#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.

One year ago: Mountains of Faith: Mt. Coronet

Two years ago: How Essential Are Holowear for Unite?

Three years ago: Cosplay: 77th Independence Celebration

Four years ago: Quickies: Officer Jenny, the Keeper of Order

Five years ago: Pokémon and Plant Eaters

Six years ago: The Price of Cosplay Costumes

Seven years ago: Do Unusual Things

Eight years ago: Futureproofing Transfers

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.

One year ago: Rethinking Pokémon-People Relations

Two years ago: Cosplay: Culture Festival

Three years ago: Pokémon of Overlapping Roles?

Four years ago: The Post Malone P25 Virtual Concert

Five years ago: No Sight, No Mind

Six years ago: Fashion Statements by Pokémon

Seven years ago: PokéTerminology

Eight years ago: Cosplay Hair

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.

One year ago: Isshoni Tanoshimimashou Under Fire

Two years ago: Performance Critique: Bunkasai Japan Fest J-Song

Three years ago: The 2022 Pokémon Anniversary Week

Four years ago: (Pokémon) Songs as Advice

Five years ago: Cosplay: Beat Launch Party

Six years ago: Local EX Raid (in a Frenzy), 2/22/2019

Seven years ago: Trainer Caps, and a Teaser

Eight years ago: Back in the Park

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.

One year ago: Cosplay: Gyomai Mini Gathering

Two years ago: NADWPKMN - The Video Series: Episode #5 - Musical Expressions

Three years ago: Follow-up Pokémon Happenings

Four years ago: Gym Takedown Habits

Five years ago: Delayed Costumes

Six years ago: Pokémon Go Community Day, 2/17/2019

Seven years ago: Time for a Pikachu New 2DS XL?

Eight years ago: The Park Is Open

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.

One year ago: Blog Changes: Made and Not Made

Two years ago: More Blog Overhauls?

Three years ago: Thoughts on More Categories

Four years ago: Pokémon Blogging Wellness

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

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. Even so, 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!

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.

One year ago: Pokémon Go Event Rollup, 12/28/2023

Two years ago: Pokémon Problem, My Problem

Three years ago: Pokémon Go Event Rollup, 12/28/2021

Four years ago: Road to 25th Anniversary: Life Goes On

Five years ago: Pokémon Go Event Rollup, 12/28/2019

Six years ago: Soul-Searching and Pokémon

Seven years ago: From Journal to Blog

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 personall 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.

One year ago: Cosplay: Art and Culture Exhibition (ACE) 2023

Two years ago: Tournament: Raid Group Great League, No Restrictions

Three years ago: Casting Out Porygon

Four years ago: Let's Talk About Finding Our Way

Five years ago: A Day (or Year) with Pikachu

Six years ago: To See and See Not

Seven years ago: A Pokémon Twist to My Phone

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.

One year ago: Days of Specific Pokémon

Two years ago: Pokémon Outfits in Café Remix

Three years ago: Pokémon Go Community Day, 11/21/2021

Four years ago: Pokémon Go Community Day, 11/21/2020

Five years ago: The Hype Cycle and Pokémon

Six years ago: Traveling All the World

Seven years ago: Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon Uptake

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.

One year ago: Cosplay: Toys & Hobbies Week 2023

Two years ago: Pokémon Go Event Rollup, 10/29/2022

Three years ago: Holowear Wonderings

Four years ago: Road to 25th Anniversary: Getting Warmer

Five years ago: Psyduck Is Missing

Six years ago: Expression of Care

Seven years ago: Three-Line Episode Summaries

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.

One year ago: Moon Matters, Pokémon Matters

Two years ago: From Draft to Post: The Thought Process of Pokémon Blogging

Three years ago: Pokémon Unite Halloween Event

Four years ago: Being a Scanner or Diver with Pokémon

Five years ago: On Tap for Go

Six years ago: Pokémon Go Community Day Repeat, 10/28/2018

Seven years ago: At the Movies: Episode 698 - "Movie Time! Zorua in 'The Legend of the Pokémon Knight!'"

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.

One year ago: Changing Post Topics on the Spot

Two years ago: Pokémon (Pikachu) Loot from Utsuru KJR

Three years ago: Pokémon Go Event Rollup, 10/24/2021

Four years ago: Type Logic: Of Dragons, Fairies, and Steel

Five years ago: Pokémon Annual 2019

Six years ago: Items with a Purpose

Seven years ago: Beyond the Boundary... of Languages

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.

One year ago: The Nonviolent Approach to Pokémon

Two years ago: Pokémon Moe Gijinka: To Love and Be Loved

Three years ago: Reminiscing Stadium and Colosseum

Four years ago: On Public Communication with Pokémon

Five years ago: Pokémon Go Community Day, 9/15/2019

Six years ago: Pokémon Go Trading Stickers

Seven years ago: Am I Writing-Challenged?

