The future is Us, not Trump..."Let's make America Kind again"

Last night to the horror of most americans, Trump won the presidency against Hillary Clinton. Was this shocking to me? No. I knew this might be how it played out. And while I planned on writing a piece titled, "How Hillary and the Media created the Trump Presidency..." I decided this morning that wasn't what the world needed, they needed this message, a message on us. 

If you asked me a year ago I was wrong how this story would play out. I believed the general was going to be Bernie v. Trump. But that isn't what is important now. What's important is, the story of us hasn't changed from last night, today, and it won't change tomorrow. We still are the United States, and as long as that is the truth, hate never won. Not even Trump as president can make that happen. Not if you let it. 

Last night Hate did not win. Yes. Trump's message does fit the narrative of hatred, and could very well be our nation's Hitler. If we let it. What won yesterday was change. Last night was the death of the establishment. They thought they were going win, they thought they didn't need someone like Sanders who understood and knew how to motivate people and what people hunger for, but they were wrong. They made this story about her and a story against him, but they forgot something, it's always been the story about us. And we are still here today. Today can be the start of change in the story of us. The democratic party can now be a party of us if we make it. Today we can stand together behind people like Senator Sanders. We can use the anger and sadness towards something greater than ourselves.

I see so much despair and fear today. Friends who are gay, muslim, latino, minorities, and even women are worrying on the future. Trump's message during the election was one of hatred, ignorance, and lies. But what people forgot yesterday and during the election. It was never about him, and it wasn't about her, it was about us. Did your neighbor change today? Friends change? Family change? No. Just the president. One man does not define a country or a nation. That just isn't the truth. You didn't change over night. 

It's easy to let fear and anger take over. I get it. I understand today had to be that. Tomorrow can be a new day. 

Bernie's message was always this, "Not Me, Us!". And I believe that's the story of America. It was never about the leader, it's always been about the progress of the people. That's what make's America Great. And we still can do great things. 

Is Trump Hitler? Maybe. I have no idea what the next four years will bring. But I do know this. Hitler was one man, who I do consider evil. But he didn't act alone, what was so evil and wrong was that no one stopped him, everyone went along with it. I don't think we will do the same. Will you? Will you give up your power to one man? Don't. 

Tomorrow can be the start of change. Change never happens from the top down, it happens from the Bottom up. Tomorrow I ask everyone who is afraid of Trump to get active in the community. Be nice to your neighbor. Let's bring back kindness. If someone shows hatred, show them love. If anything Trump has shown us, is that we need to heal and that will only happen if we put effort into it. Let's be the change we want to see in the future, starting at home, at work, in the community. You want a progressive movement? Be it, live it. Trump is one man, and he doesn't define you. The story of the United States was never about the men and women who lead it, but the story of all of us.

Not me, Us! 

-Bordon

Pokémon Go

I have to admit it. I am addicted to Pokémon Go. So far it's an addiction I don't want to quit. Why? Because it's so much fun and so far for me a healthy and safe addiction. It feeds my inner "gamer", yet forces me to do something I don't quite like doing, exercising. Yes,  Pokémon Go is in a nutshell an exercising app disguised as a mobile video game and it hides it very well!

A Squirtle I found by McDonald's

So what is Pokémon Go? It is an iOS and Android app for a cellphone. It utilizes your gps, camera, and google maps while running on your phone. Through the app you wonder around looking for Pokémon in the real world. You can use your camera to "see" the Pokémon in the real world using AR technology on your phone's screen.To find Pokémon you have to travel in real world to other locations. Not every location spawns the same monsters. So you have to walk around to find them all.

What your character looks like while playing on the Map.

So far the app seems to use far less data then other apps do while on the go. I used about 75mb during the first week I played, which compared to Google Maps & Google Mail which used collectively 200 mb. I only used the Google apps twice that week, where as Pokémon Go I used for hours! That's great news for Pokemon players as data can be taxing on your phone bill.


I've used Pokémon Go so far over 20 hours in the past two weeks and I've walked well over 40 KM, while playing. I've lost more than 5 pounds because of this app so far. That's how amazing it is! Not only that it is freaking fun to play, but I'm getting healthier doing it!


I will be posting some more Pokémon Go thoughts and posts in the up coming weeks. I do have some BB-8 blogs I owe too which will be coming as I'm still gathering data on which build I want to do! But in the mean time please take it from me, try Pokémon Go now! You won't regret it!


Even Homer Simpson has caught the Pokémon Go fever!

-Bordon

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Target Exclusive 3 Droid Pack

Today as I was returning my Target Force Awakens copy that I was disappointed with, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that there was a new BB-8 toy release!

