CWar LAN 2007 - An Odyssee

Just got back from the LAN get-together in Milford, Delaware, by way of Montreal. Like last year, I have waaaay to many experiences to be shared in my usual stream-of-conciousness way. Bear with me while I ramble.

Thursday, July 12, 2007

Got the car at 3:00 PM. Then, mad dash home to finish packing and getting my things in order. Yeah, don't forget the Razer Mouse, headphones, and pillow. On the road to Montreal by 4:00 PM. Halfway to Montreal, I remember that I forgot the pillow. Crap. Fortunately, my sister lets me borrow one of her pillows.

Friday, July 13, 2007

After a leisurely breakfast, I hit the road at 10:00 AM, for a quick ride to the Canada-US border. Halfway there, I remember the date. OMG. Having remembered by experience with Homeland Security last year, I come fully prepared: Map, names, addresses, phone numbers of the people I'll be staying with.

Finally at the border, I wait 10 minutes in line for customs before it's my turn. All very organized, professional. I'm addressed by an elderly mustachioed border agent who would have looked comfortable in a Stetson and cowboy boots. All that's missing this the Remington Peacemaker.

I answer his questions with what I hope is a "relaxed" look. He goes around the car, inspects the contents of the trunk, and sends me on my way. WHEW. I got off easy!

Then it's 2+ hours of travel down I-87. Along the Adirondack State Park: spectacular vistas of mountains, lush forests, and deep valleys. Cheryl has been wanting to visit here, so I make a note of the places that we can visit. It must be spectacular in the fall.

Finally arrive in Glens Falls, and I realize as I'm driving that I put Snowdog's directions to his place in the trunk of the car. Fortunately, I have the map coordinates of his place in my GPS. Okay, so it's a simple matter of using the GPS to find his place, right? Well, NOT so simple. I travel for 20 minutes down the backroads before realizing that the GPS map does not include the roads in the area, so I'm driving "blind." Or rather, I keep one eye on the GPS and the other on the road. Not the best way to travel.

By this time, frustration get the best of me, and I pull over into a gas station. I look up, and by blind luck I had stumbled on the very road where Snowie lives! (Who says Friday the 13th is unlucky??) Five minutes later, I roll up his driveway.

I feel a bit awkward with Snowie at the beginning. Well, that's to be expected. After all, we've only chatted on Ventrilo, and have met each other for less than an hour last year. After a coffee, Snowie shows me around his place, and the room where I'll stay the night. I start to relax, and by suppertime (juicy pork tenderloin, salad and rice - mmmm....) we're chatting like we've been friends for years.

Then he asks if I would like to go to that evening's gig, where his band "Mischief" is playing at a local bar. Well, how can I refuse, with all the beer I can drink? ;-)

After a first set warm-up with some great songs by 70's and 80's artists like Grand Funk Railroad, Led Zeppelin, and Boy George (!), the second set gets the crowd on its feet dancing with songs by artists like AC/DC, The Clash, and John Cougar Mellencamp.

Needless to say, a good time was had by all!

And then, a pleasant surprise: I get to meet TinMan in the flesh!

Of course, by the time I met him, Tin had found his heart... ;-)

It's too bad that he had to work the next day, otherwise I'm sure Tin would have been with us at the LAN.

By this time, we (and especially Snowie) were pretty tired. But not tired enough to talk. We talk about the Clan, about the U.S., Canada, Iraq, health care... and pretty soon it's closing in on midnight, and it's time for bed for an early start on Saturday.

I can't think of a happier Friday the 13th I've ever had.

Saturday, July 14, 2007

I wake up at 6:00 AM feeling like someone substituted sandpaper for my eyelids. Argh.

Snowie's up, and we decide to forgo a sit-down breakfast to get on the road more quickly. We're packed and out the door by 7:00.

On the way to the I-87, we agree that it's a good idea to have a bite to eat on the road. We pull in to "Dunkin' Donuts." While we're waiting to order, I decide to have a coffee, with milk, and bran muffin with raisins. Straightforward and to the point.

Well, it was not to be. There was, to put it politely, some confusion with regards to the order. After some back-and-forthing between me (with hearing problems) with a waitress (who was young and likely new on the job), we roll up to the window to get our order. I pass my travel mug for the waitress to fill with coffee, and she stares at me. The waitress asks if I want chocolate or strawberry milk. "With my coffee?" I ask. She stares again. Hmm. It's obvious that there was some miscommunication here. Meanwhile, Snowie is starting to crack up.

I tell the waitress that no, I wanted milk in my coffee. She closes the window, and there is some discussion inside the store. Then the girl passes me my travel mug with milk slopped over the side. She says "sorry" and passes me some napkins. I clean off the mug and Snowie is helping me and having a good laugh. Then a second waitress passes the bags of food to us, apologizes again, says "have a good day" and slams the service window shut.

Oh, did I not tell you that we haven't paid? It certainly didn't appear to be a preoccupation of the Dunkin' Donuts people to accept payment. Here I am, staring at a closed window, with money in one fist and a mug in the other. What am I to think?

