I was chatting to someone who, I had assumed, I explained everything about what my husband does.
Me-"He's working from 12pm-9pm from this past Sunday to Thursday, so it's been a struggle"
Person-"Oh, he works nights then? Where? Is this a second job?"
Me:
Then I forgot that, while she know about the very basics about what my husband does, I obviously hadn't explained what he does when he is not actually traveling for work.
I have made many, many, many, many blog posts about what life's like while Breaky travels for work.
I don't believe (correct me if I'm wrong) I have ever written about what life is like while he's working from home.
So, for those of you who may be new: My husband, BreakyCPK, is an "Esports Broadcaster" or "caster". Meaning, he does play-by-play for online video game tournaments and games. About 16% of that job involves big events to which he has to travel, often internationally. The rest is done at home, in our office, at his computer.
If you've never listened to one of these broadcasts, take a listen:
Now imagine that coming from your basement for hours on end.
I think our baby who is ALMOST 7 MONTHS OLD THE TIME IS GOING BY TOO FAST, is probably used to hearing that from downstairs by now. Honestly, it's probably just white noise to her now.
A gamer in the making!
Some things that people don't realize when I tell them he "casts" from home:
1. Like our daughter, I don't hear the casting from the basement anymore
It's all just background noise to me now. People who visit? Yeah they notice.
2. Unless there is a life-altering emergency, he cannot stop what he is doing
He can come visit on breaks and stuff, but when those would be? We never really know, and he could be unreachable for 3-4 hours at a time.
3. I prepare meals that can be eaten at anytime.
As mentioned before, he never knows when his breaks are. So neither do I, which means I eat by myself, leaving enough for him to nuke and take downstairs.
4. I will often pop onto the twitch channel to see where they are in the match to get a good idea of how the night will go.
I know enough about the game to know how much longer it could possibly take. Like who's winning, did it just start, am I going to be giving BabyCPK a bath by myself? Am I going to be able to shower today?
5. I get lonely
It's weird. Missing someone who is in the same house as you. I do have BabyCPK, but conversational abilities are a little limited. Although it would be three times more lonely if I didn't have her.
Since Breaky and I are a little behind on the Marvel universe, we decided that, before watching the new ones we haven't seen (Black Panther, the New Avengers) that we would kind of do a run-through/repeat of all the previous Marvel Movies. The only one we did not include was the Incredible Hulk, and that was because of the change of actor. Personal preference.
So we kind of made it an at-home-date-night.
Since we have a few hours or so in between when BabyCPK is asleep and we go to bed, that's when we decided to give this a shot.
We also are doing them in time-order, meaning that, since Captain America happened during WWII, we watched that first.
So here's our Phase I run through with some comments, GIFs, and a DuchessCPK (ME) and BreakyCPK (Breaky aka my husband) rating
Actually, I had recently watched it for the first time, like a month ago. Really regret not seeing this one sooner. Has to be one of my favorite Marvel Movies as of yet.
This was actually the first Marvel movie Breaky and I watched as a couple. We watched it in his apartment on a big projector screen. It is Breaky's favorite so far.
Good movie. It's a continuation of the story, but nothing truly groundbreaking. Other than making me kind of anxious. The whole gloom-and-doom and subsequent meltdown had me on edge the first time I watched it. Now though? Since I know how it ends, I can watch and enjoy.
Thor has to be one of my favorite Marvel characters. Coming from a Scandinavian background, I grew up with some of the stories and mythologies of Thor and Odin and Loki. I truly did enjoy this movie too. Different pace for sure, but my kind of pace.
Believe it or not, this was the first Marvel movie I ever watched. I believe I watched it in theaters when it came out. I was able to follow along with the story just fine, but with this run through, I realized how much tie-in with the other movies I did miss. Also, the soundtrack to this was killer.
I have been playing a fun game called "Why I cried today." Figured I would keep track of them as they happen and maybe others will get a kick out of it.
Today I cried because Breaky was leaving for the Philippines for a week
Today I cried because I forgot to add cheese to my eggs for breakfast
Today I cried because someone called at work and hates the new database and took it out on me (this is a big deal because I worked at a bank's customer call center for a year, I have been screamed at, yelled at, threatened, called every insult in the world and never, ever took it personally or cried)
Today I cried because a meeting was cancelled for work
I think I've had a draft of this blog post since my blog's inception.
But recent events made me realize that there may be some (a few, not many) people out there that may feel the same way. That is, the weird life that is the significant other of someone in the esports or video game industry.
