February 2025

Kicking myself cos I never thought about visualising roadmaps this way 🤦🏻‍♀️ (it would also make it obvious where the organisation is headless, hopefully)

Equal Experts

Continuous Evolution Part 3: The Roadmap Radar - When is a plan not a plan?

The Roadmap Radar ensures that all efforts are clearly aligned to your strategic goals and objectives.

And as it’s Yasujirô Ozu’s Birthday (and Deathday) what better excuse to repost this old classic from days of yore - the many (but not all) teapots of Ozu!

January 2025 | monthnote

Is it even a new year if I don't make some doomed attempt at weeknotes?

Random notes inc work stuff

Vicky dying still does not feel real. I feel privileged I got to spend some siginifcant time with her when she came along to Conferencia Agile Spain (like most people I primarily knew her from her writing and online presence, altho we met briefly a few times when we overlapped at GDS) and was hoping to follow up on a few things we talked about at GovCamp but equally it means I can't just indulge in my full-on denial mode...

Worked through xmas-ny break like usual. It's usually a chill time unless I am in this department, where apart from the ongoing time-sensitive work lots of random emergencies happened. So glad I'm off for a couple of weeks now, I've not had a proper break since Japan in March/April and I'm shattered.

Overall so much random and weird shit was going down at the end of Dec / start of Jan (including both me and my flatmate having very strange dreams) I was beginning to suspect a gas leak... 🙃

Got extended till Feb 2026 in my current contract. 🎉 It should make getting a mortgage easier, now just fingers crossed that the property does not get down valued like the last one and my sellers find something they want to purchase soon.

Quite a lot of change at work, lots of it quite neatly coinciding with my leave. The migration from GOV.UK PaaS my team was prepping for for the last year got delayed last minute and now I'll be missing it but I'm sure it will all go fine.

Booked in with Keemee for a tatoo just after the holiday. 🌺

Govcamp happened and I was mostly helping our rather than going to sessions. :o Good times as usual, felt particularly busy this year for a 'normal edition'. I really like that we finally have a bit of a Teacamp return with TransformGov Talks and also sort of DataBites! \o/

Spanish classes are back. I've not signed up for Korean yet, there's probably a fair bit I can do to brush up close to my former level by myself if I just find the motivation. :s

Watched

Lots of Taskmaster, the perfect crocheting accompaniment (see below)

Nosferatu - the scene in castle 100% played like something from What We Do in the Shadows, I'm not even sorry for giggling throughout. 😔 Needed more Dafoe hamming it up. I was shocked the cat was not named in the credits - breaking a sacred tradition of cinema. 4 stars.

Presence - not a horror, not my kinda thing otherwise (family drama). The central gimmick could be fun in an actual horror movie tho. Another one they kind of employ ('not being bound by time') is sort of redundant because the progression is linear (I suppose otherwise the twist would be ruined). The marketing vs movie kind of fell in place for me when I realised it's the same distributor as Longlegs which was also underwhelming.

Late Feb / March seems staked with releases I want to see: The Monkey, The Last Showgirl, Mickey 17, Death of Unicorn... probably more. Those are just the trailers I saw before Presence lol.

Played

This is probably between Dec-Jan rather than strictly Jan.

Fledgling Manor - Stefan's route only, basically not sure how the other ones can top it so I lost interest but it seems all need to be played to resolve some plot points so maybe in the future...

Sorry We're Closed - I thought this would be a VN but it's a survival horror and I find the shooting stressful haha. You can say I hould have read the description before buying but I was blinded by the art. -_-

bits of Arco (love the mechanics and the story is good but I got stuck at an encounter I can't pass but I'm too stubborn to back out and return at higher level), Animal Well, Stanley Parable (at very long last - yes, it's as good as I thought it would be), I Was a Teenage Exocolonist (tbh the mechanics were more interesting to me in a more down to earth setting of Growing Up), Cryptmaster (Steamdeck does not work well for this).

Waiting for Yakuza in Hawaii, more Hades 2 patches, next Deltarune chapters, and Ghost of Tsushima sequel + Assassins Creed Japan (open world map marker slop > therapy, don't @ me).

Makes

Decima is still closed so no pottery. I've probably forgotten 100% of what little I could do. I'll probably do a course at Mudgang when I'm back to return to some working level and then get either a studio space subscription from them or Turning Earth near Haggerston, depending on how the flat buying is coming along.

In the meantime I have finally sort of learned how to crochet. I got a kit from TOFT to make a black and white cat, resembling Bella a bit. I tried crocheting before a few times (I learned very basic knitting during lockdown and have half a pride blanket from Wool & the Gang somewhere) but it always ended up with me crying, once in public. 🥲 The kit said it's level 2 so I got another level 1 one (labrador)

TBF they are not that different, cat requires changing colours which is actually not hard if you get over the initial barrier to entry of crocheting anything at all. 😬 The cat is also bigger which makes the process much less fiddly.

