2026-08-21 08:00:00
We’re nearing the end of August 2026, and I figured it’s time I give up the pipe dream of writing a 2025 recap the way I envisioned a whole year ago. Some sections are what I did write over the past eight months; other sections I simply could not muster up the willpower to write about this late in the year, hence their relative sparseness.
In 2025, I watched 58 movies and 12 shows.
I got invested in the Toronto Blue Jays during the World Series, which was, in retrospect, a terrible decision that caused me and millions of others an untold amount of anguish and despair. If you are a Dodgers fan, never speak to me again.
It’s too painful to recount the emotional devastation of this whole experience, but I suppose it was also extremely entertaining for the neutral fans. And if I allow myself to pretend like I too was a neutral fan, I can make a list of some of those moments:
Anyway. After, I rewatched Moneyball and the video essay Why baseball is the best movie sport, and vowed to never get invested in professional sports again.
Well. Does pro wrestling count? I’m not invested, but I continue to catch bits and pieces since my partner is a big fan. My wrestling knowledge remains very limited, but I like Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky. Following all the storylines isn’t for me, but I like watching everyone (namely, the women) being very strong and beautiful, with their incredible outfits and ability to throw each other around.
Yet another year has gone by where my music listening remains pedestrian. Alas! This year I discovered The Last Dinner Party, enjoyed Lady Gaga’s music, and listened to a lot of the KPop Demon Hunters soundtrack.
Older songs I discovered this year.
I listened to various of Batman-related audio dramas, which I really enjoyed:
In a wild turn of events, I played significantly less Destiny 2 this year than I ever have before. It got dethroned by Stardew Valley in playtime.
I did very little fiction reading this year (4.5 novels…), and read a bunch of DC comics.
My favourites this year were Batman and Robin: Year One and the Nightwing run by Tom Taylor and Bruno Redondo.
Whenever I try to articulate why I liked a certain comic, I always say “and I really like the art.” Good art—impossible to define, I know; perhaps better articulated as an art style that I like or compels me in some way—is a necessary condition for me. (Case in point: I did not like the art for Red Robin (2011) or Batgirl (2000), two well-received runs, and consequently don’t really care for either.)
I only read a few indie comics this year. The standout was Song of the Seabirds by Narsid. It was available as part of the ShortBox Comics Fair; I don’t think it’s possible to buy at this time.
It made me cry a stupid amount. The art is breathtaking; I would turn a page and be flattened by how beautiful it was.
I went to see the Broadway production of Hadestown, which was perhaps my most memorable entertainment experience all year. I’ve listened to the cast recording repeatedly ever since; last month, I went to see the proshot in theatres multiple times.
Fav moments include:
Trying to write a conclusion in August 2026 is a fool’s errand. My conclusion is that I should have thrown in the towel six months ago and published what I had, instead of letting a draft fester in the background all year.
Some optimistic things that bode well for my 2026 recap, assuming I write it:
Okay, that’s all.
2026-08-16 08:00:00
2026-07-10 08:00:00
2026-06-28 08:00:00
Can I keep doing this weekly?? let’s see
This week I started and finished reading The Odyssey, translated by Emily Wilson. I enjoyed it! Wilson’s translation was easy to read and it was fun to finally see the bits and pieces that I’ve learned via cultural osmosis in the text. There’s a lengthy introduction that discusses the context of the story and translation that I still have to read, which I’m looking forward to, because I’ve come into this with nearly no context of classical studies. I’m going to try and read her translation of The Iliad at some point as well.
Today I did a brief Destiny raid encounter—Calus, whom I never met because he got sunsetted before my time—which was fun.
Everything else about the game and studio is upsetting and sad.
I played a bit more Hades II, which I pick up very occasionally these days, and am getting very close to finishing the Icarus romance storyline, which is about 90% of my motivation when playing T_T
I watched Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, which took multiple sessions so I don’t quite remember everything. Unfortunately, the best part of the romance was the music, and also I suppose the poster. The everything else made me kind of…hmm.
