Very Atypical Chores Sunday
Aug. 11th, 2024 11:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
crossover_chickYeah, uh, my day went rather off the rails this morning because of two things that happened not very long after I woke up --
1. I came into the kitchen to find a note from Mom saying that she'd put the white stuff into the washer before she left and asking me to finish up the laundry with the colors load
2. While checking out my breakfast options, I found that my homemade chocolate granola stores had been severely depleted -- and thought to myself, "Well, I know Mom has a recipe in her binder of recipes found on the web -- why don't I make a new batch myself after I have some banana bread?"
Now, if I'd just stuck with doing the laundry -- or if Mom hadn't started the laundry today and I'd just had to make my granola -- I probably would have been fine to do my usual Sunday morning thing of checking out tumblr, working on some drafts, listening to music, stuff like that. But since I ended up doing both, I ended up spending the entire morning either in the kitchen, in the basement, or in the living room -- mixing up my granola according to the recipe, moving clothes from washer to dryer, baking my granola, and folding dry items. And having a text convo with Mom about it all, and about Dad (he's doing well -- up, walking, having his broth and such. Though he's still having trouble sleeping, unfortunately). I didn't even get a chance to make my bed or get dressed until shortly after noon, and I didn't really get a chance to properly sit down until lunch. And even then, after lunch I had to put the completed granola away, and take care of all the dishes, and... Add in that Mom ended up coming home later than usual FOR lunch (admittedly, I did ask her to pick up milk on her way back, and she also got napkins and rolls since we needed those too), and -- yeah. Kind of a stressful Sunday with most of the stuff I'd hoped to complete not getting done. I've been kind of clinging to my routine and getting shit drafted on tumblr and such to keep myself calm and sane during this whole thing with Dad, so having it disrupted was not fun. :( At least I have tomorrow to catch up on some of the stuff I missed, I guess...though admittedly, we also have to prepare for the possibility of Dad coming home, so that will be at least a LITTLE disruptive. But I'm more mentally prepared for that happening, at least! And it's something I want to happen! Unlike losing an entire morning to folding towels and mixing corn syrup and oats!
*sigh* Anyway -- this is what I did manage to get accomplished today --
Tumblr: As stated, the time I normally would have spent here was spent on chores, but I did get a few things done this afternoon/evening –
Victor Luvs Alice – I said I would do it today, so I made sure it happened – I reblogged Moose’s latest McFly July Fic! Featuring Doc making his final preparations for Temporal Experiment #1 in the Lone Pine timeline, which included him wondering if a test is really a test if you already know it’s going to succeed; how important it was that Marty actually go back into the past; and why Marty didn’t actually provide more information about how he was murdered by the terrorists in the original timeline so he could better prepare (namely, would it have killed you to let him know WHERE he would be shot, Marty? XD). I really liked that last detail, honestly – we all focus on the big emotional “holy shit he was trying to save my life” moment of Doc reading the note, while Moose looked at a much more practical concern he might have after reading it. Delightful. XD
Valice Multiverse – I answered someone’s ask for a hug with Cuddlepile!Smiler before my workout (I didn’t feel right stuffing it in the queue), then threw an anon ask telling the commies to go sleep with Benjamin Franklin into the queue tonight (with Malkavian!Alice saying it’s one of the weirdest things ever shouted at her). So that’s all right then.
Portal Reloaded: Yeah, by the time I actually properly SAT DOWN in front of my computer, instead of just quickly skimming over some things and finding some music to listen to while trying to get my bed made and myself dressed, it was almost 2:45 PM, and I was like “...I’m just gonna keep going with Portal Reloaded, it’s too late to get in a proper session of Fallout 4 AND recap it AND update the Playthrough Progression appropriately.” So that’s what I did, getting myself through Chambers 20, 21, and 22. All of which I managed to partly solve before having to resort to walkthroughs (generally getting about halfway before getting confused about what to do next). I’m just glad that I recognized the one where you have to get a future and past cube to smack into each other – I saw that on the TV Tropes page for the game when I looked at it earlier this week, and it’s been in the back of my head ever since. XD Just three more chambers to go, so I think I’ll just keep going and wrap up the game tomorrow. Feels like a good way to end my vacation.
