Mocho Semifreddo

Stepped a little out of my culinary comfort zone today and attempted to make a mocha semifreddo. The part that scared me was whipping up the eggs over a double boiler, last thing I wanted was coffee flavoured scrambled eggs. Once I folded in the cream though, I couldn't stop licking the spatula - always a good sign. They're chilling overnight now, hoping they taste good frozen too. Could even have a new signature dessert.

We've been living in our new neighborhood for a little over three months now and to Rebecca's dismay, not a single garden cat has shown us an ounce of affection. That all changed this evening though as a fluffy cat jumped through a hole in the fence and rushed up for cuddles. We were so enamored by him we ended up chilling out in the garden for way longer than we planned. Here's a cute picture of me with my new best friend. Pardon the dodgy haircut, lockdown and all that.

Foodie Friday

Crawling over the finishing line this Friday and just about got a plan of a draft worked out for my current project. Started typing it up too as a mini edit/get it off paper move, that's next week's job now though and to celebrate, we bought some ice lollies. I'm in a real cooking mood recently I've noticed, Rebecca has all these great cook books and I've never once trawled through their pages for inspiration. Now that the weather is nice I wanna make salads and dishes with couscous. Got a few ideas in the bag now, along with a few ideas for some quick puddings I want to make over the weekend. It's going to be a very foodie few days.

Stream Musings

Continued tinkering at my latest project, every day I feel it getting sharper. I reckon I'm on the home stretch in getting a first draft done, with any luck I'll be 90-95% done with that phase by the end of tomorrow.

Been gently musing about streaming again over the past few days. I fancied doing Resident Evil 2 in under two and a half hours (you get a reward for beating the game under that threshold). Over the past week I've actually been practicing pretty intently for it in the evenings and on my lunch breaks and I'm now at a point where I think I can do it in one sitting. Could be pretty exciting to try and do it in front of an audience.

Knives Out

Sat down at my writing desk once more to crack on with 'my great American novel'. I worked out the base structure for my project, now I'm just putting the meat on the skeleton. I've found myself in a position where I just really want to have some fun with it all but I often end up overthinking it. During the latter part of the day I think I finally got into a groove with it and stuff began to arrive more naturally. People always envisage writing as this joyful activity, but at this moment in time it feels more like doing maths homework.

Stepped into the world of digital movie rentals this evening, Knives Out isn't bundled in on any streaming platform yet and after hearing everyone sing its praises Rebecca and I spent a whopping 76p each (plus a coupon) to rent it online. And it was a fun movie. Rian Johnson's independent movies have previously been a bit too clever and self-important for their own good, but here we finally sense that he's just enjoying his craft. It moves at a good pace and you always have full comprehension of the unfurling mystery. The film itself isn't groundbreaking, but you're along for the ride and everything ties together at the end with a neat little bow on top. Perhaps a little too neatly... While the mystery at the heart of the plot is undeniably well constructed, it never gives the viewer enough breadcrumbs to play the armchair detective - It doesn't make you feel smart, it just asks you to bask in how clever the writer is. Again, this is Johnson's classic misstep, but at least it's entertaining!

The Haunting

A little birdie told me that it was Rachel's Birthday today, so Rebecca and I did the best we possibly could to celebrate under lockdown conditions. We strolled over to their house and dropped off some presents: a canvas bread bag, a tub of ice cream and a full bottle of homemade cold brew coffee. Hopefully we made her day a little more cheerful.

Felt a little spooky this evening so I dived into The Haunting with Rebecca, promising her a chiller that 'probably won't be very scary'. My, oh my, I was wrong. From beginning to end, I was completely under the film's spell and though scenes had a bone-chilling quality, I couldn't tear my eyes away from the screen. It was pure horror. No jump scares, no parlor tricks, just a perfectly executed tale of dread.

Quarantine Beard

Muscled into a family video call first thing this morning after missing all of my phone notifications. Mum and Dad are doing well though which is always nice to see, not that I'm in any way feeling homesick but I do often think ahead and imagine spending a 'normal' weekend with them after lockdown ends.

