I love to post about the weird things that happen to me because it's usually a case of "Whatta small world!" So, drum roll please... this quarter's weird happening is this...
Last week, I got reconnected with some friends from high school, so I decided to comb through a few years of graduating classes to see who was on Facebook. I saw this guy Andrew on the c/o '89 list that I wasn't friends with, but I knew him because he was a few years ahead of me (c/o '93!). I clicked on his profile and saw that he lives in San Diego and thought, "Yea, someone else who escaped Florida to beautiful California!" But I didn't friend him because I wasn't actually friends with him. Knowing who someone is doesn't really qualify you to be "friends" with them, right?
So, I was hanging out with Travis on Saturday and he was checking his email... I peeked over his shoulder and saw a message from Facebook that said, "Andrew has added you as a friend on Facebook..." I asked Travis, "Wait, open that email... do you know that guy?" and he said, "Yeah, he's one of my San Diego friends, he's really cool!" I couldn't believe it! I told Travis (probably loudly and excitedly), "Oh my goodness! I totally know that guy! He went to my high school! In FLORIDA!!!" And then I got the scoop on him because apparently, Travis has known him since 2002! And Mike knows him too. Isn't that just weird?! Chris said that the fact my high school is across the country does make it even weirder. Especially considering our classes were pretty small back then. I think my class had about 250(?) people and his was even smaller.
So I friended him with a message something like this: Hey, this is Stephanie ____ and I went to ____ HS too (c/o '93) and I just found out that you know Travis & Mike!"
And he friended me back. It will be interesting to see him again. I haven't seen him since 1989. Wow... what are the odds?
Showing posts with label weird. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weird. Show all posts
Monday, July 21, 2008
Monday, February 18, 2008
OrcCon 2008 Recap
I made it through my weekend in potential convention hell at Strategicon/OrcCon this past weekend. I had a much better time than I have at previous Strategicons, which was NOT due to the hotel! The hotel space seemed a little better, but the parking was awful, the internet in my room never worked and there were no light blocking curtains (that I saw).
I did something that I've never done at a con ever before! I went to bed, both nights, at reasonable hours! On Friday, I only stayed up til 2 AM, then woke up at 8 AM and worked out with Ron at the gym for an hour+ and on Saturday night, I was only up til 3 AM which allowed me to get up at 9 AM on Sunday to be able to make it to the Power Grid tournament.
Power Grid tournament: I rarely, if ever, participate in the tournaments. The thought of getting stuck at a table with a bunch of people I don't wanna play with is tough. My desire to be competitive isn't enough to usually get over that hump. I think getting more sleep helped me be more tolerant of people too. But this time I decided to try the Power Grid tournament because I do enjoy playing the game.
Thirty people entered, so we had five tables of six players each. I ended up winning my table and so did Chris, so we ended up at the finals. The final table was a nail-biter to the end! Chris ended up coming in first, but I came in second! He built and powered 17 cities and I did 16, tying with Bruce, but I had more money in the tie-breaker. It was really fun! Plus, it was a "big" tournament, so the payout was more.
Race for the Galaxy tournament: I LOVE Race for the Galaxy. Instead of doing a separate post about it, I'll just say that I could play this game over and over (and I have!). In fact, with all my dealer dollars that I won in tournaments, I used it to buy a second copy of RftG because my cards are starting to get a little icky. The first time I played this game was on Christmas and since then I've logged 79 plays (conservatively) which puts me in the top 10 people playing it (who log their games on the Geek). I didn't win the tournament, but I did beat Chris, which ultimately is more important anyway! He seems to beat me about 75% of the time, so hopefully the tide is turning! Now I just have to get better at beating 42!
The Quarterly "One in a Million": I'm playing in the Power Grid tournament and a guy from the next table (playing some other game) leans in and says, "Did you used to work at Marie Callender's?" I did (a loooooong time ago), so I said, "Yes..." and I'm lookin' at him and his eyes look familiar and then I checked his name badge. I totally recognize his name! We hung out/dated for just a little while when I was 20! Shortly before I met my husband and got married. And here we are, twelve years later, running into each other at a gaming convention. How weird is that? When I knew him, he was in a band and was really into music stuff, so I never knew he was a geek at heart! I told him that had I known, perhaps the dating would've gone on longer! He lives really close to me, so we talked about gaming together sometime. He's married with two kids, so no potential re-kindling happening there!
The Food: I was so fortunate to not have to drive anywhere for food the entire length of the con! Erin and others went out and picked up food and for that I am grateful! I am often the food courier, so I know what a pain it can be and I want to say THANK YOU for the Tito's tacos, Chick-Fil-A, In-n-Out, Johnnie's pastrami, Dinah's fried chicken, Chinese food, and more I'm sure! Everything was yummy!!!!
Overall, this was a pretty decent con. I didn't play ANY Werewolf though!! But I did get sleep and my sleep schedule isn't all wacky, so that's a plus. I think I've finally adjusted to the format of the con. And I've lowered my expectations! Going to BGG.CON as my first gaming convention in 2006 ruined me forever as far as the local cons go.
