[Sovalis]

I have been slowly, gently, patiently working my way toward my goals for the last 2.5 years. I am proud of my accomplishments, so so happy with the healing and change that has happened.

 

However, I am not content.

 

I have a good life and a lot to be thankful for.

 

And yet, I could be doing things to make that life incredible and I have not made those choices. 

 

I am choosing change. Enter… Villiany. Villains are exciting because they are active agents in the world. They set a plan and go all out to make it happen. They are ambitious, driven, and create change wherever they go - proactive, rather than reactive. I want more of that energy in my life.

 

I have identified four main areas of my life that I want to be a more active agent in:

 

1) Physical Health, specifically strength training. 

2) Modifying my home so that it suits me better in terms of style and organization.

3) Modifying my habits to better support a happy, healthy life. 

4) Enjoying the romance of the world.

 

To encourage change in these areas I am:

 

1) Strength training with a trainer two days a week (Tues/Thurs) for the month of September to see if I like it.

2) Cleaning, organizing, decorating, and undertaking home improvement tasks to curate the house to my preferences. 

3) Focusing on fibre and protein from whole foods by eating the food that I want to eat while the Lair is in my sole possession, maintaining my soft no-spend, continuing my Duolingo, drinking my water, keeping up with my Bujo, Tarot, and forum routines, etc. 

4) Reading or watching stories that delight me with tales of romance. Recommendations always welcome. 

 

To protect these intentions for change I have:

 

1) Paid for the trainer up front.

2) Bought paint samples for the kitchen backsplash and gotten advice on how to handle the kitchen modifications I want to make (next major Lair upgrade).

3) Ate responsibly for Nerdly and brought that into September at home.

4) Solicited recommendations for love stories from someone I trust and now mentioned it here. (Bonus points for queer love stories!)

 

I am really hoping that victories in one area of my goals will translate into victories on multiple fronts. Fingers crossed!

 

The Bujo chart is different this time around. I had the idea to track specific goals in their own charts as if they were blueprints. This may or may not make reading the completion data more interesting, I guess we will see. I haven’t finished decorating it yet, but here is what there is so far:

 

 

I have already soft-launched this Villain Era last challenge, so I feel like this post is more of a formality and something for me to reference at the end of this challenge when I want to try and evaluate how well things went. I am quite excited about it! Thanks for coming along with me! ❤️ 

 

 

 

 

 

[Everstorm]

8 minutes ago, Sovalis said:

Villains are exciting because they are active agents in the world. They set a plan and go all out to make it happen. They are ambitious, driven, and create change wherever they go - proactive, rather than reactive. I want more of that energy in my life.

 

Well said!  Following!

[TiogaGirl]

YASSSS VILLAIN!! So fun!

[Rookie]

 

Following along ❤️

[Sovalis]

Update on the weekend and all of the amazingness that I am carrying into this challenge:

 

1) Nerdly

2) House Projects

3) First Session with the Trainer

4) Psych Appointment

 

1) Nerdly:

 

I was fortunate enough to go to Nerdly over the long weekend. The logistics were a little more complicated this year as my car isn’t reliable enough to go on the major highway that takes us close to the site. So I drove to my Parent’s house, dropped off the dog and my car, and then Bryon and Nicole picked me up and took me the rest of the way in their truck. The trip down had a few bumps but we got it all worked out and ended up on site around 4pm. We did our Covid tests, got negatives (yay!) and then unpacked and started thinking about dinner. After food we split up and did an evening session. I attended a cool Worldbuilding tool demonstration and met some new people. It was right up my alley. I stayed up pretty late visiting friends (most of whom I haven’t seen in a year, since last Nerdly), getting tons of hugs, and just generally soaking up the vibes. AMAZING.

