So I’d write some big introduction, but honestly, the title says it all.
Besides, when have you all known me to write out some big introduction or dissertation before jumping into the main event?
Every time?
Literally each and every single time?
“You’re doing it right now, Eddie” you say?
I sure am!
On the eve of my last day before I return to work at school, here is how I spent my Summer Break! —– I went into details about pinball in the last post, but I also recently participated in my first tournament (by complete accident) and also joined a pinball league. Due to doing so, I am now officially a ranked pinball player! Currently sitting 532nd (SMITHVILLE!) in Missouri and 13,000-something in the United States and (hopefully?) climbing!
If you ever wanna stop by Solid State on a Wednesday night or a weekend, decent chance you might run into me. Say hey! And if you see “MisterP” on the scoreboard television, get on my level. —–
As I write this, I am currently planning a trip to Minnesota to see friends I’ve known through NakaKon and met a few times (note to self: NakaKon might be the next blog post, perhaps, we’ll see if I get a whim to do something more “impromptu” like this first). —– Started a co-op run of Baldur’s Gate 3 with my friend Morgan (or “Momo”). For those that don’t know, it’s a computer game rooted strongly in Dungeons & Dragons lore and trappings, and plays like a much more “visual” version of a D&D campaign. A lot of the work and calculations are done by the game itself, keeping the pace a little quicker but the amount of freedom at your disposal is insane. Even then, just lackadaisically pushing through a scenario will end poorly. Even when scenarios have multiple ways they can play out, half-assing any of them will likely lead to you smashing into a wall.
Still got a ways to go, but I find myself looking forward to Tuesdays with my friend (or friends….sometimes some friends jump into the conversation with us as we play). Hi, Momo! —– There’s obviously opening this blog back up. I hope being more casual with my words and not searching so hard for “reasons” to write and “being worth it” will help. So far it seems to have done well! —– I’ve developed a taste for listening to different genres of jazz as I write, depending on the mood. Classical jazz, fusion, more hip-hop lo-fi stuff, the whole kit-and-kaboodle (it’s been years since I discovered it wasn’t “kitten kaboodle”, and it still looks all wrong typed out). It’s nothing I’d listen to in the car going somewhere (still a podcast man) or while cleaning, but somehow it keeps me locked in at writing time. —– Made some big plans for the future and hope to be laying the foundation for not only future career aspirations, but I’m also aiming for my lifelong “top of the bucket list” trip to Japan. It’s gonna take a lot of time and a lot of saving (and even if I hit a financial windfall, I’m looking to go with friends and people familiar and I don’t want to jump ahead of them and end up making that trip less than it could be).
Going back to the career aspirations, I’m not looking to settle in on anything JUST yet, and haven’t made a final decision. But I am hoping this time next year the jets will truly be “on”. —– I think that about sums it up. So uhhhhh………yeah.
Remember, you are loved, appreciated, and you matter.
In an effort to curb my lifelong negativity streak, I always told myself I would use this blog to be more positive and constructive. Never give a negative thought or rant without an alternative or a positive. A silver lining.
So to open my big return to blogging as my regular form of “social media posting” by saying that “videogaming sucks right now” flies in the face of that mission. I get that. I’m dumb, but I ain’t stupid (OK, so that’s two negatives to start Eddie….and a self-deprecation even, c’mon, get it together).
Anyone who has known me (or can take two seconds to see the wallpaper on this page) knows videogames have always been a big deal to me. My earliest memories of entertainment were a Nintendo Entertainment System hooked to a wood-box CRT TV. My favorite birthday gift from my younger years was a Sega Genesis that I still own (AND IT STILL WORKS!) in my near 39 years of age. I’ve owned at least one console from every generation since, if not often two. I’ve owned obscure hardcore consoles from the Saturn and 3DO to the ones everyone has seemed to have; Wii, PS2, Game Boy, the whole thing.
But right now…..gaming just sucks. Prices skyrocketing at alarming rates due to parts shortages, tariffs, and storage demands. Microsoft has begun restructuring their gaming businesses, and can’t seem to do it without leaving a LOT of nuclear fallout in the process. Sony recently announced they’ll be ending the production of discs and converting their gaming releases COMPLETELY to digital storefronts starting in 2028. Even getting in on the middle ground of gaming PCs costs MUCH more now than it did merely 9-12 months ago for the same specs. I have a two year old graphics card that costs MORE now in used condition than it did when I bought it new, and it’s a 4060. For those not hip to GPU jargon, that’s nothing to sneeze at but no powerhouse either.
Over the Summer, I decided I wanted to try new things, or perhaps rediscover older things.
One day….and I’m not sure exactly how I came across hearing about it, but I was tipped off to the existence of a place in downtown Kansas City called “Solid State Pinball Supply”. And while the name seems to suggest it’s more for purchasing tables and gizmos for pinball machines, it’s primarily a location for pinball players young and old to congregate and play a variety of games from across the medium.
So about a month ago, I checked the place out.
To paraphrase one of my favorite songs; I took a walk down memory lane and I never found my way back.
So what is so appealing about pinball in general? To those uninitiated it may seem like a relic from the past. Maybe your exposure to pinball begins and ends at the old Pokemon Pinball Game Boy game or that 3D Space Cadet pinball game many Windows computers carried in the 90s. Maybe you’re like me and other than the random game here and there, your pinball exposure began by playing a “simulator” such as Pinball Arcade or Pinball FX and you just had to see the genuine article for yourself.
And sure, pinball has had its soaring highs, crashing lows, and creamy middles. From being “the new hip jive” to being viewed as a gambling device and made literally illegal, to evolving into a recreational social past-time that, unlike the arcade industry, has nothing in the way of a plausible home equivalent, I’m here to tell you pinball kicks major ass. It kicked ass when I was 4 years old and we had a Gottlieb 300 machine in our basement that I tinkered, shocked myself on, and probably had a hand in damaging….and it kicks ass now.
A lot of the skills that make videogaming fun are present here. Quick reactions, studious awareness of the playfield, memorization of what mixture of actions become, combined with a mechanical and auditory feedback that is all its own. When you set up a shot and it bounces wide of the mark you were aiming at, it’s still fun to quickly react and adjust accordingly to what’s taken place. An expertly-bartended concoction of improvisation and “sticking to the plan”. And when a shot hits its intended target and destination, you can’t help but drink in the seratonin-fueled moment. The best shots in pinball will make you feel the knots in your back uncurl. Tough day at work? You hit that Hole-In-One in “No Good Gofers” (not a typo) and that hard day at the office goes up in smoke.
And if you haven’t played in a long time, a lot of the more modern tables have more advanced “gadgets” and “toys” to them; from vibrating motors under the table to LCD screens mixed with footage from various properties, to magnetic saves (or even traps). Almost any modern table has some unique twist that will blindside you in the best way possible. Count pinball out as “a silver ball on a plank of wood” at your own risk. YOU’D be the one missing out on something great. Not me, I already know. And so do many others. And hopefully I can talk you, the reader, into our building here today. And if you already know what I’m talking about, then hey, welcome back!
To start, I have a few piece of beginner advice to take with you if you plan on getting into pinball too. Or….if you just want to have in your pocket the next time you want to play an idle machine out in the wild.
– Flashing shots
A big learning curve for many players is how to “progress” the table. Many outsiders might just see each pinball table as a different set of shots at different angles, and while many vintage pinball tables have trouble shaking such distinction, that’s far from true if you’re pinballing from the 1980s and onwards. But then the intimidation comes in of having to learn/understand these different “rule sets” and how to “progress” on a pinball table.
An important rule of thumb is to pay attention to lit and especially flashing shots and lanes. If you’re ever lost and unsure where to shoot the ball and want to avoid just aiming wildly until something happens, following the lit and especially the flashing shots will quite literally light the way. Recognizing the patterns will also allow you to set the table for future playthroughs, and chart your path for better scores or maximizing multiball/high-scoring modes.
