Megacon: To Go Or Not To Go

So my husband recently bought tickets to Megacon, which I've been looking to for a while because confession: I've never actually been to a convention before. Growing up, I simply never had the money or means of transportation to get to any local conventions and before this year, my hubby and I have really only had just enough money to pay the bills. But now I have a chance to go, and not only that but Stan Lee will be there signing autographs. 

Yeah, that's right. Stan FREAKING Lee -- the king of the nerds! Er Marvel nerds, anyway. 

Here's the thing, though. I'm actually thinking about not going.
Why, you ask? 

Well, I'm not gonna lie. A lot of contributes to my social anxiety. I have anxiety attacks that are triggered by every day ordinary interactions and I really don't want to humiliate myself by meeting Stan Lee while I'm crying and hyperventilating. 

Not only that, but a few years ago, I was actually publicly -- well, as public as you can get on the internet -- humiliated by a well known comic book artist on their blog. I'm not gonna say who or what happened because, honestly, I've deleted any screencaps of the convo, and have really just been trying to move on from that situation. The point is, though, that person was one of idols and they were a total, freaking, dick and long story short, they basically shat all over my childhood. 

Who wants to go through that again? 

I mean, I read online that Stan Lee is supposed to be this ridiculously nice guy, but I really don't feel like testing my luck, especially since I know that I will definitely have an anxiety attack as soon as I even get a glimpse of the guy. But at the same time, he and Jack Kirby are responsible for about 95% of my childhood -- the parts that have yet to be destroyed by the interweb, anyway. Every morning and afternoon, my brother and I would be watching some form of Spider-Man or X-Men.
I don't know what to do, guys.
Honestly, I'd probably be happy just staying home reading and working on my writing. But my husband thinks that if I stay home, I'll just be making a huge mistake.
What would you guys do?

Nerdy Thrift Store Finds



Okay, so I'm not gonna lie. I totally have LGR (LazyGameReviewer) to thank for all this because had I not seen his video LGRThrifts, I would have never been inspired to stop by my local SPCA thrift store to see what kind of nerdy goodies and video games I was able to find. But I am really glad I did, so because of that I would just like to say, thanks, LGR, and please don't stop posting your awesome vids any time soon. 

By now, I bet you're wondering what it is I actually found at the thrift store, aren't you?
No, not really?
Well, I'm gonna tell you anyway. 

One of the coolest things I found at the store was a copy of The Sims Deluxe Edition priced down to $3.00 because it's an old game. In case you guys haven't noticed, in some of my previous posts I sort of made it obvious that I have a weird sort of love affair with The Sims franchise and the truth is, I kind of don't. Don't get me wrong, The Sims is a great game. But after a long bout of video game addiction involving The Sims 3, I just got tired of giving EA Games my money. Seriously, I was one of those suckers who gave them $10, so I could have a cow plant in my game. Then when I downloaded it, I was too afraid of it eating my Sims to actually play with it.

Yeah, it was bad.
However, that doesn't change the fact that the games hold a special place in my heart and since I already have a growing collection of The Sims games, I'm usually pretty quick to pick this stuff up when I see it. Especially when it only costs $3.

Plus, one of the really cool things about The Sims Deluxe Edition -- that I'm sure any hardcore Simmer could tell you -- is that it actually comes with a free copy of The Sims Livin' Large Expansion Pack, The Sims Creator, and also exclusive "deluxe" content. So essentially when I bought this, I was really getting two games and a much needed upgrade for the original Create-A-Sim. Who can say no to that? 

The next thing I managed to find was a copy of The Sims Makin' Magic Expansion Pack, priced down to $4. Yes, I know, I know. More Sims stuff?

Well, I almost got a copy of the Toy Story 2 PC game, but the disc was all scratched up. Plus, The Sims 3 Supernatural is my favorite Expansion Pack and this actually came with a pretty cool surprise.

The surprise turned out to be a second disc that included a The Sims 2 Sneak Preview. Say what you will about this franchise, but it is widely known that The Sims 2 set the bar for high graphics standards in video games. If nothing else, the game is worth playing simply because of how beautiful it is. So this is something I thought was really cool.

Total, my copy of The Sims Deluxe Edition and The Sims Makin' Magic cost me $7. Was it the Playstation2 I was actually hoping to see up for sale?
No, but it's still freaking awesome, and I still have one last find to tell you guys about.

 

Alright, alright. 

This last find isn't nerdy and if I'm being honest with myself, it's probably not all that interesting unless you're huge fan of the author's work like I am. Like, for real, this chick is one of my writing idols.

And her name is Laurie Halse Anderson. She's probably best known for writing the controversial YA novel Speak, which has since found it's way onto The Banned Book List in several states and counties across the US. Because people in this country need to read less in order to get smarter. That'll help the stereotypes, alright -_-

Anyway, when I stopped by the thrift store it looked like a book store had just thrown up in there. There were two huge crates of books along with the regularly stocked shelves full of books, and my husband and I had a lot fun just looking through all of them. And as you can see, I was lucky enough to find two of Laurie Halse Anderson's best sellers. What made finding these even more enjoyable is that they're hardcovers and had I bought them at bookstore, they'd have cost me about $15 each. 

Now, I haven't actually read these books yet, so I don't actually know what they're about, but the first book is Fever 1793, which I do know is a historical fiction novel. The other one I managed to find is called Catalyst, and honestly, I've only ever heard it mentioned in passing. 

I'm more than likely going to do reviews on these books sometime in the near future, but I've got a lot of stuff going on. So until then, if you haven't picked up a book by Laurie Halse Anderson, I would highly recommend doing so.

Nerdy MJ's Creative Corner

Ever wonder what I do in my free time aside from this blog?
Well, here it is. I write. What do I write, you ask?
Fanfictions, novels, poetry, lyrics. Pretty much everything. I even had a vampire novel in the works at one point, but decided to shelve until the vampiric hell that is The Twilight Saga finally blows over. If you're interested in reading some of my work, please check out the links below.
Thank you.

Nerdy MJ On Fanfiction.net

Nerdy MJ on Fictionpress.com

Pokemon X/Y: The Pokemon-Amie Blues

As someone with social anxiety, I am already prone to attachment issues. So I think some people may say that I've always had a bit of an odd relationship with Pokemon, specifically the ones in the video games. Whenever I got to play a Pokemon game, which wasn't often, I would treat the Pokemon in my battle party as my pets. I mean, sure, I would never actually confine my pets to small, plastic balls with who-knows-what inside of them and then force them to beat the crap out of other animals until they fainted, but let's not get technical, right?
I firmly believed and still do believe that battling with my Pokemon would bring me closer to them and help me to develop a special bond of friendship with them. I would always buy way too many Potions, give them nicknames, and whenever we went to the Pokemon Center, I would pretend that we had stopped there so I could feed them and see they were given proper medical care. I believed the Pokemon in the games were my friends and that they should be treated as such, and got into many an argument because of it. In other words, I got really attached to them and basically had to learn to remind myself that they weren't real animals.
As I got older, it became easier and easier not to get emotionally invested in my Pokemon. I mean, I liked them, I cheered for them in battles, and I always gave them their own nicknames. I understand now that they aren't real, but then Pokemon-Amie came around and made it a lot harder for me to view them as just little blocks of data or whatever. 

