Child of the 80's - Some young guy's view on things

Day after

2006-06-12T13:13:00.000-07:00

Today is the day after my birthday. I think I’m still full from all the food that I ate this weekend. The cool thing is that once people find out that it’s your birthday, they feel the need to give you free stuff. I’m all for that as I was treated to many a buffet in the last few days. I sit in front of my computer screen A LOT because of my home based business. You’d think that all this eating and sitting would catch up to me. Surprisingly at 29 years old and doing what I do, I don’t have the belly to show for it. I’d like to thank my maternal side of the family for their genes.

I didn’t get that Transformer toy that I wanted or a fun filled afternoon spent at Chuck E’ Cheese’s but at least I got to spend time the best people in the world. I did get a copy of Civilization IV from Kelly, some free movie passes from my brother and sister and a grip of cash from my dad. He never knows what I want so money is cool with me. Finally, at around 10:20pm I was surprised by a happy birthday phone call from another super yet undisclosed(on my part) person. I really don’t want to know what comes after 29.

Gut check time

2006-03-06T12:32:00.000-08:00

I’m steadily approaching my 29^th birthday. Remember when you were a teenager and you told yourself that you would never get out of shape or lose the slim body that you have? It seems like those days were eons away. For the longest time, I couldn’t believe how much I could eat, and not gain a single pound. In fact, I was even amazed when I lost a pound or two during the Christmas season. Today as I look towards my abdominal area I can see a small bulge forming. Not of the cancerous sort, but of the ‘I’m getting fat’ variety. I miss the days that I didn’t have to exercise to keep my shape, but as I’m writing this entry, I’m working out my abs as I do leg lifts in my chair. I suppose the fact that I’m no longer able to participate in Tuesday night floor hockey games and that it is still winter time is adding to the bulge dilemma. Any way, that is all for today as I hear the call of the microwave oven telling me that my frozen meal is now ready.

Still the Champ

2006-02-28T13:55:00.000-08:00

It's official. After my cousin challenged me to SF2 Turbo edition, I showed him who is still the man to beat. He had trouble performing his Dragon punches, but that did not matter at all. He wasn't able to withstand my onslaught from all angles and quickly realised that his game play didn't hold up against mine. I had my choice of using Ryu, Ken, Guile and Zangief, and any one of these choices turned out to be a good choice for me. My cousin then challenged me to a game of chess afterwards. To my surprise, he was a lot better than the last time I played him. But once again, I came out on top after my knight toppled his rook for an exchange that had to be made because of a forced check. One thing that he could beat me at is basketball, but of course he has the height and experience of the game on his side. However, I never really liked the game and if he ever wanted to challenge me to a game of hockey then I would be happy to oblige.

Street Fighter 2 Challenge

2006-02-20T15:54:00.000-08:00

My younger cousin challenged me to a game of Street Fighter 2 Turbo for the Super Nintendo recently. Unfortunately, neither of us still had the copy…until today. After winning an auction on ebay, the game finally appeared on my doorstep. So you probably know what I did this afternoon. Using Ryu, Ken, Guile and Zangief, I completed the game on the hardest level offered. I’m just sharpening my skills for the much anticipated battle. Before when we were young teenagers, my cousin was really good at the game. He could easily beat every one of his friends, but he could never beat me. In fact, I won a couple of real tournaments and ever since then he has wanted to dethrone the champ. We did have a rematch when we were in our late teens, but once again I came out victorious. This weekend is my cousin’s son’s birthday party. He told me that once I get the game, he’ll show me that he’s the true champion of our family. But just like ‘Guile’ says, I’ll show him why he should “stay home and be a family man.”

Muscles

2006-02-19T17:33:00.000-08:00

Did you ever notice that a lot of the cartoons in the 80s had characters who appeared to be very "ripped" or muscular. He-man is obvious, but Prince Adam shared the same physical attributes as him. In fact, he carried the same sword and looked just like He-man. That is one thing I really appreciated with the new He-man cartoon. At least they made Adam look like a teenager, and He-man like the most powerful man in the universe. Skeletor had an amazing physique as well, but he only used his magic and never his muscles.