– Holding the flippers
So basic flipper etiquette says to not just mash and slam both flippers wildly. While that is one of the first things newbies are taught, I think anyone capable of reading this blog will be able to contain that urge. However, holding a ball on the flipper to set up shots is a common practice not just for new players but for pros as well, especially when you’re having the kind of day where your shots aren’t landing OR if you notice a small “hitch” with the table and a shot you can hit regularly hit suddenly isn’t landing anymore. Using that moment to gather yourself can be vital, ESPECIALLY if you have multiball going.
Though, try your best not to just line up EVERY ball in a multiball on one flipper, that NEVER ends well. Trust me, when the math maths and the physics physic, you won’t like the answer they come up with.
One feature many newbies don’t know is that you can often freeze the ball on a flipper, and keep them held to see statistics of your current game on the table’s display. You can see what ball you’re on and how you’re progressing in certain modes, some tables might even tell you how many extra balls you have earned, or even how many tilt warnings you have left (more on that in just a moment). Holding the flippers may seem like a rudimentary beginner tactic, but it has its uses across all skill levels.
– Tilting is playing
I mentioned earlier that at one point pinball was banned in the United States. This was centered around the idea that pinball was merely random like a slot machine and could not be directly manipulated or controller in any way by a player. To the unknowing eyes at the time, skill gave way to chance.
A demonstration in-court by a professional announcing their shots and then tilting and nudging the machine to put the pinball where they predicted on a near-clockwork basis proved vital in reversing the ban and shaking pinball’s designation as a “game of chance” and galvanizing it as a “game of skill”.
Tables old and new are able to detect in one way or another when the table is tilted, and might offer a warning if the table is nudged too much or too many times, with many tables typically (keyword: typically) enacting a “three strikes” rule that resets on new balls. However, using nudging and tilting is very important if you want to earn better scores, and many modern-age tables (even back in the 70s and 80s) were built with the mechanic in mind. I’m still learning the fine points, but you gotta be quick to knowing when to tilt, because once you realize the moment it needs to be done, it’s probably already too late.
Many machines will usually give two tilt warnings on a ball before a third strike forces a “tilt” and surrenders your current ball and typically any bonuses earned. Some machines will even give extra tilt warnings as rewards, while others might have a thinner skin about it after the first “tilt” is issued. But rest assured, what seems like a dirty trick on the outside is part of the game. The people that play and even make these games expect you to do so, and the safeguards are there to keep it from becoming a mechanic you overly lean on.
– Accept you’ll get your butt kicked
My first experience with real modern pinball was FunHouse at the Liberty Community Center. I had played pinball videogames, I even had a Gottlieb 300 machine in my basement growing up. I figured I could hold my own on something like this.
Except it felt like every ball I played was basically being dunked into the center drain. Within seconds I had eaten through all 3 of the balls the game allowed and was sent packing with the machine’s goofy carnival-esque music basically not missing a beat from “Insert Credit” to “Game Over”.
Now, I have played FunHouse again since picking up a few skills and….still don’t care much for it (now I can describe it without sounding like I just suck eggs). But like with any new game, know going in your going to get your butt kicked. Even pro players will struggle their first time on a new machine, learning the timing, angles and rules of a new table. Even if they study on a YouTube video or watch someone else do it, it’s a whole other ballgame when you’re actually standing at the machine and giving it a shot yourself. But chasing those scores and getting further, finding new modes and succeeding on them, is all part of the game.
– Track your scores (The Stern Insider App)
Keeping track of your scores is a wise idea, not just for bragging rights, but to keep track of your own progress on a table. Seeing the improvement and seeing how going about different strategies on a table can make the game so much more fun, assuming you don’t chase the scores too hard and let it become an albatross.
If you’re playing on a modern Stern table, a “Stern Insider” account can help track your scores and even allow you to track or save progress on certain tables, be it the “characters” in Dungeons & Dragons; The Tyrant’s Eye or the PokeDex on the Pokemon table. It even includes achievements to chase to improve your score and see everything a table has to offer. It can even log scores in certain locations, so you can compare and compete against other players at a location. If you’re just a passerby, I can understand not messing with the setup. But if you’re visiting a pinball-focused arcade or bar for a day or an evening, it’s worth it to set up. Once the free account is set, use the QR code in the app on the table’s reader to sign-in on a machine, and you’re set.
– Ask Around!
The pinball community is one of the best when it comes to not being full of elitists and stuffy gatekeepers. I’ve been playing regularly at Solid State Pinball, and anyone working at the joint will be happy when available to provide pointers and give their honest opinions on which tables they like, which tables they think you should avoid (even if it’s in their own building), and their own experiences with a certain game. Even pro players (provided you’re not interrupting a session) will be happy to talk shop on a certain table and let you know what they know. You follow the rules, you approach with an open mind, and just have fun, you’ll be one of the pinheads.
So now I want to take this opportunity to go over some pinball tables I have personally played and would openly recommend to players looking to get into pinball OR vets who just want to know the what/why of my personal preferences.
Now I want to preface this by saying that I know I’m leaving some Hall of Fame heavy hitters out. The Addams Family is considered the “Citizen Kane” or “Super Mario Bros.” of modern pinball (Mario even has a couple pinball tables of his own). Stern just recently came out with a Pokemon table with a simple ruleset to understand and a good flow that any Pokemon fan new, old or lapsed will enjoy. As of this past weekend that I write this, I hold the #3 score for July at Solid State Pinball on their Dungeons and Dragons; The Tyrant’s Eye machine.
I’d be remiss not to acknowledge certain novelty tables that turn pinball on its side; be it Banzai Run’s novelty of having a second vertical playfield in place of a traditional backglass, SafeCracker’s running clock along with a “board game” on the display and collectible tokens the player actually gets to keep, or the disasterous-for-business but still fun novelty of the “Pinball 2000” tables (limited to Revenge from Mars 3D and Star Wars; Episode I) with a television display projected onto the playfield itself.
And I know I’m forgetting tentpole tables in pinball history such as High Speed, Creature from the Black Lagoon (don’t worry, I got your Universal Monster representation soon…..perhaps I said too much for those in the know), the aforementioned FunHouse, Twilight Zone, and even highly-sought rarities such as Cactus Canyon and the cancelled but fan-reproduced Big Bang Bar.
All of these (well, except FunHouse, but again, my opinion) are fantastic machines to my knowledge. Many of them I either haven’t played in-person, or have tables I’d recommend first for beginners or put higher on my personal list. But it’s really hard to find an at-it’s-core bad pinball machine. A pinball machine in disrepair? Sadly, that’s pretty easy. Being a “Street Fighter” fan (and yes, I am psyched for that hokey-ass looking movie coming out), it was heartbreaking to have my exposure to Street Fighter II’s pinball iteration be on a heavily damaged machine. But any machine you can step up to and play is bound to be a good time to some extent.
But I want to start with the two machines I would openly recommend to first-timers or early adopters to pinball.
The Machine; Bride of Pin-Bot
The second table in the “Pin-Bot” series, some friends of mine might be surprised I’m not opening this up with the third table in the series; Jack*Bot. And Jack*Bot is a fine table that I once sought to play for a very long time after playing it on Pinball Arcade on my PS4. But in all honesty, for people first trying to level-up their pinball game beyond just banging on the flippers and hoping by chance things go the way they want, The Machine; Bride of Pin-Bot is an awesome table to start on.
This table’s ruleset is very simple; The Bride needs to be built to completion. And you progress in doing so by shooting the ball up the left ramp on the table. ANYTIME you make this shot, you progress in accomplishing this. There’s plenty of other targets to hit and ways to maximize your score through other shots (especially if the ball lands on the left flipper, making the left ramp shot much more difficult). But the ticket will always be that left-ramp shot.
First you give The Bride the ability to speak by locking one ball, then you must help it learn to see by being able to lock two in succession. This will unlock multiball, in which two pinballs will enter the field simultaneously and the game will task you with locking BOTH balls will they’re both in-play (an excellent crash course in managing multiball on other tables). Failure to do so (locking only one while the other drains or worse, draining both) will cause The Bride to revert back to a prior phase of completion.
