The night before I left for vacation, I stubbed my pinky toe on a door frame. It was more painful than you'd imagine it would be, so I'm guessing I must have hit pretty hard.

While I was on vacation, I was wearing shoes most of the time, so my toe wasn't a big deal. At night I was always so tired that I would just fall asleep without thinking about it.

Then I got back home.

My toe feels mostly healed because it's not in pain or even all that tender.

But every once in a while I will bend my foot wrong and the entire side of my foot is aflame in pain. Not just my toe. It's agony, and I have a hard time getting my foot to "unlock" itself so I can move it again. No idea what that's about, but it's annoying as all get out. Jake likes to lie on my legs when I'm on the couch. Last night he was asleep on top of me when, out of nowhere, crippling pain. And it was all I could do to keep still so Jake wouldn't be thrown off.

I sure hope this nonsense ends sometime real soon. Otherwise I'm going to have to start wearing shoes in the house, and I am most definitely not a fan.

   
Last night I had to put a blanket on my bed. I'm so ready for Fall.

Every day I have to remind myself we're not living in a nightmare. Then I look at the news...

While I was in Disneyland for the Oogie Boogie Bash at California Adventure, I did what I always do when I'm at any Disney park, ship, or event... I eat! I love the food options at all the Disney properties (with Epcot being the top destination for me). I thought I'd run through my culinary adventures (mostly for myself so I know what to get the next time).

BEST OF THE BUNCH AWARD: Neutron Nachos in Avengers Campus at California Adventure.
I gotta tell you, this came completely out of left field for me. I usually avoid the quick service restaurants because so many times the food is "less than" compared to table service restaurants. But I wanted to try the Pym Tasting Lab alcoholic drinks. When it came to food, the "plant-based" offering was Neutron Nachos, which is described thusly:

Neutron Nachos — Blue and Red Corn Tortilla Chips, Impossible™ Taco Meat, Seasoned Black Beans, Cheese Sauce (vegan), Pico De Gallo, Sour Cream (vegan), and Pickled Jalapeños

This TikTok pretty much sums up the experience (here's a link in case TikTok is being a dick)...

They were incredible. So ridiculously tasty. So tasty that I bought all the ingredients and have made them three times since I've gotten back home! Highest possible recommendation.

   
CONSISTENTLY GREAT AWARD: Impossible Burger from Lamplight Lounge in Pixar Pier at California Adventure.
Hands-down my favorite restaurant at the resort, Lamplight Lounge pairs a fantastic drink menu with great food and service. I got the vegan burger my first time and have repeated it every time I visit the park:

Impossible™ Burger — Impossible™ Beef, American Cheese (vegan), House Spread (vegan), Grilled Onions, Lettuce and Tomato on a Potato Bun, served with Seasoned Fries

I always get it without the grilled onions and extra sauce and it's fantastic.

   
A GOOD EATS AWARD: Hearty Veggie Burger from Carnation Cafe in Main Street at Disneyland.
This is an easy staple that's different enough from the Impossible Burger at Lamplight Lounge that I can eat the two back to back without getting bored:

Hearty Veggie Burger — House-made Bean Patty, Vine-ripened Tomato, Chipotle Mayo (vegan), Slaw and Crispy Onions on an Artisan Bun, served with Fresh Fruit

They are happy to replace the slaw with lettuce, which is how I like to order it.

   
FUCK YOU, DISNEY AWARD: Three Cheese Monte Cristo from Carnation Cafe from Cafe Orleans in New Orleans Square at Disneyland.
A Monte Cristo sandwich has Turkey, Ham, and Swiss that's battered and deep-fried... then dusted with powdered sugar and served with jam. It's a famous eat at Disneyland that a lot of people must have while visiting. When my friends took me there a while ago, I thought I'd end up with a plate of fries or something since I don't eat meat... but was shocked to find that they had a Three-Cheese Monte Cristo for non-meat-eaters like me! And it was fantastic! Featuring Swiss, Mozzarella, and Double Crème Brie, it was deep fried, dusted, and served with jam just like the regular version! Heaven! And it became a must-have for me when at Disneyland. EXCEPT THE FUCKERS AT DISNEYLAND REMOVED IT FROM THE DAMN MENU! I WAITED A HALF HOUR FOR A TABLE FOLLOWED BY FIFTEEN MINUTES FOR A WAITER ONLY TO BE TOLD THE SANDWICH WAS REMOVED! WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?!? INSTEAD OF HAM AND TURKEY, YOU JUST SLAP ON TWO CHEESES! JUST TWO ADDITIONAL ITEMS IN YOUR FUCKING REFRIGERATOR TO MAKE VEGETARIANS HAPPY... BUT NOOOOOOOOO! CAN'T DO THAT! LET'S GIVE THEM A FUCKING SALAD IF THEY WANT TO EAT AT OUR FAMOUS MONTE CRISTO RESTAURANT! What a damn shame. I just don't get it at all.

