March 2025 Wrap-Up
March felt really busy even though we didn't have any trips or big plans, just a lot of busy weekends and the normal weekly grinds as we head into spring. We got to see Grace and Ben perform at I Love School District Day during mini concerts in band and chorus, respectively. As the weather got better we were able to spend more time outside and yard work has already begun. I also worked towards reorganizing the garage to be able to use my exercise equipment again. It tends to get trapped by random stuff and gifts during the run up to Christmas. My 40th birthday is in just a few days, so I need to really get back into better habits.
Blah Blog Log
Only a single post in March, which happened to be the wrap up post for February.
- January 2025 Wrap-Up - Sourdough discard crackers, a new gaming record, and a show about a nuclear meltdown.
Bored Board Games
Another amazing month of gaming that saw 175 plays across 27 games with 57 of the plays being The Guild of Merchant Explorers. It was just added to BGA last month and I just love it so much. Getting to play all four maps at different player counts has been very enjoyable. It was one of my highlighted games back in the October 2023 Wrap-Up post. March also saw my very first play of one of the most well known Euro-style games that basically shaped the American board game scene. It's one of those games that you're just expected to have played if you've been in the hobby long enough. This month's highlighted game is:
Catan - Formerly known as The Settlers of Catan, was published in Germany in 1995 and went on to win the Spiel des Jahres (German game of the year, which is still the most coveted aware by designers to this day). Players take on the roles of settlers, each attempting to build settlements, cities, and roads while trading and acquiring resources. Players gain victory points as their settlements grow and the first to reach a set number of victory points, typically 10, wins. It's a fairly simple game to play, which is why it's so popular. While I understand why it's not really popular with hobby board gamers anymore, it's a great gateway style game to introduce casual or non gamers to a more complex game.
On a player's turn, they start by rolling a pair of dice and then based on the roll resources can be gained by those who have settlements or cities adjacent to spaces with the matching number. The only exception to this is when a 7 is rolled, which is the most probable roll on a pair of dice. This is when the robber gets activated that can wreak havoc on players' plans. The robber must be moved to another hex, which will no longer produce resources until the robber is moved again. That player may also steal a resource card from another player with a settlement or city adjacent to the robber's new placement. In addition, when a 7 is rolled, all players with 8 or more resource cards must discard their choice of half of their cards, rounded down.
There are a bunch of expansions that increase the player count, give players additional abilities, and change the map in a myriad of ways. In fact, the copy I got for really cheap a few months ago came with both the 5-6 player expansion for the base game and the first expansion that adds shipping lanes and allows for more water heavy map set ups. I think one of the best features a board games can have, when applicable, is a modular board. Catan was far ahead of its time by including it and I believe is a huge reason for its success.
Enjoyable Eats
While I didn't get a picture of my meal, Christine and I did enjoy a date night meal at our favorite diner in Delaware. Odessa Diner sits about twenty minutes north from our house right on route 13. For years it hasn't really been on our way going to or from home. A couple years ago we were coming home from a NY trip and because of napping kids, hadn't stopped anywhere to eat until we were nearly at our house. I remember it being dark and around dinner time so it must have been winter. They were pretty busy but were able to stick the five of us in a booth in the corner, with me sitting in a chair at the end of the table. It could have been that we were all starving, but everyone enjoyed their food and we've been going back ever since.
I'm Watching 👀
While we're still trying to work in watches of Chernobyl and DAHMER we watched the first season of a less emotionally heavy show starring Courteney Cox and Greg Kinnear called Shining Vale. It's a satirical comedy horror television series where a family moves to a small town into a house in which terrible atrocities have taken place. But nobody seems to notice except for Pat (Cox), who's convinced she's either depressed or possessed--turns out, the symptoms are exactly the same. It's both funny and shocking at times and while it's not what I consider a typical horror show, it can be graphic at times. It's nice to see Courteney Cox in a different role than Monica from Friends and Greg Kinnear (who plays her husband) is always a delight.
Resolutions Update
I decided on a single resolution for this year: Read all 35 issues of Simplify Magazine. Which means I'll need to read 3 issues each month. Each issue is about 75 - 100 pages long and is comprised of short essays on whatever that issue's topic is.
- Goal Progress - 9 out of 35
Read three more issues that focused on Overcoming Busy, Gratitude-Generosity-Contentment, and Food & Diet. My idea to read one each weekend didn't pan out in March, as I found myself reading late into the night at the end of the month to stay on track. I've since set some reminders in my phone so I take time to focus on this each weekend.
Whatcha Snackin?
Wrap It Up
Please comment below with any thoughts or comments on anything I've covered. Thanks for reading!
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