Williamsburg, Virginia
August 7 – 10, 2003
I arrived home last night (Saturday) with Alexander at around 11:30 pm. We had decided to save a little money by not staying at the hotel Saturday night. Since my wife and my daughter, Valori had to leave Friday due to Valori’s illness, it just made more sense to pack it in Saturday evening. Living an hour away made the decision even easier.
However…
Once I got home and put Alexander to bed I sat down at the computer. Everyone in the house was asleep so I thought I’d check some e-mail before heading off to bed myself. Then I looked at the time and it struck me — there was still gaming going on just an hour away and it was only midnight! People were sure to be gaming late into the night on the last night of Gulf Games! Was it a crazy idea to go back? Well, apparently not crazy enough for me, so I immediately hopped back into my car and took the drive back up to Williamsburg, surprising (and perhaps even disappointing) a few people who thought I’d left for good.
Not wanting to waste the few extra precious hours I had bought, I Immediately sought out a game. Erik Arneson was happy enough to sit down with me for a rousing game of Battle Ball. I have to say this was probably my favorite game of the event. Beautiful, beefy bits and a BIG (I mean BIG) board. This game was pure fun and a complete blast to play. I’d played it earlier in the day with Frank Hamrick and lost 2-1.I evened up my record by beating Erik by the same score. In fact, I Believe we may have set a record for the longest half ever. Our first half came down to exactly one player each with one final, deciding confrontation. I prevailed and headed into the second half with considerable advantage – I had knocked three of his guys out of the game and I still had all of my guys.
Unfortunately, my advantage didn’t work out so well as Erik scored the touchdown that tied the game and sent us into overtime. Sadly for Erik, he had lost another player. I lost one in the second half as well, but was not to be denied in overtime, playing a very defensive game and whittling him down. It was grrrreat!
I also got in a game of Smarty Party, the new Crandlemire/Weisblumm game. Every time I play this game I embarrass myself with just how little I know about geography. There are A LOT of GEOGRAPHY questions in this game. For the second time in a row I ended the game by being the first one to reach the END. Blah. (I was able to name all of the Brady Bunch characters, though)
Anyway, those were the two games I ended up playing on my brief return trip to .
Had a great time, guys. The trip would have been perfect except for my daughter getting sick and, consequently, my wife not being able to make it Saturday because of that. Valori had such a great time Thursday and it really bums me out that she had to miss out on the rest of the event. She really liked that Zick Zack Paddywhack game — fortunately, Ward had it and the expansion for 40% off. Thanks Ward!
Alexander spent most of his time playing Super Mario Smash Bros. on the Nintendo. I think he logged in 47 hours total playing time over the course of the event. Some of his new-found buddies were able to lure him into a game of Transformers Epic Duels, or whatever it’s called. He seemed to enjoy it quite a bit.
My wife, Louie, did manage to make it down for a few hours on Friday. We managed to make the group dinner, but we did so quietly in a little table in the corner. Probably for the best since Valori was still feeling a little down in the dumps. This certainly was a bit of bad luck, because I was hoping to take advantage of this rare opportunity to introduce my wife to all my wonderful friends and even get her to participate in the fun. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t possible given the circumstances. My wife did manage to meet a few of you, though, and she thought everyone was very nice.
Anyway, I just wanted to say what a terrific time I had. I’d love to be able to say I’ll definitely make it to future GGs, but the chances are slim to none, I’m afraid. My annual travel opportunities are limited. Williamsburg was an easy call since it was in my backyard. Maybe you all loved Williamsburg so much you’ll be back real soon??? Maybe???;)