The Holiday Equation by nightchild |  |
NEOPIA CENTRAL - Whoever you are and in whatever way you do it, everyone celebrates
the holidays. Showing off your festive cheer can be a bit more tricky in Neopian
ways, and that's why I'm here to help.
This will be my third Neopian Christmas, and this year I'm celebrating with
my Shoyru and my Krawk and several close Neofriends (whom I hope are buying
me huge, shiny presents! Hahah). However, how are you supposed to go
about celebrating the holidays in the this modern Neopian world? Where do you
start? What do you do? How much virtual eggnog is it truly safe to consume?
Here are some useful tips from firsthand experience.
First of all, I'd say one of the major things everyone thinks about when they
think of Christmas is presents. And the nice thing about presents is, if you're
trying to figure out a way to celebrate the holidays with friends and family
(or in our case, Neofriends and Neopets) you absolutely cannot go wrong with
them. Presents are universally acceptable. Nobody will refuse them, and especially
not in Neopia with the economy the way it is. So in conclusion of this paragraph,
one of the best ways to spread holiday cheer is to randomly dish out materialistic
objects and/or Neopoints. Everyone will love you, I guarantee it (hey, it worked
for Santa Claus).
Presents are definitely variables, however, and I wouldn't recommend getting
the same thing for everyone on your Neofriend list. For example, your Neofriends
could easily be offended if you purchased them all a sizable pile of dung, no
matter what purpose you had in mind in buying it for them. And although I'm
sure none of them would exactly start complaining if you bought them all a Plushie
Paint Brush, I can bet that you, and your bank account, would be. Prices should
also be taken into consideration. Closer Neofriends could be given more expensive
items than people you haven't spoken to in a while or random people out of your
guild.
For your Neopets, I find that the best gifts are Paint Brushes, petpets (or
if they already have them and you're feeling exotic: petpetpets! Say that five
times fast), or toys. And although a plushie may not seem as fancy as a Faerie
Paint Brush to you, even after that spiffy-looking paint job your Neopet could
still quite literally turn blue if you don't keep it happy with a toy or two.
(Hey, it rhymes!)
And if you're feeling a bit nervous about shopping for your Neofriends, don't
worry, the possibilities really are endless. Everybody has a wishlist, even
if it isn't posted on their user lookup, I'm sure your buddies will provide
you with knowledge of the gifts they feel they need. And as a fair warning to
you, you will probably spend a fair amount of NP on your Neofriends and Neopets
Here is where the true Christmas spirit enters in... you'll really feel like
a modern-day Kris Kringle as you march up to the Shop Wizard, slap down all
your NP and declare: "I'M OFFICIALLY CHRISTMAS SHOPPING!" And he will either
look at you in awe or start dialing the number for the Neopian Insane Asylum
as he does his Shop Wizard deal to find you the best prices for the best items.
Yeah. Right.
Not to put you off the famous holiday shopping rush, however. I personally
find it quite rewarding. But if you are worried about the state of your bank
account at the end of the holiday season, remember this: It's the thought that
counts. Can't afford a Faerie Paint Brush for your Neofriend? Stick some fake
wings on the back of that Uni and grin cheesily. Didn't receive a White Ona
from the Advent
Calendar? Take a teddy bear, clean toilet paper and some scissors and work
the magic of creativity.
Now, since you rather have a lack of a Christmas tree or candles to light or
other decorative artifacts to hang about and display in Neopia you may start
to think that spiffying up your area for the holidays is impossible. Not so!
Here are some helpful ideas:
Decorate your user lookup. Just about everybody has a lookup now that
has been shined up with a little CSS (Cascading Style Sheets, a fancier and
more complicated kind of HTML). You could change your text to red and green
or add a festive image as your background. If you don't know any CSS whatsoever,
have had a temporary loss of memory or have no idea what I mean by a "user lookup",
then just go here, scroll
down to the bottom and type into that last box: "HO HO HO! MERRRRRRRRRY (insert
holiday here)!!!" Remember, you should never underestimate the power of a simple
communication.
Liven up your pet's pages, too! Don't leave out your Neopets -- they
want to be involved, too! And if you still can't work the HTML magic on your
Neopet's pet page or pet lookup, then liven up your Neopet! No matter the fact
that they currently have a perfectly good (and expensive) coat of Starry, paint
them Christmas! It's all in the holiday spirit!
Decorate your Neohome. The wonders of the Advent Calendar, the mechanism
which provides us with presents and money for each day of the month of Celebrating,
usually provide us with a decoration to put into our Neohomes. For Year 4, for
example, it provided a fully-decorated Christmas Tree, Chia Ice Sculptures,
and some artifacts for our gardens too. But if you can't manage to get your
hands (or paws, as the case may be) on any of these classics, then be creative!
Paint your Neohome red and green! Plaster it with poorly coordinated colored
lights! Or purchase several hundred garden gnomes and put red velvet hats and
beards on all of them, and set them up facing each other menacingly brandishing
such things as boughs of holly, swords constructed of leftover tinsel, and the
remains of your dinner. Now, that will guarantee you an exciting holiday.
I hope you have found this useful, or have at least found it amusing to read
my rambling inanities. Happy Holidays to all of you!
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