 

Saturday morning I was up at 6:30 for some weird reason, so I got up and took my Bujos and Tarot to the Main Hall. Nerdly happens at a Bible Camp that is closed for the summer season, so there are cabins for us to stay in, a Main Hall for us to play in, and various outbuildings we are also allowed to use. Their mandate is to provide summer camp experiences for children with disabilities, so the entire place is super accessible and just incredible. We are so, so, so fortunate to have access to this space and we feel good about supporting the work they are doing in their community as well. They are aware we are a bunch of nerdy, Queer or Queer positive, neurospicy gamers and they seem pretty fond of us. So that is good. Anyway. Main Hall super early meant that I was one of the first up, so I made coffee and did my books and enjoyed the quiet time with close friends who were also up early. One friend, Kim, told me that she was running two games over the weekend and wanted me to consider playing. The first was Rosenstrasse (Content Warning: This game deals with some events from WW2. Only engage with reading up about it if you are in a place mentally and emotionally that you can safely do so). The second was Lumberjills (Content Warning: This game also deals with some aspects of WW2 but this game is much more lighthearted and the “about” page isn’t as challenging). I trust Kim implicitly so I signed up for both games. Then I had breakfast and enjoyed soaking up the love from my friends. I am going to spoiler my conversation about Rosenstrasse so it’s not in anyone’s face. You are not obligated to read it by any means and there are some spoilers for the game in case you do think it is something you want to experience. It really shaped my weekend.

 

Spoiler

Rosenstrasse is for four players and a Director. I played with Adam, Abraham, and Nicole. Kim was our director. I know Nicole very, very well, have played with Abraham before, and didn’t know Adam at all. In the game you are assigned two characters, one male and one female. These characters are either intermarried, or in one case, are brother and sister. I played Max, a young Jewish violinist who was married to Annalise, a young, beautiful, daydreamy Aryan German woman who was played by Nicole. My other character was Inge, a proud and prideful Aryan German woman housewife who was married to Kurt, a passionate nationalist German man played by Adam. Over the course of the game love and horror swamped us repeatedly as Nazi policies started stripping away rights and liberties. It was heart wrenching and absolutely no one was safe. Halfway through the game it is revealed that Kurt has Jewish ancestry and he is barred from the Nazi party and loses his job as an Army Procurement Officer which devastates Inge’s otherwise picket fence life. Their story is intense and Adam’s handling of Kurt had vibes that reminded me of my ex, so that was an extra whammy. Max and Annalise were lovers in love with love until the bitter, bitter end, and it was both achingly beautiful and so, so hard to dig for that hope and love when the rest of the game was so emotionally devastating. Eventually the game culminates with the women protesting outside of Rosenstrasse after all of the men have been taken away. I cried for nearly the entire four and a half hours that we were playing. I am a crier by nature, but this was something else. And this was imagination based on a reality. FML. I wrestled with the game, the existential dread, the reality of our current world situation, and having a husband in the army in real life for the rest of the weekend. It was intense. SO SO SO WORTH IT, BUT OMG, UNDERSTAND THAT IT WILL WRECK YOU. Have good people around you for aftercare afterward.

 

After Rosenstrasse I went back to the main hall and got some supper. I decompressed with Kim a bit and then attended a session on designing your own RPG system. I think I was asked by everyone who saw me if I was okay because I definitely looked like I’d been crying all afternoon. ?I had a decent time with the RPG system session but wasn’t really well focused. Too tired and emotionally drained. I was going to go to bed early, but ended up being drafted into kitchen cleanup after the Midnight Pancake Party so didn’t make it to bed until ~1:30. I slept very, very well though.

 

