Closed Orchid's Mysterious Garden

[Okido]

hello friends (yes, that means you)

Sorry if my presence around here has seemed a bit stifled during this past week or so. Can't help but feel like I haven't been quite as active/talkative as usual (perhaps that doesn't mean much coming from me) — though I've still been around, of course. Just going through a hard time right now.

Either way, even if I don't have much to say, this is just me stopping by to say hi and that I hope you guys have all been doing well lately.

 

[Okido]

*sweeps the dust off my keyboard*
Might as well keep this place up to date:

Spoiler

Still trying with all my might to get myself outta this rut I'm in, but I'm alive. Summer is really lettin' me have it this year, I tell ya. Well, it'll be fall soon enough... don't worry about me, I'm the toughest guy I know.

Though, on the bright side: I might finally be getting assessed for ADHD at some point in the near future. If everything works out, it would be great to be able to receive some of the support (and medication) that I've needed for years! In the meantime, I'm trying not to dread the whole ordeal; it's unfortunately become more of a necessity than ever though, lol. Oh well.

eh, what else have I been up to?...

I got enough of my energy back to draw some stuff for Art Fight, but ouch, it's still a little draining. I really want to get back into the habit, there's a lot of stuff I want to paint these days! Though I did get to draw something over on AF for a certain forum friend around here, so I was happy about that

But mostly... I've just been sitting in my room writing, playing Brilliant Diamond, and listening to music.
This week's album pick has been Stories And Alibis (2003) by Matchbook Romance - I loved this album a few years ago and had all but forgotten about it until recently. (Isn't that one of the best feelings, rediscovering something that you really needed to hear again?)
"Promise" is amazing, but in particular I've had the lyric from "Lovers & Liars" stuck in my head: "get me far away, or at least as far as this car will take me..."

Spoilered because, even if this blog is basically a journal of sorts, I don't like talking about myself too much... :p

Guys, don't freak out, but... GIF avatars are finally back

 

[Okido]

surprise, did I scare you?

I'm feeling better now than I was the last time I posted here, which is good. I'm getting by just fine and am doing my best to try to be more confident in myself and the things I do. I still need to draw more, but I say that everyday. That assessment I talked about in my last post is a little bit more within sight now and that's good too.

I rewatched Pokémon the Movie 2000: The Power of One the other day, and I liked it a lot more now than I remembered liking it when I was younger.
Ash's characterization in this one was just perfect — I thought it got across really well that, even if he really was the Chosen One who was prophecized to save everything and everyone... he's still just a kid, and having all that responsibility suddenly foisted upon on you would be a very scary and overwhelming thing. It would be scary to anyone! In that sense, his reaction to it all just felt extremely down-to-earth.
It felt like a very refreshing reminder, after newer sagas have tried to push the narrative that "actually he IS special, and he IS the Chosen One, and that's just a fact of life I guess, oh well whatever go save the world mister protagonist" — that really, Ash is just an average person like you or I; one who came from a small town in the middle of nowhere, tries his best, has to learn from his mistakes, and is only really "special" due to having a good heart.
...And then I was completely caught off-guard by the freaking Weird Al song that suddenly played in the dub credits because I did not remember that AT ALL. I nearly fell out of my chair.
Maybe I'll make my way through all the movies at some point, but it'll take a while.

I've also been playing a lot of Masters EX after not being particularly invested in it for a few years, only because the Trainer Lodge update has made me a little obsessed. (Yes of COURSE I'll hang out with you Blue, are we besties yet????)

And finally, I had some french toast yesterday and it was pretty good. That's what's been going on in my life lately.

 

[Okido]

Oh hey, could it be? A real live Nintendo Direct tomorrow? It is! Wow, I thought they were extinct.

The last general Direct we got was way back on February 9th, which is kind of shocking to think about. That lack of one in June really makes it feel like E3 never even happened this year. I know it didn't happen but you know what I mean >:p
It'll be 40 minutes, which seems to be the norm, and it will start at 10:00 AM in my timezone. I thought we finally moved on from doing these in the morning but here we are. T_T

As is the usual for these mid-September Directs, I feel like there's not much to really speculate about here. Most of the outlandish rumors floating about tend to die down by this time of year, and all the holiday releases are not too far away now, so what could possibly fill all 40 of these minutes? I feel like you kinda have to expect the unexpected... but keep your expectations low at the same time.

Once again, I will put in my general predictions and wishes now. I suspect these to end up being much less accurate than last time, because we have so little to go off of this time around, but ah well.

