Weekend report-back: beach, board games and books
So I'm back in the office after a 4 day weekend. And I'm trying not to remind myself that it's almost 3 months until the next public holiday. Bah!
Anyway, pop culture didn't play too massive a part in my mini-break. There was braai-ing (expected on National Braai Day), the baking of pretzels in celebration of Oktoberfest (even if we weren't in Munich this year), working on the next Girlz 'N' Games comic, and a family lunch to celebrate my mother and cousin's birthdays.
A hefty chunk of the weekend however was spent at one of my favourite holiday destinations: the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast. We were celebrating a friend's birthday at his family's holiday flat in Southbroom. So there was much chilling and eating and games playing, as well as kite flying, dolphin spotting and swallowing of saltwater as I flailed around in the choppy, chilly surf.
We even managed to find Emo Shell!
Anyway, film viewing was neglected this weekend, with the exception of revisiting one of District 9's gritty, gory and darkly comic ancestors, RoboCop, and watching one of my favourite teen comedies, Eurotrip, a guilty pleasure which could be seen as an unofficial Contiki tour movie.
Gaming, both electronic and tabletop, dominated the weekend. Although no one was really drunk enough while down the coast to embrace party games like Cranium, our good old board gaming staple Settlers of Catan was introduced to more people, and we gave Race for the Galaxy yet another spin. Despite understanding exactly what to do, and even playing in pairs for a change, I just cannot convert comprehension to a decent strategy or substantial victory points for this sci-fi themed game.
In terms of reading this weekend, I finally started - and finished - The War of Art, by celebrated writer Steven Pressfield.
Pressfield is perhaps best known for his outstanding Ancient World-set historical novels (Gates of Fire, Tides of War and Last of the Amazons). The War of Art however is non-fiction; a (dare I say it?) kind of self-help book that 1) examines the creative process, 2) details the various negative forces in our lives that prevent us from achieving our potential, and 3) formulates a simple game plan to overcome this "Resistance" to achieving our dreams.
The way I've described it probably makes The War of Art sound like yet another piece of airy-fairy motivational rubbish. That couldn't be further from the truth. Written in easy-to-digest passages, the War of Art presents arguments that are simple, punchy and realistic. I won't go into too much more detail about the War of Art because I'll have a full review up here soon - as well as a giveaway for the first time ever on this blog. However the book is definitely worth seeking out if you, like me, succumb to blocks, procrastination, fear and dream-shattering, insidious rationalisations in terms of your creative work, and life in general.
Anyway, pop culture didn't play too massive a part in my mini-break. There was braai-ing (expected on National Braai Day), the baking of pretzels in celebration of Oktoberfest (even if we weren't in Munich this year), working on the next Girlz 'N' Games comic, and a family lunch to celebrate my mother and cousin's birthdays.
A hefty chunk of the weekend however was spent at one of my favourite holiday destinations: the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast. We were celebrating a friend's birthday at his family's holiday flat in Southbroom. So there was much chilling and eating and games playing, as well as kite flying, dolphin spotting and swallowing of saltwater as I flailed around in the choppy, chilly surf.
We even managed to find Emo Shell!
Anyway, film viewing was neglected this weekend, with the exception of revisiting one of District 9's gritty, gory and darkly comic ancestors, RoboCop, and watching one of my favourite teen comedies, Eurotrip, a guilty pleasure which could be seen as an unofficial Contiki tour movie.
Gaming, both electronic and tabletop, dominated the weekend. Although no one was really drunk enough while down the coast to embrace party games like Cranium, our good old board gaming staple Settlers of Catan was introduced to more people, and we gave Race for the Galaxy yet another spin. Despite understanding exactly what to do, and even playing in pairs for a change, I just cannot convert comprehension to a decent strategy or substantial victory points for this sci-fi themed game.
In terms of reading this weekend, I finally started - and finished - The War of Art, by celebrated writer Steven Pressfield.
Pressfield is perhaps best known for his outstanding Ancient World-set historical novels (Gates of Fire, Tides of War and Last of the Amazons). The War of Art however is non-fiction; a (dare I say it?) kind of self-help book that 1) examines the creative process, 2) details the various negative forces in our lives that prevent us from achieving our potential, and 3) formulates a simple game plan to overcome this "Resistance" to achieving our dreams.
The way I've described it probably makes The War of Art sound like yet another piece of airy-fairy motivational rubbish. That couldn't be further from the truth. Written in easy-to-digest passages, the War of Art presents arguments that are simple, punchy and realistic. I won't go into too much more detail about the War of Art because I'll have a full review up here soon - as well as a giveaway for the first time ever on this blog. However the book is definitely worth seeking out if you, like me, succumb to blocks, procrastination, fear and dream-shattering, insidious rationalisations in terms of your creative work, and life in general.
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