Jane

Yeah, I'm just a bit bitter because we did have it on the Wii U and I had some idea from somewhere that it had some more of the old courses and stuff on it, then it turned out it didn't. Some more DLC at some point with old/new stages would be good.

Animal Crossing!! ...if it ever comes out. Splatoon 2 is a lot of fun - I'm not one for shooters but bought it when it was on offer and have really enjoyed it (the cute punky aesthetics and the fact it's as much about shooting ink all over the place as much as attacking people helps). Definitely Breath of the Wild - it's the first Zelda game we really played but we loved it. And ends up good value considering the number of hours you can end up playing it. Stardew Valley, if you haven't played it on another platform yet. Mario Kart 8 is really good, too (if you don't already have it on Wii U).

I said busy but if you add "lines" after "dead" then that also explains it... Big deadline on Tuesday. There are a couple of threads I want to reply to (and a thread idea or two) so I guess I'll catch up next week. Have an idea for a silly topic after seeing a tweet earlier though, so I guess I'll make that before getting back to work. I approve of this message. Have you seen Hamilton?

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Update: It was good! And felt very virtuous (apart from the heap of supermarket naan on the side). Looking forward to eating the rest tonight. ...as someone with very very mild trypophobia the okra kind of weirded/squicked me out when I was chopping it, though.

We're putting okra in one of our home-cooked curries for the first time (along with red/orange peppers, baby aubergine, spinch, leftover broccoli/beans and some paneer). Will see how it turns out.

Same, Lucy and I read loads of the manga - absolutely loved it, it's genuinely hilarious at times. We had quite a few of the American Viz volumes (Lu still has most of them somewhere I guess), and it was a well-written, funny translation which really helped. I don't think I ever got to the end, but as it had such a sit-com feel it didn't really matter. I was so happy when Rumiko Takahashi was finally honoured at Angouleme this year: https://www.comicsbeat.com/rumiko-takahashi-wins-the-grand-prix-at-angouleme/ Maison Ikkoku is one of my very favourite manga ever, and lots of her other stuff is good too - I actually really liked the Inu-Yasha manga at the start and was disappointed when it dragged on so much, as it took her folklore-inspired stuff and made it into a creepy-but-not-too-scary and quite engaging action story (basically took some of her Mermaid Forest creepiness and geared it to a younger audience).

Mmm... scones...

Yeah, it's not gonna break my heart if they don't make an easier version of e.g. Cuphead (which I love the look of but from the sound of it it'd be a pointless purchase for me )... not everything's for everyone, there are plenty of other games out there to try after all. But if it's a big-budget game then it seems in the developer's best interests as well as the consumer's to have a couple of different difficulty settings. More potential customers for the developer, and if someone wants a hard game they don't have to play the easier settings if they don't want to (as web says, there are almost always going to be plenty of ways of making an easier playthrough without changing the game as a whole).

Just been to see the doc, now I need to stop posting here and get to work. Especially as I also wasted time trying to activate a free Dropbox offer that came with my PC but is now seemingly no longer valid. (I also made the mistake of going into the Concerts thread and now my brain wants me to try and make a list of all the gigs I've been to instead of working )

I enjoyed it! Obviously ep 1 will have a lot of what previous viewers are familiar with already (I watched the old anime but have never really read the manga), but it was all so beautiful. And the ending theme was so cute. I'm already looking forward to next week. The Kyoko stuff hit me a bit hard. [spoiler ep1]

Hellooooo!

Awww, hi!! I remember you. Well done on becoming a doctor, that's amazing. And on the martial arts too.

I'm not a capital-G Gamer. I'm also prone to stress and (like most of us I guess) have limited time to play, so although a challenge is often part of playing a game, I have 0 desire to pay £50+ to play something that I have literally 0 chance of finishing and that will be actively not-fun and just function as a reminder that I'm not good at video games. If there was a game that looked like it was totally my aesthetic but looked a bit too difficult, if I knew there was a softy babey mode then it'd definitely increase the chances of me buying and enjoying it. Any threat from monsters etc would just be relative to my lower gaming skill/experience. Re: the artistic integrity thing - I can kind of understand the argument, but with e.g. a novel that some people might find intimidating, there are options; I personally wouldn't want an abridged version of a book (ugh), but they exist, or you can flick through and skip/skim bits (hello, Paris sewers chapters of Les Miserables ). Also, an eBook of Anna Karenina is probably 99p as opposed to £59.99. If you buy a game that is simply too difficult, you're down a lot of money for something that it just isn't worth your time to try and finish, which is a surefire way to destroy any artistic appreciation of it.

