PerthZine

Tag: dailyprompt

  • Video Game Developer

    Describe a phase in life that was difficult to say goodbye to.

    I had a brief period a few years ago where I was a full time game developer, working as project manager for a small tech company. This would definitely take the cake for a phase I miss.

    It’s up there with full time musician and various other ideal careers, and was definitely hard to part with and go back to what one would call normal life.

    I had developed video game IP which was essentially purchased from me to hand over the rights and work for the company to bring the game to life. For reasons I won’t go deep into, it didn’t work out, and I had to return to my regular job and move on.

    It was a tough thing to walk away from, but I had no choice but to move on when the signs were saying this will not work. I guess it takes a bit of strength to say goodbye to what would be a dream job, but hey, life isn’t so bad.

    Silver linings are – I learnt a lot from the experience, and continue trying to pursue the game dev, and I walked back into my previous career on better money. Gotta think of the positives.

  • He Tried

    If there were a biography about you, what would the title be?

    I don’t mean in the sense of being a try-hard (is that even a term people still use), but meaning I’m pretty good at attempting to pursue enough things so I might one day hit the jackpot.

    This seems to be an ongoing theme of my ramblings – the importance of trying to do what comes naturally and brings you the most joy. If my life can be defined as that I’ll take it. He reached for the stars, maybe just wasn’t quite able to touch them, but at least he tried.

    Otherwise I often ponder how I would write my autobiography, since we are on the subject. Though my life has been relatively dull when compared to people with larger than life stories, the challenge in writing anything is to make it interesting for the reader.

    When people talk of literature this is a good way to describe it – as the art of writing in a way that is interesting regardless of subject matter, beyond simple storytelling. There’s usually something that happens which at least grabs the readers attention, but how you build to the event is equally important. What part of your life would you consider worth focusing on?

    Perhaps it would be the art of pursuing dreams and the inevitable wins and losses, or successes and failures. That would probably work for me.

  • The Constant Shifting Of The Mind

    Are there any activities or hobbies you’ve outgrown or lost interest in over time?

    There are two parts to answering this. One is the constant peak and trough of getting into things and out of them again. The other is the body deteriorating and not letting you do things anymore.

    I have this theory that life is all about slipping in and out of things. Call them hobbies, schemes, projects, whatever you like – they are fun and keep us occupied between the real parts of life, like work. Maybe one will catch on and follow you through life, maybe it’ll be a passing phase.

    I’ve been through martial arts, rock climbing, playing instruments, cricket, basketball, video game development, and let’s not forget writing! That’s just to name a few. Some have caught on (music, game dev, writing), others I think about all the time but haven’t gone back to (rock climbing), and some are just gone forever. I wonder what will be next.

    As long as there is something next, I think I’ll be happy enough.

    The only issue is part two of this ponder. Some things, I’m just unable to do anymore. I’d love to play footy (Aussie rules football that is), but I just assume my 44-year-old body can’t take it anymore. Maybe this is the wrong approach to life, but it does feel like some things are becoming out of reach as I get older. I can’t even jog these days without numerous aches throughout my body, and not good aches.

    Do others find this also? That there is a point in time when you can no longer do what you love to do? I imagine some things are easier to let go of than others. I’d be devastated if I couldn’t play guitar anymore. Less devastated about the jogging.

  • Nothing Day

    Nothing Day

    Do you need a break? From what?

    It’s interesting this topic would appear on a rare day that I’ve essentially done nothing but lie in bed; excellent timing. Days like this are few and far between and that’s not a bad thing. It’s nice to be active and busy, and if anything the biggest thing to overcome is feeling unnecessarily guilty about taking a nothing day.

    I don’t know about everyone else but I find myself more and more consumed by having to do things. This is half good, half bad. The bad half for me is work, and only because it occupies most of my waking hours, and while not entirely disliking what I do for a living, I would rather be doing something else.

    Because of this, and the pursuit of doing the good things outside of work, I often find myself with very little time doing nothing at all. Even as I lie here, apparently doing nothing, I’m still occupied be this – writing about something, working on content and trying to be creative.

    Does anyone else find themselves busy with similar things almost all the time? I’m talking when commuting, waiting, on the toilet, basically any chance available.

    I think this is healthy in its way, especially as a way of avoiding doom-scrolling and other mindless activities that don’t really stimulate the brain in a good way. It does mean I’m busy a lot though; almost all the time.

    So sometimes it’s nice to have a nothing day. No pressure to do anything, just taking a break from whatever it is you need a break from. Whether that is time away from the phone and technology, or just chilling playing games or lying around watching TV, everyone’s idea of a break is different, and there is no wrong answer to how you disconnect and let yourself rejuvenate.

  • Busy Making Other Plans

    Describe your most ideal day from beginning to end.

    The ideal day consists of many things for different people. I like keeping busy, doing the work that I want to do, and by this I mean what I’d love to get paid to do but currently need to support myself and family doing something else (the life that happens, when you are busy making other plans, to paraphrase the great man John Lennon).

    Get up nice and early, do some exercise (again, not anything I don’t enjoy doing, something fun). Follow that with a nice cooked breakfast (stir fry veggies and eggs these days, see my other posts).

    Then read a bit, play some music, write a bit.

    Lunch is the same as breakfast, but maybe something fresher like a nice roll with meat and salad. Watch some cooking shows or part of a movie (I rarely sit from start to end unless in the cinema).

