Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze

Sometimes when I look at games that feature beautiful realistic graphics that require tactical skills, and have mature themes I wonder if I should buy those games.  Those games are considered appropriate for my age and are hardcore.  Yet, when I do play those games I’m left frustrated and bored.  I neither have the patience nor skill to play games like that, so I end up either dying all the time or having to repeat a simple task over and over again to complete it.  That’s why I always end up going back to a Nintendo game when I want to have fun.  Their games are easy to play, original, and allow people from all skill levels to participate.

The key to having fun with video games is to play a variety of titles and genres.  One such game that I haven’t played in a while and that was long overdue from Nintendo is a Donkey Kong game.  Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze released on the Wii U on February 21^st, 2014.  I wanted to play this game for a while because it reminds me of those classic NES games that were easy to play, but with current advanced graphics.   Besides the game play, what drew me the most to this game was its creativity from backgrounds and how you interact within each environment.  The controls are accurate and easy to use with only a few different moves to remember.  The game also allows you to play on the gamepad which is convenient.  While the line-up of stellar triple A games is slowing coming to fruition on the Wii U, this is one game that was worth the wait.

Nintendo:

http://donkeykong.nintendo.com/tropical-freeze/

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDdZL8V05yQ

LeRoy Neiman Frank Sinatra Tribute Painting

This painting is a clustering of my adolescent experience.  It represents a point when I first started buying Playboy magazine and listening to Frank Sinatra.  What initiated my interest in the magazine were the beautiful women, however as I moved on to reading the articles, I found the magazine to be smart, stylish and inspiring.  I also started reading other similar magazines such as Esquire, Mens Health and National Geographic.  These magazines made me feel like the world had so much to offer, and to appreciate the sophistication in art, quality in material goods, and travel.  To complement my sense of style, I started listening to jazz and Frank Sinatra.  Sinatra to me was the ultimate guy to look up to. He dressed nice, was cool and collective, women loved him, and his music was classy.

A couple years ago I read about the death of a painter named LeRoy Neiman.  I was shocked when I read the news because it wasn’t until that moment that I realized who he was.  Neiman was considered the go-to artist for Playboy, having been featured numerous times and even responsible for creating the Femlins (the female figures on the party jokes page).  Most people will remember him for his painting in the ending of Rocky 3 (as Eye of the Tiger plays).  It was sad to hear about his death; however it was also cool to find out that he had done so many famous paintings.  In honour of his legacy I decided to reproduce one of my favorite paintings by him, Frank Sinatra on the cover of the Duets album.

Unfortunately I wasn’t able to find a clear enough picture of the original, so I had to use a picture that I found online instead.  It’s still a nice picture because I was able to look at the details and colors carefully.  I used a canvas and paints that I bought at the dollar store.  I still feel like I’m just getting back into painting so I want to keep my hobby on a budget.  I found this painting to be very enjoyable because I was also listening to my Frank Sinatra collection on my ipod as I painted.  Like most paintings, I started with the background first and worked my way up to the main figure.  Everything was quick to do, however the face and hat was where I spent most of my time.  I can admit the face isn’t exactly like the original, but I’m okay with that because I’m happy with my final result. In the end what matters most is being satisfied with what you can paint and continuing to get better.

LeRoy Neiman Wiki:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LeRoy_Neiman

Frank Sinatra Duets:

http://www.amazon.com/Duets-Frank-Sinatra/dp/B000002USN/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1394251920&sr=8-1&keywords=duets+frank+sinatra

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uQCzdwMqLM

Iron Pigs Smell the Change New Era

The minor league baseball team Lehigh Valley IronPigs made headlines today by debuting their new official Saturday cap.  The “smell the change” hat comes in a grey and blue colorway and a nice strip of bacon on the front.  This is one deliciously awesome hat.

Milbstore:

http://ironpigs.milbstore.com//store_contents.cfm?store_id=116&dept_id=-1&product_id=48845

Mezco Toyz Notorious B.I.G. (Biggie Smalls)

Holy smokes how fast does time pass by?  I wanted to do this review on my Biggie toy for a while, but never had the time.  Then when I finally did I noticed that the toy was made in 2006.  Back then I remember that I was the only person that knew about this toy before it released.  I wanted it because he’s a fat chubby toy that looks unique in any collection.  Since it wasn’t hyped on release I was able to get him for less than $18 (now he sells for much more).

Biggie was made by Mezco Toyz, a company that specializes in unique pop culture toys and collectables.  I like them because they make toys that other toy manufactures would never dream of making.  Biggie was part of a series of Hip-Hop collectables that Mezco made, which also included Public Enemy and various bobbleheads.  The Biggie doll is the best in my opinion because he stands at 9 inches tall, and comes dressed in various clothes.  I was never a huge fan of Biggie Smalls (except for a few tracks), but this action figure sure makes me appreciate his talents even more.

Bonus: picture of Biggie without any clothes, lol you know you were wondering

Mezco Toyz

http://www.mezcotoyz.com