A bit delayed this week due to being in Toronto for IATC 2026. It was a fun but exhausting weekend. More to come on that.

📚 Finished Dune Messiah this week. Might take a break from Dune for the next one. Also need to wait for this month’s credits to hit. I’m thinking some Neal Stephenson is up next. Maybe Readme.

🎵 Found a fun sing-a-long playlist for our trip to Toronto Wednesday night. It was even better that the signing kept me up for the drive. Along with plenty of coffee and a Celsius.

🍿 Obsession. It’s great. Amazing. Still thinking about it a week later. That is all.

📺 Still really enjoying Widow’s Bay and started watching Margo’s Got Money Troubles. Only an episode in but it was very entertaining. Apple TV has been killing it.

🎮 Cyberpunk 2077. Definitely a lot more involved and more complex of a game than I’ve been playing lately. It’s taking some time to get comfortable and I’m anxious with all the choices available. From appearance, multiple ways to level up, and storyline decisions, there’s just so much. I already feel like I made wrong decisions, but going to push through and maybe change things up for a replay. On a side note, I’m amazed at how well it runs on Switch 2. It looks great.

❤️ IATC 2026! Back in Toronto for the International Axe Throwing Championship. This year I’m doing ambi, doubles with Jacy, and Round 2. Driving up much later than in the past feels different, but the drive was ok. More comments about IATC will be a separate post.

Started playing Cyberpunk 2077 and I don’t know if I’m getting old or have been playing too many metroidvanias, but this game has almost too much going on. Every time I go into the menus I’m selecting something wrong, I’m almost over stimulated with everything happening, and I’m overwhelmed. 🎮

📚 Dune Messiah. Just about finished listening to the second book of the Dune series. Probably could have finished it this week but didn’t find much listening time that would allow me to take it in.

🎵 Listened to a Spotify playlist called Early Alternative during much of work this week. A lot of gems from late 70s and early 80s. Going to have to add it to the listening rotation.

🍿 The Curse. Modern take on a werewolf movie that takes place mid-to-late 1800s. It was just ok. There was a couple times where I said aloud, “This movie is still going?”

📺 The Boys. Watched the season finale of The Boys. It was satisfying. There were a lot of questions of how they were going to tie up the finale given everything that happened in the finale season and I think they did a good job. I haven’t read the comics so can’t speak to how faithful the series was, but it was entertaining if not frustrating given current events.

🎮 Before I Go. It’s almost a joke that indie games are all an allegory for death, but from the start you would be hard to believe it was anything else. A metroidvania with ok combat and at times frustrating platforming, but enjoyable to play. On the shorter side, but exactly what I was looking for.

❤️ Wine at Sunset fundraiser at Patterson Park was this week. It was wet and rainy but still an absolute blast. What’s not to love? Unlimited wine tastings and small bites from local restaurants. I went years ago when it was called the Wine Soirée, and while that was fun, the new format was even better. Already looking forward to next year’s event.

Started playing a new metroidvania called Before I Go. Jacy played it a couple weeks ago and it looked interesting. More Metroid than -vania and like most indie games, it’s an allegory about death and acceptance. The pew-pews are very satisfying. 🎮

📚 Dune. Finished the first book in the Dune series this week and already downloaded Dune Messiah. Goal is to read (listen) through all the main story line this summer.

📺 Shrinking. We finished season 3 of Shrinking. What a great feel good show. A range of emotions in every episode and the finale was no different. Loved it.

🍿_Anaconda_. A silly and fun watch. It knew what it was and that’s perfect.

🎮 The Messenger. Finished the main story and just have to dlc to do. I’ll come back to this. It was a great game and even more so for picking it up on sale for $4.

❤️ Mother’s Day lunch was a hit. My sister brought shrimp to steam up and I made crab cakes. Found some really good strawberries at the farmers market so had strawberry shortcakes for desert.

📚 Dune. Still steadily listening to Dune. I’m enjoying the all-cast reading. There’s also additional music and sound effects that really immerse you in the drama.

🎵 I didn’t listening to anything new this week. Most of my listening was Spotify playlists during work. The 90s Pop Mix was very good. A lot of bangers.

🍿 I Don’t Understand You. This was a silly and enjoyable comedy horror similar to Tucker and Dale Vs Evil. ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

📺 The Boys. Down to the final 2 episodes. Last week’s was good. Definitely had a twist that I wasn’t expecting.

📺 Shrinking. Finishing up season 3. Genuinely great show. There’s a range of emotions in each episode and the entire cast is fantastic.

📺 Drunk History. We watched a lot of Drunk History this week. Fun show to just have on the background.

🎮 The Messenger. I think I finished it this week. Going to spend a couple more hours finishing up loose ends. There’s a new game plus option which I will do, but on to a different game on the backlog.

❤️ O’s game Friday night. The Orioles are not great this season (again), but Camden Yards is still a fun place to be. ⚾️

Did not have a Starfox 64 remake on my bingo card for this year. Looks great. I’m stoked! 🎮

📚 Dune. Already read it years ago but got a Libro.fm subscription and doing a listen through.

🎵 The Saddest Landscape - Alone With Heaven. The bands first release in 11 years and it rips.

📺 The Boys. Final season and so fair it’s just ok. Only 3 episodes left and curious how they’re going to wrap it up.

📺 This is a Gardening Show. This is amazing. A handful of short episodes about 16-18 minutes long. The kids are fun and Zach Galifianakis is funny and sincere. “The future is agrarian.”

🎮 The Messenger. Obsessed.

❤️ Saturday morning walk to the market with Jacy and Nora and seeing some of the Kinetic Art Sculpture race.

Picked up The Messenger 🎮 during a Nintendo store sale for $4 and holy shit is that the best $4 I’ve spent in a long time. It’s such a fun game. I can spend 15 minutes doing a single level or playing for a few hours straight. It’s fast, challenging, and satisfying. I’m hooked.

Clearing out the backlog of games and dipped back into Hades.

I forgot how fun and satisfying it is when you get the right combination of boons. I’m looking forward to finally finishing it after almost 3 years.