E is for "Effervescent"

ACNH

Today feels like a really slow day, so I'm writing this during my afternoon lunch break. It's Friday and I'm so glad that we've finally touched down to another weekend – true, the days seem to be blending into one another more now, and the routine is getting boring and monotonous, but at the end of Fridays, I have this whole ritual of closing my work laptop and storing it somewhere else until Monday. My personal laptop goes back up on the stand in time for a Jackbox run with my friends back home (it would be Saturday morning for them), and that usually signals the start of some R&R!

Besides Animal Crossing (the island is still under construction!), I've been keeping busy with reading almost everyone's posts from the #100DaysToOffload feed, baking a few random things here and there (the last one was another attempt at a no-bake cheesecake), catching up with friends and writing my next letter (more on that later). It sounds weird to sound it out, but reading people's daily musings feels so refreshing? All of them sound very raw and honest – and it's been a real treat to see more of that. I'm planning to pick up a few dominant topics that's been discussed by others, I just need to get a few things in order! It also makes me kind of wish that I can put pictures up on mine too, but I've made it a point not to commit to buying a Pro subscription on write.as until I see that I can do this more regularly, so we'll see how that goes.

Yes, I do admit that I've impulsively bought a few subscriptions in the past, thinking I would commit to it eventually, but I never do. My latest error was Skillshare – I missed the free trial deadline and was charge a year's worth. I still don't use it, but I'm trying to! I just can't seem to sit and watch things in succession? I definitely have a very low attention span for things now.

The one thing I did keep up doing since the start of quarantine was writing letters back and forth with my boyfriend. It's funny when you think about it – I still kind of see him every now and then (I rely on him to drive me to the office when I need to, as opposed to getting a Lyft), but we've managed to send around a weekly letter that we don't discuss in person; it's a whole separate thread of conversation on its own! I've also sent my friends and a cousin in Fresno postcards and a greeting card, but none of them have really written back to me (they did text me to acknowledge they've gotten it).

So before I prattle off more, let me end this post with a few interesting things that I've seen floating around:

  • My dedication to #ACNH has led me to discover the existence of Happy Island Designer (2D) and Island Planner (3D) to help map out your dream island. It's amazing what fans can do for the love of a game!
  • Just recently stumbled on an app called Redberry to write down thoughts and to-lists in! I've always liked organizing ideas in a bulleted outline, so I'm pretty hyped to utilize it.
  • I've been thinking about doing a solo piece I found from Play At Home – just for my own amusement, of course! Since no one's watching, we should all be unleashing our inner actors!

That's it! See you tomorrow!

7/100

I'm currently doing a challenge called “100 Days to Offload” – you can join in the fun too by visiting https://100daystooffload.com

If you'd like, drop me a message here – I would be absolutely thrilled to hear from you!

#100DaysToOffload #Journal

Why is it that when you start out doing challenges, you feel so invincible on the first two days, but then on the third or fourth day, you feel like the fantasy of being able to keep up slowly slips away from your fingers. Reality sets in, and you're left with the choice of continuing (albeit a bit meh) or abandoning ship? Is it just me? But anyhow, I'm trying not to break my current streak, so this will probably sound like a filler post than anything.

I woke up to two of my friends from home frantically getting ready for a turnip run on Animal's Crossing – one had time-traveled to the recent Sunday for 99 Bell turnips from Daisy Mae and the other had an ongoing 489 Bell selling price back on their island. Who couldn't resist the temptation? Definitely not me! After an hour or repeatedly hopping from one island to another to purchase and sell, I've finally hit Bellionaire status.

I don't time travel myself, and I play the game as casually as I can (that is to say, Miles streak and fossil run in the morning, greeting neighbors and harvesting fruits in the evening before in-game and physically going to bed) – but this is a personal choice. I can't condone any of my friends (or my own brother) for trying to grind as much as possible in the least amount of time, because it's how they like to play their games. Simple. If they'd like to invite me, of course, I'm not going to say no, but it's another thing if they ask me to alter my Switch's date and time.

I do admit to getting sort of a weird high from being so rich, in-game (think of all the possibilities!), and it leaked over when I was in a catch-up call with my manager; at the end of at least five minutes of me prattling on and describing turnips and saying how it landed a spot on the Financial Time's front page, I had to stop myself from further embarrassment. Turnips! Work! Sometimes I wish I didn't project too much on the game, but I find myself doing just that.

3/100

I'm currently doing a challenge called “100 Days to Offload” – you can join in the fun too by visiting https://100daystooffload.com

If you're secretly into #ACNH, high five! My island is still shit (pre-terraforming), but if you have tips, drop me a message here – I would be absolutely thrilled to hear from you!

#100DaysToOffload #Journal