Catching Up

This past weekend we went to Matsuricon. We had an excellent time! We got to see ProZD review Ohio foods in person! The AMV competition entrants were great. The dealers hall had a lot to offer.

I’m old now. I’ve felt this for a while. My joints hurt in the morning. I’ve got a handful of mild chronic illnesses to manage. I struggle with staying up late. But my girlfriend and I still had a place at Matsuricon. So that was cool.

Art

I bought a refurbished Huion Kamvas 12 for super cheap on eBay a few months ago. I spent a month on a drawing and had moved on to a second one when we both came down with Covid. I feel like I lost what was some amazing momentum, but I just haven’t been able to return to it. I’m not good at drawing yet, but I won’t get better by thinking about it.

Gaming

I got into the Deadlock closed beta via a helpful stranger on Reddit. It’s a lot of fun. I’m not sure if I will keep playing or what. I’m very bad. Of course I’ve only played a couple of games. So I’ll get better, but I’m not sure if I want to bother. I think I’m mostly interested in this game as a spectator. And it might be a while before we get big tournaments - if they even happen at all.

I nearly 100%’d Vampire Survivors. I had just gotten off of 7 hours of Death Stranding, which I just didn’t like at all. I got it for free on the Epic Store and I’m glad I didn’t pay for it. Death Stranding left such a bad taste in my mouth that I was starting to wonder if I actually liked video games or I just liked the idea of them (seriously). So I picked up Vampire Survivors on a whim for $5 and absolutely loved it. It was incredibly easy but it just flowed. I spent nearly 40 hours on the game - most of my free time for the first 3 weeks of August.

Before Vampire Survivors and Covid, I finished Jet Set Radio on Dreamcast for the first time. I’m pretty sure I got 90% done when it came out but never finished. The games controls are much more jank than I remembered, but the aesthetic is fantastic. I played it on my new CRT setup in the bedroom. My girlfriend’s mom found us an old TV and I spent a bunch of time building a stand for it and setting up the Dreamcast and a PS2.

I was fascinated to find that Jet Set Radio was about gentrification and outside companies coming into a neighborhood to change it. Even in its cartoonish delivery it resonated with me. A new round of change is crashing into us here in Columbus. Big buildings are being built. Small businesses are being pushed out. The internet too is riding a similar wave. Big tech and AI are pushing humanity out of jobs, public discourse, creative outlets.

I’m retreating from the onslaught into nostalgia and physical media. But I’m trying to be mindful and move forward into a new way of being rather than back. I’m finding new creators and searching for new things to do.

Sports

My home soccer team, the Columbus Crew, won their mid-season tournament, Leagues Cup. I was there with my dad and it was amazing to be present for it. They’re playing out of this world right now! Nancy’s all gas no brakes approach results in some wild games and these most recent games have been fantastic examples of that.

It’s fall, so the big sports turnover is happening. American Football is kicking off. The Tour de France and the Olympics are over. It won’t be too long before we’re watching the World Series and the MLS Cup.

What I’m reading

I’ve picked up and started all the new X-Men titles. I read all of the X-Men titles from just after House of M until Hickman took over with the Krakoa stuff (2008 - 2019). I just really didn’t like what Hickman was doing. Bringing characters back to life in that way just really skeeved me out - I mean it was supposed to I think. So I’m excited to see where the new direction will take the characters, but I’m apprehensive about Disney leadership mucking things up now that they have the movie rights again.

I read the transcript for thejaymo’s podcast episode A Menagerie of Models. He offers a very different window into how creatives can use AI compared to what’s being pushed in advertising and the media. While fascinating, I’m not convinced that the benefits are worth the damage AI is causing. I would like to write more about this, but my thoughts are very half baked. In fact, I wrote a whole blog article about this in July that I never posted.

I’m also reading some 20 or 30 different webtoons on Webtoon and Tapas. Stay away if you value your sanity. Many of the stories are very good, but these apps are extremely manipulative. They use all the same tricks that gacha games use to keep you coming back. Things like daily and even 3 hour unlocks for free chapters, seemingly random gift passes. I actually think webtoons are heavily contributing to my lack of writing this year.

What I’m going to read

I picked up Moonbound from the library right before the con. I technically started it already but I’m only a couple of chapters in.

At the con I bought The Characters Taught Me Everything and BL Metamorphosis Volume 1. So I’ll be reading those soon too.

The Journey Continues

It’s been a crazy year so far and my busy season is only just getting started. I’m going to have to put a big emphasis on self-care if I want to survive the fall intact.

I think we’re all going to need to craft our own reality anchors and tie on tight. The world is getting weirder and this fall is going to be storm of epic proportions.

Look after yourself and, as always, stay chill and enjoy