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

Two years ago: One-Minute Cooking in Café Remix

Three years ago: Hidden Tracked Statistics in Pokémon Go

Four years ago: Let's Talk About Household Creatures

Five years ago: And Intelligence

Six years ago: Proud to Be a Clean Cosplayer

Seven years ago: Poké-Mobile Devices

The Values of Posts, Again

It was a little over four years ago that I wrote a post on giving value to my posts, and I feel the need to revisit the topic again. At that time, I did give an idea of how values might be given to my posts, but then I seemed to have "circled" the idea rather than discussing it directly, aside from the part where I mentioned donations as an aspect that could give value - but hasn't, something that has remained sadly true to this day, four years and many more posts later. Therefore, it seems apt to bring up the topic, this time with an actual ideation for a specific valuation to be applied to my posts.

The ideation considers the word length of my posts. Regarding this, though, it has to be said that my earlier and later posts differ in this aspect, though if a rough average could be taken of all posts up to the present, they would all be approximately be 500 words in length. Considering that there are around 2700 posts up to now, that means I have around 1.35 million words in total, which is a great number, just as great as the number of posts itself as well as the tenacity to put one up each and every day.

After that, though, things get a little dicey. This would of course be in regard to the monetary value of all of those words, which could be said to be slightly indeterminate. That would be because if they are worth what they are, then I could potentially end up with a low value or at best a middling value - and this is even regard to different currency references, though I'm a bit loath to mention them, particularly since I consider it an act of "jinxing" on one of this blog's purposes, to bring value to my Pokémon experiences from others.

Still, Pokémon is of value to many people - including yours truly - so there might be a chance that some people will be willing to give value to everything about it, including the experiences of others. This might turn out to be even more than I would expect, in which case it would affirm that the experiences have great values. It's still an aspect with some indeterminate value, yet it might not be as indeterminate as I think it could be with Pokémon included.

Out of all the possible topics I could write about (even ones that only touch on Pokémon), this one might be a far-reaching one, especially given how that first post on the topic turned out. Pokémon itself is far-reaching, though, even just by the experiences of its fans, and that far reach could be just the thing that gives insights to the values of words - specifically even the ones I put up on this blog to detail everything that revolves around it and myself.

One year ago: By Experience or By Information?

Two years ago: The Importance of Training in Café Remix

Three years ago: Realized Personal Social Media Experiments with Pokémon

Four years ago: Let's Talk About Events, Conventions, and Beyond

Five years ago: A Tale of Two (OK?) Performances

Six years ago: Ode to Magikarp

Seven years ago: Snorlax's Awakening

My Pokémon Communities on WhatsApp

While some messaging applications like LINE are on (or heading for) the down low, other established ones like WhatsApp are still on the up and up, even having some new features. One of those for the latter is a Communities feature, which allows group chats with (possibly) related members to be clustered together and to have an "announcements" group where designated community admins can post and indicate certain important matters. As expected, I have some of them that are related to Pokémon, and that bears a bit of a discussion. 

But first, it's helpful to outline some Pokémon usage scenarios for this feature. One group in a Community for a battling group may serve as a "lounge" for all Trainers, while another may serve as a way to inform and communicate about battles and battle results, which are then handled by admins. Another idea is to separate Trainers by time and/or place to make sure things need to happen in their localities of concern before dealing with others with different ones. Certainly, the possibilities are varied and need to be explored by groups and functions. 

As for my Communities, I have one for my local raid group and its primary group chat, which also includes a group specific for admins (and perhaps, would-be admins) as well as those who have attained a certain excellence... which I haven't qualified for, but that might just happen soon enough. There is also another Community for a very well-known series of PvP tournaments, which contains the primary group chat as well as a group for a live edition of the tournament, both of which may have common participants. Both of these realize the feature quite nicely.

It is important to note that not every group chat needs to be put in a community; small, close-knit groups - like the "splinter" raid groups that I also have - can do without one and every message or coordination can be done right in a single group chat as they always have been (and likely will be). The key aspect of the Community feature seems to be the emphasis on interrelationships and important matters, which not every group might need; obviously for some groups, particularly highly related ones, the need very much arises and the feature helps keep things in line.

The way that Communities in WhatsApp centralize related chat groups and provide a means of keeping important matters up front and separate is one that should work well for various interests. Evidently, they include Pokémon ones, as proven by the Communities I am a part of as above, with possibly more to come in the future. With the continued and plentiful use of the messaging application, the feature is sure to have its uses for Pokémon fans and contribute to the up and up of the messaging application to serve their communicative needs further.

One year ago: The Scramble for King of the Hill

Two years ago: Classes and Classification of Pokémon

Three years ago: Battle Box for Pokémon Go?

