Mail from the Feds duh duh duhhhh🎹

Two things form the bulk of my mail; fliers and official communication from the Federal government. This time it's from Service Canada and since I haven't put in for a passport renewal I was puzzled. Oh yeah, this year I turn 60 - not only a time for seniors discounts but early CPP application.

MarioKart Tour - Cabin Fever saver

Nintendo fan here! I even stood in line for the Wii back in the day and we still have 2 DSs and a bunch of games around. We did a lot of Wii Fit and Wii sports nights with friends but the most fun was MarioKart. I was super pumped to see a mobile game come out and was not disappointed. For me, the free version has hit the sweet spot of rewards while punting you back to real-world responsibilities - like Bennie! So I was really surprised to read such a negative review from Engadget.

Each race is fairly short and you can only collect a certain amount of coins and experience points before hitting the daily cap. Rubies are doled out frequently enough that you get to use the pipe without paying and you can use tickets to level up to earn more points in a race. I usually hit a wall 3 days before a tour ends - if you don't keep collecting stars, new tracks don't open. Challenges are a good range of "keep playing" points and "do tasks" to earn extra stars and coins. New Tour = several open tracks.

You can play a long time without knowing all the ins and outs. I collected tickets for ages before really exploring the menu button and using them to upgrade karts, drivers and gliders. Game mechanics are good. I tend to keep my thumb on the screen all the time even though you don't need to and it can result in unintended motions. It's a drain on the phone battery but not too bad.

This is a freemium game; you can purchase rubies and play packages as well as a monthly subscription. Coming soon is a multi-player mode which I'm meh about. I suppose for people used to countless hours playing games, this game wouldn't be appealing but for a casual gamer like myself, it's a nice break with firm disengagement opportunities.

First cold week of Winter.

This was the first really cold week this winter. It's been so cold that Bennie doesn't spend time outside other than potty break. Once again, the storm door on the kitchen entrance makes a huge difference as we aren't getting a gust of cold air when Bennie goes in and out and there isn't a big ice build up on the window in the door.

Wow 2020!

January and days are already getting longer. It's surprising how quickly the angle of the sun changes at this time of year. Maybe all the more noticeable because November and December are low light months. I'm not into NY resolutions but I was going to try to do the Year Compass instead I thought I'd do a look back and...change the name of the blog (with the same intermittent posting😁)