Anyway, I figured it may be fun to actually hunker down and finish this blog post about things I've noticed have become a part of my identity as the wife of an esports figure. Enjoy.
You may be an esports significant other if:
1. You have no idea what their schedule is for the next week/month/year
My family can attest, his schedule makes it really hard to pin down family vacations, dates, holidays etc... Heck, this past year was one of maybe two Thanksgivings he was able to enjoy in the states! Although, did I mention he was in Sweden like, two days before our wedding? Yeah...
2. Learning names feels like double duty
Not only do you have to remember a person's real name, but very often their gamer name. I do not think there are many of our friends who calls Breaky by his real name.
There are times we are gaming together and I have to ask who this particular person is because I forgot their gamer name. On the flip-side, I sometimes forget that people have real names, and are, for example, not called WZA in real life.
3. Getting their attention can be a task
Esports is a career that is steeped in technology, including social media. Whether it is an important Skype conversation about how they may be traveling to Sweden next week, a Reddit post about the latest tournament drama, or checking their official Facebook page, their attention may have to be dedicated elsewhere other than you talking about how your work day went. Heaven forbid if you need to ask a question while they are actually in a game! (I know better now).
I personally handle this pretty O.K. I am not one who needs like, constant attention, and honestly, I have a lot of hobbies that would require me to not be around other people all the time. However, I can randomly be needy. Breaky knows this. I am very obvious about it too, which helps him figure out when he needs to pay attention to me for like, 20 minutes. Communication is key.
4. You check to see how much time you have when someone asks what your significant other does for a living.
For me, the quick and "easy" version is "he does a lot of video production in the video game industry" or "he works for a video game company". Obviously, that's not wrong, but when I am running down the hall to grab something from the printer, I do not want to have to explain to Bob from HR what an esport is, or how there are "broadcasters" or "casters" for these events. 5. You get a lot of questions about how an esport can be considered a real thing
I used to get really excited when there is a segment on esports on TV. Like the CBS morning show, or another news segment. I couldn't understand why Breaky didn't get as excited as I did. But then I watched them. The amount of condescending, un-informed dribble that would come out of these segments was astounding. Much of this information was false and based on opinions of a generation who not only doesn't "get it" but doesn't want to try to hear the other side.
The episode of Bull on CBS did a better job of portraying esports. Who knows, maybe things are getting better. Then again, maybe not.
6. You find yourself lost when your significant other has conversations about a game, event or feature you know nothing about
Especially in the beginning of our relationship when Breaky and his coworkers started talking "shop" I found myself zoning out. As many of those coworkers got significant others, I had people I could converse with about something else.
More recently, I find myself in the middle of those conversations, but am acutely aware if there are stragglers who may not know what we are talking about. I do my due diligence to make sure to either steer the conversation in a different direction, or try to engage them in some way.
7. If you are a gamer too, date night could mean gaming date night
Breaky and I have been doing a lot of Minecraft together lately. We call these nights "gaming date nights." They are nice, until you know, one of us accidentally hits the other with a shovel, or laughs so hard they cry when a creeper blows up after falling from God only knows where on top of their head (oh goodness was that funny, one minute he was there, the next BOOM, gone! haaahaha....sorry babe)
I even have a blog post about our Minecraft adventures, but I am not sure my enthusiasm for figuring out how to make colored carpet warrants a full blog post, but Breaky was excited for me, so that's that. True love ladies and gentlemen. 8. If your significant other uses a headset mic, you often get frustrated when you think they are talking to you, but are talking to internet friends
Sometimes this is ok though. For example, last night Breaky said to his teammate "don't decapitate me!" or something like that. I, for one, would never do that, nor would that be something he would ever have to worry about from me.
HOWEVER, sometimes if we are in the same room and he starts talking, I can't tell if he's talking to me or not. So we have a system. He lets me know when I have to pay attention to him (see #3)
9. Loud noises/shouting is background noise
I am married to someone who's official job title is "Shoutcaster". No joke. Also, about 90% of his job is done in our house in our studio/office. Has been this way ever since we lived together in our apartment. Now, a good chunk of the "yelling" isn't like, angry yelling. Well, sometimes there is raging, but most of the time, it is hype yelling. It is something that I have just gotten used to. Heck, after 2 months, the dog got used to it too.
There have been many times we'll have company over when Breaky is still streaming or casting, and they will stop mid-sentence because of the shouting. I get confused about why they stopped and what they are hearing. Then it hits me. Normal people are not used to shouting as background noise.