And there you have it. Three awesome meals and a big FUCK YOU! Or rather, fuck me, because I'm the one who left the happiest place on earth without my Three Cheese Monte Cristo... meaning I was not so happy.

And so... Jenny's journey into becoming one of the most entitled, demanding little kitten princesses to ever exist. She has long been insistent on getting her pet-time when I go to bed. But then she started letting me know that she's impatient when I finally go upstairs to brush my teeth and get ready for bed. She sits outside the bathroom and meows her displeasure if I keep her waiting. It's cute. I walk outside and say "Okay, let's go then" and she goes running to my bedroom and hops on the bed waiting for me to show up.

Heaven help me if I forget something downstairs and have to run back down to get it. When I get back to my bedroom, she's on the bed meowing and meowing.

But now?

Jenny's taken it up a notch.

After the food dispenser drops her 9:00pm pre-bedtime snack, she'll chomp it down, then come to get me wherever I am (usually on the couch watching TV).

And if I don't get up and follow her upstairs, she will sit on the stairs and meow her little head off.

Assumably because the acoustics are great...

She does it because it works.

If I'm watching TV, I just finish watching it upstairs in bed while petting her.

Which is exactly what she wants.

   
• Snek! I meant to post this on Caturday, but forgot. This is SO Jake with his stuffed lion toy, Mufasa. He took that thing everywhere for years. I would find Mufasa in his food dish, the water dish, and even the litter box...

Gotta make sure your best friend is getting enough to eat when they're looking a little thin.

   
• Oh Deer! I don't have a snek friend, I've got a deer friend now...

Such a pretty girl.

   
• U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A! So proud...

In an age that science is attacked, education is ridiculed, and intelligence is mocked, this is where we are now. How sad.

   
• BUSINESS! Exaggerated. But still conceptually true...

Business is war, after all.

   
• Middlemen! It's insane. It's just insane...

The near-constant mantra from politicians continues to be that the USA has the best health care in the world. But every conceivable metric has shown that's not true. The truth is that it's the best if you can afford it! Studies show that Medicare for All would save ONE TRILLION DOLLARS A YEAR AND SAVE 114,000 LIVES ANNUALLY! But we continue to pay "health" insurance companies to provide worse care for more dollars. Disgusting.

   
• UnJournalistic! Getting facts completely wrong on your news story is one thing... but editing it so that the original wording is preserved so as to obscure the fact that you got it wrong? Shitty...

The edit should have eliminated the word "released" completely, as NOBODY TALKS THAT WAY. "Bail has been set at $1 million" is the only edit which takes responsibility for your misinformation. But because they went the dipshit route, now we've got a bunch of "READ IT AGAIN!" assholes in the comments chiding people who commented on the original headline. I am so sick of this shit I could vomit. If you don't have journalistic integrity, don't be a journalist.

   
And now back to preparing my home for Fall.

I am a massive board game nerd.

I love games in general... but board games are a tactile experience that allows me to step away from a computer screen or television screen and decompress in a way that I can't get from a video game. There's just something that comes out of opening up a box and taking out the pieces that really hit for me.

The problem being that board games are expensive, yo.

I shudder to think of how much money I've spent on my collection. It's undoubtedly way too much.

Before I get into everything, I think it's important to tell you what my favorite board game of all time is. And that game is Sorry!. Yes, you read that right, Sorry!...

Based on the board game Ludo which is based on the game Parcheesi (which is called Pachisi in the original Indian), Sorry! is a race home for your four pieces. But there are cards which do more than simply move you along a track. 4's move you backwards. 7's can be split between two pieces. 11's allow you two trade places with another player's piece. And the titular Sorry card sends another player back to the start while you get to take their place with one go your start pieces.

The game is frickin' brilliant. And deceptively simple. It's luck-driven based on the cards you turn, but there's a definite strategy element which makes it more than just a mundane Chutes and Ladders experience. Knowing how to play a card can be very much more important than what cards you get. And it's crazy fun because the game can turn on a dime. You can be way ahead one minute, then bumped to last place the next.

The design of the game has changed several times since I first started playing it as a kid. I own three versions of it, with my favorite being the 1972 version (pictured above) that I still have (the first version I ever played).

