![]() If the number of words are way less than expected on the finder page, please make sure you're not applying too much filter via advanced options. Unjumble words for for text twist, scrabble, words with friends etc or this one for solving crossword puzzles. Words with all combination of letters ( three letter and two letter words), you may use this text twist solver, that also Note: The top row on jumble solver displays only the words matching exactly with the letters, except when you use the advanced options or if you make use of any blank tiles (represented by space or ?). It will display the following words containing all the input letters. You enter elvi and hit the "Solve it" button. ![]() Here is a simple example to help you understand how this solver works. The consistent practice of noticing patterns of letters and words will help you be a better player in Scrabble, Boggle, Words With Friends, and more! Keep solving and playing jumble word games, it’s a fun and beneficial way to spend your time. Also, writing helps cement the puzzle into your memory, so you will start to better understand patterns that will help you succeed at Words with Friends and Scrabble in the future.Īside from just being fun and mentally stimulating, solving word jumbles has a variety of other benefits. When you write out the letters of the puzzle, it will help your brain make all the possible letter combinations to solve the puzzle. When it comes to solving word scramble puzzles, a piece of scrap paper can be a major help to you. Some other common patterns and letter combinations are ST, PH, and CK. If there’s a Q, there is most likely a U, and that will also give you a jump start on the solution. What patterns am I talking about? For example, look for double consonants like LL or SS, because there’s a good chance they might be together in the word. Once again, this skill helps you when playing Words with Friends and Scrabble, too. Once you identify these letter patterns in a puzzle, you will be able to quickly solve the puzzle after. Noticing patterns of letters in words will help you quickly and efficiently solve jumble word puzzles. It will help you easily identify the word lost within the scramble of letters. Once you identify whatever prefixes and/or suffixes are in your jumble, it will be simple from you to solve the puzzle from there. Some of the most common prefixes are:Īnd some of the most common suffixes are: It’s incredibly helpful when solving a word jumble to first identify all the prefixes and suffixes. Whether or not the jumble word game your playing provides any images or clues, here are some tips to be an excellent puzzle solver. ![]() Or maybe you could use this to cheat (sometimes) and win :-) In handy when you're stuck for long, use it as a learning tool or to solve disputes among your friends. So, if you frequently play daily jumble (or similar word puzzle), this little site might come (think of it like a single word anagram). You enter the jumbled/scrambled words and it tells you the possible words or answers, that can be made from those letters Solving word jumble games will sharpen your ability to unscramble words quickly and sufficiently. You get a rack of 7 random letters and you have to unscramble the letters to find the best word for your turn. In those games, you’re theoretically always solving a word jumble puzzle. These types of puzzles will help you develop your skills and get better at games like Words with Friends and Scrabble. With a word jumble puzzle, you start with a random scramble of letters and you have to find the word within the jumble. The difference between an anagram and a word jumble is that with an anagram you start with an existing word and you jumble the letters to create new ones. Anagrams are all the words that can be created with the letters of one word or phrase. ![]() Jumble games involve the skill of solving anagrams. Other times, all you have are the jumbled letters. Sometimes, clues are provided to help you figure out the puzzle. Jumble Solver helps you solve such puzzles faster by using some clue such as scrambled letters or so.Ī Jumble or Scramble Word Game is a game where a mixed up set of letters are provided and you have to unscramble the letters to find the word. Jumble is a word puzzle which is played by scrambling the letters to make an anagram, based on some clue. ![]()
