I was fully in a spring place after last week’s warm weather, but it’s been hail and snow for the last few days and my internal calendar has gone back into winter mode. It’s a quiet weekend for us this week and I’m looking forward to dozing on the sofa.
I spent some time today working out the plot issues in my big game project and I am much happier with it as a result. I’m really looking forward to getting the new version put together. Need to focus on the small April project first though!
…when I will finally get all the non-work/studying stuff that I’ve been meaning to do for the last few weekends (and not had time) done! Including the last of my Christmas prep, which I’ve been spending three months doing gradually so that I don’t have to rush around doing it in December. December is extra especially busy this year, because this year has been extra especially busy in general.
Storm Arwen is due to hit tonight, bringing high winds and snow, so Geth and I are not planning to leave the house this weekend. The treadmill is available for running (we won’t be parkrunning tomorrow even if by some miracle our local ones are going ahead) and our supermarket delivery has just arrived, so we’re looking forward to a couple of days of hibernation.
If I’ve got time, I may even do some game planning, seeing as I feel a bit bereft after finishing my two recent short ones! I put up the post-comp release for The River of Blood today (the EctoComp results were announced this morning – my game came 9th out of 23 overall and 7th out of 15 in the Petite Mort category so I’m pretty happy with that), and it looks like a good number of people are playing Morris as well, so I’ll be excited to see how that does in the next couple of weeks.
This week’s earworm playlists:
Saturday
Soft Cell – ‘Bedsitter’
Taylor Swift – ‘We Are Never Getting Back Together’
Sunday
Cast of Moana – ‘How Far I’ll Go’
Monday
Masashi Hamauzu – ‘Thunder Plains’
Goo Goo Dolls – ‘Iris’
Tuesday
Pointer Sisters – ‘I’m So Excited’
Wednesday
Kuana Torres Kahele, James Ford Murphy and Napua Greig-Nakasone – ‘Someone To Lava’
Goo Goo Dolls – ‘Iris’
Thursday
Masashi Hamauzu – ‘Thunder Plains’
Friday
Harry Belafonte – ‘Jump in the Line (Shake, Señora)’
The next week or so is quite busy with running events and gigs. I’m excited for all of it! And also for next weekend when I will return to my regularly scheduled dozing. The return to near-normality is nice but it can feel a little overwhelming to be suddenly doing All The Things.
The strange brief heatwave that made its way through the UK this week only showed its face in Newcastle on Wednesday, and that was quite enough for me. I’m done with hot weather now! Looking forward to cooler conditions for autumn running. It’s meant to be 13°C and cloudy on Sunday for the GNR and I really hope the forecast is right.
I made a decision earlier this week that I wouldn’t do the 22-mile run I’d scheduled for this week and would instead treat my 18-miler from a couple of weeks ago as my longest long run for the marathon. My body is telling me very loudly that a five-week taper is more likely to get me to the start line in one piece than a three-week taper, so I’m going to listen to it. I’ve got the GNR (13.1 miles) on Sunday, will do either eight or six miles next Thursday depending on how I’m feeling post-race, and six the week after, then a nice ten-day period of only doing mile-and-a-half streak savers and slow gentle parkruns leading up to the marathon. Fingers crossed it will all go according to plan.
This time next week I am hoping to report back on a slow but enjoyable GNR completion, two very long-awaited concerts, and the bulk of a game coded!
This week’s earworm playlists:
Saturday
Republica – ‘Drop Dead Gorgeous’
Sunday
The Beatles – ‘Hey Jude’
Tom Jones – ‘Delilah’
Monday
Koichi Sugiyama – ‘Town’
Tuesday
Koichi Sugiyama – ‘Town’
Wednesday
Boston – ‘More Than A Feeling’
Soft Cell – ‘Say Hello Wave Goodbye’
Thursday
Girls Aloud – ‘Something New’*
Friday
The Human League – ‘Being Boiled’
*RIP Sarah Harding.
…for me these days is the grey mizzle we have here in Newcastle today! I went out in it for a twenty-minute run and that was quite enough, thank you very much. I’m going to be spending the rest of the day on the sofa, both playing and making games 🙂
Cool, damp weather also makes me very excited for autumn. Two days to go!
I was excited about today’s parkrun because, for the very first time, I was volunteering as tailwalker (the back marker who walks behind the last participant and makes sure everyone gets through the finish before the parkrun gets packed away). It was fun, although the weather was not exactly ideal for being out on the course for nearly an hour!
It was an absolutely sodden morning and it just kept getting heavier! This was the second wet parkrunday since the restart and both times I was volunteering at Jesmond Dene… hope this doesn’t become a trend! I’m marshalling there again in three weeks’ time so I will keep you informed.
Back to regular running next week, plus another attempt at a new-to-me volunteer role 🙂
This studio scene is just the shiny face of it! The real puzzles in the game are solved in the meteorology centre, where you consult with specialists, pore over projections and DO SCIENCE in your endless, fascinating quest to predict the British weather correctly.
(Pixel British/Irish Isles based on a design by nightwolfdezines at Vecteezy.)
There’s been a lot of rain this week, but the temperature has not lowered and sleep has been difficult due to the muggy night-time atmosphere. I’ve also had so much day job work I’ve not had time for anything else. I’m obviously thrilled that business has been booming recently, but I’m looking forward to a bit of downtime soon!