The ruleset is simple and the reliance on one single, not-too-difficult shot can be a turnoff to vets or pros with their reaction times and angles locked in, but these easy-to-understand steps and goals all leading to the goal of hitting the “billion point shot” is an excellent introduction for early pinball players.
Taxi
This older machine is still one of the more fast-paced machines around even in modern times. But another simple ruleset and “a shot anywhere will likely do something” mentality make it a fun introduction to pinball as well as a fun time for veteran players as the pace rarely slows or stops. You pick up passengers by following lit shots and targets. There is typically an order to them, with “Gorbie” (a proxy of Gorbachev, if that tells you the time period this game comes from) and “Pin-Bot” (yep, we get in-universe crossovers in 80s pinball too) being early and “Lola” (more on that in a moment) and Santa being near the end of the queue. Only a few targets will stop play at any point in time, with most events occurring either passing over a section or hitting a target. Even the mere act of launching the ball leads the ball into a quasi-roulette “SpinOut” section. All further enforcing that once the foot is on the gas, there ain’t no brakes. An excellent game to get into the pacing and rhythm of many games and for developing the skills of hitting your shots consistently.
Fun Fact: Early versions of Taxi (as seen in the video above) included a Marilyn Monroe proxy rather directly named “Marilyn” both on the backglass display and as a passenger that can be picked up. The resemblance is uncanny. Uncanny enough that reportedly, the Monroe Estate forced a change. Later versions swapped the legendary actress for “Lola”, with the appearance altered to not-so-closely resemble her anymore. Any digital remake of the game (such as in Pinball FX) will strictly reference the “Lola” version without ANY mention of Marilyn. However, “Marilyn” tables are still out there in working condition. In fact, I’ve never played a “Lola” version. The two Taxi machines I’ve ever played both starred “Marilyn”, not “Lola”, which is a WILD coincidence if the “limited to 200” belief is true.
Black Knight 2000
The second in the “Black Knight” series of games, the original table was known for having a two-tiered playfield with an upper and lower segment along with a manually triggered “magna-save” that could stop a ball from entering the dreaded sidelane if a player hit a special button quick enough to catch it. But there were flaws to it. While the two-tiered playfield was a neat novelty, once the ball hit the bottom playfield the mission became clear; get back to the top playfield NOW. Not only was the bottom playfield dull to play by comparison, but the real points were up top. Having a ball fall quickly and live on the bottom playfield was basically a death sentence to both your current ball any score-chasing you might be doing
Black Knight 2000 brought this table into the modern era (well, late 80s) with revisions to the flow, technological upgrades to the music and appearance, and a blistering pace that will keep you coming back for more. Placing a lot of the higher scoring aspects on the bottom while having the top field serve as a “multiplier” to the bottom made both playfields equally useful and added desperately-needed balance.
Any discussion of “BK2K” would be remiss without discussing the aesthetics. This table is one of my younger brother’s favorites for not just how well it plays but the music and aesthetic it carries with it. Sounding like your Super Nintendo channeling the Trans-Siberian Orchestra with a rock flavor and angelic chorus, the music and flair the table applies as you play will light a fire in any player’s soul.
The best pinball tables don’t just bring a well-flowing table along, but hit on ALL aspects. Black Knight 2000 does just that. It might not be the most newbie-friendly like the last two tables we’ve went over (the blistering pace of the bottom playfield due to its shortened size requires any player to be ready for everything at all times), but one look is all you’ll need to “get” this one. And one play is all you’ll need to bow to the Black Knight. No matter your skill level, this is one to seek out.
Fun Fact: Steve Ritchie is both the designer of this table and the voice of the Black Knight. He would go on to be a legendary pinball designer (many people calling Black Knight 2000 one of his magnum opuses….magnum opi?) and would also contribute his voice to many classic videogames, most notably being the voice of Shao Kahn in Mortal Kombat II and MK3.
Medieval Madness
The possible diamond in the Williams Pinball family according to many players (I’d agree if there wasn’t one strong exception, more on that later), Medieval Madness has gone on to become one of the highest-rated pinball machines around and is still played heavily in many locations to this day (try getting a chance to play it at UpDown in downtown Kansas City, good luck). While many tables use lit shots and lit targets to steer players, almost any shot at any given time in Medival Madness will progress something, barring you don’t get into a cycle of the same shot in a loop. Yet it still leaves a lot of room to the player to decide when to maximize those kinds of shots. Hitting a target enough will enable its “Madness”, where you enter a multiball mode. However, the only way to cash out the jackpot for maximum points is to hit the target(s) you’ve been repeating. The solution? Vary your shots so these “madnesses” stack and put multiple high-scoring possibilities at your fingertips, including a “Royal Madness” if you set ALL of them up at once.
And that’s not even the real way to “progress” on the table, though it’s certainly the way to max out high scores. Hitting the giant castle in the middle of the field forces it to drop its drawbridge and gate. Hitting enough pinballs into the castle will topple it, and defeat royal figures, from “The Duke of Bourbon” to “Lord Howard Hurtz” until you face off with “The King of Payne” in the “Battle for the Kingdom” mode.
As stated before, the best tables are not just fun but also hit on all cylinders, and whether you come across an original mid 90s Medival Madness table or the Chicago Gaming Company re-release, this table is a must-play for ALL skill levels. Only a royal fool would walk past an idle Medieval Madness machine and leave it that way.
Fun Fact: This table includes an uncredited vocal performance by a pre-SNL Tina Fey as one of the princesses that appear during gameplay.
Godzilla
In recent years, the #1 name in pinball by a wide margin in regards to both sales and presence has to be Stern. There’s a strong chance if you’ve seen any pinball table made in the last 10 years, it’s probably a “Stern” machine. From Pokemon to Batman to Jaws to Jurassic Park, when Stern announces a table, it’s almost a guaranteed sales winner, and many of them have gone on to be darlings to players across all skill spectrums. Godzilla, while only a few years old, might be the most highly-regarded table Stern has released in its reign at the top of the pinball landscape.
Calling upon clips from Godzilla’s 50s-70s Showa Era, having collapsing props that can rise, fall, and affect the paths balls can take, and even an appearance by Blue Oyster Cult’s “Godzilla” track during multiball and when the game ends, and you’ve got the feel right. Add on a table expertly constructed with many “greatest hit” pinball gizmos from magnets to mid-field flippers and criss-crossing steel ramps….and you have a game that, new as it is, has earned the term “modern classic” and stands toe-to-toe with even the greatest games in pinball’s long history.
Dialed In!
If “Stern” is the Coca-Cola, the WWE or the McDonalds of pinball, then “Jersey Jack Pinball” is the Dr. Pepper, the AEW, the WhatABurger of pinball. Once serving as a small-run outfit to the point any franchise they made a game for was individually numbered and limited to a certain # of machines (such as Willy Wonka or Wizard of Oz), Jersey Jack has gone on to grow into a solid #2 in the current pinball landscape. One thing Jersey Jack has done that Stern hasn’t, is create original concept machines using no outside properties. Dialed In! Is currently the only “Jersey Jack” machine I have played, and it’s already set a high bar with me.
While the game does include Bluetooth connectivity and allows players to use their own smartphone to interact with the game, it’s far from a necessity to enjoy the quest to survive (or perhaps even cause) the destruction of Quantum City. An excellent layout and plenty of fun modes for players to sink their teeth into, if you see the “Jersey Jack” badge on a pinball table, give it a go. Especially if it’s this bad boy right here. Tables like this combined with the previously mentioned Godzilla by Stern ensure the short-term future (and potentially long-term, if both companies, alongside Spooky Pinball and other companies can sustain this level of quality and innovation) of pinball is in good hands.
Monster Bash
So throughout this post and this look at noteworthy pinball machines (according to me), you’ve probably wondered what pinball table I would put at #1. I’ve given a lot of tables up to this point a ringing endorsement, but stopped short of naming a true “best in show”.
Folks, I am here to tell you, Monster Bash takes that title.
