First I'll list the tournaments I've attended since last time and a review of my thoughts: Straight Up Tilted 12 (yeah it was just the one): I was honestly not expecting a good record on any of my sets, but I focused on just playing and keeping my calm. In the past I've had issues with my mindset and focusing on just playing. I briefly talked to one of my friends up in Norcal and he gave me some good advice. I focused on just "playing to learn" which honestly kept me far from being the saltlord that I found myself to usually become after missing like one tech or screwing up a jump-cancel grab.
I learned tons about the Pika/Falco MU (like how good cc'ing Pika's nair is) from friendlies. My bracket matches went surprisingly well, but I know that I wasn't getting players on my level. I won't let that get me gassed up or anything. Out of the 3 sets I played in, I won 2. The person I played with that I lost to was another Falco, and I'm kinda sure it was Yung Traplord, an up-and-coming player posed to do some big things in the region. All things considered I put him on his toes. Took 2 stocks off on each round. He told me that my problem was that I hadn't been keeping control of center stage as I should had been. In otherwords, work on your neutral game and positioning on stage.
My practice sessions have returned to digging around Smash Boards for MU guides and footage. I personally believe SB is a treasure trove of knowledge ready for any Smasher to discover. In between that I'm practicing many different things all at once. For instance, I'll take some time against the 20XX bots and practice neutral and combos, then after a couple rounds of that I'll decide to either go into full on tech practice or I'll hop into netplay. I've been practicing everyday ever since I got angry with myself for letting myself slip. After some self-reflection on the drive back from Tipped Off 12 I realized what I wanted the most out of Melee. To compete.
I want to play against strong players and give it my all and try my best to win. If I have something to look forward to, like a tournament or a meetup, I know I can play against someone that's really good. It's seriously the most fun I've ever had with any game. So long as there's a new challenge I want to put my hand in.
Anyways, the next outing is Player's Club on the 31'st.
Only a couple more days, gotta keep at it!