Showing posts with label Social. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Social. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 11, 2026

Am I Relationally Challenged?

As a Pokémon fan, I'm not without problems, which can be evidenced by two posts with similarly structured titles from past years. Now I'm about to write up a third one, which could be considered a follow-up to the second of the two posts above, but it also has some separate concerns. The earlier post dealt with communication, as in interacting with other people or entities; this one addresses relation, as in how I make sense of things - not necessarily with communication involved, but it could be. And then there's the necessary Pokémon aspect.

Making sense of (understanding) things to determine their relations is important in daily life, never mind doing so for all kinds of Pokémon games. Yet for all I've done well in this regard, it seems that there are still plenty of circumstances where I've had problems in determining relations. In the specific case of Pokémon games, this would involve how I make sense of their elements and then applying them, for example like moves in a battle. Sometimes they don't turn out how I'd expect them to be and I only find out about them after the fact.

Then there is the issue of putting out my thoughts on those relations in words - particularly on this blog. In doing so, I have to make sense of the relations Pokémon things first before I then go on to put them in writing on a post, and in either case, it seems sometimes that as I build those relations, I also have problems in doing so, like they don't make sense (to me) even as I've tried to make them make sense - if you get my drift. After having done so in the past ten years or so, it seems odd that it does happen, but the fact of the matter is... it does happen.

Like with the communication challenges discussed earlier, there may be a chance that the problems I have with relating things in and outside of Pokémon may be explained by a certain (mental) condition, even if that could only be explained later on and somehow. Whether that is or isn't true, probable, or resolvable - if it happens to be so - in some way, I want to say that I'm doing the best I can in any case. And of course, that won't change the fact that I'll always be attracted to Pokémon and be doing something with it in some form for everyone.

I've had many years of being able to make relations and make sense of them for all kinds of things, including but not limited to Pokémon. Many of them have turned out sensibly and in the best manner, but quite a few didn't or haven't seem to, which then became the prompt for this post and the question that its title entails. Even so, it just seems to be a part of the many "challenges" that I seem to possess when it comes to dealing with life and all the elements that are present in it, and with Pokémon included, that makes for a challenging life as well.

Monday, February 23, 2026

It's All About You

Regular readers might notice - aside from the recent pacing of posts - that apart from those made in "conversation" style and/or with special addressing, I've seemingly shied away from usage of the word "you" to refer to other Pokémon fans, players, and/or any other relevant parties. Yet it's such a vital way of referring to others not only textually but also personally. To that end, I've decided to take a post to regroup my thoughts on the matter while also still including the necessary Pokémon references for support.

The "seemingly" part may be due to my attempts of shifting tones on posts to try to discuss the matters in them in a more authoritative (in a way, formal) manner, even if the matters are more liberal (again in a way, casual). Pokémon matters are expected to be more of the latter than the former, so it might be unusual or even a little nonsensical to try to make things out as the former if it's not completely necessary to do so. The bottom line is that there is room for interpretation in either direction regarding the discussion of Pokémon matters.

What may be just as important is to consider the feelings and relevance toward the parties I might potentially refer with the word "you", which might involve any or all of the ones whom I had already mentioned above. In that regard, something like the aspects of Pokémon Go that occasionally causes trouble for some of you (ahem) players out there or the merchandise items that you (ahem) collectors obtain might provide an opportunity for sentimental connections to be made by inciting the reference with the word.

Given the above considerations, there might still be room for the usage of "you" in various non-conversation and non-special discussions on the posts of this blog, even if I might still shy away from its usage from time to time. In order to try to reach out to others in a more relaxed manner, the usage of the word - perhaps in the ways that I have put forth as above - might be necessary. Pokémon remains something that is personal to many people (including yours truly), and that personal connection may be needed for you and me - us. 

So, as the final word: you (Pokémon fans, fellows, friends, or whoever) are awesome, and you are you - and Pokémon makes all of us who we are.

One year ago: Cosplay: Utsuru 9.5
Two years ago: AFA ID Returns
Four years ago: Good Builds for Unite?
Seven years ago: Let's Go Take Pictures
Eight years ago: Community Days!

Wednesday, January 28, 2026

Analyzing the Traffic for My Blog

Dedicated readers will know that I sometimes discuss "meta" content related to this Pokémon blog itself in addition to actual Pokémon content, and this time I thought I'd post another one relating to the former. It concerns the traffic that comes to (and views) this blog, which is undoubtedly important for any site, even this one on my corner of the Internet. Using the information that I obtain from the Stats section of the site management for this blog, I'd like to discuss some particular points of interest about the traffic to this blog.

It should be noted that I can analyze traffic from the periods from a certain time in the past up to the now, although I can't analyze periods that don't involve the now. For this discussion specifically, though, I'd also like to place focus on the overall all-time traffic from the start when this blog was created to the now - although I can also point out specific trends within some specific times in that entire period, which should be just as fascinating as the overall traffic itself. Of course, all this can be tied back into Pokémon somehow.

