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I forgot to say, for the competition, of courseMay the force and Grogu be with you to resist the Smarties ...
Quest for Muscle: The Return of the Pump
- Thread starter GentleOx
- Start date
Mamatigerj
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Another punch. The first salvo of punches had been to his gut. This one was landed to his face. He coughed, and tasted blood. Out of instinct, he strained against the restraints tying him to the dentist's chair. His torturer, clad in the black fatigues that marked him as one of the Scavs, drew back, and wiped his gloved fist with a nearby rag. Behind him, another man wearing a stained and dirty white smock stood there, watching silently. The small room, with its white tiles, smelt of blood and sweat and despair. Not fifteen steps away was the door to the room, while a tray with wicked instruments lay on a table to the right. Furtively, he worked the restraint binding his right arm, which felt like it had some give.
"Where's the bag?"
Ox spat out some blood. "I took it, remember?" Another punch to his face.
"Where's the bag?"
"I gave it to the Broker." This time a backhanded blow.
"Where's the bag?"
"Wherever it is, you're not getting your hands on it!" He hissed. This was, predictably, followed by another blow.
Ox breathed out again, his face a mass of pain. The contract had been so simple; sneak into the Scav's base in the slums and plunder their artifacts. Simple enough to be a trap. There, in the Blue House that was the center of their territory, he had been ambushed, rushed, and disarmed before getting close to his goal. Lying facing the ground, a smelly hood pulled over his face, he had been left for hours, until finally being dragged into this room that had marked his fate. The man who had been punching him finally drew back, and turned to the man in the white clothing. "He's probably telling the truth. Get anything else out of him." The other nodded.
"I'll squeeze him dry."
Hey again, Bees! Salutations to you from the gym! My competition finished, and I'll be detailing it below, after my first workout update in several days.
Competition Bench Press: 140, 142.5, and 145x. Oh well, always next time.
Could not go to the gym Monday because there was a big typhoon, so I went today, of course. I wanted to do an easy, back to basics Push day (restarting the cycle).
Bench Press: 122.5 x 5. Felt pretty good.
Paused Incline Bench: 90 x 5.
Lying Dumbbell Extensions: 26 x 6.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls: 35 x 10. Wow, these did a number on my biceps. Will do more of them!
The competition itself was more interesting and varied than last year. Several impressive lifters in different categories who outmatched me in muscle, and it was impressive to watch them lift.
I did manage to get first place in my weight class, and a nice medal to show for it.
Whew! I'm awful tuckered out after all that. Thursday is my birthday, and I'm going to China with my parents on the weekend.
Have a great week, Bees!
Playing: A bit of PS, and Witchfire (getting farther). I'm restarting PS (again!) just for the fun of progression. With my main char in Witchfire, I've made what's essentially a magic knight build, with tons of HP and spellcasting ability. I consulted player advice, until I realized there was no consensus on which build was the best.
No short horror recently, but watch this space. I have plenty more loaded up and ready for savouring-err, playing.
Watching: A little bit of Nobody 2, but not much else.
Listening to: David Bowie - New Angels of Promise. I've been jonesing for some David Bowie these past few days, so here's one of my favourite songs of his. Did you know that this song was part of a game David Bowie starred in called Omikron? It was crap, sure, but one of the more interesting gaming experiments to meld celebrity glamour with action gameplay.
"Suspicious minds
You didn't feel us coming
In this lonely crowd, it's always time"
"Where's the bag?"
Ox spat out some blood. "I took it, remember?" Another punch to his face.
"Where's the bag?"
"I gave it to the Broker." This time a backhanded blow.
"Where's the bag?"
"Wherever it is, you're not getting your hands on it!" He hissed. This was, predictably, followed by another blow.
Ox breathed out again, his face a mass of pain. The contract had been so simple; sneak into the Scav's base in the slums and plunder their artifacts. Simple enough to be a trap. There, in the Blue House that was the center of their territory, he had been ambushed, rushed, and disarmed before getting close to his goal. Lying facing the ground, a smelly hood pulled over his face, he had been left for hours, until finally being dragged into this room that had marked his fate. The man who had been punching him finally drew back, and turned to the man in the white clothing. "He's probably telling the truth. Get anything else out of him." The other nodded.
"I'll squeeze him dry."
Hey again, Bees! Salutations to you from the gym! My competition finished, and I'll be detailing it below, after my first workout update in several days.
Competition Bench Press: 140, 142.5, and 145x. Oh well, always next time.
Could not go to the gym Monday because there was a big typhoon, so I went today, of course. I wanted to do an easy, back to basics Push day (restarting the cycle).
Bench Press: 122.5 x 5. Felt pretty good.
Paused Incline Bench: 90 x 5.
Lying Dumbbell Extensions: 26 x 6.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls: 35 x 10. Wow, these did a number on my biceps. Will do more of them!
The competition itself was more interesting and varied than last year. Several impressive lifters in different categories who outmatched me in muscle, and it was impressive to watch them lift.
I did manage to get first place in my weight class, and a nice medal to show for it.
Whew! I'm awful tuckered out after all that. Thursday is my birthday, and I'm going to China with my parents on the weekend.
Have a great week, Bees!
Playing: A bit of PS, and Witchfire (getting farther). I'm restarting PS (again!) just for the fun of progression. With my main char in Witchfire, I've made what's essentially a magic knight build, with tons of HP and spellcasting ability. I consulted player advice, until I realized there was no consensus on which build was the best.
No short horror recently, but watch this space. I have plenty more loaded up and ready for savouring-err, playing.
Watching: A little bit of Nobody 2, but not much else.
Listening to: David Bowie - New Angels of Promise. I've been jonesing for some David Bowie these past few days, so here's one of my favourite songs of his. Did you know that this song was part of a game David Bowie starred in called Omikron? It was crap, sure, but one of the more interesting gaming experiments to meld celebrity glamour with action gameplay.
"Suspicious minds
You didn't feel us coming
In this lonely crowd, it's always time"
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NightWolf714
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Nashville, TN, USA
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from
Nashville, TN, USA
Pronouns: They/she
Posts: 1,560
"The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change. ~Carl Rogers"
Congrats on the shiney new medal! That's so awesome! 
Mamatigerj
Well-known member
Yay!
Well done, Ox!
aku-chan
Well-known member
Congrats on winning a snazzy medal! 
PetiteSheWolf
Well-known member
Bravo, very well done, Ox!
For horror, I just finished the mini-serie "the fall of of the house of Usher". Apparently, it is a bit divisive, but I really had a fun time, they used different Poe stories quite neatly , with an overarching story that pays off nicely at the end. A tad repetitive in a way, but some excellent takes on the classical stories And excellent actors! (Mark Hammil as a consience-less lawyer/fixer was particularly good). I give it 5 raven feathers out of 5. Nevermore!
For horror, I just finished the mini-serie "the fall of of the house of Usher". Apparently, it is a bit divisive, but I really had a fun time, they used different Poe stories quite neatly , with an overarching story that pays off nicely at the end. A tad repetitive in a way, but some excellent takes on the classical stories And excellent actors! (Mark Hammil as a consience-less lawyer/fixer was particularly good). I give it 5 raven feathers out of 5. Nevermore!
Thank you kindly @graoumia, @JCU, @Mamatigerj, @NightWolf714 and @Fremen and @aku-chan and @PetiteSheWolf!
@PetiteSheWolf I got two episodes in and stopped. It certainly is lavish and colourful, it's just that I cared little for the numerous Succession-esque scenes in which the family is in a boardroom, yakking away. Still, on your recommendation, may need to revisit it. I have watched almost every other Flannagan series, and haven't regretted it. Thanks for your review!
Ox did not know how much time had passed since the Scav lieutenant had left him to the devices of the sadistic "dentist". It had started lightly, according to the monstrous doctor; this entailed waterboarding, which was a sensation much like drowning, though it left no marks. The other tortures involved blunt force trauma and sharp tools, though he (for now) still had all his digits and appendages. By this point, he was almost completely convinced that he would meet his end here, restrained in this bloodstained dentistry chair.. Almost... A creak, a soft snap, but the dentist didn't notice. He was too busy nattering away about some nightmarish, deluded bullshit and was loading up a syringe no doubt filled with something nasty. Ox would only get one chance at this.
The dentist turned around, syringe fully loaded. "Ah, I see you've stayed! You've decided to avail yourself of our services for a little longer." Just a little longer. "But your response would be most helpful..." He leaned down, holding the syringe pointed at Ox's neck. Now. With an effort, Ox pulled his right arm free of the busted restraint and snatched the needle. In one deft motion, he plunged it into the surgeon's neck, making sure to push the plunger as far as it would go. "Noaarhg," the dentist sputtered, fumbling around for the needle in his neck. He pushed himself away from the dentist's chair, and stumbled around the torture chamber, this way and that. Ox noticed this from the corner of his eyes, as he was busy using his free arm to undo the restraints. There. The last buckle on his foot was undone, and he sprang up, free. Standing never felt so good. The dentist was now curled up in a ball in the corner, immersed in what seemed to be his deepest nightmares. "Buh duh, do it to him, not me!" He whimpered.
Ox stood above him, glaring down balefully.
Aloha, Bees!
Work has been rather inconsistent lately, so instead of having lessons today, I had time to go to the gym.
Today was a Pull day.
Paused Deadlifts: 150 x 5. These felt challenging, but alright, so I'll continue with this paused variation.
Barbell Rows: 105 x 6.
Meadows Rows: 47.5 x 6.
Neutral Chin Ups: Top set of 6 reps.
Neutral Grip Cable Rows: 50 x 7. Ok I guess?
Yummy chicken soaked in ginseng soup for dinner. Om nom.
Hours until my birthday. Feels very weird. I may or may not have another workout in me before the weekend, we'll see.
Hope your week is going great, Bees!
Playing: Of course, more Project Silverfish. Absolute gem of a game. Will play some more Witchfire tonight.
(Watch this space, I may play a short horror tonight).
Played through Butterfly, a grisly horror covering romance and body horror. A little too much go here, open this, but a solid, atmospheric horror with a jump scare that got me. I give it three and a half cans of dog food out of five.
Also played a bit of Human Harvest, which is about escaping from a cannibal in a farm. Total rubbish. Some of the worst that the genre can offer, and it felt too low-effort to be scary. I give it zero cans of fuel out of five.
Don't care a whit for Hollow Knight.
Watching: Umm mm, not much Nobody 2, which I really want to get back into.
Have been podcast gaming to a youtube series on monsters titled Monstrum. It isn't at all annoying and the host is cute, to boot!
Listening to: Smashing Pumpkins - Rhinoceros. It's a slow burn at first, until it blazes to life. An absolute titan of alternative rock, not even bettered on the Pumpkin's subsequent album. That guitar solo is an absolute banger, too.
@PetiteSheWolf I got two episodes in and stopped. It certainly is lavish and colourful, it's just that I cared little for the numerous Succession-esque scenes in which the family is in a boardroom, yakking away. Still, on your recommendation, may need to revisit it. I have watched almost every other Flannagan series, and haven't regretted it. Thanks for your review!
Ox did not know how much time had passed since the Scav lieutenant had left him to the devices of the sadistic "dentist". It had started lightly, according to the monstrous doctor; this entailed waterboarding, which was a sensation much like drowning, though it left no marks. The other tortures involved blunt force trauma and sharp tools, though he (for now) still had all his digits and appendages. By this point, he was almost completely convinced that he would meet his end here, restrained in this bloodstained dentistry chair.. Almost... A creak, a soft snap, but the dentist didn't notice. He was too busy nattering away about some nightmarish, deluded bullshit and was loading up a syringe no doubt filled with something nasty. Ox would only get one chance at this.
