Bloodstone Borders Week 2

Well, week two of my Warmachine/Hordes league is basically in the books. I played just one game this week on Thursday night and did quite well. I managed to beat Luke Hardy, pick up a scenario victory and take out five of his solos which has basically put me squarely in the lead for the Eliminator pin. I don't really care if I win the league, but they are some pretty neat pins and I wouldn't mind winning one of them.

My game went pretty well. I decided to stick with some old stand-bys yet still try something a bit different. I took Kaya as my warlock and surrounded her with three warpwolves and a pureblood warpwolf as well. These four models pack a tremendous punch and are hard to disable because of their self healing ability. In addition to this, I took two units of shifting stones (again for healing and quick movement where necessary), a full unit of Tharn Ravagers and their brand new attachment, the Shaman. The Lord of the Feast is a got to have when running against trooper models and I went out on a limb and decided to field two Sentry Stones and give them a try. Now most people would argue that with the Sentry Stones I am making the same mistake I made last week of running models that don't match up well against a Warmachine faction. Let me tell you, being the first time I played the Sentry Stones I found that they are incredible, even against Warmachine.

The board was really clogged this time around as I we had crevasses perpendicular to both the left and right edges of the board. This was going to shove all the non-ranged troops into the middle of the table (which was all I had). He was running the new Epic Irusk and his Khador army. Khador is very meaty (as I learned my last game) and unless you have some punch, you're not going to damage them. Hence the reason I fielded my pack of wolves. He was going to try to use his ranged attacks to bust me up, and I knew it. So, using Kaya's cloak of mists I was able to hide my Tharns during their approach. I used my Shifting Stone to move my Sentry Stones closer to the action and laughed when he tried to target them with his mortars (Sentry Stones without any focus on them are completely invisible). I also started producing Manikins (little animated wooden constructs) and immediately sacrificed them to shower his onrushing pirate crew with a barrage of splinters. The Lord of the Feast also joined the fun, sending his pet raven at the pirates and immediately joining the fray, taking down his manhunter and one of the pirates with a ferocious attack.

He was able to kill the Lord of the Feast, but not without committing a Konvik, 3 pirates and his marshalled berserker first. The Lord of the Feast is one bad customer. With all those troops in the middle of the board I was able to again hit him with an exploding manikin, taking out a few pirates in the process. On the left side of the board, the Tharns had gotten around the crevice and tore into his complete ineffective Widowmakers. They didn't have a chance against the Tharns and their Shaman. They also made quick work of Alton Ashley who had joined forces with the widows in an attempt to nickel and dime my troops into submission. He then sent in his heavy, a nasty Destroyer to work over my Tharns. While he did considerable damage, the Tharns are not only difficult to hit, but even more difficult to kill. We mixed it up for a few turns and the Tharns took casualties, but were able to hold their own.

The middle of the board got very nasty. Luke sent his berserker and a Juggernaut against two of my Warpwolves. My wolves did not fair well. I was lucky enough that one of them survived, but the other was torn to shreds by the ice axe of the Juggernaut. Unfortunately for him, I followed up with an attack by my Pureblood and the other Warpie and completely decimated both Jacks and his marshalling Kovnik.

The game played out over the next few turns, I won't go into detail. He managed to kill off one more of my Warpwolves and severely wound the other two to the point where I was forcing them to regenerate and using my Shifting Stones as healing batteries. He kept throwing solos at me and I kept killing them. In the end, he had his caster and a mortar and gun crew left, but they didn't have the movement to advance and keep me from claiming the control points I needed to win the game.

It was a great game. I had a lot of fun. It was fairly close (though I felt I had it in hand most of the time) and it allowed me to try a few new things. I know that the Sentry Stones will now find a permanent home in any army I run.

My Day Off

Yesterday they announced on the radio that Barack Obama had canceled his trip to Muncie and instead detoured to Fort Wayne for a town hall meeting. As soon as I had heard, I logged on the computer, went to Obama's website and requested a ticket. I'm glad I did when I did, because they were gone in less than an hour. I found out at about 3:00pm that I had been given a ticket to get into the event.

Today I went over to Wayne High School at about 8:00am to stand in the rain and wait with 2000 other people to crowd into the gym to see Mr. Obama speak.

