The Professional Gamer - August 1, 2016

Hello readers! As I mentioned last week, I've started a new job this week.  So far, I'm enjoying it a lot, though the contrast of working with a small company versus the public sector is pretty stark.  Getting used to working within an environment that includes various types of support staff is a little weird.  At my old company, we had to take care of so many things on our own that having people to help feels strange to me.  On the other hand, I think I'm going to have a lot of fun with the technical work that I'll be doing.  I am especially going to enjoy the opportunities that I will have to travel.

I haven't had a lot of time for playing games this week, but I decided to spend it playing Pokemon Go so that I could combine my video game time with some out-of-doors walking time.  I've nearly hit level 19, which makes me think I'm doing fairly well.  And, I've got pokemon of high enough level to has some ability to perform at gyms.  I'm looking forward to continuing my journey in the upcoming weeks.

I've also watched a few more episodes of Gravity Falls, and am getting near the end.  I am still carefully rationing the episodes so that I can prolong the experience as much as possible.  Also, I have been watching the latest episodes of Steven Universe.  The latest episodes have been tackled some really tough material and been full of emotional and character payoffs.  Even though the viewing has been difficult, it has also been rewarding.

That's all that I have for now, have a great week, and game on!

The Professional Gamer - July 12, 2016

Hi readers!  I hope all of our American followers had a great Independence Day!  I sure did, even got a personal record for the 4 km race that I've been doing for several years.

Later in the week, I finished watching the first season of Gravity Falls.  I won't really post any spoilers, since I'm sure there are lots of people watching for the first time.  If you are watching for the first time, remember: trust no one!  The first season has been so much fun, and I've already started into the second season.  I've got a feeling I'll be finishing the series really soon.

I've made a lot of progress through The Lord of the Rings this week as well.  Gandalf has fallen in Khazad-dum and the Fellowship has journeyed into Lothlorien.  I think I've got less than a week to move on to the next volume.

In other news, I am a bike owner again.  Its been a long time since I had a bicycle and I'm excited to start using it for transport on the weekends.  Now, I need to get some accessories so that I can be safe and carry groceries and such as well.

Lastly, Pokemon Go has been released in Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and the U.S. so far.  I feel like I've had not a lot of time to play, but have still managed to rack up 6 km of walking and have reached level 6.  It's been fun to explore the real world, sometimes with friends, in search of magical creatures.  The server issues have been frustrating, but I'm sure that will all get solved soon.  In summary, its a lot more fun than Ingress, the previous game released by Niantec; and I recommend that you try it out if you think you would like an excuse to explore your neighborhood on foot and get to know some of the people who live near you.

That's all I have for this week.  I'll update you all later on how the Pokemon hunting goes.  Have a great week, and game on!

The Professional Gamer - July 4, 2016

Hello readers!  I hope you have all had another good week.  I've continued reading Lord of the Rings, but have also discovered that a great show that I've been hoping to watch is finally available on Hulu,  Therefore, I spent most of my evenings watching Gravity Falls.  

For those not familiar with the show, Gravity Falls tells the story of twins Mable and Dipper spending a summer with their Great Uncle Stan in a small town in the deep woods of Oregon.  Dipper finds a large book with a number "3" on the cover, and then begins to have encounters with all sorts of strange creatures and other phenomena.  The show manages a great blend of Americana and spooky campfire stories.  The animation is fluid and the characters are fun to watch in motion.  Not to mention the jokes are really funny.  I've watched a bit more than half of the first season so far.  Somehow, I managed to avoid most of the spoilers that were roaming wild on the internet; quite a feat considering that a large portion of my online friends were regularly watching Gravity Falls.  In summary, if you have Hulu, you should give Gravity Falls a shot.  

That's all I've got for this week.  Happy Independence Day to all of our American readers!  Have a great week and game on!