Eeeeeeep!!! A STARRED REVIEW from Booklist for CATALYST, my next kids book, out 6/9! Thanks for brightening my day, Booklist!

https://www.booklistonline.com/Catalyst-Sarah-Beth-Durst/pid=9729210

 

I want to write this, but I don't want anyone to feel compelled to read it, so here, have some cut tags!

( Work stress )

( MtY stress )

( MtE stress )

( Mom stress )

I'm thinking of getting therapy just to have someone to talk to about all the stress. The good thing (honest, I see it as a good thing) is that most of the stress is basically external to me -- my days are generally easy and pleasant, and everyone who's not me may be melting down, but all my stress is in the way of a contact low, as it were. Other than being in a sandwich-generation holding pattern (when will the next phase of my life begin? no one knows), things are pretty good. I'm making more money than I ever have, I love my work, I get lots of downtime to read and hang out with James and mom, and my health is better than it's been in years. So yeah, if the universe could just leave my loved ones in peace, that'd be great.

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Some of us who are disabled and/or fat are worried we'll be denied access to scarce medical resources during the pandemic. This document describes our legal rights (in the US) and ways to maximize our likelihood of getting care.

#NoBodyIsDisposable Guide to Surviving COVID-19 Triage

Crips and fatties made this.
Please share with everyone who needs it.

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I just closed a half-dozen tabs that were old posts from y'all that I keep meaning to respond to. Apologies, but I have limited oomph this week, as a lot of us do.

But hey, surveys are easy.

Quarantine meme (quaranteme? quaranmeme?) picked up from julian who got it from crystalpyramid.


( My answers )

( And the blank questions if you want to do this )

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The actor behind Luke Skywalker takes StarWars.com on a journey through filming the Star Wars sequel in time for the 40th anniversary of its release.

Emmy Nominee Leslye Headland to write, produce, and serve as showrunner for new untitled Star Wars series for Disney+.

Get behind-the-scenes peeks from the production of The Mandalorian with personal photos from Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni, and many more.

Continuing my project to journal all of my travel adventures, we come to an entertaining entry: The Big Island of Hawaii and the Great Luggage Chase of 2013.

The trip was well planned but poorly executed due to weather mishaps. I was supposed to fly DCA-JFK-LAX-KOA but snow dropped visibility to near zero at JFK so my plane was rerouted to Providence, RI after we took off from DCA. After several hours Delta put everyone back on a plane to JFK and rescheduled the connecting flights outbound from there. There was no way I was going to make it out to LAX in time to catch the Delta flight to Hawaii,  but as I was still a shiny Diamond Medallion back then and mattered to the airline, Delta put me on an AA flights to ensure I would get to Hawaii one way or another. The AA flight routed through PDX (Portland) and because of more weather problems our flight into Portland was delayed and I missed my Hawaii flight after all. Now I was stranded in Portland overnight, while my luggage (including my coat) was in LAX (it had remained on my original itinerary). 44 degrees Fahrenheit and I was dressed in anticipation of Hawaii with my sleeveless summer dress and flip-flops. Gah! Are you laughing yet? 

Delta put me up in a hotel for the evening and in the next morning I was back at the airport in my dirty clothes, tired, cranky, and eager to get to Hawaii. Let this vacation start already! I landed on Kona Island (also called Hawaii Island or the Big Island) and was immediately dismayed to find my luggage wasn’t due to arrive until that evening (having missed the evening flight the night before, they put it on the next evening flight available 24 hours later). This was a problem as I was going to be on the road for most of the trip, exploring. I left information with Delta on my whereabouts for that evening and hoped for the best. I hopped into my rental car and headed for Volcano National Park. Along the way, the scenery was gorgeous and for a good portion of the trip my car was the only one on the highways I traveled.

I journeyed to the end of the Chain of Craters Road, which follows along the ocean and dead ends at a lava flow that closed the road beyond.

As I approached Volcano National Park, the sun began to set.

There was a beautiful lava lake in the Halema’uma’u crater (the 2019 eruption of Mt. Kilauea drained it) and I was lucky enough to stand before it that evening and enjoy its stunning ebb and flow. My poor quality cell phone picture cannot capture its essence.

I had an intense dinner at Thai Thai in Volcano. It was the hottest Thai food I have ever had outside of Bankok and it brought on an instant headache and the feeling that my lips were on fire. I recommend the place only if you can stand the heat.

The next morning I was up at 4am with plans to visit the highest point on the island and the summit of the tallest mountain in the world – Mauna Kea. From its base, Mauna Kea is over 10,000 meters tall (Mt. Everest is just 8,850 for comparison). It was a cold journey as my luggage still had not arrived into Hawaii (Delta was frantically searching for my bags and could not locate them in the system at all) and so I had only my summer dress I wore on the flight to Hawaii and the t-shirt/shorts combo I purchased the day before. The view from the top proved more than worth the discomfort of the cold.

