June 2023 Entry:
June was a big month. That means a long entry especially in the latter portion of this entry.
MISC=========================
- We were without a refrigerator for about a week. I don't recall what the issue was with it, but we had started to use coolers with bags of ice to keep anything cool that was already in there. But we did get a new one delivered and installed (06.05). This was okay until my mom decided to talk about family issues feet away from workers. You don't bring up family drama in front of strangers. She said he couldn't hear us and I said out loud "you can hear us, right" and got a reply of "yeah" with an uncomfortable chuckle. To top it off, she said "he can't understand us" and that's when I had it. Not only was that horrible because she was easily speaking with him earlier throughout the time it took to bring the refrigerator in, but she kept insisting to talk about it out of sight. I insistently kept saying "stop it" until she finally did. I can't imagine how the worker felt, but I was very disappointed and embarrassed.
- Went to my ENT for a normal check up (06.08). The original parking lot was being worked on, but thankfully there were spots available across the road. The wait in the lobby wasn't long, but then I was in the patient's room for over half an hour. To make things worse, I got dizzy after the doctor was cleaning my ear. It's not the first time I got dizzy because of a routine cleaning. However, I got to the point of wanting to throw up. I needed to drop down from the chair and kneel next to a trash can as I got chills and sweats. I did ask during that time if it was okay to go to a concert and he said I would be fine. He asked who I was going to see (TWICE) and he looked them up on his computer and started reading out information about them to help distract me from how I was feeling. It might have been around 10 minutes when I felt okay to get back on the chair. The intern/assistant got me a bottle of water. We discussed needing to get another CT scan sooner than normal and to bump up the next appointment to around the same time of the scan (August).
- Watched Avatar: The Way of Water (06.08). I wasn't originally going to watch it on this day, but figured I needed to not do much after the ENT. I liked this one a little more (the lack of humans probably helped), but found it lacking at points. If there is a sequel, I hope they go more into Kiri's powers.
- My copy of Steel Assault from LRG (06.16). Played it on stream 889 in March and that convinced me to get a physical copy of it. This also happened to be my last thing from LRG that I had ordered. My only other gaming orders are from iam8bit and Fangamer.
- One more round with GGSN Ep. 05 FINALE (06.17). Any new group streams will be on Rannchan's stream and it won't be specifically themed like this with Wii game show games. There could be more/less people and it can be video/board games or more. The door is wide open. This last one had some highlights as we played our favorites. I'd have to go back and check, but I believe both Rannchan and I won two GGSNs.
- Got hit with a message in the morning that my account was limited due to Twitter spam (06.27). I had just posted a bunch of photos from the TWICE concerts and thought that might have been a possibility, but I'm sure I was caught up in a wave of others getting that notification as well. The majority weren't spamming anything that we haven't been. Is it possible because I promote other links that aren't supposed to be, sure. But then my WingedVoX VOD archive account should have been hit by it since that's all it is. Besides, it really was only effective that day and I couldn't like everything like I normally do.
- 50 streams remaining (06.29). Been years since I've gone karaoke. I wish I knew what song I was jamming out to, but I really don't know.
- The Super Mario Bros. Movie came in the mail (06.12). I knew I was going to buy it ASAP, but I wanted to wait for the right time to watch it. So I figured the last day of the month would be a perfect way to end it (06.30). Fantastic movie. All the good things I heard about it lived up the hype. Definitely can't wait for a sequel. Highly recommended.
GAMES=========================
- Sam & Max Save the World was the favorite from Demo Showcase 84 (06.01-06.02). Got a physical copy in January this year and just needed to figure out when to play it. Continuing our point and click games to start the month (since February), this was a good one. There was one small issue in the first stream where I needed to leave in the middle of the stream to get bags of ice. It did deflate my enthusiasm for it, but thankfully it was a funny game to help me forget that.
- Finished Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom off-stream (06.03). I won't go over everything, but I will reiterate what I've mentioned to many that have asked my opinion of the game. I like the story, reuniting with characters, fusing silly weapons and shields, and seeing how Hyrule has evolved. I did not like crafting. Whether it be a vehicle or some type of bridge, I always felt I wasted so much time making something that did not work. So I took the long way to do a lot of stuff. Thank goodness for fast travel.