Four years ago: Game Freak with Mario on the Side

Five years ago: Pokémon Go Community Day, 6/8/2019

Six years ago: Pokémon Go Event Rollup, 6/8/2018

Seven years ago: Poor Zygarde

LINE App in a "Downturn"?

Faithful readers of this blog will notice that I used to cover some of facets of the LINE messaging application for Pokémon matters, mostly involving stickers as a "cornerstone" of its messaging aspects. Now, though, my usage of the messaging application have drastically declined almost to the point of nothing, as I noted on my last post about stickers from there. Further, it seems like the app itself is in a bit of a "downturn" as much as I've been in one. For that, I feel the need to discuss my use of the app for Pokémon prospects in light of this situation, as something that's overdue as mentioned a few years ago.

Both my Pokémon groups there and the individual (related) people whom I message have been largely inactive, which has a strong indication that they have been absent in messaging there and/or moved to another platform, though I'm not necessarily informed on what that might be. It may mean that LINE is no longer sufficient for their needs and/or other established platforms may be better for their purposes even if they don't offer the same niceties, which I also do see somewhat in my long messaging absence.

As for the app itself being in a "downturn", it has had a few additional yet useful features being removed, and another is about to be as such very soon. The "Keep" feature, which allows chat bits and pieces (including files and media) to be kept, is about to be removed in a couple of months' time, and anything that needs to be preserved must be downloaded off of that. I happen to have a few pieces of Pokémon things in it, so there is an imperative for me to do the above action for my needs, before the feature is removed.

Overall, with the lack of activity and some of the means to do things as before (like getting free or reduced-cost stickers), particularly as they become unavailable, it seems that my activity will remain very low on the application. It would be possible to contact people for Pokémon matters outside of the app, but I'd have to find out how, whether through the application or elsewhere outside it, which could be a challenge.

While the application may or may not be in danger of going out of service - for which I am sure that other users elsewhere are keeping it alive for their purposes, Pokémon or otherwise - it seems its services for my Pokémon and general needs are indeed in a "downturn". It's definitely a prompt for me to do some Pokémon things that I used to do with it differently, with or without continued use of the messaging application in some way.

One year ago: Silph Arena Factions S2 Postseason Metas

Two years ago: NADWPKMN - The Video Series: Episode #3 - The Games I Play

Three years ago: Mastering Balls of Hands and Feet

Four years ago: It's a-Mario Time

Five years ago: Going Big in Galar

Six years ago: Pokémon Archetypes

Seven years ago: New Paradigms

Pokémon Profile Frames and Video Backgrounds

I've just gotten off a routine audio call (could have been video, but it was decided to be just audio this time) with a couple of good Pokémon friends of mine. While the setting was kind of meager yet workable, it also got me thinking about ways to improve that setting. One of the ways to do so is by having special profile frames and video backgrounds featuring Pokémon. While these may not necessarily be supported across all platforms for audio and/or video calling, they could still be considered nice touches for when they are supported and/or the opportunity arises.

Regarding profile frames, most platforms nowadays have circular profile images, which might make it a little hard to apply a circular border manually. Still, it's not impossible, and I can think of a way to create a circular border inspired by the design of the Pokémon logo. On the other hand, other platforms may support external borders - though in some cases not freely - and a selection of one of these external borders, particularly one that evokes Pokémon, might be just workable. The solution for this seems platform-dependent and may need ingenuity.

As for video backgrounds, some platforms may allow background images to be set directly within them, with or without the aid of a "green screen", and that may very well be convenient and workable - in the Pokémon case, using a Pokémon image. Whether or not that's the case, one could also set up an actual backdrop to be used in video calls, and that backdrop could contain a Pokémon image. This would have to be prepared beforehand, but in doing so, it could become a universal solution no matter the platform. Some things will still depend on the call participants.

The use of profile frames and video backgrounds that feature Pokémon in calls over certain platforms is inherently optional - evidently none of my friends and I used them in our previous call - but for those who make frequent calls, both audio and video, and especially regarding Pokémon in some way, the use may very well be warranted or even necessitated. Any or all the solutions above might help in that regard. As for my (our) personal case, the next time a regular opportunity for a call arises, we might think about these solutions... or not, and enjoy the Pokémon call regardless.

One year ago: Pokémon Go Community Day, 4/15/2023

Two years ago: Love Nature, Find Beauty

Three years ago: Great League, Remixed

Four years ago: On Pokémon and Computing

Five years ago: The Fullness of the Cup

Six years ago: Cosplay: GAME - Games Animation Marketplace and Exhibition

Seven years ago: True Colors (...of a Logo)

The Profile of My Saved WhatsApp Pokémon Stickers

It has also been a long time since I discussed about Pokémon stickers on WhatsApp, including some of the favorite ones I've "saved". Since then, my collection has expanded in number and variety, reflecting how stickers in this messaging and social media application are also numerous and varied. So, instead of listing more favorites from the collection, which could be described as futile and not useful, I've decided to describe the (current) profile of those stickers, as in what I have generally and the themes and features of them.