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![]() They watch collectors’ magazines for ads for “retired” or “suspended” designs that have escalated in value. Throughout America, collectors avidly scour swap meets for the figures. Outside, under a tent, collectors are playing “Wheel of Fortune” with names of Precious Moments figurines. “Those who have suffered the loss of a loved one find comfort.” “Sam has an unbelievable talent for tugging at people’s heartstrings,” says Freedman. Visitors dab at their eyes as they pause before it. He has dedicated a small room at the center to him and there he has painted a mural with teardrop-eyed angels bidding Philip, “Welcome Home.” His son, Philip, was killed last year in a car accident. “They remind us of things we’ve been through in our lives, our ups and downs.”īutcher understands that. The figurines “mean that much to us,” she explains. Oklahomans Debbie and David Kendall have been waiting three hours. “When I’m here,” he says, “I live in the garage.” Tourists don’t come through there.Ĭarol Osterberger, a collector from Independence, is punching holes in conventioneers’ badges, “so they don’t go through the line again and get another one signed.” She is wearing a vest inscribed, “Sam’s Angels.” But the truth is that, although his home on the complex is a tourist attraction, he divides his time between homes in Chicago-close to Enesco-and the Philippines, where he does evangelical work with children and where Precious Moments soft dolls are made. ![]() Today, Freedman says, the figurines, plates, ornaments, jewelry, mugs and all add up to “in excess of $100 million a year” in sales.Ĭarthage is proud to call Butcher a Carthaginian. ![]() The first, “Love One Another,” a boy and girl on a tree stump, just took off. At a friend’s urging, he drew a modest greeting card line that debuted at a Christian booksellers event in Anaheim.Įnesco president/CEO Eugene Freedman saw the potential of those drawings and, in 1978, they hit the gift shops in three dimensions. In the mid-’70s, he was a “chalk minister,” teaching children about God through his drawings. Butcher, 52, who once supplemented his income as a part-time janitor and bought clothes for his seven children at the Salvation Army, acknowledges that Precious Moments has made him a very rich man, “but a grateful one.” ![]() ![]() ![]() At the time, this institution was in serious financial difficulty but, under Watson’s vigorous leadership, it became financially sound and is now an international leader in genetic research. While continuing his duties at Harvard, James Watson became Director of the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory on Long Island. In the same year, James Watson married the former Elizabeth Lewis. Watson on the headtable at the American Academy of Achievement’s 1991 Banquet of the Golden Plate. Powell, USA, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Dr. Golden Plate Awards Council member General Colin L. Throughout the ensuing controversy, Watson insisted that devotion to the truth was as essential in writing for the general public as it is in scientific research. The book became an international bestseller, but some in the scientific community were scandalized by Watson’s less-than-flattering portrayal of his own colleagues. In 1968 Watson published his account of the DNA discovery, The Double Helix. In recognition of their discovery, Francis Crick and James Watson shared the 1962 Nobel Prize for Physiology and Medicine with Maurice Wilkins. Dyson during the 1987 Banquet of the Golden Plate ceremonies in Scottsdale. Crick, recipient of the Nobel Prize and the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA, receiving the American Academy of Achievement’s Golden Plate Award from theoretical physicist Dr. ![]() Watson addressing the Academy delegates at the 2014 Summit in San Francisco (Right) Dr. Glashow, the recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physics, during the 1986 Banquet of the Golden Plate in Washington, D.C. Watson, co-discoverer of the structure of DNA and the recipient of the Nobel Prize in Medicine, receives the Golden Plate Award from Dr. The following year he moved to Harvard University, where he became Professor of Biology, a post he held until 1976. James Watson became a Senior Research Fellow in Biology at the California Institute of Technology, before returning to Cambridge in 1955. Their discovery revolutionized the study of biology and genetics, making possible the recombinant DNA techniques used by today’s biotechnology industry. The initials DNA, and the elegant model of the double helix, became known around the world. The Nobel recipients, from left to right, are Maurice Wilkins, Max Perutz, Francis Crick, John Steinbeck, James Watson and John C. The 1962 Nobel Prize ceremony in Stockholm. In this way, each molecule of DNA is able to create two identical copies of itself. The DNA molecule, Watson and Crick had found, is shaped like a double helix, or “gently twisted ladder.” The two chains of the helix unlink “like a zipper,” and reproduce their missing halves. In June they published their findings in the British science journal Nature. The two scientists had determined the structure of the molecule deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), of which all living matter is made. James Watson, with a molecular model of DNA, at his office in Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1957. When their initial research failed to produce results, the directors of the laboratory ordered them to end their investigation, but they continued their work in secret and, on February 28, 1953, they made a momentous discovery. Together, Watson and Crick attempted to determine the chemical structure of living matter. By permission of the Masters and Fellows of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge – © Gonville & Caius College.) 