Snowie laughs and says: "Why don't you just leave?" As a joke. Well, my mood was not the best, and I took him literally.

We zoomed off, and Snowie looks at me shocked and says: "I can't believe you left without paying!"

Well, the Dunkin' Donuts people can sue me. Snowie said that they probably have videocam evidence and they were probably going to get the State Police after us... No matter.

There not much to talk about regarding actual highway driving. Other than to say that the New Jersey Turnpike should be more properly called the New Jersey Parking Lot. I think that people take the NJT when they are bored and want to sit in a hot car for hours at a time and watch ants crawl past their cars. I foolishly ignored Snowie's advice to avoid it, while I smugly thought, "yeah, I wanna be able to say I drove on it!" Well, driving is hardly the word I would have used. More like crawling. Better yet, inching. Anyway....

Another highlight was when we pulled over at a gas station to ask for directions. You see, the I-95 and the NJT are not well signed (more about this later, on our way back). So we pull in, I jump out and blurt out to a station attendant: "How do I get to Delaware?"

Now, you have to appreciate it's like asking someone: "How do you get to Indiana? Or Ontario?" No duh. The nicest thing he did was to NOT burst out laughing. He politely gave me instructions and we went on our way. The ridiculousness of my question and his straight-faced response didn't hit me until I had gotten back on the freeway.

We arrived at the LAN at 3:30 PM. Which isn't bad, considering we had wasted nearly and hour and a half at the New Jersey TurnPike/Parking Lot. When we had called in to Mengis/ette that we were going to be late, we learned that OmegaMan had gotten into an accident only an hour out from Delaware. We were pleasantly surprised to see him there at the LAN! Fortunately, he was able to drive his damaged vehicle to the hotel and take part in the LAN. I just hope he was able to get repairs done and get home safely!

We played from 4:00 PM to 11:00 PM, with short breaks for meals. It was fun to be able to play with no lag, and to meet old faces (Snowie, Beagle, Mengis, Mengisette, Long) and some new ones: RisingAngel, Rash, Greenhouse, SuBNoiZe, BoNgInATOr, and Mengis's brother. DroopyDawg and Tree showed up later to say hello - a nice surprise! I can't impartially comment on the play, since I was too busy to avoid getting fragged or nailed by my opponents. We all did well at at one map or another. It was the first time I went through a whole map "cycle" in one sitting!

At 11:00 PM, we called it a night and went to Mengis/ette's place for refreshments (i.e., more beer) and a late night snack (burgers, hot dogs, ice cream cake). We digested our meal while chatting about politics and the best way to raise teenagers. Then, a hardcore group (the younger people) went back to the hotel to play some more (!!!), while the elders went to bed at around 1:00 AM.

Sunday, July 15th, 2007

Snowie and I greeted the early morn (7:00 AM) by Mengis/ette's two parrots (or macaws?) with a series of squawks, cackles, whistles... which insisted on tearing me from my blessed unconsiousness... I know now how Capitaine Haddock of TinTin felt when he gave his famous dirty looks to the parrot in the Bijoux de la Castafiore... I still have to get my revenge on these birds... Though the birds became fascinated with Snowie's snoring (or scared, maybe?), to the point that they kept quiet and gave us another 2 hours sleep...

Finally, everyone woke up and we made our way to the Milford Diner for a late breakfast. We were introduced to scrapple , a local culinary delicacy, by Mengisette. While I did not partake of this savoury victual, others at the table did, and Snowdog found it difficult to describe the taste and texture... I leave it to your imagination.... (Hehehehe...)

After our farewells, Snowdog and I drove back. I'm grateful that he drove, as I didn't feel up to it. He seemed to take particular delight in pushing the Grand Prix I rented to its limits - I doubt the State Police would have caught up with him if they wanted to...

By mistake, we actually avoided the NJT and made excellent time to Glen Falls after a 7-hour drive. I met Snowie's wife Theresa and his daughter Hannah - it was wonderful for me to meet them!

I took my leave of Snowdog and his family early, as I had a 3-hour drive to Montreal to stay at my sister's, and I had to go through Canadian Customs - an ordeal that added another hour and a half to my trip! (Note to Canadian Government - Hire more Customs Officers.) My only consolation was to have bought a litre of Grand Marnier at the duty-free, at half the price of retail in Canada.

Sunday, July 16, 2007

I made it home by noon, in time to say goodbye to my wife who is travelling for the balance of the week.

As I write, the kids are visiting friends. My dog Tessa is at my feet, with her eyes closed, while I type. The house is empty for once, and it's quiet, and I have had the time to write all this down.

I find it soo hard to put into words my feelings around this weekend. I guess it's really about having met the faces and the people behind the voices and the CWar characters, and to find out that behind the virtual façade there are warm, generous, and helpful human beings that I am honoured to know.

Until next year, frag on, bruthas!

;-)