TOFT instructions are quite barebones and don't have any interim 'this is what it should look like by now' pics which as a complete beginner is quite rough, but I think I managed to make decent approximations of the cover images. I made some changes to the cat on purpose.

Belly disagrees.

The biggest issue I have with TOFT kits so far is that the amount of yarn provided leaves no room for errors or even leaving longer tails. With both patterns I made mistakes (crocheting with dark yarn is particularly hard going if you don't know wtf you're doing) and the yarn started fraying real bad so I had to chop it. I actually had to buy more yarn (which doesn't exactly match...) to finish the cat at all. :(

I got yarn and patterns for two sheep (Seth and Tobias) from them to keep busy on the upcoming flights so we'll see how consistent this minimalism is. 😬

Anyway then I went crazy at John Lewis sales so I have lots of materials now, just need patterns and ideas. The first one is not going particularly well and I'm losing my patience sligtly, might swap to something else.

またね! ✌️😗

March 2025

We're having AN ACTUAL SPRING? Whoever planted all the cherry trees (and other blossoms) around London - thank u.

For the first month this year, no one I know has died. As far as I'm aware. 🎉🥲

I've been doing Spanish on Duolingo for three full years as of this month, and taking classes for two (with some of the same people! so cool : )). It really feels like my life is just Spanish on Wednesdays sometimes, but if my count is correct I should be at the end of B1 by next summer!! :o

Went to the Stitch Festival, bought a load of stuff. I keep buying more and more yarn from Hobbii because I run out of one specific colour or have An Idea. Goal - don't buy any more in April?! I appreciate having a yarn shop 10 minutes from my house and I try to buy stuff from them whenever poss but to be completely honest the yarn selection is ass, they did not even have blue cotton. :[

Work is mostly stable, new Delivery Manager is settling in fast but I'm hanging around for a bit cos someone is going away for a month so a team needs cover. Still not sure what next, I've had chats about agile coaching. Hopefully not something that's a technology in search of an application - you know what I mean. 🙄

I made it to Data Bites (great talk about waste! all the girls love talking about incineration plants and waste tracking!!! 💖 ) and Product for the People where the vibe was honestly so nice, I really enjoyed myself even though I basically had to work throughout tee day. Also I met someone I've not seen for YEARS there cos they just came back in the UK and are doing something interesting again in one of my old depts. \o/

The OpenAI Ghibli stuff is so fucking gross.

What is up with the Majima Grayson Perry Everywhere campaign? I saw Grayson Perry books, Grayson Perry cross-stitch set, Grayson Perry jewellery, not even gonna mention the massive Grayson Perry poster that's just part of the landscape now. I like the guy a lot but it's funny how he's suddenly wherever I look. 😵‍💫

I had an eye test and my sight got better?!

House purchase has not moved from what I can see, it's gonna be another summer of hauling ass to the lido for an hour each way instead of having it round the corner at this rate. 🥲

I felt crap on the weekend when my friends started playing Delta Green, boo. :(

Whoever came up with Java Whiskers queer dating should get a raise. Not for me due to my commitment to dying alone but I appreciate marketing genius when I see it. 🫡

Earworm: Fever Ray - I'm not done (live at the Troxy). I was there and it was so fucking good, the recording almost captures it.

Less puerile street art IS available in London, but who cares. 😎

Makes

Raccoon (crochet)

Whales (crochet/needle felted)

Mouse (needle felted)

French bulldog (crochet)

Cat bed (crochet) + a necklace from the same yarn I've not managed to take a decent pic of

I picked up needle felting again after a workshop at Stitch Festival and I'm enjoying how easy it is to shape something recognisable. ~__~ It scratches the ceramics itch a bit, which is helpful since the only non-throwing course is on Saturdays in the prime morning swimming hours and I'm not sacrificing this over the summer haha.

While looking for Deltarune amigurumi patterns I found this amazing Seam plushie tutorial so putting that craft on my backlog...

I also got some cards from Pacific Knit Co, my knitting era may be approaching.

