PC Gaming

Tuesday evening

 I have been playing some old Cyan games on XP, including Myst IV, a favourite of mine because of the location, setting, and architecture of the home of Atrus and Catherine and Yeesha, a fantasy home of great beauty and elegance.  I followed up with Uru, a huge game very much in the tradition of Myst and Riven.  When I originally played it, I had no idea what was going on, or what I was supposed to do.  I was just wandering the landscapes, which was fun but meaningless.  This time I did a long walk thru with the guidebook, which tells the story and follows a logical order.  My experience was 100x better 2nd time around.  It is a breathtakingly beautiful game, and one with a story that makes some kind of sense at last.  I followed that up with a reply to the Uru sequel To D'Ni, which allows the complete exploration of the vast underground city of D'Ni.  Once one knows his way around, the entire city can be walked without linking, except to certain rooftops and balconies, which must be linked to.  It is enormous, dark, artificially lit, and very atmospheric.  A great sequel.

And I have started replaying the 3rd Uru game, The Path Of The Shell.  The first huge segment is very mechanical, reminding me a lot of parts of Riven, where the paper was made.  It is also vast, very colourful, and fun to walk there.

For our co-op game, Deb and I downloaded Goetia, from Steam.  You play as a spirit investigating an abandoned manor house and its environs, and the strange goings on that are occurring there.  Though there is a wonderful night time atmosphere, so far it isn't scary.  It's a point and click game with great visuals, and so far has puzzles that are easy and fair.  We have played three or four times now, for about an hour each time, and are pretty far into the game.

Deb and I are playing this together using Windows 10.  So far so good. 

We've also recently played a few games of The Art of Chill, a board game based on Bob Ross' TV art show.  It's easy to play (up to four), and quite fun.  The idea is to be the first to complete a painting, using the proper colours and brushes.  Chill points are awarded, from red hot to cold blue.  Whoever reaches the blue chill line first is the winner.  In addition to competing against your fellow players, you are also trying to finish your painting before Bob.  Artistic skills not required (otherwise I would not be able to play).

We are just about to finish up our latest ten game tournament of Middle Earth: The Wizards collectible card game.  We have a five game major tournament based on the official rules, and then we play five different games that I have made up for a follow up minor tournament.  It can take us nearly a year to finish ten games, even in a lock down.  The player decks always take a lot of preparing.

In art news, here is another print by Lucas van Uden (see the previous blog for another).  This landscape is based on a work by Rubens.  If I find the original I will try and place a photo of it here, too.  Enjoy.

A Village Near A Stream, after 1640.  Lucas van Uden, Flemish, 1595-1673, after Peter Paul Rubens.  Etching and engraving in black ink on laid paper, 8" x 12".  Collection Detroit Institute of Arts.

Detail of above.

Detail of above.

 Detail of above.

Detail of above. 

In domestic news, Deb had her first haircut of 2021 today, an exciting event for sure.  Her hair is shoulder length now and growing out, and it looks great.  The more red hair in the (my) world, the better!  And we ordered a new sofa on Sunday, and it was delivered today.  Right now the old one is in the garage for disposal (we had 9 1/2 good years out of it, as did several cats), and the new one is assembled and in action (currently with a cat sleeping on it).  Photos to follow soon.  We had a good old fashioned heavy rainstorm late this afternoon, receiving 1/2" of rain in about twenty minutes of heavy downpour.  That should be it for several days, as the heat and humidity return to us beginning tomorrow.

In movie news, Deb's two weekend choices were as follows.  Her main choice was Room With A View.  Usually I can tolerate British period dramas, thanks to good acting, great costumes, and sets and settings that engage the eye.  There are no surprises in this tale of young love, but the 1986 Merchant/Ivory production is nearly perfect in every way.  It is quite risky to frame an entire film around a 19 year old actress (Helena Bonham Carter), putting her in virtually every scene, but she pulls things off splendidly.  My main criticism is the overuse of lush music in the background.  Though we saw it back in the day, it still holds up really well today.

Her leaving July 31st choice was The Men from 1950, directed by Fred Zinnemann and starring Marlon Brando and, of all people, Jack Webb.  It deals with a veterans hospital that deals with war wounded, and we are in the paraplegic wing.  Brando is perfect in his first major role as a bitter victim having great difficulty in adjusting to his fate.  The movie is up to date (1950) in its treatment of such men, and brutally honest emotionally.  Worth seeing. Deforest Kelley makes a cameo appearance.  As a doctor!

