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Blog Competition

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Osha_say_wott?!

osha osha
271
Posts
13
Years
    • A Word From Osha

    Wait...we can write anything we want..and we will be rewarded for it?? Sign me up! Now..what should I "blog" about...hmm.. How about I blog...about what I should...blog.. nya? A blog about blogging..more specifically, what to blog.. Blog. That word sounds weird after a while. xD Anyways.. Raichu, what's the answer to the Blog Competition?! xD

    Wait.. I got it~! I should just blab! Me blabbing through out the entire entry.. Fantabulous. ^-^ The rules say you can write about anything, and blabbing is an anything..thing. Yus, that it be. But, wait! Will me blabbing amount to an exquisite blog post?? I know what you're thinking; "Pokemon rules". Indeed it does. But, me blabbing for an entire entry just will not do. u_u I must think of something else, hmm.

    What if (stay with me on this) ..what if I write about.. (are you with me?) different types of grass! (still with me? ..anyone?) Okay.. Don't think I have too many people with me on that one. >.<

    Hmm... I think I know what I should do. Maybe, instead of goofing around, I write something that can do something for anyone who reads it. No? Oh~! I know, instead of writing about something, how about I talk to you?

    Hey, you. Yeah, you. No, not you, but eh, sure, why not. But, yeah, you there, you know what? You are awesome. Not just awesome, but freakin' awesome. I know sometimes you feel like crap, but sometimes the awesome-est of people do as well. Just because you feel like crap doesn't mean you are. You're so much better, even if you don't know it.
    You might be going through something and feel like giving up. Don't. Everyone has problems, you're not alone. I know what you're thinking; "But no one understands just what I'm going through. Nobody has to deal with or have the problems I do." You're right, but that doesn't neglect the fact we all have our own personal problems. Others may not have it as bad as you, but you also may not have it as bad as others. The point is, no matter what you're going through, we all experience the pain it causes to us.
    And don't listen to what others if they say you'll never amount to anything or that you're a disappointment, regardless of who says them, even parents. Because you can and will accomplish anything you set your mind to, you just have to believe. Believe in yourself and there's nothing you can't do. If you don't believe in yourself, then believe in me believing in you. I believe..I KNOW you can and will be anything you want to be. You just need to take that first step. All long journeys that lead to success begin but with a single step in the right direction.
    If you've tried and have failed then get up and try again. And if you fail again, you get up again. Never give up. Even when others have given up on you, never ever give up on yourself. If you do, then those who doubted you will be proven correct. Don't give them that satisfaction, prove them wrong! Prove that you can get up after a defeat and venture forward. Prove you are something ans so much more.
    And if you're there saying it doesn't matter because you're a loser; stop it. You're NOT a loser. You're a WINNER. You were born a winner. It's a fact. How do I know what? You were the fastest sperm. Proof that you are a winner. Don't let anything or anyone tell you otherwise.
    I've been around the net and have read blogs and entries of people saying that they don't matter, or that no one cares about them. There is always someone out there who cares. Just because you don't see them doesn't mean they are not there. Maybe it's a lurker or someone to shy to speak their mind, but there is someone out there that cares. There's always someone thinking about you before they go to sleep. And you know what? I care about you. I may not know who you are, but I know you are out there somewhere reading this. And that's all there is to it for me to care about you.
    So, if you're crying or sad, don't be. You're alive and you should start acting like it. Others aren't so lucky. So stop you're boohooing and start acting like the awesome person I know you are. Life is a struggle. If you stop struggling, you stop living.
    Go out there and live life to the fullest, you only get one shot at life. If there's someone you like, go and talk to them, ask them out. Don't wait for an opportunity, make one. If life ask for your all, you give it your all and more. Don't be afraid to make a move or take a chance. Let it all go and live! You want to know the cold, hard truth? In the end, we all die. But everything that happens before death is in your hands. So, go out there and live. Live life to the fullest.
    Don't forget; You. Are. Awesome. Don't let this world get you down, this world cannot beat you, it cannot destroy you. You deserve the best. You deserve someone to hold. You deserve someone who loves you, someone who loves you for you. You deserve parents that love and support you. You deserve a friend. You deserve everything.