Writing: Well, between the late start online, the inability to update the FO4 Playthrough Progression because of not playing Fallout 4, and my desire to get my YouTube watched so I didn’t run over my bedtime with my recaps, I didn’t get any “real” writing done. However, I actually came up with a new Valicer In The Dark score idea last night while falling asleep, so I decided to write that down so I’d have something for this category. The inspiration was looking at the “academia” section of the chapter on the city of Duskwall itself, and spotting the “Jayan Hall of Alchemy” in the section on Charterhall University. Which reminded me of how I want Smiler to get the Mixology certificate from sitting in on skill classes at one of the Britechester universities if and when I do my Tiny Town save, which made me think that the VITD Smiler probably would like to attend a course there if they got a chance –
Which then made me think of some drug dealer students encountering Smiler and mocking them for not being an “official” alchemist, and Smiler, annoyed, challenging them to a sell-off – their Joy Serum versus the students’ Devil-May-Care. The score would revolve around them trying to get the most customers in Coalridge, and actually ending up tying – right before a couple of Devil-May-Care users suddenly dying. Because it turns out the students’ used devilroot sap in their drug, and that shit can be INSTANTLY LETHAL if you don’t treat it right – a fact that Smiler tells the students about at LENGTH. Cue Smiler technically win, the students’ running off to avoid the consequences, and a Spirit Warden promising to help Smiler get at least an honorary certificate from the Hall. :) Just another story to add to the ever-growing list for this verse. XD
YouTube: Despite this being the “things happen later than you wanted and you have to skip things you wanted to do” Sunday, I somehow actually got in a bonus video on top of my usual Sunday Two – probably helps that it was short, and I had a little more time to watch videos what with not having played Fallout 4 –
A) First up, before my workout, we had GrayStillPlays and “I made the Olympics 1000x more dangerous,” aka more Happy Wheels! Glad to see one of my favorite games of his today, not gonna lie. Anyway, this episode included such things as a bottle flip in Hell (with a pitchfork both flipping itself onto the “Florida” section (with Gray then landing a bottle on it) and accidentally getting the win for Gray later (Gray insisted on winning “properly” though with a bottle of mustard); a green spike fall made by Pigeon Lover that Gray got FIRST TRY (you know how rare that is?); a harpoon dodge with Pogo Guy that was a little more difficult than Gray anticipated (example: the first time he got to the “impossible” level, he got exploded by a harpoon going up the butt); a rope swing with a VERY CHALLENGING second rope transfer (getting the timing right was VERY hard for poor old Gray); a level that was literally just Bike Dad and Young Tom Hardy taking a tour of someone’s ideas for the next update to the game (like adding achievements for how often you “tore” someone’s bones XD); Bike Dad and Tom facing The Square (which proved to be VERY VIOLENT when touched, to the point where they got vaporized when Gray gave it a test boop); a “One Bottle Challenge” where you had to get the bottle into the toilet with Bike Dad (Gray had to try this one a LOT to finally land the throw); a “cute” rope swing that once again had a really hard second rope transfer (fortunately it was short, so Segway Nixon losing an arm attempting it ended up not mattering); Bike Dad and Tom Hardy having to fight Satanic Henry after he was resurrected by a random bolt of lightning (Bike Dad ended up with a trident through his neck, but he did still manage to escape); a very violent cliffside race with Segway Nixon and all his clones (featured a Pineapple Nixon getting a spear through the head, our hero Nixon having to knock over some elves feasting on Santa and a guy who’d just lost his popsicle, and the ending being a “Finnish” line, complete with flag XD); Pogo Guy having to wriggle his way out of a tiny opening in a green box (which he did just show up laughing Tom Hardy on the finish line); and Pogo Guy competing in the Olympics courtesy of Dylan Snider (going through the Pogo Hurdles, the boxing match with Rock-Em-Sock-Em robots, the off-brand Wii Sports tennis match with spiky ball, and the “how many times can you get shot with a bunch of crossbows” competition). All very fun stuff, as per usual. :) We love to see Gray smashing these unfortunate characters to bits! XD
