5 Fandom Friday - Favorite Fictional Fathers

This one was a hard one to write for me, because.... well.... this time of year is a bit too rough to handle. I lost my father on June 19, 2009. I lost my grandfather on June 20, 2009. Father's Day that year was June 21, 2009. Both of these men are very special to me.

As I'm sure is an obvious statement, none of these men even remotely live up to my own two fathers who changed so much of my life.

Favorite Fictional Fathers

1. Keith Mars - Veronica Mars
This guy defines strong parental relationships. He works to find balance in the crazy life him and his daughter lead, but they're there for each other. He supports raising a strong woman who is confident in her convictions, but is also not scared to bring down the hammer when something is wrong.

2. Phil Dunphy - Modern Family
While really quirky and over-the-top, it is hard to not know that Phil Dunphy is the most loving, caring, compassionate father out there. He always wants the best for his family and is never scared to go that extra mile to show it. Sure his awkwardness is almost cringe-worthy at times, but I, honestly, think he's an amazing father. My husband and I joke that he's an exaggerated dad version of me. I can see it. haha!

3. Scott Lang - AntMan
We all have to start somewhere, but this dad has his daughter's heart and despite all the bad things that have happened in his life and his relationship, he still wants to make it better. Plus, I mean, he fights Yellowjacket in order to save her and he almost dies! Ultimate love and dedication, even if he's kind of a deadbeat. Lang would literally do anything for her... you know that guy who dresses up like a ballerina and has tea and lets his daughter choose the outfit? Yeah... that's him.

4. Rocket Raccoon - Guardians of the Galaxy
WHAT! Yes... I mean, it's pretty obvious he's Groot's dad. Rocket raises him! Tough love is what their relationship is, but clearly Rocket has his moments and even within the reprimands, you can see how much he cares about Groot. Besides... the patience to raise and parent Groot is amazing! He's a super dad!

5. Bob Belcher - Bob's Burgers
Ok... ok... yes, the kids are so absolutely dysfunctional and, honestly, quite scary, but poor Bob tries to pull through. He's surrounded by eccentrics and just wants to make the most quirky and best-tasting burgers ever. Again... a really kind heart who tries his best in the crazy world that is his life.

Honorable Mentions
Mrs. Doubtfire - Mrs. Doubtfire
I don't even think I need to see this one, but another Scott Lang situation where you have a dad who is clearly out for relationship reasons and dysfunction, but understands how absolutely important his family is to him (sadly only having hit rock bottom).

Glenn Rhee - The Walking Dead
Hey now! He is a dad. Once that Bisquick was poured and that pancake hit the griddle, he's the daddy of that pancake! Glenn would have been an amazing dad, because his outlook on the world was seeing the good is everything. That is an outlook that is quickly losing its footing on The Walking Dead with all the optimists dying every week, but even in those last days of his fatherhood, he only wanted the best for Maggie and the baby.

The Joy of Gaming: Daddy-Daughter Tuesdays (La Isla)

This particular Daddy-Daughter Tuesday turned into a Daddy-Daughter Thursday due to things going on this week. Now that it's summer, we're starting to see a bit more game play from the whole family. We're getting going.

The game they played was La Isla and it's one my daughter really loves playing. Here's their take on it.

La Isla (2014)

Daddy  

Stefan Feld is known for his "point salad" euro games of medium to heavy complexity.  La Isla, however, is a perfect game for a mid-level child gamer.  They have fun collecting these cute animal tokens. The four phases of each turn are pretty easy to grasp and the method of claiming the tokens is fairly simple visually as well (you just have to surround a token with your people).  The only tough part for a kid Isabelle's age is the heavy iconography-- particularly for the "A Phase" special abilities, but even I need the reference card for those sometimes.  It's really a light, wonderful game that has a lot going on but doesn't overwhelm-- and the design is remarkably clever and interesting.  I honestly was surprised how quickly she took to the game-- to the point where she can teach it herself.  Last night's game was also the first time she ever beat me (by 2 points!) and, even though I still give her some strategic advice from time to time, she definitely is improving as she plays. 

Daughter

What did you like about the game?
I like that is has cool different animals and you get to collect them. My favorite animal was the Fassa (the cat), because it's a kitty and I like kitties, but I also like the Dodo, because they're really silly in my Dinosaur Sim game and make (insert noises).

Is it hard or easy to play?

La Isla is hard (we used the term difficult when talking), because it's hard to know where to put all your people. The easy things are the animal collection.

Do you need help from daddy to play the game?

