Carrie Fisher: Royal General and Bipolar Queen

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

2016 has to be Death’s favorite year. Death has taken almost everyone we’ve loved and now, it’s snatched Carrie Fisher. Carrie Fisher, an iconic woman who claimed overnight fame as Princess Leia, passed on December 27^th, 2016 at the age of 60 due to a devastating heart attack.

Carrie Fisher was famous before she was even born on October 21^st, 1956. She was the child of Eddie Fisher, an iconic signer, and Debbie Reynolds, screen legend who divorced when she was two. She escaped into books and was noted as a “bookworm” in her family. This later fueled her passion to write various episodes for series such as “Frasier”, “Family Guy”, “The Big Bang Theory”, “30 Rock”, and many more. She also crafted two plays (“Wishful Drinking” and “A Spy in the House of Me”), five autobiographies, three non- fictional pieces, and seven screenplays.  For some screenplays she was a “script doctor” – fixing scripts to make the films better; she helped with “Hook”, “Sister Act”, and other multiple films.  Fisher was a jack of all trades when it came to the cinema and even Broadway wherein she starred in “Censored Scenes from King Kong”, “Agnes of God”, and “Irene” with her mother, Debbie Reynolds.

Carrie Fisher has inspired many people everywhere as a warrior for women, a symbol of mental illness, and portraying many rolls from Camille (Mystery Woman) from “The Blues Brothers” to Princess Leia from “Star Wars”. Fisher used her struggles with her bipolar disorder, drug and alcohol abuse, and her parents’ divorce to empower her characters. With this, she essentially became the roles she played. It’s a common technique that many people with mental disorders execute. They utilize their struggles into a character – it’s a temporary form of escapism that allows them to become someone else.

Fisher has advocated for people to understand mental illness. As a whole, mental illnesses bear a stigma in society while people attempt to correct this. Mental illnesses are nothing to be ashamed of; they make up our genes and are a part of who we are. Yes, we can repair ourselves in various means and eventually we will emerge as someone stronger than before. Fisher inspired many to take note of mental illnesses and treat those affected like any other human being: with respect, dignity, and care. She emphasized this greatly in her interviews and targeted her own struggles to help people not only understand her better, but her bipolarity as well. She even referred to bipolar disorder as bipolar pride – a trait that is a part of those who have it. After Fisher’s death, people have taken to tweeting their mental illnesses following the hashtag #InhonorofCarrie.

Society still has a long way to go to understand just how crippling depression is, how one can be so shaken from anxiety, or how one manages to live a daily life with bipolar disorder. Yet through Fisher’s legacy of words and strength as well as being open about our illnesses, can we eliminate the stigma. Listen to her words, raise your lightsaber in her honor, buy her books, and remember Carrie Fisher as we march into a new year.

Thanks for reading tonight’s entry. If you enjoyed it, feel free to share, subscribe, comment, and critique.

So tell me, what will you miss most about Carrie Fisher?

Goodbye 2016: You Were a Roller Coaster

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

A new year is on the horizon. For some, it may mean the apocalypse with Trump’s reign as the new president. For others, it may be a chance to start anew or continue in growth as a person. 2016 has been a festering pile of garbage – bearing ghastly moments we never thought would occur such as the death of some iconic people, tragedies with no end in sight, and political debates as wayward as a curved road.

We are standing on a hazardous shore with rough tides, wondering what exactly 2017 will promise us. We can swim out to sea and brave the choppy waves and roll with them, becoming a stronger being. We can stay at the shore and bide our time before making a move. We can watch from afar and carry on our lives as best as we can. We have choices, but we can’t turn away from 2017.

Despite the harshness of 2016, this year was by far the best year of my life. Not because of any celebrity’s death or the ungodly tragedies that scattered our world or even the winning elector. Rather, it was a year of meeting Internet celebrities I’ve been following for years, for being more of myself and becoming empowered, for meeting someone who I want to spend the rest of my life with, and for broadening my mind and world more than what I’ve already known.

2017 for me will mean moving on with my life. Yes, I’m absolutely terrified of what Trump will do especially to people of my feminine gender. This fear, paired with my depression and anxiety cannot dominate me. I’ve allowed it to win too many times in the past and frankly, I’m done with them.