Now showing on Criterion.

Leaving Criterion July 31st, it is a b & w film. 

Mapman Mike

 

 

Weather Day Similies

Today is a "camp" day, or "Lake Penage" day.  It is mild, rainy, and very grey.  We happily survived many such summer days at our camp on the lake west of Sudbury.  We built the camp when I was ten, and I spent all my summers there, including the first several years Deb and I were teaching school in far away Southern Ontario.  Indoor activities were limited in those days.  Later there was TV, but before that there were playing cards, and bad board games.  Of course reading and writing were popular with us, as was sitting on the screened porch and looking out at the lake and distant La Cloche Mountains as the all day rain came down.  So today, watching the rain out our front windows, I am think about camp a lot (it was sold by my father many years ago).

The previous two days here at the Homestead were sunny, very dry, low humidity, and cool (low 70s F).  These I refer to as New Mexico "high altitude" days.  The weather in late August above 8,000' is very much what is was like here on Friday and Saturday, a break from the stinky heat and humidity we have had recently.  Those days are simply called "Windsor" days.  They are uncomfortable and usually unhealthy.  Other simile days around here include "London" days (chilly and very damp), "Detroit" days, grey and low visibility (when Detroit does not look its best), "tropical" days, with heat, storms, and heavy rain, and, of course the several "Arctic" days we get each winter.  So far we have escaped a major storm here (though the flooded Detroit freeway from ten days ago just reopened), and severe heat (usually 100 F or above).  But the summer is young.

In music news, our listening program continues.  We are finishing up with all the Haydn records we have (a slew of them), still working on the Baroque LPs (Vivaldi currently), the complete works of Beethoven (CDs), of which we are currently at Biamonti #153 (of 849!).  We are currently amidst the Opus 9 String Trios.  And then there is the complete works of Bach on CD.  Every Sunday we listen to a Cantata during breakfast, and during the week randomly listen to different sections of the enormous box set.

With Phase 3 of Ontario's reopening plan coming this Friday, I will feel comfortable inviting people inside again for a recital.  I need to play these pieces very badly, having had them on the back burner since October.  Hopefully I will be performing again before July is finished.

Turning to art for a moment, here is another graphic art landscape from the DIA.  Early Flemish painters often used a popular religious scene as an excuse to paint a beautiful landscape.  The Flight Into Egypt falls neatly into this category, as we get to witness a Bruegelesque mountain landscape of breathtaking scope and imagination.  If this were in a Dover colouring book, I wold set out with my pencils to colour it. 

The Flight Into Egypt, 17th C.  Lucas Van Uden, Flemish (1595-1673). Etching and engraving in ink, on laid paper, 9" x 13".  Collection Detroit Institute of Arts.

Detail of above.

Detail of above.

Detail of above. 

Lastly we turn briefly to movies watched recently, all on Criterion.  La Notte is a 1961 film by Antonioni starring Marcello, Jeanne Moreau, and Monica Vitti.  It's another almost Zen-like movie where nothing much happens for much of the film.  Marcello and Jeanne have lost the spark to their marriage, and Jeanne wanders the city of Milan for an afternoon, exploring the city alone, much like a modern woman might do (though this wasn't done very often in 1961 Italy).  Marcello flirts with Monica at a large party, but she rejects him as he is married.  A very strange film, like its predecessor L'Avventura.  It strikes out into new cinema territory, and you will either like it or you won't.  We both liked it.

Now showing on Criterion. 

My leaving July 31st selection was the classic 1930 film The Blue Angel, directed by von Sternberg and starring Emil Jannings and Marlene Dietrich.  Though its tale of a college professor ruining his life over a dance hall girl is quite dated, the emotional impact of the film still vibrates.  The version we saw was 1 hr. 47' long, but it still seemed a bit rushed towards the end, when the professor's downfall came.  Jannings gives a brilliant performance, while Dietrich...well, let's just say that she has incredible thighs, along with an overall look about her that is perfect for the role of Lola Lola.  The little nightclub is such a wonderful dive bar, and the earlier, chubbier girls on the stage are really quite fascinating, especially compared with the much more slender  and bland ones that dance there five years later.  Glad I finally got to see this.

Leaving Criterion July 31st.  

Next time I will talk a bit about some of the games I have been playing lately, including card, board, and computer types.  Till then, adieu.

Mapman Mike