Looking back

This has been a most interesting year for me. At the same time, I’ve been very very bad.

Not bad in the moral sense, but more bad in that I’ve really neglected things that interest me greatly. Activities that used to bring me so much joy, like working out, updating this space, seeing movies, playing a variety of games, all of those things I’ve not been too good about doing, especially in the last part of the year. Movies like 9 (the stitchpuck adventure), Nine (the musical), Sherlock Holmes, Ninja Assassin, and more recently the apparent visual feast of Avatar, all have been passed over in favor of playing games with my buddies. Whether it’s Agricola with local pals or Modern Warfare 2 with friends from afar, that has been the main focus of things this fall and winter.

In fact, for all my laziness, I’ve had a lot of fun. All those reviews I’ve been promising have been for some really good games. I relish the chance to play Dungeon Lords again, and look forward to replaying the newest Dominion Expansion.

In more RPG-related matters, my D&D sessions that I’ve been involved in have been really enjoyable, and the new material coming out has really given D&D 4th Edition the kind of depth that 3.X had. The best part about it is definitely the D&D Insider material available online. From the handy character builder, to the almost indispensible Monster Generator, to the added character flavor in Dragon, the year in D&D has been pretty fantastic. Add in the fact that I got to introduce several new players to the game in a sleep-deprived and half-drunk session in a Toronto diner over the summer, and it’s been a pretty solid year for XPz and lootz.

So maybe the year wasn’t a complete loss. So what about the decade that’s about to end? It’s been nothing short of fantastic for me. I got married, got a house, and got to travel! In doing so, I got to meet some of the most awesome people in the universe. At the same time, I’ve seen good times and a few bad with the friends that I’ve had for over 13 years. At this point, I’d call them family, brothers and sisters all. As for my family back in San Antonio, I’ve welcomed a new member into our family in my brother-in-law, and also recently met my first niece!

Sports were also big! The Oklahoma Sooners won a National Championship, and my beloved San Antonio Spurs won two NBA titles. I got to see Oklahoma City get the Hornets, then the Thunder. I got to sit courtside at a Thunder game too! In the gaming realm, I got more heavily involved in board gaming than ever before, meeting the outstanding people in the OKC Super Fantastic Gaming Hour group, and starting this site to bring my love of games to the world. Music was a big focus for me as I started going to concerts! I saw Nine Inch Nails six times, Sevendust three times, and Disturbed twice, among a multitude of other shows.

Yup, I’d say I’m pretty blessed. Happy New Year, and I’ll see you all in 2010!