#whatiuse

Because people care appearantly,

I play on Java 1.14.4, and you’ll need Optifine for most, The most recent full version is recommended!

Replaces some of the newer sounds with the Alpha sounds, such as chests & doors opening and the classic “Oof”, sounds like barrels or other sounds that don’t have an Alpha equivalent stay the same. (DL)

Vanilla Tweaks let’s you change some quality of life things from a huge list of edits, you can pick & choose on the site itself! I personally selected: Endless End Rods, Quieter Nether Portals/Pistons/Water/Dispensers/Droppers/Villagers/Fire, Unobtrusive Scaffolding, Lower Fire, No Vignette, Smaller Food, 3D Sugarcane/Iron Bars/Lily Pads/Doors/Trapdoors/Vines, Rainbow XP Bar, No Pumpkin Overlay, Lower Shield and Dark UI Black Text. (DL)

Ethnicity gives Villagers and Wandering Traders different Ethnicities depending on which Biome their Village is from! It also gives them expressions and “personality”, but only in a visual sense. I think Illagers change as well but I have not checked yet. (DL)

Mickey Joe's Relatively Improved Default edits quite a few things, such as Mob Models and textures, Tools durabilty being visible in the sprite itself (A nearly broken sword looking nearly broken), as well as retexturing and naming saplings, oak saplings turn into acorns for example, I think. (DL)

Personally I edited this pack to only include the Mob Remodels, if you’re interested in the pack without the the other stuff and only the mobs changed feel free to @ me on my Discord Server.

The last 3 are my own Texture edits I do personally use, HappyDogs make dogs look like my dog, Pride Parrots turn parrots into different Pride flags and Aiden Wings turns elytras into blue feather wings to fit my skin. (DL)

Additionally I use Sildur’s Shaders (medium) as well as a few Datapacks to make my life easier, but you can find those in my world download since datapacks are stored in a world’s savefile.

A friend asked me to list everything I use as a writer. Here it is. :-)

Hardware (devices specific to my workflow)

Lenovo X260 Laptop (text, and also text)

Lenovo P40 Yoga 2-in-1 (text and visual assets, note taking)

Lenovo Yoga Book (visual assets, note taking)

iPhone 6s Plus (text, small visual assets)

Software (apps specific to my workflow and projects)

I dual-boot Ubuntu 16.04 and Windows 10 on my X260, Ubuntu Studio and Windows 10 on my P40, Windows 10 on my Yoga Book, and iOS on my iPhone.

Ubuntu: LibreOffice Writer, Gedit, Steam, Aseprite, GIMP, Inkscape, Google Chrome

Windows 10: Photoshop CC, Dreamweaver, Sketchbook Pro, Mischief, OneNote, Google Chrome

iOS: Vesper, Sprite Something

All: Google Docs, Two-Factor Authentication, and encourage your collaborators to do the same.

Services

Paid Cloud Storage, Client-side/Two-Factor Authenticated

Red Couch Creative, Professional Graphic Design.

Unity Technologies’s Unity Development Platform.

A Bowker Identifiers account, for ISBNs.

Pickle, ESA, Guinea Pig Type

Amazon, and Createspace.

The US Copyright Office.

app dot roll20 dot net

ID@XBox.

Twitter.

Tumblr.

Personnel

My spouse. She is a writer, and a Digital Initiatives and Metadata Librarian. She = The Best.

My father, brother, and friends who act as my sounding board for book content and editing.

My Game Dev partner. He’s always challenging me to grow as a creative.

My Table Top RPG Groups. I usually have a Castles & Crusades and a Numenera Table going where I prototype characters, story ideas, and game concepts. 4-5 sessions a month is ideal for me.

Content curators, creative contemporaries, fans, and friends on Twitter, and Tumblr.

Resources

Many browswer tabs of collected articles and research. Save everything.

A library cart in my apartment that I use to cycle research. Read much, cycle often.

An 18th Floor, 450 square foot apartment. Minimalism = more time to write.

Tennyson, Leopardi, Wordsworth, and Blake to sharpen the saw. I wish we could hang out.

A content library of books and articles specific to long term projects.

25 GB of music, and playlists for different projects while I work.

Intangibles

Identify your disabilities. Creatives are largely informed through their weaknesses, and it is through them they build connections to an audience. People can't tap into your words, if you weren't a little vulnerable when you wrote them.

