I feel tired. Not surprisingly consider the amount of work I have this week as well as my inability to go to bed at a reasonable time in most cases. Tonight (Wednesday night) is the only night I have free. Ok, technically I have Friday night free, but that's usually Game Night and I canceled last week and feel bad about canceling again. I wish Game Night was at a local gaming store and there was a group of people that regularly attended so I wouldn't feel so bad about not going every once in a while.
Really it seems like lately anytime I want something to happen, it's up to me to take charge and be the person who works out all the details and shoulders most of the responsibility. I understand that someone has to, but it can get a little tiring. There's game night, there's D&D, there's various parties, there's house repairs. These are things I want to do, but I want to be the guest person. The one who gets invited and can show up and have fun. I don't want to have to be the one inviting everyone and working out timing issues and locations and activities and yadda, yadda, yadda. I know, I know, if I want to do these things the only way to make sure it happens is to actually set it up myself.
I mean, I like playing board games. I have games I haven't played yet (though not that many anymore). Unfortunately, there's no local game store/club where people can get together and play games, so I started up game night to play with my friends. But that makes it my responsibility and I know that some of my friends enjoy getting together and playing games as well. The problem is that every once in a while I don't feel up to having a game night (like say I've been working 60 hours all week), but I feel obligated to do it for the sake of others.
I enjoying playing RPG's. Dungeons and Dragons came out with a 4th Edition and I wanted to try it out. The friends I used to roleplay with still lived in the cities and I was inconsiderate of Emily and came home late a few nights, making her less than happy to see me drive up to the cities to play with them. Plus they got addicted to World of Warcraft. If I wanted to play D&D, I would need to get a group together and be the DM. Don't get me wrong, I have enjoyed DM'ing, but it requires a lot more work beforehand than just being a player. It also requires more during play as well. Maybe I would enjoy it more if I had created the adventure myself instead of going off of a module, but I've only just started DM'ing and I haven't played in a whole lot of games either, so I don't have much faith in my skills to do that, but that's a whole different issue. I would love to just play in a game, immerse myself into a single character instead of 100's of them.
Emily helps out quite a bit, and I love her for it. It's awesome to have a wife who wants to see me happy and helps as much as she can. But it still leaves the stuff up to me and she's not as excited about it as I am, so she has no interest in taking the lead on any this stuff.
I don't know, maybe I'll feel better after this vacation and once I've caught up on sleep.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
Thunderspire Labrynth, 2
Having received the package Bairwin required, they decided to make the trip back to Winterhaven right away. They spent another week traveling the trade routes and arrived in town, much to Bairwin's surprise. He gladly paid them for their troubles and complimented them on their unexpected speed. With a little more coin in their purse, they headed back to Thunderspire.
Upon arriving, they noticed that they were treated a little differently than before. They received wary looks and were given a wider berth. A few people would quickly cross the street to get away from them. Nachi seemed to take some enjoyment of this new treatment and scared a few passerbys. At one point, Sophana caught what looked like Brugg chuckling out of the side of his mouth when seeing this.
Saul wanted to get a magical item he had in mind so they went to shop at House Azaer. He didn't have nearly enough gold to pay for what it, so he performed a ritual to create fool's gold and entered the store with Nachi, and Sophana. They met Noristo, a young tiefling merchant with a sly smile, and were able to pass off the fake gold as real gold and left with their new goods. Soon after Allyria and Tasil entered to look around. Allyria unknowingly caught the eye of Noristo, who offered to personally help moisturize her tail. Allyria turned red (which is quite a feat for a tiefling) and stumbled out the door with Tasil close behind snickering.
The group decided to question the duergar in the Grimmerzhul Trading Post about a letter they found in the Bloodreaver's hideout. Nachi attempted to intimidate his way into some information and while everyone was distracted Tasil stole one of the bracelets on display. Nachi's attempts were met with near-open hostility and they decided to take a different approach. Nachi went up to Brugg and informed him that he had proof that the Grimmerzhul clan is purchasing slaves and that he might want to get the mages involved. Brugg informed him that while he respects the group after hearing some of the rumors about them, unless there's something happen within the Seven Pillared Hall, he and the mages don't care what happens.
Finding no help, they decided to take matters into their own hands. They returned to the Chamber of Eyes (the Bloodreaver hideout) to find it empty and tracked the slaves from there. With the help of some teamwork, Sophana is able to track them through the tunnels until they ended at the Horned Hold, a minotaur fortress that the Grimmerzhul converted into a stronghold. It consists of three parts connected by bridges over a deep chasm.
Upon arriving at the entrance they were greeted by some orcs inside the gated entrance. After dealing with some crossbow shots and spear stabs, Nachi teleported past the gate in the hopes of finding a lever to open the door. Unfortunately all he found were some angry orcs and a duergar guard, who quickly surrounded him. The rest of the party was left outside, fighting as best as they could through the gate while Tasil attempted to unlock it. Nachi got knocked unconscious numerous times before everyone was able to take control of the room. After a short rest and some healing, the party took a look around at their surroundings. They found a hall with a few locked doors and examined the rooms behind said doors. One of the doors opened into a armory, which they proceeded to ransack. The other doors opened into empty barracks with footlockers filed with nothing but clothing and hygiene products, much to the disappointment of Tasil.
The next door held back the sounds of roaring fires and hammers hitting anvils. The party gathered their courage and burst through the door to meet a couple of duergars and orcs working in a blacksmith area being directed by a large duergar covered in soot carrying a huge hammer and barking out orders. Within no time a fight broke out with the smithy flinging spells and slurs in equal measure. It was a hard fought battle, but in the end the heroes won out.
They searched the area and took what finished weapons they could find. They also stumbled upon the smithy's bedroom and were surprised to see an ornamental scepter that resembled the one Gendar talked about. Other than that they found little of value.
Having dealt with two groups of foes, everyone was feeling a little worn out and decided to take their chances and sleep in a small abandoned room off of one of the barracks they discovered. Saul magically locked all the doors they had explored and the group went to sleep with Nachi going into his trance to keep an eye out. Within the first hour, Saul was awakened with the knowledge that one of his locks had been broken. He quietly crept up to Nachi to let him know what was going on. Hour after hour another lock was broken, some leading to their room and some leading away. The rest of the party needed 8 hours to be fully rested and it wasn't until the ninth hour that the duergar search party unlocked the door leading to them. With everyone else well rested, the party sprang to the defense, taking out duergars left and right. Nachi and Tasil were able to take out an invisible scout before he could warn the rest of the hold. Together they decided to head down the hall the scout was head toward and find the slaves.
Upon arriving, they noticed that they were treated a little differently than before. They received wary looks and were given a wider berth. A few people would quickly cross the street to get away from them. Nachi seemed to take some enjoyment of this new treatment and scared a few passerbys. At one point, Sophana caught what looked like Brugg chuckling out of the side of his mouth when seeing this.
Saul wanted to get a magical item he had in mind so they went to shop at House Azaer. He didn't have nearly enough gold to pay for what it, so he performed a ritual to create fool's gold and entered the store with Nachi, and Sophana. They met Noristo, a young tiefling merchant with a sly smile, and were able to pass off the fake gold as real gold and left with their new goods. Soon after Allyria and Tasil entered to look around. Allyria unknowingly caught the eye of Noristo, who offered to personally help moisturize her tail. Allyria turned red (which is quite a feat for a tiefling) and stumbled out the door with Tasil close behind snickering.
The group decided to question the duergar in the Grimmerzhul Trading Post about a letter they found in the Bloodreaver's hideout. Nachi attempted to intimidate his way into some information and while everyone was distracted Tasil stole one of the bracelets on display. Nachi's attempts were met with near-open hostility and they decided to take a different approach. Nachi went up to Brugg and informed him that he had proof that the Grimmerzhul clan is purchasing slaves and that he might want to get the mages involved. Brugg informed him that while he respects the group after hearing some of the rumors about them, unless there's something happen within the Seven Pillared Hall, he and the mages don't care what happens.
Finding no help, they decided to take matters into their own hands. They returned to the Chamber of Eyes (the Bloodreaver hideout) to find it empty and tracked the slaves from there. With the help of some teamwork, Sophana is able to track them through the tunnels until they ended at the Horned Hold, a minotaur fortress that the Grimmerzhul converted into a stronghold. It consists of three parts connected by bridges over a deep chasm.
Upon arriving at the entrance they were greeted by some orcs inside the gated entrance. After dealing with some crossbow shots and spear stabs, Nachi teleported past the gate in the hopes of finding a lever to open the door. Unfortunately all he found were some angry orcs and a duergar guard, who quickly surrounded him. The rest of the party was left outside, fighting as best as they could through the gate while Tasil attempted to unlock it. Nachi got knocked unconscious numerous times before everyone was able to take control of the room. After a short rest and some healing, the party took a look around at their surroundings. They found a hall with a few locked doors and examined the rooms behind said doors. One of the doors opened into a armory, which they proceeded to ransack. The other doors opened into empty barracks with footlockers filed with nothing but clothing and hygiene products, much to the disappointment of Tasil.
The next door held back the sounds of roaring fires and hammers hitting anvils. The party gathered their courage and burst through the door to meet a couple of duergars and orcs working in a blacksmith area being directed by a large duergar covered in soot carrying a huge hammer and barking out orders. Within no time a fight broke out with the smithy flinging spells and slurs in equal measure. It was a hard fought battle, but in the end the heroes won out.
They searched the area and took what finished weapons they could find. They also stumbled upon the smithy's bedroom and were surprised to see an ornamental scepter that resembled the one Gendar talked about. Other than that they found little of value.
Having dealt with two groups of foes, everyone was feeling a little worn out and decided to take their chances and sleep in a small abandoned room off of one of the barracks they discovered. Saul magically locked all the doors they had explored and the group went to sleep with Nachi going into his trance to keep an eye out. Within the first hour, Saul was awakened with the knowledge that one of his locks had been broken. He quietly crept up to Nachi to let him know what was going on. Hour after hour another lock was broken, some leading to their room and some leading away. The rest of the party needed 8 hours to be fully rested and it wasn't until the ninth hour that the duergar search party unlocked the door leading to them. With everyone else well rested, the party sprang to the defense, taking out duergars left and right. Nachi and Tasil were able to take out an invisible scout before he could warn the rest of the hold. Together they decided to head down the hall the scout was head toward and find the slaves.
Got the time?
This week is going to be busy. I'm working at least 1 job every day this week, starting this past Sunday (Just Food: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday; Monster Games: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday). Plus we're taking a week long vacation next week, so we need to prepare for that as well. You know the usual packing and cleaning and preparing that goes on before any long trip.
I learned a great tip about Facebook. Did you know that there's a way to hide status updates of people you don't care to hear from? There is. I don't know how long it's been there but I've been wanting this for a while. Just hover your mouse over one of the unwanted updates on your home page. A little box titled “Hide” will appear in the top right corner of the update's box. Click on the “Hide” box and select “Hide ___” where the person's name is in the blank and you're done. Now you'll never have to see the person's updates again, unless you really want to. This is great, now I 'm more likely to see updates from people I want to see. Yea!
I learned a great tip about Facebook. Did you know that there's a way to hide status updates of people you don't care to hear from? There is. I don't know how long it's been there but I've been wanting this for a while. Just hover your mouse over one of the unwanted updates on your home page. A little box titled “Hide” will appear in the top right corner of the update's box. Click on the “Hide” box and select “Hide ___” where the person's name is in the blank and you're done. Now you'll never have to see the person's updates again, unless you really want to. This is great, now I 'm more likely to see updates from people I want to see. Yea!
Friday, September 18, 2009
Fun times?
Last night I had the largest single transaction I've ever dealt with come through. It totaled $1825.95. It was a whole butt loads worth of special orders for Farm House. That check was over half of my whole nights total. Crazy huh?
The facebook app for my iPod touch stopped working, because they updated it so that it required the iPhone 3.0 upgrade, which I hadn't purchased yet. But it seems like more and more apps are requiring it to work now, which is annoying since Apple is charging for it. So I broke down and bought the upgrade. Surprisingly, the upgrade only costs about $6 instead of the $11 it used to be. I still think it's crazy that they're charging for it, but whatever, I ended up buying it didn't I? I really hope it makes my iPod run better. The annoying thing is that I started this in the morning and it took a half hour just to download it, then it had to update the iPod and because of the update, now it has to restore it, which means uploading all the apps, videos, and music files I originally had on there. That's close to 30 gigs worth of stuff. I ended up just leaving it at home to finish while I went to work. Hopefully it will be done by lunchtime. It's going to be weird not having it for the day.
I'm not sure if you heard (or if you care), but Connor is sick so the “party” at Kathie Smith's is canceled. I hope Connor starts feeling better and I'm sure Kathie will host another party when the timings right. In the mean time, Susan's offered to have Game Night at her place. I think that'll be nice, I know she enjoys playing games, but can't make it out since someone has to keep an eye on sleeping kids. So for tonight, Game Night will be held at the Beeby's.
The facebook app for my iPod touch stopped working, because they updated it so that it required the iPhone 3.0 upgrade, which I hadn't purchased yet. But it seems like more and more apps are requiring it to work now, which is annoying since Apple is charging for it. So I broke down and bought the upgrade. Surprisingly, the upgrade only costs about $6 instead of the $11 it used to be. I still think it's crazy that they're charging for it, but whatever, I ended up buying it didn't I? I really hope it makes my iPod run better. The annoying thing is that I started this in the morning and it took a half hour just to download it, then it had to update the iPod and because of the update, now it has to restore it, which means uploading all the apps, videos, and music files I originally had on there. That's close to 30 gigs worth of stuff. I ended up just leaving it at home to finish while I went to work. Hopefully it will be done by lunchtime. It's going to be weird not having it for the day.
I'm not sure if you heard (or if you care), but Connor is sick so the “party” at Kathie Smith's is canceled. I hope Connor starts feeling better and I'm sure Kathie will host another party when the timings right. In the mean time, Susan's offered to have Game Night at her place. I think that'll be nice, I know she enjoys playing games, but can't make it out since someone has to keep an eye on sleeping kids. So for tonight, Game Night will be held at the Beeby's.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Busy?
Things have been going good here, a little hectic but good. It seems like we've been getting all these little windfalls lately. It's nice. Things are moving in a good direction at a noticeable pace. It's like all the work and hardship we've dealt with over the past years is stating to pay off. It's a nice feeling.
I have been working a lot the past few weeks. Way more than I was expecting or hoping. I hear they're hiring a few more cashiers so maybe I'll be working a few less hours. I will say that business has been good at Just Food, at least from my perspective. Maybe it's just the hours I work, but it seems like it's always busy.
I'm still loving Batman: Arkham Asylum. I was telling Isaac that I haven't been this engrossed/obsessed in a game since Bioshock. On the other hand, I still have other games to play as well, but I probably won't get to them until I'm done with Batman. I really need to finish Half Life since the Rebel FM Game Club this month is Half Life 2 and its subsequent episodes. I told myself I would play Half Life before playing its sequel, and I started that a month ago and got maybe halfway through but never finished. Now I have a strong incentive to do so.
I really like their idea of a Video Game club, like in place of a book club. The group plays a particular game either all the way through or to a checkpoint and then gets together and discusses their thoughts on it. I guess that's why I like listening to the Game Club podcasts. I think it'd be more fun to be in a group instead of vicariously listening to one, but right now I can't even keep up with the book club I'm in. I don't really need to add more things to my schedule.
Oh, Game Night is going to be at Kathie Smith's house. Apparently a Mamma Mia night is being held there at the same time. I figure the game night part will entertain the people who have no desire to watch Mamma Mia. I'll have to figure out what games I have that either correspond to some degree with that movie or at least can be played while a crowd in the other room sings songs. Either way it should be fun, right?
I have been working a lot the past few weeks. Way more than I was expecting or hoping. I hear they're hiring a few more cashiers so maybe I'll be working a few less hours. I will say that business has been good at Just Food, at least from my perspective. Maybe it's just the hours I work, but it seems like it's always busy.
I'm still loving Batman: Arkham Asylum. I was telling Isaac that I haven't been this engrossed/obsessed in a game since Bioshock. On the other hand, I still have other games to play as well, but I probably won't get to them until I'm done with Batman. I really need to finish Half Life since the Rebel FM Game Club this month is Half Life 2 and its subsequent episodes. I told myself I would play Half Life before playing its sequel, and I started that a month ago and got maybe halfway through but never finished. Now I have a strong incentive to do so.
I really like their idea of a Video Game club, like in place of a book club. The group plays a particular game either all the way through or to a checkpoint and then gets together and discusses their thoughts on it. I guess that's why I like listening to the Game Club podcasts. I think it'd be more fun to be in a group instead of vicariously listening to one, but right now I can't even keep up with the book club I'm in. I don't really need to add more things to my schedule.
Oh, Game Night is going to be at Kathie Smith's house. Apparently a Mamma Mia night is being held there at the same time. I figure the game night part will entertain the people who have no desire to watch Mamma Mia. I'll have to figure out what games I have that either correspond to some degree with that movie or at least can be played while a crowd in the other room sings songs. Either way it should be fun, right?
Saturday, September 12, 2009
NVG Day
First off, Happy National Video Game Day!
I woke up this morning, after going to bed late from gaming at Scott's, and helped Cherish and Melanie and Emily set-up their craft tent in Central Park. Every time I see their set-up it seems to get nicer and nicer. They have some nice stands to display their cards and paintings. We arranged and priced Emily's larger ceramic pieces. They also have buttons, and cards, and necklaces. I would suggest at least checking it out and saying hi. Emily will probably be there from time to time. They are located at the corner of Winona and 3rd.
I won't be there much because I have to work from 3 to close. I've been told that it's slow at the coop during Jesse James Days, but this year doesn't seem to be the case, at least it wasn't on Thursday. We'll see how today goes. For now, I'm going to try to catch-up on some sleep before I have to go. Hopefully I can get some Batman in today.
I woke up this morning, after going to bed late from gaming at Scott's, and helped Cherish and Melanie and Emily set-up their craft tent in Central Park. Every time I see their set-up it seems to get nicer and nicer. They have some nice stands to display their cards and paintings. We arranged and priced Emily's larger ceramic pieces. They also have buttons, and cards, and necklaces. I would suggest at least checking it out and saying hi. Emily will probably be there from time to time. They are located at the corner of Winona and 3rd.
I won't be there much because I have to work from 3 to close. I've been told that it's slow at the coop during Jesse James Days, but this year doesn't seem to be the case, at least it wasn't on Thursday. We'll see how today goes. For now, I'm going to try to catch-up on some sleep before I have to go. Hopefully I can get some Batman in today.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Yea!
Defeat of Jesse James Days is upon us. Em's sisters will be selling their crafts here, so stop by their tent and check it out. Emily will probably have some of her pieces there as well, though maybe not as much she would like, since we didn't take the time to go through and price some of her bigger pieces.
Time has gotten a little more valuable as of late, what with my second job and all. I don't think it will be as stressful as the last time I had a second job (which was what, all of 8 months ago?). This time our financial decisions were all made to get us ahead, instead of attempting to maintain. In fact, it's more like to accelerate our getting ahead, because we were on track to make some headway. Now though, I have a second job, Emily's working full time again, we refinanced the house for a lower mortgage payment, and we have a paying roommate again. I think if we keep this up, we might actually be out of debt in the next year or two, including our student loans. We should also have built up some savings by then as well. Yea!
We're (or at least I'm) still trying to get Friday Night Game Nights to be routine. That's step one. Step two is to start having it at other people's places. This Friday night a coworker of mine, Scott, is planning on having it at his place. He has a nice open place and a closet full of games. Then on the 18th, the plans are to have it at Kathie Smith's. She can't come to our place because she's allergic to cats. Double Yea!
Oh, and if you haven't gotten it yet, get Batman: Arkham Asylum. It's awesome. It's a 3D version of Super Metroid (a game I've been told that all games are based off of, but this one more so) starring Batman with a story straight out of a massive batman comic book arc and voiced by the awesome actors from the original animated series. I am loving this game. It speaks to me on so many levels of geekdom. Triple Yea!
Time has gotten a little more valuable as of late, what with my second job and all. I don't think it will be as stressful as the last time I had a second job (which was what, all of 8 months ago?). This time our financial decisions were all made to get us ahead, instead of attempting to maintain. In fact, it's more like to accelerate our getting ahead, because we were on track to make some headway. Now though, I have a second job, Emily's working full time again, we refinanced the house for a lower mortgage payment, and we have a paying roommate again. I think if we keep this up, we might actually be out of debt in the next year or two, including our student loans. We should also have built up some savings by then as well. Yea!
We're (or at least I'm) still trying to get Friday Night Game Nights to be routine. That's step one. Step two is to start having it at other people's places. This Friday night a coworker of mine, Scott, is planning on having it at his place. He has a nice open place and a closet full of games. Then on the 18th, the plans are to have it at Kathie Smith's. She can't come to our place because she's allergic to cats. Double Yea!
Oh, and if you haven't gotten it yet, get Batman: Arkham Asylum. It's awesome. It's a 3D version of Super Metroid (a game I've been told that all games are based off of, but this one more so) starring Batman with a story straight out of a massive batman comic book arc and voiced by the awesome actors from the original animated series. I am loving this game. It speaks to me on so many levels of geekdom. Triple Yea!
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
My new busyness
This was a busy weekend. On Friday we had another game night and played Battlestar Galactica again. The key players were Baltar, the Chief, Starbuck, and Tigh. It started off a little rocky and Chief and Baltar jumped up to accuse the other. Galactica was surrounded by cylon ships and another basestar had just arrived. Luckily, Galactica was able to jump away before things got too dangerous. Repairs were ordered and quickly completed, and with no pressing concerns, everyone decided to hunt for the cylon spy. The committee threw the Chief into the brig and then, to be safe, threw Baltar in as well. Both professed their innocence the entire time they were trapped in there. After another jump, Chief showed himself to be a cylon sympathizer and was subsequently rescued and taken to the cylon fleet. Meanwhile, unknown to all, Tigh was awaken as a cylon sleeper agent. As acting Admiral, Tigh declared martial law and named himself as the President. With a cylon in both positions of power, it was only a matter of time before the humans ran out of resources (specifically fuel) and lost, one jump away from reaching Kobol.
Saturday we slept in some before heading to Just Food to enjoy the Harvest Festival. It was a fun little time and we tried many tasty treats for various vendors. Unfortunately we arrived too late to take full advantage of the pressed art station. Afterwards we headed over to the Beeby's to play D&D for the rest of the day. I'll post how that went separately. Then around 10 o'clock we went home to go to bed.
Sunday was spent lying around and getting a few chores down. I spent some time playing more Wheelman as well as Shadow Complex. I was still a little tired, so after a quick shopping trip to Just Food, I took a 30 minute nap, which turned out to be an excellent idea. We volunteered to help with the Just Food reset, and our shift started at 9pm. We helped move things off of shelves, build-up and rearrange shelves, and then put items pack onto shelves.
Monday I went to work at Monster Games at 8am and then went to work at Just Food at 4pm and stayed there until close, which was until about 10pm. It was a long and tiring day. I'm still a little tired.
Saturday we slept in some before heading to Just Food to enjoy the Harvest Festival. It was a fun little time and we tried many tasty treats for various vendors. Unfortunately we arrived too late to take full advantage of the pressed art station. Afterwards we headed over to the Beeby's to play D&D for the rest of the day. I'll post how that went separately. Then around 10 o'clock we went home to go to bed.
Sunday was spent lying around and getting a few chores down. I spent some time playing more Wheelman as well as Shadow Complex. I was still a little tired, so after a quick shopping trip to Just Food, I took a 30 minute nap, which turned out to be an excellent idea. We volunteered to help with the Just Food reset, and our shift started at 9pm. We helped move things off of shelves, build-up and rearrange shelves, and then put items pack onto shelves.
Monday I went to work at Monster Games at 8am and then went to work at Just Food at 4pm and stayed there until close, which was until about 10pm. It was a long and tiring day. I'm still a little tired.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)