Respects...

Dear Gary,

It's been a year now since you left us. I put a humble post on my blog when I heard the news. It was just something short and simple about how I met you once at a convention and how your game changed my life and allowed me to meet nearly all the friends I have today. I just wanted to put something on my blog again this year.

Thanks for doing what you did, when you did.

We all miss you, even those of us who never met you. Your creation touched my life and it's offspring continue to touch my life all the time. I still make friends to this day and have good times with my old friends because of that game that you created. Even though we are not playing "your" game anymore, we're all still gaming and it's all thanks to you.

I hope you haven't shaken things up too much up there and I still hope you'll let me have a seat for a session or two when I get there as well.

Thanks for all the memories I've had and the friends I've met from gaming (and have yet to meet!)

Your friend,

Jason

New Years Eve 2009

With pretty much everyone I know and care about (minus Melody) in attendance, . It was a very good evening with friends. We drank, we played Rock Band 2, we watched the ball drop (whopee), and the "Line of the Night" was actually sung...

It was be and Dono doing the backup behind Pats while she was trying to sing "Last Train to Clarksville" and she had a real hard time not cracking up listening to us "Oooooohhinh and Ahhhhing" to the beat.

We all went to bed between 1-4am then somehow got up in the morning and had a really decent diner breakfast. The group shrunk by 1 before morning, with Dono's departure. After brunch we playtested Dan's board game for a few hours and then we all went home.

I think that was the last time that we will all be together in one place for a really long time. That makes me sad. I hope we will all get together for next New Years, but I have a feeling that 2009 was the last.

Line of the Night - December 11th, 2008

Ok, this is a good one. No, really. It's good.

So me and the remaining Long Island Crew have taken to playing this delightful little game known as Rock Band 2. I've been highly enjoying our near-weekly "band practices" that we've been having. It's also a good excuse to drink beer. Lots of beer. Anyway, before I get on a tanget about the virtues and flaws of drinking, let me get to the Line of the Night.

Early in the evening we were discussing the playlists and the songs that can be chosen for purchase. I was suitably irritated when I saw that there was not a single song from the greatest Epic Metal band the world has ever seen: Manowar. This sent Patsy into a tizzy Googling Manowar after a well timed comment by Dono about their 80's image which lead to this comment shortly thereafter...

Me: "So, man... this sucks. Hundreds of tunes and no Manowar!"

D: "It's coming out with the Manowar Expansion Pack."

Me: "Really? Awesome...no way!"

D: "Yeah, it also comes with a loincloth."

Congrats Dono!

Line of the Night - October 24th, 2008

"So I was aware she had something gestating inside her, so it was a baby human?"

Said in reference about another friend of mine that had given birth a week ago. Not really meant with any intentional malice, I just went for the laughs and I succeeded beyond what I really thought the joke was worth. Thanks for the nomination! I accept it whole-heartedly!

P.S. Yes, this line was delivered after about 6 beers. ;)

Line of the Day - Belated

This one goes back a couple o' weeks, the date is lost to the mists of time. I heard the best line of the Summer perhaps on my friends' answering machine. I was passed out on their couch, but not because of "87 Beers" and I just happened to be awoken to the beep of the machine and I heard this gem:

"...I don't know if I'm still drunk... or I'm really hung over... but I've *got* to get my shit together..."

I thought this line was absolutely priceless and will flog myself since I didn't post it 4 weeks ago when I heard it.

Line of the Night - July 23rd, 2008

"Hear that sound she made.. that 'auuuughaaa...' sound? You know what that sound is? That's the 'Primal Idiot' noise, from the belly, when someone's just shutting down..."

Attributed to Mike - about our waitress at Applebees' who seemed to just f*cking hate Mike. Anyone reading this that was there can back me up. She forgot his salad, his entree, AND his dessert but seemed unable to comprehend that his dessert was brought out by someone other than her, prompting her to make that 'Primal Idiot Noise'.

Trust me, if you actually heard this all in context, verbally, you would actually be able to identify the noise many, many times in your life. Maybe you've even made it yourself.

Line of the Night - July 8th, 2008

So that I don't forget these anymore I am going to be posting "Line of the Night" from every get-together I have with my friends from now on. Last night's gem came from my friend Patsy as we were discussing another party event in a bar in upstate New York:

"She was an honest slut, there was no dissembling..." said in seriousness about the 'character' of this nice young lady that served us drinks for many hours.

I think that line is priceless. And for the record, the line is also spot-on.

I'll be tweaking the template for my "Line of the Night", maybe I'll add more depth to it but for now I will leave this post as-is.

Good night!