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Thursday, May 31, 2012

Thanne Longen Folk to Goon on Pilgrimages

Jean Sexton writes:

I usually visit Amarillo over the Christmas and New Years holidays and then meet up with the Steves in June at the Origins Gamefair. However, this year ADB decided to not attend Origins because most of our customers couldn't attend either due to the date change. That left me with some time to consider a second visit to Amarillo. While April was impractical for my pilgrimage, May was looking just right.

Girding up my loins, I set off on another bus trip to Amarillo. The goal: get Traveller: Prime Directive as close to done as practical. The flash drive with all the files Mike West had sent traveled with me. The TPD Team was already warned about this very intensive time and they would prove invaluable.

We knew that when I got in on Sunday the 20th that I would be pretty tired from the long bus trip, so we planned to do something fun -- go and see the annular eclipse. We had originally thought we'd travel to Lubbock, but it looked cloudy that way. SVC made the command decision that we'd go to Clovis, New Mexico instead. So, I got to visit New Mexico for the second time in my life, went farther west than I have ever been, and got to see the annular eclipse. Events like this bring a sense of wonder and awe to me and put me in the frame of mind to work on science fiction projects.

Adapting the SFU to a gaming system is always a challenge. A phaser-I has 100 charges in GURPS PD, in Prime Directive d20, in PD20M, and in Traveller Prime Directive. That means that the weapons native to the gaming system may not play well with those of the SFU and we trust that the GMs/Referees will be able to tell which ones would break playing in the SFU or limit those to an "alien treasure trove." Some games describe a species from toe to head (GURPS) while others provide the color text and some hard guidelines with the GM to make sure that the character stays true to the game. All of that must be taken into account while doing the game translation. After eight long days (12+ hours), I feel confident that we've pulled it off. Mike lacks a chapter and some data points of having the base book done. I'm pretty sure it will be good since Matthew Sprange is on the TPD Team.

I will confess it wasn't all nose-to-the-grindstone time. The Steves and Leanna wanted me to see that Texas wasn't brown yearlong and to give me encouragement that I'd be able to garden there as I have done in North Carolina. Each day on the way to work and coming from dinner, there would be a detour into the residential areas so I could see gardens. Steve and Leanna even took me to a nursery so I could talk to the people there and get a handle on what will grow in Texas. I fell in love with Mexican feather grass. My gardening books on Texas gardens and plants along with my new gardening hat remain in Amarillo, ready for me to rejoin them someday.

Steve and Leanna also took me to see an arena football game. I love football, having gone to my first game when I was two months old. However, at some point I think I became a jinx -- about 90% of the time if I root for a team, it loses. The poor Amarillo Venom team didn't stand a chance in light of that superpower. Their kicker couldn't kick worth a flip and their quarterback even gave the opposing team a safety. It was a heartbreaking loss -- only one point difference. I do have a Venom hair ribbon now and I will endeavor not to yell myself hoarse at future games (I think SVC found my enthusiasm amusing)!

At Origins, we have traditionally celebrated the "Steves' and Jean's birthdays" since they fall in the space of four days in June. We decided to move that up and had cake and presents one afternoon. We all enjoyed that, although we missed sharing our cake with all of our friends at Origins Gamefair.

We did take an afternoon to watch Battleship. I always have that "willing suspension of disbelief" and loved the movie. However, it was fun to listen to the Steves analyze it afterwards as they know more about military culture than I ever will. It was nice to know that all of us teared up at the exact some spot in the movie.

I took some time (as did SVC and Leanna) to work with Joel on his job search. I proofread his resume and made a few suggestions. The last time I saw him, we were sending him forth to job hunt and he looked ready to join the workforce. I think he was heartened by the fact that I had worked as a waitress before getting a job in my chosen career -- one that has lasted nearly 30 years. As I channeled my mother (Oh! The Horror!) I reminded him that his goal right now was to get a job that put money in his pocket to pay the rent, eat, and get essentials. Once he had that, then he'd have time to find a job in his field. I hope that someone sees the jewel that he is and takes him on.

In so many ways it hurt to pack up my office on Monday. The book still lacked some of being through and I wanted it finished, so I feel I failed on some level. I handed over the flowers that had graced my desk all week to Leanna. A laptop and some reference books are packed away for my return in December. I wish I had been able to play the prototype Tribbles vs. Klingons, but we all proved too busy to do that. Looking at "my office," now all empty, made me realize how much I would miss it for seven long months.

As is usual, it is the people who make this trip special. From Leanna who made sure I had a wonderful place to stay to SVC who kicked into high gear and laid out most of Traveller PD to Steven Petrick who made sure I never had to open a door or touch a chair to Mike Sparks who made the internet connections work and packaged up my stuff for return to Joel who salvaged a picture of the eclipse, all the the people at ADB made my stay there wonderful. Many people on Facebook and the BBS were there to encourage me and to sympathize when things got rough. Warren Mathews even showed up in Atlanta when I was stuck there for six hours and brought food and snacks and company for over three of those hours.

Perhaps it is overly sentimental, but it is the people who make this job so special to me. Thank you for all the support you have shown as well as the patience you have exhibited. In return, I'll continue to try to give you all the products you want and deserve as well as a fun place to visit via the BBS, FC Forum, and our page on Facebook.

Tomorrow I will return to my evenings of working on TPD. Keep tuned for more news.