Six Senses

Before getting anything else going on this Pokémon blog, I'd like to discuss "yearly themes" as I've done in the past (this one being last year's) - but of course, bring things back to Pokémon somehow. For this year, I thought that it might be just as well for the numerical suggestions from the past to continue into this year, and with that, I settled for theme of "Six Senses" since last year was "five" and "six" certainly follows that. Of course, the other half of that theme is just as significant and it's the part that may be telling of Pokémon things to come.

Now, the choice of "senses" alludes to the traditional perception that there are five of them. But "five" was last year, so the "six" this year must allude to the perception that there may be an extra one of these senses. One of these could be the often-discussed ESP that forms the basis of the regard for psychic people, which further alludes to the Pokémon species of this type (Psychic) and especially one called Espeon, whose name practically includes the term in question. Thus, the theme for this year suggests a fair bit of "extra".

For that, this year's Pokémon anniversary is already a spiffy "extra" in itself, and it doesn't take a sixth sense or ESP to see that. What might need just that is the ways to determine what the anniversary will hold this year - as usual, in about one and a half months - in actuality rather than by purported information that also as usual has a way of manifesting itself around this time. If that holds "spiffy extras" as well, then it also doesn't take a sixth sense to determine that Pokémon is going to be over the top ("extra") for its next offerings.

Still, the rest of the world today (and even my own state of affairs) aren't exactly telling of "extras", and if they are telling of anything, then it could be that they might make dealing with Pokémon things more difficult. In that way, the "extras" might be telling of certain "burdens", whether they are Pokémon in origin or not. This also suggests that Pokémon affairs might have to try to reduce the burdens that they might put on for those who enjoy them, in order that fans can still enjoy them even with what could be difficult times ahead.

The big thing about senses is that they are important in and for perceiving everything about life, including all things Pokémon. It takes all five of the common ones to do just that, but sometimes for both explicable and inexplicable reasons, some help from a sixth one in some form might just be helpful. So it is that for this year, all the senses - and then some - will likely be needed to make sense (ahem) of the (Pokémon) world, and after everything has gone on, they'll still be needed for taking all that in to enjoy and survive in it.

One year ago: Pokémon Go Community Day, 1/5/2025

Two years ago: Tell Me, It'll Be All Right

Three years ago: Kids in Cosplay?

Four years ago: Indomaret Promotional TCG Cards

Five years ago: (Re)Structuring Competitions

Six years ago: Jelly-Filled Doughnuts

Seven years ago: Cosplay: Bunkasai XXI

Eight years ago: The Music of Go

Nine years ago: Alt+0233 and Its Kin

Pokémon Go Community Day Classic, 1/4/2026

Well, this is an ambitious start to the new year. This is now the earliest that Community Day has ever been scheduled in the year, and it's a Classic edition too, meaning the regular edition will come sometime later in the month. "Ambitious" might also describe the featured Pokémon species that returns for this Classic edition, which is a waddler with happy impressions that when fully evolved becomes something assertive - like a ruler - that can stand its ground in the face of certain adversities.

For those who haven't figured it out, this edition's featured species is Piplup, which was last featured in January 2020. Like it was back then, when I had Ash take care of quite a bit of the effort, the main bonus is quartered Egg hatch distance for those who want and need to clean out their Egg stock, and Empoleon as its fully evolved form (after Prinplup, of course) gets the Charged move of Hydro Cannon. Other returning facets are extended Lure Modules (back then extended Incense wasn't quite a thing) and Field Research, which was already a thing since way beyond this edition.

As for modern aspects, there would be extended Incense (with its three-hour length, whereas Lure Modules remain at one hour), extended Lure Module appearances (since the regular edition back in October last year), photo bombs (always a nifty add-on), and the extra paid Special Research (this time entitled "Piplup Parade"). Special backgrounds also return for the featured Pokémon, but this time they're not of the season; instead, the background is a unique nebulous image with a Poké Ball silhouette. As with the October edition, the background is randomly found for wild encounters and surely from some in the paid Special Research.

Evidently, this time I did things by myself instead of while sending Ash to a certain happening, since there were none to speak of anyway. This time around for Piplup, it was mostly to gather up the resources to enhance the Piplup I already have, including to fully evolve one with the best stats, which may be in the cards for further enhancement later on. Along the way, I evolved the best of my Lucky ones and a couple that had the special background, one of which is actually Shiny. In all, most things today were for preparing (for) the best.

(In the realm of "community", well... today I also needed to forego certain impressions for others, and that may or may not have had the desired results.)