This - people think "short fur must shed less!" but what you need to remember is that the longer each strand of hair is, the longer you have before each hair falls out. A dog with short hairs will shed each individual hair much more frequently than a dog with longer hair will. I have a shetland sheepdog and we do get some fluff around and have to brush him quite a lot (especially as the seasons change), but the actual volume of hair to deal with in between brushes is much less than when I lived with short-haired dogs, and the hairs also stick into your clothes less (softer fluffier strands are easier to get off with a brush or lint roller than little ones that get stuck like pins in the fibres of your clothes). Other thoughts - although they make gentle pets, Cockapoos aren't genetically lap dogs! Cocker spaniels are a traditional working breed, mostly bred for flushing out birds from long grass when shooting - don't know so much about the smaller-size of poodles, but poodles are a working breed too (the curly coat is because they're designed to retrieve them from water). They're both gundogs, basically. There are tons of cockapoos round here now and I think people often underestimate how much exercise and stimulation they need - the ones we meet are friendly and outgoing but also full of energy and a bit mental. Would also be careful with collies/collie crosses if you want a protective dog - they're very intelligent and energetic, but are designed to herd and at best to guard; they'll defend their home, but usually by barking very loudly at any perceived threat (which can include the postman). Outside of the home, they can be on the nervous side and are more likely to want to run than to fight. That's not to say you couldn't find the perfect one for you, especially if it was a mix, but if I was looking for a dog to actually protect me from a mugger I wouldn't bet all my money on a collie type. ?

I haven't been active for a couple of years now, I don't think. But yes, thank you! Thank youuuu. I will, but you found out my next one's coming out in the States before I actually knew, haha. OMG. I definitely need to buy you two a few beers next time I see you. Ahhh! Hope they like it. (and that your cast-off goes ok :x)

...is the name of my picture book if you live in the UK or Australia. In North America, it's called Prickly Hedgehogs! ...both are available online and in all good bookstores. Say hi to me, too!

#grookeygang I thought maybe I'd finally left pokemon behind a little bit recently - I enjoyed aspects of Sun, but not like the older games... partly I felt frustrated because it has so many cutscenes and feels like it spoonfed you plot too much at times instead of just adventuring (I can't actually remember how far I got... maybe I beat the Elite Four but didn't do any of the stuff after that). So I was ready to feel a bit underwhelmed when the Nintendo Direct rolled around. But omg... visually, it looks like everything I wanted from a pokemon game as a kid (albeit a relatively old kid). So pretty! Running around beautifully-rendered 3D towns and scenery with pokies jumping out at you! I loved the attention to detail and random things like the chalk hill art. I'll definitely be excited to play even just for the aesthetic. It took me a little time to warm up to the new starters, but I have to say that despite not being a huge fan of monkeys, I do like grookey (and grass pokemon generally) so I'll probably choose him.

Oh man, you have to read it. It gets pretty weird and scary (though if you're a Stephen King fan it'll be tame stuff, lol) but it's still a must-read. You should read it before the end of the year since I think that's when the HDM TV series starts. (I think the 2nd of the new books is out sometime in the autumn too.) I've really not read much lately - when I have, it's been re-reads of Austen and Pratchett and so on. Over the winter mental health stuff and deadlines have left me like a crab just after it's shed its shell - too tender and sensitive for much, so I haven't felt mentally ready for anything particularly new or intense. I'm starting to itch to read something new, though, so I might start reading the Elena Ferrante Neapolitan series of novels - everyone (including my partner) seems to highly recommend them. Ahhh! Lucy's going to lend me her copy next time I'm up - then we can all talk about it.

OIC. Just looked it up and it's based on a light novel series, so makes sense that it might get a continuation.

"can't sleep... Hedwig will eat me..." ...but oh my gosh she's so cute. And creepy Hedwig looks pretty comfy really.

Yes, this! Jeez, Shade, lots of love to you - it sounds like you've been through a lot. It sounds like you're handling all the challenges so well. Good to see you here, and good luck with your health as well as the mountain of things that you're up to!

FRUITS BASKET It will need its own dedicated thread when it comes out, from the looks of it. I have no idea what most of the rest of them are. Wait... Boogiepop Phantom? Is that another early 2000s reboot?

Looks great! You've made the colours match really nicely for two different bits of artwork.