Ga'Hoole

Ga'Hoole has a full site!

2009-10-04T10:58:00.000-07:00

I was going to do something like this eventually and I finally set up a small, simple site for you guys to visit. All blog posts will be continued to post here and when a new post is up, updates will be posted in the Bulletin Board section of the site in the category The Gate.

The site is located here and a link will be posted over on the right so you can click it whenever you please. The site offers a bit more content, of course. This included special bonus content that may not appear on the blog, contests, a very simple message board for discussion purposes, galleries for patterns and maybe some photos taken whenever from time to time, downloads will appear in the coming weeks, and there's also a monthly calendar so you can view upcoming City Folk events. (Only events for the current month will be up and running).

Eventually I'll set up an easy domain name, but for now; this is it. As always you can post your comments here, send your suggestions/requests to mairmalade@mymelody.com, or post in the Suggestions page on the site.

For now, check out the Contests page for Ga'Hoole's current contest!

Odds and ends

2009-10-04T08:00:00.000-07:00

Did I mention how autumn is bursting with events? Seriously, not only is October full of events, but November is, too. Today is the Autumn Moon; as stated by Tortimer.

Everyone's talking about it!

He'll be in front of Town Hall during the day so be sure to go and talk to him to get your little surprise. You'll be able to view the Autumn Moon later today - be sure to turn on that console and get Rover to set you up as soon as possible!

However, Tortimer wasn't my only gift today. Yeah, turns out Nook decided to remodel the store due to my opinions I gave him, oh, I don't know... A week ago? >: Why must he upgrade (Well, downgrade) on the night of the Autumn Moon? ): Guests won't like that I'm sure. That's another thing, though. We all know that having people over is more fun than running around town by yourself so organize an autumn moon viewing party and crank up the tunes! Hopefully you made a wise choice and visited K.K. Slider last night to get some music that fit the beat.

I know it's not Halloween yet; but who's to say I can't dress up early?

Rawr~! I'm a bear!

You know what I hate about being a bear?

I CAN'T WALK RIGHT! I need to learn how to walk and run on paths to avoid accidently picking up tiles. Luckily, it's a quick fix. Not so much when friends are visiting, but:

All fixed!

... ****.

But that's not the only thing that annoys me; heavens no. Another thing is the fact that flowers die so quickly. Sometimes when I can't get around to playing all day, they're all wilting and I have to run around and water all of them when I really don't have the time to do so. Luckily none of them died and I got them all watered today. Wouldn't that suck? Spending so much time on your town only to go away for a couple days and come back to a bare town? Yikes! Wouldn't be so much fun.

No idea why she's smiling. Watering flowers is a terrible chore! At least the silver watering can makes it easier, though. :)

Speaking of watering cans... Guess what town has been perfect long enough to get a new one? That's right! - Ga'Hoole has. It's been a long journey, but I've managed to keep it perfect without screwing it up. p: I know I've said it isn't hard, but sometimes it really does give you problems. You just have to watch your back I guess. p:

Alright, guys! Stay safe out there tonight! (;P) That means no making out near the waterfall with your friends. Grab the pattern maker, make a fall pattern, wear it, grab an orange hybrid, style it. Walk around with true autumn spirit tonight!

See you around!

Also, have you noticed that the grass makes weird noises when you run on it? It's like crackling leaves. Try it out and listen carefully; it's a cool sound. p: One pro to having the grass at that color. Remember that it should all be your first time playing in October. p: Some of you may time travel, but if you didn't... Enjoy your first Autumn Moon in Animal Crossing: City Folk!

The times are a changing

2009-10-03T07:55:00.001-07:00

Been a few days since my last entry, but I've been busy! It's time for fall cleaning. :3 All of you are aware of spring cleaning; it gives a good start to a fresh year in the seasons. But who's to say you can't just get a fresh start on every month?

You may have noticed the grass has been changing gradually overtime. It's not just four different grass colors - there's a variety of tones. This isn't fall's grass at the moment, but it will gradually turn into a darker orange later fall. The grass changed to its pale green on October 1st.

The trees haven't changed color, but the grass sure has! And I must say... One of my least favorite parts of early October? The grass. It looks, well, terrible. I'm not saying October is a bad month or anything because aside from the grass change at this moment, I'm all for it.

What does October mean anyway? Halloween of course! One of the most exciting events in the game. :P Candy is on sale now so stock up every once and awhile when you have the time! Can't be going out with no candy. Fruit isn't allowed! Besides, this time round you have four options: Yellow, blue, green, and red candy. Mmmm. What are the flavors?

What else does October bring? New fashions! This time, however, they're a bit... Questionable. My neighbors decided to go with 'Pathway Chic'. No idea where these fashion trends come from; but they've got to stop. Just because the pattern is on display in Able's doesn't mean it's OK to take and wear!

Also, be sure to buy some warmer clothes from Able's! The air is going to get pretty chilly! You might not notice; but are you going to let your poor AC character suffer? Stock up on warm hats! There's lots of nice ones and who says festive hats are out of season? Pssshh no!

Also, do you know what's coming up? The first anniversary of AC:CF's release in November! It's pretty amazing to see that the game's already been out for a year. For those of you that have stopped playing, why don't you get the case out, pop the disk in, and check in on your old town? I'm sure it's a mess; neighbors probably miss you, too. ): Besides, don't you want to check in on their massively huge houses? You never know where the ceiling is! It's crazy!

There's no limit to the vertical acceleration of their walls! o: It's pretty weird considering they're like... Super small animals. Maybe everything is giant and we're just thinking about it the wrong way?

What the hell. No, I don't even know what I'm talking about. Never mind, just never mind.

I'm a Pelly kind of girl

2009-09-30T16:17:00.000-07:00

You know, I'm a Pelly kind of girl. She's nice, you know? Down to earth and all that good stuff. Who doesn't want that? Who wouldn't want to be with a girl who works in the daytime so you could have her at night to do whatever? Like, play cards and make crafts like... Paper plate masks. Apparently, Pete is the opposite. I was walking around town and I noticed him doing nothing when he was supposed to be mailing letters. He said this:

Whoa, right? Whatever happened to those rumors where he was a Pelly kind of guy? Those rumors have come to an end. The truth is right here.

