Andy's LiveJournal

Mario Kart Wii: An Andy Review

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 02:49:36 GMT

I've been meaning to do this entry for like two weeks now, but here it finally is. Just wanted to take a moment to ramble about my opinionated ups and downs about Mario Kart Wii.
Firstly, to get the baddest of the bad out of the way, I'll discuss the few characters who make me frown to see as playables..

Baby Peach & Baby Daisy. No. Just.. no. Seriously. I'm fine with Baby Mario and Baby Luigi, possibly because this isn't their first Mario Kart appearance, but I think they went overkill with the babies with Baby Peach and Baby Daisy. Was it to up the percentage of baby characters? Or maybe they were added to have more female characters. Either way, without them, you've still got three babies to choose from (I'm including Bowser Jr. in the baby bunch), and five females. Well... one of which may not be a girl after all, according to Birdo's trophy description in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Still, at least they didn't go overboard with overkill by adding Baby Rosalina. Still, I have to admit, Baby Daisy is ridiculously adorable on the character select screen.
Funky Kong. Too many Kongs. D.K. and Diddy were just enough monkeys in Mario Kart, Tennis, etc., but Funky Kong belongs to the Donkey Kong series. Not merged with the Mushroom Kingdom as D.K. and Diddy were. If a third Kong was really necessary, they could've considered Donkey Kong Jr. Heck, he was in the first Mario Kart. Like Koopa Troopa, he went away after that. Koopa Troopa came back though. Why not D.K. Jr.?
Birdo. I really can't argue with having Birdo. Birdo's one of my least favorite Mario characters, but he ~~she~~ it's been around long enough for me to accept.

And, a few comments I'd like to make about some of the others..

Daisy. Without her frequent cry of "Hi I'm Daisy!" it's just not the same. But in all other aspects she's as loud and annoying (in a cute way mind you) as always, so I forgive her for that matter.
Rosalina. I guess she'll become more and more of a regular since Super Mario Galaxy. The star that follows her around is cute (I just adore the squeal it sometimes makes when she performs a midair stunt) but kind of distracting at times. I'm not sure why she's in the heavy class and not in the medium class with Peach and Daisy. ~~But maybe it has to do with the ending of Super Mario Galaxy.~~
Waluigi. Not sure why he's no longer in the medium class, but I'm getting used to controlling a heavy kart now.
Mii. Even the mere thought of racing as your Mii is awesome. I only wish this was doable in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

And characters who didn't make it, who I wish had..

Petey Piranha. Granted he was hard to play as in Mario Kart: Double Dash!! with his head taking up the entire screen, he was one of my favorites to have to race against, at least as a computer player. King Boo made his second appearance in Mario Kart Wii. Why not Petey?
Shy Guy. He wasn't selectable in Mario Kart DS, but he was cool to play as, and should've been in Mario Kart Wii.
Paratroopa. It'd be nice for Koopa Troopa to have his winged and red shelled counterpart back for Mario Kart Wii. Unless Dry Bones is playing that role. ..Well, minus the winged and red shelled part.

There're also a few tracks I'd like to comment on..

Toad's Factory. If there's anything worse than listening to Toad's voice after the N64 days, it's hearing a cluster of them chattering at the very beginning of Toad's Factory, as you're waiting for the race to start. Otherwise, I like the track, and I like the music.
Coconut Mall. I've been meaning to go exploring on all the tracks and just taking the time to look at things, but still haven't gotten around to doing so. This track will be one of my first. Because from what I've half paid attention to while keeping aware of my important surroundings, this track's got it all, from movie posters and store ads to shopping Miis and beautiful plant arrangements.
Koopa Cape. This is probably one of my favorite tracks. And only because I love how the music changes when you go into that underwater tunnel.
Moonview Highway. I'd say more people dislike this track than like it. But it's one of my favorites. Just as long as nobody triggers one of those bomb cars when I'm nearby. Seriously Shaz, if you're reading this, I couldn't agree with you more on your little bomb car rant y'had earlier.
Rainbow Road. Actually, I don't have anything to say about the Mario Kart Wii Rainbow Road, but I think it would have been awesome to have a bonus ninth cup or something, that consisted only of all the Mario Kart Rainbow Roads. They never were among my favorite tracks, so I find it odd that I'd be amused to play all the Rainbow Roads, one after another.

