Joy's Vlog

Is this thing on? Oh wait, it is on, right, haha, I totally forgot.

Anyway….

Hi! My name is Joy! Welcome to my vlog! I’m here to talk about the recent success of Inside Out 2. As you know, Disney has gone woke, meaning they include more people of colour in their movies, especially black people. This annoys me and my friends sooooo much. But luckily, Inside Out 2 is a standout. It teaches us about two things and two things only: mental health, and mental health alone. Oh! And big emotions, thanks, Sadness.

Okay, so, with all those people talking about how Inside Out 2 has addressed these issues really perfectly, I’m going to talk to you about what really goes on in your mind, whether you’re autistic or not. So here we go!

#1:

WHAT CHARACTERS DO IN YOUR HEAD.

Do you know what your favourite characters do inside your head? Whether you’re a toddler, a geek or a nerd obsessed with cartoons, you can clearly be sure that you’re favourite cartoon characters are always inside your head, plotting some new and fun ideas, whether you’re writing a story, baking a cake or just wanting to sit around eating snacks and watching TV all weekend. On our quest to get back home, Sadness, Anger, Disgust, Fear and I all met Riley’s favourite characters: Bloofy, her childhood favourite character from when she was a toddler, and Lance Slashblade, a video game character whom Riley had a massive crush on. Imagine that, right, wanting to marry a video game character. Have any of you seen the show ReBoot before? Hmmmmm…most of you might, I dunno.

Anyway, when you start watching a show that features a favourite cartoon character, you can feel an instant urge to become their friend, join in their adventures, see what they get up to next, much like Riley with Bing Bong when they go on their adventures together. Inside your mind, your favourite characters are roaming about, waiting until a report about their latest adventures come in. Now Riley’s into all this teenage stuff like werewolf sitcoms and the like, but something tells me that favourite characters have come to be cherished by kids, adults, parents and teens alike. Don’t tell me: Riley’s dad acts like a big baby sometimes. Made ya look! Ha ha!

Okay, so, I’ve seen Riley browsing Reddit in the last couple of days, looking for advice on how to win the next big hockey game. She has seen a lot of sneaky things posted on Reddit, but still, there are some she likes. For example, two parents in the toddlers’ section of Reddit said that their toddlers liked a wide variety of different shows. One mom said her little poppypants liked Daniel Tiger, If You Give A Mouse A Cookie, Blue’s Clues, Little Bear, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Bear In The Big Blue House, while another quoted that her little guy or girl loved loved LOVED Barney & Friends. In addition to that big purple lug of a dinosaur, she said that her toddler also loved Trash Truck, Llama Llama, Puffin Rock and Go Dog Go.

Now, imagine these toddlers in a really different situation. They’re watching these shows. Singing along with the songs or joining in the actions to the songs, or just watching characters like Llama, Mouse or Blue enjoying quality time with their friends and family. Now when TV time is over, these toddlers will get back to playing. But not before you hear one of them say:

“Come on, Mickey, let’s go on an adventure!”

So here, one toddler has got Daniel Tiger, Mouse, Blue, Little Bear, Mickey and Bear going with him on an expedition to a Candy Mountain in the far left hand corner of Bumblesweet Valley, while the other one is enjoying a singing dancing jamboree at Barney’s Fun Ranch with Llama, Oona and Trash Truck. Did I mention Walter and Donny are here too? These characters are always in their minds, even when they grow up, because nothing can stop them from still being alive inside your head. Characters grow to become independent livers inside your head, playing, dancing and laughing until the day you die. All I have to say is: it’s a big step forward, it allows you to relive those memories you had with these characters and all the adventures you spent.

But then, from the age of 10, people get a certain something called…an OBSESSION. DUN DUN DUUUUNNNN! Okay, I was being a liiiittle too dramatic here, haha. Okay, so, picture this: you are growing up watching YTV in a place called Canada at the age of 10 in 2002 and 2003 -

“Riley learnt about that in school.”

Thanks, Fear, we needed to know about it, thank you. Anyway, as I was saying, obsessions with cartoons can strike into the heart from the moment you watch it the first time. You have your snacks, you have your drinks, you have your YTV Woah magazine, and all is going well, and all of a sudden, this little red wizard going by the name of Orko appears on the screen. A sudden sense of excitement swells up in your body, and washes over you like an ocean splashing over your naked body, you start to shiver, then shake, and then suddenly, IT HAPPENS! Your snacks fly everywhere, you are jumping around in excitement, it’s not He Man you’re rooting for…but someone different entirely.

For you see, some cartoon characters can be a slight obsession to those who have just turned 10 and are still in primary school. Obsession is the devil’s drug, it can sweep over you like a mystical broom, wanting to increase your hormonal pleasure by the time you turn 24. Obsession is common in teens and adults, it can happen in any kind of person, and they become so obsessed they forget about the thing they are supposed to be doing. Like for instance:

You are cleaning the dishes, having a bit of a laugh, when all of a sudden, HE MAN! You drop the dishes all over the floor, and you are scolded by your mom.

You are going to bed and having sweet dreams about another day at school, when all of a sudden, DIGIMON! You can’t go to sleep anymore.

You are out walking in the park with your crush, just chatting and laughing, when all of a sudden, TRANSFORMERS ARMADA! You suddenly blurt out Optimus Prime’s name, and your crush slaps you in annoyance and leaves.

Obsessions can be dangerous at times, but sometimes they are good to share. Maybe at school, you might find another girl who is obsessed with My Little Ponies, or a boy who’s interested in Pokemon games. The possibilities are endless. For characters make up the most really important memories in your mind - the ones you spend with your family and friends.

Also, anyone read that Reddit post about Bluey and My Little Pony?

#2:

IMAGINATION LAND.

Everything that exists in your imagination is right here, in Imaginationland. In your head, there is an abundance of things based on your favourite things, and even houses for your favourite characters, mentioned in the earlier step, to live in. Sadness and I went to Imagination Land once, and there were all sorts of cool stuff - French Fry Forest, Sparkle Pony Mountain, Princess Dream World, you name it, it’s here. But your Imagination Land has to do with YOU and YOU alone.

Every person’s imagination land is different. They can house anyone you want to house, anything you want to find, or anything you like to do or see. It’s a safe, sweet-smelling place that is unique to the person with the active imagination. Take a look at those people who had imagination - Richard Corbet. Marc Brown. Todd Parr. Every single person has a unique Imagination Land, which fits the unique them they are. Here’s how you can draw your very own Imagination Land:

1.Grab a piece of paper and a few pens or crayons.

2.Think about what excites you most, like a story you’re working on or something you’re ecstatic about.

3.Draw away!

This happy place alters depending on the person housing it in their mind. But, there’s a sad footnote: should you lose your imagination as an adult, Imagination Land disappears forever. Princess Dream World, as I’ve seen, collapsed into a shower of confetti. The Stuffed Animal Hall Of Fame had its giant bear centerpiece’s head ripped off. Am I being a liiiittle too brutal here? Okay, I am, but I’m being serious, without imagination, we dare not live, and without life, there would be no humans or animals to populate our planet. So it’s very important that we all have a little imagination to help us grow up, become knowledgable and share our memories with our children.

Excuse me, I need a have a moment…