Now for the pertinent stuff. For views, this blog was relatively "sleepy" from its start in 2017 up until mid-2024 when the views suddenly surged to many thousands, the highest around the end of last year entering this year. Even so, most of that view traffic has been indicated to come from an unknown source (or sources), so I can't exactly point out what they were for. A lot of the view traffic, however, is indicated to come from search engines and social media, which means that at least some people are actively seeking Pokémon content, finding my blog in the process, and then referring back to the content in it in some way.

As well, I can point out the origins of those views. To this point, one-third of the views were identified as coming from Singapore, which is notably the home of Brandon Tan as the prime Pokémon Go player... but the views may have more obscure origins and not be necessarily related to either Brandon Tan or Pokémon Go, the latter still a frequent topic of discussion here. The rest of the views are from my resident country (of course), the U.S., other identified countries, and other unidentified ones, each of them roughly in one-sixth amounts. That may or may not mean something for Pokémon fans in all of those regions.

Meanwhile, the topic of what are those views were viewing - as in, the posts on this blog - is also a pertinent one for this discussion... but I feel like this could be siphoned into its own post because of its rather broad scope and great relevance for many more Pokémon things, particularly the ones associated with those posts. So, I expect the discussion for this one to be made whenever, especially at the point "whenever" becomes relevant.

Even now, traffic is vital to any web site, including this little one - well, maybe not so little now - about all kinds of Pokémon things and how I deal with all of them in some way before writing and showing them off here. With the way that the blog is going, at least some traffic may be expected to come to it for all the posts that I've made and continue to make, and that could become the impetus for including a lot more Pokémon things.

Three years ago: Cosplay: Utsuru 7.5
Six years ago: Expecting the Contrary
Seven years ago: Color Me (Shiny) Groudon
Nine years ago: Fire Power!

Friday, January 2, 2026

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.

Three years ago: More Blog Overhauls?
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

Thursday, January 1, 2026

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!

Friday, October 3, 2025

How Hard Is It to Unite Pokémon Fans?

Presently, those who deal with Pokémon will surely know of Pokémon Unite, the game where players play as Pokémon along with a team to go up against other teams. Unions for this game often come easily for the Pokémon... and it seems less could be said about that when it comes to the matter as it relates to fans themselves. With that, the question posed in the title of this post becomes the key to the discussion of that particular topic.

I was also inspired to bring up this topic by a condition that some Pokémon friends of mine brought up. It seems that in some places of the world, it can be easy for Pokémon fans to gather (that is, "unite"), show off their merchandise and other things, and of course play the games and check out the entertainment. Then they asked, "why not here?", and that led into a discussion about the state where "here" is - their places and mine.

What was apparent is that certain difficulties are present that hamper a possible gathering of Pokémon fans in the place. The difficulties take the form of a lack of outreach between the official management and fans as well as among genuine fans to one another; this last bit is also exacerbated by the implicated presence of those who aren't "genuine", which demands a separate discussion in and of itself. These may be rather great concerns.

Meanwhile, in contrast, in the other places where it seems easier for fans to unite or draw themselves together, it may be that the great number of genuine fans are able to cast aside their differences and link their passions, as demonstrated by the condition that my friends brought up in the first place. Good communication seems to be a necessity as well, and while there may be the non-genuine "stragglers", they seem to be able to be eliminated.

As for the answer to the question posed in the title, given the above, it seems it might not be that hard to do so if the fans are loyal, true, and friendly to themselves and others, much as they are for other things in life. And if they aren't... then the difficulty seems to become rather apparent, perhaps even more so for other things in life as well. There may still be the need to have the hope that Pokémon fans can unite as easily as Pokémon in that game of concern.

Thursday, August 21, 2025

#YesToPokemon

Something that some parts of life sometimes could use a bit more of is affirmation, and that doesn't always seem to come easily in those parts. This includes those that are identified with Pokémon, which is the key theme of this blog and indeed also a key part (or many of them) for fans around the world. To that end, it seems Pokémon itself also provides a potential "solution" with regard to this matter, and through social media, that solution is made evident for those whose efforts might just need some of that affirmation.

The "solution" is in the form of a hashtag, something common to social media today. That hashtag, certainly, is the title of this post (#YesToPokemon - following hashtag rules, just simple alphanumerics) and becomes a way of saying "yes" to Pokémon matters. It's especially pertinent if the official representations of Pokémon on social media - whichever one is one's preference - notice something really good from what fans offer and want to feature it in at least a semi-formal capacity, and the hashtag is to affirm.

In fact, that is exactly what happened recently on one platform, with me being a witness to the act of affirmation. A certain master illustrator - without formal ties to Pokémon - drew a piece of fan art that the official representation liked so much. Consequently, the query as described with the exact process above was made and the affirmation response was promptly given; subsequently, the art was featured. It's a dream come true for any fan, and though it may not be a "big break", the affirmation is pretty big in itself. 

Personally, I'm inclined to use the hashtag myself without having anything to offer - unless it may be considered that this blog is the offering. But then again, I'm affirmative of a lot of things that are related to Pokémon, whether they're official offerings or other fans' offerings. If they're all in good spirits, as would be recognized by official Pokémon representations, then that's good reason enough to make the necessary affirmations for me and other fans that can benefit - surely Pokémon would also be open to the benefits.