The dentist turned around, syringe fully loaded. "Ah, I see you've stayed! You've decided to avail yourself of our services for a little longer." Just a little longer. "But your response would be most helpful..." He leaned down, holding the syringe pointed at Ox's neck. Now. With an effort, Ox pulled his right arm free of the busted restraint and snatched the needle. In one deft motion, he plunged it into the surgeon's neck, making sure to push the plunger as far as it would go. "Noaarhg," the dentist sputtered, fumbling around for the needle in his neck. He pushed himself away from the dentist's chair, and stumbled around the torture chamber, this way and that. Ox noticed this from the corner of his eyes, as he was busy using his free arm to undo the restraints. There. The last buckle on his foot was undone, and he sprang up, free. Standing never felt so good. The dentist was now curled up in a ball in the corner, immersed in what seemed to be his deepest nightmares. "Buh duh, do it to him, not me!" He whimpered.
Ox stood above him, glaring down balefully.
Aloha, Bees!
Work has been rather inconsistent lately, so instead of having lessons today, I had time to go to the gym.
Today was a Pull day.
Paused Deadlifts: 150 x 5. These felt challenging, but alright, so I'll continue with this paused variation.
Barbell Rows: 105 x 6.
Meadows Rows: 47.5 x 6.
Neutral Chin Ups: Top set of 6 reps.
Neutral Grip Cable Rows: 50 x 7. Ok I guess?
Yummy chicken soaked in ginseng soup for dinner. Om nom.
Hours until my birthday. Feels very weird. I may or may not have another workout in me before the weekend, we'll see.
Hope your week is going great, Bees!
Playing: Of course, more Project Silverfish. Absolute gem of a game. Will play some more Witchfire tonight.
Played through Butterfly, a grisly horror covering romance and body horror. A little too much go here, open this, but a solid, atmospheric horror with a jump scare that got me. I give it three and a half cans of dog food out of five.
Also played a bit of Human Harvest, which is about escaping from a cannibal in a farm. Total rubbish. Some of the worst that the genre can offer, and it felt too low-effort to be scary. I give it zero cans of fuel out of five.
Don't care a whit for Hollow Knight.
Watching: Umm mm, not much Nobody 2, which I really want to get back into.
Have been podcast gaming to a youtube series on monsters titled Monstrum. It isn't at all annoying and the host is cute, to boot!
Listening to: Smashing Pumpkins - Rhinoceros. It's a slow burn at first, until it blazes to life. An absolute titan of alternative rock, not even bettered on the Pumpkin's subsequent album. That guitar solo is an absolute banger, too.
Last edited:
NightWolf714
Well-known member
Berserker
from
Nashville, TN, USA
Pronouns: They/she
Posts: 1,560
from
Nashville, TN, USA
Pronouns: They/she
Posts: 1,560
"The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change. ~Carl Rogers"
OoOo, I'm definitely gonna have to check out that YouTube channel!
PetiteSheWolf
Well-known member
I can understand that "succession" side being annoying to some, definitly. What else from Flanagan would you recommend?
PS - glad the Ox escaped the nasty dentist! "Is it safe? is it safe?".... brrrr!
PS - glad the Ox escaped the nasty dentist! "Is it safe? is it safe?".... brrrr!
@PetiteSheWolf There's so much of his work out there to love. Essential is The Haunting of Hill House, and imo Midnight Mass, the subject matter of which will be familiar to you and me (particularly for me, as a recovering alcoholic). Also, I love that scene from Marathon Man; one of the few scenes I remember from watching it as a kid with my dad. Brrr indeed!
@NightWolf714 Yeah it's a great series, and seems to be slowly restoring people's faith in PBS.
Ox slowly made his way up the steps to the Observatory entrance. Sneaking out of the Blue House without his gear, he felt positively bare. That said, it would've been sheer foolishness to root around the complex without any weapons beyond the scalpel he'd pilfered from the dentist's tools. He had made the miles long trek back to Freelancer territory. His arrival was met with whispers and furtive glances, but there was really only one person he cared about seeing. Staring death in the face had had that effect. Opening the door to the entrance, he made his way upstairs to see her, busily plotting away on a map, and making notes.
"Hey." The sound was loud in the quiet hum of the observatory. Simmi turned slowly, recognition in her body language. Her eyes fixed on him, taking in the relics of the treatment that the dentist had inflicted. Her reptilian visage paled. A beat. Then she seemed to recenter herself. "You're alive..." she croaked. He let out a smile, even that feeling painful. "Here, in the flesh." Clearly, she was conflicted. Ox took a step towards her. Another. She didn't retreat, nor come closer. Then, when they were perhaps two meters apart, both moved to meet, holding each other in a passionate hug. Ox could feel her lithe form through her fatigues, and he could feel himself growing warm as well. When they broke apart slowly, her eyes found his. "I thought I would never see you again." Her gaze was, curiously, fixing him in place: he could see so much in her eyes.
Ox bent his head down slightly and kissed her.
Hey again Bees!
My birthday has come and gone, and as a 40 year-old, life has progressed from an plain-vanilla crisis to a midlife crisis. The joys of aging...
Of course, that doesn't stop me from hitting the gym. Today was Legs (!) day.
Paused Squats: 90 x 6. Pretty tough, but manageable.
Front Squats: 65 x 5. Similar feeling.
Sissy Squats: Sets of six reps.
Lying Leg Curls: 35 x 15.
Back Extensions: Five sets of 12 reps.
I taught two classes yesterday. One was well, the other was a disaster. Ugh. Still feeling it today, and not the kind of thing one wants to do on their birthday. Afterward, however, had a great curry dinner with an old friend in which we talked shop and celebrated growing old in the company of good friends.
Hear hear!
We're going to China tomorrow for the weekend. I may or may not work out there, as they have a fine gym, but my legs workout beat me black and blue.
Have a wonderful weekend, Bees!
Playing: Plenty of Witchfire, which is a AAA game in an AA skin, I'm convinced. Glad that my PC can handle it, and that even when I fail, I'm having a bloody good time.
Not Playing: Borderlands 4. While in theory I could, as my PC squeaks by the hardware requirements, I would have to make do with 30 FPS, which I'm unwilling to do. Guess I'll just have to wait until I have the funds to buy the game, and more importantly, a PC that can handle it.
Watching: NM, at the moment. Have to get up early tomorrow, so unlikely to do any Late Night Cinema.
Listening to: Poppy, Amy Lee and Courtney Laplante - End of You. What a treat, from three goddesses of rock and heavy metal! There're enough catchy and interesting elements that make this one a formidable single. Would that we saw more of this kind of ambitious collaboration.
@NightWolf714 Yeah it's a great series, and seems to be slowly restoring people's faith in PBS.
Ox slowly made his way up the steps to the Observatory entrance. Sneaking out of the Blue House without his gear, he felt positively bare. That said, it would've been sheer foolishness to root around the complex without any weapons beyond the scalpel he'd pilfered from the dentist's tools. He had made the miles long trek back to Freelancer territory. His arrival was met with whispers and furtive glances, but there was really only one person he cared about seeing. Staring death in the face had had that effect. Opening the door to the entrance, he made his way upstairs to see her, busily plotting away on a map, and making notes.
"Hey." The sound was loud in the quiet hum of the observatory. Simmi turned slowly, recognition in her body language. Her eyes fixed on him, taking in the relics of the treatment that the dentist had inflicted. Her reptilian visage paled. A beat. Then she seemed to recenter herself. "You're alive..." she croaked. He let out a smile, even that feeling painful. "Here, in the flesh." Clearly, she was conflicted. Ox took a step towards her. Another. She didn't retreat, nor come closer. Then, when they were perhaps two meters apart, both moved to meet, holding each other in a passionate hug. Ox could feel her lithe form through her fatigues, and he could feel himself growing warm as well. When they broke apart slowly, her eyes found his. "I thought I would never see you again." Her gaze was, curiously, fixing him in place: he could see so much in her eyes.
Ox bent his head down slightly and kissed her.
Hey again Bees!
My birthday has come and gone, and as a 40 year-old, life has progressed from an plain-vanilla crisis to a midlife crisis. The joys of aging...
Of course, that doesn't stop me from hitting the gym. Today was Legs (!) day.
Paused Squats: 90 x 6. Pretty tough, but manageable.
Front Squats: 65 x 5. Similar feeling.
Sissy Squats: Sets of six reps.
Lying Leg Curls: 35 x 15.
Back Extensions: Five sets of 12 reps.
I taught two classes yesterday. One was well, the other was a disaster. Ugh. Still feeling it today, and not the kind of thing one wants to do on their birthday. Afterward, however, had a great curry dinner with an old friend in which we talked shop and celebrated growing old in the company of good friends.
Hear hear!
We're going to China tomorrow for the weekend. I may or may not work out there, as they have a fine gym, but my legs workout beat me black and blue.
Have a wonderful weekend, Bees!
Playing: Plenty of Witchfire, which is a AAA game in an AA skin, I'm convinced. Glad that my PC can handle it, and that even when I fail, I'm having a bloody good time.
Not Playing: Borderlands 4. While in theory I could, as my PC squeaks by the hardware requirements, I would have to make do with 30 FPS, which I'm unwilling to do. Guess I'll just have to wait until I have the funds to buy the game, and more importantly, a PC that can handle it.
Watching: NM, at the moment. Have to get up early tomorrow, so unlikely to do any Late Night Cinema.
Listening to: Poppy, Amy Lee and Courtney Laplante - End of You. What a treat, from three goddesses of rock and heavy metal! There're enough catchy and interesting elements that make this one a formidable single. Would that we saw more of this kind of ambitious collaboration.
. Happy belated birthday
Mamatigerj
Well-known member
Happy belated Birthday
NightWolf714
Well-known member
Berserker
from
Nashville, TN, USA
Pronouns: They/she
Posts: 1,560
from
Nashville, TN, USA
Pronouns: They/she
Posts: 1,560
"The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change. ~Carl Rogers"
Happy belated birthday! 
astro_lizard
Well-known member
I hope you had a great Birthday!!!!
PetiteSheWolf
Well-known member
Happy birthday, dear Ox! And I will look into Midnight mass!
Thank you for the birthday wishes @astro_lizard @CODawn @NightWolf714 @Fremen @Mamatigerj @JCU and @graoumia and @PetiteSheWolf. You're all the best! I may not have displayed my birthday on time, here on the hive, but your birthday wishes more than make up for it.
A distant part of him wondered how he could deliver a kiss without having lips, but their absence didn't detract from the pleasurable sensation, nor the tension of the situation. She wasn't resisting, or pulling away, but she wasn't leaning into him either. When he finally, slowly broke the embrace, he waited, anticipating her reluctance. She stood there, arms at her side, trying to keep her face as neutral as possible, and failing. Her plate carrier gently rose and fell with her breath. Ox did feel a touch embarrassed that he was clothed like a half-naked mendicant, and hadn't bothered to steal a shirt on the way out, but too late for that.
A sad smile was on her face."You're not a very good listener, are you?" He gave a weak smile. "Not one of my stronger suits." "Why...? I mean, I know why, and I return those feelings. That's not it. But you know why we shouldn't do this." Ox nodded slowly, and she continued. "You could be killed. A stray bullet, an anomaly, the creatures..." "A jilted lover," he joked, hoping to ease her turmoil. She hiccuped softly in a laugh, but continued, her eyes dipping downward towards his scars. "What if I lose you too?" Ox placed a hand on each of her shoulders and looked her in the eye.
"You're right. It's dangerous out there, and one day we'll have to part, that's true. Nothing is forever," he said. Then he touched his forehead against hers, closing his eyes. "But we have this moment, now, and I'd rather spend it, and what time we have with you than do anything else." He opened his eyes again to look into hers. Her eyes were slightly wet, but looking straight into his.
She took his hand and led him upstairs.
Greetings once more, Bees! I'm back in Hong Kong and back at it.
Today was another Push Day, in which I steadily ramped up the weights. This is W2D1, and I'll try to add another day if I can.
Bench Press: 125 x 6. Seems alright.
Incline Press: 92.5 x 6. Same here.