Don't get me wrong. I love Pokemon-Amie. It's probably my favorite feature in the Generation 6 games, but essentially what Nintendo is telling us to do with that feature is to treat our Pokemon the way we treat our pets. They want us to feed them, pet them, play them, and essentially love them. And, seriously, how could we not?
Pokemon are some of the most adorable creatures ever to come into existence. Sure, not all of them are cute and cuddly like, say, Charizard. Most people would probably fall down in tears if they ever saw a Charizard in real life, especially a wild one. But still we put all this time into training them and teaching them how to battle, so that they can carry us to victory against the Elite Four and, in my opinion, Pokemon definitely deserve our love for that.
Taking all that into consideration, it's really, really hard not just to melt into a puddle of freaking goo when you see your prized Pokemon eat a cake with chocolate on top of it, basically, out of the palm of your hand. Or when they turn to you in battle and ask you what to do "with trust in their eyes". Who can't love that?
With all the cuteness and love and trust involved, it's hard to think that there could possibly be a downside to Pokemon-Amie, but believe me, there is. The bad part about Pokemon-Amie is that no matter how much you love a Pokemon, sometimes you just can't them with you throughout the entire game. That means that there are some Pokemon you might end up having to box in the Pokemon Center PC.
Now, I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, "But, MJ, that's nothing new. We've all had to box our favorite Pokemon in previous games."
That's true. It's not a new feature, but it is so much worse than it was previous Pokemon Generations. I mean, think about it: You have this Pokemon that you love and play with every day, that you tried all the way up to level 20-something. Then suddenly you realize, your party is full and no one can learn the new TM that is essential for completing the game. That means someone in your party needs to replaced with a Pokemon that can learn the TM. As if to make things worse, you start off on the road to the nearest Pokemon Center when suddenly you get into a battle and out pops your favorite Pokemon -- the one you know needs to be boxed -- and the text box on the screen says, "So-and-So looks at its Trainer with trust in its eyes."
It trusts you -- it knows you love it and you know it loves you because you just checked its affection level, and you HAVE to box it!
Get the idea?
Now, I know this may not seem like a big deal to some people, but really that's only because those people are heartless jerks with no real concept of love and friendship. And I used to be one them. Originally, I'd planned on keeping a Furfrou named Paris in my party simply I liked the Pokemon and via Pokemon-Amie, I managed to get pretty attached to it. I knew eventually I might have to box it because Furfrou is a Normal-type that doesn't learn any spectacular moves except maybe Surf, but, honestly, I didn't know what was going to happen when I did. I just thought it'd be like when I was a kid and I'd be all happy and smiling and like, "Bye, Furfrou. See you later." 

Uh, no.
I was so depressed I had to stop playing my game until I managed to forget about Fufrou. I'm not going to say that my social anxiety has nothing to do with it. It probably does, but that doesn't make me special. I know there are other people out there who get depressed over the simple action of boxing a Pokemon now, and not just because my post about it on the Miiverse got five Yeahs!
It's because Nintendo reminded us that we have feelings and that if Pokemon were real, they'd have 'em to. So I guess what I'm really trying to say here is thank you, Nintendo, for emotionally comprising an entire generation of Pokemon Trainers. 

Nerdy MJ Reviews The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (Swedish Version)

***WARNING MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS***

Title: The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

Director: Niels Arden Oplev

Writer(s): Nikolaj Arcel, Rasmus Heisterberg, Stieg Larsson

Starring: Noomi Rapace, Micheal Nyqvist, Lena Endre

This is a movie I've been looking forward to watching for quite some time ever since I read the first book in the Millennium trilogy. However, I'd like to give a word of warning to anyone who, like myself, is new to the world of the trilogy and is reading it for the first time: Do NOT watch this movie before you finish the series. Just don't. It is filled with spoilers and foreshadowing that could potentially ruin the series for you.
Anyway, with that aside, I would just like to say that this movie was amazing and it's kind of making me question whether or not I should even bother with the American version of the film. But don't worry, I will be watching it if only to compare the two. I do, however, have some complaints about this version, which is the original Swedish film.
As far as casting goes, it's my opinion that the only character they nailed 110% was that of Lisbeth Salander. Noomi Rapace did an amazing job and did nothing to dampen the fangirl crush I've been harboring on the character because, seriously, Salander is just so f*cking cool. As for the characters of Mikeal Blomkvist and Erika Berger, well, let's just say the choices could have been a lot better. Like a lot a lot.
Okay, okay, Micheal Nyqvist didn't do a bad job as Blomkvist. The acting certainly fit the character,and if I'm being honest here my only real complaint is that he did not at all fit the Blomkvist I was picturing inside my head.
The cast choice for Berger kind of makes me cringe, though. I mean, in the book she's described as this cultured, sexy, much talked about magazine editor that has an on-going polyamorous relationship with Blomkvist for more than twenty years. That's a long time, and I get that she's supposed to be middle-aged, but in the movie, I can't help but think that she looks....Like.....Well, the exact opposite of that!

See this -- this is her! This is Erika Berger! Obviously!

I mean, for real, I just can't look at this picture without wondering when the last time she picked up a comb was. I guess that's probably more the costumes department fault than hers, but Lena Endre would be the last choice I'd make for Berger if I had a chance to make this movie over again. Maybe I'll come to like her in later films or something, but I just...I just...I can't.
She is so not right for this role to me.
Another complaint I have about the movie is that the foreshadowing -- AKA spoilers -- seemed really unnecessary. I mean, I guess they help to give us a bit of insight into Salander's character, but anyone who has the read the books would not need that insight and the incident brought to light by this foreshadowing wasn't even mentioned in the first book. They just threw it in the first movie just because!
Or more than likely for lazy people who decided they didn't want to read the books first, but I don't feel like being nice to them -- I was in the middle of the second book when I watched this. They spoiled parts of it for me very badly. If I had known about these spoilers beforehand, I would have NEVER watched this while I was in the middle of the trilogy. I would have waited and watched the whole thing in one sitting.
Spoilers and one less than ideal casting choice aside, this was still an amazing movie. Oplev and the writers did a hell of a job with making sure it stayed close to the book's dark, controversial, and somewhat disturbing plot and stay close it did indeed.The production value of the film wasn't great, though. I remember thinking more than once that it looked like a bad made for TV film, but that doesn't take much away from the film and certainly is not something to hold against it. I was on the edge of my seat throughout the entire movie and can't wait to watch the second and third films. Which I will be doing as soon as I finish the trilogy.
In the end, I'm going to award the movie eight of ten stars because everything aside -- which isn't much -- Oplev did a damn good job with this movie and despite its flaws, I'm jumping up and down in my seat with excitement at the idea of watching the next movies. Would I recommend this movie to everyone?
To everyone, no. If you can't stand subtitles, well then quite frankly this movie is not for you and I feel bad for you because I learned the hard way that some of the greatest movies of all time never even make it to the States much less get translated or remade in English. And if you dislike extreme violence, then yeah, stay far, far away from this movie. Like as far away as you can possibly get because this movie just like the book is not for the faint of heart.
Everyone else, though, do not miss this movie. I don't care that it's a couple years old or you didn't like the books or whatever. Just watch the damn movie.

Here We Are Again....

Back to talking about Animal Crossing New Leaf for Nintendo's 3DS. Now, for those of you who don't know, I've had a very love and hate relationship with this game ever since I picked out a bad map a while back. Well, actually it was more like a feeling a mild claustrophobia as I slowly wandered around the map and realized as I walked, "THERE'S NOT ENOUGH SPACE TO BUILD ANYTHING HERE!"
Seriously, though, those maps defy the laws of physics. You can have an area of land that looks it hold like two or three buildings tops and be about a mile wide and long IRL, then find out, it can only fit one building. One tiny-ass building. I know they operate based on the number of squares per feet or something like that, but seriously -- where did they come up with freaking logic?
It's freaking mind-boggling, if you ask me.

