Gotta Catch Em' All!!!

Back in Computer Programming Class! Oh boy, another day of "fun".......

Ok so I am Asian and I am geeky so of course I am obsessed with Pokemon. It is a phenomenon that has influenced almost every part of popular culture around the world. If you dont know what Pokemon is then let me just say that you really need to get out and see things, or even talk to people, honestly at this point just about everyone should know what Pokemon is. I mean my 80 year old grandfather knows what Pokemon is.

"Pokémon (ポケモン) is a media franchise published by the video game company Nintendo and created by Satoshi Tajiri in 1996. Originally released as a pair of interlinkable Game Boy role-playing video games, Pokémon has since become the second most successful and lucrative video game-based media franchise in the world, behind only Nintendo's own Mario series.Pokémon properties have since been merchandised into anime, manga, trading cards, toys, books, and other media. The concept of the Pokémon universe, in both the video games and the general fictional world of Pokémon, stems from the hobby of insect collecting, a popular pastime which Pokémon executive director Satoshi Tajiri-Oniwa enjoyed as a child. Players of the games are designated as Pokémon Trainers, and the two general goals (in most Pokémon games) for such Trainers are: to complete the Pokédex by collecting all of the available Pokémon species found in the fictional region where that game takes place; and to train a team of powerful Pokémon from those they have caught to compete against teams owned by other Trainers, and eventually become the strongest Trainer, the Pokémon Master. These themes of collecting, training, and battling are present in almost every version of the Pokémon franchise, including the video games, the anime and manga series, and the Pokémon Trading Card Game.In most incarnations of the fictional Pokémon universe, a Trainer that encounters a wild Pokémon is able to capture that Pokémon by throwing a specially designed, mass-producible spherical tool called a Poké Ball at it. If the Pokémon is unable to escape the confines of the Poké Ball, it is officially considered to be under the ownership of that Trainer. Afterwards, it will obey whatever its new master commands , unless the Trainer demonstrates such a lack of experience that the Pokémon would rather act on its own accord. Trainers can send out any of their Pokémon to wage non-lethal battles against other Pokémon; if the opposing Pokémon is wild, the Trainer can capture that Pokémon with a Poké Ball, increasing his or her collection of creatures. Pokémon already owned by other Trainers cannot be captured, except under special circumstances in certain games. If a Pokémon fully defeats an opponent in battle so that the opponent is knocked out (i.e., "faints"), the winning Pokémon gains experience and may level up. When leveling up, the Pokémon's statistics ("stats") of battling aptitude increase, such as Attack and Speed. From time to time the Pokémon may also learn new moves, which are techniques used in battle. In addition, many species of Pokémon possess the ability to undergo a form of metamorphosis and transform into a similar but stronger species of Pokémon, a process called evolution.In the main series, each game's single-player mode requires the Trainer to raise a team of Pokémon to defeat many non-player character (NPC) Trainers and their Pokémon. Each game lays out a somewhat linear path through a specific region of the Pokémon world for the Trainer to journey through, completing events and battling opponents along the way. Each game features eight especially powerful Trainers, referred to as Gym Leaders, that the Trainer must defeat in order to progress. As a reward, the Trainer receives a Gym Badge, and once all eight badges are collected, that Trainer is eligible to challenge the region's Pokémon League, where four immensely talented trainers (referred to collectively as the "Elite Four") challenge the Trainer to four Pokémon battles in succession. If the trainer can overcome this gauntlet, he or she must then challenge the Regional Champion, the master Trainer who had previously defeated the Elite Four. Any Trainer who wins this last battle becomes the new champion and gains the title of Pokémon Master. Pokémon, being a popular franchise, has undoubtedly left its mark on pop culture. The Pokémon characters themselves have become pop culture icons; examples include two different Pikachu balloons in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, a Pokémon-styled Boeing 747-400, thousands of merchandise items, and a theme park in Nagoya, Japan in 2005 and Taipei in 2006. Pokémon also appeared on the cover of the U.S. magazine Time in 1999. The Comedy Central show Drawn Together has a character named Ling-Ling, which is a direct parody of Pikachu. Several other shows such as ReBoot, The Simpsons, South Park, The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy, Robot Chicken,All Grown Up! and Johnny Test have made references and spoofs of Pokémon, among other series. Pokémon was also featured on VH1's I Love the '90s: Part Deux. A live action show called Pokémon Live! toured the United States in late 2000. It was based on the popular Pokémon anime, but had some continuity errors relating to it.Joseph Jay Tobin theorizes that the success of the franchise was mainly due to the long list of names that could be learned by children and repeated in their peer groups. The rich fictional universe provided a lot of opportunities for discussion and demonstration of knowledge in front of their peers. In the French version Nintendo took care to translate the name of the creatures so that they reflected the French culture and language. In all cases the names of the creatures were linked to its characteristics, which converged with the children's belief that names have symbolic power. Children could pick their favorite Pokémon and affirm their individuality while at the same time affirming their conformance to the values of the group, and they could distinguish themselves from other kids by asserting what they liked and what they didn't like from every chapter. Pokémon gained popularity because it provided a sense of identity to a wide variety of children, and lost it quickly when many of those children found that the identity groups were too big and searched for identities that would distinguish them into smaller groups." (Wikipedia)