A good number of my stickers are connected to Pokémon Go (examples being a Stardust sticker and a Venusaur fainting in PvP); this is expected, since I'm connected with several groups for the game and deal with it often. But then there are also main series stickers depicting their consoles, as well as a Pokémon Unite sticker - the "What a Goal! +100" popup. Most other stickers I have, however, are representative of Pokémon in general, showing particular species in both common and uncommon ways for different contexts.

On that note, I do have lots of stickers that represent Pikachu - no surprise, as it's a fan favorite and my favorite as well. Surprisingly, I have a number of Psyduck and Snorlax stickers thanks to being in contact with other Pokémon fellows who like these Pokémon species. Other Pokémon species are represented in more meager numbers that I may not be able to count easily, but they're still there and waiting for me to use them with all the fun and funk they may have - perhaps an understatement in and of itself.

Under the header of "funny" and "funky", there is now a good number of animated stickers in my collection, again mostly pertaining to particular Pokémon species (an especially funky set shows some of them being grabbed by hands). A good deal are also local stickers, containing expressions in the local language where I am and being used by the same people. Finally, I also have a few stickers from my images that others helped to make, so I could call them "mine" in a sense - though considering stickers, none of them are ever as such.

Every user of WhatsApp will likely have loads and loads of stickers they've "saved" as favorites, and for Pokémon fans like me, they'll have loads and loads of Pokémon stickers, likely in addition to anything else they've saved. With that magnitude, there is bound to be some themes and commonalities among them, as well as novelties and quirks. My collection of "saved" Pokémon stickers definitely proves just that, and the aspects will just keep on varying as I keep "saving" more and more Pokémon stickers.

One year ago: Silph Arena Web Site Quirks

Two years ago: All the Trainers Are Nemesis

Three years ago: Moody Friends, Moody Pokémon

Four years ago: The Primary Warning of Pokémon Go

Five years ago: Local EX Raid (and Nothing), 4/4/2019

Six years ago: Gambling Not Permitted

Seven years ago: One Thing

What Lurks in the Pokémon Night

Many of my posts on this blog - OK, most of them, including many recent ones - are or were made in the night and even leading up to the morning. For some, it could be a spooky time (regardless of a certain specific time of year), especially if weather conditions are involved. For others like me, who are "night owls", it may be the most comfortable time of the day, as long as one is also sequestered safely at home. Yet even then, there may be the consideration that some things are still present in the night, even Pokémon ones for those who sense them like me. With that in mind, it seems like something to be explored, to find out what does lurk in the night.

Every now and then, a shadow flies outside my window, which I'm certain is a Zubat -and sometimes, going out briefly to see confirms that it is as such. Intermittent clicking and yelping also leads me to believe that a Treecko is present somewhere close by, and at the right moments, I can in fact spot it outside, gripping a wall much like one did a glass in the Detective Pikachu movie. Faint buzzing sounds also tell me that Venomoth are present outside, and it's all I can do to keep them at bay. Other faint sounds might be more indicative of something more typical as Kricketot, though there is a lack of affirmation for this; then, there is always the concern that Rattata, specifically of the Alolan form, might manifest itself right outside my door. Evidently, a lot of things (Pokémon) could lurk outside in the night.

Perhaps what ties all of these together is the whispering sounds that they make, and that leads me to register a certain piece of music by Yanni, titled appropriately enough, "Whispers in the Night". They're the whispers that I can't keep quiet no matter what I do, and that's completely fine as they continue to lurk. The music itself, though, has a romantic sound to it, and that might be considered indicative of the other "whispers", that of Trainers to one another or to and from their Pokémon. They're something that I sometimes wish I could hear as a bit of a reassurance that there is still something of Pokémon out there for me and everyone else who remains a fan today. The remnant sounds of those whispers seem to be embodied in the piece of music.

And it is those whispers, Pokémon or otherwise, that continue to accompany me and my Pokémon wanderings throughout the night, particularly during the writing of many of these posts. That will likely not change for many posts in the future, given that I'm always observing Pokémon happenings throughout the day before I put my thoughts in a post. So too the whispers won't change much as I listen to them, but at least they might just provide some indications for writing future posts, including this exact one, making them still one with my Pokémon experience.

One year ago: Cosplay: Unity, The Story of Us

Two years ago: Let's Talk About Challenges in Connecting

Three years ago: Making the Case for Open-World

Four years ago: Possibility of a "Basic League"?

Five years ago: Beta Testing

Six years ago: Taking the Go Train

Seven years ago: Worldly Inspirations for a Small World