A little early thanks

It's the day before Thanksgiving. Most of us will be spending some time with family and friends, and taking a moment to say thank you for all that life has given us. Here's a bit of what I'll be thankful for this year.

I'm thankful the people in my life, friends and family both. I've had a tough time over the past few years, and I have had many strong and loving people there to lean on. I couldn't have done it without you. You continue to support me, even when you think I'm crazy and will probably get eaten by bear (*cough* Shawn).

I'm thankful that I have a nice place to live and food and that I get to share it with my brother. We don't always see eye to eye, but I'm happy that he's there and that we get to spend time together. I think my Dad would be happy about that.

I'm thankful for the opportunity to pursue a long time dream of mine. I spend a lot of time thinking and planning for next summer. Thank you all for reading my musings and staying interested. I hope I can make your world a bit bigger and brighter.

Also, I officially registered my domain name www.onthetrailgamer.com. Maybe I can grow a little bit more now.

The spork and the sleeping bag

Another thrilling Thursday. Work is busy, after being slow for a few days. It was a welcome change at the beginning of the week to have a chance to breathe a bit between calls. Not any more.

Two pieces of my gear came in today...My sleeping bag - a 20 degree Kelty bag which compresses down to an incredibly small sack, and my titanium spork. The spork is awesome! It's super light and durable. Silly what things impress you isn't it? Here it is -

SPOON! and fork (some of you will get that).

Short post today, my lunch break is almost over. Back to the never-ending grind of tech support calls. Except it will end...in less than 6 months! 0_o

My future home

There it is. My future home for 6-8 months of next year. Doesn't look like much does it? It's a Big Agnes Fly Creek UL2. Packed weight of 2lbs. 5 oz. A little slice of privacy and protection from the outdoor world. I ordered yesterday, should arrive the beginning of next week. Once I get it, I'll open it, set it up and start looking for any issues that I may run into. Stitches that aren't perfect, stuff like that. It's going to take abuse, being taken down and set back up every day. Big Agnes has a good reputation, which I'm hoping is well earned.

My tent was the last major piece of gear that I needed to purchase. Next is the small stuff, things like stuff sacks, clothes, and shoes. The little sundries that I might need. I'm incredibly conscious of not getting too much, I'm trying to bare bones it. Luxuries will be at a minimum, as you might expect. I'm going to carry a paperback or two with me, and I'm hoping that I can arrange some swap outs with people along the way, as I finish reading them. There's some great series out there that I've never read before, so I'm going to try to pick one of them and start it fresh. Any suggestions?

The world stage

It has been a tough weekend for the world. The terror attacks in Paris and other places were heartbreaking to hear about. I can't imagine being there, experiencing that.  The world seems like a much smaller place when bad things happen. As much as we as Americans tend to pick on the French, no one deserves to experience the suffering or terror that was perpetrated in Paris.

I know that I tread on dangerous ground here. I'm going to broach a subject that many will disagree with. As several of my re-enactor friends have been known to say, "No politics or religion in the mess!" Please read what I write with an understanding and maybe give me a little leeway. Stop reading now if you feel like I'll offend you.

The French response to the terror attacks scares me. I am human, I understand the want or need to respond when a nation is attacked by another. I logically understand that Syria is a hotbed for terrorist activity. But it is also a nation where regular people live and work and grow up. Not everyone there is a terrorist. Whether the terror attack was state-sanctioned is information I do not have. I don't know a lot about a lot of things.

I'm not a pacifist, I understand that violence can be a necessary response. But I also know that violence begets violence. I feel like Syria will lash out and their targets may not be military, or even French. We're all fair game. I have friends in the military and also friends that live in large metropolitan areas. Those are the people I worry about this affecting. I worry that the situation will escalate. I worry that we will be drawn into another front on the "Global War on Terror". And I have no confidence in our government to manage the situation effectively.

These are the thoughts I have. I don't know the answers or pretend to understand the repercussions. I know that I've seen a lot of hate expressed for Muslims on Facebook from people that I considered friends. I understand the knee-jerk hate reaction. That doesn't make it okay.

Stop, take a breath. Understand that I'm expressing my fears, not being a hippie or a wuss. Respond if you want. Stop reading if that is what you feel like you need to do.

I'd just like the world to be here when I get back from my hike.

Nose to the grindstone

Another weekend down, another Monday here. I survived being on call again. Despite being paged a dozen times on Saturday, I had a decent weekend. Got a bunch of gaming in, which is definitely good for my sanity. Came in a close second place in 8 man Splendor tournament at Crossroad Games, which was a ton of fun.

This weekend was also the national Extra Life game day, which I'm sure I may have mentioned a few times. It was a huge success, raising over $1,000,000 over the weekend. That puts the year total to almost $6,600,000 to the Children's Miracle Network. Locally, we brought the total to over $20,000 for The Barbara Bush Children's Hospital. Not too shabby for the little city of Portland. I know there's more events going forward, like Crossroad Games Thanksgaming.

Trying to get more in the habit of writing again, I let myself slide a bit. I'm also trying to get some branding in the form of my Facebook page, so if you can, please go over and give it a "Like". I'd really appreciate it. 

I'm still here

Wow, I 'm kind of a slacker. I just realized that it's been a week and a half since my last post. Time goes by too darn fast! I have no good excuse, just been working, playing games, doing my thing.  Extra Life has their national event this weekend, so I've been trying to promote that as much as I can. I went for a great hike last weekend up Douglas Mountain in Sebago. Here's a couple of the views from the top -

Top of Douglas Mountain, looking west to the White Mountains.

That photo was taken from a stone fire tower at the top. It has an extensive view of most of Western Maine, which was pretty awesome! That is Sebago Lake to the right side of the picture.

Other things going on - started to change my eating habits. I've been doing the Mediterranean diet on the recommendation of my doctor. Lots of fruits, veggies, lean meats and whole grains. Overall, pretty easy for me to follow, and it actually makes me feel a lot better on a daily basis. It also means that I'm cooking, which is MUCH better than eating out all the time.

Picked a few more pieces for my trip, a 20 degree Kelty sleeping bag, and some other minor things. I think the only major things I have left to purchase is my tent, and clothing, which I'm holding off a bit on. A lot of the stuff I've been getting is off Massdrop, which if you don't know what it is, you should check it out!