Burrwitch? Sandito? ... I guess it's just a wrap :/

The other day I thought I was being creative when I made a burrito, only instead of rice, beans, chicken, sour creme and hot sauce I used ham, turkey, mayo, and catsup. It worked out really well, and I was trying to decide whether to call it a Sandito or a Burrwitch. It turns out that already exists and is called a Wrap (how boring!)

Excitement brewing

Things are still underway regarding my game getting published, and there's not much left to do but wait.

I'm not going to lie, I'm a little excited and getting a little antsy!

Seattle trip - part 2

As mentioned, I did play some pickup Ultimate on Sunday at Marymoor park. It was fun, and a good 2 hours of running. Unfortunately this would be the last exercise I got before Potlatch.

I went to the Cheesecake Factory with Renee, Matt, and Jonah for dinner. I've never been to Cheesecake Factory before, maybe because I don't care for cheesecake. I didn't realize that it's not only a restaurant, but that they have an absurdly large menu including many different types of food! It was pretty good too.

After dinner I stopped at a game store and picked up 2 games. I got Lost Cities: the Board Game for Jeremy and Amelia as a thank-you for putting me up (and putting up with me). They like the card game, and Jeremy was asking about the board game version. I also got a game that looked pretty interesting, but that I'd barely heard of called Masters of Venice. In that game you bu and sell stock in companies, and you also buy, sell and trade resources (which the companies deal in). the stock value and prices go up and down as you buy and sell things and as the companies "do business." It's a little confusing at first, but everything really works the way you'd expect based on supply and demand. Jeremy, Aaron and I played Masters of Venice twice. Aaron and Jeremy both did far better in the 2nd game, while I actually might have done worse!

Tuesday morning I drove to Vancouver, and it was just 2.5 hours from Jeremy's apartment to Jay's. The border crossing was interesting. I've been to London and through Mexico City, but both of those were by plane and I just filled out the paperwork on the plane and nobody grilled me about what I was doing in the country. I have crossed the boarder on foot in Nogales before, but that was many, many years ago and at the time they didn't care where you were going or what you were doing. I didn't really know what to expect at the Canadian border, but the experience turned out to be kind of amusing...

First I drove up to a booth at which a lady asked me some typical questions... what are you doing in Canada? Visiting a friend. What is your friend's name? Jay Cormier. Where did you meet Jay? In Las Vegas at a trade show. How long ago was that? Last April. How long will you be staying? Until Thursday. Nothing too exciting. Then she told me to pull under the canopy and go inside this building, so I did. Inside the building there was a waiting area, and counters behind which boarder agents stood. One of them called me over, and began by asking some of the same questions as the lady in the booth. However, he was getting much more detailed with his inquiries... What are you going to do with your friend Jay? Play board games. He gave me a quizzical look so I elaborated, like Monopoly, only different ones. What board games are you going to play?

Really? I thought, is he really interested in which board games we plan to play? I was torn as to how to answer this. Part of me wanted to be accurate and honest, but of course we hadn't planned ahead as to which board games to play. Part of me wanted to list off several Euro-strategy games, like Masters of Venice or Glory to Rome (which I had in my car), but knew he wouldn't have any idea what I was talking about. Part of me figured he just wanted to make sure i had some answer, and that part of me realized I was hesitating to answer while I ran through all these thoughts... so I finally said ... there are a thousand different board games, I don't know which we'll play. He went on with his questioning... Where are you from? Tucson, Arizona. You came all the way up here from Tucson to play board games?!?

Um... yes? He obviously doesn't know me. I didn't say that though, instead I said I'm on vacation in Seattle. Finally he was done with his inquisition and he asked me to wait. I sat down while he did whatever it is they do, and then he came back, called me back up, and sent me on my way. The whole process didn't really take very long, but it was surprising to me how interested they were in what I would be doing while visiting my friend. Also, I'll note that everyone I interacted with at the border was very, very grumpy.

Vancouver was nice. Jay actually lives in New Westminster, which is like a suburb or something. Like Tempe to Phoenix maybe. We hung out, talked about games, played some of his designs as well as a prototype being published by Tasty Minstrel. We went to a game night on Tuesday, and on Wednesday jay had a meeting with this comedy group which I tagged along for. It was pretty fun, I've always wanted to be involved with comedy in one way or another. Wednesday was also Canada Day - there were a million people out at the beach, and there were fireworks that night. Thursday morning Jay had to get back to work, so I headed back to Seattle.

There's a girl who works at Google in downtown Seattle that I knew in college but haven't seen in 10 years. It's too bad, too, because I really liked her 10 years ago! I found out she worked at Google, and tried to find a way to contact her, but to no avail. More recently I was able to contact her through Facebook (go go gadget social networking) and it turned out that while she was leaving for India on Friday, she was able to meet me for lunch on Thursday. We caught up a little bit and I saw some of the Google offices - looks like a cool place to work. While I was in the area, I stopped in at my friend's law office and surprised him. He didn't have much time to talk, but he invited me to play games the following Tuesday starting at 10am (planning to go all day).

