The beginning

As cons go, Chimaeracon is pretty small. Attendance ranges in the hundreds, but our main goal is to have fun. I promised pictures so here I am at midnight putting this stuff up for your perusal.
First, the set up.

Say hi to my buddy Carl

Roll2Play is set up and raring to go

Then the people start to trickle in. (heh, heh I said trickle.)

No seriously

Then the gamers arrive.

Artist Alley

Who's dice is that anyway?

They came to game

Before you know it

Games

All kinds of games

They're setting up

...the place is in full swing.

board games

Silly games

Card games

But just remember, beware the creeper.

There will be more tomorrow, I promise.
 

So much to do, so little time

It's the night before the con, and all through the house,
No TV could be heard, we were all kinda doused.
The dog outside, and I on my laptop,was just settling in, for a last minute co-op.
The games were stored in the closet with care
in hope the ghost of Gygax would reappear.
Miniatures in cases, and books on the shelf,
I wondered where's that stupid little elf?
Is the laundry all done? I asked my wife,
'Are you kidding?' she said. 'Not on your life.'
We get so rushed with last minute plans,
it's havoc when someone makes crazy demands.
But time will march, either fast or slow,
pretty soon it will be time to go.
As I get in my Dodge, I'll call out their names,
'On Jackson and Gygax, on Gandolf and Frodo, on Kirk and Spock, don't forget Mario and Luigi, you little dodo.
Daughters making signs and last minute plans,
'Will anyone dress up as the Doctor?' asks one of his fans.
As we scrubbed our pans and turned out the lights, I shouted, Good gaming for all, and to all a good fight. 
 
  
    

living for the weekend

This weekend I will be at Chimaeracon. (spelling it with the 'ae' goes against everything I learned about grammar.) http://chimaeracon.com/
We play all kinds of tabletop games. A lot of people dress up as their favorite character. A couple of years ago I had a kid dress up as a samurai. It was a good costume, right on down to the sword. When I told him he'd have to peace knot it or leave it in his car, he got a little whiny. 'But I want to show my friends!'
No, Sorry. Not going to happen. 15 years old and a sharp weapon he wants to show off. Hmm... what's the worst that can happen?
Generally the costumes are pretty good. I especially like the steampunk costumes. They're really creative. There is a picture floating around on the link I put up. Last year a girl dressed up as a character from the munchkin game. If you don't know what I'm talking about, look for a pretty girl dressed as a Valkyrie holding a really big axe.
Generally, I try to make a prop for the con. Last year it was a huge, heavy, hard to transport mech. This year I tried to make a creeper out of lighter materials such as Styrofoam. Long story short: it didn't turn out like I planned. A buddy of mine stepped in and put together a cardboard creeper. Thanks a million, Gary.
Rather than driving across town all weekend, we got a room at the Marriott where the con will be held. It'll be like a mini-getaway, or that's what I keep telling myself. I'm looking forward to it... really. Part of the time I will be security/safety, which means I make sure vendor merchandise doesn't walk out the door. I also keep the costumed warriors, webslingers, and caped crusaders from kicking their heels up too high.
No balcony diving Spiderman. Sorry Batman, no swinging from the chandeliers.
I'll also be running a Robo Rally game each day of the con. Don't know what that is? Come on down to the con and find out. We'll have a lot of fun. I'll be posting pictures throughout the weekend. No, really, I will.
At other times I'll be playing some other games with my friends. Card games. Strategy games. Board games and everything in between.
Let's see: Fun, check. Friends, check. Family, check. Food, definitely check. Two weeks back my good friend Gary took me to a Greek restaurant not too far from where the con was going to be held. I haven't had stuffed grape leaves since I was a kid. Perhaps I can leave the kids at the pool and the wife and I make a date out of it?

Good for the goose

If you take a look at all the contraceptives out on the market today, nearly all of them are geared towards women. The pill. Sponges. IUD's just to name a few. The only male oriented birth control is the condom. Heck, they even make a female condom for the woman to put inside of her. How crazy is that?
In talking with my friends about forms of birth control, the answer usually gravitates towards hysterectomies. Well, why not vasectomies? None of the guys I talked to would even entertain the notion of going under the knife if they could help it... the cowards.
After my second child was born, I began to look into getting out of the gene pool. Two lovely daughters were currently in my house. After doing the math, I would have a 1:12 chance of having a son. Right before scheduling an appointment for myself, my wife announced she was pregnant with our third child.
I won't lie. For two brief seconds I considered telling my wife to end this pregnancy. Of course, that wasn't my decision. My rights as a person end where yours begin. I didn't have the right to tell my wife (or any woman) what to do with their bodies. 
So my darling Stephanie came into our lives. Three girls. Punnett square be damned, it was high time to get out of the damn gene pool.
For a woman to get her tubes tied requires an overnight stay in a hospital, cutting through several layers of muscles, and is considered major surgery with the associated cost. Recovery time is in the 6 to 9 week range, depending on surgical procedure and complications.
For the guys it's different. the cost was minimal (under 100.00). An outpatient procedure. (I drove myself home.)
Then, on doctors orders, I had to lay on the couch all weekend and watch TV. I would compare the procedure to be as painful as getting a cavity filled.
Ladies: Every argument your boyfriend or husband makes against getting a vasectomy is invalid. It's cheap, minimal discomfort, no loss of sex drive (I've noticed an increase.), and if you want a kid later for whatever reason, it's reversible! 
My wife and I have sex more often because pregnancy is one less thing to worry about.
And to all the guys who are to macho to consider the points I make: get over it already. Consider it a sign of maturity. Your girl will thank you.     