    My ideal afternoon? Spending time in the studio writing and recording music would be number one. Again, you can’t beat doing what you love and believe yourself to be put on the earth to do. Maybe some more writing and absorbing any kind of art (film, books, music, video games being top of my list).

    Add the family to all this, spending a nice late arvo/evening with them would be perfect. Playing with the kids, maybe the beach, or doing something fun to feed their little minds.

    Dinner would be something more exciting, an interesting dish, maybe a dessert as well, all made from scratch of course. Eat with the family, either at the table or in front of a movie depending on the mood and food.

    Finish up with putting the kids to bed and spending time with the wife; watch a movie or something else. If there is still time I’d do more in the studio, write or develop video games; they are the things I latch onto when in the mood to be creative.

    I’m at my most satisfied when there are not enough hours in the day to get everything done.

  • I Was So Much Older Then, I’m Younger Than That Now

    How do significant life events or the passage of time influence your perspective on life?

    Being over 40 now, this question is something I think about a lot. It always makes me think of the Bob Dylan lyric from My Back Pages, amazingly written when he was only 22!

    I always interpreted the lyric to mean when you are younger you tend to take things more seriously (politics, beliefs, basically everything), especially in that late teens to early twenties period. As you get older I think these things ease up as you learn to accept things and become comfortable in both your own skin and the world you live in.

    This doesn’t mean you stop believing in things and maintaining ideals, it just means you become more open to others opinions; most likely because you meet more people and go through more experiences.

    It also doesn’t mean all people develop like this, as many stay fixed in position; stuck in their ways as the saying goes. Ever try building a piece of Ikea furniture with a 60 year old? Everyone develops differently.

    I think it is something to aspire to – to develop the mind over your lifetime and achieve some sort of potential. The Greeks called it eudaimonia. Basically achieving a sort of satisfaction with your existence; reaching a level of happiness and well-being. It’s a nice aim in life, and even if you don’t achieve, I guess that’s what it’s all about, having something to work towards.

    Significant life events and trauma play the role of striking a lightening bolt through your path, depending on the severity or good/bad it can be that moment where there was life before and life after.

  • Foody Feed – Wok is Boss

    Foody Feed – Wok is Boss

    What’s your favorite thing to cook?

    Given I’ve been getting heavily into cooking these days it’s tricky picking a favourite, but right now stir fry has to be top of the list. Disclaimer – I just wrote about this in a separate post talking about breakfast stir fry!

    I realise that stir fry encompasses a very broad spectrum of recipes but lately I’ve been getting closer to mastering the art of simple veg, egg, noodles/rice and protein. It is deceptively easy, just a few steps done right needed to really nail it.

    I spent a lot of my life being scared of the stir fry and I’ve heard or read others giving reasons why they can’t use a wok properly. One excuse is having an electric cooktop and the wok not getting hot enough, but I have electric and have no issues – the secret is to be patient, it might take five minutes or more to heat up properly, and then you are cooking with gas (oops).

    I also found some key ingredients and got the confidence to splash a bit of this, dash in a bit of that. Timing what goes in when also helps massively. Thicker stemmed vegies first, leafy greens later, sauces at the end (with sauces like soy, pouring onto the side of the wok rather than into the ingredients), meat and aromatics like garlic and ginger first, but I also like to remove and add the meat back in the end.

    I’m ranting now but I used to hate the idea of cooking meat, removing, putting back in later, thinking it would mean losing those nice juices and flavours. I’ve come to my senses and realised you don’t lose the juices (either remove with the meat and pour back in later, or leave in to reduce) and it gives you so much control! This also allows for browning of the meat, which I had a recent revelation about.

    Within the space of about two days I saw two presenters do the same thing when browning meat (yes I watch a lot of cooking shows). Instead of chucking the meat in and tossing until it’s a bit brown, you actually leave it to really brown up on one side, then give it a quick stir. This lets it stick to the pan and really brown, and those sticky bits get scraped up during the rest of the cooking process, adding much more flavour. Don’t be afraid to leave it longer than feels natural.

    It’s a really great way to cook and also perfect for adding leftovers at the end. Currently my number one go-to dish!

    Anyone have any tips on buying a really good wok and ladel?

    Veggie version with capsicum, pak choi and some basil on top. Perfect breakfast
  • 386 – Tiny Doom

    386 – Tiny Doom

    Write about your first computer.

    It was a 386, can’t remember any other spec other than running early windows. Must have had 16 or 32MB ram, and I used DOS a lot.

    The main painful memory was trying to play doom and having to go smallest screen size and resolution. Playable, barely, and cheat codes were required. I’ll never forget IDDQD (if you know you know, otherwise look it up).

    Pretty sure the game was acquired by calling a number on the modem, an early iteration of file sharing. Took forever to download and likely interrupted a few times by another family member picking up the phone and cutting the connection; at least they got the modem yelling at them in return. Then installing via multiple floppy disks which would also fail regularly.

    Not to mention I only got to do this on weekends as my dad had a computer; I didn’t have one with mum during the week.

    It must have played Wolfenstein better but I can’t remember playing it as much. By this time Doom was just too far a jump ahead and so much better.

    Eventually I would get a 486 and enter warp speed, and I think I inherited the 386 but by that time the Playstation and Nintendo 64 were around so it was less useful.

    Special shout out to Nintendo for porting Doom to the SNES with about the same level of playability as my 386.