Even with all the complexity of Pokémon today, and particularly contributions to it from all kinds of sources, there is something to be said about being open to all the good things from them and affirming those things. To say #YesToPokémon would perhaps be the simplest thing one can say to all of that, and if the official Pokémon representations on social media are of any indication, it is that they can and do make those affirmations. Fans can then do the same and then spread the good affirmations all around.

Wednesday, March 19, 2025

3000 Posts!!!

This post being written has a significance: it becomes the 3000th post I've written on this blog. It comes a few years after I've written my 2000th, and it will always be that way because of the number of posts and the intervening time for all of them. The most significant digit of the number for the current milestone is of course 3, which has strong ties to Pokémon in its manifestations (three Legendary Pokémon in a bunch, three evolutionary stages, three starters or first partners, and so on and so forth). Meanwhile, the number itself is a part of a certain facet of pop culture that also in part encompasses a certain triad, and with that in mind, I thought I'd use (interpret) it as the framework for the occasion of this milestone.

Each of the elements in the triad technically represent "zones", but for the milestone occasion, I thought I'd interpret them as "concerns". The first of these deals with residential affairs, which may have been considered by many of the posts on this blog. These can be interpreted as my entrenched progressions, as well as those of others, in the games as well as how the games continue to entrench themselves for everyone who deals with them, like me. They're really "entrenched" in the sense that they're persistent... and therefore "resident" as well, and that's something I like to present in the posts about the above topic.

Of course, Pokémon now has a lot of things offered for money deeply embedded within many of its things, so there are commercial affairs afoot. In addition to the games - which in a way I'm promoting thanks to my posts about them - there also has been a lot of merchandise, which I've also taken to promote at times. Some are purely aspirational, as in ones that come to my attention and I promote without owning them, but others are genuine, as in ones that I do actually own and/or have gotten and have taken to promote them as such. The affairs might be considered "iffy" for some - even me - but they're still part of the process.

Lastly, there are industrial affairs and their associated concerns. In the case of the posts on my blog, these can be considered to be the various analyses and critiques I've made of matters surrounding official Pokémon goings-on as well as my own creative efforts, the latter of which could be considered as further extensions. The process of putting Pokémon things out - including for this blog and my related creative efforts - is not (and has not been) always an easy one, and it may be helpful to review and check them as they occur. That's definitely a concern along with all the other concerns I've outlined or suggested above.

All the elements above in their original form need to be balanced in some way in their original context, and that would seem to have to apply well for the posts on this blog. After having written 3000 posts, I've explored so much about Pokémon and yet there's much more about it to explore, especially as Pokémon itself continues to develop. What other significances Pokémon will have in the future and I will provide in return for this blog may not be known yet, but to look for them as I deal with and write about Pokémon is the task.

Five years ago: No Sight, No Mind
Seven years ago: PokéTerminology
Eight years ago: Cosplay Hair

Saturday, February 22, 2025

Real Words on Artificial Intelligence (A.I.)

This may be a topic that I should have picked up for discussion a somewhat longish time ago, but like many things, I suppose it's better late than never. Many people are surely familiar with the rise of artificial intelligence (A.I.) in the past few years through bots, assistants, generators, and the like, some of which can now also understand, recognize, and deal with matters related to Pokémon. Beyond all the assistive capacity that they possess, in some ways they also conflict with the same capacity for people (humans). As such, I feel the need to make a statement on the issue and to augment that with experience related to the issue. 

Some days ago, in a certain space on the Internet, someone posted a poem that others suspected to be generated by an A.I. bot due to some telltale signs. The confirmation came after "denial by silence", but by then damage had been done, as the critics themselves were silenced. An apology was made, yet it too was somewhat late and put the original poster in imperfect standing. Even with the signs, some people could have conceivably taken the poem as is and they'd never know that a human wasn't involved in the actual composition of the poem, aside from getting the A.I. to do it by way of a "prompt". And that becomes a concern.

While the generated content by A.I. is interesting and possibly helpful for certain efforts, a lot of the content is also riddled with mistakes and errors in whatever form it may take. That state of affairs justifies the warning that generators now carry, in that they can possibly make mistakes. With that in mind, the best way to treat the content seems to be to treat them as raw materials for use in creative work, or information that needs to be fact-checked with someone or something else, and never at face value. This would be incidentally true for anything made by people in general, but it seems even more true for the "machined" things.

Because of the above, I now feel that I also need to make a statement. All written content on this blog - that is, aside from images and other rich media - are solely made by me and without the assistance of any A.I. in any form. This also means I (have to) own up for any mistakes they might contain and will correct them as necessary. Furthermore, any written content that I create, write, and publish, for Pokémon or otherwise, will never make use of A.I. content - unless it is for discussion about them, as this post serves to do in a way.

I also need to say that if any written things appear on the Internet and they look suspiciously like they were written by me, then it could be the work of an A.I. scraping up the words in the posts of this blog and spitting out something that resembles that. It's what A.I. things do in order for them to do what they do, and it may or may not necessarily be something that I can prevent. At the least, the assurance of this blog having written content that came purely from my mind, heart, and soul along with interactions to Pokémon remains something definite.

Pokémon is surely at present also affected by (the content generated by) A.I. things, and admittedly a few of my other dealings are affected in much of the same ways. With that experience and situation, this post becomes quite necessary to be written up in order to show that my assistive capacity for Pokémon matters, in writing at the very least, is not dependent on A.I. things and/or content and can stand up to them if at all deemed necessary, like now.