Spent the bank holiday washing Rebecca's car and doing some gaming and reading by myself, very relaxing overall. Rebecca yearned for a BBQ dinner so we rustles up a cute 'indoor BBQ' by cooking all the usual suspects in our kitchen, then moving outside to eat. First corn on the cob of the year though, a real treat!

For the past few weeks I did the really obvious thing and grew a quarantine beard, sadly I decoded later on today that it had to go. I can't really maintain a beard anyhow without the right tools so it was best to nip it in the bud and flush the beard down the sink. Looking going now though...

The Sacrifice

Felt like I hadn't been giving films enough of my attention recently and when I saw I could watch The Sacrifice on Film4 catch up I decided to set an alarm and watch it really early this morning. Turns out I should've stayed in bed. At times, this Russian film feels like a prayer being whispered. Some impressive imagery and extended shots give it a dreamy quality, but the 'stagey' nature of the character interactions pulls you from the film's spell. It's too long, lulls a fair bit and just doesn't quite stick the landing when it comes to conveying its message.

Though the film was a disappointment, meeting up with Louis and Rachel in the park this afternoon was time well spent. We set up picnic blankets at a safe distance and just chatted and soaked up the sun for the afternoon. Perfect day for it too, once we'd all said our lot, it was peaceful just sitting on the hillside, admiring how blue the sky was. 

Another Saturday in Lockdown

Gale force winds buffeted me as a headed to do the weekend grocery shopping. Remarkably, the shops were fully stocked with everything we needed, we're planning on having a isolation BBQ on Bank Holiday Monday so I stocked up on meat and corn on the cob. After decompressing and decontaminating I settled into a chill weekend day, complete with a video pub quiz in the evening. I only placed 3rd but that's OK.

Lockdown Chowdown

Briefly hung out with my Coffee 1 team via video chat this morning. We all played that bluffing game '2 truths, 1 lie' as a socializing activity, it's nice that we all get together for these things and it's good to see their faces again. The end of the week also marks the right for a celebration, so Rebecca and I got a take away! The burger place we were dreaming of sadly wasn't open so we hit up our plan B which still hit the spot. Even in lockdown you got to treat yourself sometimes.

A Cheeky Run

I've grown increasingly aware of how sedimentary my lifestyle has become since lock-down, so I strapped on my running shoes and headed out for a quick run. Did alright too, thinking I should make it a fairly regular thing, just to keep my bloody pumping and my muscles from turning to stone. Just as well I'm exercising now too, Rebecca whipped up a new batch of cheese scones, which are very, very delicious but very bad for you...

Mass Effect 3

Warm one today. Perfect weather for sitting indoors and trying to get things done. Well, that's not entirely true, we pulled out some chairs into the garden for lunch and ice cream which was splendid. I'm slowly chinking away at Mass Effect 3, the game I'm playing at the moment too, it's one I neglected playing back in 6th form that Jamie was always a big fan of. The second I finish it, I'll be sending him a message saying sorry I sat on it for so long.

I'm quietly wait for Sick Critic to finish its website maintenance, our editors have said no new content will be published because we are hemorrhaging web-traffic at the moment. My latest written works will head up there soon though. Brainstormed a few new article ideas too which I think they'll be interested in getting their hands on. 

Hey, Hay Fever. Go Away

My hay fever wore me down again today, to the point where I spiritually started banging my head against the wall to conjour up some motivation to work. I got a few more of Louis' vegetable lines typed up for delivery but aside from that the day passed without much being achieved.

Thankfully this evening was spent in the virtual company of Mark, Daniel, Lucy and Emily as we all rung in Mark's Birthday and played some board games. Secret Hitler translated very well over video chat, didn't win a single round but I enjoyed myself nonetheless.