In other news, since when is Physics a guy? Or human for that matter? Does Pascal say anything that's actually, well, rational? How about some rational thinking, man? Yeah. You just blew my mind.
However, he does bring up a valid point. Can you fool the logic of physics? o:

You know that rule where you get 0-3 hybrids per day and how 0 is more often the case when it comes to them? Well, earlier today I got three hybrids. I wasn't expecting any as usual; but sometimes you just get lucky with this sort of thing if you have flowers set up for crossbreeding. What did I get? Well... Pink. Times three.

Don't let the clapping fool you. I guess anyone should be happy with the appearance of hybrids, but I've already gotten pink cosmos and pink tulips. I haven't seen the pink roses yet, but that's not the point. I don't want all these pink flowers! How about some purple for a change? Pink doesn't exactly match the fall theme that's coming up. Pink for Halloween? Go figure.

Did I mention how Elvis isn't the only neighbor I've wanted to get rid of? Yeah, I also wanted to get rid of Rodeo and I got exactly what I wanted there; but now there's this huge blank spot and it looks ugly. Not to mention my bridge is still blocked up by that stupid player's house. Why can't all the map layouts be amazing? And by amazing I mean by there being no houses by my bridges.

Someone, however, managed to fill that spot right up. And who was it? SOMEONE I DON'T WANT IN MY TOWN!

So now I'm back where I started. And speaking of Alli, why won't she let me help her with unpacking? Is she hiding something? That's something you always notice in your town. All of these animals are keeping all these weird secrets. What the hell, man? Also: A couple days back Pinky and some duck... I think it was Pate... Anyway, they were talking about me apparently and were all like: "MAIRE DID WHAT?" So I'm all like what.

So yeah, what?

Bringing back Pascal into this equation...

What?

I don't even want to know. Seriously. Somethings are better left not discussed.

I'm still a Pelly kind of girl~! If I wasn't, I'd be all over Pascal. Maybe he'll let me borrow his clothes - there's a thought. Maybe I'll make a pattern that features his overalls.

Four emote rule

2009-09-29T14:59:00.000-07:00

I don't mind it too much; I only mind it when I have four emotions and I see something I want more and have to replace one of my current emotions. I mean, how many are there exactly? There's around 30 - and when you have to knock that down to four... Well, it's hard.

I mean the thing you have to put into play here is what you want to express. That's hard to narrow down because you don't know what kind of situation you'll be in later on. Whether you want to pose with a certain emotion to amuse yourself or just think it fits, or when it actually fits and you don't look like a complete idiot while you use emotions with just your friends when you're visiting them or vice versa. I mean am I the only one that'll use emotions when I'm near my neighbors and I see them doing something weird or whatever? I'll totally start roleplaying in my head or out loud when I'm alone. Sometimes I get this epic drama in my head and start playing it all out like one of them is my boyfriend or one of my friends that is acting all stuck up (In which case I'll use the angry emote).

Does that make me weird? Yeah, guess so.

The main problem, however, is this four emote rule now. Since I have so much to express normally, I'm lacking the space. I only have delight, glee, sadness... And... Uh... Laughter, right. I only have positive ones for now and I don't want to get rid of them. The only reason I have delight is because clapping can be used to express more than just delight. I mean, I guess when clapping you're signaling delight; but you know what I mean. If anger happened to show up, I'd take it. What would I replace it with, though? At this point I'd probably knock glee out; but what happens if there's something else I like, too? I wouldn't want to get rid of anger or anything else... Maybe I should just switch it up like a normal person every now and then, but what if it takes forever to see the emotions I used to have?

They should just have a list of emotions in the text box somewhere... Like a drop down menu of sorts listing the text of the emotions. I don't care if it's long; I want my damn emotions so I can show the animals in my town I mean business.

Too many fleas during the Flea Market

2009-09-27T15:17:00.000-07:00

Why is it even called a Flea Market? Well, in France there were always a lot of outdoor markets lurking about selling everything from used items to clothing to furniture. Apparently most items had fleas within them; thus the term Flea Market. Gross! However, the name does fit the game with animals and all.

So do you guys really know what you're buying? Ugh! They're probably floating with fleas. Beware of cockroaches or something appearing in your homes, guys.

Well it's time yet again for the monthly Flea Market. I must say I want to strangle those bubbles each time I enter my town, though. I'm not one of those players that plays all day. I'm one of those players that plays Animal Crossing for as little as 30 minutes to about three hours or so at a time depending on what I'm doing. So I come and go a lot is what I'm trying to say.

WHY DOESN'T ANYONE LISTEN?

My first stop was extremely unlucky. Pinky was actually the only neighbor in my town that had a home with more than three items I wanted. But, of course... SICK! Why can't Pinky just suck it up and sell me whatever the hell I want to buy? I figure if I complain about it on the internet Pinky will suck it up and I'll be able to buy something. (Yes, I know that if I open my gates Pinky will be all better. I just didn't think of that until now). DON'T JUDGE ME!

What kind of house is this? This is all trash - complete trash. The trash...iest of trash. Who wants to buy any of that unless that exotic chest is to your liking? Also... That tile; so two decades ago.

And of course... The only thing I wanted at Miranda's house she just couldn't part with. Why doesn't she clean out her house and only set out the things she wants to sell instead of playing mind games with me and getting my hopes up? Stupid duck, stupid town, stupid animals! Everyone blame your mayor and ask for a better Flea Market.

You know; it's only been like ten minutes and I'm already sick of going into my neighbors' houses to try and get some good deals. What's worse is that I have to wait around for like half of my neighbors so they can go inside and sell me what I want. THAT'S IT! I'M GOING TO THE RECYCLING BIN! It's better and it's free. Hmph.

Yeah, it was empty.

Oh, and Elvis? Yeah. For anyone who actually reads my blog you'll know that I hate Elvis. Not just because he picked like the worst location to move to, either. I just don't like him. I'd rather have a penguin or something in my town. :3 So he, once again, rises on my 'To destroy by making a pitfall maze'. Why? Because he wouldn't sell me his Modern Bed. <.<

But I have the monneeeeyy!!

Bull****. I asked for that Low Screen and then she was all lolno so I was all lolyes then I was all angry face and she was all LOL COME BACK SOON. Then I was all =|. Besides, this was actually in a friend's town. The one thing to do when it's Flea Market time is to travel to other towns to get the best experience. The more shopping, the better! And most of the time you get a lot of variety. Even if some animals are mean and don't sell you what you want. (Even though they should, hmph).

And the best part of my day?