10. You learned a new language without realizing it
I actually did a blog post about this too. I have had to learn a lot of acronyms at first. Now the struggle is to remember to not use them, oh, let's say...at work. Or around my family. Or at the farmer's market. Normal people don't know what to do if I randomly start spouting off about Linda down the hall being "super salty" or Mike from finance being a troll. Especially if your boss is an older medical doctor.
Well, I hope you all had as much fun reading this as I had making it. It was loads of fun. If I missed anything, please leave a comment!
One part of being a wife of a streamer is hearing the stream or cast, be it just one side of it, usually from a distance, as his studio is downstairs (also known as the CPKave) and I stay upstairs if I am home when he's streaming. Sometimes, out of context, what I hear is well....interesting. Honestly, now his streaming or casting is just background noise.
"FUCK" "holy...... ooooo" *THUNK* <silence> almost a whisper "No....nope, I think I'm done with this game tonight" I heard this one at around 11:00 pm while in bed. I almost had to get up and make sure Breaky was still breathing.
Last year, Breaky and I joined a bunch of our friends at Blizzcon 2015. We were able to go, as those tickets were purchased for us as a wedding present.
Blizzcon 2015-Linkin Park
We had a blast, and how I truly wish I had started blogging back then, as I would have had so much to work with. Pictures, thoughts, frustrations, videos, Overwatch insights, Hearthstone hype, freebies, and much more. It was such an amazing experience.
Now, this year we got to watch the E-Sports events from our Smart TV, which has a Twitch App (fancy), find out about updates to our favorite games from Twitter and Facebook, and longingly reminisce about the good times we had last year. Mind you, I don't miss the long lines, the congestion, waiting an hour to play one round of Overwatch, or having to take all of that time off of work. I have mixed feelings about missing it this year, obviously.
Breaky and I at Blizzcon 2015
To recap the big announcements that Blizzard made in regards to there games, and my thoughts, which you can skip if you want, you can see below:
Along with the expansion, we are also getting new "Tri-Class" cards, that could be used by three different classes instead of one class, or like basic cards, all classes.
Also included is the "build your own spell" cards, such as "Kazakus", where it gives you options and choices which result in a unique spell.
Now, there are a ton of new cards that have a lot of potential to be game-changers depending on what kind of decks you like to run, or don't like to come across (I'm lookin at you Murloc-Paladin), but at the same time, it has the potential to breathe new live in to the game for some. As far as the Tri-Class cards, I find this very interesting, having played a little bit of a Priest deck that has a tendency to "borrow" cards from the deck or hand of the individual I'm playing. Makes for very interesting game-play.
It was my intention to post some of the cards that I found the most interesting, but in the words of Ulla from the Producers "But there's just so many of zem!" (If you have no idea what I'm talking about, what the movie or go see the show. Solid gold right here), actually 132 to be exact, and it is my understanding we are still getting news about new cards, and that will probably continue.
I have some mixed feelings about the custom spell idea. It definitely combats the whole "leave it up to the RNG Gods" motto that is pervasive in the Hearthstone culture. Not exactly sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing yet. Sometimes having chaos makes for the best Hearthstone stories and matches. But on the flip side, each custom spell will be different (someone did the math somewhere and the chances of getting/making the same spell is low. I'm lazy and don't "math" so, take my/their word for it)
So instead, tell me in the comments what cards you are most excited about. What decks you are running currently that you may not continue, or which you may now try! Personally, I find my Dragon Priest deck to get some changes in a positive direction, and honestly excited to maybe try some different Paladin decks outside of, but still including, Murloc Paladin.
Sombra is a new offense hero that uses "hacks" to disrupt enemies and turrets , and uses invisibility and a translocator to allow quick movement.
Arcade
There is a new section that allows for a wide variety of play that we have not seen before. This, from what I can tell, replaces the weekly brawl concept.
1v1 mystery duel where the hero you play is randomized and you play against one person.
3v3 where you get to choose your hero and play with two other people in a simple "last man standing" elimination concept
6v6 Mystery Heroes: Similar to the 1v1 mystery duel, only, obviously, with 6 players.
6v6 no limits, which allows for multiple of the same hero, which is no longer allowed in quick play (YES!)
New Maps
We get two new maps, "Ecopoint: Antartica" which is an arena map. This map is the map used in many of the new Arcade modes. Another new map is Oasis, a control-point map set in the Arabian desert, and has a jump pad to allow access to a higher location (whhaaaat?)
League
An announcement was made at Blizzcon about the idea of an E-Sports league for competitive Overwatch.