    Now go out there and be awesome. :3


    --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------​


    Feel free to subtract for all the spelling and grammar mistakes I made. xD I'm kinda pressed for time so I didn't proof read it. x3 And yes, all that is part of my blog entry, including the first few paragraphs. xD I know, it was going one way then took a sharp in a different direction. :cer_tongue: All part of the time. ^-^ Ha. xD
     
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    Shining Raichu

    Shining Raichu

    Expect me like you expect Jesus.
    8,959
    Posts
    13
    Years
    • Hey guys, just letting you know that as the Get-Together has been extended, so has the Blog Competition! We'll now be accepting entries until 11:59PM EST on Thursday 21st July.
     
    Hybrid Trainer

    Hybrid Trainer

    2,096
    Posts
    15
    Years
    • Finally did my entry! :D

    Bad things take time, horrible things happen all at once
    Spoiler:
     
    Last edited:

    Buttered Coat

    I AM BUT A COAT.
    71
    Posts
    12
    Years
    • My ranty blog.

    I'm bisexual, and I'm damn proud.
    I like guys.
    I like girls.
    Got a problem?

    I like short adorable girls. Preferably blonde. They're cute and I just want to hug them :3
    I like tall emo guys. Preferably skinny. They're freaking hot (XD) and frankly, they can be some of the nicest people you could meet. Also, by skinny, I don't mean like, anorexic. I mean no muscle, not overweight. Ok, a little muscle is good
    (I also like the vice versa. Like, emo chicks are hot and cute guys are….. cute? ^-^)

    So yeah! I'm proud of who I am. And if you have a problem, you come here and tell me. I'll sort you out. There is nothing wrong with me no matter what you think. This is normal, and it's amazing. It's great getting a pick from either gender! I have more of a selection XD

    I would like to quote Russel Howard here because the quote is funny. 'You always here bigots going "GAY MEN ARE WRONG! IT SAYS SO IN THE BIBLE!" The bible also says that every animal in the world can fit on a boat.' I know I'm not a gay man but you get the general idea XD if you don't, I will explain.

    The bible says gays are wrong, correct? It says it's a sin, right? The bible says pre-marital sex it a sin but you always see bloody 13 year olds bragging about their umpteenth child. The bible says the whole world started out with Adam and Eve. If that's true, how are there so many people now? How did 2 people give birth to squillions? How can 2 people be the result of so many different races? Gosh, Eve must be sore. So, are we all incest then? The bible says abortion is wrong. People get abortions every day. The bible says divorce is wrong. How many of your parents are still together? My parents are divorced. They don't look like the devil to me.

    It gets a little annoying when my friends and I are walking down the corridor and we get all these people we've never met yelling out 'lesbians!' but I do very much enjoy it, because it gives me the chance to yell out things like 'There's a difference between lesbian and bisexual!' and other things that often leave them speechless. I don't think they expected me to not only admit it, but be proud, too? I may have blown their minds a little.
    I don't really have much else to say on the matter, so I'll just sum up the general idea of my lovely rant in the next sentence.

    I'm bisexual. And I'm damn proud.
     

    Warrior Rapter

    Dinosaur Pokemon Trainer
    209
    Posts
    15
    Years
    • Penny's Worth of Thoughts

    I am an observer. Always have been, probably always will be, but what can I say, when your growing up getting picked on, it's helpful to have a source of entertainment. I may not be much on what some people call "common sense", but I truly believe you can learn quite a bit about other people by watching them.

    Sometimes, though, even for someone who's observed others for years, you can still run into things that just make you ask "Why?" Why do people think they have to have bulging muscles, a thought that often crosses my mind. People often seem to see "strength" as a physical attribute, something you can lift weights in order to improve. Not too many seem to think about other strengths, least not where I live. Endurance is one that I can think of off the top of my head.

    Usually, when I got picked on, it's because someone took one look at me and pretty much thought they could break me like a twig. I think what few of them realized is just how much my body could take. I've walked a paper route after an ice storm because there were some power lines on the road and I didn't trust riding a bicycle on the ice. I've lost part of a toe due to a lawnmower without hardly feeling any pain..... least until time to change the dressing on the stitches after the fact. When I was little, I used to love jumping off of things: tree branches, swings while I was swinging, even down stairs. All that is before the bumps, bruises, and cuts of just everyday life and bullying. So the thought has always puzzled me, why do people think they need to have bulging muscles for strength?

