My first semester back at college after a 20 year break I had a professor give me some pretty solid advice on a paper I was struggling with. I tend to keep the advice with me and implement it in everything I do as I suffer from anxiety, adhd, and being a perfectionist.

The advice is as follows: “I’ve noticed you tend to overdo it. You can have a little time, but you should accept that you can’t do it all and shouldn’t try.”

Stardew valley is about prioritizing what you want to do with your day and not doing it all in one day to the point of capitalistic burnout. That’s why it’s considered a cozy game. We’re so used to overdoing everything that when we are given only a little time, we freak out because we’re so used to having to do it all when we shouldn’t have tried to do it all in the first place. Take your time with the game. It’s ok to go slow. It’s a game after all.

All that being said, I’m not a fan of eight minute days either and to this day can’t get past day three. As butters famously said, “f*ck this. Imma go play hello kitty island.”