In other random ramblings, I like the addition of bikes, and love popping wheelies. But wheelies aside, are there any pros and cons to karts vs bikes? Is a kart capable of doing something that a bike isn't?
I'd also like to mention that when playing in GP mode, I refuse to believe that the computer players control most of the red shells, blue shells, and lightning bolts that hit me. Sometimes it just seems that the game decides, "Shoot, he's getting too far ahead of the other players. Oh well, I'll just hit him with lightning the next time he makes a jump, followed by a couple of red shells, and then a blue shell or two depending on whether he's still in first place." Either that or all eleven computer players are secretly teamed up against me and do everything in their power to use every item they get against me. Heck, I've had computer players ahead of me throw red shells behind them when they were below 1st place.
And, while on the topic of computer players and items, it seems they've gotten much better at controlling their green shells, and no longer aimlessly throw them like in previous Mario Kart games. I can't count how many times I've been hit by a green shell when neither right in front of, nor behind, the thrower.
Anyway, this entry's getting longer than I feel like typing, even though there's still a lot more I wanted to cover, but whatever. I'll just close by saying one more thing. Nintendo, please give Toad back his old voice. If the guy who did his old voice is no longer voice acting, just use the voice clips of him in his N64 days. I used to love Toad. Now I want him in a coma.
Oh, and if there is a Mario Kart Wii soundtrack, I totally want it.

I'ma gonna win!

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 03:17:05 GMT

Mario Kart Wii: 5155-4248-8822

Add me. Let's race!

Here to stay

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 14:30:03 GMT

Welcome to my apartment Jen~

Be relax and make yourself at home.

Years of practice?

Sun, 08 Jun 2008 10:46:47 GMT

I just saw a centipede walk backwards. A centipede. Walking. Backwards. That is some freaking amazing skill.

Potter, Weasley, Snape

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 15:17:51 GMT

Just a few days ago I rolled up a bunch of coins I've had accumulating for quite awhile and cashed them at the bank. Got me $111. Oh yes.
So I decided to go ahead and buy me a copy Mario Kart Wii. Haha, Waluigi's a trip in that game. But I've always liked his quirkiness. Right now I have never wanted to cosplay him more.
Anyway, something to look forward to, I have a storyline in mind for a web comic I wanna work on. But knowing me, we'll see if I actually get around to doing it or not.
Oh, and I'm not really a Harry Potter fan, nor do I usually care for spoofs of the original badger song, but this Potter version is just so dang catchy!

Fortified with optimism

Sat, 31 May 2008 00:11:08 GMT

I totally love the SoyJoy commercials on TV lately. ( Rainy Day / Jump Rope ) They never cease to make me smile. ~~Bummer they're not vegan.~~
Haha, and a few days ago I was walking to the store, and I walked by this girl in her car stopped at a traffic light, and as I passed by she called out to me, "Hey sexy~" in a very hit on like voice.

Happy Memorial Day

Mon, 26 May 2008 20:04:27 GMT

Two months ago I said I would, so here it is.

Ulala and Pudding about to start a round of tennis. Because I cannot express how awesome it is that they're both playable in Sega Superstars Tennis.
In other video game news, I played a few rounds of Mario Kart Wii at Mom's, and I love it. I totally wanna own it, but I'm not in as big a hurry to buy it as I probably should be. Lately I'm in kind of a money saving mood, which isn't a bad thing, right? But we'll see if I can wait to put it on my Christmas list or 'til the price drops by twenty dollars or so.
Otherwise, nothing too new going on.. Spent yesterday at Mom's with the family for Memorial Day. I had my Bocas while everyone else had their thing. I also didn't get much sleep last night. And had to work today (got paid double time and a half though). Somebody needs a nap.

Pay 99¢

Thu, 22 May 2008 23:31:33 GMT

I want daisies.
Buy me daisies!

Writer's Block: Whose part would you play?

Thu, 22 May 2008 19:15:21 GMT

If you could be cast on any TV show, from any time, who would you play?

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Lieutenant Randy Disher from Monk.

Yeehaw!

Sun, 18 May 2008 17:32:26 GMT

I'm back from Texas! Again! I don't even know where to start.. This trip was just as good as (if not better than) my last visit, but unlike last time, ten days was not enough! We did a lot, but we did way~ less than we wanted to. Rocky was satisfied with his trip too, it seems. Oh, and as always with my vacations and such, I haven't been keeping track of my Friends page. So if something big happened in your life and I should know, tell me! Either way... on to the pictures!

