Farewell Queek

I'm sad to say that Queek the guinea pig passed away last night.

Two things were true about Queek: he loved the little fuzzy ends that came in his hay and he loved the ladies. He could much through those fuzzy ends like nobody's business. It was fun to watch how he sucked them down. I think he would judge a batch of hay on the number of fuzzies it had. Once he zipped through those, he was done with that batch and squeak for more.

Queek and I had an OK relationship; I fed him and gave him scratches (and the aforementioned fuzzies). We'd chat about stuff. He was so-so on his former pen mate Magnet. They never really quite got a long and each had to have their own pigloo. I think he didn't really care for us because we were guys; Queek was a ladies guinea pig. He would get very excited whenever The Bat, Barnelia or The Bat's Mom came in the room. He'd run to the front of his pen and tilt his head up just waiting for a pet (which they often gave him). He got so excited last time he saw Barnelia he nipped her (clearly out of love because he wasn't a mean spirited piggy).

The Bat and I said our goodbyes and buried him in the backyard next to the new flower bed. He'll get a sunflower when it comes time to plant.

Thank you everyone who took care of Queek and Magnet while The Bat and I were away.

Everything I Know I Learned from D&D

or Rest Well Gary Gygax

As you probably have heard the creator of Dungeons & Dragons passed away. I can't think of many people that I never actually knew that had such an impact on my life. D&D and games in general have been my main hobby since I was a teen.

I started playing Dungeons and Dragons in sixth grade when I met a few kids in the gifted and talented classes who "played." I say it with quotes because they didn't really know any rules and they didn't have dice (just a Sucrets container with tiny slips of paper in it numbered from 1 to 20). They just told stories to each other in the guise of D&D. Not a bad thing mind you, just less structured. I begged my parents for the Red Box (it came with real dice! I still have my first well worn d20) and it took off from there to other RPGs, computer games, table top games, miniature games and card games. D&D was a gateway drug for me that led me into a world of nerds, dorks and other socially awkward creatures. I have spent more money and time on games than I care to think about. But I don't regret it.

I feel that D&D gave me a love of reading, the ability to understand complex systems, helped me explore creativity and imagination and allowed me to explore what was right and wrong, good and evil in a safe environment. D&D was my sandbox growing up. While most players probably built castles and pillaged villages, I remember that I played a time traveling monk (hardly D&D cannon) who spent most of his time building a museum, a very scholarly priest who spent most of his gold on building a huge library and inventing new inks to illuminate texts with or a rogue who sought to learn the funniest joke from the gods. I wouldn't be who I am, for better or worse, with out Gary Gygax's creation.

I grew out of some gaming; I just can't quite take RPGs as seriously as I used to and I don't have a group of friends to support a steady gaming habit. Now I mostly play World of Warcraft and other video games but I do miss those few years of Gaming Tuesdays before I left the Sunshine State.

Tonight, as Teodor (my Blood Elf Frost Mage in WoW) was flying to Gadgetzan I noticed all the mechanics that Gygax introduced to storytelling to transform it into a game. (Hit points, classes, levels, experriance points, etc.) What he started with D&D was everywhere and these stories are much more fun and engaging because of him. As soon as Teodor landed he poured out a mana potion in salute of the first GM's passing.