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June 2021.

The west coast just got over the heat dome. In my neck of the woods, that was easily the hottest it’s ever been here. Our car at one point said 46ºC. We were ill-equipped to deal with the heat — no AC and living on the top floor of our building. To beat the heat we ended up booking a hotel for a few days. It was an expensive solution, but the sanity gained more than made up for it.

I’m looking into solutions for AC in our place, even though we’re renting. I imagine this was the first of many heat waves to hit us now and in the coming weeks. Not to mention that it’s been so dry that wildfire season can’t be far off.

This month I participated in the GMTK Game Jam. I wrote about my experience, and the game we made is called “Put ‘er There”.

My takeaway from the game jam is that I need to engage more in the visual arts. I had a blast making pixel art, and I want to continue to draw (or pixel) regularly.

Not much else going on. The province has moved onto Part 3 of its re-opening plan which means things are starting to “return to normal”. Masks are recommended but not required. People have been acting weird about it. Not much surprise there.

I had my first experience in over a year meeting with more than one or two people at once, and without masks. It felt, as expected, weird and a bit uncomfortable at first, but soon it felt like normal again. Keeping in touch with friends over Discord and text helps keep you connected, but nothing can replace seeing (and hugging) them in person.

I’ve been quiet on the music front lately. I must be in a music funk, because I find myself not listening to much of anything lately. Sometimes I’ll put on the 24/7 lo-fi beats channel, but recently it’s the sound of my keyboard clacking away while at work. Eventually something will come my way that reignites the spark and I’ll be back in it again. I did manage to rediscover the Drop Nineteen’s Delaware.

I’m continuing to play through Miitopia. I think the game overstays its welcome a bit (the classic JRPG trope of an even bigger bad — literally called “The Darker Lord”). It’s still keeping my interest though. The end of the game has some quality-of-life features that should honestly be there in the start: the ability to change jobs at will, and being able to buy the same equipment for other party members. The last area is starting to drag on, but I figure I’m near the end.