Saturday, September 19, 2009
Magnifico isn't magnificent
Last night after H's hockey practice, we headed to Kevin's for some gaming. Larry taught us his new game, Magnifico. This is war in the middle ages if Leonardo's inventions had been realized. So in addition to infantry and castles, the players can build tanks and gliders.
Some really neat ideas, but not sure it works well for five players.
This afternoon, H and I tried Lord of the Rings two player and didn't make it out of Shelob's Lair. We want to play with more than the two of us.
Croquet was fun with three balls each, though. Beautiful weather, so we also went on a couple bike rides. One to hardware store and one to the grocery.
Some really neat ideas, but not sure it works well for five players.
This afternoon, H and I tried Lord of the Rings two player and didn't make it out of Shelob's Lair. We want to play with more than the two of us.
Croquet was fun with three balls each, though. Beautiful weather, so we also went on a couple bike rides. One to hardware store and one to the grocery.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Exercise (and previous lack thereof)
My son is playing PeeWee hockey (11-12 yo) and this season, the team is doing off ice training as well. The plan is to do two laps of 12 stations or so with some pushups in between. Sounds like a great plan, right? The catch, parents and siblings are invited, too. So, since I was driving him over anyway, I decided to participate.
Now I am not in shape, but I can ride my bike for an hour with nothing worse than being out of breath and sweating, ditto for exercise bike. I was not ready for circuit training. Mrs. A (one of the team member's mom) was the drill sergeant. Four other fathers (three are coaches) joined in the fun as well. Two were smarter and just watched. Let's just say, I didn't keep up. I did most of the stuff, but couldn't always finish the 30 seconds and by part way through the second circuit, I wasn't doing my three pushups between stations either. I skipped the jumping skate like motion laps, too. (My left knee did not like me landing with sideways momentum on my left leg only.) Maybe the worst exercise was planks. You rest on your elbows and toes and hold your body straight (and off the floor) for the thirty seconds. Sounds easy, but my form must be off, because I couldn't inhale.
My son did all except the last couple sets of pushups. The dad that did marathons actually did less than I did, but only because he wanted to go watch his son's hockey game. The kids seemed to be able to do the whole thing and the other dad's were "cheating" less than me. Three of the kids showed up after cross country practice. So I think we probably aren't going to have to worry about the team fading in the third period. :)
By the time we got hom and H finished his homework (or nearly so), it was too late for any gaming, so I played online a bit before reading some of Dan Brown's new novel.
Now I am not in shape, but I can ride my bike for an hour with nothing worse than being out of breath and sweating, ditto for exercise bike. I was not ready for circuit training. Mrs. A (one of the team member's mom) was the drill sergeant. Four other fathers (three are coaches) joined in the fun as well. Two were smarter and just watched. Let's just say, I didn't keep up. I did most of the stuff, but couldn't always finish the 30 seconds and by part way through the second circuit, I wasn't doing my three pushups between stations either. I skipped the jumping skate like motion laps, too. (My left knee did not like me landing with sideways momentum on my left leg only.) Maybe the worst exercise was planks. You rest on your elbows and toes and hold your body straight (and off the floor) for the thirty seconds. Sounds easy, but my form must be off, because I couldn't inhale.
My son did all except the last couple sets of pushups. The dad that did marathons actually did less than I did, but only because he wanted to go watch his son's hockey game. The kids seemed to be able to do the whole thing and the other dad's were "cheating" less than me. Three of the kids showed up after cross country practice. So I think we probably aren't going to have to worry about the team fading in the third period. :)
By the time we got hom and H finished his homework (or nearly so), it was too late for any gaming, so I played online a bit before reading some of Dan Brown's new novel.
Labels: Other family
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Other things intruding on "life"
My son's hockey season has started as well as my daughter's marching band season. That's cut into my (semi) regular Friday gaming. H (going on 12) has gotten interested in poker lately, but I've convinced him that two player hold 'em isn't a great game.
However, I introduced him to Portland from Blazing Aces and it's been a hit.
In Portland, each player has a standard deck of cards and through the game must form six poker hands. Sounds easy, but you have to turn the cards over one at a time and decide which of the five slots to place it in (covering up the previous card). The first hand is worth one point, the next two, etc. A game only takes about five minutes or so, so it cries out for repeat plays.
He's won way more than his share and both "championships of the world." (CotW is our name for the final game of the night.)
However, I introduced him to Portland from Blazing Aces and it's been a hit.
In Portland, each player has a standard deck of cards and through the game must form six poker hands. Sounds easy, but you have to turn the cards over one at a time and decide which of the five slots to place it in (covering up the previous card). The first hand is worth one point, the next two, etc. A game only takes about five minutes or so, so it cries out for repeat plays.
He's won way more than his share and both "championships of the world." (CotW is our name for the final game of the night.)
Labels: gaming with family
Free Stuff
Is free stuff worth it in the gaming world? I've recently received some and am restarting this blog to get some more. Hourly rate wise, no way! But, if what you are doing is what you enjoy, then it's a nice bonus.
I think I like writing and courtesy of Free Games Friday at
http://michaelmindes.com/
I get a kick in the butt to start writing again and should also get a free plush dragon. How cool is that? Free Games Friday is another place to get free stuff. Now if Michael's writing hurt to read, it wouldn't be worth it to read his blog for the outside chance of some free games every Friday. Since his posts are usually interesting, the free games are just a bonus.
I think I like writing and courtesy of Free Games Friday at
http://michaelmindes.com/
I get a kick in the butt to start writing again and should also get a free plush dragon. How cool is that? Free Games Friday is another place to get free stuff. Now if Michael's writing hurt to read, it wouldn't be worth it to read his blog for the outside chance of some free games every Friday. Since his posts are usually interesting, the free games are just a bonus.