• Could Definitely Happen: News on Bayonetta 3, Breath of the Wild 2, and Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope; specifically that DLC they teased the other day.
• Might Maybe Happen: Something something NSO services. Something something Scarlet/Violet, even? Eh?
• It's Not Impossible?: Style Savvy. Another Harvest Moon remake (DS or Back to Nature, perhaps?). I'm also going to tentatively move Tomodachi Life Switch up to this tier because I wanna have hope this time goddammit.
• That's A Funny Joke: Mother 3, Pokemon Battle Revolution: Reloaded, Nintendo 64DD games on NSO, an entirely new Panel de Pon with online play, and a spiritual successor to the Everybody Votes Channel and/or Check Mii Out Channel.
• Who???: Pikmin 4.

See ya at 10:40 tomorrow!

 

[Okido]

And we're back. Let's review:

Spoiler: yesterday's predictions

Could Definitely Happen: News on Bayonetta 3, Breath of the Wild 2, and Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope; specifically that DLC they teased the other day.

Yes to all three. BOTW2 is now called Tears of the Kingdom, after we've all been calling it BOTW2 for years. History seems to repeat itself since BOTW was called "Zelda Wii U" for years before we got a real title.
Mario + Rabbids was shown but those expansion packs weren't mentioned, which saddens me because I wanted to see Rayman dangit

Might Maybe Happen: Something something NSO services. Something something Scarlet/Violet, even? Eh?

Yes, more N64 games being added. No SV anywhere to be seen. Basically what I expected.
Mario Party 1-3 is kind of a cool addition, and yeah I'd like to be excited about Pokémon Stadium 1 and 2, but you can't transfer Pokemon from any other games, so... kinda why bother? Even though we have RBY/GSC on 3DS Virtual Console and that could have been awesome if they could connect but of course not because the 3DS is about to cease being supported entirely whyyyy.

It's Not Impossible?: Style Savvy. Another Harvest Moon remake (DS or Back to Nature, perhaps?). I'm also going to tentatively move Tomodachi Life Switch up to this tier because I wanna have hope this time goddammit.

Nobody talk to me about anything else, we're on 48-hour Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life lockdown.
My prediction of it being DS or BtN was just ever so slightly off. If I'm remembering this right, DS has the same setting and characters as A Wonderful Life — and Harvest Moon 64, which is very similar to BtN, is actually getting added to the N64 NSO app in Japan. Weird!
But no Style Savvy or TomoLife, because the world is cruel and unjust. It was a fair sacrifice to make I suppose.

That's A Funny Joke: Mother 3, Pokemon Battle Revolution: Reloaded, Nintendo 64DD games on NSO, an entirely new Panel de Pon with online play, and a spiritual successor to the Everybody Votes Channel and/or Check Mii Out Channel.

Ha... haha... sigh...

Who???: Pikmin 4.

I-I DIDN'T MEAN IT!!!!!!

Spoiler: the other stuff that happened

Fire Emblem Engage
Literally everyone I know and everyone across the entire internet has been making fun of our new protagonists Pepsi Girl and Aquafresh Guy. Meanwhile, failure of a character design student that I am... I actually think they're kinda cute. Leave me alone!!!

Anyway, I've said this before, but I personally haven't enjoyed any FE game since Awakening. This one... could change my mind? I dunno, I'm oddly intrigued for once and I at least want to give it a shot. (And it's NOT because of Toothpaste Boy, okay?!?!)

Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life
This is all I really care about, I'm sorry. It doesn't come up a lot, because why the heck would it, but I am secretly a massive Harvest Moon/Story of Seasons fan. I'm just very excited that I'll finally get to play AWL in some form, especially with all the modern quality of life improvements.
The overworld graphics look really pretty so far, which is... more than I could say for SoS:FoMT? (I do love that game to death but omg does it ever look just terrible sometimes.) And again, some of the new character designs will take some getting used to, but they're not bad or anything. Nami looks perfect, and that's all I could really ask for. My only real wish is that my boy Skye from DS Cute will be added here, but maybe that's an impossible dream...
Also, holy hell, apparently we're getting an option for a non-binary player character this time around. And they're explicitly referred to as such on the press release!! HM remakes just keep winning, it seems.

Ib
I guess it's finally time I play this. I've been meaning to for years and years but have never gotten around to it. I've avoided spoilers for this long, so hey, I'll take this as a sign!

Pikmin 4
I literally said this as a bit and it came true. I like Pikmin a lot, so don't get me wrong, I'm happy about it... but why does this never happen for anything else that I make sarcastic jokes about??? OTL

Kirby's Return to Dreamland Deluxe
Magolor in HD. That will be all.
Also its page on the Nintendo website says it'll support online play, which would be neat if true.

Hey, that was actually a fun Direct. I'm pleasantly surprised!
Like any Direct, it had some "eh" moments here and there (like seriously guys I think we could have shown slightly fewer farm simulators) but overall that was pretty darn good.

