Animal

For my band's last show, I dressed up as the Muppet Animal.

I used colored hair spray for my hair and my skin. For what I could spend, it seemed the most durable and had the best coverage.

The ankle and wrist shackles I made out of craft foam. I cut the strips out of a large sheet, and bought a package of shapes. All hot glued together with strips of Velcro for easy  on and off.

The chain was from a Halloween decoration. I made a choker out of Velcro and looped it through the chain.

The gig was a huge success!! We were offered a weekly spot at the bar, but unfortunately we had to turn it down. We said we could do a monthly show and it looks like that may happen.

Car Wars

My GM, is looking for someone to take the mantle either intermittently, or after our DH campaign has run its course. I ran two D&D campaigns prior, and the second one is a popular choice within the group as the next game.

While I am not opposed to that, I have a hankerin' for something else. A Car Wars campaign! My idea is that the group would be employees/co-owners of a small local shipping company. The structure would be small delivery runs, some accounting/business, and when money is tight, head off to the local AADA arena for a rumble.

I envision the cars as the focus. But am looking at either boosting the primitive character development in Car Was or running an altogether different character system. Out of the 7 of us, only 3 have played Car Wars before (back in the 80's it was one of our favorite games).

As an introduction to the game for the other 4 players, I am planning an Division 15 arena battle. Everyone would have the same car. I based the vehicle off the Armadillo in the Vehicle Guide vol 3. Essentially, I dropped about 1/3 of the armor F, B, L, R and the AP rounds in the RL to add a ram plate and an extra magazine for the RL.

This is v 0.1 of my vehicle record sheet. At this point it is heavily based on the standard sheet. After we play the arena battle, I will make adjustments as we see fit.

The Game of Life

My wife just spent a week in the hospital. She has been struggling quite awhile before hand and it is not over yet--Out patient treatment for the next 3-4 weeks and another 2-3 weeks at home before going back to work.

Taken from the interwebs without permission

This impacts us financially as the up-to-2-months she will be off work will be unpaid. We do not have disability insurance. We do not have any other significant form of income (I stay home to care for our son and my mother-in-law). Nor do we have access to assistance programs.

We also have no savings. My wife has been sick off and on for various reasons over the last 10 years. She underwent 13 surgeries (including breast cancer and foot surgery) plus my 2 month hospital stint (brain tumor). This has drained us, an inheritance, and we still owe money.

I have painted a grim picture. What is my point? My wife and I keep forging ahead. People often say to us "It will get better". Well, I can say after hearing that for over 10 years, sometimes it doesn't--Sometimes it gets worse. But that does not mean we are giving up in any way... Its just reality.

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Spending time with my friends through games (as a true hobby) has been a pastime of mine since 1980. It is who I am, how I express myself, and an important part of my life. Its NOT just because I like games...

Created by Zorcon as a fan wallpaper for the video game
"Bikini Karate Babes"

I am socially awkward, even with close friends at times. Games put me on an equal playing field and I am more comfortable. But most importantly, games are a way for me to escape from the stresses of life and actually cope with it better.

Without games, I do not know how I would have made it this far.

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I have been keeping an eye on my post count. In 22 more posts, I will have posted in 2013 the same number of posts as the previous 4 years combined! With everything going on, it will be a big challenge, but I am up for it!