I think I could teach it, I just might need a little daddy help. I needed, kinda medium, help, kinda didn't when we first learned it. Daddy read the directions to me and I could do a couple things without help, like placing some people to catch animals.

Is there anything about the game that you don't like?

I don't like that I only have certain choices for animals to raise and blocks and powers and that daddy keeps stealing my spots and animals.

Do you think other kids would like the game? Why?

Yes, because I taught two other kids how to play it already. So maybe they would like it? I don't know, because they left to go play on the bouncy house. The animals are cute and the little people are neat, so I think kids would like them.

If someone asked you if they should buy this game what would you say? Why?

I'd say "yeah!" 'Cause (the adults) can put the board together, um, and the animals are cute (giggles).  

Will you play it again?

I will play it again, because I like animals. I've played this game, I think, like, 3 times, maybe 4.

(Sorry... husband forgot to take a picture with her. We're trying to correct this problem slowly but surely.)

The Joy of Gaming: Junior Gamers Club (Trailblazers Day 1)

What is Junior Gamers Club?

The Junior Gamers Club Trailblazers are the older kids who come in to play. Unlike the younger kids who I consider exploring the hobby of tabletop gaming, whether they're avid players at home or not, I felt the older kids were really blazing the trail as gamers. That's why I chose this particular title, especially keeping with the Adventure theme that matches so well with the summer.

We started out with 5 kids. Then dropped down to 4. 4 of the 5 were students of mine. There was only one kid I didn't know. So... I guess... 5 is a good start? We did think we were going to have some kids from the Boys & Girls Club come out, but we're not sure what happened there. But there's still 5 more sessions!

I felt bad that the number was so low, because the shop actually opened up an hour before it normally does just for us! Ah well.

Overall, though, the gaming went really well. Our shop gal was even surprised at how "quiet" the kids were, because the games they played were so "intense." Adorable.

All the kids signed up for the club part in order to get lanyards and earn achievement pins, so all that money went into my club jar. I told the couple parents I talked to about how it's just covering the cost of everything and any extra goes towards our game club.

Our first day was full of interesting games and, like you might expect, were a bit more intense. My daughter started out the day with us, because I take her to a summer activity in the middle of our club. I based the club times around this, because we don't live in the area and it gives us something great to do.

Here is our list of games for Day 1 of the Trailblazers:

Forbidden Desert

Forbidden Island is one of the favored games whenever I share it with young people, whether in my Literacy class or in our game club. Forbidden Desert is just as popular with those who have already played Forbidden Desert. Sadly, I don't think they made it. I'm super excited for Forbidden Sky, and, honestly, so are my club kids.

Evolution

My daughter wanted to teach me this and while I went through the rules, I knew she was missing some information. Sadly, it didn't go well towards the end when she realized I had totally blocked her carnivores from attacking and they weren't going to make it. She was overly tired, which was sad, because I was really enjoying the game.

Once we were done, the older kids took a stab at it and seemed to enjoy it.

Incan Gold

Another favorite whenever we bring it to club or kid events. Our copy is looking pretty shabby though. We definitely need a new one.

HEXplore It

 I've written about this one before and is the new addiction of my older kids. Created by my co-workers husband, they donated a free copy to our club, which literally made me cry. The kids are loving it.

Red 7

A simple game that I'm hoping to see hit the table more in club.

Dead Man's Draw

I think this one is going to be a club favorite next year. None of them wanted to take it out of the vault to really learn it and appreciate it. Took us two seconds to get them excited about it and they played it, like, twice! A great way to end the day.


All the kids earned a four game achievement pin and are on their way to their sixth. I love their gaming enthusiasm and that's what makes this all really worth it.

Next week, some of the kids have requested the following games (we have a binder of games to help induce induce interest for the kids).

• Race for the Galaxy
• Invaders
• Dragon Slayer
• Goblins Drool, Fairies Rule
• X-Marks the Spot

The Joy of Gaming - Ray's Rate a Shelf #18

At the beginning of this year, my husband started a Twitter feed, posting a different part of our game shelves and rating the games that are on them. I was so impressed by this activity, I thought it would be great to share it on my blog.

Click the Tweet to see the rankings and the games.

Rate a Shelf: @Zmangames_ @nerdcoremedical @UpperDeckEnt @PlayroomEnt @SherwoodGames This is, sadly, largely a shelf of shame...I need to play so many of these still. pic.twitter.com/nCgtnkiddP

— Ray Bonilla (@OldManMerton) January 21, 2018

The Joy of Gaming: Junior Gamers Club (Explorers Day 1)

What is Junior Gamers Club?

