🍂 Hello over here! 🍂
Settle in comfortably, we're going to chat for a bit ☕️
For years I maintained many blogs and tumblr (RIP my skyblogs that now sleep in the archives of the BNF) and I admit that I miss taking the time to write long articles. So why not do it again here? I really want to take up this habit and share my feelings, thoughts, passions, and current favorites with you... What do you think? Let's go!
. .ೃ F A V O R I T E S .ೃ. .
. The Cosmic wheel sisterhood. .
Since the beginning of the year, I have revamped my entire wishlist on Steam, filling it with indie games. I worked several years in a major game company and I've always had a particular love for indie games, their freedom, freshness, and the values they convey. So I follow Steam sales and pick some here and there, setting aside around ten euros a month to discover some gems.
The latest find is a game from studio Deconstructeam, "The Cosmic Wheel - Sisterhood".
Synopsis: Dive into an enchanting story as Fortuna, a fortune-teller sentenced to exile on her asteroid. Make your tarot deck, regain your freedom, and determine the fate of the cosmic community of witches.
It's a cozy game where almost the entire story takes place in the same location (except for a few flashbacks). Your choices affect your relationships with other characters but also the fate of the witches' community you belong to (despite your 200-year exile). The tone of the game is caring and inclusive writing is present, a delight for my little heart. As you go, you personalize your tarot deck, accumulate energy, and your card draws also impact your various encounters.
I had a great time; I really liked the mechanics of the game and got caught up in personalizing the cards, which have certain meanings depending on the assembled elements.
It took me a little while to get into it (a little over an hour) but once I was in the plot, I often thought about it during my other activities, eager to return to it and see what happened next!
It's important to note that there is a lot of text, as it's mainly through interactions with other characters that the story unfolds. A soothing game with subtleties, finished in about ten hours, but with all its value in replaying and trying other combinations to see all the possibilities.
. Nattō. .
If you are rather familiar with Japanese culture, you probably already know nattō, at least by name.
Nattō (納豆) is a traditional Japanese fermented food made from fermented soybeans, most commonly eaten with plain rice in Japanese cuisine, especially for breakfast. - Wikipedia
It is true that at first glance nattō can be surprising. The appearance is not exactly appetizing (although I think it looks a lot like melted cheese on a hot pizza slice) and the smell can seem strong (much less than a blue cheese if you ask me). The mouthfeel is completely unique, hard to define. It is a bit slimy, a bit sticky... but super appetizing!
My partner had wanted to try nattō for a long time and since our move to Charente, it wasn't easy to find a well-stocked Asian grocery. Once we did, we found nattō! He first tried an industrial one from Japan. At first he ate it by himself, I honestly didn't feel like trying it. The second time, seeing him really enjoy it, saying he had more energy and really felt a change inside, I wanted to try! The first few bites, I forced myself a little I admit. I thought "well, if it's so good for me, I'll just have a little spoonful a day and that'll be enough." And actually... Little by little... You get used to it. And little by little, you like it!
Now, imagining nattō on just-cooked, steaming hot rice is a vision of paradise for me! 🍚
And I've also understood the importance of GOOD nattō (like everything, right? lol), those offered in Asian grocery stores are good for backup but are very bitter, have a coffee and ammoniac aftertaste, and aren't very tasty. Let me share our gem, organic nattō made in France, in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur,! Le Nattō du dragon! Try it with your eyes closed if you like nattō, it's a treat!
Another important point, remember to pimp your nattō so it develops all its flavors. When you buy the industrial type, it comes with a tiny pouch of karashi mustard and a tiny pouch of soy sauce (so much more packaging, huh) that it's good to mix with your nattō. That's where your creativity comes in! For Japanese purism, I invite you to do some research, I think Dijon mustard, chopped leek tops, and soy sauce are enough. Here, we love trying new things. We mix it with whole-grain mustard (because it's all we have), soy sauce, chopped leek tops, and a tiny touch of ketchup to balance the bitterness and it's a BANGER. Simply. When you have fresh tomatoes, don’t hesitate to eat one with your white rice and nattō, the two go perfectly together.
Since I've been eating it, for two weeks now, I've really felt a change in my energy during the day (we often eat it for breakfast or lunch but never at night), and a real change in my digestion and transit too. It’s not a placebo effect at all, something really beneficial happens for my body. Nattō is rich in vitamin K2 (or menaquinone, which stimulates the hormone osteocalcin, which fixes calcium in the body), it's really good for the intestinal flora (mainly thanks to fermentation, which also makes it very digestible) and above all very rich in protein!
I can only recommend you try it! I saw a meme saying that nattō is a bit like American fruitcake, you either love it or hate it. I'm glad I love it, I hope you do too! 🥢
. Nekoniwa. .
Nekoniwa has been my little refuge for quite some time but I had never talked about it here. We follow a Japanese woman who lives in the southern United States. In each video she transports us into her gentle, poetic world with a polished aesthetic. I love the little bubbles she manages to create with each video. Only the music and sounds from the footage accompany us, no voiceover, just footage and text. We don’t know her name or her face (she always makes sure her face is off-screen or hidden under a big hat). After each viewing of one of her videos, it makes me want to cook, garden, tidy up my home, or create things—it's so pleasant! 𓋼
After watching several channels in this style (camping, lifestyle, cooking, etc.) I noticed that this video style—no voiceover, just text and music—is very widespread, especially by people of Japanese origin. I love it! It makes me want to create some too 🌰 I have others saved, would you like me to share them with you?
I hope these little capsules in the world of Nekoniwa will please you!
And that's it for this autumn letter which, in the end, is more a presentation of favorites! But that's just as good if I made you discover a few little things! And it did me good to take my time to write this article ☾☼
Wishing you a great day, evening, night, morning and see you soon!
Latipule 𓅯
Nattō illustration by Rodger Liukane and banner from Nekoniwa