    The most I can think of as an answer is that it's just an association people have. "If you want to be strong, you have to have muscles this big" or something like that. If you are reading this and happen to be one of those people that want to have big muscles, sorry, but, there's other ways to be strong. You can be strong charismatically, have strong leadership abilities, a good endurance, even just be really clever at figuring things out. And if you are someone who has picked on someone before because of their lack of muscles, I'd ask you to stop. You might be surprised what us little guys are capable of.

    Just a penny's worth of thoughts, for anyone who wants to read them.
     

    smithtism

    Blank
    73
    Posts
    13
    Years
    • The Blogging Competition

    I...I don't even know where to begin with this. I mean, I went to the GT8 forum to try to find something fun to do. I had already entered a couple of events, and I wanted to try my hand at something else since the GT8 was extended. That's when I happened to come across an event simply titled,"Blog Competition". I thought to myself, "A blogging competition, eh? Now this I've gotta see. So I clicked the link and found the rules and standards being thrown at me in a creative and appealing manner. Not too unusual, pretty much every other event does this. I read about what we were supposed to do: write about anything we want for as long as we want. Now I was excited and thought, "Oh boy! I'm pretty creative. I could really get into this!" I scrolled down to check out the competition.

    And right away I was hit with these MASSIVE entries made by...well, everyone. I was led on to believe that this was just a simple little blogging game. But I didn't find any simple blogs. Oh no. This is what I found:

    • Love is just a word, so who needs it? 799 words.
    • I went to see Harry Potter and I couldn't enjoy it. 1,029 words.
    • I would be oh so very happy if I could get accepted into your school. 896 words.
    • I went to war and now everything's changed for me. 746 words.

    And the list goes on. The contest is riddled with entries just like these. At this point, I was upset. And I mean REALLY upset. I came thinking that people were just writing simple little paragraphs about something that happened to them that was kinda funny, or sad, or just interesting to read. But these people were writing flipping essays! I haven't seen stuff this planned out and well-written since my English 102 class. And I'll tell you right now, I never like that class. Every time I turned in an essay in there my teacher would nit and pick and fuss about every little detail until I got down to a C- if I was lucky. I actually cried in there once. When I got out with a passing grade I was sure that I wouldn't have to deal with planned writing until I got into college. Then *BAM*! A bunch of writing fanatics show up and boot out any chance I had of feeling good about my writing. I mean, how's a schmuck like me supposed to compete with stuff like that? They were writing poetry, and I can barely even write a haiku.

    Now I figured, "No way. There is no way I'm going to win. There's no way I can compete with all of that. But just for the heck of it, I think that I'll enter and get the participation emblem." I didn't look at the emblems when I first looked at the rules, so I scrolled all the way back up to see what my consolation prize was going to be. I saw first place was a golden typewriter, which looked like a pretty good trophy to have. Second place was a silver stylograph. I've never heard of a stylograph before, but I thought the emblem was decent and worth winning. Then I saw it. The prize for entering the contest and not being good enough to place first or second.

    A broken pencil.

    …A BROKEN PENCIL?!?!?! What in the heck were the people who organized this event thinking that this would be an acceptable prize? They're giving this…this…thing away and telling people, "Sorry you weren't good enough to win. But here, have a broken pencil. It's better than nothing." Who are they trying to kid with this? They might as well just come out with it and say, "You're a loser. Here's evidence of how much you suck." None of you know how angry I was to see this joke of a prize. I was literally tempted to pick up my laptop and chuck it across the room in blood-boiling frustration. This sent me over the edge. This was not a blogging competition anymore. With all of the entries the size of Texas, and the prize that will scar your creativity for years to come, I came to realize that the competition had transformed into an all-out battle of gladiators where the winners were showered in praise and glory and the losers get eaten by the lions.

    So yeah, I'm still going to enter, and this is going to be my entry. And do you know what, I don't really care what happens. Because the result is going to be the same for me. If I lose, then I lost and I'll have to live with the shame. If by some strange miracle that I do win, then the weight of the irony of my victory would come crashing down on my fragile little soul, and I'll still be the loser.

    And if the event organizers get insulted from reading my entry, well then I say, "Join the club."
     

    (=Nemesis=)

    112
    Posts
    12
    Years
    • Having looked all over PokeCommunity.com for pages linked by the word "blog" I couldn't actually find a way to make my own entry for this competition. But now it looks like nobody really knows so they're all posting it here. Or perhaps we're supposed to. I'm not sure. A quick look through other peoples' entries and it looks like pretty much anything goes anyway.

