Welcome to 2021! Here is what I’ve been up to this past month, aside from the day-to-day ‘job’ related stuffs…
Learning Stuffs
- Pixel Arts (Udemy lesson), I am progressing to the intermediate sections of the course, creating a platformer game mock:
- I’ve picked up and completed two Udemy courses on public speaking. Even though I have presented to 20+ people professionally, I continue to want to improve on my presentation/communication skill. The courses did not disappoint as they provides great strategies from how to present, how to prepare the story points, to how to structure the story in my head.
- Investment – still slowly reading up, and I also started a Udemy course on this (I guess I am addicted to Udemy, I just love it so much better than the traditional education format!), learning how to read balance sheet, and calculate portfolio risks…etc.
- I throw in a couple hundred bucks to pick up some crypto currencies right at the beginning of its crazy rally… it’s now doubled, leaving me kicking myself for not picking up more 😀
Creating and hacking stuffs
- I’ve started a Medium publication (for better SEO after the platform’s recent update) pushing my weekly newsletter there.
- I am also preparing to start a new project to draw Chinese’s famous “300 Tang Poems” (唐詩三百首). Probably will be another Medium publication. Below is the initial ‘pilot’, I welcome any feedback! but disclaimer, I know I don’t have the greatest Chinese handwriting. 😀
- Once I got these project going at a more regular pace, I plan to get back to my Twitch/video channel again.
Consuming stuffs
- I watched The Mandalorian Season 2, and I think it’s mostly a great season! I must say that I was also a bit disappointed by [spoiler alert] how easily the Darktroopers got disposed of.
- Gaming
- I completed Bioshock Infinite and its DLCs (Burial at Sea 1 & 2), fantastic game!
- Also completed Flower, a meditation game, I think. I actually finished most of it previously, but my 3 years old reminded me and helped me finished the last of it.
- Rise of the Tomb Raider: ~33% now. This game is huge!
- Stadia Pro: so… I have been a Youtube Premium subscriber for a while, and for that they offered to try Stadia Pro (providing hardware) for a month. So I did. it was actually pretty amazing experience, also surfaced a huge selling point for Cloud gaming. I think if I am younger by 10 years, without a family I would strongly consider it. At the end of it, I cancelled Stadia Pro, as well as Youtube Premium. I am keeping the Stadia hardware to play a game I paid a couple bucks for (Shadow of the Tomb Raider), it’s not FPS, and 1080p is certainly great enough for me.
Closing thoughts… I realized myself being heavily affected by the holiday season, laziness and procrasternation kicked in, things certainly moved slower this past month. I am hoping to change this in the new month, and this new year! Stay safe, and stay tuned!