Overhead Press: 60 x 5. Will increase poundages next time.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls: 37.5 x 10. I may have the poundages wrong, I'll check next time.
+22,000 steps.
Regarding my weekend away, China is interesting. There's a very tangible difference between here and there. The immense commercialism and accessibility has done wonders for a sleepy port like Zhuhai, which has developed to become a more laidback version of Hong Kong (to say nothing of Shenzhen). Our hotel was well furnished and had many facilities - I wasn't fancying a workout, so I waited until coming back here.
The people are generally good-natured and more friendly than here, I thought. There's less of the mad dash that characterizes Hong Kong, though, interestingly, I found the people generally more efficient and hungrier for income. In Hong Kong, the attitude in many shops is - "these are our services, and if you don't like them, then buzz off". Whereas in China, I found them to be more accommodating. My extremely bad Putonghua got a good workout, and I had to fall back on Cantonese quite a bit (good thing Zhuhai is in Guangdong province).
So more positives than not. But being unable to access my usual websites (they're blocked by the Great Firewall) sucked. Glad to be back on terra firma.
I am somewhat in one of my anxious and melancholic moods today. I'm not sure why. I did some reading, and it may have to do with the massive amounts of caffeine I take in every day. It goes two scoops of coffee in the morning, a glass of coke zero, two scoops of preworkout, and another scoop of coffee when I get back. So... I may be overdoing it. It may also be the reason that my hands shake from time to time (though thankfully they don't affect my workouts).
Hope you had a good weekend, Bees!
Playing: Played some... what did I play... Sulfur, that's right. Even though there's been a new update, I don't know if I can be bothered to get back into it again. Will play some Cultic tonight, as there's a new update coming this week.
Oh yeah, and Hades 2 goes 1.0 next week, to boot! Woohoo!
Watching: Uh, still not much. Mostly spent my spare time in China reading SCPs.
Here is a fascinating trailer for a game that harkens back to the 90s with a choose-your-own adventure format mixed with FMV. Fascinating that somebody decided to bring this format back, and it definitely looks interesting.
Listening to: Eagle Eye Cherry - Permanent Tears. Something soft and poppy and reflective for tonight. Never owned his CD myself, but I've always had a fondness for this song.
A distant part of him wondered how he could deliver a kiss without having lips, but their absence didn't detract from the pleasurable sensation, nor the tension of the situation. She wasn't resisting, or pulling away, but she wasn't leaning into him either. When he finally, slowly broke the embrace, he waited, anticipating her reluctance. She stood there, arms at her side, trying to keep her face as neutral as possible, and failing. Her plate carrier gently rose and fell with her breath. Ox did feel a touch embarrassed that he was clothed like a half-naked mendicant, and hadn't bothered to steal a shirt on the way out, but too late for that.
A sad smile was on her face."You're not a very good listener, are you?" He gave a weak smile. "Not one of my stronger suits." "Why...? I mean, I know why, and I return those feelings. That's not it. But you know why we shouldn't do this." Ox nodded slowly, and she continued. "You could be killed. A stray bullet, an anomaly, the creatures..." "A jilted lover," he joked, hoping to ease her turmoil. She hiccuped softly in a laugh, but continued, her eyes dipping downward towards his scars. "What if I lose you too?" Ox placed a hand on each of her shoulders and looked her in the eye.
"You're right. It's dangerous out there, and one day we'll have to part, that's true. Nothing is forever," he said. Then he touched his forehead against hers, closing his eyes. "But we have this moment, now, and I'd rather spend it, and what time we have with you than do anything else." He opened his eyes again to look into hers. Her eyes were slightly wet, but looking straight into his.
She took his hand and led him upstairs.
Greetings once more, Bees! I'm back in Hong Kong and back at it.
Today was another Push Day, in which I steadily ramped up the weights. This is W2D1, and I'll try to add another day if I can.
Bench Press: 125 x 6. Seems alright.
Incline Press: 92.5 x 6. Same here.
Overhead Press: 60 x 5. Will increase poundages next time.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls: 37.5 x 10. I may have the poundages wrong, I'll check next time.
+22,000 steps.
Regarding my weekend away, China is interesting. There's a very tangible difference between here and there. The immense commercialism and accessibility has done wonders for a sleepy port like Zhuhai, which has developed to become a more laidback version of Hong Kong (to say nothing of Shenzhen). Our hotel was well furnished and had many facilities - I wasn't fancying a workout, so I waited until coming back here.
The people are generally good-natured and more friendly than here, I thought. There's less of the mad dash that characterizes Hong Kong, though, interestingly, I found the people generally more efficient and hungrier for income. In Hong Kong, the attitude in many shops is - "these are our services, and if you don't like them, then buzz off". Whereas in China, I found them to be more accommodating. My extremely bad Putonghua got a good workout, and I had to fall back on Cantonese quite a bit (good thing Zhuhai is in Guangdong province).
So more positives than not. But being unable to access my usual websites (they're blocked by the Great Firewall) sucked. Glad to be back on terra firma.
I am somewhat in one of my anxious and melancholic moods today. I'm not sure why. I did some reading, and it may have to do with the massive amounts of caffeine I take in every day. It goes two scoops of coffee in the morning, a glass of coke zero, two scoops of preworkout, and another scoop of coffee when I get back. So... I may be overdoing it. It may also be the reason that my hands shake from time to time (though thankfully they don't affect my workouts).
Hope you had a good weekend, Bees!
Playing: Played some... what did I play... Sulfur, that's right. Even though there's been a new update, I don't know if I can be bothered to get back into it again. Will play some Cultic tonight, as there's a new update coming this week.
Oh yeah, and Hades 2 goes 1.0 next week, to boot! Woohoo!
Watching: Uh, still not much. Mostly spent my spare time in China reading SCPs.
Here is a fascinating trailer for a game that harkens back to the 90s with a choose-your-own adventure format mixed with FMV. Fascinating that somebody decided to bring this format back, and it definitely looks interesting.
Listening to: Eagle Eye Cherry - Permanent Tears. Something soft and poppy and reflective for tonight. Never owned his CD myself, but I've always had a fondness for this song.
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. I am happy you enjoyed your week-end@graoumia You have a point. But I loves my smarties too much, so the coffee has to go.
Ox gently rose from bed and got to his feet. Simmi was still sleeping, and he didn't want to disturb what was undoubtedly much-needed rest. Descending from the spare, well-kept loft that was Simmi's private space, he made his way down to the landing where his locker and bed were. He had anticipated that a disaster (like his capture) might set him back to zero, and had stored some spare gear and supplies here in the observatory. He opened the locker, retrieving his spare outfit; a stylish bomber jacket and jeans didn't constitute much protection, but it was better than walking around in his underwear, he supposed. Following that was a 9mm pistol. He loaded the empty pistol with a fresh magazine, chambered a round, and pushed the slide back, checking to see a round was in the chamber. Fortunately, his bug out bag was just as untouched, and had been prepacked with plenty of essential supplies like flares, lockpicks, MREs, and other goodies.
He had just slung the backpack onto his shoulders and was checking the straps when he heard footsteps from the loft. Simmi made her way down to the landing dressed in loose-knit pants and a tank top: she was beautiful. "Sorry to wake you," he said, still checking to see that everything was in place. "I was hoping you'd gotten some rest." She smiled a little at this. "No thanks to you. Didn't do much sleeping, I recall." He smirked, and said "Glad to see someone in Carcosa appreciates me." She coughed. "What happens now?" He approached her and gently took her hands into his. "I like being with you, but more importantly, even among the stalkers and the anomalies and all the crazy shit that goes on here, I want to make us work." She nodded, though her assent seemed tenuous. "One day at time," she said.
"One day at a time."
Hey Bees! It's good to be back, and I took the opportunity today to hit the gym once more.
Today was another Pull day in which I upped the poundages a little.
Paused Deadlifts: 155 x 5. Not too bad. Though I fear there will come a point where this is less manageable.
Barbell Rows: 110 x 3.
Meadows Rows: 47.5 x 8, 50 x 6! A tiny PR! Not bad!
Incline Rows: 28 x 6. Could not get up to 30 today, oddly enough.
Neutral Grip Chinups: Top set of 8 reps.
Hot as can be today. When will winter come?
Still battling feelings of anxiety. Reduced my caffeine intake a bit. Just had my preworkout scoops, and that was it. I don't have any excessive shakiness... yet.
Haven't had any new contracts since coming back. Ugh. May have to go back to job hunting.
Since I have more spare time, can work on my book, at least.
Onwards and upwards, Bees!
Playing: A bit of PS last night, but more Cultic than anything else. I played it on a harder difficulty than I was used to and got shredded, repeatedly. Been awhile since I played, so still shaking the dust off.
Will play some more short horrors; watch this space.
Update: Crow County is not a short horror, but this retro-horror throwback was on sale, so I happily scooped it up. Will post impressions later...
Update 2: Played a short horror named White Coat, Red Hands, about a doctor who encounters a moral dilemma as s/he leaves work. Total rubbish. I'm not going to knock off points for it being short, because that's the point, but the jump scares were tosh, the writing contrived, and the gameplay practically nonexistent. I give it one bottle of poorly rendered beer out of five.
Watching: I got it into my head to watch Heavy Metal, the 1981 animated film. It just looks too cool to pass up. Whether it takes priority over Nobody 2... I dunno, we'll see.
Listening to: Don Felder - Heavy Metal (Takin' a Ride). Tonight's featured song is gonna have to be Don Felder's contribution to the Heavy Metal soundtrack. It's more hard rock than Heavy Metal, but still a wicked tune with lots of great guitar noodling.
Ox gently rose from bed and got to his feet. Simmi was still sleeping, and he didn't want to disturb what was undoubtedly much-needed rest. Descending from the spare, well-kept loft that was Simmi's private space, he made his way down to the landing where his locker and bed were. He had anticipated that a disaster (like his capture) might set him back to zero, and had stored some spare gear and supplies here in the observatory. He opened the locker, retrieving his spare outfit; a stylish bomber jacket and jeans didn't constitute much protection, but it was better than walking around in his underwear, he supposed. Following that was a 9mm pistol. He loaded the empty pistol with a fresh magazine, chambered a round, and pushed the slide back, checking to see a round was in the chamber. Fortunately, his bug out bag was just as untouched, and had been prepacked with plenty of essential supplies like flares, lockpicks, MREs, and other goodies.
He had just slung the backpack onto his shoulders and was checking the straps when he heard footsteps from the loft. Simmi made her way down to the landing dressed in loose-knit pants and a tank top: she was beautiful. "Sorry to wake you," he said, still checking to see that everything was in place. "I was hoping you'd gotten some rest." She smiled a little at this. "No thanks to you. Didn't do much sleeping, I recall." He smirked, and said "Glad to see someone in Carcosa appreciates me." She coughed. "What happens now?" He approached her and gently took her hands into his. "I like being with you, but more importantly, even among the stalkers and the anomalies and all the crazy shit that goes on here, I want to make us work." She nodded, though her assent seemed tenuous. "One day at time," she said.
"One day at a time."
Hey Bees! It's good to be back, and I took the opportunity today to hit the gym once more.
Today was another Pull day in which I upped the poundages a little.
Paused Deadlifts: 155 x 5. Not too bad. Though I fear there will come a point where this is less manageable.
Barbell Rows: 110 x 3.
Meadows Rows: 47.5 x 8, 50 x 6! A tiny PR! Not bad!
Incline Rows: 28 x 6. Could not get up to 30 today, oddly enough.
Neutral Grip Chinups: Top set of 8 reps.
Hot as can be today. When will winter come?
Still battling feelings of anxiety. Reduced my caffeine intake a bit. Just had my preworkout scoops, and that was it. I don't have any excessive shakiness... yet.
Haven't had any new contracts since coming back. Ugh. May have to go back to job hunting.
Since I have more spare time, can work on my book, at least.
Onwards and upwards, Bees!