Here are the things I need to do in 2017:

1.       Live – 2016 flew by and the older you become, the faster time flies. I need to take time with my hands and do with it what I want. By that I plan to live – go out more and try Cuban food or go to that museum I’ve always wanted to see especially with the one I love by my side. Time can’t stop me anymore.

2.       Work out – Hey, did you know your metabolism slows as you get older? Want proof? In January 2016, I weighed 120 and now I weigh 134. I need to tone my body, shake off the extra weight, and continue my fight to cut soda from my diet. Albeit, I do accept who I am physically and mentally, I realize that I’m getting older and my body isn’t what it used to be. I need to take care of it now more than ever. 

3.       Write – This goes in hand with taking time into my hands and doing what I will. I have to utilize time to finish my original works and work on the blog. I have allowed time to get in my way of publishing my entries due to my social life, a relationship, the holidays, and going out into the world around me. Yes, I apologize, but now I understand what I need to do.

4.       Improve  - This also ties in with working out, but more so on a mental note. While I do already accept myself mentally and physically, I still want to improve my anxiety which seems to attack me most in my life. I need to find ways to quell it so that it doesn’t affect me as much.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry! If you enjoyed it, feel free to share, subscribe, comment and critique.

So tell me, what are your New Year’s resolutions?

Last Minute Christmas Gifts

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

With Christmas just around the corner, there are last minute gifts to be bought, baking to be had, and lights to be lit. It’s a time of the year to get together with people and celebrate a holiday filled with cheer and wonder.

Speaking of last minute gifts, here’s some gifts anyone will like:

1.Body Lotion – winter is the season of dry skin, thus prompting everyone to use body lotion. Bath and Body Works usually has some great gifts for $10 and below.

2.Gift cards – especially the VISA ones. You can never go wrong with a gift card because it will always be used and they never expire.

3.A scarf and glove set – winter is cold and everyone could use the layers. Scarves and gloves not only keep you warm, but are fashionable as well. There are sets for men and women so everyone has the chance to be warm for the winter.

4.Movie tickets – the movies are expensive, with $11 a ticket per individual you can practically get a meal for that amount.  Plus there’s usually something good playing and chances are there’s a movie they’ll really want to see sooner or later. Tickets never expire either so they can use them when they like.

5.Speakers- because everyone nowadays has some sort of sound producing source whether it’s a mobile device or something stationary like a television. They don’t even have to be expensive speakers because there are good quality ones for $20 and below. There’s also some nice phone chargers for $20 and below because you can never have enough chargers whether they are for work, home, or even your car.

I wound up buying another gift that a majority of people would like: candy. I bought a simple Ghiradelli package for a couple I didn’t know all that well, but they were friendly at my workplace. It’s Christmas and well, why not? It was only $5 and they ate it up.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you enjoyed it, feel free to share, subscribe, comment, and critique.

So tell me, what’s your go to last minute Christmas gift?

Neko Atsume: Cats For Days

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Just like the majority of this world, I love cats. I used to have a few cats, but they passed on (rest their furry souls). Which is why I was immediately smitten with the kittens of Neko Atsume – a game where you lure cats to your yard using food, toys, and means of relaxation.

Originally Neko Atsume was an easy game for most devices with minor updates, but this year it’s seemed to have a few prominent upgrades. This past year, we’ve seen the release of more items to satisfy our cats, attract new feline friends, and wallpapers for our devices (I currently have Ginger as my wallpaper). The last update also included the new cats Sapphire, Jeeves, Macchiato, Bengal Jack (one of my favorites), and Melange.

Today, we receive yet another new update filled with even more furniture, new wallpapers, and more fluffy friends. The more I play this game, the more I’m allured by its simplicity, its overall adorable style, and my love for kittens.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you liked it, feel free to subscribe, share, comment, and critic.

So tell me, what’s your favorite cat from Neko Atsume?

Pokemon Go: Where Are You Going?

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Pokemon Go is slowly unveiling new Pokemon, beginning with the babies of Gen 2. Yes, those tiny cuties you couldn’t stop fawning over are now in Pokemon Go. The baby Pokemon will hatch from eggs found at various Pokestops. The following are new baby Pokemon featured in Pokemon Go:

Igglybuff and Cleffa hatch from 2k eggs
Pichu and Togepi (which can evolve into Togetic after 50 candies) hatch from 5k eggs

Magby, Elekid, and Smoochum hatch from 10k eggs

Also floating around in Pokemon Go is an exclusive Pikachu all dolled up for the holiday season with a Santa hat. When the holiday Pikachu evolves into Raichu, the hat stays on.