Today was the first day that we ran the summer club. Mondays are for the 5-9 age range. I always tell people, it's not like we're checking IDs or anything. So if you're 10 and you come to the 5-9, I don't care. Or if you're 4 and you sneak in, because you're parents feel you're gamer ready, I'm seriously not going to bat an eyelash. I just want to expose young people to the gaming habit.

I'll just save you the stress of wondering how it went and tell you only two kids showed up. I thought for sure there'd at least be 3 or 4. I also understand that some people might be busy this week or have things going on. I am reserving judgement until at least the end of June. Suffice to say, I was slightly disappointed, but it's my first time doing this. What in the world did I expect? For people to be banging down the door?

The two kids we had though seemed to have fun. My daughter had to leave at 12:15, though, to go to acting, so then the brother and sister were left to each other. When I arrived back, my husband was playing with the 5yo sister and the mom was playing chess with the 9yo brother.

The mom bought the punch card and achievement pin track, so that was really exciting! The daughter played 5 games! She earned her first achievement pin. Sadly, the brother was upset that he did not get to 4 games to earn his first pin, but that's alright. Sometimes it takes time to earn the achievement pins. And to be fair, he played chess. That takes a while.

Despite to disappointing turnout, we did get in some pretty neat games. Here is Day 1's roundup.

Outfoxed

We weren't sure how to start things, so my daughter brought over a game she feels confident teaching and shared it with the kids.

Monopoly, Jr.

Brought by the brother and sister and they played this next.

Dragon Slayer

I recommended this while I was dropping off my daughter at acting. Who doesn't like rolling dice and it is a pretty simple game to understand. Much loved by many young people I share it with.

Farm Fun

I arrived back to see my husband playing this with the 5yo girl and she was having a ball.

Star Wars Chess

When I arrived back, I saw the mom playing with her 9yo son.

My First Stone Age

The 5yo girl REALLY wanted to play this and I was pretty familiar with it from my club and our time at Khaos Kon, so we broke it out. She played fine, but we could tell she was flagging.

Tsuro

I challenged my husband while we were waiting for the kids to finish. It was right up to the last tile and my husband won by one tile. Grrr.


Sidenote: I have my gamer rules set and I'll post them on Wednesday when I do my write-up. We already know that Wednesday is looking more promising, because the majority of the contact I've had with parents have been asking about the older kids game day. Excitement is on the horizon!

The Joy of Gaming: The Junior Gamers Club

At some point I lost my mind and became very motivated to start a summer gamers group based on age to try to help expose more children to tabletop gaming.

I love working with our local game shop. I always hear about the kids I know going up for Pokemon or Magic, but so many don't go up to play games. Sometimes, too, I wonder how many young people are engaging in more "adult" games than maybe something they might really enjoy. While not a bad thing, sometimes I think it can make the hobby feel a little frustrating.

The other piece I wanted to work on, which I fully promote in my Middle School Tabletop Game club is kids teaching kids. I wanted to provide the opportunity for kids to share games they like with each other while also being exposed to the variety of game available to them. Instead of an adult hovering and running the game, I want the kids to have the opportunity to take charge of their own learning and sharing.

I broke the group into two age ranges. 5-9 and 10-14. I didn't want to get too much into high school, because I wanted to focus on the younger ages. My husband and I are going to be present to help the kids work through the games and, in some instances, help teach or guide them through the initial game while they work together to problem solve what they struggle with. It feels like an experiment, but I am glad to try it.

To add an extra incentive, I've created a stamp card for the participants. As they play, they earn achievement pins for games played: 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 20. (See a trend?)

I also made game master badges with lanyards for the achievements. The sadness, though, is that it costs $5 to be able to participate in that part of the program. Playing is completely free, but joining the Explorers (5-9) or Trailblazers (10-14) for achievements is $5. It doesn't even cover the full cost of paper, ink, lanyards, and pins, but it helps a little bit.

The Junior Gamers Club starts on Monday and I'm so nervous. My husband keeps reminding me it's just playing games with kids, but you know how parents can get. Then there's attendance. I'm so nervous. I also need to make a list of rules for behaviors and I dropped the ball on that one to have it ready for our first Explorers meeting. I'll definitely have it done by Wednesday.

I thought it would be a great summer addition to really help promote gaming beyond just some of the basics we already keep in our homes. I'm going to be posting updates throughout the summer address what seems to be working and what isn't.

Here we go!

5 Fandom Friday - Comfort Foods That Always Make Me Feel Better

(Edited and republished from 8/25/2017)

This week's 5 Fandom Friday is "Comfort Foods That Always Make Me Feel Better." I find this one funny, because my husband has us going Keto and while typically I don't miss food... there are some days I just crave something so badly that I'd give up the whole lifestyle to have it. Yet, after a year of living on Keto, I have found foods that really help fill that gap when I need it. So I've concocted 2 lists of 5. Non-Keto and Keto.