Playing: A bit of PS last night, but more Cultic than anything else. I played it on a harder difficulty than I was used to and got shredded, repeatedly. Been awhile since I played, so still shaking the dust off.
Will play some more short horrors; watch this space.
Update: Crow County is not a short horror, but this retro-horror throwback was on sale, so I happily scooped it up. Will post impressions later...
Update 2: Played a short horror named White Coat, Red Hands, about a doctor who encounters a moral dilemma as s/he leaves work. Total rubbish. I'm not going to knock off points for it being short, because that's the point, but the jump scares were tosh, the writing contrived, and the gameplay practically nonexistent. I give it one bottle of poorly rendered beer out of five.
Watching: I got it into my head to watch Heavy Metal, the 1981 animated film. It just looks too cool to pass up. Whether it takes priority over Nobody 2... I dunno, we'll see.
Listening to: Don Felder - Heavy Metal (Takin' a Ride). Tonight's featured song is gonna have to be Don Felder's contribution to the Heavy Metal soundtrack. It's more hard rock than Heavy Metal, but still a wicked tune with lots of great guitar noodling.
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Mamatigerj
Well-known member
Yay! 
astro_lizard
Well-known member
Congrats!!! 
Thank you kindly @CODawn, @astro_lizard, @Mamatigerj, @JCU, and @Fremen, of course.
The sun lit the day in a pleasant glow, and it was pleasantly cool, but nonetheless, Ox staggered under the weight of the duffel bag. Following the clues left by the Broker's contact, he had found the spot figuratively marked "X", in the middle of a cornfield at the edge of the Crossroads. Thoroughly digging away, he'd uncovered the heavy duffel bag not deep within the earth. Now it was time to lug it over to The Black Lake and deliver it to the Broker, who was most emphatic (and threatening) that it not be opened before then.
Possessing none of the more sophisticated equipment he had toted before his capture, he had no choice but to take up the simpler jobs made available from Carcosa's numerous employers. He would bide his time until he had the necessary equipment for more dangerous jobs.
Sweat beaded on his lizard brow, which he wiped away with the back of a hand. The bag was not the encumbrance that the massive RG East crate had been, but it was considerably hefty, and dug into his shoulders. Ox followed the path leading out of the small cornfield. Just as he was clear, he saw four men waiting on the roadside, perhaps alerted by his passage through the cornfield. All armed with older weaponry, but sporting the brand spanking new uniforms of the Insurrectionists, he saw that their posture was lax, their demeanor lackadaisical. Their leader held up a hand.
"Whoa, freelancer. This is Terra Reddit land. And we are required to levy a tax..."
"For the good of the people," snickered the man beside him. He received an elbow in the ribs, and shut up.
"...A tax on all passersby," continued the leader, as if nothing had happened.
"We'll start with that duffel bag you're carrying. Put it on the ground and step back."
Nei hou, Bees! I'm back in the gym again.
Today was an alternate Push day, focusing on paused bench pressing.
Paused Bench Press: 120 x 6, 122.5 x 5. These sucked. What happened to my strength?
Paused Incline Press: 90 x 6.
Overhead Press: 60 x 6.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls
+23000 steps!
I'm somewhat bushed, so I may push my next workout to Sunday. We'll see.
Saturday is yummy Japanese buffet! Hopefully the coming typhoon won't make us cancel.
It's almost the weekend, Bees! Just make it to tomorrow!
Playing: So it turns out that Crow Country justifies the hype. I played through a good chunk of it last night, and there's more coming. I find the lo-fi look to be part of its charm, and while it's not scary, it's certainly excellent. There's lots to uncover, so I'm going to dive in again tonight.
Will also play a bit of Witchfire and Project Silverfish, if I don't conk out first.
Refunded Conscript. I just didn't feel like it was really worth it, and I only get 26 HKD back anyway.
Still waiting for my long-heralded Abiotic Factor discount. May only happen in ten days (the great Steam sale is coming!).
Memes: A certified kitty classic (aren't they all?). I thought that this song by Gucci Mane made for the funniest edit; it may perhaps be the original song for this video.
@PetiteSheWolf This one's for you! I hope Mademoiselle Luna doesn't get any ideas.
Watching: Uhh, still not much, even though my backlog of movies grows.
Listening to: Faith No More - The Real Thing. I haven't listened to this one in years. I owned the CD (secondhand, of course) back in the day. An excellent, powerful song from an excellent record.
The sun lit the day in a pleasant glow, and it was pleasantly cool, but nonetheless, Ox staggered under the weight of the duffel bag. Following the clues left by the Broker's contact, he had found the spot figuratively marked "X", in the middle of a cornfield at the edge of the Crossroads. Thoroughly digging away, he'd uncovered the heavy duffel bag not deep within the earth. Now it was time to lug it over to The Black Lake and deliver it to the Broker, who was most emphatic (and threatening) that it not be opened before then.
Possessing none of the more sophisticated equipment he had toted before his capture, he had no choice but to take up the simpler jobs made available from Carcosa's numerous employers. He would bide his time until he had the necessary equipment for more dangerous jobs.
Sweat beaded on his lizard brow, which he wiped away with the back of a hand. The bag was not the encumbrance that the massive RG East crate had been, but it was considerably hefty, and dug into his shoulders. Ox followed the path leading out of the small cornfield. Just as he was clear, he saw four men waiting on the roadside, perhaps alerted by his passage through the cornfield. All armed with older weaponry, but sporting the brand spanking new uniforms of the Insurrectionists, he saw that their posture was lax, their demeanor lackadaisical. Their leader held up a hand.
"Whoa, freelancer. This is Terra Reddit land. And we are required to levy a tax..."
"For the good of the people," snickered the man beside him. He received an elbow in the ribs, and shut up.
"...A tax on all passersby," continued the leader, as if nothing had happened.
"We'll start with that duffel bag you're carrying. Put it on the ground and step back."
Nei hou, Bees! I'm back in the gym again.
Today was an alternate Push day, focusing on paused bench pressing.
Paused Bench Press: 120 x 6, 122.5 x 5. These sucked. What happened to my strength?
Paused Incline Press: 90 x 6.
Overhead Press: 60 x 6.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls
+23000 steps!
I'm somewhat bushed, so I may push my next workout to Sunday. We'll see.
Saturday is yummy Japanese buffet! Hopefully the coming typhoon won't make us cancel.
It's almost the weekend, Bees! Just make it to tomorrow!
Playing: So it turns out that Crow Country justifies the hype. I played through a good chunk of it last night, and there's more coming. I find the lo-fi look to be part of its charm, and while it's not scary, it's certainly excellent. There's lots to uncover, so I'm going to dive in again tonight.
Will also play a bit of Witchfire and Project Silverfish, if I don't conk out first.
Refunded Conscript. I just didn't feel like it was really worth it, and I only get 26 HKD back anyway.
Still waiting for my long-heralded Abiotic Factor discount. May only happen in ten days (the great Steam sale is coming!).
Memes: A certified kitty classic (aren't they all?). I thought that this song by Gucci Mane made for the funniest edit; it may perhaps be the original song for this video.
@PetiteSheWolf This one's for you! I hope Mademoiselle Luna doesn't get any ideas.
Watching: Uhh, still not much, even though my backlog of movies grows.
Listening to: Faith No More - The Real Thing. I haven't listened to this one in years. I owned the CD (secondhand, of course) back in the day. An excellent, powerful song from an excellent record.
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PetiteSheWolf
Well-known member
@PetiteSheWolf Your kitty must be a real clubber!
His mind flashed back to the last time he'd been accosted by the Insurrectionists, as a more naive mercenary beginning his journey. This gang was either less bloodthirsty, drunk on power, or just plain daft. He reckoned it was a mix of the three; putting on that uniform gave men strange ideas. He stood uncomfortably in the sun and cleared his throat, a bit pointedly. "Gentlemen. I've had quite the week, and the Broker's not known for his patience. What say you turn your heads this time and we go our separate ways? I'll forget this ever happened." The squad leader cocked his head, seemingly in disbelief. "We weren't asking." Ox sighed. "I am." They were a mere ten meters away. Having a mere pistol wouldn't be a problem.
The squad leader's patience was exhausted. "Can you believe this shithead? Boys, take *everything* he has." The three underlings approached in a line, jaunty and casually, their weapons lowered. Ox bode his time. He slowly unslung the duffel bag. Just to lull them a little more, make them think he had capitulated. When they drew close, not more than two meters away, he hefted the bag, and with a thrust, threw it at the soldier on the left.
The militiaman let out an "OOmph" as ten kilos of artifacts slammed into his chest and sent him sprawling to the ground. Ox dropped his right hand to his pistol's butt, his left on his belly. Swiftly, he drew the 9mm, bringing the muzzle up and forward, but keeping it at his hip. They were close enough that he didn't have to waste time raising the sights to eye level. Instead, he fired two shots for each of the two remaining men at hip level, the pistol jerking in his hand. Control the muzzle flip. As they fell, he turned back to the man he'd thrown the bag at, and fired a single shot into his head. Now to deal with the commander.
Said fellow was shakily aiming a carbine at the approaching Ox. "F*CK!" He yelped as he pulled the trigger repeatedly. He'd forgotten to chamber a round, or the antiquated firearm had jammed. Sloppy. Ox levelled the pistol at him with both hands. The militiaman was in his sights, and had dropped the gun, raising his hands in submission. "Please! No.... I'll..." "Shut up." He wanted to excoriate the bandit. Then put a bullet in him: leaving him alive could be dangerous. Pistol still raised, Ox made his decision. "Get the f*ck out of here. I see you again, I'll kneecap you." The erstwhile squad leader took off, in the direction of the Goldwood Forest. Would he gather reinforcements?
Ox would deal with that when the time came.
Hey again, Bees! I braved the rain for a workout after church service. I decided to get back on my leg workouts, so that's what today was focused on.
Paused Squats: 90 x 6. Ugh. Had tight hamstring problems that hampered the reps, so I did my best. Hopefully next week's workout will... work out.
Front Squats: 60 x 6. Too blasted to do anything better.
Hack Squats: 50 x 6.
Lying Leg Curls: 50 x 6.
- Forgot to do body extensions.
So not so great, but at least I went in and did the work.
The rain lately has been rather messy, but it's slated to get even worse on Wednesday - we have a huge typhoon coming in that's going to wreck the city. The biggest in recent memory, they're saying! We should be safe down in the valley, but going outside of the house will be out of the question.
Hope you're having a great Sunday, Bees!
Playing: Since I last posted, mostly bits of Crow Country. Slowly making more progress. Also doing well with my re-playthrough of Cultic, which is as fun as it was back in 2022. Will try to play through it before downloading the recently released second episode.
Hades 2 on Thursday! I can't wait to romance all my waif-err, further my relationships, and conclude the story.
No Rest for the Wicked looks interesting, but I can't be bothered to spend 170 bones on a game that's likely not as good as Witchfire is.
Speaking of Witchfire...
Also, watch this space. There are some indie horrors that have caught my eye.
Watching: Last night, I watched a microbudget indie horror called Brightwood. Here's a trailer, synopsis, and review.
Synopsis: Married couple Jen and Dan balefully set out one morning to a gorgeous running trail surrounding a local lake in the hopes of salvaging a relationship in tatters. Jen is (rightfully) furious with Dan for getting drunk the night before and ruining a party with his drunken, lecherous behaviour. As they lap the lake, they realize something strange: the pathway out has disappeared, but more importantly, the find themselves unable to leave. Will they be stuck there, their irritable outbursts and sniping repeating for eternity? Or will they find a way out, and mend their bond?
Summary: If you can get past the bare-bones filmmaking and absolutely minimal budget, this is a surprisingly endearing and gripping exercise in drama and tension.
I found this one closer to Brit horror Triangle in and plot. It's almost like a rough idea of Groundhog Day was married to relationship hell. This one is a two hander, with only two actors making up the cast. They're not very likeable, though that's by design. And even so, they have their moments of charm and sweetness. I thought little of them in the beginning, but they grew stronger as the film went on. The film's main weakness is not its budget, but that it's quite repetitive at times - though that may be the point.