Another 80s cartoon character was Mum-Ra from Thundercats. When he became Mum-Ra, the ever living source of Evil, he was just a Hulk. When do mummies have the time to work out, and what purpose are all the muscles for any way?

He Man

2006-02-08T02:57:00.000-08:00

A little while ago, my girlfriend bought me the Top ten fan selected He-Man episodes. Today a watched the first two shows of the DVD. The first one was Evilseed. I laughed my ass off when Skeletor said that he wasn't going to be beaten by that cabbage, or to something to that extent. The second episode was the Quest for He-Man where Skeletor transported him to another Universe.

I have to say that it got me all choked up when I saw Prince Adam raising his sword and making his transformation into He-Man. I remember having serious discussions with my older brother about who has the most powerful sword. There was He-Man's sword, Excalibur, the Star sword and Power sword combined, Luke's lightsaber, the Sword of Omens, and I'm sure there is more. Discuss away.

Happy Groundhog's Day

2006-02-02T07:39:00.000-08:00

Happy Groundhog's day everyone! I think that's how you greet someone on February 2nd. I'm pretty sure it's not Merry Groundhog's day. Checking out Groundhog.org, you'll see that we have 6 more weeks of winter remaining. But I guess that's okay with me as a new love in my life is snowboarding. Any way, I'll leave with a word of advice for the Groundhog...It's just your shadow!

Karate Kid II answers

2006-01-11T15:55:00.000-08:00

Answers:
1. Tomi Village
2. $1800 (3 to 1 he does not make through ice)
3. Geisha
4. The balls (remember Miyagi dojo in Okinawa)
5. a dancer
6. "No"
7. 3 times (Daniel in the tournament, Mr. Miyagi on the stump, Daniel against Chozen) 4 times if you count the 2 that Mr. Miyagi did on the stump.
8. Second place is "No place"
9. Daniel to dance in the Obon dance
10. 2 people. Daniel and Kumiko.

Karate Kid II Quiz

2006-01-10T12:03:00.000-08:00

How well do you know Karate Kid II? Take this quiz and find out.

1. What didn’t the corporal realize he was standing on?

2. How much money did Mr. Miyagi and Daniel win from the ice breaking bet?

3. According to Chozen, what did Daniel dance like?

4. What is the primary target?

5. What did Kumiko want to be?

6. What did Daniel quietly say to himself when he saw Mr. Miyagi about to strike John Crease in the face?

7. How many times did you see the Crane kick used in Karate Kid II, including the scenes of Karate Kid I at the beginning?

8. According to John Crease, what is second place?

9. What was the condition imposed by Sato in order for there to be an Obon dance at the castle?

10. How many people did Chozen punch (with his fists) during the entire movie of Karate Kid II?

2006

2005-12-30T01:16:00.000-08:00

The new year is just around the corner, so what is everybody's plans? My plans have evolved through the years. Up until I was about 16, New Year's Eve was spent with the family(immediate, cousins, uncles, aunts). That was the time when my older cousins had "other plans" with their friends. Before that, New Years was almost as anticipated as Christmas, minus the gifts. On the millenium celebration, I spent New year's with my girlfriend at the time. After I made her a delicious seafood dinner, we went down to Olympic Plaza to watch the fireworks, and celebrate the new millenium. This year I will be celebrating it with my girlfriend and most likely, future wife.