Seven years ago: Trainer Caps, and a Teaser
Eight years ago: Back in the Park

Monday, February 17, 2025

Economy of Expression

For those who have been keeping up with this Pokémon blog since the beginning, or at the very least have read posts from that time, they'll have noticed that the posts have grown in length. This exact topic I also brought up as early as the end of the second year of my posting, and this time, I want to bring it back with a twist. The situation - perhaps then and now - is something that is somewhat in contrast with what happens when I talk with other people, which is that I prefer to speak as little as possible, even now when it seems that my views are seemingly not quite appreciated. The situation invokes the phrase of "economy of expression", and I'm prompted to discuss it with my blogging efforts.

Back then, I also referred to how I'd found my "voice" to discuss certain Pokémon (and related) matters, and that remains true even now and useful for some topics that would then be able to be discussed on this blog, like some in-depth observations of particular in-game elements. However, it seems important to keep in mind that for some things, it may be best to say less about them, which is where "economy of expression" becomes relevant. This is especially true for things that are controversial in nature, which may only need to be skimmed on the surface rather than to be explored in depth.

Given the daily frequency of the posts on this blog, "economy of expression" is also a practical principle to keep in mind because it simply means a lot less things to contend with for this blog, Pokémon, or otherwise. There are still other places and topics that might need to have some in-depth discussion, but the principle may also indicate that may not be as necessary as it seems to be on initial consideration. Regardless, it has to be weighed as I evaluate each discussion topic for the posts I'm about to create.

To say less things might be a bit of a counterpoint of a blog like this one and especially of Pokémon (where so much is still going on), but it seems that just like regular conversations with people, I need to weigh where I need to say a lot and where I only need to say a little. With that, there may be a certain insight with the principle of "economy of expression", for which I could say more even with less words.

Four years ago: Gym Takedown Habits
Five years ago: Delayed Costumes
Eight years ago: The Park Is Open

Thursday, January 2, 2025

New Directions, Same Directions

The start of the new year also means taking a post to make a discussion of things I might want and/or need to do with regard to making this Pokémon blog work for the posts as well as discussions to be made throughout this year, just like in many of the past years (see below). While the content remains as solid as ever - even if it seems a little shaky - ensuring that the blog works for that purpose is also important, although the blog does this mostly on its own. The remaining part, meanwhile, is up to me, and that's the part that presents many possibilities as well as problems.

In regard to this situation, the appropriate description is as per the title of this post: taking new directions while at the same time keeping certain directions the same. The latter involves keeping series of posts - ones on the same topic and possibly even at the same time of year - that are by now standard, like the monthly event rollups for Pokémon Go, or even more simply, today's and yesterday's post. The former would then involve coming up with new content in other posts, and if possible even to fill those established series of posts in order to give them at least some variety.

Meanwhile, the reorganization of posts is always in order. It can be seen that I finally made the "Puzzle Spinoff Games" category to group all related discussions, while before that I had created the "Game - Fundamentals" category to serve as a "meta" for topics that could cross over to more than one game (different from posts that discuss multiple games at once but each in relative separation, like for Pokémon Presents). Even these may still need some work if readers notice the categorization is off.

All of this is (and has) obviously been done by mostly me and me alone, with not much input from other people and/or readers. It's admittedly impressive but at the same time lacking outside perspective, which is something I wish I could have every now and then; these could comprise the "new directions" that I need while keeping the "same directions" as established by already existing posts. And if something should stray along the way, that would become the prompt to go in the right direction.

Pokémon is a broad thing by now, needless to say, and while I can't capture all that breadth in the posts of this blog, I can at least capture some of that along with my personal relations and interactions to Pokémon. For this purpose, both same (old) and different (new) directions are equally important and can be made evident through the posts of this blog. In this ninth year of blogging, that's still something I'd like to present.

Two years ago: More Blog Overhauls?
Three years ago: Thoughts on More Categories
Five years ago: New Post Categories
Six years ago: Taking the Plunge
Seven years ago: What's Next?
Eight years ago: ...And a Hoppip New Year

Wednesday, January 1, 2025

Hoppip New Year 2025

Hoppip New Year! For those still keeping up with me, this is now the entry point to my ninth year of Pokémon blogging. That's a pretty long stretch of time for anything I've ever started and continued, aside from being drawn to Pokémon in the first place. It also represents a rather intensive commitment that I've made over these years... and that seems to become a pertinent issue for this blog as I'm starting yet another year. Pokémon affairs are a given and natural for anything I choose to write about, but then there are other aspects that go into that.

Last year was actually a bit of an eventful year when it comes to Pokémon, and I got a good bit of that in all my posts throughout the year, including all the usual bunch of happenings to which I put in my Pokémon twists. My commitment is thus justified for Pokémon affairs, wherever and whenever I can fit them along with whatever else I need to do, which also means exploring and discussing them through all the posts on this blog. It's a fine commitment to be sure, especially if both those affairs and the goings-on in life can play nicely.

