Hobbies & Interests

I love narrative. It excites me to sink my teeth into the flesh of a different world. From Dungeons & Dragons to copious video games, anime to books, it's how I've come to even perceive our own world: a story in which I am one of trillions of characters.

Unashamedly, I love Medieval Fantasy over everything else. Whether that's the narratives I consume, or Renaissance Fairs (yes, I cosplay a fantasy character. Come at me), I yearn to live as if it were all real. Of course, modernity has its perks. I am a software engineer. I know full well video games wouldn't have existed if it weren't for progress. Yet that's the beauty of the modern age! Our choices are near-limitless.

When I'm not writing or reading fantasy stories, coding or working out at the gym, I'm writing poetry. I will publish more in the future, but here is one poem to taste:

The Act of Giving

Blood cradles the shoreline
where my visage skitters
in the firelight behind
like dawn moonbeams. I heave,
reel my battered self
upward, a hunter
(a prey) no longer to this
eventuality—ready now
to nourish, disseminate
the rhythm of nurtured words
that drum my final heartbeats:

peace, at last, is listening
to the ash patter on
the crests of scattered waves.

Video Games

The games I enjoy most

  • Skyrim

    My all-time favorite game. I have Akatosh tattooed on my leg. What more can I say?

    10/10

  • Hollow Knight

    Hollow Knight is a treasure. It's an exercise in futility, yet also a meditation on what it means to be alive. The game challenges you fairly, and those challenges are always rewarded with stunning beauty.

    10/10

  • Elden Ring

    I'm a sucker for all things Souls-related. I played Demon's Souls back in 2010 and every Dark Souls title in between.

    10/10

  • Sekiro

    Honestly, I don't know if I like Elden Ring or Sekiro more. And in many ways, it isn't even fair to compare the two, despite being made by the same people.

    10/10

  • Stardew Valley

    I can't pass up a hat-tip to this one. Stardew Valley holds a special place in my heart, if not for me, then for all the wonderful people I know who are so enamored by the game.

    9/10

Books

The books I enjoy most

  • The Name of the Wind

    Inspiration is something I strive to find only through serendipity. Forcing such a delicate thing would push it away, like magnets of the same pole. When I read The Name of the Wind, I had heard about it, been told of its worth. But I gave it no expectations. And that is when inspiration flitted into existence like a fae phasing between worlds. I cannot recommend this book enough.

    Goodreads

  • House of Leaves

    I'll be honest. I care about complexity. It thrills me when something wends, makes me question my understanding of the world, and House of Leaves did exactly that. The story—or, rather, stories—interleave philosophy, poetry, and text-book-esque prose in a way that made me strive to be a better person. Yes, it's fiction. But in the words of Tom Spanbaur: Fiction is the lie that tells the truth truer.

    Goodreads