Syl's Blog

I skipped my weekly musings post for the weekend. It should only be my second one here on my main blog, but I've already skipped it, both because I'm too tired from the weekend to bother and also because I didn't really keep up with what I did the past week in any sort of tangible way. I'm also starting to think that, honestly, I just don't want to keep up with everything I consume. I've tried very hard for so long to do that, and it's clearly not working out for me. I rarely actually post week…

Joel is always coming up with great ideas for his blog, and I was most recently intrigued by his Gaming Updates post. So here I am, stealing yet another idea from Joel for my own blog! I thought it would be a lot of fun, and maybe a little insightful, to write about my own gaming habits this year. Joel focused on goals he set for himself on his blog, and I've set my own personal gaming goals but haven't previously posted about them. At the beginning of the year, I made a list of games I'd like…

I loved making watercolor cards as Valentine's Day gifts, and I've wanted to branch out into other creative projects, so I decided to try making a bookmark using a similar canvas. This time, I used watercolor pencils -- not quite the same medium and a bit more challenging for me, as I'm not the best at drawing, and I'm quite rusty when it comes to art in general. Still, I had a lot of fun making this! My theme was, of course, Ranni. 😊 One side depicts Ranni the Lunar Princess from Elden Ring,…

One thing I've always loved is personalizing my online presence. I see it as being similar to decorating, which is another thing I love to do, both in real life and in virtual worlds. I keep my Steam profile decorated, in a sense. I recently revamped it, focusing on similar colors and the games I love. I thought it would be fun to go over some of the details and my thought process behind them. Profile pic: I chose an official image of Alma Armas from VA-11 Hall-A, one of my favorite visual…

I experimented with doing week notes over at weblog.lol for a while, and after reflecting on them, I've decided to make a few changes: I'm going to integrate them back into my main blog here, so I'll be posting these weekly notes moving forward. I'm calling them "Weekly Musings" because I like the way it sounds and that's kind of what these are to me, looking back and musing on the week before. Instead of trying to include every piece of media I consumed throughout the week, I'm only going to…

I've been back on Twitch as an Affiliate streamer for a couple of months, which has been plenty of time to get a feel for it and reflect on it. After talking with Danny about it kind of in-depth last night, I made the decision to stop streaming. Things I liked about it: The community aspect and chatting with friends Sharing cool games with people Things I disliked about it: Being the "center of attention," so to speak Having my attention divided, which made it difficult to focus on games The…

I've been searching for a volunteer opportunity for the past year or so, trying to find something I can stick with long-term and that will help my community while also speaking to me personally. I try to contribute to clothing drives and things like that whenever possible, but I've been looking for something more permanent, where I can serve in a steady role for a long time to come. Yesterday, out of the blue, I got an email from a volunteer with the Friends of the Knox County Public Library…

Summer is the perfect time for peaches, and I've been craving them a lot lately. Today, I decided to whip up a peach crisp. I used this recipe, but I made a couple of adjustments: I didn't have oats, so I just used more flour, and instead of pecans or walnuts I used sliced almonds. I have to say, it came out perfectly and was absolutely delicious served warm with vanilla ice cream. It really hit the spot in this summer heat. Other summer foods I've been enjoying: Bomb Pops, a childhood favorite…

I've been thinking about how much I share about myself on this blog and elsewhere from an internet-safety standpoint. Growing up, I was taught never to share any details about myself online, including my name and the city I lived in. Now, though, I'm a published writer, so my name is out there and I kind of need it to be in order to be recognized for my work. I could've used a pen name, and sometimes I wish I had, but it's too late for that now, and besides, I prefer having my writing…

I have a few little things to share, and I got the itch to write, so I thought why not update my blog? Site-Related Things I made a few aesthetic changes to my Hotel Dusk shrine and added a character analysis of Kyle Hyde. I really love this shrine. It might be my favorite website I've ever made, and I'm proud that it's listed at Emotion. I have some more ideas for Hotel Dusk extras, but I think I want my next focus to be finishing my Koudelka shrine. I like the old-school design I came up…

As far as my favorite video game console goes, it's always been a toss-up between the PlayStation 2 and the Nintendo 3DS. They accomplish different things and are meant for different types of games, so really it's a pretty solid tie between the two, with one being my favorite stationary console and the other my favorite handheld. Joel recently posted about his experiences with the 3DS, and it inspired me to revisit my own personal experiences. Mine will not be as in-depth, and I'm not as…

Danny and I spent the 4th appreciating an aspect of this country we both have no hesitations about celebrating: nature. We put Ranni's harness on and packed up her collapsible water bowl and a water bottle, and the three of us headed out to Seven Islands State Birding Park. I mentioned in another post that we have a list of things we want to do together this month, and this was the first one checked off the list! We left early so we could get there before the worst of the day's heat settled on…