What we mean

Some times I write a letter of encouragement to a friend or someone I barely know.
Perhaps I should preface this: If I work with you, you are off limits. It's my don't crap where you eat rule. I've broken it a few times, but looking back I can say its a good rule to follow.
There was this young girl who ran the register at my work. We had barely said greetings to one another. She was sweet, pretty and an all around ray of sunshine. One day the rumor mill went into high gear. She'd had a stroke. Yes, they can happen in young twenty somethings. I felt a kindred spirit with her because I knew what it was like fighting back from a serious injury like that. I won't divulge personal details here, but I let her know that this wasn't the end of her world. That there would be a ray of light coming in at the end of the tunnel. I let her know that she wasn't alone in her ordeal and people like her go on to lead happy productive lives. Most of all, I let her know that I was there to listen if she needed someone to talk to.
When she did come back to work, she went out of her way to thank me. She told me how much my letter helped and encouraged her to get back on the horse... to rejoin life.
After that, we remained friends. Said our greetings and told each other stories about how we overcame our difficulties. She no longer works at Lowe's, but I hope she is continuing to find what she seeks.  

What's to forgive?

When it comes to forgiving, I think Baptists are the worst. For example: someone says they're sorry, they should mean it. My whole beef with Religion in general and Baptists in particular is that I don't think they're actually apologizing.
In my many years of going to parties, bar tending and waiting tables I've noticed a trend. Many people are asking for forgiveness on Sunday for what they did Saturday night. The people doing it the most happened to be of the Baptist persuasion. These same people do it again and again. Week after week. Doing some really wild stuff at the dance clubs and hangouts knowing that they can just ask for forgiveness the next morning in church. A revolving door get out of jail free pass.
Kinda takes the sincerity out of it, doncha think?
A friend of mine once observed that I wasn't very religious, but I was a spiritual person. That was a very deep thought and I wanted to give it the time it deserved before I came to a conclusion. They were right.
I do believe in fate and karma. Your outlook on life lends to your overall happiness. I believe we control our own destiny. We make out own luck. Most of all, if you did wrong by a person, apologize... and mean it.
So to all the bullies who beat me up in grade school, to the girlfriend who cheated on me, to all the mean arrogant assholes I've run across (and worked for)... I forgive you.

Spring, sprang, sprung

Last week we were having days in the 70's and 80's. Beautiful weather. Spring has officially arrived. This is one of the reasons I love living in Texas.

Blue bonnets grow everywhere.

 Some of my family lives north of the Mason-Dixon line. They can't help it and I don't hold it against them. In fact, I feel a little sorry for them. Those friends that insist on living east of the Mississippi river and in the North east in general... well, that's plain stupid. They're good people and family, but the location is awful. Every time I've been there, I feel claustrophobic. 
I went up there a few years back. It felt like stepping into a black and white picture. I was the only person in color. The denizens of West Haven were wearing varying shades of gray.
Another thing: There was a liquor store every 1/4 mile. No exaggeration: I double checked. If I had to live up Connecticut way, I'd drink too. To add insult to injury is that they have crappy alcohol. Cheap liquor stores. Stuff normal people would pass on.
My Dad wanted to buy me a beer. (He likes buying me drinks, I don't know why. But hey, free beer.)
He and I walk up to the bar and he asks me to pick out a beer.
Old Milwaukee on tap. Miller. Budweiser.
With a straight face I say; 'I don't see any beers here.'
All the heads at the bar turned and regarded me with evil eyes. Maybe that was self-loathing on their part. The stoutest bottled beer they had was Samuel Adams. What they consider the heavy stuff, we here in Texas consider the baseline.
Now last month, I gave my good buddy a six pack of Shiner Bock. (The beer in Florida is lousy too.) He had no idea beer could taste that way.
My friend hit it on the head: taste. In a moment of universal clarity I realized that if you live in a crappy part of the country, you drink to get drunk so you can escape from the living hell wherever you call home.
If all I had to choose from was Budweiser, I'd be a tea-totaler.
Let me ask you folks, What is your drink of choice? Whatever it is my friends: Drink responsibly. Drink Shiner or support your local micro brew. 
Death before Budweiser!