’s which was only a little over a full week long (and I had college applications to complete).  Maybe it has something to do with your absence, heh.  My family and I did the same stuff as usual this break as we did last break: watch movies together, go to New York City for fun, hang out and relax, etc.  We didn’t watch as many movies together as we did last year; that might have also contributed to the brevity of this break.  Ah, and the fact that it wasn’t very cold; that certainly put a damper on the mood even though we had the Christmas tree strung up and I blasted Christmas music from my laptop whenever I had the chance to give the house a cheery soundtrack, ahah.  Last winter break is still my favorite, or at least my favorite in recent memory, but this year’s wasn’t too bad… just a bit underwhelming at times.  How was your winter break?  You hardly ever alluded to it in your response, and I’m guessing that’s because you were working on college applications, but I’m sure more than just studying happened while you were away.  I want to hear all about it!  You’re finally back and I’m so happy, you could just sit there talking about the time you dropped a pencil on the ground and I’d be excited to hear about it.  You don’t need to hold back at all!

 

That just about does it for this response.  Sorry for rambling at times; there’s just a lot I’ve been meaning to tell you.  I’m fairly certain I’ve forgotten some things as well, so if I randomly say something like, “Oh, that reminds of something that happened over winter break…” in August, you know the reason why.  I’m sorry again, for being a nuisance, and feel free to take as long as you need getting back to me.  Don’t feel pressured to write too much; even though I may sound eager to hear all the details about how you’ve been, if writing about it would get in the way of your AP exams then I don’t want you to sacrifice your academics for my sake.  And that being said, I wish you the best of luck on anything you may have coming up, be it orchestra or tennis or school related!  I hope you enjoyed the snow day, and don’t forget to take care of yourself! 

 

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Wow, I can't believe I initially forgot to rep your post...

I believe we can agree both of us have practically become senile old farts before even truly pushing 20.

 

I'm really happy that I'll be able to play the next generation on my 3DS! I haven't played the games in so long, I'm getting all giddy just thinking about it! I was also thinking of getting Pokemon Moon myself (and more so now that the cover Pokemon has been revealed, oomph), but I'll have to wait until we get more information before I make that my final decision. After all, we still have half a year left of waiting, eheh. I'm really curious to know why they chose "Sun" and "Moon" as the titles though. Maybe they ran out of colors and minerals? I know a lot of people have been thinking about Mega Solrock and Lunatone and the theme being outer space, but that seems too obvious (they did show Solrock and Lunatone in the first trailer, though it may have been just to tease us). Also, Mega Flygon and Milotic pl0x. I'm not sure how the titles relate to Zygarde (or how they'll even incorporate Zygarde into the games), but dfjhadjhkadkfjadfjdfk I'm stoked! Also, I'm torn between the water and fire starter. I always choose the fire starter, but the trailer ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh............... should I go in blind or should I spoil the evolutions for myself?? I'm probably going to end up spoiling myself because I won't be able to contain the hype. Also, the internet is a spoiler minefield, so I'm bound to get spoiled eventually anyway. I'm still not entirely sure how you managed to do it, lol. Be sure to let me know what you plan to do so that I don't unintentionally spoil things for you, ahah. You've at least watched the most recent trailer, right? 

 

Hmm, so you actually didn't get to play Undertale? And gasp! You enjoyed the playthrough??? Haha, don't worry, I kid. One of my favorite Let's Players was doing a playthrough of this game, and I forced myself to quit watching because I was determined not to spoil the game for myself, urgh. He only got through the demo and a small portion of stuff that happens afterwards, so I've seen the introduction of Sans and Papyrus (ahaha, clever, clever names, Toby), but that's about it. Geezus, man, you had the guts to dive into Twitch's frenzied chat? There's not a single constructive comment in that warzone, and it's far worse than the YouTube comments section for most videos. Everything you can think to type is buried in spam in mere seconds and it's probably one of the most dehumanizing places on the internet. Dear lord, it's amazing what anonymity can cause people to turn into. Oh yeah, and I've run into a few people attempting to play Megalovania by ear on the piano after school and it's always fun joining them in struggling to figure out the notes, ahahaha. Aside from that and pleading to a couple of friends not to spoil the game for me, there's not much else I've done with Undertale.

 

Chrono Trigger is widely regarded as a masterpiece that has aged relatively well, which I think is a pretty big label for a game to have since I haven't seen much criticism floating around. I heard a lot of great things about it from this one friend, and I was seriously considering downloading it, but if you remember that one time my laptop got infected with some trojan, well, that was enough to deter me from playing it. I highly doubt I'm going to find the time to play it now since the game's apparently rather time consuming, but there's not much I can do about that at this point.

 

The Steins;Gate 0 OVA wasn't anything special... until you get to the last five minutes or so, and bam it hits you and you want more and then you silently cry to yourself because there's no sign of the anime coming out anytime soon. You could use it as a refresher for when Steins;Gate 0 comes out, but it really is mainly a recap of episode 23 (for the most part), so there's not much to gain from it, lol. Monster's been pretty good so far. I think it's hilarious how the entire premise of the anime seems to be based on everything spiraling out of control just because of one "morally right" decision Tenma chose to make. And this Johan kid is so detached; it's almost horrifying, yet fascinating. I just hope the anime doesn't follow the character magnetic team trope (it seems like it's going down this path). Oh yeah, and sorry for not updating my MAL. I'm not too sure why you're concerned though, ahah. I've just been getting kinda lazy about it since there's not much I do on there other than keep track of stuff I've watched and plan to watch. Also, this anime called Erased is huge (apparently it hit top 5 at some point??) and I'm thinking about watching it. Along with maybe Cowboy Bebop and HxH and One Punch Man and afadfkadkjfhadksjfhdkasfh.

 

I'd hate to break up your expectations, but no girl's hair looks like this in the wind, lol. Our hair definitely ruffles up (probably a lot more than you think, and dare I say possibly even more than your hair), and it can be a reaaaaal pain to comb it out afterwards. I almost never had trouble with my hair when I was little (back then I had one of those standard Asian bowl cuts, so uhhhhhhh...), so I'd imagine that guys rarely struggle with hair, not that most guys have bowl cuts or anything. I have this one friend who's a bit particular about his hair, but I thought he was just one of the few exceptions, haha. Don't worry, I won't force such unreasonable expectations onto you guys. We're human, after all, ahah. Ohh, that's an interesting point your accounting class brought up. My econ teacher also mentioned something similar about pollution, so if you don't mind, I'd like to add to what you said. It's funny, because you can ask any stranger on the street their opinion on pollution, and I'm willing to bet that they're against it. Yet, I think you'll agree that most heavily populated areas are filled with garbage like cigarette butts, potato chip bags, plastic bottles, six pack rings, plastic grocery bags, etc. And if you've seen the sidewalks of NYC, there are filthy blackened wads of gum on pretty much every sidewalk square. Weird, huh? What's with the discrepancy in attitude and consequence? The mob mentality of "oh, tossing just one gum wrapper on the streets won't make a difference" is why littering/pollution is so commonplace among everyday people. Convince everyone to believe that every piece of trash matters and that each person matters, and conservation efforts will undoubtedly improve loads (and, while unrelated, probably even voter turnout to that same effect). Of course, I have my doubts on how effective something that preachy will end up being, so I suppose we'll continue falling victim to this social trap until the pollution starts taking a direct toll on our everyday lives (wow, that's rather depressing). I mean, just look at how bad China is and the lack of effort being put forth to stop this, and the fact that you can see it from space, which is absolutely disgusting. Also, I'm gonna digress a bit here because think this and this are hilarious. But yeah, while the common people may be the main culprits for pollution in North America (air pollution included, but that's almost unavoidable since we're so reliant on cars), I'm not entirely sure that you'll be able to convince me that other countries like China uphold similar environmental standards for factories. And I may as well include this fun interactive map while I'm at it to give you an idea of how tame our predicament is in comparison to other parts of the world. And you can refer to this chart if you're wondering what all of those colorful flags mean. Your stance seems to be limited to America, because there are plenty of other areas around the globe where the pollution is far worse than just the kind caused by "normal people" (and not just China). But you definitely have a point there in saying that us regular people have a pretty big impact as well. Ahh, sorry for rambling on so much, eheh. Oh, and how's driving been going? It's been a while, so I'd love to hear about your progress so far!

 

Erm, I know you're an introvert and all, and I can respect that you're very independent--it's just that I honestly can't wrap my mind around the idea of going through college without a group of friends or any connections. I don't want to generalize or misinterpret your situation since I don't know what it's like to be in your shoes (and it's also been a while since we've last exchanged responses), but I sincerely hope you're okay. Video games and anime are great ways to unwind and all, but there's nothing wrong with changing things up a bit!

 

January and February were okay, I guess. This year's winter was really mild so I haven't had as much trouble getting up lately. Or maybe it's because I've been averaging around 5-6 hours of sleep on most days. And it's funny, because I rarely doze off in my classes now, as opposed to last year when it happened in almost every class every day. It's so much easier to absorb the material and focus in class when I'm not dozing off, ohmygosh, what was I doing junior year. I've been driving to school on most days now, so maybe that's helped a bit. Oh, and I also installed f.lux in order to control the amount of blue light emitted from my laptop to help me sleep better. Even though I still occasionally have headaches, I've only had to consume one ibuprofen pill since the year began, so that's also kinda nice. I don't think I have many custom things, now that I think about it. I have numerous extensions on Chrome that I actively use if that counts as anything. They make things so much more convenient, ahah. Ohh, Rainmeter seems really interesting. I'll have to look into it when I have the time. How did you come across this?

 

So uh... I've finally submitted to the supposedly "most important" meal of the day. I'm now bringing a frozen Gogurt with me to school! It's been so long since I last had one of these, holy moly, what a throwback. It's still hard for me to last until lunch sometimes, so it's not unusual for me to bring something else as well (something like dried coconut slices). I've also stashed some food (stuff like Clif Bars) leftover from tennis matches in my tennis bag, so I sometimes use those as a last resort when I'm feeling a little famished, hehe. 

 

School's been alright, I suppose. I have mixed feelings towards most of my classes since I've been feeling pretty burnt out lately. I guess my favorite class at the moment is orgo because I like the idea of how spatial the subject is. I've always been more of a geometry over algebra person, lol. I've also gotten pretty close to the teacher (he's definitely one of my favorite teachers), so the class is always a pleasure to attend. But gosh, I really wish I could've taken the time to understand physics better. I probably would've ended up liking the subject a lot more if I had a firmer grasp on the material. It's really fascinating to look at everyday circumstances through a physics standpoint, ahaha. It's a shame that the class didn't go as well as I would've liked. It's really hard to develop enthusiasm for the subject when the class is tailored to go over FRQs and prepare you for multiple choice tests. Honestly, this alone completely killed my motivation (and don't even get me started on those godforsaken webassigns, urgh). The vast majority of the class also consisted of reading off powerpoint slides that taught me next to nothing. But oh well. I suppose I can look over some texts in the bookstore in my free time to make up for this. There's not really much else that's worth noting. AP testing went as expected (for better or worse) except that my graphing calculator just stopped working during one of the tests for whatever reason (it wasn't even low on battery??) and the fact that it was freezing and my hands felt numb on certain days. I don't mind the cold too much, but geez, warn us beforehand if you're gonna set the thermostat to -30*, now will ya? Oh yeah, and the AP bio teacher is in some beef with collegeboard and even the school for discussing the test with students. I didn't realize that people actually took that warning seriously, lol. It sucks that those students might have their scores canceled though. So how was your first year of college? How would you evaluate your experience?  

 

What the... it peaked at 68* in February for you guys?? I guess the weather's just been really screwy lately because it's May now and our highs seem to have settled in the 60* range, which is just barely enough for t-shirt weather (and the fact that there were snow flurries bestowed upon us just now). Oh, and was there also a massive amount of snow dumped on you guys back in April? It kinda sucks how mild this year's winter was, and wtf is going on with spring, but hopefully next year we'll be blessed with a true midwestern winter, hah.

 

The teachers around here don't vary much difficulty-wise (only those teaching the same classes though), but there are definitely a few who are a bit harder than others. It's not enough to completely demolish your grade, but it can be pretty frustrating at times when you have boatloads of work piled on while others have a comparatively lighter load. The most memorable teachers I've had were the ones in the chem department. Gosh, I freaking love the orgo and AP chem teachers. I haven't met a single person who's had anything bad to say about them. It's nice to know that the professors are good at Case! I don't think I'll end up going into accounting, but I hope the professors are equally as awesome all across the board, haha. I can't believe that there's such a discrepancy in teacher difficulty at JP though. Didn't the teachers try to collaborate with each other on the curriculum? Or did they just do their own thing?

 

Oh, huh, I never took the time to acknowledge the smell of the bookstore, but that cafe fragrance is pretty relaxing, haha. Our Barnes and Noble doesn't have a second floor though (pfft, look at you living the good life). Despite having the convenience of Amazon, it seems that my parents would still prefer going to the bookstore. I mean, I do as well because there's nothing like the feeling of physically securing what you're looking for. No mix-ups, damages, or potentially getting your package lost in the mail. While those incidents are unlikely to happen, it's still a lot more comforting leaving with exactly what you wanted, especially having examined the item/book beforehand. Also, you have the advantage of immediacy as opposed to waiting or paying for expedited shipping, heh. I certainly won't deny the convenience of online shopping though (everything's practically at your fingertips, haha). When I head off to Case, I'm going to try my best to find a little haven for myself kinda like the bookstore here (probably at the beginning of the year before things start getting heated up). I don't think I'll end up spending too much time cooped up in my dorm when there's so much to do and explore. Or maybe this is just wishful thinking and I'll end up being a lot busier than I thought I'd be. My current room isn't much of a haven since it can be a little hard to focus with so many distractions, and I'm anticipating the same for my dorm, especially with a roommate. I'd rather be able to isolate myself, eheh. I was hoping that maybe you'd have some suggestions, but it seems that you've already established your own place to study and relax, even if it is your dorm. It's good that you're able to adapt so readily, haha. What do you plan on doing next year?

 

I really think you'll like Tatami Galaxy and Ping Pong. They're both definitely on my rewatch list, and the more I think about it, the more I want to make them priorities. But I want to wait a little longer just to see how much my impression of them has changed or until I'm having a rainy day. Ping Pong is such a good rainy day anime, ahhhhhhhhh!! There's also so much symbolism and stuff to analyze, which is something I know you love, hehe.  

 

Even though, as you said, Smash is best experienced with friends, I would rather have a game that I can invest my time in as opposed to a game that's kinda short-lived. I don't mind not being able to obtain the DLCs, but still, VLR and OoT also sound like loads of fun sooooooo............................. khdghdfghjsdfklgkldghkfgas;dgahdfk. Also, this is kinda off-topic, but my parents have been pushing me to get a new phone, and the general consensus is that I'm probably going to end up with an iPhone SE soon. I tried to convince my dad and sister about the OnePlus brand, but they're not having it. To be honest, it felt like a losing uphill battle because they're far more knowledgeable about this stuff than I am, lol. I don't mind too much though, since a phone is just a phone and at least I'll have the convenience of familiarity, haha. 

 

Just out of curiosity, are you still actively playing Smash? Pokken seems to be *the* fighting game that everyone's getting into (and it actually looks like a ton of fun, honestly, ahah), but of course that's only for the Wii U. Also, I still have a few games I want to prioritize over FE, but I'll definitely keep your advice in mind! Fates is an experimentative game, huh... is there anything in particular that makes it unorthodox in comparison to Awakening?

 

Yeah, I've tried recommending anime for my sister to watch c'mon, pls give Steins;Gate and Nichijou a try :c, but she just brushes off whatever I say because what could a younger sister possibly have to offer. She claims to want to watch "feel-good" anime, so I guess that's why she leaned towards Shigatsu and Free. Does Fairy Tail also count? I've seen her binge on that every once in a while (probably because she's out of college and has a lot more free time now). She only watches "pretty" anime though, so Ping Pong was definitely out of the question even though it's a fantastic rainy day anime, which is really a shame. Ahhhh, I forgot to rant about Shigatsu's bland characters! Gosh, I feel like I've said this before, but I still absolutely despise love triangles. Both Kaori and that one short-haired brunette (who I don't care for enough to look up her name) extensively got on my nerves throughout the anime. I also laughed at Kaori's death because of how underwhelming and predictable it was, so maybe I'm just a horrible person. Haha, but I guess my sister wasn't in the mood to hear my off-handed complaints while we were watching, lol. Ohh, Sayonara Memories, hm? That's an interesting song. A lot of Japanese songs seem to follow some sort of story format (especially vocaloids), so it's always fun reading over those lyrics. But yeah, I see what you mean. Shigatsu wouldn't have been any worse off being condensed into a 4:30 song, haha. Shigatsu's "Again" was what initially got me to look into the soundtrack, and while most of them weren't terribly memorable (I swear, half of them just sound like alternate arrangements of each other, which seems really lazy), they also aren't layered enough, so the soundtrack (most of it) ultimately turns out to be perfect study music for me. Also, the fact that the majority consists of instrumentals is a huge plus, heh. Oh my gosh, "Running Through the Stars" has this one little tidbit that sounds like Gate of Steiner! Whaaaaaatttt........ 

 

Geez man, how did you get your hands on all of this merchandise? A Kino no Tabi collector's edition box and a promotional pamphlet for The Dog of Flanders from way back in 1997? Haha, I'm assuming that the sudden urge to obtain some rare anime merch just struck you? But I must say, those are some really nice finds! 

 

Ohh, what a cute Pikachu plush! The pattern is pretty unique, so I can see why you chose that one, haha. I do find it interesting that you kept its packaging intact though. I tend to discard packaging or store it in the basement somewhere if I plan to keep the item. Was this habit of yours developed after collecting amiibos? And I saw that you just received your 999 fanzine! How is it? I barely have any anime or video game merch (and most of them are my sister's anyway), and I haven't bought any in a loooonngg time, so my parents would probably get suspicious if anything of the sort happened to land on the doorstep of the house, eheh... And it's good to see that you're supporting the creator of Undertale! Though I'm still a bit surprised you didn't play the game after watching Etika's stream. There are multiple endings and ways to approach the game, right?

 

Oh man, Sun and Moon for $31.99 instead of $39.99? Kinda makes me wish I had Amazon Prime myself, haha. I'm not a frequent Amazon user, so I'm not sure how useful that'll end up being (might be helpful in college though, hm). And a binder to hold your Pokemon cards? Any particular reason why that came to mind? I have a LOT of cards that my sister and I hoarded back in elementary school, but I wouldn't be surprised if I found them all stacked up messily inside a cardboard box, lol. They don't hold as much sentimental value as they used to, which is probably why we haven't found the need to display them.  

 

(It's been a while, and I don't know if you still remember what happened, so just bear with me here, ahah). Hm, so you're one of those people, huh. Geez man, I can just imagine the horrified look on the cashier's face as your smug self sent dozens of singles flying and coins clattering right on top of the counter. While you proudly gazed off into the distance plotting your next devious endeavor (or your next meal), the poor guy was probably silently swearing under his breath, squirming in agony and sweating profusely as his anxiety levels peaked at just the thought of tackling this enormous undertaking. "What did I do to deserve this??" he might've thought to himself. And you, you just continued to commend your brilliant self while observing the man scrupulously counting and scrutinizing each bill just to make sure you weren't attempting to pull a fast one. Oh dear, I wouldn't want to wish this ordeal upon my worst enemy! I hope you're happy with yourself. I bet the poor guy never thought he would be subject to such tribulations, and I bet you're real content with yourself, you cheeky bastard. Hehe, though in all seriousness I got a good laugh from that little tale of yours, but I'm also surprised you remembered the exact amount of coins and bills you handed over. If you want me to be honest, $61.39 in mainly singles and coins does seem a bit overwhelming, so I hope the guy didn't mind too much, ahah.

 

Hell yeah, Cave Story's soundtrack is awesome! I'm glad you got a chance to play the game, hehe. Now that you've finished it (for the most part), I suggest you go on to listening to this Cave Story Medley. It's pretty long, so you can listen to it while doing homework or surfing the interwebs. One of my favorite soundtracks is Running Hell, which is the Blood Stained Sanctuary's theme. But the main theme also has a special place in my heart, haha. Oh, and On To Grasstown and the Sand Zone theme and Jenka 2 and Scorching Back and The Way Back Home, hehehehehe. Definitely go watch a playthrough of the rest of the game if you don't have time to get through the Last Cave (Bloodstained Sanctuary is truly a nightmarish hellhole). I tried not to spoil any of the game for myself beforehand, so I ended up getting the normal ending. After watching a playthrough of the good ending, I decided that it wasn't worth restarting the game, haha. Also, did you end up trading your Polar Star? I traded mine for the Machine Gun and I abused it so much, ahahahaha. I remember being stuck in that one abyss-like labyrinth with just a couple hearts left, so I just shot at the ground with the Machine Gun to fly past all those obstacles in order to avoid confrontation with them, lol. Same with the Sand Zone; I just flew past those skullsteps, heh. It would've been fun trying out the Spur, but I have zero regrets trading the Polar Star for the Machine Gun. 

 

Oh, and since you're passing on Super Meat Boy, at least try to look into some OSTs! Or watch a playthrough (I recommend UberHaxorNova). The game is very streamlined and the level and boss themes are pretty darn good if this or this is anything to go by, ahah...

 

Wow, your family is really connected. You guys watch movies together and hang out and relax? I can't remember the last time our family spent some legitimate quality time with each other. I mean, sometimes we go out to eat dinner together. Actually, now that I think about it, we only spend time with each other on vacation. I guess I don't mind too much though. It's been like this for a pretty long time now. As for winter break, nothing eventful happened. We went on a two day/one night "vacation" if that counts as anything. Except that it didn't snow enough, so we went back home early, lol. That's about it, eheh. Oh, and may as well talk about spring break while we're at it. As you already know, I spent the majority of spring break visiting colleges with my dad (my mom couldn't come). While my sister was at work, my dad and I were looking at the various schools and exploring Boston. But I've already told you about my general impressions of the schools, so I'll just skip to the latter part. What made this trip so memorable wasn't the fact that this was my first time in Boston nor was it because of the arctic weather I was far from prepared for, but because this was the first time in a long while that I was able to spend some quality time with my dad. I used to have a bitter impression of him, and I was even terrified of the fact that he (instead of my mom) would be taking me to visit these schools. I was wrong. I was completely wrong. For once, he seemed almost content with me and just life in general. He did things and said things that I never thought he would do or say. For once, we were able to share a coherent conversation. I was able to learn a lot about him through our conversations about various industries and countries, and it was kinda eye-opening. While our ideologies are still pretty polarized, I'm not as different from him as I originally thought. Those basic principles he instilled in me when I was little are still firmly rooted, so I guess it's true that the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree, ahah. Perhaps something else may have contributed to his good mood (probably the mending of some family issues that I won't get into), but still, what a turn of events. It almost feels a little silly that this was the highlight of my visit to Boston, eheh. These kinds of things seldom happen, so I do cherish those little moments when I can share a moment or a laugh with my dad. We're still tremendously different people, but it's really comforting to know that the rift in our relationship isn't nearly as big as it used to be.

 

Oh yeah, and I also went to San Antonio for the orchestra trip! We flew there by charter plane from an airport in Flint (I didn't drink any of the water, don't worry, lol). The first thing I noticed when we landed was that it's ridiculously hot there, not that that was unexpected though (note to self: don't move to Texas). We traveled to a few historic sites like the Alamo (yay I wasn't forced to take pictures every five minutes and I was actually able to enjoy myself), Seaworld, the riverwalk, a Fiesta (this place is so cultured and I swear I would've thought we were in a different country if I didn't know any better), oh, and we also watched our school's marching band perform in the San Antonio Fiesta in front of thousands of people, which was honestly so hype, hehe. Seaworld was fun, but I wasn't in the mood to get soaked or spend the majority of my time waiting to go on rides in the scorching sun, and only one of my friends shared mutual feelings, so I walked around the park with her to visit various exhibits and to watch performances, lol. We got to see dolphins, beluga whales, orcas, sea lions, penguins, puffins, flamingos, alligators, this huge tortoise, a macaw, and probably a few others that I might've missed. The riverwalk was really relaxing and the elegant scenery definitely helped. Naturally there were little kiosks littered around the area during this time of the year (almost like in China) with sellers trying to convince everyone to splurge on souvenirs and trinkets, but rather than feeling annoyed or pestered, I actually felt that this added to the atmosphere. This area was just bustling with activity, and while it may seem out of place on a riverwalk, the placid vibe of the surroundings almost felt more prevalent than ever. The commotion and the serene environment seemed like complements despite the stark contrast, weirdly enough. It's hard for me to explain, but there are loads of pictures on google images if you're curious to know. And during the Fiesta, a few of my friends bought cartons of confetti eggs and cracked them on top of a bunch of people's heads (and almost managed to get me but didn't, hehe). It was glorious ahhhhhh!! Confetti was strewn across the streets and bleachers and everyone was wearing these flower crowns and there were these prismatic Mexican pennant flag banners draped across the buildings and roads and there were food and knickknack stands everywhere, and the best part was that practically everyone there seemed like a tourist from wearing gaudy clothing and accessories in celebration of the Fiesta (including the natives), yet we still stood out because there were barely any Asians out on the streets, hahah. The floats that drove by in the parade during the Fiesta were also incredibly showy and each one blared music, and a lot of them also had searchlights that swung beams of light into the night sky. But of course, one of my favorite parts of the parade was when our school's marching band appeared, and our group just started screaming and cheering at the top of our lungs and clapping until our hands turned raw, and we were so loud that I could barely hear the marching band play and I don't think I've ever seen the orchestra hold so much admiration for the band before, hah. That just about sums up how the orchestra trip went except for some bonding time we had back at the hotel (and I learned about some rather... disturbing things about the people at our school). Oh yeah, and on the way back home, one of my friends pulled out his viola and started playing fiddle tunes in the airport and even had some money thrown into his viola case, lol.  

 

Ahhh, it's been so long since I last posted one of these responses. I don't know how easy it'll be for me to get back into the swing of things, so, again, I apologize in advance if I'm not able to post the following responses on time. But yeah, so what have you been up to?

 

--

also, I'm really freaking frustrated because of how glitchy this website has been while I was posting this (it took me nearly two hours, no joke)

it's pretty late and I'm really tired right now so I'm sorry if there are any portions of the response that I didn't fix or have weird formatting ;/

I'm gonna ask Chek to remove the double posts 

honestly wtf happened

Edited May 16, 2016 by Kenzi

[Akazora 293]

I'm really happy that I'll be able to play the next generation on my 3DS! I haven't played the games in so long, I'm getting all giddy just thinking about it! I was also thinking of getting Pokemon Moon myself (and more so now that the cover Pokemon has been revealed, oomph), but I'll have to wait until we get more information before I make that my final decision. After all, we still have half a year left of waiting, eheh. I'm really curious to know why they chose "Sun" and "Moon" as the titles though. Maybe they ran out of colors and minerals? I know a lot of people have been thinking about Mega Solrock and Lunatone and the theme being outer space, but that seems too obvious (they did show Solrock and Lunatone in the first trailer, though it may have been just to tease us). Also, Mega Flygon and Milotic pl0x. I'm not sure how the titles relate to Zygarde (or how they'll even incorporate Zygarde into the games), but dfjhadjhkadkfjadfjdfk I'm stoked! Also, I'm torn between the water and fire starter. I always choose the fire starter, but the trailer ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh............... should I go in blind or should I spoil the evolutions for myself?? I'm probably going to end up spoiling myself because I won't be able to contain the hype. Also, the internet is a spoiler minefield, so I'm bound to get spoiled eventually anyway. I'm still not entirely sure how you managed to do it, lol. Be sure to let me know what you plan to do so that I don't unintentionally spoil things for you, ahah. You've at least watched the most recent trailer, right? 

 

Hmm, so you actually didn't get to play Undertale? And gasp! You enjoyed the playthrough??? Haha, don't worry, I kid. One of my favorite Let's Players was doing a playthrough of this game, and I forced myself to quit watching because I was determined not to spoil the game for myself, urgh. He only got through the demo and a small portion of stuff that happens afterwards, so I've seen the introduction of Sans and Papyrus (ahaha, clever, clever names, Toby), but that's about it. Geezus, man, you had the guts to dive into Twitch's frenzied chat? There's not a single constructive comment in that warzone, and it's far worse than the YouTube comments section for most videos. Everything you can think to type is buried in spam in mere seconds and it's probably one of the most dehumanizing places on the internet. Dear lord, it's amazing what anonymity can cause people to turn into. Oh yeah, and I've run into a few people attempting to play Megalovania by ear on the piano after school and it's always fun joining them in struggling to figure out the notes, ahahaha. Aside from that and pleading to a couple of friends not to spoil the game for me, there's not much else I've done with Undertale.

 

Chrono Trigger is widely regarded as a masterpiece that has aged relatively well, which I think is a pretty big label for a game to have since I haven't seen much criticism floating around. I heard a lot of great things about it from this one friend, and I was seriously considering downloading it, but if you remember that one time my laptop got infected with some trojan, well, that was enough to deter me from playing it. I highly doubt I'm going to find the time to play it now since the game's apparently rather time consuming, but there's not much I can do about that at this point.

 

The Steins;Gate 0 OVA wasn't anything special... until you get to the last five minutes or so, and bam it hits you and you want more and then you silently cry to yourself because there's no sign of the anime coming out anytime soon. You could use it as a refresher for when Steins;Gate 0 comes out, but it really is mainly a recap of episode 23 (for the most part), so there's not much to gain from it, lol. Monster's been pretty good so far. I think it's hilarious how the entire premise of the anime seems to be based on everything spiraling out of control just because of one "morally right" decision Tenma chose to make. And this Johan kid is so detached; it's almost horrifying, yet fascinating. I just hope the anime doesn't follow the character magnetic team trope (it seems like it's going down this path). Oh yeah, and sorry for not updating my MAL. I'm not too sure why you're concerned though, ahah. I've just been getting kinda lazy about it since there's not much I do on there other than keep track of stuff I've watched and plan to watch. Also, this anime called Erased is huge (apparently it hit top 5 at some point??) and I'm thinking about watching it. Along with maybe Cowboy Bebop and HxH and One Punch Man and afadfkadkjfhadksjfhdkasfh.

 

I'd hate to break up your expectations, but no girl's hair looks like this in the wind, lol. Our hair definitely ruffles up (probably a lot more than you think, and dare I say possibly even more than your hair), and it can be a reaaaaal pain to comb it out afterwards. I almost never had trouble with my hair when I was little (back then I had one of those standard Asian bowl cuts, so uhhhhhhh...), so I'd imagine that guys rarely struggle with hair, not that most guys have bowl cuts or anything. I have this one friend who's a bit particular about his hair, but I thought he was just one of the few exceptions, haha. Don't worry, I won't force such unreasonable expectations onto you guys. We're human, after all, ahah. Ohh, that's an interesting point your accounting class brought up. My econ teacher also mentioned something similar about pollution, so if you don't mind, I'd like to add to what you said. It's funny, because you can ask any stranger on the street their opinion on pollution, and I'm willing to bet that they're against it. Yet, I think you'll agree that most heavily populated areas are filled with garbage like cigarette butts, potato chip bags, plastic bottles, six pack rings, plastic grocery bags, etc. And if you've seen the sidewalks of NYC, there are filthy blackened wads of gum on pretty much every sidewalk square. Weird, huh? What's with the discrepancy in attitude and consequence? The mob mentality of "oh, tossing just one gum wrapper on the streets won't make a difference" is why littering/pollution is so commonplace among everyday people. Convince everyone to believe that every piece of trash matters and that each person matters, and conservation efforts will undoubtedly improve loads (and, while unrelated, probably even voter turnout to that same effect). Of course, I have my doubts on how effective something that preachy will end up being, so I suppose we'll continue falling victim to this social trap until the pollution starts taking a direct toll on our everyday lives (wow, that's rather depressing). I mean, just look at how bad China is and the lack of effort being put forth to stop this, and the fact that you can see it from space, which is absolutely disgusting. Also, I'm gonna digress a bit here because think this and this are hilarious. But yeah, while the common people may be the main culprits for pollution in North America (air pollution included, but that's almost unavoidable since we're so reliant on cars), I'm not entirely sure that you'll be able to convince me that other countries like China uphold similar environmental standards for factories. And I may as well include this fun interactive map while I'm at it to give you an idea of how tame our predicament is in comparison to other parts of the world. And you can refer to this chart if you're wondering what all of those colorful flags mean. Your stance seems to be limited to America, because there are plenty of other areas around the globe where the pollution is far worse than just the kind caused by "normal people" (and not just China). But you definitely have a point there in saying that us regular people have a pretty big impact as well. Ahh, sorry for rambling on so much, eheh. Oh, and how's driving been going? It's been a while, so I'd love to hear about your progress so far!

 

Erm, I know you're an introvert and all, and I can respect that you're very independent--it's just that I honestly can't wrap my mind around the idea of going through college without a group of friends or any connections. I don't want to generalize or misinterpret your situation since I don't know what it's like to be in your shoes (and it's also been a while since we've last exchanged responses), but I sincerely hope you're okay. Video games and anime are great ways to unwind and all, but there's nothing wrong with changing things up a bit!

 

January and February were okay, I guess. This year's winter was really mild so I haven't had as much trouble getting up lately. Or maybe it's because I've been averaging around 5-6 hours of sleep on most days. And it's funny, because I rarely doze off in my classes now, as opposed to last year when it happened in almost every class every day. It's so much easier to absorb the material and focus in class when I'm not dozing off, ohmygosh, what was I doing junior year. I've been driving to school on most days now, so maybe that's helped a bit. Oh, and I also installed f.lux in order to control the amount of blue light emitted from my laptop to help me sleep better. Even though I still occasionally have headaches, I've only had to consume one ibuprofen pill since the year began, so that's also kinda nice. I don't think I have many custom things, now that I think about it. I have numerous extensions on Chrome that I actively use if that counts as anything. They make things so much more convenient, ahah. Ohh, Rainmeter seems really interesting. I'll have to look into it when I have the time. How did you come across this?

 

So uh... I've finally submitted to the supposedly "most important" meal of the day. I'm now bringing a frozen Gogurt with me to school! It's been so long since I last had one of these, holy moly, what a throwback. It's still hard for me to last until lunch sometimes, so it's not unusual for me to bring something else as well (something like dried coconut slices). I've also stashed some food (stuff like Clif Bars) leftover from tennis matches in my tennis bag, so I sometimes use those as a last resort when I'm feeling a little famished, hehe. 

 

School's been alright, I suppose. I have mixed feelings towards most of my classes since I've been feeling pretty burnt out lately. I guess my favorite class at the moment is orgo because I like the idea of how spatial the subject is. I've always been more of a geometry over algebra person, lol. I've also gotten pretty close to the teacher (he's definitely one of my favorite teachers), so the class is always a pleasure to attend. But gosh, I really wish I could've taken the time to understand physics better. I probably would've ended up liking the subject a lot more if I had a firmer grasp on the material. It's really fascinating to look at everyday circumstances through a physics standpoint, ahaha. It's a shame that the class didn't go as well as I would've liked. It's really hard to develop enthusiasm for the subject when the class is tailored to go over FRQs and prepare you for multiple choice tests. Honestly, this alone completely killed my motivation (and don't even get me started on those godforsaken webassigns, urgh). The vast majority of the class also consisted of reading off powerpoint slides that taught me next to nothing. But oh well. I suppose I can look over some texts in the bookstore in my free time to make up for this. There's not really much else that's worth noting. AP testing went as expected (for better or worse) except that my graphing calculator just stopped working during one of the tests for whatever reason (it wasn't even low on battery??) and the fact that it was freezing and my hands felt numb on certain days. I don't mind the cold too much, but geez, warn us beforehand if you're gonna set the thermostat to -30*, now will ya? Oh yeah, and the AP bio teacher is in some beef with collegeboard and even the school for discussing the test with students. I didn't realize that people actually took that warning seriously, lol. It sucks that those students might have their scores canceled though. So how was your first year of college? How would you evaluate your experience?  

 

What the... it peaked at 68* in February for you guys?? I guess the weather's just been really screwy lately because it's May now and our highs seem to have settled in the 60* range, which is just barely enough for t-shirt weather (and the fact that there were snow flurries bestowed upon us just now). Oh, and was there also a massive amount of snow dumped on you guys back in April? It kinda sucks how mild this year's winter was, and wtf is going on with spring, but hopefully next year we'll be blessed with a true midwestern winter, hah.

 

The teachers around here don't vary much difficulty-wise (only those teaching the same classes though), but there are definitely a few who are a bit harder than others. It's not enough to completely demolish your grade, but it can be pretty frustrating at times when you have boatloads of work piled on while others have a comparatively lighter load. The most memorable teachers I've had were the ones in the chem department. Gosh, I freaking love the orgo and AP chem teachers. I haven't met a single person who's had anything bad to say about them. It's nice to know that the professors are good at Case! I don't think I'll end up going into accounting, but I hope the professors are equally as awesome all across the board, haha. I can't believe that there's such a discrepancy in teacher difficulty at JP though. Didn't the teachers try to collaborate with each other on the curriculum? Or did they just do their own thing?

 

Oh, huh, I never took the time to acknowledge the smell of the bookstore, but that cafe fragrance is pretty relaxing, haha. Our Barnes and Noble doesn't have a second floor though (pfft, look at you living the good life). Despite having the convenience of Amazon, it seems that my parents would still prefer going to the bookstore. I mean, I do as well because there's nothing like the feeling of physically securing what you're looking for. No mix-ups, damages, or potentially getting your package lost in the mail. While those incidents are unlikely to happen, it's still a lot more comforting leaving with exactly what you wanted, especially having examined the item/book beforehand. Also, you have the advantage of immediacy as opposed to waiting or paying for expedited shipping, heh. I certainly won't deny the convenience of online shopping though (everything's practically at your fingertips, haha). When I head off to Case, I'm going to try my best to find a little haven for myself kinda like the bookstore here (probably at the beginning of the year before things start getting heated up). I don't think I'll end up spending too much time cooped up in my dorm when there's so much to do and explore. Or maybe this is just wishful thinking and I'll end up being a lot busier than I thought I'd be. My current room isn't much of a haven since it can be a little hard to focus with so many distractions, and I'm anticipating the same for my dorm, especially with a roommate. I'd rather be able to isolate myself, eheh. I was hoping that maybe you'd have some suggestions, but it seems that you've already established your own place to study and relax, even if it is your dorm. It's good that you're able to adapt so readily, haha. What do you plan on doing next year?

 

I really think you'll like Tatami Galaxy and Ping Pong. They're both definitely on my rewatch list, and the more I think about it, the more I want to make them priorities. But I want to wait a little longer just to see how much my impression of them has changed or until I'm having a rainy day. Ping Pong is such a good rainy day anime, ahhhhhhhhh!! There's also so much symbolism and stuff to analyze, which is something I know you love, hehe.  