For that last bit, it has to be admitted that they haven't always played nicely, even up to the point of this post being written. It becomes a challenge when that happens, including toward my commitments, Pokémon or otherwise. Finding ways for them to be able to do so is also a pertinent challenge, but it can and should be handled for this blog - and my life in general - to move forward. That in itself should be a commitment, while other things, including Pokémon itself, move forward and not necessarily in the direction other people and I want it to.

As with every year (and an aside to the above), I also deliver my "Hoppip Report"... for which over the course of the past year, the Hoppip have been wandering in and out of happenings - and the "winds" - in Pokémon Go. The ones I've encountered have not been fairly beneficial or unique, and so they went to Professor Willow instead. Meanwhile, over the years, I've managed to find Shiny forms of both genders as well as the newly found XXL and XXS size forms, so I've chosen to display them for this year's "report" just like I did in some past years.


It is also inevitable that the list of previous posts at the bottom of each new one is to grow longer, this time with ones from eight years ago. It grows as this blog grows... and perhaps that can also be said for my commitments, again for Pokémon affairs and other things. The management of both of these seems to become warranted in this ninth year of blogging and many more years of continued involvement with Pokémon and all things related to it. So, as the Hoppip keep moving with the winds, my Pokémon life and this blog have to do the same.

One year ago: Hoppip New Year 2024
Two years ago: Hoppip New Year 2023
Three years ago: Hoppip New Year 2022
Four years ago: Hoppip New Year 2021
Five years ago: Hoppip New Year 2020
Six years ago: Hoppip New Year 2019
Seven years ago: Hoppip New Year 2018
Eight years ago: First Post Time!

Saturday, December 28, 2024

Getting Down on All Fours

There are only a few days left in the year, and I want to take one of those days - today - to deliver my views on Pokémon things, blogging things, and other relevant things throughout this year. Fittingly, earlier this year, I had outlined a specific "theme" (as I've done in past years) that might just be representative of how all of those things might proceed. Now that it's the end of the year, I thought I'd still "run with it" and see how it becomes applicable - and it is: this year, it seems that other Pokémon fans and I have had to "get down on all fours".

When someone does the action I've described, it's usually to get low to the ground to search for something. That might represent some fans' search for news about the new Legends game announced earlier this year, which could be said to be still minimal. Else, it might be the search for cards they don't have in the recently released (and expanded) TCG Pocket, something that has been realized since that time. The low search might just continue for now, along with searches that take place way above the ground.

Of course, when one gets too low, one could fall flat on one's face and be lying face down on the floor; though not exactly being on "all fours", it is only vaguely similar. The introduction of Gigantamax (and to a lesser extent, Dynamax) in Pokémon Go may have been a fall-flat experience for some and may continue to be that way until Trainers can find out ways to even out their calibers in this regard. Not to mention, Niantic itself has still managed to find ways of occasionally falling flat on their faces this year.

Personally, this year in my Pokémon blogging experience has been a bit of a "fall-flat" experience itself, especially on the latter end of it, for reasons that may or may not have something to do with the continued fallout of a certain circumstance I detailed also earlier this year. Its solution is not necessarily easy, and yet I think I have found a way. Regardless, it seems necessary to take it up so that my Pokémon affairs, including this blog, as well as other pertinent ones can proceed in a more reliable manner - and not "flat on the floor".

(Interestingly, I did take up the theme in a literal manner with my "four fours" series that remarkably was also designated from the fourth month of this year; whether that's by (my) prompt or by chance might be up to readers to determine.)

An interpretation of my "yearly themes" always seems to be in order, and this year's "four on the floor" theme is no different for a lot of things - which for this blog means Pokémon and things that touch on that. The interpretation of "getting down on all fours" is somewhat of a tangent, but it seems be quite useful as a perspective for the end of the year. After having four things on the floor - or wherever they might end up - moving on from there is not only necessary but also possibly pleasant for Pokémon and all.

Seven years ago: From Journal to Blog

Monday, December 9, 2024

Am I Just a (Poké)Weeb?

There's something in development that very much pertains to me - and my interests in relation to Pokémon - that I can't discuss in greater detail just yet, although the title of this post may make things obvious. At any rate, the main phase of that development is over, which is what I had wanted to wait for before making the discussion so I don't feel like I'm about to "jinx it". It could also be admitted that the topic is slightly sensitive, even with its Pokémon relation, so doing it this way somewhat makes sense.

Now, the crux of the topic regards the consideration of myself as a Pokémon "weeaboo" or "weeb" for short... for which, due to a combination of recent circumstances and experiences, makes it seem that I'm just that and nothing else, instead of someone of any other role, including ones that are related to Pokémon. I've already made a treatise on the "weeaboo" aspect earlier, and that continues to apply; what becomes pertinent is what had just transpired as above, leading to the question as posed in the title of this post.

With that, the thing currently in development is one of the relevant circumstances, along with a few recent upheavals with my raid group (primarily concerning Gigantamax battles) and the apparent fact that this blog, as well as other social media efforts, still have not led to the results I desire or intend - one recent one of these, in fact, failed to "get off the ground" before it could begin, which is regrettable as it could have increased my Pokémon standing, if not my own, and provided support. It seems that people already have formed certain ideas about me one way or another, particularly as in the "just-'weeb'" regard, and it may be difficult (very, and even bordering on impossible) to change that regardless of what I put forward.