This new update was ushered in this past week along with Niantic partnering with Sprint and Starbucks. Those two locations in particular are now Pokestops across the nation and beyond.

Players, however, are disappointed with this feature of only Gen 2 baby Pokemon (excluding Tyrogue). They were hoping for something on a larger scale like the release of Gen 1 legendarys and/or all of Gen 2 Pokemon. Personally, I believed we were getting those traits as well: dataminers managed to locate codes for Mewtwo and Mew within the game. So why aren’t they being released? Why aren’t the rest of Gen 2 being released?

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you enjoyed it feel free to share, comment, critic, and subscribe.

So tell me, what baby Pokemon do you want?

Pokemon Moon: Over the Moon

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

I had no idea that Pokemon: Moon would keep me at bay for….Lord, when did I update last? Around Thanksgiving? This game has dominated my life and I am absolutely in love with it.

Moon is a prime example of how much the franchise has evolved over the years. When Red, Blue, and Yellow premiered it was mostly about training Pokemon to be the very best.  We were encouraged to level up our teammates, beat the Elite Four, and claim our Champion title. Many other games in the franchise functioned in the same fashion: train and claim. Pokemon: Pearl, Diamond, and Platinum, however, offered a new shift that only Pokemon: Yellow offered: the ability to walk with our Pokemon and in turn, become closer to them.

Yellow gave us a Pikachu to follow us and ultimately feel like Ash Ketchum, the hero of the Pokemon television series. Pearl, Diamond, and Platinum increased this notion by allowing us to select specific Pokemon to follow us. Heart Gold and Soul Silver changed this method so that any Pokemon could follow us from Chikorita to Unown. Black 2 and White 2 only allowed us to walk a Mienfoo in return for receiving a pearl once it was satisfied.

It was a matter of bringing trainers and their Pokemon closer outside the battlefield. Nintendo was attempting to implement the notion of not only being a Pokemon trainer, but a Pokemon caretaker. Someone who could fight alongside their best friend and becoming closer to them – much like Ash Ketchum or James from Team Rocket.

Yet the final form of this franchise came with XY wherein we could pet and play with our Pokemon.  Yes, we lost the feature where they followed trainers, but in return we were given Pokemon Amie: the trait of actually interacting with our Pokemon. We fed them specific pastries, we played games with them, and in turn they expressed their affection for us by means of becoming in sync with us in combat. They wished to land critical hits to earn our praise, they avoided an attack to obtain our admiration, and they even mega evolved when we commanded them to.

It was a wonderful, eye opening experience that I don’t believe my younger self would have ever thought possible. Bonding with my Pokemon allowed them to become what I call my dream team; a well balanced team of level 100 creatures filled with power for combat and affection for my trainer.  When they fight, they don’t fight for the money or defeat – they fight because it’s how they connect with my trainer. This team also consists of Pokemon that often remind me of when I played the other games through the years. Seeing Pokemon I grew up with like Mawile and Ponyta enjoying themselves in the company of my trainer made me smile. It made the game feel a bit more personal.

Pokemon ORAS (Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire) continued this notion, but expanded Pokemon showing their affection in contests. If they received high markings, they demonstrated a special move. My Skarmory took the contests by storm with a metallic twister of a move that blew my mind as well as the audience’s.

Now we have Pokemon Sun/Moon which gently coaxes you into becoming closer with your Pokemon. Not only is there the return of Pokemon Amie(now Pokemon Refresh), but now if your Pokemon receives a status effect they will approach you at the end of combat. Of course you can still use Antidotes and Awakenings, but would you shun the face of your own pained Pokemon? The Alola region prides itself on the notion of Pokemon and humans becoming closer with each other in friendship, transportation, and living in harmony. Even the Pokedex entries seemed to heavily tie into life on the islands to show how in sync Pokemon are with mankind.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you liked it, feel free to share, comment, critic, and subscribe.

So tell me, what do you think of Pokemon Sun/Moon?