Quote of the Moment
"All really great things happen in slow and inconspicuous ways." Leo Tolstoy


Sunday 31 January 2016

Day 1 - The Funny Thing Is...

...That I am not exactly sure what the point of doing this is!

Am I trying to internalise a bunch of things so they are once more ingrained/grooved in my mind and more easy for me to commit my time to? I mean, I feel like certain interests as I get older, are disconnected and more difficult to engage with. Could creating a plan for the free time I have now develop those grooves which will help me in the future focus on things I actually want to focus on?

Or is it an external thing? This is a blog after all, anyone, anywhere could read it and pass judgement. Someone could expect a post, and be disappointed when one does not appear either by missing some strange vicarious enjoyment he or she may have had or simply disappointment at my failure to complete something I set out on. Is this external pressure something good for me?

Finally, how about those pennies which come from the ads on this page? Honestly, I just enjoy seeing this trickle in for the once yearly "Yay! I made £2 again this year from blogging!" It's not this.

The Day Today

As a recap, here is THE LIST. In bold are things I worked on today.

  1. 'Complete' Fallout 4
  2. 'Complete Homeworld 1 and 2 HD editions
  3. Paint the remaining Raven Guard Warhammer 40k models
  4. Hang around the Games Workshop store like a nerd
  5. Go to 5 new museums or art galleries in Shanghai
  6. Gym every other day
  7. Plan teaching for the start of the new Semester. (TS unit, plus 1 week of Math + English)
  8. EPIC gaming session in Diablo 3
  9. Sort and take photos of Shanghai and other places
  10. Take care of the wife
  11. BONUS: Trip to Hangzhou
  12. DOUBLE BONUS: Keep this blog updated
I have three squads and a land speeder to complete for point 3. At the moment I am in the last hour or so of painting a tactical squad of Raven Guard space marines. If the last two sentences made no sense to you then fair enough, its pretty nerdy. Essentially what I am doing to painting very small models in surprisingly intricate detail and using painting techniques I have nowhere near mastered. I will keep posting pictures, and you can have a look at the links if you want to find out more.

The completed dudes.
Today, I painted some gray - which I mixed myself - on the models which were not completed (6) and then focused on one to get it done. Above is a picture of those which are finished. What do you think?

The other key thing I did from the list is play a bit of Fallout 4. A good Bethesda RPG. I've always played computer games. Though in recent times the enjoyment these have given me has reduced somewhat. I don't know why, maybe it's time to put such frivolities and time sinks behind me. But to hell with that. At least for now, I am going to sink days of my time in this one and Homeworld.

The Day Tomorrow

Tomorrow is the first day of the holiday proper. I am going to see about going to the Shanghai Museum and getting some photographs taken of Shanghai (5 and 9). I will try and get some final things of the previous semester of school tied up (pre-7), as well as complete a bunch of domestic chores (pre-10).



Saturday 30 January 2016

Freizeitstress

Three weeks of holiday. YESSSS!
Tye, he never suffered from Freizeitstress.

And what am I going to do with it? NOTHING

Well, not nothing. Actually a punishing list of 'things I want to complete'.

And below is the list. My objective is to write a post approximately every day to update on progress. In doing so I will conquer my 'Freizeitstress' with a list. I will gain that sense of completion through Gamification. I will achieve through an imposed sense of collective judgement through publishing the details on the internet.

It all makes sense.

The List


  1. 'Complete' Fallout 4
  2. 'Complete Homeworld 1 and 2 HD editions
  3. Paint the remaining Raven Guard Warhammer 40k models
  4. Hang around the Games Workshop store like a nerd
  5. Go to 5 new museums or art galleries in Shanghai
  6. Gym every other day
  7. Plan teaching for the start of the new Semester. (TS unit, plus 1 week of Math + English)
  8. EPIC gaming session in Diablo 3
  9. Sort and take photos of Shanghai and other places
  10. Take care of the wife
  11. BONUS: Trip to Hangzhou
  12. DOUBLE BONUS: Keep this blog updated

So there you have it. Posts