The Wonder of 8-Bit

I can't believe it. I'm still owning it.

Well it's not the actual picture of my Nintendo Entertainment System, NES for short; mine is buried under cupboards and thick dusts. But really, there's still one in my house.

NES is a video game console released in the third generation, or the 8-bit era. In its era, this console is every children's dream as great video games were released to be played in the console. And not only in its era, it left a great legacy until now, and some video games in NES console are considered to be the best video games the whole time.

I'm not an '80s guy, but my pops is. Well for brief, he owned it in his younger age, and he kept it to be inherited to my brother and then to me, of course. At the age of four, I wasted my time to sit on the floor and stare on the TV, following the pixels' movement.

And don't think I've forgotten the video games I used to play everyday; they were the greatest. And thus follows:

1. Super Mario Bros.

Who doesn't know this game? It was one of the earliest platforming game, and to date the best. And asking who can forget the theme song is a stupid question.

And to be frank, I wasn't able to complete even a level of it. But talking for a four-years old, I don't know if it was likely or unlikely. It was difficult. Actually still a bit, now. Foremost if you're getting here:

Ah. Sweet. A masterpiece. And it wasn't hold only one of the best games with a very pleasant gameplay, also it was the game with the BEST theme song. Ever.

The Super Mario Song MP3 Download

Masterpiece. 'Nuff said.


2. Pac-Man


And also, who doesn't know this but cavemen? The lil' yellow beads-eating guy that were chased by four 'spooky' ghosts.

With another memorable music; chiptune and electronic musics in the video game which perfectly fits the style of '80s, this video game probably was the golden age of video games.


Also, there's a memorable quote regarding the video game in a rather humorous tone.


"Did you know that the original name for Pac-Man was Puck-Man? You'd think it was because he looks like a hockey puck but it actually comes from the Japanese phrase 'Paku-Paku,' which means to flap one's mouth open and closed. They changed it because they thought Puck-Man would be too easy to vandalize, you know, like people could just scratch off the P and turn it into an F or whatever."

-- Scott Pilgrim, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (2010)

Hilarious. And somewhat epic. Interestingly, pretty much things regarding this game sounds epic. Even for such an unrelated humorous quote.

3. Tetris

I did play this too when I was younger from my current young age. And with all frankness, this game is one of the MOST annoying game I've ever played in the console.

Your goal in playing this game is...pretty much nothing but to keep the blocks dropping and to keep them for reaching the top end. Fun? Well, it's not a 'no', though I hardly able to not reaching the end. Useless? Yes. I mean, you will also be annoyed if your older brother who is an expert in playing the game asked you to join the Multiplayer game and watching you beaten in every level. Again and again. If such situation did occur not, probably I won't be that bitter toward this game.

It's better than Spica though.

4. Mega Man

Before he became a popular icon among kids and Japanese comic books, Mega Man in the game's cover was actually a more human looking man, wore a blue Astronaut-suit like, and wielded a gun instead having a gun as his hand.

Somehow in the game, he acquired the 'Super-Deformed' form he became popular with, and I never really knew what exactly happened to his hand and the gun that magically merged with it.

The game play was simple: blast your way in each level to get to the boss, and of course in order to reach the final boss. For a simple good vs. evil story which we hardly can concern of and standard side scrolling action-platforming game, somehow this game was pretty interesting. Or can be said, challenging, since the game was difficult even if you're talking about beating one level. But with all its simplicity, this game and foremost the Mega Man himself managed to achieve a position as a gaming icon and also a popular name in the world. Branching to other media and spawning numbers of sequels and spin-off video games were of course also inevitable.

Fingers crossed my NES system is still working. I'm planning to play with it once more.

If You Need Things to Describe the Word Epic, These Are

I'm telling you, it won't take so much time to amaze you with these videos.

First off, I'll explain that stop motion is an animation technique to make a physically manipulated object appear to move on its own. The object is moved in small increments between individually photographed frames, creating the illusion of movement when the series of frames is played as a continuous sequence. So briefly, you make a pose of an inanimate object, one by one, and connect the shots to create an effect that the thing is moving. Get what I mean? Sounds tiring, yes. And imagine that if this guy created these using the same technique to action figures.

In my own opinion, these are the best way to waste your spare time, channel your creativity or ingenuity, and attract people all over the world, of course. I'll say this guy is a genius. Fun. Hilarious. In one word, EPIC.

And this one is a different stuff. Still the same epic and hilarious. Or cute. Or whatever.

I Am Number Twelve

Dear friends,

Where shall I even begin?

Oh wait. I don't even know where to. Let me think of it.

Twelve.

What do we do with it? Is it a such special number that you and I have to concern about? Or does it lead to something far greater? Go figure, but speaking the matter of fact, it actually IS merely a random number that I accidentally picked.

Oh well. To be frank, I'm talking of the hour when I can finally fall asleep every night.