 

Even though, as you said, Smash is best experienced with friends, I would rather have a game that I can invest my time in as opposed to a game that's kinda short-lived. I don't mind not being able to obtain the DLCs, but still, VLR and OoT also sound like loads of fun sooooooo............................. khdghdfghjsdfklgkldghkfgas;dgahdfk. Also, this is kinda off-topic, but my parents have been pushing me to get a new phone, and the general consensus is that I'm probably going to end up with an iPhone SE soon. I tried to convince my dad and sister about the OnePlus brand, but they're not having it. To be honest, it felt like a losing uphill battle because they're far more knowledgeable about this stuff than I am, lol. I don't mind too much though, since a phone is just a phone and at least I'll have the convenience of familiarity, haha. 

 

Just out of curiosity, are you still actively playing Smash? Pokken seems to be *the* fighting game that everyone's getting into (and it actually looks like a ton of fun, honestly, ahah), but of course that's only for the Wii U. Also, I still have a few games I want to prioritize over FE, but I'll definitely keep your advice in mind! Fates is an experimentative game, huh... is there anything in particular that makes it unorthodox in comparison to Awakening?

 

Yeah, I've tried recommending anime for my sister to watch c'mon, pls give Steins;Gate and Nichijou a try :c, but she just brushes off whatever I say because what could a younger sister possibly have to offer. She claims to want to watch "feel-good" anime, so I guess that's why she leaned towards Shigatsu and Free. Does Fairy Tail also count? I've seen her binge on that every once in a while (probably because she's out of college and has a lot more free time now). She only watches "pretty" anime though, so Ping Pong was definitely out of the question even though it's a fantastic rainy day anime, which is really a shame. Ahhhh, I forgot to rant about Shigatsu's bland characters! Gosh, I feel like I've said this before, but I still absolutely despise love triangles. Both Kaori and that one short-haired brunette (who I don't care for enough to look up her name) extensively got on my nerves throughout the anime. I also laughed at Kaori's death because of how underwhelming and predictable it was, so maybe I'm just a horrible person. Haha, but I guess my sister wasn't in the mood to hear my off-handed complaints while we were watching, lol. Ohh, Sayonara Memories, hm? That's an interesting song. A lot of Japanese songs seem to follow some sort of story format (especially vocaloids), so it's always fun reading over those lyrics. But yeah, I see what you mean. Shigatsu wouldn't have been any worse off being condensed into a 4:30 song, haha. Shigatsu's "Again" was what initially got me to look into the soundtrack, and while most of them weren't terribly memorable (I swear, half of them just sound like alternate arrangements of each other, which seems really lazy), they also aren't layered enough, so the soundtrack (most of it) ultimately turns out to be perfect study music for me. Also, the fact that the majority consists of instrumentals is a huge plus, heh. Oh my gosh, "Running Through the Stars" has this one little tidbit that sounds like Gate of Steiner! Whaaaaaatttt........ 

 

Geez man, how did you get your hands on all of this merchandise? A Kino no Tabi collector's edition box and a promotional pamphlet for The Dog of Flanders from way back in 1997? Haha, I'm assuming that the sudden urge to obtain some rare anime merch just struck you? But I must say, those are some really nice finds! 

 

Ohh, what a cute Pikachu plush! The pattern is pretty unique, so I can see why you chose that one, haha. I do find it interesting that you kept its packaging intact though. I tend to discard packaging or store it in the basement somewhere if I plan to keep the item. Was this habit of yours developed after collecting amiibos? And I saw that you just received your 999 fanzine! How is it? I barely have any anime or video game merch (and most of them are my sister's anyway), and I haven't bought any in a loooonngg time, so my parents would probably get suspicious if anything of the sort happened to land on the doorstep of the house, eheh... And it's good to see that you're supporting the creator of Undertale! Though I'm still a bit surprised you didn't play the game after watching Etika's stream. There are multiple endings and ways to approach the game, right?

 

Oh man, Sun and Moon for $31.99 instead of $39.99? Kinda makes me wish I had Amazon Prime myself, haha. I'm not a frequent Amazon user, so I'm not sure how useful that'll end up being (might be helpful in college though, hm). And a binder to hold your Pokemon cards? Any particular reason why that came to mind? I have a LOT of cards that my sister and I hoarded back in elementary school, but I wouldn't be surprised if I found them all stacked up messily inside a cardboard box, lol. They don't hold as much sentimental value as they used to, which is probably why we haven't found the need to display them.  

 

(It's been a while, and I don't know if you still remember what happened, so just bear with me here, ahah). Hm, so you're one of those people, huh. Geez man, I can just imagine the horrified look on the cashier's face as your smug self sent dozens of singles flying and coins clattering right on top of the counter. While you proudly gazed off into the distance plotting your next devious endeavor (or your next meal), the poor guy was probably silently swearing under his breath, squirming in agony and sweating profusely as his anxiety levels peaked at just the thought of tackling this enormous undertaking. "What did I do to deserve this??" he might've thought to himself. And you, you just continued to commend your brilliant self while observing the man scrupulously counting and scrutinizing each bill just to make sure you weren't attempting to pull a fast one. Oh dear, I wouldn't want to wish this ordeal upon my worst enemy! I hope you're happy with yourself. I bet the poor guy never thought he would be subject to such tribulations, and I bet you're real content with yourself, you cheeky bastard. Hehe, though in all seriousness I got a good laugh from that little tale of yours, but I'm also surprised you remembered the exact amount of coins and bills you handed over. If you want me to be honest, $61.39 in mainly singles and coins does seem a bit overwhelming, so I hope the guy didn't mind too much, ahah.

 

Hell yeah, Cave Story's soundtrack is awesome! I'm glad you got a chance to play the game, hehe. Now that you've finished it (for the most part), I suggest you go on to listening to this Cave Story Medley. It's pretty long, so you can listen to it while doing homework or surfing the interwebs. One of my favorite soundtracks is Running Hell, which is the Blood Stained Sanctuary's theme. But the main theme also has a special place in my heart, haha. Oh, and On To Grasstown and the Sand Zone theme and Jenka 2 and Scorching Back and The Way Back Home, hehehehehe. Definitely go watch a playthrough of the rest of the game if you don't have time to get through the Last Cave (Bloodstained Sanctuary is truly a nightmarish hellhole). I tried not to spoil any of the game for myself beforehand, so I ended up getting the normal ending. After watching a playthrough of the good ending, I decided that it wasn't worth restarting the game, haha. Also, did you end up trading your Polar Star? I traded mine for the Machine Gun and I abused it so much, ahahahaha. I remember being stuck in that one abyss-like labyrinth with just a couple hearts left, so I just shot at the ground with the Machine Gun to fly past all those obstacles in order to avoid confrontation with them, lol. Same with the Sand Zone; I just flew past those skullsteps, heh. It would've been fun trying out the Spur, but I have zero regrets trading the Polar Star for the Machine Gun. 

 

Oh, and since you're passing on Super Meat Boy, at least try to look into some OSTs! Or watch a playthrough (I recommend UberHaxorNova). The game is very streamlined and the level and boss themes are pretty darn good if this or this is anything to go by, ahah...

 

Wow, your family is really connected. You guys watch movies together and hang out and relax? I can't remember the last time our family spent some legitimate quality time with each other. I mean, sometimes we go out to eat dinner together. Actually, now that I think about it, we only spend time with each other on vacation. I guess I don't mind too much though. It's been like this for a pretty long time now. As for winter break, nothing eventful happened. We went on a two day/one night "vacation" if that counts as anything. Except that it didn't snow enough, so we went back home early, lol. That's about it, eheh. Oh, and may as well talk about spring break while we're at it. As you already know, I spent the majority of spring break visiting colleges with my dad (my mom couldn't come). While my sister was at work, my dad and I were looking at the various schools and exploring Boston. But I've already told you about my general impressions of the schools, so I'll just skip to the latter part. What made this trip so memorable wasn't the fact that this was my first time in Boston nor was it because of the arctic weather I was far from prepared for, but because this was the first time in a long while that I was able to spend some quality time with my dad. I used to have a bitter impression of him, and I was even terrified of the fact that he (instead of my mom) would be taking me to visit these schools. I was wrong. I was completely wrong. For once, he seemed almost content with me and just life in general. He did things and said things that I never thought he would do or say. For once, we were able to share a coherent conversation. I was able to learn a lot about him through our conversations about various industries and countries, and it was kinda eye-opening. While our ideologies are still pretty polarized, I'm not as different from him as I originally thought. Those basic principles he instilled in me when I was little are still firmly rooted, so I guess it's true that the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree, ahah. Perhaps something else may have contributed to his good mood (probably the mending of some family issues that I won't get into), but still, what a turn of events. It almost feels a little silly that this was the highlight of my visit to Boston, eheh. These kinds of things seldom happen, so I do cherish those little moments when I can share a moment or a laugh with my dad. We're still tremendously different people, but it's really comforting to know that the rift in our relationship isn't nearly as big as it used to be.

 

Oh yeah, and I also went to San Antonio for the orchestra trip! We flew there by charter plane from an airport in Flint (I didn't drink any of the water, don't worry, lol). The first thing I noticed when we landed was that it's ridiculously hot there, not that that was unexpected though (note to self: don't move to Texas). We traveled to a few historic sites like the Alamo (yay I wasn't forced to take pictures every five minutes and I was actually able to enjoy myself), Seaworld, the riverwalk, a Fiesta (this place is so cultured and I swear I would've thought we were in a different country if I didn't know any better), oh, and we also watched our school's marching band perform in the San Antonio Fiesta in front of thousands of people, which was honestly so hype, hehe. Seaworld was fun, but I wasn't in the mood to get soaked or spend the majority of my time waiting to go on rides in the scorching sun, and only one of my friends shared mutual feelings, so I walked around the park with her to visit various exhibits and to watch performances, lol. We got to see dolphins, beluga whales, orcas, sea lions, penguins, puffins, flamingos, alligators, this huge tortoise, a macaw, and probably a few others that I might've missed. The riverwalk was really relaxing and the elegant scenery definitely helped. Naturally there were little kiosks littered around the area during this time of the year (almost like in China) with sellers trying to convince everyone to splurge on souvenirs and trinkets, but rather than feeling annoyed or pestered, I actually felt that this added to the atmosphere. This area was just bustling with activity, and while it may seem out of place on a riverwalk, the placid vibe of the surroundings almost felt more prevalent than ever. The commotion and the serene environment seemed like complements despite the stark contrast, weirdly enough. It's hard for me to explain, but there are loads of pictures on google images if you're curious to know. And during the Fiesta, a few of my friends bought cartons of confetti eggs and cracked them on top of a bunch of people's heads (and almost managed to get me but didn't, hehe). It was glorious ahhhhhh!! Confetti was strewn across the streets and bleachers and everyone was wearing these flower crowns and there were these prismatic Mexican pennant flag banners draped across the buildings and roads and there were food and knickknack stands everywhere, and the best part was that practically everyone there seemed like a tourist from wearing gaudy clothing and accessories in celebration of the Fiesta (including the natives), yet we still stood out because there were barely any Asians out on the streets, hahah. The floats that drove by in the parade during the Fiesta were also incredibly showy and each one blared music, and a lot of them also had searchlights that swung beams of light into the night sky. But of course, one of my favorite parts of the parade was when our school's marching band appeared, and our group just started screaming and cheering at the top of our lungs and clapping until our hands turned raw, and we were so loud that I could barely hear the marching band play and I don't think I've ever seen the orchestra hold so much admiration for the band before, hah. That just about sums up how the orchestra trip went except for some bonding time we had back at the hotel (and I learned about some rather... disturbing things about the people at our school). Oh yeah, and on the way back home, one of my friends pulled out his viola and started playing fiddle tunes in the airport and even had some money thrown into his viola case, lol.  

 

Ahhh, it's been so long since I last posted one of these responses. I don't know how easy it'll be for me to get back into the swing of things, so, again, I apologize in advance if I'm not able to post the following responses on time. But yeah, so what have you been up to?

 

--

also, I'm really freaking frustrated because of how glitchy this website has been while I was posting this (it took me nearly two hours, no joke)

it's pretty late and I'm really tired right now so I'm sorry if there are any portions of the response that I didn't fix or have weird formatting ;/

I'm gonna ask Chek to remove the double posts 

honestly wtf happened

It’s great to see you so excited for the new Pokemon games!  Even though I finished playing Alpha Sapphire and Y not too long ago, I’ve been in the mood for some Pokemon myself.  I’ve had cravings for randomizers and other mods of older games, but I’ll do my best to be patient and wait for SM while attending to more pressing matters, like clearing out my video game backlog, in the meantime.  Funnily enough, I actually kind of like Sun’s legendary design a little more than I like Moon’s, but because I have such a strong devotion to the moon as a symbol (nighttime imagery for the win!) I don’t regret claiming a copy of it early.  There’s a lot of potential with the titles being Sun and Moon, though I don’t have any personal theories on what it could mean.  Since the new gen game titles have held somewhat significant meaning for a while now (“Black and White” for games that focused on moral questions and “X and Y” for the first 3D main series installments) I’m sure “Sun and Moon” are relevant to the overarching themes of the games in some way.  The sun and moon are prominent symbols in all kinds of religion and folklore as well, and since the Alola region is unapologetically based on Hawaii I’m sure there are plenty of connections they can make.  That being said, you can imagine how weary I am about the blatant connection to Hawaii (given how much the France-based Kalos bothered me), but I won’t judge the game until it comes out.  And yeah, poor Zygarde.  It’s gotten a ton of exposure in the anime, with all its different forms and stuff, but it gets virtually no recognition in the games from which it originates.  Perhaps they’ll just shoehorn it in in a “Zeta Episode” of sorts, though Game Freak would pleasantly surprise me if they instead made it an integral part of the main story without overshadowing the new Pokemon.  This time around, I’m going to try my best not to spoil all the Pokemon to myself.  In Y, I planned a team in advance to make sure I had good type coverage, and that wasn’t as fun as I expected it to be.  In AS, I solo ran which I only did because of time constraints and because there were no new Pokemon.  For SM though, I’m going to have as close to a blind, “normal” run as possible.  I’ll keep up to date with news as it comes out, but once November 18th arrives I’ll avoid any mention of Pokemon on the Internet until I beat the game.  With any luck and with enough willpower, I think I’ll be able to accomplish this without running into any spoilers.  And if we have an XY scenario where small mom and pop stores distribute the games a few days before the street date, leading to leaks of things like the final forms of the starters, then I’ll be avoiding those as well.  Feel free to join me on this abstainment from spoilers, though if you end up just spoiling yourself anyway because you either aren’t able to buy the game immediately or you want to know more about the new Pokemon before starting then that’s fine too (you just better not blurt out spoilers to me before I finish or anything, hahah).

 

Ughh, that I haven’t typed one of these up in a while is clearly showing; I’ve rambled on for far too long.  My first semester SAGES teacher would be disappointed in me.  I suppose I’ll put this in a separate paragraph just so the first one doesn’t inflate to an unhealthy size.  I’m also a bit torn on the starters, but I think I’m leaning toward Rowlet.  Grass starters have always felt a bit under-appreciated, and I have a thing for underdogs.  Of course, from what I’ve seen a lot of people love Rowlet so maybe this generation will be an exception.  Or maybe my preconceptions about Grass starters are completely wrong.  Growing up, it always seemed to me that everyone gravitated toward the cool Fire and Water types (like holy geez, just look at Blaziken and Swampert and Infernape and Empoleon, how much more badass can you get?) and rarely picked the Grass type.  It certainly doesn’t help that Grass types just aren’t as versatile offensively or defensively as Water and Fire types.  But perhaps Grass starters are actually more appreciated nowadays than they were before, or seemed before.  Regardless though, I really like Rowlet’s design.  It’s so round and cute just imagining it waddling around makes me feel warm inside (I'm aware it flies, but that doesn't mean it can't waddle!).  Litten is also really cool though.  It’s cute, but not cute in the doe-eyed way the other starters (from all generations) are.  It must be the yellow eyes and deadpan expression.  I think that makes it really unique and I’m interested to see how its final form turns out.  And then there’s Popplio.  While it’s certainly grown on me, I kind of wish they went for a different design, something more akin to a baby harp seal (I love those things, ahhhhhhhh).  So like, the cuteness of Spheal with the shape of Seel.  The whole circus theme seems a bit weird to me, especially since I fear they may go overboard with the circus imagery in its later evolutions.  After all, they went from Fennekin to a witch fox holding a burning wand.  I’m just imaging Popplio’s collar and nose going full clown and that’s freaking me out.  Funnily enough though, it seems like Popplio is actually the one drawing you away from Litten.  There’s still plenty of time for you to decide, especially if you wait for the final forms and typings to be revealed/leaked/spoiled.  May I ask why you seem to be under some oath to always choose Fire starters though?  And this being the case, I assume you chose Chimchar when you played Platinum?  Also, I assume you used your real life name for your Platinum file, right?  And, sorry for all the questions but, if you had the chance to replay Platinum again would you use pick Chimchar or one of the others, and would you use your real name or a pseudonym, like Kenzi?

 

Hmph, well fine, I’ll give you that, I suppose let’s plays aren’t all that bad in some situations, hmph.  But I still believe playing it yourself is generally the preferred option.  I only watched Etika’s let’s play because it was live (I was somehow always there to catch his streams; I should probably cut back on the hours I spend on the computer…) and because I was still on the fence about Undertale in regards to if I was ever going to find the time to play it.  If it was something like Ace Attorney 6, even if Etika was live streaming it, I still wouldn’t watch it because it’s a game I plan on giving priority to finishing the moment it comes out.  Aw, but Twitch chats are the best!  It’s a frenzied fustercluck of both temporal and long lasting memes, and that’s why I love it so much.  Nintendo Directs, even the boring ones, are wildly entertaining for the chat alone (and this is even after Nintendo bans spamming and cussing).  It’s all the better if the streamer just allows the chat to go batshit insane.  I believe Etika only has his mods ban thoroughly obnoxious spammers and people who post spoilers, so his chats are a beautiful mess.  Demo’s Twitch chat isn’t nearly as fast paced, but it’s certainly danker which makes up for it, haha.  That reminds me of a time that some news channel broadcasted one of the presidential debates live on YouTube, though I can’t remember if it was a Republican or Democratic one.  They left the chat enabled in the minutes leading up to the debate, and from the looks of it there were no restrictions.  Then some intern must have turned it off, because right before the debate started the chat option went away.  That was a real buzzkill, because it’s not very often you get to see political memes and shitposting flying by at such a breakneck speed, hahahah.  But anyway, this topic has digressed.  I hope that you one day find the time the enjoy Undertale!

 

The general premise of Chrono Trigger certainly seems interesting.  I know you already have a lot of things on your to-do list, and you may not have much time for the game, but if you ever ending up really wanting to play it then I can get an emulator and ROM of the game set up for you.  Just give me the word!

 

Ah, alright, I suppose I’ll check out the Steins;Gate 0 OVA once we have a more solidified air date for Steins;Gate 0, and use it as a refresher/hype builder.  Hmm, I wonder what episode of Monster you’re on?  It’s been such a long time since I’ve read the manga that even if you told me it probably wouldn’t mean much, but I’m still curious to know how much progress you’ve made and how much you still need to work your way through.  Humph, it’s not like I checked your MAL during your long absence for signs of any activity or anything b-b-baka!  But on a more serious note, MAL keeps track of when you start shows and when you finish them (like, the actual date) even though it doesn’t show that data on the surface.  You have to dig through the settings to find them.  Maybe it’s my OCD, but because MAL keeps such good records of everything you do, I immediately update my list the moment I watch even a single episode, which is why if you ever see my list update you’re more likely than not seeing it happen in real-time.  But it only keeps track of when you begin/end an anime if you start from episode one and individually update with each episode you watch.  If you just update your list in one go, for example putting a show from Plan to Watch to Completed with no other steps in between, it leaves the hidden begin/end data blank (you can input in dates manually if you kept track of this yourself, but this usually leads to estimations as opposed to exact dates). I think it’ll be cool to look back on my progress years from now and reminisce over how slowly/quickly I watched a certain series, knowing the exact date I started and the exact date I finished.  I know it’s not a huge deal to most people, but knowing the hidden feature is there makes me inclined to update my lists immediately.  I can only speak on behalf of ERASED and One Punch Man, since those are the only ones I’ve watched, but they’re pretty fun shows.  They’re short and easy to watch in one sitting (given you have the time for it).  They won’t be the deepest or most complex shows you’ll ever watch, since one-cour only gives you so much room to develop and expand on a world and characters, but they have a wide appeal so they’re a safe bet if you’re just looking for something short and sweet to enjoy.

 

Hahah, yes yes, I know that everyone can have hair trouble and that anime always makes hair look too good in the wind (look at you posting Hyouka gifs when you haven’t even watched the show, Kenzi pls jk jk), but I still believe my hair is especially prone to weirdness.  With how mussed up it gets when I’m outside in the wind while everyone else around me doesn’t seem to be having any trouble, you’d think my hair was related to Bernie Sander’s.  If my hair were a person, it would probably die to a stiff breeze.  When we meet in person you’ll see just how unruly my hair can be, ahah.  I feel like using gel to prevent my hair from going too crazy and to keep all those stray strands in place would certainly help, but at the same time I’d rather not bother myself with any more processes in the morning than I already do.  And you had a bowl cut as a kid?  Ahh, the way I’m imagining it, it sounds really cute, hahah.  

 

Yeah, I should have clarified that I was referring specifically to America.  Other developed countries also apply, like those in Western Europe and Japan, since those places share similar standards for waste control and because manufacturing businesses tend to have global operations as opposed to strictly local ones.  But yes, in regards to a place like China, you’d be hard pressed to convince anyone that they have the same quality guidelines.  

 

Ohh, and as for how my driving is going, I haven’t really done much of it at all.  My dad taught me the basics (and by basics I mean accelerating and braking and turning) for an hour about a week ago, and to put it bluntly I’m awful at it, ahahah.  I suppose I’ll get better if I practice more, but for now it’s like I’m driving with two right feet and two left hands.  Conceptually understanding things is fine, but my penchant for silly mistakes on math tests seems to carry over to driving.  In my current state, I’m a code red public safety hazard, bleh.  I’ll probably sign up for a quick official driving session right before I take the road test so I can get the deets on how to easily pass.  Apparently the road tests in New Jersey are really hard and you can only pass if you sign up for one of those official programs?  Hrmm, sounds suspiciously like some kind of “pay-to-pass” scam that helps to line the government’s pockets, but I’d rather not risk failing so whatever, I’ll sign up.  And despite my original plan to just barely pass just to get my driver’s license and be done with driving, my parents actually want to me to continue driving for the rest of my adulthood?  Which means I’m going to need a car?  Sighhh, my envisioned minimalistic lifestyle is crumbling before my eyes…  Oh well, looks like I’m going to have to git gud at driving whether I like it or not.

 

Aww geez Kenzi, you’re so sweet, worrying about me like that, haha.  Rest assured I’m doing just fine.  While I admit that hearing someone say that video games and anime is all he needs is a bit concerning (I’d probably think I was some kind of neckbearded basement dweller if I didn’t know me, to be honest), there’s nothing for you to worry about.  In just about all my classes this past year, there was generally one person I was somewhat close to that I could rely on for help in case I missed a class, and there are a handful of people from high school I still keep in touch with.  I know that connections are important when it comes to finding a job and internships, but I’m sure those will develop as I take more and more accounting-specific courses and I begin to see familiar faces.  Not to mention, you’ll be at Case before long, and that certainly counts for something!  So again, no need to fret, I’m perfectly content.

 

I guess the upside to a mild winter is the easier mornings, and I can imagine it certainly helps that you’ve gotten into a more regular sleeping schedule.  I’m really happy to hear that you haven’t been dozing off in class as much!  Interestingly enough, my sleep schedule during the second semester also smoothed itself out.  I occasionally nodded off in some of the less engaging classes or when I was just not feeling up to the weather, but not nearly as much as before.  It certainly is nice what sufficient sleep can do to the brain, as far as learning is concerned.  My grades even improved from the first semester despite taking more classes in the second.  Ohh, f.lux seems interesting, and it’s good that it’s helped you sleep better!  And you’ve even been having less headaches?  It certainly seems like life has been treating you pretty well these past few months!  I can’t remember how I discovered Rainmeter; probably saw a gif of a neat skin and was feeling motivated enough to throw together my own, even though it ultimately ate up the majority of my weekend.

 

Goodness me, so you’ve decided that breakfast is pretty important after all, huh?  I’m glad that you aren’t going hungry before lunch anymore and that you don’t have to carry around a bag of bread to nibble on during class.  Only having some Gogurt and maybe a few other things still seems a bit bare bones, but then again you eat lunch so I suppose it’s alright.  It’s just good to see you’ve been taking care of yourself!  

 

Yeah, I can imagine at this point in time you’re more than ready to just leave high school behind and enjoy your summer break.  You don’t have very long to go, so give finals your best shot I guess, haha.  Gosh, physics didn’t sit well with me either, but then again the physics I have in mind is the pretty basic level kind.  But with an ineffective class and teacher, any subject of any difficulty can be made to feel like a drag.  At least you like your orgo teacher!  And your APs went pretty well, so that’s good too.  To have your graphing calculator just stop working in the middle of the exam sounds like a huge pain.  I don’t think anything like that has ever happened to me, but I probably would have panicked if it did.  I rely on my graphing calculator for emotional support, since I’m not one to remember how add simple numbers under the right amount of stress, ahah.  I hope the test went well regardless of that malfunction though.  And geez, I’ve never known those warnings to be anything serious either.  I wonder if someone had a bone to pick with the AP bio teacher and reported him/her to the authorities out of spite.

 

College was pretty good though, especially the second semester!  I got lucky and got better grades than I expected to back when the semester was still young, so thank goodness for last-second final grades.  There isn’t too much else to discuss that I don’t believe I’ve already mentioned, though it’s been so long there may have been a few things that have slipped my mind.  The workload can be a bit overwhelming at times, but if you remain determined enough (or just have more self-control when it comes to spending your free time) then you should be able to pull through and make things work.  Generally speaking, the freedom is certainly nice and I had a much richer learning experience than I ever did in high school.  The students here, of all grades, are nice, the teachers are generally pretty competent, and it’s been a good time overall.  However, the dining hall food isn’t all that great and the service is even worse.  The mail system prevents packages and letters from being delivered in a timely manner, so time sensitive mail can get screwed over which really sucks.  And the construction and renovation of landscaping and buildings has long term benefits but can sometimes be a nuisance when it occurs during the school year.  But of course, these complaints are universal to all universities and colleges, and it’s nothing I hold personally against Case.  I have my classes and room selected for next semester as well.  Got waitlisted for one of my classes which left a gaping hole in the middle of my schedule, but I’m otherwise pleased with how it turned out.  I don’t have any classes on Fridays, which means I have a three-day weekend all of next semester!  It’s pretty difficult to pull this off and still have a packed schedule, so I’m thankful it somehow worked out.  As I mentioned in the PM, I’ll be rooming in Clarke Tower for next year.  It’s the only non-Greek boarding option on the north side of campus for sophomores.  Since the Peter B. Lewis Building is on the north side, I didn’t want to have to make an excessive trek across campus every day by living way down south with most of the other sophomores.  Granted, the quad is on the south side so those with more natural science classes would benefit from living down there.  By chance, I ended up on the very top floor of the tower (11th floor…), so I’m praying I have the same luck as I did this past year and end up with a pre-installed A/C unit in my room, otherwise I have a very good chance of frying myself before I even make it to midterms.  Oh, and I’m living in a single that’s part of a suite, which I’m pretty happy about.  My roommate wasn’t all that great this past year, and I’d much rather live alone this year.  I’ll definitely appreciate the extra privacy, given how much studying I do in my room.  I also like talking to myself to help “teach” myself when I’m studying, something that was very awkward when my roommate was around.  And this privacy also gives me the freedom to stay up late if I need to without potentially disturbing someone else.  I won’t use it as an excuse to pull excessive all-nighters, but sometimes things happen and you’re forced to stay up late whether you like it or not.

 

I suppose here would be a good place to address your question from the PM.  Here at Case we have doubles and suites, which I believe you were referring to when mentioning halls and quads.  Technically, I don’t think we actually call them doubles, but for clarity’s sake I’ll just roll with that definition.  The first year experience is virtually entirely double-style living, though I believe you can request a single for health reasons.  Singles are generally found on the first floor of residence halls.  All the halls in your first year will be regular doubles, where you room with one other person and use whichever bathroom on the floor that you want (there are usually two bathrooms, though some buildings just have one very large bathroom for the entire floor), the only exception being Clarke Tower which is a suite style building.  Suites at Case are a set of six singles grouped together that share a bathroom, with the exception of Clarke Tower which is three doubles and two singles grouped together (if you couldn’t already tell, Clarke Tower is just one big anomaly).  All of second year housing will be suite-styled living.  If the two types still sound pretty similar, it’s because, as far as I can tell, they pretty much are.  The main difference is that the bathrooms in suites are more private, in that only those in the suite are allowed access to it.  In regular halls lined with doubles, the bathrooms act more like public bathrooms that anyone who can access the building can use.  I’m not sure whether the privacy of a suite bathroom also comes with the responsibility of maintaining the bathroom.  If you end up joining Juniper for Taft or Taplin, then that’s totally cool!  I believe some of the older residence halls still have rooms locked by an actual physical key.  Taplin and mostly likely Taft rooms are opened by your student ID card, which is otherwise used for meal swipes and accessing certain buildings around campus.  Oh, and if they’re switching up the genders this year and assigning Taplin’s fourth floor as a female floor, then I recommend you room in 411, which was my room.  After all, I guarantee you’ll have A/C, hahah.  But anyway, I hope that answered your question.  Sorry if I wasn’t very clear on some things, and if you need any clarification I’d be happy to give it.  Because I haven’t lived in a suite yet, I can’t give any personal opinions on that matter.

 

Thinking back on it, perhaps I was just really salty about some of the grades I got in classes I just wasn’t very good at, like the sciences and the maths.  In reality, maybe the difficulty of JP’s teachers wasn’t as varying as I had originally thought.  It’s hard to tell since it feels like it’s been such a long time since high school, and hindsight isn’t nearly as 20/20 as people make it out to be.  The tests and sometimes the quizzes for a certain subject at a certain level were usually the same, but homework assignments and how things were graded varied by teacher.  Naturally, teaching style and likability and personality varied drastically as well.  There were definitely enough variables to make the differences between some teachers teaching the same subject painfully obvious, especially if one of the teachers was inferior to the others in just about every way.

 

Yeah, the entire amiibo fiasco has gotten me especially weary of how people package their items, especially since you’re guaranteed to get something delivered a little more dinged up than you would have liked if you order enough things online.  Amazon does have the advantage of boxes though.  I don’t know about you, but opening one of those brown boxes is sort of like opening a present on Christmas.  It’s not something I do anymore, but the memories of unwrapping gifts when I was younger remains and a little bit of that special feeling is evoked whenever I get something in the mail, boxed up nice and securely.  If you’re worried about distractions, then your dorm room won’t be a very good place to study for sure.  My roommate hardly talked (to me at least; he talked to himself a bit) and I tried my best not to let his presence and actions interfere with my studies, but even then it wasn’t the same as having a room or space all to myself.  More likely than not, you won’t have a roommate who’s an international student which will only make her more of a distraction than my roommate was to me.  As for places to study, the corny answer is the library.  I don’t believe it’s open 24/7, but it’s open long enough for you to get your work done if you’re efficient at it.  PBL also has a lot of nooks and crannies given its asymmetrical layout, if you’re up for exploring the building and finding a quiet place to yourself.  I haven’t explored the campus all that much though, as you can imagine, and I wouldn’t be surprised if you end up knowing the place better than I do once you’ve been here long enough.  And as I mentioned above, I’ll most likely be studying in my room next year as well given I’ll be in a single.

 

Yes, I’ve certainly heard a lot about the symbolism in Tatami Galaxy and Ping Pong, and they definitely intrigue me.  If I do choose to watch them, I know I’ll almost definitely be able to watch them in one sitting each, so I’ll wait for when I have an opportunity like that.  I actually took a bit of a break from anime, since even a lot of a good thing isn’t good for you, and I’ve gotten to the point where I’m feeling burnt out.  It doesn’t help that FE: Fates, as great of a game as it is, is heavily anime inspired and that’s all I’ve been playing since February.  After beating Fates not too long ago, I binge watched Game of Thrones.  It’s really fantastic and quite a breath of fresh air (when comparing it to anime of course), though I do feel like its quality has noticeably slipped in recent episodes and I don’t think I’m liking the direction it’s taking.  It’s still worth checking out if you ever just don’t want something anime-esque and instead want to revel in the sex, violence, and politics of a fantasy world.  I’ve caught up with all the episodes and am watching the 6th season as it’s currently airing.  I’m still technically on my “anime break” though, since after I finish writing this response to you I’ll start and complete Majora’s Mask.  After that, I’m hoping I’ll be in more of an anime mood and will probably resume watching more shows and playing more anime-styled games.  Or maybe I’ll prolong my break by doing something else, I don’t quite know yet.

 

Hmmm, well if you’re in a conundrum over what game to get, then why not just get a whole bunch?  Don’t go overboard like me and buy so many you can’t hardly finish them all, but maybe buy the handful that you’re most inclined to get and start from there?  Your 18th birthday is coming up really soon, and I’d think your parents would be more than willing to get you more than just one game for an event as momentous as that.  Personally, I’d recommend VLR (plus ZTD once it’s released on June 30th) and OoT as a starter pack of sorts, which will most likely be enough to tide you over to November’s Sun or Moon.  Considering you have so much else on your to-do list, I don’t really know if you’ll even find much of a need for a game like Smash, but if you really want to buy it then I suppose you’re free to do so.  Actually, now that I think about it, why don’t you try out the demo?  There’s a free Smash 3DS demo on the eShop, which is the game with a very limited roster, stage selection, and game mode, but it will give you an idea of how the game plays.  You can use it to gauge whether or not you’re willing to put in the money for the game.  Also, if I’m not mistaken, there’s an FE: Awakening demo on the eShop as well.  It’s only the first few minutes of the game, without the character customization, but it allows you to beat the first map and gives you a taste of the gameplay.  How you respond to that might also change your perception of the series and how much priority you’re willing to give it.  I know you’ll be busy until the end of the school year, but once you find the time to try out the demos let me know!

 

I don’t know if I’d say I actively play Smash, but I do pick it up occasionally.  I don’t play the 3DS version anymore now that I’m home, since if I wanted to play Smash I have my Wii U version which has more features and I can enjoy with my brother.  I’ve heard good things about Pokken, and I really want to like it, but I don’t think it’s my kind of game.  Smash is the only fighting game I have ever played, so the gameplay is pretty much ingrained in my mind.  I tried Soul Calibur II for the GameCube many years ago, but I didn’t enjoy it nearly as much as I enjoyed Smash.  Since Pokken is more Tekken-esque than anything, I don’t think I’m going to have much fun with it unfortunately, and I don’t have the time or money to risk giving it a try.  What makes Fates different from Awakening is hard to explain unless you’ve played the games before, but a decent analogy would be that the new gameplay features are as big a change to the series as the physical/special change from third gen Pokemon games to fourth gen, plus the addition of the Fairy-type, the type matchup changes, and the altered stats of some Pokemon between fifth and sixth gen.  It’s technically the same base gameplay as Awakening, but if you try beating the game using Awakening strats and an Awakening mindset you’re going to run into quite a bit of difficulty.  It’s really hard to go into any more detail than that without spoiling some bits or just not making any sense with jargon, eheh.

 

Wanting a “feel good” anime and then deciding to watch Shigatsu is just… wat even??  I suppose if you go in not knowing it’s supposed to be a “tearjerker” then maybe you’d think that, but it should have been abundantly clear by episode three what the last episode was going to be about.  Ohhhh, but Free is certainly a “feel good” anime if you know what I mean ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) your sister is lewder than I thought, huehuehuehue…  But yeah, you’ve definitely mentioned your dislike for love triangles, if not in one of our responses than somewhere else on DCW.  I don’t necessarily think love triangles are inherently all that bad, as long as they’re handled well.  But since they’ve been done to death you’ll be hard pressed to find one that isn’t the same as all the others.  Shigatsu was not an exception.  That you like the OST for not being very layered since it helps you study is actually one of the reasons I didn’t like the show.  Everyone gushes about the soundtrack, but none of songs perked my ears and made me think, “hey, this song is actually quite good.”  I was really hoping a good soundtrack would make some of the scenes better for me, even redeem the entire anime, but unfortunately nothing of the sort happened.  For the longest time I couldn’t figure out why.  Thankfully, you put it perfectly: the songs aren’t layered enough.  They sound nice, sure, but there’s no subtlety or depth to them.  They’re just generic and samey and… there.  They’re easy to tune out or completely overlook (I swear some episodes of Shigatsu straight up had no music, or at least I couldn’t remember if there was any music), and while that might be fine for study music it’s not at all fine for a television show’s soundtrack, one whose premise revolves around music of all things.  But anyway, I suppose that’s enough complaining about Shigatsu for now, haha.  Ohhhhhhhhh my goodness, and as if you giving me the exact words I was looking for wasn’t enough, you also point out something that’s been bugging me for the longest time!  I knew Gate of Steiner sounded familiar, but not just the beginning portion that sounds like Great Fairy Fountain.  I remember asking my brother if he recognized that later portion from anywhere, and he said he didn’t but I could have sworn I had heard it somewhere else.  And it was from this discreet song I had found all this time!  Gahh, can’t believe it took me this long to realize, considering how much I like Running Through the Stars, ahah.

 

You’d be surprised by what people sell on eBay.  Googling these things won’t give you much info, and even if it did there wouldn’t be any pictures to accommodate it.  In fact, I only discovered the Kino no Tabi box and Dog of Flanders pamphlet through eBay itself.  Thankfully demand for these items is so low; the price I paid for them was extremely low to match.  The Kino no Tabi box was released in waves.  The box plus the license plate and first volume (first four episodes) sold for $29.99 (according to an old ad I also managed to dig up).  I don’t know how much the remaining three volumes sold for individually (three episodes each), but even if they sold for $10 each that would place the value of the entire set at $59.99 back in 2003.  The box set was used, sure, but take into consideration over a decade of inflation and $50 is an extremely fair price.  The Dog of Flanders pamphlet is a little harder to put a price on, only because I’m merely going off the word of Japanese sellers.  According to them, the pamphlet was distributed at theaters when the movie premiered, but to be honest the booklet’s quality is so high and size so big (dimensions larger than your average printer paper) that I’m having trouble imagining it was given out for free.  I’d venture to say the quality is higher than that of my 999 fanzine, by quite the margin.  Even if it happened to be given out free of charge, I doubt many were ever printed, and my seller kept the pamphlet in better condition than some used textbooks I get from Amazon, so I would have been happy to pay even more than the listed $20.  

