Schools are starting up again and the Delta variant of COVID has a lot of parents concerned regardless of whether or not politicians say they shouldn't be. I think the politicians are more focused on businesses, the economy, and their own personal agendas than health and people dying.

That said, I also think the CDC hasn't been very clear in their messaging which only fans the flames of mistrust towards them.

Personally, I just don't want to get COVID. Or if asymptomatic, not transfer it to anyone else. My wife and I are back to wearing masks most places.

We played mini golf!

Otherwise, things are going relatively well. We found an outdoor mini golf course which wasn't a kindergartener's haven! My next post may have some bigger personal news, but that all depends on the next few weeks.

Work

Work at Power Home Remodeling has been moving forward like it has been. Vaccinated employees who work in the Philadelphia area where our HQ is located are starting to come back to the office a few days a week. More will join them next month depending on what happens in the world.

Our next in-person gathering is still planned for later in October for now. Really hope that happens and that airlines can figure their shit out. Right now, flying on a plane or even visiting an airport seems like a bad idea.

Movies

  • SubUrbia (1996) is an early Richard Linklater film and feels very much like other films of his. Like hanging out with the group of characters on any average day. I just wish they were characters I felt like hanging out with.
  • Gunpowder Milkshake looked like it was going to be the women's version of John Wick with tons of awesome action. It ended up being a bit more style over substance. Entertaining, but nothing I'll watch again.
  • Wrath of Man is Guy Ritchie's latest film and I find him pretty solid overall in how enjoyable the films I've seen of his are. I haven't seen them all, not the lower rated ones at least. This one's pretty solid though. Pretty fun
  • Blood Red Sky felt like maybe it was twenty minutes too long but enjoyable. Vampires on a plane.
  • L.A. Heat (1989) feels like it would have been a crappy direct-to-video release in the early 80's rather than the later ones. One of those that would have been sitting on the shelf in Blockbuster and only rented when they were out of stock on the popular movie of the week. Pretty awful.
The Suicide Squad
  • The Suicide Squad (2021) was pretty great. I don't think James Gunn has directed or written a film I haven't thoroughly enjoyed. While maybe not quite up there with his Guardian of the Galaxy films, it's still a really great, fun movie. Just thinking about it now makes me want to watch it again.
  • CODA is about a family with a fishing business. The entire family is deaf except for the daughter who they rely on quite a bit. It's a heartfelt film and one of the better one's I've seen this year. Recommended.
Bigfoot: The Unforgettable Encounter
  • Bigfoot: The Unforgettable Encounter (1994) was hokey, but turned out to be an okay film overall. Really nice one to make fun of if watching in a group!
  • A Dangerous Place (1995) is a bit more of a violent take on Karate Kid. Even used some of the same filming locations. Not a very good film but not nearly as bad as I thought L.A. Heat was.

Viticulture board game

This game gets a lot of praise and I've been interested in playing it for a while. It was recently added to Board Game Arena so it instantly popped up to the top of the list for my gaming group to play.

Viticulture

It's a worker-placement game about starting a winery. You play through seasons growing grapes, processing it into wine and then selling the wine. During all this you have seasonal tours and visitors who can help or hinder yours and other player's endeavors.

There's a little learning curve but it started to sink in after a few seasons. You definitely learn that there's a bit of an engine-building aspect to and that's where things really get rolling. Was really fun for all of us so we'll be getting this one queued up again in an upcoming gaming session.

Top photo by Nicole Geri on Unsplash