B) Then, after supper, we had the aforementioned bonus video, recommended to me by my friend Weird Kev on tumblr – “Dehydrated Pizza from Back to the Future Part II | Binging with Babish!” By Babish Culinary Universe, which, judging by some of the recommended videos on the side, specializes in recreating food from movies and TV shows. This episode was all about recreating and then doing a bit of science with the half-pepperoni, half-green-peppers Pizza Hut pizza from BTTF II. Specifically, after confirming that he couldn’t just order one from the local Pizza Hut Go (they don’t do half-and-half toppings) and that modern Pizza Hut pizzas were kinda crap anyway, Babish made three 14-inch pizzas of the correct type (even doing his best to imitate Pizza Hut’s pizza sauce), then freeze-dried them to see if he could rehydrate them via such methods as using a steam oven, a steamer basket, splashing them with boiling water, or just letting them soak. Short answer – no. XD He either got horrible tough pizza or soggy inedible pizza, with the best result being from “splashing with boiling water occasionally in the oven” (some cheese stretch and a NEARLY-edible crust). So he comforted himself by making a giant version of the pizza to snack on. XD It was a fun little episode, and I’m glad I took the time to check it out. :)
C) And finally, we had Jon and “Fallout 4: Sim Settlements 2 - Part 47 - This Means War!” We picked up with Mayor Bob having finally awoken from a weeks-long coma after the horrible vertibird crash that marked the end of last week’s episode, ready to learn what’s become of the Commonwealth and how to fix it. Here’s what he got up to this week –
I. Attended a meeting with his department heads, who informed him that, while they were able to repel the overseas attack (Aiden taking out the final carrier ship), the Gunners WERE able to stage a successful ground invasion under the banner of their new leader, Lamont, and take over some territory, including spots like Murkwater and the wreck of the FMS Norther Star (as Theresa put it later, anything south of HQ is now Gunner land). The gang at HQ and the Minutemen have been doing their best to set up blockades and repel attacks (and have gotten themselves some sweet new anti-aircraft lasers on the roof, which is nice), but they just don’t have the resources to repel an army – especially one swelled by mercenaries, as Jake mentioned the Gunners seem to be hiring people to boost up their ranks after the loss of so many troops on the sea. And the other factions are still too busy fighting each other to recognize the threat the Gunners have become. So things were not particularly good. Fortunately, the meeting did result in Mansfield suggesting that, if they need an army, why don’t they just train one up themselves – and when it was revealed Aiden couldn’t take charge of that (being spread too thin with security issues), Bob suggesting they find someone else to help. If the Gunners are hiring people, they could too, after all. Which had Theresa suggest an old friend of hers, Salvador, who was also ex-military and knew a thing or two about fighting and training soldiers. Lupe confirmed that our old friend Captain Algernon (who is currently missing in action, uh-oh) was looking for him at some point too to help in the fight against previous bad guy Wes, so he definitely seemed like the guy to recruit. So, after taking a moment to set up some tasks for the facilities people to clean up the new hangar area and restore the fountain in the atrium (very important) –
II. Bob and Theresa set out for Diamond City to see what The Ron might know! Because everyone turns to The Ron to find what they need at some point or another. The trip didn’t start off well, with Bob unwisely approaching a Gunner “settlement” and picking a fight even after seeing the people there take down a Mirelurk Queen – fortunately he managed to escape total annihilation with the help of some Psycho Jet and running away really quickly, and the pair made it to Diamond City in one piece. The Ron was happy to see them, and – after a brief side conversation about Theresa trying to find someone she used to travel with (they had a falling out, and she wanted to bury the hatchet) – cheerfully told them all they needed to know (along with the worrying bonus information that the same two guys who had approached him on Captain Algernon’s behalf looking for Salvador were also the same two who later beat him up to get him to spill about Jake, hmmm). Namely that Salvador was camped by the Charles River, somewhere near Cutler Bend, and that he was not someone who played favorites – he treated everyone equally, and, if you got on his bad side, he would let you know about it. Bob was fine with that and checked his Pip-Boy –
And discovered that, hilariously, Salvador had in fact set up camp essentially RIGHT NEXT TO EGRET TOURS MARINA. You know, Bob’s beloved capital city. XD Well, that made things easier!