 

As for why I bought all this stuff, I really can’t tell you why.  I guess I just had an itch for merch, but the more I think about it I’m starting to feel like I got it because I also really like old stuff.  It doesn’t even matter what that “stuff” is; if it’s old and (to some extent) rare then it fascinates me.  Buildings, vehicles, weapons, trinkets, you name it.  If it’s historical and has a story to tell, I’m going to love it.  I’ve always wanted to explore abandoned buildings, especially the old decrepit ones I see on the side of the road, the ones already half taken back by nature.  It doesn’t matter if there’s no actual historical value to the building; just knowing it’s since been abandoned really calls to me.  Once on my way back from Game Stop (this was in Cleveland) the bus passed by this preserved historical site, which was some kind of old fashioned house.  The sign on the front said Dunham Tavern, and so right then and there I Googled it up and found that it’s the oldest building in Cleveland, the existing taproom dating back to 1842.  Once while I was writing a paper for my SAGES course (first semester) I somehow got distracted and discovered old black and white photos of the Severance Hall construction in the early 1900s, one of which showcased how that one intersection Case students today cross daily looked back then, with the nearly complete music hall as the backdrop.  Heck, while looking up old things related to Cleveland just now, I learned about a now defunct amusement park called Luna Park that was around from 1905 to 1929.  It was just six minutes south of Case Western and shut down as a result of the Great Depression.  I checked Google Maps to see what became of the land it used to stand on, and now it’s just a sad area encased by shady, cracked roads.  Some aged homes stand there, but a good portion of it is empty space up for sale.  Seeing what has remained the same, and what has changed, just fills me with this indescribable feeling of wonder and inspiration and sadness.  Gaping in awe at the things people decades and centuries before me gaped at, while wistfully daydreaming about the sights and sounds never to be experienced again.  But anyway, I’ve rambled on for too long.  I guess what I mean to say is that the reason why I bought the Kino no Tabi box and the Dog of Flanders booklet is because I love historical things so much.  Both anime are old and largely forgotten by the general populace, and the merchandise of these series that date to their original release are even more lost in this age of information.  Being able to hold these “relics” in my own hands gives me a kind of joy that is impossible to emulate with something new, shiny, and mass produced.

 

Hahahah, yeahh, the whole amiibo craze has made me think twice about ripping open boxes.  I’ll probably get around to freeing Pikachu from its cardboard prison, but maybe some other time.  I don’t intend to sell it, so there’s no point in keeping it restricted like that.  The 999 fansize is pretty good!  Generally speaking, the art is nice, and I’m glad I’ve helped to support aspiring artists who share at least one of my interests.  I hope a VLR and ZTD one are made in the future; it just wouldn’t feel right without a full trilogy.  Etika played through the pacifist and genocide routes of Undertale, and from what I understand those are the only “necessary” endings to get in order to clear yourself of story related spoilers.  The various neutral endings lead to alternate dialogue and stuff like that, but nothing too major aside from that.  I’ll probably look up those scenes later if I’m feeling up to it.  But yeah, once you’ve played through pacifist and genocide you’re free to Google up fanart and fan theories and all the other nice stuff without worry.

 

You can get Amazon Prime free for six months if you provide them a school-based e-mail address, such as first.last@school.edu.  As long as you have that .edu it should work.  All colleges give their students a school e-mail and Case is no exception.  Oh, and do you remember that cute little username Case gave you during the application process?  The one that’s just your three initials followed by a one- to three-digit number?  Well, if you don’t then the sooner you remember it the better, because that’s your Case ID and will follow you for your entire Case Western career, ahah.  Your e-mail will literally just be your ID followed by @case.edu, so abc123@case.edu for example.  You’ll be using it a ton, so hopefully you like the numbers you were assigned.  I know you don’t use Amazon much, but you can use your Case e-mail to shave off a few dollars from your inevitable Sun/Moon purchase, and get free 2-day shipping for whatever else you may need (or want, hah).  I think I only got the Pokemon card binders because my free Prime trial was about to end, and I was feeling bad about just having my Pokemon cards rot away in a little tin can (some of which my brother and I had to go out of our way to steal, if you recall) and figured having a way to display and flip through them certainly wouldn’t hurt.

 

Oh goodness, I had completely forgotten what we were talking about and it took a good while before I finally realized why you were teasing me so, ahah.  The cashier seemed amicable enough, so I don’t think he minded having to count all those bills and coins.  This is something I learned in accounting, but businesses benefit most from cash transactions.  Though so many people just use credit cards to pay nowadays, they’re riskier for the business.  There’s always the small chance a customer will default on their payment, and even if a customer doesn’t, the business needs to pay the credit card company a tiny fee every time they make a transaction with a customer using a credit card.  It may not seem like a big deal, but those fees and that chance of default adds up over hundreds, thousands, or potentially even millions of transactions a business makes during a fiscal year.  Cash is simple; you receive it and it’s all yours.  But credit and debit cards come with those small risks, credit cards more so than debit cards, which is why a lot of gas stations charge less for someone who pays with cash.  If that cashier were concerned about the success of Game Stop as a whole, he might have been pleased that I bought such an expensive item with cash.  But considering that whether or not a single customer pays with cash or credit doesn’t affect a cashier’s salary in the slightest, I doubt it.  Ahh goodness, I can imagine you’re already tired of reading this response (I probably should have warned you to grab a snack and settle in for a long read), and I’m sorry I keep on getting sidetracked by practically unrelated things.  I’ll try not to dillydally for much longer, eheheh.

 

Phew, goodness me, you certainly liked the soundtrack didn’t you?  The medley is pretty neat, too!  If I can’t even beat the hidden Last Cave, then there is no way in heck I’m going to get close to beating the Bloodstained Sanctuary, hah.  So I’ll definitely check out the ending bits when I’m in the mood for it.  To digress a bit, I played some Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze not too long ago and one of the optional stages completely rekt me.  It reminded me just how bad I am at platformers, as if Cave Story wasn’t reminder enough.  And it also revealed why I’m so bad at them.  I realized that I can’t do “perfect” levels.  I don’t know if there’s a specific word for this, but you know levels that require crazy precise techniques and inputs?  The ones that, if you mess up even once, you throw off the pattern and are virtually (if not literally) forced to return to the very beginning of the stage?  The hidden Last Cave is kinda like that, but even then the difficulty is also dependent on the weapons you have and it’s not like it’s impossible to beat the cave if you mess up partway through.  That optional stage in Tropical Freeze was one of those “perfect” levels though.  One slipup, one mind lapse, one imperfect button press, and it’s all over.  I spent literally 8 hours straight on that one stage.  And guess what?  I never beat it.  I looked up guides and tips and tricks but all that I learned was that I just wasn’t good enough.  All I needed was one perfect run, to get from the beginning to the distant end, and it would be over.  But I could never get that perfect run, not once in the 8 hours I spent trying it.  Even if I put in another 8 hours, I doubt I would beat it.  I see others online beating it after a “long” one hour, and I’m just sitting here accepting the fact that platformers (and I suppose other things like bullet hells) that require perfection in any form are impossible for me.  As I mentioned earlier, I’m terribly prone to silly mistakes.  I can’t help it, I just am.  Thank goodness that one level in Tropical Freeze is optional.  Technically the hidden Last Cave is too, but once you opt to try it you’re locked-in which really sucks.  I’m frightened to even see what the Bloodstained Sanctuary holds, if the hidden Last Cave is already so far out of reach for me.  But anyway, I said I wouldn’t, but it looks like I’ve digressed again, so sorry for that.  I also definitely abused the Machine Gun once I got it.  I flew all over the damn place with that thing, and made parts that should have been decently challenging simple instead.  I kind of regret it, especially since I wasn’t able to practice using the Booster v2.0 (curse that impossible to control contraption!) and because it’s not a good weapon at all for the hidden Last Cave.  But oh well, levitating around like that was fun so I guess it’s fine, hahahah.

 

Aghh, just as I say I’m going to watch a play through of Super Meat Boy, it’s released on the Wii U of all things!  Now I’m a bit on the fence about it.  It looks fun in terms of gameplay and level design, but goodness if there are any of those “perfect” levels then I’m royally screwed.  Unfortunately, I don’t have any way of knowing if something is way above my skill level unless I actually try it.  Should I take the risk and buy it, or should I just watch a let’s play?  I’m leaning toward let’s play, but I still want to wait a bit and give it time before jumping the gun.

 

Eheh, my family isn’t nearly as connected as I sometimes make them out to be.  We only watch movies together and eat out and stuff like during the long breaks, and even then I feel like my parents only join in on the fun out of obligation.  We’ve tried board games as well, which can sometimes be pretty fun, but movies are preferred by my mother who likes to take that chance to doze off, ahahah.  Most of the time though, we just mind our own businesses.  This summer break for example, I’m locked up in my room so often that I hardly pay any mind to what my parents are doing.  I know when they come home from work and when they go to sleep, and I see them during dinner, but that’s about it on a normal day, ehhh.  So yeah, I don’t want you to think we’re some kind of picture perfect nuclear family, because we’re often times pretty disconnected with each other.

 

Hmm, it’s too bad your winter break wasn’t too eventful.  I always look forward to winter breaks more than any other break, even summer, just because of the magic of Christmas (I could go on and on about all the number of times I’ve craved blasting holidays tunes at untimely times of this year, but this response is as long as it is), so it’s a shame you don’t have any particularly special memories from this holiday season.  Then again, you had college apps to stress about, so perhaps you weren’t in a particularly festive mood to start.  I’m really glad you got to bond with your father so much during your spring break Boston trek though!  I was never as detached from my parents as you were with your father (I certainly wouldn’t be terrified of traveling alone with either of my parents, that’s for sure), so I can’t quite relate to how you felt, but coming to terms with someone I’m not very comfortable with sounds like it would be such a wonderful thing!  Hopefully this experience fosters a healthy relationship between you and him in the future, and perhaps serves as a good lesson when it comes to dealing with other people, specifically those you’re averse to.  And there’s no need to feel silly this was the highlight of your spring break!  Heck, I’m the guy who actually enjoyed writing college app essays two winter breaks ago, hah.  Finding peace and bonding with others like this isn’t something that happens every day, so as you say you should cherish those moments.

 

Ohhhh your trip to San Antonio sounds absolutely fantastic!  I’ve never been down to Texas, though despite the heat it certainly seems like an interesting prospect.  For an orchestra trip, it sounds like you had a wonderful time!  I know how busy you’ve been and how stressed you were, so I’m glad you got this chance, however long or brief it was in your mind’s eye, to enjoy yourself and have such an unforgettable experience!  Visiting the Alamo must have been cool!  I’m surprised you weren’t in the mood to get soaked, even though it was so hot.  Well, now that I think about, that whole uncomfortable drying process that begins with your hair and ends with your socks and lasts the entirety of the day can be pretty irritating, even in the heat.  It’s never fun wanting to eat but feeling icky because you’re wet and feeling self-conscious about leaving behind a steaming butt print behind on the poor bench you decide to sit on while you’re munching on an overpriced churro.  And opting out of waiting in the lines for those rides was probably a good idea.  You saved yourself from getting any more weird tan marks and you got to stay in the cool A/C (assuming there were some indoor portions of the aquarium sections).  The riverwalk sounds really cool!  It sounds like something I’d like, haha.  Then again, now that summer time is approaching I’m back in that “summer festival” mood (this is what happens when you watch too many anime).  Just the idea of stands and booths set up to be all nice and colorful sounds so festive.  And then when night falls, perhaps there could be fireworks!  Ahhhh I need me some good fireworks asap, I’m in a seriously festive mood.  Hahah, writing these responses always gets me excited about the smallest things, gosh.  It’s really neat how your school’s marching band marched in the parade during the Fiesta!  It’s great the orchestra cheered them on; being cheered on while you march is such a satisfying feeling, haha.  I’m sure the band greatly appreciated it.  Hrmm, I don’t like the sound of “disturbing things about the people at our school” one bit.  You seniors better not be leaving behind a trashy legacy for the precious underclassmen, ya hear?  Jokes aside, I’ll take the bait: what disturbing things do you happen to be talking about?

 

Oh, there’s absolutely no need to apologize for any delays.  We’re going to meet each other in person before long, and I guess after that there won’t really be much of a need for these responses anymore, will there?  Haha, it’s still such a surreal thought, to be honest.  I hope I can live up to your expectations; I’m significantly worse at speaking than I am I writing, soooo, eheh.  But anyway, in response to the rest of your PM, I did absolutely fine the second semester (better than expected even!), so though I might have sounded distressed, your absence didn’t send me into an uncontrollable spiral of depression, rest assured.  And it sounds like there’s still a lot for you to worry about in the coming weeks leading up to the end of your K-12 career.  Best of luck in the tennis tourney and during your (presumably) final concert!  Also, what interview are you referencing?  Since the school search is over, would it be safe to presume an internship or job interview?  Regardless of what it’s about, good luck with that as well!  I don’t have much experience with interviews yet, but I know those can certainly be nerve-wracking.  And of course, be sure to have fun at Cedar Point and prom!  Let me know just how much I missed by failing to attend this supposed “once in a lifetime” event back when I had the chance, haha.

 

As for how I’ve been and what I’ve been up to, I believe I’ve actually mentioned everything of importance at various points throughout this post, and maybe a little bit elsewhere on DCW.  Oh, my grandfather’s come over to visit from China, which is nice.  He’s pretty old now and he stays at my aunt and uncle’s place for the most part (about a 45 minute drive from where I live, roughly), but he spends the weekends here and it’s certainly nice to see him.  And my summer course on astronomy, which I’ll be taking at Rutgers, starts the very beginning of June (literally June 1st if I’m not mistaken), so that’s coming up.  Thinking back on it, did I ever even mention this summer course previously?  Maybe in passing I did, a long time ago, but yeah that’ll be my only “not fun” activity I’ll be participating in, aside from learning how to drive, haha.  Just need to take it so I can get my natural science requirements at Case done and out of the way with; not really any other reason than that.

 

And that just about wraps up this response!  Sorry for getting carried away and rambling on all those times; it seems to be a recurring theme with this exchange, huh?  Again, don’t worry about getting a timely response sent back on time.  Now that it’s summer break, I finally have the freedom to get around to all those games and anime I’ve had on my mind for the longest time so there’s plenty I’ll be doing to keep myself occupied.  And since it’ll also be summer break for you soon as well, I’d much rather you spend your time doing what you want to do, as opposed feeling obligated to write up a response for me.  There will be plenty of time to catch up once we meet in person anyway!

[Kenzi 146]

On 5/24/2016 at 10:44 AM, Akazora said:

  Reveal hidden contents

It’s great to see you so excited for the new Pokemon games!  Even though I finished playing Alpha Sapphire and Y not too long ago, I’ve been in the mood for some Pokemon myself.  I’ve had cravings for randomizers and other mods of older games, but I’ll do my best to be patient and wait for SM while attending to more pressing matters, like clearing out my video game backlog, in the meantime.  Funnily enough, I actually kind of like Sun’s legendary design a little more than I like Moon’s, but because I have such a strong devotion to the moon as a symbol (nighttime imagery for the win!) I don’t regret claiming a copy of it early.  There’s a lot of potential with the titles being Sun and Moon, though I don’t have any personal theories on what it could mean.  Since the new gen game titles have held somewhat significant meaning for a while now (“Black and White” for games that focused on moral questions and “X and Y” for the first 3D main series installments) I’m sure “Sun and Moon” are relevant to the overarching themes of the games in some way.  The sun and moon are prominent symbols in all kinds of religion and folklore as well, and since the Alola region is unapologetically based on Hawaii I’m sure there are plenty of connections they can make.  That being said, you can imagine how weary I am about the blatant connection to Hawaii (given how much the France-based Kalos bothered me), but I won’t judge the game until it comes out.  And yeah, poor Zygarde.  It’s gotten a ton of exposure in the anime, with all its different forms and stuff, but it gets virtually no recognition in the games from which it originates.  Perhaps they’ll just shoehorn it in in a “Zeta Episode” of sorts, though Game Freak would pleasantly surprise me if they instead made it an integral part of the main story without overshadowing the new Pokemon.  This time around, I’m going to try my best not to spoil all the Pokemon to myself.  In Y, I planned a team in advance to make sure I had good type coverage, and that wasn’t as fun as I expected it to be.  In AS, I solo ran which I only did because of time constraints and because there were no new Pokemon.  For SM though, I’m going to have as close to a blind, “normal” run as possible.  I’ll keep up to date with news as it comes out, but once November 18th arrives I’ll avoid any mention of Pokemon on the Internet until I beat the game.  With any luck and with enough willpower, I think I’ll be able to accomplish this without running into any spoilers.  And if we have an XY scenario where small mom and pop stores distribute the games a few days before the street date, leading to leaks of things like the final forms of the starters, then I’ll be avoiding those as well.  Feel free to join me on this abstainment from spoilers, though if you end up just spoiling yourself anyway because you either aren’t able to buy the game immediately or you want to know more about the new Pokemon before starting then that’s fine too (you just better not blurt out spoilers to me before I finish or anything, hahah).

 

Ughh, that I haven’t typed one of these up in a while is clearly showing; I’ve rambled on for far too long.  My first semester SAGES teacher would be disappointed in me.  I suppose I’ll put this in a separate paragraph just so the first one doesn’t inflate to an unhealthy size.  I’m also a bit torn on the starters, but I think I’m leaning toward Rowlet.  Grass starters have always felt a bit under-appreciated, and I have a thing for underdogs.  Of course, from what I’ve seen a lot of people love Rowlet so maybe this generation will be an exception.  Or maybe my preconceptions about Grass starters are completely wrong.  Growing up, it always seemed to me that everyone gravitated toward the cool Fire and Water types (like holy geez, just look at Blaziken and Swampert and Infernape and Empoleon, how much more badass can you get?) and rarely picked the Grass type.  It certainly doesn’t help that Grass types just aren’t as versatile offensively or defensively as Water and Fire types.  But perhaps Grass starters are actually more appreciated nowadays than they were before, or seemed before.  Regardless though, I really like Rowlet’s design.  It’s so round and cute just imagining it waddling around makes me feel warm inside (I'm aware it flies, but that doesn't mean it can't waddle!).  Litten is also really cool though.  It’s cute, but not cute in the doe-eyed way the other starters (from all generations) are.  It must be the yellow eyes and deadpan expression.  I think that makes it really unique and I’m interested to see how its final form turns out.  And then there’s Popplio.  While it’s certainly grown on me, I kind of wish they went for a different design, something more akin to a baby harp seal (I love those things, ahhhhhhhh).  So like, the cuteness of Spheal with the shape of Seel.  The whole circus theme seems a bit weird to me, especially since I fear they may go overboard with the circus imagery in its later evolutions.  After all, they went from Fennekin to a witch fox holding a burning wand.  I’m just imaging Popplio’s collar and nose going full clown and that’s freaking me out.  Funnily enough though, it seems like Popplio is actually the one drawing you away from Litten.  There’s still plenty of time for you to decide, especially if you wait for the final forms and typings to be revealed/leaked/spoiled.  May I ask why you seem to be under some oath to always choose Fire starters though?  And this being the case, I assume you chose Chimchar when you played Platinum?  Also, I assume you used your real life name for your Platinum file, right?  And, sorry for all the questions but, if you had the chance to replay Platinum again would you use pick Chimchar or one of the others, and would you use your real name or a pseudonym, like Kenzi?

 

Hmph, well fine, I’ll give you that, I suppose let’s plays aren’t all that bad in some situations, hmph.  But I still believe playing it yourself is generally the preferred option.  I only watched Etika’s let’s play because it was live (I was somehow always there to catch his streams; I should probably cut back on the hours I spend on the computer…) and because I was still on the fence about Undertale in regards to if I was ever going to find the time to play it.  If it was something like Ace Attorney 6, even if Etika was live streaming it, I still wouldn’t watch it because it’s a game I plan on giving priority to finishing the moment it comes out.  Aw, but Twitch chats are the best!  It’s a frenzied fustercluck of both temporal and long lasting memes, and that’s why I love it so much.  Nintendo Directs, even the boring ones, are wildly entertaining for the chat alone (and this is even after Nintendo bans spamming and cussing).  It’s all the better if the streamer just allows the chat to go batshit insane.  I believe Etika only has his mods ban thoroughly obnoxious spammers and people who post spoilers, so his chats are a beautiful mess.  Demo’s Twitch chat isn’t nearly as fast paced, but it’s certainly danker which makes up for it, haha.  That reminds me of a time that some news channel broadcasted one of the presidential debates live on YouTube, though I can’t remember if it was a Republican or Democratic one.  They left the chat enabled in the minutes leading up to the debate, and from the looks of it there were no restrictions.  Then some intern must have turned it off, because right before the debate started the chat option went away.  That was a real buzzkill, because it’s not very often you get to see political memes and shitposting flying by at such a breakneck speed, hahahah.  But anyway, this topic has digressed.  I hope that you one day find the time the enjoy Undertale!

 

The general premise of Chrono Trigger certainly seems interesting.  I know you already have a lot of things on your to-do list, and you may not have much time for the game, but if you ever ending up really wanting to play it then I can get an emulator and ROM of the game set up for you.  Just give me the word!

 

Ah, alright, I suppose I’ll check out the Steins;Gate 0 OVA once we have a more solidified air date for Steins;Gate 0, and use it as a refresher/hype builder.  Hmm, I wonder what episode of Monster you’re on?  It’s been such a long time since I’ve read the manga that even if you told me it probably wouldn’t mean much, but I’m still curious to know how much progress you’ve made and how much you still need to work your way through.  Humph, it’s not like I checked your MAL during your long absence for signs of any activity or anything b-b-baka!  But on a more serious note, MAL keeps track of when you start shows and when you finish them (like, the actual date) even though it doesn’t show that data on the surface.  You have to dig through the settings to find them.  Maybe it’s my OCD, but because MAL keeps such good records of everything you do, I immediately update my list the moment I watch even a single episode, which is why if you ever see my list update you’re more likely than not seeing it happen in real-time.  But it only keeps track of when you begin/end an anime if you start from episode one and individually update with each episode you watch.  If you just update your list in one go, for example putting a show from Plan to Watch to Completed with no other steps in between, it leaves the hidden begin/end data blank (you can input in dates manually if you kept track of this yourself, but this usually leads to estimations as opposed to exact dates). I think it’ll be cool to look back on my progress years from now and reminisce over how slowly/quickly I watched a certain series, knowing the exact date I started and the exact date I finished.  I know it’s not a huge deal to most people, but knowing the hidden feature is there makes me inclined to update my lists immediately.  I can only speak on behalf of ERASED and One Punch Man, since those are the only ones I’ve watched, but they’re pretty fun shows.  They’re short and easy to watch in one sitting (given you have the time for it).  They won’t be the deepest or most complex shows you’ll ever watch, since one-cour only gives you so much room to develop and expand on a world and characters, but they have a wide appeal so they’re a safe bet if you’re just looking for something short and sweet to enjoy.

 

Hahah, yes yes, I know that everyone can have hair trouble and that anime always makes hair look too good in the wind (look at you posting Hyouka gifs when you haven’t even watched the show, Kenzi pls jk jk), but I still believe my hair is especially prone to weirdness.  With how mussed up it gets when I’m outside in the wind while everyone else around me doesn’t seem to be having any trouble, you’d think my hair was related to Bernie Sander’s.  If my hair were a person, it would probably die to a stiff breeze.  When we meet in person you’ll see just how unruly my hair can be, ahah.  I feel like using gel to prevent my hair from going too crazy and to keep all those stray strands in place would certainly help, but at the same time I’d rather not bother myself with any more processes in the morning than I already do.  And you had a bowl cut as a kid?  Ahh, the way I’m imagining it, it sounds really cute, hahah.  

 

Yeah, I should have clarified that I was referring specifically to America.  Other developed countries also apply, like those in Western Europe and Japan, since those places share similar standards for waste control and because manufacturing businesses tend to have global operations as opposed to strictly local ones.  But yes, in regards to a place like China, you’d be hard pressed to convince anyone that they have the same quality guidelines.  

 

Ohh, and as for how my driving is going, I haven’t really done much of it at all.  My dad taught me the basics (and by basics I mean accelerating and braking and turning) for an hour about a week ago, and to put it bluntly I’m awful at it, ahahah.  I suppose I’ll get better if I practice more, but for now it’s like I’m driving with two right feet and two left hands.  Conceptually understanding things is fine, but my penchant for silly mistakes on math tests seems to carry over to driving.  In my current state, I’m a code red public safety hazard, bleh.  I’ll probably sign up for a quick official driving session right before I take the road test so I can get the deets on how to easily pass.  Apparently the road tests in New Jersey are really hard and you can only pass if you sign up for one of those official programs?  Hrmm, sounds suspiciously like some kind of “pay-to-pass” scam that helps to line the government’s pockets, but I’d rather not risk failing so whatever, I’ll sign up.  And despite my original plan to just barely pass just to get my driver’s license and be done with driving, my parents actually want to me to continue driving for the rest of my adulthood?  Which means I’m going to need a car?  Sighhh, my envisioned minimalistic lifestyle is crumbling before my eyes…  Oh well, looks like I’m going to have to git gud at driving whether I like it or not.

 

Aww geez Kenzi, you’re so sweet, worrying about me like that, haha.  Rest assured I’m doing just fine.  While I admit that hearing someone say that video games and anime is all he needs is a bit concerning (I’d probably think I was some kind of neckbearded basement dweller if I didn’t know me, to be honest), there’s nothing for you to worry about.  In just about all my classes this past year, there was generally one person I was somewhat close to that I could rely on for help in case I missed a class, and there are a handful of people from high school I still keep in touch with.  I know that connections are important when it comes to finding a job and internships, but I’m sure those will develop as I take more and more accounting-specific courses and I begin to see familiar faces.  Not to mention, you’ll be at Case before long, and that certainly counts for something!  So again, no need to fret, I’m perfectly content.

 

I guess the upside to a mild winter is the easier mornings, and I can imagine it certainly helps that you’ve gotten into a more regular sleeping schedule.  I’m really happy to hear that you haven’t been dozing off in class as much!  Interestingly enough, my sleep schedule during the second semester also smoothed itself out.  I occasionally nodded off in some of the less engaging classes or when I was just not feeling up to the weather, but not nearly as much as before.  It certainly is nice what sufficient sleep can do to the brain, as far as learning is concerned.  My grades even improved from the first semester despite taking more classes in the second.  Ohh, f.lux seems interesting, and it’s good that it’s helped you sleep better!  And you’ve even been having less headaches?  It certainly seems like life has been treating you pretty well these past few months!  I can’t remember how I discovered Rainmeter; probably saw a gif of a neat skin and was feeling motivated enough to throw together my own, even though it ultimately ate up the majority of my weekend.

 

Goodness me, so you’ve decided that breakfast is pretty important after all, huh?  I’m glad that you aren’t going hungry before lunch anymore and that you don’t have to carry around a bag of bread to nibble on during class.  Only having some Gogurt and maybe a few other things still seems a bit bare bones, but then again you eat lunch so I suppose it’s alright.  It’s just good to see you’ve been taking care of yourself!  

 

Yeah, I can imagine at this point in time you’re more than ready to just leave high school behind and enjoy your summer break.  You don’t have very long to go, so give finals your best shot I guess, haha.  Gosh, physics didn’t sit well with me either, but then again the physics I have in mind is the pretty basic level kind.  But with an ineffective class and teacher, any subject of any difficulty can be made to feel like a drag.  At least you like your orgo teacher!  And your APs went pretty well, so that’s good too.  To have your graphing calculator just stop working in the middle of the exam sounds like a huge pain.  I don’t think anything like that has ever happened to me, but I probably would have panicked if it did.  I rely on my graphing calculator for emotional support, since I’m not one to remember how add simple numbers under the right amount of stress, ahah.  I hope the test went well regardless of that malfunction though.  And geez, I’ve never known those warnings to be anything serious either.  I wonder if someone had a bone to pick with the AP bio teacher and reported him/her to the authorities out of spite.

 

College was pretty good though, especially the second semester!  I got lucky and got better grades than I expected to back when the semester was still young, so thank goodness for last-second final grades.  There isn’t too much else to discuss that I don’t believe I’ve already mentioned, though it’s been so long there may have been a few things that have slipped my mind.  The workload can be a bit overwhelming at times, but if you remain determined enough (or just have more self-control when it comes to spending your free time) then you should be able to pull through and make things work.  Generally speaking, the freedom is certainly nice and I had a much richer learning experience than I ever did in high school.  The students here, of all grades, are nice, the teachers are generally pretty competent, and it’s been a good time overall.  However, the dining hall food isn’t all that great and the service is even worse.  The mail system prevents packages and letters from being delivered in a timely manner, so time sensitive mail can get screwed over which really sucks.  And the construction and renovation of landscaping and buildings has long term benefits but can sometimes be a nuisance when it occurs during the school year.  But of course, these complaints are universal to all universities and colleges, and it’s nothing I hold personally against Case.  I have my classes and room selected for next semester as well.  Got waitlisted for one of my classes which left a gaping hole in the middle of my schedule, but I’m otherwise pleased with how it turned out.  I don’t have any classes on Fridays, which means I have a three-day weekend all of next semester!  It’s pretty difficult to pull this off and still have a packed schedule, so I’m thankful it somehow worked out.  As I mentioned in the PM, I’ll be rooming in Clarke Tower for next year.  It’s the only non-Greek boarding option on the north side of campus for sophomores.  Since the Peter B. Lewis Building is on the north side, I didn’t want to have to make an excessive trek across campus every day by living way down south with most of the other sophomores.  Granted, the quad is on the south side so those with more natural science classes would benefit from living down there.  By chance, I ended up on the very top floor of the tower (11th floor…), so I’m praying I have the same luck as I did this past year and end up with a pre-installed A/C unit in my room, otherwise I have a very good chance of frying myself before I even make it to midterms.  Oh, and I’m living in a single that’s part of a suite, which I’m pretty happy about.  My roommate wasn’t all that great this past year, and I’d much rather live alone this year.  I’ll definitely appreciate the extra privacy, given how much studying I do in my room.  I also like talking to myself to help “teach” myself when I’m studying, something that was very awkward when my roommate was around.  And this privacy also gives me the freedom to stay up late if I need to without potentially disturbing someone else.  I won’t use it as an excuse to pull excessive all-nighters, but sometimes things happen and you’re forced to stay up late whether you like it or not.

 

I suppose here would be a good place to address your question from the PM.  Here at Case we have doubles and suites, which I believe you were referring to when mentioning halls and quads.  Technically, I don’t think we actually call them doubles, but for clarity’s sake I’ll just roll with that definition.  The first year experience is virtually entirely double-style living, though I believe you can request a single for health reasons.  Singles are generally found on the first floor of residence halls.  All the halls in your first year will be regular doubles, where you room with one other person and use whichever bathroom on the floor that you want (there are usually two bathrooms, though some buildings just have one very large bathroom for the entire floor), the only exception being Clarke Tower which is a suite style building.  Suites at Case are a set of six singles grouped together that share a bathroom, with the exception of Clarke Tower which is three doubles and two singles grouped together (if you couldn’t already tell, Clarke Tower is just one big anomaly).  All of second year housing will be suite-styled living.  If the two types still sound pretty similar, it’s because, as far as I can tell, they pretty much are.  The main difference is that the bathrooms in suites are more private, in that only those in the suite are allowed access to it.  In regular halls lined with doubles, the bathrooms act more like public bathrooms that anyone who can access the building can use.  I’m not sure whether the privacy of a suite bathroom also comes with the responsibility of maintaining the bathroom.  If you end up joining Juniper for Taft or Taplin, then that’s totally cool!  I believe some of the older residence halls still have rooms locked by an actual physical key.  Taplin and mostly likely Taft rooms are opened by your student ID card, which is otherwise used for meal swipes and accessing certain buildings around campus.  Oh, and if they’re switching up the genders this year and assigning Taplin’s fourth floor as a female floor, then I recommend you room in 411, which was my room.  After all, I guarantee you’ll have A/C, hahah.  But anyway, I hope that answered your question.  Sorry if I wasn’t very clear on some things, and if you need any clarification I’d be happy to give it.  Because I haven’t lived in a suite yet, I can’t give any personal opinions on that matter.

 

Thinking back on it, perhaps I was just really salty about some of the grades I got in classes I just wasn’t very good at, like the sciences and the maths.  In reality, maybe the difficulty of JP’s teachers wasn’t as varying as I had originally thought.  It’s hard to tell since it feels like it’s been such a long time since high school, and hindsight isn’t nearly as 20/20 as people make it out to be.  The tests and sometimes the quizzes for a certain subject at a certain level were usually the same, but homework assignments and how things were graded varied by teacher.  Naturally, teaching style and likability and personality varied drastically as well.  There were definitely enough variables to make the differences between some teachers teaching the same subject painfully obvious, especially if one of the teachers was inferior to the others in just about every way.

 

Yeah, the entire amiibo fiasco has gotten me especially weary of how people package their items, especially since you’re guaranteed to get something delivered a little more dinged up than you would have liked if you order enough things online.  Amazon does have the advantage of boxes though.  I don’t know about you, but opening one of those brown boxes is sort of like opening a present on Christmas.  It’s not something I do anymore, but the memories of unwrapping gifts when I was younger remains and a little bit of that special feeling is evoked whenever I get something in the mail, boxed up nice and securely.  If you’re worried about distractions, then your dorm room won’t be a very good place to study for sure.  My roommate hardly talked (to me at least; he talked to himself a bit) and I tried my best not to let his presence and actions interfere with my studies, but even then it wasn’t the same as having a room or space all to myself.  More likely than not, you won’t have a roommate who’s an international student which will only make her more of a distraction than my roommate was to me.  As for places to study, the corny answer is the library.  I don’t believe it’s open 24/7, but it’s open long enough for you to get your work done if you’re efficient at it.  PBL also has a lot of nooks and crannies given its asymmetrical layout, if you’re up for exploring the building and finding a quiet place to yourself.  I haven’t explored the campus all that much though, as you can imagine, and I wouldn’t be surprised if you end up knowing the place better than I do once you’ve been here long enough.  And as I mentioned above, I’ll most likely be studying in my room next year as well given I’ll be in a single.

 

Yes, I’ve certainly heard a lot about the symbolism in Tatami Galaxy and Ping Pong, and they definitely intrigue me.  If I do choose to watch them, I know I’ll almost definitely be able to watch them in one sitting each, so I’ll wait for when I have an opportunity like that.  I actually took a bit of a break from anime, since even a lot of a good thing isn’t good for you, and I’ve gotten to the point where I’m feeling burnt out.  It doesn’t help that FE: Fates, as great of a game as it is, is heavily anime inspired and that’s all I’ve been playing since February.  After beating Fates not too long ago, I binge watched Game of Thrones.  It’s really fantastic and quite a breath of fresh air (when comparing it to anime of course), though I do feel like its quality has noticeably slipped in recent episodes and I don’t think I’m liking the direction it’s taking.  It’s still worth checking out if you ever just don’t want something anime-esque and instead want to revel in the sex, violence, and politics of a fantasy world.  I’ve caught up with all the episodes and am watching the 6th season as it’s currently airing.  I’m still technically on my “anime break” though, since after I finish writing this response to you I’ll start and complete Majora’s Mask.  After that, I’m hoping I’ll be in more of an anime mood and will probably resume watching more shows and playing more anime-styled games.  Or maybe I’ll prolong my break by doing something else, I don’t quite know yet.

 

Hmmm, well if you’re in a conundrum over what game to get, then why not just get a whole bunch?  Don’t go overboard like me and buy so many you can’t hardly finish them all, but maybe buy the handful that you’re most inclined to get and start from there?  Your 18th birthday is coming up really soon, and I’d think your parents would be more than willing to get you more than just one game for an event as momentous as that.  Personally, I’d recommend VLR (plus ZTD once it’s released on June 30th) and OoT as a starter pack of sorts, which will most likely be enough to tide you over to November’s Sun or Moon.  Considering you have so much else on your to-do list, I don’t really know if you’ll even find much of a need for a game like Smash, but if you really want to buy it then I suppose you’re free to do so.  Actually, now that I think about it, why don’t you try out the demo?  There’s a free Smash 3DS demo on the eShop, which is the game with a very limited roster, stage selection, and game mode, but it will give you an idea of how the game plays.  You can use it to gauge whether or not you’re willing to put in the money for the game.  Also, if I’m not mistaken, there’s an FE: Awakening demo on the eShop as well.  It’s only the first few minutes of the game, without the character customization, but it allows you to beat the first map and gives you a taste of the gameplay.  How you respond to that might also change your perception of the series and how much priority you’re willing to give it.  I know you’ll be busy until the end of the school year, but once you find the time to try out the demos let me know!

 

I don’t know if I’d say I actively play Smash, but I do pick it up occasionally.  I don’t play the 3DS version anymore now that I’m home, since if I wanted to play Smash I have my Wii U version which has more features and I can enjoy with my brother.  I’ve heard good things about Pokken, and I really want to like it, but I don’t think it’s my kind of game.  Smash is the only fighting game I have ever played, so the gameplay is pretty much ingrained in my mind.  I tried Soul Calibur II for the GameCube many years ago, but I didn’t enjoy it nearly as much as I enjoyed Smash.  Since Pokken is more Tekken-esque than anything, I don’t think I’m going to have much fun with it unfortunately, and I don’t have the time or money to risk giving it a try.  What makes Fates different from Awakening is hard to explain unless you’ve played the games before, but a decent analogy would be that the new gameplay features are as big a change to the series as the physical/special change from third gen Pokemon games to fourth gen, plus the addition of the Fairy-type, the type matchup changes, and the altered stats of some Pokemon between fifth and sixth gen.  It’s technically the same base gameplay as Awakening, but if you try beating the game using Awakening strats and an Awakening mindset you’re going to run into quite a bit of difficulty.  It’s really hard to go into any more detail than that without spoiling some bits or just not making any sense with jargon, eheh.

 

Wanting a “feel good” anime and then deciding to watch Shigatsu is just… wat even??  I suppose if you go in not knowing it’s supposed to be a “tearjerker” then maybe you’d think that, but it should have been abundantly clear by episode three what the last episode was going to be about.  Ohhhh, but Free is certainly a “feel good” anime if you know what I mean ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) your sister is lewder than I thought, huehuehuehue…  But yeah, you’ve definitely mentioned your dislike for love triangles, if not in one of our responses than somewhere else on DCW.  I don’t necessarily think love triangles are inherently all that bad, as long as they’re handled well.  But since they’ve been done to death you’ll be hard pressed to find one that isn’t the same as all the others.  Shigatsu was not an exception.  That you like the OST for not being very layered since it helps you study is actually one of the reasons I didn’t like the show.  Everyone gushes about the soundtrack, but none of songs perked my ears and made me think, “hey, this song is actually quite good.”  I was really hoping a good soundtrack would make some of the scenes better for me, even redeem the entire anime, but unfortunately nothing of the sort happened.  For the longest time I couldn’t figure out why.  Thankfully, you put it perfectly: the songs aren’t layered enough.  They sound nice, sure, but there’s no subtlety or depth to them.  They’re just generic and samey and… there.  They’re easy to tune out or completely overlook (I swear some episodes of Shigatsu straight up had no music, or at least I couldn’t remember if there was any music), and while that might be fine for study music it’s not at all fine for a television show’s soundtrack, one whose premise revolves around music of all things.  But anyway, I suppose that’s enough complaining about Shigatsu for now, haha.  Ohhhhhhhhh my goodness, and as if you giving me the exact words I was looking for wasn’t enough, you also point out something that’s been bugging me for the longest time!  I knew Gate of Steiner sounded familiar, but not just the beginning portion that sounds like Great Fairy Fountain.  I remember asking my brother if he recognized that later portion from anywhere, and he said he didn’t but I could have sworn I had heard it somewhere else.  And it was from this discreet song I had found all this time!  Gahh, can’t believe it took me this long to realize, considering how much I like Running Through the Stars, ahah.

