Noise

My microwave is old and has started making a worrying noise, so I'm going to purchase a replacement this morning.

Thinking about microwaves brings to mind a brief period when I flatted with a hippie chick. Since she didn't own one, I immediately bought one. I sat it on the kitchen bench (not plugged in), went out to the bins to dispose of the box and the next thing I knew there was an awful burnt smell in the air.

"What happened?" I asked.

"I used it," she said.

Unfortunately, prior to heating up whatever, she'd neglected to remove the plastic covering at the back, which was now scorched and giving off an unpleasant aroma.

That hippie chick liked burning things. When I applied for the room, she forgot to mention that she smoked herbal cigarettes (not code for pot) in front of the TV all night. It was why I moved out a month later, taking my still faintly plastic-ponging microwave with me.

At Cancon 2016, we...

Terraformed a fantasy land to expand our societies and demonstrate our devotion to elemental gods. (Don't be like me and employ an isolationist strategy - the power points that result from interaction are key.)

Got our kaiju on.

Got our "Ben-Hur" on.

Attempted to evolve a class of animals to a state where some species could survive a looming ice age. (I was victorious as the amphibians.)

Robbed a train in the wild west.

Robbed a tomb in the near east.

Tried to make each other laugh at tastelessly rude fill-in-the-blank jokes - and succeeded.

Robbed a train PLUS a stagecoach in the wild west.

Fought a raging river in a hunt for gems. (The way this b/g sits atop its box and pushes the canoe pieces towards the waterfall edge on clear plastic discs is brilliant.)

Final word: "Niagara" and "Cards Against Humanity" were both played twice, but the star of the weekend was "Colt Express", which was played five times (three with the expansion). Along with the visual appeal of the 3D train, etc., it never felt samey or failed to amuse.

5, 3, 4

Will be in the nation's capital from tomorrow until Tuesday for the Cancon gaming convention.

I've attended the con three times before - in 2004, 2009 and 2012.

In '04, I went alone and played nothing but "M:TG", finishing in the boosters in Standard with a rogue white-artifact deck, and - IIRC - also scoring a pack of Italian Legends as a spot prize. I believe I ran mono-B discard in Vintage and mono-R goblins in Extended.

2009 saw me hanging out with TC and LPO, indulging in mainly boardgames with a bit of role-playing... "Red November", "Risk: TLOTR", "Settlers", "Space Munchkin", the "WOW" b/g and a couple of linked "D&D 4E" adventures.

We had LM and LJ with us as well in 2012. Stuff played: "4E" again, "Battlestar", "Thrones 2E", "Evo" and chariot racer "Circus Maximus".

This year, we're aiming for more people and more boardgames. Expect a report next week.

F-i-i-i-ne

Talented acquaintances of mine, AH and SC, made a short film.

It's about the sort of fake-cover farewell card that's traditional in magazine publishing.

They were nice enough to give me a minor role.

If you enjoy it, please share the link.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2zAF1WzYCY

Friendship is "Magic"

RS and I are evenly matched at "Magic: The Gathering", both in terms of deck construction and playing.

On this visit, he brought with him a mono-G Eldrazi deck and a very synergistic mono-W life-gainer, which could win with creature damage or the special ability of this fellow -

To face those, I prepared mono-G landkill, U/R counter-burn-steal and B/W "prison" (Winter Orb, Icy Manipulator, Mole Worms, Kismet, various removal cards).

Our 30 duels revealed the life and c-b-s decks to be the strongest. Landkill and Eldrazi were absolutely devastating when they worked. However, they weren't consistent. The prison pile neither flogged nor got flogged.

We had a ton of fun fighting our creations - usually with T20 on in the background - and discussing how they might be improved. My only regret is that I never once cast the following wrecking ball, despite having four in the deck and eight mana-producing elves to pay the cost. Bloke just didn't wanna come to the party.

Maybe he doesn't like cricket.

Last five movies watched

Pick of the bunch: "Sicario" stands out from the rest of this crap as a highlight of 2015. Tense and gripping, it makes the US-Mexican drug war seem like a conflict on an alien world - which, in some ways, it is.

Ender’s claim

Things I’ve seen end a friendship include a BMX bicycle frame, a high/low poker hand, a girl from out of town, a Nintendo Game & Watch, religion and a compliment. That sixth one was my fault. Back when I was a teen, a pen pal sent me a dot-matrix printout of a swords-and-sorcery tale he’d written. I replied that I thought it “a good parody”. Clearly it wasn’t meant to be, though, as I never heard from the dude again. The lone detail of the story that sticks in my mind is a warrior (possibly elven) doing a flip and pausing in mid-air while being caught in a ray of sunlight. I really did think it was a piss-take.

Last five movies watched

Picks of the bunch: If you want outstanding choreography and cool, actioner "John Wick". If you want idiosyncrasies and insights into the meaning of working life, the Studio Ghibli doco.

Nah-yeah

Couldn't get near the "Art Of The Brick: DC Comics" LEGO exhibition at the Powerhouse Museum. The place was rammed with families seeking a kid-occupying activity on a rainy holiday Wednesday. But maybe I'd seen all I needed to see...

Plan B was Grayson Perry retrospective "My Pretty Little Art Career" at the MCA. It was like his telly shows smooshed together, but minus the entertaining commentary. I battled lights and glass to photograph his model of Baba Yaga's Hut, done in 1983 - around the same time I was encountering the dwelling and its occupant in "D&D".

Last five movies watched

POTB: "SW-TFA".

I also endorse "Mr Turner", for the world building and the gallery's worth of painting-like scenes.

I blame Bowser

RS and I hired a golf cart to navigate Western Plains Zoo's 6km circuit, taking turns to drive it between animal enclosures. At one point, we returned to where we'd parked the thing only to find it had vanished. We couldn't understand how or why this had happened, and were unsure what to do next. RS wanted to notify a zoo staffer, but there were none about. I suggested we go look at some other nearby critters and hope the vehicle reappeared in the meantime. Eventually, we checked the car park again and found our missing ride in a different spot. The coffee cup that had been sitting in the holder when we rented it was gone, replaced by a used tissue. We were later informed that the ignition keys aren't unique; that there are basically three variations. So was our cup-coveting, runny-nosed cart shifter just stupidly lucky or were they up to mischief? Personally, I blame Bowser.