Even after all that, while I'm still not in favor of (personally) using the "weeb" term to represent myself, if it means there is a certain positivity in that representation as others see myself, then I won't reject that representation. Yet I still want to be seen (and I personally regard myself) as someone of greater standing and especially with relation to Pokémon, in particular for aspects I outlined many years ago. These aspects are what I want to emphasize and put forward, but other positive aspects can and should be able to "tag along for the ride".

It seems that after all this time, people still don't know much about me - despite what I put forward - and feel the need to ascribe certain things (and regard only those things) to me and my Pokémon interests, as with the "weeb" thing. Though there's a certain capacity of it being applicable and accurate - again, which I won't reject - it would also be nice to represent myself as someone with more to show. With that I also very much still consider Pokémon to be something that I can use to accomplish that.

Three years ago: Casting Out Porygon
Six years ago: To See and See Not

Thursday, November 21, 2024

YouTube Pokémon Highlights: Even More Pokémon Parkour

Recently, I had covered "parkour with Pokémon" as one of the topics I meant to cover a long time ago but got delayed to the present. It also spawned a "YouTube Pokémon Highlight", as the topic was actually based on a few videos from that video sharing site. As it turns out, the world of this topic is a bit of a broad one, and I found that now it's worthy of spawning another one of these highlights based on some other videos related to the topic, a few of which were also incidentally found as I covered the topic initially.

One of these other videos is by Kuma Films, which features the traceur (parkour athlete) of Todd Robins cast as Pikachu, similar to the casting of Calen Chan in the other videos I initially covered. Unlike them, this video has less of a story to it and more of an impressionist feeling of Pikachu running across various environments - specifically around Taiwan and some rough terrain, as the setting of the video. Interestingly, this video was posted 11 years ago in 2013, which was three years prior to the release and boom of Pokémon Go, making the video a practical "forerunner" of others that came after it. It's still a neat video that is gripping of the "running Pikachu" concept, presenting it in an almost natural fashion.

Speaking of Pokémon Go, UrbanAmadei created a parkour video based on the viewpoint of a Trainer chasing a Pikachu, which further affirms this viewpoint and approach for bringing together Pokémon and parkour. The video was shot in a park in Berlin in 2019, which places it three years after the game's release and boom, yet still being relevant to its perspective. The video actually spawned a sequel one year later, which was incidentally during the big "downturn" of the world; further, it has a more relevant tie to the game, as it was used to promote the global Go Fest edition of that year. In either case, the Trainer was depicted as unsuccessful in the capture of Pikachu, definitely making it a different take.

Then, there was a video by Nick Pro, which is similar in concept to the previous one. This also takes the viewpoint of a Trainer running across various kinds of terrain (including the indoor setting of a house), encountering random Pokémon and catching them along the way. It's another video from just after the release of Pokémon Go - specifically, 2018 - but it still serves well to highlight the game in addition to parkour; in fact, the concept is what I would call "semi-AR" due to the way the Pokémon appear in the video and were caught by the Trainer... except for one, for which one will just have to watch the video in order to find out which one that is. The dynamics of the game and parkour are still well-represented.

Evidently, there is something about Pokémon and parkour that go together very well: they can be quite action-oriented for all the objectives that they might present and account for to be achieved. Some of them could also be realized at the same time, if all the parkour videos I've highlighted (here and previously) are of any indication. There will always be Trainers and Pokémon species going through environments - quite possibly in styles that evoke parkour - and that might just be worthy for further encapsulation in videos.

Six years ago: Traveling All the World

Tuesday, October 29, 2024

YouTube Pokémon Highlights: More from DevinSupertramp

The previous post on parkour and Pokémon was actually a neglected draft from five years ago that I've only managed to flesh out more recently. It was also admittedly based on a few YouTube videos, though I had also wanted to keep it from becoming an edition of "YouTube Pokémon Highlights" and thus tried not to write it up in that style. Even so, the videos nevertheless prompt me to make one of these highlights, for the fact that two of them originate from the same content creator and there is more than meets the eye. 

With that, the content creator is called DevinSupertramp (stylized as all lowercase letters on the channel page), and the key figure is a filmmaker by the name of Devin Graham, who makes videos along with a host of dedicated people, called Team Supertramp (who else). The videos are a blend of sightseeing, extreme sports, crazy things, and pop culture - and it is obvious where Pokémon fits into this framework, in light of the post from the other day. The filmmaker also has a separate channel under his own name that focuses on the "meta" behind the videos - techniques, tips, and even behind the scenes - which are a part of this highlight as well as the videos from the main channel. Since (at least) one of their videos were shot in or close to my "neck of the woods", that was what led me to posit about helping other Trainers in parkour, hinting at a collaboration; such may never happen, but it's still fun to think about it.

Besides the parkour videos from the other day, there are a couple more videos related to Pokémon on the main channel that deal less with extreme sports and focus more on its pop culture side. A video entitled "Pokémon battle in real life!" is a six-minute spoof based partially on Legends: Arceus and other Pokémon facets, while another entitled "Banette's Curse" is a literal short film (clocking in at 17 minutes) with some dramatic aspects about it; the latter is especially appropriate to be mentioned now, certainly with it approaching Halloween and all. It's important to mention that these as well as the previous parkour videos - for that matter, many on the channel - employ other people to enact their premises, while Devin is simply the mastermind behind the concepts and videography.