While there are clever twists here and there, and bits that show off the intersecting moments (trying not to give anything away), I don't know if there is a grand explanation for the film like you see in, say, Primer, and the plot devices are nothing we haven't seen before in Triangle or Cronoscrimenas (Time Crimes). The little shocks are welcome nonetheless. I appreciate that while it wasn't exactly scary, it was still pretty creepy and twisted.
This is a textbook example of an indie punching high up above its weight class, and while competent direction can only do so much to overcome a minimal budget, I'd say that it sells itself pretty well.
I give it three and a half pairs of apple buds out of five.
Listening to: Home - Thunder. Even though there hasn't been that much thunder, I'm borrowing this song for all the rain-soaked atmosphere it has. Another classic of electronica/synth.
His mind flashed back to the last time he'd been accosted by the Insurrectionists, as a more naive mercenary beginning his journey. This gang was either less bloodthirsty, drunk on power, or just plain daft. He reckoned it was a mix of the three; putting on that uniform gave men strange ideas. He stood uncomfortably in the sun and cleared his throat, a bit pointedly. "Gentlemen. I've had quite the week, and the Broker's not known for his patience. What say you turn your heads this time and we go our separate ways? I'll forget this ever happened." The squad leader cocked his head, seemingly in disbelief. "We weren't asking." Ox sighed. "I am." They were a mere ten meters away. Having a mere pistol wouldn't be a problem.
The squad leader's patience was exhausted. "Can you believe this shithead? Boys, take *everything* he has." The three underlings approached in a line, jaunty and casually, their weapons lowered. Ox bode his time. He slowly unslung the duffel bag. Just to lull them a little more, make them think he had capitulated. When they drew close, not more than two meters away, he hefted the bag, and with a thrust, threw it at the soldier on the left.
The militiaman let out an "OOmph" as ten kilos of artifacts slammed into his chest and sent him sprawling to the ground. Ox dropped his right hand to his pistol's butt, his left on his belly. Swiftly, he drew the 9mm, bringing the muzzle up and forward, but keeping it at his hip. They were close enough that he didn't have to waste time raising the sights to eye level. Instead, he fired two shots for each of the two remaining men at hip level, the pistol jerking in his hand. Control the muzzle flip. As they fell, he turned back to the man he'd thrown the bag at, and fired a single shot into his head. Now to deal with the commander.
Said fellow was shakily aiming a carbine at the approaching Ox. "F*CK!" He yelped as he pulled the trigger repeatedly. He'd forgotten to chamber a round, or the antiquated firearm had jammed. Sloppy. Ox levelled the pistol at him with both hands. The militiaman was in his sights, and had dropped the gun, raising his hands in submission. "Please! No.... I'll..." "Shut up." He wanted to excoriate the bandit. Then put a bullet in him: leaving him alive could be dangerous. Pistol still raised, Ox made his decision. "Get the f*ck out of here. I see you again, I'll kneecap you." The erstwhile squad leader took off, in the direction of the Goldwood Forest. Would he gather reinforcements?
Ox would deal with that when the time came.
Hey again, Bees! I braved the rain for a workout after church service. I decided to get back on my leg workouts, so that's what today was focused on.
Paused Squats: 90 x 6. Ugh. Had tight hamstring problems that hampered the reps, so I did my best. Hopefully next week's workout will... work out.
Front Squats: 60 x 6. Too blasted to do anything better.
Hack Squats: 50 x 6.
Lying Leg Curls: 50 x 6.
- Forgot to do body extensions.
So not so great, but at least I went in and did the work.
The rain lately has been rather messy, but it's slated to get even worse on Wednesday - we have a huge typhoon coming in that's going to wreck the city. The biggest in recent memory, they're saying! We should be safe down in the valley, but going outside of the house will be out of the question.
Hope you're having a great Sunday, Bees!
Playing: Since I last posted, mostly bits of Crow Country. Slowly making more progress. Also doing well with my re-playthrough of Cultic, which is as fun as it was back in 2022. Will try to play through it before downloading the recently released second episode.
Hades 2 on Thursday! I can't wait to romance all my waif-err, further my relationships, and conclude the story.
No Rest for the Wicked looks interesting, but I can't be bothered to spend 170 bones on a game that's likely not as good as Witchfire is.
Speaking of Witchfire...
Also, watch this space. There are some indie horrors that have caught my eye.
Watching: Last night, I watched a microbudget indie horror called Brightwood. Here's a trailer, synopsis, and review.
Synopsis: Married couple Jen and Dan balefully set out one morning to a gorgeous running trail surrounding a local lake in the hopes of salvaging a relationship in tatters. Jen is (rightfully) furious with Dan for getting drunk the night before and ruining a party with his drunken, lecherous behaviour. As they lap the lake, they realize something strange: the pathway out has disappeared, but more importantly, the find themselves unable to leave. Will they be stuck there, their irritable outbursts and sniping repeating for eternity? Or will they find a way out, and mend their bond?
Summary: If you can get past the bare-bones filmmaking and absolutely minimal budget, this is a surprisingly endearing and gripping exercise in drama and tension.
I found this one closer to Brit horror Triangle in and plot. It's almost like a rough idea of Groundhog Day was married to relationship hell. This one is a two hander, with only two actors making up the cast. They're not very likeable, though that's by design. And even so, they have their moments of charm and sweetness. I thought little of them in the beginning, but they grew stronger as the film went on. The film's main weakness is not its budget, but that it's quite repetitive at times - though that may be the point.
While there are clever twists here and there, and bits that show off the intersecting moments (trying not to give anything away), I don't know if there is a grand explanation for the film like you see in, say, Primer, and the plot devices are nothing we haven't seen before in Triangle or Cronoscrimenas (Time Crimes). The little shocks are welcome nonetheless. I appreciate that while it wasn't exactly scary, it was still pretty creepy and twisted.
This is a textbook example of an indie punching high up above its weight class, and while competent direction can only do so much to overcome a minimal budget, I'd say that it sells itself pretty well.
I give it three and a half pairs of apple buds out of five.
Listening to: Home - Thunder. Even though there hasn't been that much thunder, I'm borrowing this song for all the rain-soaked atmosphere it has. Another classic of electronica/synth.
Mamatigerj
Well-known member
Stay safe!
Thank you @Mamatigerj! We've weathered every typhoon before this one okay, so knock on wood, shouldn't be a problem.
Ox lugged the large duffel bag forward and lifted it onto the Broker's desk. There were a few clunks as its contents were jostled, but everything was intact -- he hoped. In any event, the Broker unzipped the bag and was beholding its contents. "Yes... quite satisfactory." While the golden mask covered his face, his eyes glittered with naked greed. What did he need all those artifacts for? Ox had boldly put the question to him once and been told to "mind your own f*cking business." He had from then on been mum on the matter.
While he was brusque, and hated extended conversations, the Broker was still helpful and generous. That seemed to be the Broker standing in front of Ox now, withdrawing some bills from inside his desk. "One thousand, as agreed on. Plus a little bonus." Ox thanked him, nonetheless counting the money. The Broker leaned back, his arms folded across his massive chest."You haven't made any debt payments, freelancer Ox." He was really hoping that topic wouldn't come up. Ox shrugged, hopefully more casually than he felt. "I've been a little preoccupied as of late," he said, diffidently. The Broker barked out a laugh. "I'll say. You stared death in the face and made it out alive. How does that feel?"
"Like this is a crazy-ass place that doesn't care how much money you have or how tooled up you are."
"Now he's getting it!" A hearty laugh.
"It also reminded me to hold close what's important."
"I'm glad you think she's important. Tell me, how is she?" Was this a test? Ox could feel his face growing warm.
"She's witty, competent, and she definitely has all her ducks in a row." Test passed. He could sense the Broker's silent approval.
"Simmi's one of my best contacts and trading partners. Did you know that? Treat her well or I'll have to..." Those ice cold eyes fixed on Ox.
"Trust me, you don't want to find out."
Hello again, Bees! The gym is definitely going to be closed tomorrow, so I made sure to work in another gym sesh before the weather goes bonkers.
Today was my third (I think) week of my linear Push workouts.
Bench Press: 127.5 x 6, 130 x 5. Felt pretty good today. Wasn't feeling great this morning, but when I headed to the gym, it clicked!
Spoto Press: 110 x 5. Still fun and profitable, if tough.
Incline Press: 95 x 6. Today, just bleh.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls: 40 x 8. Steadily, but slowly increasing the weights.
+26,000 steps! How did I do that?!?
The typhoon will start rolling in tomorrow at noon. Practically everything's going to be closed down, and it's apparently going to be one of the biggest in history! We're not even planning to go out tomorrow, and we'll also be staying at home on Wednesday, which bears the brunt of the storm. Hopefully it'll let up on Thursday.
Some Bees were asking about the old WWII-era bomb in Quarry Bay. I'm glad that nobody was hurt, and that a potentially volatile situation was defused (no joke intended). We live some districts away, but it was still a pretty shocking update.
Stay safe, Bees!
Playing: Made a few more inroads into Crow Country; I just have to overcome an illogical mushroom eating puzzle that doesn't make sense.
Will try to squeeze in s'more Cultic. It's so good!
Want to play s'more Witchfire tonight.
I played a bit of a short horror called Stay With Him, which is about babysitting a strange child (this is the second such game I've played). Good voice-acting can't make up for idiotic puzzles, snail-like walking speeds, and shocking, but repetitive jump-scares. I didn't even finish it, but I'll bet that if I did, it would get a score of one and a half puzzle blocks out of five.
Watching: Will try to make inroads on Heavy Metal tonight.
Listening to: Joe Satriani - Searching. I used to have a Satch CD, I think it was Surfing with the Alien. Here's an epic instrumental from him with a great melody, and of course, all sorts of guitar heroics.
Ox lugged the large duffel bag forward and lifted it onto the Broker's desk. There were a few clunks as its contents were jostled, but everything was intact -- he hoped. In any event, the Broker unzipped the bag and was beholding its contents. "Yes... quite satisfactory." While the golden mask covered his face, his eyes glittered with naked greed. What did he need all those artifacts for? Ox had boldly put the question to him once and been told to "mind your own f*cking business." He had from then on been mum on the matter.
While he was brusque, and hated extended conversations, the Broker was still helpful and generous. That seemed to be the Broker standing in front of Ox now, withdrawing some bills from inside his desk. "One thousand, as agreed on. Plus a little bonus." Ox thanked him, nonetheless counting the money. The Broker leaned back, his arms folded across his massive chest."You haven't made any debt payments, freelancer Ox." He was really hoping that topic wouldn't come up. Ox shrugged, hopefully more casually than he felt. "I've been a little preoccupied as of late," he said, diffidently. The Broker barked out a laugh. "I'll say. You stared death in the face and made it out alive. How does that feel?"
"Like this is a crazy-ass place that doesn't care how much money you have or how tooled up you are."
"Now he's getting it!" A hearty laugh.
"It also reminded me to hold close what's important."
"I'm glad you think she's important. Tell me, how is she?" Was this a test? Ox could feel his face growing warm.
"She's witty, competent, and she definitely has all her ducks in a row." Test passed. He could sense the Broker's silent approval.
"Simmi's one of my best contacts and trading partners. Did you know that? Treat her well or I'll have to..." Those ice cold eyes fixed on Ox.
"Trust me, you don't want to find out."
Hello again, Bees! The gym is definitely going to be closed tomorrow, so I made sure to work in another gym sesh before the weather goes bonkers.
Today was my third (I think) week of my linear Push workouts.
Bench Press: 127.5 x 6, 130 x 5. Felt pretty good today. Wasn't feeling great this morning, but when I headed to the gym, it clicked!
Spoto Press: 110 x 5. Still fun and profitable, if tough.
