Third Coast Games

    Speaking of insanity, I have decided to open a game store.

   Third Coast Games will be opening in Friendswood, TX, just south of Houston. I am trying like crazy to open on May 4th, but due to delays with the landlord getting the lease contract put together, that may not happen. Heck, I can't even say for 100% sure that I have the space, since the lease is not yet signed.

   For now, there is a placeholder website, www.thirdcoastgamestx.com. Once I have the logo ironed out and the location settled, I will set up social media pages on Facebook, Twitter, etc.

It's My Birthday!

Just thought I would share that.

Aggie Ring Day! WHOOOOP!

   If you didn't already know, I'm a very proud former student and graduate of Texas A&M University, class of 1994. For Aggies, getting their senior ring is a very big deal, surrounded by traditions that have grown up for over a hundred years (the first rings were made in 1889, but the design wasn't the same). 

   Unlike any other school of which I am aware, you can not just buy an Aggie ring. Theoretically, I could go online and purchase a ring from Baylor, or Notre Dame, or even t.u. (that cow school in Austin). Not the Aggie Ring. You have to earn it. Usually in the fall or spring of your junior year, you turn in an application to the Association of Former Students (our alumni organization, who owns the rights to the ring design). The Association will check your transcripts and grades and determine if you meet the criteria to purchase your ring.

   Each part of the design has a symbolic meaning.

   The only visible difference in the ring is size (ladies' rings are smaller scaled), class number (the last two digits of your graduating class year), and your signature, engraved inside the ring. Some students opt to have a diamond added or have it 'antiqued,' but that's not part of the official design.

   Here's mine. I essentially never take it off, and won't until I am buried. Notice, it's a bit worn.

J Womack '94, History

   And today, right about the time this posts (I scheduled it yesterday), my oldest son will receive his Aggie Ring. I'm very proud of him.

Greyson Womack '18, Biomedical Science

   One of the traditions of getting your ring that goes back at least thirty or so years is the 'ring dunk' ceremony. Essentially, you don't put it on until you have taken it to a bar, dropped it into the bottom of a pitcher of beer (soda is okay if you're teetotal, but most college students drink the beer), and drink the entire pitcher to get it back. Some people try to chug it down quickly. I prefer to enjoy my beer, but to each their own. Just don't puke it back up or choke on your ring! 

   Anyway, we are heading to the Dixie Chicken to dunk his ring (and re-dunk mine!). The sun is over the yardarm somewhere!

Brexit: How does it affect gamers?

   Brexit has passed the UK's voters. As a result, they will be leaving the European Union sometime in the next few years (I understand there's some provision for a period of time to be used making necessary policy adjustments, etc.).

   While I want to remain out of the politics of it, I'm curious as to how people think it will affect that most vital demographic: the gamers. Will it help gamers in the UK? What about gamers in the rest of Europe? Or in the US?

   As of this moment, it seems a plus for the US because of the effect Brexit seems to be having on the pound sterling. It's dropped a good bit against the dollar, meaning this is a good time to buy British products. Does that substantially harm the British manufacturers? I hope not, as I am on good terms with more than one of them (yeah, Martin, I mean you!).

   Anyway, I'm interested in what you all think. Please spread this around - I'll be mentioning it on TMP as well. Please comment below. And please, no vitriolic rhetoric. I know some people are quite incensed and others are jubilated by the results of the vote, but I'm interested only in the specific sense here.

I hate my wife's dog.

  Actually, she's a puppy. And I shouldn't, because she is just doing puppy things.

  Last night she knocked over my portable painting station, aka the TV tray. This entailed her carrying off three bottles of paint and my brush cup. Which was about half full of water at the time, so now there is paint water in the carpet. Joy. And of course the bottles of paint (Vallejo) were thoroughly chewed up. Can't even tell what the label says. The brush cup too, but that's not a major loss.

  To top it off, she snatched away two bases of almost finished FOW Indian mortars. Gnawed one of them up pretty well, but didn't swallow any lead. Did manage to pop some of the figures off of the stand, though, and got about half of the basing material down her mouth as well. Luckily for her, health-wise, it was just sand and PVA glue, and the paints are all non-toxic acrylics. Still...

  Anybody want a 7 pound female Chihuahua?

  AAAARGH!

Weymouth, Dorset, UK... Anyone been there?

The younger boy and I shall be in Weymouth this June. Any suggestions for eats and drinks?

We are attending the Tank Days show at the Tank Museum in Bovington.

Grad School - 1, Gaming - Nil

And I think that pretty well explains what's been going on around my house. I have purchased some more Ogre Miniatures, both off eBay and from Warehouse 23. So I'll be needing to add some points to my "purchases". Spent about $100 all told. Have to double check before updating the expenses, too.

What am I, the gaming CPA?

Nope, just tired. The paper is going well, if you are interested in my schoolwork. It's an article on the process of school desegregation as seen in Galveston, Texas. Fairly interesting - far more interesting than I thought it would be when I began. Gobs of digging through old school board minutes. May 10th can not get here fast enough.

I promise I will finish the A to Z. Might post a D tomorrow if I take a break.

Starting orbit #43... NOW!

   Today is the 21st anniversary of my 21st birthday. That's right. Kids born on the day that I could first legally drink in Texas can now legally drink in Texas. Freaky.

   But, as my daddy always says, getting older may not be a lot of fun, but it sure beats the alternative...

Skype Help Needed

   So my buddy Jim has moved 600 miles to the frozen north of Texas (okay, so not so frozen this time of year.) My sons want to continue to game with their godfather (yup, just like the movie). I want to continue to game with my best friend. But a ten plus hour commute just isn't frequently going to be in the cards.

  Tell me about Skype. Will it do what I think it will do for us? I have a large flatscreen that can be used as a monitor on the wall in the game room (helpful when playing ZULU as background while painting, etc.). I have two laptops with integrated webcams and a third computer that could be moved to attach to the TV if needed. I have an older digital camera that shoots video and I think can be setup as a live web camera. We also have three smart phones (one iPhone and two Droids - we are a mixed family, you see...). Almost fitting the Droids should be involved, since we play Star Wars RPG.

   So, can we do this for free via Skype? I would prefer if we could all have our faces individually on his screen, and maybe an additional camera on the field of play. Do I need to get another webcam? Help the techno-challenged gamer!

1 down, 12 to go...

Classes, that is.

I finally finished my first graduate class last night. Man, this thinking thing has gotten harder, hasn't it? Or is it just that since I haven't really had to do too much of it for the last fifteen years or so, I am sorely out of practice?

I think I will get a B for the course, which is okay, but I was hoping to get an A. I did learn a good bit about the history of the British Empire (this is what the course was over), especially in regards to the early 20th century. I even learned a good deal about the interwar society of Britain, which may come in handy for my Very British Civil War gaming.