Day 259 of 362

Annnnnnndddd, I'm back. Actually I got back last night and ran the last half of FNM at the store, but I don't really count that given how exhausted I was.

Today at the store, we have a 40K tourney and World of Darkness later. It means I get to leave early. I also have a bunch of boxes waiting for me to check in and price. I should get the bulk of that done today. Anyhoo... I need to get going. Depending on what's going on, I may blog more tonight, but I wouldn't count on it. I'm still kinda tired... =P

-- GopherDave

Day 258 of 362

Day three of ACD Games Day, and it would be hellafun if I weren't in the grips of some nasty cold/flu bug. More likely a cold as I have not had a fever yet, but I have had plenty of lung candy. I brought DayQuil with me (thank a higher power), but I left the Mucinex at home. Ehh... I'll hit it up tonight...

With sickness comes oversleeping, though, and we've missed the two Friday seminars we wanted to attend. I think we are just going to grab something to eat, pack the car, check out of the motel, and then head to the ACD warehouse to do some shopping. Once that's accomplished, we'll hit the road for the drive home to the Gophers. I miss y'all a bunch, but I do this trip each year to be a better GopherDave...

Let it be said, self-improvement is hard... =P

-- GopherDave

Day 257 of 362



The general view from our room when we got here Wednesday afternoon.

I am definitely overdressed for this shindig... =P

Thursday sunrise from the room.

For what's going on today, I'm getting a late start. I'm hoping to get some more blogging done this evening. Generally, last's night thing was a welcome shindig of not-so-epic awesomeness, but the next two days will be better. I'm pretty sure of that.

I will hopefull drop more nuggets as time allows... until then...

Enjoy!

-- GopherDave

Day 256 of 362

Yep... not at the store, but still wearing the uniform. You might even get some face pics of me during this trip.

Hey there, all...

It's just past 11AM, and I am about ready to leave for Madison. Trouble is, HighSign won't get here until about 1:30PM or so.

*sigh*

I ended up awakening about two hours earlier than I planned due to some family stuff that needed  to be addressed. Once it was all done, I figured "why should go back to sleep", and so I started the day.

For those of you who don't know what's happening, I (and HighSign) are going up for ACD Games Day. ACD Distribution is one of the largest game distributors in the nation, and they happen to be the primary distributor for the store. Each year, they hold this shindig where various game manufacturers ply us liquor and try to convince us we should by their games, as opposed to games from all of the OTHER manufacturers who happen to be there as well.

I went last year, and I picked up some useful tidbits, but not enough to really make me want to go again. Then I did a bit of research and found that the show is still in its formative years, and that I wasn't really going there for the rah-rah manufacturer seminars. I was going there to network with other store owners. Hopefully, by this time next year, we'll have an adult employee who can be trusted with the store, because networking is something that Loquacious is VERY, VERY GOOD at. Skribl's great, and we trust him with the store, but there are a few things going against him currently. One, he's 17 and still in high school, so his time is quite limited. Two, if Lo and I were gone, he'd have no way to the store. So, it's me and HighSign, a good friend who used to be part of another retail concern in town, while Loquacious mans the fort.

There are a few things I want to do this trip in relation to my gaming situation. Mostly a lot of thinking and a little work (if I can find time). We'll see how things go. I'm supposed to network, but I am fighting something illness-wise, so I may end in my room more than I'd like... =/

-- GopherDave

Day 255 of 362

Okay... today started with a bit of a hiccup, but has since straightened itself out. we'll know more later as conversations are had with others.

Not much happening at the store today. Casual MtG and that's about it. I tried to get KnightErrantJR to run DC weekly while the D&D game that runs every other Tuesday takes a break, but he's not buying into it. Poop.

There's still packing for my trip to be done. I'll get the bulk of it done tonight. I have a touch more laundry to do for it all, but that can also be done tonight and tomorrow. If all goes well, by about 1:30PM Wednesday HighSign and I should be on the road to Madison. I'll see some old friends there and hopefully make some new ones as I learn more about what I am doing in this retail gig.

-- GopherDave

Day 254 of 362

Well... last night's Champions game was certainly odd. I had planned a fight and never even got to it. Instead, the group spent most of the night dealing with a moral quandary I hadn't realized I had put into play. It was a oddly-satisfying session filled with nothing but role-play and a few dice rolls. Plus, it will give me more time to get the next session more fully-planned... HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA... Plan? I can't even think about that word with a straight face.

Today, I did orders a day early to accommodate the fact that I will be out of town Wednesday through Friday. Me and HighSign are headed up to Madison for ACD Games Day. It's basically about two and a half days filled with seminars and shopping. It also contains an evening where game manufacturers ply us store owners with liquor and tell us we should be buying nothing but THEIR games. I went last year, and it was kind of cool. We'll see how this year goes.

While I'm gone, Loquacious and Skribl will be watching the store. I'm hoping the rest of the Gophers behave for them, although I'm more worried about our POS system acting up than I am about our patrons and friends. Beyond that, I'm confident that Mrs. Gopher and Skribs will have things locked down and taken care of, so no real worries are happening on my end.

During the time I am gone, I am going to think about the other Champions game and if I want to try to keep running it or kill it. Every sign that's thrown my way says to stick a fork in it, it's done. Trouble is, I'm a hopeful kind of stubborn, so my psyche isn't letting it go quite that easily. We'll see how things turn out...

Later all... GopherDave

Day 253 of 362

Hey there... a late blog post today. I'm already at the store and behind in my day, so this will be short.

Champions did not happen last night. One player could not make it, and another player dropped the game altogether. That leaves us down to five players, of which only three can make it consistently. I think karma is trying to tell me something that I am too stubborn to hear.

Also picked up Lo's anniversary gift. Pics can be seen here... In my own words, I did good.

And that's pretty much all I have time for... peace...

-- GopherDave