Super Sniffles

Really had to force myself into the land of the living for the most part of the day. Despite using some nasal sprays to combat my blocked nose, I couldn't stop sneezing and generally feeling a bit gross, even now I don't feel 100%. Pushed on though and I'm happy to report I hit 200 unique dialogue lines for Louis' game. Big milestone, but still plenty to do.

If it were a normal year I'd be writing about spending the evening with chums, relishing in a mid-May BBQ for Mark's Birthday. Obviously, 2020 has been atypical so we couldn't meet up for a Birthday blowout. Instead, Dan and I arranged a small digital present and I sent him a delightful bit of virtual furniture for his Animal Crossing home. We're doing a fun video call tomorrow night so we'll still mark the occasion, very much looking forward to that.

Kindergarten Cop

Unbeknownst to me, one of Rebecca's childhood movies was Kindergarten Cop, the Arnold Schwarzenegger film where he has to go undercover in a preschool to catch a baddie. It's a little too long and some of the dialogue is oddly lewd in places but I found myself having a good time while watching it. Still, I couldn't really understand who this movie was for. Not enough action for Arnie fans, not enough heartfelt epiphanies for comedy lovers and it certainty ain't for kids. I think it exists, and is remember fondly, purely on the virtue of Arnold's screen presence, his charisma is undeniable and it's the saving grace of this oddball film. The debate whether or not School of Rock is a better movie rages on in this household though.

A Crate of Hipster Beers

What's the first thing you think about when you hear the phrase 'Saturday Morning'? Probably a nice lie in, or watching telly with a big breakfast. I got up early to get a good spot in the que for the supermarket. Though I was groggy, it paid off. Crowds were minimal and I got everything we needed, minus breaded chicken, clearly Asda's clientele went mad for Kiev's and nuggets last week.

Despite the early start I had a relaxing Saturday. Rebecca whipped up some cheese scones which were a delight and I buried my head in my gaming backlog. A crate of hipster beers I ordered on the cheap finally turned up in my doorstep today too. Meant I could enjoy a delicious IPA while playing some webcam games with old uni friends.

Light Years Away from the Good Times

Inputted a handful more of lines of dialogue for Louis' vegetables this afternoon seeing as I had a backlog of content to deliver to him. A handful of the new lines are all multiple choice based dialogue which I'm having a bit of difficulty getting my head around writing in the correct code. Really want to crack it though, some of my best lines use multiple choice options so it'll be great when they're working.

Went for a late evening stroll around our park after dinner with Rebecca. While it wasn't exactly warm, the lazy sunset made for a gorgeous change of scenery. Can't wait to hang out in that park with friends while sipping a cheeky beer. That possibility seems light years away, but just dreaming about the good times is enough to keep you going.

Lazy Medicine

Though I thought I was too much of a man to admit it, I think I have hay fever. A twitchy nose and itchy eyes really started to take hold over the weekend and Rebecca insisted o took an antihistamine tablet, mostly because the sound of me snuffing started to wind her up. The pill worked a treat, but she mentioned drowsiness was sometimes a side effect. One hour after dosing up I was lounging in the sun like a cat looking for a warm spot. Though I got some personal stuff done today, it arguably hasn't been my most productive session but the bits I did get done I'm pleased with.

To top it off I'm prepping a mass batch of cold brew coffee. I'll have about a litre of the stuff by tomorrow afternoon, just in time for the hot weather!

Coffee Video Quiz

Finished up my review of Streets of Rage 4 for Sick Critic. Their site is going through some technical issues so it'll likely go up in the next day or two. Not sure what to crack on with next, I had a group video chat with my Coffee 1 team for a little midday pub quiz and we signed off by saying what we were all getting up to. I told them I was working on my great American novel in a joking manner but one of them messaged me after for more information - I had to let them down. No doubt something will pique my interest between now and breakfast. Besides, I can't just play games all day, that'd just be plain lazy.