Anyway, though, I decided that I want to overcome those feelings and challenge myself with an Animal Crossing Nuzlocke challenge, and just have fun with it. No themes. No trying to outdo Aika Village because let's be realistic here, I'm afraid of Paranormal Activity -- I can't kill a bug without bursting into tears. Why would I want to outdo Aika Village?
No, the only real goal is to keep with the challenge and have fun with it. Overall, I just want to build the town of my dreams. Which is where the scifi movie references and self-obsession comes in.
As you can see the town is named Skynet after the evil corporation from the Terminator movies. I decided to go with that because I thought it was an awesome name with a good reference that would grab people's attention. It actually wasn't my first choice, though. My first choice was actually Leafshire, but it was too long, sadly.
The mayor of Skynet is named Emerald after my birthstone. If and when I mention her again in upcoming posts, I'll probably refer to her as Emme/Emmy for short.
Overall, I really like the town, though I have been experiencing a bit of map anxiety. Hopefully, it turn out fine and I'll have picked a pretty decent town map.

In the screenshot, you can also see my villagers, most of whom I'd already encountered in previous saves. Though there are some newcomers, one of whom I'm hoping will leave as soon as humanly possible. But from left to right, they are Hopper, Snake, Eloise, Sally, and Bubbles.
They're a pretty good bunch, IMO. Though I freaking hate Snake. Don't ask me why. I just do. I really, really want him gone, but since I'm playing a Nuzlocke, I'm probably just gonna have to deal with him.
Speaking of which, here are the rules of the ACNL Nuzlocke challenge:

1. You must set one of your villagers catchphrases to cough. They have the plague. If all your villagers start saying cough, you must reset your town.
2. If a villager asks to move, you have to let them. 
3. You can time travel, but not to get villagers out.
4. You may not reset for maps or villagers. 
5. No glitching. You can accept glitched items though.
6. Beetle farming is not allowed, you may only use fruit/shells/Stalk Market/selling random stuff.
7. You can ONLY use your town fruit, your Island fruit and the fruit from Isabelle. You can take off up to 3 of these rules to make it easier. You can also add rules. 
Nuzlocke Rules
And, yeah, I will be ignoring some rules. Numbers one, six, and seven specifically, and while I won't be resetting for villagers or any of that stuff, I will be attempting to adopt them out when it is time for them to move.

Nerdy MJ Reviews Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus Book 1

***WARNING MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS***

Title: Cardcaptor Sakura Book 1 (omnibus)

Author: CLAMP; Nanase Okawa

Artist(s): Mokona, Tsubaki Nekoi, and Satsuki Igarashi

Cardcaptor Sakura was originally published in 1996-2000 and is quite possibly one of the most popular magical girl manga in publication. The story centers around fourth-grader Sakura Kinomoto, who has been chosen to recapture the magical Clow Cards after awakening the Cards' guardian, Cerberus -- AKA Kero -- from a book found in her father's library. From early on, it is made clear by the author and artists that Cardcaptor Sakura was intended to be a children's manga. However, due to the story, which captures the reader and makes the book ultimately unputdownable and the beautiful artwork, it is easily something that can be enjoyed readers of all ages.
But because of the overall theme of love -- all kinds of love -- human to creature relationships and acceptance, some might believe that the book is more suitable for open-minded, adult readers. Even in this first omnibus book, which collects volumes 1-4 of the series, we see examples of same-sex romance and pedophilia. Because of the pedophilic relationships -- yes, there's more than one -- I would not recommend this book for someone under the age of thirteen and fourteen, and would urge adults to remind the readers that it's really just a story and things don't work that way in the real world.
Anyway, despite what some may consider a somewhat controversial theme the story, overall, is incredibly upbeat and moving. We see characters struggling to overcome their hardships with each other for the good of others involved, and Sakura's optimistic attitude is incredibly contagious and will leave the reader feeling good once they've finished. This really is a story anyone can enjoy reading, though. It has everything -- action, romance, drama, and comedy.
Not only that, but this is an example of some of CLAMP's finest artwork ever. I don't think anyone can look at the characters in this book and say they aren't all beautiful in their own way. While it is possible for some to argue that the artwork is too girly for male readers to enjoy, I would like to remind you that this does fall into the shoujo genre and really, since when is artwork "girly"? I didn't realize that artwork had a gender unless you're referring to the use of flowers and Lolita style outfits Sakura dons throughout the book, in which case you're just being gender biased. Hate to break it to you.
In any case, do not discount this book because it is a magical girl shoujo and certainly not because of the artwork. If anything, the artwork is one of the things that this series so great. There are so many beautifully depicted panels in this book, it's hard to describe them all. Plus, because it is an omnibus reprint, the book also includes some of the most beautiful color prints I've ever seen in any manga.
Overall, I'm going to give this book an eight of ten. The story grabs the reader tight from the very beginning and the artwork is beyond beautiful. Again, it's definitely something you do not want to pass up. Trust me. If you missed this series in the 1990s, go out and pick up a copy of the omnibus now. You won't regret it.

New Gender Options On Facebook

In recent years, Facebook has come a pretty long way in proving themselves to be a supporter of LGBT rights. A few years ago, they altered their profile settings, so that bisexual users like myself -- thanks, Facebook -- could update their profiles to state they were attracted to both sexes. Then this morning it was announced that Facebook had again updated the profile settings. This time, however, they edited the settings to include more than fifty different terms for users to use to describe themselves and their gender. Facebook also added three pronouns choices for users to select from: him, her, them. The new settings can be seen in the picture below, which was taken from the Huffington Post website.

I think it's pretty safe to say that this is a huge step for Facebook, and a supporter of trans rights, I applaud them for taking this step. I think it's awesome to see a little bit more love and acceptance in the world as opposed to....Well, that other yucky stuff. Hopefully, we'll get to see more awesome stuff like this from other social media sites in the future.
We need more stuff like this in the world, so thank you, Facebook. 

Social Anxiety: What It's Really Like

Recently, someone tried to give me some advice on how to make friends after I explained to them that I have social anxiety and that makes it hard for me to make real friends. They said I should go to a place where I'm likely to meet like-minded people that will want to be friends with me. Huh.
I never realized it was that easy, but that's probably because I have social anxiety and it doesn't work that way for me.
Going to places like the movies or the library or a bar or a club is probably how most normal people make friends, right?
That does not work for me. It just doesn't. If I go to places like that and find someone I want to be friends with, I have to walk up to them and keep myself from having an anxiety attack. That's something that's pretty hard to do when A) you have no control over your feelings of anxiety and B) you're too busy, worrying about whether or not the person you're trying to talk to thinks you're a complete and total idiot. It usually doesn't work and the anxiety attack usually leads to a depressive bipolar swing, which could leave me feeling horrible about myself for days on end.
I wake up every day, feeling like I'm seconds away from having an anxiety attack. There is a constant pressure on my chest caused by the pounding of my own heart. When I go out in public, I don't look at people, I don't talk to anyone, and I stay as far as away from crowds and people as humanly possible, so I can try not to worry about whether or not they're judging me or making a joke at my expanse. If I see someone I want to talk to, I don't talk to them because I don't want to have to worry about humiliating myself and having an anxiety attack. I constantly try to make decisions that other people would approve of, so I don't have to worry about them judging me.
Everything I do from the way I cut my hair to the clothes and food that I buy is decided for me, based on the positive or negative reactions I get from other people. Even when I go online to a social media website or a forum, I think carefully about everything I post or say. I don't talk about how I'm feeling because if I do, people will find me whiny. I don't talk about a normal in my life because if I do, people will find me boring. I don't talk about the things I don't like because if I do, there's a chance someone will assume I'm talking about them and start a scene. I don't talk about my accomplishments because if I do, people will think I'm trying to get attention.
I essentially don't talk to anyone about anything, except my husband, and if I do post something personal online, it's usually about my husband, our cats, or movies or television and even then, I worry about whether or not someone will go out of their to accuse me of not having a life. I really feel like I don't get to make friends because I'm just constantly on edge and afraid to.
No one needs to tell me that this is no way to live. I know it isn't and I feel horrible that I can't just go out and meet people like everyone else. Or that I get so hung up on people that I used to be friends with or who were just nice to me for no reason that I'll go out of my way to please them, even if I know they're bad for me or if I know they want nothing to do with me for some reason or another. I know it makes me look pathetic like some lost puppy dog or crazed fangirl, and believe me, if I had a choice I would give up my attachment issues in a second, but it kinda comes with the territory, unfortunately. I also know that I don't need people to tell me how to make friends because I know that I can't do it. Or, at least, I know that I can't make friends like everyone else.
I'm not stupid. I learned how you're supposed to make friends in preschool just like everyone else. It simply doesn't work.
I just need people to understand that and to understand why it's so horribly insensitive to say thing like, "Oh, you just need to go out and meet people" to me. Hopefully, one day, I'll be able to friends that will understand that, but for now I'm happy that I have my husband who loves me and our little cats. They're my family, and I love them. They make me happy. That's all that matters.