Now the reason for this long drawn out and copied explanation of Pokemon is that people seem to think that the game is for children. Honestly the game is for all ages and the franchise, while directed at kids, can be enjoyed by all ages. The Pokemon games are actually extremely deep. The design may seem simple but to master the game and to train the strong, powerful Pokemon, it takes alot of time, effort, math, and strategy. I am seriously tired of people saying that Pokemon is a children's game, or people saying that people are too old to be playing Pokemon. Most of the people competing in the Pokemon World Championship are in their 20s. The same goes for the Pokemon card games. Now as for the anime and the manga, sure those are childish, but for me, and maybe for alot of other people, I like the world of Pokemon and I think that watching the show or reading the manga is adding an extra depth to the seires that helps me enjoy the games even more. The fact is that Pokemon , while made for children, is unique because it can transcend generations and bridge age gaps. Each person can have a coonection with each indiviual Pokemon and even while playing the game, you'll start to favor one more than the others and not be able to explain why you like taht particualr Pokemon. Each Pokemon brings different traits, personality, abilities, strengths, weaknesses, etc and each game, manga, anime episode, card, etc help expand your understanding of each Pokemon, giving you so many ways to bond and form connections with certain ones. All the different media that the franchise brings adds a new dimension to the world. Pokemon is definatly not a game that you can be too old for, and no one should be told that their too old to like it.

College Football

Once again I am bored in computer programming class....only 38 weeks left

Football is the most popular sport in America. It is at the forefront of American sports and it slowly but surely starting to make its way to the rest of the world. People just cant seem to get enough football. We have middle school, high school, college, and professional leagues, not to mention Pop Warner leagues for little kids. The one that I find really special level of football is college football. Division 1-A college football is just so passionate and electrifying. The atmosphere around a game or in the stadium is something that cannot be explained and must be experienced. High school football is great to watch but sometimes there are players that just dominate a game and the difference between the levels of skill between players and teams can be so that the games aren't as fun or exciting to watch. And yes of course the most talented players and the best football is played in the NFL, but most fans aren't as passionate about the games. College football brings a great mixture of talent and passion that just makes for an amazing all around experience. The sounds of the band, roaring of the crowd, getting louder and louder as the spirit leaders try to pump people up. The athletes are young and naive, but talented and passionate. The fans have a connection to the teams, more so than to their favorite pro team, whether its because they went to the school, their child goes to the school, etc. College football is truly something that everyone should experience at least once and hopefully it will continue to inspire the next generation of football.

Hey Mr.West...Mr.West...Mr.West

Ok here comes the next chapter in the saga of.....Period 4 Computer Programing Class Boredom

Ok so those i you who watched the MTV Music Video Awards last Sunday probably know what this blog is going to be about.I should start by saying that I really do not like Taylor Swift's music, and I do agree with Kanye that Beyonce should have won that award, but that doesnt mean that I do think Kanye was a gigantically, massive douche. For those for you who don't know what happened, first let me just say that you live under a rock, second let me fill you in and set the scene for you. Kanye West, award-winning rapper, producer, writer, has lately been doing crazy things, like cussing out people at the 2008 MTV VMAs for not letting him perform, and many other incidents like this. Taylor Swift, the 19-year old country music sensation that has seemed to somehow bridge the gap between country music and people who normally cant stand it, meaning most of the known world, including most species of primates and some known birds. Ok now before I continue....I do not like country music, I really can't stand it, but Taylor Swift's music, in my opinion, sounds more like pop than it does country, but i does not mean that I like her music in anyway shape or form. Back to the story. So the 2009 MTV VMAs are going smoothly; Russell Brand is making offensive jokes, Lady Gaga is being a freak.....everything is going how it should and how everyone expected it to go. Then comes the award for Best Female Video. The nominees are Beyoncé — "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It), Kelly Clarkson — "My Life Would Suck Without You, Lady Gaga — "Poker Face, Katy Perry — "Hot N Cold, Pink — "So What", and finally Taylor Swift—"You Belong with Me". I think alot of people thought that Beyonce was gonna win the award easily. Taylor Swift was announced the winner and whole audience looked shocked, as well as happy for Taylor. The applause and cheers were loud, as Taylor Swift got up, hugged her family, and ran to the stage. She began to give her speech and then......Kayne West appeared out of no where and stole the microphone from Taylor Swift's hands. Kayne then said, on live TV, "Taylor, Imma let you have your moment, but I just want to say that....BEYONCE HAD ONE THE GREATEST VIDEOS OF ALL TIME!". He then handed the mic back to Taylor and began to walk off stage. The crowd booed Kanye, as he flipped them off and walked off. Taylor was speechless and just stood in the middle of the stage, completely still, not saying a word. The show then cut to commerical, and the rest of the night was filled with presenters, award winners, performers congraulating Taylor Swift in some way or form. Kanye West was cut from the show, and is now banned from the MTV VMAs. The last award of the night was Video of the Year. Beyonce won the award, and when she got up for her speech, she told the story of how happy and excited she was when she was 19 and she won a VMA as a memeber of Destiny's Child. She then called up Taylor Swift and said that taylor Swift deserved her moment. Taylor Swift came on stage and ended the night by finishing her speech. Kanye released several public statements afterword aplogizing, and saying that he was wrong and he did it because he has "been touring some much, and making so much music" that he is "tired, overworked, and stressed". I am a big fan of Kanye's music, but he is an ass. Taylor Swift didnt deserve that. Its like if Robin finally did something without Batman, and Superman told him that he just got lucky. I mean really Taylor Swift is only a couple years older than me, shes barely considered an adult. Kanye is a talented artist, and he is highly sucessful; why does he need to pick on a teenager. Kanye should just stick to making music, there is no need for him to police the music industry, with his own ideas or concepts of what he thinks music should be. If he really wants to make a huge impact on the music industry, just keeping making the great music he has been.