As I was descending from the summit, Delta called with some good news. They found my bags at KOA. They said they would hold them for me till later that evening when I arrived for my flight to HNL. And they gave me a $200 delta voucher for my trouble. That made me feel a little bit better, but it reinforced the universal travel truth: checking luggage for a weekend trip is almost always a bad idea.

It was a leisurely drive back to KOA, with more scenic shots along the way.

When I got to KOA airport, Delta had some fun news for me. My bags weren’t at the airport anymore where they were supposed to be. As a “courtesy”, Alaska had picked them up from Delta baggage and sent a courier across the island to the hotel I stayed at the night before (2.5 hours away) to hand deliver them to me. With just a few hours before my departing flight for HNL, I told Delta they needed to get ahold of the driver and advise him to race his ass back to this side of the island to the airport. I was doubtful I would ever see my luggage again, but thirty minutes before takeoff, a very tired and sweaty courier waved at me and handed me my bags. As soon as I got to Waikiki and checked into my hotel, I took a long shower and enjoyed the luxury of putting on clean clothes- a ritual I usually take for granted.

I enjoyed a couple of relaxing days taking in the sun and fruity cocktail drinks on the beaches of Waikiki before heading home to Virginia.  That trip was delayed too, because of storms in Virginia, and I ended up spending the night near LAX and coming home a day later. All in all a good trip, excluding the weather and luggage fiascos. I have since been back to the Hawaiian Islands two or three times (to Oahu and Maui) but the Big Island is definitely the most spectacular of them all.  Go to Oahu for the history and shopping, go to Maui for the food, but go to the Big Island for the rugged scenery that will take your breath away.

Given the reputation of Mindclash Games as a producer of well themed and sufficiently complex games, I was quite optimistic about getting Cerebria: The Card Game on the table. Designed by István Pócsi and Frigyes Schőberl, the game was released in 2018, and it was due to arrive on my doorstep in March.
Once the box arrived and I saw the cutesy artwork by Villő Farkas, Jamie Sichel, and Pedro A. Alberto, I prepared a little space in my heart for the love of the game that was already starting to develop. The illustrations are playful, family friendly, and reflect the theme very well.
 
In Cerebria: The Card Game, we are organizing and controlling our emotions while toying with the emotions of others. The theming overlaid on the gameplay here works well with regard to what we are doing with our actions, but there is no explanation of who we are or why we are in this situation we find ourselves. I would have liked to see a better developed contextual narrative for the game.
Thanks to busy spring work schedules, it took a bit of time to gather friends over to play. The first game came together at the last minute when my friend Aaron was in town visiting for the weekend and our regular gaming friends John and Meagan dropped by. The five of us crowded around our gaming table, my husband Christopher explained the rules, and then we went at it.
To play the game, cards are pulled out of the main deck to form three decks laid out in vertical columns and the card at the top of each deck is flipped over and available to draw. Every player is dealt four cards. Players take turns drawing from one of the face up cards to their hand, playing cards from their hand to their personal tableau and collecting emotion fragments (blue fragments for gloom and orange fragments for bliss) on those cards if possible (some cards don’t collect fragments but have other special abilities), or both (two actions are mandatory each turn).

During a turn, a player may also activate emotion abilities of eligible cards in their tableau. These abilities involve actions that directly benefit the player, take-that actions that hurt other players, or combo actions that manage to do both at once. Gameplay moves pretty quickly and is not subject to much analysis paralysis. A round ends when any of the three draw piles is empty. At that juncture, all the emotion fragments collected in each player’s tableau are squirreled away to their personal cache and any bonus fragments are awarded to players (emotion cards have vibe symbols on them and bonus fragments are awarded for tableaus that meet set collection goals such as three different vibes or four identical vibes). If any player has amassed either twelve of the same color emotion fragments or seven of each color, they win and the game ends. If not, the game resets with the discard of any existing face up cards, replenishment of the three vertical decks, and all players drawing back up to (or discarding down to) four cards. Then play resumes and unfolds as in the previous round.

None of us are really fond of “take that” games, so the more aggressive and vindictive emotion abilities our cards presented us with weren’t used as frequently as they might have been with a different group of players. But that didn’t stop anyone from winning the game as the game has a lot of room for creative strategies and there are multiple paths to victory.

Subsequent games I played with other groups were just as enjoyable. This week, for example, I played a 4 player game at a youth center with three teens and everyone had a good time. There was a bit more time required before the under 16 crowd really understood the rules and how everything fit together but overall it went well. There were definitely more take-that actions taken by the teens than any of the adults I played with.
 

Win Condition: Be the first player to amass 12 emotion fragments of either gloom or bliss, or 7 of each. Strategy Tip: Be careful about laying down a valuable set of emotions in your mindset (such as four of a kind) early in the game. Tip your hand too soon and you invite others to play aggressive take-that emotion abilities against you to keep you from scoring points. It’s better to lay down your final card, if possible, just before drawing the last card from a draw column, which will end the round and allow you to score immediately.