 

You’d be surprised by what people sell on eBay.  Googling these things won’t give you much info, and even if it did there wouldn’t be any pictures to accommodate it.  In fact, I only discovered the Kino no Tabi box and Dog of Flanders pamphlet through eBay itself.  Thankfully demand for these items is so low; the price I paid for them was extremely low to match.  The Kino no Tabi box was released in waves.  The box plus the license plate and first volume (first four episodes) sold for $29.99 (according to an old ad I also managed to dig up).  I don’t know how much the remaining three volumes sold for individually (three episodes each), but even if they sold for $10 each that would place the value of the entire set at $59.99 back in 2003.  The box set was used, sure, but take into consideration over a decade of inflation and $50 is an extremely fair price.  The Dog of Flanders pamphlet is a little harder to put a price on, only because I’m merely going off the word of Japanese sellers.  According to them, the pamphlet was distributed at theaters when the movie premiered, but to be honest the booklet’s quality is so high and size so big (dimensions larger than your average printer paper) that I’m having trouble imagining it was given out for free.  I’d venture to say the quality is higher than that of my 999 fanzine, by quite the margin.  Even if it happened to be given out free of charge, I doubt many were ever printed, and my seller kept the pamphlet in better condition than some used textbooks I get from Amazon, so I would have been happy to pay even more than the listed $20.  

 

As for why I bought all this stuff, I really can’t tell you why.  I guess I just had an itch for merch, but the more I think about it I’m starting to feel like I got it because I also really like old stuff.  It doesn’t even matter what that “stuff” is; if it’s old and (to some extent) rare then it fascinates me.  Buildings, vehicles, weapons, trinkets, you name it.  If it’s historical and has a story to tell, I’m going to love it.  I’ve always wanted to explore abandoned buildings, especially the old decrepit ones I see on the side of the road, the ones already half taken back by nature.  It doesn’t matter if there’s no actual historical value to the building; just knowing it’s since been abandoned really calls to me.  Once on my way back from Game Stop (this was in Cleveland) the bus passed by this preserved historical site, which was some kind of old fashioned house.  The sign on the front said Dunham Tavern, and so right then and there I Googled it up and found that it’s the oldest building in Cleveland, the existing taproom dating back to 1842.  Once while I was writing a paper for my SAGES course (first semester) I somehow got distracted and discovered old black and white photos of the Severance Hall construction in the early 1900s, one of which showcased how that one intersection Case students today cross daily looked back then, with the nearly complete music hall as the backdrop.  Heck, while looking up old things related to Cleveland just now, I learned about a now defunct amusement park called Luna Park that was around from 1905 to 1929.  It was just six minutes south of Case Western and shut down as a result of the Great Depression.  I checked Google Maps to see what became of the land it used to stand on, and now it’s just a sad area encased by shady, cracked roads.  Some aged homes stand there, but a good portion of it is empty space up for sale.  Seeing what has remained the same, and what has changed, just fills me with this indescribable feeling of wonder and inspiration and sadness.  Gaping in awe at the things people decades and centuries before me gaped at, while wistfully daydreaming about the sights and sounds never to be experienced again.  But anyway, I’ve rambled on for too long.  I guess what I mean to say is that the reason why I bought the Kino no Tabi box and the Dog of Flanders booklet is because I love historical things so much.  Both anime are old and largely forgotten by the general populace, and the merchandise of these series that date to their original release are even more lost in this age of information.  Being able to hold these “relics” in my own hands gives me a kind of joy that is impossible to emulate with something new, shiny, and mass produced.

 

Hahahah, yeahh, the whole amiibo craze has made me think twice about ripping open boxes.  I’ll probably get around to freeing Pikachu from its cardboard prison, but maybe some other time.  I don’t intend to sell it, so there’s no point in keeping it restricted like that.  The 999 fansize is pretty good!  Generally speaking, the art is nice, and I’m glad I’ve helped to support aspiring artists who share at least one of my interests.  I hope a VLR and ZTD one are made in the future; it just wouldn’t feel right without a full trilogy.  Etika played through the pacifist and genocide routes of Undertale, and from what I understand those are the only “necessary” endings to get in order to clear yourself of story related spoilers.  The various neutral endings lead to alternate dialogue and stuff like that, but nothing too major aside from that.  I’ll probably look up those scenes later if I’m feeling up to it.  But yeah, once you’ve played through pacifist and genocide you’re free to Google up fanart and fan theories and all the other nice stuff without worry.

 

You can get Amazon Prime free for six months if you provide them a school-based e-mail address, such as first.last@school.edu.  As long as you have that .edu it should work.  All colleges give their students a school e-mail and Case is no exception.  Oh, and do you remember that cute little username Case gave you during the application process?  The one that’s just your three initials followed by a one- to three-digit number?  Well, if you don’t then the sooner you remember it the better, because that’s your Case ID and will follow you for your entire Case Western career, ahah.  Your e-mail will literally just be your ID followed by @case.edu, so abc123@case.edu for example.  You’ll be using it a ton, so hopefully you like the numbers you were assigned.  I know you don’t use Amazon much, but you can use your Case e-mail to shave off a few dollars from your inevitable Sun/Moon purchase, and get free 2-day shipping for whatever else you may need (or want, hah).  I think I only got the Pokemon card binders because my free Prime trial was about to end, and I was feeling bad about just having my Pokemon cards rot away in a little tin can (some of which my brother and I had to go out of our way to steal, if you recall) and figured having a way to display and flip through them certainly wouldn’t hurt.

 

Oh goodness, I had completely forgotten what we were talking about and it took a good while before I finally realized why you were teasing me so, ahah.  The cashier seemed amicable enough, so I don’t think he minded having to count all those bills and coins.  This is something I learned in accounting, but businesses benefit most from cash transactions.  Though so many people just use credit cards to pay nowadays, they’re riskier for the business.  There’s always the small chance a customer will default on their payment, and even if a customer doesn’t, the business needs to pay the credit card company a tiny fee every time they make a transaction with a customer using a credit card.  It may not seem like a big deal, but those fees and that chance of default adds up over hundreds, thousands, or potentially even millions of transactions a business makes during a fiscal year.  Cash is simple; you receive it and it’s all yours.  But credit and debit cards come with those small risks, credit cards more so than debit cards, which is why a lot of gas stations charge less for someone who pays with cash.  If that cashier were concerned about the success of Game Stop as a whole, he might have been pleased that I bought such an expensive item with cash.  But considering that whether or not a single customer pays with cash or credit doesn’t affect a cashier’s salary in the slightest, I doubt it.  Ahh goodness, I can imagine you’re already tired of reading this response (I probably should have warned you to grab a snack and settle in for a long read), and I’m sorry I keep on getting sidetracked by practically unrelated things.  I’ll try not to dillydally for much longer, eheheh.

 

Phew, goodness me, you certainly liked the soundtrack didn’t you?  The medley is pretty neat, too!  If I can’t even beat the hidden Last Cave, then there is no way in heck I’m going to get close to beating the Bloodstained Sanctuary, hah.  So I’ll definitely check out the ending bits when I’m in the mood for it.  To digress a bit, I played some Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze not too long ago and one of the optional stages completely rekt me.  It reminded me just how bad I am at platformers, as if Cave Story wasn’t reminder enough.  And it also revealed why I’m so bad at them.  I realized that I can’t do “perfect” levels.  I don’t know if there’s a specific word for this, but you know levels that require crazy precise techniques and inputs?  The ones that, if you mess up even once, you throw off the pattern and are virtually (if not literally) forced to return to the very beginning of the stage?  The hidden Last Cave is kinda like that, but even then the difficulty is also dependent on the weapons you have and it’s not like it’s impossible to beat the cave if you mess up partway through.  That optional stage in Tropical Freeze was one of those “perfect” levels though.  One slipup, one mind lapse, one imperfect button press, and it’s all over.  I spent literally 8 hours straight on that one stage.  And guess what?  I never beat it.  I looked up guides and tips and tricks but all that I learned was that I just wasn’t good enough.  All I needed was one perfect run, to get from the beginning to the distant end, and it would be over.  But I could never get that perfect run, not once in the 8 hours I spent trying it.  Even if I put in another 8 hours, I doubt I would beat it.  I see others online beating it after a “long” one hour, and I’m just sitting here accepting the fact that platformers (and I suppose other things like bullet hells) that require perfection in any form are impossible for me.  As I mentioned earlier, I’m terribly prone to silly mistakes.  I can’t help it, I just am.  Thank goodness that one level in Tropical Freeze is optional.  Technically the hidden Last Cave is too, but once you opt to try it you’re locked-in which really sucks.  I’m frightened to even see what the Bloodstained Sanctuary holds, if the hidden Last Cave is already so far out of reach for me.  But anyway, I said I wouldn’t, but it looks like I’ve digressed again, so sorry for that.  I also definitely abused the Machine Gun once I got it.  I flew all over the damn place with that thing, and made parts that should have been decently challenging simple instead.  I kind of regret it, especially since I wasn’t able to practice using the Booster v2.0 (curse that impossible to control contraption!) and because it’s not a good weapon at all for the hidden Last Cave.  But oh well, levitating around like that was fun so I guess it’s fine, hahahah.

 

Aghh, just as I say I’m going to watch a play through of Super Meat Boy, it’s released on the Wii U of all things!  Now I’m a bit on the fence about it.  It looks fun in terms of gameplay and level design, but goodness if there are any of those “perfect” levels then I’m royally screwed.  Unfortunately, I don’t have any way of knowing if something is way above my skill level unless I actually try it.  Should I take the risk and buy it, or should I just watch a let’s play?  I’m leaning toward let’s play, but I still want to wait a bit and give it time before jumping the gun.

 

Eheh, my family isn’t nearly as connected as I sometimes make them out to be.  We only watch movies together and eat out and stuff like during the long breaks, and even then I feel like my parents only join in on the fun out of obligation.  We’ve tried board games as well, which can sometimes be pretty fun, but movies are preferred by my mother who likes to take that chance to doze off, ahahah.  Most of the time though, we just mind our own businesses.  This summer break for example, I’m locked up in my room so often that I hardly pay any mind to what my parents are doing.  I know when they come home from work and when they go to sleep, and I see them during dinner, but that’s about it on a normal day, ehhh.  So yeah, I don’t want you to think we’re some kind of picture perfect nuclear family, because we’re often times pretty disconnected with each other.

 

Hmm, it’s too bad your winter break wasn’t too eventful.  I always look forward to winter breaks more than any other break, even summer, just because of the magic of Christmas (I could go on and on about all the number of times I’ve craved blasting holidays tunes at untimely times of this year, but this response is as long as it is), so it’s a shame you don’t have any particularly special memories from this holiday season.  Then again, you had college apps to stress about, so perhaps you weren’t in a particularly festive mood to start.  I’m really glad you got to bond with your father so much during your spring break Boston trek though!  I was never as detached from my parents as you were with your father (I certainly wouldn’t be terrified of traveling alone with either of my parents, that’s for sure), so I can’t quite relate to how you felt, but coming to terms with someone I’m not very comfortable with sounds like it would be such a wonderful thing!  Hopefully this experience fosters a healthy relationship between you and him in the future, and perhaps serves as a good lesson when it comes to dealing with other people, specifically those you’re averse to.  And there’s no need to feel silly this was the highlight of your spring break!  Heck, I’m the guy who actually enjoyed writing college app essays two winter breaks ago, hah.  Finding peace and bonding with others like this isn’t something that happens every day, so as you say you should cherish those moments.

 

Ohhhh your trip to San Antonio sounds absolutely fantastic!  I’ve never been down to Texas, though despite the heat it certainly seems like an interesting prospect.  For an orchestra trip, it sounds like you had a wonderful time!  I know how busy you’ve been and how stressed you were, so I’m glad you got this chance, however long or brief it was in your mind’s eye, to enjoy yourself and have such an unforgettable experience!  Visiting the Alamo must have been cool!  I’m surprised you weren’t in the mood to get soaked, even though it was so hot.  Well, now that I think about, that whole uncomfortable drying process that begins with your hair and ends with your socks and lasts the entirety of the day can be pretty irritating, even in the heat.  It’s never fun wanting to eat but feeling icky because you’re wet and feeling self-conscious about leaving behind a steaming butt print behind on the poor bench you decide to sit on while you’re munching on an overpriced churro.  And opting out of waiting in the lines for those rides was probably a good idea.  You saved yourself from getting any more weird tan marks and you got to stay in the cool A/C (assuming there were some indoor portions of the aquarium sections).  The riverwalk sounds really cool!  It sounds like something I’d like, haha.  Then again, now that summer time is approaching I’m back in that “summer festival” mood (this is what happens when you watch too many anime).  Just the idea of stands and booths set up to be all nice and colorful sounds so festive.  And then when night falls, perhaps there could be fireworks!  Ahhhh I need me some good fireworks asap, I’m in a seriously festive mood.  Hahah, writing these responses always gets me excited about the smallest things, gosh.  It’s really neat how your school’s marching band marched in the parade during the Fiesta!  It’s great the orchestra cheered them on; being cheered on while you march is such a satisfying feeling, haha.  I’m sure the band greatly appreciated it.  Hrmm, I don’t like the sound of “disturbing things about the people at our school” one bit.  You seniors better not be leaving behind a trashy legacy for the precious underclassmen, ya hear?  Jokes aside, I’ll take the bait: what disturbing things do you happen to be talking about?

 

Oh, there’s absolutely no need to apologize for any delays.  We’re going to meet each other in person before long, and I guess after that there won’t really be much of a need for these responses anymore, will there?  Haha, it’s still such a surreal thought, to be honest.  I hope I can live up to your expectations; I’m significantly worse at speaking than I am I writing, soooo, eheh.  But anyway, in response to the rest of your PM, I did absolutely fine the second semester (better than expected even!), so though I might have sounded distressed, your absence didn’t send me into an uncontrollable spiral of depression, rest assured.  And it sounds like there’s still a lot for you to worry about in the coming weeks leading up to the end of your K-12 career.  Best of luck in the tennis tourney and during your (presumably) final concert!  Also, what interview are you referencing?  Since the school search is over, would it be safe to presume an internship or job interview?  Regardless of what it’s about, good luck with that as well!  I don’t have much experience with interviews yet, but I know those can certainly be nerve-wracking.  And of course, be sure to have fun at Cedar Point and prom!  Let me know just how much I missed by failing to attend this supposed “once in a lifetime” event back when I had the chance, haha.

 

As for how I’ve been and what I’ve been up to, I believe I’ve actually mentioned everything of importance at various points throughout this post, and maybe a little bit elsewhere on DCW.  Oh, my grandfather’s come over to visit from China, which is nice.  He’s pretty old now and he stays at my aunt and uncle’s place for the most part (about a 45 minute drive from where I live, roughly), but he spends the weekends here and it’s certainly nice to see him.  And my summer course on astronomy, which I’ll be taking at Rutgers, starts the very beginning of June (literally June 1st if I’m not mistaken), so that’s coming up.  Thinking back on it, did I ever even mention this summer course previously?  Maybe in passing I did, a long time ago, but yeah that’ll be my only “not fun” activity I’ll be participating in, aside from learning how to drive, haha.  Just need to take it so I can get my natural science requirements at Case done and out of the way with; not really any other reason than that.

 

And that just about wraps up this response!  Sorry for getting carried away and rambling on all those times; it seems to be a recurring theme with this exchange, huh?  Again, don’t worry about getting a timely response sent back on time.  Now that it’s summer break, I finally have the freedom to get around to all those games and anime I’ve had on my mind for the longest time so there’s plenty I’ll be doing to keep myself occupied.  And since it’ll also be summer break for you soon as well, I’d much rather you spend your time doing what you want to do, as opposed feeling obligated to write up a response for me.  There will be plenty of time to catch up once we meet in person anyway!

 

 

 

So now that more trailers have been released, I have a few thoughts I want to voice. Firstly, I did not see those typings coming. Psychic is understandable because of the third eye that appears when the legendaries use their signature move. And I suppose the fact that psychic is a primary rather than a secondary typing also has some significance. But wtf is Solgaleo. Why is it psychic/steel. Why isn't it part fire and why is an emissary of the sun weak to fire. I dunno, maybe they just didn't want a duplicate of Pyroar or something. Someone claimed that it has to do with its relation to the alchemy theme of the game, which makes sense given that Solgaleo is the "beast that devours the sun." Plus the fact that the symbol on Littens forehead kinda resembles the alchemic symbol for sulfur. So that's an interesting theory. Also, Lunala's typing is disappointing. Psychic/ghost isn't that great, honestly. I'm still leaning towards Pokemon Moon though just because I like Lunala's design better, but we'll see. Apparently there will be multiple islands to explore, so that's a nice change of things. I wouldn't be surprised if the artificial island turned out to be the antagonists base. Speaking of which, what do you think their theme will be? Do you think it'll be something singular or do you think there'll be opposing dual teams like Team Aqua and Magma? Oh, and Rotom!! Fourth gen remakes confirmed?!?!!!>???111?!!! Also, it looks like they're finally giving us some updates on Zygarde. They have to tie this in with Kalos. There's just no way they can leave it out after putting so much emphasis on Zygarde. I'm also going to try my best not to spoil myself, but I might have to just so I can make my mind on whether to get Sun or Moon (stuff like version exclusive Pokemon). I want to have at least some idea of what I'm getting myself into, haha. Or maybe I really should go in blind so it'll truly be like exploring a new region without much prior info. Oh gosh, I'm really going to have to watch myself as the release date creeps closer, eheh.

Treeko didn't feel underappreciated, and in fact, Snivy seemed like the fan favorite of fifth gen. Rowlet is a cute ball of fluff for sure, and the grass/flying typing is certainly interesting, hmm. I agree, Litten's impassive expression is making me rethink some things. I guess it'll probably come down to typings and final evolution design then. As long as Litten doesn't end up being fire/fighting (man was Emboar a disaster), I'll be okay. Popplio is adorable, but that clown nose is really bugging me. I'm still leaning towards Litten though, haha. But I still don't know if I want to spoil the evolutions for myself, urgh. I think the theme for the sixth gen starters was RPGs or something. Delphox is the mage, Greninja is the bandit, and Chesnaught is the warrior, which I guess explains why they went all-out with the witch fox imagery for the Fennekin evolution line, lol. As for why I've always gravitated towards fire starters, I think it's because of my sister. She's always been preaching how fire starters are the best ones, and that kinda stuck with me as I played the games. Yup, Chimchar was indeed my starter back in Platinum, haha. I actually ended up choosing Oshawott for BW just because Emboar's design was such a huge turnoff, but I ended up picking Tepig for B2W2 just to mix things up a bit. I've always used my real name for these games since it never really occurred to me to use a pseudonym. Using my real name just makes the game feel a lot more personal, which allows me to have a much closer attachment to my Pokemon. So to answer your question, I'd continue using my actual name, hehe. But I've also played plenty of ROM hacks/fanmade games, and for those, I always use some silly name just for the helluvit, lol. As for which starter I'd pick if I were to replay Platinum, I'm not entirely sure. I guess it'd probably depend on what I'm playing it for (speed-run, nostalgia, nuzlocke, etc.), but I have a feeling I'd choose Chimchar again just for old times' sake :')

Sooo... I recently started Undertale, and... at first, it seemed alright. Fun puzzles, fun dialogue, fun characters, and it was a good game, as expected, but I still didn't really understand why everyone was so utterly batshit crazy about it, but then I reached the part where I had to fight Asgore and after that WTF. WTF. W.T.F. WHY U GOTTA PULL MY HEARTSTRINGS LIKE THAT, DAMN, FLOWEY. Seriously, nothing, just nothing could've prepared me for what I witnessed after fighting Asgore. Flowey broke the fourth wall hard. GAH, and those backstories. I'm such a sucker for backstories dsfjhadslfjhafjasdhfas. Also can we please take a moment to acknowledge how absolutely godly the soundtrack is. It felt like a mix of 999 and Super Meat Boy (a bit of that Cave Story and Pokemon vibe as well), and it was just... many thanks to Toby for all the eargasms, ahhh. OH YEAH, and how could I forget. A LOT of these themes had Touhou vibes :'D (Undyne's theme and Toriel's theme, just to name a couple, are great examples of this). Everything was just so fitting to its area, and I don't think there was a single soundtrack that I glazed over. It takes a lot to be able to compose music that captures the atmosphere of these environments and situations so thoroughly. The art was also breathtaking in some scenes. Oh my gosh, it's amazing what you can illustrate with so little (it's all so detailed, holy moly, who needs all these 3D models and graphics). AND THE DIALOGUE. Not just the content of the dialogue, but the soundfont they spoke in. Like Toriel had this benevolent, motherly soundfont, while Asgore had this tender, overlord-like soundfont (I believe he was also the one who offered words of encouragement in the Game Over sequence), and Sans had this plump soundfont that complemented his personality/sense of humor. Flowey, of course, is the most recognizable with the shaky text and rattly soundfont. It's kinda hard to explain unless you hear it for yourself, lol. But it was just a nice little detail Toby incorporated into the game (every nook and cranny of the game is so filled with detail, hnng). The gameplay was also... unique to say the least, hahahah. I went the neutral/pacifist route, so of course the goal wasn't to mindlessly slaughter everyone that stood in my way but to choose the right combination of actions to appease the "enemy" so that I could spare them (and admittedly, it took me a while to realize that I was actually supposed to fight Asgore instead of surviving as long as I can). The bullet-hells were quite creative! Bones, animals, teeth, arrows, etc., and not just standard circular or elliptical bullets were used to give a sense of personality that reflected the attacker. Everything was just crafted with so much purpose, geezus (here's a real good example, and I may as well link this while I'm at it). It was a light-hearted game (well, most of it, haha) with such a resonating overarching theme, and it's. just. so. good. Also, Mettaton EX was probably my favorite boss battle so far, hah. I'm currently in the middle of completing the pacifist route (just finished the neutral one), but I don't think I have the stamina to go through the genocide route. Apparently, you have to kill every single existing monster in the area before progressing, which seems reaaaaally time consuming. I might end up watching a playthrough of that instead. All in all, it's just a really good game. That's all I have left to say based on my impressions so far. I'm bracing myself to be blown back once more after finishing the pacifist route.

I'm about halfway through Monster and I can feel the buildup coming. I'm liking it so far, but I haven't been blown away yet. I love how they illustrated the passage of time by growing out Tenma's hair. Oh, erm... sorry for not updating my MAL. I-I just didn't have time to watch much anime during that time period, gomen :c Dang, I didn't realize MAL was so proactive in recording dates and times. I feel that this would be more like a burden than a "wow!" feature for me. It's really hard for me to stop once I start a compulsive habit. And I have no doubt that it'd turn into one after considering how much anime I still need to get around to watching. It's definitely a neat feature, but it won't be the reason I'm using MAL. I just think the site is a great way to keep track of the stuff I've watched and need to watch, haha. Erased seems to be getting a lot of criticism for its ending so I'm still on the fence about watching this. After all, the conclusion is what leaves the lasting impression (and it's one of the key components to what'll make or break a show). I'm definitely going to look into OPM (and maybe I'll update my MAL just for your sake, ahah..), but I don't know if I'll be able to watch it all in one sitting though. I don't have much endurance when it comes to bingeing shows since staring at a computer screen for extensive periods of time without much break makes my head and eyes ache. I'd much rather take it in slow so I can enjoy myself rather than watch it all in one go. Something like OPM would probably take me a few days to finish then. I can almost hear you chuckling to yourself about how amateur this must sound, eheh.

I know I haven't watched Hyouka, but the show has such pretty gifs :c I'm really curious to see your hair, but I suppose I'll just have to wait until I finally get to meet you, hehe. I've actually thought about using hair gel myself whenever I put my hair in a ponytail for tennis. I have a lot of baby hairs that like to fly onto my face since my hair is layered, and this can be especially bothersome when it's windy. But I kinda just learned to deal with it since, like you said, hair gel can be a bit of a hassle, haha. Oh man, my friends tease me a lot for that bowl cut I used to have. It might've been cute back in elementary school, but having that kind of hairstyle up until late middle school? Those were some cringey times, as much as I'd hate to admit it, lol. Well, at least it was convenient because I never really had problems combing it or anything. Also, just as I mention that old bowl cut, I recently received a reminder of what I looked like back then. adhasfhjlksdfhasdkljfhakldhjf dear lord whyyy... If you're wondering, this "reminder" was a CD from one of my middle school teachers. Back in middle school, some of us were forced to record a ~10min video of ourselves talking to our "future"/senior selves. I was talking about the recording with a few other friends who had the same teacher (and, consequently, received CDs of themselves as well), and uh... welp, there's not much for me to say other than all of us are glad those days are over.

Ahah, I also had trouble with turning when I first started driving. The driving instructor I had showed me this really bizarre way of moving and placing your hands on the wheel that seriously didn't make sense to me. I eventually figured that overlapping your arms naturally as you turn works much better (it's kinda hard to describe in words). But as you practice driving on the roads, it becomes much easier to figure out how to make sharp and wide turns once you start getting the feel of things. Geez, is the NJ road test really that hard? We have a parking test and a driving test (along with the written portion, of course). Fail any one and you fail the test (you had to pass the written portion before you're permitted to take the other two though). The parking test was pretty straightforward: drive up to a line, then back-in to a parking space, then proceed to parallel park. The driving test was just driving on the main roads, highways, and suburbs (and they try to trip you up by asking you road questions while driving). But that's about it. You can make up to six mistakes on the parking test and up to twenty-five on the driving test, and while that seems forgiving, it's actually stupidly easy to rack up on those since the proctors are really nitpicky about this kind of stuff. Are you forced to drive on a course or do you also go on the main roads? And what about parking? I know you're against driving, but having a license is quite liberating! I wasn't terribly eager about getting my license (my dad kinda forced me, lol), but man is it nice not having to constantly pester my friends and parents for rides. And you know, driving is almost a necessity nowadays unless you're living in an urban city like NYC. I'm sure you'll warm up to the idea of getting a license eventually!

It's good to know that everything has gone well for you at Case! Thanks for updating me and letting me know that you've been alright, haha. 

Actually, I didn't have to take any finals this semester since my grades were in good standing and none of my teachers required it for seniors, lol. For seniors, school ended on June 1, but for everyone else it ends on June 17. As eager as I was to leave, I still had senior pictures to hand out to people who requested last minute. And these pictures were gags, but I couldn’t tell whether or not some of these people actually took my Facebook post seriously. Oh, and in case you didn’t know, sometimes people post senior pictures on Facebook and ask everyone to Like or comment on their post if they want one. So, as a joke, I made some sloppily-drawn stick figures on MS Paint, and posted them on Facebook as my “senior pictures.” Long story short, I ended up having to print out and write personalized notes on the back of nearly three dozen of these photos (it was on legit photo paper too) because I couldn't tell if some of these people knew that the Facebook post was a joke, even if others made it blatantly obvious in their comments. But I still have no regrets, hahah. Oh yeah, and the other reason I've still been going to school is because we're doing a ton of fun labs in orgo like making esters and stirring rods, which I didn't want to miss out on, lol. Also, the more I think about my AP tests, the more I don't want to see some of my scores, especially for physics, dear lord. One of the free responses for E/M was a question with field lines that resembled a pressure system map, and wow, the moment we all flipped to that page when the timer started, the person sitting across from me turned his head towards my direction and made that same blank expression, and we all knew we were doomed before even placing our pencils on the page. And the calculator malfunction I had earlier didn't exactly help either. That just about sums up how the entirety of physics went (it was mainly E/M; I got rekt so hard). I'd rather not fill this response with rants, so I guess I'll just leave it at that. Oh, and I don't think the students had their AP bio scores cancelled, so that's probably a huge relief for them. But what happened was that the AP bio teacher was posting on some teacher forum and complaining that our school was, apparently, the only school in the state that had Form E (the international version, and the supposedly harder version of the test). Some other teacher called her out for it, saying that she shouldn't be disclosing this kind of info before the tests were released, and the AP bio teacher replied with "Watch me." And with that, the AP bio teacher got reported and sure enough, the news spread like wildfire throughout the school because everyone's scores were then in risk of getting cancelled. So, TIL some people really do take the "don't discuss the test or else" threat seriously.

Ohh, it's nice to hear how great the professors and student body are! I'm not too concerned about the dining hall food since I'm not a terribly picky eater, but the mail system might pose a problem for me. A three-day weekend, huh? I'm a bit envious, hmph. I still have no idea how scheduling for classes works, but I'm thinking about going into Materials Science and Engineering or Polymer Science and Engineering, so this is the schedule I'm trying to work out: CHEM 111, EMSE 110 (basically an intro course to materials science that only meets up once a week), Chemical Aspects of the Aging Mind (seminar), MATH 121 (I haven't touched calc since last year/sparingly in physics, hahah), Wellness (just based on what I've heard from you), and PHYS 121. Scheduling has been a real pain since a couple of these overlap, and I have no room for any lunch on Fridays, soooo... yeah this is all tentative, lol. I can't take the Wellness class (10-11am) if I take EMSE 110 (8:30-11:15am), so I'm not sure what to do about that (I'm probably going to have to drop Wellness then). Feel free to criticize or suggest anything. My plan is to take all the gen science courses as a premed student (it's just something I'm considering), but the main problem I'm seeing is that there aren't many overlapping MatSci and premed courses, so I might have an issue trying to cram all of those classes in. Of course, I know I'm being a little too ambitious by doing engineering+premed, but I wanted the chance to expose myself to both (plus, MatSci is more science than engineering anyway). I'm not adamant on following through with this plan, so I suppose we'll see how this goes. I'm going to keep an open mind for now since it's possible that I could end up in nursing or business, lol. At the moment, I also reaaaaaally want to keep this seminar so I'm trying to work around that. Oh, and conveniently enough, I won't have internet access during the period when we actually sign up for classes (vacation to Alaska, whoo), so I'm trying to work that out by emailing one of the guys in charge of this stuff. Aghh, this is all so frustrating, what a mess. And should I go on the three-day adventures thing? It sounds pretty cool, haha. As for housing, I ended up choosing Smith. I couldn't strategically choose a building near where my classes will take place since I don't even know which classes I'll end up with, and I've been told that Juniper has the best housing, so I just went with Smith since I wasn't given the option of Taft or Taplin for whatever reason (I highly doubt they were both filled to capacity at the time I signed up). Ohh, you talk to yourself to help with studying? I think I used to do that, but now it's mostly under my breath. Would you mind elaborating on what you do? Also, I checked with the Case's class of 2020 Facebook page, and I think the fourth floor of Taplin is still an all guys floor. I'm pretty sure I'll be okay without the A/C since I'll be bringing a fan with me, but thanks anyway, haha. And thanks for the dorm info as well! It's kinda hard to imagine why Clarke Tower is formatted that way, but I suppose I'll get to see this for myself soon enough, heh.

Personally, I didn't have many bad experiences with teachers. Except for that one freshman English teacher that most people adore, the summer school government and civics teacher, and the summer school gym teacher. But those are rants I can save for another time. I know my precalc teacher seemed to get a fair amount of hate even though I thought she was fine (teaching style and personality is vastly different from the other precalc teacher, which most people complained about). The majority of the class also really disliked our algebra 2 teacher, but I thought she was alright. A lot of people have mixed feelings about the AP Bio teacher just because of how obviously she plays favorites (plus the fact that her main form of teaching is just reading off notes). And yeah, I didn't think she was that great either, honestly. And there's that Physics C teacher I already told you about. Oh, and weirdly enough, I've had a couple of friends this year complain about the calc teacher I had last year even though I thought he was a solid teacher. So I guess our schools really don't differ much in terms of teacher quality then.

Oh, I see what you mean.  Although I can't really relate to opening one of those boxed presents on Christmas, I can imagine how much excitement unboxing something can bring, haha. It's probably why there are so many unboxing videos on YouTube (aside from the ones that the YouTuber was paid to do). Have you ever heard of those monthly subscription boxes? Geez, they're everywhere now. And from what I've heard from people, it really is like getting a Christmas gift every month, lol. Okay, so I went in blind for my roommate and checked my roommate status a few days after selecting my room (it was empty before since I was the first to select the room), and wtf, my roommate turned out to be a friend from school?? w.h.a.t. are the chances. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this since I was hoping to meet someone new (I mean, she's a really nice person for sure, but I kinda wanted to branch out to others), so uh... we'll see how this goes. I'm not planning to spend most of my time in my room though, so I suppose it doesn't really matter. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around this, holy moly. So yeah, I don't expect to have much quiet time in our dorm room, lol. That's fine though, since I can always walk over to the library if that's what it comes down to. I really want to break up my habit of staying up late to finish my work (plus, I need to be considerate of my roommate's sleeping habits), so maybe it's a good thing that the library isn't open 24/7, eheh. I don't think I want a place that's dead silent since I like a bit of white noise, but I can always work around that, haha.

Just to warn you beforehand, Tatami Galaxy is more episodic than anything else and does not follow a fluid timeline. At all. I'd discourage you from trying to watch it all in one sitting since what it throws at you can be pretty overwhelming, but this is just based on my experience. Ping Pong is a lot easier to watch and much easier to follow. So do what you will with that info, haha. Oh wow, you've been watching Game of Thrones? There's been a lot of buzz about it, and admittedly, I'm actually tempted to watch it. And geez, all caught up already? How long did it take for you to get to that point? Also, what made you gravitate towards GoT?

Erm, I don't know if my parents would be willing to let me grab a bunch of a games from the shelves (I know I definitely wouldn't feel comfortable asking for so many). My dad bought a new laptop for me a month ago (it was a pleasant surprise for sure, but I haven't gotten around to using it yet), and I just received a new phone a few days ago after my parents kept nagging at me for how trashed-up my old phone was. Not that it was cracked or broken or anything, but it was practically useless outside of calling and checking emails because of how laggy and unresponsive it was. I was already going to ask for a new phone (I'm thankful that they offered first), but I didn't expect them to buy me a new laptop, so I think you can understand why I feel that asking for a bunch of games would seem kinda greedy, even if it is for my birthday. At most, I'd only be comfortable asking for one. And even then, I don't think I could muster up the courage to do so until a couple weeks before my birthday at the earliest. In the meantime, I'm going to finish up Undertale, the other games you've sent me, and the demos you mentioned. That, along with the anime I still need to get around to watching after finishing Monster, should keep me occupied for some time, so no need to worry, haha.

Oh yeah, there's a ton of new mechanics in Pokken that'll definitely take a ton of time to get used to, so I can understand why you feel that way. Maybe check out some gameplay on YouTube if you haven't done so already. It's pretty neat, haha. Hmm, that's an interesting analogy. I can see why it's so hard to explain, but I think I get what you mean. How difficult would you say the adjustment from Awakening to Fates was?

I believe my sister was already familiar with Nodame Cantabile, so what drew her in was probably the cover image of Shigatsu on MAL (I saw her browsing the site beforehand). Ohoho, and isn't it that everyone who watched Free did so knowing that it's a "feel good" anime? ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) Don't worry, I haven't turned into one of those people......... yet. jkjkjkjk, hahahahah (no really, I still have yet to watch it, lol). Yeahh, I can't think of a single example of a love triangle that I've been okay about. Generally speaking, love triangles seem to be implemented for the sake of spurring up the fandom. And for long running shows like DC and Naruto, the persistence of those love triangles allows these shows to stay "relevant" with all the drama they can capitalize on. Then again, most romance subplots don't exactly leave good impressions on me either (they tend to be better off without it, really). Less is more; simpler is better. Steins;gate is a good example of this. The romantic subplot wasn't shoehorned in there--it was drawn on subtly. Feel free to recommend me any good romances you've stumbled across if you happen to disagree. Oh no, simple songs can be quite good! Have you ever listened to Moonsetter? Toby Fox is a musical genius, geezus. I've known about Moonsetter for years, but it wasn't until recently when I realized he was the one who composed it. Gbless, and major props to him for being where he is now. But yeah, I'm sure there are a ton of simple songs/OSTs out there that you may have unconsciously grown attached to, ahah. Great Fairy Fountain is rather simple and a lot of the 999 OSTs as well, heh.

I actually tried looking for anime merch on eBay myself a while back, but these were the mainstream kind of anime so the stuff I found wasn't anything extraordinary (and even if I did run into something like that, the seller probably would've seriously jacked up the price). I wasn't planning to purchase anything, but I had some funds from my YouTube channel if I found something I really wanted though, so the browsing I did wasn't completely mindless, eheh. But that was back when I went through a "phase" every time I started obsessing over something. I'd like to think I've outgrown the tendency to go through that "phase" (or at least it's a lot more controlled now), but that doesn't change the fact that I still have those cravings for some merch every once in a while, ahah. Oh man, you're going to have to show me those finds you managed to nab on eBay (as well as teach me how you found them, hehe). Hmm, as for why theaters distributed the Dog of Flanders pamphlet for free, I'm not too sure myself. The Japanese traditionally do a lot of promotional things for premieres and special events, so I don't think it'd be too out of the ordinary for them to hand out such quality pamphlets for free. Better quality than the 999 fanzine too? I guess they really do go all out with this stuff then, haha.

Historical significance is what made you feel inclined to purchase those merch, huh... Ahh, I should've known, heh. Oh geez, you've always wanted to explore abandoned buildings? There's a ton of them around the Detroit, Flint, and Pontiac area. While those tattered buildings and factories ridden with graffiti and discolored window panes have always been intriguing (sometimes I like to think how they ended up in that state and what the effect these buildings have had on the atmosphere of their surroundings), I definitely wouldn't feel safe wandering around in those areas, especially given the reputation of these cities. But perhaps that's what makes exploring abandoned buildings an adventure, haha. Even knowing all of this, would you still risk venturing into those abandoned buildings? After hearing you gush about all these historical sites, I can see why you have such a strong affinity to history! Are you interested in minoring in history? Oh, and maybe you can show me around these areas if you ever get the chance, ahah. I decided to look into Luna Park myself, and it seemed like such a nice amusement park based on the pictures I saw, but wow, what a depressing end to things. It's fascinating how much has changed over the course of so many years and how much we've advanced (or devolved) as a society and how much our perspectives, values, and priorities have shifted. It's interesting to see how these kinds of areas and land reflect these changes. It's also fun to think about how sentimental we can be sometimes and how much value we can attach to something. Like diamonds, for example. Despite the wear and tear they may undergo over the course of decades, their worth only continues to be determined by the memories and history associated with them more than anything else, and certainly not by how practical they are (outside of industry and laboratories). I love this quote in particular "diamonds are intrinsically worthless, except for the deep psychological need they fill" just because the same can be applied to a boatload of other things. Similarly, those abandoned buildings are essentially worthless, but with all the history they must hold, maybe you can't help but feel inclined to venture into the rubble despite the danger. And it's disappointing to see the former Luna Park area a shell of its former self, especially since there seems to be no trace of the park remaining and nothing left to explore. So I can completely understand why you felt the need to purchase those merchandise. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if I did something similar for the same reason, haha.

