180 Lunches

  • Travel Logs: Spain Edition

    Crystal and I have been married for 20 years. We dated for 5 years before that, and became friends 5 years before that. 30 years of hanging out. For the past 15 years or since kids, we’ve been on one trip with just the two of us for longer than a weekend away. We did a ten year road trip and Covid shot a fifteen year anniversary trip in the foot.

    This year we set out to take that long overdue trip. Just the two of us. Spain was the spot and Barcelona and Madrid were the specific destinations. Today they get added to the “travel log” page:

    Visit the Barcelona Travel Log

    Visit the Madrid Travel Log

  • Super Speed 3D Printing

    I got a new 3d printer this Fall. A full post is in the works on that, but for now, this wild thing where the build plate moves not the nozzle(s) and it is cooled with dry ice. Cooling and nozzle speed/accuracy are the limiting factors in how fast a consumer FDM printer can print an object.

  • Best Games: Arc Raiders

    Best Games of the 2020’s is back with the ninth game in 2025. Sadly, the fifth entry in a racing franchise, that I hope gets a sixth, is off the list.

    Arc Raiders(2025) goes on at #22

    This game garnered positive and very loud buzz every time it had a public playtest. My radar is generally not tuned into this genre, but it was hard to ignore. Extraction shooters were the rage or are the rage? Escape from Tarkov seemed to be the best in class, but it felt too harsh for my delicate and old gaming sensibilities.

    Arc Raiders has sanded off those edges a bit. Starting as a PVE^ game and then eventually adding in PVP^^, when per the developers just PVE lacked some punch and staying power. That origin is apparent the moment you load into your first game. The maps look fantastic, lived in, and a hidden back story in every room. The combat feels great, reminds me a bit of Last of Us.

    You’ll likely encounter a robot or “arc” first and they will push you, maybe even kill you. They are tough and in groups they can quickly end your round. Eventually you will get better gear and better strategies for tangling with them and maybe even bored. In step the players. The opportunity to tussle with strangers is a endless thread to pull on. Do you have a friendly chat and pair up? Is their salutation a grenade at your feet? Can you deescalate a situation? How long can you trust your fellow man when there is shiny loot on the line?

    It is a gem of a game, facets on top of facets. Entertaining and unpredictable. I want to be playing it right now. Just one more solo run to stock up or jumping on with friends to see what trouble we can get into.

    Forza Horizon 5 (2021) is an excellent racing game, but it was too similar to Horizon 4 which grabbed a hold of me and kept me racing for a solid 2 months in 2018. On top of that the progression was poorly balanced. If they give you all the things in the first 3 hours, what is there to play for? Said my broken brain.

    ^PVE: Player vs. Environment or take on AI enemies

    ^^PVP: Player vs. Player or take on other people

  • ABCs: Memi’s & Olde Towne Smokehouse

    We’ve doubled down on the ABC challenge. Last week we hit our 18th and 19th spots and we have reservations this week for the 20th. Holiday time off work is right around the corner too, it just might be possible.

    Memi’s

    This Egyptian restaurant in the fan had some great food that reminded me of the meals my Dad makes. The Tagine Beef with Potato that I had could have come right out of his kitchen. The cocktails from the bar were a little flat, but maybe get a beer or whine and enjoy your dish all the same.

    Olde Towne Smokehouse

    BBQ in a tiny house turned restaurant feels like how BBQ should be served. We stopped in for lunch and had solid pulled pork and brisket. The sides (hush puppies and sweet potatoes) were good too. It was beyond cramped though, so maybe go on a nice day and sit outside at the picnic tables? Pop the hatch on an SUV and hang your legs out the trunk?

  • Best Games: Hades II

    Best Games of the 2020’s is back with the eighth entry this year, and the only VR game that felt like a triple AAA game (that I’ve played) is off into the sunset.

    Hades II (2025) goes on at #22

    Sequels can be weird. How much do you stray? How much do you remain the same? How do you meet and even exceed unknowable expectations? Hades 2 is a great game, but built firmly on the house Supergiant already lived in. That “house” is #4 on the Best of list.

    Hades 2 quickly evokes everything I loved about the first game. Compelling and quick combat, paired with interesting characters and a story that make “one more run” incredibly addictive. The art was already amazing and it has been stepped up to another level. The surface world and the world below feel like you are getting twice the amount of game and variety for the price of one.

    Killer stuff. So what gives, why the mid-table ranking? After over 35 hours played, I still haven’t finished it, and I’ve lost momentum to do so. The story is still strong, but the gameplay loop got tedious. A run to the final boss of the underworld is easy now, almost a 100% guaranteed win. The top side is the same through the first three zones, but the final zone is a big spike in difficulty.

    A typical run takes 25-30 mins. For the underworld that is 25 non-challenging minutes to progress 3 minutes of story. For the surface that is 25 minutes of the same loop, to have my butt kicked when I arrive at progression. I’m guessing speed runners have solved this, but for my very average abilities it tipped into not having fun. And then into moving on to other games.