Non-Keto Comfort Foods That Always Make Me Feel Better

1. Toast with Melted Butter and Honey
I'm being totally honest... that is such a comfort food and so sweet! There is no replacement for this nostalgic taste.

https://www.thekitchn.com

2. Pizza
Enuf said! Specifically Jake's Pizza... the Buffalo Chicken pizza with the thin crust. God I love that place. It's my cheat place, actually. I get a small. It doesn't kill my progress as much as other things.

3. Macaroni and Cheese
This was always my favorite little food. From scratch or a box, I had perfect making any kind of Mac n' Cheese, because it was my favorite. I miss you pasta...

simplyhappyfoodie.com

4. Salvadorian Breakfast Cakes/Cupcakes
I don't remember how I found this recipe, but I made it and I fell in love. A Parmesan sweet/savory and I made a Chocolate version. Oh my goodness... they are so delicious, but sugar is everywhere! Will always love it.

https://food52.com

5. Pretzels (Soft or Hard)
Pretzel fiend over here. Pretzel nuggets at the movies, pretzels at the ballpark, pretzel sticks with cream cheese... Supposedly there are Keto-Friendly pretzels, but... I don't know if I want to be disappointed. My daughter has just discovered the joys of soft Pretzels with Nacho Cheese... and so I bought her those ones with the cheese inside. I'll be honest... I steal one off her plate.

www.platingsandpairings.com

Keto Comfort Foods That Always Make Me Feel Better

1. Ham and Pickle Rolls
These are one of my favorite party foods, but when I'm having such a hard time figuring out what to eat or pack for lunch, these always just make me feel a bit better. A bit nostalgic. They're ham with cream cheese spread on them and a slice of pickle in the middle. A friend called them "Wisconsin Sushi." haha! You can also chop up the ham and pickles and then add in the cream cheese and it becomes a dip or cracker topping or something like that. You have the ratios on everything right. I can't even find a picture of them that I think really represents it... whether the ham type, the amount of pickle or the amount of cream cheese. It's crazy! Ah well. Pickles, ham, and cream cheese. MIX IT LOVE IT!

2. Gordon Ramsey's Sublime Eggs
When we saw these made on MasterChef, I knew I could make them and we have just fallen in love with them. A small pillow of joy. I've perfected my version. Sometimes even use a little cream cheese instead of creme fresh.  We cook ours JUST a bit more than absolutely runny like him. Either way. It's delicious!


3. Low-Carb Chicken Divan Casserole
I found this recipe looking for some cauliflower dishes. This has become a total comfort food. Something I need more in the winter than in the summer, but oh my goodness... it's creamy and there's chicken and broccoli. Oh so delicious!

4. Rotisserie Chicken and Broccoli dipped in Butter
One of the quickest keto meals we can have when I don't want to cook. Strip the chicken, steam the broccoli and get out that dipping bowl of butter. Dip chicken, eat. Dip broccoli, eat. Chew, napkin, repeat. Always hits the spot and relieves the stress of cooking.

5. Chocolate Chip Cookie Butter Fat Bomb
This recipe comes from Sweet & Savory Fat Bombs by Martina Slajerova. It is a bit fiddly at the beginning, because you have so many steps, but oh well. It's worth it! I make the cookie, then chop it up, add, butter, then add some keto chocolate chips. BOOM! Such a treat for lunch or at the end of a long, hard day. Love them so much.


Man... that entry was hard... let's get on to some geekier entries. Ha!

The Joy of Gaming - Ray's Rate a Shelf #17

At the beginning of this year, my husband started a Twitter feed, posting a different part of our game shelves and rating the games that are on them. I was so impressed by this activity, I thought it would be great to share it on my blog.

Click the Tweet to see the rankings and the games.

Rate a Shelf: @ChrisHandy @SJGames @alderac @bravefrontier @bwisegames pic.twitter.com/SbaTgaSIKi

— Ray Bonilla (@OldManMerton) January 19, 2018

The Joy of Gaming: Daddy-Daughter Tuesdays (Kingdomino)

My daughter bought this game for my husband for his birthday so that they could play together. At least, that's the story I'm sticking with. It had nothing to do with me getting it for myself. Either way, they finally got a chance to play together.... without me...