I haven't really found the need to use Amazon Prime yet (I might once I need to splurge on used textbooks though, hrm), and wow, all you need to do is provide a school email? Ohh, how convenient! I don't know if I'll be using it just for the sake of getting Sun or Moon, but that's still a handy tool I'll look to whenever I'm in need of some expedited shipping, haha. How has your experience been with Prime and Case's mailing system?

Oh wow, TIL it's more beneficial for businesses if consumers hand over cash instead of credit or debit cards. I'm guilty of getting in the habit of using my debit card instead of cash just because I have a pet peeve about carrying around change. It never occurred to me that paying with debit or credit could be so detrimental to businesses. 1-3 percent is actually a lot for a transaction fee, and on top of taxes as well? I'll keep that in mind next time I'm given the option to swipe my card. But I've also read loads of times that paying in cash induces the consumer to spend less. It seems to me like a psychological thing when you can physically see or think about the amount you're losing/handing over, so you're not as inclined to spend as much (plus the fact that you're physically placing a budget on yourself). Huh, now wouldn't it be weird if this phenomenon and the transaction fee both place businesses back in the same position fiscally. I'll still try to use cash as often as I can (at least for the businesses I support, haha). Thanks for the info!

Damn, eight hours for just one level in Tropical Freeze, and even then to no avail? That's actually really persistent of you, haha. Any particular reason you felt the need to invest so much time into that level? Or was it just your inner completionist nagging at you? Oh yeah, the Last Cave is nothing compared to the Bloodstained Sanctuary. It's insane. And just out of curiosity, what made you choose the Machine Gun instead of waiting for the Spur?

Erm… Super Meat Boy is actually one of the best examples of a game with “perfect” levels. I mean, the later levels are notoriously difficult for a reason, eheh. So in that case, you probably should watch a playthrough instead of playing it for yourself. Unless you get highs off rage-quitting or something, lol. Or you could watch a speed-run, but it doesn't have the same effect without the rage commentary.

I mean, even the fact that your family has get-togethers with movies and board games still seems foreign to me. We don't even do that. The most we do is vacation, eat out together, or go to an outlet together. I think we watched movies together at one point (it was a very brief time though), but my dad started gravitating towards this Chinese Netflix-knockoff recently, which eventually turned into his main source of entertainment. For the most part, we just do our own thing. I can hear the TV on most of the time though, so I at least know what my dad is doing. My mom would be either outside gardening, indoors studying, browsing on her Mac, immersed with her phone, or with my dad watching TV. Sometimes she also likes to bake and cook things, which I like to help her out with whenever I have free time. And recently, she's been asking me to play tennis with her, haha. But aside from that, not much family interaction in this household.

I've always looked forward to winter break as well just because it's right in the middle of the school year around the time when I feel like collapsing, but yeah, this year was... a little different. I dunno, overall senior year has just been so bittersweet that I don't even have a proper impression of it like all my previous years in high school. I'm just happy that I'm currently in a period of peace with my dad, though that might change once I head off to college. But the bonding we had back in Boston definitely helped to alleviate the stress in our relationship. It's such a heartwarming feeling knowing that he took pride in me for once.

I thoroughly enjoyed my trip to San Antonio, but it wasn’t all completely stress-free. A couple of friends and I had the “brilliant” idea of bringing our physics packets with us (dozens and dozens of pages in total, and this doesn’t even include the free responses) to do/check over in the hotel during our downtime, and uh… that didn’t work out too well. For starters, we didn’t accomplish much because who knew that touring sites like the Alamo could take such a toll on us. Secondly, it was getting pretty late in the night (way past our “curfew”), so no one was really in the mood for studying anyway. But enough of that, ahah. Just as you said, I didn’t want to get soaked at Sea World because of the awkward mess I would’ve been. Oh, and I already have a ton of weird tan lines from tennis so I don’t think going on those rides would’ve affected that either way, eheh. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to catch any fireworks even though you’d think something as cultured as a fiesta would permit such a thing, lol. Oh, and about the disturbing things… I know drugs, smoking, alcohol, and hooking up isn’t uncommon among our age group, but it’s just the idea that there were people around my immediate friend circle who actively partake in these activities that just really threw me off. Just the fact that there were people who did this kinda stuff during the orchestra trip last year and this year, and heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if all the previous years were the same--right under everyone’s noses. People I never would’ve expected turning out to be surprisingly promiscuous. It’s nothing unusual, really, since I know these kinds of things happen at every high school. So in hindsight, I’m not entirely sure why I was so shocked considering how commonplace and unregulated this is in college. After all, there has to be a gateway for this kinda stuff to happen in college, and I was already exposed to this info when I was a junior. I guess I was just taking the time to grasp how sheltered of a life I’ve been living, not that I’m planning to go hard on liquor the moment I step on campus or anything (I’m actually rather conservative when it comes to this stuff). It’s just a bit hard to look at these people the same way I used to.

It's hard to imagine that we've known each other for this long, yet it'll only be a matter of months before we'll be able to see each other for the first time. It's a surreal thought indeed. Oh gosh, there's no need to be concerned about living up to my expectations, haha. Though I guess I'm a hypocrite for saying that since, admittedly, I'm a little worried about living up to your expectations myself. As I'm sure I've said before, I'm far from eloquent, so you'll have to excuse me whenever I trip over my words, eheh. Oh, and that interview I mentioned before was for a volunteering and shadowing position at a local hospital that I'll be occupying myself with this summer. The interview was actually pretty low key, much to my surprise, lol. Cedar Point was fun (except for the part where we had to finish a test packet before going on rides). Considering that this was the first time I've gone to an amusement park in years, I'd say it went pretty well! Of course, I was initially a bit nervous analyzing the rides as I walked through the park, but my friends weaned me in with rides like Corkscrew. By far the most intense ride I went on was Maverick. Definitely didn't look intimidating at first glance, but the buildup to that 95* drop felt rather terrifying if you want me to be honest (apparently it's Cedar Point's steepest roller coaster, huh). None of us wanted to go on rides like the Millennium Force though because we're cowards. Also, if you're familiar with the right-hand rule (aka, the physics gang sign), my friends and I went on Raptor holding our hands in that position for the entire ride for the sake of one of those pictures. And it worked! ...for the most part, because although my friends now have proof of accomplishing this feat, my hand got cut off in the picture and I'm a little salty >:T But anywayyyyy...

Prom was alright. It was actually kinda fun, haha. I was a bit hesitant about going at first despite my initial enthusiasm (probably the aftermath of feeling so burnt out), but one of my friends hinted that he was going to ask me, so I guess I felt kinda obligated to go afterwards (also the fact that my parents and friends kept pushing me). Prom took place at this fancy golf club, and the night sky was absolutely gorgeous with the full moon reflecting off of this little pond. Oh yeah, and I also saw my friend from Cranbrook (who I mentioned a few responses ago), which was a really pleasant surprise, so of course I took this opportunity to catch up with him again along with a few other friends. And we ended up congregating on the patio exchanging dark jokes, laughing, and talking about how our lives were going. The dinner was 5/10 (not counting the chocolate fountain since that was pretty rad), the dance was 2/10, but overall, I'd still rate prom 7/10, which isn't bad by any means. The dance was bad because it felt like a sweaty gym class and everyone's just jumping up and down anyway. It just wasn't to my taste even though everyone else seemed pumped for it. And also, oh my gosh, the slow dance was... really awkward to say the least. Everyone's just huddling with their date, deep into each other's arms "waddling" back and forth to this song (I don't know how everyone could take this or themselves so seriously; it's actually rather laughable in hindsight). I didn't have any intention of participating in the dance and certainly not the slow dance, but uh, I guess my date thought differently. In short, I was really uncomfortable. I seriously can't understand why everyone else was so into this slow dance. But of course, that was only a small portion of the overall night. I only participated in the dance for five minutes tops. It was just a really... distinguished five minutes. Oh geez, if the reason you skipped prom was because you could anticipate this sort of awkward tension, I applaud you because this completely caught me off guard. Agh, I can already sense your cringed reaction, eheh. The highlight of my night was just chilling on the patio engaging in conversation and catching up with those few friends I mentioned earlier. I actually had a lot of fun talking with them and spent most of my time on the patio even though I probably made the dance sound like it overtook my entire night or something, lol. I dunno, I think it may have been just me since a lot of people had a ton of fun participating in the dance and seemed to have spent the majority of their night partying there. My experience was a bit of an anomaly in comparison, so you probably shouldn't go by anything I say if you want a truly accurate portrayal of what prom is supposed to be like. I just didn't see the appeal of the dancing. Oh, and after prom, I went to an after party. Nothing too shady happened though. Just food, Jenga, truth or dare (except some of it was a little too touchy-feely), and stuff like that. But if you're wondering why I still rated my overall experience at prom so high, it's because I had an absolutely wonderful time catching up with some old friends on the patio. Paired with some breathtaking nighttime scenery and my night was completely made. I don't blame you for not wanting to go, but prom was definitely a memorable experience for me in ways both pleasant and uncomfortable, haha.

Oh wow, your relatives live in America? My grandparents and aunts and uncles all live in China, and only one of my cousins lives here. The only time I'm able to see them is when I go visit, which I haven't done since seventh grade, urgh. It's been so long since I last saw them, I'm beginning to feel a little guilty. And considering that I probably won't have much time in college to stop by (especially since I might end up being occupied in the following summers), I'm not sure when I'll have another opportunity to see them again, sigh. Ohh, astronomy, huh? That actually sounds pretty interesting! Summer courses can be a damper depending on how you want to look at it, but maybe treating it as a learning experience rather than an obligation can help with that, haha. And if I remember correctly, you mentioned that the grades you receive in summer courses aren't factored into your GPA, so by the looks of it, the class could end up being all the more enjoyable! 

Phew, with all this graduation, rehearsals, banquets, scheduling, going back to school, senior pics, grad parties, and all-night party stuff, I actually ended up being a lot busier than I thought I'd be. Things should be winding down now... hopefully. But just to warn you in advance, as I've mentioned before, I'll be gone from July 6-16 for vacation. I'm pretty excited, so I'll update you on that when the time comes, haha.

[Akazora 293]

On 6/16/2016 at 2:59 PM, Kenzi said:

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So now that more trailers have been released, I have a few thoughts I want to voice. Firstly, I did not see those typings coming. Psychic is understandable because of the third eye that appears when the legendaries use their signature move. And I suppose the fact that psychic is a primary rather than a secondary typing also has some significance. But wtf is Solgaleo. Why is it psychic/steel. Why isn't it part fire and why is an emissary of the sun weak to fire. I dunno, maybe they just didn't want a duplicate of Pyroar or something. Someone claimed that it has to do with its relation to the alchemy theme of the game, which makes sense given that Solgaleo is the "beast that devours the sun." Plus the fact that the symbol on Littens forehead kinda resembles the alchemic symbol for sulfur. So that's an interesting theory. Also, Lunala's typing is disappointing. Psychic/ghost isn't that great, honestly. I'm still leaning towards Pokemon Moon though just because I like Lunala's design better, but we'll see. Apparently there will be multiple islands to explore, so that's a nice change of things. I wouldn't be surprised if the artificial island turned out to be the antagonists base. Speaking of which, what do you think their theme will be? Do you think it'll be something singular or do you think there'll be opposing dual teams like Team Aqua and Magma? Oh, and Rotom!! Fourth gen remakes confirmed?!?!!!>???111?!!! Also, it looks like they're finally giving us some updates on Zygarde. They have to tie this in with Kalos. There's just no way they can leave it out after putting so much emphasis on Zygarde. I'm also going to try my best not to spoil myself, but I might have to just so I can make my mind on whether to get Sun or Moon (stuff like version exclusive Pokemon). I want to have at least some idea of what I'm getting myself into, haha. Or maybe I really should go in blind so it'll truly be like exploring a new region without much prior info. Oh gosh, I'm really going to have to watch myself as the release date creeps closer, eheh.

Treeko didn't feel underappreciated, and in fact, Snivy seemed like the fan favorite of fifth gen. Rowlet is a cute ball of fluff for sure, and the grass/flying typing is certainly interesting, hmm. I agree, Litten's impassive expression is making me rethink some things. I guess it'll probably come down to typings and final evolution design then. As long as Litten doesn't end up being fire/fighting (man was Emboar a disaster), I'll be okay. Popplio is adorable, but that clown nose is really bugging me. I'm still leaning towards Litten though, haha. But I still don't know if I want to spoil the evolutions for myself, urgh. I think the theme for the sixth gen starters was RPGs or something. Delphox is the mage, Greninja is the bandit, and Chesnaught is the warrior, which I guess explains why they went all-out with the witch fox imagery for the Fennekin evolution line, lol. As for why I've always gravitated towards fire starters, I think it's because of my sister. She's always been preaching how fire starters are the best ones, and that kinda stuck with me as I played the games. Yup, Chimchar was indeed my starter back in Platinum, haha. I actually ended up choosing Oshawott for BW just because Emboar's design was such a huge turnoff, but I ended up picking Tepig for B2W2 just to mix things up a bit. I've always used my real name for these games since it never really occurred to me to use a pseudonym. Using my real name just makes the game feel a lot more personal, which allows me to have a much closer attachment to my Pokemon. So to answer your question, I'd continue using my actual name, hehe. But I've also played plenty of ROM hacks/fanmade games, and for those, I always use some silly name just for the helluvit, lol. As for which starter I'd pick if I were to replay Platinum, I'm not entirely sure. I guess it'd probably depend on what I'm playing it for (speed-run, nostalgia, nuzlocke, etc.), but I have a feeling I'd choose Chimchar again just for old times' sake :')

Sooo... I recently started Undertale, and... at first, it seemed alright. Fun puzzles, fun dialogue, fun characters, and it was a good game, as expected, but I still didn't really understand why everyone was so utterly batshit crazy about it, but then I reached the part where I had to fight Asgore and after that WTF. WTF. W.T.F. WHY U GOTTA PULL MY HEARTSTRINGS LIKE THAT, DAMN, FLOWEY. Seriously, nothing, just nothing could've prepared me for what I witnessed after fighting Asgore. Flowey broke the fourth wall hard. GAH, and those backstories. I'm such a sucker for backstories dsfjhadslfjhafjasdhfas. Also can we please take a moment to acknowledge how absolutely godly the soundtrack is. It felt like a mix of 999 and Super Meat Boy (a bit of that Cave Story and Pokemon vibe as well), and it was just... many thanks to Toby for all the eargasms, ahhh. OH YEAH, and how could I forget. A LOT of these themes had Touhou vibes :'D (Undyne's theme and Toriel's theme, just to name a couple, are great examples of this). Everything was just so fitting to its area, and I don't think there was a single soundtrack that I glazed over. It takes a lot to be able to compose music that captures the atmosphere of these environments and situations so thoroughly. The art was also breathtaking in some scenes. Oh my gosh, it's amazing what you can illustrate with so little (it's all so detailed, holy moly, who needs all these 3D models and graphics). AND THE DIALOGUE. Not just the content of the dialogue, but the soundfont they spoke in. Like Toriel had this benevolent, motherly soundfont, while Asgore had this tender, overlord-like soundfont (I believe he was also the one who offered words of encouragement in the Game Over sequence), and Sans had this plump soundfont that complemented his personality/sense of humor. Flowey, of course, is the most recognizable with the shaky text and rattly soundfont. It's kinda hard to explain unless you hear it for yourself, lol. But it was just a nice little detail Toby incorporated into the game (every nook and cranny of the game is so filled with detail, hnng). The gameplay was also... unique to say the least, hahahah. I went the neutral/pacifist route, so of course the goal wasn't to mindlessly slaughter everyone that stood in my way but to choose the right combination of actions to appease the "enemy" so that I could spare them (and admittedly, it took me a while to realize that I was actually supposed to fight Asgore instead of surviving as long as I can). The bullet-hells were quite creative! Bones, animals, teeth, arrows, etc., and not just standard circular or elliptical bullets were used to give a sense of personality that reflected the attacker. Everything was just crafted with so much purpose, geezus (here's a real good example, and I may as well link this while I'm at it). It was a light-hearted game (well, most of it, haha) with such a resonating overarching theme, and it's. just. so. good. Also, Mettaton EX was probably my favorite boss battle so far, hah. I'm currently in the middle of completing the pacifist route (just finished the neutral one), but I don't think I have the stamina to go through the genocide route. Apparently, you have to kill every single existing monster in the area before progressing, which seems reaaaaally time consuming. I might end up watching a playthrough of that instead. All in all, it's just a really good game. That's all I have left to say based on my impressions so far. I'm bracing myself to be blown back once more after finishing the pacifist route.

I'm about halfway through Monster and I can feel the buildup coming. I'm liking it so far, but I haven't been blown away yet. I love how they illustrated the passage of time by growing out Tenma's hair. Oh, erm... sorry for not updating my MAL. I-I just didn't have time to watch much anime during that time period, gomen :c Dang, I didn't realize MAL was so proactive in recording dates and times. I feel that this would be more like a burden than a "wow!" feature for me. It's really hard for me to stop once I start a compulsive habit. And I have no doubt that it'd turn into one after considering how much anime I still need to get around to watching. It's definitely a neat feature, but it won't be the reason I'm using MAL. I just think the site is a great way to keep track of the stuff I've watched and need to watch, haha. Erased seems to be getting a lot of criticism for its ending so I'm still on the fence about watching this. After all, the conclusion is what leaves the lasting impression (and it's one of the key components to what'll make or break a show). I'm definitely going to look into OPM (and maybe I'll update my MAL just for your sake, ahah..), but I don't know if I'll be able to watch it all in one sitting though. I don't have much endurance when it comes to bingeing shows since staring at a computer screen for extensive periods of time without much break makes my head and eyes ache. I'd much rather take it in slow so I can enjoy myself rather than watch it all in one go. Something like OPM would probably take me a few days to finish then. I can almost hear you chuckling to yourself about how amateur this must sound, eheh.

I know I haven't watched Hyouka, but the show has such pretty gifs :c I'm really curious to see your hair, but I suppose I'll just have to wait until I finally get to meet you, hehe. I've actually thought about using hair gel myself whenever I put my hair in a ponytail for tennis. I have a lot of baby hairs that like to fly onto my face since my hair is layered, and this can be especially bothersome when it's windy. But I kinda just learned to deal with it since, like you said, hair gel can be a bit of a hassle, haha. Oh man, my friends tease me a lot for that bowl cut I used to have. It might've been cute back in elementary school, but having that kind of hairstyle up until late middle school? Those were some cringey times, as much as I'd hate to admit it, lol. Well, at least it was convenient because I never really had problems combing it or anything. Also, just as I mention that old bowl cut, I recently received a reminder of what I looked like back then. adhasfhjlksdfhasdkljfhakldhjf dear lord whyyy... If you're wondering, this "reminder" was a CD from one of my middle school teachers. Back in middle school, some of us were forced to record a ~10min video of ourselves talking to our "future"/senior selves. I was talking about the recording with a few other friends who had the same teacher (and, consequently, received CDs of themselves as well), and uh... welp, there's not much for me to say other than all of us are glad those days are over.

Ahah, I also had trouble with turning when I first started driving. The driving instructor I had showed me this really bizarre way of moving and placing your hands on the wheel that seriously didn't make sense to me. I eventually figured that overlapping your arms naturally as you turn works much better (it's kinda hard to describe in words). But as you practice driving on the roads, it becomes much easier to figure out how to make sharp and wide turns once you start getting the feel of things. Geez, is the NJ road test really that hard? We have a parking test and a driving test (along with the written portion, of course). Fail any one and you fail the test (you had to pass the written portion before you're permitted to take the other two though). The parking test was pretty straightforward: drive up to a line, then back-in to a parking space, then proceed to parallel park. The driving test was just driving on the main roads, highways, and suburbs (and they try to trip you up by asking you road questions while driving). But that's about it. You can make up to six mistakes on the parking test and up to twenty-five on the driving test, and while that seems forgiving, it's actually stupidly easy to rack up on those since the proctors are really nitpicky about this kind of stuff. Are you forced to drive on a course or do you also go on the main roads? And what about parking? I know you're against driving, but having a license is quite liberating! I wasn't terribly eager about getting my license (my dad kinda forced me, lol), but man is it nice not having to constantly pester my friends and parents for rides. And you know, driving is almost a necessity nowadays unless you're living in an urban city like NYC. I'm sure you'll warm up to the idea of getting a license eventually!

It's good to know that everything has gone well for you at Case! Thanks for updating me and letting me know that you've been alright, haha. 

Actually, I didn't have to take any finals this semester since my grades were in good standing and none of my teachers required it for seniors, lol. For seniors, school ended on June 1, but for everyone else it ends on June 17. As eager as I was to leave, I still had senior pictures to hand out to people who requested last minute. And these pictures were gags, but I couldn’t tell whether or not some of these people actually took my Facebook post seriously. Oh, and in case you didn’t know, sometimes people post senior pictures on Facebook and ask everyone to Like or comment on their post if they want one. So, as a joke, I made some sloppily-drawn stick figures on MS Paint, and posted them on Facebook as my “senior pictures.” Long story short, I ended up having to print out and write personalized notes on the back of nearly three dozen of these photos (it was on legit photo paper too) because I couldn't tell if some of these people knew that the Facebook post was a joke, even if others made it blatantly obvious in their comments. But I still have no regrets, hahah. Oh yeah, and the other reason I've still been going to school is because we're doing a ton of fun labs in orgo like making esters and stirring rods, which I didn't want to miss out on, lol. Also, the more I think about my AP tests, the more I don't want to see some of my scores, especially for physics, dear lord. One of the free responses for E/M was a question with field lines that resembled a pressure system map, and wow, the moment we all flipped to that page when the timer started, the person sitting across from me turned his head towards my direction and made that same blank expression, and we all knew we were doomed before even placing our pencils on the page. And the calculator malfunction I had earlier didn't exactly help either. That just about sums up how the entirety of physics went (it was mainly E/M; I got rekt so hard). I'd rather not fill this response with rants, so I guess I'll just leave it at that. Oh, and I don't think the students had their AP bio scores cancelled, so that's probably a huge relief for them. But what happened was that the AP bio teacher was posting on some teacher forum and complaining that our school was, apparently, the only school in the state that had Form E (the international version, and the supposedly harder version of the test). Some other teacher called her out for it, saying that she shouldn't be disclosing this kind of info before the tests were released, and the AP bio teacher replied with "Watch me." And with that, the AP bio teacher got reported and sure enough, the news spread like wildfire throughout the school because everyone's scores were then in risk of getting cancelled. So, TIL some people really do take the "don't discuss the test or else" threat seriously.

Ohh, it's nice to hear how great the professors and student body are! I'm not too concerned about the dining hall food since I'm not a terribly picky eater, but the mail system might pose a problem for me. A three-day weekend, huh? I'm a bit envious, hmph. I still have no idea how scheduling for classes works, but I'm thinking about going into Materials Science and Engineering or Polymer Science and Engineering, so this is the schedule I'm trying to work out: CHEM 111, EMSE 110 (basically an intro course to materials science that only meets up once a week), Chemical Aspects of the Aging Mind (seminar), MATH 121 (I haven't touched calc since last year/sparingly in physics, hahah), Wellness (just based on what I've heard from you), and PHYS 121. Scheduling has been a real pain since a couple of these overlap, and I have no room for any lunch on Fridays, soooo... yeah this is all tentative, lol. I can't take the Wellness class (10-11am) if I take EMSE 110 (8:30-11:15am), so I'm not sure what to do about that (I'm probably going to have to drop Wellness then). Feel free to criticize or suggest anything. My plan is to take all the gen science courses as a premed student (it's just something I'm considering), but the main problem I'm seeing is that there aren't many overlapping MatSci and premed courses, so I might have an issue trying to cram all of those classes in. Of course, I know I'm being a little too ambitious by doing engineering+premed, but I wanted the chance to expose myself to both (plus, MatSci is more science than engineering anyway). I'm not adamant on following through with this plan, so I suppose we'll see how this goes. I'm going to keep an open mind for now since it's possible that I could end up in nursing or business, lol. At the moment, I also reaaaaaally want to keep this seminar so I'm trying to work around that. Oh, and conveniently enough, I won't have internet access during the period when we actually sign up for classes (vacation to Alaska, whoo), so I'm trying to work that out by emailing one of the guys in charge of this stuff. Aghh, this is all so frustrating, what a mess. And should I go on the three-day adventures thing? It sounds pretty cool, haha. As for housing, I ended up choosing Smith. I couldn't strategically choose a building near where my classes will take place since I don't even know which classes I'll end up with, and I've been told that Juniper has the best housing, so I just went with Smith since I wasn't given the option of Taft or Taplin for whatever reason (I highly doubt they were both filled to capacity at the time I signed up). Ohh, you talk to yourself to help with studying? I think I used to do that, but now it's mostly under my breath. Would you mind elaborating on what you do? Also, I checked with the Case's class of 2020 Facebook page, and I think the fourth floor of Taplin is still an all guys floor. I'm pretty sure I'll be okay without the A/C since I'll be bringing a fan with me, but thanks anyway, haha. And thanks for the dorm info as well! It's kinda hard to imagine why Clarke Tower is formatted that way, but I suppose I'll get to see this for myself soon enough, heh.

Personally, I didn't have many bad experiences with teachers. Except for that one freshman English teacher that most people adore, the summer school government and civics teacher, and the summer school gym teacher. But those are rants I can save for another time. I know my precalc teacher seemed to get a fair amount of hate even though I thought she was fine (teaching style and personality is vastly different from the other precalc teacher, which most people complained about). The majority of the class also really disliked our algebra 2 teacher, but I thought she was alright. A lot of people have mixed feelings about the AP Bio teacher just because of how obviously she plays favorites (plus the fact that her main form of teaching is just reading off notes). And yeah, I didn't think she was that great either, honestly. And there's that Physics C teacher I already told you about. Oh, and weirdly enough, I've had a couple of friends this year complain about the calc teacher I had last year even though I thought he was a solid teacher. So I guess our schools really don't differ much in terms of teacher quality then.

Oh, I see what you mean.  Although I can't really relate to opening one of those boxed presents on Christmas, I can imagine how much excitement unboxing something can bring, haha. It's probably why there are so many unboxing videos on YouTube (aside from the ones that the YouTuber was paid to do). Have you ever heard of those monthly subscription boxes? Geez, they're everywhere now. And from what I've heard from people, it really is like getting a Christmas gift every month, lol. Okay, so I went in blind for my roommate and checked my roommate status a few days after selecting my room (it was empty before since I was the first to select the room), and wtf, my roommate turned out to be a friend from school?? w.h.a.t. are the chances. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this since I was hoping to meet someone new (I mean, she's a really nice person for sure, but I kinda wanted to branch out to others), so uh... we'll see how this goes. I'm not planning to spend most of my time in my room though, so I suppose it doesn't really matter. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around this, holy moly. So yeah, I don't expect to have much quiet time in our dorm room, lol. That's fine though, since I can always walk over to the library if that's what it comes down to. I really want to break up my habit of staying up late to finish my work (plus, I need to be considerate of my roommate's sleeping habits), so maybe it's a good thing that the library isn't open 24/7, eheh. I don't think I want a place that's dead silent since I like a bit of white noise, but I can always work around that, haha.

Just to warn you beforehand, Tatami Galaxy is more episodic than anything else and does not follow a fluid timeline. At all. I'd discourage you from trying to watch it all in one sitting since what it throws at you can be pretty overwhelming, but this is just based on my experience. Ping Pong is a lot easier to watch and much easier to follow. So do what you will with that info, haha. Oh wow, you've been watching Game of Thrones? There's been a lot of buzz about it, and admittedly, I'm actually tempted to watch it. And geez, all caught up already? How long did it take for you to get to that point? Also, what made you gravitate towards GoT?

Erm, I don't know if my parents would be willing to let me grab a bunch of a games from the shelves (I know I definitely wouldn't feel comfortable asking for so many). My dad bought a new laptop for me a month ago (it was a pleasant surprise for sure, but I haven't gotten around to using it yet), and I just received a new phone a few days ago after my parents kept nagging at me for how trashed-up my old phone was. Not that it was cracked or broken or anything, but it was practically useless outside of calling and checking emails because of how laggy and unresponsive it was. I was already going to ask for a new phone (I'm thankful that they offered first), but I didn't expect them to buy me a new laptop, so I think you can understand why I feel that asking for a bunch of games would seem kinda greedy, even if it is for my birthday. At most, I'd only be comfortable asking for one. And even then, I don't think I could muster up the courage to do so until a couple weeks before my birthday at the earliest. In the meantime, I'm going to finish up Undertale, the other games you've sent me, and the demos you mentioned. That, along with the anime I still need to get around to watching after finishing Monster, should keep me occupied for some time, so no need to worry, haha.

Oh yeah, there's a ton of new mechanics in Pokken that'll definitely take a ton of time to get used to, so I can understand why you feel that way. Maybe check out some gameplay on YouTube if you haven't done so already. It's pretty neat, haha. Hmm, that's an interesting analogy. I can see why it's so hard to explain, but I think I get what you mean. How difficult would you say the adjustment from Awakening to Fates was?

I believe my sister was already familiar with Nodame Cantabile, so what drew her in was probably the cover image of Shigatsu on MAL (I saw her browsing the site beforehand). Ohoho, and isn't it that everyone who watched Free did so knowing that it's a "feel good" anime? ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) Don't worry, I haven't turned into one of those people......... yet. jkjkjkjk, hahahahah (no really, I still have yet to watch it, lol). Yeahh, I can't think of a single example of a love triangle that I've been okay about. Generally speaking, love triangles seem to be implemented for the sake of spurring up the fandom. And for long running shows like DC and Naruto, the persistence of those love triangles allows these shows to stay "relevant" with all the drama they can capitalize on. Then again, most romance subplots don't exactly leave good impressions on me either (they tend to be better off without it, really). Less is more; simpler is better. Steins;gate is a good example of this. The romantic subplot wasn't shoehorned in there--it was drawn on subtly. Feel free to recommend me any good romances you've stumbled across if you happen to disagree. Oh no, simple songs can be quite good! Have you ever listened to Moonsetter? Toby Fox is a musical genius, geezus. I've known about Moonsetter for years, but it wasn't until recently when I realized he was the one who composed it. Gbless, and major props to him for being where he is now. But yeah, I'm sure there are a ton of simple songs/OSTs out there that you may have unconsciously grown attached to, ahah. Great Fairy Fountain is rather simple and a lot of the 999 OSTs as well, heh.

I actually tried looking for anime merch on eBay myself a while back, but these were the mainstream kind of anime so the stuff I found wasn't anything extraordinary (and even if I did run into something like that, the seller probably would've seriously jacked up the price). I wasn't planning to purchase anything, but I had some funds from my YouTube channel if I found something I really wanted though, so the browsing I did wasn't completely mindless, eheh. But that was back when I went through a "phase" every time I started obsessing over something. I'd like to think I've outgrown the tendency to go through that "phase" (or at least it's a lot more controlled now), but that doesn't change the fact that I still have those cravings for some merch every once in a while, ahah. Oh man, you're going to have to show me those finds you managed to nab on eBay (as well as teach me how you found them, hehe). Hmm, as for why theaters distributed the Dog of Flanders pamphlet for free, I'm not too sure myself. The Japanese traditionally do a lot of promotional things for premieres and special events, so I don't think it'd be too out of the ordinary for them to hand out such quality pamphlets for free. Better quality than the 999 fanzine too? I guess they really do go all out with this stuff then, haha.

Historical significance is what made you feel inclined to purchase those merch, huh... Ahh, I should've known, heh. Oh geez, you've always wanted to explore abandoned buildings? There's a ton of them around the Detroit, Flint, and Pontiac area. While those tattered buildings and factories ridden with graffiti and discolored window panes have always been intriguing (sometimes I like to think how they ended up in that state and what the effect these buildings have had on the atmosphere of their surroundings), I definitely wouldn't feel safe wandering around in those areas, especially given the reputation of these cities. But perhaps that's what makes exploring abandoned buildings an adventure, haha. Even knowing all of this, would you still risk venturing into those abandoned buildings? After hearing you gush about all these historical sites, I can see why you have such a strong affinity to history! Are you interested in minoring in history? Oh, and maybe you can show me around these areas if you ever get the chance, ahah. I decided to look into Luna Park myself, and it seemed like such a nice amusement park based on the pictures I saw, but wow, what a depressing end to things. It's fascinating how much has changed over the course of so many years and how much we've advanced (or devolved) as a society and how much our perspectives, values, and priorities have shifted. It's interesting to see how these kinds of areas and land reflect these changes. It's also fun to think about how sentimental we can be sometimes and how much value we can attach to something. Like diamonds, for example. Despite the wear and tear they may undergo over the course of decades, their worth only continues to be determined by the memories and history associated with them more than anything else, and certainly not by how practical they are (outside of industry and laboratories). I love this quote in particular "diamonds are intrinsically worthless, except for the deep psychological need they fill" just because the same can be applied to a boatload of other things. Similarly, those abandoned buildings are essentially worthless, but with all the history they must hold, maybe you can't help but feel inclined to venture into the rubble despite the danger. And it's disappointing to see the former Luna Park area a shell of its former self, especially since there seems to be no trace of the park remaining and nothing left to explore. So I can completely understand why you felt the need to purchase those merchandise. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if I did something similar for the same reason, haha.

I haven't really found the need to use Amazon Prime yet (I might once I need to splurge on used textbooks though, hrm), and wow, all you need to do is provide a school email? Ohh, how convenient! I don't know if I'll be using it just for the sake of getting Sun or Moon, but that's still a handy tool I'll look to whenever I'm in need of some expedited shipping, haha. How has your experience been with Prime and Case's mailing system?

Oh wow, TIL it's more beneficial for businesses if consumers hand over cash instead of credit or debit cards. I'm guilty of getting in the habit of using my debit card instead of cash just because I have a pet peeve about carrying around change. It never occurred to me that paying with debit or credit could be so detrimental to businesses. 1-3 percent is actually a lot for a transaction fee, and on top of taxes as well? I'll keep that in mind next time I'm given the option to swipe my card. But I've also read loads of times that paying in cash induces the consumer to spend less. It seems to me like a psychological thing when you can physically see or think about the amount you're losing/handing over, so you're not as inclined to spend as much (plus the fact that you're physically placing a budget on yourself). Huh, now wouldn't it be weird if this phenomenon and the transaction fee both place businesses back in the same position fiscally. I'll still try to use cash as often as I can (at least for the businesses I support, haha). Thanks for the info!

Damn, eight hours for just one level in Tropical Freeze, and even then to no avail? That's actually really persistent of you, haha. Any particular reason you felt the need to invest so much time into that level? Or was it just your inner completionist nagging at you? Oh yeah, the Last Cave is nothing compared to the Bloodstained Sanctuary. It's insane. And just out of curiosity, what made you choose the Machine Gun instead of waiting for the Spur?

Erm… Super Meat Boy is actually one of the best examples of a game with “perfect” levels. I mean, the later levels are notoriously difficult for a reason, eheh. So in that case, you probably should watch a playthrough instead of playing it for yourself. Unless you get highs off rage-quitting or something, lol. Or you could watch a speed-run, but it doesn't have the same effect without the rage commentary.

I mean, even the fact that your family has get-togethers with movies and board games still seems foreign to me. We don't even do that. The most we do is vacation, eat out together, or go to an outlet together. I think we watched movies together at one point (it was a very brief time though), but my dad started gravitating towards this Chinese Netflix-knockoff recently, which eventually turned into his main source of entertainment. For the most part, we just do our own thing. I can hear the TV on most of the time though, so I at least know what my dad is doing. My mom would be either outside gardening, indoors studying, browsing on her Mac, immersed with her phone, or with my dad watching TV. Sometimes she also likes to bake and cook things, which I like to help her out with whenever I have free time. And recently, she's been asking me to play tennis with her, haha. But aside from that, not much family interaction in this household.

I've always looked forward to winter break as well just because it's right in the middle of the school year around the time when I feel like collapsing, but yeah, this year was... a little different. I dunno, overall senior year has just been so bittersweet that I don't even have a proper impression of it like all my previous years in high school. I'm just happy that I'm currently in a period of peace with my dad, though that might change once I head off to college. But the bonding we had back in Boston definitely helped to alleviate the stress in our relationship. It's such a heartwarming feeling knowing that he took pride in me for once.

I thoroughly enjoyed my trip to San Antonio, but it wasn’t all completely stress-free. A couple of friends and I had the “brilliant” idea of bringing our physics packets with us (dozens and dozens of pages in total, and this doesn’t even include the free responses) to do/check over in the hotel during our downtime, and uh… that didn’t work out too well. For starters, we didn’t accomplish much because who knew that touring sites like the Alamo could take such a toll on us. Secondly, it was getting pretty late in the night (way past our “curfew”), so no one was really in the mood for studying anyway. But enough of that, ahah. Just as you said, I didn’t want to get soaked at Sea World because of the awkward mess I would’ve been. Oh, and I already have a ton of weird tan lines from tennis so I don’t think going on those rides would’ve affected that either way, eheh. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to catch any fireworks even though you’d think something as cultured as a fiesta would permit such a thing, lol. Oh, and about the disturbing things… I know drugs, smoking, alcohol, and hooking up isn’t uncommon among our age group, but it’s just the idea that there were people around my immediate friend circle who actively partake in these activities that just really threw me off. Just the fact that there were people who did this kinda stuff during the orchestra trip last year and this year, and heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if all the previous years were the same--right under everyone’s noses. People I never would’ve expected turning out to be surprisingly promiscuous. It’s nothing unusual, really, since I know these kinds of things happen at every high school. So in hindsight, I’m not entirely sure why I was so shocked considering how commonplace and unregulated this is in college. After all, there has to be a gateway for this kinda stuff to happen in college, and I was already exposed to this info when I was a junior. I guess I was just taking the time to grasp how sheltered of a life I’ve been living, not that I’m planning to go hard on liquor the moment I step on campus or anything (I’m actually rather conservative when it comes to this stuff). It’s just a bit hard to look at these people the same way I used to.

It's hard to imagine that we've known each other for this long, yet it'll only be a matter of months before we'll be able to see each other for the first time. It's a surreal thought indeed. Oh gosh, there's no need to be concerned about living up to my expectations, haha. Though I guess I'm a hypocrite for saying that since, admittedly, I'm a little worried about living up to your expectations myself. As I'm sure I've said before, I'm far from eloquent, so you'll have to excuse me whenever I trip over my words, eheh. Oh, and that interview I mentioned before was for a volunteering and shadowing position at a local hospital that I'll be occupying myself with this summer. The interview was actually pretty low key, much to my surprise, lol. Cedar Point was fun (except for the part where we had to finish a test packet before going on rides). Considering that this was the first time I've gone to an amusement park in years, I'd say it went pretty well! Of course, I was initially a bit nervous analyzing the rides as I walked through the park, but my friends weaned me in with rides like Corkscrew. By far the most intense ride I went on was Maverick. Definitely didn't look intimidating at first glance, but the buildup to that 95* drop felt rather terrifying if you want me to be honest (apparently it's Cedar Point's steepest roller coaster, huh). None of us wanted to go on rides like the Millennium Force though because we're cowards. Also, if you're familiar with the right-hand rule (aka, the physics gang sign), my friends and I went on Raptor holding our hands in that position for the entire ride for the sake of one of those pictures. And it worked! ...for the most part, because although my friends now have proof of accomplishing this feat, my hand got cut off in the picture and I'm a little salty >:T But anywayyyyy...