Why Are People Criticizing J.K. Rowling?

Last week an article was released about an interview J.K. Rowling did with Emma Watson. In the article, it was revealed that Rowling felt uncertain about the RonxHermione coupling she created in the books and felt that Ron and Hermione would likely need couples' consoling. Then she said she felt like Hermione was probably better suited for Harry. Ever since, Potter fans all over the internet have been completely flipping their shit.
I mean, seriously, I don't agree with the idea of Hermione marrying Harry, but I never agreed with the idea of her marrying Ron, either. Honestly, I always kind of saw her getting Neville since her and Harry were too close, she fought with Ron too much, and Neville seemed like the only secondary character mentioned that wasn't a total douchebag or a complete idiot. Although, admittedly, it seemed like Malfoy and Snape rounded out a bit....Sort of.
That aside, I know extremely well insane dedicated fangirls and fanboys can be, but I also know how loyal they can be, too. So I'm actually really shocked that so many people are judging Rowling because of her opinion about the characters she created over something as petty as a freaking fanpairing -- oh, I'm sorry -- shipping. I find it especially shocking that people accuse her of trying to "remain relevant" now that Harry Potter is over and done with.
Yeah, because she probably called the magazine up and asked them to do interview herself. *Insert sarcasm*. She is J.K. Freaking Rowling. She invented Harry Potter and kick-started the fantasy genre hype again. A Lord Of The Rings movie would have happened eventually -- hell, there's probably a less famous one floating around that only super fans know about -- but do you really think it's a coincidence that movie came out the same year as Harry Potter And The Sorcerer's Stone?
It's called marketing, people.
So, again, while I don't agree with Rowling's opinion at all, I think it is incredibly ridiculous that people who claim to be fans of her work are reacting to this with such hostility. I'm startled to see how quickly and easily dedicated fans can change or forfeit their alliance to a writer as brilliant as Rowling over something as small as shipping or fanpairing or whatever. Apparently, though, the fact that she wrote the childhoods of an entire generation of people who for years and years loved work doesn't matter now that she suddenly has an opinion about her work. That makes me sad.
That makes me so sad. It makes me feel like the fandom has abandoned her to a degree, and that's horrible, especially considering it's over such a little thing. I still think Rowling is an amazing writer, though, and I respect her opinion on the whole pairing situation. I don't agree with her and I'm definitely not saying she was right, but I don't really care that her opinion differs from mine because she wrote the series. Let her think what she wants.
That's my opinion on my subject.

Series To Look Into

 

Usually, I like to wait until after a series is finished, so I can buy the graphic novels in order to save money, but lately there have a couple comic book series that have come out that I just couldn't say no to buying immediately. You can see two of them in the picture above, and I apologize for the poor lighting. It's not easy when your only camera comes in the form of your 3DS >.<
The first series, though, isn't shown in the pic. That series is The Amazing X-Men: Return Of Nightcrawler (#1-5). That series actually came out a few months ago, but because of the stores I frequent, I actually didn't stumble upon until early January and I haven't finished collecting it just yet. I still need issues #4-5 both of which were out of stock last time I went to the comic book store. So chances are I'm going to have obtain them online and, hopefully, not for ridiculously more than what they're worth.
Anyway, the main reason this series is worth following is because it is the return of Nightcrawler, who perished from the Marvelverse a few years ago when he was stabbed through the chest by a freaking Sentinel. Personally, I've been a fan of Nightcrawler ever since I first learned of his existence in the early 2000 cartoon show X-Men: Evolution. I mean, yeah, that show deviated a lot from his actual character into the comics, which I've also come to love, but it was still an awesome character with a cool backstory and kick-ass fighting abilities and mutant powers. So I've been following him in the comics ever since and was actually pretty devastated when I found out Marvel had killed him off. I mean, if nothing else, Nightcrawler was a HUGE fan favorite, so who didn't see that one coming?
They never kill off fan favorites! Well, almost never....
But if you guys are big Nightcrawler fans like I am, then you should definitely give this series a look. It's funny, exciting, and full of action. It also features the return of another famed fan favorite that those of you who grew up with the 80s Marvel cartoons will be happy to see.
Another series I've taken a liking to and think is worth following is the Infinity: Heist series. It tells the story of a lowly villain turned....Well, into something else. I won't say what for the sake of avoiding spoilers.
It is definitely a good read, though, and I really like that it's told from the point-of-view of Marvel villains rather than heroes. This is the first series I've encountered with that perspective, though I know there are others that exist. I just haven't been able to find them yet.
The third series I decided to follow and think you guys would like is the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012) series from Kevin Eastman, which I will actually be following in graphic novel format. I posted a review of it yesterday and you can read it here Nerdy MJ Reviews Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Vol. 1.
Finally, the last series I decided to follow (for now -- there will be more in upcoming weeks) is the new Inhumanity series. I'm not gonna lie. When I first heard about this series, I had no interest in it whatsoever.
The Inhumans had never really been something I was interested in and because they seemed to be more fantasy-ish rather than scifi. Honestly, when it comes to fantasy, there isn't really much I like. I'm not even a huge Thor fan, but then I decided to give Inhumanity the benefit of the doubt and pick up a copy.
I was glad I did. Even though everything that's happened to lead up to the series is a bit hard to follow, it still turned out to be a great read and I'm definitely looking forward to picking up a copy of the next issue. I don't know if I'll subscribe to it, but this is definitely something I'm going to enjoy if only to kill the time.
These are the series I've decided to follow in the past few weeks, and I think you guys should give them a try, too. That's it for now and I'll post more on this subject later.  

Tabletop & Card Games

Not really sure how often I'm going to post about this subject because it's something I just recently got into. The reasoning behind that is actually because I had some pretty negative experiences with people, meaning other nerds, who into stuff like this in high school and I just haven't been able to move past the experience until recently. I do have my own dice, though, and I'll post pics of those for you guys to see on Twitter and stuff, and I have played both MtG and DnD. I've also played the Pokemon card game.
So what you will more than likely be seeing on this page is just announcements for the MtG and Pokemon sets, and probably an announcement on when the DnD version is going to come out and a review of that. I'll probably also give reviews about other things like Marvel Heroclix and other tabletop games as well. I'll also probably be addressing the issue of sexism in the nerd community, not specifically involving this subject, but you'll probably see a label for this page on those posts because I know it's something I will experience more than once.
For now, though, I think I'll post a pic my first Marvel Heroclix figurine, which I bought today. I'm actually really excited to play this game specifically because I imagine it'd be a lot like doing a Marvel text-based RP like what I've seen in forums. Unfortunately, I've been involved with a Marvel text-based role-play simply because I've always wanted to in-cannon RPs and no one else wanted to play in-cannon. They always wanted to make OCs.
Anyway, here are before and after pics of the Heroclix.