This shirt of Jen's is comfy.. Silky in texture, but not really silk.

Walking to Target like nobody's business.

Jen taking a sip of pineapple soda.

It totally says Sewing Avenue. XD

Just bein' silly.

We bought candy bracelets.

Jen's roommate Jarvis, whose only picture I took was in midst of a blink. Go figure.

It's funny 'cause it's true!

I caught this while passing by in a bus, so the quality came out horrible. But is reads, "KFC Do Not Enter." Jen and I approve this sign.

GRADUATION

Jen got her bachelor's degree in computer science. Her family came for her graduation also, so I got to meet them, which was cool.

Way to go, Jen! ^^

FOOD

We rolled the crescent roll dough around in cinnamon sugar before baking them. They were awesome. We wanted to do the same with Bac~Os, but didn't get around to it.

Making doughnuts.

Doughnut holes, too.

So this is what Jen was talking about.

Hooray for sprinkles free of confectioner's glaze~

First sprinkle doughnut I've had since going vegan. Well worth the wait.

Simply delicious. ~~And the doughnuts were good, too.~~

We made a romantic dinner on my last night there. Well.. it started off as a romantic dinner, but the sugary drink got to us five minutes into it.

I think this was my first time having gnocchi.

Leave it to Jen and me to drink wild berry soda from those bell shaped glasses.

DEENASAUR COSPLAY

It isn't the first Deenasaur cosplay, and hopefully not the last.

And what's a cosplay without a prop? XD

"Going somewhere?"

Classic.

She also wants to hem the shorts and possibly do the purple eye shadow.

SPIRAL DINER

Jen introduced me to Spiral Diner, by far the best vegan restaurant I've eaten at.

Spiral Burger.

"The Mitch" Tofu Club.

And, the news you've been waiting to hear. It's official now. Jen and I are sweethearts.
Oh, and she's moving to Virginia in a few months.

On my way

Wed, 07 May 2008 13:23:46 GMT

See you in a few hours, Jen~

Birthday #25

Wed, 07 May 2008 00:56:55 GMT

Turning a quarter way to 100 is kind of a big deal. Sadly though, that's pretty much the only part of my Birthday I had to look forward to; working mids this week, I'd be in bed on and off throughout the day, and I hadn't really time or energy to do much.
Of course, having zero plans for today made today's goods even better. It started last night at work, when my coworkers had signed a Birthday card for me. I'm surprised they remembered, let alone even knew, since the only mentioning of my Birthday I did was a side comment sometime over a week ago.
Then Rocky bought me a vanilla cupcake ~~with my money, mind you~~, my second virtual gift ever.
From Steve I got a new wireless router, since my current one acts up all the time. Now I'll finally be able to play Super Smash Bros. Brawl online.
And of course, the occasional IM popped up throughout the day wishing me a happy Birthday, so that was swell.
Overall today could've been better, but it sure could've been a lot worse too. Either way, I wasn't looking forward to today as much as I am tomorrow, when the real goodness begins.
Happy Birthday, me.

That time of year again

Tue, 06 May 2008 10:39:02 GMT

Happy Birthday, me.

10 d (Jen) > 25 a

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 23:33:48 GMT

In two weeks exactly I'll be in Texas. With Jen. As happy as can be.
In lesser news, my Birthday's thirteen days away.
Buy me Virtual Gifts! Or draw me giftart!
Or do both! Or neither..
Either way, aging a quarter way to 100's got nothing on spending ten days with Jen. ♥

Writer's Block: Happy Earth Day

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 19:02:26 GMT

What do you do EVERY day to take care of the earth's environment? What could you do more of?

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~~Every day I wake up and the first thing I do is NOT drop a piano on Marzipan's head.~~ Let's see.. Well, I recycle my stuff. And if I see some litter within X amount of distance from a waste basket I'll drop it in.. Being vegan and not supporting meat industries is a biggie. And using light from my open windows instead of lighting of the electric persuasion saves quite a bit.. Oh, and opting not to have children. The world needs less humans. ..Nice long entry on that topic to come some day eventually probably.
As for what I could do more of... I suppose I could stop leaving the television on all day solely for unnecessary background noise. And turn off my computer before going to bed. Oh, and I need to learn how to recycle like paper and cardboard.. And those other things that have a random number in the middle of the recycle logo. What do those mean? Where do I take those? And I could compost my compostable kitchen matter. Oh, and ride my bike to take care of local errands, such as Shoppers, or Best Buy, or the mall. ~~And chain myself to a tree marked to be cut down for a new shopping center.~~
Wow. There's a lot more that I could do than I already do. I do have a few bags full of paper, cardboard, and those other plastics with those numbers on them. It's just a matter of me figuring out how to take care of them.
Happy Earth Day, everyone.

