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UNIT TWO: Processing pain + work (day 3)

It was really easy to write in my notebook about my AI game.

Perhaps it will get harder when I actually try to code it.

I came up with the basic architectures.

Super Basic MVP Stack

  • Streamlit
  • Python vector db
  • Free MySQL

Production Stack

  • WordPress + NodeJS
  • AWS
  • VectorDB
  • MySQL

I also came up with a bunch of mini challenges that will help me get to the Basic MVP done.

Goals for the MVP are:

  1. Determine the overall AI technologies needed
  2. Come up with estimated overhead to run the game
  3. Raise money/interest

Mini Challenges for MVP:

  1. Create and pull from vector databases in python
  2. Work on data structures:
    • Story summary
      • Last 3 transactions
      • Story summary
      • Main objective
    • Geography
      • Locations
      • Lore
      • Physical properties
    • Characters
      • Stats
        • Age
        • Race
        • Health
        • Strength: A character’s physical strength, such as how much they can lift or punch
        • Dexterity: A character’s precision, agility, and nimbleness
        • Constitution: A character’s physical fortitude, such as how well they resist damage and disease
        • Intelligence: A character’s raw IQ and ability to learn
        • Wisdom: A character’s spellcasting ability
        • Charisma: A character’s spellcasting ability and saving throws
      • Location
      • Updates
      • Backstory
    • NPCs
      • Stats
      • Location
      • Backstory
      • Motivation
    • Relationship matrix
    • Time
  3. Visibility mechanism (to see who gets to see and interact with a new transaction)
  4. Overall prompt
  5. Story summary mechanism
  6. Query past with locations and time
  7. Develop multi session chat in streamlit
  8. Teach LLM examples
    • Battle
    • Non standard battle
    • Player enjoyment
    • Plot armor
    • Changing objective
  9. Map movement mechanics

Later development challenges:

  1. Explore invalid response resistance (create a way to repair responses)
  2. Explore cost-cutting and LLM selection
  3. Explore personality extraction (of NPC’s or characters)
  4. Explore context length restriction problem solving

Writing all this down I’ve come up with two steps moving forward:

  1. Even simpler MVP – completely prompt based
  2. After getting interest, develop simple MVP into NodeJS + frontend
  3. Then work on full final product
  4. Tool calls might be a gamechanger as well as vector databases

I’ve done it. I hit the wall of sinking dread, exhaustion, and boredom in this project.

I don’t want to create a DND game focused on storytelling with AI. AI just isn’t good enough, masterful enough, creative enough to create a rich world.

I want to focus on creating a game similar to the games I always wanted to create, focused on strategy and cool mechanics based in a system that allows for infinite creativity.

I need to create a system that builds a reality, not tells a story, and lets the player interface with it in a seamless way.

That means I’m adding a challenge:

  1. Think about how to allow for the user to have multiple inputs
    • Speech – what your character says
    • Action – what your character attempts to do
    • Question – what you want to ask the DM
  2. Separate the types of responses
    • Speech and actions get translated into story
    • Questions are responded to
  3. Think of how to use fewer words and show more
    • Character sheet
    • Map
    • Voice input and output

Also, I take back what I said, I can make a game on LLMs that tells a story, even though the thought of it makes me queasy in my chest for some reason.

I have then the challenges related to storywriting:

  1. Franklin’s elements of a story
  2. Dialog
  3. Emotion
  4. Character development and growth

UNIT TWO: Processing pain + work (day 2)

It’s 1 am in the morning and I feel tired.

When I think about drawing on my drawing tablet I feel overwhelmed high in my chest.

I feel really really scared that everything I do will be frustrating and not good or artistic.

Let me start with some inktober sketches.

What strikes me when I draw is that art for me, even just plain linework, is all about discovery, all about uncovering the truth or the world underneath the scribbles. It doesn’t matter if I don’t see the world at first, it emerges from within the shapes.

I mean this style is definitely me, I guess I worry that if I try to refine it, it will lose the liveliness in here. At the same time, I’m not sure I want the business card to be this messy and a part of my wants it to look more like a tarrot card. I imagined a swashbuckling kid with big aviator goggles and a bunch of dripping paint brushes.

UNIT ONE: Workspace cleanup (day 1)

AI GamingArt Coaching
Ideal PlaceQuiet with cool game posters that give me inspirationSomewhere warm and comfy and inviting. Traveling, in the library, Craft, or Sa-Ten
Ideal ToolsMultiple monitors, clear file structure, keyboard, notebookSketchbook, drawing tablet on laptop and phone, clear file structure
Ideal WarmupMinigame, blog post, writing ideas in notebookInktober prompts, art instagram posts, blog post working out some sketch ideas

To-do list

  1. Decide on clear file structure for AI gaming
    • Github
    • Jupyter notebooks
    • Python code
    • Project documents
  2. Designate a coding notebook
  3. Think about alternative coding spots or ways to optimize effectiveness at home
  4. Connect tablet with laptop and phone
  5. Decide a clear structure for both branding sketches and other sketches
  6. Designate sketching notebook

Results

  1. Decided to start with Google Collab and branch out from there
  2. There aren’t any really good coding notebooks, will buy a new one eventually will use bad one for now
  3. Not sure
  4. Done
  5. Done
  6. Done

AI Consulting + Art Coaching Days 52/63

Time is really running out in the first part of this challenge.

Perhaps it is time to actually create a challenge. I want to create separate challenges for art coaching and AI consulting (now AI gaming).

However, I think it’s ok to do both at first because the setup for each is pretty light work and can be done at the same time. In that case, I can include today.