I think I've discovered the perfect morning routine. First, I feed Ranni then have a glass of water and a bowl of Special K Fruit & Yogurt cereal. Special K is one of the few cereals you can find in grocery stores that's fortified with iron and B12, which helps with my chronic anemia and gives me energy for the day ahead. Then, I've been using my Moka pot to get my coffee fix. I've found that it works better than my Breville machine for the perfect cup of espresso with steamed milk. It's also…

I played the demo for an upcoming game called Silver Pines on Tuesday and haven't been able to stop thinking about it, so I felt the need to get down some of the thoughts that are kind of bursting out of me at this point. You can find more information about the game at its official website, and you can access the demo and wishlist it on Steam. The website provides links to console releases as well, but I believe the demo is currently only available on Steam. The studio behind Silver Pines is…

It hasn't quite been a full month and I'm already missing it here, which I think is a good sign. I've come to the conclusion that I really like treating this blog as a personal journal, and that's okay. I'm a remnant of the old days of blogging, when it was more journal entries and less essays, and it's hard for me to get away from that, even now. I still want to write thoughtful pieces as well, but I don't think that has to be my focus. I can use this space to simply chronicle my life and have…

I updated my /music page with a new YouTube listener badge and decided I kind of wanted to do a small blog post as well, with photos! First up, Danny got new glasses, which I think suit him perfectly, and I just really love this picture of him holding Ranni. Next, these photos may look familiar if you've been following my blog for a while because I'm pretty sure I've posted similar ones before. I had breakfast at one of my favorite local restaurants, The Farmacy, with my mom, sister, and niece.…

If you've seen my latest status update or my Mastodon profile, you might already know that I've decided to take a hiatus from blogging here. To paraphrase Marie Kondō, this blog does not spark joy at the moment, so I need to figure some stuff out and then come back to it with a fresh mindset. I didn't know it was possible to get burnt out on blogging, but I think I am? It was starting to feel like a chore. I felt like I was just blogging for the sake of it without putting the kind of thought…

When I previously wrote my thoughts on Pragmata, I purposely avoided addressing the weird internet culture war surrounding it. Regardless, it was in the back of my mind while writing, which is frustrating because I don't want to have to think about such things while discussing a game featuring a kid, but this is unfortunately the world we live in. After letting my small, not-too-serious review sit for a while, I've decided it's best if I say something about the elephant in the space station. I…

It's been a while since I've just written my thoughts on a single game, and I have quite a lot of thoughts about Capcom's third-person shooter Pragmata. This will be a spoiler-free review and, of course, a very subjective look at one of my favorite games of the year so far. It's a common phenomenon to feel like a game was made for you specifically, and that's pretty much how I feel about Pragmata. It plays in third-person over-the-shoulder view, which is my favorite perspective, and it adds a…

I mentioned in my last post that I received some bad news at work. My supervisor, who I adore, accepted a new position in another city. It's a hybrid role where she'll be closer to family and where she can grow more, so of course I'm happy for her. But selfishly, it's going to be a difficult adjustment. Her last day was on Friday, and I feel like her last two weeks with us flew by. She's the one who hired me, and she has believed in my capabilities since day one. I'm not exaggerating when I say…

I received some bad news this week, both at work and at home, which has put a bit of a damper on this beautiful spring. I'll try to write about it later, but for now I'd rather focus on the things that made the week good in spite of the bad. I want to get back to using my digicam regularly again, but all of the photos here were taken with my phone (a Pixel 8 Pro, unfortunately). Ranni My priority with Ranni is making sure she's happy and healthy, rather than relying on her for my own mental…

Since this is a personal post that mentions health issues, I've decided to exclude it from showing up on the Discovery feed. As I mentioned in my last post, I haven't felt like blogging lately. That's mostly down to the fact that I've dealt with an anemia flare-up and my sleep has been all over the place. I'm very much feeling the need to get back into a regular routine, and I thought I'd write a bit about what that will hopefully look like and steps I can take to get there. My Planned Routine…

I haven't felt much like blogging lately, but I wanted to pop in quickly to say hello and would you like to see some blueberry bread? I made it the other day. It's essentially just blueberry muffins in bread form, but I like it better this way, and I prefer it packed full of blueberries. 🫐😋 It's one of my comfort foods that's easy to whip up with basic ingredients. I hope you enjoyed looking at this blueberry bread. I certainly enjoyed eating it. Here are some other foods I've enjoyed lately:…

I still love New York City, the melting pot, the oldest bar in the city, and the Irishman who told us never to go to bed angry. I still love the black bear and her cubs at the top of Kuwohi, and when we told her, "This is your domain. We'll go back down. We'll be on our way." I still love New Smyrna Beach, the rays and crabs, the little girl who gave me a sandstone bracelet, and the hurricane that kept us in a late-night diner with milkshakes and stories. I still love Seattle, the light rail,…