I rate this one 8/10, for reminding us that the Mario movie is a constantly looming threat on the horizon that grows closer with each passing day.

 

[Okido]

random update because I guess I should

I've mostly been writing so far this week. My current project is up to a little over 14,000 words right now, but I'm getting close to the end of it, so ideally I'll be able to power through and finish it soon.

The weather is finally cooling down, much to my relief. Next Friday the temperature will peak at a mere 63°F (~17°C), which sounds like heaven right about now. I've been spending a lot of time down by the pier at the riverside these past few days, and I can only hope it'll stay cold from now on.

September usually tends to make me nostalgic, especially now, and as a result I've been listening to an absurd amount of music. I struggled for a long time trying to think of the right song to accurately capture how this month has made me feel, but came up with nothing. Maybe it'll come to me eventually; but for now, I just discovered this tonight, and it feels... almost right, somehow.

OK, goodnight.

.: ~♡~ :.​

 

[Okido]

Hmm. Hi!

I've spent the last week or two attempting to finish my National Pokédex in Brilliant Diamond, without the use of any touch trading. It's been... surprisingly fun, and not nearly as much of a chore as I thought it would be. My Natdex was already about 2/3 of the way full, and since I play GO pretty actively now, a lot of the remainder could just be sent up through HOME or otherwise obtained through the GTS. It's been an alright way to pass the time, especially since I do really want (more like need) that Shiny Charm at the end of all this.

Except now I've hit a slight roadblock. I'm currently at 489 caught, and the only ones I have left to register are Celebi, Deoxys, and... Spinda. Fun fact: Spinda is the only Pokémon regularly obtainable in BDSP that just... cannot be put into nor taken out of HOME. Really.
Because to my understanding, in BDSP only, there's a glitch involving the data that calculates Spinda's spots. Basically, a Spinda transferred from any other game will have completely incorrect spot locations when put into BDSP (and vice versa, a Spinda caught in BDSP will have incorrect spot locations when put into HOME). So to avoid this, they just made any Spinda completely untransferrable between BDSP and HOME. No one gets in, no one gets out. Spinda jail.
So... I've just sort of been... waiting for the daily swarm to perhaps, by some miracle, land on Spinda one of these days, so I can just catch one and get it over with. T_T
(Meanwhile, Celebi and Deoxys can't be traded on the GTS, and the only way to obtain them in BDSP is to transfer them up from a previous generation via Bank. Which would be fine, except um, my 3DS has gone missing in my own room, so I can't find it to do that. Oops??)

On the bright side, I finally finished my Let's Go Eevee dex, after having stagnated at 149 for almost three years because I couldn't be bothered to get a Golem through GO until now. XP I haven't done any more hunting yet, but I hope to get started soon, since there's so many lovely Kanto shinies that I'd like to train for an online team.

Anyway, that's most of what I've been up to. I overslept terribly today but I'm drinking coffee right now so life is good.
I kinda can't wait until it's December so I can put whipped cream and Christmas sprinkles on my coffee; I started doing that a few years ago and now it's just kind of a seasonal thing for me. ...Every day I become more like Noelle Holiday.

 

[Okido]

Well it's definitely been a couple hours.

Since my last threadmarked post, I have been intermittently shiny hunting in LGE now that I have the charm. On my first day I both found the shiny Diglett I've been looking for since February 2020 (yay) and accidentally ran away from a shiny Slowbro because I was literally not looking at the screen (wtf). I've been alternating between hunting Squirtle, Porygon, and Koffing, but so far no luck at all since then. That Slowbro probably placed a curse on me but whatever. OTL

Boring life stuff that I'm deciding to spoiler if you don't wanna read it:

Spoiler

As of yesterday, my birthday is now just three months away, so it's officially the time of year where I have to decide how I feel about that. 20 is a somewhat alarming number, but right now I am feeling... ambivalent... maybe?

I kind of reached an impasse in the process of getting those therapy appointments/assessments that I need, and now I'm back to the state of being... not really sure when any of that is going to happen. Which sucks, because I'm basically stuck, in every sense of the word, until I can get that over with. I'll live, but it'll continue to be a weight on my shoulders until then.

Right now I'm vaguely rotating some art ideas around in my head. In particular, I'm starting to think I want to officially flesh out the fan-region that I've been conceptualizing off and on since 2011 or so. (The only issue here is the fact that worldbuilding is kind of a slog to me. I just like making the Fakemon designs, along with hard technical data like their base stats and learnsets; I'm a character designer/programmer, not a writer lol. But, if I do get around to it, maybe another blog is in order, if that's something you guys would want to see that is.)
I'd also like to figure out how to draw Regidrago, for reasons.