We don't have a lot of information as far as how this will particularly look, but some information can be found here. Basically, there will be a Preseason, where rosters will be built and my understanding is that it will be by city, similar to many professional sports leagues. Players will have contracts, get paid appropriately, and compete in the inaugural season with live streams every week, all accumulating in to the World Championship.
Thoughts:
I was able to play Sombra a little last night, and actually found her quite a lot of fun to play. The new Arcade mode (see below) allowed me to play her in a setting that was more fitting to learn a character than when I tried Ana (which I find myself playing more and more to be honest). The hacking abilities and ultimate made me assume she would be more of a defensive or support character, but after playing, I can see how this would be considered an offense character. While I prefer more of a support or defense style character, I can see myself playing her, when the novelty of a new character wears off.
I really like the Arcade concept. This allows for more casual play, allowing people like me, who main heroes in Quick Play and Competitive because of comfort and ranking reasons, to try new heroes in a new kind of environment.
Am liking the one new map: Ecopoint: Antartica, which I tried as a result of playing a bunch of games in the Arcade Mode. No complaints. Have not tried the other map yet.
As far a the league, we will see. I have seen first hand how attempts to organize and contractualize E-Sports has done in the past. Questions remain, such as Casting talent and how that will look, if the teams will have to sign an exclusivity clause in their contract, and how already existing E-Sports organizations and teams will fit in, if at all. Obviously, I have no shot or interest in becoming a competitive player in any E-Sports league, let alone Overwatch, but as an avid watcher of E-Sports events, it will be very interesting to see how this pans out
Overall, interesting announcements. Can't wait to see what happens.
Last week was....well, interesting to say the least. For some context, I work in an older building that used to be a residence hall (dorm for non-university-worker speakers) and, well, I had the urge to tell the story in tweets and GIFs this time. So I figured out how to embed tweets in to my blog.
Here we go:
We (Breaky and me) took a little break from WoW to celebrate the new expansion from Hearthstone. "Whispers of the Old Gods" released April 26th and included brand new cards and introduced a new style of game play which retired some older cards from previous expansions, but still allowed you to play those cards in a different format called "wild."
For those that may not know what the hey-diddle-diddle I'm talking about, Hearthstone is a computer-based card strategy game. You play a "class" or a "hero" and you play cards to ultimately destroy your opponent. Some of your cards are spells that may do things like damage or healing, and other cards are "minions" that you place on the board that can do damage or protect your hero.Think Magic the Gathering on the computer, just a little bit more playable (in my opinion, Magic just seems way too convoluted. I have a master's degree, so my brain-space is super limited now). If you haven't already, I suggest playing. The tutorial is super helpful, and its $$ FREE $$ HOLLA. You can play on your PC, phone and tablet.
So Breaky and I tried to pre-order the 50 packs. I had a crap-ton of issues trying to log on to my Hearthstone on my tablet, which is connected to Amazon. We used Amazon because of their deal on coins, which allowed us a pretty good deal to pre-order these packs. Unfortunately, I was a little too late, so I ended up buying 40 packs, then receiving 3 packs for logging in that day, and a few more for winning a few games in the new standard format. Total, I ended up with 48 packs to open with my Breaky.
Along with everyone else, I got C'Thun when I logged in to open my packs. This is C'Thun:
There are many cards in the expansion that increase C'Thun's attack and health.
And the husband and I argue about how to pronounce. C'Thun. According to the card's sound effects, it is Ka-Thoon. Breaky thinks it is See-Thuun.
To each their own.
Anywho, on to the opening
Couple things for newbies to Hearthstone. In order of rarity, cards with a white stone in the middle are "Common", cards with a blue stone are "Rare" cards with a purple stone are "Epic" and cards with a gold or yellow stone are "Legendary" and are usually adorned with a dragon up top. Cards that are gold are worth more and are pretty rare.
I decided to record my pack openings just in case we had something epic happen. I had a few good openings, took some additional screenshots and was able to record the cool opening animation.
Check it out!
This is my Golden Legendary! Hogger, Doom of Elwynn. Plus, pretty cool Priest card: Power Word: Tentacles" which gives a minion +2/+6
This is probably the best overall opening I had. No Legendary cards, but three Rare, two of which are gold and an Epic!
Then of course, there's my husband's Legendary, Yogg-Saron, which casts a random spell for each spell you've cast this game. Jealous:
I am probably most excited about my C'Thun Priest Heal Deck. I played a basic Priest Heal Deck when I was learning, and did pretty well until I was about a rank 19, then it wasn't valid anymore.
