I have never made much of a deal out of my own birthday. I for sure usually don’t skip work, and don’t talk it up there like a lot of people do (there are people here with balloons in their cubicle from 8 months ago). I don’t like parties in my honor, and I don’t like discussing my age (after I hit 40 I stopped telling people, at least at work, how old I am) even though most people who know my true age tell me I look at least 10 years younger than I am. Must be all that clean living *cough*.
As it just so happens, it’s a game night tonight, so for the second time in three years I’ll be spending my birthday night with the gaming group. Thank God most of them are drinkers. Anyway, I enjoy DM’ing on my birthday, and tonight I’m going to continue our occasional White Box old school dungeon delve. Some nice relaxing fun compared to the uphill struggle that is my AD&D campaign (a torture of my own design). I just gotta find a way over to Andy’s and home without risking a birthday DUI.
Anyway, I would like to divide this post into two parts, each where I ask your input/experience. OK, first one: have you ever run a game on your birthday, how was it, and did you eventually wish you had just had a traditional birthday party (y’know, a night at the Super 8 Motel with a couple of hookers, a pizza, and bottle of Gray Goose)? Have you ever DM’d or played on a birthday?
And secondly, have you ever made a “Bucket List” of things to do before you die? I haven’t. To travel the world? Outside of some visits to Scotland back in the day, I don’t leave America (although I often hear Amsterdam calling my name). If you gotta pee in the street and poop in a hole in the ground, I don’t go. Date a supermodel? I think that boat passed me by. Get rich? Man, I’m tryin’. But anyway, below are some of my favorite Bucket List items from Adam Carolla’s new book In “50 years We’ll All be Chicks.” I relate very much to the pop culture nature of some of these, and I choose these things to do before I die. Do you have any?
*Disclocate my shoulder to get out of a straight jacket.
*Pull a fake mustache off someone and shout “Ah Hah!”
*Shout “Release the hounds!”
*Stop a crime by throwing something. A guy steals a purse and starts running. I throw a can of corn football style and knock him out.
*Catch a punch and twist the guys hand until he drops to his knees
*Get shot and blow it off “I ain’t got time to bleed”
*Put my hand over the mouth of a beautiful woman to stop her from screaming and alerting the bad guys.
*Punch out my undercover partner who is about to say something he shouldn’t and blow our cover.
*Get kicked out of a casino for winning.
*Have a cape removed on stage.
*Be killed by the person I told to kill me if I start turning into a zombie.
*Dry-shave with a machete
*Drive my car off a pier onto a garbage scow.
*Box a kangaroo
*Fight somebody on top of a moving train
*Pop the locks on an attaché case full of money and slide it across the table.
*Silently communicate/point to my watch underwater.
*Fend off a Kodiak bear with a torch.
*Track somebody. I get off my horse, squat, then do that thing where I pick up a clump of dirt and let it sift through my fingers.
Small world. I'm 39 as of today.
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday!
Happy Birthday. :D
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday! Two more days to mine. Wonder what JB over at BXBlackrazor thinks of all us Sagittarius gamers...
ReplyDeleteAnyway, no bucket lists from me, although I like that list you posted.
I have played--DMed even on my birthday in the past. Went well. I got tired of the binge drinking birthday years ago, so it actually worked out pretty well for me.
TS: thanks, girlfriend!
ReplyDeleteDan/Lord G: Thanks, and right back atcha. Nice being in the "too close to Xmas to get as many presents as you should" club, eh?
Happy Birthday man.
ReplyDeleteYou actually cheered me up today. I feel good that at 41 I've done at least 3-4 of those things.
Never got to play or DM on my B day. This year on my 39th 4 of the guys that I play rpg's and board games with played board games. We played some card game where you bet on monsters. It was almost like poker and if you had the high bet on a monster you could use a special power that it had. I can't remember the name but the rules were easy to pick up....it was fun. Then we played a couple of games of Last Night on Earth. Zombie game with the right group and beer that is a great board game. Even with out the beer it is fun.
ReplyDeleteAs far as bucket lists go ...I always wanted to through hike the Appalachian Trail but since that takes about 3 months and I have a wife and daughter probably won't happen. I would like to do a cage dive with great whites. Go elk hunting. Fish the amazon. Catch an alligator gar. catch a speckled trout over 8 pounds. Nail a really large boar with my bow. Climb Everest (that one will probably never happen far too expensive). Achieve Black Belt in a martial art (I have taken several different styles but could never stick with one until reaching a black). See my daughter grow up to be happy and successful. Run into the asshole roommate who stole 400 bucks from me and disappeared about 15 years ago and beat him senseless.
Oh and I forgot Happy Bday!
ReplyDeleteI'm 38 now and my birthday is in the spring. So many demands on our time...
ReplyDelete> I get off my horse, squat, then do that thing where I pick up a clump of dirt and let it sift through my fingers.
ReplyDeleteAh yes, the tracking technique of the ranger-agronomist.
Hope you had a good one!
I'm so late to this party, but hope it was fun!
ReplyDeleteP.S. I though of another one for the bucket list:
Escape from quicksand!
Jay: whatever happened to quicksand? I feel that we used to talk about it a lot more. When I was a kid it was in every movie, TV show, and book. It was like the world was half quicksand. Did we pave over it all? Is there any of it left?
ReplyDelete