Big Top, thank goodness. He wasn't in my town but luckily one of my friends had him in theirs and I totally got his Outdoor Bath for a great price. (It's going to be going into Ga'Hoole's cafe). Which is in the making, by the way. But anyway, look at his house... It's not like he needed the Outdoor Bath or anything. It totally doesn't fit.

AND OH MY GOD.

Is he wearing grass? ;D I should get the Snow Shirt so we can be buddy-buddies.

Luck of the... Dandelion Puffs?

2009-09-26T19:20:00.000-07:00

Today was an extremely lucky day. In case none of you are aware, I haven't been able to get my Wi-Fi working for weeks. It's always been error after error. However, today, finally, for some odd reason... It decided to install with no errors. I can now connect and play online whenever I want to. That means contests are a go for sure in the near future! I met a new friend on AC:CF today, too. He needed a pattern and I could finally give it to him. Here we are in his town acting like royality.

But that isn't where the luck started; oh no. You see, I was walking around town and came across some dandelion puffs. I was kind of surprised because I've never actually found them before in the form where I can pick them up and blow. After I did that, everything fell into place! It was magical. :3

You know, I've always liked these things. They're so much fun. :3 Oh, good thing #2? Guess what town is at Perfect Status again! o: It was actually much harder than I thought it'd be. Who knew?

Aside from that, I've gotten mass amounts of hybrids. I got three today and two tomorrow. (Yes, I did a little time travel). I do that from time to know... You know... Everyone does. ): Poncho still loves me so it's all good. <3

Now if only Elvis would move...

Everyone's a critic

2009-09-25T18:08:00.001-07:00

And when I say this - I really mean it. Really. I don't even know where to start; there's Pete making absolutely ridiculous claims, my town is being, sorry for the term, a bitch, houses are really starting to annoy me, and Harriet... SHE MADE ME LOOK LIKE... LIKE... WELL, A GUY. And not just a guy. An ugly guy; seriously. Worst. Hairstyle. Ever.

So I was walking around town watering flowers because I hadn't played Animal Crossing in a day and I noticed Pete walking around. It was the first time I actually noticed him, so I decided to say hi just to see what I'd get.

And that's exactly what I'm saying! It's true, isn't it? Who wants a typed letter? Not me; I prefer handwritten ones myself. It's a lot nicer seeing someone's actual hand as opposed to a default font that's set on paper. But we don't have the option. Never have, never will. How can he even make such a claim? He's never gotten a handwritten letter because it's not possible! >: They're always typed. And you know, that's really beyond me how it even happens. How do animals type? They can't. Can't write handwritten letters, either. However, neither can you. Have you seen your hands? Ridiculous! That brings me to another point: Tools. How do you use them exactly? You have little spheres for hands; it just doesn't work.

If you've actually read my blog and noticed the landscaping entry, you'll recall how I mentioned to always check your map for something like, well, this. And it's an absolute mess and there's nothing I can do to turn it around any other way. :P Sure, Rodeo can move; but that still leaves the human's house. I should have taken a better look at my map. Luckily the damage isn't too bad. At least the house is kind of off to the side... It would have been a lot better if the player's house and Rodeo's were switched around, though. I'd rather have the spot where the player's house is to be free rather than Rodeo's so my path could actually sync with the bridge. Stupid map layouts! >: I won't even use that house. If someone moves there I'm going to make their life hell. Beware, family!

Now this is probably the biggest problem. I don't know if I've mentioned this yet; but my town hasn't been perfect for a couple days. Pelly keeps saying there's not enough greenery in some areas which I really don't understand. I should have too much to be honest. Pretty much every place in my town is crowded trying to get it to balance out to too much so I can just subtract a couple of things to balance it out to get it perfect again. For example, my huge cluster of flowers in one area:

I guess I could add more and I understand that it could be other areas. I've been adding stuff everywhere, trust me. The good news is that Ga'Hoole should be perfect again in a matter of days with some minor tweaking. I'll really have to crack down on areas that look bare. The only weird part is this is the only area I was working on earlier. (So the only place I took some stuff out of). There were other places, but I was sure I balanced them out. Just goes to show this whole thing is rigged. :( Everyone's a critic. It is a very specific system, though... Just have to be very careful and get everything perfectly organized.

And now for my haircut. Some of you might think it looks cute because of the blonde hair and the blue eyes. The shirt and stockings aren't too shabby either. Maybe the hairpin has a certain effect; but when it comes down to the conclusion, the truth is that I look... Gay. Really.

Any boy's hairstyle does. Why? BECAUSE OF THE DRESS.

DAMN YOU, HARRIET. I KNOW IT WAS MY FAULT BUT WHY CAN'T YOU LET ME FIX THIS BEFORE I LEAVE?

She has terrible fashion sense. How can she actually allow some girl to walk out with a guy's hairstyle or vice versa? It looks kind of weird. No offence to anyone; but look at that. Maybe it's just me and my dislike of short hairstyles.

What. Seriously, what? Maybe I should go dye it pink~!

Landscaping

2009-09-22T15:15:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Ga'Hoole's landscaping guide! Normally when I do this sort of thing my words are all over the place because I have so much to say; but I'll try to keep it as organized as possible for you. To start, let's go over some topics that will be covered. (Hopefully in order)

Know your map
Tools of the trade
Hybirds + Carnations
OK to plant; not OK to plant
Hybrid patterns
Trees
Patterns and how to use them
Tips for landscaping

Before we begin let me first say that if I forget anything and I feel that it should be added, it will be later added in another addition of a post related to landscaping. Let's begin!

Know your map

It's a little messy, but it's home. Your map is probably the most important tool for landscaping. Be sure to always scope your town out before you live your life in Animal Crossing. Check around to see the negatives and positives. Examples of negatives and positives are: Islands +, good places for orchards and gardens +. houses near bridges -, signs near bridges -, signs near important places -, space near the bus stop +, good ramps +, etc. If you have an island; don't worry about it being too hard to navigate with you only having two bridges when you first start off. (Or three if you have an island), you'll have the option of getting a third bridge for your town by donating 200,000 bells to the Town Fund.

Are islands difficult to get as your default layout? Certainly not. A lot of people mention how islands are a lot rarer than your everyday, simple layout. That's not true. The truth behind the matter is there's a lot of programmed layouts already; many of them having an island and many of them not having an island. It's all about luck I suppose since it's random. Just keep restarting until you get the layout you want.

