ELU Wrap-up

Sitting here in the sun at Disney's Coronado Springs resort, I can't help but feeling a little sad. One of the other people I met here said it was like leaving summer camp. 

Extra Life United was amazing success. I ended up making the finals and ultimately winning the Settlers of Catan event. This also let me win the Tabletop track completely. My winnings were $4,375 before I went to the finals. 

The finals were tough, it was a surprise game- I faced a PC gamer in something called Duck Game. It was fun but not really in my wheelhouse. Ultimately I lost but even so I won another $1,000 for The Barbara Bush Children's Hospital. 

Even more important to me was getting to meet with some truly amazing people. Jeromy "Doc" Adams, the founder of Extra Life and the Enmon's whose daughter inspired Extra Life to BE created. Sean and Trish Rooney, who lost their wonderful little boy Dominic just 6 months ago and were here leading the charge for Extra Life. Sean and Trish astounded me with the amount of love and warmth. The Tabletop group as whole were all wonderful people and I clicked with them immediately.  And most of all-the children-the Children's Miracle Network Champions. The reason behind it all, I spent much of my time here overwhelmed with the emotions and joy of seeing these amazing little people that have been through more pain and suffering that most of us will ever know. 

I return to Maine with my heart filled with warmth. I return with so many new friends. I return with ideas and opportunities and possibilities. Extra Life United was one of the best experiences of my entire life. I'll be back next year. 

#ExtraLifeUnited #DominicStrong #ExtraLife4Kids #CMN

Extra Life United

Just a quick post about my time here at Extra Life United...

I am blown away. I knew this event would be an incredible experience. Being around my fellow Extra Lifers is energizing and incredible but I can't begin to tell how much more powerful it has been than my already high expectations. I have met so many great people here- fellow gamers, CMN champions and their families and the staff that makes Extra Life possible. Every single person here has made Extra Life and the Children's Miracle Network a big part of their lives. Every moment I spend with them, makes all the hard work worth it. 

The tournament has been kind to me so far. I managed to make the finals in all three tournaments yesterday. I placed 4th in Blokus, 3rd in Love Letter and a 1st place win at Liar's Dice. That's over $2,500 of prize money for The Barbara Bush Children's Hospital and I'm pretty sure that I locked a place in the finals. 

Being up on the stage for all 3 finals was surreal. Twitch streamed the whole day, so if you go to twitch.tv/extralife4kids you can watch. I was literally shaking before each game, I was so nervous. That's a lot of pressure, I really wanted to win some money for BBCH. I can't imagine how I'll feel before the finals!

Off to prep for the day. Excited and terrified, but overwhelmingly happy. 

Remember...it's about the journey. 

Finally Friday

Friday. It has been a long short week (we had Monday off for President's Day. I know, weird, right?). I woke up yesterday, convinced that it was Friday. I spent the first half hour of my day thinking that. And then it hit me like a ton of bricks. Thursday. Shit. Don't you hate that?

Things have been good lately though - Ever day is a bit closer to my departure and that is exciting. Things are rolling along for the Chits and Bits Game Marathon at the end of April. If you're not familiar, that's the 24 hour board game marathon that I started 2 years ago. We get together on International Tabletop Day and play games for 24 hours. Participants raise money for The Barbara Bush Children's Hospital through Extra Life. There's a raffle and door prizes and tournaments and all kinds of good stuff! The raffle this year is going to be huge, so there's been a ton of work being done (mostly by fellow Bearded Boardsmen Rob, thanks buddy!) to gather donations, and we've had some huge successes. Check out the Marathon on Facebook if you want more info.

Rob and I fly down to Disney World on Tuesday to compete in the Extra Life United national event. Gamers from all over the country are going to be at Disney playing in a game tournament to win prize money for their local Children's Miracle Network Hospital. I couldn't more excited to go down there and meet some of the families that Extra Life helps. It's a huge honor for Rob and I to represent BBCH. Plus leaving dreary 35 degree weather for 4 days in sunny Florida is nothing to complain about. Getting involved with Extra Life and support BBCH is one of the most rewarding things I've ever done. I can't wait to take my journey and spread the word for Extra Life.

Remember...it's about the journey!

Whoops

Whoops, it's been a while. I'm slacking off, but I have excuses. No good ones, just the same old recycled crap. I was sick on the couch since Friday, I came to work today despite STILL feeling crummy. I had to have blood drawn for a physical, and I had fasted for 12 hours, so I figured I might as well come in and be miserable afterwards.

Here's the latest- For all of you that voted for me for the Badger Sponsorship, thank you so very much. I didn't make top 7, but I still got a bunch of great stuff out of it. It ended up being about $300 worth of stuff, which is great, considering I hadn't even thought I'd make top 12. So thank you again for your support.

I got a bunch of stuff in the mail today, a couple of merino wool t-shirts (which I'll end up wearing nearly every day for 6 months), a merino sweatshirt (yes, Mom, I know-a SWEATSHIRT), 2 water bottles that roll up to take less room, and 3 rechargeable tiny flashlights. Massdrop is a wonderful site, if you've never used it. I saved about $100 on all that stuff.

Snowing like crazy here. I hope that all the hikers that are on the trail already are safe and warm. I can't imagine attempting a through-hike in weather like this, but they're out there already.

Remember- it's about the journey.