Where the Hell have I been?

Did you ever get super psyched to start a new hobby? You go out and buy all of the stuff that goes with it because you are damn sure this is going to be your thing for-e-ver? Then when it’s time to actually get to work on the thing, you dabble for like ten minutes and then go back to rewatching New Girl?

I’m proud to say that this is not the case with CGC….mostly. I have every intention of making this website a thing. I wrote my first few posts and then about a week or so later I had to start packing my stuff because I was moving (again) and then I travelled for a bit and…well let’s break it down.

The Move
For those that don’t know, every year since I turned 35, I’ve moved to new places because of work. While it’s been a great journey so far, and I’ve been able to live in some genuinely fantastic places, I haven’t been able to call a place “home.” This time however, I stayed in the same area, just to a nicer place. I also signed a two-year lease and told my boss that I don’t want to leave the Midwest for a good long while. I’m honestly pretty relieved that I don’t have to pack my shit again this time next year.

If you tuned into my Twitch streams at any point over the past few weeks, you’ll have checked out the new place. That kitchen is 90% of the reason I got this place. I mean, look at it.

The photo alone is enough to make me want to head over to my kitchen and cook something.

I’m also pretty proud of how this little corner turned out.

So between unboxing everything, setting up the statues, putting up the art, and all the other little shit you have to deal with when you’re moving, I just didn’t have a lot of time to just sit and write.

And then there was all the travel.

All the Travel
Every year I go to PAX East for a little R&R and this was, without a doubt, one of the best experiences I’ve had at a con. Part of that has to do with Square Enix showing up and having a Battle Challenge event. If you don’t play Final Fantasy XIV, a Battle Challenge is when folks go up against one of the game's bosses and if you win, you get a sweet ass t-shirt. It took about two hours of circling around the event waiting for the line to open up for new players, and then another two hours of standing in said line but I got through it.

And you gotta admit, that is a sweet ass t-shirt.

The rest of PAX was pretty much what you expect if you’ve been to a large gaming con. There were tons of indie game studios trying to promote their debut title, a few major studios like Larian Studios, craft vendors, and those weird collectible box things that cost $60 and contains like a mug, some stickers and a bunch of random shit you’ll never use.

I did notice a lot of the major PAX staples like Devolver Digital, Intel, and Discord didn’t show up. My guess is that because the Game Developer’s Conference was going on earlier in the week, some of these companies just decided to attend one thing. That may be why next year’s PAX was moved to the summer.

I also didn’t attend nearly as many panels as I did in previous years. Normally, you see some deep dive discussions from fans on their favorite games, some YouTubers or Twitch streamers talking about their experiences, and just random silliness. All of that was still there but this year’s offerings were few and far between.

So with fewer companies on the expo hall and fewer panels, what made this PAX so amazing? It was the amazing people I got to hang out with. When I go to cons, I usually go solo. I may run into folks from time to time but for the most part I’m by myself. PAX 2024 was spent mostly with friends I’ve made on Twitch. Even though it was the first time we all met in person, it felt like we’ve been lifelong friends. For a shy guy like myself, having experiences like that is pretty rare so this PAX will have a special place in my heart.

Total side note, Ore Ida potatoes was there promoting some new instant potato cup and you could sit on a giant potato throne. I’m not sure why they did this and if anyone actually enjoyed their instant potatoes but it was weird as hell.

What part of this image screams “You know what this event needs? Microwaved potatoes”

The rest of my travels were all work related but were still pretty great. When I was in LA, I managed to sneak off for a quick trip to Downtown Disney and got myself a lightsaber.

The Cold from Hell

I don’t normally get sick. At worst, I get a cold for a day or two, and then I bounce back. Maybe between the move, travel, the changing seasons, but I got hit with what was the worst cold I’ve had in ages. I had to cancel a couple of streams and spent way more time in bed than I expected. Needless to say, I just didn’t have it in me to sit down and just write stuff. At the time of this post, I’m two weeks into the cold and I finally feel like 99% better. I’m pretty sure the Midwest is actively trying to end me with it’s pollen and ice.

It took about two hours of circling around the event waiting for the line to open up for new players, and then another two hours of standing in said line but I got through it.

So What Now?

With all of the trips behind me, my apartment where I want it to be, feeling better, and having some more down time to just live, I want to get back into writing on a regular basis. As I’ve mentioned before, the goal is to write something at least once a week but I also want to give myself some grace to miss a week from time to time.

What I will say is now that things have settled, you’ll be seeing a lot more CGC stuff. Thanks for sticking around!

Finding a Copy of Fire Emblem: Three Houses Was a Contemplative Trip