Woke up around 7:30 on Sunday and headed for the Hall. Had breakfast, did coffee and Bujos, and generally hung out until after lunch. After lunch we headed out to the woods to play Lumberjills. Kim was directing again, and I played with Nicole, Nancy, and Dinah, all of whom I have gamed with before. Lumberjills explores the setting of the WW2 Women’s Lumber Corp in Scotland where young women went to work in timber camps cutting wood to support the war effort. This game does not feature the war in such a direct way as Rosenstrasse; it is in the background and affects you in as much as it is the reason you are in the camp in the first place and the cast of soldiers and other lumberjacks who come to the dances. The gameplay breaks up into a prelude, three acts, and an epilogue. In each act, there are three events: Sawing, where you stand in a particular posture holding hands with your sawing partner and physically rock back and forth while talking; Dancing, where you stand in a different posture and sway with your partner while talking; and Chatting, where you are in the dorms with your other Jills talking about the suitors you danced with and whatever else you feel like. I played Kit, a tomboy who signed up readily for the Corps when it was announced and left London to go. I made the decision in the prelude that Kit was coming to terms with being queer and that unlocked an alternate block of suitors for the game who were women rather than men. This game was so much fun. The dance cards mean that you dance with each other player, either as your character, or as one of their suitors trying to woo them. I love to flirt and like to think I am pretty good at it, so this was a great way to indulge without anyone coming to harm. Nancy played Eliza, the Lady who owned the local boarding house. She and Kit fell in love, and then at the end of the game Kit decided to stay in Scotland with her rather than returning to London. It was so sweet and incredibly tender and it made me cry too. Lol. Definitely helped me realize that I need more romance in my life. I know that isn’t Dave’s deal, so I need to sort out other ways to accomplish that dopamine goal. 

 

After Lumberjills I headed back to the Hall for supper and the played Steam Up with some friends. When that finished I put on my headphones and worked on my Bujo for this new challenge. I started the spread three times before I arrived kind of where I wanted to go with it. I went to bed around 11 and slept well. 

 

Monday was breakfast, cleanup, many rounds of hugs, and then heading home. I collected the dog, the car mostly behaved on the way home and I got in around 4pm, tired but so very satisfied. 

 

2) House Projects

 

Dad bought me the yellow paint samples I wanted for the kitchen. I think I am going with English Daisy, which is the more butter yellow (as opposed to the more lemon yellow of Unmellow Yellow). I need to buy other supplies to get started, but I like having the colour choice decided. I also hung some new blue curtains in the dining area today after taking down the beige ones that were there. Baby steps, but good baby steps. 

 

3) First Session with the Trainer

 

I had my first strength training session today! It was an hour long, went really, really well, and left me feeling like Jello. I really hope the DOMS aren’t too bad tomorrow because I need to work. ?I was handling better weight than I thought I would for most things after being so long away from things. Will definitely go again on Thursday. 

 

4) Psych Appointment

 

Had my regularly scheduled check in appointment in person today so drove to the next city over and did that. All is well, no changes to treatment. Happy about that. 

 

Okay, I think that is plenty long enough for now. Thanks for indulging me!!

[DarK_RaideR]

Hello there! I'll do my best to keep up this challenge round!

[Sea-to-sky]

8 hours ago, Sovalis said:

Reading or watching stories that delight me with tales of romance. Recommendations always welcome. 

 

If you havent watched the anime “your name” yet. I highly recommend it, its amazing and has very high quality english dubbing. 
 

following and cheering. All for more villaining

[Salinger]

WOOOOOOO SOV!!! AMAZING challenge!

 

Romance films.... have you watched the Before trilogies?

 

Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, Before Midnight...

 

 

[Rookie]

Nerdly sounds like a great time ❤️ (and a bit intense at times lol) 

[MaeradCase]

Nerdly sounds like my kind of jam. Wish I lived closer enough to join. ?

 

Also, I liked your RPG story. I'll mentally prep for the concealed one, and read it a little later. ? Thank you for the consideration.

[TimovieMan]

51 minutes ago, Salinger said:

Romance films.... have you watched the Before trilogies?

 

Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, Before Midnight...

[athousandwords]

Love the names on your Bujo layout (No Capes! and Monologuing made me snort laugh!). Following along for awesome villainy!!

[Snarkyfishguts]

 

Following for villainy and healthy boundaries  

[Artemis Prime]

Yeah, you've got this!

[Heidi]

12 hours ago, Sovalis said:

Reading or watching stories that delight me with tales of romance. Recommendations always welcome.

Okay, here we go, and please understand these are "romance of life" movies, becuase once something gets soapy I lose interest:
Once

August Rush

Begin Again 

The Map of Tiny Perfect Things

Collateral Beauty

Carrie Pilby

Before Sunrise

2 hours ago, Salinger said:

Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, Before Midnight...

 

 

1 hour ago, TimovieMan said:

SAME.

 

I love the villain categories. 

Here to cheer!