Incline Press: 95 x 6. Today, just bleh.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls: 40 x 8. Steadily, but slowly increasing the weights.
+26,000 steps! How did I do that?!?
The typhoon will start rolling in tomorrow at noon. Practically everything's going to be closed down, and it's apparently going to be one of the biggest in history! We're not even planning to go out tomorrow, and we'll also be staying at home on Wednesday, which bears the brunt of the storm. Hopefully it'll let up on Thursday.
Some Bees were asking about the old WWII-era bomb in Quarry Bay. I'm glad that nobody was hurt, and that a potentially volatile situation was defused (no joke intended). We live some districts away, but it was still a pretty shocking update.
Stay safe, Bees!
Playing: Made a few more inroads into Crow Country; I just have to overcome an illogical mushroom eating puzzle that doesn't make sense.
Will try to squeeze in s'more Cultic. It's so good!
Want to play s'more Witchfire tonight.
I played a bit of a short horror called Stay With Him, which is about babysitting a strange child (this is the second such game I've played). Good voice-acting can't make up for idiotic puzzles, snail-like walking speeds, and shocking, but repetitive jump-scares. I didn't even finish it, but I'll bet that if I did, it would get a score of one and a half puzzle blocks out of five.
Watching: Will try to make inroads on Heavy Metal tonight.
Listening to: Joe Satriani - Searching. I used to have a Satch CD, I think it was Surfing with the Alien. Here's an epic instrumental from him with a great melody, and of course, all sorts of guitar heroics.
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astro_lizard
Well-known member
Sending you good vibes! Good luck weathering the storm, you'll be in my thoughts!
NightWolf714
Well-known member
Berserker
from
Nashville, TN, USA
Pronouns: They/she
Posts: 1,560
from
Nashville, TN, USA
Pronouns: They/she
Posts: 1,560
"The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change. ~Carl Rogers"
Sending good vibes!
PetiteSheWolf
Well-known member
Crossing fingers for your safety during the typhoon, dear Ox.
Thank you for your thoughts and prayers @graoumia, @Fremen, @PetiteSheWolf, @NightWolf714 and @astro_lizard. We are indeed safe and sound now, and the typhoon is safely past us.
There was a loud clank as the Broker's armourer placed the rifle onto the long table, next to the other guns already there. It was a sleek assault rifle with features that befitted those rifles issued to most modern armies, such as ambidextrous safeties, picatinny mounts, and M-LOK handguards. Ox dismissed it out of hand, however; it did not look terribly rugged, he could not afford such armament, and he needed a gun that would stand up to the kinds of beating the zone meted out. His gaze fixed on each of the other rifles in turn. There was the old-reliable PK battle rifle he had previously used, as well as the state-of-the-art M77 rifle he had previously toted. Ox was tempted to buy it again, but toting it around again felt like bad luck. He needed something proven, but not too old. He glanced around the large armoury, taking into account the weapon racks from head to toe, and boxes of ammunition to spare. A set of fluorescent lights lent the large, warehouse-like room a clinical atmosphere, as if the stalker wasn't browsing for death-dealing implements.
Ox placed his hand on another rifle he'd seen other stalkers tote around. It was a conventional design whose traditional features seemed to belie its more modern accoutrements. He looked up at the armourer. "What about this one?" He picked up the blue-camo rifle and shouldered it. "Ah, that's the Type 18. Design has been around for nearly sixty years. Patented roller-delayed blowback design ensure smooth recoil and accuracy." Ox held the rifle in different positions. Not too big, not too heavy. He pulled the bolt back, flipping it upwards, and then removed and placed the magazine back in the magwell. He finished the maneuver with a hard downwards slap to the bolt handle, which sent it forward with the satisfying sounds of components locking into place. "Funny, most people don't know to do that. We changed the colour scheme to blend in when you're in the city, added some rubber to the stock, and a reflex sight on top of it. Can't go wrong."
Ox nodded. "How much for it?"
Greetings, Bees! It is I, the Ox of a Gentle nature. The typhoon has passed, and I was raring to go and ready to get back into the gym.
Today was another secondary Push day, in which I furthered my Paused Bench.
Paused Bench: 122.5 x 6. Not bad, not bad.
Paused Incline Bench: 90 x 6.
Paused Shoulder Press: 60 x 6.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls: 40 x 10. Was it really 40? Or some other weight? I really need to weigh that EZ Curl Bar.
I did something to my shoulder during the incline benches. I got cocky and left the weight on my chest for ten seconds before pushing it up again. And now my shoulder is quite sore. Will need to rest a little, I think.
Regarding the typhoon...
Things were a little hairy for awhile, but I have a feeling I slept through the worst T10 portions of it. The T8 bits were bad at times, but apart from the visibly turbulent winds, most of us got by with some heavy rainfall. One of the worst parts is being unable to leave the house, which is somewhat reminiscent of those Covid days. Others haven't been so lucky; there was a hotel whose lobby was totally flooded, and a family that felt into the sea on the first day (what they were doing there during a typhoon is rather dubious).
The rains have dissipated today, now we can leave the house again! Woohoo!
We've got this together, Bees!
Playing: ABIOTIC FACTOR WENT ON SALE!! Woohoo! It feels like I've been waiting longer than a month! It may get an even bigger sale during the Steam Autumn Sale, but hell, I'm not waiting... er, five days. Anyway, now I can game away to my little heart's content! Hence, I've been busy breaking stuff apart, crafting them into new objects, and exploring the Gate facility's every dark corner!
All praise Gaben!
Played a demo for an intriguing Bioshock-like Crisol: Theater of Idols. However... It ran on my (admittedly ageing) PC like someone with two broken feet, and horrid performance notwithstanding, the bugs were just unmanageable. When you start up the game and see crates floating in the air, then that's your signal to quit. Ergo, that's what I did.
NOT playing indie sensation Baby Steps. I don't care if it's funny and inventive, I can't play a game with such an infuriating gimmick: you advance through the world one step at a time, and if you don't step right, you fall flat on your ass.
Miss me with that ridiculous nonsense.
Hades 2 releases at midnight our time, but I'm not sure I'll stay up that late, as I usually hit the hay at 12:30. We'll see...
Watching: Not much, and unlikely to watch anything tonight (due to Hades 2).
Listening to: Luna Lenta - Wave. So... lately I've been diving down the rabbit hole that is the Youtube channel Electronic Gems. Some absolutely fantastic finds so far, and I'm having more luck with it than NewRetroWave, which has more chaff than wheat these days. Here's a gorgeous, quasi-ambient number that I really like!
There was a loud clank as the Broker's armourer placed the rifle onto the long table, next to the other guns already there. It was a sleek assault rifle with features that befitted those rifles issued to most modern armies, such as ambidextrous safeties, picatinny mounts, and M-LOK handguards. Ox dismissed it out of hand, however; it did not look terribly rugged, he could not afford such armament, and he needed a gun that would stand up to the kinds of beating the zone meted out. His gaze fixed on each of the other rifles in turn. There was the old-reliable PK battle rifle he had previously used, as well as the state-of-the-art M77 rifle he had previously toted. Ox was tempted to buy it again, but toting it around again felt like bad luck. He needed something proven, but not too old. He glanced around the large armoury, taking into account the weapon racks from head to toe, and boxes of ammunition to spare. A set of fluorescent lights lent the large, warehouse-like room a clinical atmosphere, as if the stalker wasn't browsing for death-dealing implements.
Ox placed his hand on another rifle he'd seen other stalkers tote around. It was a conventional design whose traditional features seemed to belie its more modern accoutrements. He looked up at the armourer. "What about this one?" He picked up the blue-camo rifle and shouldered it. "Ah, that's the Type 18. Design has been around for nearly sixty years. Patented roller-delayed blowback design ensure smooth recoil and accuracy." Ox held the rifle in different positions. Not too big, not too heavy. He pulled the bolt back, flipping it upwards, and then removed and placed the magazine back in the magwell. He finished the maneuver with a hard downwards slap to the bolt handle, which sent it forward with the satisfying sounds of components locking into place. "Funny, most people don't know to do that. We changed the colour scheme to blend in when you're in the city, added some rubber to the stock, and a reflex sight on top of it. Can't go wrong."
Ox nodded. "How much for it?"
Greetings, Bees! It is I, the Ox of a Gentle nature. The typhoon has passed, and I was raring to go and ready to get back into the gym.
Today was another secondary Push day, in which I furthered my Paused Bench.
Paused Bench: 122.5 x 6. Not bad, not bad.
Paused Incline Bench: 90 x 6.
Paused Shoulder Press: 60 x 6.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls: 40 x 10. Was it really 40? Or some other weight? I really need to weigh that EZ Curl Bar.
I did something to my shoulder during the incline benches. I got cocky and left the weight on my chest for ten seconds before pushing it up again. And now my shoulder is quite sore. Will need to rest a little, I think.
Regarding the typhoon...
Things were a little hairy for awhile, but I have a feeling I slept through the worst T10 portions of it. The T8 bits were bad at times, but apart from the visibly turbulent winds, most of us got by with some heavy rainfall. One of the worst parts is being unable to leave the house, which is somewhat reminiscent of those Covid days. Others haven't been so lucky; there was a hotel whose lobby was totally flooded, and a family that felt into the sea on the first day (what they were doing there during a typhoon is rather dubious).
The rains have dissipated today, now we can leave the house again! Woohoo!
We've got this together, Bees!
Playing: ABIOTIC FACTOR WENT ON SALE!! Woohoo! It feels like I've been waiting longer than a month! It may get an even bigger sale during the Steam Autumn Sale, but hell, I'm not waiting... er, five days. Anyway, now I can game away to my little heart's content! Hence, I've been busy breaking stuff apart, crafting them into new objects, and exploring the Gate facility's every dark corner!
All praise Gaben!
Played a demo for an intriguing Bioshock-like Crisol: Theater of Idols. However... It ran on my (admittedly ageing) PC like someone with two broken feet, and horrid performance notwithstanding, the bugs were just unmanageable. When you start up the game and see crates floating in the air, then that's your signal to quit. Ergo, that's what I did.
NOT playing indie sensation Baby Steps. I don't care if it's funny and inventive, I can't play a game with such an infuriating gimmick: you advance through the world one step at a time, and if you don't step right, you fall flat on your ass.
Miss me with that ridiculous nonsense.
Hades 2 releases at midnight our time, but I'm not sure I'll stay up that late, as I usually hit the hay at 12:30. We'll see...
Watching: Not much, and unlikely to watch anything tonight (due to Hades 2).
Listening to: Luna Lenta - Wave. So... lately I've been diving down the rabbit hole that is the Youtube channel Electronic Gems. Some absolutely fantastic finds so far, and I'm having more luck with it than NewRetroWave, which has more chaff than wheat these days. Here's a gorgeous, quasi-ambient number that I really like!
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NightWolf714
Well-known member
Berserker
from
Nashville, TN, USA
Pronouns: They/she
Posts: 1,560
from
Nashville, TN, USA
Pronouns: They/she
Posts: 1,560
"The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change. ~Carl Rogers"
I hope your shoulder feels better soon. And that you don't loose too much time with Hades 2, hehe
Thank you so much @JCU, @graoumia, and @NightWolf714. My shoulder indeed feels better today.
@NightWolf714 Hehehehe.
"What do I pay you fools for? Get the hell out of my office!" Ox had just finished paying for his new equipment, and had left the armoury, when a shout came from the Broker's office, followed by the swift exit of two very cowed stalkers. Ox glanced at the guard to the Broker's office, whose face was studiedly neutral. "Get that other stalker in here, the Ox one." The guard gave him a sympathetic glance and nodded in the direction of the office. Ox made his way inside.