Prom was alright. It was actually kinda fun, haha. I was a bit hesitant about going at first despite my initial enthusiasm (probably the aftermath of feeling so burnt out), but one of my friends hinted that he was going to ask me, so I guess I felt kinda obligated to go afterwards (also the fact that my parents and friends kept pushing me). Prom took place at this fancy golf club, and the night sky was absolutely gorgeous with the full moon reflecting off of this little pond. Oh yeah, and I also saw my friend from Cranbrook (who I mentioned a few responses ago), which was a really pleasant surprise, so of course I took this opportunity to catch up with him again along with a few other friends. And we ended up congregating on the patio exchanging dark jokes, laughing, and talking about how our lives were going. The dinner was 5/10 (not counting the chocolate fountain since that was pretty rad), the dance was 2/10, but overall, I'd still rate prom 7/10, which isn't bad by any means. The dance was bad because it felt like a sweaty gym class and everyone's just jumping up and down anyway. It just wasn't to my taste even though everyone else seemed pumped for it. And also, oh my gosh, the slow dance was... really awkward to say the least. Everyone's just huddling with their date, deep into each other's arms "waddling" back and forth to this song (I don't know how everyone could take this or themselves so seriously; it's actually rather laughable in hindsight). I didn't have any intention of participating in the dance and certainly not the slow dance, but uh, I guess my date thought differently. In short, I was really uncomfortable. I seriously can't understand why everyone else was so into this slow dance. But of course, that was only a small portion of the overall night. I only participated in the dance for five minutes tops. It was just a really... distinguished five minutes. Oh geez, if the reason you skipped prom was because you could anticipate this sort of awkward tension, I applaud you because this completely caught me off guard. Agh, I can already sense your cringed reaction, eheh. The highlight of my night was just chilling on the patio engaging in conversation and catching up with those few friends I mentioned earlier. I actually had a lot of fun talking with them and spent most of my time on the patio even though I probably made the dance sound like it overtook my entire night or something, lol. I dunno, I think it may have been just me since a lot of people had a ton of fun participating in the dance and seemed to have spent the majority of their night partying there. My experience was a bit of an anomaly in comparison, so you probably shouldn't go by anything I say if you want a truly accurate portrayal of what prom is supposed to be like. I just didn't see the appeal of the dancing. Oh, and after prom, I went to an after party. Nothing too shady happened though. Just food, Jenga, truth or dare (except some of it was a little too touchy-feely), and stuff like that. But if you're wondering why I still rated my overall experience at prom so high, it's because I had an absolutely wonderful time catching up with some old friends on the patio. Paired with some breathtaking nighttime scenery and my night was completely made. I don't blame you for not wanting to go, but prom was definitely a memorable experience for me in ways both pleasant and uncomfortable, haha.

Oh wow, your relatives live in America? My grandparents and aunts and uncles all live in China, and only one of my cousins lives here. The only time I'm able to see them is when I go visit, which I haven't done since seventh grade, urgh. It's been so long since I last saw them, I'm beginning to feel a little guilty. And considering that I probably won't have much time in college to stop by (especially since I might end up being occupied in the following summers), I'm not sure when I'll have another opportunity to see them again, sigh. Ohh, astronomy, huh? That actually sounds pretty interesting! Summer courses can be a damper depending on how you want to look at it, but maybe treating it as a learning experience rather than an obligation can help with that, haha. And if I remember correctly, you mentioned that the grades you receive in summer courses aren't factored into your GPA, so by the looks of it, the class could end up being all the more enjoyable! 

Phew, with all this graduation, rehearsals, banquets, scheduling, going back to school, senior pics, grad parties, and all-night party stuff, I actually ended up being a lot busier than I thought I'd be. Things should be winding down now... hopefully. But just to warn you in advance, as I've mentioned before, I'll be gone from July 6-16 for vacation. I'm pretty excited, so I'll update you on that when the time comes, haha.

Hahah, yes, there certainly was a lot of confusion over the typings of the SM legendaries.  I, and just about everyone else, assumed Fire was a shoo-in typing for Solgaleo, so it’s certainly interesting to see it not be the case.  And of course, the irony of having Solgaleo be weak to Fire and Lunala weak to Dark was certainly not lost to fans.  I’m sure there are good reasons for why this is the case, which you’ve already brought up with the alchemy-related “lion devouring the sun” connection (something I totally buy into, just saying).  And maybe Lunala is weak to Dark because the moon can only be “invisible” (new moons) when sunlight doesn’t reflect off of it and therefore needs a lack of darkness to “exist,” in a manner of speaking?  It also seems logical to have the artificial island be the team’s hideout.  I can also see the antagonist team pushing some sort of technologically advanced agenda.  Since Alola is a chain of islands and likely has limited resources, perhaps the whole issue will be technology vs nature?  Hawaii/Alola seem to have a rich cultural history as well as a focus on the natural and traditional.  Maybe the evil team has good intentions, trying to catch the antiquated Alola up to the rest of the more tech-savvy regions of Pokemon by pushing for technology and development, while forgoing traditional roots and putting a strain on the limited amount of space and nature of the islands?  That may help tie the guardian deities of the islands into the plot, as well.  I dunno, that’s just me musing around, I haven’t really given this theory much thought aside from that.  And yup, it’s really exciting to see Zygarde finally receive some of the coverage it desperately needed!  I can certainly see them making SM closely related to Kalos.  Not to mention Magearna’s signature move, Fleur Cannon, calls back to a lot of things from XY.  Ah, and while we’re at it, I may as well talk about some of the other new Pokemon recently revealed.  Bruxish’s ability is pretty sweet, but goodness that design is a bit much, haha.  Grandpa Pokemon, err… Drampa seems cool as well.  I know Normal isn’t the best of types, but hey a Normal/Dragon is unique and I’m all for something special.  Cutiefly is cute, naturally, but also really small when you send it out in battle.  Nothing against small Pokemon, but… having it fight against a Wailord would certainly be a sight to see.  And it looks like Togedemaru is the Electric Pikachu-like Pokemon of this gen.  They’re usually never good on the team because they don’t evolve and are really frail, but it has endearingly chubby cheeks, I’ll give it that.  The rest of Grubbin’s evolution line has also been revealed.  I guess it’s confirmed as one of the token “catch early, evolve early” Bug Pokemon for this region.  That means Vikavolt’s stats probably won’t be very good, but damn it has such a good design!  I might actually consider using it on my team, as a sort of “handicap” to make the game more challenging.  What do you think of these new additions to the Pokemon universe?

Ohh, true, Treeko certainly had its fans back in the day.  I still feel like it just wasn’t as preferred over Mudkip and Torchic, at least among my friend group.  And was Snivy really the fan favorite back when fifth gen was fresh?  You probably know better than me, since I wasn’t really using the Internet too heavily back then (wasn’t browsing reddit or Pokemon forums at least) and very few of my friends continued to play Pokemon when BW was released, but I guess I already had the misconception that Grass types were often shunned in favor of Water and Fire.  I believe part of me chose Snivy out of sympathy, though I did think Serperior’s design was awesome as well.  Today though, I like Samurott out of all the fifth gen starters after I actually took the time to read up on the Pokemon and learned he has dual swords sheathed away in his leg plates.  Phew, what a goddamn badass, hahah.  Ohhhhh the sixth gen starters were based off of RPG classes, jeez, I feel so silly for not noticing that.  I only noticed they were the most human-like of all the starters, but didn’t make any connection beyond that.  That makes sense, but I still don’t think any of their deigns will ever truly warm up to me (except for Greninja’s, though now I see him more as a Smash character than a Pokemon, ughh).  Hmm, so that’s why you have an affinity for Fire starters.  Makes sense, since a lot of what I feel about the starters can be tied to impressions I got from my group of friends (as someone who didn’t get any of the games until later, it was difficult for me to make any assertions for myself and so I just took everyone’s word for it, pfft).  Huh, and thanks for answering all my questions about your first Platinum run, it’s interesting to know!

Ahahaha, goodness, your experience with Undertale closely mirrors mine.  I wasn’t really convinced of the hype until the Asgore fight, and pretty much everything that followed.  I certainly liked the buildup and the journey that led to the end of a neutral run, but it wasn’t until all those revelations right before, during, and after the Asgore fight that I was truly blown away.  And Etika beat Asgore with just one HP left, so it was one heck of an emotional rollercoaster even during the battle sequence, hah.  And yes, the OST for the game is brilliant.  It’s hard to find a game or movie or television show with a nearly flawless soundtrack from beginning to end like this.  Usually I find a soundtrack with a handful of really good pieces, and then just claim “that game/movie/show has an amazing OST” because I can’t be so picky and expect every song to be good right?  After all, there are always moments of downtime that don’t really require super catchy tunes playing in the background, so an OST filled with “fluff” isn’t something that bothers me.  But geez, Undertale’s soundtrack is so packed to the brim with good songs, it’s probably the only full soundtrack of anything that I can listen to from beginning to end without feeling the urge to skip a song.  My favorite songs would have to be just about every boss theme, mainly because they’re all so intense, they’re prime material for fantastic covers, and they evoke the most emotion and memories when listening back to them.  And yes, I’ve certainly noticed the brilliant uses of the different soundfonts for the characters speaking.  It really enhances their personalities, as you say.  And speaking of personalities, the monsters you “fight” all have such interesting personalities, which are explored through acting with them and their bullet shapes and patterns.  Haha, Mettaton EX’s fight was so crazy and bizarre, but it was certainly a lot of fun regardless.  Genocide isn’t nearly as tedious as it may sound.  I don’t want to say too much, but it’s definitely nowhere near as tedious as EV training a Pokemon.  That wasn’t a very good comparison, but whatever, heh.  You can watch a playthrough of it if you want, since it’s also really good watching as a spectator, but just know that it’s not as time consuming as people sometimes make it out to be.

I saw your post about Monster in the other thread, and from what I gathered you enjoyed it to an extent.  I’m glad that, at the very last, you didn’t dislike it.  It’s been a really long time since I’ve read the manga, but I’d have to agree with you saying that it could get predictable.  I don’t recall any moments where a “twist” ever completely took me by surprise, but it was still a good watch, or read, in my case.  It’s something that would work really well as an introduction to anime, since it contains so little of what makes anime “anime” and is instead very western inspired.  Also, I can’t think of another anime that is such a 1:1 adaption of its manga, so it acts as a good example of a show willing to sacrifice brevity for the sake of not leaving anything out from its source material.  And about MAL, it certainly can feel like I only watch anime the way I do because of that site.  For example, I used to not care about not finishing shows, since if a show was so bad why force yourself to finish it?  But seeing as how MAL keeps track of everything you don’t finish, and I’m reminded every day of something that I fail to see to completion, it eventually got on my nerves enough to clear out my Dropped list and finish everything I start.  I actually kind of envy the lax way you treat your list; you’re not a slave to the site, hahah.  Yeah, to be honest, Erased’s ending was… pretty lackluster.  It wasn’t too bad, but it pales noticeably to the opening few episodes and just leaves you feeling unsatisfied.  If endings really make or break the experience for you, then maybe it would be best not to watch Erased, or at least give it less priority than whatever else you plan on watching.  And pfft, what a skrub, git gud like me and ruin your eyes in the good name of anime, huehuehue.  Of course I’m just playing, if you can’t binge on things because it causes you pain, then take your time.  If anything, I’m more impressed that you were able to finish Monster as fast as you did considering your inability to watch too much at one time.  Also, now that you’re done with that, what do you plan on watching next?

Ohhhhh, if you had that bowl cut even into late middle school, then… well… yeah, I guess if I were you I’d probably feel pretty embarrassed about it as well, eheheh.  I’m pretty sure middle school was a cringey time for just about everyone.  There’s a lot of things about my middle school years I’d like to just bury and leave behind, blegh.  That’s pretty cruel of your teacher to have made you leave a recording for your older self to watch, haha.  Maybe (s)he was one of the lucky ones who didn’t have such a cringey middle school, but geez, I can’t imagine something like that working out for most people.  Well, you can just rest easy knowing what’s passed is past, at least.

Hmm, well now that I’ve driven a bit more, I guess what I said earlier needs some clarification.  I’ve gotten better at turning, though I still feel like a clunky skrub at it compared to my parents, and I realized a lot of the trouble I was having at first stemmed from the fact that my dad’s 2013 Toyota Camry is a really difficult beginner car, since the brakes and acceleration are super sensitive and the body of the car is wider than older models so maneuvering was tougher.  Once I got a real instructor, who used an older car, it felt a lot more manageable.  Small foot movements didn’t cause me to speed up or slow down jerkily, and I wasn’t as nervous traversing narrower roads.  It felt like playing the oboe and then switching over to the alto sax, realizing that the latter’s intonation was a lot harder to control than the former’s.  And I guess NJ’s road tests aren’t actually all that bad.  In fact, Rahway’s testing center has a really easy road test.  It’s in a closed course, no traffic lights, only stop signs, at a consistent 15 mph.  They never ask you to go out on the real road, let alone the highway.  And parking only consists of parallel parking and a k-turn, so that’s pretty easy as well.  They don’t ask you questions while you drive either.  Thinking about it, the road test for Rahway is really easy compared to the road test that you took.  Edison’s road test is more similar to yours, in that they at least have you drive on a real road.  They still don’t ask you questions, from what I understand, but they do try to trick you into failing by “forgetting” to wear a seatbelt and urging you to run stop signs (falling for these tricks leads to an automatic failure).  In fact, the only thing about the test that has me worried is that for both Rahway and Edison, there is no point system.  Whether you pass or fail is completely up to the discretion of the person sitting in the passenger’s seat that day.  If I’m unlucky, they could fail me for the smallest of mistakes, no questions asked, especially if they’re in a bad mood.  From what I gather, the only people who failed at my school did so because of a dickish instructor, and not because they crushed a cone while parallel parking or something major like that.  And maybe I will end up liking the fact that I have a license in the future, but I seriously have no use for it right now.  I never go out on my own accord; it’s my parents who goad me into getting some fresh air every once in a while, hah.  I guess I won’t need to bring my passport with me to the airport for domestic flights anymore which is nice…?

Okay, I wrote the whole above paragraph before taking the test, so it's a bit outdated, but instead of amending it I've just decided to type up a new one right here.  I passed the test on my first try, surprisingly enough.  I personally thought I did terribly.  Every time I made a small mistake, I immediately kicked myself for screwing up (not literally, but you know what I mean) and the more I messed up the more nervous I got and the sloppier my driving became.  Also, the instructor spoke really softly and slowly, often times giving the instruction to turn at the very last second which forced me to abruptly stop or slow down.  He kind of sounded like Ben Carson (heh, Carson) if that gives you any perspective.  I didn't do anything as terrible as, like, running off the course or knocking over cones, but I knew I didn't perform at my best and I was freaking out that I was going to be failed on some technicality.  Still can't believe I passed.  Don't know if I've just been too hard on my own driving or if I just got really lucky, but whatever, hahah.

Ah, that’s right, I think my school did something similar, where you could be exempt from quarterlies (we didn’t have finals, but the third and fourth “quarterlies” counted for our “final exam” grade) if your grades were high enough at the end of the year.  I can’t remember if this was a perk only for seniors, or if it was seniors and juniors, or just every grade.  Either way, my grades were, uh… nowhere near… as high as the requirement…… at all… so no exemption for me, hurhurhur.  And geez, look at you, still attending school even after you were officially dismissed all for the sake of a joke and science, hahah.  I would have hightailed it out of there as soon as I possibly could, if my school had given seniors such a luxury.  And I never realized that’s what people did with senior photos.  I believe mine are just sitting in a filing cabinet somewhere; we don’t hang up or frame school photos like we used to, ha.  And the AP tests, or perhaps just the physics one, sounds like it was rough.  If it’s any condolence, I have no idea what field lines are (Googled it; still don’t really get it).  Though, given how bad I am at physics, that probably doesn’t mean much, ahah.  It’s good that those students won’t get their scores canceled.  I can’t imagine how much that would have sucked if it were the case.  But seriously, that’s one ballsy bio teacher.  I can understand why she’d be upset though, especially if it’s true that they were the only ones who got form E.

That looks like a pretty solid schedule you have planned out!  I’m not at all literate in the sciences when it comes to majors or courses or workload, so I don’t really trust myself to provide any pertinent advice when it comes to that.  It certainly sounds like you’re being ambitious with all this engineering and premed stuff, especially since the last time I checked you didn’t seem all that certain about what you wanted to do, but it’s good to hear you’re also keeping your options open.  And if you ever decide to pursue business, either for a major or minor, I can help more with that.  Your First Seminar professor will be your counselor until you declare, and I’m sure Dr. Zagorski, if you get into his seminar, will be able to help you plan your schedule out if you do end up doing something as ambitious as you envision.  You can declare your major as early as November, if I’m not mistaken, so do you plan on declaring then?  Declaring is useful because your counselor changes from your First Seminar professor to a major/field specific professor who knows the ins and outs of the courses you’ll be taking the best.  You can always change majors whenever you want, which will in turn change your counselor, so feasibly jumping around while still getting your classes done isn’t too difficult, I’d think.  And it sucks you’ll be without Internet during signups for classes.  Hopefully you got that sorted out!  As for that three-day adventure thing, I didn’t participate in it so I’m not sure how good or bad the experience is.  I don’t regret not going or anything, since it just didn’t really look like my type of thing, but if it intrigues you then go for it!  And you’ll be rooming in Smith, nice!  I’m not sure just how much better Juniper housing is compared to other residential colleges, only because I very rarely found myself needing to enter a dorm that wasn’t Taplin, let alone a room or bathroom in some other dorm.  But if other people consistently claim that Juniper houses are better, then I’m sure there’s some merit to what they say, haha.  And Case’s housing selection process is a bit of a mess.  I never completely figured it out myself, but they apparently only give you a few options at a time, and allow you to select more as time passes?  I kind of recall really wanting to live in Taplin, and when the time came to select my room only the fourth floor of Taplin had rooms available and I was confused but just figured there was no point in waiting in case there really were no other Taplin rooms left and just grabbed 411 (which was completely unoccupied at the time).  I still don’t get why Case does things this way, hm.  And yes, you definitely need a fan if you don’t have A/C.  I just hope I’ll be alright, since I doubt I’ll be lucky enough to have A/C in my room again this year.  Ahhh, yeah, well when I talk to myself to help me study I kind of… like, take on a different persona and just lecture to myself……  Ehh, it’s a bit embarrassing to admit, but yes that’s the general gist of it.  I find it’s a lot more engaging than just sitting in silence and staring holes into my books and notes trying to make sense of obtuse concepts.  And it works hand-in-hand with my penchant for locking myself up in my room, as opposed to finding a quiet but public place to study.

Wahh, did you never really get wrapped gifts for Christmas??  Actually, this topic feels kind of familiar.  If we’ve ever discussed Christmas gifts, or the lack thereof before, then I’m sorry for not remembering, eheh.  Ahh yes, Loot Crate and all those similar monthly subscription box goodies.  Those have been around for a while if I’m not mistaken, but it’s only recently that I’ve seen them get any real attention. I don’t personally know anyone subscribed to any of those services though.  Oh man, what are the chances you somehow ended up rooming with someone from your school?  I thought it was impressive someone from my school ended up living on the same floor as me, but the same room??  That’s pretty crazy.  It’s too bad you won’t be able to use this as an opportunity to meet new people, but trust me there are plenty of other chances you’ll get.  In your classes, at social events, and arguably most importantly at orientation, you’ll have the chance to make friends.  And maybe it won’t be all that bad, having a familiar face around.  Also, I meant to ask you this before but it completely slipped my mind: how many people from your grade will be attending Case with you?  Since you live a lot closer to Cleveland than I do, I imagine more people from your school will attend than mine.  Aside from me, there are two others from my grade who are at Case.  I used to think there was just one, the guy who roomed on the same floor as me, but I didn’t realize another girl also enrolled.  At the end of the school year, JP’s newspaper club publishes an edition with a list of all the colleges the graduating class will be attending as well as the students attending each university.  Her name wasn’t listed under Case, so I assumed it was just me and the other guy.  Some people opt out of having their name in the newspaper for obvious reasons.  Does your high school do something similar?

Hrmm, Kenzi’s recommending I don’t do something the way I planned on doing it?  That makes me want to rise up to the challenge and attempt it anyway, fufufufufufu…  Kidding, kidding, I’ll keep your advice in mind.  Still can’t promise I won’t at least attempt to binge The Tatami Galaxy all in one sitting, even if I ultimately complete it over the course of a few days if I find that it’s too much for me to handle, hah.  Game of Thrones is really good!  If there’s any one American television show you’re considering getting into, this should be it.  It’s the most popular of the bunch, making headlines on mainstream news outlets like Yahoo (in the Entertainment section usually, granted, but still) and gets referenced just about everywhere you go.  I’ve noticed so many GoT references all over the Internet, in completely unrelated places, that I wouldn’t have picked up on had I not seen the show.  And I believe it’s the most pirated television show or movie ever?  Just goes to show how popular it is.  Now is a good time to start, since we’re nearing the end of the series.  Seasons are, or rather were, 10 episodes long, with each episode sitting at roughly 50-60 minutes.  So far there are a total of six seasons, with seven and eight planned for later.  Seven and eight will be the last seasons and won’t feature as many episodes as previous seasons (though the episodes will apparently be a tad bit longer to compensate).  Also, up until now, every season has aired annually, at roughly the same time of year (the releases actually lined up nearly perfectly with seasonal spring anime, funnily enough).  However, season seven was just revealed to be delayed, by how much is unknown currently.  Still, I believe the series will conclude in two or three years, which gives you plenty of time to complete the first six seasons if you choose to start now, even if you take your time with it.  As I said earlier, it’s a great show to check out if you start feeling annoyed by the anime tropes you’ll find in the anime/manga/video games I recommended, though after some time you’ll probably start catching on to the Western cinematic/storytelling tropes before long and may start craving the weeb life again, haha.  As for how long it took me to finish, I watched five episodes a day.  This let me finish a season every two days, provided consistent pacing, and ensured I would get a healthy dose of season finale hype every other day.  By the time I caught up, the sixth episode of season six had yet to air.  Which means, after some simple math, it took me eleven days to bring myself up to speed (ten days for the first five seasons and one more day for the first half of the sixth), though to be honest, I might have taken a day or two off from my binge if I was busy doing something else, so it was probably closer to 13 days, or just about two weeks.  And as for why I decided to watch Game of Thrones, it’s because my brother recommended it, hah.

Ohh yeah, you mentioned last time that your parents got you a new iPhone even though you tried to convince them of OnePlus’s merit.  I realized just now that I never actually replied to that portion of your response.  Sorry about that, eheh.  It’s too bad that we won’t be able to have matching phones, but oh well, I’m sure the iPhone will serve you well since you’re more familiar with how it works anyhow.  Not to mention, you’ll have an easier time finding stylish cases for it!  One of the downsides of having an OPO is that cases of them are hard to come by.  My dark blue case works just fine in softening falls, but I kinda wish I had one that expressed an interest of mine, even if only subtly…  Have you started using your new phone yet?  And since this is a pretty good place to bring this up, have you started playing Pokemon Go?  I never knew how crazy popular this game would be.  I thought people would be disappointed that it isn’t exactly as promised from the initial hype trailer, but good god sooooo many people are playing it!  There are stories of hundreds of people gathering together (in cities of course) to play Pokemon Go together and socialize after Lures are dropped, as well as stories of local businesses taking advantage of strategically placed PokeSpots and Gyms.  I went to a nearby park not too long ago, and there was a small Lure gathering over where three PokeSpots were in close proximity to each other.  I didn’t join in since I was with my parents and we were spending time with my grandfather, but it seemed like a good number of people had gathered.  I met at least five or so people playing the game elsewhere in the park.  The stories of people actually going out and exploring and meeting new people is just so mind blowing!  If you haven’t already, jump on this global hype train before it loses steam because there’s a whole new culture evolving around this game and it’s absolutely insane.  It’s actually motivated me to go out and do something instead of just stay locked up in my room all day long.  In fact, part of the reason this response was so unexpectedly late was because I’ve been spending so much more time out and about that I didn’t have as much time to spend typing this up as I had expected.  But, ehem, yeah, sorry for the rant.  Anyway, what kind of new laptop did you get?  Maybe you can start using it when you get to Case, as a way to start off fresh and new.  It’ll also be easy to remember just how long you’ve been using the laptop for, if you recall you first booted it up at the very beginning of college.  Ah, and that’s right, you certainly have a lot of things lined up to do (sorry, I realize I was the one who recommend all those things to you, I hope I haven’t burdened you…) so I guess building up your 3DS library right this instant isn’t top priority or anything.  You mentioned in the other thread that you’re very much interested in Ocarina of Time now, which is great!  Let me know what else you get, after you try out the available demos and think on it for some time.

Adjusting from Awakening to Fates wasn’t too bad, I think.  Birthright is the easiest of the three routes, and since I started with that it helped to ease me into the new mechanics.  By the time I started Conquest, which would have kicked me to the curb if I had started with that route to be honest, Birthright had given me enough “training” of sorts to get through Conquest easily enough.

Pfft, so your sister claims she’s not really into anime but knows what Nodame Cantabile is?  Seriously?  Nodame Cantabile of all things??  Please, she’s totally bluffing, there’s no way she’s not a closet weeb.  I bet she has a whole collection of figurines and body pillows stashed away beneath the floorboards that she displays when no one else is around.  Thinking about it now, I realized that I can’t really think of many romance-focused anime (or books or movies) that were especially good.  The ones I look back on fondly are the ones that are just regular slice of life shows with a sprinkle of cute, drama-less romance, the kind you can’t help but smile at.  Ones that come to mind are Acchi Kocchi and the recently aired Tanaka-kun wa Itsumo Kedaruge.  Ore Monogatari is similar in that the romance is heart-warmingly sweet and pure, but it’s advertised more directly as a “romance” than either Acchi Kocchi and Tanaka-kun are.  Oh, though it’s been a long time since I’ve seen Acchi Kocchi so the romance might have actually been more heavy-handed than I recall it being.  But if we’re talking solely about plot-driven romances that feature a predominant love triangle/polygon, then yeah I can’t really think of one that was very good.  I can’t say I’ve ever heard Moonsetter before, but it’s certainly a catchy little tune.  Has that signature Toby Fox vibe to it.  And for sure, I’m certainly no musical elitist that only listens to super complex songs or anything, ahah.  I like my dose of simple songs as well.  Of all songs I like listening to when I study or just surf the web around, most of them are probably on the simple side, though the songs I recall the names of tend to be a bit more complex.

Oh man, so you like to think that you’ve outgrown going through those phases when you obsess over a new interest?  I-I actually don’t think I’ll ever be able to not go through such a phase when I get into something new, eheheh… heh… hehh……  I can’t help but feel that makes me look a bit childish compared to you, ahah.  I do my best to spend smart though, hah.  And sure, I’ll definitely show you the eBay goodies I got.  In fact, I’d gladly lend you the Kino no Tabi box set to watch, whenever you feel like starting the anime.  Though, I don’t think I have much to teach you when it comes to finding these rarities.  Kino no Tabi and The Dog of Flanders just happened to be pretty discreet as they are so there wasn’t much merch, bootleg or otherwise, to sort through on eBay, making finding the box set and promotional booklet relatively simple to track down.

Ah geez, I realized that I had gotten so impassioned talking about exploring old buildings that I had completely forgotten about the safety issue, ack.  The buildings themselves could potentially be safety hazards, since if they’re abandoned there’s no guarantee things like stairs and the floor and windows and railings will still be in good working order.  And of course, there’s also the issue of running into trouble with people.  I can imagine abandoned buildings are prime spots for shady activity, especially the kinds that could very easily endanger someone walking in on whatever is going on unsuspectingly.  I actually didn’t take the whole “trill of danger” into consideration when imagining how exciting it would be to explore abandoned buildings; I was just excited about the history.  Ugh, how careless of me.  Now that you’ve reminded me of the dangers, I might have to reconsider, eheh.  I mean, I still think it would be cool to go exploring if I have the time (especially after the Pokemon Go release).  I’d feel a lot better if I had someone with me, and it would be awesome if you’d be cool with joining me, though if you wouldn’t feel comfortable about it because of the safety hazards then it’s totally understandable.  And yeah, it’s really crazy seeing how things have changed with time.  That quote about the diamonds is pretty interesting.  It actually seemed really familiar and I thought that I knew its source, but when I Googled it and only found unfamiliar names I realized that I must have been mistaken.  Regardless though, that quote really applies to me, I get sentimental about so many small silly things that don’t really have much, if any, intrinsic value, heh.

I haven’t had much to buy recently, so I’m not really missing my lack of Amazon Prime right now, but it certainly came in handy when I needed it last year and earlier this year.  It’s great for video game preorders, since not only are they at a reduced price but they’re also eligible for release date delivery, which is really great if you’re like me and want to play a game as soon as possible (for both the hype and to avoid spoilers).  I don’t think I’ve ever really needed Prime for getting a super time sensitive delivery though, so if you’re not keen on preordering video games then you’re not missing out on too much I guess, hah.  And apart from Case’s mailing delay, it’s not too bad.  Letters seem to be more prone to delays than packages, since letters are delivered to your mailbox in your dorm while packages are sorted at a central office where you have to go out and pick it up.  Letters tend to arrive one to three days late, depending on the time of week, while you receive an e-mail notification that a package has arrived and is available to pick up the very day it arrives on campus.

Psshh, there’s no need to be afraid of change, just do what I did and spend all your coins with a purchase somewhere, haha.  But yeah, real talk, change is also something that peeves me about having to pay in cash.  I love bills, but geez coins are so hard to manage.  Ah yeah, and I’ve also heard about how people tend to spend less with cash.  I actually didn’t take that into consideration, ahah, and it’s a good point you brought up.  I guess if you plan on definitely buying something in advance and choose to pay with cash then it certainly helps, but if you’re just browsing around and picking up whatever you think looks worth the price then maybe it wouldn’t make much of a difference.

Hah, oh gosh no, it was just the completionist in me that was driving me to beat the level, not any admirable persistence.  Before long it just became so frustratingly unenjoyable that I really felt like I had wasted hours of my life stressing over something so ridiculous.  Ughh, I probably won’t ever return to that level, there are just too many better things I could be doing with my time.  And I think I went for the Machine Gun because people said it was the better gun for beginners, heh.  It certainly helped me fly my way to victory since I found the Boosters too clunky.  And aw man, if Super Meat Boy is like that, which I guess I should have expected, then I won’t play it.  Can’t afford to put money and time working for something I know I’m awful at.  And I certainly do not get highs on rage-quitting, though considering how stubborn I can be in maintaining habits that are just straight up not very productive or good for me, I can see how you might form that opinion, hahah.

Even just eating out, going on vacations together, and shopping together can be considered close family activities!  It’s not like you never spend time to bond with your folks in some way, haha.  And your dad uses some Chinese Netflix knockoff as well?  I thought my family was just weird that way, heh.  My dad has some strange programs on his computer he uses to watch Chinese television shows, movies, and live broadcasts. I’m pretty sure it’s illegal to some extent, but eh whatever, how else are we going to get Chinese entertainment from here?

Geez, doing work during a trip of all things is practically impossible.  There’s already the natural stress that comes with packing, traveling, and sleeping in an unfamiliar room, and since the trip was mainly for fun I’d have been more surprised if anyone managed to muster up the motivation to get any physics work done.  Still, I’m sure it was a valiant effort, hah.  Aw, no fireworks though, huh?  Speaking of which, my family and I went to see a fireworks display for the Fourth of July at some nearby college, and it… wasn’t very good.  The fireworks weren’t coordinated and they tried playing music over loudspeakers, but since the fireworks were a mess (and some of them were just earsplittingly loud for no good reason) it made the whole experience really long and uncomfortable.  Heh, I have even more appreciation for good fireworks now (I’m starting to get that Disney itch again, oh gosh someone help me…), so the experience wasn’t a complete waste I guess.  And yeah, I figured that’s what you were insinuating.  Finding out people you’re close to participate in those activities is certainly a bit shocking, especially if you’ve grown up with them since elementary school and whatnot, but that’s life I guess.  If that’s what they choose to do with their bodies and their time, and as long as they take all the necessary precautions and are prepared to face the consequences, no matter how severe, if something doesn’t go as planned, then they’re free to do what they want.  It’s not like I’m in any position to preach at them like a fifth grade health teacher or judge them for their actions.  But yeah, once you start hearing about specific people doing specific things, it’s a lot harder to look at them the same way you used to.

Oh nice, a volunteering and shadowing position at hospital?  That’s really cool; let me know how much (or little) you enjoy it!  Honestly, I feel kind of bad that I’m not getting a part time job or volunteering at all this summer.  But at the same time, I still haven’t done nearly as much as I was planning on doing this summer, as far as interests and hobbies are concerned.  I didn’t realize just how much of a video game and anime backlog I had built up over the years.  Granted, in terms of hours, I’ve spent a ton of time playing games and watching things, but it feels like I’ve barely dented my to-do list.  Sighhh, hopefully you’re having more luck than me, but considering how much you also have to get done I believe your situation probably feels just about as fruitless as mine.  Ahh yes, the classic “packet to do during a trip to an amusement park” trick teachers around the country play on their students at the end of the school year; never gets old.  I get that work even during trips needs to be done in the name of education, but at the same time you’d think someone would have figured a way to get kids to work more efficiently.  If Pokemon Go can increase face to face socialization rates across the world while simultaneously fighting the obesity epidemic, then I’m sure teachers can get together to figure out a way to make amusement park trips educational and fun.  Pshht, and look at you Kenzi, needing to be weaned into roller coasters because you haven’t ridden one in a while, what a casual.  I’ll have you know the first ride I rode at my senior year physics trip was Kingda Ka, hah!  Warmups are overrated, huehuehue (just kidding, I only rode it first because if we didn’t get on the line early it would be too long to wait later in the day).  But I’m glad you enjoyed the rides anyhow, even if I personally think you should have tried even the scarier looking ones.  Maybe it’s because I’ve ridden so many roller coasters in my life, but I’ve lost just about all anxiety from them now.  I do remember how terrified of the really tall and steep ones I was back when I was younger though, so I understand how you felt.  Maybe one day you’ll be able to conquer all the rides at Cedar Point!  And wow, I must have really been slacking during physics because the right hand rule doesn’t ring a bell at all, eheheh.  Phew, did I even take that course??  I’m starting to think it was all just a dream at this point…  Ahh, it’s too bad your hand got cut off in the picture though.  Such is the luck of the draw when it comes to seat position and camera angle on coaster rides.

Nice, so you guys had prom at a golf club?  Hm, I have no idea where my year’s prom was held.  It was probably just some sort of fancy estate, though I recall my grade barely pulling together enough funds to not have prom in the school gymnasium.  It’s good to hear your place had a patio that overlooked what sounds like really nice scenery.  It’s lucky it wasn’t rainy or cloudy that day at least.  And it’s cool that your friend from Cranbrook was there as well!  Was he there because his date attends your school or because he just wanted to have a good time and see some familiar faces?  And wow Kenzi, you’ve been slipping, that’s not how averages work.  5/10 * 2/10 = 7/10??  Please, it’s a common mistake, but “*” refers to multiplication not addition, silly silly (I’m just joking, please don’t take offense, you can most definitely math better than me anyway).  Hahah, but seriously, it doesn’t look like you enjoyed the dancing very much.  I certainly didn’t imagine it to be very exciting, and as someone who just doesn’t dance I don’t think any “dance” could be to my taste, unless it turned into a regular group music listening session.  Wouldn’t that be something, the whole senior class sitting in a large ballroom listening to sick beats in quiet contemplation like, “I do say, sir and madam, that was quite the “epic drop” was it not?”  Ehem, but yeah, it looks like you enjoyed the slow dance even less.  Slow dances always seem so cute and romantic in fiction, but it’s never the case in real life.  Ugh, it’s almost as big a lie as cruise commercials and ShamWow.  And hey, I actually think 7 Years is a pretty decent song.  I didn’t listen to the radio while in college, but tuned in a few times this summer to see what the latest hits were.  Heard 7 Years on there and was mildly impressed.  It doesn’t really feel like it would work as a slow dance song though, dunno what the DJ was thinking.  And ehh, I only opted out of prom because I knew I wasn’t going to dance and just standing around in a fancy suit talking to people and eating food seemed like a terrible way to spend a hundred bucks.  Even if I had foreseen that the dancing would have been awkward, it wouldn’t have mattered because I was never going to dance in the first place, hah.  Still though, I’m glad you got something out of the experience!  I still don’t feel like I missed anything by not attending my own prom, but I’m happy you didn’t regret going to yours.  It turned into memorable experience, and that’s great!  Also, at the after prom party you seriously just played Jenga and truth-or-dare of all things?  Pfft, not even Smash Bros, tsk tsk, I expected better of your friend group.

Well, not all of my relatives in America, but some of them do.  My grandparents and most of my uncles and aunts and my cousins live in China.  My mother is the eldest child in her family, and has two younger sisters and one younger brother (the brother is the very youngest in the family).  The second eldest sister and her husband live in America, and their son (my cousin) is two years older than me and was like, me and my brother’s best friend when we were younger. We played a ton of Star Fox Adventures, Donkey Kong Country, and Smash Bros together as kids, phew good times.  Christmases were awesome, haha.  The third sister still lives in China, along with her husband.  Their only child, another son, is the same age as my cousin living in America and he’s going to a college in Kansas as an international student (he spent all of his childhood in China).  My sister’s little brother is also in China, along with his wife and one son, who is a year older than me.  I believe he’ll be staying in China for the time being.  My mother’s parents both permanently live in China, though her father (my grandfather) is currently staying here in America, living with both my family and my aunt’s family (the one in America of course) interchangeably.  My father’s side is more straightforward.  He’s the youngest of the entire family, and has a large number of brothers and sisters all of whom live in China.  My cousins on my father’s side are much older than me, two of whom live in Australia.  I don’t know them as well, since I haven’t interacted with them as much as I have with my mother’s side of the family.  I think that’s because my father’s parents have both already passed away, his mother before I was born and his father just after I was born (I met my grandfather on my father’s side once, just before he passed away, but I was just a baby at the time so I obviously have no recollection of the meeting).  With the parents already passed away, I can imagine family reunions aren’t quite the same.  Sooo yeah, that was a very quick rundown of my extended family.  I’m sorry, it must have been quite confusing without names or pictures to use as reference, heh.  Didn’t expect to ramble on for this long either, excuse me for that.  But to get back on track, the astronomy course was pretty easy.  Got an “A” without much trouble, and the material itself was pretty interesting.  I’m just a sucker for the cosmos, so even though the professor was a bit of a bore I still really enjoyed the class.

