Spoilers! A Trip to Ireland & Life Update

Hey y’all!

It’s been a minute hasn’t it? As I explained in my last post several months ago, things have slowed way down on the blog. More so than I expected if I am being perfectly honest. Initially this slow down was just so I could focus on making my game, but I have since rediscovered my passion for writing fiction (fanfiction) while creating a story for the game I am working on. I have shared several of my works here already. It’s been fantastic to stretch my creativity like this again.

But that also means there hasn’t been much new stuff to share here. And I’m afraid that this will continue for a little while. I have been reading quite a lot and have several books I would like to put up reviews here for as well as some new otome Switch games and PC dating sims that I think need more attention. I also have some fanfiction works that I would like to review here as well. I just haven’t had the motivation to write any reviews lately. I also never finished my 30 Day Challenge or a (rather large) write up on one of my favorite horror games.

Everything is falling to the back burner, but I can’t say that I’m unhappy about it.

This blog has been a huge outlet for me, and while I still love it and plan to maintain it and add to it, I just don’t see myself tackling as many posts per week as I used to. I know that means I will lose readers and followers, but life is too short for me to push out a steady stream of content that I will come to resent all for the sake of numbers.

Wow, I didn’t mean for this post to take on such a melancholy mood! That is all to say that basically life happened and continues to happen so please don’t anticipate that the same level of activity and posts that you were used to. I have no intention of that becoming the norm again. I will update and post reviews that mean something to me, and I still have lots of things planned, but right now, there are things taking higher priority that also make me happier in general.

Let’s get into the actual life update shall we?

Our Trip to Ireland in August 2022

My husband and I finally made our way to Ireland for a wedding in August this past year. We had been planning to go since 2020, but the world had other plans. With the travel bands lifted/relaxed, we were able to make the trip over this year. We had a rough time at the airport as our first flight was canceled and that created a domino effect. Once the first flight was rescheduled the following day, we found out that our seats were not together. And then the layover between flights was almost 9 hours! Our second flight had the same seat issue and we ended up having to pay several hundreds of dollars to sit together. It was a nightmare, but once we actually made it to Dublin, all was well, thank goodness.

The wedding took place in Belfast and was just gorgeous! We had a lovely time with my husband’s family. We drove down to Tralee to see more of his family, too. We saw the beach, went to a couple of family get-togethers, and took about a million photos! We had so much fun but also spent some time resting and being together. I loved it! I can’t wait to go back! We are already planning another trip for this October.

Home Updates: Office & Main Bedroom

I have been talking about updating our office for awhile and we were able to get quite a few things done recently!

We had the carpets ripped out upstairs and replaced with wood-like vinyl. (At least I’m pretty sure it’s vinyl!) The carpet was probably 20 years old, and it needed to be replaced ages ago. I was very happy to get that done. I also painted the office a very pretty deep maroon color. My husband removed the backs of my bookcases as well and mounted them to the wall. I really love the way the room looks now! We still have a few things left to do but I was able to tick off one of my big items as well: a standing desk!

We got the standing desk from Flexispot! We had a great experience with them and I couldn’t be happier. I have been using it for a few months now! I love it. It’s easy to use and just perfect for what I need. I also splurged about got a walking pad from Amazon that fits perfectly underneath it. Maybe after using them both a while longer, I’ll come back with a full overview/review if anyone is interested. So far though, I really like both the standing desk and walking pad!

As for the bedroom, I painted an additional wall that I had been dying to paint black right before we had the carpet removed. We also finally got a headboard. It wasn’t the one I wanted, but it was budget friendly and mostly fit the vibe I wanted. It’ll do until I can get the headboard I want. We also quickly realized that without the carpet, the floors were pretty cool in the early mornings so I also purchased a rug from Ruggable! The room is slowly coming together.

The small nook with the newly painted black wall also got some love. I brought up my old black bookcase from IKEA and the papasan chair from our old house (which has been seen in older photos around the blog before). The old cushion lost a lot of its stature from use over the years so I purchased a new one in emerald green! I just started styling the bookcase but there’s not much to it so no new pics yet!