The current version looks like something exploded...

I rather like the bold, vibrant design... except for the color slides, which look awful and would be so much better if they were the colored solid so the "You can't slide on your own color" rule is easier to observe (instead you have to look at the three colors available then determine if you can slide, which is madness). But oh well. Times are always changing.

What doesn't change is that I still love Sorry! in all its incarnations.

Tune in tomorrow for more board game nonsense.

Alrighty then. Yesterday I fully admitted that my favorite board game of all time is Sorry! no matter what new hotness comes along. Now I'm going to be diving into the kind of games that are not 100 years-old (well, 97 years-old, but you get the idea).

My favorite games work great for two-player. Games with a low player count move quickly, allow chit-chat that doesn't interrupt the game, and seem more casual the less players are involved (even when it's not a co-op game, because even the most cutthroat games can be casual and fun with just you and somebody you know well).

That being said, games that are either designed for solo play or have very good solo play are mostly what I'm looking for. Mostly because it's tough to find other people wanting to play when I'm wanting to decompress after work. If you're lucky you can find somebody available on the weekend, but it's never guaranteed, so buying for solo play is always a good move if you want to game on your own schedule.

Most solo games are a "beat your own score" version of multi-player where you face off against an automa. And that's fine. I treat them like puzzles where I'm trying to figure something out. Other solo games come out of co-op modes where you can play on your own or play multi-handed.

Whichever way it shakes out, a good game is a good game. And here are some of my favorites...