However, I did find grooves in what I was doing. Some days were spent doing sidequests. Some days were for shrine hunting. Some days were for progressing the actual story and searching for the Dragon Tears in order. I didn't spend much time in the sky-lands or the depths if I didn't have to, which are huge chunks of the game. That does mean I also never bothered to increase my battery gauge. And I did look up a lot of things. Mainly the online interactive map to easily find shrines or to look up answers to puzzles if I felt I was spending too much time on them. Other than maybe a few pieces of equipment, I knew I wanted to beat the game once I hit 100 shrines.
I didn't feel underpowered when I got there. It took a few tries before it clicked with what I needed to do. There were really cool moments that happened. But once the credits rolled, I was relieved that I was done. I will stress that this game made me feel really stupid. There was a lot of frustration especially after looking up answers and realizing how easy some of them were. I really wish I liked this more. It's not a bad game by any means, but crafting is not for me. I'm at least now watching videos people are making about the game, but I am still being careful about talking about the game in Discords and streams so I won't be the one guy with a negative opinion. Will I ever return to it? For now, no. Maybe if there's DLC, but I am also someone that thinks the game doesn't need any. There's already so much to do. But if they do something like the Champions Ballad, I'll consider it. With that being said, Tears of the Kingdom (as of typing this 07.03) is 10th in my ranking of Zelda games.
- Not much to note about Demo Showcase 110 (06.04). Except that the favorite was a visual novel where we did nothing extra other than watch it, ha.
- Finished Super Mario Advance off-stream (06.05). Never played this version before. I didn't mind the first playthrough and collecting the red coins. The second playthrough I used a guide to find the Yoshi eggs. Otherwise that would have been me mindlessly throwing potions everywhere hoping to find them.
- Excitebike was the NES game of the month (06.06). Originally played this before streaming. And since the NES NSO titles are running dry (mostly sports games left), I figured it was okay to revisit this even though it was going to be short. It's classic Excitebike.
- Puzzle Galaxy was our free-to-play game of the month (06.07). Another good jigsaw puzzle game. You only get a few for free. So if you aren't sure, give it a try, see what kind of themes there are. If it's for you and your family, consider spending some dollars on the DLC.
- Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon was fantastic (06.09-06.11). Everything is screen shot worthy. If you played the Bayonetta trilogy, you'll see some nods they made toward it. If you haven't played a traditional Bayonetta game, you'll be fine not knowing anything. The controls do take getting used to and that's where I'll recommend trying the demo to see if it's for you or not. Or you can play this co-op by giving someone else one of the joy-con. Bottom line, this is one of my favorite games I've played this year.
- The Apollo Justice Trilogy was announced (06.12). I had a feeling it was going to happen. While I still say the original Phoenix trilogy is better, this is a good arc for Apollo. Can't wait to play it.
- GRANDIA HD Collection | Grandia was a good revisit (06.13-06.19). I've only played it once on the original Playstation. It holds up really well. The strategy guide was very helpful too and I'm glad I still have that. Big fans of the game that came in for the streams said that they've never seen it in person before and that it's worth a couple hundred dollars now, wow. The only thing I was worried about was how long it would take to actually beat the game. While I did always have 6 streams set aside for it, there was a small chance of it being 5 streams only, especially since we lost to the final boss at the end of the 5th stream. But had I not leveled up off-stream, I wouldn't have beaten it within that time frame anyways. So while the playtime will show 43 hours, it was actually 53.
I did say it multiple times in the Grandia streams that the reason it was even on my radar is because of the Hazel video "Cozy Anime RPGs."
- Because of the 6 streams of Grandia and one stream for the GGSN finale, that was officially the only time I've streamed for 1 week straight (06.13-06.19). I was actually worried about this week and there wasn't any other alternative version with schedule adjusting that felt any better. Thankfully I wasn't as tired from it all, but I think my body knew it was over and I had little to no energy the next day. It was sometime last year when I did 6 streams in a row of The Great Ace Attorney that I mentioned I won't do that ever again. I never did, but these 7 days didn't change how I felt. I don't recommend it unless you're doing 7 short streams in a row.
- This latest Nintendo Direct was amazing (06.21). Super Mario RPG remaster/remake, Star Ocean the Second Story R, and Super Mario Bros. Wonder being in my top favorites. Lots for me to like. I will say though, it was odd being one of the only people in a few Discords that was really excited about things. Not to say everyone should like everything (some Directs I only like 1-3 things), but I was surprised when some said it was a bad Direct. I felt like I shouldn't share how excited I was in some of them because everyone was being negative about it. The good thing about being in multiple Discords is there was at least one server that was just as excited as I was.