On my map I've numbered some important places for gardens and such. My layout is pretty good in terms of growing flowers and trees, however, that little spot on the right-hand side of the bridge at the bottom is pretty useless to me. :P Just remember: Location Location Location.

Tools of the Trade

Your three tools are the shovel, the axe, and the watering can. All having three stages: Normal, Silver, and Golden.

~Shovels~
Normal: Tom Nook's shop. Nothing special about it, performs the basic shovelling out stumps, getting buried items, and a tool you need to obtain the golden shovel.

Silver: You'll get this from Resetii in the City. (If his little center is open to you). Aside from performing the basic tasks, the silver shovel will double the bells you get from growing money trees by 10%.

Golden: This allows you to actually plant bells to grow money trees.

~Axes~

Normal: Performs your everyday cutting needs, but will break after being used to a certain extent.

Silver: This axe will not break no matter how many times you use it.

Golden: Allows you to chop faster than the previous two. It also doesn't break like the silver axe.
*You get the Golden and Silver axe from Serena. You'll find her by throwing a normal axe into the fountain which you must donate 500,000 bells for after you've donated and built the bridge by donating 200,000 bells.

~Watering Cans~

Normal: Allows you to water your flowers.

Silver: Received from Posy Farm after purchasing 50 flower seeds from Tom Nook. Also aside from basic watering, it has a 9-square radius.

Golden: Looks awesome and you receive it for free after having your town at Perfect Status for 15 days in a row. It also allows you to make golden roses by watering a black wilted rose. The golden can has a 9-square radius much like the silver.

Flower Seeds: Bought from Tom Nook's shop for 40 bells each. (Or less depending on if he has a sale).

Saplings: Bought from Tom Nook for 80 bells.
Cedar Saplings: Bought from Tom Nook for 60 bells.

Hybrids + Carnations

I'm not going to spend any time on giving you a list of possible hybrid combinations. Guides like that are everywhere. Actually, if you really don't know where to find a good one; just google it. Seriously. You'll find a good one for sure. I will, however, say that carnations can be obtained on Mother's Day and Father's Day.

OK to plant, not OK to plant

When planting trees, make sure they're at least one space apart from eachother.

When planting trees near water, be sure to be careful. Try to get them at least two spots away from rivers. This allows for more space while fishing. Planting trees right near bodies of water will make them die.

When planting trees near the border lines of your town, make sure that they're at least one space away and again; a space apart from eachother.

Beware of signs! Planting flowers near signs is a very, very bad thing to do. If a villager happens to move there any flower in range of the house will vanish and you'll never see them again. Don't think that having flowers there will ensure that no house will be set up there. The following picture contains shoveled in spaces where you shouldn't plant. Anywhere else aside from them is fine.

So don't do this:

Or this:

Don't set your hybrid combinations near anything. Try to get them in some open space. In otherwords, not near hills, trees, signs, buildings, animal's houses, etc. So for example, don't do this:
ESPECIALLY if Nook hasn't fully upgraded yet. If he hasn't, planting them directly beside will ruin your flowers.

So what about ponds? What can you plant there? I'll admit that planting flowers near those holding ponds look pretty; so feel free to do that. When planting trees near flower ponds, make sure they're far enough so that they look something like this:

Don't be afraid to plant near houses, though. If they're already there, you have nothing to lose! Planting a couple flowers near a villagers' home looks nice and you don't look like the bad guy stealing flowers and planting them in locations you want such as your house.

What else looks nice? Bridges! Bridges are a great place to do some landscaping. Feel free to plant some flower paths near bridges to brighten them up a bit. It's really nice that there's plenty of space for it. Even when the bridges are on an angle. (You can still do two flowers on each side going diagonally). It looks nice!

Trees can also warm up near bridges. If the location is right, you could put two trees on either side. (Make sure to space it out a bit, though).

Also when planting trees try to avoid planting them near the edges. Try to stray a little bit from there. Don't avoid it altogether, just be careful. Something like this:

It can be tricky with the edges not being straight, but as long as your two spaces out it shouldn't ever be a problem. Want flowers on the edges? Go for it! It's not like the only flowers planted need to grow hybrids. Mix it up a little! All flowers look nice; hybrid or non-hybrid.

Hybrid Patterns

These you'll certainly have to mix up and experiment with. There are the obvious ones being side to side and diagonally:

But mix it up a bit! Try something new!

There's tons of ways to make hybrids. Just get creative! I would recommend going simple on pathways, though. The simple horizontal crossbreeding works wonders.

Trees

Be careful with them, as stated. Remember that cedar saplings can only grow in the top two acres. (So going from the top; 32 spaces down). Any farther and they won't grow. Normal saplings will grow anywhere, you can plant flowers pretty much anywhere, saplings anywhere, coconut trees will only grow on the bottom acre, however. Just make sure not to plant them in the sand! In order to obtain a coconut; check the beach everyday. One might wash up. Remember that you can also plant fruit in the ground anywhere to get fruit trees. Also remember that running on saplings that have just been planted will not have an effect on growth. Watering will have no effect, either. All you need is time... And planting the trees in a proper location.

Patterns and how to use them

Never and I mean NEVER cover your entire town with patterns. Have little areas for them; but nothing more. Don't put pathways ALL through town, either. Just certain areas where you think you need them. With my layout I could easily pull off connecting them to make certain gardens without having them go everywhere and looking out of order. You can make simple flower patterns, blanket patterns, beach towel patterns, you know; little things to spice your town up a bit. Don't really bother with themes unless it's something small. They're a real hassle and they trash a good town look. You can't drop items, either. Or shoot down presents, etc. It's also a hassle if you have more than eight. The chances of you accidently picking up patterns is very high and it's annoying to switch characters every once and awhile to clear your mistakes.

Don't put them on bridges or around houses, either. It looks terrible, trust me. Just remember to use patterns in moderation. I have nothing against themes, really... They just don't work out in most cases. Every once and awhile is fine if you have the time and only want to do it for a couple days. They can look really cool; but really take out from the true landscaping factor.

Tips for landscaping

Aside from what's been said, just have fun with it. Plant trees in certain patterns, have walk-in gardens, put gates around some of your flowers, have a couple gates set up with flowers near buildings. (For example):

It can look really cool!

