Poke Mania had reached a peak in my life, but was far from over. I couldn't stand the sight of Pokemon cards. I couldn't stand the sight of anything to be honest. I remember feeling so ashamed as I emptied out hundreds of Pokemon cards from my pockets. It changed me. I tried to distance myself from the dumb things my friends would do. The easiest way to avoid all of it was to stay in the house. I began to watch the show.
I used to watch it whenever it was on, but I began to watch it religiously. If I wasn't up by 10:00am on Saturday my weekend was ruined. Those were the days lol. I remember I saw a commercial for the game Pokemon Yellow. I began to think of my friends at school who would play Pokemon Red & Blue all the time. They looked like they were having fun, so why shouldn't I? Well for starters I didn't own a GameBoy. I saw an ad in the paper for the Limited Edition Pokemon Yellow GameBoy Color going on sale for the holiday season. I knew what I was asking Santa for Christmas.
I was skeptical about whether or not I was on Santa's naughty list after that whole mall incident, but I figured I wouldn't know unless I tried. Christmas came, and Santa came through. Boy was I a happy camper that morning as I began my adventure with Pikachu in Pokemon Yellow. I then realized that the Pokemon series was a role playing game which I despised. I was shocked. I thought I did more than tell the Pokemon what to do. I decided to give the game a shot, and I'm happy I did. I stopped watching the show not long after that. I became determined to catch all 151 Pokemon. I managed to do it in about a month. (Here's how:
http://bit.ly/auPz9c)
It's February 2000 at this point and I'm learning about the new Pokemon Gold & Silver version. There was word that 100 new Pokemon had been added bringing the # of Pokemon to 251. I found out the game had been released in Japan that past November and wasn't due in the US until the upcoming fall. I was determined to play the game as a result. I wanted to be the first kid in my school to see these new Pokemon. I went to Ebay.
Remember how I told you I had a paper route back then? I still had it, and I saved up to buy imported copies of Pokemon Gold & Silver. The first seller I saw had both games for about 50 dollars. I won the auction, sent him the money, and never heard from him again. Salted. I was more determined than ever to play these games as a result. I found another auction a few weeks later and won. I sent my money and waited a week. Nothing showed up. A week to a 12 year old is like a month. It was brutal. I felt defeated after 10 days went by and nothing showed up. I began to lose hope. The next day my aunt tells me I have a package. I almost cried I was so happy. I Pokemon Gold & Silver 7 months before any of my friends at school did. Sure they all clowned me because I couldn't read Japanese, but I didn't care. I was able to navigate my way through the 16 badges and the Elite 5 so it wasn't so bad. Besides everybody knows the story stays pretty much the same.
I had thought Poke Mania had left my system, but the truth is it had evolved. What started as a trading card fad evolved into a passion for a video game franchise. Pokemon is the reason why I've owned a GameBoy Color, GameBoy Advanced, and a Nintendo DS. I could give up the trading cards and the show, but I could never give up the games. I used to keep my love for the series on the low because of my crazy past, but I don't care. I still have Poke Mania. Gotta Catch em All.
I used to watch it whenever it was on, but I began to watch it religiously. If I wasn't up by 10:00am on Saturday my weekend was ruined. Those were the days lol. I remember I saw a commercial for the game Pokemon Yellow. I began to think of my friends at school who would play Pokemon Red & Blue all the time. They looked like they were having fun, so why shouldn't I? Well for starters I didn't own a GameBoy. I saw an ad in the paper for the Limited Edition Pokemon Yellow GameBoy Color going on sale for the holiday season. I knew what I was asking Santa for Christmas.
I was skeptical about whether or not I was on Santa's naughty list after that whole mall incident, but I figured I wouldn't know unless I tried. Christmas came, and Santa came through. Boy was I a happy camper that morning as I began my adventure with Pikachu in Pokemon Yellow. I then realized that the Pokemon series was a role playing game which I despised. I was shocked. I thought I did more than tell the Pokemon what to do. I decided to give the game a shot, and I'm happy I did. I stopped watching the show not long after that. I became determined to catch all 151 Pokemon. I managed to do it in about a month. (Here's how: http://bit.ly/auPz9c) 
It's February 2000 at this point and I'm learning about the new Pokemon Gold & Silver version. There was word that 100 new Pokemon had been added bringing the # of Pokemon to 251. I found out the game had been released in Japan that past November and wasn't due in the US until the upcoming fall. I was determined to play the game as a result. I wanted to be the first kid in my school to see these new Pokemon. I went to Ebay.
Remember how I told you I had a paper route back then? I still had it, and I saved up to buy imported copies of Pokemon Gold & Silver. The first seller I saw had both games for about 50 dollars. I won the auction, sent him the money, and never heard from him again. Salted. I was more determined than ever to play these games as a result. I found another auction a few weeks later and won. I sent my money and waited a week. Nothing showed up. A week to a 12 year old is like a month. It was brutal. I felt defeated after 10 days went by and nothing showed up. I began to lose hope. The next day my aunt tells me I have a package. I almost cried I was so happy. I Pokemon Gold & Silver 7 months before any of my friends at school did. Sure they all clowned me because I couldn't read Japanese, but I didn't care. I was able to navigate my way through the 16 badges and the Elite 5 so it wasn't so bad. Besides everybody knows the story stays pretty much the same.
I had thought Poke Mania had left my system, but the truth is it had evolved. What started as a trading card fad evolved into a passion for a video game franchise. Pokemon is the reason why I've owned a GameBoy Color, GameBoy Advanced, and a Nintendo DS. I could give up the trading cards and the show, but I could never give up the games. I used to keep my love for the series on the low because of my crazy past, but I don't care. I still have Poke Mania. Gotta Catch em All.
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