And lastly, the song I've been listening to on repeat this week is: "Chapters", by Better Luck Next Time. It's actually not my favorite by them (nor even one of my top five), but I've been entirely hung up on the very last line: "you could say this all seems like a chapter, and it's neverending."

I also promised @Hawthorn I'd say something here about glitches in Pokémon games so here's that too. This won't be too in-depth but it'll be under this cut anyway.

Spoiler

Right now I'm probably most interested in 4 4, a glitch Pokémon exclusive to Yellow. More specifically, I'm fascinated by the "4 4's true cry" effect.

To keep things short: upon encountering 4 4 in the wild, the game will crash. Its front sprite is so incredibly massive that it overwrites tons of RAM, overflows into SRAM, and corrupts the address of the current sound bank — which almost always results in an immediate, anticlimactic crash, and not much else.

But back in 2013, this was unexpectedly discovered by TheZZAZZGlitch (volume warning, seriously, it's loud):

Pokemon Yellow: "4 4's true cry"

I was playing Pokemon Yellow, minding my own glitchy business. Suddenly, I used the wrong special stat, and encountered 4 4 instead of 4 4 Hy. Surprisingly, ...

www.youtube.com

And to this day, the effect seen here has never been replicated, ever again.

There's been tons of research put into figuring out just how this could have happened (as seen in the follow-up video from 2017, four years later) — there is even an automated script running on a virtual machine right now, constantly saving states and starting new encounters with 4 4 every second, in an attempt to somehow reproduce that cry — but as far as I'm aware, still nothing has ever come of it. The exact source of this sound still has not been determined.

unsettling, isn't it.

Okay, see you later.

 

[Okido]

Yesterday, I got my second vaccine booster. Thankfully no bad side-effects like I got from my initial shot and first booster, but wow my arm HURTS at the moment. Also everything kinda tastes weird??

~

I got around to preordering a physical copy of Violet earlier today, since we're now officially one month from release.
Sprigatito is still my starter choice. I'm probably gonna start avoiding leaks a little more carefully in the next few weeks, because I actually want that feeling of seeing new Pokémon for the first time while playing lol. I feel like I haven't experienced that since Gen 6, for various reasons; SM revealed way too much in their trailers before release, and I didn't play SwSh until late December so I just looked up the dex before then. I'm not squandering it this time!!
(also you know you're getting old when you still instinctually append "Version" to the end of Pokémon titles even though they haven't done that for almost a decade now. it's Pokémon Violet Version to me dammit)

For posterity, and for those of you who care about Pokeani — the Masters 8 finals match is starting later this week, spanning from October 21 - November 11.
I am... slightly nervous about the outcome, though I'm pretty sure Ash will win this one. Moreso I'm paranoid about what will happen after that lol, but I'm excited regardless. I just hope that the next series doesn't start on SV release day; I really want Project Mew to get some closure, and then for the animation team to get some rest until at least next year.

~

Gonna work on... maybe drawing or compiling some stuff for the headcanon blog later tonight. There's some ideas rattling around in there, it's just a matter of putting them on paper.

 

[Okido]

ugh, been feeling blah since last night. I don't really know what happened, but as soon as I got a bunch of new ideas and was feeling pretty good, my mask fell off and I just lost motivation for... everything. I'm gonna go find a comfortable rock and live underneath it until I gain some of my confidence back. Maybe I'll finally fix my sleep schedule while I'm under there too.

re: the latest Pokeani (spoilered for length, and spoilered for spoilers, but nothing major):

Spoiler

I stayed up to watch this episode when it aired this morning. TL;DR it was pretty good.

I got kind of emotional seeing Ash walk into the stadium so confidently, because during that scene I had a random flashback to the Indigo League Conference opening ceremony, when he marched into the stadium really nervous and awkward like a total dork lol. It was a very "look how far he's come, I'm so proud of him " kind of moment.

Secondly, omg surprise appearance from my favorite Project Mew gang. Gou seems confident too, good for him. Gary seems... kinda like he's thinkin' about somethin'. (Also Tokio calls him "Shigeru-kun" awww he finally made a friend I called it)
I sincerely can't tell if that's the last we're seeing of PM or not. It almost feels like it, but I also doubt it somehow. Naive optimism, perhaps...

Oh, right, the battle. That was good too.
Gengar's Cursed Body activating was actually kinda awesome? It made my competitive player heart happy because that is exactly how cool it feels when I get Cursed Body to work in my favor lol.
And I love seeing Mr. Rime animated. Its voice is perfect for it, too.