Piplup is a Pokémon species that has made quite an impression over time along with other, more popular species, so it becomes a natural fodder for a Classic edition of Community Day. In particular, its earlier edition took place before many modern perks of the event were instituted, so bringing it back for a Classic edition helps in that regard. It's an ambitious Pokémon for an ambitious time (incidentally), and at the beginning of this year, that may just be a sign of things to come for the regular iterations.

One year ago: Card Rarity in TCG Pocket

Two years ago: Let's Talk About Being In and Out of Place

Three years ago: Three to Get Ready, Go

Four years ago: TCG 25th Anniversary (Plus Localized Content)

Five years ago: New GBL Novelties

Six years ago: On Third Parties

Seven years ago: The Loading Screen of Go

Eight years ago: Team Assistance and Secrecy

Nine years ago: "They can imitate you, but they can't duplicate you..."

Are Pokémon Fans "Reckless"?

Pokémon fans are certainly united by their love of all things about the franchise, or at the least what appeals to them from what the franchise offers. Yet it's possible that they could be united in other respects, one of them behavior or attitude. For that, I have a proposition that might sound somewhat controversial but sensible in some ways, particularly by the experiences of my own in contrast to those of other fans. Despite its element of controversy, I consider that there's still a place to make a discussion about it - and in a calm manner, no less.

That's because I'm floating the idea that Pokémon fans can be considered "reckless" in their behavior or attitude. It's a strong claim to make, especially given the fact that it includes yours truly as a part of the group. Yet the way that quite a few of them are in some communicative channels, like the comment sections of YouTube videos (as I've addressed a few years ago) or even in some game chats or forums, suggests the "reckless" idea. Then again, that's where some of the most "toxic" fans are present, while the amiable fans are less likely to have such tendencies; or rather, the tendencies might be present in another way than communication.

Meanwhile, other fans might go to other extremes that might suggest "recklessness". Some fans might be willing to travel great distances to meet each other, given an opportunity that makes that possible. Then, others might invest themselves in some efforts of creation or collection that could seem beyond humanly (capabilities), and the "recklessness" through those efforts might be implied. Even this blog by yours truly could be considered, in a way, a product of "recklessness" (including in the way it's done), which may explain why it may or may not have begotten anything useful even after many years of me keeping up the efforts.

Granted, any claim about behavior or attitude may not necessarily be universally applicable, including the claim I'm making in this post. Some fans might still be rational in all their ways, at least by their own perceptions as well as of others, though a few of their actions might just approach "recklessness" by some accounts. The claim would then become most applicable to the most fervent, intense, and even "crazy" of fans, whose actions can possibly be construed to have elements of "recklessness" even with certain rational bases for those actions.

So, it seems that the "reckless" viewpoint of Pokémon fans in their behavior or attitude might only lie in the eye of the beholder, and that perception may depend on the fans who perceive and are being perceived. After all that, it may be sufficient to say that Pokémon fans may or may not be as wild or extreme as the eponymous species of creatures, but at least their appreciation may have wild and unique extents. Whether that's "reckless" or not may just be something that fellow fans have to recognize and reconcile for all their attraction to Pokémon.

One year ago: A Pokémon Unite Dream

Two years ago: Four on the Floor

Three years ago: Cosplay: Pokémon Festival Jakarta

Four years ago: Two and Two Together

Five years ago: A Dream with Partners

Six years ago: A Clear Vision

Seven years ago: Home and Heart... and Hope

Eight years ago: Now Accepting Donations

Nine years ago: Confessions and Concessions

Getting It Together: Simplify and Amplify

As I'd said in my opening post for the new year, I'd like to discuss what I'll need to do for this blog in order to make an improvement, also the same as prior years as indicated below. A lot of the points presented in them still apply, but for this year in particular, I want to discuss what it may take for me to "get things together", something that has presented a challenge over much of the past year and perhaps even up to this point in time. After considering what has happened then and now, I've determined that in order to "get things together", I'd need to do two things, as indicated by this post's title, which are to "simplify" and "amplify".

For the "simplify" portion, it might seem that more than a few of my posts have gotten quite "convoluted" in their structure, even if this could be considered a natural consequence of being able to write more in comparison to my early blogging days. Thus, the effort is to try to remove "convolution" wherever possible and to make it easy for me to write about Pokémon things while still necessarily going as deep as possible and necessary into them. This would in turn make it easy to deal with this blog amidst all other (Pokémon) things in my life.