    EDIT: To expand on that, right after posting, I read the entry above mine and thought that its endearingly witty rhetoric about losing the competition was not actually an entry, but in fact a rapid-fire sore-loser complaint. I was worried because I thought at first glance that the competition was over, that the winners and losers had been declared, and I was too late to do anything about it!

    So without further ado, this is the subject of today's blog entry.

    Pokemon.

    Goodness, what a surprise, says the PokeCommunity at large. We were expecting it to be about marzipan. However, I'm going to be very specific with this one. This is about the two virtually exclusive natures of Pokemon which seem more or less at each others' throats, with two very different ideologies warring upon one another. Aha, now that I'm using violent imagery, I have your interest.

    On one side, we have the Competitors. That's probably most of you reading this. If you're interested in a Pokemon, it's probably because it has a good type combination, high base stats with an appropriate spread, a useful ability, a move pool you can nicely abuse - pick any three. It must have the right nature, and either perfect Individual Values, or an ideal Hidden Power. Out there in the big scary world, nothing less will do.

    On the other side, we have the Sentimentalists. Those are the ones who feel a little ashamed when they've allowed a Pokemon to faint. The ones who take it personally when their Girafarig let out a roar! The ones who not only nickname their Pokemon, but actually take time over choosing a good name, as well! In extreme cases, they might even refuse a Shiny Pokemon if they don't care for the colour. Unbelievable.

    I place myself firmly in the Sentimentalist camp, and I'm not ashamed to say it. I have dabbled a little in the Competitor's realm, though I don't really like it. It's the combination of inhospitality and high learning curve, I think, that puts me off the most. Anyway.

    There's a significant disparity, which is that Sentimentalists are not really able to compete at their best, and this really boils down to three core game mechanics.

    Individual Values. I know why they're there, and it's a good reason. IVs are the parallel of genetic pedigree. Higher values are for better-bred specimens, and lower values are for those with lower origins, in a sense. Shiny Pokemon are the "freak" species, their detriment being that generally speaking, a Shiny Pokemon does not have perfect IVs and thus, Shiny Pokemon don't usually make good competitors. I believe the Competitors just use them as some sort of trophy-prestige-thing.

    I certainly don't disagree with the IV system by itself, and not in this respect of Competitors vs Sentimentalists, either. It differentiates them. The Competitors spend a very long time gunning for genetic perfection to yield a very slight advantage in combat, and the Sentimentalists willingly forgo this advantage because the greater glory lies not in setting up a production line breeding process to find the perfect genetic soldier, but in bringing that Geodude you just happened to run into first, to greater victory.

    IVs, though, are but one prong in a rather nasty-looking trident of hidden qualities.

    The Nature system is far more of a divider, and this is what does the most to give the Competitor an immediate runaway advantage, at the moment. In the old days, Nature was really there for a new sort of game mode, the Battle Tent, or Battle Palace. It was clearly a Sentimentalist idea, that Pokemon should choose moves that reflect their own personality when left to their own devices. However, the idea was not brilliantly implemented, meaning that only a few Pokemon with specific natures would stand a good chance of consistently surviving rounds. Because of this, the idea of the Battle Tent disappeared after Emerald, yet Natures remained. As you probably know, every nature increases one statistic by 10%, and reduces another by 10%, for everything apart from HP. Though this doesn't seem like a lot, it has a profound effect on battling performance in the big league. That's one that Competitors will never allow to work in any way except in their favour, and it's one that Sentimentalists will not want to manipulate because the idea of rejecting one Pokemon's given personality, the closest thing they have to a "soul", in favour of another, goes against their own nature. I'm not giving up on my Adamant Charizard, I could hear them say; we've come too far together.

    The third prong in this vindictive trident is the Effort Value system. EVs work on the principle of training against specific Pokemon in order to yield specific statistic gains. Every time your Pokemon defeats an opponent, or was even involved in its defeat, gets a boost to a little hidden number. By the end of a Pokemon's EV training, it will have accumulated around 130 additional points in whichever statistics they trained in. That is a heck of a lot of points and makes a bigger average statistical difference than IVs and Natures put together. Unfortunately, a very small percentage of trainers even know about the EV system, and an even smaller percentage actually knows about how to go about EV training in the most appropriate way. That's one major problem with the EV system, to a greater extent than the other two. The other major problem is that once EV training has taken its course, it is very difficult and painful to undo it all. You need some very rare berries, and obtaining those means either planting and carefully maintaining them (DPPt), or going for some very long walks indeed (PokeWalker) or spending a few hours on community work (Rock Smash) and dealing with inexplicable Frenchmen (Shard de Berry!). If the system for undoing the "damage" of EV training was more fathomable, I would be happier to excuse it. If the system were more transparent, I would, similarly, be happier to excuse it.