III. And so Bob and Theresa proceeded back to the Marina, and from there down the river to Salvador’s camp, where they were let in by a freedom fighter after Theresa said she was an old friend. Salvador proved to be an interesting person, with a very blunt, robotic way of speaking, and a clearly-artificial eye that didn’t look dissimilar to Nick’s. I wouldn’t swear that this guy is an escaped synth (or, as someone in the comments suggested, a former courser), but the signs really do seem to point to it! Anyway, Bob complimented him on his camp to get on his good side right away, and he and Theresa laid out their case. Salvador was initially disinterested, as he already had a host of men to help him fight against the Gunners and bring stability back to the region, but Theresa pointed out that he didn’t have THAT many guys, and that they could both really benefit from helping each other. Salvador allowed Bob to continue making his case, and after asking Theresa for a bit of help (with her being like “could you have asked me BEFORE we were standing right next to him?!”), simply stated that they could use his guidance, and that he was willing to learn whatever tactics Salvador was willing to teach him. Salvador was like, “all right, prove it – I know of a location near here the Gunners are planning to take over, and was planning a preemptive strike with my men. If you promise to come with me and listen to my advice, I’ll let you lead the assault and see how you do.” Jon was like “new tutorial? Yes please–”
IV. And so Bob and Salvador proceeded over to an old bridge near an old Coast Guard facility! Where, after apologizing for “not being a people person” (and no-selling Bob’s attempt to figure out what was troubling him), Salvador instructed Bob in the fine art of recon! By which I mean he gave Bob a pair of binoculars that could be used to mark enemies like a recon scope for your troops to attack and had him mark a super mutant hound wandering by the dock, then the Gunners when they arrived on their little ship, before having him fire off a flare gun to call in the Freedom Fighters. Once they arrived, Salvador put Bob in charge of leading the attack, and Bob did what he did best – sniped people with his new Explosive Sniper Rifle. XD The Freedom Fighters also held their own, and once they succeeded in wiping out the Gunner force, the game awarded Bob with an A victory rating (with just one guy on their side being injured, possibly because he was taking cover behind a car when it exploded). Salvador was dutifully impressed with Bob’s skills, and Theresa (having caught up with the group) asked if that meant that he was ready to sign on –
V. Aaaand Salvador went “maybe – have to show you something first.” He headed down to the dock, and after getting briefly distracted by picking up a new type of gun off the Gunners (an “induction pistol” that seems to shoot electrical energy) and hitting up a workbench to see what it could do, Bob followed him there. Turns out what Salvador wanted to show him and Theresa was the partially-unloaded Gunner cargo – jet fuel to for their bomber planes, which have been causing chaos in the Commonwealth. So far the planes are limited by the fact that they can only ever carry enough munitions and fuel for a single sweep, and then have to find a place to refuel, but the Gunners are attempting to create a special outpost that will allow them to refuel their planes much more quickly and become a REAL force to be reckoned with. Salvador does not want that to happen, and made stopping that one of his conditions for joining up and helping lead the HQ’s new military. The other condition was that Bob adhere to a proper code of conduct that emphasizes stability and equilibrium in the region – otherwise, Salvador would pull his support and his men. Making sure the Gunners couldn’t turn their planes into an even worse threat was something Bob was totally behind, but Jon was a little worried that a time would come in the mod where he’d be forced to pick between making Salvador happy or making someone else happy...but he needed that commander, so he agreed to the guy’s terms, and Salvador headed off with Theresa to HQ to officially join up. Bob swung by the Marina to update his new induction gun into a cool sniper rifle with a scope (so it had the knockback effect), then returned to HQ himself –
Where he ended the episode on the greatest sight of all – a working GNC fountain in the middle of the atrium! complete with little rocket going around the turning globe and plantlife spilling out the bottom! Jon was EXTREMELY pleased. :D It’s the little things when you’re planning a major military campaign, you know? Anyway, we’ll see how Salvador fits in with the rest of HQ, and what the plan is from here, next time! Hopefully it includes retaking Jamaica Plain, which fell to the Gunners right before Bob returned to HQ...
Workout: Back on the bike this week, and back with the GrayStillPlays compilations, moving onto “1000 Ways to Murder the King!” Games that, as you might expect, have some sort of focus on murder and monarchs. XD I’ve gotten through two games where you kill your king, then walk to the end of a long hall dodging various attempts on your own life by looking back at JUUUST the right time, hoping to get that magical upgrade from one of the few nice people in your life that means you don’t die of old age when you get to the end of the hall, and I’m currently about halfway through a third that is basically the same thing only Mafia-themed. XD We’ll see what else this compilation contains as we make our way through the week!
All right -- not exactly what I wanted to accomplish, but at least the day wasn't a total wash. And now I am going to head to bed so I don't get up too late on my final day off of my vacation (though, admittedly, the whole office has Monday off, it's RI-specific-holiday Victory Day). I'm HOPING I can make some progress with tumblr drafts on Victor Luvs Alice tomorrow, along with getting back to "Londerland Bloodlines: Downtown Queensland;" finishing off Portal Reloaded, keeping up with my YouTube Subs, and getting in a workout. We'll see how the day goes and if Dad gets to come home or not. I am really hoping -- it's been rough on all of us with him in the hospital. I'm just really glad that the situation wasn't any worse. *sigh* Night all!