I did something that I've never done at a con ever before! I went to bed, both nights, at reasonable hours! On Friday, I only stayed up til 2 AM, then woke up at 8 AM and worked out with Ron at the gym for an hour+ and on Saturday night, I was only up til 3 AM which allowed me to get up at 9 AM on Sunday to be able to make it to the Power Grid tournament.
Power Grid tournament: I rarely, if ever, participate in the tournaments. The thought of getting stuck at a table with a bunch of people I don't wanna play with is tough. My desire to be competitive isn't enough to usually get over that hump. I think getting more sleep helped me be more tolerant of people too. But this time I decided to try the Power Grid tournament because I do enjoy playing the game.
Thirty people entered, so we had five tables of six players each. I ended up winning my table and so did Chris, so we ended up at the finals. The final table was a nail-biter to the end! Chris ended up coming in first, but I came in second! He built and powered 17 cities and I did 16, tying with Bruce, but I had more money in the tie-breaker. It was really fun! Plus, it was a "big" tournament, so the payout was more.
Race for the Galaxy tournament: I LOVE Race for the Galaxy. Instead of doing a separate post about it, I'll just say that I could play this game over and over (and I have!). In fact, with all my dealer dollars that I won in tournaments, I used it to buy a second copy of RftG because my cards are starting to get a little icky. The first time I played this game was on Christmas and since then I've logged 79 plays (conservatively) which puts me in the top 10 people playing it (who log their games on the Geek). I didn't win the tournament, but I did beat Chris, which ultimately is more important anyway! He seems to beat me about 75% of the time, so hopefully the tide is turning! Now I just have to get better at beating 42!
The Quarterly "One in a Million": I'm playing in the Power Grid tournament and a guy from the next table (playing some other game) leans in and says, "Did you used to work at Marie Callender's?" I did (a loooooong time ago), so I said, "Yes..." and I'm lookin' at him and his eyes look familiar and then I checked his name badge. I totally recognize his name! We hung out/dated for just a little while when I was 20! Shortly before I met my husband and got married. And here we are, twelve years later, running into each other at a gaming convention. How weird is that? When I knew him, he was in a band and was really into music stuff, so I never knew he was a geek at heart! I told him that had I known, perhaps the dating would've gone on longer! He lives really close to me, so we talked about gaming together sometime. He's married with two kids, so no potential re-kindling happening there!
The Food: I was so fortunate to not have to drive anywhere for food the entire length of the con! Erin and others went out and picked up food and for that I am grateful! I am often the food courier, so I know what a pain it can be and I want to say THANK YOU for the Tito's tacos, Chick-Fil-A, In-n-Out, Johnnie's pastrami, Dinah's fried chicken, Chinese food, and more I'm sure! Everything was yummy!!!!
Overall, this was a pretty decent con. I didn't play ANY Werewolf though!! But I did get sleep and my sleep schedule isn't all wacky, so that's a plus. I think I've finally adjusted to the format of the con. And I've lowered my expectations! Going to BGG.CON as my first gaming convention in 2006 ruined me forever as far as the local cons go.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
It really IS a small world!
The Sherman brothers had it right, "It's a small world after all, it's a small, small world!"
I was marveling just a few weeks ago at the weird coincidence of meeting someone who used to live in my very apartment two tenants before me. Well, this past weekend, my friend Seth and I were discussing some stuff and I mentioned Andrew "Rif" Hutchings who was on the opposing team for my second Lingo appearance. Turns out Seth knows him, is friends with him, just played games over the Christmas holidays with him.
I think Chris was right when he commented on that apartment post:
"Statistically, you should have a one-in-a-million occurance happen every couple of months or so. Plus, living in a big city like LA just seems to make that sort of thing more likely."
Well, it hasn't even been a couple months and it's happened again. Rif goes to grad school in NY & came out the LA to film a game show (that's where I met him). Meanwhile, I met Seth (who lives in Tucson) in Dallas last November at a gaming convention and later found out that they not only know each other, but they're friends. They went to high school together.
I guess I should officially stop being surprised now. But I don't think I can! If it happens one more time in the next month, then I guess I'll be forced to accept it.
I was marveling just a few weeks ago at the weird coincidence of meeting someone who used to live in my very apartment two tenants before me. Well, this past weekend, my friend Seth and I were discussing some stuff and I mentioned Andrew "Rif" Hutchings who was on the opposing team for my second Lingo appearance. Turns out Seth knows him, is friends with him, just played games over the Christmas holidays with him.
I think Chris was right when he commented on that apartment post:
"Statistically, you should have a one-in-a-million occurance happen every couple of months or so. Plus, living in a big city like LA just seems to make that sort of thing more likely."
Well, it hasn't even been a couple months and it's happened again. Rif goes to grad school in NY & came out the LA to film a game show (that's where I met him). Meanwhile, I met Seth (who lives in Tucson) in Dallas last November at a gaming convention and later found out that they not only know each other, but they're friends. They went to high school together.
I guess I should officially stop being surprised now. But I don't think I can! If it happens one more time in the next month, then I guess I'll be forced to accept it.
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