Though if I'll say anything, just from this first impression, I do think it kinda sucks that Ash is allowed to use GMAX, Mega Evolution, and a Z-Move all in the same battle. I get that from an in-universe standpoint it's supposed to be a testament to Leon's confidence, but out here it just feels like Ash is kind of in a bad position either way, whether he wins or loses.
If he wins, I foresee the argument being that it "doesn't count" because he had an advantage; and if he loses, I foresee endless waves of ridicule on the horizon, for being unable to win even when he used all three gimmicks in one battle. Poor Ashy-boy can't catch a break, can he.

Conclusion: I'm excited for the rest of this match, I just worry I'm going to be burnt out by Part III or so.
leave it to me to say I have no motivation and then gush about anipoke for several paragraphs

I'm gonna call it a day now. Here's to a good weekend for everyone.

.: ~♡~ :.​

 

[Okido]

Good news: my sleep schedule has been mostly repaired. The bad news is, just my luck, it's because I caught a cold over the weekend. orz

The last few days have pretty much just vanished into thin air for me. I feel a bit better today, but still not at 100% yet. I wish I had something more positive to say around here lol, but them's the breaks for me this week.

I hope you're all well; see ya sometime later.

 

[Okido]

Halloween is over. I've said before it's not my favorite holiday, and per usual I didn't do much of anything special, but I had an okay time I think.
Time to return all my profiles back to normal (until December, that is).

speaking of, it's November now. Strange to think the year's so close to being over when it still feels like it was summer just yesterday. Ah well, I think I'm ready to move on, so for once I don't mind.

I have more to write about, I'm fairly sure; but it's very, very late now, so I'm gonna get some rest and do that tomorrow when my mind is a little clearer.

.: ~♡~ :.​

 

[Okido]

Leave it to me to have posted something here way too early because I accidentally dropped a freaking orange on my phone. You saw nothing. NOTHING.

I was gonna make a longer threadmarked post last night, but I honestly couldn't think of a single thing to say. I had a very, very... tiresome day yesterday so my mind is still in a fog (as you may be able to tell).

I've been thinking I might make an SV travelog blog here once we're a little closer to release date — I wouldn't wanna spam up this one, probably. Though I might make it sooner, just to document some thoughts I have before it comes out; that could be fun to look back on later.

My day is only just getting started, so hopefully getting some art done later this evening isn't out of the question for me. (I say that a lot, don't I...?)

 

[Okido]

It happened! An actual post! And it only took four and a half hours to write it.

Spoiler: pokemon stuff (no actual spoilers here, don't worry)

There is so much happening in these next few weeks that I almost can't get a grip on it all. The most important battle in Pokeani history is concluding tonight, and SV is releasing a week from now, then my favorite arc that I'm way too invested in is being wrapped up after that, and then Journeys is ending and by then omg it's the holidays already. If you need me, you'll be able to find me in a sleepless caffeine-induced adrenaline frenzy until at least January.

I've been "avoiding" the big wave of SV leaks that have happened over the last 24-48 hours — and by that, I mean that I've been peeking at them through my fingers out of curiosity and then immediately running away again out of fear. Which has been working out well for me so far.
I've witnessed a little bit of it here and there, only the things that I desperately needed to know, but nothing that's really ruined the surprise for me (yet). I was fortunately blessed with the gift of an extremely awful short-term memory, so honestly, I already don't remember most of what I saw! There will be no mention or description of said leaks here, so you're safe; though I'll say that what I have seen thus far seems very promising, which is good.

Seriously though, The Finals IV is airing in a few hours and I don't know if I'm ready. I'm very much hoping that Ash will win — and I'm still pretty sure he will — but there's absolutely no saying whose match it is right now. No matter what happens, he'll always be First Place In Our Hearts to me.

For the record, at the moment, there has somewhat suspiciously been no announcement nor even a hint towards the next anime saga; when usually that gets announced a while in advance. Journeys was first announced in the middle of October 2019, about one month before it started... and if it ends this December 9th, I suppose there's still time to do that?
My guess is that the SV series will be announced on November 18th, which is both a break week and the Scarlet/Violet release date — but right now, just due to the current circumstances, I've noticed a significant number of us are flipping out about calmly considering the possibility of the entire series coming to an end... forever.

I just hope I can look back on this post and laugh rather than cry.

Spoiler: boring stuff?

As for me, I'm unfortunately feeling... below average. Mostly just tired, and very, very self-conscious lately. It's why I haven't had anything to write about here for so long — half of me has nothing to say, the other half doesn't really want to say anything at all. At least it comes and goes; I just wish it would go a little bit more often and for longer periods of time lol. I'd like to get back to doing the things I enjoy and enjoying them, but... right now, all I want to do is curl up in bed and sleep.