Components for Cerebria: The Card Game  include glossy cards and some plastic tokens representing emotional fragments. Everything should hold up to regular use and all components can be stored compactly in the well made, small box provided.
I really enjoyed the game and the interactions it provoked between players. If your group enjoys take-that games, you can really turn the screws to your opponents and if your group wants to steer clear of such tactics you can just as easily play and win the game without striking out against others. The theming here is unique. Other than Cerebria (also from this publisher), there aren’t any current games dealing with organizing and handling emotions. It’s a great way to remind ourselves that we can control our emotional mindset by choosing what we focus on, regardless of what emotions pass through our minds.
This easy to learn, quick playing, well-illustrated, clever game has earned a forever home in my collection.
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Publisher: Mindclash Games
Players: 2-5
Actual Playing Time (vs the guideline on the box): About 45 minutes
Game type: set collection, take-that
Rating:

Jenni’s rating scale:
OUI: I would play this game again; this game is ok. I probably would not buy this game myself but I would play it with those who own it and if someone gave it to me I would keep it.
OUI OUI: I would play this game again; this game is good. I would buy this game.
OUI OUI OUI: I LOVE THIS GAME. I MUST HAVE THIS GAME.
NON: I would not play this game again. I would return this game or give it away if it was given to me.

Japanime recently sent me a review copy of their storytelling game Cartooner  from designer Jason Thompson, and as soon as I read the detailed description of this real-time drawing game I was a bit anxious about playing it. In Cartooner , players take on the role of cartoonists tasked with creating comic strips that carry their artistic vision and the narrative demands of their readers. I am a terrible artist. Stick figure level artistry, if we are being honest. My fragile ego doesn’t always react well to attempting tasks I am terrible at (hello shame and feelings of self-loathing). But all three of my kids love to draw and were quite excited about the game so I reluctantly brought Cartooner to the table one recent afternoon and we gave it a go as a family.

In the first round of the game each player is dealt three theme cards which represent their core artistic vision and they must draw a comic strip with two panels during the allotted time period (in student mode, which we played under, it’s eight minutes). Fame points are awarded for drawing in every panel (scribbles don’t count), incorporating the themes, and using no more than three word balloons (unlimited sound effects and symbols are allowed). In the second through fourth rounds, the rules and point qualifications are the same except that there are additional panels that must be filled (four panels total in the 2^nd round, six in the 3^rd, and eight in the 4^th), the storyline must logically follow from the first round’s comic strip, and additional fame points are available for adhering to the guidelines on selected trend cards which represent the content demands of our comic strip readers.

After each round of Cartooner, fame points are awarded to players by the consensus of all competitors as to how well each player qualified. At the end of the 4^th round, the player with the most fame points is declared the winner.

Components include 136 theme cards, 52 trend cards, 160 fame tokens, 64 pages for drawing comics, and the rulebook. Everything should hold up well under typical usage. There are colorful illustrations from Konstantin Pogorelov on the trend cards and the cover box but as this is a game designed for the players to create their own artwork, illustrations and print design are otherwise quite limited. Players will want to photocopy the comic book pages (or order additional books from the publisher) as the initial supply extends only to four games, assuming four players each game.

I was a ball of self-doubt going into round one as everyone began drawing, but once my storyline starting flowing out of my pen, I got lost in the creative process and really began to enjoy myself. Over each successive round I cared less and less that my drawings were Highlights magazine submission quality. I was heavily invested in the development of my characters and the evolution of my storyline. I also took a lot of pleasure in reading the comics of my competitors. Everyone did an amazing job with their strips and the stories were funny and fascinating.

My husband Chris drew a comic strip about a deadly virus, the bad guys who want to unleash it, and the team out to save the world from it. Our son Locke created a lighthearted strip about puppets dancing in space while our other son Max devised a comic about an agoraphobic lock that was being pursued by evil keys wanting to pry it open. Our daughter Helenipa shared her thieving ghosts at the heart of her comic strip and I terrified everyone with my tale of the unfortunate twins separated at birth who are reunited only when the one left at the orphanage returns to seek vengeance.

By the time we were finished, we didn’t even care much about the points and winning. We were really happy with our stories and the experience of sharing them. No one at our game table experienced any analysis paralysis but there was a low-level undercurrent of anxiety that progressively increased each round as we all wondered if we would get our panels completed before the time ran out (spoiler: we frequently didn’t).

Cartooner is the re-implementation of a previously released game, Mangaka, from the same designer and publisher. Therefore, while its mechanisms are not unique, the subject matter has shifted from anime to American style comic strips. This is a significant enough change to justify adding Cartooner  to your collection, even if you already own Mangaka. If you’re trying to decide between the two, note that Cartooner  features simpler themes and trends that will appeal to a broader age base and cultural demographic. We only needed to remove a handful of cards to keep the game family-friendly.

