Sunday, 17 February 2013

Please, no egg-cruciating puns


This week it's going to be a pretty short post, for two reasons.  The first is that I have had a lot on my mind right now, each idea tugging for that little bit of extra attention and I haven’t had much time to sit down and think about what I was going to write about.  Even if I did have something, I’m not sure that it would be great, as my time is currently being consumed elsewhere. 

The second reason is that I am currently wrestling with some sort of hybrid nose/throat cold thing that is so evil, it should only be spoken about in hushed tones, lest we anger it.  In fact, I’m pretty sure it’s going to have a significant role in Paranormal 12 as the primary antagonist.  OK, I may be exaggerating slightly but it’s not the greatest motivational tool to wake up feeling like I’ve swallowed red hot glass just before snorting quick-drying cement.  So, I’ve decided to take it easy by curling up on my couch with a ridiculous amount of tea and a blanket, just so I can sum up the energy to continue with my Sunday Cooking Challenge.  So, instead of doing a regular blog post, I just figured I would do a quick overview of anything interesting that happened this week.

·         Sunday Cooking Challenge: This is something I started about 5 weeks ago as my cooking was beginning to suffer and I was making the same things over and over again as I work full-time and only ever cook for myself (forever alone – Internet meme ed).  This became pretty depressing, as I enjoy good food and enjoy cooking as well.  So, to force myself out of this spiral, I decided to spend time every Sunday cooking something a bit more complicated or that I haven't done before, to help reignite my passion for cooking.  So now I decide on Friday what I want to make (via recipe books, websites etc), buy the ingredients on Saturday, then cook them on Sunday.  So far it has been a great success; giving me something to look forward to and has even acted as a catalyst for eating better during the week, especially when I have left-overs.  Things I have made so far include
o   Chicken and Cheddar Dumplings
o   Japanese Ramen
o   Sesame Noodles
o   Spaghetti with oil, garlic and chilli
o   Fabada
I invite you all to join me in my weekly challenge!  Next week I’ll be making Asian meatballs and tonight I will be redoing chicken and cheddar dumplings, as I now have the proper ingredients.

·         The Great Debate: ‘What came first: the chicken or the egg’ is no longer the great egg debate.  Nope it’s been replaced with how to make an omelette.  Thank you to everyone who gave me advice on how to make my first omelette!  I’ll keep you all posted on how much of a train wreck it is, as I suck at frying things such as pancakes.

·         Project Atoll: Despite being distracted, I have actually managed to take this further as planned.  I have fleshed out the general premise and have also started to add more detail to the various characters, as well as added a dog to the character list.  Not only this but I am even in talk with a couple of artists to get some character designs created.  Whilst it may be too early to get this started, I want to get some visuals to help my thought process a little.

Pick of the Week

X-Com Enemy Unknown - Aliens are attacking the earth and it is up to you to save the earth from certain doom.  For those who don't know, X-Com isn't another Spielberg film but a strategy game where you manage a team of elite soldiers who are sent to multiple alien situations, whilst also managing the companies finances and research decisions.  

Where the game excels is forcing you make hard decisions whilst trying to ensure a balance, as you never have enough resources or time to do everything.  In battle, do you send your soldiers rushing in to rescue civilians but at the risk of exposure or do you hang back to maintain defence but at the death of the civilians?  Do you try to capture them alive, meaning you need to get close or do you just attack to survive?  In finance, do you spend money on researching better armour or more powerful weapons?  Which country to you send a new satellite over, to reduce panic?  If you make a wrong decision, your trained soldiers die or countries can withdraw funding from your program.  

This is an enjoyable strategy game with great customisation options, replay value and tense gameplay that will leave you sitting on the edge of your seat.  Best of all, it requires you to sit and plan and engages you at every turn.


Music of the Week

Time for this weeks' song and as usual, it has one that I have been listening to recently.  Disbelief - Rewind it all.   This is a band I discovered back when I was in university and this particular song has stuck with me ever since.


Ok, that's it for me this week.  If you need me, I will be burrowed deeply underneath a heavy blanket, so I would recommend that you bring a headtorch to find me.

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