❤️ 

[Sovalis]

14 hours ago, Everstorm said:

Well said!  Following!

Thanks Ever! Glad to have you!

 

14 hours ago, TiogaGirl said:

YASSSS VILLAIN!! So fun!

Hi TG! Thanks for coming!

 

13 hours ago, Rookie said:

 

Following along ❤️

Thank you, Rookie. Good luck with the start of the new job!!

 

9 hours ago, DarK_RaideR said:

Hello there! I'll do my best to keep up this challenge round!

Thanks, DarK_RaideR!

 

5 hours ago, Sea-to-sky said:

If you havent watched the anime “your name” yet. I highly recommend it, its amazing and has very high quality english dubbing. 
 

following and cheering. All for more villaining

I will look into that. Thanks, Sea-to-sky!! ❤️ 

 

4 hours ago, Salinger said:

WOOOOOOO SOV!!! AMAZING challenge!

 

Romance films.... have you watched the Before trilogies?

 

Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, Before Midnight...

 

 

Hi Sal! I have not heard of those ones, thank you for the recommendations! I will see if I can get them here. ❤️ 

 

4 hours ago, Rookie said:

Nerdly sounds like a great time ❤️ (and a bit intense at times lol) 

Nerdly is amazing. It can be intense, but it’s so worth it. 

❤️ 

 

3 hours ago, MaeradCase said:

Nerdly sounds like my kind of jam. Wish I lived closer enough to join. ?

 

Also, I liked your RPG story. I'll mentally prep for the concealed one, and read it a little later. ? Thank you for the consideration.

I also wish you lived closer. I think you’d love it. 

You’re welcome!

 

3 hours ago, TimovieMan said:

How’d you get this before-coffee picture of me???

 

3 hours ago, athousandwords said:

Love the names on your Bujo layout (No Capes! and Monologuing made me snort laugh!). Following along for awesome villainy!!

Glad it made you laugh! Nice to have you, athousandwords!

 

2 hours ago, Snarkyfishguts said:

 

Following for villainy and healthy boundaries  

Hi Snarky! So glad to see you! ❤️ 

 

2 hours ago, Artemis Prime said:

Yeah, you've got this!

Thanks, AP!  

 

1 hour ago, Heidi said:

Okay, here we go, and please understand these are "romance of life" movies, becuase once something gets soapy I lose interest:
Once

August Rush

Begin Again 

The Map of Tiny Perfect Things

Collateral Beauty

Carrie Pilby

Before Sunrise

SAME.

 

I love the villain categories. 

Here to cheer!

❤️

Perfect. I will look into those. Thank you, Heidi. 

❤️ 

 

 

Morning, Friends!

 

Holy WORD the DOMS are real this morning. I knew I was going to be in for it yesterday because I was already feeling it, but sleeping and then waking up sure made a world of difference. I took some Advil before bed, again at midnight when I woke up, and then again this morning. I am not sure if it is doing anything. I did have an epsom salt bath this morning and have now put some Voltaren on my elbows which are feeling the worst of everything. I think I can get through my workday but it’s not going to be an easy or comfortable day. Hopefully this is just the “you’re back after a long time away” startup penalty and nothing more serious. It doesn’t feel like injury, just like intense use, so I imagine things will be alright as I integrate. Tomorrow’s session will be interesting. 

 

I switched out the curtains in the dining room yesterday, taking down the beige microfibre ones and putting up some blue linen-ish sheers instead. The colour makes me really happy. They don’t block nearly as much light which is nice right now, but will also mean they won’t block the cold as winter comes in so I might need to find an alternative for when the weather turns. Felt good to make a change to the space using what I already had. Frugal villainy at its finest. 

 

I managed to make a smoothie this morning and actually consume it, so I have had some protein and fibre to start my day. That feels good, too. I started Santa Olivia by Jacqueline Carey before bed last night and read the first twelve chapters. It was a very good start. 

 

The leaves are starting to turn and drop now. Nothing super fast yet, but it will only accelerate from here. I think I am ready. Everything else feels transitional right now, so it seems appropriate that the seasons be visually shifting as well. 