- The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX was our Gameboy NSO game of the month (06.21-06.22). Only my second time ever playing it without counting the remake. It was unfortunate we couldn't 100% it because of a few time specific photos that we missed out on. Other than that, it holds up well.
- A spree of Valis games with the Valis: The Fantasm Soldier Collections I & II (06.27-06.28). Originally thought to be one stream, it became two. I went under the assumption and research that each game (except the fourth) was a good hour long. The first game took way longer than anticipated and that's when the idea to split them became true. I kind of had that in the back of my head, but it really would have been nice to do them all in one, but impossible). The first game is solid, the second game is bad, I understand why many like the third, the fourth is better than Super Valis IV, Syd is a better version of the second game, the Mega Drive version of the first game wasn't bad, but the MSX version of the first game was rough.
- F-ZERO X was our N64 game of the month (06.29). Played the SNES version last month and similar to Pilotwings, followed it up with the next generation. Never played this one. Only had experience with the SNES and GameCube versions. I do see why people like this one though. It is tough as expected of the series. And there are tons of unlockables. Definitely worth a try.
- Strider (06.30)
ETC=========================
- MISAMO - Marshmallow (MV)
- TWICE 5TH WORLD TOUR 'READY TO BE' (06.24-06.25):
Night 1 (06.24, Sec 117 Row 24 Seat 11) - Had a hair appointment at 1PM. Talked to my stylist about things such as watching Avatar and the sequel since she was the one that suggested it. Mentioned how I never went to a Kpop concert before and said I was supposed to see SNSD a long time ago. She said she never went to one herself, but mentioned an older group during her time that I knew of. She wished me a fun night with the concert and I headed back home to rest for a few hours before heading out again.
Left around 4:30 after eating what would be dinner to meet up with a long time friend to carpool to the concert. Coming home from the stylist, the temperature was in the high 90s so I debated whether or not to wear a plain shirt while driving. I'm glad I decided to do that because it was even hotter. But I eventually got to his place (my first time there) and it was a nice area. Greeted each other for the first time in years, hopped in his car, and headed off. I brought a bottle of water and was cooling myself off by putting it against my face. We had a good time catching up and before we knew it, we parked within walking distance from the venue. I changed my shirt and we walked to the outdoor merchandise booths. Some stuff was already sold out like the candybongs (light sticks), but they still had each of the 3 shirts in my size. Got 2 of them and my friend got one. We were about to enter, but the staff told my friend that his camera wasn't allowed. It wasn't a super big camera, but it was over the limit. We walked back to his car to put it up and I changed into one of the shirts and put the other one away.
Then we finally entered the venue. Walked around to find another merchandise booth so that he can exchange his for a larger size (the vendor said they're okay with making those exchanges). We noticed a lot of things too like the individual member posters and eventually the one big banner with all the members. There were pretty big lines for all of them so we didn't try. We got his shirt exchanged and then went to get some water. Chilled for 10 or so minutes baby-ing our expensive water, ha. Eventually went in to sit in our seats. To our left were 2 fans that were very nice and spoke with us. One gave us freebies in a small bag that included a business photocard (all members), 2 small individual photos (Momo and Tzuyu), and a handmade bead bracelet that said TWICE on it. Between us and the other person, we made trades and I ended up trading my Tzuyu for Mina. More people filtered in and there were a group of girls that sat to my right. Had a silly interaction with the girl right next to me as my cup was actually in her cup holder since all of us were already one over. She said it was okay to keep it there, and I didn't want to say this part out loud since we just met, but I thought it would be odd or uncomfortable for her if I kept reaching somewhat close to between her legs every time I was going to get a drink, ha. With where we were sitting, I pointed out to those around us that there was actually space behind us to put stuff as the seats behind us were the handicapped area so it had some elevation leaving that convenient cubby area. Not only that, but there was a barred gate/separator above and I used that so much to hold on to throughout the concert especially when I was very tired after a song/s. Soon after, the concert began.
Below will be the set list and I'll give a brief thought of each song. I knew of a few songs ahead of time as well as some of their solos (don't know the actual songs themselves though), but didn't want to spoil the entire set list for myself. Hopefully it's everything (going based off videos a friend shot).
+ Set Me Free
Starting with their latest was a good way to kick off the concert. Currently my 3rd favorite TWICE song.