• Marvel Champions. This is a surprisingly smart game which requires some genuine thought to work through the narrative and be successful. I exclusively play this two-handed, choosing two of the hero decks I have and finding cool ways to play them.
• Clank! Catacombs. This is one of those board games which has embraced a digital assistant for solo play, and it's darn good. Yes, I prefer playing with others, and there are some who hate the solo experience, but I love the dungeon-crawling aspect which is always different thanks to each dungeon being created on-the-fly from various tiles.
• Cascadia & Cascadia Rolling Rivers. This is a lazy tile-laying game that plays exceptionally well solo. It's just so easy to pull it off the shelf when you want to relax and be distracted from the world.
• Star Wars: Outer Rim. I own many, many Star Wars IP games (I even own Star Wars Monopoly!). As a solo experience, it's good but not great. But then you add the Unfinished Business expansion, and it's a solo experience I love the truly feels like Star Wars. That goes a long way to making me love it, but I think the very good AI player works so well that it contributes a heck of a lot. If there's a problem, it's that there's just not enough content to stay interesting day-in and day-out. Which is why I'll play it straight for a few days, then put it away for a couple months. Such a shame, because with more expansions this would be a killer game.
• Final Girl. Truly one of the most unique games in my collection, the core game for this dedicated solo actually isn't playable on its own. You have to purchase "feature films" which have a new location, a new villain, and two new "final girls" to play. Most all of the expansions are based on actual horror films (everything from Nightmare on Elm Street to Alien). But here's where things get interesting... you can mix-and-play locations, villains, and final girls. Which means even if you have just a handful of "films" you've got a lot of options to keep the game feeling fresh.
• Dice Throne. This is the game that got me back into board games after a long sabbatical. It's like "Battle Yahtzee"... but more than that. There's a bunch of heroes to choose from (with Marvel IP thrown in the mix), and finding a way to battle them is where the fun is at. To play solo, you have to use one of the co-op expansions which makes for an interesting solo-play experience. One I enjoy (and play often), but this is a game that pretty much demands two players to live up to what makes it so great.
• Spirit Island. Easily one of the best solo games ever made, it scales up well to handle more players easily. It's a true solo game, meaning you only have to play one-handed and still get a full experience. The downside is that it can be pretty tough to beat. The game is complex and fidgety and has a steep learning curve... but, in the end, it's worth it for the type of games I like.
• Star Trek: Captain's Chair.
• 20 Strong. This is a card-based decision-making game which requires a good strategy to manage the risk vs. reward options presented to you.
• Arkham Horror: The Card Game, Season 2. This is a game that has a good true-solo mode, but I always play two-handed because it feels hollow if you don't. Replayability is limited in that you're playing the same scenario over and over (until you buy the next one), but you can make it feel different by playing different characters. The pre-built decks you can buy are surprisingly good, and an easy way to jump in a game that gets fiddly.
• Lost Ruins of Arnak. This is pretty much Indiana Jones as a board game. Which would be enough for me if that's all it was because the theming is done so very well. But there's a wonderful puzzle element which makes it a great game besides the point. What I will say is that the Expedition Leaders expansion is essential for solo play. And, if you like campaign games, then you'll want to pick up The Missing Expedition as well.
• Ark Nova. This is a game I love to play true-solo... but not all the time. It's one of those games you just have to be in the mood for. What's helped me enjoy it more often is an unofficial solo app called ARNO, which simulates additional players. Oh how I wish that there were more bots like this to make games more fun to play solo.
• Terraforming Mars Ares Expedition. This is the "shorter and streamlined" of the celebrated original Terraforming Mars. It's fun, it's "crunchy" (deeply strategic), and it's got low overhead for solo.
• Heat: Pedal to the Metal. This game is most fun with a group, but I've had a blast playing it solo as well... the more racers the better.
• Obsession. There's no disguising it... this is Downton Abbey turned into a board game. You play as a family trying to improve your estate with events, renovations, and staffing to attract wealthy guests who allow you to make even more improvements to escalate your standing in society.
• Parks. This is likely my choice for best-looking game. It's simple graphical elements are just so fresh and clean. And it plays fantastic. And also plays fantastic solo thanks to the automa player you get to compete against.
• Endeavor: Deep Sea. This is a fun submarine game that builds the game-board with tiles, and has changing objectives to keep it fresh each time you play. There is a pretty big fault in the game that I'm not sure is able to be overcome... and it's that you can make poor decisions early on which you then have to live with for the rest of the game. This can really suck, because you're just going through the motions knowing you're likely going to lose. I really hope that they can figure a way to back out of these bad decisions, because it would make a good game great.
• Distilled. This is a game about making alcohol that's surprisingly fun to play. There's a lot going on and it has a solo mode which is pretty smart in its implementation. I like trying different strategies each time I play, because there isn't ever only one way to go about your game. The recently added Cocktails expansion fills an interesting "gap" in game-play, but I have yet to decide if it's in a good way.
• Forrest Shuffle. This is a relaxing game that got a darn good solo-play automa in the Exploration expansion. The problem is that it's a bit too easy when played solo despite some confusing scoring mechanics. Maybe one day they will figure out a way to come up with a solo automa which plays as well as a two-player game... even via an app somehow... because that would make me much more willing to play more often.
• Roll Player. How somebody came up with the idea to turn D&D character creation into a game, I don't know. But I am certainly glad they did. This is right up my alley because I love chucking dice and I love dice manipulation games. But it gets better... there was criticism that this was a game without an endgame, which was addressed with the expansions. The Monsters & Minions allowed you to actually use the character you create, which closed the loop and made the game near-perfect.
• Cartographers. A flip-and write game that works beautifully for solo play and uses a theme I love: drawing maps. It's so easy to pull this out for a quick play that it's always within reach when I need distraction from life.
• Critter Kitchen. This would be a game I play a lot more often if it didn't have such a fidgety set-up. But once you do get the board set? A fun game with cute art that has a great solo automa with some variety to it. I almost hate to add even more set-up to the game, but adding the A La Cart expansion makes a good game even better... for multi-player. Inexplicably, the automa doesn't take the expansion into account like it should, which is a real shame for solo players.
• Marvel United. This is a simple co-op game which plays beautifully two or three-handed solo. Because it is so simple, I actually like it a lot because I can just relax and enjoy myself rather than have to wrack my brains to play. What makes this game such a winner to me is the sheer variety of content that's available to play (and I own just about all of it). Later expansions add things like "equipment" to make things a little more exciting, but the most excitement can be found just picking the heroes you want to play and finding a villain scenario that seems like fun. Bonus? Somebody has created a brilliant "Megaverse" tool which leads you through playing everybody against everybody, and it's a sight to behold. I'm loving it, even though I'll likely never get all the way through! A DC Comics version has been Kickstarted but, given that the game developer is in serious trouble, whether it makes it to backers remains to be seen.

Marvel United is also great because the game pieces are so fantastic (all 350+ of them!)...

"There's only one Blade, and there's only ever gonna BE one Blade!"

I could go on and on, but that's probably more than enough to give you an idea of what I like to play (if you want to see more, just visit my collection on Board Game Geek).

The downside of board games is that you have to set them up to play then tear them down when you're done. For some games, this is a monumental undertaking because there's loads of parts and pieces needed to play. It's even worse if you have a game which takes several play sessions before you can complete it... and you have cats. Leaving a game out on my dining room table and expecting everything to still be in the same place come morning is insane in my house. Jake and Jenny would destroy it. Not out of malice... but out of fun.

Because it's a game after all.