 

I need to go get cream before work as I didn’t have enough for a second coffee this morning. I hope that you hear a song that makes you want to groove a little today. Thanks for being here. ❤️ 

[athousandwords]

26 minutes ago, Sovalis said:

I switched out the curtains in the dining room yesterday, taking down the beige microfibre ones and putting up some blue linen-ish sheers instead. The colour makes me really happy. They don’t block nearly as much light which is nice right now, but will also mean they won’t block the cold as winter comes in so I might need to find an alternative for when the weather turns. Felt good to make a change to the space using what I already had. Frugal villainy at its finest. 

 

Maybe you can double layer them in the winter (sheers on top of microfibre) to be able to keep the color once it starts getting cold?

 

Hope the DOMS ease up soon!

[Harriet]

15 hours ago, Sovalis said:

To encourage change in these areas I am:

 

1) Strength training with a trainer two days a week (Tues/Thurs) for the month of September to see if I like it.

 

There is no good and evil. There is only power(lifting).

 

I wish you glorious progress. 

 

Oh wow, the Rosenstrasse game sounds intense. I think that would be too much for me. I've read and heard real stories and I don't know how other people cope but I honestly feel like the trauma of history (and modern affairs. and even graphically violent fiction) is just accumulating like evil debris in me. It doesn't go away, it doesn't get better, it just sinks to the ocean floor and like fish bones and gradually compresses into sadstone. 

[Harriet]

46 minutes ago, Sovalis said:

Holy WORD the DOMS are real this morning. I knew I was going to be in for it yesterday because I was already feeling it, but sleeping and then waking up sure made a world of difference. I took some Advil before bed, again at midnight when I woke up, and then again this morning. I am not sure if it is doing anything.

 

DOMS is really normal after starting a new workout or upping the intensity or coming back after a break. AFAIK  anti-inflammatory painkillers hasten recovery but they also the blunt adaptive/hypertrophic response. I trust your joints feel okay and it's only your muscles that are sore?

Sooooo what exercises did you do??? 

[MaeradCase]

So, I read the hidden game narrative. It sounds devastatingly beautiful... like "The Pianist" with Adrian Brody. 

 

My gut response is to mention that I got a game called "If I Were a Lich Man" which has three games within, none of which I've played yet, but all having to do with Jewish traditions in a way that invites people to the table to discuss life and it's troubles in the open, loud, heartfelt way they are known for.

I told my friend who works at the shop my sessions are played at about it because she suggested I watch Madoka Magica (a magical girl anime lasting one season, addressing dark topics regarding the dangers of exchanging one's freedom for a life of servitude with the caveat of having a wish granted as part of the deal), and I realized the premise of one of IIWALM's titular game fits with the themes of Madoka Magica except it's four liches discussing their beliefs on the function of the philacteries and the threat of paladins. I immediately wanted to draft an alternate version in which they are instead the magical girls discussing their soul gems and the threat of witches. ?

[Heidi]

2 hours ago, Sovalis said:

I hope that you hear a song that makes you want to groove a little today.

On the way home from acupuncture, I heard "Blackbird" by the Beatles coming out of the windows of the car next to me at a stoplight, and it made me smile, so I popped that onto the car radio (via my phone), then that of course led to Bloackbird Song by Lee DeWyze, which I also love.

 

For the curtains, does it make sense to add some thermal drapes as a second layer, something that you can leave open when it's not cold? I like this additional light for you.

 

I hope you are having a lovely day.

❤️ 

[Laghail]

Following for the villainy and the evil enjoyment of debilitating DOMS *evil cackle*

[AerynLee]

Here for the villiany and the awesome goals! It's amazing what relatively small touches do for a house. We painted our second floor (aka- the master suite) and awesome blue color called Dragonfly this year and it's so wonderful

[Mistr]

Yay for a great weekend and a strong start to your challenge!

 

I love the "No capes" section. ?

[MaeradCase]

6 hours ago, Mistr said:

Yay for a great weekend and a strong start to your challenge!

 

I love the "No capes" section. ?

Wait, oh my gosh, I didn't even look at the titles of the new tally boxes. Those are amazing, Sov! "And your little dog, too!"