Seriously, if I can say, the insomnia has taken over me. I barely yawn every night. Sleeping sound like a great thing to be done if I can do it. And even sometimes I 'm afraid of falling asleep. In dreams, everything can be. I can come face to face with the thing that is my greatest fear. Dreaming of it even can send me away to limbo. Or even in dreams, I can meet the angelic girls I dream of even in real world. And that will kill me, as I know it is merely a dream. When I'm awake, the fact that I can't ever afford those dreams really hurts.

Maybe some of you are wondering, 'So does this person go to sleep?'. Yes of course I do, in the end. But I have to wait for quite a long time for this sleepy feeling to visit my head and closing my eyes. I always don't want to sleep, I prefer doing things in the midnight. But as you all know, I am a desperate school boy, who like it or not, have to wake up early in the morning to avoid being reviled by teachers.

If I have to wait for quite a long time to feel sleepy, then what I do in the meantime?

I wonder. I imagine. I hope.

Look, I'm talking about hoping this and that. You know what is this and that, if you know me. And you may suspect this will lead to a hopeless love talk once again; yes it is indeed. I don't know why, but as a stripling my mind and heart become very unstable. But I decide that girls are far too complicated for me to understand, if I can say some of them are as complicated as math equations.

Well, not pretty much as complicated as this.

I've done talking about girls. Maybe the best way to its conclusion is to...wait, hope. Pray. Oh, don't get me started.

Yay, tiramisu cakes.

The Sole Noel

It's hard to deny that it's close to Christmas. And it also means that the end of the year has come. To me, it's quite hard to steep the feels of Christmas since the atmosphere around me is extremely unsuitable for that. 

There's no snow, the sun shines so bright instead. No Santa. No cookies (That's the worst part). There's no beloved one to spend Christmas with. And this year, the Christmas tree stays in the attic, since everyone is too lazy to take it out.

I didn't say I don't know what's the true meaning of Christmas. But with those feelings and celebrations, it should be far better. Then, I tried to make fun by myself, as hey, it's the holy holiday already. I'll still spend it here, but holiday can be anywhere.

EPIC:

They who are in vacation in the Attic:

Ebenezer Scrooge, humbug:

The bookworm's holiday stack of stock:

That's how I'll spend holidays, fooling around and becoming a true bookworm. But Christmas is not just about celebrations and fun. It has a deep meaning.

I believe, that Jesus is truly the only way. I celebrate Christmas because it's His birthday.

And in the end, I can only say:

Cheers and have a happy holiday,

Bobby

When You Encounter Bad Things

It is very pathetic, for someone to have bad days in a row. Or in other words, to have a bad week. And that someone, my friend, is the very person you know, the very person who is behind these words.

That was me.

First thing first, the final tests. There's NOTHING worse that this thing. But everything will get worse if you: a) Are having a toothache, b) Met up with a girl that suits your type.

Yes, finally I've paid visit to the dentist. And what I got is a pathetic, exceeded pain that lasts for 5 days or what (Until NOW). The dentist said that everything will be alright; and I tried to trust on her but I simply can't. And from my 2 brief visits, I have got bad things besides the pain itself. I've tasted a drill inside my mouth, needles, and even a superbly long hose.

And I've got the followings.

DEAR MRS. DENTIST, I SUGGEST YOU TO:
01. Reduce your blinding light.
02. Tell your patient when to open or close your mouth; I ended up opening my mouth for around an hour.
03. Do NEVER put a loud-roaring engine inside your practice space, that surely surprises your patient.
04. Install an Air-Conditioner within the space.
05. Strawberry or Chocolate flavored serum.
06. Not asking stuffs to your patient.

Among others. And what is pathetic is the fact that the dentist did those things to me. Yes, she entangled me in a conversation while she was checking into my mouth.

Dentist: (Checking my mouth) "Does that hurt?"
Me: (Mouth opened) "Uh-uh."
Dentist: (Injecting my tooth) "Did you use this side for eating?"
Me: (Mouth opened) "Nuh-uh."
Dentist: (Putting a hose into my mouth) "Hey, did you come to the choir rehearsal yesterday?"
Me: (Hose inside my mouth) "Ah-nuh."

And so on. Even though I just needed to say "Yes" or "No", but with your mouth opened and stuffs inside it, you can barely say a word. And your head must stay still, so you can't nod or shake your head for the answer. And I'm pretty sure, the dentist didn't know which one is "Yes", "No", or "Quite".

So that was my first sadness, and I should come there again for the third check. Duh.

And then, several days ago, I was strolling around the city and through into a plaza. I was rushing to the restroom to wash my face, since I slept in the car and I surely needed a face-wash to got rid of the sleepy effect on my face.

Then this girl came through, and walked in front of me.

On why meeting up with a girl is a bad thing:
You will be thinking of her for at least 3 days ahead. And since it's meeting without stopping; not knowing, bigger chance comes to 'You won't meet her again'.

