Just a small update to let you know how things are going, for the handful of you who still check in on this site. They are going as well as can be expected, given the current circumstances. I’m working remotely from home, staying put, and trying to bee busy. The last bit hasn’t been easy. […]

Let it be known that I spent my 48th birthday on pandemic-induced furlough, eating junk food and watching the world burn. Also, a happy birthday for fellow 313’er Mike Sterling, who owns the best dang comic shop on the planet. In fact, you should go buy something from him right now. Recommended listening: There won’t […]

Being an almost comprehensive list (at the time of posting) of the records I’ve played on my first day of COVID-19 furlough. Air – Moon Safari (both sides) Apollo 440 – “Can’t Stop the Rock” (12″ extended 440 mix) Chemical Brothers – Exit Planet Dust (side one) Chemical Brothers – Born in the Echoes (side […]

As I mentioned in a previous post, The Mines of Bloodstone AD&D module was a big deal when it dropped in 1986. Dragon Magazine hyped the heck out of its high-level level play parameters, which went beyond even the demigod-slaying action of the classic The Queen of the Demonweb Pits. My geeky teen self was […]

The Kid loves boardgames, but it’s a love tempered by a short attention span and dislike of complicated rules. Once an explanation pushes past a single paragraph or half-minute of explanation, her eyes glaze over and she abruptly changes the subject. Part of it is typical teen bullshit and part of it stems from her […]

Talk of a console port of Baldur’s Gate dates almost as far back as the game itself. Playstation and Dreamcast versions of the AD&D-branded RPG showed up under the “season + year” bottom end of upcoming releases lists through the dawn of the new millennium before quietly vanishing. The increasingly apparent unlikelihood of ever getting […]

When I launched the Nobody’s Favorites feature (over ten years ago, apparently) I made a public point of striving for more than just a “Mort of the Month” angle where I’d find lazy ways to snark on soft targets. Instead of a litany of smug cheap shots, I forced myself to find some angle — […]

Every few months, the BBC releases a new installment of Top of the Pops: The Story of…, spotlighting a specific year through lens of the venerable pop music program. The format is strictly documentary-lite, generally apolitical, and typically focuses upon whoever accepts their invitation to provide commentary. (Think VH-1’s decade-themed specials from the Aughts — […]

“It was like swimming against a current that swept you backwards however hard you struggled, and then suddenly deciding to turn round and go with the current instead of opposing it. Nothing had changed except your own attitude: the predestined thing happened in any case. He hardly knew why he had ever rebelled.” – George […]