Before

After

In case you can't tell, I got Lady Deathstrike for my first figurine, which is really awesome because I think she'll make a really cool villain to play with. I also really like Heroclix because the figurines are really cheap whereas with DnD or figurines for other tabletop games, you could end up paying twenty dollars and up for just a tiny, little piece of painted plastic that's not even the size of the average action figure. I get that it's about collect-ability and rarity, but that's still a lot of money for something that's small enough to be a choking hazard to small children. Especially when you have bills to pay.
Because of that, I think I'll probably end up buying a few generic DnD figurines that I can use interchangeably for some of the classes whereas I'll buy the Heroclix figures more regularly because I only paid $3 for my Lady Deathstrike figurine. If I wanted to, I could go back to the store tomorrow and get two more for $5.
Also, I just now realized that I've been referring to them as figurines throughout the entire post and I'm sorry for that. I'm pretty sure it's incorrect, but my husband always calls them figurines. Not miniatures, and I just picked it up from him. I'm sorry for that.
Anyway, I know I'm probably going to have to do a lot of saving for the Heroclix books and the rest of the supplies needed to play the game, but for now, I will keep you guys posted on my experiences with DnD will probably even post some scans of my character sheets once I get them finished. 

Nerdy MJ Reviews Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Vol.1: Change Is Constant

***WARNING MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*** 

Title: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Vol. 1: Change Is Constant

Author: Kevin Eastman & Tom Waltz

Artist:  Kevin Eastman, Dan Dancun, Ronda Pattison, Robbie Robbins

Back in the 1980's, the original TMNT comics by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, published by Mirage Studios, were some of the most popular comics probably ever written or thought of, and they're popularity led to a pop-culture phenomenon known as "Turtle Mania". It led to the release of comic book spin-offs, a cartoon series, and a live-action movie. Turtle Mania continued into the early 90's after the release of a not so great sequel to the original live-action movie and, seemingly, died altogether after the release of the third live-action Turtles film.
The hype did begin to pick up again in the early 2000's when 4Kids began running a new cartoon series on their Saturday morning cartoon block based off a new series of comics by Kevin Eastman, but it was nothing, IMO, compared to the more recent TMNT hype that was jump-started by Nickelodeon when they announced they were going to air a new CGI-animated cartoon series. This took place in 2012 shortly after the Micheal Bay blow up, I believe, and then directly afterwards, a new TMNT comic book series was announced.
The graphic novel I purchased today collects issues 1-4 of that new comic book series with art and story by Kevin Eastman, Tom Waltz, and Dan Duncan. It's full of references to the original comics, movies, and cartoon series, which includes the art style in the book, which is characteristically Eastman. Or, at least, pretty close to it. Now, the art itself isn't a huge turn-off, but the fact that they decided to give all of the Turtles red masks is simply because it makes really hard to identify which Turtle is which. Even with the pages printed in color, it's not always possible to tell them apart by their weapons until you're a few panels into the fight scenes.
That aside, I am definitely feeling the new take on the Turtles' origins, but it is a little a confusing and I'm hoping everything will be explained in the second volume, which I hope to purchase soon. What's confusing about it, you ask?
Well, in this incarnation, we find three of the Turtles living with Splinter, desperately searching the streets of NYC for their lost brother, Raphael. Cool. I like that. It would be totally unsurprising if someone -- *cough*Leo*cough* -- pissed off Raphael to the point where he would actually run away for a while. In fact, he has -- in the movies, the 2003 cartoon series, etc., etc. So like I said, it's really not surprising and it's a great plot twist to the typical TMNT origin story.
The problem is that, according to what I've read of their origin story so far, none of the Turtles nor Splinter have had any ninja or martial arts training whatsoever and yet, they know ninjutsu. Or Splinter does, anyway, and even Raph, who supposedly got amnesia while he was lost in NYC, knows how to handle himself in a fight. Though, honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if the Raph in this book only knew, like, street fighting that he picked up from random gang members who attacked him just because he was....Well, him.
So while I'm loving the plot twists that I've read about so far, I'm really not loving how confusing the story is at this point or the lack of multicolored masks, which just makes things even more confusing. I am hopeful, though, that this will all get cleared up in the second volume, which I'm hoping to purchase soon. Probably sometime next month. However, because of these little faults in the art and story, I'm only going to give a six out of ten.
I would still definitely recommend picking it up and giving it a good read, though, because even though the story was a bit confusing, it still does a damn good job at pulling you in and keeping you hooked. Not to mention, the Turtles are a household name a for reason. I've met people who have never set foot inside a comic book store once in their lives and know who the Turtles are. It's an awesome story full of unforgettable characters and unbelievable action. So if even you're not a Turtles super fan or just plan don't like them, I would definitely say that you should pick up this graphic and read it through. If you didn't like 'em before, I'm betting you would now.
Again I'm giving this book a six out of ten, but I'm extremely hopeful that the next volume will do better.
Thanks for reading guys.

The First Game

Most people will probably own a few hundred video games -- for console, PC, and otherwise -- if they are lucky. But, usually, there is going to be one game that will stand out more than all the others. One game that will always hold a special place in a gamers' heart, forever and eternity.
That is the first game you ever buy. The game that started you on the path of a gamer. That you hand-picked yourself from behind a shining glass case and spent weeks trying to beat afterwards because we're pretending that everyone has hand-eye coordination as bad as mine right now.
For me, the very first game I ever owned was Glover for N64 system.

Not gonna lie, I never finished playing it and that is something I truly regret. The truth is, though, I was eight years old and absolutely terrified of the game's main villain, Cross-Stitch. I mean, I had played other games with my friends and family, but the villains in those games -- Sonic the Hedgehog and Super Mario Bros. -- were bright, colorful, familiar cartoon characters that I used to watch on Saturday mornings. Cross-Stitch was none of those things and, in short, he scared the crap out of me. That made me really hesitant when it came to playing this game, so I mostly just sat and watched my mother and brother play the game instead.
I also wasn't very good at video games as a child. In fact, I was terrible at them. That probably stemmed from the fact that for an embarrassingly long time, I believed that if the characters died in the game, then they would die in real life as well and I am prone to anxiety attacks. Plus, again, my hand-eye coordination is not the greatest. So when it came to video games, I was the last one to be picked or allowed to play in my family. I didn't get a chance to play most of time until my mother and brother had already gotten bored or frustrated with the game and decided to call it quits for the day.
Again, I mostly just sat and watched, which is probably where my love of let's plays came from.
The other reason, I didn't finish this game was because when money started to run out in my family, video games and toys were among the first things to go. I still remember the day my mom boxed up most of our N64 games and movies and took them to the pawn shop. I was beyond upset. We couldn't have had more than ten games, at most, maybe fewer and I was really looking forward to eventually finishing Glover. I mean, yeah, Cross-Stitch terrified me, but I still loved Glover. He was awesome -- he turned an ordinary rubber ball into a weapon. What isn't cool about that?
I decided to write this post for Throwback Thursday. Hopefully, you guys know me a little bit better now.Maybe one of you guys loved Glover just as much as I did when I was a kid or maybe not. Either way, feel free to tell me about the first game you ever owned was in the comments below and your experience with it. I'm looking forward to it.

An Anniversary Tribute To....

The Sims!