Avoid movies, games, and other media that bear a strong resemblance to current projects. When you go back and experience that media later, you won't have to wonder if you were influenced by them. Where there are similar elements, you'll get affirmation that your creative contemporaries reached similar conclusions.

Duality. Have 2+ methods for everything that contributes to your word count. "I can only write when..." = a failed and unproductive writer. Hone your talent so that you can work anywhere. If you need a specific keyboard, app, or circumstance to write, you’ll fail to produce. When you can thumb out two thousand words on your smartphone while waiting for fifty minutes at the DMV, you'll know you're close to becoming a master. 

Wishlist

A professional grade Lenovo Yoga Book, ISV certified, with an Nvidia Quadro GPU. While I'm dreaming, make it with a 12.5" WQHD AMOLED screen, i5 or i7 ULV Processor, 16 GB RAM, 512 SSD, SD Card Reader, and the same EMR tech that's in the create pad, built into the screen as well.

The perfect daily carry rucksack, backpack, or messenger bag. This is The Quest.

Digital copies of very specific editions of Tennyson, Leopardi, Wordsworth, and Blake.

I'd like better analytics from Amazon/Createspace, and Bowker.

Someone dutiful to do marketing for me. I'm terrible at it.

Today I am moving out of realm of the kitchen and taking you into our bathroom. While I still feel that our plastic waste is way beyond what it should be I am also proud of the small steps we have taken to reduce our single plastic use while supporting independent UK businesses. I feel that as long as a swap doesn't break the bank, does the same/better job as your previous off the shelf product and doesn't inconvenience you ridiculously - there is no excuse.

So here's a little breakdown of the swaps I've made and am so happy with.

DEODORANT – We swapped from the usual Doves and Sures out there to a Salt of The Earth stone years ago and were super happy with it. I loved the fact that I wasn't clogging up my arm pits with chemicals and artificial scents. Did you know that Aluminium-based complexes in regular deodorants react with the electrolytes in the sweat to form a gel plug in the duct of the sweat gland? Yup. Grim. BUT unfortunately this lovely product comes in a plastic holder. So after some research I ordered Carr Greens sample set of cream deodorants and was converted. Our favourite scent is Lemon and Geranium and it works soooo well. We've signed up to their subscription and get a new tin every 3 months. This costs £10 and lasts two adults (one of which has a very active job) perfectly.

SHAMPOO BAR – this is a difficult one and I have tried quite a few in the past with little success. While I didn't find the process of using the bar as complex as I thought I would the earlier products I purchased left my hair with a thin layer of grease on them. But I persevered and finally came across Wild Sage + Co. Their Rosemary + Lavender shampoo bar is to die for. It leaves my hair nourished, soft and clean. I even had people comment on my hair looking healthier post bubba! And for £6 a bar (or £5.40 if you buy a multi pack) it’s not extortionate. Love love love. BODY + FACE – I've got a little thing for Wild Sage + Co and am a real sucker for the way they present their brand, the way they create their products and their ethos in general. I have combination skin and since having a child my skin has behaved in all sorts of weird ways. Wild Sage's Charcoal Detox soap is amazing. It leaves my face nice and clean as well as moisturised at the same time. I've also recently purchased their Pink Himalayan Soap which we use as a body wash and is exfoliating and invigorating all at the same time.

SHAVE – I've been talking about this for ages but for some reason never took the plunge... until Mat finally got me a safety razor for Christmas. Aaaaand I am a convert. It honestly is so easy to use. Your initial investment may be a little higher but the blades going forward are super affordable. My one is by Edwin Jagger and is so well made.

PERIOD – I am still in the testing stage of this but a few of my friends recommended I try a mooncup. I am so aware of the amount of waste period products produce and am determined to find a routine that works for me. So far I am liking it but haven't dared venture out on longer trips yet. So the only products I still haven't managed to swap/find are: Toothpaste/Toothbrush – I have tricky gums and have to be careful what products I use. An electric toothbrush is an absolute MUST and so is a good toothpaste. I just worry that the natural tabs out there won't cut it.

Facecream – This feels like a never ending journey. I have tried quite a few eco friendly products but still haven't found one that suits my temperamental skin.

Body Lotion – as with the facecream I still haven't found a good body lotion. I tried using coconut oil after showers and although it absorbs into my skin ok I still feel it't too greasy :-(

So here you have it - a little list of our swaps + challenges. What sustainable beauty products do you love to use?