Rocky the crab, The Pizz, and a potluck

Mon, 21 Apr 2008 00:42:14 GMT

Rocky has a MySpace! And a LiveJournal too, at rockydacrab. Don't expect a lot of updates from him though, since he's.. y'know... an inanimate object.
In other random news, I bought a The Pizz t-shirt today.
Oh, and we're having a potluck at work this weekend. I wanna make both a main dish and a dessert. Not sure exactly what though yet.

Whee~

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 01:20:57 GMT

I bought a bike today.

Sakura Matsuri 2008

Sat, 12 Apr 2008 22:43:41 GMT

Went to the Cherry Blossom Festival today with a few friends. 'Twas my first time. Didn't quite enjoy it as much as I could've; I left my cell at home so I couldn't wander off on my own to see and do all I wanted to, I completely missed the parade, and it rained off and on. It was still pretty awesome though. Anyway, onto some pictures~

These dolls were very nice, but kinda expensive.. There was one further to the right I thought about buying, but didn't.

Dude. Green fire hydrant!

That Yoshi is choking. :O

There were cosplayers.

Hecks yeah!!

They were dancing! I didn't have a nice view. D:

I definitely look forward to going next year, both prepared and early enough to catch all the excitement.

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Thu, 10 Apr 2008 03:14:41 GMT

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Less than three

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 03:29:24 GMT

She has the prettiest smile ever.
She compliments my physical appearance.
Her knowledge and vocabulary seem to have no boundaries yet she's eager to expand it more.
She's willing to take the patience to help me expand mine.
She's very creative, and is always coming up with neat ideas.
Cooking with her is ridiculously fun.
She's an environmentalist and an activist.
She shares tons of interests and views with me.
She's compassionate.
She's multi-talented, from playing the piano to riding the unicycle.
She makes me want to get out more.
She gets as big a kick out of watching YouTube Poop as I do.
She's as masculine as I am feminine.
She's the one I can thank for adding imitation honey to my bagel with Tofutti cream cheese.
She's the one who gave me the needed motivational boost to pursue my new job.
I think of her first thing in the morning and last thing before bed.
When I'm with her my world is perfect.
She is the sprinkled topping on my doughnut.
She tells me I have no idea how much I mean to her.
She's absolutely right.

Texasbound

Fri, 04 Apr 2008 14:41:32 GMT

I'm going back to Texas this May for Jen's college graduation. Well... and to just stay for another ten days. ♥
This is my best year ever.

Fools in April

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 12:11:55 GMT

I'm gonna skip the story of the outrageous event that recently took place in my life and cut straight to the chase: April Fools'!
Besides, I don't think I'll ever top my 2006 entry.
My drawing motivation's been gone for a month, but I forced myself to draw something anyway.

My favorite April fooler yucking it up with a few random pranks, such as the ol' running refrigerator, the snake in the peanut jar, and the squirting flower. Why Xianghua? 'Cause she's always running around crying out "Just kidding!" and such. I always associated April Fools' Day with her because of that, and because her Birthday's the day right after. Anyway! Happy April Fools', everyone. Keep it safe!
And in other random April 1st news, my Guild Wars character never looked better! XD

Today's entry was brought to you by the letter S

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 17:46:07 GMT

Funny how as much as I say I don't care for memes, I do them just as often. Anyway~

