Looking back at 2019’s New Years Resolutions

Hey, it’s that time of year where I think about thinking things. So It’s probably a good time to see if I did anything with my resolutions for 2019.

via GIPHY

General Goals

1. Be Slower - I think (unsurprisingly) my results were mixed. The idea here was to focus my energy towards one thing at a time. I think I managed to do this moderately well when I wasn’t stressed. When I was stressed, I think I fell back to my old patterns.
2. Finish Things - Well, this still isn’t my strength. I did give a lecture on finishing things, which I did finish. I think I’ve generally gotten better at getting stuff done and especially doing things as soon as they come up so that they don’t land on my to-do list at all.
3. Be Comfortable - This one’s gonna be a long process. I spent a little time thinking the other day that I have an urge for “this to be done” so that I can be happy. Finding that way to seperate my mental state from everything else in the world is going to be some work.

Specific Goals

1. Finish the Thesis - Goddamnit :-D
   
   
   
   
   
2. Make Something Everyday - Uh, where the hell did 2019 go? I started strong, lost it a little in the middle and then have picked up a bit at the end. Taking a really motivating art class has helped for sure.
3. Finish a Project a Month - Uuuuh, where did 2019 go? I bombed this one pretty hard, but at least I have moved most of my projects along a little.
4. Enjoy Good Stuff - I think I did okay. Not great, but okay. I’ve read a ton this year and watched a lot of shows I’ve been interested in. I’ve played more games and enjoyed them.
5. See More things - I don’t know that I did this as well as I should have, but I definitely took myself on some little adventures and think I’ll have space for a lot more.

2019 was okay. It was a transitional year and the year in which I moved from being a guy who hadn’t finished his PhD to a guy who did finish his PhD. The bit where the world didn’t suddenly change around me was to be expected I guess, but I’m still trying to figure out how to be out on my own. It’s been easy for years to blame the PhD for the things I’m not happy with, but that’s a crutch I have to give up now, and more to the point, maybe turn it into a nice cane and use it to hook the world into where I want it.

via GIPHY
Tradition now dictates that these posts end with a dancing cat

Blog: Books Read in 2019

"Criminology". Biology.

I'm on Good Reads

Blog: Books Read in 2019

Oooh. Eeeech. Mmm.

I'm on Good Reads

Blog: Games of November 2019

As often is the case, November was pretty crazy, so I didn't play that much. My time went primarily to Luigi's Mansion 3 with a little bit of day-to-day play of Sunless Sea and Pogo. Now, I'm tired, but the semester is hitting its end point and I'm dreaming of some of the interesting things I can turn my time to in December.


My top five games (by play time) for November were:

1. Luigi's Mansion 3 - I have super fond memories of the first Luigi's Mansion, what with it being the first game I played on GameCube. I really love the way it forms an interconnected world and an immersive environment that's really fun. Luigi's Mansion 3 seems to have a lot of those bones and is generally quite fun, but it feels a little bit short of a really engaging game.
   
   

   

   Ah, nothing haunting about this game at all.

   
   


2. Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival - This came up in a list of most disappointing games of the decade I watched recently. Every time we play I do find myself thinking about all the little things they could have added to make this game amazing, but it just falls a little short of what you might want. On the other hand it has enough content spread out in such a way that we still find ourselves a little surprised most times we play and its an important part of our weekend mornings.
   
   

   

   Waiting on a winter day.

   
   


3. Sunless Sea - My push to get better at Sunless Sea produced some interesting results. I definitely got to see more of the game and enjoyed the zen of sailing slowly across the vast(ish) unterzee.
   
   

   

   Crabs. As big as the ship.

   
   


4. Europa Universalis IV - Most of my time came from a pretty chill Saturday at the end of the month. Every time I play I'm struck by the interesting balance of feeling of in control and out of control. I think for EU V they could do some streamlining of interfaces and some clarification about implications and consequences, but now I'm enjoying understanding what the flow of a war is likely to be before I actually start it. I've found it extremely beneficial to play on Iron Man because it causes you to follow through and see exactly how things happen.
   
   

   

   Never quite enough resources to take over the whole world.



5. Pokémon Go - I'd have liked to get out a bit more, but didn't leave myself the time or mental space to really do so. I'm thinking even if the weather's a bit crappy in December I should put myself to doing a little more intentional play.
   
   

   

   Big and shiny.

   
   

Here's my total play time chart for November:

And here's a chart of how much I've played over the month: