Despite the fact it feels like a fairly ordinary week, looking back, I had quite a lot of experiences.
But where to begin? Well for one, I finally achieved my goal of biking to work (which was a 20 miles commute one way). It almost ended in disaster right from the start, when my chain fell off my bike at the intersection right outside my house; but thanks to a spare bike I've dubbed The Black Arrow, I made the journey- mind you, with no rear shocks, and a frame that's much smaller than I'm used to, but I made it. And that same day was the day I got to perform with the people I've been rehearsing with. We performed a handful of songs, one of which I got to do a sax solo on, and then my main number, Moondance (by Van Morrison), where I sang and also did another sax solo. It was phenomenally fun, and apparently a good number of my coworkers (this was performed at work) were pretty amused! Heck, I was amused at the fact that, despite not having really played my sax in almost a decade, it seemed to come right back to me.
But this was only a couple of accomplishments I achieved this weekend. Don't get me wrong, by the way- Saturday was a pretty lazy day for me, so I don't know how I accomplished anywhere near as much as I did in just one weekend. But singing and biking aside, I also finally fixed some long-standing issues I was having with my Nextcloud setup. It feels so nice to have it working now, and know I pushed my way through all the little challenges to make it happen. FYI, if you need help setting up your own instance, reach out to me- I've made a neat to-do style list that helps you get it all nailed out, quick.
And on top of that, I also finished a game I started not too long ago, RiME. I'll try to keep spoilers out of the mix, but if you don't want to know what kind of ending it has, I would encourage you stop reading now, and go play the game for yourself. And if you haven't, GO DO IT!
I feel like it goes without saying at this point, but I view death and loss with a fairly solid and not fearful stance. I guess, I view it just like passing through a door that is to remain one-way for a long time, until the owner of the portal declares it is time. In that light, I LOVED this game, but I also gained a better understanding and appreciation of what most people probably feel about loss and death. In fact, I would start by rebuking myself on the first couple of sentences I typed, by acknowledging how easy it is to sit in my armchair and talk about difficult things that I've had little real-world experience with. It was Eisenhower that said, "Farming looks mighty easy when your plow is a pencil, and you're a thousand miles from the corn field." In that light, anytime I speak of death in such a trivial manner, I also need to acknowledge that it certainly can't be an easy thing to experience or witness.
[BEGIN BIG SPOILERS] Especially referring to RiME, I can't even begin to imagine the power and weight that the loss of a son or daughter would put on my shoulders. I am not yet a parent, but such plans are eventually to be on the table. And if the day ever came that I had to witness my own child die, I only pray I would be able to eventually pick myself up from the emotional fall.
[END BIG SPOILERS] But what I really just wanted to say is, if you haven't played RiME, find the time to do it. Not only are the visuals BEAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUTIFUL, and not only is the visual storytelling AMAZING, but the story that it tells is one that I think most people need to experience- and sooner than later!
And that's all I feel the need to share this week. Until next time, see ya!