I may have forgotten to release a blog post last week, but in my defense, Stardew Valley is fun.
One of my goals for this year was to actually sit down and read, play, or watch the things I keep saying I’m going to read, play, and watch. Gone would be the days where I just allowed myself to constantly create without appreciating some of the wonderful creations which have already been put out into the world.
But, being a quarter of the way through 2024, I think it’s about time I look at how I’m doing with my goal for the year. So, let’s break down what I’ve managed by Reading, Playing, and Watching.
READING
While my progress has tapered off the past month, I’ve managed to read six books so far this year, plus one I’m nearly done with and another I’m about to start for an ARC review (yes, those count for me).
So far, it’s been a lot of books about poisons and death, such as Death by Shakespeare by Kathryn Harkup and The Secret Poisoner by Linda Stratmann. I have tried to lighten things up with Bookshops & Bonedust by Travis Baldree, but I just haven’t had time to finish it.
With the summer coming up, I definitely will be attempting to read some more light-hearted (or at least fictional) books, but there will also be some books about plague and poisons, even if I don’t tend to talk much about either of those topics in my books.
At least, not yet.
PLAYING
If you couldn’t guess from the opening to this blog post, I’ve been playing a lot of Stardew Valley the past few weeks. Since the update at the end of March, I’ve probably sunk almost 40 hours (if not more) into the game, and I’m almost done with Year 2. I probably could’ve played even more if I didn’t have a million other things going on the past few weeks.
Stardew isn’t the only game I’ve played, though. I also got the honor to play Potions: A Curious Tale for a review, and while it’s a short game, I very much enjoyed it. Additionally, I did redownload Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp on my new tablet, which I try to touch about every day.
Do I still have a very long list of games I need to play? Yes. Am I still going to play Stardew instead of going through that list? Also yes.
I think the only way I’m going to get through all those games is to start streaming them (which, in my defense, I have considered once I get a regular computer instead of just a PC).
WATCHING
Honestly, this has been where I’ve been the weakest. Maybe it’s because I don’t have any streaming services and am at the whim of whatever cable plan my school decided to buy for television channels, but I’ve pretty much only watched Twitch streams and whatever sport was on for background noise.
But, hey, I have watched some playthroughs of games I otherwise wouldn’t have watched, so that has to mean something, right?
Joking aside, I do hope to correct this a little more through the rest of the year. While I’m about to work on a bunch of term papers, I should have the time to do so over the summer. The biggest decision then will be what I actually chose to watch first.
While I wish I could say I have soaked in more of the creativity out there, I’ll get myself a pat on the back for a decent attempt. Summer is coming soon, which should mean more time for such endeavors, but the emphasis is on the word should. I’ll have an internship and preparation for marketing a novel at that point, so I will have some more work on my hands.
Do y’all think I can do it? Any recommendations?
Trust me, I can always use the help.
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