Kingdomino

Daddy  

Kingdomino is a very fast, simple game. It's not incredibly deep, but it's certainly enough to keep kids engaged and works nicely for families. It offers up simple choices but still allows for some measure of strategy. Isabelle understood the premise and the scoring easily enough, though the 5x5 spatial element was tricky for her. She would exceed her 5 square limit multiple times because even though one row was only 4 squares, the one above it would extend out another two squares. That confused her.  Other than that, a very good option for that age range.

Daughter

What did you like about the game?
I like that we get to build a kingdom and I get to choose green and build a forest kingdom.

The art had some weird stuff in the pictures. Like a crazy thing walking in giant-sized boots. CRAAAAAZZZZZEEEEEEEY!

Is it hard or easy to play?
It was easy to play, 'cause really all you do is put pieces together. And placing people down on the rectangles and that's the tile we put down in our kingdom and there's only six in a row for tiles and you count every single square. 

Do you need help from daddy to play the game?
The first time we played, because I put more than six tiles, but you're not supposed to move tiles, but he let me move the tiles, because I mixed them up. I don't think I'd need help to play the game again.

Is there anything about the game that you don't like?
I don't like that I lost both times. There weren't many crowns and it's really hard to get six squares (not sure what she was getting at). The crowns are your points and I just wasn't getting enough crowns. They're random and we place our meeples on them. You hope you can place for the crown. 

Do you think other kids would like the game? Why?
Yes, because it's fun to build a kingdom. The meeples are fun to play with. The strategy is building which people like. 

If someone asked you if they should buy this game what would you say? Why?
Yes, because the meeples are cool and you can put the meeples in the palace and it's building and people like building.  

Will you play it again?
I would like to play this game again. 

5 Fandom Friday - Gateway Fandoms That Made Me Who I Am Today

(Republished from 8/11/2017.)

I haven't done these in a long time, but I know the ladies who were running them became a bit busy. Look and my blog and tell me I don't understand that.

Essentially 5 Fandom Friday was a day to celebrate 5 things about being a fan! This was originally done by The Nerdy Girl blog. Since it took me so long to get into them, I figured I'd start from the very beginning and try to keep up on Fridays.

So let's get things started!

Gateway Fandoms That Made Me Who I Am Today

1. The X-Files
I was that kid who snuck into their basement on Sunday night to watch The X-Files or hide in my room. I "wasn't supposed to" watch stuff like that. Finally my dad watched some with me and that was really cool, but I loved The X-Files. I even got to comics and I hid them in the draw next to my bed. It fed all my needs and love of Sci-Fi/Supernatural/Paranormal. You could even credit this for helping to formulate my love of ghosts and zombies and whatnot! Amazing! I want to believe.... and I do.

2. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
I read this as a Sophmore in High School and it blew my mind! I think it was, honestly, my first real exposure to Sci-Fi reading! I had already read Fantasy and Fantasy is cool, but there is just something about Sci-Fi that I love without question. So much so that I've created a Sci-Fi reading unit for my sixth graders. It makes me the happiest when I'm reading Sci-Fi. I even have "Ender" engraved on the inside of my class ring.


3. Settlers of Catan
Our friend Jim brought this game out one day and I was completely hooked. So much so that I think I bugged him and my husband with how much I wanted to play it. It was just the coolest thing ever! The new got into Pandemic and Hero Quest and now my husband and I are gamers and we own over 300 games. Thanks Settlers!

4. Star Wars

You know this is where it all started! One of the first geeky movies I remember watching as a kid and I was from the 80s! We had the toys and everything! Star Wars permeated my life and kept me open to that type of sci-fi/fantasy and really created my love of geekdom. Moving forward I was addicted to Labyrinth and Adventures in Babysitting and Indiana Jones and other Spielberg awesomeness. I had so much to geek for!I could probably even credit it with keeping me open to amazing things like Mystery Science Theater 3000 when I was a kid! I loved it and it still permeates my adulthood today! Shockingly, I'd say Star Trek, but I wasn't really allowed to watch Star Trek and/or I didn't understand what it was as a kid. I remember one of the times I sat down to watch it at my parent's friend's house, my parents made fun of it and said to turn it off. I dunno. But for some reason Star Wars as alright and I am thankful for that!

5. Super Mario Bros
My brother and I each got $50 for Christmas. We pooled our money to buy a Nintendo Game System. Now, my brother had a tendency to take it over more than I did, but I loved my time on it and I loved playing Super Mario Bros. I've played almost all the games, but not things like Mario Cart. SMB was honestly my gateway to gaming and now we've introduced it to my daughter, but she prefers the Lego games more than SMB. Sad, but true... but she's REALLY good at gaming. I'm working on all the convoluted new expectations of using a controller. Man oh man.