Ohhhh lordy, okay, I know this probably looks really bad, but I’m super-duper really sorry for this delay!  Ughh, you posted your reply a whole month ago, and I only just give you my response now.  And during summer break of all times!  I’m sorry for not giving you notice that my response was going to be delayed.  I hope you haven’t been thinking I was ignoring you or something.  At first, I thought I could finish the response quickly, but then so many things got in the way.  The astronomy classes took up time twice a week, I started taking legit driving classes and had to help my parents do the groceries to practice driving, and with my grandfather visiting I had to spend a lot of time with him.  My sister visited for about a week or two, and I went with her and my mother to her Dartmouth’s graduating class’s alumni reunion, which took place right after you posted your reply.  After getting back from that event, I started typing up my response but my writing skills must have taken a hit because I was having trouble writing like I usually do.  So I decided to take a break and clear my mind by playing through Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright.  After finishing that, my brother was working on something that he wanted to show me and my parents, which took a few hours out of a couple of days (ask me about this later, too complicated to explain here).  And then before I knew it Zero Time Dilemma had been released and I just had to play it and finish it asap.  The game took a little longer to finish than expected because of ongoing distractions (the driving stuff and classes, etc).  By the time I finished, I was scrambling to finish up this response and then *bam* Pokemon Go drops like a bomb and starts a social revolution.  Now I religiously go out for a walk for three hours every day (which is how long it takes my phone battery to fall from 100% to 1%), which has given me great exercise and also forced me to take two showers per day (and you know how long it takes me to take showers).  Ohh, and that doesn’t even count all the seasonal anime I have to keep up with, each and every week.  So yeah, even though it’s summer break I’ve been crunched for time.  I know this might sound like I’m just making excuses, but hopefully you understand.  This summer’s just been surprisingly busy.  And you had that trip to Alaska you mentioned previously didn’t you?  Goodness, I was hoping to get my response out to you before you left, but it looks like it’s just about over.  Well, be sure to tell me all about how it went!

Anyway, I wonder how many more back and forth responses we’ll have on here now that we know we’ll be seeing each other when school starts back up?  Depending on how much time we both have this summer break, this might even be my last post on this thread.  We could probably just use PMs to communicate how to meet each other, and after that we’d have no more use posting here anymore.  Knowing this exchange is going to end really soon kinda makes me sad, haha.  But at the same time I’m really excited to meet you, so it balances out.

That’s about it for this post.  Hope you enjoyed your trip, and get back to me whenever you have time!

[Kenzi 146]

On 7/14/2016 at 8:29 PM, Akazora said:

 

Hahah, yes, there certainly was a lot of confusion over the typings of the SM legendaries.  I, and just about everyone else, assumed Fire was a shoo-in typing for Solgaleo, so it’s certainly interesting to see it not be the case.  And of course, the irony of having Solgaleo be weak to Fire and Lunala weak to Dark was certainly not lost to fans.  I’m sure there are good reasons for why this is the case, which you’ve already brought up with the alchemy-related “lion devouring the sun” connection (something I totally buy into, just saying).  And maybe Lunala is weak to Dark because the moon can only be “invisible” (new moons) when sunlight doesn’t reflect off of it and therefore needs a lack of darkness to “exist,” in a manner of speaking?  It also seems logical to have the artificial island be the team’s hideout.  I can also see the antagonist team pushing some sort of technologically advanced agenda.  Since Alola is a chain of islands and likely has limited resources, perhaps the whole issue will be technology vs nature?  Hawaii/Alola seem to have a rich cultural history as well as a focus on the natural and traditional.  Maybe the evil team has good intentions, trying to catch the antiquated Alola up to the rest of the more tech-savvy regions of Pokemon by pushing for technology and development, while forgoing traditional roots and putting a strain on the limited amount of space and nature of the islands?  That may help tie the guardian deities of the islands into the plot, as well.  I dunno, that’s just me musing around, I haven’t really given this theory much thought aside from that.  And yup, it’s really exciting to see Zygarde finally receive some of the coverage it desperately needed!  I can certainly see them making SM closely related to Kalos.  Not to mention Magearna’s signature move, Fleur Cannon, calls back to a lot of things from XY.  Ah, and while we’re at it, I may as well talk about some of the other new Pokemon recently revealed.  Bruxish’s ability is pretty sweet, but goodness that design is a bit much, haha.  Grandpa Pokemon, err… Drampa seems cool as well.  I know Normal isn’t the best of types, but hey a Normal/Dragon is unique and I’m all for something special.  Cutiefly is cute, naturally, but also really small when you send it out in battle.  Nothing against small Pokemon, but… having it fight against a Wailord would certainly be a sight to see.  And it looks like Togedemaru is the Electric Pikachu-like Pokemon of this gen.  They’re usually never good on the team because they don’t evolve and are really frail, but it has endearingly chubby cheeks, I’ll give it that.  The rest of Grubbin’s evolution line has also been revealed.  I guess it’s confirmed as one of the token “catch early, evolve early” Bug Pokemon for this region.  That means Vikavolt’s stats probably won’t be very good, but damn it has such a good design!  I might actually consider using it on my team, as a sort of “handicap” to make the game more challenging.  What do you think of these new additions to the Pokemon universe?

Ohh, true, Treeko certainly had its fans back in the day.  I still feel like it just wasn’t as preferred over Mudkip and Torchic, at least among my friend group.  And was Snivy really the fan favorite back when fifth gen was fresh?  You probably know better than me, since I wasn’t really using the Internet too heavily back then (wasn’t browsing reddit or Pokemon forums at least) and very few of my friends continued to play Pokemon when BW was released, but I guess I already had the misconception that Grass types were often shunned in favor of Water and Fire.  I believe part of me chose Snivy out of sympathy, though I did think Serperior’s design was awesome as well.  Today though, I like Samurott out of all the fifth gen starters after I actually took the time to read up on the Pokemon and learned he has dual swords sheathed away in his leg plates.  Phew, what a goddamn badass, hahah.  Ohhhhh the sixth gen starters were based off of RPG classes, jeez, I feel so silly for not noticing that.  I only noticed they were the most human-like of all the starters, but didn’t make any connection beyond that.  That makes sense, but I still don’t think any of their deigns will ever truly warm up to me (except for Greninja’s, though now I see him more as a Smash character than a Pokemon, ughh).  Hmm, so that’s why you have an affinity for Fire starters.  Makes sense, since a lot of what I feel about the starters can be tied to impressions I got from my group of friends (as someone who didn’t get any of the games until later, it was difficult for me to make any assertions for myself and so I just took everyone’s word for it, pfft).  Huh, and thanks for answering all my questions about your first Platinum run, it’s interesting to know!

Ahahaha, goodness, your experience with Undertale closely mirrors mine.  I wasn’t really convinced of the hype until the Asgore fight, and pretty much everything that followed.  I certainly liked the buildup and the journey that led to the end of a neutral run, but it wasn’t until all those revelations right before, during, and after the Asgore fight that I was truly blown away.  And Etika beat Asgore with just one HP left, so it was one heck of an emotional rollercoaster even during the battle sequence, hah.  And yes, the OST for the game is brilliant.  It’s hard to find a game or movie or television show with a nearly flawless soundtrack from beginning to end like this.  Usually I find a soundtrack with a handful of really good pieces, and then just claim “that game/movie/show has an amazing OST” because I can’t be so picky and expect every song to be good right?  After all, there are always moments of downtime that don’t really require super catchy tunes playing in the background, so an OST filled with “fluff” isn’t something that bothers me.  But geez, Undertale’s soundtrack is so packed to the brim with good songs, it’s probably the only full soundtrack of anything that I can listen to from beginning to end without feeling the urge to skip a song.  My favorite songs would have to be just about every boss theme, mainly because they’re all so intense, they’re prime material for fantastic covers, and they evoke the most emotion and memories when listening back to them.  And yes, I’ve certainly noticed the brilliant uses of the different soundfonts for the characters speaking.  It really enhances their personalities, as you say.  And speaking of personalities, the monsters you “fight” all have such interesting personalities, which are explored through acting with them and their bullet shapes and patterns.  Haha, Mettaton EX’s fight was so crazy and bizarre, but it was certainly a lot of fun regardless.  Genocide isn’t nearly as tedious as it may sound.  I don’t want to say too much, but it’s definitely nowhere near as tedious as EV training a Pokemon.  That wasn’t a very good comparison, but whatever, heh.  You can watch a playthrough of it if you want, since it’s also really good watching as a spectator, but just know that it’s not as time consuming as people sometimes make it out to be.

I saw your post about Monster in the other thread, and from what I gathered you enjoyed it to an extent.  I’m glad that, at the very last, you didn’t dislike it.  It’s been a really long time since I’ve read the manga, but I’d have to agree with you saying that it could get predictable.  I don’t recall any moments where a “twist” ever completely took me by surprise, but it was still a good watch, or read, in my case.  It’s something that would work really well as an introduction to anime, since it contains so little of what makes anime “anime” and is instead very western inspired.  Also, I can’t think of another anime that is such a 1:1 adaption of its manga, so it acts as a good example of a show willing to sacrifice brevity for the sake of not leaving anything out from its source material.  And about MAL, it certainly can feel like I only watch anime the way I do because of that site.  For example, I used to not care about not finishing shows, since if a show was so bad why force yourself to finish it?  But seeing as how MAL keeps track of everything you don’t finish, and I’m reminded every day of something that I fail to see to completion, it eventually got on my nerves enough to clear out my Dropped list and finish everything I start.  I actually kind of envy the lax way you treat your list; you’re not a slave to the site, hahah.  Yeah, to be honest, Erased’s ending was… pretty lackluster.  It wasn’t too bad, but it pales noticeably to the opening few episodes and just leaves you feeling unsatisfied.  If endings really make or break the experience for you, then maybe it would be best not to watch Erased, or at least give it less priority than whatever else you plan on watching.  And pfft, what a skrub, git gud like me and ruin your eyes in the good name of anime, huehuehue.  Of course I’m just playing, if you can’t binge on things because it causes you pain, then take your time.  If anything, I’m more impressed that you were able to finish Monster as fast as you did considering your inability to watch too much at one time.  Also, now that you’re done with that, what do you plan on watching next?

Ohhhhh, if you had that bowl cut even into late middle school, then… well… yeah, I guess if I were you I’d probably feel pretty embarrassed about it as well, eheheh.  I’m pretty sure middle school was a cringey time for just about everyone.  There’s a lot of things about my middle school years I’d like to just bury and leave behind, blegh.  That’s pretty cruel of your teacher to have made you leave a recording for your older self to watch, haha.  Maybe (s)he was one of the lucky ones who didn’t have such a cringey middle school, but geez, I can’t imagine something like that working out for most people.  Well, you can just rest easy knowing what’s passed is past, at least.

Hmm, well now that I’ve driven a bit more, I guess what I said earlier needs some clarification.  I’ve gotten better at turning, though I still feel like a clunky skrub at it compared to my parents, and I realized a lot of the trouble I was having at first stemmed from the fact that my dad’s 2013 Toyota Camry is a really difficult beginner car, since the brakes and acceleration are super sensitive and the body of the car is wider than older models so maneuvering was tougher.  Once I got a real instructor, who used an older car, it felt a lot more manageable.  Small foot movements didn’t cause me to speed up or slow down jerkily, and I wasn’t as nervous traversing narrower roads.  It felt like playing the oboe and then switching over to the alto sax, realizing that the latter’s intonation was a lot harder to control than the former’s.  And I guess NJ’s road tests aren’t actually all that bad.  In fact, Rahway’s testing center has a really easy road test.  It’s in a closed course, no traffic lights, only stop signs, at a consistent 15 mph.  They never ask you to go out on the real road, let alone the highway.  And parking only consists of parallel parking and a k-turn, so that’s pretty easy as well.  They don’t ask you questions while you drive either.  Thinking about it, the road test for Rahway is really easy compared to the road test that you took.  Edison’s road test is more similar to yours, in that they at least have you drive on a real road.  They still don’t ask you questions, from what I understand, but they do try to trick you into failing by “forgetting” to wear a seatbelt and urging you to run stop signs (falling for these tricks leads to an automatic failure).  In fact, the only thing about the test that has me worried is that for both Rahway and Edison, there is no point system.  Whether you pass or fail is completely up to the discretion of the person sitting in the passenger’s seat that day.  If I’m unlucky, they could fail me for the smallest of mistakes, no questions asked, especially if they’re in a bad mood.  From what I gather, the only people who failed at my school did so because of a dickish instructor, and not because they crushed a cone while parallel parking or something major like that.  And maybe I will end up liking the fact that I have a license in the future, but I seriously have no use for it right now.  I never go out on my own accord; it’s my parents who goad me into getting some fresh air every once in a while, hah.  I guess I won’t need to bring my passport with me to the airport for domestic flights anymore which is nice…?

Okay, I wrote the whole above paragraph before taking the test, so it's a bit outdated, but instead of amending it I've just decided to type up a new one right here.  I passed the test on my first try, surprisingly enough.  I personally thought I did terribly.  Every time I made a small mistake, I immediately kicked myself for screwing up (not literally, but you know what I mean) and the more I messed up the more nervous I got and the sloppier my driving became.  Also, the instructor spoke really softly and slowly, often times giving the instruction to turn at the very last second which forced me to abruptly stop or slow down.  He kind of sounded like Ben Carson (heh, Carson) if that gives you any perspective.  I didn't do anything as terrible as, like, running off the course or knocking over cones, but I knew I didn't perform at my best and I was freaking out that I was going to be failed on some technicality.  Still can't believe I passed.  Don't know if I've just been too hard on my own driving or if I just got really lucky, but whatever, hahah.

Ah, that’s right, I think my school did something similar, where you could be exempt from quarterlies (we didn’t have finals, but the third and fourth “quarterlies” counted for our “final exam” grade) if your grades were high enough at the end of the year.  I can’t remember if this was a perk only for seniors, or if it was seniors and juniors, or just every grade.  Either way, my grades were, uh… nowhere near… as high as the requirement…… at all… so no exemption for me, hurhurhur.  And geez, look at you, still attending school even after you were officially dismissed all for the sake of a joke and science, hahah.  I would have hightailed it out of there as soon as I possibly could, if my school had given seniors such a luxury.  And I never realized that’s what people did with senior photos.  I believe mine are just sitting in a filing cabinet somewhere; we don’t hang up or frame school photos like we used to, ha.  And the AP tests, or perhaps just the physics one, sounds like it was rough.  If it’s any condolence, I have no idea what field lines are (Googled it; still don’t really get it).  Though, given how bad I am at physics, that probably doesn’t mean much, ahah.  It’s good that those students won’t get their scores canceled.  I can’t imagine how much that would have sucked if it were the case.  But seriously, that’s one ballsy bio teacher.  I can understand why she’d be upset though, especially if it’s true that they were the only ones who got form E.

That looks like a pretty solid schedule you have planned out!  I’m not at all literate in the sciences when it comes to majors or courses or workload, so I don’t really trust myself to provide any pertinent advice when it comes to that.  It certainly sounds like you’re being ambitious with all this engineering and premed stuff, especially since the last time I checked you didn’t seem all that certain about what you wanted to do, but it’s good to hear you’re also keeping your options open.  And if you ever decide to pursue business, either for a major or minor, I can help more with that.  Your First Seminar professor will be your counselor until you declare, and I’m sure Dr. Zagorski, if you get into his seminar, will be able to help you plan your schedule out if you do end up doing something as ambitious as you envision.  You can declare your major as early as November, if I’m not mistaken, so do you plan on declaring then?  Declaring is useful because your counselor changes from your First Seminar professor to a major/field specific professor who knows the ins and outs of the courses you’ll be taking the best.  You can always change majors whenever you want, which will in turn change your counselor, so feasibly jumping around while still getting your classes done isn’t too difficult, I’d think.  And it sucks you’ll be without Internet during signups for classes.  Hopefully you got that sorted out!  As for that three-day adventure thing, I didn’t participate in it so I’m not sure how good or bad the experience is.  I don’t regret not going or anything, since it just didn’t really look like my type of thing, but if it intrigues you then go for it!  And you’ll be rooming in Smith, nice!  I’m not sure just how much better Juniper housing is compared to other residential colleges, only because I very rarely found myself needing to enter a dorm that wasn’t Taplin, let alone a room or bathroom in some other dorm.  But if other people consistently claim that Juniper houses are better, then I’m sure there’s some merit to what they say, haha.  And Case’s housing selection process is a bit of a mess.  I never completely figured it out myself, but they apparently only give you a few options at a time, and allow you to select more as time passes?  I kind of recall really wanting to live in Taplin, and when the time came to select my room only the fourth floor of Taplin had rooms available and I was confused but just figured there was no point in waiting in case there really were no other Taplin rooms left and just grabbed 411 (which was completely unoccupied at the time).  I still don’t get why Case does things this way, hm.  And yes, you definitely need a fan if you don’t have A/C.  I just hope I’ll be alright, since I doubt I’ll be lucky enough to have A/C in my room again this year.  Ahhh, yeah, well when I talk to myself to help me study I kind of… like, take on a different persona and just lecture to myself……  Ehh, it’s a bit embarrassing to admit, but yes that’s the general gist of it.  I find it’s a lot more engaging than just sitting in silence and staring holes into my books and notes trying to make sense of obtuse concepts.  And it works hand-in-hand with my penchant for locking myself up in my room, as opposed to finding a quiet but public place to study.

Wahh, did you never really get wrapped gifts for Christmas??  Actually, this topic feels kind of familiar.  If we’ve ever discussed Christmas gifts, or the lack thereof before, then I’m sorry for not remembering, eheh.  Ahh yes, Loot Crate and all those similar monthly subscription box goodies.  Those have been around for a while if I’m not mistaken, but it’s only recently that I’ve seen them get any real attention. I don’t personally know anyone subscribed to any of those services though.  Oh man, what are the chances you somehow ended up rooming with someone from your school?  I thought it was impressive someone from my school ended up living on the same floor as me, but the same room??  That’s pretty crazy.  It’s too bad you won’t be able to use this as an opportunity to meet new people, but trust me there are plenty of other chances you’ll get.  In your classes, at social events, and arguably most importantly at orientation, you’ll have the chance to make friends.  And maybe it won’t be all that bad, having a familiar face around.  Also, I meant to ask you this before but it completely slipped my mind: how many people from your grade will be attending Case with you?  Since you live a lot closer to Cleveland than I do, I imagine more people from your school will attend than mine.  Aside from me, there are two others from my grade who are at Case.  I used to think there was just one, the guy who roomed on the same floor as me, but I didn’t realize another girl also enrolled.  At the end of the school year, JP’s newspaper club publishes an edition with a list of all the colleges the graduating class will be attending as well as the students attending each university.  Her name wasn’t listed under Case, so I assumed it was just me and the other guy.  Some people opt out of having their name in the newspaper for obvious reasons.  Does your high school do something similar?

Hrmm, Kenzi’s recommending I don’t do something the way I planned on doing it?  That makes me want to rise up to the challenge and attempt it anyway, fufufufufufu…  Kidding, kidding, I’ll keep your advice in mind.  Still can’t promise I won’t at least attempt to binge The Tatami Galaxy all in one sitting, even if I ultimately complete it over the course of a few days if I find that it’s too much for me to handle, hah.  Game of Thrones is really good!  If there’s any one American television show you’re considering getting into, this should be it.  It’s the most popular of the bunch, making headlines on mainstream news outlets like Yahoo (in the Entertainment section usually, granted, but still) and gets referenced just about everywhere you go.  I’ve noticed so many GoT references all over the Internet, in completely unrelated places, that I wouldn’t have picked up on had I not seen the show.  And I believe it’s the most pirated television show or movie ever?  Just goes to show how popular it is.  Now is a good time to start, since we’re nearing the end of the series.  Seasons are, or rather were, 10 episodes long, with each episode sitting at roughly 50-60 minutes.  So far there are a total of six seasons, with seven and eight planned for later.  Seven and eight will be the last seasons and won’t feature as many episodes as previous seasons (though the episodes will apparently be a tad bit longer to compensate).  Also, up until now, every season has aired annually, at roughly the same time of year (the releases actually lined up nearly perfectly with seasonal spring anime, funnily enough).  However, season seven was just revealed to be delayed, by how much is unknown currently.  Still, I believe the series will conclude in two or three years, which gives you plenty of time to complete the first six seasons if you choose to start now, even if you take your time with it.  As I said earlier, it’s a great show to check out if you start feeling annoyed by the anime tropes you’ll find in the anime/manga/video games I recommended, though after some time you’ll probably start catching on to the Western cinematic/storytelling tropes before long and may start craving the weeb life again, haha.  As for how long it took me to finish, I watched five episodes a day.  This let me finish a season every two days, provided consistent pacing, and ensured I would get a healthy dose of season finale hype every other day.  By the time I caught up, the sixth episode of season six had yet to air.  Which means, after some simple math, it took me eleven days to bring myself up to speed (ten days for the first five seasons and one more day for the first half of the sixth), though to be honest, I might have taken a day or two off from my binge if I was busy doing something else, so it was probably closer to 13 days, or just about two weeks.  And as for why I decided to watch Game of Thrones, it’s because my brother recommended it, hah.

Ohh yeah, you mentioned last time that your parents got you a new iPhone even though you tried to convince them of OnePlus’s merit.  I realized just now that I never actually replied to that portion of your response.  Sorry about that, eheh.  It’s too bad that we won’t be able to have matching phones, but oh well, I’m sure the iPhone will serve you well since you’re more familiar with how it works anyhow.  Not to mention, you’ll have an easier time finding stylish cases for it!  One of the downsides of having an OPO is that cases of them are hard to come by.  My dark blue case works just fine in softening falls, but I kinda wish I had one that expressed an interest of mine, even if only subtly…  Have you started using your new phone yet?  And since this is a pretty good place to bring this up, have you started playing Pokemon Go?  I never knew how crazy popular this game would be.  I thought people would be disappointed that it isn’t exactly as promised from the initial hype trailer, but good god sooooo many people are playing it!  There are stories of hundreds of people gathering together (in cities of course) to play Pokemon Go together and socialize after Lures are dropped, as well as stories of local businesses taking advantage of strategically placed PokeSpots and Gyms.  I went to a nearby park not too long ago, and there was a small Lure gathering over where three PokeSpots were in close proximity to each other.  I didn’t join in since I was with my parents and we were spending time with my grandfather, but it seemed like a good number of people had gathered.  I met at least five or so people playing the game elsewhere in the park.  The stories of people actually going out and exploring and meeting new people is just so mind blowing!  If you haven’t already, jump on this global hype train before it loses steam because there’s a whole new culture evolving around this game and it’s absolutely insane.  It’s actually motivated me to go out and do something instead of just stay locked up in my room all day long.  In fact, part of the reason this response was so unexpectedly late was because I’ve been spending so much more time out and about that I didn’t have as much time to spend typing this up as I had expected.  But, ehem, yeah, sorry for the rant.  Anyway, what kind of new laptop did you get?  Maybe you can start using it when you get to Case, as a way to start off fresh and new.  It’ll also be easy to remember just how long you’ve been using the laptop for, if you recall you first booted it up at the very beginning of college.  Ah, and that’s right, you certainly have a lot of things lined up to do (sorry, I realize I was the one who recommend all those things to you, I hope I haven’t burdened you…) so I guess building up your 3DS library right this instant isn’t top priority or anything.  You mentioned in the other thread that you’re very much interested in Ocarina of Time now, which is great!  Let me know what else you get, after you try out the available demos and think on it for some time.

Adjusting from Awakening to Fates wasn’t too bad, I think.  Birthright is the easiest of the three routes, and since I started with that it helped to ease me into the new mechanics.  By the time I started Conquest, which would have kicked me to the curb if I had started with that route to be honest, Birthright had given me enough “training” of sorts to get through Conquest easily enough.

Pfft, so your sister claims she’s not really into anime but knows what Nodame Cantabile is?  Seriously?  Nodame Cantabile of all things??  Please, she’s totally bluffing, there’s no way she’s not a closet weeb.  I bet she has a whole collection of figurines and body pillows stashed away beneath the floorboards that she displays when no one else is around.  Thinking about it now, I realized that I can’t really think of many romance-focused anime (or books or movies) that were especially good.  The ones I look back on fondly are the ones that are just regular slice of life shows with a sprinkle of cute, drama-less romance, the kind you can’t help but smile at.  Ones that come to mind are Acchi Kocchi and the recently aired Tanaka-kun wa Itsumo Kedaruge.  Ore Monogatari is similar in that the romance is heart-warmingly sweet and pure, but it’s advertised more directly as a “romance” than either Acchi Kocchi and Tanaka-kun are.  Oh, though it’s been a long time since I’ve seen Acchi Kocchi so the romance might have actually been more heavy-handed than I recall it being.  But if we’re talking solely about plot-driven romances that feature a predominant love triangle/polygon, then yeah I can’t really think of one that was very good.  I can’t say I’ve ever heard Moonsetter before, but it’s certainly a catchy little tune.  Has that signature Toby Fox vibe to it.  And for sure, I’m certainly no musical elitist that only listens to super complex songs or anything, ahah.  I like my dose of simple songs as well.  Of all songs I like listening to when I study or just surf the web around, most of them are probably on the simple side, though the songs I recall the names of tend to be a bit more complex.

Oh man, so you like to think that you’ve outgrown going through those phases when you obsess over a new interest?  I-I actually don’t think I’ll ever be able to not go through such a phase when I get into something new, eheheh… heh… hehh……  I can’t help but feel that makes me look a bit childish compared to you, ahah.  I do my best to spend smart though, hah.  And sure, I’ll definitely show you the eBay goodies I got.  In fact, I’d gladly lend you the Kino no Tabi box set to watch, whenever you feel like starting the anime.  Though, I don’t think I have much to teach you when it comes to finding these rarities.  Kino no Tabi and The Dog of Flanders just happened to be pretty discreet as they are so there wasn’t much merch, bootleg or otherwise, to sort through on eBay, making finding the box set and promotional booklet relatively simple to track down.

Ah geez, I realized that I had gotten so impassioned talking about exploring old buildings that I had completely forgotten about the safety issue, ack.  The buildings themselves could potentially be safety hazards, since if they’re abandoned there’s no guarantee things like stairs and the floor and windows and railings will still be in good working order.  And of course, there’s also the issue of running into trouble with people.  I can imagine abandoned buildings are prime spots for shady activity, especially the kinds that could very easily endanger someone walking in on whatever is going on unsuspectingly.  I actually didn’t take the whole “trill of danger” into consideration when imagining how exciting it would be to explore abandoned buildings; I was just excited about the history.  Ugh, how careless of me.  Now that you’ve reminded me of the dangers, I might have to reconsider, eheh.  I mean, I still think it would be cool to go exploring if I have the time (especially after the Pokemon Go release).  I’d feel a lot better if I had someone with me, and it would be awesome if you’d be cool with joining me, though if you wouldn’t feel comfortable about it because of the safety hazards then it’s totally understandable.  And yeah, it’s really crazy seeing how things have changed with time.  That quote about the diamonds is pretty interesting.  It actually seemed really familiar and I thought that I knew its source, but when I Googled it and only found unfamiliar names I realized that I must have been mistaken.  Regardless though, that quote really applies to me, I get sentimental about so many small silly things that don’t really have much, if any, intrinsic value, heh.

I haven’t had much to buy recently, so I’m not really missing my lack of Amazon Prime right now, but it certainly came in handy when I needed it last year and earlier this year.  It’s great for video game preorders, since not only are they at a reduced price but they’re also eligible for release date delivery, which is really great if you’re like me and want to play a game as soon as possible (for both the hype and to avoid spoilers).  I don’t think I’ve ever really needed Prime for getting a super time sensitive delivery though, so if you’re not keen on preordering video games then you’re not missing out on too much I guess, hah.  And apart from Case’s mailing delay, it’s not too bad.  Letters seem to be more prone to delays than packages, since letters are delivered to your mailbox in your dorm while packages are sorted at a central office where you have to go out and pick it up.  Letters tend to arrive one to three days late, depending on the time of week, while you receive an e-mail notification that a package has arrived and is available to pick up the very day it arrives on campus.

Psshh, there’s no need to be afraid of change, just do what I did and spend all your coins with a purchase somewhere, haha.  But yeah, real talk, change is also something that peeves me about having to pay in cash.  I love bills, but geez coins are so hard to manage.  Ah yeah, and I’ve also heard about how people tend to spend less with cash.  I actually didn’t take that into consideration, ahah, and it’s a good point you brought up.  I guess if you plan on definitely buying something in advance and choose to pay with cash then it certainly helps, but if you’re just browsing around and picking up whatever you think looks worth the price then maybe it wouldn’t make much of a difference.

Hah, oh gosh no, it was just the completionist in me that was driving me to beat the level, not any admirable persistence.  Before long it just became so frustratingly unenjoyable that I really felt like I had wasted hours of my life stressing over something so ridiculous.  Ughh, I probably won’t ever return to that level, there are just too many better things I could be doing with my time.  And I think I went for the Machine Gun because people said it was the better gun for beginners, heh.  It certainly helped me fly my way to victory since I found the Boosters too clunky.  And aw man, if Super Meat Boy is like that, which I guess I should have expected, then I won’t play it.  Can’t afford to put money and time working for something I know I’m awful at.  And I certainly do not get highs on rage-quitting, though considering how stubborn I can be in maintaining habits that are just straight up not very productive or good for me, I can see how you might form that opinion, hahah.

Even just eating out, going on vacations together, and shopping together can be considered close family activities!  It’s not like you never spend time to bond with your folks in some way, haha.  And your dad uses some Chinese Netflix knockoff as well?  I thought my family was just weird that way, heh.  My dad has some strange programs on his computer he uses to watch Chinese television shows, movies, and live broadcasts. I’m pretty sure it’s illegal to some extent, but eh whatever, how else are we going to get Chinese entertainment from here?

Geez, doing work during a trip of all things is practically impossible.  There’s already the natural stress that comes with packing, traveling, and sleeping in an unfamiliar room, and since the trip was mainly for fun I’d have been more surprised if anyone managed to muster up the motivation to get any physics work done.  Still, I’m sure it was a valiant effort, hah.  Aw, no fireworks though, huh?  Speaking of which, my family and I went to see a fireworks display for the Fourth of July at some nearby college, and it… wasn’t very good.  The fireworks weren’t coordinated and they tried playing music over loudspeakers, but since the fireworks were a mess (and some of them were just earsplittingly loud for no good reason) it made the whole experience really long and uncomfortable.  Heh, I have even more appreciation for good fireworks now (I’m starting to get that Disney itch again, oh gosh someone help me…), so the experience wasn’t a complete waste I guess.  And yeah, I figured that’s what you were insinuating.  Finding out people you’re close to participate in those activities is certainly a bit shocking, especially if you’ve grown up with them since elementary school and whatnot, but that’s life I guess.  If that’s what they choose to do with their bodies and their time, and as long as they take all the necessary precautions and are prepared to face the consequences, no matter how severe, if something doesn’t go as planned, then they’re free to do what they want.  It’s not like I’m in any position to preach at them like a fifth grade health teacher or judge them for their actions.  But yeah, once you start hearing about specific people doing specific things, it’s a lot harder to look at them the same way you used to.

Oh nice, a volunteering and shadowing position at hospital?  That’s really cool; let me know how much (or little) you enjoy it!  Honestly, I feel kind of bad that I’m not getting a part time job or volunteering at all this summer.  But at the same time, I still haven’t done nearly as much as I was planning on doing this summer, as far as interests and hobbies are concerned.  I didn’t realize just how much of a video game and anime backlog I had built up over the years.  Granted, in terms of hours, I’ve spent a ton of time playing games and watching things, but it feels like I’ve barely dented my to-do list.  Sighhh, hopefully you’re having more luck than me, but considering how much you also have to get done I believe your situation probably feels just about as fruitless as mine.  Ahh yes, the classic “packet to do during a trip to an amusement park” trick teachers around the country play on their students at the end of the school year; never gets old.  I get that work even during trips needs to be done in the name of education, but at the same time you’d think someone would have figured a way to get kids to work more efficiently.  If Pokemon Go can increase face to face socialization rates across the world while simultaneously fighting the obesity epidemic, then I’m sure teachers can get together to figure out a way to make amusement park trips educational and fun.  Pshht, and look at you Kenzi, needing to be weaned into roller coasters because you haven’t ridden one in a while, what a casual.  I’ll have you know the first ride I rode at my senior year physics trip was Kingda Ka, hah!  Warmups are overrated, huehuehue (just kidding, I only rode it first because if we didn’t get on the line early it would be too long to wait later in the day).  But I’m glad you enjoyed the rides anyhow, even if I personally think you should have tried even the scarier looking ones.  Maybe it’s because I’ve ridden so many roller coasters in my life, but I’ve lost just about all anxiety from them now.  I do remember how terrified of the really tall and steep ones I was back when I was younger though, so I understand how you felt.  Maybe one day you’ll be able to conquer all the rides at Cedar Point!  And wow, I must have really been slacking during physics because the right hand rule doesn’t ring a bell at all, eheheh.  Phew, did I even take that course??  I’m starting to think it was all just a dream at this point…  Ahh, it’s too bad your hand got cut off in the picture though.  Such is the luck of the draw when it comes to seat position and camera angle on coaster rides.

Nice, so you guys had prom at a golf club?  Hm, I have no idea where my year’s prom was held.  It was probably just some sort of fancy estate, though I recall my grade barely pulling together enough funds to not have prom in the school gymnasium.  It’s good to hear your place had a patio that overlooked what sounds like really nice scenery.  It’s lucky it wasn’t rainy or cloudy that day at least.  And it’s cool that your friend from Cranbrook was there as well!  Was he there because his date attends your school or because he just wanted to have a good time and see some familiar faces?  And wow Kenzi, you’ve been slipping, that’s not how averages work.  5/10 * 2/10 = 7/10??  Please, it’s a common mistake, but “*” refers to multiplication not addition, silly silly (I’m just joking, please don’t take offense, you can most definitely math better than me anyway).  Hahah, but seriously, it doesn’t look like you enjoyed the dancing very much.  I certainly didn’t imagine it to be very exciting, and as someone who just doesn’t dance I don’t think any “dance” could be to my taste, unless it turned into a regular group music listening session.  Wouldn’t that be something, the whole senior class sitting in a large ballroom listening to sick beats in quiet contemplation like, “I do say, sir and madam, that was quite the “epic drop” was it not?”  Ehem, but yeah, it looks like you enjoyed the slow dance even less.  Slow dances always seem so cute and romantic in fiction, but it’s never the case in real life.  Ugh, it’s almost as big a lie as cruise commercials and ShamWow.  And hey, I actually think 7 Years is a pretty decent song.  I didn’t listen to the radio while in college, but tuned in a few times this summer to see what the latest hits were.  Heard 7 Years on there and was mildly impressed.  It doesn’t really feel like it would work as a slow dance song though, dunno what the DJ was thinking.  And ehh, I only opted out of prom because I knew I wasn’t going to dance and just standing around in a fancy suit talking to people and eating food seemed like a terrible way to spend a hundred bucks.  Even if I had foreseen that the dancing would have been awkward, it wouldn’t have mattered because I was never going to dance in the first place, hah.  Still though, I’m glad you got something out of the experience!  I still don’t feel like I missed anything by not attending my own prom, but I’m happy you didn’t regret going to yours.  It turned into memorable experience, and that’s great!  Also, at the after prom party you seriously just played Jenga and truth-or-dare of all things?  Pfft, not even Smash Bros, tsk tsk, I expected better of your friend group.

Well, not all of my relatives in America, but some of them do.  My grandparents and most of my uncles and aunts and my cousins live in China.  My mother is the eldest child in her family, and has two younger sisters and one younger brother (the brother is the very youngest in the family).  The second eldest sister and her husband live in America, and their son (my cousin) is two years older than me and was like, me and my brother’s best friend when we were younger. We played a ton of Star Fox Adventures, Donkey Kong Country, and Smash Bros together as kids, phew good times.  Christmases were awesome, haha.  The third sister still lives in China, along with her husband.  Their only child, another son, is the same age as my cousin living in America and he’s going to a college in Kansas as an international student (he spent all of his childhood in China).  My sister’s little brother is also in China, along with his wife and one son, who is a year older than me.  I believe he’ll be staying in China for the time being.  My mother’s parents both permanently live in China, though her father (my grandfather) is currently staying here in America, living with both my family and my aunt’s family (the one in America of course) interchangeably.  My father’s side is more straightforward.  He’s the youngest of the entire family, and has a large number of brothers and sisters all of whom live in China.  My cousins on my father’s side are much older than me, two of whom live in Australia.  I don’t know them as well, since I haven’t interacted with them as much as I have with my mother’s side of the family.  I think that’s because my father’s parents have both already passed away, his mother before I was born and his father just after I was born (I met my grandfather on my father’s side once, just before he passed away, but I was just a baby at the time so I obviously have no recollection of the meeting).  With the parents already passed away, I can imagine family reunions aren’t quite the same.  Sooo yeah, that was a very quick rundown of my extended family.  I’m sorry, it must have been quite confusing without names or pictures to use as reference, heh.  Didn’t expect to ramble on for this long either, excuse me for that.  But to get back on track, the astronomy course was pretty easy.  Got an “A” without much trouble, and the material itself was pretty interesting.  I’m just a sucker for the cosmos, so even though the professor was a bit of a bore I still really enjoyed the class.

Ohhhh lordy, okay, I know this probably looks really bad, but I’m super-duper really sorry for this delay!  Ughh, you posted your reply a whole month ago, and I only just give you my response now.  And during summer break of all times!  I’m sorry for not giving you notice that my response was going to be delayed.  I hope you haven’t been thinking I was ignoring you or something.  At first, I thought I could finish the response quickly, but then so many things got in the way.  The astronomy classes took up time twice a week, I started taking legit driving classes and had to help my parents do the groceries to practice driving, and with my grandfather visiting I had to spend a lot of time with him.  My sister visited for about a week or two, and I went with her and my mother to her Dartmouth’s graduating class’s alumni reunion, which took place right after you posted your reply.  After getting back from that event, I started typing up my response but my writing skills must have taken a hit because I was having trouble writing like I usually do.  So I decided to take a break and clear my mind by playing through Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright.  After finishing that, my brother was working on something that he wanted to show me and my parents, which took a few hours out of a couple of days (ask me about this later, too complicated to explain here).  And then before I knew it Zero Time Dilemma had been released and I just had to play it and finish it asap.  The game took a little longer to finish than expected because of ongoing distractions (the driving stuff and classes, etc).  By the time I finished, I was scrambling to finish up this response and then *bam* Pokemon Go drops like a bomb and starts a social revolution.  Now I religiously go out for a walk for three hours every day (which is how long it takes my phone battery to fall from 100% to 1%), which has given me great exercise and also forced me to take two showers per day (and you know how long it takes me to take showers).  Ohh, and that doesn’t even count all the seasonal anime I have to keep up with, each and every week.  So yeah, even though it’s summer break I’ve been crunched for time.  I know this might sound like I’m just making excuses, but hopefully you understand.  This summer’s just been surprisingly busy.  And you had that trip to Alaska you mentioned previously didn’t you?  Goodness, I was hoping to get my response out to you before you left, but it looks like it’s just about over.  Well, be sure to tell me all about how it went!

