thanksbrother

Been working through a small order of these, these are mid-priced (for me) cigars that hit most of the notes I like. I’m still not the best at identifying flavors but it fits a standard Don Pepin profile, I’m also a big fan of the Tatuaje cigars and really just all his cigars are a little spicy and leave me thinking “Oh boy, I sure do enjoy smoking cigars.”

It truly has been a great change of pace in my life since I started enjoying tobacco again. After I quit smoking cigarettes and went nicotine abstinent for two years I just saw my porch and thought about how boring it would be out there without a cigarette. Cigarettes felt like an annoying compulsive habit. One or two cigars a day and I’m right as rain, sitting outside enjoying the atmosphere and a much more satisfying smoking experience. Cigs don’t even smell or taste good.

I’d say it tastes like it looks. Dark brown. Rich. Woody, leather. Just pleasant all the way. No complaints.

These Cain cigars really are a great value. Always on sale, a comfortable length and gauge, and they generally draw and burn pretty well. They’re strong, and I enjoy a strong cigar.

Since Holts always teases you with a four pack sampler at checkout that I always forget I bought I generally have one or two of these around and they generally hit the spot. This in particular, the Daytona, is a little lighter on the flavor profile but still has that nicotine spice on the nose and palate.

Usually consume with alcohol as I find it a good companion for the nicotine burn. A flavorful pale ale (or an IPA) like this Dale’s is great.

This album was a frequent listen for me when I was in high school, every once in a while I go back to it and it still holds up.

Took me a rough winter of self-tamed ducks before I figured out auto-slaughter, I only had low skilled folks… all they could do was chop wood, kill ducks, oil, get food poisoning and wait.

Would love Earthworm Jim or MDK reboots but I think those are under Infogrames / Interplay not Activision?

With the abundance of retro platformers I still think this is a niche worth revisiting

Was just thinking about this game the other day. It was super fun and had a more interesting / entertaining vibe than other vehicle combat games (Twisted Metal, not sure what else)

I was all over that and Carmageddon, which also doesn’t have a very good modern equivalent.

Oooo this is a good one!

Wild. If I had to say which game is harder between Battletoads and Elden Ring, I’d say Battletoads hands down. I’ve gotten pretty far, but never beat it on NES. I guess I could go the emulator route just so I don’t get that awful feeling every time I see the cartridge, some amount of closure.

Similar situation - I’d been at a job for about 10 years that robbed me of all of my time, but didn’t pay me enough to comfortably stay home or take vacations.

I went freelance but current events happened and now I’m home a lot. I beat Elden Ring. I put like 100 hours into Rimworld. Gaming can get super depressing in a concentrated binge, so what I also have done:

1. Backpacking. Nerd out on gear for a week or so, go to REI and drop some money, and go walk for days at a time. I love it. Most recently just did a 15 mile out, sleep, 15 mile back trip and it definitely was good on my brain (rough on my body)

2. DIY tech projects. I had a couple raspberry pis around. One is now a synth / sequencer / workstation with a midi keyboard using the Zynthian OS and the other is going to do some self-hosting.

3. Fixing my furnace. This one isn’t one I recommend.

4. Cigars for me, but any kind of highly indulgent consumable that people like to talk about. Chocolate, wine, cheese, etc.

5. Exploring. You’d be amazed what you can find just walking around. A friend just showed me a crazy underground stream that I’ve been walking over for YEARS now and I had no idea it existed. Going to go check it out.

6. Plants and Birds. I have a front porch. My days of nothing to do usually start with about an hour or so on the porch with a cigar, watching and trying to identify the birds that come to my feeder and admiring the progress of my plants that are growing out there.

Goin on like 30-something years with Battletoads now

This is one of those things where every time I start thinking about it I just... stop thinking about it and remember to keep an eye on what my son is up to on the internet.