It was still too early for anyone to be at Potlatch, and I had agreed to pick up some teammates, but not until 7pm, so I went to Renee's house and hung out with her for a while. Then I went to the airport and picked up some teammates and settled in for a weekend of frisbee! I made another airport run later to get 1 more guy, and I saw a bunch of people I know from various places... that's one of the things I love about a big tournament like Potlatch - running into people like Jeff Hartline, Giles Peng, Jen Shannon, Lauren from Flagstaff (now from Boulder), Lori Starr, Deb Weis, Dave Keifer, people from Phoenix, and of course my teammates from Victoria, Portland, Washington DC, Boulder, and Sacramento. Of course this time there were a handful of Tucsonans there as well, and I spent some time hanging out with them.

This year we didn't do near as well as we did last year, though much of the team was the same (guys anyway), and I think our women were probably stronger than last year's... we weren't gelling very well, there were clashes of attitude, and people just weren't on the same page much of the time. We had a lot of simple drops and throwaways. It was pretty frustrating, and while last year we went 6-2... this year we were only 2-6. Frustrating as it was though, it was still a fun weekend of frisbee in great weather.

Sunday night I went to dinner with Jeremy and company at Red Robin again. They put about 50% more chicken on my salad than normal, so that was good :) Monday I hung out with Renee, we did some errands (buy cat food, go to library) and had lunch at a grocery type place which was pretty good. Jonah was very well behaved the whole time. Later I played some Boom Blox on the Wii while Renee tried to get some sleep, and finally Renee and I met Matt for dinner at a place called Z Tejas.

After dinner i decided I wanted some ice cream, so I went to Cold Stone before returning to Jeremy's, where he Emily and I played Lost Cities again, and then Jeremy, Aaron and I played another round of Dominion. We played several games of Dominion while I was there, and they have a stuffed sheep which they use like a trophy - I managed to win the sheep before leaving, thus taking the title with me... just in time for intrigue (an expansion) to come out next week! Haha!

The next morning, everyone went to work, and I packed my stuff to get ready to leave. My flight wasn't until 3:15, so I decided to go to that game day thing for a while - it was in a Microsoft building which happened to be only a couple blocks from Jeremy's apartment! Good thing too, because when I was almost to the building, I actually ran out of gas! It was pretty embarrassing - and the car gave no physical warning. It had a low fuel light, but didn't act at all funny before simply cutting out in the middle of the road. I drifted into a parking lot and about 30% of the way into a parking spot before the car stopped going. I felt pretty stupid for letting this happen, but luckily I was right next to where I was going, and my lawyer friend was able to give me a ride to a gas station real quick. I ate lunch at the Microsoft building (it's a cafeteria they meet in to play games), and then finally had to get on my way.

I got to the airport just in time to return my car and check in for my 3:15 flight. I got to the counter just after 2:00, but the check-in computer told me it was too late to check in! A man working for the airline said he didn't know why, but he got me checked in. I had to check a bag, which I hate doing (even moreso now that it costs $20), but he took care of that too. When I got to my gate I thought something was fishy... nobody was boarding, or waiting to board, and the sign said the flight to San Francisco (where I had a connecting flight) was at 5-something, not 3:15. It turns out the plane had mechanical problems, so to make sure I didn't miss my connection they put me on another airline through Phoenix to Tucson, arriving 1 hour later than I would have. 2 different people called the baggage people and let them know to put my checked bag on the right plane.

When I arrived in Tucson, my bag did not come out in the baggage claim. I figured it must have gotten on the plane to San Fran after all, and maybe missed the connection and was still up there. After talking to the US Air people about it and arranging for them to deliver the bag when it did arrive, I decided to just check the United baggage office, as United was my original carrier... and sure enough, somehow my bag was right there. I now suspect that the bag was put on the 5-something flight and DID make the connection, and had been sitting in Tucson for an hour. I'm glad I checked!

Finally, I got home, and my little kitty cat was very happy to see me! She curled up within reach and I was able to pet her all evening, and she even slept in my bed with me (which she hasn't done since she was really little)! Evie is so cute! I was sorry to leave Seattle, but it was also good to be home. Except for the weather - when we stopped over in Phoenix the pilot said local temperature was 104 degrees... at 7:30pm!

Where do you buy good, inexpensive furniture?

I need to buy some bookshelves to hold my board games - ideally I'd like 2 of them, 33" wide x 12" deep or so, the taller the better (i.e. not just 4 shelves).

I seem to remember someone telling me about a great furniture store, I think it was on Broadway, which had good furniture at a discount price. I don't recall if it was used or something, and I don't recall where exactly it was or what it was called.