Using the Universal Monsters as characters on the table, your mission is to form the “Monsters of Rock” band and rock out with Frankenstein, his Bride, Dracula, The Mummy, The Wolfman, and The Creature From The Black Lagoon (using a returning holograph feature from the The Creature From The Black Lagoon table). Each specific monster has their own set of unique targets (both in location and how to trigger them) and modes that are activated once those targets are triggered enough times. Gather all members together and you trigger the namesake “Monster Bash” mode, a 4-ball multiball in which any of the previous monster shots trigger a jackpot. Another extra “Monsters of Rock” wizard mode (a term used for a table’s end-game mode/modes) increases the point values on those jackpot payouts even further.
A table where almost any given shot progresses something but aiming and focusing on certain shots will lead to most success, combined with insanely fun multiball modes, incredible use of the Universal Monster properties, excellent music (in a game centered around music, it BETTER not miss!!!), this table hits in any and all aspects. Whether you hunt down a (fairly uncommon) original Monster Bash table or the more widely available Chicago Gaming Company revision, Monster Bash stars as the headliner of the pinball world.
Pinball is experiencing a resurgence in the past decade. Through the fall of the arcade, through Covid making many social gaming events seem taboo, through technological advancements in gaming and PCs, to the AI boom and the potential first signs of a new-age videogame crash, pinball still stands and continues to rise. The time-honored tradition of reflexes, timing, the satisfaction of nailing a tough shot, and enjoying it all in a social setting with friends, family, or even strangers stands strong as it ever has. Hell, in this day and age where the world is split so many different ways, where the gaming industry can’t seem to get out of its own way, and it feels like past-times come at a higher premium than ever, maybe all of those things pinball provides are stronger now than they’ve ever been. Not bad for a past-time that’s been around longer than most of its gaming contemporaries.
Valentine’s Day as a single man…wait, no, come back! Let me get this paragraph out before you assume it’s just gonna be a sulkfest…stinks. And many single people will often wonder what they’ve done (or haven’t) to get themselves to that point. They spend the holiday wondering what they could do differently and ultimately vowing that next year won’t be the same. Heck, you can go through my Facebook posts from years past and see for yourself. It’s either me sulking because I feel I’ve earned the right to (as if self-deprecation is a reward at the end of a long journey…man, what a shitty journey THAT must be) or trying to put a brave face but leaving obvious cracks in the mask. But ultimately, that thought will still break through the walls of many single people on Valentine’s Day; the thought of “What did I do wrong?” or “What can I do differently?”
Instead I had a different thought in my head this past Valentine’s Day, February 14th, 2026:
“Is 38 too old to be attending your first rave?”
(Yeah! See? Not a sulkfest! You gotta trust me when it comes to affairs of the writing variety!)
That was the thought in my head a mere 15-16 hours ago, as I type this. My legs still feel like Jello, and my ears still contain that slight spice of temporary tinnitis. That’s how tinnitis works, right? I’m still not sure my energy is all back as I ride the high of a Sparkling Ice Caffeine, with all the caffeineenergy sauce (thanks Homestar Runner!) to make you feel like MAAAYBE you can get through the day without that power nap (but DAMN does that power nap feel tempting).
And if I could do it all over again…..I certainly would. Though maybe I make a few different moves.
NakaKon is a convention in Kansas City I’ve been a fan of for many years now. I could go into my story about how it took me 4 years to go to my first one and how finances and work schedules and COVID wiped out the first 3 attempts at me going but…..oh, look at that. That’s basically the story right there.
NakaKon is focused on Japanese culture. Be that anime, gaming, music, traditions, etc. If you’re into a sliver of it, Naka probably has a branch on its tree for it.
A couple years ago I made a real effort to become a part of this community, and eventually found myself a regular contributor to its social channels and eventually a moderator on their Discord server (for as long as Discord is still around, as much as Discord wants to run themselves into the ground). I’ve made a lot of remote friends through my involvement and participation, but never met a whole lot of them in-person.
Naka recently started the “Naka Underground” events, a series of dance parties and social gatherings for people 21+ to attend. And I had some intrepidations in ever attending; would it JUST be people in their lower 20s and I’ll stick out like a sore thumb? Would it be a lot of groups and dates and me showing up solo dolo was just a horrible idea?
And the big question: Is this WAY too far out of my comfort zone?
I mean, there’s stepping out of your bubble and seeing what the world has out there, but is this just too much? Am I WAY too out of my element for such a thing?
I told a ton of friends of mine I was doing, but a couple of friends in particular took vested interest; one who we in the Naka scene lovingly refer to as “Momo”, and my friend Sam. Both of whom have always been encouraging of me stepping out of my comfort zone, though sometimes maybe a little too much “diving into the deep end” for my comfort. These weren’t the ONLY people encouraging me, but they seemed to be the two most “dealt-in”.
Valentine’s Day rolled around and I knew they would both hold me accountable if at this point I stepped out. And the urge to do so was there. Yes, I could stay home, make lame attempts to fill in the Saturday Valentine’s evening, probably end up self-deprecating (or as my friend Becca calls it, “Self-Defecating”, because you’re talking shit on yourself). Same as it ever was. Same as it ever was. Same as it ever was. But….that was just it. Same as it ever was. My comfort zone left intact. No expanding my horizons, no stresses, no weird encounters, no making an ass out of myself and possibly having this new community figure out how much of a drooling neanderthal I truly am, like so many communities had before (at least, I felt….though, maybe not).
But I knew I needed to do this. I was sick of sulking on a day like this. And I knew the judges I would answer to wouldn’t take it well. “Momo” might give me an encouraging word and “better luck next time” while being at least a little disappointed “next time” wasn’t “THIS time”. And Sam would’ve thrown some playful insults I won’t repeat here, but would have been disappointed I didn’t go. It’s not the first time he’s tried to get me to participate in social events outside my comfort zone. In fact, I kinda wonder if he (or both of them) almost expected me to not take the step. Wouldn’t be the first, second, or third time I’d stayed in my bubble.
At about 10 after 8 I pulled into the parking lot of the Walgreens across the street. I couldn’t find parking in the same block as the building, and their recommended parking was a half-mile away AND cost $12. That’s 2 1/2 times what my cover charge would’ve been to get to the rave! Fortunately, the Walgreens across the street didn’t seem to care. Maybe they were used to it, maybe they thought I would be back shortly. Maybe they didn’t know I left the car there. Or maybe they would’ve ticketed my car if I let it sit much longer. I don’t know for sure.
But there I was. Standing in the pitch-black night of Westport, the city lights in the horizon, and the ground still wet from the rain earlier in the day. A slight cool breeze blew, making me wish I at least wore a light jacket. But a flannel jacket at a rave in Westport would’ve made me seem somehow even more out of place. So I went without. I didn’t FULLY regret that decision until later in the night when it was time to go, but…maybe in the future I pick a better coat. Already I’m thinking my hoodie would’ve worked fine. Where the hell did I put that thing?
As I walked up I could hear music blasting but had no idea which door it was coming from. I looked through the windows and my eyes saw a strong contrast to what my ears heard. A bar occupied by a few patrons but hardly a jumping hotspot of rave music and bass shaking the walls. But I couldn’t ignore my lying ears. I looked around and saw a second door that suggested this went upstairs. I had a hunch this was where the action was.
After a jaunt up the steps and an awkward exchange of financials with the front door (thanks to the loud music), I was inside.
Club music walked the tightrope of being torturously loud and just right on a night like this. People jumped, pumped, and swayed to the music. And I……
……stood in the back of the room.
What the hell was I doing here?
This isn’t my music. This isn’t my comfort zone. Nobody here knows me. I have no safety net or wingman here.
After about half an hour of trying to dive off the diving board, I stepped into the restroom and locked the door. I could feel the old doubts pulling at me. Get to the door, get out of here, don’t make such a dumb mistake as showing up to something like this alone ever again. You keep convincing yourself this can end differently, and it never does.
And yet……
I just got here. Why the hell was I already deciding how this night would end? It was just getting started!
