Happy 8th Anniversary MLP! (Birthaversary?)

Okay, technically, yes, I'm writing this at 1 AM the day after, but shush.

So our good old cartoon horse show has finally turned 8! And I'm happy! Here's hoping for 10!

Even though I haven't been a member of the fandom for a year yet (and it already feels like so much time has passed), I've grown to love it and become passionate about it, and it's easy to see why: it's just a dmn good show! Not to mention, it appeals to my sense of nostalgia: a LOT of the people who bring MLP: FiM to life worked on shows I loved in the past. Tara Strong was Ben Tennyson, Raven, and Timmy Turner, Tabitha St. Germain and Kathleen Barr brought were Nazz and Kevin & Marie (respectfully) on Ed, Edd n' Eddy (which was a larger part of my childhood than my mother would like to admit ) and I'll forever be grateful to Big Jim Miller, Terry Klassen, and Scott Underwood (who has since left MLP) for helping bring the Eds' zany adventures to the screen.
I always make myself laugh because I've watched EEnE so much over my life that I can recognize the characters' facial expressions down to the most minute detail, and when I watch MLP I see a lot of those same faces pop up; it's in those moments I get a little flutter in my heart, and I think "Ah, there's one of Jim's faces!" That, and the fact that some expressions can be so simple but can convey a world of meaning... gosh dang, Canada has some great talent!

Where was I? Oh yeah. Colorful, diminutive equines.

You know, it's funny: I actually remember exactly where I was on October 10th, 2010, the date of the show's premiere. And back then, I would've wanted nothing to do with it.

It was a Sunday, I was middle school-aged, and Mom was taking me to pick up my best friend so we could go back to my house and watch the "10/10/10 Ben 10 Marathon" (which I remember thinking was a really awesome idea and recording the movies they aired on VHS tapes... Vengeance of Vilgax, I think?) A fun time was had by all, and I'm glad the memory has stuck around, especially since the date is now far more significant to me! (Not to mention, Pound Puppies also premiered that day, and I started watching it long before I became a brony. I'd rush to switch channels once I saw those colorful horses come on... oh how delusional I was. More on my journey to bronyhood in future posts, perhaps.)

(I've been using a lot of parentheses in this post, you notice that?)

I'll end this post on a positive, somewhat humorous note.
Realizing that today was the big day, I thought "Okay, I have to watch the horses today, but how? I'm at college, they don't carry the channel, and the internet is absolute horse manure." Well, perhaps taking a cue from Fluttershy, I mustered up all of my courage and walked for about a mile in the dimming light to the Dollar General in town where I knew they had pony DVDs, and I made my first (Correction: Second) in-person pony purchase instead of hiding behind a shopping website. I was so happy inside that I'd made myself do it; moreover, the cashier didn't give a sht and they weren't terribly priced. I got four: Friends Across Equestria, A Pony for Every Season, Soarin' Over Equestria, and Adventures of the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

But probably the best moment of my trip occurred at the register. When she scanned the first DVD, the computer did something weird... she said it was asking for my age.

It took all I had not to burst out laughing right there.

Ah, My Little Pony! It's as powerful as booze and more addictive than cocaine!

Have a happy Pony Day everypony!