1953: James Watson and Francis Crick with their model of the double helix, the twisted-ladder structure of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), the year of their momentous discovery. Watson joined Francis Crick in this work at Cambridge in 1951. He was engaged in research at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark when he first learned of the biomolecular research underway at the Cavendish Laboratory of Cambridge University in England. in the same subject at Indiana University. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Zoology four years later, and went on to earn a Ph.D. He was a precocious student, and entered the University of Chicago when he was only 15. James Dewey Watson was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois. ![]() ![]() ![]() By the whole Percy Jackson and the Olympiansseries. If you are not familiar with this book, click on the link above and buy the book right now. There are many MANY more books that come from this but The Lightning Thief is where it all started. ![]() The following recommendations are based on you being familiar with the official and original series of The Lightning Thief: Percy Jackson and the Olympiansby Rick Riordan.There are some great stories and then there are some absolute tropey tales.Ī couple of things to note before we jump into the best Percy Jackson fanfiction: Word of warning though: Fanfiction is a slippery slope into a very very deep hole. That’s where the best Percy Jackson fanfiction comes in–like icing between the author’s layers of cake. ![]() Oh, fanfiction! How I love you, my guilty little pleasure! It is the ultimate outlet for all of my pent-up frustration for What If? and But What About? For Percy Jackson fans, the official Universe is ever-expanding there are a plethora of opportunities to explore alternate universes or vignettes between books. The only thing Ann-Marie loves more than reading is travelling. And then realizes where they get it from. A bad day is when she has to pry a book from her kids’ hands. A good day is when her kids bring notes home from school. From novels to trading cards to the inside of CD covers (they’re still a thing, right?). Ann-Marie Cahill will read anything and everything. ![]() ![]() ![]() There are no official or right rules for Pyramid Solitaire, but we prefer the rules we used for our implementation because they are a good combination of skill and luck. Variations allow to reset the stock and/or they only have one waste pile. ![]() There are many different versions of Pyramid Solitaire. Note that using the undo button does not impact your score. (Bonus) Incremental round number bonus: round number * 1,000 points.(Bonus) Time bonus shown in the top left corner: counts down from 20,000 points to 0 while playing.(Bonus) Removal of all cards, so not only the pyramid but also the cards in the stock & waste: 15,000 points.Removal of a pair of cards or a King: 500 points.Complete different rounds after each other to improve your score. Pyramid Solitaire Ancient Egypt has several scoring rules that reward quick play and good strategy. If you are still unsure about which moves are allowed, follow the in-game tutorial. Undo a move by clicking the undo button in the bottom right corner.Move an open card from the pyramid or the waste to the temporary card storage in the bottom left.Note that resetting the stock is not possible. Flip the stock to reveal three additional cards that will be added to the three waste piles.Kings count as 13 and can be removed by simply clicking on them.The valid pairs are: Ace & Queen, Two & Jack, Three & Ten, Four & Nine, Five & Eight, Four & Nine. Aces count as 1, Jacks as 11 and Queens as 12.It doesn’t matter where the cards are, you can pair cards that are in the pyramid, in the waste or in the temporary card storage. don’t have another card on top of them, can be paired. Pairing is done by first clicking on the first card and then on the second card. The remaining cards are put face-down in the stock. Layout & dealįirst, 28 cards are dealt face-up in the shape of a pyramid, with the cards partially overlapping. The objective in Pyramid Solitaire is to remove all cards in the pyramid by pairing cards that add up to 13. Family: Adding & Pairing Solitaire Games. ![]() ![]() The Most Advanced Company Information Database. Robert Wayne Williams, MD is a health care provider primarily located in Montgomery, AL, with other offices in Auburn, AL and Phenix City, AL. Robert Wayne Williams, MD About Robert Wayne Williams MD Dr. Currently Bridgeway Diagnosticss 4 physicians cover 4 specialty areas of medicine. Bridgeway Diagnostics, LLC in Auburn, AL - (334) 539-5700 - Profile. (888) 364-8536 Home Find a Diagnostic Radiology Doctor AL Montgomery Dr. Note: A blank value indicates that the clinician's score for this performance category was weighted to 0 and did not contribute to their MIPS Final Score. Bridgeway Diagnostics is a Group Practice with 1 Location. *Cost will be weighted at 0% for all MIPS Eligible Clinicians for the 2022 Performance Period in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Search for other Physicians & Surgeons, Radiology in Phenix City on The Real Yellow Pages. This provider currently accepts 12 insurance plans. Get reviews, hours, directions, coupons and more for Bridgeway Diagnostics at 5007 Summerville Rd, Phenix City, AL 36867. The CPB is part of the MIPS final score based on the overall medical complexity and social risk for one's patients treated.