1. I came into the kitchen to find a note from Mom saying that she'd put the white stuff into the washer before she left and asking me to finish up the laundry with the colors load
2. While checking out my breakfast options, I found that my homemade chocolate granola stores had been severely depleted -- and thought to myself, "Well, I know Mom has a recipe in her binder of recipes found on the web -- why don't I make a new batch myself after I have some banana bread?"
Now, if I'd just stuck with doing the laundry -- or if Mom hadn't started the laundry today and I'd just had to make my granola -- I probably would have been fine to do my usual Sunday morning thing of checking out tumblr, working on some drafts, listening to music, stuff like that. But since I ended up doing both, I ended up spending the entire morning either in the kitchen, in the basement, or in the living room -- mixing up my granola according to the recipe, moving clothes from washer to dryer, baking my granola, and folding dry items. And having a text convo with Mom about it all, and about Dad (he's doing well -- up, walking, having his broth and such. Though he's still having trouble sleeping, unfortunately). I didn't even get a chance to make my bed or get dressed until shortly after noon, and I didn't really get a chance to properly sit down until lunch. And even then, after lunch I had to put the completed granola away, and take care of all the dishes, and... Add in that Mom ended up coming home later than usual FOR lunch (admittedly, I did ask her to pick up milk on her way back, and she also got napkins and rolls since we needed those too), and -- yeah. Kind of a stressful Sunday with most of the stuff I'd hoped to complete not getting done. I've been kind of clinging to my routine and getting shit drafted on tumblr and such to keep myself calm and sane during this whole thing with Dad, so having it disrupted was not fun. :( At least I have tomorrow to catch up on some of the stuff I missed, I guess...though admittedly, we also have to prepare for the possibility of Dad coming home, so that will be at least a LITTLE disruptive. But I'm more mentally prepared for that happening, at least! And it's something I want to happen! Unlike losing an entire morning to folding towels and mixing corn syrup and oats!
*sigh* Anyway -- this is what I did manage to get accomplished today --
Tumblr: As stated, the time I normally would have spent here was spent on chores, but I did get a few things done this afternoon/evening –
Victor Luvs Alice – I said I would do it today, so I made sure it happened – I reblogged Moose’s latest McFly July Fic! Featuring Doc making his final preparations for Temporal Experiment #1 in the Lone Pine timeline, which included him wondering if a test is really a test if you already know it’s going to succeed; how important it was that Marty actually go back into the past; and why Marty didn’t actually provide more information about how he was murdered by the terrorists in the original timeline so he could better prepare (namely, would it have killed you to let him know WHERE he would be shot, Marty? XD). I really liked that last detail, honestly – we all focus on the big emotional “holy shit he was trying to save my life” moment of Doc reading the note, while Moose looked at a much more practical concern he might have after reading it. Delightful. XD
Valice Multiverse – I answered someone’s ask for a hug with Cuddlepile!Smiler before my workout (I didn’t feel right stuffing it in the queue), then threw an anon ask telling the commies to go sleep with Benjamin Franklin into the queue tonight (with Malkavian!Alice saying it’s one of the weirdest things ever shouted at her). So that’s all right then.
Portal Reloaded: Yeah, by the time I actually properly SAT DOWN in front of my computer, instead of just quickly skimming over some things and finding some music to listen to while trying to get my bed made and myself dressed, it was almost 2:45 PM, and I was like “...I’m just gonna keep going with Portal Reloaded, it’s too late to get in a proper session of Fallout 4 AND recap it AND update the Playthrough Progression appropriately.” So that’s what I did, getting myself through Chambers 20, 21, and 22. All of which I managed to partly solve before having to resort to walkthroughs (generally getting about halfway before getting confused about what to do next). I’m just glad that I recognized the one where you have to get a future and past cube to smack into each other – I saw that on the TV Tropes page for the game when I looked at it earlier this week, and it’s been in the back of my head ever since. XD Just three more chambers to go, so I think I’ll just keep going and wrap up the game tomorrow. Feels like a good way to end my vacation.