Anyway, I wonder how many more back and forth responses we’ll have on here now that we know we’ll be seeing each other when school starts back up?  Depending on how much time we both have this summer break, this might even be my last post on this thread.  We could probably just use PMs to communicate how to meet each other, and after that we’d have no more use posting here anymore.  Knowing this exchange is going to end really soon kinda makes me sad, haha.  But at the same time I’m really excited to meet you, so it balances out.

That’s about it for this post.  Hope you enjoyed your trip, and get back to me whenever you have time!

 

That’s an interesting theory for Lunala you have there! I probably would’ve put money on Solgaleo being part Fire and Lunala being part Fairy just based on their designs (or what they symbolize) alone. Gosh, it’s already been over a month since the information has been revealed and I still can’t get over it, hahah. The theory about the team wanting to be more technologically advanced seems plausible (especially with Zygarde and the ecosystem) and it kinda reminds me of Opelucid City in BW (and the thing with truths and ideals with Reshiram and Zekrom). But I wonder how they’d incorporate Solgaleo and Lunala into their plan, hm. Being on a tropical island also reminds me of Hoenn a bit, heh. Ohh, and I think that artificial island may actually tie into Magearna (because it’s a man made Pokemon and everything). Or maybe I’m just making wild speculations. As for the new Pokemon, I’ve been getting some mixed feelings. Pokemon that resemble manmade objects just don’t sit well with me. Sure, it’s “fun” but it seems kinda… backwards. That being said, you can probably guess that I’m not a huge fan of Charjabug or Comfey, as creative as they are. I’m also on the fence about edible-looking Pokemon like Bounsweet because it makes me question the diet of Pokemon trainers. Erm, sorry, these are just weird peeves of mine, eheh. Onwards, Bruxish is just… weird. It’s so gaudy and I don’t really know what to think of it, but its ability is definitely going to add something to the metagame. Drampa is… interesting. Not really a fan, but its typing is still kinda neat. Also, I’m just going to leave this here: "Drampa are especially gentle with children and often appear at schools and parks where children gather." Nice. What were they thinking when they came up with that description, hahahah. Cutiefly is cute? I guess? It’s probably going to end up largely ignored like Maractus unless it happens to have some awesome evolution. And I actually kinda like Togedemaru because of its typing and abilities. Vikavolt looks badass. Sweet design, but yeah, its stats probably aren’t going to be that great. Saladit is really cool! Unique typing and interesting ability! I like this guy. It has a lot of weaknesses though, so it probably won't see much use in competitive play, and that's a shame. Bewear is… well, its name is certainly something to behold. I think Fairy/Fighting would’ve been better typing just based on its design. Hahahahah, Wimpod. They get creativity points for that one. Ohh, and I like Mudsdale a lot. The concept is neat and its ability, whoaaaaaaaa. Mudsdale+Assault Vest pls nerf. He’ll probably have a lack of recovery moves to make up for this though. I also really like Mimikyu, but not the fact that its sole existence is based on Pikachu. Tapu Koko though!! I love it. Awesome typing and design. I’m really looking forward to seeing this guy in the games.

Okay, so the pacifist route was pretty good, but I think my expectations were a bit too high since I wasn’t really left as satisfied as I hoped I’d be. The ending was a bit corny, but I still enjoyed it a lot. My favorite part was definitely exploring Alphys’s lab and reading those entries posted on the walls. BACKSTORIES, WHOOOOOO!! A lot of those amalgamates were horrific and the overall atmosphere of the lab was just so tense (especially the bit with the golden flower, oh my gosh, you could foresee what was coming) and I loved every moment! I got a LOT of 999 vibes from this place. Just the exploring and clicking on every item and especially the OST, oomph. Oh, and Temmie’s design totally reminds me of the Mimigas from Cave Story. And I still can’t get over Dogsong, hahahahahah. It’s so derpy and trollish, it’s brilliant!! Also, I want to comment on the success of Undertale for a bit. It’s a weird topic to bring up, but something kinda hit me while I was playing the game. All of the references made, personalities of the characters, the dialogue, and just the charming humor in general is so fitting to our generation (like the dogs, the spiel about anime being real, onion-san—it’s right down the alley of tumblr and ripe humor for internet culture to devour). Had this game been created a few years earlier, I’m doubtful it would have blown up like this. Undertale seems to have been released at such a prime time on the internet, and the growing prominence of internet culture and popularity of Let’s Plays and social media only helped to further skyrocket the awareness of the game and its success. There’s also so much you can dissect from this game through data mining and so many easter eggs that it still manages to stay relevant despite being a fun, short-lived game at surface level (neutral/pacifist route, at least). In an era where the objective of most games is to defeat your enemies rather than to befriend them, you can’t help but feel intrigued by what lies behind the game’s tagline either: “A friendly RPG where nobody has to die.” It truly is a breath of fresh air, especially with those complex graphics and 3D models also getting shoved down our throats lately. And the shock factor from the end of the neutral route most definitely adds to its novelty as well. Not only that, but those who do attempt to slaughter everything in their paths are guilt-tripped hard. Genocide isn’t for the faint of heart. Undertale takes a heavy turn, repeatedly breaks the fourth wall, Frisk takes on an entirely new persona, and the game makes it blatant the kind of person/monster you’ve become. Yet, the underlying theme still rings clear: to stay determined and unwavering. The goal now is to see through what you started despite being reminded to no end that you’re a soulless brute. The game will attempt to break you and toy with your morals and emotions with heart-wrenching character interactions and notoriously difficult bullet-hells, but for what purpose? To allow you to play this game on a more personal level. Not just for the storyline, but for your sense of determination. Ahhhhhh, Undertale!! Erm, please excuse my rambling—this is just something I’ve been thinking about, ahah. As for the genocide route, if you couldn’t already guess, I have a pretty good idea of what happens, lol. I was at a friend’s house when he decided that he wanted to take on genocide, and oomph, this game is reaaaaally heavy (being bombarded with “But nobody came” is so ominous, geezus). The soundtrack also switches to some pretty heavy-sounding music (kinda caught me off-guard, and admittedly I was a little horrified at first), and omfg Undyne’s genocide theme sounds exactly like something that would belong in Touhou. Seriously, if you told me that was a soundtrack in one of the newer Touhou games I probably would’ve believed you. The instrumentation of the melody at 1:55 mimics that of Touhou soundtracks so flawlessly, and I just… Toby…?????? And don’t even get me started on Sans. GEEZUS. We had to call it quits after the sixth attempt since I had to go back home, but man, what a nightmare. I still have no idea what’s going to happen next, so no spoilers pl0x, heheheheh.

I really liked the concept of Monster and it’s still something I’d definitely recommend to the right person, but leaving so many holes for the audience to fill in just got kinda excessive. There’s so much more I wanted to learn about Johan. He’s such a complex character, but it’s just impossible for me to understand how he gained such an enormous following without any background info on the scandals and schemes he was involved in. You can’t just expect me to believe that these people worship him without reason. What did he do to rise up the hierarchy so quickly? How did he gain so much notoriety and so many blind followers? What happened to him between his childhood and present day self? And yeah, I didn’t mind the fillers at first, but the glorification of Tenma was just too much at one point. I don’t regret watching the anime though. You know, I will admit that not finishing MK1412 has been marinating in the back of my mind lately. I still haven’t had the chance to see Touichi’s debut (even though I already know it’s going to be an asspull), but there’s just so much I need to get around to finishing that it’s not really bothering me as much as it should. Eh, oh well. Yeah, I haven’t added Erased to my PTW list yet, and I probably won’t after hearing what you had to say about the ending. I have a friend who seemed to like it a lot (Steins;Gate vibes, hehe), so I might reconsider. My current priorities are classics like Death Note and Code Geass (a couple of friends have badgered me for having not watched them yet), and I’m also watching OPM right now just to see what the hype was about. I’m really liking it so far! As for why I managed to finish Monster so “quickly,” I didn’t. I actually started on it a few months ago, lol. I’m also planning to rewatch Tatami Galaxy just because I feel like I missed a lot first time around. Also the fact that it’s kinda relevant now that I’m going to college, ahah.

Waitt, I thought it was assumed that the proctor wouldn’t tell you to wear your seatbelt or give you any hints. The proctors around here don’t deliberately try to tell you to run stop signs though (but yeah, doing so is an auto fail). In fact, the proctors here don’t speak at all unless they’re asking you questions or giving you warnings (like going over the speed limit). Or if you decide you want to converse with them or something. Geez, you guys don’t have a point system? Isn’t such a subjective way of grading kind of unfair though? But congrats on passing! I think you’re being a bit too hard on yourself; I’m sure you did fine, haha. 

Ohh, it wasn’t hard to get exempted from finals at all! Most teachers make it so seniors with a B or higher (final semester grade) don’t have to take a final exam. Other teachers are stricter about this policy and just force everyone to take the final anyway. My actual senior photos are also collecting dust in a filing cabinet, lol. I didn’t have plans on handing them out anyway, and I’m glad I didn’t because I had so much fun with the gags I made, hahahahahahah. 

So the schedule I sent you from my previous response is now my current schedule (+another course, which I’ll elaborate on later). Still tentative though since I’m not entirely sure if I want to use the AP credit from physics C mech. You see, if I use it, I’d be placed into PHYS 122. Which is E/M. Which is the bane of my existence if you couldn’t tell from before. But at the same time, I’m gonna have to take the class eventually, so uhh… yeah. I’m kinda leaning towards PHYS 122 for this reason after talking to a couple of people (basically I’m just telling myself to bite the bullet), but we’ll see. As for the extra course I added, that ended up being EMAC 125 because now I’m debating between going into Materials or Macromolecular Science. EMAC 125 is a research “class” (not really a class) that meets up whenever you want to as long as you put in six hours a week. You’ll be conducting research under professors and grad students, or so I’m told, and apparently it’s quite enjoyable! Of course taking EMSE 110 and EMAC 125 would mean that I’m taking six courses, which is kinda overkill, so I’ll be dropping whichever one I don’t like as much. I might also stop by on one of the CS classes at the beginning of the year because I heard the professor is awesome, heh. Oh, and I decided not to do the three-day adventure thing just so I can get more volunteer/shadowing hours in. Also, I’ve been getting lazy and didn’t really feel like going. Yeahh, the whole housing selection was really unorganized. When I first opened it up Mistletoe housing was my only option even though I selected Juniper has my preferred house. But after a few hours of waiting I finally had the option to choose Smith (no Taft or Taplin though). When I talk to myself while studying, it’s usually when I come to some revelation or when I’m just flat out frustrated. It’s not really a method of studying more than it is a habit I never grew out of, eheh.

I’ve actually been warming up to the idea that I’ll be rooming with a classmate from school this year, haha. I think we’ll get along, and at the very least, there won’t be any surprises, lol. Including myself, three people from school will be attending Case this year. Despite our close proximity to Cleveland, most people around here still feed into the Michigan schools. Our school also lists students and where they’ll be attending on  the school newspaper, and normally you can opt out, but this year everyone kinda had to tell them where they’re going in order to receive their cap and gown. 

My friend has been trying to convince me to read GoT before watching it, but wahhh, there’s just so much backlog I still have yet to get through. Honestly, this alone is kinda discouraging me from getting into the show. Geezus, nearly an hour for each episode?? And oh gosh, you managed five episodes a day? Ahh, no wonder you plowed through the show that quickly! I dunno, a lot of my friends have been talking about it, and I feel kinda left out not being able to contribute anything to the conversation. Maybe that’ll serve as my motivation to watch it, haha. Or read it. I’m still not entirely sure yet. I want to at least get through Death Note and Code Geass (because I’ve been missing out) before hacking away at GoT. So that’s already 87 episodes worth of anime before I can get into GoT. And the more I talk about the backlog I need to get through, the more it seems like obligation. I think I’m going into these shows with the wrong mindset. Rather than being intrigued by a promising premise, it feels like I’m just watching these shows for the sake of keeping up with others. Hahahahah, I’m just not used to feeling this overwhelmed by all these anime I need to watch and games I need to play (and books I kinda wanted to read). It’s amazing how you can dive into all these without batting an eye, ahah. I hope you don’t think too poorly of me if I’m not able to get through my entire backlog this summer (or, rather, at this rate, even put a dent in it, eheh).

I’m actually pretty happy with my phone! Because I was able to store my old phone’s info onto iCloud, I was able to seamlessly transfer it all to my new phone. So it’s almost as if nothing’s changed! I still have my old contacts and pictures and apps and settings. It’s just located on an upgraded phone now, lol. My phone case is one of those wallet cases where you can store cards and money and stuff. It can be pretty handy whenever I’m in a pinch, haha. And yes! I do have Pokemon Go, heh. I haven’t been able to grind much since Troy is pretty much devoid of any activity. Seriously, there are literally only two Pokestops on my radar from where I live. Two. Nothing else. Not even a gym. Pokemon Go is everywhere though, oh my gosh. Everyone is buzzing about it. e.v.e.r.y.o.n.e. But I think I’ll be okay being a filthy casual. People are taking over gyms with 2k+ CP Pokemon and it’s freaking insane. Geezus, I only started the game about a week ago and my highest is only 300-something. I mean, I can’t spend the entirety of my college career investing in this game, right…? I still haven’t decided on a team yet, but I’m leaning towards Valor at the moment. I’ll wait until I’m on campus before I make up my mind though. Oh, and I’ve also been using my new laptop lately! I wanted to make sure I could navigate my way around Windows 10 before heading off to college, lol. It’s been a real hassle trying to transfer all of my old files and programs onto this laptop though. Right before I left for vacation, I finally found a replacement cracked amtlib.dll file I could insert into Photoshop CS6 (long story short, some freak accident happened and the old cracked amtlib.dll file was deleted when I was a freshman). I don’t know why it took me this long to find the motivation to scour the internet for it, but I eventually found another one. And for the longest time, I couldn’t understand why CS6 wouldn’t operate on the new laptop when it worked fine on the old one, but I finally realized it’s because I never gave “permission” to run the program and had to click on “Run as administrator” for it to work. I feel a little silly thinking that the reason it wouldn’t operate at first was because I thought the new laptop was a 32-bit, derp. Transferring Camtasia has also been a pain in the arse, and it’s a shame the quality of its graphic interface went down, but that wasn’t necessarily unexpected. Sorry about the rant. You can ignore everything I just typed. I needed a place to vent out, eheh. Alsooooo, this laptop has a touch-screen!! So it can convert to a tablet (but not a very effective one) and I have the convenience of just tapping the screen to click on something, woohoo. There’s a ton of fingerprints on the screen now, but weirdly enough, it actually doesn’t bother me much. Yeah, I know, I’m a barbarian. But in my defense, it is a touch-screen, after all, and how easily bothered are people with fingerprints on their phone screen, heh.

So I just played the Awakening demo, and ohh the mechanics. It seems like a bit of strategy is involved rather than just mindless slaughtering, haha. I definitely liked what I saw, but I was only able to play through two stages before getting cut off. The Smash demo was also really limited since there was only one stage I can play on and only five characters to choose from (Mario, Pikachu, Villager, Link, Mega Man). Still a lot of fun to play though! I haven’t started on OoT yet, but I’m holding back on that for now (and yes, I finally got my hands on a physical copy of the game, hah). I just haven’t been in the mood to play for some reason. 

Well, I mean, in my sister’s defense, she seems really into music anime, lol. Stuff like K-ON, Nodame Cantabile, and Shigatsu are all right up her alley, so I can’t really blame her, haha. She could be a closet weeb (going to Youmacon, obsessing over Code Geass and Free, printing out anime sheet music, etc.), but I wouldn’t know. She hides a lot of stuff about her life from me and rarely ever answers any of my questions seriously, so uh… yeah. I think she’s turning back to anime again though. Maybe she went through a dry spell in college, but now that she has more time on her hands, it looks like she’s finally getting back into the groove. I dunno, maybe I’m just picky when it comes to romantic subplots or just romances in general. I really like it when they’re simple and straight to the point. Or anything that makes me grin like an idiot and feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside, hahahah. There’s not a lot that comes to mind, but Zootopia was a pretty cute movie, heh.

I’ve gone through a lot of those “phases” in middle school and early high school whenever I started obsessing over something, but as time passed, I realized it’s actually a lot more rewarding when there is someone out there I could obsess about these things with as opposed to buying boatloads of merch that I probably won’t look at or use years later. It’s a really cheesy way to put it, I know, but I just love generating discussions with people about things I could ramble on about for hours! I love being able to click with someone and seeing their eyes light up when they start talking about something they’re passionate about. I don’t think buying merch can provide that same kind of pleasure for me anymore. Also the fact that I kinda consider myself a closet weeb and don’t really openly display or talk about my interests unless there’s an instigator (or unless I’m around people I’m comfortable talking about this kinda stuff with), eheh. 

I’m kinda on the fence about exploring abandoned buildings, but it’s definitely something I’d be up for so long as we won’t be doing anything too reckless, ahah. But at the same time, Cleveland doesn’t exactly have the best reputation, so we’ll see. I remember reading a post about exploring abandoned buildings a while ago, and apparently there are a lot of safety precautions you need to take before venturing in. Of course exploring by yourself is highly discouraged, but checking the reputation and kinds of activity that occur in the surrounding area is also pretty important. If all of this sounds good to you, then yeah, I’d be down to explore.

I can’t really see myself in dire need of Amazon Prime anytime soon, but it still sounds like a handy tool for sure! I’m definitely a casual when it comes to video games, so preorders aren’t too high on my priority list. I might reconsider in the case of Sun and Moon though, lol. Yeahh, I know my sister had some problems with the mailing system back when she was in college, so maybe I shouldn’t have expected that much from Case. It doesn’t look like it’ll end up causing me too much trouble, which is a bit relieving. It’s reassuring to know that I’ll receive and email notification for packages at the very least, ahah, Thanks for the info!

Ahah, my dad mainly gets his dose of Chinese movies and television shows through that Chinese Netflix knockoff, and the morning/evening news from whatever we normally have on our TV. And likewise, I didn’t realize there were people out there who did the same, lol. Maybe this sort of tactic is a lot more common than I originally thought, hm. I don’t think he has any strange programs on his computer or weird apps on his iPad though. He normally just reads Chinese news articles from those.

Well, uh, during the trip we managed to get “some” physics done. Just not very efficiently, eheh. Ohh, my parents and I also went to see fireworks for the Fourth of July! We stayed local and decided that going straight to the source of the fireworks wasn’t worth breathing in all that musty air, so we just stood around the outskirts instead, lol. I mean, we already got a pretty good whiff of that air after the finale, so just imagine how concentrated it must’ve been in there, yuck. Also not the greatest view since there were a couple of trees blocking the way, but I still think it was completely worth the trip! My sister and I got to play with sparklers when we all got back too! We, of course, had to take some cheesy timelapse photos all in good fun, heh. It’s a shame the fireworks you saw ended up being a disappointment, but it’s good that you have a renewed appreciation for good fireworks now, ahah. Yeahh, I’ve slowly been learning that there are a lot of people I’d never, ever expect to partake in those kinds of activities and indulging in them like rabbits. One of my friends in college went ham and took advantage of the freedom immediately as a freshman after being so confined in high school, and geezus, he himself admitted that he never would’ve predicted for this to have happened to him. And I guess I’d be lying if I said curiosity never got the best of me either, eheh. 

There are some parts of volunteering that have been pretty monotonous. Holding doors for people, directing visitors to where they need to go, putting on a smile and greeting everyone who enters and leaves with “good morning!” and “have a nice day!”, pushing patients around in wheelchairs—even to the point where one of them tried to give me a tip (I refused for obvious reasons, but it was still a nice gesture, haha). A few people seemed genuinely appreciative of this, which of course felt pretty rewarding, but doing all of that for hours on end weekly can make you feel kinda numb and seriously bored after a while. Other days, I’m stuck shredding paper and doing office work, but I was promised that I’d be able to move around the radiology department soon and observe stuff like CT scans and ultrasound, so I’m looking forward to that. Shadowing has been a LOT more eventful, lol. It’s really flexible so I can dabble around in whichever department I want (but only in anatomical pathology), show up or leave whenever I want to (I go daily anyway), change my area of focus if I feel bored, and it’s been a swell time, haha. I have my own little work area where I’m given a bunch of slides and a medical dictionary whenever I’m idle to build up my vocabulary. There’s a boatload of words in there that sound like gibberish, but looking over the terminology and jotting down notes has been surprisingly helpful in understanding the procedures I get to observe first hand. Stuff like gross examination, tissue embedding, and surgery are all things I can see on a day-to-day basis. And it’s pretty legit since I’m forced to wear scrubs, scrub hats, latex gloves, face shields, lab coats, and/or surgical masks before I’m allowed to enter places like the operating room, laboratory, or that one area where you analyze frozen sections, heh. I won’t go into further detail for things like the pancreatic surgery in case you have a weak stomach (slightly surprised that I didn’t get queasy while observing), so I’ll just leave it at that. Doing stuff like this in a span of a single day can be kinda tiresome, but at least it’s a lot more productive than the other volunteering positions I’m in, haha. Yeahh, it’s taking me forever to chip away at my backlog at the moment, so I’ve kinda just accepted my fate at this point, lol. Whatever happens, happens, and I guess I won’t be running out of ways to entertain myself anytime soon. I… I mean, I don’t really consider myself an adrenaline junkie and I was just a little intimidated by all of those rollercoasters since I haven’t gone to an amusement park for years pls don’t hurt me… I still feel anxious thinking about rides like Power Tower (geezus I reaaaaally can’t handle rides like those) or anything with an enormous vertical drop, phew. And personally, I probably wouldn’t have gone on those super intense rollercoasters for my first few rides (like you did with Kingda Ka) even knowing there’d be a huge line in a few hours. I know, I’m a wimp, sigh. Kudos to you for being so ambitious though! Ohh, and the right hand rule is mnemonic we used to help us out in E/M. I guess it can be applicable to physics mechanics, but it wasn’t touched on as much for us. While Cedar Point was fun and all, I don’t know if I can muster up the courage to go again, hahah. It’s one of those things that I’m really hesitant about at first but turn out to be something I kinda enjoyed in the end. I’m just back in the “hesitant to go” phase again…

Ahahah, I still can’t get over the lack of funding your school had for prom. It’s good that you guys managed to rake in enough to fund it though! Yup, my friend from Cranbrook was asked by one of his family friends in order to get some other guy to leave her alone, lol. Ohh, pfft, silly me. Sorry, I meant to rate prom a perfect score of 5/7. After all, 5/10*7/10 = 5/7, kappa :^) I think the main reason I reaaaaaally didn’t like the slow dance is because of the kind of friendship I had with the guy. It’s the kind where we’d troll and make fun of each other, and it most certainly wasn’t the kind of friendship where I could have heart to heart conversations with him. So I guess it was a bit hard for me to immerse myself in the slow dance when I wasn’t really comfortable with anything outside that kind of relationship I was used to. Everyone else seemed to have a good time at the slow dance, so there’s that. Oh goodness, I didn’t like 7 Years when I first heard it, and I dislike it even more now. I’m not entirely sure what the DJ was thinking either, but I’m triggered every time I hear that song thanks to the slow dance. I.. I see. You didn’t want to go to prom because you didn’t think it was worth the money to just talk to people all dressed up while eating food. …except that kinda sums up my experience at prom pretty well, eheh… The only difference was that I reluctantly joined the dance for a few minutes and the cost of my ticket was nowhere near a hundred bucks. If I recall correctly, it was around $45 per person (varies year by year depending on how much funding we have). Geezus, you know, I also would’ve been a lot more hesitant about going to prom if the price of tickets was jacked up that high. Oh yeah, and that after party was a really last minute thing. It was an impulse decision I made because it sounded like fun. But if you want me to be honest, it wasn’t that great. Pretty disappointed there was no Smash, but at the same time, I wouldn’t necessarily consider them the kind of people who’d be into games like that, lol.

Oh wow, your relatives are scattered everywhere! America, China, and Australia?? Whoaaa, that’s awesome! I don’t think I’ve been introduced to many of my cousins. I’ve only ever known two of them, which feels odd, and even then, I don’t really know them that well either. And you seem to have a good grasp of your family tree as well! Oh gosh, talking about all of this has made me realize how little I know about my relatives. The only time I’ve been able to see them is in China, and this was all so long ago too, urgh. Ohh, and I’m glad you enjoyed your astronomy course! It’s good to hear that you still managed to take something from the class even if you didn’t think professor was that great, ahah.

Man, what a busy bee you were! And no need to apologize either! Perhaps you could quell my curiosity and let me in on what your brother was working on and we’ll call it even, heh. Hahahah, I’m kidding. If it’s too complicated to explain in writing, I’ll just ask you in person, lol. I’m happy to hear that you’ve cleared some games from your backlog and that you’re getting active with Pokemon Go! You seemed to have quite a lot going on, so I hope writing this response didn't cause you too much stress, eheh.

I’m just warning you beforehand that I wrote quite a bit about how vacation went (so grab some popcorn or something if you’re up for it).

Sooooo, about my trip to Alaska… My family (parents and sister) and I were traveling with another family (sister’s best friend, mom, and brother) like we usually do for cruises. While my sister was hanging out with her best friend, I spent most of my time exploring places with my sister’s best friend’s brother. He’s an incoming college junior and we’ve known each other for a while, so it was all good (I’ll be referring to him as “friend” for the sake of convenience since “sister’s best friend’s brother” can be quite a mouthful). For the first few days of vacation, we actually traveled around Alaska on foot, by bus, and by train, and I was still trying to adjust to the fact that it’s literally bright as day around midnight, holy moly (my prayers go to the locals who live there in the winter when it’s dark as midnight at noon). Okay, so the first thing I want to comment on is how pure the environment is. The views are gorgeous and breathtaking and I just askdjasdlhfdfklgjhkdg. One of the best examples of this was when we were on a glass roof train (it was specifically built for scenic riding). Never have I ever gazed at such tranquil scenery. Numerous bodies of water didn’t contain so much as a single ripple, and they were so glassy and serene I couldn’t believe my eyes. You could see the clouds in the sky and foliage reflected off the surface so clearly it’s almost as if they weren’t bodies of water at all! Of course I had to take advantage of this, so I ran to the last train car (but I like to refer to it as the “open” train car). Oh yeah, and my hair actually seemed to be behaving even with all the wind (hence the term “open” train car), much to my surprise. But it might’ve been because of the haircut I got a few days prior, haha. My friend also followed along, and we stood together at the edge of the train car as we gawked at the mountains, waterfalls, and trees while having a ton of deep, meaningful conversations (DMCs) from probing each other with questions. 

Another place we went to with great landscape was on top of this one hill that took us about 1-2 hours to hike up. My friend and I were by ourselves most of the time since everyone else seemed to trail behind a considerable amount. We had to make frequent stops to make sure we didn’t lose the rest of our family, eheh. During our hike, the two of us discussed the various anime we’ve watched embracing our inner weeb and games we’ve played, the teachers we had, our general impressions of school and community, and stuff like that. We also joked around while incorporating dank memes and Spongebob references (why is this show so quotable) into our conversations, and it made the trek up the hill a lot more enjoyable than it would’ve been otherwise, hahah. Of course we took a lot of panos and pictures with our phones as well (like of those tiny pinecones we found about the size of a fingernail). Both of us were a bit sore and out of breath by the time we reached the peak (also dying of thirst), but wow, the view was incredible! Neither of us realized how high ~1.7k vertical feet was (just checked and it’s about the height of Sears Tower+antenna, geezus). But anyways, there was just so much depth!! You could see the entirety of the village/town we started off in (goodness it was so small from up there) and the rivers and the tops of numerous mountains/hills (others were encased in clouds) and everything was just so grassy and rugged and the soil we stepped on (well, not really soil since it was a dusty tan color) was actually glittering when we brushed our fingers across it and the trees from the other mountains/hills were so tiny they just looked like bushy moss! It’s a shame the photos we took couldn’t capture the depth too well, but that feeling of ecstasy when we made it to the top, oh gosh, how invigorating! That alone made it all worth it, and at least we have those pictures to commemorate that moment, heh. Our trek down was a lot less strenuous, but we had to use different leg muscles and it was a little more mentally taxing trying to figure out where to place our feet (as opposed to mindlessly climbing up through brute strength). Except this time we didn’t wait for the rest of our family since we were so deprived of water. Man, you should’ve seen the looks on our faces when we found those water fountains. We drank so much water it was probably enough to last us without dinner (pretty sure we just stood there drinking for at least a solid two minutes). Afterwards we sat on a bench for around ten minutes or so waiting for everyone else. Some other things we did in Alaska include making s’mores (in the “daylight” lol), sitting around a hot tub, and just wandering around. My friend and I also stayed up pretty late almost every day (usually till around 2am) having DMCs around a fireplace, a garden/patio, next to a windowsill, etc. And that just about sums up my highlights in Alaska before we hopped on the cruise ship.

Ahh, the cruise ship. One of the first things us kids did (everyone minus parents) was visit the art gallery to play a guessing game. There was a painting hung up and participants had to write down a guess from $10k-$60k on a slip of paper with their name and favorite artist, and whoever guesses correctly (or is the closest) receives two free paintings, a $200 credit he/she can use towards anything in the art gallery (including auctions), and a bottle of white wine. We all wrote down our guesses and placed them in the box. I, however, wanted to have a bit of fun and decided to use dank memes for my guess (I wrote down 42000 and regret not writing 42069, what a missed opportunity) and wrote down “Squidward T.” as my favorite artist, you know, because I wasn’t expecting to win anyway. Welp, you can guess what happened just from the fact that I included this in the response. Interestingly enough, I happened to win. Wow. Just, wow. My sister laughed at me, my sister’s best friend was speechless, my friend was holding back tears of laughter, and I was confused. Incredibly confused. Long story short, I got to take home a few thousand dollars worth of paintings/seriolithographs, woohoo. Also, the food! So. much. food. Every dinner we’d go to this fancy restaurant (prepaid, of course, so it’s basically a buffet), and wow the food is good. I also got a voucher from the restaurant to help celebrate my birthday, and while that was really nice of them, I didn’t know if I wanted to draw that much attention to myself. Well, my friend and sister managed to persuade me eventually (I’m sure their ulterior motive was just to nab the dessert I’d be given, lol), and a few of the waiters gathered around our table and sung Happy Birthday while I awkwardly shrunk in my seat in mild embarrassment. The dark chocolate cake I got was delicious though! And yes, I did end up sharing it with my friend and sister, haha.

Moving on, my friend and I went exploring around the ship and sometimes we’d meet up with our sisters for activities and shows on the ship. Naturally, the ship went on some scenic cruising around glaciers and whale watching areas as well—sometimes while having an informational announcement through the ship’s speakers. Did you know that glaciers get their blue color because of how dense they are? That’s also why the majority of icebergs are submerged underwater, and is, consequently, where the phrase “the tip of the iceberg” originated. My friend and I had a lot of these kinds of conversations speculating how all these phenomena came about. Sometimes we’d just stand on the deck and gaze at the ocean trying to make sense of the discolored divisions of water, how screwed up our depth perceptions are because we’re surrounded by water, and stuff like that. Although he’s majoring in EECS, he’s still really intuitive and observant about some of this stuff and just seems to have a natural knack for science! Many of our DMCs also revolved around psychology and the idiosyncrasies of human nature, and gosh, there’s just so much I’ve learned from these conversations. We spent all of our nights past 12am (sometimes till 3am) exploring the ship, settling down in empty lounges and decks where we would be alone, just talking, among other… things (not really comfortable mentioning it here, so ask me in person if you’re still curious, eheh). Oh yeah, and I finally know what champagne, white wine, and beer taste like now. They taste bitter and awful. It really is all acquired taste, yuck. Honestly, how do people enjoy these rancid drinks (yes, I know I’m underage, but my parents were there with me, lol). Of course, we didn’t spend all of our time on the ship. We also went on a few shore excursions where we had a bus tour (crossed the Canadian border and “smuggled” a Canadian rock, hahahah), went water rafting (still so much fun even though some of us got drenched, heh), and kayaking (got a little seasick halfway through since the waters were a bit rougher than I thought they’d be). We saw a bunch of bald eagles, starfish, some whales, seals, sea lions, and jumping fish that I presumed were flying salmon. Nothing else too eventful happened during the excursions aside from exploring the various towns by foot. 

As the ship continued south, the daytime discrepancy started lessening. It was actually reasonably dark at 10pm at one point! It’s a shame that it was overcast on most nights though despite being bright and sunny on most days. My friend and I had plans to see the stars, but you can probably guess that didn’t work out too well. However, a few lounges we visited had these ceiling lights that gently blinked on and off (and by that, I mean a faded kind of blinking) to represent the twinkling of stars. Ahh, how mesmerizing. Staring out into the “abyss” during the nighttime can be a bit terrifying though, especially when we were out on the deck. Like actually, the ship is surrounded by an even spread of black. Can’t see anything else. It’s just an abyss of what looks like nothingness. You can kinda see some ocean froth if you looked downwards, but everything else was black and empty. Scary stuff, eheh. Well, anyways, there was also this one magic show we saw and it completely blew us away. I think the magician’s name was Ben Seidman. For one of his tricks, my friend went completely ballistic and jumped out of his seat with such an awestruck look on his face and we were both wildly cheering and clapping until our hands turned raw. There was a laminated sheet of paper taped on the stage for the entire show, and it listed everything (except for the first bullet point) that happened—participants’ names, guesses, actions—and it was spot-on. How??????? The magician chose all of the participants randomly (I’m 100 percent sure of this) and… and… it’s all so mind-boggling it’s almost as if he predicted the future?? saldkhaskjldfhklf. OH, and us kids also decided to participate in this one game show on the ship called the Pyramid Game Show (basically like Taboo except without the taboo words) and we won! We each received a cute little flashlight as our reward, lol. For our last night on the cruise ship, my friend and I went to the deck and just, wow, you could see the skyline of this one city (no idea what its name was) but what a view! Vibrant and multicolored lights were dotted across the coast and you could faintly make out the shapes and glow of a few towers and buildings in the pitch black, and oh gosh, what a stark contrast to all the nature and mountains (and blackness during the nighttime) we’ve been seeing! I don’t want to ramble on for too long, so I’ll just begin a new paragraph here starting with when we all got off the cruise ship.

The ship docked in Vancouver and we were all free to explore the city for the rest of vacation. The first thing I noticed was how much the place reminded me of China (mainly the way the apartments were built and the fact that there was construction everywhere). We also visited Stanley Park where we saw this huge orange and yellow tree fungus jutting out from the bark, ate what I think was a Japanese hotdog (of course my dad didn’t like it), went to a shore where we skipped stones for a few minutes, walked on a trail where we saw these huge murky brown and black slugs, frogs, pink and white lotuses (ahh, they were so pure looking), oh and there were these couple of birds that approached me and I think that was the closest I’d ever been to a wild bird that wasn’t a pigeon or seagull (I was standing about 1-2 ft away from them whoaaaaa). After we all ate dinner at this one restaurant, my friend and I decided to head back to the hotel by ourselves and the rest of our family were off to explore other parts of the city. Oh yeah, and I finally had the opportunity to download Pokemon Go at the restaurant heheheheh (the carrier I have is kinda crappy and has a really spotty connection even with VPN). There were Pokestops everywhere, which is expected in such a populated city, but man does it suck to not be able to access most of them because I almost never had signal outside the hotel, hmph. I ended up being forced to live vicariously through my friend who managed to catch a Nidoqueen for his third encounter adskfajsklfhasdlfkhasdklfh. 

The next day, we stopped by Tim Horton’s for breakfast because we’re in Canada, after all, lol. We spent most of the day on the Hop-On, Hop-Off tour buses, and while it wasn’t as scenic as where we visited the previous day, it was still fun, ahah. Perhaps what was most memorable that day (though not necessarily in the good way) was when we stopped by Chinatown. My friend went into a porta potty and found… syringes. Well, that kinda set the mood. We went into this one park afterwards for a few minutes and while that was nice, it started becoming overcast (which also helped with the mood). We then walked out into this really shady area where there were these picnic blanket-sized tarps scattered on the ground loaded with items (old shoes, clothes, tattered trinkets, etc.). There was a huge crowd of people doing what looked like bartering and maybe buying this stuff. So I thought to myself, alright, maybe I’m just jumping to conclusions. As we kept walking, we saw this sketchy alleyway with a dumpster and people rummaging or “scavenging” through the rubble. Garbage and trash bags were strewn everywhere and you could see that the cars were being loaded with this stuff. Erm, okay. So I guess dumpster diving isn’t illegal here. But what really got me was after we passed that alleyway. I overheard a conversation between two people and this one guy was asking this other person something about having teenage boy sex slaves, and that was when my friend and I immediately glanced at each other horrified and “casually” increased our walking pace. Honestly, what on earth...? But enough of that, eheh. Also, the stereotype that Canadians are polite angels is not true. Well, at least not when driving, hahahahah (geezus, the road rage is real around here). 

The following day was our last day of vacation and my sister and her best friend already left for home by the time the rest of us woke up. Our parents let my friend and I wander around the city by ourselves for about half and hour or so after buying some breakfast (brunch?). We stopped by a few souvenir shops and a convenience store but finally settled down on a park bench in front of this fountain play structure and talked a bit more. Our last stop was a park filled with suspension bridges connecting tree canopies together. It’s kinda funny since my friend is afraid of heights, but he still seemed really insistent about going there. It was a really relaxing way to end the vacation, well, for me at least, haha. The rest of our day was spent at airports and airplanes where my friend and I finished the Undertale game he started (neutral/pacifist route). We also watched The Jungle Book on the plane, and it was… an interesting movie, lol.

I’m sure there were probably a few details I missed, but that’s just about the gist of how vacation went (I’m surprised I managed to write so much, I hope I didn’t bore you or anything, ahhhhhh). Also, I noticed that I wrote 7/6-7/16 on the previous response when it was actually supposed to be 7/6-7/19. It’s a minor error, but I figured I should let you know anyway, lol. If you couldn’t tell already, I had a lot of fun, heh. So many new experiences and sights to see! I’m a little bummed to be back home again, but I’m still so grateful for everything that happened during those couple of weeks. Oh, and this will most likely end up being my last response just going by how much summer I have left and everything I still have yet to do (feel free to hit me up with a PM if you need anything though). And sorry for writing so much about myself. I tried my best not to ask you any questions so that you wouldn't feel pressured to reply (rhetorical questions aside), eheh. Whether or not you want to reply is totally up to you, so don’t feel obligated to write up a last-minute response or anything if you’ve been feeling burnt out from everything that’s on your plate. I know there’s a lot you need to catch up on, so enjoy the rest of your summer, and I’ll see ya soon, haha.

[Kid the Phantom Thief 252]

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