I walk down the street and say "everything will be alright".

As you can tell, readers, things have been "slowing down" here on Twee Affect. Your writers have been busy studying for finals and pulling all nighters to write papers so that they can get their (community) college education. Let us now take this time to reflect on this past year in LEGO, and weep bitterly. This year has been a year of CHANGE. Not just the CHANGE that was promised by our new and very socialistic government, but the CHANGE in many parts by our favorite betraying childrens toy company, LEGO. This past year Lego designers, engineers, and financial planner people have really shown they have no respect for the vocal AFOL (adult fan of Lego) community (also less importantly the TFOL (teenaged fan of Lego)).

First let us look at the parts that hurt your beloved writer most and have been mentioned before: Panels. Yes, readers, Lego decided to change the oh so useful 1x2x3 and 1x4x3 panel. Their infinite uses, which are far too infinite to list here, have been rendered to nothing. Nothing. Uselessness.





Next, Lego decided to change a part with infinitely many more infinite uses: the macaroni brick.



It looks as if we must now invest in 4x4 round plates in order to make our precious cylinders. Your author cannot repeat "what was Lego thinking???!!!" enough. This change is more unbearable than Dan Boeckner's falsetto (sorry, Jonesy).



This next change doesn't effect your writer much because he is not a SPACEtard, but is still worth mentioning because he is certain that in some point in the future he could have used this part as filler brick: some windscreen. Even though this part now connects better, the words of someone with advanced degrees pretty much sums it up best: too many engineers, not enough designers.



Another changed part baffles your author, but he feels compelled to share it with you anyway: the 1x1 tile with clip. What was the point of changing this part? It looks like it uses a little less plastic, which, in the long run, could save money, but, other than that, it seems like a waste of a new mold (one which could have been used for some Brickarms prototypes (do u have n e u would liek 2 trade???)).



This year has been really tough for us fans. Next year some great sets and lines are supposed to come out, but your author's evolutionary survival tool, pessimism, tells him to expect the worst and to be disappointed. Good thing the crisis hot line is still in his cell phone's recent calls and he can quickly make use of it, if the need be.