Retrain your Brain

Beavered away at one more review for Sick Critic today, no deadline or funny business for this one which is nice and I'll have it done by tomorrow for sure. Been sticking rigidly to my early morning alarms now though which has been a real boon to my productivity, I procrastinate a lot less and clock in at a decent time. Retraining my brain to enjoy work has probably been my subconscious goal during quarantine, just hope I can keep it up afterwards too.

Rustled up a jolly good dinner tonight with a few bits we had knocking around the fridge. Alongside falafel and fried halloumi I mixed up some couscous with thinly sliced green pepper, olives and the kicker, chorizo. Tasted like Summer for a change, kinda bored of comfort food now.

The Road to 200

Coming up to almost 200 unique lines of dialogue for Louis' game now. I hadn't touched that project in two weeks so I came back to it with a wealth of new lines to put in and dishing them out at a rapid pace felt great. Definitely started scraping the creative barrel by the end of the day though so I had to step away, might work on something else tomorrow just to cleanse the palette. I need to actually get around and write them up into code for Louis too, that's always the part I'm putting off...

One Last Voyage(?)

Put shorts on today and immediately regretted it. The weather sure took a mighty turn for the chilly, I spent the later part of the day swaddled up in a blanket, my mind though was exploring the high seas with Dan and Mark. It was a bitter sweet voyage though, my monthly subscription that extends to Sea of Thieves expires tomorrow. I went on my final bit of pirating today (until I buy the game outright anyway) but we made the very most of it with a big 4 hour session. The long weekend has been welcome but I'm ready to get back to tinkering on my projects again, more and more I find my work to be fulfilling, though its always effort in the moment, reflecting back on a days work is a nice feeling.

Local Tourist

In a desperate attempt to nab some flour, I headed out to Asda early doors. Setting my alarm early paid off though since I walked back with ample flour to bake some brownies with. When they came out the over I thought I screwed them up, but after they set for a little bit I realized I nailed them. Shortly after baking them Rebecca and I headed out on the longest walk I've been on since the lockdown. It'd been almost 2 months since I went North of the river, was novel seeing parts of Bristol again I hadn't seen in ages, felt like a tourist in my own city.

West Side Story

What an odd day. It felt like I came back from a long holiday and slept poorly on the plane because I just found myself spacewalking and drifting through the day. I went for a walk and took it easy (that's what the Bank Holiday is for) but my body clock just felt unsettled. Ate meals at an odd time as a result which likely only made things worse. It wasn't until the last slither of the day I decided to try and be proactive and get out of that funk.

Best way to do that while still doing very little? Watch a new movie! West Side Story was a total delight. A modern(ish) iteration of the Romeo and Juliet story with a beautiful New York background that's adorned with apartment fire escapes, washing lines and soot-stained bricks. Well shot, great energy and expertly pieced together - loved it.

Infinite - Beyond The Mind

At long last, I can finally share with you that review I've been working on for Sick Critic now that the embargo has been lifted. The game was called Infinite - Beyond The Mind, it's only a little indie game so there's no real fanfare attached to its release, but I reviewed it just as I would any other game. You can read my article here, though I should warn you, it's not especially kind. I personally think it's sharply written and it was nice to flex the less flattering side of my vocabulary - typically I like to see the good in most things but this game gave me zero satisfaction to play.



Dinner's have begun to go a little on loop since this whole pandemic hit so I wanted to push the boat out a little and experiment with what we had to make something unique. So I butterflied some chicken breasts and rolled them in chili powder and paprika , cut up some homemade chips and cooked some sweetcorn to make a DIY Nando's style dish. Cooking the chicken in my cast iron let me practice making a pan sauce from the fond too, but that part didn't go so well. I added too many flavours and managed to over-reduce it so it ended up tasting like insanely garlicky popcorn. Put it in a ramekin for optional dipping though so no harm done! Next pan sauce will be all the better for this little failure.

Dead Weight at the DeadLine

Finished up the first draft of that review I've been working on over the past few days. I always assumed I needed to hit a deadline with this one, but my editors aren't showing many signs of hustle if they want it released the moment the game's embargo lifts. In fairness, it's not the biggest game so there really isn't a captive audience for it, but it would help for viewing numbers. Never mind though, I just hope the editor's notes aren't as exhaustive as last time.