Now the main bedroom and the office are looking really good! I’m happy with the updates!

Health Updates from 2022 and 2023

I have an entire section of this post dedicated to my health because a lot has happened since last year.

Even before roe v wade was overturned, and the state that I currently reside in made abortion access non-existent, I finally bit the bullet and scheduled an IUD appointment with my obgyn in June of last year. I had been having issues with getting my birth control refilled in a timely manner, and when neither the pharmacies nor my insurance company would solve the issue, I decided it was time to find a long term solution.

I’m going to tell you right now that the procedure was not pleasant. Lucky for me, my obgyn had been up front about the pain and discomfort so I had a decent idea of what to expect. I was thankful that I had taken ibuprofen and asked my husband to drive me home afterwards because the pain was excruciating. I know other people that have a uterus have said it wasn’t a big deal, but as someone with a generally high tolerance for pain and spent years with periods that were debilitating, this was some of the worst pain I have ever experienced. Fortunately, it only lasted a couple of days before I was back to my regular cramps and general period-like symptoms.

I’ve have had the IUD for about 9 months now, and I’m happy with my decision especially after current events. If you’re considering getting an IUD and want to hear from someone who had the procedure recently, feel free to shoot me a DM on Twitter. I would be happy to answer any questions that I can. Please remember I’m not a doctor and am just basing it off of my own experience.

Then there was Covid. I finally got it after two years of being safe and working from home. I was honestly so upset when I tested positive, but it was only a matter of time.

Right before we were scheduled to come home from Ireland, my husband began to feel sick. He took a rapid test and it came back negative so we chalked it up to a cold. However, the day before we flew home, I also started showing symptoms. All we could do was wear our masks, keep our hands clean, and do our best to social distance. Luckily, the flights home were what we had originally planned for so Alec and I were able to sit in our two seater section for both flights. We kept our masks on through both airports and on the ride home. I felt so guilty, but we did everything we could to minimize the spread despite not knowing at the time if we even did have Covid. Once we were home, we both took a rapid test and almost immediately we got a positive result.

This was several months ago now. Up until about January, I was still feeling some of the symptoms despite testing negative. I’ve been to the doctor as well to find out that many people like myself are still experiencing respiratory issues and fatigue. I had a terrible cough that just wouldn’t go away. I did eventually stop coughing up stuff, but so many things can still set the symptoms off all over again.

The biggest issue was at night. Something about the sun going down would set it off. I slept elevated with a humidifier. For awhile I lived on cough drops and cold medicine, anything to suppress the cough. When the AC was on or if I lied down, I would immediately begin coughing again. I did get to a point where I could drink a hot cup of tea before bed to help sooth my throat before going to sleep. My sleep schedule was also taken a hit. I used to go to bed at 9pm, and now I’m lucky to fall asleep at 11pm, though it’s most often closer to midnight.

Covid is no joke, and I feel like one of the lucky ones despite the symptoms that continued to hang on.

Game Update

If you’ve kept up with my other update posts, you already know I am working on my first video game!

I knew this process was going to be long and full of difficulty, but I don’t think I really understood what I was getting myself into. I had a loose idea and inspiration but I am having a hard time getting an actual story line together. I have some plot points written out as well as three characters. I have also started on their designs as well by just curating photos and pictures that fit the vibes I want.

I have also been doing some research by playing other dating sims which may sound silly but it’s a great way to find things you want to incorporate (or stay away from). Like I love the idea of pronoun options and a chatroom-like interface. I also realized that I didn’t have to start out with all three characters at all if I didn’t want to. I could try just a single character with 2 or 3 paths to get a feel for everything then add the other two later when I was ready. Seeing other indie games has given me a new perspective for sure, but I want to make sure I stay true to my vision without accidentally copying another creator’s work.

So that about sums everything up I think! Thanks for coming along on this ride with me. I appreciate your support as always! Hopefully it won’t be so long in between posts next time! Until then!