Currently I'm making something for a friend for Easter and trying to customise a pattern into a specific character... sneak peek:

Also pictured my first attempt at untangling a hank. What an absolute disaster. 🙃

Watched

a lot of KBash stuff - thank you youtube algorithm gods for sending me those fun, thorough videos from interesting perspective.

finished Star Trek TOS (due to this post, heh). Boy, did I feel like bobo the fool when I enjoyed the last episode and saw it's the most hated and panned one. 🧍🏻 You can quickly dismiss the premise as misogynistic (whatever the interpretation some aspects are deeply sus) but it's actually easy to find some nuance - and the idea that it's because of the writers' incompetence is delicious. 👹 Like the writer of that article I thought the performances were very fun. Anyway, I just started TNG and it kicked off strong with one of the divas of all time so my hopes are high. Maybe fewer aliens will be just blonde bombshells with funky hairdos this time (would it kill you to pledge your eternal devotion to a sentient pile of rocks that can revive Genghis Khan at least ONCE McCoy you coward! >:( ).

Next

Somehow I ended up buying fuckton of tickets for the future this month, so:

Kinoteka festival (Saragossa Manuscript, Hourglass Sanatorium)

UK Games Expo

A weekend in Ghent (I booked the Eurostar and the next day Switch 2 and Deltarune 3+4 were announced for the same weekend, I am fuming/you are WELCOME Lancer Fan Club)

Neon Genesis Evangelion screenings at the PCC

Deltarune concert for the 10 year anniversary (I was on the fence, I opened the seating chart and there was only one front row circle seat avaialble so my poor impulse control took over....)

Gotta make it to that Leigh Bowery exhibit

This is so true, thank you Pokemon News UK 😌

Fox and grey cat

Random little projects made this week.

I've had the cat kit for a while (bought instead of another book I will never finish at Waterstones), and the fox is my attempt at actually making stuff I find on Tumblr. It's a free pattern.

Honestly I expected the kit to be worse, the yarn was clearly some kind of a synthetic and the hook was just a chunk of metal but the instructions were pretty clear and it worked up quick. I have yarn spare as well. Shape-wise it's similar to TOFT kits but obviously less 'quality', at £10.

I placed the eyes wonkily hence the side eye 'fix'. 💀

---

The fox is made with Rico pure cotton. It's incredible how much more pleasant it was to make than my last thing, also in cotton but from Hobbii. Maybe that was stiffer cos it was bleached? :s

Catnana (alien phase + placeholder face, the future owner’s mum is doing me a solid and embroidering properly and stitching on legs herself, I will edit once I get a pic).

My first time using chenille - pretty horrid to work with tbh??? It was almost impossible to see the stitches so I had to feel my way around. Surprisingly decent outcome all things considered. Better than trying to do the same pattern in a pure wool anyway which was NOT soft and pleasant…. 😬

I ran out of yellow before the end despite using up two skeins instead of the one recipe called for anyway. :|

Pattern: https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/1187577726/pattern-jumbo-catnana-crochet-pdf-only

Kinda took off as a meme at work so I may make some minis to throw at people hehe

Made a Susie Deltarune amigurumi.

If you want more detail/other angles, peep this.

tl;dr i finished two sheep from TOFT (Seth the Wensleydale and Tobias the Hebridean) and this is what they look like

Things that went well:

I think they are very cute and I 💖 them, I guess that's the most important : )

I'm glad I changed the colour palette for Tobias, crocheting so much in a dark yarn would have been hell even with my new neck light

Safety eyes, look much cuter than the pattern. I wish the toft patterns had more instructions on where to place the eyes, I go through A LOT of trial and error. :|

I added a second coat of sligtly longer chains to Tobias' fleece and I think it was a good decision, he looked hella flat otherwise (and it wasn't actually that much more work).

Seth has very fun texture! Reading the pattern I could not imagine how a chain you work back down can become fleece but in the end it's even more extreme than the picture. Leading to:

Things that did not go so well:

Holy fuck did I use A LOT of yarn on Seth. Obviously I misinterpreted something in the instructions about curliness or density but if I only used the 50g provided I think he would have looked patchy AF? In the end I think I used 50g just on the head, and about 125g in total - needing not one but TWO deliveries (since I thought extra 50g would do... idiot). I could tell early on it looks different but obviously was too stubborn to undo what's already been done. I'd like to say I'm gonna learn something from this but I'm not gonna sit here and lie. 😑

Black yarn fortunately means no one can see stitches on Tobias' horns, not just me. 🙄 I felt like I followed all instructions and even made 3 of each just to test if I fucked up by accident but all of them ended up looking a bit off.

Future improvements

I want to learn different ways to do a decrease (sc2tog), or maybe figure out how I'm doing it wrong - it always stands out and looks like shit. The fleece helped hide it in this instance but I won't always be so lucky...

I need more patience when sewing things together, or I'll never make anything that looks straight ahead. 💀

Fortunately I found both a crochet class from end of March and a stitch circle in my local library that just started mid-Jan so I should be able to bother some people irl for advice when a pattern does not make sense to me and just as a second pair of eyes. :')