* Ivan Rohena-Quinquilla, MD, is a Diagnostic Radiology specialist practicing in Phenix City, AL with 15 years of experience. ![]() Quality category score: Quality performance category score.įinal MIPS score without CPB: MIPS Final Score without the Complex Patient Bonus (CPB). IA_category score: Improvement Activities (IA) performance category score.*Ĭost category score: Cost performance category score.* PI Category Score: Promoting Interoperability (PI) performance category score.* The incentive Program for Eligible Professionals and is part of and effort to improve outcomes base on these incentives. It replaces several other programs such as the Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS), the Value-Based Modifier (VBM), and the Medicare Electronic Health Record (EHR). MIPS is designed to incentivize eligible clinician's to improve the quality of care they provide to patients, while also reducing the cost of healthcare. MIPS stands for Merit-based Incentive Payment System. If you identify information that you believe to be incorrect or outdated, let us know.Merit-based Incentive Payment System Results: Bridgeway Diagnostics provides the latest in state-of-the-art imaging and expert image analysis for your doctors, ensuring the highest possible standard of care. He currently practices at Bridgeway Diagnostic Radiology LLC. Currently Bridgeway Diagnosticss 4 physicians cover 4 specialty areas of medicine. Bridgeway Diagnostic Radiology LLC 5007 Summerville Rd Phenix City, AL 36867. Bridgeway Diagnostics is a Practice with 1 Location. While CNN has attempted to clean this data, it may still contain errors. Jason Hoover, MD is a diagnostic radiology specialist in Phenix City, AL. Bridgeway Diagnostics Radiology 1910 E Samford Ave Auburn. Bridgeway Diagnostic Radiology LLC 5007 Summerville Rd, Phenix City, AL 36867 Phone 33 Fax Not Available Staff Languages Not Available Office Hours Not Available This location is not currently accepting new patients. Employee totals, which the SBA refers to as “jobs retained,” refers to the number of employees as reported by the borrower and may not necessarily reflect the number of workers kept employed with PPP funds. Data for those and cancelled loans is not included in this database.īecause the SBA released loan amounts in ranges, date, business type, industry, state and county totals represent minimum estimates. Dollar amounts represent loan amounts approved by lenders and not necessarily the amount of money disbursed to businesses.įor loans worth less than $150,000, the SBA released anonymized data by state. This data represents about 13% of the 4.8 million loans and about 73% of the $521 billion approved under the PPP to date. Bridgeway Diagnostics can be contacted via phone at (706) 350-5800 for pricing. ![]() The data in this database was published by the Small Business Administration (SBA) on Jand includes all approved, active Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans worth $150,000 or more. Bridgeway Diagnostics is located at 100 Bascom Ct in Columbus, Georgia 31909. ![]() ![]() Email or, if you need to reach us securely, visit cnn.com/tips. Do you have information about the Paycheck Protection Program or any of the businesses or loans in this database? We’d like to hear from you. ![]() ![]() ![]() However, the water was a little too cold for me, but again I am a wimp. I am ALWAYS cold and the temperature was great. Sign up for Be Frugal and you can get 2% cash back on your stay.I felt bad for people who booked on busier days and reported arriving at 4pm and waiting in line for an hour to check in. When we arrived on Wednesday we were able to check into our room right away at 1pm. ![]() That being said, it was built during a pandemic and I am sure they had to cut back since construction costs are insane right now. When we booked in LA we booked a cabin room and it had animatronics and was interactive…this room was bare bones. Just a bunk bed with some painting on the walls. We booked a den room and were a little disappointed.Use their booking calendar to find the cheapest days for the room type you want.Sign up for their email list and get offers for 40-60% off their average room rates.Of course, they want to fill as many rooms as possible, but it’s putting a strain on their new staff.įor this reason alone, I highly recommend avoiding the weekends or any week that school is out when the resort will probably be very full. I honestly feel like they are overbooking for the amount of trained staff they have. Overall the staff members are young, which is awesome, but they also haven’t mastered the fine art of hospitality and customer service. This was fine, but that meant that sometimes people don’t know the answers to your questions, or that they are more focused on talking to each other than being available to guests.