+ I Can't Stop Me
Keeping the energy with my second favorite TWICE song.
+ Go Hard
Great presentation with the stage and screens.
+ More & More
This is my least favorite title TWICE track. However, the stage presentation with what I called the Triforce triangles was done really well and made me appreciate the song more.
+ Moonlight Sunrise
No major notes here other than it was a good way to end the first set of songs.
+ Brave
A song that I didn't know I knew some of the choreography for, ha.
+ Try (Dahyun's solo)
I knew Dahyun had a piano for her solo, but I honestly didn't know she sang during it as well. But this was the start of a good rest period for my voice and me dancing.
+ Done for Me (Tzuyu)
Tzyuy's solo was the one I had seen nothing for prior. I really liked her all white outfit.
+ New Rules (Sana)
I did like that Sana has been switching up the colors she wears for her solo. I forgot what she mentioned when she talked about it.
+ Move (Momo)
Momo reminded me of why she was my original bias. She is the reason I cared to look into TWICE in the first place. The way she commands the stage with her dance is undeniable.
+ 7 Rings (Mina)
The one solo I was looking forward to seeing in person for obvious reasons. Mina did not disappoint.
+ Feel Special
Jihyo's acapella vocals during this was a nice touch.
+ Cry For Me
Great song that I never really got into. The live performance was awesome.
+ Fancy
Had to mark out for my favorite TWICE song.
+ The Feels
Great energy. Definitely a fun song live.
+ Original song (Chaeyoung)
It's not what I would have expected her to do, but it's Chaeyoung. She can do anything. Definitely a calm, wave your candybong/phone light in the air mood.
+ Nightmare (Jihyo)
I didn't know that this was a song from Jihyo's upcoming album. And while all the candybongs changed colors in sync the entire concert, it was during her solo that I really appreciated how it made the arena look.
+ Goose (Jeongyeon)
Very fun and high energy. I remember seeing photos of Jeongyeon's solo and it made me excited to see her having so much fun.
+ Pop (Nayeon)
It was Pop's one year anniversary. Nayeon and the dancers wore party hats throughout the song. Being able to be there for that felt really special.
+ Queen of Hearts
While I sang the entire night (minus all the solos except Pop), I really belted it out for Queen of Hearts. It's one of my favorites. I really sang straight up into the air plenty of times and soaked in seeing them sing it live.
+ Yes or Yes
Fun crowd interactions beforehand to get us to yell "Yes or Yes" as loud as possible.
+ What is Love
Another fun energetic song to sing with everyone.
+ Cheer Up
More fun. This must have been their oldest song they sang that night. I don't remember which member was chosen to do the Shy Shy Shy part that they did specifically for the concerts.
+ Likey
Keeping the energy going with another fun song. Just like the previous song, I forgot who did the solo dance that they did specifically for the concerts.
+ Knock Knock
The song that has a soft spot in my heart. It was the first new song from TWICE after I started following them. My heart was full for this one.
+ Scientist
This one took a few seconds for it to recognize, ha. Enjoyed it for sure.
+ Heartshaker
I was surprised to hear this one. I like the song, but I didn't think it to be as popular. No silly hugging shenanigans.
+ Alcohol Free
I really liked the new beginning with them sitting down. I was the only one in my area doing the in between parts of the song and I heard a few people laughing as they realized what I was doing. Before the song, they asked us to cheers with them. Myself and a few around me took our cups and cheers with them. At the end of the song I also made sure to cheers them.
+ Dance the Night Away
Bringing the energy back to high. It's hard not to ignore the energy.
+ Talk That Talk
Great ending song. Big energy from everyone.
+ When We Were Kids
First for the encore stages. A good slow song after all those high energy ones. This was also when it flashed on the screens that we were to hold the free banners we were all given. Maybe it was just from my view, but I didn't see that many hold them up. It is possible that people missed it. Thankfully the members saw them and even read it out loud in between songs.
+ Crazy Stupid Love
One of their best b-sides from their latest album.
+ Missing U
Our first song from the wheel. I made sure to yell "rig the wheel" when Nayeon was close to it. I actually can't remember the last time I heard this song so it was nice.
+ TT
Our second song from the wheel also became our last song. We probably could have had one more, but there was a lot of talk and debate about what to sing. It landed on TT, but Nayeon and a few other members were trying to get us to cheer for another song to sing, ha.