Fourteen years ago today, the Electronic Arts gaming company and Maxis released a spin-off to the hit city-building game, SimCity. The spin-off was known simply as The Sims and was considered groundbreaking as it was one of the most successful life simulation games ever released. As of March 22, 2002 the game had sold more than two million copies worldwide, making it the most popular PC game in history.
Since the release of The Sims, there have been two sequels made -- and a third awaiting release (The Sims 4) -- both with multiple Expansion and Stuff Packs, and numerous spin-offs of the original game, including The Sims Stories, MySims, and The Sims Medieval as noteworthy examples.
Due to the game's enormous popularity and success as well as my own love for the franchise, I have decided to dedicate this post to EA, Maxis, and The Sims franchise. With that, I would like say, happy anniversary to The Sims! 

Nerdy MJ Reviews Jurassic Park

***WARNING MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS***

Title: Jurassic Park

Author: Micheal Crichton

We've all seen the classic, Stephen Spielberg movie that taught every 90's baby that it would be beyond terrible if dinosaurs existed in modern times. But today I still meet people that have no idea that this iconic blockbuster ever existed in paperback form as a New York Times' bestseller. Meaning, they've never heard of the book and have no idea who Micheal Crichton is.
No offense to them, but I knew that Jurassic Park was a book when I was nine. I took it home from the library, opened it up, and then stopped reading less than three pages into when I realized I had no idea WTF Crichton was going on about. I didn't know what a prologue was and I still can't pronounce Procompsognathus. So, needless to say, I decided to put off reading this book until I was older.
Well, I just finished reading it.
The writing is awesome, although some of the comedic scenes came off a bit campy times, which was a turn off for me, personally. I loved the entire first half of the book, though, and I get the hype. Mostly.
For me, this book kind of started to go downhill after the T-rex attack and not just because I realized the one in the movie was about ten times cooler and more terrifying. It's not because I think Crichton is a bad writer, either. I don't. I think he was probably one of the last few amazing scifi writers.
It's because I hated his freaking characters. Mainly, Dr. Ian Malcolm, who had actually been my favorite character from the movie. As far as the book goes, though, I can't f*cking stand the guy. Let me explain why.
We're all familiar, I think, with the lecture Malcolm gives John Hammond in the JP movie along with paleontologists Grant and Ellie. About how the scientists working for Hammond are unethical and lack moral, and it's true. They were unethical and they did lack moral. Not to mention, they were probably the stupidest f*cking scientists I had ever heard of in my entire life. Who in their right mind could possibly think it would be a good idea to not only clone carnivorous dinosaurs, but to place them on island full of people -- or that, technically, would be full of people?! I mean, really those scientists were just polishing their own egos by doing that. I get that and I totally agree with what is said in the movie.
In the book, though, Malcolm just doesn't berate the scientists of Jurassic Park. No, no, no. He goes onto to berate and rant about scientists and science, in general. And it goes on and on for numerous chapters almost right up until the end of the book. In case you're wondering if that could possibly get old after a while, the answer is yes. Very much so, yes. For numerous reasons.
For example, isn't a mathematician a type of scientist -- isn't mathematics and chaos theory, which Malcolm practiced and studied, used in science?
Not only that, but listening to Malcolm drone on and on about the evils science made me wonder if the cultural impact this book had on society in the 1980's and 90's had anything to do with the way some people view science today -- you know, as evil and unethical? I'll just let you guys think about that for a minute then.
Anyway, Malcolm is not the only character that was ruined for me in this book, I can assure you. There are several other things that made me not like it nearly as much as I thought I would have. I won't go into the biggest one, though, because would give away a ginormous spoiler and I'm pretty sure you guys would not appreciate that.
My rating for this book is going to be a six out of ten. The writing is awesome and the story is great, but scientific inaccuracies -- yes, because I care about those, even though I decided not to bore you with the details of an actual velociraptor -- and the cast of characters killed it for me, I'm sorry to say.
Would I recommend it to other people, though? Yes, definitely, especially if you're big into scifi like I am. Can't promise that you'll enjoy it, but yes, I would definitely recommend it.
That being said, I'm still hopeful that Crichton will have redeemed himself with The Lost World, which I will be reading in the future, despite this less than enjoyable reading experience.

Micheal Bay's 2014 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Re-Make: Turtles REVEALED?!

***WARNING MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS***

I'm pretty sure everyone is familiar with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the remake/reboot/re-imagining/whatever Micheal Bay is doing of the 1990 original movie. Or if you weren't familiar with them before last year -- or was it the year before? -- when Bay dared to mention the words "turtles", "not mutants", and "aliens" in the same sentence, then I'm gonna assume you are now thanks to the unholy hell unleashed upon Bay by hundreds of thousands of TMNT fans via the internet. Myself, included ^_^
After Bay later responded to the fans and announced the Turtles would be of alien origins and would indeed be very, very mutated there really hasn't been much news for the movie. Except that Megan Fox is playing April O'Neil, the Shredder is now a white guy, and the Foot Clan is looking more akin to the Japanese yakuza than an army of killer, ninja thieves, but most people like pretend that this just isn't happening.
Although, honestly, the Foot thing is almost forgivable because the yakuza is Japanese, at least, and almost makes sense because they're, like, the largest organized crime unit in the world right now.
Anyway, last week a picture of a quite horrendous-looking TMNT Michelangelo children's costume surfaced on the web as a piece of supposed concept art for the new movie. The image horrified millions of  TMNT fans and left countless others scratching their heads in confusion. How else does one react when you find out the Turtles are gonna look like this? 

Let's be honest, it looks pretty bad. And what's with the bling and stuff? I mean, where would Mikey get this stuff -- Ron Jon's? He lives in a sewer, for crying out loud!
The next day, however, fans were appeased when a new image surfaced. This time the Turtles were depicted using figurines: 

Then even more images were released, so we get a look at the other Turtles.

I'll admit, they look pretty good as far as the whole "realistic Turtles" thing goes. They look very much mutated and turtle-ish. But I'm still having a hard time looking past Donnie's gadget-pack and all the other additional stuff that I guess was just thrown on to the give Turtles more personality. I mean, I know people throw away some pretty cool stuff, but if they've never, ever set foot above ground, then how are they getting this stuff? I know a lot of people like to hate on New Yorkers, but I'm pretty sure they wouldn't be dumb enough to throw high-tech computer gear into the sewer.
That aside, no amount of awesome graphics can make a movie good as far as the story goes, which has been proven again and again by countless Bay haters. If the rest of the movie sucks, then having badass Turtles is sort of a moot point and money down the drain, unfortunately. Whether or not the rest of the movie lives up to the awesomeness of these Turtle figurines, we will just have to wait and see.
Til then, I'm just gonna kick back and enjoy the awesome new TMNT cartoon series that's been airing Nickelodeon and hope for the best. 

Pokemon X Team

Current Team: 

Pokemon Trainer Rika

Braixen

Nickname: Renee

Type: Fire/Psychic

Sex: Female

Level: 22

Attacks: - Flame Charge
- Ember
- Fire Spin
- Psybeam


Reasoning: There really wasn't any reason why I picked Fennekin. Or, at least, not a good one, I admit. Fennekin has been my favorite of the Kalos region starters since day one, though I did waiver a bit when I found out about Delphox. That was mostly because I, personally, saw a very strong resemblance to Renamon and her Digivolutions in Digimon Tamers (AKA Digimon Season Three).
I didn't like Chespin -- or at least its evolutions -- because it wasn't appealing to me as far as appearance goes and honestly, like a lot of other players I did not like its typing or stats at all.
I decided not go with Froakie because, first of all, everyone has Froakie. People just seem to love it and I'm just meh about it as a starter. I did, however, try playing with Froakie as my starter in a previous save and it was cute at first, but then once it evolved, I hated it. I thought its evolutions were, honestly, terrifying. They reminded me of some mutated, demonic version of Kermit frog, especially in Pokemon-Amie and I freaking hated it. I did not want to play the game with that as my starter.
So I stopped playing for a while.
I also think Fennekin and its evolutions has fairly decent stats, granted not as good as Froakie's, but I think once I Super Train it a bit, it will be extremely powerful. I look forward to doing battle, both in-game and competitively, with Renee.