Yeah, so she was clearly my type (But I can't describe the type, but I know of it). Oddly enough, she dressed in pink too. Maybe she was that girl, but I guess she's another. But I don't know for sure, since both are my type, so both may look similar.

She was walking to the restroom, too. And she walked VERY fast. I'm telling you, the way to the restrooms was this narrow, and quite-long and intricate dim alley. She was walking in front of me, so I must be behind her (Of course!?). I kept our distance for around 3 meters.

And suddenly, she turned her head back and stared at me.

She turned her head for around 5 times along her journey to the restroom. And I could tell she was looking at me, since there was no one other behind. Unless she got sixth-sense or what. And what I'm afraid of, is if she thought that I was stalking her.

Yeah, that's possible. But I was glad she looked back at me. Though I didn't know what was in her thoughts. And that was before we both arrived in front of the restrooms: female's straight ahead, and male's on the right.

And she turned right.

I stopped at the corner of the alley, and waited there. Uh-oh. I surely didn't want to get into that room with a girl inside. 10 seconds, and she ran out of the room, glanced at me, and rushed toward the female's.

Tongue in cheek.

I could see her pretty face blushed red. Then slowly I strode into the room, washed my face, and went out. I stepped my feet back into the alley, and the girl had just come out and quickly walked away. Again, she glanced at me. But at the end of the alley, I turned left and she turned right. So that was the end of that strange meeting, and I spent my time wandering around with the hope to see that girl again.

But I didn't.

So I classified that as a bad thing. Really, it was a bad thing to be in such situation. And worse, you didn't know what to do. So, it indeed was really a bad thing.

Well, the repeated thrice 'bad thing' should be a very clear indication.

A Crackled Enamel

Everything was all right. Nothing was wrong, I had my life as how it should be. I could do anything without any problem. Unless if the thing itself is a problem.

It was a week ago, before I felt this...pain. Tracing back, I found the source: the pain came from inside my mouth. Tracing deeper, I felt the pain right inside my mouth, right on the left side of my mouth. And tracing even deeper, it came from one of my teeth.

I have heard warnings from my school dentist, she said, "You have a hole in your teeth. Go to the dentist." You all know that she was talking of a professional dentist. By the way, I ignored her warnings, since it felt okay; nothing was wrong. And furthermore, how could that be? I hadn't eaten any sweets, chocolate, or anything that parents say to their kids can cause a toothache. I had reasons to ignore her warnings.

But back to several days ago, I felt this pain, and I dared to knock my teeth, where I guessed the pain came from. And...

Ouch.

Maybe God found out this naughty boy, who didn't want to hear the advice from Mrs. Dentist. Whatever the source, but I've got this very painful feeling. And I knew, at that very moment: I got a toothache.

This is my very first time, having a toothache. I don't know what to do, I even haven't told my Mum about this. I'm afraid someone will tie my head with a white cloth, and that will make me looks like I'm wearing a ribbon on my head. No. But it is exceedingly painful on the other hand. I can't sleep well, and even more painful, what I have to do is to punch my left cheek for the 10-minutes-painkiller.

The pain won't ever get lost.

And there's no other way than going to dentist. I'll tell Mum as soon as possible. And as for now, if tomorrow will be the end of the day, the last place I want to be is:

Because I don't want to rest with any additional pain; that's not peaceful.

Make a Wish

Several days ago, I was walking toward my house, in the midst of the tranquility of the night.

You have to know that opposite from the house of mine was a row of other houses, which roofs were not that high.

Then came this thing, across the black night sky.

It flew so fast, high from the sky and quickly swooped down until it disappeared on the back of one of the house. You may say 'It was merely a spotlight'. There were many spotlights around my house indeed, as my house was located close to a TV studio, which frequently appeared in the midst of night's clutches. But there was none of them was that bright, that big, that clear, and it was simply a spot, without the light tailed below it.

As a boy, whose work is reading and daydreaming, the first thing that came crossing in my mind was that it was something, it was a creature. And hence seeing this, my life will be changed forever. So can you read my mind? If no, go figure.

Then someone told me, 'It may be a shooting star'.

With all my senses, I finally thought, yes, it may be the truth.

So I quickly opened an unofficial board, letting people channel their wishes through me, so that I could send them to the presumably shooting star. Actually I myself doubted it, or in other words, I was still hoping it to be some sort of alien or extra-terrestrial or what.

 It was quite a ridiculous phenomenon, which existence might be questioned. It was very rare, but when someone witnessed it, things became challenging and thus the truth was still needed to be questioned. Then someone spread this rumor, an urban legend or a belief, which truth should be questioned too. Some thought it was simply a tongue-in-cheek, but some really believed in it. There was nothing wrong in it, actually, but people might thought it was kinda ridiculous. But I was never too late to do a thing.

Yes, a thing. Go figure.