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Let's list it out

Let's list it out
Photo by Kelly Sikkema / Unsplash

I tried to make some progress on a game I'm working on in Godot. It's a version of solitaire, and to be honest probably already exists, but is a perfect amount of work for me to actually be able to accomplish. There are play rules, win states, and minimal graphics to work out. I can finish it, which is probably the number one reason I haven't yet finished it.

So while I didn't really make much progress on the game itself today, I figured I might as well list out as many of the projects as I feel like listing out and what state they're in. Since I already mentioned it, I'll start with the solitaire game:

Untitled Solitaire Game

I've got the rules for a variation of solitaire that's pretty fun. It's not "solvable" - I'm not sure if that's the correct term, but as I have it working now there is not guaranteed solution to a given deal as far as I can see. But as I mentioned there is a set of rules and a "win" state that I can finish, and so in my mind this should be my number one priority.

Untitled Casual Game

Not much to say about this one other than it's like, 1% done, so likely never going to be finished. Good learning project though, and one that will help me get better with pixel art too.

Deckbuilder

One of the first game design ideas I had is still one of my favorites, and I'm sort of keeping it on the back burner until I can give it the time and attention I think it deserves. I think the idea is solid and I want to have a little bit more game dev experience before I make a real attempt at this idea.

ClassIQ

This is working, but needs a lot of work. So much so that a rewrite makes sense, and one is maybe... 30% done? Or at least 30% of what ClassIQ is, though probably more than that. It should be my highest priority, really, so let's put it at number 2 behind the solitaire game.

Avatarz.lol

I have a project probably 80% done that lets you serve images to use as avatars (or similar) from open source icon libraries like Font Awesome. I got stuck on documentation and fine tuning the API. It'd be worth finishing just to see if it got enough traffic to be a bother.

Bazooka.email

This domain was too good to pass up, and the idea would be really fun to host a low stakes email server where your address is @bazooka.email. I spun up a Droplet and was able to send and receive some test emails and even view the inbox in a browser. I think that's about as much of a PoC as you could possibly define for an email client though, so probably very very low on the priority list. Also not really any practical use, just fun.

Untitled Project Management App

Inspired by this list, I did in fact spin up another Laravel instance in hopes of making something for me to keep track of all of these various projects as well as other organizational management. The pile of papers on my desk is beginning to lose its shape and when it falls I'll finally have to organize it. I'd love to utilize my scanner and back up the important stuff at the same time.

Geo-Location App

Based on an interaction at a recent concert, I have a flutter app maybe 60% built. It's also a solid idea, though I admit I'm a little intimidated by what happens when the app is finished. I can handle a website, an app seems like a bigger headache that I already don't have the time for.

Hobbies & Media

All work and no play... as with every thirty-something like me I've got a gaming backlog a mile long. Finally I can afford the systems and games I couldn't in the past, but have lost the time and drive to play that I used to have. Similar with some of the movies and TV shows out in recent years... I'll also list some of the other hobbies I wish I had more time for and and of the stuff around the house I should get to:

  • Games (top of mind, not "the backlog")
    • Silent Hill 2
    • Satisfactory
    • Manor Lords
    • A whole list of Switch games (Octopath/Unicorn Overlord at the top for some pixel art inspiration)
  • TV & Movies
    • Rings of Power Season 2 - I enjoyed Season 1 cause it was eye candy and I'm not such a LotR nut that anything in the story bothered me much.
    • The Wire - Old as hell but been itching at me to finally watch it.
    • The Acolyte - Another pretty universally panned show, but like LotR it just seems like a fun watch, I don't expect much from it other than some Star Wars eye candy.
    • The Bear - Definitely been wanting to check this out with the wife.
    • Succession - We're halfway through and love it but are just terrible at watching shows, obviously.
    • I know there are more - friends and family recommend things all the time but with the list above as-is, the list in my head isn't all that active.
    • As for movies, either there haven't been many worth seeing lately or I've just been surprisingly up to date on movies, or perhaps some of both.
    • My Kindle has been gathering dust and it saddens me. Like my gaming backlog, I've collected books on sale and by recommendation over the years but haven't been able to stay with a book for more than a chapter or two. Maybe I need to switch up genres or read a physical book to mix it up a bit, but I miss reading, especially before bed.
  • Hobbies & Housework
    • I need to fix my 3D printer (again). It seems to be the same issue, I need to unload the filament when I'm done since I use it so infrequently. But once I fix that there's a handful of things I've been wanting to print, one of which could make some money next year.
    • My office is in a dire state. I got close to finishing it up when we first were moving in, but the closet never got the attention it needed and has begun spilling out into the room. With my new monitor, PC, the new printer... it's time to shake things up and make this room more productive than a stress drain.
    • I did get a new microphone, and the green paint (hideous as it is) in the office makes me want to toy around with streaming. Whether it be gaming or coding, it might just be fun to spend some time with an "audience," even if the audience is just me.
    • I've got so much home automation stuff half unboxed that needs to be finished. Send the kids to grandmas for Thanksgiving week and maybe I can get some of it done!
    • I need to move like I was at the beginning of the year. I don't need to be a gym rat, but I also should get my ass out of this chair and out of the house more than I have been.
    • Writing! It's always been on my list and I've never gotten very far, but since I'm doing a list why not add it? NaNoWriMo is right around the corner and maybe that's something I can motivate behind.

This freaking blog

Self imposed but look at this. 10:20PM and I'm writing my second entry. It's not technical, it's not interesting to anyone but me, but I'm doing it. It's more than nothing, and nothing is what I've been doing too much of for too long.

Besides this wall of words, I'd love to have something to visualize all of these projects and then hopefully see some progress made on some - if not all - of them. That may come from the project management app I mentioned, or maybe not. I have been toying around with generative ML and LLMs recently, maybe they can help me organize things.