I’m really glad I pushed through my anxiety and played Cartooner. It’s a great game for stimulating creative ideas, building a cohesive narrative, and honing the ability to work under tight deadlines. The sharing portion of each round fosters good will and allows players to encourage and build up one another, making it a great family game or even a good icebreaker for less familiar groups. This is definitely a game that’s going to come out to our gaming table again and again.

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Publisher: Japanime Games
Players: 1-8
Actual Playing Time (vs the guideline on the box): About an hour
Game type: real-time, storytelling
Rating:

Jenni’s rating scale:
OUI: I would play this game again; this game is ok. I probably would not buy this game myself but I would play it with those who own it and if someone gave it to me I would keep it.
OUI OUI: I would play this game again; this game is good. I would buy this game.
OUI OUI OUI: I LOVE THIS GAME. I MUST HAVE THIS GAME.
NON: I would not play this game again. I would return this game or give it away if it was given to me.

The team at NSKN names (now Board and Dice) sent me a review copy of Teotihuacan and I’ve had the opportunity to play several times in the months since, across all player counts, including solo against the Teotibot.

Scholars tell us that Teotihuacan was, in its prime, the largest city in the Americas as well as the sixth largest city in the world. It’s only fitting that a prominent board game designer should make it the focal point of a compelling strategy game. Daniele Tascini is that designer, and in Teotihuacan, players take on the role of noble families working to build the great city and its Pyramid of the Sun while accruing wealth and glory.

Odysseas Stamoglou is the artist behind the illustrations and tile carvings in this game. A casual glance from a player like myself (who is not steeped in deep knowledge of Mesoamerican art but has visited the Teotihuacan ruins) observes that the illustrations are reminiscent of the decorations found on structures and items from the famed city. With a bit of research I was able to track down further information on the genesis of and inspiration for the artwork, as explained by Odysseas in a BoardGameGeek.com (BGG) thread:

“All the symbols, masks and murals you see in the game are original Teotihuacano art, with some minor adjustments. The temple icons as well as the various patterns you see are not just random decorations. For example, the red pyramid, associated with the pyramid of the Sun has the fire god as its symbol. The red patterns and decorations are symbols associated with the fire god (like triangles, pointed or romboid shapes, etc). So I went out of my way to make sure each visual element is thematic and as true to the theme as possible. The great pyramid symbol and the dice icons are invented, following the style of Teotihuacan with goggle eyes and headdress for the Pyramid and Maya signs for the dice. I used the mural of the Great Goddess as inspiration for the pyramid symbol.”

Clearly, Odysseas has put a lot of time and effort into his work here and it reinforces the game’s theme extremely well. The theme and the artwork are woven together beautifully. It might have been nice to include custom dice that feature thematic Mesoamerican etchings in place of ordinary pips, but that can drive up the retail price of the game, so it may have already been discussed and dismissed by the design team as too costly. I would also like to see obsidian incorporated into the theme somehow (perhaps in a future expansion?) as that was prominent in Teotihuacan art.

Components for the game include cardboard and wooden tokens, a large main board, 4 sets of dice, and beautifully made tiles (construction material feels and looks similar to dominos) used for building the pyramid. I really love the color palette used on the main and action boards. Player aids would be nice and such an obvious plus that it’s hard to understand why they were overlooked. The good news is that there has been a collaborative effort on BGG to create effective player aids; we downloaded the latest version from beonyourway (shown below; https://boardgamegeek.com/filepage/177055/yet-another-teotihuacan-player-aid) and found them to be very useful.

Getting into the gameplay, Teotihuacan is predominantly a worker placement game (with set collection aspects) that features dice deployed as workers utilizing a rondel. Players begin the game with 3 worker dice each and take turns moving a worker die they control 1-3 spaces around the main board, from one action board to another, completing the desired action(s) on the action board their worker lands on and earning any associated victory points.

Most actions also allow the player to increase the numeric value of the worker die by 1 and when the die reaches 6 in value, the worker “ascends”, allowing the player to choose from a selection of valuable bonuses (including the acquisition of a 4^th worker die) and resetting the die back to 1 in value. The actions represented on the various action boards include earning resources (cocoa, stone, wood, gold), constructing the pyramid, decorating the pyramid, building houses, worshipping to advance on temples and earn discovery tiles, and securing technology.

Extra actions or bonuses may be granted to a player when they have more than one die on an action board at the time they complete the action on that board – this is usually a result of moving a die to an action board where the player previously moved a die but some discovery tile bonuses allow players to move more than one worker die at a time, which can also lead to the accumulation of multiple dice belonging to one player on an action board. It’s not exclusively take, take, take in Teotihuacan. Players must give up resources in order to complete most actions. Additionally, they must pay resources – specifically cocoa - at the end of each phase or “eclipse” of the game (payment is proportionally to the number of worker dice they control and the numeric value of those dice) as well as whenever they wish to take an action where other players currently have worker dice positioned (payment is proportional to the number of other players who have worker dice already on that action board).

