I just finished watching the Seahawks-Vikings game on NFL Game Pass. Back when the season started in September, after much frustration trying to get the pirated NFL feeds to work on my computer (there is no such thing as a free lunch), I said heck with it and paid the 2500 Baht for a subscription to the NFL's online TV package.
2500 Baht is the equivalent of about 80 meals.
Anyhoots, worth every penny. I love football, and I really love football when my favorite team is tied for the best record in the league and looking like they're Super Bowl contenders.
During the second half of the 'Hawks game, the temperature dropped precipitously into the 40's F, the incessant rain began falling, and I thought back to my five years living in the Emerald City, the five years I spent before moving here to Thailans. I loved Seattle for lots of reasons. It's a great town! The people are wonderful and the most friendly people I've ever met in America. The scenery is breathtakingly beautiful. The culture is exciting and avant guard. The weather, now, that's another story. The weather is shitty.
I saw that drizzle rain and realized that this being November, this was the vanguard of a rainy season that would last until May. It will rain every single day in Seattle from now until mid-spring. It'll be 35 to 45 degrees all the time during that rain. There might be a few days when the rain turns to snow, but not that many.
I wrote last time on this blog about how here in Thailand, there's this constant harsh environment right outside your window that one has to protect oneself from. Same thing this time of year in Seattle. Which is worse? To be a be a bit warm and sweaty in 85 degree temps with high humidity or to be cold and wet in the 40F Northwest winter rains?
It can't be 68 degrees all the time (well, it can if you never leave a climate controlled home), but if I had to choose between cold and wet versus warm and sweaty, I'll pick the latter.
_________________
Last night, I went and did something that I've not done in twenty years, but had been a very integral part of my life back in those days. I went and played Dungeons and Dragons. Nowadays, D&D has a new name, 'Pathfinders', and the 'official' rules have migrated over to a new organization. Last time I played back in 1993, D&D was on its Second Edition. They're now on their 4th.
All that aside, role playing games are still role playing games, no matter what the underlying rules or how long its been since one has played. For me, it felt like putting on an old, comfortable shoe, although my foot has changed quite a bit in those 20 years.
I found myself shushing my fellow players. Shushing people?!? WTF was that? Lets just say that the 43 year old Joko doesn't run the same kind of character that the 23 year old Joko did.
We play RPG's in order to have fun pretending to be someone else, but in my first trip back to that game in a long time, I found myself profoundly impacted by who I am now.
D&D self-analyzation.
________________
That name... Is it just a horrible misspelling, or was it chosen for marketing purposes? I've been wondering this for months. Today, I visited Pickadaily Bangkok for the first time, and I'd have to say it is the latter. See, they've got this sign in the square that touts this place as an "English Style Daily Arcade"... Okay, I'm not sure what a daily arcade is supposed to be, but it's gotta figure in the name.
2500 Baht is the equivalent of about 80 meals.
Anyhoots, worth every penny. I love football, and I really love football when my favorite team is tied for the best record in the league and looking like they're Super Bowl contenders.
During the second half of the 'Hawks game, the temperature dropped precipitously into the 40's F, the incessant rain began falling, and I thought back to my five years living in the Emerald City, the five years I spent before moving here to Thailans. I loved Seattle for lots of reasons. It's a great town! The people are wonderful and the most friendly people I've ever met in America. The scenery is breathtakingly beautiful. The culture is exciting and avant guard. The weather, now, that's another story. The weather is shitty.
I saw that drizzle rain and realized that this being November, this was the vanguard of a rainy season that would last until May. It will rain every single day in Seattle from now until mid-spring. It'll be 35 to 45 degrees all the time during that rain. There might be a few days when the rain turns to snow, but not that many.
I wrote last time on this blog about how here in Thailand, there's this constant harsh environment right outside your window that one has to protect oneself from. Same thing this time of year in Seattle. Which is worse? To be a be a bit warm and sweaty in 85 degree temps with high humidity or to be cold and wet in the 40F Northwest winter rains?
It can't be 68 degrees all the time (well, it can if you never leave a climate controlled home), but if I had to choose between cold and wet versus warm and sweaty, I'll pick the latter.
_________________
Last night, I went and did something that I've not done in twenty years, but had been a very integral part of my life back in those days. I went and played Dungeons and Dragons. Nowadays, D&D has a new name, 'Pathfinders', and the 'official' rules have migrated over to a new organization. Last time I played back in 1993, D&D was on its Second Edition. They're now on their 4th.
All that aside, role playing games are still role playing games, no matter what the underlying rules or how long its been since one has played. For me, it felt like putting on an old, comfortable shoe, although my foot has changed quite a bit in those 20 years.
I found myself shushing my fellow players. Shushing people?!? WTF was that? Lets just say that the 43 year old Joko doesn't run the same kind of character that the 23 year old Joko did.
We play RPG's in order to have fun pretending to be someone else, but in my first trip back to that game in a long time, I found myself profoundly impacted by who I am now.
D&D self-analyzation.
________________
I've
seen the signs for months now as the place has been slowly constructed
near the OnNut-Srinakarin junction. They put up a clock tower. They've
got faux-Tudor style architecture. About a week ago, a big, red,
double-decker bus facade went on the side facing OnNut. Finally, this weekend, Pickadaily Square opened up here in Bangkok.
That name... Is it just a horrible misspelling, or was it chosen for marketing purposes? I've been wondering this for months. Today, I visited Pickadaily Bangkok for the first time, and I'd have to say it is the latter. See, they've got this sign in the square that touts this place as an "English Style Daily Arcade"... Okay, I'm not sure what a daily arcade is supposed to be, but it's gotta figure in the name.
Not too schmaltzy. They put a lot of thought and work into this little mini-mall.
I'm sure it will get crowded soon. Nice to be able to walk around when it is not.
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