Can’t get enough of these new colours.
Feels already like summer at times with the air being warm and tender. Not to mention the sudden burst of colours everywhere after so many months of black, white and grey. Seasonal changes are fascinating every year.
Better weather has encouraged me to run more and Nike Run Club App’s Half-Marathon Plan has introduced me ways to make my runs more varied and with more purpose. The app itself has been in my use for almost ten years and while I’m obviously “the product” by sharing my run data with them, I’m pleased I’ve been getting a motivating service for free. Running has been by far the most consistent sport activity I’ve done.
Cracking open a classic book
When it comes to other activities, one thing I thought about doing more is reading classic literature, so I started reading Fyodor Dostoevsky‘s Crime and Punishment. I did try to read it years ago in English, but gave up after a few pages, as the vocabulary was too advanced for me. The Finnish translation instead is a breeze to read. I’m only one fourth into the story, but it is clear already that this is well above average literature.
I’ve also been fooling around again with Midjourney, the AI image generator. Still not sure what I’m supposed to do with all the imagery created with it, but it is an interesting pastime when bored otherwise.
Some imagery I’ve instructed Midjourney to create for me this week.
Getting acquainted with the new hardware
It took almost three weeks, but finally I gathered enough courage to face buyer’s remorse, unboxed the PlayStation 5 and plugged it in my TV and AV amplifier. The foul stench of fresh plastic and the size of the console were not good first impressions and on the first day I just confirmed some settings, let it update itself and turned it off.
Clearly I was still conflicted by how should I use my time with the console and thinking how to be mindful of it, scheming myself certain house rules like never play before the dishes are washed or do a run or some other workout beforehand. Using its lure to motivate me do more useful stuff first.
Eventually I started playing the pre-installed game Astro’s Playroom (after washing the dishes first), which showcases the different features of the Dualsense game controller. Okay, so it is an improvement from the DualShock 3 I’ve been using the past ten years, but I wonder how many other games will really use those new features in meaningful ways. DualShock 3 had its motion sensor and pressure sensitive buttons, but only a few games utilized them.
DualShock 3, meet DualSense.
The PS5 is also a beast in power consumption compared to the PS3 (200W vs 70w), although its performance per watt is presumably way better. Still, I must admit Nintendo’s Switch is a clear winner eco-wise, using only a fraction of power compared to the PS5 (18W vs 200W), even though strictly speaking it is a handheld device. One thing I will not be using the console for thanks to its power greed is streaming video and music.
The new console might be overkill in my current home entertainment setup, as my decade old TV only has a Full HD display, but at least judging from Astro’s Playroom, the frame rate is smooth as butter thanks to the lower resolution. And the cooling fans are quiter than PS3’s and I suppose the PS4’s as well (from what I’ve heard and read), which was one reason I didn’t settle for a PS4 instead. Well, once I decide what proper game I will start with I can get a better picture was this all worth it.