On another note, though; as you may have noticed, my username is a little bit... bolder now.
I didn't really want to draw any attention to myself, but it's been a couple days and after so many people mentioned it (I love you guys) I figure it's at least worth acknowledging here, for the future. ^^; I'm a super mod now — very exciting. I hope to give it my all and do an even better job going forward.

I haven't had a "song of the week" here like I usually do for a couple weeks in a row. I've been looping a few different songs recently, but I usually try to pick one that accurately captures how I've been feeling lately... which explains why I haven't been able to come up with one for a while. I usually take way too long overthinking the perfect choice and end up just not deciding on one at all.
That said, today's pick is: "Anything But Ordinary" by Avril Lavigne.

I'm gonna go get a small amount of rest before I have to get up again at 6:00.
If you're reading this, take it easy.

.: ~♡~ :.​

 

[Okido]

Time to be a supportive Subway Master like I was meant to be! [...]

Awww Blanc what reason do you have to be so nice?
I'm a little low on words right now, but... yeah, it's true days like these will be inevitable at times. Your kind words and belief backing me up certainly help more than you think though; and I hope you and I both can work towards feeling clearer soon enough. You've been a very good friend to me and I'll be around for you if you need anything either!

No need to worry about me, though. I'm tough, and even when things feel tiresome I will get through it like I've gotten through everything before. (You will too!)

My anxious ass wouldn’t find the courage to bug just anyone [...]

As an aside I very much relate to this. I only bug the people that I love. I annoy because I care.
(also I have an idea of what I want to draw you for your birthday but you didn't hear that from me)

---

Okay, I hate past me:

I'm gonna go get a small amount of rest before I have to get up again at 6:00.

Because OMG this ALWAYS happens to me. Whenever Daylight Savings Time rolls over, I always forget to adjust my schedule the next time I watch Pokeani. It was actually on at 5:00 AM my time, and I was still totally awake by then... but just completely missed it live anyway, since I still thought it wasn't airing until 6:00 AM. And then I fell asleep anyway as soon as I realized my mistake. I achieved nothing.

Anyway, actual semi-formed thoughts now. I apologize for this.

Spoiler: spoilers for JN133

HE DID IT!!! HE REALLY DID IT!!! I'm so proud of him!!! I don't care if I've already said it once or twice, I will say it a thousand times. He worked so hard to get here and HE DID IT. This twerp from some middle of nowhere town in Kanto is the strongest Trainer in the world now. AND DON'T YOU EVER FORGET IT.
I probably won't be over this episode for a very long time. There were several parts that were just done so well and with so much emotional weight that it actually made me want to shed a tear. (I didn't though. I DIDN'T.)
Now if you'll excuse me, I feel like I have to go listen to "Everything Changes" from 2.B.A. Master on loop for several hours.

In addition: two weeks from now lies the final culmination of Project Mew, in an episode of the same name.
The preview was (intentionally?) pretty vague, so not much to say about it right now. Though I don't know why but I love the fact Gary is wearing purple here??? I mean, purple isn't even anywhere on his main outfit anymore, but that's the one he picked. Like, heck yeah dude, that's your color. :P

Caffeinated excitement frenzy... setting in... must not die...

 

[Okido]

Hi.

I played Violet this week on the 18th and completed it back on the 20th. I really enjoyed it! The story and soundtrack is great and there's so many new Pokémon this gen that I really like, which is admittedly kind of a pleasant surprise. I've been Tera Raid Battling myself to death since I finished the main story, but I'm looking forward to wandering around in a postgame world.
I've also found two whole shinies thus far — one random full-odds Shiny Luvdisc during the main story, and the other a Shiny Persian while I was using Sparkling Power Normal to hunt Eevee.

Anyways, I'm gonna be real occupied because of some American holiday that's happening today. Wherever you are and whatever it is you're doing this evening, hope you all have a good Thursday.

 

[Okido]

Meh. Insomnia has been getting the better of me this week. No matter how hard I try, I just can't seem to sleep any time before 5:00AM these days... and all of a sudden that seems to be takin' a toll on me. Let me tell you, it does nooot feel great.

But I did promise holiday cheer, and I'm gonna put up my tree and decorations on Friday, I think. While I'm at it I'll probably force everyone to listen to Pokémon Christmas Bash too. As usual. Because winter is the coolest time of year...

Speaking of, I know you're probably sick of seeing 'em from everyone you know already, but it's once again time for Spotify Wrapped. I compiled some highlights from my top 100 songs last year, too - but since this blog didn't exist at the time, I figure this year I may as well put it here instead. So here, another slightly confusing glimpse into my music taste.