The crowd was a racial imbalance with about 70% African American to Caucasian mix. The funny thing about it was that even with this mix I still felt very comfortable. The crowd that had gathered were there for the same purpose as I was.

I stood outside for about an hour, shambling along at a very slow pace until I was finally able to enter the commons of the high school. Security was extremely thorough, asking me to turn on my cell phone and camera to check their functionality, requesting all the metal objects out of my pocket, and passing me through a metal detector before wanding me and patting me down. Once it had been determined that I was not a threat, they let me enter the gym.

It was extremely crowded, with tons of people crammed into the risers in the gym. Two separate platforms had been erected, one for a plethora of news media who had earlier erected their tripods and expensive cameras. The other stood with a single microphone, behind which sat a small bleacher reserved for the privileged few. I was sent to the far left and placed on an aisle, with so many bodies parked like cars before me.

I was sitting about 12 rows up, constantly jostled in front of and behind me by people who just couldn't keep their seat. The conversation around me revolved around the seats on the floor, oh so close to Mr. Obama's stage. Everyone wanted those seats.

I waited and waited for about an hour and a half, the seat getting more uncomfortable by the minute. The crowd was growing restless as well and began to chant and cheer like we were at a ball game. There was even one guy who from the balcony, broke into a dance, drawing claps and cheers from the observers below.

There was an immediate tension in the air when we first noticed the Secret Service agents. They filed in from behind a curtain and marched to a variety of preassigned posts. You could see them scanning the crowd. The thing that surprised me about them however was how they interacted with one another. They weren't the stoic individuals I came to recognize from the movies. Instead they were smiling and seemingly joking with one another. You could still feel their presence.

A speaker approached the microphone on the stage. I doubt if anyone recognized the man, as he was certainly no one I had ever seen.

The man introduced himself as Mike Riley, the former campaign manager of Robert Kennedy. He shared stories of the crowd reaction 40 years ago today when Bobby Kennedy had to tell a gathered rally about the assassination of Martin Luther King. It was a very touching story.

I won't get into too many details, other than to say that Mr. Riley gave a nice, not great, introduction for Mr. Obama. The aura of the crowd completely changed when the Senator walked out. It was pretty incredible. I have to say that I, like the people around me, were completely stricken by Mr. Obama.

He started with a moment of silence in recognition of the anniversary of Dr. King's murder. The message that followed was one of reverence toward the slain pastor. Yet in no time Obama tied it into our current political situation. He spoke for about 10 minutes, but quickly changed the tone of the gathering by announcing that they were going to do things the way Dr. King would have. He was going to have a town meeting, and that it was time to get to work.

Obama is a great speaker. He took questions from the crowd (8 or 9 of them) and addressed each one completely. He managed throughout his answers to address all the issues of today: Gun control, health insurance, education, drugs, the environment, labor unions and the war in Iraq. He didn't linger too long on any issue, yet his underlying tone was pretty easy to understand: government can help with some issues, but the basic things that can further one's life was stuff that happened at home.

I really liked that message. I think it is important for people to take ownership of their own lives. Obama's message was about giving American's more opportunities, not giving them handouts. I can appreciate that.

I don't want to drag this message out any longer. I just want to say that I felt that Obama was extremely genuine. He spoke to the people, not at them. He didn't read from a script, and as far as I could see had no notes to refer to. He was real, and I like that. I was glad I got an opportunity to see him.

Right before I left, I pushed my way through the crowd to the railing near the stage. As luck would have it, Obama had just made his way to that area. I was able to reach out my hand and shake his. Now I'm not bragging or anything, but I feel honored to have shook the man's hand. I only hope that in seven months I can tell my friends and family that I had the opportunity to shake the hand of the President of the United States.

One Red Paperclip

I heard about this on the radio and thought I would share it with everyone because it is a pretty neat story. A guy named Kyle MacDonald really wanted to propose to his girlfriend. He wasn't going to do it though until he had a home for the two of them to live in. So, in an act of inspiration, MacDonald decided he was going to trade for a home. He went to Craigslist.com, a website that allowed you to barter for items and posted his trade: a single red paperclip. Over the span of a year just over a year MacDonald was able to trade the paperclip for another item (in this case a pen that looked like a fish), then another item (hand sculpted doorknob) and another (a Coleman camp stove) and etc.