    I know that for some of you, sympathising with what seems like a case of prima donna whining, looks difficult or impossible. But I ask you, if you had played a recent Pokemon game with no knowledge of the game from outside it, and having only the information that the game itself provides, wouldn't you be similarly alienated from it all? I can assure you that, confronted with messages such as "Your Pokemon needs to work harder", "Your Pokemon's potential is rather decent all round... incidentally, I would say its best aspect is Special Defence - it's very good in that regard" and being told that "Gentle" nature reduces one sort of defence in favour of another sort, you would be feeling confused by the additional layers of detail that are hinted at, but never explained properly.

    Somewhat tangential, here's another point that strikes me as significant between Sentimentalists and Competitors. Competitors really like to talk tough, coming up with terms that seem to be more about separating themselves from the children's pet animal game they're quite clearly playing.

    Here's a prime example: a Pokemon assigned to learning environmental navigation moves (through HMs, such as Surf and Cut, or certain TMs, like Flash) is called an "HM Slave", or in extreme cases, where a Competitor is trying his very best to look Mean And Tough, an "HM B****". Their words, not mine. To the Competitor, an "HM Slave" is the lowliest of the low, who could, figuratively speaking, be replaced at a moment's notice. They'll never enter a battle in their entire lives, and that makes them scum.

    To the Sentimentalist, however, the "HM Slave" is anything but. While no officially adopted term seems to have reached widespread use among Sentimentalists, I use the term "Chauffeur" to describe Pokemon which cart you from A to B. "Chauffeurs" are essential and indispensable. They're likely to be your closest companions for the hundreds of hours you may pour into a single game. They could have humble origins (such as the venerable, understated Sandshrew) or could live among the legends (my Latios has been my most long-serving "Chauffeur" - because his Pokedex entry remarks that he doesn't like to fight - and thus he's never had to). Alongside the starter Pokemon, in fact, the "Chauffeur" can be recognised as the most important Pokemon to have available, to a Sentimentalist.

    These are two cultures that really don't get along at all. The Sentimentalists probably wish that future games would bring the Competitor's advantages down a notch or two, and the Competitors probably wish that the Sentimentalists would all shut up and learn to play the metagame properly. A lasting irony is that every new combat gameplay feature in generations I to III designed to appeal to Sentimentalists has widened the competitive gap and given the Competitors a greater advantage.

    However, lateral developments such as the Contest (later expanded into the Super Contest), Pokethlon and Pokemon Musical, seem to be experiments designed to increase the appeal to Sentimentalists without disturbing the core gameplay. It's actually worked well; the Contest was easy to get into and added another dimension into coming up with a moveset. Its comparative success was recognised and it was further developed for Diamond and Pearl. The Pokethlon is a splendid diversion in an already fantastic HG/SS, with enough variety and interest to keep it fresh. The Musical, while not nearly as well-developed as the Pokethlon, was something else to do in a moment of calm, and it's hard to get over the memory of Kyurem in a straw hat.

    At the same time, the new Triple Battle and Rotation Battle modes are appealing and not difficult to get into. Triple Battles are more complex and strategic, relying on hidden properties of moves to hit adjacent or opposite opponents; it is more in line with the Competitor's interests. Rotation Battles are unpredictable, daring, and fun; they are more in line with the Sentimentalist's interests.

    In short, I would say that after Generation III, Game Freak learned an important lesson, and started working out ways to enrich the gameplay and appeal to both factions of the community. And with such successes as they have found, I would conclude that they have learned their lesson well.

    I'll wrap this up with a brief analogy, to illuminate the importance of this conflict, and to illustrate my reasons for thinking that it has been at the heart of Game Freak's concern since the very beginning.