Then there's the "amplify" portion. That would involve ways of making my posts having that necessary depth as above while making the limited resources I have - mostly words, but at times images might also be pertinent - say or express as much as possible. It might be considered an avenue of creativity that is somewhat needed for this blog after so many years. Given that Pokémon itself has been (and recently gotten) rather creative and so have a good segment of its fans, it seems natural that I'd have to follow suit for this blog somehow.

Even with these two aims together, it might still be necessary to let one of them take a slight dominance over the other to still allow myself to express what I need to express and to show what Pokémon things absolutely needs to be shown. That also means it might be partially dependent on what those Pokémon things actually are and how they could stand to be featured on this blog in both of the ways stated above - again, words and/or images.

Realizing these two aims might be either a hand-in-hand matter or a separate-but-together effort, much like how certain Pokémon games are played and including ones that are very much pertinent to me right now and in the foreseeable time ahead. At least some of that is definitely a natural fodder for being featured on this blog, and after nine full years and going into the tenth, making things simple while also amplified seems to be the imperative.

One year ago: New Directions, Same Directions

Two years ago: Blog Changes: Made and Not Made

Three years ago: More Blog Overhauls?

Four years ago: Thoughts on More Categories

Five years ago: Pokémon Blogging Wellness

Six years ago: New Post Categories

Seven years ago: Taking the Plunge

Eight years ago: What's Next?

Nine years ago: ...And a Hoppip New Year

Hoppip New Year 2026

Hoppip New Year! Well, this Pokémon blog is now starting its tenth year, a round number for all things concerned. Now, roundness can be construed in many different ways, and any of them seem apt to be discussed at the beginning of this year of Pokémon blogging for all that they may indicate for what has come as well as what will come with everything Pokémon. That then becomes reflected back into my blogging efforts for what I've done and what I'll need to do - the latter likely in more detail tomorrow.

One of the things that "roundness" may refer to is completion. Nine years of discussing certain Pokémon matters on this blog have been completed, and I've also been able to complete a lot of things within that time. Yet this is something that faces challenges, much like the subject of "commitments" that I discussed a year ago (see below). Despite the challenges, both past and present, I still want to commit to that completion, and that also means doing what I can possibly do in both the Pokémon front and blogging side.

"Roundness" can also have references to perfection or fullness, and this presents a more intriguing prospect. Over the past year, a lot of things have happened for Pokémon, and I got to address many of them in my blog posts. This year, meanwhile, already has its cues for further perfection and fullness, some to be evident in a couple of months' time. That means more of them to address, which further means more chances to achieve a "roundedness" of my own with this Pokémon blog.

Like in past years, I also put forth my "Hoppip Report" on this day. Last year, I put out stats on my captured Hoppip through the in-game Pokédex since I didn't have anything particularly special for a captured Hoppip. I've decided to revisit that and show what kinds of Hoppip I actually have through the new and improved appearance of that Pokédex - something I should probably discuss in a different post. The ones for the 100% (best stats) and Lucky are indeed missing... but they'll surely come sooner if not later.

Also like past years, the list of posts from past years grows even more round with the addition of the one from nine years ago. That is something that is warranted regardless along with the state of roundness of all my affairs, both in and out of Pokémon. As for Hoppip itself, it is not necessarily a "rounded" Pokémon in one sense, but after all this time, it still has provided a sense of "roundedness" for me to start off another year of Pokémon blogging. By all means, that may be a good and "round" way of looking at things at this point. 

One year ago: Hoppip New Year 2025

Two years ago: Hoppip New Year 2024

Three years ago: Hoppip New Year 2023

Four years ago: Hoppip New Year 2022

Five years ago: Hoppip New Year 2021

Six years ago: Hoppip New Year 2020

Seven years ago: Hoppip New Year 2019

Eight years ago: Hoppip New Year 2018

Nine years ago: First Post Time!

Nine Years... in My Item Storage

So, as of this post, it completes a full nine years of blogging about Pokémon on all kinds of topics, from hard ones related to the games and the rest of the Pokémon franchise fandom to soft ones related to much of my own experiences and at least a little bit of some of other fans. Like previous years, to close off the year, I take a concept or mechanic - mostly from the main series games - and attempt to apply that to all that I've blogged about within that time. The concept I've chosen for this year is item storage (or Bag, when talking about general-purpose Pokémon Trainers), something that is evidently needed for those main series games but is also applicable to other Pokémon games with their multitudes of similar yet different items. 

