u/SeriousResult3732

Since Turtle WoW got taken down I haven't been able to scratch this itch. To me, TWoW was just about perfect...

- large immersive open world with an active RP scene

- cosy vibe

- basic graphics without over-the-top flashy particle effects and animations

- RNG visual upgrades (I enjoy RNG grinds for stuff to make my character look the way I want - usually a forest wizard/druid or something along those lines)

- slower paced gameplay

- horizontal progression (can take long breaks without feeling like my progress is being made redundant).

- bonus that it was free too (I don't get much time to play, maybe 3-4 hours a week, so subscriptions usually don't feel worth it, plus they make me feel pressured to play to make the most of the sub fee).

I'm the meantime I've been dabbling with my OSRS account again, which I'm enjoying, but it lacks the deep immersion of something like WoW RP - where I can get cozy with a mug of wine, a bit of weed, and get lost in another world.

Hoping someone will be like "oh dude, how have you not heard of X before?! It's exactly what you're looking for."

Specifically I'm talking about the ambient tracks. Not even sure if it should be called music - it's more like atmospheric audio scene setting.

Adds SOOOO much depth to the immersion of the game.

Was there one composer who did most of it?

I'm 37, and for the past year or so, something in me had changed. Not sure how I feel about it...

When I get dressed, I find myself tucking my shirts into my pants - and not just for work. I think it looks smarter, and honestly it feels more comfortable too (no cold drafts sneaking into my lower back).

Problem is, the habit has started to sneak in to my casual wear too, I'm talking tucked in t-shirts...

I never understood why my old man tucked his t-shirts into his pants. I also always thought it looked pretty dumb. But here I am doing just that...

Help. Is this normal?

My partner and I are sitting at about $600k net worth at 36/38 (so, $300k each, mostly tied up in property).

We've been pretty much flat lining for a good few years for a few reasons...

• We've just gone through the young kids phase, and we're now home schooling, so effectively have been/will continue to be on one income (partly because my partner is a qualified teacher who's really passionate about high quality education, partly because we live 45mins from the nearest school, partly because we value the flexibility).
• My industry (residential architecture) has been in shambles for the last 3 years, and since then my business has only been doing about 30-40% of what it can do in a healthy economy (only around $40k revenue lately, abysmal).

For the last 3 years we've been going backwards by about $10k per year (drawing down on our revolving credit mortgage).

Other than the cashflow stress since the economy turned to shit, we love our life.

We live in a beautiful part of the country, on a lifestyle block that we've created from scratch to suit us. We have plenty of autonomy/flexibility, the lifestyle we enjoy costs bugger-all, and when the economy picks back up I'm confident we'll be able to start moving forward again (should be able to put away about $60-70k pa).

But!

I don't really know where others are at/whether we're falling behind in a big way, and whether the state of the economy might just be the new normal/my business may not pick back up food a long time.

Just looking for a little perspective I guess.

I'm a sole practicing residential architect in Northland, and I'm thinking of folding my business because it's hardly been generating any inquiries/revenue (only about 20% of what I have capacity to take on).

Before I close the business, I wanted to check if it's a me problem, or just an industry reality at the moment.

I'd love to keep the business running, but if increasing turnover is beyond my control (industry reality) then I'll fold.

As a bit of background, I started the business at the beginning of the post-covid recession (bad timing, I know). So I've only really been in business during a slow economy - recession, govt austerity, oil wars, etc.

The question I've got is whether other small businesses in architecture or similar industries are operating at a severely hampered rate too (20% ish), or if it's likely that I'm just doing something wrong that I could work to fix.

I don't have the guts to talk to other sole practicing architects directly to ask them about the state of their businesses, so here I am on a throw away on reddit 😅