Not much else to report this week as a result. Hoping to be able to squeeze in some game creation as well next week.
This week’s earworm playlists:
Saturday
Liam Payne and Quavo – ‘Strip That Down’
Duran Duran – ‘Five Years’
2 Unlimited – ‘Get Ready For This’
Technotronic – ‘Pump Up The Jam’
Sunday
Jason Derulo – ‘Want To Want Me’
The House Of Love – ‘Shine On’
Monday
Arctic Monkeys – ‘I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor’
Don Henley – ‘Boys Of Summer’
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark – ‘Locomotion’
Tuesday
Koichi Sugiyama – ‘Dragon Quest Town Theme’
Cast of Peter Pan – ‘A Pirate’s Life (Is a Wonderful Life)’
Wednesday
Koichi Sugiyama – ‘Dragon Quest Town Theme’
Cast of Peter Pan – ‘You Can Fly’
Thursday
Keala Settle – ‘This Is Me’
Friday
Nobuo Uematsu – ‘Let The Battles Begin!’
Alannah Myles – ‘Black Velvet’
Nobuo Uematsu – ‘The Trials’
Tracy Chapman – ‘Fast Car’
I think (hope!) we’re done with the winter weather now. I’ve been able to wear spring running clothes for five days in a row without getting cold, and the last two ‘supermarket trip Thursdays’ have been so sunny that the car has been summer levels of hot when we exit the supermarket and I’ve had to take my hoodie off to drive home. The blossom is finally coming out properly too, and should be in full bloom within a week or two. I’m already looking forward to taking lots of pictures.
I’ve spent most of this week planning games and experimenting with code (when not running, working, or doing household chores and admin). I’m in a real game creation place at the moment and am excited about all the things I’m planning to make over the next year or so.
Work has been quite busy for the last few days so I’m looking forward to the weekend.
This week’s earworm playlists:
Saturday
Michael Land – ‘Scabb Island Overview’
Sunday
The Crüxshadows – ‘Deception’
Harry Nilsson – ‘One’
Lisa Lougheed – ‘Run With Us’
Monday
The Crüxshadows – ‘Marilyn, My Bitterness’
Tuesday
The Crüxshadows – ‘Marilyn, My Bitterness’
Mesh – ‘Let Them Crush Us
Wednesday
Dee Cooke – ‘Control Room’
MC Hammer – ‘U Can’t Touch This’
Thursday
Michael Land – ‘On The Hill’
Jorge Vera – ‘Tierras Magicas’
Friday
Michael Land – ‘On The Hill’
This week has featured a lot fewer deadlines and manic last-minute things than last week did, so I’ve been able to get back to some semblance of normality in terms of the house upkeep and the exercise/training programme. It’s been especially nice to get back out for my walks, as it’s been really clear and sunny all week. This has meant that early morning runs have been a bit chilly, but afternoon walks have been the perfect temperature. Hope the sunshine continues.
As often happens when I release a game, I feel a bit bereft of my project and am already eagerly planning out the next one. This covers many things: the long planning document acts as my project for April’s Camp NaNoWriMo, and the new game itself is the full version of the excerpt I released for IntroComp 2020 and will also be entered into ParserComp 2021. Planning out the puzzles is fun, but I can’t wait to dive back into coding. I’ve got two and a half months to finish the game, so an important mission is not to get distracted by anything shiny in the meantime!
A blissfully quiet weekend awaits. Looking forward to finishing off the last of the other games from the jam (I’ve been playing the Spanish ones this week and it’s been a really fun way to get some language practice in) and also getting in some time with my much-neglected Switch Lite.
This week’s earworm playlists:
Saturday
Dee Cooke – ‘Control Room’*
The Crüxshadows – ‘Dragonfly’
Dee Cooke – ‘Intro And Exit’
Sunday
Dee Cooke – ‘Path And Tree’
Michael Land – ‘Governor Marley’s Mardi Gras Fish Fry’
The Beatles – ‘Ticket To Ride’
Dee Cooke – ‘Control Room’
Lily Allen – ‘The Fear’
Monday
Michael Land – ‘The Barbery Coast’
Lewis Capaldi – ‘Someone You Loved’
Soft Cell – ‘Say Hello, Wave Goodbye’
Dee Cooke – ‘Control Room’
George Fenton – ‘Bergerac (Main Theme)’
Tuesday
Dee Cooke – ‘Control Room’
Soft Cell – ‘Say Hello, Wave Goodbye’
The Crüxshadows – ‘Ariadne’
Wednesday
Joe Hisaishi – ‘Kokoro No Kakera’
Michael Land – ‘Scabb Island Overview’
Thursday
Michael Land – ‘Scabb Island Overview’
Friday
Dennis Martin and Takeo Miratsu – ‘If You Still Believe’
Michael Land – ‘Scabb Island Overview’
Dee Cooke – ‘Intro And Exit’
Lisa Lougheed – ‘Run With Us’
*Like last week, I have spent an embarrassingly large chunk of the last few days with my own compositions stuck in my head after making them for my game. Given that music is planned for most of my future game projects, this could become a regular occurrence.