Anybody know what I'm talking about? Or know where I can find some nice bookshelves at a decent price? Please leave a comment if you do... thanks!

Edit: This is what I'm talking about! Is $183 a good price? I think I might go ahead and order 2 of these... Still looking for comments though, if you have any!

Seattle trip - and how Car Rental is the biggest scam ever!

Once again I have ventured up to Seattle for my annual summer vacation, and once again I'm staying 11 days to visit friends and family. This time there's more family to visit, as My sister had her little baby, and I finally got to meet Jonah!

I arrived in Seattle on Friday, after Diana was nice enough to drop me off at the airport. She also gave me something she'd made to give to Jonah - a stuffed Octopus and a matching baby blanket. Diana has become very crafty. When I got to the airport, I rented a car and then headed to Redmond to meet friends at Red Robin.

... A word about rental cars...
Car Rental agencies have quickly ascended toward the top of my list of institutions I find unreasonable and ridiculous. I realized that I should have booked a car in advance, and I was already kicking myself for not having done so. However, they're still car rental agencies, and they still rent cars to people, right? Well, that's not as clear cut as you might think:

Avis, Budget, and Alamo all have deals with Southwest, and offer discounts and double credit for Southwest Rewards members, so I first stopped at the Avis counter and said "Hi, I don't have a reservation, but I'd like to rent a car." Despite a sign that said "Cars Available," their response was "Sorry, all I have left is exotic stuff, like Hummers and Cameros, they're upwards of $150/day." OK... I'll try the next counter...

Alamo had a big line, but Budget's counter was bare - I said the same thing there, and the lady behind the counter answered very curtly "I've got no cars whatsoever, I'm completely sold out." Ok - I guess I'll wait in the Alamo line then. Maybe the reason there's a line at Alamo's counter is because they have cars..?

No. They told me all they have is some convertibles for $78+ a day, nothing compact or cheap. I was beginning to worry a little bit at this point, and was starting to make preparations for a somewhat desperate plan. Back at the Avis counter I inquired about making a reservation for Saturday or Sunday, and was planning to perhaps rent a more expensive car until then, and come back and swap them out in a day or two. It would have been a pain in the ass, but at least it would have worked. I was in luck! The guy was able to reserve me a car for the next day! He said I could pick it up anytime, even like 8am. I asked when I should come in order to ensure there would be a car for me - how could I be sure if they don't have anything now, you know? His reply... "oh, we'll always have a car for you. If we're out of this one, we'll give you a bigger size."

I started to think something was a little fishy at this point, and I formulated a better plan. Unfortunately, SeaTac airport doesn't have free WiFi, so I couldn't just get online and make a reservation. Instead, I called a friend and got him to look up some phone numbers for me, and then I called Avis, Alamo, and budget and made reservations for 3pm Friday (which was 10 minutes away). I was able to get a reservation for all three, and I was quoted prices which, of course, were different fromt he ones the guy at the counter had given me (you never seem to get the same quote twice from rental agencies).

Armed with my reservation number, I walked up to the Budget counter as they were the cheapest price (by only a couple dollars over Avis). The person in front of me in line was on the phone with someone, obviously distraught, and said "they don't have any cars-" and was promptly interrupted by the clerk "I didn't say we didn't have any cars, I said that all reservations are waiting..." I'd heard enough. This was the same lady who told me they were completely sold out, and obviously these people had a reservation and were having a problem. I decided to go to Avis.

Again armed with a reservation number, I talked to the Avis clerk )not the same one as before) and not only did they have a car for me, but while I reserved a sub-compact, they gave me a Toyota Corrolla (which I believe is "full size") for the same price!

So after over an hour of consternation, a little panic, and frustration, I finally was driving away in a car which - after $560 rental fee and then over 50% taxes and stuff - is mine through next Tuesday when I go home. My god renting cars is expensive! I'm going to drive the shot out of this thing while I've got it!

...and now back to your regularly scheduled vacation report...
On the way into Redmond I picked up my friend Sean, then Jeremy and his sister Emily met us at Red Robin. I started last year's vacation with dinner at Red Robin and then Game Night at Uncle's Games, and I really liked how that went. I think my typical vacation will start that way from now on.

Renee, Matt, and Jonah were able to join us as well, on their Anniversary no less, and I finally got to see the little guy in the flesh! Jonah is about 1 month old, and man, is he tiny! Babies - they're just like real people, only smaller...

After dinner we went to Uncles and Alex met us there. Renee and Matt went home, and the rest of us played Battlestar Galactica. Alex and Sean had some variant rules they use, and they'd tweaked most of the character powers a little and also added some new made-up characters. I think I may have played out BSG, but it was kinda fun. The character I picked was one of the new ones - Sharon "Athena" Agathon - and she started in the Brig. that was boring, I spent the whole first half of the game in the Brig, doing nearly nothing. I ended up being a Human, and the Humans won fairly handily except for being a little low on fuel.