Spoiler: long

The only curation involved in this list is not including the same artist twice, and excluding any songs that make me think "why is this even on here?". Which honestly narrows it down by quite a lot.

#1. Motionless - Better Luck Next Time
#2. Universe - Savage Garden
#3. Crash - Charli XCX
#4. Promise - Matchbook Romance
#5. Imaginary - Evanescence
#6. Niki FM - Hawthorne Heights
#8. Reboot - jimmythumbP
#9. My Favorite Patient - Cauterize
#11. Poetic Tragedy - The Used
#12. Scars - Papa Roach
#13. Stars - t.A.T.u.
#14. Serotonin - In Her Own Words
#17. Set Phasers To Stun - Taking Back Sunday
#18. Smile In Your Sleep - Silverstein
#22. That's What She Said - The Friday Night Boys
#26. Kiss Me Like The World Is Ending - Avril Lavigne
#29. Bring It In, Guys! - Toby Fox
#31. Sometimes We Have Too Much Fun - You, Me, And Everyone We Know
#33. Dead on Arrival - Fall Out Boy
#35. She's A Lady - Forever The Sickest Kids (the EP version)
#37. Big Girls Don't Cry (Personal) - Fergie
#41. Dear Agony - Breaking Benjamin
#45. Double Vision - 3OH!3
#55. Wonderwall - Cartel (cover)
#59. Miracle - Paramore
#62. Crossing Our Fingers For The Summer - Cinematic Sunrise
#65. Adam's Song - blink-182
#70. Iris - The Goo Goo Dolls
#79. I'm Not A Thief, I'm A Treasure Hunter - A Skylit Drive
#81. 感情ケミストリー - Yuuhei Satellite ft. senya
#82. There's No Sympathy for the Dead - Escape the Fate
#85. Heartbeat - Stereo Skyline
#87. 貴方に花を 私に唄を - Re:nG
#90. Rapid Hope Loss - Dashboard Confessional
#91. Give Me Your Hand (Best Song Ever) - The Ready Set
#94. Gerbera - MEMAI SIREN (original by Yuyoyuppe)
#96. Kagerou - BABYMETAL
#100. Your Faith In Me - Jessica Simpson

There's some stuff I know I've listened to this year that apparently didn't even make it into the top 100, which I find interesting. I'd apparently listened to 29,131 minutes of music this year, which is down significantly from last year's total of 38,496, but allegedly still more than 81% of other listeners in the US. (It also told me that I am a "Time Traveller", whom "seeks out music that's new to you, regardless of whether it's new to the rest of the world". Sigh. Trust me I know.)

 

[Okido]

There's been not much goin' on with me lately, but today I do have some good news. As of about two hours ago, I've finally replaced my ancient clunky laptop, and have upgraded to a far nicer one!

I may have gained a reputation among my friends in these past 5 years for having a horrible outdated computer that hates me, but those days are over now. No longer must I suffer through having 4GB of RAM, a fuzzy 720p display, a perpetually dying battery, a wifi connection that often shuts off at random, occasional weird behavior after updates, programs that stop responding and crash if I look at them the wrong way, being only barely able to run games from 13 years ago... uh you get the idea. I'm free!
Only thing I'll have to get used to is Windows 11, since it came preinstalled, but so far it doesn't seem all too bad? I haven't really messed around with it yet, but right now it just feels like 10 with a fresh coat of paint, really.

Regardless, I'm very excited to be able to actually do things without being held back by the struggles of my old HP brick. (For instance, did you guys know that programs can actually open relatively quickly? Did you know webpages don't usually take 5-30 seconds to load on a good day? Crazy, right?!)

 

[Okido]

So, it's been a month and a new year has started. Like I mentioned, a lot has happened, for better or worse. I tried to tackle it all somewhat concisely, but uh this ended up pretty long regardless lol.

Spoiler

First things first; of course, last Saturday was my birthday! I'm 20 now and I've got all sorts of mixed feelings about that, lol. On the one hand, it really feels like a big change, and it makes me want to go out and start living my life. On the other hand... ewww, twenty. Humbling. Maybe I'll just go lay down on the floor for a while, instead.
A big round number like this can really put things into perspective. Where exactly did the last 5-10 years go? If anyone finds them... please tell me... T_T