    The Pokemon anime contains an idiot. That idiot's name is Ash Ketchum. We know Ash must be an idiot because when it comes to things like battling he has absolutely no idea of what he's doing. Ignoring the very different rules the anime has (where you can use Agility, Quick Attack and Iron Tail all in the same turn), he will usually send out Pokemon with a severe type disadvantage, keep forgetting that you have to weaken Pokemon before attempting a capture (as if he has Alzheimer's disease restricted to the part of the brain responsible for PokeBall management), and decide one day that "polishing" Brock's Onix with a Water Gun attack will be just fine. I remember a time when I looked at a Diamond and Pearl episode to find out just how bad the newer series was, thinking it might be a good episode because "Ash uses Pokemon from the different regions to compete in the League Championship". I turned it off after he decided that his most reliable choices would be his Cyndaquil, Heracross, Bayleef, etc. (as in, some of his least reliable); he somehow managed to forget, for example, his Sceptile, which is probably the most capable battler he's ever trained.

    But it is in his darker hours where he shines the most. The very first episode proved, like many to come, that this imbecile had enviable bravery and determination when it came to protecting his Pikachu, more than making up for his outright incompetence in the field of battle.

    How is this relevant? For all Ash's incompetence when it comes to the arena, he seems to understand something that most of the competitive battling community does not. He doesn't treat Pokemon like a collection of numbers, collated and approximated and to be rejected if their estimated chance of victory slips below the optimum.

    And guess what? This is because Ash is based on Satoshi Tajiri, who demonstrates his unfaltering sentimentality almost every time he utters words. You may mock us, Competitors, but the creator of Pokemon was in our camp all along.


    That's my first blog entry here. How did I do?
     
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    Alex

    Alex

    what will it be next?
    6,408
    Posts
    17
    Years
    • Seen Dec 30, 2022
    Hey, California Waiting

    Spoiler:


    On day 5 of my trip to California, I'm sitting in the living room watching America's Got Talent with Klippy. We hit Venice Beach today and went cruising in West Hollywood on Santa Monica Boulevard and Sunset Boulevard.

    But let's rewind. On saturday, Klippy and I embarked on a drive to San Francisco. After 3 stops for food and to fill the tank, the 8 hour trip of good tunes, good laughs and good company was over. Rolling into the San Francisco outskirts was bluntly marked by the thick layer of fog covering the city like a blanket. We get settled in with Klippy's cousin and go for a late dinner and cruise around the city. We went to San Fran's pretentiousness-filled Cha Cha Cha restaurant, where the food was surprisingly good but the service was quite lacking. It was so loud in there you could hardly hear the people you were sitting with. The music was blasting and by the time we sat down it was past 9, so everyone was already drunk off their famous Raspberry Sangrea.

    Spoiler:


    On sunday we embarked on the task of seeing as many sights and famous places in the city as possible. We hit Pier 39 (as well as a ton of other piers), Fisherman's Wharf, the Bay Bridge, the Sutro Baths, the Golden Gate Bridge (among other places), and finished with a beautiful skyline of the entire northern side of the city. We actually did a loop around the Golden Gate Bridge: started on its west side, near the Sutro Baths, then went through the Presidio forest and ended up on its east side for the sunset.

    Spoiler:


    Like I mentioned earlier, today was comprised of strolling through Venice Beach, checking out all the sights to see, playing I Spy with the ladies of Venice, getting hassled by the vendors and constantly breathing that overwhelming smell of sweet mary-jane.

    Only a day left on my trip to beautiful Southern California before I have to head back up to the homeland. So far it's been a great summer vacation, not to mention getting to meet my long-time best buddy Klippy, after nearly 5 years of talking. The PokeCommunity may annoy me at times, but I think I can relate with a lot of people when I say I've made some pretty damn good friendships thanks to this place. I can guarantee that if I hadn't joined on Christmas Eve '06, I would not be where I am tonight.

    Here's to hoping everyone can meet anyone they want whom they've first met at PC or any other social discussion site.
     

    Blue Nocturne

    Not THAT one.
    636
    Posts
    15
    Years
    • Age 28
    • Seen Mar 6, 2013
    The Apprentice Finale

    I've got quite a few messages (and by "quite a few", I mean three) asking for my opinion on the results of Sunday's conclusion to The Apprentice, and I can now finally be bothered to do a quick little blog about it. I have mixed feeling about it to be honest. I'll be going into detail about that in a bit, but first I'll just go over the other candidates:

    Helen was... amazing. She had won 10 out of the 11 tasks, and was instrumental in a number of them. If it was like the previous series, where it was all about a job, she'd have won, no question. But I wasn't too sure about her. For a start, she often looked very creepy. REALLY damn creepy, I mean her eyes... She looked at the very least a bit bummed out and at most high on pretty hard drugs. On a more serious note, she could definitely sell, but her creativity never really blew me away, so I wasn't too sure about her potential as a business partner. When she gave her business plan, I thought she was dead in the water to be honest. The concept was interesting, but it sounded like she was making it up on the spot; she couldn't even defend the idea against simple questions! I nearly threw a shoe at the TV than cardboard

    I hated Jim.

