Contrails: Oct '26, Week 4

The week went by in a flash! 🤔

🌙 Work 🌙

Spent most of the week editing vocals for a solo cover (It's done and sent for mixing! ✨) and looking forward to the scheduled release of my cover of Ga (Moth) with Nagi! 🖤💜

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDygKTsxZbQ

I have so much to say about this collaboration. 🥹 I'm not sure where to start...

Nagi lives in Japan, and I can count with my hands the number of times we've met in person (I think it's just over 5 now? 6? 7?). When we first met (through Yuraia), our creative ambitions were very different - from each other and compared to today. But we stayed connected over the years. Privately, she's the only person who still addresses me by a name I've stopped using, giving me a nostalgia hit every time. She holds a special place in my heart because I'm sentimental like that. 🥺💜

When she reached out to collaborate on Zamza, I honestly expected it to be the first and last project together. I think we work well together, but I've always seen her as someone with so much more drive, skill, and potential than me. I saw Zamza as a project to help jump-start her YouTube channel, so I was motivated to do my best for a special friend.

Because... Why settle for me?

So when she asked to collaborate again, I was pleasantly surprised. She likes Yuraia's mixes, and I was inclined to believe that I was just a convenient add-on because I work with Yuraia often. But if that was all, surely she could just commission Yuraia to record and mix solo covers? 🥹 She eventually shared how she wanted to challenge herself to venture out of her comfort zone by working with others. What she didn't know was that I was going through a rough patch in my creative endeavors at that time, so it felt like she was offering a hand to get me back on my feet. So to reciprocate that good will I decided to take on the challenge too.

And I'm glad to report that I have no regrets. 🥹 Did I discover anything new about myself? No. But now I can say that I've covered an Utsu-P song. 🥹✨

I'm grateful for the opportunity to work with people who are so skilled in their craft. I still wish that Nagi would go further. I feel like I'm obscuring her glory every time my voice enters. But for today, I'll settle for the comfort that I was able to stand with someone so wonderful. 🐈‍⬛🐇

Really looking forward to our next cover together! 🥺💖

Fun fact: I was really happy when she asked for help to illustrate the scratch lines in the background. I felt recognized for having a skill. 🥺

🎮 Gaming 🎮

I changed my outfit because I was getting annoyed that the pants in my previous outfit would scrunch up weirdly when I sat down. I quite like this comfy vibe!

It was a rather calm week on the gaming front: Continued to stream Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii for friends and level my Gunbreaker in Final Fantasy XIV.

I'm enjoying the gameplay in Pirate Yakuza, but the story still feels rather hollow. The game feels more like a mashup of many mini-games rather than a side-story to the main Like a Dragon story. I guess I'll take what I can get and enjoy the nostalgia from looking at all the side characters from the mainline game.

A friend asked if I would get Stranger Than Heaven. Honestly I'm not keen because it looks completely unrelated to the main story or the characters I'm fond of. But maybe I'll get it when the game is on a huge discount since I did enjoy the Judgement series. (Though, to be fair, the Judgement series DID make references to the main story, which I enjoyed a lot.)

Also, I like ships. And I get to steer a vehicle.

Besides leveling in FFXIV, I also got to try the new seasonal typing game with some friends! 🎉

Got carried. 🙃 Or at least, I guess I managed to carry my own weight... maybe...

It was honestly quite fun! I can imagine the game getting stale if someone went at it for days on end, but it was great as a getaway from the standard content. :) I have yet to earn enough points to claim all the event rewards that I want, so I'll be back for more!

I also got to watch the FFXIV Fanfest Keynote live with my partner on Saturday morning! 💖 I'm a little disappointed that I have to wait for a later Producer Live Letter to learn more about how new Off-Tanks will play, but I'm looking forward to the rest of the content coming in Evercold! ✨ The update I'm most excited about is the Gauntlet of Power -- I've always struggled with remembering boss mechanics, so I think doing 5 random boss fights in a row will allow me to practice recalling. Almost like doing flash cards? 🤔

I just hope there'll be enough friends who still play regularly to experience this together. 🥺

I'll try my best, Radovan. 🥹

~💜~

Hopes for this week

♪ Edit vocals before the weekend - working on something for fun with a friend.

♪ Prepare to publish a cover ✨

♪ Organize the files from all my covers over the years...

☆ Try not to gain weight (lol)

☆ Play Pirate Yakuza ☆ Play FFXIV

☆ Have a nice catch up with ^said friend over the weekend 💖

Thank you for reading! 🌙🐰