things I've been doing lately
Dec. 1st, 2024 11:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
m_oonmoonI wanted to share the stuff I've been enjoying lately. My life is an endless repetition of the same day ad infinitum but maybe talking about it would add a little bit of charm.
First off, since I'm mostly talking about books here, I'm going to share the book I've been reading. Right now I'm reading Robin Hobb's Ship of Magic. It's thick one, which is part of the reason why I thought I'd share a random blog post now as opposed to making you wait for a review on this. I suspect it will take me until the end of the year to finish this. I won't go into too much detail since I intend to make a review of sorts when I do finish it. Suffice it to say that I am very much invested in the story and the characters. I am interested in how Hobb is going to merge all these story lines. There is a definite sense that the characters are all moving towards the same destination even though they all appear to be walking in completely different directions.
I'm not much for romance but the Althea x Brashen romance sub-plot is one that has been brewing since those two were introduced and yet I don't dislike it. It's rare for me to ship (hehe get it?) a straight pair in any form of media but this one I don't mind too much. I do hope this statement doesn't bite me in the ass as I get further into the novel. As long it doesn't lean too heavily on the romance and doesn't get melodramatic, I think I can stomach it. It's also quite amusing imagining Wintrow as a ship-fucker. He reiterates that the love he feels for the ship is not romantic but I find it amusing, nonetheless. I feel bad saying this, though, because Wintrow is undoubtedly my favorite character thus far. He reminds me very loosely of Alyosha or Myshkin.
I've also been reading China Mieville's Embassytown but I am hesitant to bring it up, much less review it. I'm reading it on my kindle which means that I rarely, if ever, pick it up. I think I've been reading it for 3 months now. I know. Yikes. The book doesn't deserve this kind of treatment. The setting is so inventive and I truly cannot fathom how Mieville even thought of it. But I feel unequal to the task of talking about it because I feel like I should've dedicated more time and concentration on it. Let's just leave it at that.
Other than reading, I've also been playing video games. Right now I'm playing Final Fantasy 7: Remake. I don't know if I'm just getting old but none of the characters are appealing to me. They all seem like caricatures, or characters that have been done a million times before. Visually they're impressive for an old-ish game but they suffer from same-face syndrome. I think it's a product of game developers wanting to make their main characters visually appealing. They cater too much to what the common beauty standards are with the end result that everyone looks the same, with no distinguishing feature except their clothes and hair. It's a bore, really.
It doesn't excite me as much as Baldur's Gate 3 but because I'm so bad at video games, the gameplay provides enough challenge that I keep coming back. I suppose I'll finish it just for the sake of finishing it. It's such a dizzying game. From the gameplay to the setting. The layout of the slums gives a sense of claustrophobia. I can never figure out where to go. I suppose that's part of the atmosphere but I get frustrated sometimes so I can't play it for too long. Not to mention the plethora of side-quests that doesn't really move the plot. I am not obsessed but it will have to do.
The last thing I want to talk about is Mad Men. I've been re-watching it at a snail's pace and I know that it's been said many times before but it's so good. It's a great show that doesn't treat its audience like idiots. I love it. I'm in the episode where fuckass Crane hires a new guy to handle broadcast operations without acknowledging Joan's hard work. I truly hate all the men in this show. It's quite impressive, actually.
That's all I have for now.
First off, since I'm mostly talking about books here, I'm going to share the book I've been reading. Right now I'm reading Robin Hobb's Ship of Magic. It's thick one, which is part of the reason why I thought I'd share a random blog post now as opposed to making you wait for a review on this. I suspect it will take me until the end of the year to finish this. I won't go into too much detail since I intend to make a review of sorts when I do finish it. Suffice it to say that I am very much invested in the story and the characters. I am interested in how Hobb is going to merge all these story lines. There is a definite sense that the characters are all moving towards the same destination even though they all appear to be walking in completely different directions.
I'm not much for romance but the Althea x Brashen romance sub-plot is one that has been brewing since those two were introduced and yet I don't dislike it. It's rare for me to ship (hehe get it?) a straight pair in any form of media but this one I don't mind too much. I do hope this statement doesn't bite me in the ass as I get further into the novel. As long it doesn't lean too heavily on the romance and doesn't get melodramatic, I think I can stomach it. It's also quite amusing imagining Wintrow as a ship-fucker. He reiterates that the love he feels for the ship is not romantic but I find it amusing, nonetheless. I feel bad saying this, though, because Wintrow is undoubtedly my favorite character thus far. He reminds me very loosely of Alyosha or Myshkin.
I've also been reading China Mieville's Embassytown but I am hesitant to bring it up, much less review it. I'm reading it on my kindle which means that I rarely, if ever, pick it up. I think I've been reading it for 3 months now. I know. Yikes. The book doesn't deserve this kind of treatment. The setting is so inventive and I truly cannot fathom how Mieville even thought of it. But I feel unequal to the task of talking about it because I feel like I should've dedicated more time and concentration on it. Let's just leave it at that.
Other than reading, I've also been playing video games. Right now I'm playing Final Fantasy 7: Remake. I don't know if I'm just getting old but none of the characters are appealing to me. They all seem like caricatures, or characters that have been done a million times before. Visually they're impressive for an old-ish game but they suffer from same-face syndrome. I think it's a product of game developers wanting to make their main characters visually appealing. They cater too much to what the common beauty standards are with the end result that everyone looks the same, with no distinguishing feature except their clothes and hair. It's a bore, really.
It doesn't excite me as much as Baldur's Gate 3 but because I'm so bad at video games, the gameplay provides enough challenge that I keep coming back. I suppose I'll finish it just for the sake of finishing it. It's such a dizzying game. From the gameplay to the setting. The layout of the slums gives a sense of claustrophobia. I can never figure out where to go. I suppose that's part of the atmosphere but I get frustrated sometimes so I can't play it for too long. Not to mention the plethora of side-quests that doesn't really move the plot. I am not obsessed but it will have to do.
The last thing I want to talk about is Mad Men. I've been re-watching it at a snail's pace and I know that it's been said many times before but it's so good. It's a great show that doesn't treat its audience like idiots. I love it. I'm in the episode where fuckass Crane hires a new guy to handle broadcast operations without acknowledging Joan's hard work. I truly hate all the men in this show. It's quite impressive, actually.
That's all I have for now.