#PastebinMonday 07/07/2025 Nose to the Grindstone Edition

Nose to the Grindstone Edition

'Sup, doods!

Things have stabilized around here in so many ways… even with the rain pouring down outside as I write this update for the second Sunday in a row. I no longer have to worry about crawlspaces getting too quickly flooded and seeping water into my office. I can just focus on winning tournaments and tackling what’s in front of me to get through all of these videos that I am trying to make.

Key word… trying.

Games Done Quick is on this week, doods, and trying to do anything else while that event is on is a process for me. If I don’t remove the distractions, I lose focus. If I do remove the distractions, I fall asleep. I don’t even feel good about streaming during GDQ because I’m not sure if anydood will watch. I will use this opportunity to put my nose to the grindstone and crank through the videos in my backlog as much as I can.

There is another distraction that has popped up that might prove to be even more diabolical than GDQ. Doods:

HORSE GIRLS

Doods. What if Monster Rancher got mashed up with horse racing? And all the horses were girls based on actual Japanese race horses from yesteryear? They’re more than girls and not quite horses. They are “uma musume” and a mobile game featuring them that launched in Japan in 2021, Umamusme: Pretty Derby, just got released globally in the past couple of weeks. Man, am I seeing EVERYONE play it right now. Some are getting into the actual training of the horse girls. Others are simply getting excited in the same way that they would watch actual horse races. I am so tempted to put that on my phone and waste time with it during my commutes. On the other hand, I do not trust myself to limit my playtime on a live service game to just that. Maybe if I don’t engage with the PvP, I’ll be fine? I don’t have any Shorts to get onto YouTube right now. That is the exact kind of slippery slope I do not want to fall into right now if I want to get into the video grind. If you think I should stream it to scratch the itch, doods, let me know and I’ll probably devote a Sunday to it.

Speaking of Sunday, I’m gonna do my qualifying for the TA2026 Poochy Open on Sunday after Games Done Quick. I’m serious about not trying to counter-program during the week. I’m not a big name that can do that yet. See you then!


Today's (permanent) extra streaming goals:

Goal #1a: schedule all of my YouTube shorts. This has been a mental roadblock on my ability to focus on anything else. I will be very disappointed in myself if I do not get completely caught up this week.

Goal #1: record footage for my Puzzle League tutorial series. The scripts are done! I am now challenging myself to find time amidst my tournament duties to work on recording the gameplay. I would then need voice-over on top of that. I’m prepared to go all in on this during the month after the Shorts are caught up.
Goal #2: release the Puzzle League tutorial series YouTube shorts once a day until they're all done. I really do think I need to time the release of the series with a ramping up of my streaming schedule so that I can take advantage of whatever there is to gain from releasing the shorts. This could start September. This could start November. I have no clue.
Goal #3: clean up my own stream layout. Most of the framework necessary for a semi-proper stream is done now thanks to streaming the process, though I'm not currently motivated to stream any other part of it at the moment. Next major objective is to make alerts. I have stream reaction clips to put in. Emotes, one or two alternate overlay themes, and alternate timer themes would come soon after. As soon as I think of things to put in, I will add them to the list. I added a list in a dedicated channel in my Discord server. If you have any time to kill and want to contribute, check it out.
Goal #4: catch up on video archives that I have yet to upload since I restarted streaming. I may put them on a separate channel.
Goal #5: edit personal best videos in Tetris Attack Easy – V-Hard (post commentary recorded) and Normal (post commentary recorded)—and everything I did in Pokemon Puzzle Week—and that S-Hard PB—and that V-Hard WR—and that Easy – S-Hard WR—and that TA Easy PB—and another Easy – V-Hard PB (twice). Standalone archival videos are already attached to my speedrun profile. I'm hoping to make eye-catching productions from each speedrun. I'm considering it to be my personal test to be a YouTuber. I was failing miserably even before my location situation changed.
Goal #6: finalize the tournament layout once and for all in a way that I can adapt for every game we might play. I have a volunteer to help broadcast the matches in my stead. I have a lot of videos I want to get out of the way first.

This week's schedule:
Sunday @4pm-7pm ET – TA2026 Poochy Open Qualifying

Now if you'll excuse me, doods, my body is a meat balloon right now and I need to deflate. That’s my life story for the week. Until next time, everyone, be decent to each other. Later, doods!

--Cards