Men and the "Nothing Box"

The most boring date of my life was when my date took me to an arcade and I spent two excruciating hours watching him play video games. I definitely gave him the "let's be friends" speech after that, and frankly, I didn't even care that much.

So how is it I married an on-line gamer?

Rob's latest thrill of choice is Lord of the Rings Online. He loves the graphics and the story line, the endless hours of bashing spiders while yelling, "Baruk! Hadda! Idaryu!" Or rather, watching his dwarf bard bash things.

Recently, his high-powered gaming computer went on the fritz, so he's having to make do with his laptop. Since it's just not up to standard, she spends a lot of time crafting instead of fighting.

Yes, crafting. Rob pushes buttons; he watches as his dwarf runs for 10 minutes across the countryside (unless he gets it a horse, then he watches the backside of a pony for 10 minutes as it carried his dwarf across the countryside.) The dwarf gets to town, where it picks up it's mail--stuff his buddies send him to craft with. Then he pushes more buttons and his dwarf runs to a temple or craft house or something--they look alike to me. then he pushes more buttons and sits, mesmerized, while his dwarf swings a hammer for no apparent reason since he's working with gemstones. this continues until the computer has decided he's had enough and declares he's "made" something.

I don't get it.

The other day, however, my friend Ann found a video that explained it all: Men and the "Nothing Box."



One of the things I love most about Rob is his incredible mind. Whether at work or writing, teasing the kids or coming up with a killer pun, he's got this incredible knack for managing details and making them fit in the big picture. If the "nothing box" is the price to pay, then I guess I can live with that.

Just don't take me to the arcade.

My Dragon Story Won an Award!

Almost a year ago, I started writing a silly fantasy noir serial for the North Dakota Mensa publication, the Prairie Dawg. Shirley Starke, the editor, had done a translation for me for another Dragon Eye, Pi story, and we'd gotten to talking about Vern and Sister Grace and came up with the silly idea of the two chaperoning the Faerie at a Mensa convention. No heavy mystery, but a lot of fairy and Mensa in-jokes.

This year, even though it wasn't finished, Shirley entered it in the Mensa Publication Recognition Program contest. I got a rather..yellow..certificate of participation, so I figured nothing came of it.

Imagine my surprise when I received a trophy in the mail today! Stunned silence followed by much whooping and jumping and happy dancing!

It's funny the coincidences life brings your way. As it turns out, we're moving to North Dakota in 3 weeks, and I already have a friend and several acquaintances there thanks to the Prairie Dawg and MM&M. Also, It was such for to write, that I've novelized it and it may be my first Dragon Eye Mystery.

If I can ever find the cable for the camera, I'll put up a photo of the trophy.