I wasn’t going to knock my social walls down in the first minute. I wasn’t going to step out of my bubble right away. I wasn’t going to become a “hit” in the scene by standing on the wall.
The old me would’ve waited forever for things to fall into place before making the move. The new me jams the peg until it fits.
So I bent my knees a little, then moved them around some more, and let the thunderous music do its thing. Matching the tempo and moving my arms just a little (turns out I’m not a big arm-mover), I just rode the vibe out for as long as I felt comfortable.
Before I knew it, there were more people behind me on the floor than in front. I was in, and part of the group. And I was enjoying myself, even if the music wasn’t 1:1 the kind of stuff I listen to at 38.
I did find myself stifling a few social urges. I wanted to high-five someone that was handing them out and seemed to not notice me, but certainly would’ve had I held a hand out. I wanted to compliment the outfit of a woman who bumped into me that I thought looked genuinely cool. But I was already taking baby steps and just…..couldn’t.
As I left at about 10:00, I knew my ears would be ringing the next day from all the loud music I heard. But here I was at the end of Valentine’s Day, and instead of sulking that I was single, I took a step that was so far out of my comfort zone I couldn’t see my comfort zone anywhere. And…..it actually worked out. I had fun, I enjoyed myself, and it sure as shit beat a night in alone, trying to defeat the thoughts in my head.
So to go back to the initial question…..is 38 too old to be attending your first rave?
Who cares, man?
Just, ya know, bring some hearing protection next time (Amazon order already placed).
Note 1 – This paper was written by me in 2012 but has been not only a piece I’m proud of but also one I often discuss amongst friends as well. I think it serves as a time capsule for a time when most people had moved on from the Metro North Mall but kept it in their minds, and it’s interesting to see what plans they had that eventually fell through. Note 2 – When I originally completed this assignment, I had cited Kansas City Star articles copied from microfiche at the Kansas City Library. I turned in printouts of the articles mentioned (as specified in the assignment’s requirements) instead of citing the sources traditionally.I don’t recall the exact dates of the issues of the Star I used, but I wanted to give them at least as much citation as I could.
It becomes almost impossible to imagine that only 12 years ago the Metro North Mall was once a shopping and social haven for old and young alike, and not a place that served the needs of joggers more than anybody. It’s hard to believe the mall contains empty space after empty space and chain fence after metal barricade within the unapologetic neon colors that nobody in their right mind in 2012 would decorate their home with. Many fountains have been emptied of the water, now leaving only the machine that cycled it as if someone dumped a motor in it. Some shops still leave signs of what was there once before; power cords for ovens, tables with chairs attached or shelves and racks for hanging items. Others, such as the Orange Julius, the movie theater and the Fun Factory arcade have been replaced by walls, leaving no signs that they ever existed for years and years in the first place, as if they have been erased from the records. It’s hard for someone who has been to the mall all their lives to see what has become of it. Likewise, it’s tough for someone who sees it now for the first time to see anything but a piece of scenery on the side of the road. What was the Metro North Mall like in its heyday? What is it truly like now? And what does the future hold?
The Past – Fly Away! Spend a day!
The Metro North Mall was constructed throughout the mid-1970s as a shopping mecca for the Kansas City area. Nearly 40,000 attended its grand opening in 1976. The Mall was developed by Sherman Dreiseszun and his nephew Frank Morgan.
Dreiseszun and Morgan both owned and operated several properties throughout Kansas City. When the Metro North Mall opened in 1976, it was the second biggest mall in the Kansas City Area short of the Oak Park Mall, which opened in 1974 and was owned and operated by Dreiseszun and Morgan. Both of them ran several successful businesses within the Metro Area, including the Town Pavilion and One Kansas City Place in the late 80s. They were also successful bank operators, having each been placed on Forbes list of the richest Americans in 1991. A bank scandal eventually hit them hard in the pocketbooks. Frank Morgan would pass away in the early 90s having never confessed to any wrongdoing in the scandal. During this time, Dreisezun lost control of many of the banks he owned, thereby cutting him off from the profits those banks were making. Dreiseszun would eventually confess to crimes of bid rigging and would pay a $375,000 fine and retain control of his banks. He passed away in 2007.
When it opened in September 1976, the Metro North Mall hosted 125 stores and 4 anchor stores across two levels. One aspect of the mall’s original layout shows stores that don’t tend to market themselves towards a youthful crowd. This, along with very few food options for its time show that the Metro North Mall was intended to be a one-stop shopping center first and foremost, and its role as a social hangout wasn’t prioritized. This isn’t to say there weren’t sights to see and places to visit however. A large part of Metro North’s marketing gimmicks have always revolved around balloons. Many people who have visited the Metro North Mall and do so to this day still recall the ironically miniature (though still several feet tall) hot air balloons that would levitate up to a certain level; sometimes only up to the second tier, and sometimes clear to the glass ceiling of the central pavilion, and then float back down gently. These balloons would often change color depending on a theme of the season or holidays; when the 4th of July came near, the balloons would take a patriotic red, white, and blue scheme. During the fall, the balloons would be adorned with a yellow and brown hue to reflect the colors of the season.
The mall has always retained a neon blue scheme to its design. There are neon lights strung out in various places and many of the walls are painted this same neon color, as if you’re in the year 2012 through the eyes of the 1960s. There have always been fountains of various sizes throughout the mall, with the most notable one surrounding the balloons. For years people would toss any change they have into the various fountains, with a few crumpling and throwing dollar bills in.
A mall culture would cultivate in the late 80s and early 90s, with the Metro North Mall starting to cater to that demographic. A large amount of stores began to crop up aimed at a younger market; Spencer’s Gifts offered a large (though sometimes leud) selection of items for teens and young adults. The Disney Store still remains an often-cited memory of the Mall, containing several Disney related items and merchandise, as well as numerous televisions playing Disney films along the black floors and walls. While the Orange Julius always existed in the mall, the Sam Goody candy shop, Topsy’s Popcorn, and Original Pizza offered a wider variety of mall food than when the mall opened with only a couple “food-on-a-stick” joints. Also, the Fun Factory Arcade was a place many youngsters spent time and money at. Many of these places, along with the movie theater (while it was around, a murder within one of the 6 theaters shut the place down with no plans to reopen) kept the mall running strong. While many of these places sound like typical mall mainstays, it was close to a large amount of people that were interested in such a place and had nothing near them that offered what the Metro North Mall did. As well, the KC Metro busses always have stopped at Metro North (and still do), so a simple bus ride and spare time is all a young person would need to travel there.
[Redacted] often visited Metro North during the mall culture’s prime. He said he visited around once a week on average, and was usually there on Fridays after school. When I showed him a map of what the Metro North Mall had when it first opened in the 70s, he remarked that the stores were a lot more adult oriented in comparison to Spencer’s, Topsy’s Popcorn, Software Etc. (now known as GameStop), Mr. Bulky’s, KB Toys, and so on that lined the mall in the 90s and early 2000s.
[Redacted]’s lasting memory is of the atmosphere. “You had parents yelling at their kids and how it echoed through the halls. You could walk by the Fun Factory and hear all the games making noises. And there was that chill-out mall music that you’d never want to put on your iPod, but it just fit the place so well”.
As time went on though, many stores in the mall started to depart. Many people attribute Zona Rosa’s construction to the downfall of the Metro North Mall and while that must certainly be considered, it was hard not to see the signs even beforehand to [Redacted]. “Did Zona Rosa run it out? It was on its way out already. People always crave new stuff, and the Metro North Mall had trouble delivering in competition with many other fronts such as Tiffany Springs and the Boardwalk, as well as Zona Rosa. But I promise you, Zona will arrive at the same point in almost the same amount of time as Metro North did, and Tiffany Springs and the Boardwalk will shut down even before that”. [Redacted] also has his own theories to things that could have contributed to the Mall’s downturn. “It only takes a few stores to shut down. Usually people will go to a store with only one destination in mind and decide to check the other store’s items in the process. It would only take a few of the stores with more regular customers to close down or move for people to just stop going to the mall altogether”.