Aside from that, the day itself was alright, though maybe the slightest bit underwhelming to be totally honest. I just visited downtown as I usually do, and later I had kake udon and makizushi from a small restaurant near my house (both of which were fantastic by the way). And... that's really about it! It was nice enough, and I don't mind spending the day quietly by myself, but I definitely feel like I've had better/more memorable ones in the past for less important milestones. It is what it is though and that's fine by me.

~~~​

Now, the rest. What's happened since I last visited around here?

Well, for one thing... on the morning of Friday, December 16th, it was announced that the Pokémon anime series as we've known it all this time will soon be coming to an end. It's being concluded with a final 11-episode arc entitled "Aim to Be a Pokémon Master" — one last hurrah to celebrate the story and its heroes, before we finally say our goodbyes to them indefinitely. It will be succeeded by a new, unrelated series, currently just known as "Pokémon (2023)".
(I sort of wrote out my thoughts about this over in this lovely thread right here, but that was a while ago already.)

Have you ever had what you thought was a completely irrational worry in your head that something would happen, and then it actually does end up happening after all? Yeah... me neither... ;_;

I'll be honest, when this news dropped, it completely and utterly defeated me for a while. I don't know if it just caught me at a bad time or what, but it felt like reality very suddenly crashed down on me all at once. I felt very weepy that week. (And yes, you may laugh.)
It was bound to happen, and I do feel a little ridiculous letting it get to me this much; but I can't help it, really. It's just so... strange, I guess, when something that meaningful to you that'd always been there — that you assumed would always continue to be there — just suddenly... isn't. It's given me this sense of sad, heavy-hearted wistfulness that I just haven't been able to shake, not even for a day. I suppose I'll cross that bridge when we get to it, but man, I kinda wish I didn't have to.

...and hey, check out what I was saying right here on this blog just a few months ago!:

Spoiler

It just feels weird, ya know? It's a lot better than what they used to do, where they'd just let most characters disappear without alluding to them again... but doesn't it feel weird that they're setting up a lot of them to, potentially, never be able to return again after this? A lot of these past characters' departures have seemed very final, or at least that's how I've interpreted them. Obviously nothing is certain about the Gen 9 series yet; but it really feels like they're gearing up for... something with all this, and it's a little concerning to think about what that could possibly be.

[...] right now, just due to the current circumstances, I've noticed a significant number of us are flipping out about calmly considering the possibility of the entire series coming to an end... forever.

I just hope I can look back on this post and laugh rather than cry.

Haha... ha...

~~~​

So then a week came and went, and Christmas had already rolled around. I wish I had some fun story to tell about how my holiday was, but uhhh... I woke up on Christmas morning feeling sick, and it turned out to be Covid, lol. Is that a fun story?
Yeah I still have no idea how this happened honestly. I hadn't been outside in quite a few days, I always play it very safe and had never caught it before up to that point... and yet, somehow, I was the only one in my house who tested positive for it. Needless to say, I just did not really have Christmas/NYE this year, since I spent the entirety of them quarantined in my room. (whyy??!!)

It was pretty awful for those first few days, but I'm better now and it definitely could've been a lot worse. The longterm symptoms are no joke, though — I've been fully recovered for nearly two weeks now, but my voice is still shot, I'm finding it noticeably harder to focus and I have a lingering dry cough that won't leave.

Be careful, everyone.

~~~​

But now it's a new year! A fresh start! So what do I have planned?

...I don't know, really! I never go out of my way to make any resolutions, none too ambitious anyway — but I've got this nagging feeling that I just want to do tons of new things this year. Like I said, it feels like something's changed and I want to try taking a step into new experiences. It'll be hard, but I'm just so tired of idly sitting around, waiting and waiting for something amazing to happen... when I know nothing ever will, if I don't make an effort. I've wasted so much time doing that.

That said, I know I have to start small. It goes against my very nature to do this, after all, lol. Throwing myself headfirst into anything just isn't possible right now.
I'm thinking I'll go back to the process of seeking out the medical appointments that I need to make life a little easier, and then slowly work my way out from there.

~~~​

And how am I feeling right now...
Fine, I suppose. This past month has been rough on me, and I'm still trying to get back up from it knocking me down... but the floor ain't so bad at the moment.

The weather has been freezing cold, as is the usual for this time of year, and I like it that way! I've made lots of progress in writing/finishing the oneshot that I've been working on for... nearly two years (ouch) and I'm almost done with it now. And in a weird way, I'm almost kind of looking forward to watching each and every episode of Aim to Be a Pokémon Master — don't get me wrong, it'll absolutely break my heart by the end, but like... I think I'm ready... maybe... or not LOL.

To round things out with a song pick... I can't choose, so tonight it will be "Minna de Arukou!" a.k.a. "Everyone Walk Together!" from the Riding on Lapras CD. For no reason other than that I love that song's existence, and it just feels particularly relevant in a certain nostalgic, bittersweet kind of way these days.
And, heck, on that note, I think "To Know The Unknown" from the Pokémon 3 soundtrack fits that bill too.

I hope you have a nice night.

.: ~♡~ :.​