After BSG, Jeremy and Emily tried Cow Tipping, a prototype card game that Michael has decided Tasty Minstrel Games will publish - while I taught Glory to Rome to Alex and Sean. They liked it, and Alex said he'd want to play it some more, however the store was closing so we headed home. I was hoping Mohan and Runjith would make it to Uncles like last year, and I kinda thought I was going to stay in their apartment, but I haven't heard from Mohan lately and they weren't there. Fortunately, Jeremy and Amelia (and now Emily and her husband Aaron who live with them) always seem happy to have me, so I am staying with them this weekend.

When we got to Jeremy's house, he, Aaron and I played 4 hands of Dominion, each of us winning one, and then Jeremy being the first to win 2 (which is what we decided to play to). One of those games Jeremy beat me by just 1vp!

Today, Jeremy, Amelia and I played Cow Tipping. Then they two, Emily, Aaron and I all went to get Teriyaki at a really good place - I liked it a lot. After that Aaron, Jeremy and I played a couple hands of Race for the Galaxy - one in which Jeremy beat me by 1vp AGAIN, and Aaron was only maybe 2vp behind me. The second game I had started really well, but we had to abort because Aaron and Emily had to go to some Red Hook Brewery tour thing.

Ameila went to study (she's taking the Bar soon), and I talked Jeremy into playing glory to Rome. We played 2 games, and in one he beat me by 1vp yet again! Then we played a couple of songs worth of Rock Band - oh my god am I bad at drums! After that we left to pick up Sean and attend a game night in Seattle with Julie, Peter, Alex, his GF Julie, and some other people. Jeremy and I played a few games of something called Twitch, which is a speed game sort of thing (fun, but not the best game - some rules ambiguity). Then we played Smallworld with Julie and Peter, then a 2 player game of Smallworld, then we went to dinner with Alex and Julie, and finally played another game of Smallworld with those two.. all in all, we played a lot of Smallworld. Alex played several games of Glory to Rome with other people, so he got a chance to play it some more.

And then we came home at 3 in the morning, and I spent an hour writing this blog post! If I were less tired I probably would have simply summarized stuff, for example the entire last paragraph could have just been "We played some games".

Tomorrow I plan to play some pickup ultimate at Marymoor park, which happens to be right by Jeremy's place, then go to dinner with Renee and Matt while Jeremy Raids - he plays World of Warcraft... but everybody's got their faults ;)

Monday afternoon there is pickup frisbee at Microsoft campus, and it turns out that Jeremy's place is super close to that as well! I'm so glad Jeremy (and co.) considered my convenience when choosing an apartment - it really couldn't be more convenient.

New stuff - redeaux

Last week I picked up some new stuff at Sports Authority, including a pair of cleats. Well, let me tell you about these cleats...

First off, they're the exact same make and size as my current pair, but the new version of the model (Nike "Total 90 Shoot II" rather than just "Total 90 Shoot"). The new version of the same shoe. When I got home and put the brand new insoles in them, my foot would no longer fit in the shoe. This was disappointing in general, but doubly so since I should have realized it would happen. In my current cleats I wear a 3/4 length insole, and maybe that's why it seems to fit better (also possibly because my cleats are broken in and stretched out a bit). So, annoyed, I removed the insoles and tried putting the cleats on without them... and they didn't fit right!

I swear they seemed to fit alright in the store, but putting them on at home it was pretty clear that they were just a little too tight in the front. It was like 10.5 was too small, but I'm sure size 11 would be too big. I even checked with the foot-sizer thingy at the store!

So why is it that the same make, same size, basically same model shoe no longer fits while my old shoes do? Just to annoy me? In the end I returned the cleats, the insoles, and the $10 protection package. I didn't really have time to be shopping for new cleats, I'll have to do that when I get back from Seattle. Fortunately my current cleats are in good enough shape that I don't need new ones yet...

New stuff

I went to Sports Authority during lunch and picked up some new stuff - mainly I needed new insoles for my cleats because I tore through the ones I had during the tournament last weekend. I got better ones this time which will hopefully hold up better.

While I was there I got a new pair of cleats, some compression shorts, and a hat! Once in a while it's good to get new things. My hat is falling apart, and I only have 2 pair of compression shorts that I like, and I need them 5 days a week. Not sure I really needed new cleats, but I decided to try a pair with a different cleat pattern. I also got a $10 'protection plan' because it sounds like they're really liberal in what they'll replace. Within 13 months if, say, the spikes wear down (likely with the ground here being so hard) or the insides tear up (I tear through heels and toes of cleats pretty fast), they'll send me a check for the full purchase price plus tax... Hopefully I'll remember to keep the receipt and claim the new shoes next year!