This is Alpha, the first-born, when he was 2YO.
This is Beta, the second-born, when he was about 2YO.
This is Gamma, the third-born, when he was about 18MO.
Feb
7
2017
Here’s my latest idea: skeeball plus bowling.
It’s perfect for people like me, who never got the hang of spinning the bowling ball to make it curve.
I’m not going to get around to making this, so someone else can give it a try.
He who digs a pit will fall into it, And he who rolls a stone, it will come back on him.
Proverbs 26:27
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Feb
2
2017
For some reason, I feel like discussing the word postpone.
I like symmetry, so it bothers me that no one ever uses the word prepone. There should be a matching word. Post means after, pre means before, so prepone should mean to move something earlier in schedule. Just the opposite of postpone.
I did some searching, and there was only one online dictionary that listed prepone as the opposite of postpone. Maybe it hasn’t caught on because no one ever does anything earlier than necessary. Things at work are always delayed, never opposite-of-delayed.
And while I’m at it, why don’t we use the word pone for schedule? It’s certainly easier to write and to say, but maybe people have a problem with Latin (where the pone from postpone originated)?
It’s not like we use all the forms for postpone currently, so we could just use pone as it is and not worry about ponam, ponemus, or ponendum.
So Amasa went to call out the men of Judah, but he delayed longer than the set time which he had appointed him.
2 Samuel 20:5
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Jan
31
2017
This is a guide for how to play the game Carcassonne. It’s a fun, slightly involved tile game.
1. How do I win?
You win by having the most points at the end of the game.
2. How do I get points?
By claiming various features of land. Features are buildings, roads, and fields. The number of points increases as the size of the feature increases (length of road, area of building/city, etc.)
3. How do I claim something?
By placing your marker (meeple) on it. You can claim only one feature per turn, and it must be on the land tile that you just played that turn.
4. How does the game end?
You play until all the tiles are gone. After someone plays the last tile, you add up final points. You should have some points before then, as you count the cities and roads as they are completed/closed during the game.
5. How do I share a feature with someone to get some of their points?
You can’t share a feature directly; if someone already has claimed it, you can’t also claim it. You’ll have to start a new item, claim it, and then connect yours to his (and hope he doesn’t block you).
There, now go play Carcassonne.
Likewise, if a man sells a dwelling house in a walled city, then his redemption right remains valid until a full year from its sale; his right of redemption lasts a full year.
Leviticus 25:29
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Jan
26
2017
This is a guide for how to play the game Kingdom Builder. It’s a fun, slightly involved board game.
1. How do I win?
You win by having the most points at the end of the game.
2. How do I get points?
This is a tricky question. Big picture answer: you get points by fulfilling the conditions of the goal cards. Now what the goal cards are depends on what was dealt. There are many goal cards, but you randomly choose a few of them to be in play. So your goals and tactics will change from game to game.
3. How do I fulfill the goal cards?
By building houses. The game board is a set of land tiles (similar concept to Settlers of Catan, but different execution) and each turn you get to place a number of houses on the board. Everyone gets the same minimum number of houses per turn – there are no coins or resource to collect in order to buy houses – but you can earn an extra house or two per turn depending on what extras you have unlocked.
4. How do I unlock these extra thingies?
There are a few special locations on the board tiles. If you build a house next to one of these spots, you earn its ability (which is usually either moving or adding a house).
5. How does the game end?
You play until someone runs out of house tokens. Then you finish the round so that everyone has the same number of plays. Then you total up your points.
There, now go play Kingdom Builder.
See, I have appointed you this day over the nations and over the kingdoms, To pluck up and to break down, To destroy and to overthrow, To build and to plant.
Jeremiah 1:10
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Jan
24
2017
This is a guide for how to play the game Machi Koro. It’s a fun, involved card game.
1. How do I win?
You win by being the first player to build all your goal cards.
2. How do I build goal cards?
By buying them with coins.
3. How do I get coins?
You earn coins based on what business cards you have, combined with what was rolled on the dice.
4. How do I get business cards?
By buying them with coins. You start with a couple of businesses, and those can earn you coins. The more coins you get, the more businesses you can buy, which in turn lets you earn more coins.
Each card has a value (what it costs to buy the card) and a rank (what number must be rolled in order for you to use the card).
5. How would you describe this game?
It’s a cross between Settlers of Catan and Dominion. It’s like Settlers in that your prosperity depends on what numbers you and the other players roll on the dice. But the game is easier and quicker than Settlers. And it’s like Dominion in that you advance by gaining cards and those cards have different capabilities and you can choose what characteristics you prefer.
There, now go play Machi Koro.
Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed And founds a town with violence!
Habakkuk 2:12
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Jan
19
2017
This is a guide for how to play the game Sushi Go. It’s a fun, simple card game.
1. How do I win?
You win by having the most points at the end of the game.
2. How do I get points?
By having played cards that earn points
3. How do I play cards?
Everyone has a hand of cards. You pick one you want to play in that hand and turn that card face up. You do that several turns and when you’re done, you have a bunch of face-up cards. Those are your points.
4. How do I know which cards to play?
The cards have different point values. You’ll want to pick things with higher points. There are some combinations that earn higher points, so look for those.
5. How is that hard?
Because each time you play a card, you pass your cards to the left. So you can’t plan much because the set of cards you have changes each turn.
There, now go play Sushi Go.
So Saul said to his servants, “Provide for me now a man who can play well and bring him to me.”
1 Samuel 16:17
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Jan
17
2017
There are a number of fun things that happen when you drive a 15-year-old car. One of which is replacing light bulbs.
One headlight stopped working. Not knowing exactly how old the bulb was (worst case: 15 years), I stopped by the parts store and bought a pair of headlight bulbs.
After I got home, I opened the back of the headlight and started to replace the bulb. Once I finally unplugged the bulb from the connector, I was greeted by a lump of melted and burned plastic. The connector of the wiring harness was partially gone and the terminals were not making a solid connection. I put the new bulb on just for fun but it didn’t fare any better. So I adjusted the terminals on the connector and plugged the old bulb back in. Success! So I left the old bulbs in place.
Since I didn’t trust the connector (something is not right if plastic is melting and charring), I ordered a replacement wiring connector. The bulb stopped working a couple days later again, so I swapped out the old connector for the new connector and the bulb has been fine ever since.
Then a couple weeks later, the turn signal starting blinking rapidly. That usually means one of the bulbs burned out, so I went and bought replacement turn signal bulbs. However, the new bulb didn’t work either.
Hmm…
I put the old bulb back in and it didn’t work. I set the assembly down so I could figure out what was going on and the old bulb started working again. Turns out the wiring harness was a little flaky. The bulb stopped and started working a couple more times as I reinstalled the turn signal assembly. But I got it stable and everything was good.
For a couple days.
Then the turn signal started blinking rapidly again, telling me that the wiring harness flaked out again. So I ordered a replacement turn signal connector and wiring. And I drove for a few days with a bad turn signal while I waited for the equipment to come in the mail.
Finally, the connector arrived. I went out to the car and turned on the signal. I was surprised to see that the front turn signal was fine and the back turn signal was bad. Of course, the back turn signal uses a different bulb than the front. So now I had to stop at the parts store and get a new bulb.
I replaced the back bulb and everything was fine.
So now I have a spare set of headlights and a spare turn signal connector, so I’ll be prepared in case they ever go out.
Moral of the story: diagnose the problem before buying replacement parts, not after.
Behold this; we have investigated it, and so it is. Hear it, and know for yourself.
Job 5:27
Posted in Mishaps | Leave a Comment »
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