Comment and I'll give you a letter, then post this in your journal and list 10 things you like that begin with that letter.
neosinific gave me S.
Things I like beginning with S, in no particular order:
Space Channel 5 Best video game ever. And not just because of the lead character's hotness. Super awesome storyline (esp. in part 1), and super awesome game play (esp. in part 2).
Smexy Cheerleaders Oh yes.
Spiders I fear them like whoa. But I also love them like whoa.
SpongeBob SquarePants The show's ridiculously stupid it's awesome. Crazy randomness. And he reminds me a lot of me in my AMC days, especially when working at the Krusty Krab.
Soy Is there anything you can't do with soy?
Sprinkled Doughnuts Best kind of doughnut on the planet. I don't care what you say.
The Slowskys Yes, those Comcast turtles. Or maybe I should call them Verizon turtles..? Anyway, I can't get enough of their commercials.
Swimming Sadly, though, since being diagnosed with eczema, I haven't swam in a public pool.
Sleeping No matter how good or bad a day is, I always look forward to going to bed in the end. It's the time I set both my mind and body at ease, and think blissful thoughts.
Spending Time With Jen What? It starts with S. It's something I love doing. So it counts. In fact, go ahead and add "Seeing Jen" as a bonus number eleven to the list.

The other day, I got an mp3 of Mario Kart: Double Dash's Rainbow Road. Doing 65 on the highway to Rainbow Road.. Hecks yeah! XD
And after much procrastination on getting my taxes done, I'm getting $1600. Nice.
In closing, I leave you with another Brawl screenie.

The heart of a janitor

Fri, 28 Mar 2008 22:47:29 GMT

I wasn't gonna post this until I was closer to having my new job, but since I don't plan on making my move 'til late May at the earliest, I'll go ahead and spill the beans now.

JANITOR

Now you're probably thinking, "He must be joking." Well, I'm not. I'm serious. I know the pay generally sucks, but from what I gather, large enough facilities such as hospitals and colleges (just to throw a couple random examples out there) pay a decent enough salary that I can support myself on. I'm not talking something small like a Burger King or a Bowling Ally.
So why a janitor, you're probably wondering. Because it's something I love doing. Let's see, where to start...
I guess it kinda goes back to my AMC days. I've said it before, and it'll probably go for quite awhile: Working at AMC was the best three years of my life. Especially working usher shifts. Portering the lobby and hallways of debris, mopping soda spills, keeping the restrooms clean and stocked, changing trash bags and taking them out to the compactors, cleaning auditoriums between show times... I freaking enjoyed doing that kind of work. I even enjoyed cleaning the nasties, such as urine, vomit, blood, feces, and so on (yes, you'd be surprised at some of the things customers would leave behind). Even working at my current job, when it's time to take care of trash and dirty mats and whatnot at the end of each shift, I always try to be the one who does it. It's work that I enjoy doing, and can totally see myself doing it 40 hours a week.
I see my self as a people person. I enjoy being in others' presence. At both AMC and Raytheon, I've worked in groups and I've worked solo. Although I've enjoyed both, I prefer to work alone. To work at my own pace. To be self motivated. Yet I also like to be around people. Being a daytime janitor (I prefer working morning to afternoon shifts), I can work solo, and at the same time, be in people's presence. 'Course granted that people will usually make little to no eye contact with janitors, I don't think that would be a problem. It's just nice to see someone every now and then while working.
A low salary is the only con I can see so far, which is a biggie (though I can see myself getting by without trouble on around $27000, but I'd probably be required to move to a new apartment complex where the minimal annual income would allow that). But if I can get past that, I really think this is the job for me. It'd probably keep me in shape too (of course in comparison to my current job where I get two hours of break time each day, plus occasional snoozing during down time, what job wouldn't?).
Only problem is, I don't know of any close by places hiring. There's a few Lockheed Martin positions available which require a top secret clearance which I have, but the commute isn't convenient for me. Otherwise, I can't find any openings in my area. But I'm keeping my eye out. I don't really plan on making my move anyway until late May, early June anyway.
...Questions? Comments? Suggestions?

Item unlocked

Wed, 26 Mar 2008 20:00:18 GMT

Been playing Sega Superstars Tennis, and I'm actually a bit disappointed.. but maybe because I'm comparing it to Mario Tennis, which I found more fun and liked the controls for more.. I dunno. Still, Ulala and Pudding being playable and the Space Channel 5 court makes it worth it. And I love how Pudding breaks out her guitar for her Superstar State. Fan art likely to come soon to a cocotapioka near you.
In even happier news, I finally found the Natural Grocer store the other day that I've been looking for for months. ABC Cookies, Mac & Chreese, and soy jerky, three things I've been searching for forever, can be found there. I am a happy camper.
Otherwise, I've been working on a resume for... something. ..Details on that to come... later. To those who already know... shush.