Meanwhile, the behind-the-scenes look at the videos are just as fascinating and entertaining to watch as the actual results. For the Pikachu chase parkour, it is revealed that there was a mishap: Calen Chan, the traceur (parkour athlete) in the role of Pikachu, did indeed fall while filming - the "twist" at the end that was retooled in the actual video, also highlighting a certain danger in the sport in general. Then there are the ones for the other parkour video (an apparent fact: it was quickly produced to tie into the hype of the game at that time), as well as ones for both of the videos mentioned above. They're all reminders that these videos come neither from thin air nor instantly, and they have production values of their own.

Looking at the other videos on Devin's channels, all of them may be attractive to certain groups of people, including fans of the pop culture aspects highlighted in them. Regardless, it's the Pokémon aspect I'm interested in, especially for the purpose of highlighting them here, and Devin has made that work so well (or almost) in the two videos involving parkour and the other two featuring just Pokémon in general. That much speaks to me as a Pokémon fan, as much as Devin (and Team Supertramp) express other things in the other videos.

Three years ago: Holowear Wonderings
Five years ago: Psyduck Is Missing
Six years ago: Expression of Care

Monday, October 28, 2024

PokéParkour

One kind of sport that some people would consider "extreme" is parkour. The sport involves athletes getting from one point to another in quick time and great style, which means running, jumping, dashing, leaping, and so on and so forth to achieve the objective. In the world of Pokémon, their athletes (Trainers) don't need to do all the same funky and extreme things to get around, although there is the prospect that they may be able to do just that. If that happens, then it may just be deserving to call it "PokéParkour" per the title of this post.

While I've found that I'm not exactly fit for parkour, I might just be able to assist other Trainers (and likely their Pokémon as well) in their parkour efforts, particularly if it's to chase after some other Trainers with less-than-savory agendas like those of Team Skull, some of which might have parkour skills of their own and need to be chased down with those very same skills in order to prevent them from carrying out their agendas. Being that the parkour sport has some inherent dangers of its own, they may need all the help they can get.

Back to the case of their Pokémon, they might just be able to execute parkour moves of their own, and ones that are even more extreme than what their human partner Trainers are capable of. And if they're not affiliated with certain Trainers, they may run in order to evade capture... although the Trainers may be resourceful enough, with or without parkour skills, to corner and eventually capture them. Certainly, after that, they can then ally with some involvement of parkour for all their battle and non-battle needs.

In fact, those scenarios have been illustrated in a few YouTube videos, though with humans acting out the parkour scenarios for Trainers and Pokémon alike. Two videos illustrate the "capture" scenario and their eventual resolution (though without the above extrapolation) and were filmed during the initial explosive breakthrough of Pokémon Go. Another video illustrates the "chase" scenario and has a twist at the end, driving home the point that I made above. The production quality of the videos is very good as well.

"PokéParkour" becomes a fascinating display of what human Trainers and Pokémon species might just be capable of, considering the videos as above. And that would be some extreme abilities in getting from place to place while leaping over things rapidly and stylishly, a useful thing to do in some circumstances if not a whole lot of fun. It's as much fun to think about for a Pokémon fan - me - while being able to actually do it as some people can... and most likely their Pokémon, if they were actual Trainers.

Thursday, October 24, 2024

We Welcome You to Pokéween

It's one week before the peak of the "spooky season", and I thought I'd discuss (and preview) it a bit, certainly with the necessary Pokémon connections. Now, Pokémon and Halloween have always gotten along, for all the specific reasons (and more) that I've outlined way, way, way back in the first Halloween post I made. Even so, in most of the past years, they seem disparate, still belonging to their own realm. Over the past year, this has turned somewhat, bringing both realms closer together - so this post is a bit of a late thing as well - and that is done under the banner of "Pokéween".

For the occasion, the profile pictures of Pokémon accounts on social media have been changed to a Pikachu jack-o-lantern, and relevant content for the season is abound within them - an example being costume guides based on the latest anime series. Then there is supplementary content for fun activities like coloring pages and pumpkin carving stencils, which are especially fun if one finds out and keeps track of them through the e-mail newsletter. Indeed, the festivities began early and are coming out strong.

The thematic electronic games also get in on the fun. Pokémon Go has the now-pertinent Halloween decorations up (with a bit of a delay), and it as well as Café Remix and Unite have their traditional Halloween events with the usual bonuses; the one for Pokémon Go will be explained in due time while the others just demand playing through them and seeing what bonuses can be gotten from the events. Each of these has also been promoted under the Pokéween banner, making them emblematic of it.

A number of merchandise items has also been promoted. The seasonally appropriate "Trick or Trade" TCG booster packs are one of them, as well as a Cubone Funko Pop! figure, all kinds of Pokémon decorations and tableware, and selections of costumed plush dolls. They're all fit to be ordered - even now just to collect them or save them for next year - and add a Pokémon brand of spookiness.

