2021
2021 was a shitty year. I often toyed around that it felt like 2020 New Game Plus — the same thing, but more challenging. Aunt died. Mom almost died. Hell, a lot of people died.
The only real good thing was not traveling, and with that, spending as much time as I could with Oliver.
Let's go with it.
Books
I read a lot this year. By October, I got hooked up on Manga again (and MIR4, a mobile old-school MMORPG). With that, my reading productivity dropped slightly. .
Necromancy in Nilztiria — D.M Ritzlin
I started the year reading this fantastic collection of Sword and Sorcery pulp books while on a quick vacation. It was exactly what I needed.
Virgin Suicides — Jeffrey Eugenides
I watched the movie a couple years ago, and the book is even better.
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Amazing dungeon romp. Nice setting, Lovely traps and mobs.
Lady Joker Volume 1 — Kaoru Takamura
This marked the beginning of my obsession with Japanese crime/mystery books that permeated most of my reading. Fantastic setting and complex characters. This is my book of the year.
The Tokyo Zodiac Murders — Soji Shimada
Another excellent mystery / honkaku read. Loved it.
Music
As always, counting only 2021 releases.
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Best album of the year, inspired by Japanese castles. Minimal and evocative. Best logo of the year too.
Chanterelle — Earthly Delights
Minimal fantasy synth. All about the garden, not the castle.
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Love the new direction. Mellow, but still Deafheaven.
Dream Division — Legend of Lizard Lake
70's porn stoner dungeon synth. It's that vibe. Got the lovely vinyl, but the postal service lost it.
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From December 2020, but too good to leave out. She's a goddess. Look up her live presentations on youtube. Good for early mornings with some cinnamon coffee.
Kaaterskill on Oda
Hail to the goat
Lace Shawl — The Secret Botanist
Lovely dungeon synth black metal single.
Morgul Blade — Fell Sorcery Abounds
Since Morgul Blade's first EP, I was hooked. The mix between traditional and black metal, with catchy riffs and solos is so good.
Scenic Railway — Scenic Railway
Best comfy synth of the year. Nice for sleepy long car driving sessions (I don't drive, so I can doze off.)
Somali Yacht Club — The Sun + Sun's Eyes (2021 Reissue)
Been listening to this for years. So happy to finally get it on vinyl. Fantastic psych/stoner rock.
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The soundtrack of one of my lovely escapades with my wife from the daily burn.
Tech
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After a long time away from social media (and soloing it on Monologues), I decided to try to be more social by joining the mastodon instance Merveilles. One of the best decisions I made this year. What a fantastic group of people.
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I added it to this list because this is still my favorite gadget of all time. I have been using mine for 5 years, and it's still rock solid. The UI gets worse every year (thanks, Amazon), but the screen and hardware UX is the best I have seen on an ebook reader.
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This year Setapp finally became interesting to me. Many utilities I used to renew licenses yearly (and for multiple computers) are now there. Hence, the subscription price is totally worth it.
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Quickly retrieving 2FA codes on my phone made me dread doing the same on my computer. Ohtipi solves that. Truly a nice and simple utility. On Setapp.
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I finally gave up managing windows on my desktop computer, installed Yabai, and started using it. So good.
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What Yabai was on my desktop, Swish was on the laptop. Simple gestures allow me to do anything I need with any window. Also available on Setapp.
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Saved my ass when internal chaos was too high. Pairs well with Ritalin LA.
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Games
I tried to play several games, but with Oliver taking over my Nintendo Switch, my only game platform was my phone and iPad. I finally also admitted I don't have time to play hardcore 100hr+ RPGs and stopped buying them.
So looking at mobile games, I tried to avoid the hero collector gacha games and classic ports. Then I found something that's perfect for my lifestyle. I would not call them MMORPGs in the sense of what I used to play, but more like MMORPG Management Sims.
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You can read about Teon on my Meditative Games page. It's like a real Diablo 2 clone with lots of opportunities to grind. The game is not automated, so it's a good one if you are looking for something less screen-saver-ry. Unfortunately, the dungeon design made my eyes hurt badly.
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I played it for a good part of the year. There are tons of sound systems, but it feels a little hollow in the end. Too many systems do that — you are upgrading so many things that it starts to not make sense anymore. I ditched it for MIR4.
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This one got me straight to the core. Check the page for more reasoning. Basically, all I wanted on a mobile to play from time to time.
Assorted
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The best french movie about corporate 3D hentai espionage. Loved it. If you hate it, it's because your soul is already in the wrong place. The real Back to the Future.
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Been wearing these the entire when year leaving home while in Rio. They are amazing. When at the Cabin, it's all about the Hardgraft Wool Slips.
All black's COACH Manhattan Bike Bag
Still rocking it. Bought in 2018.
Colab with Helvetica Blanc
It's been in the wall of my office for the entire year. I love it. It's part of The Garden.
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Things I was looking forward for 2021
The Vaccine
Got 3 shots. looking for more.
Mask free life
Not yet.
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Good enough. Not amazing.
Things that didn't lived up my personal hype
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Good enough. Not amazing.
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Messes with chrome keyboard shortcuts
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Things I'm looking forward for next year
Mask free life
Not die of COVID
Less dragons to chase