įor the restaurant staff this means they don’t know how to make what you order, like when my daughter and I had a late night mother-daughter date night and ordered a S’mores Sundae with “burnt marshmallow topping” which instead came out to us as 3 cold marshmallows on top of vanilla ice cream sitting on 2 squares of graham crackers LOL! In every inch of the resort you will see new staff members being trained. More Family Travel and Activities Posts.See the full disclosure in the privacy policy. This post may contain affiliate links for your convenience. I just want to share some tips and tricks that I learned along the way. Like I said, my family had a great time and we would probably go back again. Since we got such a good deal I was only minorly irritated when the fire alarm went off twice during the night (electrical issue) and when we couldn’t use our cell phones (more on that below).īelow I have included a bulleted list of things to know to help you plan ahead so your family can have a fun and enjoyable stay. That being said, we did have some issues during our stay, that made me very happy that we had gotten a 50% discount on our room since we booked months ago before the resort actually opened. We really did enjoy ourselves while we were there and I would whole-heartedly recommend GWL Manteca to friends and family who are looking for a short and convenient family trip. We arrived early and since we visited during a slow day we were able to check into our room right away which was awesome. On their website they say check in is at 4pm, but you can access the waterpark at 1pm. This was a huge plus since the kids were still in a good mood when we arrived and ready to play. The fact that you can get there in just 3 hours from our location in northern California was amazing since we are used to driving 5+ hours to get to most destinations. We had a great time and it was a wonderful mini-family vacation. It was just enough time to fit all the activities in, spend a ton of time and the waterpark and still head home before anyone had a meltdown. We did a mid-week 3 day/2 night stay and I would say that amount of time was perfect. Cal GWL a few years ago when our kids were little and we were looking forward to experiencing the waterpark now that they were big enough to go on all the slides. It just opened in June of 2021 and we were excited to have a GWL within a few hours of our house. Last week we visited the brand new Great Wolf Lodge in Manteca. ![]() ![]() ![]() If you don't use buttermilk or a buttermilk substitute in the recipe (just plain whole milk for example) omit the baking soda. ![]() Baking Soda: This also helps the biscuits rise & reacts with the acidic element in the buttermilk.Baking Powder: This adds lift to the biscuits so they rise in the oven! Make sure your baking powder is fresh! I use this aluminum-free baking powder.If you swap out the flour (use white whole wheat, whole wheat, einkorn wheat, etc.) it will likely mess with the wet & dry ingredients ratio and make the biscuits too moist or dry. Flour: I use unbleached all-purpose flour ( this King Arthur one specifically).Combine those in a cup and let it sit 5-10 minutes before adding to the recipe. Please use this if you can as it really makes the biscuits! If need be, you can make a buttermilk substitute with 1 cup of whole milk + 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice. It gives them a lot of flavor & moisture, as well. Buttermilk: This adds richness & tang to the biscuits.It tastes better than 99% of other butter.) In that case, you should add an extra tablespoon for good measure. ( TIP: Kerrygold butteris my favorite! Look for deals on it at Costco, Trader Joe's & Walmart so you can snag it for $2.99 per 8-oz stick. It is the KEY ingredient so don't add less cause you're convinced you can save calories or some nonsense. Butter: This is what makes the biscuits flaky & soft in the middle.You may have to run to the store to grab some cheese + buttermilk, but it's worth it - I promise! You only need 8 simple ingredients for this recipe, 6 of which you likely have in your pantry & fridge right now. I transform my chicken pot pie into turkey pot pie usually! The drop biscuits work the same at 10,000 feet, they just take a bit longer to bake. Usually around late November when it's cold, snowy & we're craving comfort food. I've even made these drop biscuits several times at high altitude when I'm visiting my sister in Breckenridge, Colorado. I'll often make these when I have a lot of other things going on in the kitchen (cooking for a holiday feast like Thanksgiving, Christmas or Easter, for example), so I appreciate how simple they are to throw together. This makes them perfect for times when you need a quick side to go with a meal. All you have to do is mix everything in one bowl (cold butter is still important here), drop rounded spoonfuls on a baking sheet & pop it in the oven. No sprinkling the counter with flour, rolling out the dough or cutting it into circles. Why Drop Biscuits Instead of Regular Biscuits?