And that was the end of the concert. My friend and I stuck around and spoke with the friends we made when we initially sat down. As we made our way out, I made sure to tell the girl I was sitting next to her that I thought she was pretty. She thanked me, but there was no follow up from her so I guessed there was no interest. I wasn't sure throughout the concert as we had a few interactions and locked eyes a few times. We definitely were dancing next to each other and she knew the words to a lot of their songs. But I did get a feeling she was on the young side as she knew all the lyrics to the solo songs while I dindn't (minus Pop). Oh well. Then it was a long time in traffic, an Instagram call (didn't know that was possible) about plans for the next night, more catching up on the ride with my friend, a quick stop to buy some Gatorade, a short stay at his place for me to use the restroom and gather my things properly, then I was home by 12:30AM. Should have stopped for some fast food on the way, but ended up drinking half the Gatorade, a bottle of water, and 2 bananas to replenish energy before ultimately going to bed. Thus ends my first official Kpop concert.
Night 2 (06.25, Floor F Row 6 Seat 5) - Early start as I left home around 1PM to meet NRM at his friend's for all of us to carpool together. We made it to Toyota Center around 2PM. I changed shirts because it was still hot. Also brought an umbrella in the event we were going to wait in lines outside for a long time. And I also brought an old dog plushie to possibly give to Sana. So I had a lot with me. We left a lot of stuff in the car as we were going to come back. We walked to the VIP check-in and got our goodies and lanyards. Brought it back. Friend split to meet with his other friends. NRM and I walked to the nearby hotel and chilled there. TAN joined us around 2:30PM. We stuck around there for a bit to stay cool until going back to the car to get stuff and put stuff up.
We made our way to the VIP line around 3PM and were out there for about 15-20 minutes before making it inside. First order of business after getting our tickets was to go to a merchandise booth. Each one of us got something with mine being the candybong. We walked around to see if other booths had trading cards as NRM was trying to get more, but those sold out fast again. We did find the individual member banners and took photos with them. I actually got a cramp when posing in front of Sana's, ha. We stopped at a nearby table and rested there. NRM gave me batteries for my candybong as I was getting it set up. He made a poster for the guitarist Yewon. His friend rejoined us for a bit and they started opening up the trading card packs they were able to get prior. Around 4PM, we went to our lines for VIP.
NRM and his friend were sitting elsewhere so we split. TAN and I immediately made friends with the 2 girls that were at the back of our line by making silly F jokes (F yeah, get the F out, etc) because we were Floor F. It was one of their first concerts ever. All of us made friends with the 2 girls that stood behind us as well. It was nice to make small talk about TWICE and non-TWICE things. They all had something in common with originally being from Louisiana and that this was their first TWICE concert. TAN and I shared stories with them about night 1, how we got our tickets, etc. And for a while, we stood in front of a curtained off area leading to an entrance for seating. TWICE was actually doing their pre-soundcheck and we were able to hear them as soon as we entered the building around 3PM. They were still going as we were in line. I could see their heads from under the bottom part of the curtain. I couldn't tell who, but I know I saw 3 of them together. So I pointed it out to our group and the girls were sneaking peeks and getting excited. The security guard was cool with us trying to look as long as we stayed in line and weren't doing anything unnecessary. At some point the girls finished up and that's when our line started to move. We stopped at one point for a few minutes before eventually it was a steady walk to our seats. Farewells were bid with the new people we met and TAN and I sat down in our seats.
As soon as I sat down, I instinctively took out my camera to take a photo of the stage, but immediately put it down as I forgot we weren't allowed to use our cameras for the VIP soundcheck. A worker saw me and pointed at me a couple times and I apologized silently and put my phone away. I greeted the person sitting to my left who was a mother with her daughter while TAN was making small talk with the people to his right. I apologized to her ahead of time because I'd be dancing and singing next to her. She laughed and said she'll be fine as she was mainly there with her daughter (who was pretty). After introductions, they told me they were from Austin and that they like going to Kpop shows together. TAN and I also chatted with a guy in front of us who also decided to apologize ahead of time since he was 6 feet tall, ha.
TWICE came out for their soundcheck. It was awesome seeing them in person in casual clothing. Mina, my goodness. Other than remembering what Mina and Sana wore, Nayeon had sunglasses on the entire time. If she was looking in our direction, I put my sunglasses on too, ha. Collectively, they all seemed really tired. I can remember Dahyun being very reserved instead of all energetic as usual. I don't blame them for feeling worn out if they were. It was a reminder of how hard they work. The 3 songs they sang for us during the VIP soundcheck were Touchdown, Missing U, and Signal if I remember correctly. After that, they went backstage and we were all left to do whatever until show time.