If you want to lay out flowers with walkway patterns, make sure to have them at least have two beside eachother or three. Don't have a path consisting of a single 1x1 pattern going around town. It looks really ugly and it's not big enough. You can switch around from larger ones. (Don't go any bigger than four for a path, though). You can use your walkway patterns as a square or something, though. For your bus stop is just an example. You can even make bench patterns!

When garderning make sure to have a specific plan. If you want patterns, lay them out first and have your natural things follow so they don't get in the way. My #1 tip is to cut EVERYTHING down and start completely fresh so you have everything the way you want it. Don't always go for a perfect town; that's never any fun. :P Make a theme using natural scenes. You'll never go wrong with that.

Here are my two favorite pattern designs of all time. They're really easy to make and can add a real kick to your town:

Remember: If you aren't having fun with it, you aren't landscaping. Try to make one heck of a town! Good luck, guys. Make it original! :D

Just a PS; huge walk-in gardens are really nice. You can dedicate a whole area of your town for it. It looks awesome. <3

It's also good to note that landscaping takes a lot of time and patience. If you don't have either... Get both. Also note that it's fine to time travel a couple days into the future to get things organized. Just make sure it's only a couple days in the future and you water any plants if you're going forward. After about 3-4 days, make sure you go back. If there's more you need to grow or you want grown ASAP, time travel back to your original date and go in the future a little bit more. The day you're going to go back, don't bother watering your flowers. They won't die going backwards a couple days to get to the current date. Remember to water them once you're back, though... Or you're looking at some dead flowers tomorrow!

Question mark?

2009-09-20T13:07:00.001-07:00

No, it isn't a bargain and no, I will not buy your flowers! Why must Tom Nook always do this every time you buy something? The little jingle that comes along with his questioning face every time you stand in front of his wares and press 'A' or tap it. Do you know how annoying that is? Especially when you're buying a lot of items? Rawr, Tom Nook, rawr!

He's lucky I don't steal them. I mean, come on... How hard is it to grab a pouch off the shelf? It's not like he's fast enough to catch you or anything. (Even though he does follow you around the entire store no matter where you walk. How about some privacy while I shop, Mr. Nook? >: Then again... His last upgrade does seem pretty high tech. I'm sure there's some sort of security system with this thing. Darn!

But speaking of security systems... You know who doesn't have one? Redd! What does Redd do... ?

The samething, of course! Salesanimals these days. They just can't take no for an answer. Speaking of the above image, though... Who wants to buy a brown drum? It looks so ugly; stop trying to push your sales! You're a terrible salesanimal with... Uh... Terr-i-craaaaazzzy prices! However, quality does come into play. Redd doesn't know anything about that, though. Who does? GracieGrace! I shall take my money elsewhere!

. . .

DO NOT WANT!

So what are the differences between these places? Tom Nook is a sad sap if you don't buy his goods, but he deals with it. The prices are OK, though and he certainly does have a great selection. Redd is just a moron with a good printer that prints exact replicas of paintings and tries to get you to buy his wares no matter what... And GracieGrace is for those snooty animals who think they're all that. In other words; anyone with money to afford that stuff. But, seriously? 220,000 for a dresser? I'm taking my money elsewhere! HMPH!

What else annoys me with these animals... Oh, right! Elvis. I don't really have anything against the animal; I mean, if you like him... That's great and all, but personally? Yeah. I want him out. Now. So what does that mean? I've been pushing him into pitfalls everyday and pushing him all over town to make him mad. :3 I tried hitting him with my net; but it didn't work. :( And what does he say right after I push him in the hole? He complains about his keys! Yeah, right! I'm not finding those for you, buddy. :/ I'm denying every request you give me.

Now for your viewing pleasure; here's Elvis screaming like a little girl:

His catchphrase suits him, don'tcha think? (He came to my town with that, by the way). It's not like I changed it to that or anything...

Seriously, I didn't. Though I wish I would have had the chance! ;_;

The Bug Off; where the Bug Off actually means Bug 'Off'

2009-09-19T17:08:00.000-07:00

Hey, pro tip: If you ever want to take part in a Bug Off make sure you do so in the morning. Personally, I forgot all about it; even when I went into my file to see the "Hey, everybody, The Bug Off is starting!" Why didn't I bother? I was only there to take care of the everyday touch-ups. Water my flowers, check town for a new Jacob's Ladder or other hybrids, check Tom Nook's shop, check Able's, talk to a few neighbors, mail a few letters; you know, the usual.

So what did I do? I waited until 5:30 PM to look for bugs. That was 30 minutes before it ended. Let's just say I had, like, no time whatsoever with the whole thing. Apparently Rodeo was in the lead with some mantis at 54 points. I went to a friend's town who was earlier in the day and you know who was winning? Winnie with a mantis; 60 points worth. What's worse? I could only see grasshoppers and bell crickets. That certainly doesn't help me!

In the fields? Where are these fields? Oh! You mean the grass, right? I tried that already - no luck. Seriously. BELL CRICKETS ARE DEAD TO ME. Hills? What? He wants me to climb the ramps every couple of seconds? How does that help me hunt for bugs? Oh, wait! I get it now. He wants me to jump off cliffs with my net and umbrella hoping to float over a bug and get it good with my golden net. Did I ever mention how horrid I am when it comes to catching bugs? Makes me wonder how I ever got my golden net. So onto another story. When I was hunting for bugs in that last 30 minutes I found a bell cricket hopping around. It was in front of me; so I swung my net and missed. Twice. Worst part? It didn't even move.

Maybe I'm not even built for The Bug Off. I mean, have you seen my arms? They're noodles with rocks attacked to the end of them. Small rocks... More like pebbles. They're bigger than my feet, though. Maybe that's what I have to start doing? Use something smaller. That's a sight; gripping my net with my feet running around on my hands. This, my friends, is advanced technology at work.

Anyway, after seeing only five bell crickets, two grasshoppers, and one red dragonfly; I decided to give up. The bugs certainly weren't flying today. Or crawling... Hopping... Standing still - whatever bugs do.

How can this... Animal... Be better at catching bugs than me? :( I'm prettier, I have a golden net, and my shoes... They're so much better! ... But that's because he doesn't wear shoes. Unless he just has flesh for feet and those shoes were bought. Eww! Is that what Gracie sells now? Animal feet?

No wonder there aren't any bugs... Someone else is stealing them. Gracie is going to use them for her new line to follow up her animal feet - bug toes! So anyway... I didn't win The Bug Off. :( I think I got 30 points for one bug, though. That's a start! Especially when all the bugs in my town are being used for all these hip trends. That's just groovy, man.