ĭrop biscuits are much simpler than traditional biscuits. (In a hurry? Click Here To Save This To Your Comfort Food Recipes Board On Pinterest!) Really anything! Heck, fix 'em for an appetizer or snack if you're having a game day party. I almost always serve these drop biscuits with skillet chicken pot pie (pictured below), but they're fabulous with homemade soups (like creamy chicken noodle soup, cabbage roll soup, or creamy tomato basil soup) or alongside a hearty main dish like slow cooker pot roast or Mississippi roast. Who needs store-bought rolls when you can have fresh biscuits with hardly any work? Bring this to your next party or holiday gathering (bake 'em right before going over) and everyone will be in cozy, carby, comfort food heaven. If you love butter + garlic + cheddar cheese, then you have to try these. ![]() And they taste just like Red Lobster's Cheddar Bay Biscuits. This has been my go-to savory biscuit recipe for the past 7 years! Why? It's fast, easy, and super comforting. ![]() ![]() So far I have given you 17 very different examples of epic bullet journal layouts you can use for your own bullet journaling efforts.īullet journaling can be simple and minimalist or it can be quite complex and artistic.īeing a practical guy, I have to remind you that the purpose of bullet journaling should be keeping track of the things you need to keep track of, not necessarily creating a work of art. This pick mixes a highly practical and useful list with some great looking design and art, making this bullet journal idea very special. I keep a packing checklist of my own and I have found it to be invaluable. I specifically love the packing checklist. They transform a few fairly simple lists into a work of art that is truly unique. Health Tracker Bullet Journal IdeasĪ post shared by □Christina three bullet journal layout ideas in this section are certainly far beyond my artistic abilities to ever duplicate – but they look great. If you're interested in more, check out our roundup of the best bullet journal habit tracker ideas and examples. If you want to change your habits, unless you are an artist, I recommend keeping it simple.Ĭomplicated designs could make you less likely to stick to the habit and less likely to diligently keep track of your progress. Looking for bullet journal spread ideas? Check out this roundup of monthly bullet journal spread examples. Simple monthly tracking of multiple tasks that looks incredible. My favorites however are the two minimalist designs. I enjoyed the way icecreamioplans broke her bullet journal into three sections, for morning, workday and evening. I love the way rachelbujo makes her habit tracker into an artistic masterpiece with the lemon art and the lemon colored “moods” of the week. ![]() I love these all four of these habit tracker layouts. ![]() I would be interested to learn YOUR favorite bullet journal layout in the comments section at the end of this post.Ī post shared by mariana | bujo minimalista you might imagine, being a blog about changing your habits, I started with a collection of habit trackers. The numbering of this list is completely arbitrary. One thing: As with all art there is no “best” on this list. So I will just share with you what I think are the best bullet journal layouts from others. While I appreciate the effort many have put into making bullet journals their own thing, when I try it myself, the results are less than spectacular. Many people have truly elevated the idea of bullet journaling layouts into an art-form by using various bullet journal supplies to personalize their journals. While the basic idea is simple and quite efficient as a method of keeping track of many cool ideas, that is just the beginning. It is my opinion that bullet journaling is an art form. I will also link to a lot of great sites where you can learn a lot more details on bullet journaling specifically. It will give you some bullet journal page ideas that you can take to your own journaling efforts and improve the look of your bullet journal weekly spreads and daily spreads. On this page I will show some of the best bullet journal layouts. While that article might be great if you have never heard of the concept of bullet journaling before, it does not give any great ideas to anyone who is looking to improve their journaling efforts with some cool bullet journal page ideas. ![]() when it came to bullet journaling, specifically, all I have written is a fairly basic article describing, “ what is bullet journaling”. I even wrote a book called Effortless Journaling: How to Start a Journal, Make It a Habit, and Find Endless Writing Topics designed start journaling and make it a habit that lasts.