Books
Someone You Can Build a Nest In by John Wiswell (Audiobook) – A fairly lightweight blend of monsters and romance, two genres I rarely read, but it was well-written and enjoyable except for the saccharine ending/epilogue.
DragonLance Tales, Volumes 1-3 (The Magic of Krynn, Love and War Kender, Gully Dwarves, and Gnomes ) edited by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman – A re-read from many years ago. I always enjoy visiting Krynn and these stories add color to the world and well-known characters. These were all pretty good, but none of these stories really stood out to me as especially bad or great.
Movies
Jaws – Probably the first time I’ve watched the whole thing since forever ago. It holds up fairly well after 50 years and the well-executed simplicity is in stark contrast to modern movies that feel like they often struggle under the weight of self-inflicted complexity. The Wikipedia page has a lot of details on how difficult the production was, even Spielberg tried to get out of directing it.
Pacific Rim – A favorite of mine and another rewatch, but this time with my son, who is finally old enough to enjoy these types of movies, and he loved it. The level of detail in Del Toro’s movies make them very rewatchable, and Djawadi’s soundtrack is a gem on its own.
Games
Oddsparks: An Automation Adventure – In Progress – If Nintendo made a factory game it would look a lot like this with cute characters and a pretty gentle learning curve. Within the genre it has some interesting ideas, especially around logistics that require and reward thinking and tinkering.
Tower Wizard – Completed – A short (~6 hours) “clicker” that is well-structured. It strikes a good balance between allowing idleness but not requiring it. Fun and definitely worth the few bucks it cost.
Music
Stephen Wilson Jr. – A discovery in the gap since my last post, but Wilson blends outlaw country and 90s alternative with a massive amount of talent to create a lot of great songs. His cover of Stand By Me is nothing short of epic.
Also, since my last update, I’ve started taking guitar lessons with my son! It’s been a fun experience so far.
Sports
Red Sox – This year’s team is interesting in that they appear to be a much better team than last year, but the results don’t back that up. They have a remote chance at the postseason if they can avoid more losing streaks, but given their feast-or-famine rhythm so far that seems unlikely.
In Progress
The Naming Song by Jedediah Berry
Murderbot, Season 1
Lego Masters, Season 5