Writing: Well, between the late start online, the inability to update the FO4 Playthrough Progression because of not playing Fallout 4, and my desire to get my YouTube watched so I didn’t run over my bedtime with my recaps, I didn’t get any “real” writing done. However, I actually came up with a new Valicer In The Dark score idea last night while falling asleep, so I decided to write that down so I’d have something for this category. The inspiration was looking at the “academia” section of the chapter on the city of Duskwall itself, and spotting the “Jayan Hall of Alchemy” in the section on Charterhall University. Which reminded me of how I want Smiler to get the Mixology certificate from sitting in on skill classes at one of the Britechester universities if and when I do my Tiny Town save, which made me think that the VITD Smiler probably would like to attend a course there if they got a chance –
Which then made me think of some drug dealer students encountering Smiler and mocking them for not being an “official” alchemist, and Smiler, annoyed, challenging them to a sell-off – their Joy Serum versus the students’ Devil-May-Care. The score would revolve around them trying to get the most customers in Coalridge, and actually ending up tying – right before a couple of Devil-May-Care users suddenly dying. Because it turns out the students’ used devilroot sap in their drug, and that shit can be INSTANTLY LETHAL if you don’t treat it right – a fact that Smiler tells the students about at LENGTH. Cue Smiler technically win, the students’ running off to avoid the consequences, and a Spirit Warden promising to help Smiler get at least an honorary certificate from the Hall. :) Just another story to add to the ever-growing list for this verse. XD
YouTube: Despite this being the “things happen later than you wanted and you have to skip things you wanted to do” Sunday, I somehow actually got in a bonus video on top of my usual Sunday Two – probably helps that it was short, and I had a little more time to watch videos what with not having played Fallout 4 –
A) First up, before my workout, we had GrayStillPlays and “I made the Olympics 1000x more dangerous,” aka more Happy Wheels! Glad to see one of my favorite games of his today, not gonna lie. Anyway, this episode included such things as a bottle flip in Hell (with a pitchfork both flipping itself onto the “Florida” section (with Gray then landing a bottle on it) and accidentally getting the win for Gray later (Gray insisted on winning “properly” though with a bottle of mustard); a green spike fall made by Pigeon Lover that Gray got FIRST TRY (you know how rare that is?); a harpoon dodge with Pogo Guy that was a little more difficult than Gray anticipated (example: the first time he got to the “impossible” level, he got exploded by a harpoon going up the butt); a rope swing with a VERY CHALLENGING second rope transfer (getting the timing right was VERY hard for poor old Gray); a level that was literally just Bike Dad and Young Tom Hardy taking a tour of someone’s ideas for the next update to the game (like adding achievements for how often you “tore” someone’s bones XD); Bike Dad and Tom facing The Square (which proved to be VERY VIOLENT when touched, to the point where they got vaporized when Gray gave it a test boop); a “One Bottle Challenge” where you had to get the bottle into the toilet with Bike Dad (Gray had to try this one a LOT to finally land the throw); a “cute” rope swing that once again had a really hard second rope transfer (fortunately it was short, so Segway Nixon losing an arm attempting it ended up not mattering); Bike Dad and Tom Hardy having to fight Satanic Henry after he was resurrected by a random bolt of lightning (Bike Dad ended up with a trident through his neck, but he did still manage to escape); a very violent cliffside race with Segway Nixon and all his clones (featured a Pineapple Nixon getting a spear through the head, our hero Nixon having to knock over some elves feasting on Santa and a guy who’d just lost his popsicle, and the ending being a “Finnish” line, complete with flag XD); Pogo Guy having to wriggle his way out of a tiny opening in a green box (which he did just show up laughing Tom Hardy on the finish line); and Pogo Guy competing in the Olympics courtesy of Dylan Snider (going through the Pogo Hurdles, the boxing match with Rock-Em-Sock-Em robots, the off-brand Wii Sports tennis match with spiky ball, and the “how many times can you get shot with a bunch of crossbows” competition). All very fun stuff, as per usual. :) We love to see Gray smashing these unfortunate characters to bits! XD
B) Then, after supper, we had the aforementioned bonus video, recommended to me by my friend Weird Kev on tumblr – “Dehydrated Pizza from Back to the Future Part II | Binging with Babish!” By Babish Culinary Universe, which, judging by some of the recommended videos on the side, specializes in recreating food from movies and TV shows. This episode was all about recreating and then doing a bit of science with the half-pepperoni, half-green-peppers Pizza Hut pizza from BTTF II. Specifically, after confirming that he couldn’t just order one from the local Pizza Hut Go (they don’t do half-and-half toppings) and that modern Pizza Hut pizzas were kinda crap anyway, Babish made three 14-inch pizzas of the correct type (even doing his best to imitate Pizza Hut’s pizza sauce), then freeze-dried them to see if he could rehydrate them via such methods as using a steam oven, a steamer basket, splashing them with boiling water, or just letting them soak. Short answer – no. XD He either got horrible tough pizza or soggy inedible pizza, with the best result being from “splashing with boiling water occasionally in the oven” (some cheese stretch and a NEARLY-edible crust). So he comforted himself by making a giant version of the pizza to snack on. XD It was a fun little episode, and I’m glad I took the time to check it out. :)