TAN and I sat for a bit before getting up to leave. We waved to 2 of the girls we made friends with. I ended up making small talk with a security guard next to the sound booth while TAN caught NRM and his friend's attention. We all left the seating area to go find food. TAN and I got in line for pizza and just happened to be behind 6 foot tall guy again, ha. The guy in front of him bought the last pizza. The cashier said that more were on the way soon and if we really wanted to, we could wait as she tended to others, but would let us buy the pizza as soon as they were available. It was only the 3 of us waiting as more of the line bought other items. A few minutes later, 5 pizzas were brought in. We bought ours and TAN and I commandeered the back of the food booth that served as our table. NMR and his friend met up with us as they ate their hotdogs. NMR at some point got some freebies and shared them with us; photo cards made by fans. I got Momo. After eating, we split again. TAN and I went to see if the full group banner was available for photos. Much like the day before, the line was super long so we kept walking. He ended up getting some ice cream. We chilled for a bit and then went back to our seats about half an hour before the show started.
Apparently there was a spill in our area because there were many paper towels and napkins bunched up under a chair. More small talk with TAN. I don't remember what prompted the topic of how it was when I got into Kpop, but I started to mention VCDs, no subtitles, low quality videos, etc. That got the attention of the mother in front of us who was with her 2 kids (I think the older child was 9). I started to name groups that no one else around us knew except her such as SES, FinKL, and HOT. When I mentioned BabyVoX, she lit up and that made me feel good as they were my first favorite Kpop group and the reason I use VoX in my usernames. The mom and her daughter that sat next to me returned except the swapped seats. Soon after, it was show time.
I won't go through every song again as the order is the same (minus the encore wheel), but I will highlight a few songs. One thing for sure is that the view was different. Not only that, but it was good that everyone wore different outfits (or at least a different color) for their solos. And rest assured that I was singing and dancing all night again.
+ The Feels
I might have done it during night 1, but despite seeing the different/new arm choreography, I was able to do it? It was easy to follow, but it felt natural.
+ Pop (Nayeon)
Being on the floor this time, it was awesome to have the confetti fall over us.
+ Queen of Hearts
Such a good song. I really enjoyed singing/yelling into the air again.
+ Cheer Up
Jihyo was chosen to do all 4 Shy Shy Shys against her will, ha.
+ Likey
Momo did the solo dance and ended it with a freaking cartwheel. I am so glad I was up close to see that in person.
+ Heartshaker
Nayeon went far out to spin back to Sana in the end, but Sana turned around to hug Tzuyu, which she's done in the past. But it was hilarious to see Nayeon start gyrating with the middle of the pack, ha.
+ Alcohol Free
Dahyun yelling "I'm alcohol free" before the song started was silly. Some are speculating it was a mission for her to do. I hope it was. Again I did the middle parts of the song and a few around us knew and laughed at what I was doing.
+ Dance the Night Away
Similar to the confetti falling, being on the floor as the streamers shot out and getting caught in them was amazing. TAN wrapped himself up in so much. I would have done that too.
+ Talk That Talk
Same thing with the confetti again. I wasn't told until after the show, but I had a piece of confetti on my forehead since then, ha.
+ When We Were Kids
A fan video was played after the song (either this or Crazy Stupid Love after) and the members turned around to watch it. I only learned afterwards that there was a link in a specific Discord to submit a video. If I were part of it, I would have sent one, but oh well.
+ Like OOH-AHH
Our first encore wheel song. I again had to yell "rig the wheel" to the laughter of a few around us.
+ Candy Pop
And this was our final encore wheel song and the song the concert ended on. I can't remember the last time I heard the song. It would not have been my choice to end on, but it was a nice surprise.