Pidgeotto

Nickname: Jett

Type: Flying/Normal

Sex: Male

Level: 22

Attacks: -Twister
-Gust
-Quick Attack
-Sand Attack

Reasoning: I chose Pidgey to my Flying type in the game because I have a soft for Pidgey and it's evolutions, and I honestly was not interested in the other Flying types. Talonflame seems like it'd be cool to have, I didn't another Fire type, so it got boxed and again, I just really like Pidgey.
It's sort of a tradition. I started playing the Pokemon video games when I was about 12 and my first game was Pokemon Silver. I got it because the Burger King where I lived was having a drawing and was giving them away as a prize, and my grandfather went down and spent the whole day there til he won a copy for me and my brother. It was the only Pokemon videogame I owned for a very long time because we didn't have the money to spend on them and Pidgey was one of the first Pokemon I caught when I played it and it just grew on me.
So I guess it's safe to say, that stats aside, I think Pidgey is freaking awesome.

Floette

Nickname: Flaay

Type: Fairy

Sex: Female

Level: 22

Attacks: -Tackle
-Wish
-Fairy Wind
-Razor Leaf

Reasoning: I wanted Flabebe in my party because, unlike a lot of players that I know, I am a fan of the Fairy types and, honestly, I would be surprised if I didn't run into some Dragon Types on my way to the Pokemon League or elsewhere, for that matter.
I had Swirlix as my Fairy type the very first time I played Pokemon X and I always felt really bad because according to Dexio and Sina, Flabebe is the Fairy type to get. I had opted to go with Swirlix, though, because all Flabebe really seemed to learn was Grass type moves.
This time around, though, I decided to look at it from a different point of view. Flabebe could learn Grass moves and Fairy types, which in my mind meant it had the potential to be very badass -- plus, I wouldn't need to capture a Grass type. Two birds, one stone.


Honedge

Nickname: Claymore

Type: Steel/Ghost

Sex: Female

Level: 22

Attacks: -Tackle
-Swords Dance
-Shadow Sneak
-Aerial Ace

Reasoning: First of all, it's an Excalibur reference, so if that's not awesome, I don't know what is.
Second, it's stats are awesome and it is literally one of the only good Metal types available in Kalos.

Tyrunt

Nickname: Taichi

Type: Rock/Dragon

Sex: Male

Level: 20

Attacks: -Tackle
-Stealth Rock
-Bite
-Strength

Reasoning: Not gonna lie, Tyrunt was not totally part of my original Pokemon X dream-team. Then I booted up the game the other day and realized NONE of my Pokemon could learn the HM Strength.
I Googled it and it turns out, there aren't that many Generation 6 Pokemon that can learn that move and aside from Pidgeotto, I'm trying to keep my team pretty Gen. 6 exclusive this time around. After thinking it over and discussing strategies with my husband, I decided that my best bet would be to remove Furfrou from my party and replace him with my Tyrunt who could learn the move. It makes me really sad that I had to remove Furfrou from my party because I had become really attached to her, but I know that overall Tyrunt is going to contribute more to my party when it comes to battle.

Becoming A Stereotype?

I'm sure we've all seen the movies where there's this one little kid, usually a boy. He wears big glasses and suspenders, has a stuffed up nose, complains about being sick a lot, and when he opens his bedside table drawer, there's nothing but asthma inhalers inside of it.  When we saw this on TV, we couldn't help but think or say aloud, "It's gotta suck to be that kid," and we all knew we would never want to be like to him.
I started to feel like that kid in the movies when I was nine years old and my eye doctor told my mother I needed bifocals. Bifocals -- on a nine-year-old girl! I was so upset, I burst into tears in the doctors' office and said, "Normal kids don't need bifocals. That's something Grandpa should be wearing!"
It wasn't just that, though. I knew that the other kids at my school would never understand. They already didn't. I had spent the entire third grade, being called four-eyes and watching them make fun of the way I walk because I'd had an operation done two years earlier to correct my clubfoot. Regular glasses were bad enough. I knew that wearing bifocals would only make things worse.
When I went back to school, I found myself subjected to a lot of curious questions from the children who bullied me regularly. "Why is there a line on your glasses?" they asked and so, I did my best to explain the situation. I told them the line was there because the glasses were bifocals, which meant it was made of two different lenses because the doctor said I was far and near-sighted in both eyes. Or, at least, that's how it'd been explained to me.
The kids said the same thing I had back at the doctors' office, "That sounds like something for an old person."
Eventually, though, the kids got over the glasses, and I started to feel less like the kid in the movie. Until around sixth grade, that is.
I knew there had to be something wrong with me. I was almost always sick, no matter what time of the year it was and I spent a lot of my time being depressed. I would cry at home and at school. Sometimes for no reason, and no one ever asked why or how come. But by middle school, I was spending a lot of time in the school psychiatrist's office and when they asked me what was wrong, I told them, "There's something wrong with me. I think I'm sick."
When they asked me why I never talked to anyone or had any friends, I said, "There's no point in trying to make friends. They're just going to make fun of me."
That was all I knew, so it was all I could tell them. Back then, I didn't know about social anxiety or how the mind worked. I did know, though, that not all of the bad feelings could have come from being bullied. Lots of kids were bullied and went on to be happy and sometimes even popular. So even if that was a part of it, I knew there was something wrong with me.
Then one day, I saw a commercial for anti-depressants on television. I didn't understand depression as an illness. Only as the feeling I had that constantly plagued me. I watched the commercial and thought maybe those pills could make me happy. I turned to my mom and said, "I want to be put on those."
I asked my mom constantly to have me looked at by a doctor to see if I needed to put on anti-depressants for two years. I told her over and over there was something wrong with me. I knew there had to be. Normal people weren't unhappy like I was. Not all the time, anyway.
It wasn't until I was a freshman in high school, though, that I was finally able to talk to a doctor. I remember waking up in a hospital in a city two hours away from where I lived. I didn't know what had happened. When I asked, my mom told me, "You had two Grand mal seizures in three days."
I understood immediately. My father had epilepsy and so did an aunt on my mother's side. I must have had it, too.
I wasn't diagnosed right away, though. It wasn't until two months and four seizures later that a doctor determined that my seizures were caused by stress. By then my mother was ready to listen, too, and this time she asked if I needed to be put on anti-depressants. The doctor said, "So she is a little depressed -- so what?"
Then he wrote a recommendation for a counselor who could write prescriptions if I needed them because my medical insurance wouldn't cover a psychiatrist. Two weeks later, I was taking three different types of pills every day. An epilepsy medication, an anti-depressant, and a vitamin.
By then, I had also realized that I didn't just feel like the nerdy boy with a drawer full of asthma inhalers -- I was him.