    Oh Susan, I liked Susan. She started off a bit small and irritating. Nothing annoys me more than someone using their age, gender, race etc. to excuse themselves from acting like a brat. Having said that, she won me over. She grew to become the mouse that roared, being proved right in the end on multiple occasions... usually over, dare-I-say-his-name... Jim. Sure, she got lots of things wrong as well, but look at the person who won! I think what cost her was a lack of ambition regarding her business plan. Not with the numbers, oh god, no! £1,000,000 in the first year! But more with the product... Natural skin care isn't exactly a gap in the market, I'm afraid. Regardless, I personally think that Susan was the best candidate. All Lord Sugar said when he fired her was "Skin Care isn't my thing"... as a reason, thats about as valid as "My phone battery won't work".

    Tom. Tom, Tom, Tom. He was awful. What saved him time and time again was his ability (one that was highly exaggerated) to generate new ideas... and he just didn't. The chair idea could have worked if it wasn't 15 years behind! His actual business plan was a disaster, only He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's love letter to Alan was worse, albeit by quite a distance. An ergonomic chair is hardly the new light bulb.

    However, I do think that Tom needs direction more than Helen or Susan. Neither of them really NEED Lord Sugar to be a success, Tom needs the direction to be more than someone who just invents, invents, invents.

    So I don't think Tom was the best candidate, but he was probably the best choice.
     

    [Imaginative]:[Clockwork]

    9
    Posts
    12
    Years
    • Seen Aug 2, 2015
    A Formal List of Complaints
    (to be posted anywhere on the Dairy Queen premises)
    Contains swearing


    To the boss​

    1. Listen, I realize you're like three feet tall, but could you stop staring at my torso every time we speak? It only makes the awkward silences you inevitably bring about that much more awkward when I have to worry about the constant studying (and mentally criticizing, I would imagine) of my body.

    2. I appreciate the fact that I don't have to pay for the official Dairy Queen shirts I'm forced to work in. One of them is even something I would consider wearing out in public if it didn't have the permanent stench of french fries and interactions with shamelessly obese customers fused with its every fiber. The other shirt, however, is a color that could only be described as periwinkle and proudly declares "Shake it up!" on both sides, apparently so I can't hide the smoldering flamboyance from everyone I talk to. Did you realize that I'm a boy when you were picking it out? Or did you just not care? Thanks for that.

    To the boss's middle-aged child​

    1. Alright, you're actually an okay guy, I'll admit. But you're creepy. Like, "Oh my God, here he comes again with that smile! Hide!" creepy. Do you notice that I never have anything interesting to say when you chat me up about your favorite history topics? Yes? Then why do you keep trying? It makes me and everyone around me uncomfortable when you insist that I should already know your random bits of Civil War trivia because I'm an okay student. Please. Just stop.

    2. Also, I know we're not allowed to wear jeans to work, but you should probably invest in some type of alternate pantwear. There comes an age where you should stop making a living while wearing shorts and that age is long past.

    3. Oh, and I take back what I said about you being an okay guy. I know about your disturbingly one-sided sexual high school years. Not even the kind of thing I can be uncomfortable with but kind of admire like if you had had sex with every girl in your grade or something. This is like middle of class "wanna suck my dick?" type of stuff that just makes you look really desperate and -- surprise! -- more creepy.

    To my coworkers​

    1. Cougar lady: Everyone knows you're the one stealing from the register because, despite the glowing connotations associated with being a forty year-old cashier, you're an idiot. Because of you, we now have window shifts and when you're the one assigned to it, you continue to steal money. Really? Really? It amazes me that you still have a job. You took the three dollars that lady left for everyone and when I asked where it went, you pulled it out like it was some hilarious joke. The worst part? You pulled it out of your bra, giving me the wholly unnecessary mental image of the wrinkled and probably discolored boobs that were rubbing against my money. So thank you for being an effective step in ruining boobs for not only me, but anyone who may read this.