Almost every game has gone down the same for me– I find creative ways to pull out far ahead of the other players in the beginning, but I usually struggle with building an engine and eventually their engines take off and they overcome me. I couldn’t even pull off a win against the Teotibot on the easiest level. I finally had a win last week by focusing heavily on the construction action board, as three of the technologies gave bonuses for that action.

There are many ways to score points in Teotihuacan and it opens up a lot of avenues for creatively driving point accrual. The many options also allow for replay experiences that feel like a different game each time. Of course, a multitude of choices can also lead to analysis paralysis and Teotihuacan can suffer from this, dragging the playing time out typically anywhere from 90 to 120 minutes on average in our house.

Strategy tip: players need to be flexible and adapt tactics each game, taking  into consideration the action board arrangement and the available technologies on the alchemy action board.

Teotihuacan is the only game in my collection with a Mesoamerican theme, one of the few incorporating a rondel, and as an added plus, it includes solo mode.  It has so much to offer including a well-researched and implemented theme, a consistent intellectual challenge across all player counts, and quality components. All of these features suggest it would be a great addition to any game library, but it’s the ever-changing gameplay created by the variable action board placement and technologies that really compelled me to give Teotihuacan a permanent home in my game collection.

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Publisher: NSKN Games (now Board and Dice)
Players: 1-4
Actual Playing Time (vs the guideline on the box): 90-120 minutes
Game type: Worker Placement, Rondel, Set Collection

Rating:

Jenni’s rating scale:
OUI: I would play this game again; this game is ok. I probably would not buy this game myself but I would play it with those who own it and if someone gave it to me I would keep it.
OUI OUI: I would play this game again; this game is good. I would buy this game.
OUI OUI OUI: I LOVE THIS GAME. I MUST HAVE THIS GAME.
NON: I would not play this game again. I would return this game or give it away if it was given to me

Let's take a moment to talk about the series Exit: The Game, which debuted in the United States in 2016.

Designed by Inka and Marcus Brand and published by Thames and Kosmos, the games are advertised as an Escape Room in a box. In an escape room, you and a group a friends are placed into a room (you may literally be locked in, depending on the fire code of the city where you book the room). Then,  a timer is set, a story is told to you to provide context and atmosphere for your puzzling adventure, and you attempt to solve a series of puzzles, the answers to which will eventually lead you to a key or combination to escape the room - hopefully before time runs out. These rooms typically book for $30+ per person, so the promise of replicating the escape room experience out of a tiny little box for a fraction of the cost is very appealing.

But does Exit: The Game live up to its promise? It does. It absolutely does, with one caveat - some of the games have you puzzling to solve a mystery within the time limit, but you aren't trying to escape anything.

Earlier titles in the series are fairly straightforward. A paper booklet of puzzles; a set each of riddle cards (pair with the booklet to solve the puzzles), answer cards (used to validate puzzle solutions and lead you to new riddle cards),  and help cards (hints for solving the puzzles); a decoder wheel (used to input codes derived from the puzzles); a simple rulebook; and various accessories (usually constructed of cardboard or paper) provide the core of the game experience. Players need to come equipped with scissors (destruction of components is required in nearly every game), pens/pencils, rulers, and a sharp wit to finish the game and calculate their score (measured in stars). The puzzle mechanisms vary, but they will be at least somewhat familiar to players who have done escape rooms or puzzle hunts before.  Depending on the title chosen, the puzzles also vary in difficulty. There is a difficulty rating printed on each box. We found that on average, we finish every Exit title in about 75 minutes; what varies for us across difficulty ratings is how many hint cards we lean on to solve the puzzles.

As the series has progressed in maturity, Inka and Marcus have been able to deliver titles with creative new puzzle mechanisms, changes in solving methodology (such as varying whether the puzzles in the paper booklet must be completed in sequential order or not), and meta puzzles. Meta puzzles are those which you cannot solve without getting a piece of the solution from some or all of the other puzzles included. For example, a puzzle that has you solve for a sentence comprised of words derived from other puzzle solutions is a meta puzzle. A good example of a title from the Exit: The Game series with a meta puzzle is Exit: The Game  - Dead Man on the Orient Express. It includes a meta puzzle that requires players to pay close attention to the passengers, their possessions, and locations throughout the game in order to solve it successfully. That game also introduced envelopes to open as the game progressed and it’s one of the titles that doesn’t see players escaping anything; instead they are trying to issue a code at the end to transmit the identity of a killer to authorities.