When I started this blog, I didn't have much of an inkling of what I'd post about, and I'd often choose random topics to discuss - like a Trainer starting out with only a few items in their Bag. In more recent times and especially this year, those "random topics" have settled into a kind of "regularity", like for a Trainer having a ready stock of various kinds of items in their Bag, ready to use them when the opportunity strikes. My regular event rollups and coverage for Pokémon Go, updates on certain progressions for all kinds of Pokémon games, and some days of the year with posts dedicated to more esoteric topics are examples of the evident "regularity".

Many items, in and out of the main series games, are certainly of the "enhancer" nature, like the hold items I discussed a year ago (see below). But the main series games also have a host of what are called "key items" that serve to advance the adventure in some way. My takes on all kinds of Pokémon aspects, like the ones in the "gimme five" series posts throughout this year followed by other facets of the franchise have elements of both enhancement and advancement - in many cases depending on how readers and other fans look at them.

Quite incidentally, nearly two years ago, I had discussed the amounts of items Trainers may have in their Bag in general, and the points that I had discussed there (re)apply into this end-of-year discussion with the more general topic of item storage. For the concerns of this blog, the path taken can be said to be the "moderate" path with sufficient items (or discussions) that free Trainers - or fans - to take whatever Pokémon path they want or need to take for them. 

Yet much recently, there has been the concern of "maxing out" the items in my storage, which can and still do happen in games that impose such limits like Café Remix and Pokémon Go, and the associated problems that come with that. That translates to this blog as having issues in composing posts and having to cope with them like Trainers use up their excess items.

Nine years is a pretty long time for blogging efforts, especially in my case where I devote them to a specialized topic, in this case Pokémon. Even more specialized within that is the body of items that make up one's storage in the games of the franchise or wherever they apply.

Looking into my "item storage", it seems that I've got a varied lot of items in it, like the posts on this blog, and that has to be shown off within this year and the next. Cheers! 🍒🎈🎀

One year ago: Eight Years Holding Items

Two years ago: Seven Years with Usage of Field Moves

Three years ago: Six Years & The Conferring of Statuses

Four years ago: Five Years - Extended Healing

Five years ago: Four Years, Taking Damage and Healing

Six years ago: Three Years: Making My Moves

Seven years ago: Two Years of Evolution

Eight years ago: One Year Full of Pokémon

Realizing Agreements

The fire

Making me clean

Making me fly

Spinning me 'round and 'round

Spinning me 'round

The fire

Within your eyes

This mystic time

I've known before

Once before

The flame

Within my heart

Agreements made

Are now realized

Like before...

-- "Agreement", Kitaro (vocals by Jon Anderson)

As for a song to really close off this year, as I've discussed others in all of the past years, I had to think and really think about it, and I settled on the above quoted song in the end. "Settled" becomes an appropriate word, for its title ("Agreement") has that very connotation. It's an intriguing connotation to say the least, and framing that in the Pokémon experiences I've had this year on and off this blog is something that can and should be done.

But first, the song itself needs to be discussed. This is one of the few vocal songs by this "new age" composer, though the vocals are provided by a singer better known as the vocalist of a certain band. It's also a pretty long (and slow) song, of which the first pre-chorus and chorus are quoted above. As a result, its flow and lyrics are pretty drawn out, which applies to the themes and imagery, and ultimately how the song can relate to Pokémon.

The most curious part of the quoted lyrics as above is of course the "fire" and "flame" that have certain effects, if many Pokémon species of the former type are to be considered. The song itself suggests a kind of "delirium" with these elements as well in light of what has been quoted above, and with all of the goings-on in Pokémon this year, players and fans might find themselves in that kind of "delirium", trying to seek agreement with the happenings.

Seeking agreements is of course one thing; realizing them is quite another. Throughout this year, that has been a challenge, as I had addressed with my review in light of the "yearly theme" I supposed for this year. Even now, coming to terms with what is expected to make an agreement happen may still be difficult for several Pokémon matters - not the least of which are remnants of other matters - and may be further challenging with the "delirium".

If this song has any other indication, it may be that realizing agreements might require one to make sense of and make peace with the world, and that is similar in spirit to other songs and musical pieces by this artist. That is an "agreement" in itself, and the same would be true for Pokémon matters and happenings, especially those that have been present over the course of this year. The next agreement might just be to make sure that all of those turn out for the best.

One year ago: The Road Never Ends

Two years ago: Tales Told, One by One

Three years ago: Someday, Soon...

Four years ago: ...Is There Still Time?

Five years ago: Return to Believe

Six years ago: (Extra-)Ordinary Days

Seven years ago: One Day, in Life

Eight years ago: When I See You Again