    Half-Life: Alyx (2020) drops off the bottom of the list. What a cool execution of a new technology with so much promise. I never finished it though, because of the spins, sweats, and headaches. I don’t think VR is for me.

  • Che, Weapons, and Planet

    It is the middle of November and I did a bad job tracking for the October media log. And by “bad job” I mean I didn’t do it. So how about some recent recommendations instead?

    Michael Che

    Most know him from Weekend Update, but I’d seen a few of his specials before and really enjoyed his sketch show. We saw him live in Charlottesville last month and it was great. His opener, Paris Sashay was hilarious and Che crushed his set.

    Weapons

    The rare “scary” movie that gets great critic reviews is my kind of scary movie. This move is wild, strange, and occasionally puts you on the edge of your seat. I’ve linked the trailer above, but I’d actually recommend not watching it. Go in cold, know nothing, and be rewarded with a thrill ride.

    Bridge Planet Nine

    A sci-fi heist gone wrong from a local comic artist and writer, Jared Throne. A fun and quick read that primed the pump for starting a Scum & Villainy campaign with friends this month (more on this later).

  • ABCs: Importante Bodega Bar & Uliveto

    We are off pace on the ABC challenge. Summer, travel, and returning to a Fall schedule got in the way. But there is nothing to do, but go to more great restaurants. Onward!

    Importante Bodega Bar

    On the heels of a once in a lifetime anniversary trip to Spain we were excited to grab tapas in Richmond. Importante was not on par with some of the phenomenal places we went on our trip, but that was a very tall order. What it did deliver was good to great though. All the tapas staples E.g., patatas bravas, tortilla espanola, croquettes, and more.

    Uliveto

    Is it cheating to go to the sister restaurant of an already great pick in the game? No clue, but Uliveto might just be a nose ahead of Gersi, so who cares. We had a fantastic time on a brisk Saturday night in November at this Mediterranean and Italian fusion spot. We went for the full spread, cocktails, appetizers, entrees, coffee, and dessert. All of it was great and we were stuffed.

  • I Heard It’s A Mess There Too – Aesop Rock

    A second Aesop album in 2025, sure I’m game. From what I can tell it might be solo produced by him with no features, which was not the case for the album that came out in May. I spun this thing all last weekend. Cruising in the car, windows down, with autumn weather in the air. It matched the vibe, easy listening, but complex beats and vocals. Worthy of adding a song or two to the annual playlist.

  • AI Study Buddy

    AI will change the world! Or AI is a bubble that will ruin the global economy! Or AI is a new tool to be embraced in the evolution of humanity! Or AI will gut what is left of the individuals creative experience!

    Any or all of that could be true. It is a question that no one has the answer to. I am neither having a economic existential crisis, nor selling off my worldly possessions to prepare for the AI utopia. What I am doing is attempting to keep up with the advances and what are practical use cases.

    Hard Fork is a great resource for that, among many others. In a recent episode focused on AI in education, I was inspired to test out a new approach to studying with my middle schooler.

    The Approach

    I created a new project in ChatGPT^ and provided it with context for his classes and my aim to support him studying for quizzes and test. When he has an upcoming assessment, we start a new chat in the project, and load up any relevant materials E.g., study guides, worksheets, etc. Then we use the study mode introduced in July to prep. This is really the power of a RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) on display. I don’t need the AI to hallucinate facts about the Revolutionary War. Instead I am handing it source material and telling it to only operate in that specific space.

    What works

    We are leaping ahead into the material. He is empowered to more proactively review with mnemonics and chunking. We can jump into material we’ve forgotten or are unfamiliar with and help him right away. Prior to this approach, studying was painful for both parties. He would stare at a printed worksheet and I would have to basically micro study all of it first before I could ask him effective questions and assess his readiness.

    What doesn’t

    It is a lot of typing for a kid whose foundation on a keyboard is mostly WASD for gaming. The potential alternative is voice mode, but he sort of froze up when we tried out just talking to the to future bot. So the going is slow with typing, but that isn’t a bad thing. Probably more of a self fulfilling prophecy for him to get better at it.

    Conclusion

    We’ve seen an immediate lift since we started. Studying is less painful and his grades were already good, but also improved. This could be the slippery slope to what many people associate, AI + Education = Cheating, but being introduced to that concept feels inevitable. If we can be the “cool” parents and introduce it responsibly, hopefully he views it as a tool. Not a shortcut that undermines his development as he grows up with this technology.

    ^ I’ve been paying for ChatGPT Plus for a year now and using it regularly, but I don’t think anything I am describing here requires. Except voice mode, which he didn’t care for.

  • Only One Mode – SPEED

    I heard about Speed and Turnstile in the same conversation on the side of a soccer field with two Dads. I started listening to both with regularity, but as mentioned saw them both live back in September. Speed was great. Gallons of energy. But they were a bit hamstrung by the venue. Barriers to segment the crowd, a little too much sky and space. If they returned to Richmond in a smaller venue, I’d bet they’d tear the place apart. Plus they have a flute!