By the time the series release of Exit: The Game – The Catacombs of Horror  came around, I really thought the Brands couldn’t have any new tricks up their sleeve. I was wrong. With Catacombs of Horror, they have introduced the two part adventure, giving players a longer puzzling experience in one box. You can play straight through the entire game (allot yourself at least 2 hours) or play the first half and come back to the second half another time. There are also some fantastic new twists on the puzzling mechanisms (a candle is included and must be lit to solve one of the puzzles, for example), and the components got an upgrade (I’m holding onto the adorable little skulls indefinitely). Alongside the puzzle elements, the theming in the series has gotten better and better as new titles are released. Catacombs of Horror provides a well written narrative, albeit very very dark. As we solve puzzles, we find ourselves chasing down what happened to a friend of ours who disappeared into the Catacombs of Paris. It seems he may have met a dark end after having crossed paths with some demonic forces. This title is definitely not for the kiddos, which might be its only drawback. We have clever tweens who enjoy puzzle games, and this isn’t something we can share with them.

There have been at least three more titles released in the Exit: The Game series since Catacombs of Horror  was published in 2018 and more are on the way for 2020. If you’ve previously purchased any of the series, I’d strongly recommend adding Catacombs of Horror  to your must-play list. If this is the first you’ve heard of the series, do yourself a favor, and start with one of the easier titles, such as Exit: The Game – The Sunken Treasure. Then if you have a good time, move onto Exit: The Game – The Pharoh’s Tomb, before sinking your teeth into the most difficult titles like Exit: The Game  - Dead Man on the Orient Express or this one (Exit: The Game – The Catacombs of Horror ).

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Publisher: Thames and Kosmos
Players: 1-4 (we always play with 2)
Actual Playing Time (vs the guideline on the box): About 2 and a half hours
Game type: puzzle, cooperative
Rating:

Jenni’s rating scale:
OUI: I would play this game again; this game is ok. I probably would not buy this game myself but I would play it with those who own it and if someone gave it to me I would keep it.
OUI OUI: I would play this game again; this game is good. I would buy this game.
OUI OUI OUI: I LOVE THIS GAME. I MUST HAVE THIS GAME.
NON: I would not play this game again. I would return this game or give it away if it was given to me.

I will meet you there this weekend!

I'll be at TABLE F2 with the lovely keshii! There's going to be a lot of amazing and beautiful people there!

I will have Starfighter: Chapter 01, t-shirts, hot shorts, AND ALSO, some sweet extras. This will be my first con with a table.. and it is all because of you guys! Thank you so, so much! I can only hope I can meet you guys so I can thank you in person; you have my humble love and affection.

I'll see you there, sweethearts! -HamletMachine

TCAF site!

If you're attending, stop by and say hello!

(I don't have a table number yet but I'll be sure to announce this as soon as I know! If not, I'm sure you can find where my table is in the directory!)

EDIT: OH MAN! I almost forgot— At last Yaoi-con, there was a sweet person who had lost her voice from a cold (ah, I'm not sure if I got your name) and had printed out some TCAF info so I could attend— SWEETHEART, IF YOU READ THIS, THANK YOU! I hope to see you there!) -Hamlet

Studio Universal na znovuotevření kin nečeká. Premiéru animovaného hitu Trollové: Světové turné pustilo na placených digitálních kanálech. Strategie se vyplatila a hollywoodský gigant zvažuje, že by kinům v budoucnu odepřel jejich exkluzivní právo promítat filmy měsíce před uvedením na jiných platformách.

Dr. Anthony S Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and just...

How CEOs Are Ruining America

Today, America’s wealthiest business moguls – like Jamie Dimon, head of JPMorgan Chase – claim that they are “patriots before CEOs” because they employ large numbers of workers or engage in corporate philanthropy.

Rubbish.

CEOs are in business to make a profit and maximize their share prices, not to serve America. And yet these CEOs dominate American politics and essentially run the system. 

Therein lies the problem: They cannot be advocates for their corporations and simultaneously national leaders responsible for the wellbeing of the country. This is the biggest contradiction at the core of our broken system.

A frequent argument made by CEOs is that so-called “American competitiveness” should not be hobbled by regulations and taxes. Jamie Dimon often warns that tight banking regulations will cause Wall Street to lose financial business to banks in nations with weaker regulations. Under Dimon’s convenient logic, JPMorgan is America. 

Dimon used the same faulty logic about American competitiveness to support the Trump tax cut. “We don’t have a competitive tax system here,” he warned.

But when Dimon talks about “competitiveness” he’s really talking about the competitiveness of JPMorgan, its shareholders, and billionaire executives like himself.

The concept of “American competitiveness” is meaningless when it comes to a giant financial enterprise like JPMorgan that moves money all over the world. JPMorgan doesn’t care where it makes money. Its profits don’t directly depend on the wellbeing of Americans.

“American competitiveness” is just as meaningless when it comes to big American-based corporations that make and buy things all over the world. 

