aonduineabhaile

[aonduineabhaile]

[aonduineabhaile]

There’s something magical about going to a Waffle House at three in the morning. Not like a good kind of magical, though, more of a strange, forbidden type of magical.

[aonduineabhaile]

Restaurant idea: Naan Sequitur

A place that exclusively uses naan in various other cultural recipes.

[aonduineabhaile]

You know what they say when you makes assumptions: it makes an ass out of, um…ptions.

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[aonduineabhaile]

The Autumn World

Why is it the world seems a different place on the first day of autumn?

The sunlight seems softer as the air takes on a fresh crispness, the breeze caressing everything with gentle chill.

Emerald green below and sapphire blue above give way to hues of blazing fire, of ruby, copper, and gold topped with smoke-gray skies.

Wind rattles dry leaves and empty branches, bringing with it the songs of birds en route to their southern sojourn.

The scents of salt and sand are replaced by cinnamon and clove; fresh-mown lawns and sunscreen by wood smoke and cider.

Cups are now topped off with mulled cider and hot chocolate while pies are filled with pecan, pumpkin, and apple.

It becomes a world of comfort, of home and family, and I exist to experience it anew each year.

[aonduineabhaile]

A wisp of a cloud nestled among the leaves.

[aonduineabhaile]

Morning Idyllic

I awoke early. It isn't something I ever mean to do, but after a few tosses and turns I make the mistake of opening my eyes only to find they will no longer close of their own accord. I stare at the ceiling for a time, trying to let the fog in my mind consume my consciousness and drag me back to slumber. Realizing I'm making negative progress on that front, I make the second mistake of trying to check the time. My phone is sitting in its stand on my bedside. I tap the screen, opening a portal of light in the darkness. My attempt to read the blurry numbers leads to my third mistake. I don my glasses to read the time properly at which point it is pointless, my day has already begun. I at least know now that it is just before six.

Aware of the pull of blankets from between my legs, I carefully extricate my legs from around the cat. I throw on lounge pants and a t-shirt and make my way downstairs, skipping the steps that creak the loudest to avoid disturbing those still dreaming. In direct contradiction to that sentiment, I walk into the kitchen and switch the kettle on.

I work in the gloom of the lingering night to prepare a cup of coffee. Turning on flourescent lights just seems wrong, somehow. I pull down my zebra mug and pour-over filter from the cupboard, adding two teaspoons of fiber to the former and a poorly measured quarter-cup of coffee grounds to the latter. All the while, the sound of the kettle grows into a steady roar of boiling water. As it begins to crescendo, I lift the kettle and gingerly douse the grounds.

Its hard to see in the dark, so I keep stopping to look at how much I've poured. Once I'm satisfied, I grab the maple syrup from the fridge and pour in just enough to not be considered conservative. I put the syrup back in the fridge, grabbing the milk while I'm in there, and fill the rest of my mug. I put the milk away and stir, trying not to hit the sides of the mug.

I carry my mug to the back door and step out onto the deck. The air assaults my skin with countless pinpricks of cold, coelescing into a single chill causing me to shiver. It feels nice. I place my mug down on a small table and take a seat next to it to stare out at nothing in particular. At this point it is bright enough for me to discern that the sky is blanketed horizon to horizon with dark gray clouds. I have no plans today, though I am excited at the prospect of a nap later.

I lift my mug to my lips and hold it there for a moment. I inhale steam. I exhale steam. I take a long sip of the hot drink, letting it fill me as a temporary reprieve from the winter air. I set my mug back down and the cold seeps back into me. My gaze shifts imperceptibly to the clouds, my head empty of any meaningful thought. I hope it snows.

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Quintessential Pokémon Gym Challenge

With nine generations of Pokémon, we have a decent look into what an ideal gym challenge would look like. The data I used takes into account the most up-to-date version of each mainline game, meaning the levels and number of Pokémon are calculated using what is in the remakes, if applicable. However, due to some aberrations with the formula over the years, generation 7 has been omitted from the gym data due to not having gyms. Likewise, generation 8 has been omitted from the Elite Four calculations for similar reasons.

Gyms

For the gyms, the data was pretty straight forward, with only two arbitrary choices being made. First, Gyms 2 and 4 both favored Grass and Water types, so I decided on Grass for Gym 2 as it has more weaknesses and is more favorable for the early game. Second, the average number of Pokémon for Gym 7 ended up being less than that of Gym 6 (thanks to generation 3's double battle gym), so a ceiling was used for that average rather than standard rounding.

As a note, Gyms 6 (Flying and Steel) and 8 (Dragon, Ice, and Water) also had ties but some types were not considered due to earlier gyms and the results of the Elite Four. With that in mind, the quintessential gyms would appear as the following:

Rock: 2 Pokémon, Average Level of 13

Grass: 3 Pokémon, Average Level of 19

Electric: 3 Pokémon, Average Level of 24

Water: 3 Pokémon, Average Level of 29

Normal: 3 Pokémon, Average Level of 34

Flying: 4 Pokémon, Average Level of 38

Psychic: 4 Pokémon, Average Level of 43

Ice: 4 Pokémon, Average Level of 47

Elite Four

To determine the Elite Four, the types were pooled and were determined by mode. This was done as not every generation had a linear path through the Elite Four, so position was not a consideration.

In general, Dragon and Ghost appear most often and are therefore included by default. For the remaining two slots, there was a three-way tie between Steel, Fighting, and Dark. To determine which types to fill the slots, I opted to minimize super-effective types to provide a better emphasis on tactics rather than type specialization.

As both Steel and Dark are weak to Fighting, they should not be paired together, placing a Fighting type in the Elite Four. It should also be noted that Fighting and Dark are both weak to Fairy, and with a Dragon type already slotted, we don't want three members with the same weakness. This means Steel will be the last type.

Due to the split nature of Elite Four challenges, two scenarios will be presented. In either case, the number of Pokémon each member uses will be 5.

The first scenario is for which the Elite Four can be challenged in any order. In this case, the average Pokémon level will be 55.

The second scenario is for which the Elite Four are challenged in a specific order. For the average levels in this scenario, a ceiling was used to avoid two members having the same average level. To determine order, Ghost and Dragon occupy the third and fourth slots due to their seniority. I placed Steel in the second slot due to the greater number of resistances it has over Fighting, making it a potentially more challenging battle. This would make the Elite Four appear as the following:

Fighting: Average Level of 54

Steel: Average Level of 55

Ghost: Average Level of 56

Dragon: Average Level of 57

Concluding Remarks

Thus concludes the quintessential gym challenge. I did not include any analysis on the Champion as that team is determined more on the region rather than particular types, giving it a wildcard role. I am curious to see how future titles will either reinforce or deviate from this conclusion.

As an additional note, there are four types that have not had a representative among the Elite Four, those being Electric, Fairy, Grass, and Normal.

[aonduineabhaile]

The Pretty Kitty

Look at the kitty

Sitting so pretty

With her tail curled around her paws

The kitty, of course

Shows no remorse

With my dinner clenched firmly in her jaws

Still, I don’t dare

To stick my hand near there

And risk the wrath of her needlepoint claws

And despite her vice

She has innocent eyes

Which command me to forgive all of her flaws

[aonduineabhaile]