Everything other than the Broker's desk was untouched, counting the apprehensive-looking guards. The desk, over which the Broker stood, was piled high with paperwork, open binders, and a map of Carcosa, not to mention an ashtray, upon which several stubbed out cigarettes (and a cigar) were placed. The Broker looked up at Ox, and there was fury in his eyes, though it seemed to be directed elsewhere. Then something in him clicked, and he slowly stood straight, as if regaining his composure. "Freelancer Ox, a new job for you," he said, seemingly back into his gregarious persona. "The incompetents I call "employees" were chased away from Insurrectionist territory; however, they dropped a duffel bag containing -" Ox sighed. "Artifacts?" He interjected.
The Broker nodded, not seeming to mind the interruption. "But of course. They're too valuable to leave in the paws of those deluded cretins. I need you to get them back." He stabbed a finger at the map, indicating the Goldwood Forest." Close to the heart of Insurrectionist territory. Ox glanced at the map. Going in there openly, or guns blazing, amounted to suicide. "If I say no?" The Broker looked at him dangerously. "Then you would have ahem, fallen out of my good graces, we'll say." He let out a breath. "Look, we know it's a dangerous job. But I'll make it worth your while. What do you say?"
Ox nodded. "I'll do it. But there are some things I'll need first."
Hello once more, Bees! I'm back from the breach. I mean, gym.
Today was a bit different. I really wasn't in the mood to do a big deadlift or squat workout, so I plugged in a fluffy Back workout and made sure to get my steps in. So something of a light workout day.
Wide Grip Pulldowns: 65 x 6.
Low Rows: 50 x 6. Ouch, these're tougher than I expected.
One Armed Cable Rows: 40 x 6.
Incline Rows: 60 x 6.
Neutral Grip Chin Ups: Top set of ten reps.
Face Pulls: 8 x 10.
Surprise surprise, no Hades 2 last night. Conked out and went to bed instead. Could've spent all day today gaming, but I decided to go to the gym instead; I suppose this speaks to the power of forming habits.
Hot pot dinner tomorrow night! Looks absolutely yummy.
And while the typhoon may have passed, the heat is back with a vengeance. Yuck.
We made it to the weekend, Bees! Go nuts!
Playing: I haven't played Hades 2 yet; I will likely spend all night tonight doing so! I'm very curious to see how Supergiant develops the endgame story, and works out the potential plotholes. Assuming I don't get my butt kicked defeating the final bosses.
In Abiotic Factor, I took down a mech with nothing but a club made out of pipe fittings. And then I checked online and realized, foolishly enough, that there were easier ways of taking it down, like setting traps. And now I know.
Watching: Haven't watched anything these few days.
Listening to: Kamelot - Rise Again. How have I never posted this one? It's one of those songs that captures the emotion behind games like Dark Souls perfectly. Some of the lyrics are apropos to Hades 2, even.
"And now I turn to the gods
Whichever will listen from below or above
Hear my cry! Feel my pain
If I should fall, I′ll start over again!"
@NightWolf714 Hehehehe.
"What do I pay you fools for? Get the hell out of my office!" Ox had just finished paying for his new equipment, and had left the armoury, when a shout came from the Broker's office, followed by the swift exit of two very cowed stalkers. Ox glanced at the guard to the Broker's office, whose face was studiedly neutral. "Get that other stalker in here, the Ox one." The guard gave him a sympathetic glance and nodded in the direction of the office. Ox made his way inside.
Everything other than the Broker's desk was untouched, counting the apprehensive-looking guards. The desk, over which the Broker stood, was piled high with paperwork, open binders, and a map of Carcosa, not to mention an ashtray, upon which several stubbed out cigarettes (and a cigar) were placed. The Broker looked up at Ox, and there was fury in his eyes, though it seemed to be directed elsewhere. Then something in him clicked, and he slowly stood straight, as if regaining his composure. "Freelancer Ox, a new job for you," he said, seemingly back into his gregarious persona. "The incompetents I call "employees" were chased away from Insurrectionist territory; however, they dropped a duffel bag containing -" Ox sighed. "Artifacts?" He interjected.
The Broker nodded, not seeming to mind the interruption. "But of course. They're too valuable to leave in the paws of those deluded cretins. I need you to get them back." He stabbed a finger at the map, indicating the Goldwood Forest." Close to the heart of Insurrectionist territory. Ox glanced at the map. Going in there openly, or guns blazing, amounted to suicide. "If I say no?" The Broker looked at him dangerously. "Then you would have ahem, fallen out of my good graces, we'll say." He let out a breath. "Look, we know it's a dangerous job. But I'll make it worth your while. What do you say?"
Ox nodded. "I'll do it. But there are some things I'll need first."
Hello once more, Bees! I'm back from the breach. I mean, gym.
Today was a bit different. I really wasn't in the mood to do a big deadlift or squat workout, so I plugged in a fluffy Back workout and made sure to get my steps in. So something of a light workout day.
Wide Grip Pulldowns: 65 x 6.
Low Rows: 50 x 6. Ouch, these're tougher than I expected.
One Armed Cable Rows: 40 x 6.
Incline Rows: 60 x 6.
Neutral Grip Chin Ups: Top set of ten reps.
Face Pulls: 8 x 10.
Surprise surprise, no Hades 2 last night. Conked out and went to bed instead. Could've spent all day today gaming, but I decided to go to the gym instead; I suppose this speaks to the power of forming habits.
Hot pot dinner tomorrow night! Looks absolutely yummy.
And while the typhoon may have passed, the heat is back with a vengeance. Yuck.
We made it to the weekend, Bees! Go nuts!
Playing: I haven't played Hades 2 yet; I will likely spend all night tonight doing so! I'm very curious to see how Supergiant develops the endgame story, and works out the potential plotholes. Assuming I don't get my butt kicked defeating the final bosses.
In Abiotic Factor, I took down a mech with nothing but a club made out of pipe fittings. And then I checked online and realized, foolishly enough, that there were easier ways of taking it down, like setting traps. And now I know.
Watching: Haven't watched anything these few days.
Listening to: Kamelot - Rise Again. How have I never posted this one? It's one of those songs that captures the emotion behind games like Dark Souls perfectly. Some of the lyrics are apropos to Hades 2, even.
"And now I turn to the gods
Whichever will listen from below or above
Hear my cry! Feel my pain
If I should fall, I′ll start over again!"
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The shape of a single soldier in their tell-tale gear of plate carrier, woodland fatigues, and an orange headband came striding out of the tunnels toward their spot at the edge of the logging camp. Axel took a puff of his cigarette, and turned to his compatriot. "Did we send out any patrols today?" Juri shook her head, drawing a shape in the dirt with her boot. "Maybe they're a courier?" Anything to break up the monotony. Guard duty was this endless slog; even if you finished one shift, you would inevitably be assigned to do another. They watched as the lone soldier approached them, a duffel bag in hand. Axel and Juri saluted them, each raising a single arm in the air. "Hail Kempt," they intoned, as one. The courier slowly returned the salute. "Hail Kempt," he said.
The two guards eyed him. "Funny that we don't have any orders to patrol today," Axel remarked. Ox couldn't tell if there was any suspicion there. Confidence, confidence. "I came upon something belonging to that fae bastard," he said, spitting in the dirt. "Bastard indeed," Juri said, casually. "What's the password?" She asked him. Ox could feel his heart thump, but stayed calm. "There is no password today," he replied. Axel and Juri looked at each other. A beat passed.
Then they broke into laughter. "Apologies, soldier. It gets a bit boring at times. Can we look inside the bag?" Careful, Ox. He shook his head. "Only the boss is allowed to see it. Sorry, mate." The guard didn't even seem miffed. "Of course, he's up there - " She pointed at a long, bridge-like section that connected the two main buildings together. " - doing his usual. Tell 'em we need more rations and a pay increase." "Yeah, and a promotion in there too," Ox snarked. The two laughed. "We'll leave you to it. Take care, soldier." Another salute. "Hail Kempt!" Ox half-heartedly returned the gesture and continued on his way, towards the building that hopefully contained the Broker's lost loot.
That was the easy part.
Hello once more, Bees! The weekend is over and I'm back in the gym, ready and raring to go.
Today was another regular Push day. I forget what week I'm on.
Bench Press: 130 x 6. Ugh. This weight was just agony for me. I don't know if it was a today thing, or a weight thing, but here's hoping that by next week, I'll have gotten stronger.
Spoto Press: 115 x 5. I be movin' on up!
Incline Press: 97.5 x 5. Getting to 100.
Straight Bar Pushdowns: 9 x 8. Not feeling adventurous today.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls: 40 x 10. Slowly upping the volume.
Getting home was a mess, due to crazy traffic. The usual minibuses on the side of the road were totally absent, so I took the tram that passes through my home district instead. Got stuck in a car jam maybe ten minutes away from home. I opted to get off the tram early and walk home. The tram passed me (it happens) when the crush cleared up, only to be stuck in another jam further on up the road. Yeesh.
Wednesday is a holiday, so I will take that day off from the gym.
Don't let the heat get you down, Bees!
Playing: I've been having the most fun playing Abiotic Factor.
Previously, on Escape from the GATE... I pilfered power cells from an eerie dimension haunted by giant, horrifying creatures, and made my way into the Manufacturing sector - only to encounter soldiers hell-bent on killing personnel. Stay tuned to this spot for more updates!
So... Hades 2's full release is out. I've played through the loop several times, but I got impatient about wanting to find out what the endings were. I looked them up on YT, and found myself satisfied. Sometimes for me, it's about finding out the story immediately, be it through playing, watching, or immediate consumption, rather than having it parceled out to me a bit at a time. There're a lot of complaints on Reddit about the true endings, and a lot of talk that maybe the game was rushed. There's certainly compelling evidence to support that. That said, I don't mind the direction the ending went.
Also, the Autumn sale is tonight! I can't wait to go treasure hunting and see what bargains I can pick up!
Watching: Uh... I really should watch something. Really should...
Listening to: Jasper De Ceuster - Dusk. Another mellow electronic find! I like! I've been going through the videos from the Electronic Gems YT channel one by one, and listening to see which ones I like. I did this for synthwave stalwarts NewRetroWave (turns out a 13 year-old archive takes a ton of time to listen through), and I'm doing it again. Seems to be bearing fruit, if songs like this are anything to go by.
The two guards eyed him. "Funny that we don't have any orders to patrol today," Axel remarked. Ox couldn't tell if there was any suspicion there. Confidence, confidence. "I came upon something belonging to that fae bastard," he said, spitting in the dirt. "Bastard indeed," Juri said, casually. "What's the password?" She asked him. Ox could feel his heart thump, but stayed calm. "There is no password today," he replied. Axel and Juri looked at each other. A beat passed.
Then they broke into laughter. "Apologies, soldier. It gets a bit boring at times. Can we look inside the bag?" Careful, Ox. He shook his head. "Only the boss is allowed to see it. Sorry, mate." The guard didn't even seem miffed. "Of course, he's up there - " She pointed at a long, bridge-like section that connected the two main buildings together. " - doing his usual. Tell 'em we need more rations and a pay increase." "Yeah, and a promotion in there too," Ox snarked. The two laughed. "We'll leave you to it. Take care, soldier." Another salute. "Hail Kempt!" Ox half-heartedly returned the gesture and continued on his way, towards the building that hopefully contained the Broker's lost loot.
That was the easy part.
Hello once more, Bees! The weekend is over and I'm back in the gym, ready and raring to go.
Today was another regular Push day. I forget what week I'm on.
Bench Press: 130 x 6. Ugh. This weight was just agony for me. I don't know if it was a today thing, or a weight thing, but here's hoping that by next week, I'll have gotten stronger.
Spoto Press: 115 x 5. I be movin' on up!
Incline Press: 97.5 x 5. Getting to 100.
Straight Bar Pushdowns: 9 x 8. Not feeling adventurous today.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls: 40 x 10. Slowly upping the volume.
Getting home was a mess, due to crazy traffic. The usual minibuses on the side of the road were totally absent, so I took the tram that passes through my home district instead. Got stuck in a car jam maybe ten minutes away from home. I opted to get off the tram early and walk home. The tram passed me (it happens) when the crush cleared up, only to be stuck in another jam further on up the road. Yeesh.