C) And finally, we had Jon and “Fallout 4: Sim Settlements 2 - Part 47 - This Means War!” We picked up with Mayor Bob having finally awoken from a weeks-long coma after the horrible vertibird crash that marked the end of last week’s episode, ready to learn what’s become of the Commonwealth and how to fix it. Here’s what he got up to this week –
I. Attended a meeting with his department heads, who informed him that, while they were able to repel the overseas attack (Aiden taking out the final carrier ship), the Gunners WERE able to stage a successful ground invasion under the banner of their new leader, Lamont, and take over some territory, including spots like Murkwater and the wreck of the FMS Norther Star (as Theresa put it later, anything south of HQ is now Gunner land). The gang at HQ and the Minutemen have been doing their best to set up blockades and repel attacks (and have gotten themselves some sweet new anti-aircraft lasers on the roof, which is nice), but they just don’t have the resources to repel an army – especially one swelled by mercenaries, as Jake mentioned the Gunners seem to be hiring people to boost up their ranks after the loss of so many troops on the sea. And the other factions are still too busy fighting each other to recognize the threat the Gunners have become. So things were not particularly good. Fortunately, the meeting did result in Mansfield suggesting that, if they need an army, why don’t they just train one up themselves – and when it was revealed Aiden couldn’t take charge of that (being spread too thin with security issues), Bob suggesting they find someone else to help. If the Gunners are hiring people, they could too, after all. Which had Theresa suggest an old friend of hers, Salvador, who was also ex-military and knew a thing or two about fighting and training soldiers. Lupe confirmed that our old friend Captain Algernon (who is currently missing in action, uh-oh) was looking for him at some point too to help in the fight against previous bad guy Wes, so he definitely seemed like the guy to recruit. So, after taking a moment to set up some tasks for the facilities people to clean up the new hangar area and restore the fountain in the atrium (very important) –
II. Bob and Theresa set out for Diamond City to see what The Ron might know! Because everyone turns to The Ron to find what they need at some point or another. The trip didn’t start off well, with Bob unwisely approaching a Gunner “settlement” and picking a fight even after seeing the people there take down a Mirelurk Queen – fortunately he managed to escape total annihilation with the help of some Psycho Jet and running away really quickly, and the pair made it to Diamond City in one piece. The Ron was happy to see them, and – after a brief side conversation about Theresa trying to find someone she used to travel with (they had a falling out, and she wanted to bury the hatchet) – cheerfully told them all they needed to know (along with the worrying bonus information that the same two guys who had approached him on Captain Algernon’s behalf looking for Salvador were also the same two who later beat him up to get him to spill about Jake, hmmm). Namely that Salvador was camped by the Charles River, somewhere near Cutler Bend, and that he was not someone who played favorites – he treated everyone equally, and, if you got on his bad side, he would let you know about it. Bob was fine with that and checked his Pip-Boy –
And discovered that, hilariously, Salvador had in fact set up camp essentially RIGHT NEXT TO EGRET TOURS MARINA. You know, Bob’s beloved capital city. XD Well, that made things easier!
III. And so Bob and Theresa proceeded back to the Marina, and from there down the river to Salvador’s camp, where they were let in by a freedom fighter after Theresa said she was an old friend. Salvador proved to be an interesting person, with a very blunt, robotic way of speaking, and a clearly-artificial eye that didn’t look dissimilar to Nick’s. I wouldn’t swear that this guy is an escaped synth (or, as someone in the comments suggested, a former courser), but the signs really do seem to point to it! Anyway, Bob complimented him on his camp to get on his good side right away, and he and Theresa laid out their case. Salvador was initially disinterested, as he already had a host of men to help him fight against the Gunners and bring stability back to the region, but Theresa pointed out that he didn’t have THAT many guys, and that they could both really benefit from helping each other. Salvador allowed Bob to continue making his case, and after asking Theresa for a bit of help (with her being like “could you have asked me BEFORE we were standing right next to him?!”), simply stated that they could use his guidance, and that he was willing to learn whatever tactics Salvador was willing to teach him. Salvador was like, “all right, prove it – I know of a location near here the Gunners are planning to take over, and was planning a preemptive strike with my men. If you promise to come with me and listen to my advice, I’ll let you lead the assault and see how you do.” Jon was like “new tutorial? Yes please–”