In 2001 a project began for a food court in the Metro North Mall to be built where an old 6-screen movie theater was. This forced the mall to shut down many of the restaurants within so they could be rebuilt as part of the court. However, this project would never be completed, and all of the restaurants involved would not be relocated within the mall or reopened in their previous spots. As development of Zona Rosa started to near completion, many stores left not only the Metro North Mall, but Barry Road altogether. Both Dillard’s and JCPenny would leave for much nicer stores either within Zona Rosa or nearby Tiffany Springs. The entire Montgomery Wards corporation was shut down, which left a vacancy within their anchor of the mall. This left only The Jones Store, which eventually left and became Macy’s. Macy’s was in fact around when the mall originally opened as well, leaving a small bit of full-circle irony to the life of The Metro North Mall as it stands today.
The Present – “As If Time Stopped”
The Metro North Mall is still open to this day, but it is undoubtedly a far cry from what once existed before. You can tell on the drive up to Metro North that things just feel off. The instant feeling you get from seeing gigantic parking lots with only about 10 cars each parked in them gives an eerie feeling to say the least. And that’s if you park in the lots connected to Macy’s. A drive around to the lots that connect to the former anchor stores contain even less cars, often times not a single car at all. The buildings around the mall that received business from mallgoers have become scenery. Two auto shops as well as a movie theater in the back of the mall property are all closed. Even across the street the lack of business is evident. What once was another movie theater eventually became a church, but has also shut down as well. And recently the Best Buy store that had resided there for years and years shut its doors as well. The other smaller stores and restaurants have either cycled around for some time, or have seen the bare minimum of business it takes to keep it around. It’s as if somebody took a decrepit mini-mall and increased its size tenfold without actually adding anything to it.
Within the mall itself, the theme continues. Store after store has been shut down, leaving little subtle hints as to what was there before. Where TCBY once stood near the central pavilion still contains white tiles with random blue and red tiles scattered, a signature of the franchise’s style. The Disney Store’s old storefront still uses a neon blue and pink color scheme and still has the black floors and ceiling inside, but they contain health supplement ads from the still-open GNC center inside the marque instead of advertisements and related merchandise for Disney’s next theatrical offering. The Orange Julius opened along with the mall and was the final store of those that originally inhabited the mall to shut down, with the area now covered in a wall with a wooden door in the middle with no hint as to what could be behind it. Though this is often a sign of construction, this wall has remained up for many years now with no advertisement of an oncoming business. Safe to assume its bit the dust. A Topsy’s popcorn that is only opened during the holiday season is the only place to purchase any food in the mall anymore.
The mall is still open, but the market within has become incredibly niche. Unless you are looking for something incredibly specific, you really don’t have any financial business being in the Metro North Mall itself aside from the Macy’s anchor store. Kay Jewelers still stands near the central pavilion, even if its workers probably spend more time standing idly and chatting amongst themselves than with customers. The aforementioned GNC store that sells vitamins and health supplements still stands down one wing of the mall, with “The Wig Shoppe” still standing a few fronts down. This was a store me and my friends would always joke about, that there was no way it would stay opened longer than the stores we frequented. Seeing the wood panels, the orange sign that begins with a grammatically incorrect lowercase “t”, and all the merchandise popcorned all around the cramped store makes me feel like karma spent 10 years sharpening its fangs before biting me in the ass.
The most prevalent of people in the store anymore are mallwalkers, specifically during the Winter and Summer seasons. Many of them dressed in loose t-shirts and windbreaker pants, they simply graze the perimeter of the climate-controlled store, not needing to worry about temperature or precipitation. They pay little attention to the locked up storefronts as they walk/speedwalk right by. It’s hard telling whether they care or if they’re just so used to the sight that they can ignore it. Most of these people can be found on the second floor of the mall, where even though only an Eyemasters and Hair California still exist, the entire perimeter of the mall is accessible, unlike the bottom floor where the area for the nonexistent food court is still blocked off.
It’s still amazing that so much care is put into this place even due to the severe lack of business. Floors are still clean, trash isn’t stacked up, nothing is knocked over. You can still see janitors walking the floors, sweeping dust, and picking up loose trash, as if their jobs wouldn’t change whether Metro North sees 30 or 30,000 people in a day. It’s as clean as it was in its prime, maybe even cleaner. Many of the visitors still sit at the gigantic stairway in the middle of the mall and watch the balloons. Though instead of eating and/or checking their merchandise, it only serves to reflect. You can hear the balloons hit the hot air jets that protrude from the fountain, even though the jets themselves are almost silent. The sounds of Eric Church and other country singers fill the air now, a far leap from the gentle mall music, as if the mall wants to remind you you’re in a rundown part of town, and not in a mirrored, neon utopia. You can even hear the Sirius commercials kick in if you listen hard enough, which is puzzling considering the Muzak service is still quite commonly used even among smaller businesses, such as the Big V Country Mart in my hometown of Smithville. There is also a bird that has made its nest inside a plant in the mall and flies around the central fountain, even willing to eat food from people sitting on the steps willing to offer it. It all contributes to the eerie aura of the mall, as if you’re trespassing in an area that’s about to be destroyed and you need to leave immediately.
The Future – Rediscovering the “Pleasure of Shopping”
The Metro North Mall’s official website does indeed provide information of a rebuilding process. However, details on this are blurry at best. Their description of the re-launch provides a lot of rhetorical statements. This website states that redevelopment is to begin this year, 2012, with construction completing in 2014. They also claim the renovated mall will be 103 acres of land, which is noteworthy due to the size of the current mall taking up 105 acres. There were proposals of the mall being turned into an outdoor area similar to Zona Rosa, but when Dreiseszun passed away the project was scrapped. A friend of [Redacted]’s who also works at the Metro North Mall has stated to him that they are “redoing everything” though he could not go into further details, and that he honestly believed Zona Rosa was in for some real competition.
The Oak Park Mall was in similar straits but recently finished a rebuilding of its own and is now enjoying a large amount of success, with almost every lot in the store occupied by a business. It is possible that a similar reconstruction could provide similar results. However, there have been many obstacles to clear in the process. There is still an ongoing conflict between the old Dillard’s property and the Metro North Mall. This would seem like an easy conflict to solve if Dillard’s was not backed by ZR Metro, the firm that owns the rival Zona Rosa shopping district that Dillard’s now occupies. And while construction is said to be ready to begin in 2012, a sign outside Topsy’s popcorn claims that they will return during the upcoming holiday season of 2012. Unless construction is going to take place in segments and not all at once (which is difficult to believe if the mall is aiming for a 2014 relaunch), then this would not be possible. Also, while Metro North claims other stores have signed on to become a part of the mall and replace the vacant anchor stores, no corporation has stepped up and said they are involved.
However, while doing research for this article I did stumble upon one interesting discovery. There is a website devoted to bringing Von Maur, an outlet store whose closest branch resides in Overland Park, to the new Metro North Mall. This appears to be an official site, as it is linked to Von Maur’s official page and includes quotes from the President of the Northland Regional Chamber and from a Legislative Aid to Kansas City. Most noteworthy are concept photos of what the store would look like inside a renovated Metro North Mall. Right now, these are the only verified photos hinting the visual appearance of the New Metro North project.
[Redacted] however, sees a different image. “I think the delays in reopening will continue, and eventually an entirely new shopping district will pop up and either force Metro North to get its act together or fold up and go home for good”. That being said, he is optimistic that a renovated Metro North could succeed “Part of me hopes they keep the corny tiles and the neon, just to keep it unique. I also wonder if they will keep with tradition and have the balloons, and finally get that food court done…if there is a good Metro North Mall in the winter, especially during a brutal winter and around Black Friday, Zona Rosa would take a humongous hit from it”.
It would be incredibly easy to de-value what the Metro North Mall represented. And yes, it could be interpreted as a defeat for capitalism and so on. With all of that being said, it takes something beyond words to describe a ghost mall such as this, where there’s no guarantees of a non-bleak future. This mall, over its nearly 40 years of existence has taken a life of its own, a character of its own. All that’s left to wonder is if the Metro North Mall has a Rocky Balboa ending of an old dog learning new tricks, or if it’s just a matter of time before all that’s left is what once was.