Consider a mainstay of corporate America, General Electric. Two decades ago, most GE workers were American. Today the majority are non-American. In 2017, GE announced it was increasing its investments in advanced manufacturing and robotics in China, which it termed “an important and critical market for GE.” In 2018, over half of GE’s revenue came from abroad. Its once core allegiance to American workers and consumers is gone.

Google has opened an Artificial Intelligence lab in Beijing. Until its employees forced the company to stop, Google was even building China a prototype search engine designed to be compatible with China’s censors.

Apple employs 90,000 people in the United States but contracts with roughly a million workers abroad. An Apple executive told The New York Times, “We don’t have an obligation to solve America’s problems. Our only obligation is making the best product possible” – and showing profits big enough to continually increase Apple’s share price.

American corporations will do and make things wherever around the world they can boost their profits the most, and invest in research and development wherever it will deliver the largest returns. 

The truth is that America’s real competitiveness doesn’t depend on profit-seeking shareholders or increasingly global corporations. The real competitiveness of the United States depends on only one thing: the productivity of Americans. 

That in turn depends on our education, our health, and the infrastructure that connects us. Yet today, American workers are hobbled by deteriorating schools, unaffordable college tuition, decaying infrastructure, and soaring health-care costs. 

And truth be told, big American corporations and the CEOs that head them – wielding outsized political influence – couldn’t care less. They want tax cuts and rollbacks of regulations so they can make even fatter profits. All of which is putting Americans on a glide path toward lousier jobs and lower wages. How’s that for patriotism?

The first step toward fixing this broken system is to stop buying CEOs’ lies. How can we believe that Jamie Dimon’s initiatives on corporate philanthropy are anything other than public relations? Why should we think that he or his fellow CEOs seek any goal other than making more money for themselves and their firms? We can’t and we shouldn’t. They don’t have America’s best interests at heart — they’re making millions to be CEOs, not patriots.

Big American corporations aren’t organized to promote the wellbeing of Americans, and Americans cannot thrive within a system run largely by corporations. Fundamental reform will be led only by concerned and active citizens.

Well, in just a few short days I am off to Japan on what I think is a very well-deserved vacation! The dogs will be on vacation, too, on their first ever trip to a boarding facility. I put a lot of care into choosing a place for them and I am optimistic that everything will work out well in my absence. Nervous, but optimistic. It will be really good for all of us, I think, since I have never boarded them and need to lighten up and it will be a good "out in the world" experience for the browns. Cutting the cord... I will report back on how everyone does.

Last week at Doga Maizy was such a pill that this week I put in an untested rookie. Probert was up to the challenge and made a LOVELY Doga companion. He taught a wonderful class and he just might be my new Doga co-teacher.

My boyfriend brought over this poster for Probert this weekend and hung it above his crate. Probert came in from playing outside to see it for the first time, walked straight into his crate and stood there staring at it. I think he likes it!

Last week was my friend Flo's birthday and we surprised her with this photo (which was a huge pain in the butt, let me tell you!). ;)

About a month ago we brought a new couch (it had previously occupied our office at work, but didn't work in our new building) home. I was really excited, but Hannibal the cat was REALLY angry about the new couch when it was first moved in. She was hissing and running and generally acting pretty nutty. In an effort to calm her down, I went to pick her up to put her in a bedroom for a while and she freaked! She ended up biting my hand, which ended up getting infected, which ended up requiring TWO emergency room visits. The first visit resulted in a tetanus shot (OW!) and a prescription for big-ass antibiotic pills. The second visit resulted the following day from a HUGELY swollen hand that required IV antibiotics. At that visit I learned that it takes about 30 minutes to receive a course of IV antibiotics, which was very fortunate since we were having a party that evening with 20+ of our friends due over.

Just thought I’d give an update, since I haven’t posted any articles in a while…I decided to take some time off from this site as it was taking up a lot of time just trying to keep up with the news lately, and I’ve been super busy with many other things that I just couldn’t […]

Shaenon: My kid told me I should only draw cats, so I made this Florida Keys-themed wallpaper for him. As usual, if you make a donation in any amount to the Skin Horse Tip Jar, or contribute any amount to[…]↓ Read the rest of this entry...

ESPN will be releasing two brand new 30 For 30 documentaries in Africa in May and early June, telling the stories of cyclist Lance Armstrong and martial artist Bruce Lee.

Most stakeholders agree that holding smaller competitions will be the best way forward post-lockdown.

Hall of Famer Patrick Ewing says his two Olympic gold medals along with his 1984 NCAA championship ring were stolen.

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As John Constantine proves in the new "Apokalips war" animated movie

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Kvůli koronavirové pandemii pracují z domova tisíce lidí. Home office má však určitý pracovně-právní rámec, což tuší málokdo. Jaká jsou práva a povinnosti zaměstnanců a co musí zaměstnavatel udělat, aby neporušil zákoník práce? Ve spolupráci s právníky Bořivojem Líbalem a Markem Poloni přinášíme praktický servis rad pro zaměstnance a zaměstnavatele.

