The Plot Bunny Farm

Tonight was gaming night. (They stopped right before facing Strahd! They wanted to prepare spells and be well rested. What’s a DM to do? *ponders adding traps to encounter* [probably not]) So, as I’m the current DM, I spent a good chunk of the day prepping maps — and of course, the players went different directions than expected, so I had to draw a couple on the fly.

Fabulous time with our friends (and wonderful food, too!), which in turn means only 47 words for the day. With which I’m happy, so all is well with the world.

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.

Since last summer, we’ve been having a mostly weekly D&D game with friends. I mentioned back in April that I ran a one-shot Numenera adventure for the group. This summer’s been more off than on, between our vacation, summer school, and their vacation (Pennsic*, which they just got back from), so we haven’t been progressing much on the adventure.

On the other hand, that means the last couple of times we’ve gotten together, we’ve played other games that we have, like Zombie Dice (theirs — I still need to buy some), We Didn’t Playtest This at All (and We Didn’t Playtest This Either), RoboRally, Boss Monster, and Exploding Kittens. (No, really, it’s fun, even if you like cats.) This, in fact, is what we did yesterday evening.

So I’m grateful for fun games, good friends, and especially friends who want to get together and spend time playing even after they’ve just gotten back into town.

What are you grateful for this week?

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.

Okay, not a basket, per se, at least today; I’m spending the day with my son’s class for their end-of-year picnic — swimming, games, food, and good times with familiar faces. ( Read the rest of this entry » )

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.

I had an epiphany this morning at 5:00, but I can’t use “epiphany” because E was yesterday. I suppose I could have used “F is for five o’clock,” but the time isn’t as important as the content. I was awakened by the girl fussing (she got herself back to sleep), and I started to complain to myself that I was just barely going to fall back asleep before it would be time to get up and get the kids ready, then start on my day — same old, same old. That’s when it hit me — I chose this life.

Okay, that may be obvious to others. Epiphanies do tend to be personal, after all. Still, I’m going to explore what I mean.

I chose marriage and children. I chose work that I could do anywhere we lived because I didn’t have to look for a new employer. I chose to start telling the stories in my soul. And, if it comes right down to it, I choose to do our taxes because I’m a bit of a control freak.

Every part of the day before me is a direct consequence of something I chose, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’m married to a wonderful man whom I love, we have incredible kids, and my work allows me to be who I am.

There are downsides — the only family here is the one my husband and I have made; our closest relatives are several states away. I don’t have any close friends where we live, though certainly part of that is that I’m not good at reaching out. With the Internet, though, I’m in touch with friends and family that I haven’t seen in decades, and I’ve made several excellent new friends through on-line communities (especially Forward Motion).

This is my life, and I’m grateful for it.

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.