To make a long story short, MacDonald was able to upgrade each of his trades until he was finally offered a house in Saskatchewan by trading the home owner a chance at a role in a Corben Bernsen film called Donna on Demand. It is a pretty neat story. To make it all the better, MacDonald signed the deed for his house and proposed to his girlfriend who accepted. The ring MacDonald presented her was shaped from the same red paperclip that had started the whole trading frenzy. MacDonald had contacted the lady he had traded for the fish pen and purchased the paperclip back from her.

This is a pretty neat story. I think I may have to buy the book (which you knew would be following after MacDonald's success) so I can find out how the guy actually pulled this whole thing off. If you get a chance visit his website: Oneredpaperclip.com

Neat stuff.

Book Review: Odd Thomas

I am typically very careful when deciding to purchase a book by Dean Koontz. He seems to be the type of author that can write a book that knocks it out of the park, but has also written novels that I've thought were pretty tough to read. Odd Thomas fits into the first category.

The story is about a rather typical 20 year old who not so typically sees ghosts. I initially thought the book was going to be very quirky, as the first person style of writing that Koontz uses tends to present this in the first few pages. It however is much more serious as the book progresses and the first person style allows you to see things through the eyes of Odd, the oddly named protagonist.

The story is actually pretty grim. Odd Thomas toils as a short order cook in the small western town of Pico Mundo. He has never left the town mostly out of fear. He is comfortable in Pico Mundo and if he was to leave, he anticipates helping the ghosts that he sees on a daily basis would become much more difficult. He comes from a dysfunctional (if not our right broken family) and tends to keep to himself but maintains a healthy relationship with the town's chief of police, a local author/celebrity, his boss and co-workers as well as the love of his life, Stormy Llywellyn.

Odd goes to work one day and notices a man followed by dark shadowy demon creatures that only Odd can see. These creatures are a foreboding sign that terrible death will occur. The last time Odd had seen multiple bodachs (as he calls the creatures) it had been when crossing the path of a psycho who ended up killing his entire family with a power drill. When the man leaves the diner Odd is shocked to see close to twenty of the bodachs following him. This whole encounter sets Odd on an adventure to stop the man from unleashing whatever hell it is that is following him.

The story is very good. The character development is sensational. When the book is all over, you realize how attached you've become to the protagonist and his friends. The book can be a bit clownish, with characters representing all colors of a kaleidoscope, but they really work well. There is real pain, and real terror written into the book, but also a great deal of heroics.

From the perspective of a casual reader, the book gets to the grit quickly, meaning it doesn't take long for the reader to become immersed. The story flows in short, smooth chapters making it easy to put down when the world interupts. There are very few slow sections of the book, which makes it flow incredibly well. This is the kind of book that could easily fill a rainy afternoon.

One positive about this book is that it has already spawned two sequels with a fourth set for release this May. The sequels are called Forever Odd and Brother Odd. I know I will read all of them as I've already purchased and started reading Forever Odd.

Tell me what you think of Odd Thomas after you read it, or direct your questions to my new blog email at lonnbristolblog@gmail.com.

Middle Class Frustration

You know, I have actually voted for Republicans in the past. I voted for Indiana's current governor, though at this point in time I wish I hadn't. Now we have this new Presidential election coming up and I have to question why anyone who makes less than a six figure salary could vote for John McCain.

McCain knows nothing about the economy, he has actually admitted it. He wants to win the election based on his strengths regarding foreign affairs. Granted, the issues concerning the Middle East are important, but the economy seems to be the 800 pound gorilla that McCain would like to ignore.

Strike ONE

McCain's idea of economic relief would be to increase tax breaks to large corporations by $100 billion. Now, I know that big companies are important, but frankly, many of the big companies I know are already finding relief by sending business to India, Mexico, China and Indonesia. What we need is something to keep the money here in the U.S.A.

Strike TWO

Another of the things that McCain would like to do is extend the tax cuts to billionaires initiated by George W. Bush. This is elitism at its worst. There are far fewer billionaires in the world than there are struggling middle class workers. Relief needs to come to those who make this country run.

Strike THREE

The war in Iraq has cost us over a half of trillion dollars so far. Oh so many years ago I read about how expensive it was to run the government and that taxes was the only way to pay for it. Well, considering we are coughing up billions of dollars a week, any Presidential candidate that suggests that we fight this war in Iraq for another 100 years cannot be elected.