There was a lot of debate about the new millenium being either 2000 or 2001 since the year 0 is more of an epoch or starting point rather than a year. It's sort of like saying you can't celebrate the race at the start line. So whatever, I just liked the way 2000 looked. Was anybody else surprised that the world's computers didn't crash on Y2K? ;)

Yet Another Christmas Blog

2005-12-23T01:02:00.000-08:00

Time is quickly counting down for Christmas, and I'd say that I have most of my gifts completed...just not wrapped. For a couple of my cousins, I'm making a compilation of 80s slow songs and burning them on a CD. I know, I know, I just admitted to an illegal activity. But They own all the albums of their favourite 80s artists, but not all on 1 CD. One of my cousins' favourite song is Careless Whispers by Wham, so that hit is going on for sure.

Then there is the t-shirt that I'm having especially made for my brother. Last year I made an exact replica of the 'Karachi Vice' shirt. For those who don't know who they are, or were, they were a faction/gang in 'Stampede Wrestling.' This was a wrestling show that spanned many decades where a lot of the wrestling greats emerged. A gift that I give to each one of my 15 cousins every year is a lotto ticket. They might as well get nothing from me, but there is always that chance, plus I get 10% of any winnings over $1000. Christmas, the time of giving. :)

Update

2005-12-18T14:20:00.000-08:00

Sorry I haven't written in a while. A lot of things to do and people to see. I still have to start my Christmas shopping, but I'm saving that for Monday morning. Right now it is 3:30 PM and I woke up only 1 hour ago. Last night's Christmas party at my old school buddy's house was terrific, to say the least. I got to see some old faces and reminisce about past events. My friend is at the stage right before portable MP3 players arrived on the scene. He had his CD's with burned MP3's being played off his DVD player all night. I've been trying to create a CD with 80's tunes and last night's musical selection gave me good ideas of what to use. In fact, a good portion of last night's conversation was dedicated to the 8-bit NES.

I've been playing my Super Mario All Stars game(s) recently and out of all the Super Mario games, the Lost Levels has to be the most difficult. This was a game that never came to North America until it was included in this Super Nintendo collection. Every single level is an expert level starting with world 1-1. I'm still on the last level (8-4) and the road to it was enough to make my thumbs sore. I must have been on level 8-3 for at least an hour, but like I was 10 years old again, I played through with determination. I had to stop at level 8-4 because I had my party to go to, but today is a new day.

Christmas time

2005-12-14T23:29:00.000-08:00

Nine more days until Christmas Eve. Ever since I was a little kid, Christmas has been my favourite time of the year, and I'm not just quoting the song. I remember the first time I sat on Santa's lap, I was 5 years old, and he asked me what I wanted. I told him that I wanted a Transformer, and he gave me a wrapped present. When I opened it, lo and behold it was 'Shockwave' of the 'Decepticons.' For the longest time after that, I truly believed with all my heart that Santa was magic. 'Shockwave' was the first and most favourite Transformer that I ever owned.

Every year since I can remember celebrating Christmas, my family always had the privelege of opening the gifts at midnight on Christmas eve. When I say my family, I mean my eighty or so first cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, immidiate family, etc. It's a huge tradition that invloves an immense dinner, music, games, and gift exchange. Usually I'm pretty good at getting my gifts before crunch, but that's not the case this year. I guess I better get off my ass and start mad rush at the malls. Oh well, nine more days to worry.

Closet Jem fans

2005-12-11T22:56:00.000-08:00

I think it's safe to say that all the closet Jem and the Holograms fans are coming out now. I for one never denied my like for the show. As a hetero male, I'm not afraid to say that the music was catchy, and still is today. I personally think the best season was when the 'Stingers' hit town. Their lead singer was for once a male singer, for what was traditionally a battle of the female bands. The Stingers' songs ranging from Destiny, to Under my Spell, to Let Me Be still have great replay value. Unfortunately, Rhino DVD dropped the ball and had not released the final season with the Stingers as well as other Hasbro cartoons...ahem...G.I. JOE. Sony is supposed to have the contract now, but unfortunately they will be re-releasing them from the very first season again. It kind of sucks to have a complete series of dvds with one of the boxes looking completely different. I can still see people buying the complete series once Sony re-releases them just for a matchin box cover.