It's because of cats that I've long wanted a gaming table. Which is to say a dining room table where you can remove the top and have a play area underneath. That way you can uncover and play whenever you like and not risk any cat-related tragedies.

The problem is that gaming tables like this have historically cost $1,500 or more for a decent one. The one I had my eye on was $2,400. Which might as well be $10,000, and I can't possible spend that kind of money for games.

Then I saw a game table on Amazon which looked to be very good quality... at a fraction of the price. So I took a chance and ordered it.

And it was indeed shockingly high quality. Not for the price, but shockingly high quality period.

But it arrived damaged.

Surprisingly, the company I purchased it from shipped me a replacement top! And here it is...

In the photo I am playing a small game, so I only uncovered half the table. For larger games or many players, you can uncover all of it. The thing even came with a bunch of cup holders which attach to the side for drinks or snacks!

I am very, very pleased with it. And it makes a great impression when friends show up to play.

Which is why I ordered the smaller coffee table version for my living room, so I can set up solo games for myself while watching television.

Meaning I have two gaming tables in my home now! Can you believe it?

Take it from me, people... dreams really can come true.

Board games are insanely expensive in several ways.

They used to be a cheap for of entertainment, costing $15 to $20... or maybe up to $35 if they are large or fancy. But now? They're so large and complicated that $45 to $55 is considered normal, and many games go for $100 or more. Because of this, I have tried to not buy so many new games.

Tried and failed.

Because unless it's some kind of legacy game (like Monopoly), games do not stay in print. Most games don't. They come, maybe get a second or third printing if they're extremely popular, then go. So if you miss picking up a game when it's released, you may never get a chance again without paying astronomical prices on the third-party market.

Take for example, Marvel Champions. This is a game that I bought years after it was first released in 2019. Then I forgot about it... only finally playing it a couple years ago. At which point I discovered I loved it. Problem is, the publisher hasn't reprinted the loads of "hero packs" and expansions that got released, and the only way to find them is off eBay where people are charging insane prices. The Doctor Strange hero pack goes for $200... assuming you can find one for sale. I wanted to pick up Gambit, but he was $340. Other rare heroes aren't available anywhere for any price. It's insanity.

And for that reason if I find a game that looks even remotely interesting, I will either back it's Kickstarter or GameFound campaign... or purchase it in a store... rather than waiting and having to pay double or triple if it sells out and doesn't get a reprint.

My obsession with getting every piece of the Marvel United games, expansions, and upgrades has cost me a pretty penny indeed. Had I only known how much I'd love collecting and playing it, I would have been able to buy it all for 25%-35% the cost I ended up paying.

And so I end up spending more money than I should to save money. Potentially.

At least that's what I tell myself.

   
And because board games are so crazy expensive and there's so bloody many of them, I watch a lot of YouTubers and other social media. And because I'm mostly interested in how a game plays solo, I am usually watching solo play channels and reading solo play sites. Here's some of my favorites...

   
Green
Esmerelda makes videos about things that make her happy. Which, from what I can see, are board games she can play solo. She seems a lovely person who has a pleasant presentation which I love. Because she's in the Netherlands, some of the games she plays are unavailable here (or no longer available), which is a bummer... but I've snagged a few of them I've seen on eBay. Others I've bought at various game stores local and online. Like this Carcassonne variant that looks fantastic...

   
Smidgen Plays Solo
Probably the one board game reviewer whom has the most compatibility with me when it comes to games I like. He's gotten me to buy a lot of games!

   
Tabletop Turtle
I really, really like Mike and Kim's take on games... even though I don't always agree with them. Mike has a pretty good take on solo games, but it feels as though he doesn't play solo very often...

   
Stephen & Zeshawn
Stephen Callaghan owns House Rules Games in Dallas and does social media for his shop. Zeshawn Khan has a social media channel called Board & Shield because he loves games. And both of those channels are worth watching. But my favorites are when they crossover...

   
Rolling Solo
This YouTube channel has a good user community built around board game solo play.

   
Specifically Solo
Another YouTube channel which has loads of content built around solo play.

   
Room and Board
Chris George is a highly entertaining YouTuber who has a unique take on board gaming, with a lot of interesting content around the hobby (not just reviews). And his play-throughs with Zach are legendary...

   
Totally Tabled
Mostly solo play content, but also has a lot of list videos if you're looking for new games to try or buy!

   
True Solo Studios
A fairly new channel with solo board game play content by Josh.

   
slickerdrips
Tom has a pleasant play manner that makes his videos a nice watch. Mostly solo board game play.

   
Sir Thecos
A lot of solo game content that's exceptionally well-presented.

One more day left...