Nothing sucks more for a creative than having the idea and not being able to pull from the mental abyss.
That’s the trap I feel like I’ve been in the last few months.
I love writing more than I have in a very long time, and I’m itching to “create” more than ever. Having ideas and not succeeding in getting them out there will do that.
But sometimes…well…oftentimes, it’s difficult to see them through. Which is the trap I find myself in now.
I thought maybe if I made a point to write more often, I’d force myself to get those ideas out.
I thought if I paid for a blog site and a URL, I’d force myself to get those ideas out.
I thought maybe if I cut down on my social media presence (something I want to make a goal to cut even more in 2026) and used my blog as my primary outlet for what’s on my mind (similar to the Xanga days of the mid 2000s that seeded my love of writing to begin with), I’d force myself to get those ideas out.
And as you can see from the last date I updated, I’m not exactly succeeding in that regard.
Ultimately, I feel like maybe I’m trying to use this outlet as a gallery of COMPLETED work. Stuff I want to take pride in. Stuff I’m confident WILL NOT fail. I hate to make it sound like I only want to do it for the attention, but there’s really no way to sugar-coat it that doesn’t come off that way. So I suppose that’s exactly what it is.
I remember watching a video awhile back that said when you create art, “that art is for you” and promised “that is enough”. And……I guess, in the process, that voice saying “this isn’t worth the effort”, “the juice isn’t worth the squeeze”, “nobody will like this”, just can’t be drowned out. Or at least, I’m having trouble doing so right now.
I want to find my lane and stick to it as well. Another obstacle I feel like I have is I constantly flip through the same cycle of ideas and don’t just lock in on one and stay there. I want to write creatively, I want to work on research topics, I want to do poetry, I want to stream, I want to record videos, etc. etc. etc. I won’t specifically name them here, but an ex-friend of mine had the same issue and I’d criticize him for always going through this loop of “Idea A → B → C → A → B →C” ad infinitum. But it dawns on me that in my own head, I’ve done the same thing. And, strike against me, at least he actually PRODUCED something. Where the hell is MY homework?
So maybe this blog needs to not be the gallery, but the lab. Maybe I just need to put fingers-to-keyboard-to-signal-to-pixels and let the fiber internet lowercase-g gods sort it out. I mean, it worked on Xanga.
I actually still have those posts saved somewhere. I’ve always been afraid to go back to those posts. The musings of an emo teen at a time where he felt he didn’t belong (which, in retrospect, was correct but not to the extent I thought) and tried to find whatever way he could to put it down on something. Yes, I’m sure with years of writing experience and a college education I’d find that shit awful now in the name of quality, but at least that version of me was doing something with his writing. Which is a little more than the adult with a writing degree and no portfolio can say, as brutal as that sounds.
So back to the lab again I suppose. And maybe we just throw things at the wall and prey that they stick. And if/when they don’t, we throw something else. And we do it in a lab with glass windows rather than a completely closed environment. Do things stick to glass better than…lab-wall material? Can I pretend the answer to that is yes?
Being back at Price Chopper on Wednesdays (even if it’s not the same store) was nostalgically fun…..for about 10 minutes. I AM glad most Cosentinos stores do shifts on different tasks now. With all due respect to my former co-workers, there was WAY too much “bailing” on things and not prioritizing what needed done. They always threatened to start doing “shifts” and those of us that COULD prioritize were always like “…….that’s a bad thing?” Being one or two workers short because they split during a rush to do other things is silly.
My feelings about the song aside, Owl City’s “Fireflies” being pitch-corrected to dodge content ID tags has MUCH different energy than the original song.
I really do think farming could be something the younger generation could get into if there wasn’t so much “old blood” running the shows about 10-20 years behind where it could easily be. Maybe that’s just my exposure to midwest farm culture, but it truly feels like an industry that could take off with some practical modern innovations, but too many people that could make it happen aren’t willing to. It genuinely feels like it’s just a matter of “unwilling”, not “unable”.
Being done for the day and back home by 3-3:30ish makes up for being up so early. It just doesn’t feel like it when you’re up so early.
I am finally getting to the point where getting up that early doesn’t feel so “early”, but it does still throw me off when it feels like it should be 10 or 11 and it’s only 9-9:30.
Where were “Boomwackers” when I was a kid?
That being said, having Boomwacker videos where the point the note is supposed to be played changes from video to video is aggravating to me and nobody else ever I’m sure. First-world paraprofessional problems.
Having our classroom as “The Apartment” is so awesome. Having a scale studio apartment with a living area, kitchen, bed, etc. is so neat. You almost forget at times you’re in a classroom. But it also works right into what we’re trying to teach our students.
Having a rare retro videogame system in our room that doesn’t read games but otherwise functions fine makes me sad. I ALMOST feel obligated to try and get it fixed, even out of my own pocket, just to preserve a not-very-common piece of gaming history.
Boy howdy, am I getting my steps in each day. I’m hitting 8K before 3 PM. Heck, on days we go out of the school it’s not uncommon for me to hit 10K before 3PM.
Man, even a month in (or 19 school days as the instructor I assist pointed out today…..holy smokes 19 days…..), the Phase One part of the building still feels like a space ship compared to where I went to High School. Heck, it feels like a space ship compared to Maple Woods, and I remember Maple Woods feeling cutting edge when I went there.
The last day of my last weekend off before I return to work.
It’s so weird to be my older age and have these long periods of having work off, but that’s part of working at a school. I anticipate if/when I become a teacher my Summers will be a lot more activity-filled. And to be honest, this Summer felt a lot faster than last year. I went so long I genuinely started forgetting the daily regiment. Though being in a new class helped with forgetting the old regiment too.
This year, I’m moving to a whole new building. I’m heading up to the High School, with a new staff member and working with a much different age group then before. In fact, I don’t think it’s possible to have a sharper change in age group in the school district; from kindergartners to 18-21 year olds. But it’s a change I welcome and look forward to.
I worked Fridays at the High School this past Spring and took to it a lot better than I thought I would. When I first was considering being a para, I wanted to work with younger kids so much more since I had helped out with babysitting youngins’ over the years before. I thought for sure older students wouldn’t be the best fit. Oddly enough, I always thought if I taught, the opposite would be the case. I’m no math whiz, I always mess something up with science…but I feel comfortable with my writing (ya know, blog and wordy statuses and DMs and all that), and teaching younger children the finer points of writing……….yeah, that doesn’t click.
But here we are. A new experience, a new me.
I just hope the good will I’ve built in the last year in finding my stride and the work I did at the High School didn’t give the wrong idea. The “imposter syndrome” is real right now, if I’m taking too big a bite out of all this. But at the same time, there’s nothing to it but to do it. Who knows? Maybe this time next week, before we even have kids, I’ll feel like I’m ready to take on the world? That’d be nice.
In the meantime, I’ll enjoy this final day of my break……OK, well, there’s tomorrow too, but who considers Mondays a break, right?
“Whatever tomorrow* brings I’ll be there, with open arms and open eyes.” * – or Tuesday, whatevs.
You are loved, you are appreciated, and you matter.
It wasn’t my intention to take this much time off of the blog, but I am still working on a major post. It’s something that’s LONG overdue, and a post I think a lot of people will appreciate me sharing.
I know I’m known for having major buildup for stuff like this, but I have begun work on the post; I’ve already outlined it and have begun plucking away at it. It’s just rather long.
In the meantime, I’m a month away from going back to work at Platte County High School. A new challenge, but one I have no doubt in my mind I can answer.
I also recently began a “positivity journal”, one I bought at the recommendation of a friend. It gives me new prompts whenever I use it, and while it’s supposed to be a “5 minute” one, I find myself rarely stumbling on questions and being done in a few minutes. But, each time I do it, even when (perhaps “especially when”) I’m down, it brings me back up.
The concept of “count your blessings” it’s typically taught when we’re little and has some major religious connotations, but it does help quite often. Count your victories, even if they’re small ones.