Pac Man

2005-12-09T00:02:00.000-08:00

For all those gamers of the 80's, Pac Man is making a return. I really don't know if kids today are going to identify with the characters as much as the kids from the 80's. For more information, check out the link to the website.

Pac Man World 3

No news today

2005-12-07T23:41:00.000-08:00

I have to return some video tapes.

Holiday Tree?

2005-12-05T22:57:00.000-08:00

I'll be damned if I start calling my Christmas tree and Christmas Lights Holiday tree and Holiday lights. This politcal correctness has gone a bit too far. Over at the American capitol in Washington DC, the big tree with all the decorations is called a Holiday Tree? That's plain stupid, and the white house has already felt a backlash.

I remember when I was in grade 1, I had to perform in a Christmas play. My role was Santa Claus, but the only thing I told my parents was that I have a special performance. I ended up doing my Santa Claus part in a brown suit and a santa hat. All I remember from that play is hearing my older brother in the audience yelling out, "Hey, there's Santa!" and everyone laughing. I was only 6 and I remember the laughing, but I don't remember any emabarassement.

Getting used to Cindy

2005-12-04T04:57:00.000-08:00

Tonight me and my girlfriend ended up watching 5 back to back episodes of 'Three's Company' season 5. I've already watched the entire series many times in syndication, but this is all new to her. You don't get to see too many 'physical' comedies nowadays, which is why it's so refreshing to see 'Jack Tripper' and 'Cindy Snow' get tangled with an ironing board. My girlfriend still isn't used to 'Cindy' as being the replacement of her cousin 'Chrissy Snow' played by Suzanne Somers. Right now were at the point of the series where 'Chrissy' is slowly being phased out. In the last 5 episodes or so, Suzanne Somers only appearances have been on the telephone from her fictional parents' house. She didn't even get to tape any scenes directly with the other cast members, yet you still see her in the opening credits. New characters get some getting used to, and my girlfriend felt the same way when the 'Ropers' left. But it wasn't long until she totally embraced Don Knotts as the new macho man landlord. My girlfriend cracks up everytime he does his Karate chops in the air. But she shouldn't get to used to 'Cindy' as her career on the series was short lived.

Perfect Stranger DVD

2005-12-01T23:34:00.001-08:00

I really don't know when they are going to release the DVD of Perfect Strangers, the sitcom not the movie which has nothing associated with Balki and Larry. I'm sure many people have searched and came up with the movie, I just hope those they didn't end up buying it thinking it was something else. I remember the first time I did the Dance of Joy with my buddy Jerome. Because of the size difference, I was the one who always had to catch him at the end. Any way, go ahead and sign the petition for the DVD release. I don't know if this actually works, but it wouldn't hurt.

Perfect Strangers petition

Street Fighter God

2005-11-30T16:07:00.000-08:00

I used to think that I was pretty good at the Street Fighter series. I won a couple of SF2 tournaments when I was about 12-13 years old. Nobody in my family could come close to beating me, especially if I used Zangief. But I recently stumbled upon this footage of the true Street Fighter God. You have to watch it to believe it, so check it out.

Street Fighter God

Super Mario Music

2005-11-29T02:34:00.000-08:00

You really have to watch and listen to these two clips. No words to describe them other than cool!

mario1
mario1.1

Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Start

2005-11-27T03:55:00.000-08:00

Everyone remembers the famous code for the 8-bit NES game, Contra. What not many people realised is that were many different variations of the code, each with different functions. Here they are.

Three extra lives:
Press Up(2), Down(2), Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A at the title screen. Then, press Start to begin the game in single player mode or Select + Start to begin in two player mode.

Thirty lives per continue:
Press Up(2), Down(2), Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A before the demonstration begins at the title screen. Then, press Start to begin the game in single player mode or Select, Start to begin in two player mode.
Information in this section was contributed by Leon Noel and Christine.