Wednesday is a holiday, so I will take that day off from the gym.
Don't let the heat get you down, Bees!
Playing: I've been having the most fun playing Abiotic Factor.
Previously, on Escape from the GATE... I pilfered power cells from an eerie dimension haunted by giant, horrifying creatures, and made my way into the Manufacturing sector - only to encounter soldiers hell-bent on killing personnel. Stay tuned to this spot for more updates!
So... Hades 2's full release is out. I've played through the loop several times, but I got impatient about wanting to find out what the endings were. I looked them up on YT, and found myself satisfied. Sometimes for me, it's about finding out the story immediately, be it through playing, watching, or immediate consumption, rather than having it parceled out to me a bit at a time. There're a lot of complaints on Reddit about the true endings, and a lot of talk that maybe the game was rushed. There's certainly compelling evidence to support that. That said, I don't mind the direction the ending went.
Also, the Autumn sale is tonight! I can't wait to go treasure hunting and see what bargains I can pick up!
Watching: Uh... I really should watch something. Really should...
Listening to: Jasper De Ceuster - Dusk. Another mellow electronic find! I like! I've been going through the videos from the Electronic Gems YT channel one by one, and listening to see which ones I like. I did this for synthwave stalwarts NewRetroWave (turns out a 13 year-old archive takes a ton of time to listen through), and I'm doing it again. Seems to be bearing fruit, if songs like this are anything to go by.
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After abandoning the duffel bag full of junk, Ox had conducted an inconspicuous search of the log camp. Every time he passed by another guard, he felt like he was going to jump out of his skin. On the third floor of the building nearest the guard post by which he had entered, he found a tantalizing locked door with a window set in it. Looking through the window revealed rows of lockers, and - presto! - a duffel bag placed above them. Glancing behind him furtively, he took out his set of tools and set to picking the lock. It was extremely difficult to stay calm, as he worked the tumblers and pins. Don't mind me, just another fascist, going about my day doing fascist-y things. There was a click, seemingly as loud as a gunshot, and Ox rotated his picks, opening the door. Glancing behind him quickly, he stepped into the room and shut the door behind him.
It was difficult to resist the temptation to loot the storeroom, but he had his goal, and it was too dangerous to be there any longer than necessary. Ox reached up and pulled the duffel bag from its place atop the lockers. Bingo! He left the room, closing the door behind him, and made his way down the stairs to where the massive logs were stored. Passing by a guard that seemed to take no untoward notice of him, Ox strode purposefully outside, into the camp's perimeter. He could see the post where he had entered, and the two guardsman had been joined by a third. It was his only way out, and all other routes lead deeper into the heart of Insurrectionist territory.
When he reached the guard post, all three looked up at him, the newcomer giving him a nod of acknowledgement. Ox calmly stopped, bag slung over his shoulder. "Command told me to bring these to our men out on the front lines. One of the guards was digging something into the dirt with their foot. "Man, you couriers get all the cool jobs." Ox grinned a grin he didn't feel, saying, "When you've been doing this shit as long as I have, they'll find a use for you anywhere." The third man seemed puzzled when he heard Ox's voice. The other guard he'd met on the way in casually saluted, and left his post, perhaps to answer the call of nature. The other guard, satisfied that the third man would take responsibly for the post, went off to have a cigarette. The third man looked familiar, and was sizing him up in return. Son of a bitch. It was the squad leader he'd spared earlier. He shouldn't have recognized Ox, given the balaclava the latter was wearing, but it was too late now.
Ox locked eyes with his; there was recognition there, and the soldier's eyes widened. His hands grasped the submachine gun he was carrying. Ox gave the tiniest shake of his head to the man. He was at the edge of their camp, and could gun him down and run. Then, in a gesture that seemed nigh-imperceptible, the soldier broke eye contact, and nodded his head in the direction of the road leading out of the camp. Ox waited a moment, disbelieving. The soldier nodded again, and his hands relaxed, dropping to his sides.
Ox gave a tiny nod of his own, and set off down the road leading away from the camp.
Hi Bees!
I braved the heat and the crazy crowds to hit the gym on a holiday.
Today I felt like it, so I did another Push day. If I workout tomorrow, I'll change it up.
Paused Bench Press: 125 x 6. Solid performance, but it was quite taxing.
Paused Incline Press: 92.5 x 6. Not bad, either.
Paused Shoulder Press: 62.5 x 6. Just getting in the numbers.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls: 42.5 (I think!) x 6. Ugh, this was tough. Can't hit ten reps yet.
The weights were moving well, so I'm going to go ahead and increase the weights next time. However...
I did something to my elbow with all the pressing work. I'm basking in the relief of the soothing medicine oil I applied, but this might be a lesson for me to space out the Push days and not to... err, push it. My walk home was pretty darned long, too.
Most obviously in Hong Kong, it's National Day, which is a big holiday. It's also China's Golden Week, which means we have plenty of tourists and punters trawling the city.
It's the first day of October, my favourite month of the year! Bring on the costumes and the candy, the zombies and ghoulies, and the blood and gorror! Yes...
Stay scared, Bees!
Spooky: Since today marks the beginning of Spooky Season, I'm going to do my annual trend of featuring something from horror culture; I've previously featured spooky songs. This time, I'm highlighting a horror movie that I've watched or a scary game I played that made an impression on me, good or bad. Not really a review, more a celebration of spooky stuff, and the ones that have captured my imagination. I hope you enjoy it!
Today's spooky spotlight is on Friday the 13th (the very first one in the franchise)!
"Ki ki ki ma ma ma..."
This is the film that got me into horror films, where they had previously scared and repelled me. All the gory kills, the cliches, the terror of it all... it was new to me, and it was all amazing. I watched it in my parent's room alone, on a big TV. While it's probably not the best horror film in the franchise (and doesn't exactly act as a blueprint, funnily enough), and is unoriginal when compared to the likes of Halloween, this one retains special significance in my heart.
"You may only see it once, but that will be enough."
Playing: Predominantly Abiotic Factor. I was a bit stumped, so I consulted a walkthrough and realized I'd overlooked a pretty fundamental crafting recipe. Now I'm in the middle of breaking out of the facility. Or trying to...
Crow Country has suffered the most from my purchase of Abiotic Factor, though I made a little progress last night.
Played a demo for something whose name I forgot, which should speak volumes. I remember it was an FPS with 2d sprites and lots of kicking. Hmm.
Watching: Lots to watch, just haven't picked out something yet.
Listening to: Alice Cooper - Man Behind the Mask. I've posted this one previously, and I'm posting it again. Alice Cooper's fantastic ode to 80s slashers (particularly Friday the 13th) is just a killer (haha, not sorry) tune.
"Oh, but he's back
He's the man behind the mask
And he's out of control he's back
The man behind the mask
And he crawled out of his hole"
It was difficult to resist the temptation to loot the storeroom, but he had his goal, and it was too dangerous to be there any longer than necessary. Ox reached up and pulled the duffel bag from its place atop the lockers. Bingo! He left the room, closing the door behind him, and made his way down the stairs to where the massive logs were stored. Passing by a guard that seemed to take no untoward notice of him, Ox strode purposefully outside, into the camp's perimeter. He could see the post where he had entered, and the two guardsman had been joined by a third. It was his only way out, and all other routes lead deeper into the heart of Insurrectionist territory.
When he reached the guard post, all three looked up at him, the newcomer giving him a nod of acknowledgement. Ox calmly stopped, bag slung over his shoulder. "Command told me to bring these to our men out on the front lines. One of the guards was digging something into the dirt with their foot. "Man, you couriers get all the cool jobs." Ox grinned a grin he didn't feel, saying, "When you've been doing this shit as long as I have, they'll find a use for you anywhere." The third man seemed puzzled when he heard Ox's voice. The other guard he'd met on the way in casually saluted, and left his post, perhaps to answer the call of nature. The other guard, satisfied that the third man would take responsibly for the post, went off to have a cigarette. The third man looked familiar, and was sizing him up in return. Son of a bitch. It was the squad leader he'd spared earlier. He shouldn't have recognized Ox, given the balaclava the latter was wearing, but it was too late now.
Ox locked eyes with his; there was recognition there, and the soldier's eyes widened. His hands grasped the submachine gun he was carrying. Ox gave the tiniest shake of his head to the man. He was at the edge of their camp, and could gun him down and run. Then, in a gesture that seemed nigh-imperceptible, the soldier broke eye contact, and nodded his head in the direction of the road leading out of the camp. Ox waited a moment, disbelieving. The soldier nodded again, and his hands relaxed, dropping to his sides.
Ox gave a tiny nod of his own, and set off down the road leading away from the camp.
Hi Bees!
I braved the heat and the crazy crowds to hit the gym on a holiday.
Today I felt like it, so I did another Push day. If I workout tomorrow, I'll change it up.
Paused Bench Press: 125 x 6. Solid performance, but it was quite taxing.
Paused Incline Press: 92.5 x 6. Not bad, either.
Paused Shoulder Press: 62.5 x 6. Just getting in the numbers.
EZ Bar Preacher Curls: 42.5 (I think!) x 6. Ugh, this was tough. Can't hit ten reps yet.
The weights were moving well, so I'm going to go ahead and increase the weights next time. However...
I did something to my elbow with all the pressing work. I'm basking in the relief of the soothing medicine oil I applied, but this might be a lesson for me to space out the Push days and not to... err, push it. My walk home was pretty darned long, too.
Most obviously in Hong Kong, it's National Day, which is a big holiday. It's also China's Golden Week, which means we have plenty of tourists and punters trawling the city.
It's the first day of October, my favourite month of the year! Bring on the costumes and the candy, the zombies and ghoulies, and the blood and gorror! Yes...
Stay scared, Bees!
Spooky: Since today marks the beginning of Spooky Season, I'm going to do my annual trend of featuring something from horror culture; I've previously featured spooky songs. This time, I'm highlighting a horror movie that I've watched or a scary game I played that made an impression on me, good or bad. Not really a review, more a celebration of spooky stuff, and the ones that have captured my imagination. I hope you enjoy it!
Today's spooky spotlight is on Friday the 13th (the very first one in the franchise)!
"Ki ki ki ma ma ma..."
This is the film that got me into horror films, where they had previously scared and repelled me. All the gory kills, the cliches, the terror of it all... it was new to me, and it was all amazing. I watched it in my parent's room alone, on a big TV. While it's probably not the best horror film in the franchise (and doesn't exactly act as a blueprint, funnily enough), and is unoriginal when compared to the likes of Halloween, this one retains special significance in my heart.
"You may only see it once, but that will be enough."
Playing: Predominantly Abiotic Factor. I was a bit stumped, so I consulted a walkthrough and realized I'd overlooked a pretty fundamental crafting recipe. Now I'm in the middle of breaking out of the facility. Or trying to...
Crow Country has suffered the most from my purchase of Abiotic Factor, though I made a little progress last night.
Played a demo for something whose name I forgot, which should speak volumes. I remember it was an FPS with 2d sprites and lots of kicking. Hmm.
Watching: Lots to watch, just haven't picked out something yet.
Listening to: Alice Cooper - Man Behind the Mask. I've posted this one previously, and I'm posting it again. Alice Cooper's fantastic ode to 80s slashers (particularly Friday the 13th) is just a killer (haha, not sorry) tune.
"Oh, but he's back
He's the man behind the mask
And he's out of control he's back
The man behind the mask
And he crawled out of his hole"
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astro_lizard
Well-known member
Happy October! It's my favorite time of year, as well 
NightWolf714
Well-known member
Berserker
from
Nashville, TN, USA
Pronouns: They/she
Posts: 1,560
from
Nashville, TN, USA
Pronouns: They/she
Posts: 1,560
"The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change. ~Carl Rogers"
Another fan of October and all things Halloween here! Well, mostly! I'm slowly becoming less of a scaredy-cat with horror movies. 