IV. And so Bob and Salvador proceeded over to an old bridge near an old Coast Guard facility! Where, after apologizing for “not being a people person” (and no-selling Bob’s attempt to figure out what was troubling him), Salvador instructed Bob in the fine art of recon! By which I mean he gave Bob a pair of binoculars that could be used to mark enemies like a recon scope for your troops to attack and had him mark a super mutant hound wandering by the dock, then the Gunners when they arrived on their little ship, before having him fire off a flare gun to call in the Freedom Fighters. Once they arrived, Salvador put Bob in charge of leading the attack, and Bob did what he did best – sniped people with his new Explosive Sniper Rifle. XD The Freedom Fighters also held their own, and once they succeeded in wiping out the Gunner force, the game awarded Bob with an A victory rating (with just one guy on their side being injured, possibly because he was taking cover behind a car when it exploded). Salvador was dutifully impressed with Bob’s skills, and Theresa (having caught up with the group) asked if that meant that he was ready to sign on –
V. Aaaand Salvador went “maybe – have to show you something first.” He headed down to the dock, and after getting briefly distracted by picking up a new type of gun off the Gunners (an “induction pistol” that seems to shoot electrical energy) and hitting up a workbench to see what it could do, Bob followed him there. Turns out what Salvador wanted to show him and Theresa was the partially-unloaded Gunner cargo – jet fuel to for their bomber planes, which have been causing chaos in the Commonwealth. So far the planes are limited by the fact that they can only ever carry enough munitions and fuel for a single sweep, and then have to find a place to refuel, but the Gunners are attempting to create a special outpost that will allow them to refuel their planes much more quickly and become a REAL force to be reckoned with. Salvador does not want that to happen, and made stopping that one of his conditions for joining up and helping lead the HQ’s new military. The other condition was that Bob adhere to a proper code of conduct that emphasizes stability and equilibrium in the region – otherwise, Salvador would pull his support and his men. Making sure the Gunners couldn’t turn their planes into an even worse threat was something Bob was totally behind, but Jon was a little worried that a time would come in the mod where he’d be forced to pick between making Salvador happy or making someone else happy...but he needed that commander, so he agreed to the guy’s terms, and Salvador headed off with Theresa to HQ to officially join up. Bob swung by the Marina to update his new induction gun into a cool sniper rifle with a scope (so it had the knockback effect), then returned to HQ himself –
Where he ended the episode on the greatest sight of all – a working GNC fountain in the middle of the atrium! complete with little rocket going around the turning globe and plantlife spilling out the bottom! Jon was EXTREMELY pleased. :D It’s the little things when you’re planning a major military campaign, you know? Anyway, we’ll see how Salvador fits in with the rest of HQ, and what the plan is from here, next time! Hopefully it includes retaking Jamaica Plain, which fell to the Gunners right before Bob returned to HQ...
Workout: Back on the bike this week, and back with the GrayStillPlays compilations, moving onto “1000 Ways to Murder the King!” Games that, as you might expect, have some sort of focus on murder and monarchs. XD I’ve gotten through two games where you kill your king, then walk to the end of a long hall dodging various attempts on your own life by looking back at JUUUST the right time, hoping to get that magical upgrade from one of the few nice people in your life that means you don’t die of old age when you get to the end of the hall, and I’m currently about halfway through a third that is basically the same thing only Mafia-themed. XD We’ll see what else this compilation contains as we make our way through the week!
All right -- not exactly what I wanted to accomplish, but at least the day wasn't a total wash. And now I am going to head to bed so I don't get up too late on my final day off of my vacation (though, admittedly, the whole office has Monday off, it's RI-specific-holiday Victory Day). I'm HOPING I can make some progress with tumblr drafts on Victor Luvs Alice tomorrow, along with getting back to "Londerland Bloodlines: Downtown Queensland;" finishing off Portal Reloaded, keeping up with my YouTube Subs, and getting in a workout. We'll see how the day goes and if Dad gets to come home or not. I am really hoping -- it's been rough on all of us with him in the hospital. I'm just really glad that the situation wasn't any worse. *sigh* Night all!
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Date: 2024-08-12 11:06 pm (UTC)So my new occult house I made I forgot to set the romantic boundaries so they all WOULDN'T get jealous when flirting with each other, so I had to use the Wonderful Whims and debug mode to get rid of the jealousy and turn on polyamory. Stupid Sims lol.
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Date: 2024-08-13 03:14 am (UTC)LOL, whoops XD Though you can always change the base game romantic boundaries in CAS whenever you want, I believe. Though I personally am gonna stick to Wonderful Whims for more nuanced stuff myself. Modders do it better!