Setup Challenge (4 days, Sep. 2nd – 6th)

UNIT ONE: Workspace cleanup (day 1)

  1. Ideal workspace brainstorm
  2. Action items
  3. Execution

UNIT TWO: Processing pain + work (day 2-3)

  1. Workday for art coaching
  2. Workday for AI gaming
  3. No work needed, only emotional processsing

UNIT THREE: Planning (day 4)

  1. Design a challenge for art coaching (3 days)
  2. Design a challenge for AI gaming (3 days)

Workpost 72: Refocusing

There are a couple of things I’m feeling into.

  1. I wonder if I have prediabetes since I do not feel well after eating sugar. I feel a bit numb and my stomach doesn’t feel good. I feel it in my kidneys as well.
  2. I really want to tackle my bloating and take it seriously. I was able to find way to tackle my knee issues, I should be able to tackle them too. My first thought is just to massage right below the belly button softly but for a long time, it tends to work and is very gentle.
  3. I want to refocus on my businesses, maybe create some challenges around them now that I’m excited and motivated to work on them again.
  4. I want to do what I set out in the last workpost, cleaning out my to-do list as cleanly as possible.

Ok here are some of the symptoms of prediabetes:

  • Increased thirst – yes at night
  • Frequent urination – nope
  • Increased hunger – nope
  • Fatigue – not really more than usual
  • Blurred vision – nope
  • Numbness or tingling in the hands or feet – nope, more on the back
  • Unexplained weight loss – nope
  • Dark spots on the skin – nope
  • Skin tags – nope
  • Slow healing of cuts and wounds – nope

So I probably don’t have prediabetes, just don’t respond well to glucose spikes or processed sugars.

In terms of bloating, I want to keep it simple, just doing very light circles right below my belly button really is causing me to feel like my gas is leaving. I want to make it a habit to do that when I’m feeling bloated.

Also, when I feel stressed, I want to focus on breathing. I want to charge my watch more often and use it to check my stress levels.

I’ll leave my business planning to dedicated blog posts, but overall, my next step is to improve my working tools and setup.

Workpost 71: Reseting

It’s somehow very comforting to have these work posts, as if I’m not completely alone while completing these tasks. Not just alone with my todo list.

I think its time to do a full todo list cleanup. Try my hand at every single item and see how far I can get.

Giving Too Much

I was in Taichi class the other day and my instructor said something very interesting.

She told us that if you are leaning forward, then you are “giving too much”. And if you lean back too much, you are “accepting too much” and when someone gives you a compliment, all you need to do is say a simple thank you.

It is an very interesting concept in taichi, this idea of always being in balance, always sitting on your heels even when pushing forwards.

I really want to experiment and see how much I can apply this to things like Valorant or productivity.

Workpost 70: Picking a Path

Today, I have many different paths that I can walk down.

I can focus on work. I can spar with my friend, I can go to jiujitsu. I could try to do it all. But I feel weary and tired from not sleeping yesterday. I feel stressed and pressured, and so I want to focus on a few things.

I suppose, first thing is first, I need to focus on work, because without that I cannot be focused tomorrow. Nothing matters until I get that piece done, and once that part is done, all manner of things are possible.

I did indeed get that done, and I feel extremely proud of the work I did.

Workpost 69: Getting More Work Done

One of the most recent realizations is that Valorant is meeting my need for significance maybe in a narcissistic way.

One of the ways that I can fulfill my needs and move on to getting more work done is by reassuring myself that even if I’m not getting better, even if I don’t win I am worthy, I am ok.

Today I really want to focus on getting all the contract work done but also visiting non-profits and getting more information about them.

If I can, I also want to be in good shape for jiujitsu and will probably need a bit of napping to get there.

Something else I was thinking about watching some podcasts about fighters today, when I go to jiujitsu, I go to learn and be really good at grappling and self-defense, but that’s not really my focus right now.

I’m really focused on my businesses, and in order to stay focused, I want to focus everything in my life on that.

This means jiujitsu is less about being good at grappling or fighting, but much more about being healthy, relieving stress, and getting a break from the computer.

I’m feeling kinda shitty right now trying to get past the lack of sleep I got today.

What I’m going to start out with is going to a nice place to work and get the basics done, then try to go to the gym and take a nap when I can relax my body enough.

After that, I’ll consider creating a focus for the day on what I want to complete.

Today I would like to work on my personal website.

I want it to reflect all the things that it represents for me:

  1. My workspace – messy creative space for me to work through things, sort of like akimbo
  2. A place that mirrors my coaching
    • Welcome to my house
    • Be patient
    • Take risks
    • Be ok with silence
  3. A workspace – sort of like profit in peace
  4. My way to be myself in a public way
    • If people stay, it helps me, if people leave, it helps me

Workpost 68: More Processing

Today I feel the need to process more emotions. I got some leads, but I’m afraid to call them. I don’t want to call them at all.

It feels boring, annoying, and painful.

I’m afraid if I call these people that I’m going to be sent to voicemail, or pressured to answer questions I don’t know the answer to. I’m afraid I will say something wrong that will mess it up, or that none of these leads are real.

I feel this burning numbing fear in center and left and right of my chest.

It feels like a plastic cage like a kids toy. It hurts like swallowing a hard candy that is a little too big.

Everyone I’m calling are just people like me.

But what if they don’t want to talk to me. What if they want me to leave them alone? Why do people sign up for things and then decide they don’t want to talk about them? What if I need to act excited and interested but I’m not?

The point is to vet these people, they might not want to work with you but you might not want to work with them on the same token.

UPDATE: I ended up calling and securing one meeting!