Dropped our Amazon Prime a few months ago as it was easy to buy whatever we wanted and get it to our door the next day. Prime isn't all that useful as most times your items still take 2+ days to be delivered and with that it was an easy sale for the family to just wait if they needed to get items from Amazon to get the cart to the $35 limit for free shipping.

I've been going to our local Ace Hardware for some small items that we need for any home repair things. For large sheet goods or lumber there's still Lowes and Home Depot but, I've been working on trying to find other sources for that is nearby. It just takes some time to go through in how you shop and try to find other sources for them.

I've been sitting here for the past few minutes, trying to gather my thoughts after diving into Citizen Sleeper 2. You know that feeling when you finish something special and need a moment to process it all? That's exactly where I am right now. Before I jump into my experience, I should mention that I gave it 4 out of 5 waffles, and I can certainly see why.

Let me paint you a picture of my evening: It's late, lights dimmed, headphones on, and I'm about to start what I thought would be just another sci-fi game. Boy, was I wrong! From the moment I woke up as a synthetic being with scattered memories, I knew I was in for something different.

I'll be honest - at first, the amount of text had me worried. I mean, I love a good story, but this is a game, right? Then something clicked. As I started making decisions and rolling those virtual dice, I felt my heart race with each choice. There's something incredibly tense about watching those dice results determine your fate, especially when your character's survival hangs in the balance.

The funny thing is, I found myself getting completely lost in the atmosphere. The subtle hum of the space station, the minimal but perfectly placed music - it all just worked. I caught myself literally holding my breath during some of the tenser moments, even though I was "just reading." Pretty impressive for a game without flashy action sequences, right?

I have to tell you about this one moment - without spoiling too much - where I had to make this split-second decision about trusting someone. My palms were actually sweaty as I weighed my options. That's when it hit me: this isn't just a game about reading and rolling dice; it's about living another life in this incredibly well-crafted universe.

Now, I should warn you - if you're looking for non-stop action and explosions, this might not be your cup of space tea. But if you're like me and love getting lost in a good story where your choices actually matter, you're going to eat this up.

The resource management through the dice system kept me on my toes the whole time. Every roll felt important, and I loved how my character's skills affected my chances of success. It reminded me of those late-night tabletop RPG sessions where every decision could change everything.

I'll admit, the tutorial section did run a bit long, but you know what? I appreciated knowing all my options when things got serious. And trust me, they get serious pretty quickly in this game.

For anyone curious about more details, I'd definitely recommend checking out my comprehensive review over at 2TonWaffle (https://2tonwaffle.com/citizen-sleeper-2-review-a-compelling-narrative-journey-through-space/). I break down everything from the mechanics to the story elements in a way that really helps you understand what makes this game tick.

As I wrap up my thoughts on these first two hours, I can't help but feel excited to jump back in. There's something special about a game that can make you feel so invested through mainly text and simple mechanics. It's proof that sometimes the simplest ingredients, mixed with great storytelling, create the most memorable experiences.

Until next time, fellow space travelers! Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some more synthetic dreams to chase...

Opening things up here as I've been wondering for those that run their own sites, how or when do you begin to look around to bring in another person to lighten the load on yourself? I know that it feels extremely vulnerable to think about bringing a new person into the mix of your creative flow but, there has to come a point in which you need too. Not just for your sanity but, also for your creativity.

One of the things I'm trying to get through my own head is to find other creatives who would want to join as being paid is important but, for an initiative like the 2TonWaffle is not in the cards at the moment. For myself as a tiny, independent space, expenses are mountainous over any hope of profit. Would asking creatives to volunteer or come on board pro bono be something that would be deemed offensive? I don't know and is the main thing I wrestle with myself constantly.

Owncast is a great piece of software and is truly stable for livestreaming. I've been using it for a few years now and is part of the places I stream too.

Hey streaming community!

I just wanted to share something that's completely transformed my OBS setup process. Have any of you tried Elgato's new Marketplace Connect plugin yet?

After struggling for years with the traditional way of setting up OBS (you know, the late nights, endless YouTube tutorials, and constant troubleshooting), this plugin feels like magic. I can now install professional-level streaming setups in minutes instead of hours!

Some highlights that blew me away:

• The step-by-step wizard that handles all the technical setup
• Instant loading of entire scene collections (with all plugins included!)
• Access to community-created templates for every type of stream
• The ability to share and even monetize your own OBS setups

For newer streamers, this means you can have a polished stream from day one. For veterans, it means more time creating content and less time fighting with technical issues.

I have a fantastic breakdown of all the features on 2TonWaffle: OBS Marketplace Connect: Transforming Streaming Setup from Headache to High-Five

Has anyone else here given it a try? What's been your experience? And for those who haven't tried it yet, what's your current OBS setup process like?

(Note: Currently only available for Windows users)

Hey fellow gamers,

I just published my in-depth review of Remedy's supernatural action-adventure masterpiece "Control" over at 2TonWaffle.com

For those unfamiliar, Control puts you in the shoes of Jesse Faden, who becomes the director of the Federal Bureau of Control—a secret government agency dealing with paranormal phenomena—right as an interdimensional entity called "The Hiss" invades their headquarters.