Strike FOUR

John McCain has my respect. He is an American hero for what he endured as a POW. On the other hand we have to occasionally set aside our reverence for one's act of bravery, or popularity, or physical appearance and make a decision that best benefits everyone as a whole. I don't have anything against rich people. I, like many people feel that those who are impoverished must first look at what they can do for themselves before asking for handouts from others. But, as someone who has done well in life, but is now struggling in the face of a crippled economy, of a housing market that is faltering, and a country where decent jobs are hard to find, I have to wonder why you wouldn't look toward someone who has a plan for economic improvemets that could pull is out of this mire we are currently in. I do not believe that John McCain can, or will do it. I think he is looking at the Reagan theory of trickle down economics without realizing that the trickle is flowing towards citizens in other countries, not the US middle classes who in the past made this country strong.

I would love to hear your comments on my thoughts.

Update on Balin

Balin seems to be feeling a lot better. For those of you who didn't hear about it, the little guy was suffering from ear infections in both ears, had a nasty infection in his eye (which he got from me) and was had a terrible cough. He seems to be doing much better now. His ears still bother him a bit, but he is taking medicine for it so hopefully it will be all fixed soon.

Everybody seems curious as to whether he is walking or not. I have to admit that he is yet to take his first steps. He has proven time and time again that he can stand on his own and not fall over, but he seems really timid about taking that first step. He'll hold on to your fingers and walk with you, but when you try to get him to do it himself he either starts whining or he just sits down.

One thing I can tell you is that he is going to be a hand full once he starts walking. It is difficult enough trying to keep track of him now as he crawls all over the house. I found him the other day soaking wet because he had went in the bathroom and played in the toilet. Yesterday he had went into Gracie's room and pulled all the clothes out of her bottom dresser drawer.
He is a happy little guy. He has the most infectious laugh. I love listening to him when he does his deep belly laugh. Grace is really good with him and plays with him and he just loves that. He got a little cart that is supposed to help him learn to walk. Instead, he likes to sit on it and have us push him around. That makes him smile a lot until we take him off it, at which point he usually cries.

When he went to the docter he weighed around 25 pounds, so he is getting to be a big boy. We think that he may end up being left handed, like Angie's dad and nephew. I think that is a good thing, especially if he can throw a fastball around 91 miles per hour. He is getting plenty of practice throwing. He gets in these moods where he just grabs toys and starts throwing them behind him. He can trash the living room in about 3 minutes. That I believe he gets from his two older sisters.

Well, that's an update. Once he takes his first steps I'll post another update.

Play Date Results

Well, Gracie had her play date yesterday. I was lucky enough to be home for most of it, so I can report first hand on how it went.

Gracie was not a very good girl yesterday. I can't count the number of times she had to be spoken to about her screaming and yelling. Had Balin not been napping it wouldn't have been as bad, but he was and she managed to wake him up at least once. Her little friend, Rachel, barely made a sound. Unfortunately Gracie takes after me and ended up facing the wrath of Mom more than once.
I know the next time we plan one of these we will make sure Gracie gets plenty of rest. We had let her stay up until 10:00pm on Sunday and she ended up getting out of bed early Monday morning so she was running on less sleep than normal and that contributed to her behavior. Grace tends to get a bit wild when she is tired.

I think she had a good time with her friend though. They did craft projects (made necklaces and braclets), played dress up, played with the Barbies, watched a movie and built a fort in Grace's room. It is nice that she had someone to play with, but I have a feeling she tries to impress kids as well. As far as her being bossy, she had to be reminded to let Rachel make the decisions once or twice, but overall she did well.

She did get in big trouble at the end of the play date though when she was caught jumping on her bed for a third time. We don't allow her to jump on the furniture and she knows it. I really gave it to her after her friend had left and told her that if she acts up by jumping on the bed or not listening or talking back to mom this week while she is on spring break then she is not going to go on her girl scout camping trip in May. Hopefully that has an effect. I really don't want to deny her this trip, but I think to make an impact you have to do things like that once in awhile.

Overall though, this was a pretty good play date. We learned some things (and made sure Grace was in bed at 8:30 last night) and that is what is important.