īut…. I wrote about the many benefits of gratitude and wrote a small guide to help you find the best gratitude journals for your needs. I gave details on how to start journaling and make it a habit that lasts. How it can make you smarter, healthier, happier and more mindful. I have talked about how important journaling can be to both mental health and productivity. ![]() But I have never shown how cool some bullet journal layouts can be. On this blog, I have discussed journaling quite a bit. ![]() ![]() I mean, Elite Beat Agents sold poorly enough as it is, so I think totally changing the game for a different audience was the right decision. On top of the bizarre appearance of the Ouendan, the games have stages based on foreign concepts like a mikoshi race at a summer festival, sumo wrestling, Japanese-style electoral campaign, plus a few stages based on fables that are downright nonsensical without knowing the story behind them. It’s not just the soundtrack that’s an issue, so much as the fact that the game as a whole is steeped in Japanese culture. Though it was a popular title with importers, Nintendo thought that Ouendan was impossible to bring it to audiences outside of Japan in its current state. So Elite Beat Agents, as I’m sure many of you already know, was a completely overhauled version of Ouendan with a localization so comprehensive that it should be considered a completely different game. The sound design is changed to a softer set of percussion for the game’s token sad song – although neither Ouendan game has anything that matches the hysterically overblown sentimentality of Elite Beat Agents’ “You’re the Inspiration” stage. The fact that the songs are accompanied by an over-the-top cacophony of whistles and cheers is also entertaining. ![]() These segments provide some incentive to replay stages if the desire for an elusive “S” rank isn’t enough, but most importantly they’re just plain fun. The direction of the cutscenes change depending on how well the Ouendan are cheering, potentially causing some downright hilarious outcomes and slight changes to the ending of the song. The songs are broken up by short animated evaluations that show the progression of the plot. While the rhythm game is happening, the story doesn’t stop as the action on the top screen changes based on the Ouendan’s performance. On harder difficulty levels it’s entirely possible to fail a stage without actually missing a single note. This isn’t helped by the harsh scoring system where even being slightly offbeat can quickly drain the Ouendan’s life bar. It’s incredibly simple, but the difficulty level gradually increases to the point where memorization and a keen sense of rhythm are required to succeed. Apparently Yano had the idea for Ouendan when he first played the DS and the gameplay of tapping and dragging sequences of notes in time with the catchy J-pop playing in the background feels like a natural fit for the console. Unless anyone wants to bring up some forgotten title, I’m certain that Ouendan was the first rhythm game to rely entirely on using a touch screen for input. The Ouendan have to deal with plenty of seemingly mundane problems, like a kid trying to woo a girl by winning a game of dodgeball, but the way the game presents these rather trite dilemmas with the hot-blooded passion of a sh?nen manga never fails to be entertaining. The game has a reputation for how ridiculous the scenarios are, but that’s not strictly true. ![]() ![]() Each stage is its own self-contained story, beginning with a manga-style cutscene showing some stressed-out soul screaming for the Ouendan. With their goofy mix of ridiculous hairstyles, distinctive sideburns and massive eyebrows, the Ouendan are far from the usual American depiction of cheerleaders, but that’s part of the charm (and that’s not to say that the skirt-wearing, pom-pom-waving variation don’t show up). The titular Ouendan are a specialized squad of cheerleaders who show up out of the blue to help drive ordinary (and a few extraordinary) citizens to succeed in their goals – whether that be taking a university entrance exam or fighting off a giant rat. ![]() None of their games exemplify this approach quite as well as Ouendan because, really, who can express and incite passion quite like a good cheer squad? Rather than making games as pure entertainment, he wants to create experiences that “make people feel good”. Case in point: their 2005, Nintendo-published title – Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan (“Yeah! Fight! Cheer Squad”, if you were wondering why nobody ever translates its name) In an interview with 1UP, the game’s director Keiichi Yano stated that iNiS’s philosophy was to create games with “passion” – both in terms of the act of making the games and the actual content. As a development team that takes a clear musical direction with each of their games (iNiS itself stands for Infinite Noise of the Inner Soul), they understand how to create a perfect blend of personality and compelling gameplay unlike anything else out there. I hope you all like anime cheerleaders and J-pop, because this week I’m taking a look back at a pair (or is it a trio?) of quirky rhythm games produced by iNiS that are up there as personally my favourite games on the Nintendo DS. ![]() |
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