R. L. Floyd

I’m keeping my new year’s resolutions pretty achievable and low-pressure this year.

1. Read more books
2. Write and complete a first draft of a new novel
3. Get back into photography
4. Practice tabla on a regular basis
5. Learn to manage time better and be more productive

Last year was mildly successful in terms of what I planned to achieve. I read a lot (though mostly comic books), got my certifications and found work, kept pretty healthy, and was more productive with projects and things because of less time spent with the epic-time-waster known as the internet. I didn’t end up doing much street photography, writing, or going to events, but I guess that’s what 2012 is for.

2011’s New Year’s Resolutions put into practice:

1. SUCCESS - Finish study, gain certifications, and find work
2. FAIL - Do lots of street photography on a regular basis
3. HALF SUCCESS - Read at least two books a month
4. FAIL - Write almost every day
5. EPIC FAIL - Finish my science fiction novel
6. SUCCESS - Continue to eat healthy and exercise regularly
7. EPIC SUCCESS - Spend less time on the web and use web browsing time more efficiently
8. HALF SUCCESS - Finish all of the video games I start
9. FAIL - Go to more events that I’m interested in
10. MOSTLY FAIL - Practice mindfulness and patience

Albums

5) Torches - Foster the People
4) Andrew Hale - L.A. Noire Official Soundtrack
3) 65daysofstatic - Silent Running
2) Younger Brother - Vaccine
1) Gotye - Making Mirrors

Some surprise albums in my top five this year. I was sure Younger Brother’s Vaccine would take the number one spot, but then I discovered Gotye later in the year, and he instantly became one of my favourite artists. Making Mirrors was a solid album. It’s full of variety, and very funky and uplifting. Great listening to it with headphones.

Movies

5) Super 8
4) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallow, Part 2
3) Black Swan
2) Scream 4
1) Source Code

Honourable Mentions: Pearl Jam Twenty

I didn’t watch many 2011-release movies this year. Scream 4 almost took the number one spot, just because it was the most fun I’ve had in a movie theatre in years. But ultimately Source Code won because it was a movie that has stayed with me since I watched it. Loved the concept, loved the way it was executed. My kind of movie.

TV Shows

5) Lost Girl
4) Fringe
3) Dexter
2) Game of Thrones
1) Torchwood: Miracle Day

Honourable Mentions: Outcasts, The Chicago Code

Some great TV shows returned this year, and some solid new ones. Fringe was a lot lower on my list this year because I felt this season was its weakest (even though it’s still so damn good). Dexter managed to keep me glued to the screen. Game of Thrones was a MASSIVE show, and I can’t wait for season two. In the end, though, Torchwood won by a mile. Its creators have done some excellent things for TV.

Games

5) L.A. Noire
4) Skyrim
3) Star Wars: The Old Republic
2) Dragon Age 2
1) Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective

Honourable Mentions: Super Mario 3D Land, Mario Kart 7

What a year for games! L.A. Noire surprised the pants off me. I didn’t plan to play it and didn’t expect to like it, but I ended up adoring it. Dragon Age 2 was probably the biggest game for me in terms in anticipation and how much time I spent playing it. SWTOR was finally released, but I didn’t get much of a chance to play it this year and look forward to spending LOTS of time with it in 2012. Same goes for Skyrim, but what I’ve played so far is absolutely stunning. Ghost Trick took first position though because of how unique it is and how amazing the story was, especially for a DS game. A video game has never managed to make me cry the way Ghost Trick did.

Some amazing stuff was released this year, and there’s a bunch to look forward to in 2012. (hint: Mass Effect 3!) 

This is a bit of a heads up for all you game and music nerds.

If you’re interested in getting the Assassin’s Creed Revelations Collector’s Edition because the music soundtrack comes on an actual disc inside the box (as opposed to a digital download), think again… Despite it being called an “original game soundtrack”, the included disc isn’t the Revelations soundtrack at all, but rather a “best of” soundtrack from the previous games, according to Rossinio’s blog. As far as I can tell, the actual Revelations soundtrack is available as a digital download only, and has a full 80 tracks as opposed to the Collector’s Edition’s measly 12.

I was pretty disappointed about this, thinking I’d have to resort to inferior lossy AAC files from iTunes to listen to some of my favourite music ever, but then I stumbled across this post on Game-OST. It mentions a website to download the Revelations soundtrack in “true CD quality” lossless audio (you can choose FLAC or ALAC). The catch is that the website is in French, but I found it reasonably easy to navigate with help from Google Translate. Once you’ve paid (it works out to be just shy of AU$30) you just need to download the Qobuz downloader, which downloads the music and puts it directly into your iTunes library. Convenient.

This November was the busiest month I’ve had in a looong time. I’m talking years, here. And it wasn’t the oh-my-god-I-can’t-cope-and-just-want-to-go-to-bed-and-sleep-forever kind of busy, but rather the good kind of busy where you feel like you’re achieving something and making progress in your life.

For most of October leading up to the event, I was convinced I wouldn’t have time for NaNoWriMo this year and would have to give it a miss. But something made me do it. You know, that little voice inside your head saying “You can do it, you crazy-ass lunatic!” So I listened to it. And with less than a week to go before November 1st, I came up with the shell of a main character and a vague plot (or something like a plot, anyway), and decided I’d just have to wing it for the rest. She’ll me right, mate. How hard can it really be?

Umm… Well, short answer: Really Damn Hard. it was definitely the hardest of the three years I’ve participated. The month was super busy, sure, but finding the time to write was the least of my worries. The main issue I had was with the story itself. It was my first attempt at tackling fantasy (a genre I rarely read to begin with), I wasn’t sure which point of view I should stick with (so I wrote in a whole bunch of different ones to try to figure that out), and I didn’t have anything that remotely resembled a plan for my novel. Plus, I began to resent my characters, many of which turned out to have the personality of a doormat.

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