Snooping isn't all that great

2009-09-18T18:05:00.000-07:00

Well, you can't exactly blame me for wanting in on whatever my neighbors are talking about when I'm walking around and notice two animals facing each other with a '!' over their heads. What's fun about walking right past and missing out on the gossip? I suppose some people choose to be courteous and in this case... I wish that's what I would have done.

So to start things off simple; this was between Static and Caroline. Personally, I hate them both and I hope they both leave town so they can be replaced with reasonable neighbors. >: I swear, every time I see one of them or talk to one of them they're always causing trouble. Not to mention both of their houses are in terrible locations. It's a good thing Static talked to me about moving earlier. Anyway, we're getting off topic here. Here's the pin-point of the conversation:

Basically I was minding my own business watering my plants and noticed them talking to each other so I decided to run over and start listening in. (Seriously, though, you'd think they'd notice me standing there listening and watching them. I thought animals had heightened senses? Damn chipmunks. So Static started making fun of Caroline's face. He said something was there, and she freaked out for no apparent reason. He then proceeded to tell her to move her hands up and down. She didn't find anything, so she asked him to do it.

Yeah, what. That's exactly what I said. W-H-A-T. If I didn't see the 'Oh, it was just your eyes' at the end of that, I would have seriously been creeped out. Even so; that's mean. :( (Even though her eyes are really ugly).

Remember guys; only listen in when it's the cool kids talking. Poncho, for example. <3 But animals with the jock personality always have something funny to say. Snooty can be funny if you like listening to animals bash each other. I think it's pretty mean, actually.

It being mean towards anyone except Caroline, that is. :P

SPECIAL NOTE
This weekend will probably have a lot of entries. I have the Bug Off to do tomorrow, my landscaping guide will be finalized and posted tomorrow, and I'll have more define categories for my entries. (So new colorful banners and more to write about!) With what I have now it just seems... Limited. Like a category or two are missing.

Poems might also be added in the near future. I'll try to keep them all AC:CF related. :P

Striking Fashions

2009-09-17T16:28:00.000-07:00

*Left click images for fullsize*

One thing I never try to do in City Folk is to actually follow a certain outfit or theme. It's just not me; I'd rather go all over the place with my outfits and create something truly striking. Most of the time my outfits are just simple, you know? No big thrill at all - just original.

Let's take a look at our fall plaid shirt. A perfect piece for this time of the year.

You'll notice a couple things in this picture. For one (and I'm telling you now), I love pink hair. It goes with almost anything. Same with the star shades, for the most part. It's one of the most useful, overpriced accessories you'll find in the game at Gracie's. It doesn't look good with those cute hair styles, though. Stick to grown-up styles when wearing your shades. Unique in some cases as well. The one thing that's wrong here are the shoes. Try to avoid these dress shoes unless you're a male wearing something down-right fancy. Sure, it looks good with some white or white and green/pink outfits; but otherwise... No.

First glance: The Jacob's Ladder doesn't work here, right? Wrong. Looks sexy with the pink hair and the pink outfit. The dress shoes look OK here, but they still don't pop well enough.

Now, if you want to have a certain outfit, go with some white hair and sport an accessory that just doesn't fit. For example, a witch:

Just so you're in the loop; white hair really works well here. One hairstyle for females that normally always fits an outfit is the grown-up style where you select the following options: Grown-Up > Elegant > Receive. Now, how about we sport this outfit with some star shades?

Coolest person in your town for sure. Just look at that Orange bunny balloon! Work those shades! Strut your stuff! (I'll confirm that when I got on the bus to head back to Ga'Hoole that Kapp'n wanted to take me to an island).

Alright. Now let's get rid of that hat and sport something where we'll see that lovely white hair. (Pink or white hair, seriously. THE. BEST. COLORS. Aside from a brown on certain occasions).

See? Doesn't that balloon just look lovely as you skip along to wait for the bus? A Jacob's Ladder goes like peanut butter and jelly with white hair, by the way. But if you want to add some more green to your look; why not go for the Jacob's Ladder and a Kiwi shirt?

Lovely. Maybe some orange/brown? Let's get rid of the accessory and try this with our white hairstyle.

Looks lovely in the twilgiht; an orange/brown outfit. AND THAT WHITE HAIR? I CAN'T STRESS ENOUGH HOW HOT WHITE HAIR LOOKS. But enough of that. Normally adding a hat that's the same color as your hair doesn't work out too often, but this badge hat is one of the most amazing hats ever. It has the perfect fit for any female and looks good with just about anything.

We're also sporting a new outfit here. A nice pink one to match the pink badge on the badge hat. (I haven't changed my shoes yet, though... Even though I should).

To be honest, however, the badge hat looks good with ponytails. Specially the ones where you have three bits of hair sticking out and the one that sticks out in the back. This one, to be specific:

Your hair looks great. And those pink shoes with that green shirt? Striking. In order to get that hairstyle, go the grown-up route. Then Alluring > I'll say, Back off!

Now if you want this to match somewhat, get rid of the badge hat and change your outfit. This next one is a custom pattern; A Rover shirt. Looks great with white, light brown, or blonde hair.

The red shoes look lovely with this custom pattern.

You know what else looks good? STAR SHADES! And a prism shirt; same style, of course:

The different colors with that white... MMmMMMmm.

Hello, teacher? Yeah! The students called; they want to know where you bought your outfit!

Indeed. I'll only say this once, those Funky Shades and that Turnip top go together for the perfect grown-up look with your grown-up hairstyle. Make it white and you'll look tight. You'll end up getting comments like this from your neighbors:

And what man or animal wouldn't? Look how original and grown-up you look! Did you notice my shoes? Hot, aren't they? Probably my favorite since the stockings that come with the shoe style are amazingly hot and smoking for lack of better adjectives. Now, for a more simple look:

Perfect for a small get-together with friends. Especially when you're giving them a tour. For a final piece, never say anything bad about your grandparents taste in fashion. There's one piece that just screams 'Hot!' when you put it with this outfit. What item is that? The Grandpa Hat. It looks lovely and everything pulls together. The colors match to a certain extent, but honey... You certainly don't; even when it looks lovely. Pull on some star shades with this outfit and you'll be making this cloudy sky go away in two seconds flat.

