Little Mittens
stargrace 
I still need to finish the thumbs, but I’ve got some cute little mittens finished up for my son (or daughter, whoever needs them) in my handspun yarn! They didn’t turn out too bad and I like the rustic look they have.
2019
Whatever Happened to the Road to 5 million Gold?
In January (or maybe it was February?) I decided that I wanted to do blog posts about working my way to 5 million gold as a casual player.
So whatever happened to those posts and goals?
They took a big ‘ol crap, that’s what. I got bored, life got busy, and I ended up spending almost all of the money that I had accumulated, so now I have about 500,000 gold to my name and my dreams of purchasing the auction house mount from BFA have pretty much been dashed and smashed all over the ground.
I’m contemplating starting back up again and trying to inch my way forward – but – with the release of classic servers I’m scared that populations may dwindle and money making may become even more difficult than I already find it. Since I’m not exactly playing much these days finding the time to level up and PLAY the game has been slim to none.
Still, the desire is there, so maybe.
Maybe.
Returning to Games
I have tried to be better about buying in to early access games, but truth is that these days LOTS of games go into early access before being released in order to gain funding – the problem is I’ll explore their beta for a little while, get angry at the issues I find (even though they’re clearly in early access and it shouldn’t matter if the game is bug-filled) and then I set the game aside. Then I forget about it.
Then a major patch or DLC will come along and I’ll suddenly remember that I own that game and I haven’t played in a while.
ARK is a game like that. I bought in very early, played 20 hours of it, and then set it aside for whatever reason. Now there have been some DLC, the game doesn’t take 20 years to load (this was a major issue for me at the start) and a few friends are playing so I found myself logging in. I forgot how to do any crafting but the basics are still the same. Smash things, collect things, level up, build a shelter and try to survive a dino ridden island. I’ve died a handful of times because I simply forgot what it was I was doing or because I had to randomly go afk in an unsafe area and take care of whatever it was my child wanted at the time (crackers! toast with peanut butter! water with ice cube! To name a few of his favourites) but overall it’s coming back to me.
I’m still partially interested in PixARK (a pixel version) but it would have to hit a pretty hefty sale before I consider picking it up. Overall, it’s nice to return to games I haven’t played in a while. Especially if they are games that have no true ending. What about everyone else, do you return to play your older games or once you’re finished with them are you through for good? Let me know in comments, and as always, happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!
Slay the Spire
This month the humble bundle early unlock caught my eye almost immediately. Slay the Spire released earlier this year, but I had never picked it up for whatever reason, even though I happen to really enjoy playing card games (and this one has a bunch more to it). I already subscribe to the humblebundle monthly but decided to pay it ahead of time to unlock the two games they mentioned. I have little interest in Squad – but I’m INCREDIBLY glad I picked up Slay the Spire.
It’s a cute little card game where you also earn relics that can add / negate / destroy certain aspects of each fight. You can upgrade cards, visit merchants, and basically follow a path of monsters and bosses until you reach the top of the ‘spire’. There are three acts, three different characters, and before I knew it I had invested multiple hours into the game.
There’s quite a bit of randomness to the initial climb so even if you fail (which I do, often) you won’t feel like you’re doing the exact same fight all over again. Once you beat the first three acts you can also ascend your character, improving rewards for each defeated creature (but also increasing their difficulty). So far I’ve only ascended once, with one character. Lots more to go!
Anyone else pick this game up early?
Spinning with 100% Llama
I’ve been having a great time spinning the merino/nylon blend that I got on sale from knitpicks, but I wanted a break and I love trying to spin new fibers. I settled on a 100% llama braid that I got as a gift a few years back.
Woah.
The staple length is quite long, but the fiber is VERY slippery. I’m spinning it pretty thin, hoping for a fingering weight once it’s finished. I have 4oz total, so I split it into 2oz sections, and then split those sections just slightly to ease my spinning because this fiber sheds unlike any fiber I’ve ever used before. The first day I tried spinning it I felt like I owned a white long haired cat, I was completely covered from head to toe. Now I spin this stuff on the balcony, otherwise it gets EVERYWHERE. Somehow it even managed to get around my kids sippy cup.
Despite the annoying shed factor the fiber is luxurious and absolutely beautiful. I’m having no issues drafting or spinning it thin, I’m spinning from the fold, off the tip, which seems to be my preferred method of spinning. The end product is a very strong very soft yarn with a slight halo (less than mohair, but still a cloud that’s noticeable). I have NO idea what I’ll knit with this. Maybe more gloves?