And that was the end of night 2 of the concert. We sat for a bit while saying bye to a few around us that left when they did. I spoke to the daughter and mother for a few minutes asking if they were heading home right away to Austin or staying the night. I mentioned how a few people were thinking to wait to see TWICE leave the arena and they seemed excited to possibly do that. TAN and I made eye contact with NRM and his friend who came around to us to talk about heading out. As we were leaving, the girls we first befriended talked with us and made sure to exchange social media before we made our way out of the staging area and bidding our farewells to them. TAN was originally going to ride back with us, but stuck with his original plan. So he came back to the car to get his stuff. But NRM's friend met with other friends so we didn't have the key, ha. As we waited, I was waving at almost every passing car (I should have been doing TWICE dances instead, ha) and I believe all waved back. TAN left when NRM's friend came by with 2 other friends that were going to ride with us. Pleasantries and stories were exchanged as we rode out. The 2 new friends were dropped off. The remaining 3 of us were trying to find a fast-food place nearby to eat, but most were closed. So we just returned to his place, gathered our things, and split for the night. I originally wanted to get Jack In The Box on the way home, but took a wrong turn and ended up getting Wendy's. Ate my meal, caught up on a few things, and went to bed.
General concert thoughts -
+Friends
Thank you to aunt snorlax for helping secure the ticket for night 1. Thanks to NRM for securing the ticket for night 2. Thanks to TAN for being a cool new friend. And thanks to anyone new friends I made and spoke with during the concert/s.
+ Small talk with staff
I was talking to almost any staff member I was able to exchange words with. From vendors in and out of Toyota Center to even the guy at the gas station at the end of night 1. One friend noticed that I was being very friendly. I replied with "it really depends on them." If someone seems like they don't want to be bothered, I won't engage outside of a "thank you." If I think I can make small talk, I usually ask how their day is. Most will smile back with a joke and I leave with them with encouraging words. The vendor I bought the shirts from night 1, I made sure to ask if they were getting water and they were assuring me that they were being taken care of because it sure was hot out there. I asked some if something is "free" knowing it is not just to get them to joke back. On day 2 after I bought my candybong, we passed by the table that helps with syncing them up. Mine was still in the box and I asked "does it sync if I keep it in the box?" One person was giving a legit answer while others laughed at the not so serious question. At the end of night as the staff was ushering us to leave, I pointed in the other direction (the stage) and they said "if you want to get in trouble or get tackled" and laughed. My favorite interaction was probably when TAN got ice cream and I was waiting off to the side. One staff member was grooving to the music and I started to groove and body roll next to her. Fun stuff.
+ Freebies
It was nice to get freebies from some kind ONCEs. My favorite was the bracelet from night 1. If I go out or I'm streaming, I'm wearing it.
+ Age
While I met a few people my age (for example the mothers I spoke with), it was safe to say that the age range was fairly young. Possibly mid-20s or younger. Nothing wrong with youthful energy, but it did make me question talking to the girls I sat next to on both nights or even the friends we made in the F line.
+ Fan chants
Unless it was part of the song lyrics, I don't recall anyone doing the fan chants. I did a few, but was definitely singing the full song like those around me.
+ Live band
Now this was nice. I don't recall if they were using a live band the entire tour, but I recall that during one of the talking segments they asked if we noticed them. I wouldn't have minded hearing the original backing tunes, but the live band added a different energy to familiar music. Shout outs to guitarist Yewon.
+ Fireworks
I do like fireworks in general and have been accustomed to seeing them go off during wrestling events. Those are more percussion with lots of color and heat while the concert had soft sounding ones that were more sparkly, but still a nice touch.
+ Sitting far/close
Being up high for night 1 was actually really nice. We had more space to ourselves in general. Plus we could see everything all in one view such as the members moving around the stage, the big screens, and the sea of fans. I really liked seeing the venue full of candybongs all synced and lit up together. Being on the floor has pluses and negatives. There sure was less space as seats are more mashed together. But seeing the members up close in person was a treat for the eyes. We were in the splash zone area, but didn't get splashed, ha. If there ever is another 2 night concert, I think I would do the same to have the different views. Hopefully for the floor I can be even closer.
+ Photos
I took a lot of photos, but I'm no photographer so the majority didn't look great. I don't know how everyone else has super good quality for their photos and videos, ha. Thanks to cool fancams and photos that they take. But I did want to remember this from my view. I don't like taking videos on my phone. Plus I sang and danced a lot so I wouldn't be able to do both. The following Twitter link are for what I thought were the best photos I took along with close ups of the merchandise and freebies.
Thank you, TWICE. You made my first Kpop concert special and this 20+ year old Kpop heart feel filled with joy. I love you all and hope to see you again.
That's a wrap on June 2023. Thank you for your support. Be cool and be kind.
"Reprise the theme song and roll the credits."