Unlimited lives:
Press Up, Down, Up, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, A, B, A, B, Select, Start when "Jungle" appears on the demonstration screen.

Transfer lives:
Begin game play in two player mode. Press A + B when losing a life to use a life from the other player.

All weapons:
Press Down(2), Up(2), Right, Left, Right, Left, A + B before the demonstration begins at the title screen.

Level select:
Press Up(2), Down(2), Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Start(2) at the main menu.

Now go get them aliens!

No news today

2005-11-26T12:14:00.000-08:00

Nothing for today. I have to return some video tapes.

First Transformer post

2005-11-24T23:33:00.000-08:00

For anyone new to the world of Transformers, this one layed out on my Zebra comforter is Sky Lynx. His stats are Strength:10 Intelligence:08 Speed:10 Endurance:10 Rank:09 Courage:10 Firepower:07 Skill:08. He has three modes: an Earth space shuttle with a cargo module, a dinobird and lynx, and a winged dragon. My fondest episode(s) with Sky Lynx were the Return of Optimus Prime mini series. He was the one who fetched a Quintesson on a planet engulphed by that rage sickness since the Quintessons were the ones who created the Tranformers.

This was probably my 3rd favourite Transformer that I owned, behind Megatron and Shockwave. Unfortunately, I lost those 2 somewhere and probably won't see them ever again (sniff). Any way, eventually I'll post the rest of my collection, or what's left of it.

Cowboy Curtis

2005-11-23T01:43:00.000-08:00

Who is that weird looking dude in the cowboy hat? It's none other than Laurence Fishburne (aka. Morpheus) from the Matrix Trilogy. The picture is of the character Cowboy Curtis from the classic 80's morning show "Pee Wee's Playhouse." I wonder which pill he chose to get him into that outfit? Oh well, ya gotta start somehwere.

Knights of the Magical Light

2005-11-21T17:40:00.000-08:00

Three suns aligned, pour forth their light, and fill the archer's bow with might. Famous words chanted by the Spectral Knight known as Cryotek that unleashed the mighty archer from his magical staff. This reference is of course from the short lived cartoon called 'Visionaries.' I was fortunate enough to collect every vehicle from the series.

Unfortunately, I didn't realise the collectors value of the toys. Like a kid, I played with them, testing the boundaries of their...range of motion? Have you ever tried launching your Dagger Assault off a ramp? Or used the spring loaded cannon of the Lancer cycle as an insect exterminator? The vehicles are for the most part in tact. I have a couple of pieces missing; like the see-through chamber door of the Dagger Assault, Reekon's magical staff and helmet. Come to think of it, I may be missing Reekon all together.

I will post pictures of my vehicles and remaining figurines as soon as I get my camera's driver CD back from my girlfriend. Until then, you'll have to be patient. At least I have included nice little clips from the show, and here is a link to the awesome Visionaries intro.

Child of the 80's

2005-11-19T22:42:00.000-08:00

Hello all you readers out there. First time for everthing and this is my very first blog. My name is Allan and my pet Rabbit's name is Lionel. As the title indicates, I am a child of the 80's. Transformers, GI Joe, Smurfs, Cheers, Miami Vice, Pac-Man, the age of shoulder pads (for men and women), I could go on.

Today I am 28 years OLD, but I've been this age for about 5 months now. No more 10 & 1/2 years old, or 12 & 2/3rds years old just a solid 28. I recently quit my full time job in order to persue that, although I am Canadian, "American Dream." Opening the new business in a matter of days. That's right everyone, I'm gonna be my own boss. I haven't gotten used to that sleeping in thing quite yet. When I wake up at 9:30 AM, I feel like half my day has already been wasted. I still treat the weekday like a regular work day and for 8 hours/day I'm doing my research in order to get my business ready. But today is still the weekend, so no work for me. I just finished watching 3 episodes of Three's Company Season 5 with my girlfriend. I told you I was a child of the 80's.