Halloween is now not that far ahead, so it's time to consider the aspects that will make it a great one this year. That means setting the mood in the games and preparing all the fun stuff that fans can use to add Pokémon to the occasion as the peak of the "spooky season". With that, every fan (and other people) are now welcome to take part in the occasion as "Pokéween", the mutual celebration of the franchise and the most haunted time of the year.

Sunday, September 15, 2024

In Search of New Posting Styles

Besides searching for new Pokémon experiences and detailing them on this blog, I'm also searching for new ways to achieving the presentation of those details. Now, it's true that text can only go so far in presenting information - which is also why this blog has an accompanying YouTube channel - but that presentation of information can still be unique in some ways, even if not completely. To that end, I've decided to explore past and present posting styles in order to be able to search for ones that I can determine to use in the future.

The majority of posts on this blog are written in the prosaic style, and that's something that will continue to be present in some way. Sentences and paragraphs, as with many written works or creations, form the primary way I explain about Pokémon things and discuss the same related experiences. Even so, it could be of interest for me to vary up that structure a bit and not be tied to certain conventions I've long followed to make things much less "formalized", and reserve "formal"-sounding things for where they're really only necessary. This is a Pokémon blog after all, so the need to let loose is a useful one.

Of course, for those who have been with me for a time will recognize the "discussion" format that involves certain characters, some of which may be in cosplay form [the IC term being "send"]. That's a very different format that allows for lots of creativity and freedom.

Me: Plus, it lets me think about you two - even if I'm not sure you two do the same.

Goh: Well, I think we think about everyone.

Ash: Why not? Goh's got a point. 

Pikachu: Pika chu. ["Very true."]

Me: That's reasonable. We all have certain followers who are always interested in us.

Ash: You're one of them!

Goh: I believe Ash has the point now.

Ash: And as always, anything to help you out is something that helps us out too. 

Me: Can't be stressed enough. But it's certainly OK if I bring in other characters too.

Goh: Hey, you never know which Pokémon ones you'll meet, We're all for it.

Pikachu: Chu pika? ["Who knows?"]

Me: That's quite the possibility.

Continuing the discussion in a more standard format, I've also broken into poetry on one occasion, and though it could be difficult to repeat this, perhaps a really special circumstance might just be the prompt to do so once more. It may also be possible to include occasional poetic quips like the following:

Let's say something about Pokémon
As the journey goes on and on.

Whatever the case, this blog is just as much an outlet for creativity as much as formality, given my appreciation and involvement in Pokémon. How much of them can be reflected in my posts as well as the subsequent valuation that results may be another matter, but the usual methods of presentation should be able to contribute to that, as well as any new and novel methods that deserve to be included somehow.

Thursday, September 12, 2024

No Lies... and Lies

And we lie, lie, lie
On a streetcar named desire 
Oh, we lie, lie, lie
For that sweet bird of youth
I could be great like Tennessee Williams
If I could only hear something
That sounds 
Like the truth
-- "Lies", Elton John 

Some years ago, I wrote a post that effectively became a call for and support of truism or honesty, especially on the Internet and for Pokémon matters. It remains a valid thing even today and now... yet it has to be admitted that to some extent, it's a bit idealized. It seems that the fact of the matter is that even in a world full of truism, some falsehoods - that is, lies - might still exist and need to exist, even for matters closer or farther to Pokémon. With that in mind, I've had to tap into a song by a familiar artist (to me) as a way to make sense of it all.

The song, yet another one from the same album as some other songs of the same artist I've brought up, mentions in its verses and pre-choruses many ways many people - including the singer - could possibly lie, while the chorus (quoted above) might be considered to explain the "rationale" and ideals for such lies. The lyrics suggest the universality of the process, which could be taken to mean its necessary existence as I've mentioned above. That of course also means possible ties to Pokémon, and there's at least one possible way.

It is known that people can make "white lies", a lie that is intended for benevolence rather than malice. In one episode of the Pokémon anime, this was the case as Ash and the others were helping out a Pokémon, one of the efforts being to craft a "white lie" for the Pokémon to be able to do what it needed to do. The Pokémon in question may or may not have realized the significance of the "white lie", but in any case, it seemed to be a necessary matter to get things going, thus affirming the presence and crafting of that lie.

Personally, I might have benefited from at least one "white lie" I needed to make in the past, as well as ones that I could have made, in order to not have a "black hole" in my heart and mind, and most importantly to assist in certain Pokémon matters. As well, it seems that there are or have been instances of "white lies" on this blog, and mostly unintended ones - or at least they started out that way. Only those who keep a really close eye on my blog will know how these "white lies" are manifested... and I intend to keep it that way.

At any rate, it seems there is a "hard wiring" for honesty somewhere within me, which is also why this topic is hard for me to discuss - although the song helps somewhat to put that into perspective. In the end, it seems like "salt, reconsidered", some lies are a necessary part of the chaos of life, even the parts concerned with Pokémon. What is not a lie is that I'm still attached to and fascinated by Pokémon, and that's a truism I'm only happy to promote through my Pokémon dealings and writings - even if a "lie" is needed to get things going.

Perhaps another part of the song says it all:

I lie about most everything...
But I'd never lie to you.

One year ago: A Win for the Ages