The game absolutely blew me away with its:

• Distinctive brutalist architecture that shifts and transforms
• Incredibly satisfying telekinetic combat
• Mind-bending narrative that respects player intelligence
• Connections to a larger Remedy universe

What really surprised me was how the game balances its weirdness with genuinely engaging gameplay. Flinging chunks of concrete at possessed agents while levitating through reality-bending office spaces never gets old!

Questions for discussion:

• Have you played Control? What were your initial reactions?
• Which paranormal ability did you find most satisfying to use?
• Did you find the story's deliberate ambiguity engaging or frustrating?
• How does it compare to Remedy's other titles like Alan Wake or Quantum Break?
• What was the most memorable moment or character for you? (Personally, I can't get enough of Ahti the janitor!)

I'd love to hear your thoughts, whether you're just starting out or have completed everything including the DLCs. And if you haven't played it yet, what's holding you back?

Looking forward to the discussion!

I agree completely and for a company that commands such a majority share of the internet, the decisions it makes effects so many businesses. There are a lot of small, independent sites who experienced a major drop of inbound traffic that equals to a massive loss of business.

With Google search we've already seen how absolutely garbage it is now with its focus on shoving ads and AI results into your search. You have to almost go to the second page in order to see your actual results of the search hich makes it all but useless.

As pointed out by Vencabot that this new tool that was on the surface a great thing in bringing a bit more discovery to Owncast streams, is actually using AI in changing stream titles. For the vast majority of Fediverse users, AI changing your content without you knowing it is a large faux-pa. What's your thoughts on this new development and I do hope that the developer of this will make the changes to remove this AI feature, or at least make it known and giving you the option to opt-in if you want to use it.

I've been working on getting this new forum infrastructure up and running, that has ActivityPub integration. Been running Invision Community for our regular, main forums for quite awhile lately. What I wanted to do was to have something that can easily share out into and from the Fediverse. This is what NodeBB is bringing to the table in a way that is actually pretty easy.

Would this help in bringing new members to the forums, I really can't say but, it could make it easier for people to make their way into the forums and create an account. Another aspect of NodeBB is shrinking the overall feeling of the forums to something more user friendly. Something that I believe that many were feeling with coming into our Invision Community forum. Could I be wrong in that? Probably but, not going to find out without at least trying this new initiative to see how things work out.

In using NodeBB as this new forum software I can and you can as well create and respond to posts and threads from Mastodon, Lemmy, and other ActivityPub homes. This is the main core in why I even started to move over to NodeBB. For this I only hope and believe that by being more involved within the Fediverse would help in bringing more eyes into the content I and everyone else makes and shares.

Hey fellow creators,

I just published a deep dive into what I'm learning is the "campfire approach" to content creation. In a digital forest where everyone's competing for attention, I believe success isn't about having the biggest fire—it's about building one that genuinely reflects who you are.

Some key points I explore:

• Why mimicking successful creators often backfires
• The FIRE method (Flint, Tinder, Kindling, Logs) for structuring sustainable content
• Balancing technical skills with creative expression
• Building genuine connections instead of chasing algorithm-friendly metrics
• Creating sustainable practices that prevent burnout

I'd love to hear your experiences:

• What makes your "campfire" unique in your niche?
• Have you found yourself drifting toward content that performs well but doesn't feel authentic?
• What's one tool or technique that's helped you maintain your creative voice?

Whether you're just striking your first spark or tending a well-established flame, I believe we all face similar challenges in staying true to ourselves while building something that attracts the right audience.

Read the full post here: https://indiecreatorhub.com/the-soul-of-the-independent-creator-finding-your-campfire-in-the-digital-forest/

Looking forward to your thoughts!

Ghost has just released the ability to integrate your Ghost blog with the Fediverse. Only available currently to Ghost Pro users but I'm expecting once this initial large wave to go through. They should be opening it to those who self-host Ghost.

I've always been a big advocate for indie creators and the work they do. This video helps bring to light how even with $2 million dollars, its extremely expensive to produce a indie show without an overbearing, large, corpo studio.

Recently last month, I had moved our services to a different hostel that had caused some issues when trying to access our Owncast and even removed us from the Peertube Sepia Search index. Working on finding out what was going on I think I found the issue that was causing these problems. I'm seeing that Owncast is being accessible from everywhere as many were getting the default Hostinger page. Our Peertube instance is now back in the index to be viewable there. If you're still seeing a problem, please let me know.

True in that Discord has been successful but, the issue is as a company they will be beholden to what the shareholders want. That means trimming overhead and squeezing as much and then some of profits from the company at users expense.

This was what a lot of people were talking about in how they didn't think Skype was still around. That falls on Microsoft who had repeatedly didn't push the service, even after they acquired it many years ago. Then Covid came around and Zoom took advantage of the situation to their advantage over Skype.