I saw Adolescence of Utena in theatres, which I went in not knowing what to expect–I’ve forgotten most of the anime by now—and it was incredible. The symbolism, the romance, the music, the art and animation, the sword fighting, the CARS, the way Utena and Anthy swap roles… I’m still thinking about this dance scene. I think everything about this movie was made specifically for me, which I didn’t feel about the anime… perhaps worth a revisit…
2026-06-21 08:00:00
I took this week off from work and I had wanted to spend the time being wildly productive, but of course reality happened and it was [fart noises] pretty chill instead. I made zero progress on any side projects, but I did clean my apartment, touch grass, hang out, read books, play Destiny, and get cooked by the sun.
I did a riso workshop at Fluoro which was very cool! I’ve wanted to take one for a long time so I’m glad I finally took the opportunity.
I played a bunch of Destiny because of the recent update and also because there’s a funny bug going around that lets you stack damage buffs so you can delete bosses, so I did some dungeons and deleted some bosses. Good stuff.
I finally finished reading Ficciones after more than a year, since I had to keep returning it to the library and then reborrowing it and then forgetting to read it. It’s incredible!! My favourites from it are The Circular Ruins, The Garden of Forking Paths, Death and the Compass, and The South.
I also won the used bookstore lottery and found these:
I’ve never read East of Eden but I’ve heard universal praise for it, so I’m really excited to read it! (Sometime. Eventually.)
Labyrinths has most of the same stories as Ficciones but I think by a different translator(s). I found this quite in-depth article by Michael Marcus discussing the various translations, though I’ve only skimmed through it. What a fascinating topic!
Lastly, I also found Babel by R.F. Kuang, which I’ve heard mixed things about—thematically, it sounds up my alley though so I hope I like it.
I got tickets to see The Odyssey next month, and some impractical part of me is like hmm maybe I should try to read it first? Nevermind that I’ve never studied classics so I don’t even know where to start with that, and I don’t actually know what happens in the story. Is this doable?? Someone who has read it tell me which translation to read. Or dissuade me out of it.
2026-06-14 08:00:00
Happy weeknotes number 40! I thought about doing something special for this, but realized I have too many unfinished projects that I would rather work on instead. Perhaps when I hit 50.
Once again, too much time has passed since the previous entry that I’ve forgotten what’s happened and what I wanted to include.
I finished 30/30 days of the plein airpril painting challenge! This was my third year doing it and my first time doing all 30 days in an art challenge.
It was a lot of fun! I started off feeling quite rusty, having not painted much since last April (and I wonder why I don’t improve…) but by the end I was feeling much more confident in my abilities.
A few firsts this year: I started using a solid brush in Procreate; I used some movie frames as reference instead of strictly my own photos; I painted a bird.
Some highlights:
In retrospect, I wish I adhered less to colour accuracy—my favourites are the ones where the colours are bright and saturated. Perhaps it’s not realistic in a photo, but as a painting I like it a great deal more.
Next year, I think I’ll take it easy on how many days I participate in. Towards the end, I started to feel quite tired; as a result, I think my last week of paintings were the least interesting. The consistency was great though—I haven’t drawn much since then, and I really need to get back to it.
These are all collected in my sketchbook collection; most have some notes attached and time spent; Procreate paintings include a timelapse.
I saw The Last Dinner Party live and they were incredible!! My favourites were Big Dog and This is the Killer Speaking, but really, it was all fantastic.
Destiny 2, a game that consumed a not-insignificant amount of my time and energy over the past five years, announced that it is ending its live service updates. Maybe at some point in the future I’ll write a five thousand word blog post about it.
In their own words:
“This week in Destiny, we launched Monument of Triumph, our last live service update for the best game ever made, aka Destiny 2.”
They’re right. It’s the best.
I’m playing Marathon again, mostly very badly, but I’m trying to get over my gear fear.
I haven’t been watching much lately, much less anything new. Highlights include Tekkonkinkreet (beautiful; also great score!) and rewatching Hackers (HACK THE PLANET!!!); today I’m going to see Disclosure Day.
I’m looking forward to: Hadestown proshot in July (“looking forward to” is an understatement); Fields of Mistria in August; CONTROL Resonant in September (also: this song is a banger); and of course, spending time with Destiny 2.
Also, I adopted a cat. Her name is Sophie. She is the cutest cat in the world.