    2. Lazy shift manager: Your new haircut makes you look like you're going undercover to bust an eccentric jewel thief at his big, fancy party. Also, the first time I saw you with it, you wore sunglasses, which added to the "look." It was hilarious.

    3. Party boy: I'm sorry your girlfriend "doesn't blow," but you still have to suffer through the dryness and actually work.

    4. Emo guy: Your hat is the worst thing in the entire restaurant. I can't even imagine what would make you think it was a good idea to buy it, let alone wear it where people can actually see you. Whenever I look at it, I hate you. Also, you're a dick.

    To the customers​

    1. Freakishly particular sundae guy: Good Lord, dude, it's a freaking sundae. You ask for everything, I put on everything, I fill it to the point where it's almost running over, and somehow it's always too small. Is it because I'm white? If you weren't six-and-a-half feet tall and easily capable of kicking my young ass, I'd throw the sundae into your car and laugh.

    2. Douchebag with two soon-to-be's: What's wrong with you? Everything about you is wrong, from the way you yell at your kids when they do something completely innocent to the way you don't yell at them when they're being little dickheads. Not only that, you eat at DQ every day and each time you come in it's the constant battle with the menu. You open your mouth slowly, exhale, and then snap it shut while continuing to stare at your list of 90% disgusting, 10% worse than ever imaginable options. Guess what. I know what you're ordering. Two snack burgers and one hamburger. No, I'm not psychic. I'd call you an idiot but I can't help but thinking that maybe you look for a long time, hoping to break one of the many ruts that you've made in life, before finally settling on the same-old, same-old once again. Which is actually kind of sad.

    3. Every fat person ever: We all know you're going to eat it; you ordered six of it. Please don't freak out about the tiniest thing.

    Thank you.
     
    UnderMybrella

    UnderMybrella

    Wandering Programmer
    280
    Posts
    13
    Years
    • Abimon Ending, the real one, NOT the "elite four" thingies

    Spoiler:

    Yay, the possibility to win a blog. Then I can post constant updates about Abimon!
     

    LightOfTruth

    Member
    729
    Posts
    14
    Years
    • Seen Jul 16, 2020
    What will happen if the winner all-ready have a blog? :)

    Like if a PC Supporter won
     

    Oryx

    CoquettishCat
    13,184
    Posts
    13
    Years
    • Age 31
    • Seen Jan 30, 2015
    LightOfTruth said:
    What will happen if the winner all-ready have a blog? :)

    Like if a PC Supporter won
    Click to expand...

    From the rules I'm almost certain the blog is awarded to the highest rank non-blogged person - if it was just Supporter credits then it would make sense to give the money to the highest ranked no matter what, but the point is to get a blog, not just Supporter. So if first and second have blogs, then third would get one I believe.
     
    Shining Raichu

    Shining Raichu

    Expect me like you expect Jesus.
    8,959
    Posts
    13
    Years
    • Toujours said:


    From the rules I'm almost certain the blog is awarded to the highest rank non-blogged person - if it was just Supporter credits then it would make sense to give the money to the highest ranked no matter what, but the point is to get a blog, not just Supporter. So if first and second have blogs, then third would get one I believe.
    Click to expand...

    Yes, this is very much correct :)
     

    cbd98

    A bouquet of oopsie dasies
    333
    Posts
    13
    Years
    • Seen Jan 18, 2021
    This is a blog entry of how I remember Monday. Maybe Tuesday. Not sure...

    Spoiler:
     
    Shining Raichu

    Shining Raichu

    Expect me like you expect Jesus.
    8,959
    Posts
    13
    Years
    • *sigh* just got home from work so that's why I'm incredibly late posting this. But needless to say, the entry period is officially over! We shall be as fast we can in announcing the winners!
     
    Shining Raichu

    Shining Raichu

    Expect me like you expect Jesus.
    8,959
    Posts
    13
    Years
    • Okay guys, the results are in!

    In second place, on 23 points out of a possible 30...

    Spoiler:


    And the phenomenal blog that won the competition, with a score of 26.5 out of 30, is....

    Spoiler:


    CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU BOTH!

    If anybody else would like to know their score, you can PM me directly. But before you do, please realise that not everybody could do well (though a lot of you did!) so if you scored lowly please do not be upset or offended.

    I'd just like to say thank you to everybody for taking part in the competition! Keep on blogging, everyone!
     
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