The finalists are:

• Be The Serpent, presented by Alexandra Rowland, Freya Marske and Jennifer Mace
• Claire Rousseau’s YouTube channel, produced & presented by Claire Rousseau
• The Coode Street Podcast, presented by Jonathan Strahan and Gary K. Wolfe
• Galactic Suburbia, presented by Alisa Krasnostein, Alexandra Pierce and Tansy Rayner Roberts, producer Andrew Finch
• Our Opinions Are Correct, presented by Annalee Newitz and Charlie Jane Anders
• The Skiffy and Fanty Show, presented by Jen Zink, Shaun Duke, Paul Weimer, Alex Acks, Trish Matson, David Annandale, and The Skiffy and Fanty Crew

I'm not familiar with any of these, and I'm not confident of finding time to change that between now and voting time. But I have at least bookmarked the YouTube playlist (she helpfully made a "Hugo Voter Packet" playlist!) and downloaded some sample episodes from each podcast to listen to.

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ingredients

• 1 avocado, chopped ($1.25)
• 1tablespoon finely chopped celery ($.05)
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped onion ($.05)
• 2 teaspoons mustard ($.05)
• 2 teaspoons mayo  (use something like Veganaise or make your own) ($.10)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• Lettuce and optional tomato for serving

directions

• Coarsely chop the avocado, add the remaining ingredients, then stir gently until evenly incorporated. 
• Store leftovers for up to a day or two in an air tight container.
•  

nutritional information:       calories: 280       fat: 37 gr      carbs: 15 gr      protein: 3 gr

Continued from Day Four. (From the beginning.) On Friday we packed all of our stuff back up and headed out.  We were barely out of the resort when: This tire is flat. Apparently all that gravel out to Horne Lake Caves the day before also included a small screw.  We limped around the corner to … Continue reading Summer Horrification — Day Five — Englishman River and Rathtrevor

We started going to a personal trainer at the end of the summer, and it’s been really good–building strength, getting healthier. But the one thing that she badgered me about was bread. “You have to stop eating bread! Gluten is terrible for you. It’s what’s making your knees hurt. It’s causing inflammation in your finger […]

At the very end of 2017, I wrote about my lovely new sewing space and how much more work I’m getting done in there. One of the pictures I did not include was the view into the rest of the family room: As you can see, there is lots of lovely space in our library. I […]

Heh. K Tempest Bradford happened across an old photo of me and Neil — I’m in a sari, so I’m guessing this was at the Hugos. We look very young, so at least a decade ago — maybe two. 

Все знают, коллектив MusicAeterna и его художественный руководитель Теодор Курентзис с декабря 2019 года активно работают над проектом культурно-образовательного центра Р. А. Д. И. О. в Санкт-Петербургском Доме Радио. Но карантин вносит в эту работу свои коррективы, и в конце апреля было объявлено об открытии digital platform — виртуальной творческой резиденции MusicAeterna. В скором времени на ней будет доступна онлайн-версия перформанса Алексея Ретинского «Слышать», посвященный Людвигу ван Бетховену. Анонсируем это событие статьей Анны Самсоненко, побывавшей на единственном представлении в феврале.

This is the Call for Nominations for the 2019 Theszie Awards (the rec.sport.pro-wrestling Awards). To nominate candidates for all categories, you may use this form. Nominations are due by January 5, 2019. Finally, to see previous years’ results, click here for 2018, click here for 2017, here for 2016, here for 2015, here for 2014, […]

This is the Call for Votes for the 2019 RSPW (Theszie) Awards. You can vote here. The Theszies are the oldest fan awards in pro wrestling history, going back to 1990 (when Mr. Perfect quite appropriately won Best Wrestler and Junkyard Dog v. Ric Flair at Clash of the Champions XI won Worst Match). They […]

A convocation of the Lover Triad of United States Grand Lodge will be held in Cleveland, Ohio, August 14-16 2020. Registration for the convocation is now open. See this site for more information.

Out of an abundance of caution regarding the developing COVID-19 situation, U.S. Grand Lodge has decided to cancel its scheduled national gatherings this spring, specifically Advanced Initiator Training, Kaaba Colloquium, and the Electoral College meeting. The Electoral College meeting will be held online according to standard Electoral College procedures. For more information regarding COVID-19, please …

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Event cancellations at local bodies due to COVID-19 will reduce revenue, but not rent and other fixed expenses. Many local bodies already operate on extremely tight margins and struggle to pay their bills even during normal times. All members are encouraged to continue to financially support their local bodies, even if there are no events …

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The Convocation of Lovers scheduled for August 2020 in Cleveland has been indefinitely postponed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Those with hotel reservations for this event should cancel them. There should be no cancellation fee charged if you made a reservation at the Courtyard Cleveland Westlake using the conference reservation link.

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