Rebecca and I spent a bit of time this evening discussing what fun activities we can do to mark the Bank Holiday. I voted for baking and she didn't need convincing. I've been eying up a brownie, cookie and a mocha semifreddo recipe recently, doesn't matter what order, I want to try them all.

Pre-empt the Edit

I hid myself away in my dining room/study for a very sizable chunk of the day to work on my upcoming game review for Sick Critic. Even after dinner I went back to work so I could get a head start on rewriting it for delivery tomorrow evening. After my last review required heavy re-editing I want to make sure this one only needs minor tweeks before it goes up. Having read some sentences aloud to Rebecca I think we're onto a winner here but I don't want to speak too soon. Got almost 1000 words written and polished today which is a damn good day in my book.

Clueless Reviewer

Begun the day early and got in my writing chair in record time today which felt really nice. I put in for a review code for a game I'd never even heard of the other day with Sick Critic. I figured it would be good practice to write a review for something where opinions and conversations about a product simply didn't exist. I spent the afternoon playing the whole game and I've already started brainstorming bits to put in my review. To add to the sense of professionalism, I have a deadline and even an embargo date, though I'm not allowed to voice my opinions just yet, Rebecca knows exactly how I feel about the game - I'll be working on that tomorrow no doubt.

On the 7th Day...

Wow, where has this weekend gone? I actually don't really remember what I dd today, mostly I just did what God did on the 7th day, but maybe I took that advice a little too literally. I'm sitting here now writing this with a head full of... not regrets, but with some keen desires. I want to bake something next week, not just because I owe Louis and Rachel some treats, but just to do something a little different. I want to cook a new dish, go for a walk and crack on with some work. This isolation has turned me into a cocoon, but now I feel oddly invigorated to become a butterfly. 

I'm pumped to start next week, I want to set my alarm for a good time and rise at a good time - some days next week feel like they're in dire need of seizing.

Greasing Up for a Walk

A cooked breakfast, that's just the ticket when everyday starts to feel the same. Rebecca and I indulged in rustling up a full English this morning. We're talking scrambled eggs, sausages, bacon, fried mushrooms and toast, in my youth I would have gone for double size portions, but older, more modest me had a sensible helping but I was still stuffed afterwards.

Walking off the bacon grease was a good idea we figured so we headed out into a part of Bristol we had never really explored. Just a 15 minute walk up the road and we found another really lovely park which an incredibly panoramic view of the city, it's apparently the best spot to watch hot air balloons when they take to the sky. Nice to know there's still magical little spots just on our doorstep.

Finished the day by chatting with friends, in particular Daniel. We each proposed a games night with some others but everyone else kinda fell by the wayside for various but fair reasons so we just ended up playing games as a pair. Instead of gaming, we just chewed the fat, quietly reminiscing, joking and chatting about games - an honest to God hang out session. Was real nice too, don't often get to chat with Dan like that and I'm always glad when I do.    

Shaggy Rug

We ordered a very cute circular rug to go under my mini office chair the other day. We expected it to arrive weeks from now but Rebecca and I were gob-smacked to hear a knock on our door this morning with a delivery. Now the florr is protected AND my feet are warm while I work. Speaking of, today marks the end of the full week I gave myself to develop an idea running around my mind, I wanted to see if I thought it had legs and now I think it does. If it fell apart I would've walked away but I think I've done enough now to keep working on it - but man, I am looking forward to the weekend so I can give it room to percolate.

Rebecca and I at long last got a chance to see Danny Boyle's Frankenstein on YouTybe, having now got the dates correct. I've now seen both versions, with the leads swapped, and I think I now prefer Cumberbatch as the monster. Never thought I'd change my mind on that but it was a super physical performance. Both versions are still free to watch on YouTube this week, if your a fan of the story its a great adaptation.