Bored in Compter Programming

Ok so right now i am sitting in computer programming class in 3rd period. This class could not be more useless. All we do is write, but not on a computer...no....but on paper....WTF! How does that make sense!? Why do we even need this class...most of the students have proven that we know more than the teacher....we have corrected him several times....and thats just today. What is a computer programming class if you dont use the computer....this is just a prime example of why LAUSD is wasting money and wasting the time of both its students and teachers. There are about 28, $3,000 apple computers....beautiful computers, but no we dont use them, we just turn them off, and turn them on....WTF!!! THATS LIKE $100,000 WASTED AND A WASTE OF PERFECTLY GREAT AND AWESOME MACS!!!! WOW LAUSD!!! ALL THIS AND YOU GUYS ARE STILL FIRING GOOD TEACHERS!! Really does this generation really need to learn how to use an email account or learn how to search the internet. Honestly this class is obviously obsolete and needs o either be changed or gotten rid of. I took this class because I thought Intro to Computers would be too easy for me, but now that I know how mindless and easy computer programming is...I wonder what Intro to Comp is like....hmmmmmmm

Key Club Cali-Nev-Ha District Convention 2009

Ok so DCON was actually April 2-April 4 but I was writing my monthly article on it so I decided to wait and just post my article up instead of just writing about it.

What makes Key Club different from other service clubs? What makes it possible for hundreds of thousands of high school kids to help as much as they do? The answer is passion. Passion is what makes Key Clubbers give up their weekends to plant trees or clean up a beach. It is not only a passion for helping people but it is a passion for the organization itself. Key Club is special in the fact that this passion, this spirit lies within every Key Clubber from generation to generation. And the way that spirit is passed on to the next line of Key Clubbers is though an event like DCON.

As much as a freshman hears statements like “250,000 members” and “worldwide club”, they can never realize how huge Key Club is until they see the amount of people and the amount of spirit at District Convention. DCON helped my members realize that this is not just some club that sits around and talks about random topics, but it is instead a club that is affecting people all over the world and making a difference, no matter how small.

DCON shows the organization at its best. For members new to Key Club or members who haven’t quite gotten their spirit, DCON shows that this club is organized, influential, and in many ways “magical”. The faces on my members when they first saw general session, with everyone showing their spirit and trying as hard as they could to win that spirit stick, can only be described as amazing. At DCON, you can literally see pride of Key Club. Whether it be new members staring their incredible journey through this remarkable organization, or seniors preparing to say the final goodbyes to the club that gave them so much, DCON is an emotional experience that must be seen and felt to be truly understood.

After building the passion, DCON also gives its attendees the tools to transform that passion into service and work. Each and every one of the workshops and speeches given at DCON adds to the knowledge of each attendee and helps this organization learn and grow. At DCON I have met many people and received masses of information and advice from the older members. I will never forget those people, and this experience we shared together. I will put the information that I have received to good use throughout this year, and when my time in Key Club is done, I will pass on my knowledge and continue the cycle of learning and growth. My members and I learned how Key Club can do anything and how they can help in making the impossible possible. It’s a clique I know, but that’s what Key Club is all about, making memories and making a difference.

Chris Okamura Key Club Division 25 West Reseda High School Vice-President