Hasbro and Target partnered to release exclusive figures BB-8, C-3PO, and RO-4LO. The figure set costs around $30, at a price point of $29.99.  So far this pack is only in stores, and isn't even in the online storefront yet for Target!

Side-Note: Currently however, Target has a deal that you can text a number and get a coupon for Star Wars merchandise.

It's a great deal if I say so and you can pick this up and the movie and get some money off! It only lasts until April 9th, 2016 though so hurry to your local target to get some Star Wars merchandise. I am in no way paid to tell you this, I just wanted people to know of a great deal!

Back of the Box, Close Ups are below!

Back to the review! I'm going to review each figure separately for this review.

C-3PO

C-3PO figure doesn't really have great articulation. The arms only articulate around the shoulders, and appear to be a ball joint. Legs move in the hips only slightly to arrange the feet in a standing position. His head doesn't move at all. Basically this figure was designed to sit on a shelf and that is it. It's very pretty to look at, but there isn't much else to him sadly.

RO-4LO

RO is a new type of droid that is used by the Resistance. The box claims that they are upgraded R2 units. This one was seen in the scenes where the Resistance was getting their starfighters ready to, or when they landed at the Resistance base. There was another R0 unit seen in the film that Poe uses when he doesn't have BB-8. That one is Orange and Grey coloration. It's interesting that this droid didn't get much notice during the launch of the movie as it is a new astromech type droid. One of it's glaring features is a lack of holoprojecter. If you want to read more on this droid there is an excellent article here on the theories of this droid.

Front of RO-4LO

Back of RO-4LO

Unfortunately only his legs move so you can tilt his body. He doesn't have a third "leg" that can clip on, so that is missing. He also doesn't have a moveable head. Sits well on a shelf though!

BB-8

BB-8's figure is the most complex. He has two "arms" that can pop on the circles where they should pop out from in the movie. This figure is interesting as it reminds me of this figure that was announced last winter for release, however, there are noticeable differences.

Hasbro BB-8 Preview, this might be a different release coming up, but looks similar.

Some details are different such as the lack of shock stick or rotating blade, the Target BB-8 looks different. Also, a lot "dirtier" looking detail as if he just got off the sands of Jakku.

Going to leave him like this on my shelf! 

Back Side of BB-8

BB-8's head does move around, it's a lot like other BB-8 toys that Hasbro and Disney has made where the head is attached to a stick and wobbles around the top of the toy through a hole. So he doesn't roll, they should in my opinion have used a magnet and let him roll around, but I guess this saves on cost. He also has a flattened part of his sphere that is meant for the base, so he can sit on a shelf well. He does sit pretty well on a shelf!

Conclusion

In conclusion I believe the main draw of the 3-pack is BB-8. I don't regret buying the figure set as I got a deal and I love this BB-8's detail. I think they all could be great toys for kids, but don't expect much articulation in any of the figures besides BB-8.

Well that's it for this short review.

May the Force Be With You!

-Bordon


P.S. Look out for more incoming Star Wars toy reviews. Now that the movie is out on Blu-Ray, I think it's time that I can share more toys that I got in the past 6 months, some contained spoilers. I also will be publishing my own theories on The Force Awakens and the new movie coming out this December Rouge One. Look out for them coming soon on this blog near you!

I also will be comparing all my BB-8 Toys, and blogging about building BB-8 in the very near future, very much in concept stages still, but I'm ready to share many of my findings, especially now that the movie is out for everyone to view! No excuses for trying to avoid spoilers now in my blog!

Also, feel free to check out my other BB-8 reviews. 

Star Wars The Force Awakens Blu-Ray Release

On April 5th the Star Wars Force Awakens Blu-Ray released. I wasn't able to get a copy however during that day. Why? Well Target had given pre-orders from their online/web store that came with a $5 gift card if you ordered it the month prior. It sounded great, it'd have extra behind the scenes content of making the movie and such and "special packaging". I was excited! I pre-ordered it thinking Target's pre-order delivery guarantee would have the copy at my front door delivered to me. However, that was not the case.

On April 6th I went to Facebook to complain on Target's social media. Why? Because my copy was sent on the 5th by UPS to be delivered to the Post Office instead of my house that day, and there it sat for 2 days (release and the next day) and didn't move. I found out many had the same issues, and that the packaging was card board and some even had broken Blu-Rays! Not even that, the "exclusive content" was download content, from the web. You didn't have it on disk. So I decided to look up what other stores had for exclusives. Walmart had a sleeve that featured BB-8, but it was cardboard and sleeves don't always look the best. So I went with Best Buy's Steelbook feature. I figured I was ordering the original and prequel trilogy in Japanese recently and got the steelbooks for them, so I thought I'd get the Star Wars Episode VII steelbook to go with them. A better deal and it was a physical item.