And you look cool and daring looking out over this cliff as a bonus!

Now remember, it isn't about what you wear; it's how you wear it. Don't bother with all that matching-trying-to-complete an outfit thing. It'll all go better if you're original and get your own style. Mix around with certain things. This is why we have accessories! Change your outfit often. It's not fun to walk around in the samething everyday. Stay fresh and don't let Gracie walk all over you. The truth is, you're way more fashionable than her with any look.

Remember that simple is always striking, too. Create a simple white pattern and add some pink lines at the bottom to make it pop slightly. It all depends on what eyes your character has and what hairstyle you have going on. Shoes make the difference, too. Try matching by color if it looks right. Sometimes going by style is a good route to pick, but it all depends.

So stay simple, get original. Do whatever. Make your own fashion statement and walk around town like it's no one's business. Accept dates, live the high life...

And get a lot of money. You'll blow over 50,000 a week with hair changes, buying accessories, clothes, and flowers to make hybrids for your hair. Especially if you buy some stuff at Gracie's. Some of her accessories and outfits look amazing. Don't always buy them together... Sometimes a hat from a set or an article of clothing looks fine on its own. Mix and match those accessories, girlfriends!

Ga'Hoole is perfect! (Bonus content included)

2009-09-14T12:48:00.001-07:00

*Left click the images to view the full-size*

Before I begin, I just want to start off by admitting I've never actually received 'Perfect Town' status. It wasn't because I had no knowledge of Animal Crossing, it was because I was always too lazy to mark acres and plant a certain amount of flowers and trees in them; that was it. And that's all it ever is. Getting a perfect town is nothing more than patience. If you've been playing Animal Crossing you'll know exactly what I mean. Anyone can get perfect status... It isn't complicated... It isn't hard... It's just time consuming. That's why I've never truly gotten around to it. That, however, changes today! Also, I recently started playing City Folk again on August 31st. :P So it took me 15 days to get around to actually completing it. I also want to say that during this Daily Journal you'll find a lot of tips that involve anything landscape-related in Animal Crossing: City Folk. You can count on the next entry to be a guide on landscaping now that I've pretty much mastered it myself. (Not just because I have a perfect town).

Proof! Ha ha!

You know, I'm going to tell you another story. I never expected to get a perfect town. Sure, I cut down every single tree and took all the flowers from around town and bought a bunch; but I never actually formatted my town to make sure I planted trees and flowers accordingly to ensure I got perfect status once I was done. I planted all of them to my liking putting trees in flowers near cool patterns and placing them near paths or putting them in a certain position just to make my town look, well, original. And that's what I'm all about and what Animal Crossing is for everyone. Originality.

I wasn't going to make this entry, but I decided it might as well be special so I decided to go around town and take some pictures of my gardens and such. (Please note that these aren't all of the main gardens I have. There's a lot more in certain areas of my town; I just decided to pick out a couple favorites and other important locations around Ga'Hoole).

The first Jacob's Ladder to appear in Ga'Hoole

I suppose it is somewhat important to notice that picture wasn't taken today. I actually was roaming around town yesterday when I found a Jacob's Ladder randomly. At first, I thought: "Wait, a Jacob's Ladder? My town isn't perfect..." So after I found that I ran straight to Town Hall to talk to Pelly about the environment to find that Ga'Hoole reached 'Perfect Status'. That's when I got pretty excited considering I've never seen that before. :P I've never owned a legit Jacob's Ladder. Speaking of hybrids now, I don't have a lot of those around my town either. I believe at the moment I have around four. Having your town at perfect status won't make hybrids appear any faster, but I will get more gradually. All it takes is time, good location for your flowers, and a sliver watering can! That's right; not normal, not gold. Silver. And I'll tell you why right now. A normal watering can performs the exact operation you need to keep your flowers alive. Liquid to ensure they stay alive without wilting. A Golden Watering can is a nice tool to have, but I don't recommend asking someone to use theirs. That's not what Animal Crossing is about! Don't you want your own watering can? It's not the same when you borrow someone else's to achieve your goals. Things don't work that way and it certainly doesn't matter. Those golden roses can wait! A silver watering can won't turn wilted black roses gold, but it will encrease your chances of getting hybrids by watering your flowers. (10%) It also has the same 9-square radius as your golden can has. Basically... A win-win situation. In order to get this silver watering can, buy flowers from Nook's shop everyday. Once you've purchased 50, you'll get a letter in the mail from Posy Farm with their thanks. Your reward? The silver watering can!

Below are pictures of all three cans together going from the left; watering can, silver watering can, golden watering can. Also a copy of the letter you'll get from Posy Farm. straight from Maire's mailbox! :D

Shown above the red and yellow pansies are purple flowers from the pansies family. (redxred)

Where exactly is this Posy Farm? It's a mystery! Tune in later for details on an upcoming creative writing contest. The winner will receive 100,000 bells!

Now? Where exactly is that bonus content I promised you? :P Below, as stated, will just be some of Ga'Hoole's hot spots. Again, please keep in mind that what you're about to see isn't my entire town. Just very, very small fragments of some of my favorite spots. (Not that my town is any bigger than yours or anything).

To start, my town has an island in the bottom center. It was random and took eleven retries to get. That doesn't mean islands are rare or anything; they certainly aren't. There's tons of pre-set town layouts and a great deal of them contain some sort of island. You just have to keep restarting until you get something that fits you! (There are limited layouts, though). There's not like, 500 different town layouts. More like... Uh... Well, more than 30! D: Less than 100 probably.

So, what's next for Ga'Hoole?

Let's recap for the rest of September (In no particular order)

In-depth fishing disasters of Ga'Hoole
Simple landscaping guide
Fashion Fever for the fall
In-depth look at how I decorate
The Bug-Off
Flea Market trash bash
Creative writing contest (This one might not happen this September, perhaps October)

And whatever else happens to pop up during the rest of the month. Check back soon!

Fish are evil

2009-09-12T11:32:00.001-07:00

They're mean because they try to avoid my fishing rod. Literally. As always I'm low on bells because I like to spend them on nothing important. You know, go to the city and spend it on nonsense like a new hairstyle everyday or buy whatever furniture I see. To just keep this short and simple, every time I cast the line out into the ocean the fish moved and changed its direction to face away from me and kept going farther away.