So earlier this week, I booked a trip to Eureka Springs, Arkansas. For sure, I’ll be making a post about my trip (both during and after the fact), but it’s wild for me to be booking a camping/wilderness-ish trip. In (what feels like) a former life of mine, I H-A-T-E-D camping so much. I’d always dream of visiting cities specifically. I remember dreaming about Las Vegas as soon as I left it, and imagining the likes of New York or Tokyo. Bright lights, big city.
And anytime I ever went camping I was miserable. I was too stuck in my tech withdrawals and found the outdoors drier than the Mojave (both where I was and the outdoors in general……you get it, you get it). I even took a couple trips to Wyoming where my most favorite part was the end. No, not how we ended the trip, but when we pulled into the driveway and I was DONE with that shit.
I don’t know. Maybe the outdoors appeals to me more now. I’ve always thought I’d enjoy the outdoors more if I didn’t burn on contact to sunlight and if my blood wasn’t to mosquitos what hot dogs are to Joey Chestnut.
But I’m actually looking forward to the downtime, the disconnecting (for the most part), the outdoors, the unplanned “adventuring”.
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One last bonus for the week: I have an official URL for the blog now! You can visit this very page by going to “justedthings.blog”. Bookmark it.
“The only way to learn is by playing. The only way to win is by learning. And the only way to begin is by beginning.” – Sam Reich
Growing up in the late 90s and 00s, a lot of the theater/more hipster-y friends I knew would watch “Whose Line Is It Anyway?”. Originating in the U.K. (though the U.K. version would only have a run in Comedy Central after the U.S. iteration took off), it went through a series of hosts as the years went on but I think most of us reading this were familiar with the version hosted by Drew Carey. A comedy “game show” where the “rules are made up and the points don’t matter”, it consisted of creating improvisational (“improv”) comedy scenes for the comedian cast to play out. While comedy skit shows weren’t new and performing in front of a live audience was a well often tapped into (especially in this time where sitcoms were in a golden era), improv comedy was a new slant that general audiences were unfamiliar with.
These improv exercises played out in the form of different “games”, and the host awards point values for whatever they might feel like in the moment, whether those reasons are tied to the quality of the performances or just complete non-sequitors. The concept of looking to an audience for ideas and having actors play it out without prior knowledge and seeing if/how they swim is a common exercise on improv stages throughout, and it stands to reason “Whose Line-” popularized the concept (though it likely took that idea from improv exercises itself). Long time cornerstone of the cast, Colin Mochrie had stated on the “Conversations with Ross” podcast that the concept of the show was to introduce general audiences to the concept of improv, and the show becoming an “end-all” was not the intention. But be it having to create new objects out of props, or taking different identities to create a dating profile, the quick-hit games would typically led to pretty clever results, with only the rare stumble which….actually was also funny. You’d see the players keep the flow so often that it was hilariously off-beat when they fell off beat too.
Originally premiering in 1998 on ABC, “Whose Line-” ended up being the foundation for what many people in this day and age as improvisational comedy. And it still runs today on The CW Network.
However, there is an undeniable “rose-tint” to how people view “Whose Line-“. And to be honest, trying to watch current episodes versus older ones, I’m not sure where the quality drop is. It’s definitely there, in my opinion. I don’t think it’s the goofy, sexist idea that Aisha Tyler has tanked the show. I don’t think the actors, many of whom are longtime cast members, have lost their touch. Maybe the show having been on ABC Family and having to tone down from the old clips you could find on YouTube from the show’s prime has a hand in it? Maybe I’ll come back to it.
It might surprise you that I’ve spent so many words (400+ up to now) discussing this show and not the show listed in the title.
If you’re a fan of improv comedy, a fan of “Whose Line”, or…hell, if you’re a skeptic of improv comedy and want to see the art practiced at its top-shelf best, get ready for a “Game Changer”. —–
“Game Changer” is also an improv comedy show under the guise of a game show. Hosted by Sam Reich, the CEO of CHMedia (the parent comedy of Dropout, formerly CollegeHumor), “Game Changer” is at the very least strongly inspired by “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” but runs in a different yet refreshing direction.
Instead of a multitude of games across an episode, each episode of “Game Changer” is centralized around one single theme with the concept being changed or manipulated as the episode goes on. While this can sound a bit exasperated when compared to the quick-hits of “Whose Line-”, I can attest that without spoiling some of the best episode ideas and twists, a single concept can often lay the foundation for tons of insanity that hits a new gear just when you think the pedal is already to-the-floor. From a game of “Simon Says” constantly twisted to trick contestants, to an escape room, it’s a blast to see what Sam and the cast come up with any given week. There’s even extremely elaborate game setups and scenarios that I would be doing a great disservice spoiling here. Just know that on occasion, in ways you won’t see coming, you as the viewer won’t always be “in the loop” looking out on those that aren’t.
And the theming of each episode goes extra levels as well, oftentimes to a very impressive degree. Sam, the crew, the props departments, etc. are always clued in to some extent. It’s not just a “game” thrown in and they work around Sam arbitrarily applying loose rules. Episodes with elaborate sets, sometimes including studio audiences, and even episodes that take place off-set in different parts of the studio are of the norm here. If it’s in front of a camera, if it’s in the studio, it’s Sam’s playground. And the contestants will most certainly play.
The contestants, similar to “Whose Line-“, also consist of various actors and improv comedians. While it is fun to see these concepts (of which contestants are, with a few exceptions, NOT briefed on prior to the show beginning) throw these cast members off, each one shows the know-how and comedic/improv timing to adapt. You’re not watching performers to see if they pass or fail at navigating the stormy waters, you’re seeing HOW they’ll navigate them. The contestants switch off very often, but each one will tend to have at least a couple you’ll fall for, if not everyone involved. Highlights for me include super-nerd (and host of a Dungeons and Dragons themed show on Dropout) Brennan Lee Mulligan, Ally Breadsley and Isabella Roland hit home runs over everybody’s head, and Jacob Wysocki feels like me pulled from another reality where I don’t suck all the eggs at improvisational comedy and made the Improv-athon team.
On top of that, you see a clear camaraderie between the host, Sam Reich, and the performers on the show. This isn’t someone inviting random people who haven’t proven their comedy chops or haven’t worked with Sam before. Sam knows what clicks with his contestants and feeds into that while also trying to throw curveball after curveball, and have each one curve differently. In doing this, the show delicately walks the line between playing right into the contestants wheelhouses and making the game too easy, and forcing the performers to adapt and adjust to the conditions of the game being played in that episode. And in turn, Sam (and the audience) are even thrown for a loop by what the contestants can come up with. Sam is as much an audience member and fan as he is a host, even though he knows where the episodes bodies lie at any given moment.
And while the show does keep score, the “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” element of being comedy-first is still present. Winning is tertiary, and it’s refreshing to see the performers play to have fun and for laughs than to strategically “win”. The prizes are almost always (with a few exceptions) goofy things like a one-time-use Keureg machine, a gas card, etc. It’s never so crazy that the contestants drop having fun and enjoying working with one another to “compete”. And there are a few times where the prizes are grand, but they’re usually tied to games of grander design and certainly have no strings attached at all………….I realize winks don’t translate well to text, and I feel too uppity to resort to emojis on this here blog/journal/website thingie.
Put it all together, and you come up with what I think is one of the funniest shows on any televised/streaming media right now. It does get R-rated for certain (and sometimes the game theme will play into that, such as Sam asking the players to say something the show will have to bleep), but we’re all adults here. And don’t expect anything ignorant or ableist here; we’re just immature adults, we’re not assholes here.
“Game Changer” is the natural evolution to “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” and is absolutely worth your time if you’re looking for elite-tier improv comedy, or comedic insanity in the guise of a gameshow that the host is only loosely holding in his iron grip.
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“Game Changer” can be watched on the DropOut streaming network:
If you want to check the show out for yourself aside from the snippets you’ve seen here, there are a handful of full episodes available to watch on YouTube:
