Just a little Mazal Tov to my brother Ben and his wife Yael on the birth of a baby boy two days ago.
Also, my cousin Julie is due any minute, and my wife's brother Jeremy/sister in law had a baby two weeks ago.
My son Saarya's English birthday is today. And my daughter Tal's bat mitzvah is next weekend.
Yehuda
Friday, April 29, 2005
Game Day Session Report
Posted at www.jergames.com (specifically www.jergames.com/reports.html).
Thanks all for coming to the game day, and hope to see you all regularly.
Yehuda
Thanks all for coming to the game day, and hope to see you all regularly.
Yehuda
Wednesday, April 27, 2005
Game Day tomorrow
Tomorrow is game day. Some number of people are coming, many new. Here's hoping they will turn into regulars.
My problem is that I don't have a huge crown coming. If I did, I could afford to start a long game, knowing that if a single player walks in, s/he will be able to find a pick up. Instead, I have to commit to shorter games. If a single walks in, I will probably get up and sit him or her down in my spot. Then if another walks in, I will play with them two player.
Maybe next time I will warn in advance that games tend to start on the hour, or something like that.
Anyway, it could be a huge success, like most of the last game days. Or it could ...
Wish me luck.
Yehuda
My problem is that I don't have a huge crown coming. If I did, I could afford to start a long game, knowing that if a single player walks in, s/he will be able to find a pick up. Instead, I have to commit to shorter games. If a single walks in, I will probably get up and sit him or her down in my spot. Then if another walks in, I will play with them two player.
Maybe next time I will warn in advance that games tend to start on the hour, or something like that.
Anyway, it could be a huge success, like most of the last game days. Or it could ...
Wish me luck.
Yehuda
Monday, April 25, 2005
Happy Passover
Saturday was shabbat, as usual, and Saturday night/Sunday the first day of Passover. Only the first day and last day of Passover qualify as "holy day" holidays. The in-between days count as semi-holidays - I can still go to work ... unfortunately. I'm taking off Thursday for the JSGC GAME DAY, of course.
Saturday you can't prepare for the seder night, so everything had to be done before shabbat, leaving us a long dull shabbat day without a good book to read. I finally convinced my wife to go for a walk with me and we ended up at Nadine's, where we played a five player Puerto Rico game. Usually these games come down to between Nadine and Rachel, and it looked that way to me for most of the game. However, the other two players were still sufficiently new that they chose roles without looking too much at what it did for the other players. Somehow I ended up benefiting from this, although I still don't know how.
I know I made the correct decision of Wharf versus Harbor, which is usually correct for five player, and won handily at 57 to 46/44/41/33.
Sunday afternoon Rachel and I played two games, First game 52-51 in my favor. Second game 52-51 in her favor. Really time to move onto a new game, here.
Yehuda
Saturday you can't prepare for the seder night, so everything had to be done before shabbat, leaving us a long dull shabbat day without a good book to read. I finally convinced my wife to go for a walk with me and we ended up at Nadine's, where we played a five player Puerto Rico game. Usually these games come down to between Nadine and Rachel, and it looked that way to me for most of the game. However, the other two players were still sufficiently new that they chose roles without looking too much at what it did for the other players. Somehow I ended up benefiting from this, although I still don't know how.
I know I made the correct decision of Wharf versus Harbor, which is usually correct for five player, and won handily at 57 to 46/44/41/33.
Sunday afternoon Rachel and I played two games, First game 52-51 in my favor. Second game 52-51 in her favor. Really time to move onto a new game, here.
Yehuda
Thursday, April 21, 2005
Session report up
Well, we really didn't have a session. We cleaned for Passover. But when we were done, my wife and I played Puerto Rico. Here.
Yehuda
Yehuda
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
Accosting Strangers
As an addendum to the Toy Shop incident: you should know that this really happened, including my shouting "Woo Hoo!" and accosting passing strangers. Anyone who knows me would know that.
On my vacation, when we were lost in the woods, totally in the middle of nowhere, I was in the middle of a discussion with my son about the finer points of the Hagaddah, the book with the Passover service that we read on Passover night. Religious Jews study the Hagaddah, or other Passover laws, before Passover. We were stuck on two questions regarding the origin of some parts of the service.
Suddenly we ran into this religious couple and their children in the middle of nowhere. I immediately went up to them and said "Hi, we have two questions regarding the Hagaddah," and proceeded to ask the questions. Without any hesitation, I got two cogent and intelligent answers from the guy. We wished each other a happy Passover and I continued on our way.
It is always nice to be members of some clubs, just for the assumed kinship that is generated when you run into other members of them. Religious Jews form a club. I think board gamers in general do, too, and especially this little sub-group of board game bloggers.
When you think about it, all of us belong to overlapping clubs of some sort, most likely. If only we all realized it.
Yehuda
On my vacation, when we were lost in the woods, totally in the middle of nowhere, I was in the middle of a discussion with my son about the finer points of the Hagaddah, the book with the Passover service that we read on Passover night. Religious Jews study the Hagaddah, or other Passover laws, before Passover. We were stuck on two questions regarding the origin of some parts of the service.
Suddenly we ran into this religious couple and their children in the middle of nowhere. I immediately went up to them and said "Hi, we have two questions regarding the Hagaddah," and proceeded to ask the questions. Without any hesitation, I got two cogent and intelligent answers from the guy. We wished each other a happy Passover and I continued on our way.
It is always nice to be members of some clubs, just for the assumed kinship that is generated when you run into other members of them. Religious Jews form a club. I think board gamers in general do, too, and especially this little sub-group of board game bloggers.
When you think about it, all of us belong to overlapping clubs of some sort, most likely. If only we all realized it.
Yehuda
Vacation
Well, the vacation was nice, but not really relaxing.
The first day was a drive up, followed by a short hike, lost in the woods, running away from a bunch of cows and bulls (who weren't chasing us, except in the mind of my daughter), a Bar-B-Q and some late night games.
When the other family arrived, they played some hands of Gin while I played Anagrams with David, the father, the Scrabble expert. He has a voluminous knowledge of short words, but I am quicker on the draw and more creative. Both of us have certain letters we are waiting for in order to steal a word or two. It was a tough match, but I gained a good lead, and only lost most of it by the end.
Later at night I introduced their 19 year old son Yoni to Tigris and Euphrates, which I can't seem to break out at the game night (I thought that they liked it when we first played, but I think it may be too dry for them). Anyway, I played with Saarya and Yoni an enjoyable game. Yoni really liked it, and we thought he was going to win after he put down a monument and nobody seemed to be in a position to challenge him. I lost huge when I challenged Saarya twice in my turn, once to an external conflict and once to an internal one. Out of the six tiles he had he could only beat me if he had exactly 3 black tiles and 3 red tiles. Guess what? ... Saarya ended up winning 8 to 7 to 6 (me). I was about to go to 8 myself.
Late at night, my daughter played Pop, some sort of pencil and paper game that works with both Hebrew and English letters. Players alternate placing "p"s and "peh" (Hebrew version of "p") in various places and then placing "o"s and "vav"s (Hebrew version of "o") between places making the word "pop" in Hebrew or English. I don't know the rest of the rules, but I will try to find out.
The next day, Monday, we split up into various groups, water hiking, horseback riding, winery, and a great dinner at night. Too tired for games.
The last day, Tuesday, was a bust, since no one was willing to commit to anything except what they didn't want to do, leaving everyone hanging until the day was basically over. I started a Scrabble game at one point which I was losing at by about 40 points, but never finished it.
This week is the rest of cleaning and then cooking for Passover, so probably not much in the way of games. Next week is game day, however, if all goes well.
Happy Passover, to one and all, and may your life be meaningful and peaceful.
Yehuda
The first day was a drive up, followed by a short hike, lost in the woods, running away from a bunch of cows and bulls (who weren't chasing us, except in the mind of my daughter), a Bar-B-Q and some late night games.
When the other family arrived, they played some hands of Gin while I played Anagrams with David, the father, the Scrabble expert. He has a voluminous knowledge of short words, but I am quicker on the draw and more creative. Both of us have certain letters we are waiting for in order to steal a word or two. It was a tough match, but I gained a good lead, and only lost most of it by the end.
Later at night I introduced their 19 year old son Yoni to Tigris and Euphrates, which I can't seem to break out at the game night (I thought that they liked it when we first played, but I think it may be too dry for them). Anyway, I played with Saarya and Yoni an enjoyable game. Yoni really liked it, and we thought he was going to win after he put down a monument and nobody seemed to be in a position to challenge him. I lost huge when I challenged Saarya twice in my turn, once to an external conflict and once to an internal one. Out of the six tiles he had he could only beat me if he had exactly 3 black tiles and 3 red tiles. Guess what? ... Saarya ended up winning 8 to 7 to 6 (me). I was about to go to 8 myself.
Late at night, my daughter played Pop, some sort of pencil and paper game that works with both Hebrew and English letters. Players alternate placing "p"s and "peh" (Hebrew version of "p") in various places and then placing "o"s and "vav"s (Hebrew version of "o") between places making the word "pop" in Hebrew or English. I don't know the rest of the rules, but I will try to find out.
The next day, Monday, we split up into various groups, water hiking, horseback riding, winery, and a great dinner at night. Too tired for games.
The last day, Tuesday, was a bust, since no one was willing to commit to anything except what they didn't want to do, leaving everyone hanging until the day was basically over. I started a Scrabble game at one point which I was losing at by about 40 points, but never finished it.
This week is the rest of cleaning and then cooking for Passover, so probably not much in the way of games. Next week is game day, however, if all goes well.
Happy Passover, to one and all, and may your life be meaningful and peaceful.
Yehuda
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