Yeah. I can't even keep count on how many times I needed to cast and re-cast my rod. :( And by the time it actually started to face me, it bit the line right away and I was like "WHOA. WAIT, WHAT!?" The one time it decides to bite I'm off guard. :( Fish hate me. I guess it's not a good thing to mention that I also have both a golden rod and a silver rod handy. It kind of surprises me, too. How I got that golden rod that is. :P I guess it's all in timing and getting a good cast. I still say fish are evil. Especially to me.

EVERYTHING HATES ME AND I CAN PROVE IT.

Join me next time when I give you an in-depth walkthrough of my journey eyeing the river for fish. Will I get lucky? Maybe. Will something happen? Most likely. Will that something be positive? Not a chance.

I think.

Why do you play Animal Crossing?

2009-09-10T15:54:00.000-07:00

Watering Flowers. It's just something you have to do if you want your flowers to survive for a couple days in City Folk. You know, I've been playing Animal Crossing since the release of the one on the GCN in 2002. You could plant flowers in that game; but you couldn't water them. Why? Because there was no watering can! That's right! No silver, no gold, not even a plain old one from Nook's. Sure, watering flowers gives you something to do and it's add to a more realistic environmental party of Animal Crossing, but how annoying is it when you have more than 100 flowers spread across town and you have to water all of them!

It makes me wonder about why so many people play Animal Crossing. What's so fun about planting flowers, loading your game everyday to water them, and try to set your flowers in patterns to try and grow hybrids? Pressing A in front of flowers is fun? Since when! But it actually is... To a certain extent, anyway.

Yeah, there's more to Animal Crossing than just watering flowers; but you have to admit. Watering them every single day is annoying. Everything in Animal Crossing is daily, too. You don't have to do all the activities daily, however, you're always doing the samething whether you think you are or not. You're always going after different goals. Paying off your house, planting trees, planting flowers, catching bugs or fish, attending certain festivals, going to neighbors houses, maybe venturing off to the city, trying to get a couple new tools, collecting certain things, trying to invent your own kind of 'Animal Crossing'.

Personally, I've always found Animal Crossing to be a fun series. A generic, yet interesting concept. It has this certain... 'Addicting' appeal to it that keeps you playing to do whatever you need or want to do with your town. It has something for everyone, really. Different furniture series and themes for different kinds of players, clothes, seasons to explore, sports. (Yes, fishing and catching bugs is considered a sport!) It's just not everyday you get a game that has a realistic appeal towards everyone. (Not saying Animal Crossing is realistic, but you know what I mean. So why do I like it? There's just always something to do. Even if you're just playing for ten minutes everyday it's nice to get into your home away from home and get a couple things done. It's especially fun when you're first starting getting everything organized. The longest I've played Animal Crossing continuously was for about two years; then I started to drift off and leave it for a year before I picked up the controller again.

I just turned on my game yesterday after playing for the previous week just to water the flowers and to say 'Hi' to one of my neighbors, Poncho, The animals have various personalities in which case one of them can at least come close to matching mine - which makes him pretty funny and 'cool', for lack of a better word, to me. Now... Speaking of flowers, I recently cut down every tree in my town just to put down some patterns and arrange the flowers to my liking. Then I planted the trees. Everywhere. It took awhile, but it was actually sort of fun. Landscaping is just part of the adventure!

What keeps you playing?

Hot Date... With Poncho!

2009-09-04T11:15:00.000-07:00

*To view the full-size of the images, right click them and select 'View Image'.*

Earlier today I was walking around town when I saw Poncho perk up and run over to me. I figured he was excited; I was getting pretty excited, too. He asked me if I wanted to crash over at his place for a little bit. I happily obliged and set our date up for 8:30 PM.

It started out really well. Almost normal, really. What's the first thing you think of when you're in a house with a bear? Run away like hell. Not in this case, though. Poncho was super sweet and decided to tell me about his little 'Work-out' buddies.

Getting a bit turned on, I decided to ask if I could have a go. He responded:

... Was all I could say so I decided to push around the furniture a bit to work up my upper and lower body strength. It's a good thing I did because Poncho started talking about doing some trial runs with him.

So I headed over to the sofa and asked Poncho about it. He said cherry soda spitting out of it was normal, so I grabbed some couch and started my work-out with him. As Poncho would say, I was getting pretty 'Pumped up' from this experience. Luckily he had just the solution for me:

Glad that Poncho was into it as well, I began turning things around with my newly acquired muscles. I started to get a little breathless so I decided to stop with all the work-outs. Hoping we were going to get somewhere, I started a conversation about wrestling. He said having too much furniture would really cramp his style. Not enough space for wrestling mats!

Glad you were thinking of me, sugar. So since I finally built up the courage and was getting a bit too excited from his major turn-on, I decided to go in for the kill. Since he was so into 'Touching and turning", I spoke to him again.

... But was really let down.

Daily Journal - Jail Break!

2009-08-31T21:42:00.000-07:00

By the time I finished planting the flowers I bought from Tom Nook's shop, it was rather late... Closing time, to be exact. 1 AM and playing Animal Crossing? Sometimes I just get so caught up in the game I can't break away from the essence. It's weird because --

WHAT!

There I was, about to save... When I saw a black creature approach my door. When I say creature I'm not trying to be mean to the animals or anything; but there was a big, black... SPIDER! It kept running into my door like it was trying to break in. I was standing a few spots behind, so it wasn't scared or anything. Yet. I whipped out my net from my pocket and paced up slowly trying not to scare it. Too late... I did. The odd thing was that it kept racing into my door. Yeah, right. You're not getting in there! So I swung my net.

... And missed. ._. I guess I'm not one of the better ones when I have a net in my hand. I'm better with hitting neighbors on the head even though I tend to miss them, too. I swear it's the Wii remote's fault! Not mine! But that wasn't even the worst of it. After I missed the spider (or tarantula to be exact), he thought it'd be a good idea to chase me away. Finally. Why didn't he think of this before? He wanted to see my expression when I missed? Are you telling me those things can predict the future now? D: At least he wasn't chasing me all over town. :) It was a simple bite for Mr. Spider, but I will have my revenge!

That reminds me... If cockroaches can break in my house, what are the chances of those things breaking loose? I saw three that night. They're probably going to gang up on me. What if they come back? Eat Poncho first! Not me! ;___; However, it is August 31st... So I guess I won't have to carry my net around every step of the way expecting to run into one of them. Game over, guys. Wait until next year. ;)