When I went into Best Buy to get the Steel Book Force Awakens Blu-Ray I was greeted with a huge BB-8 holding the movies. It was a neat thing to have in the store I thought.

I love it, but I don't want it as nearly as much as Target's animatronic one! 

Two days later, I got the Target one in the mail. Three Days after release! No gift card was ever delivered. I took pictures for you to review. After that, I returned it to Target, and while there I found a pleasant surprise. A BB-8 figure bundle pack released along with a coupon deal!

Front Cover of, Target left, Best Buy Right 

Back side of Blu Ray cases, Target left, Best Buy Right

Inside of Best Buy's Steelbook Case. Pretty clean and neat!

Just thought I'd share my experience with you and how different the movies are. If you want to see the insides of the Target version of the Blu-Ray, Tyler has an excellent video showing you the guts. Check it out here.

May the Force Be With You!

-Bordon 

Top Five Best April Fools Jokes of 2016

April Fool's Day came and went Friday. I found myself not really pranked by anyone, making my record about 10 years now I think. However, I do love seeing all the fake products, announcements, and other pranks companies make during the day for the past few years. I've always told and suggested to companies to try to think of something fun for April Fool's Day to help get noticed in the Social Media world as Facebook and other social sites love to share the pranks during the day. Let me share with you my top 5 favorite pranks from this year, and one huge dud.

5.  Wolverine Records

The Canadian site called the Library and Archives of Canada launched a page featuring Marvel's Wolverine's military records for the Canadian government.

Is it proof that Mutants live among us, or Fools?

4. Star Trek White Noise Machine

Think Geek made a hilarious product up for April 1st. The Star Trek white Noise Machine makes sounds like any ship from past Star Trek shows. It claimed to sell for a hefty price of $150. If you clicked on the buy it now button of it though it would direct you to a page letting you know that it's an April Fool's Day prank. However, judging by the comment section of the fake product page, you'd think Think Geek might want to make it so!

3. Donald Trump's Huge Campaign Announcement

If only this were true. Jimmy Kimmel has done it again with this hilarious video of Trump announcing that his campaign run was all a huge, or yhuuuuge set up to an April's Fools Joke. Funny enough my wife overhearing me listening to the video for a second thought and hoped it was real. I did too.

2. Witcher 3: Roach Horse DLC

CD Projekt Red launched a video announcing fake Horse DLC for their Witcher 3 game that launched last year. Mocking the very bugs they took to correct since the launch they made up DLC and a story that the bugs were purposely left into the game. Mocking both themselves and the video game industry as a whole, the video is hilarious to watch. It left me wanting both a talking horse dlc drop and that Roach sticker though.

1. Quilted Northern: Rustic Weave 

Quilted Northern posted this hilarious commercial for their "new" product called Quilted Northern: Rustic Weave. A product no one wants I would hope at least. The video is perfect in the fact that it reminds me of the old SNL commercial skits that I loved and the dose of serious reality Quilted Northern gives to the product ad. I love the part were the lady sits down and there is perfect narration timed to her wince. Wonderful job Quilted Northern!

The Worst

Google Mail: Mic Drop

Google's prank was the worst this year. Besides Minions being stupid in my opinion. Someone at Google decided it would be funny this year for Google Mail, or Gmail, to have a "Mic Drop" button added it's mail service. The button when pressed would then send a "mic drop" gif to the receiver. It was meant to be a joke that some people might use, but never the way it ended up happening. Somehow Google messed up the prank and there was a bug in the system. The Mic Drop was being sent with messages when it was never clicked, and sometimes just the gif and not the message was being sent. This prompted some people to claim that the prank had either cost them their job or a job opportunity. Google quickly cancelled their prank and apologized. Hopefully next year they will have a better prank or just not do it at all. 

Well that was my list of top five pranks and one huge dud for this years April Fool's Day. What is your favorite or least favorite this year? Let me know in the comments below!

- Bordon 

Quick Update on Sphero BB-8

Quick Update on the Sphero BB-8. On the release of the movie or shortly after my iPhone got an update for the Sphero app. It added some new moves to Sphero such as figure eights and other cute little movements. The only other update I've seen is the sounds sound a lot closer to the film than they did before. In fact he sounds a lot more like his big hasbro brother.

It also has been brought to my attention the Sphero had nothing to do with the Stage BB-8 as once thought. It has now been confirmed to be made by Lucas Film after the film was created, for promotional purposes.

The Stage/Red Carpet BB-8 is also to be believed to be axle driven as opposed to hamster driven like the Sphero and Hasbro models. This information comes from the BB-8 builders club that I have joined on Facebook for the past two months.

I will update my blog when I get around to building BB-8 in the near future. It is one of my goals for this year.

Thanks for reading this short update!

-Bordon