This feeling is something I'm still dealing with today. Because, I mean, who wants to be that person? Who wants to be that stereotype, taking three different pills a day?
It may sound like I'm complaining, but it isn't fun. Who wouldn't complain -- in high school, my mom bought my a pill organizer as a present just to make my life easier.
Now, I know that I was misdiagnosed in high school. I never had depression. I have bi-polar disorder and social anxiety, and epilepsy, clubfoot, scoliosis, Hay fever. The list literally feels like it goes on forever.
I'm going to start counseling for bi-polar disorder soon, and I know I'm not the only dealing with stuff like this which is why I decided to write about it.
I mean, it's not a part of every nerd's life. We don't all wake up first thing in the morning and wonder if the counselor is going to tell us we have to be put on psychosis meds, regardless of whatever horrific side-effects it might have. We don't all wonder if we're always going to feel like a dated, played-out nerdy stereotype that everyone loves to hate on. But it's part of this nerd's life, and I know I'm not the only one.
I may be a lot like that boy in the movies with a drawer full of asthma inhalers, but that isn't me. I'm still my own person.

Realization

In middle school, I began to take an interest in comic books. It only made sense, to me. I had grown up watching the cartoons based on the comics -- Batman: The Animated Series, Spider-Man, X-Men: The Animated Series, Batman Beyond, and X-Men: Evolution. In fact, by that point in time, X-Men: Evolution was at the height of it's popularity and my brother and I watched it every day after school. The problem was, I didn't know where to go to actually get comic books.
There was no comic book store in my hometown. At least, not by that point. The one that had been opened there closed down due to lack of business once people realized they could buy their kids' Pokemon cards at Walmart. The nearest Barnes & Noble was two towns away and my local library had an extremely small, condensed collection of graphic, which I avoided due to the T and T+ ratings. Yes, I really was that much of a goody two shoes.
So one day, my brother came home from school with this magazine type thing. It was called Shonen Jump and it was filled with comic-type drawings and stories. But I couldn't figure out how to read the damn thing. I asked my brother, "What's with that book you got at the book fair?"
He didn't know, either. He said he'd just bought it because it had Goku from DBZ on the front cover. At that age, I had already knew what anime was. Barely. A close friend I went to school with who, like me, was obsessed with Digimon had explained what it was and why all the cool Digimon and Pokemon toys only seemed to exist in Japan. I had never seen it in this format, though. The idea of it blew my freaking mind.
After examining the book more closely with my brother and some of his friends, I discovered that this book was actually what was known as manga -- a Japanese comic book. This one was for teenage and pre-teen boys. The reason we couldn't read it was because in Japan, they didn't read the same way we did. They read from right to left. Go figure.
Even the manga my brother had brought home was for teenage boys, I quickly asked him if I could read it -- he wasn't even old enough, anyway -- and tore through it. I skipped through the series I didn't like after a quick read of the first couple pages and read the ones I did like. The ones I had seen on Toonami like YuYu Hakusho or DBZ. I asked my mom if we could start having Shonen Jump sent to our house for my brother and I to read, and she said yes. The subscription was put in my name since I seemed to like it more, but usually whoever got home the fastest was the one to read it first. That was usually me since most of life revolved around re-reading Harry Potter and debating X-Men with my friends, who lived around the corner or next door.
After I found out about Shonen Jump, though, I realized I wanted to read different types of manga. Maybe something with more drama or romance. So I went to the library and began to search. And by that I mean, I took my copy of Shonen Jump to the library and asked the librarian, "Do you have anything like this -- it's called magma?"
If you think that's bad, I was 12 and my mom still can't pronounce it.
Anyway, the library did have some manga in the childrens' section, which my friends and I immediately requested be moved due to the T or T+ ratings that had been placed upon it. Most of it was moved, but for some reason, the librarians just did not seem to agree that Dragon Ball Z was inappropriate for small children. So Goku ripped a guy's head off -- look at the veins and the blood! Kids won't know what that is. They'll think it's awesome.
Either way, though, I had discovered shoujo manga.
The complete world of anime and manga was at my fingertips. I could read anything or watch anything. If I wanted action, I'd go for something Naruto or Yu-Gi-Oh! If I wanted something girlier, I would go for something like Cardcaptor Sakura or Sailor Moon. If I wanted something in the middle, I would go for Rurouni Kenshin, which to this day is my all-time favorite manga.
More importantly than that, I felt like I could pick up a volume of manga, read it for hours, and all of my problems would disappear. I felt like as long as I was wrapped up in my world of ninjutsu and Japanese magic, nothing could hurt me. Not the kids at school or my family or anything.
I even forgot about comic books for a while.

Today, I no longer feel the same way about manga or anime. It's not because anime and manga is bad. It's because I grew up and my standards are higher than they used to be.
I'm tired of reading about the same stereotypical characters that, somehow, seem to fit into every genre of manga because those are the stereotypes the manga-ka all conformed to. While it could be argued that even though I don't like, those stereotypes do work, I would like to argue that that may not be. The rise of anime and manga has finally ended. It's no longer as popular as it used to be. Last month, I walked into an F.Y.E.  at the mall and all the anime -- even the awesome, classic series like Death Note -- had been marked down to half-price. The anime and manga-related merchandise was gone. It had all been replaced by Marvel paraphernalia, Hunger Games backpacks, and Bat-signals. Why do you think that is?
The answer is simple: In the 1990s, there was a phenomenon known as Japanophilia that began with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Nintendo, the introduction of the pop culture classic Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, etc. and it inevitably led to an increased interest in other things from Japan -- IE anime and manga. The children of that generation, however, have grown up and I think a lot of them are facing the same struggles as I am when it comes to anime and manga.
I still read manga and watch anime. The problem is finding a series I actually like. That is a series where the Goku-esque character is not the central focus of the series or a love-triangle or harem never comes into play romantically. Don't get me wrong, there are definitely series like that out there and I've found a few of them. The problem is, even if I think the story is those series is better than all the stuff portrayed in the mainstream manga that doesn't mean it's popular. And if it's not popular, then the odds of it coming to America are less and if it's probably never coming to America, then the odds of the scanlators continuing to post it online are significantly less.
There's not much out there for readers like me, it seems and the otaku fandom, I think, is suffering.

I'm not, though.
As much as I love anime and manga, I've come to terms with the fact that I'm just not as enthusiastic about it as the rest of otaku fandom. Hell, I don't even consider myself an otaku.
I realized a long time ago that I prefer comic books to manga and I'm okay with that. I find they meet my high literary standards better than manga does, even if it means exploring parts of the Marvel multiverse I never thought to explore before. It's just part of who I am.
And that's what the point of this post is. It's about growing up as a nerd and realizing that just because you don't love something as much as you used to, you're not a bad person or a bad nerd or a bad otaku or whatever.
Like what you like. Love what you love and try to realize that just because as a nerd, you feel the need to conform to certain standards and fit into a certain fandom, you don't have to.
I'm sorry if this post comes off as corny, but I started this new section of my blog, so I could write about life as a nerd and as a nerd girl and this is part of that life.

A Tribute To The LPers -- And LPs -- That I Love

I know we all have our favorite Youtube channels and LPs and LPers. People that convince us, "Hell yes, I NEED that game!" And inspire us to voice our own opinions and critique about said game. So today I decided to share some of my favorites with you as a sort of tribute to them (see title). This post will probably be updated as I find more awesome LPers scattered across the realm of the Youtubedom. Hopefully, you guys will love them, too.

Okay, so probably my number one favorite Youtube Let's Player is Zack Scott of the ZackScottGames channel, and my favorite Let's Play that he does is the Animal Crossing: New Leaf Let's Play, featuring the town of the Astoria and much apparent hatred for koala bears that wear sunglasses. The reason this particular LP is my favorite is because I love ACNL, despite the fact that it irritates me to no end because of the fact that a lot of the maps suck (or at least the ones I've chosen have) and there simply is not enough room to place all of the Public Works Projects and because this is the first ACNL Let's Play I ever watched on Youtube.
Thanks, Zack Scott, for convincing me to go out and purchase my very first Animal Crossing video game! ^_^