A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

board games

One Meeple: Criss Cross

There’s a few types of things that attract me to a game – first being the aesthetics. If something looks good, I tend to click and look to see what the game is about. 

Once there, I look deeper. If I am with a game group and such, I don’t mind some deeper games. But when I am playing solo, most of the time I like simple games that don’t take too long, but still have a bit of thinking or strategy to go with it. 

Criss Cross seemed to be most of that. A small game that you could throw easily in a backpack and travel with, it’s designed by Reiner Knizia. The concept is simple – roll two dice and put the symbols on your scoresheet. The catch is they have to be placed next to one another – be it vertically or horizontally. 

The goal is to get as many symbols in a row, which gets you your points. If you have other symbols in between, it makes it harder to get bigger points. The key is not just having many symbols in a row, but they have to be connected with one another. 

Criss Cross game
Criss Cross

The game, playing solo, takes no more than 10 or so minutes. It requires a bit of thinking as you never know the next roll. So do you want to break up this spot or the next one. You can place the symbols wherever – they don’t have to connect with previous ones – but at the same time, you have to think about connecting symbols. 

Reality is this game isn’t one where you will be straining your brain over things. You roll some dice and try and be strategic where you place the symbols on your grid. Before you know it, the game is over. The “advanced” version makes you look at the middle diagonal line (though you still can’t put things diagonally) and you could that up and back for points at the end of the game. That gives you a whole different way of thinking about the game. 

This was a relatively cheap game and it’s footprint, as noted before, is small. I like that aspect. Also, if I want to just chuck some dice and write a few things down, it’s easy to do. 

The replayability probably isn’t to the point where you’d want to play it every night. But with it being so small, it’s easy to keep around and use when you just need a quick game.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

One Meeple: Dice Stars

Solo games take on different levels of complexity and skill. Some are simple games that challenge you to beat your previous best score, while others involve skill and a deeper thought process.

Dice Stars has a lot to like.

  • It’s quick
  • It has a lot of dice
  • There’s some thinking involved

While the bigger view of the game is that there is a lot left to chance (totally true), there’s some thinking involved as you need to know when to push your luck and when to go with what you have.

Dice Stars is a simple game where you draft dice, and roll them. Before you draft the dice, you have to decide how many you are taking out of the bag — from 1 to 3 dice. While you can get gutsy and go for three, it could also come back and hurt you. Any dice you don’t use will be put in the reserve, which can end up hurting you even more.

The goal is to match up colors and numbers to try and maximize your scoring. You don’t want to “X” out too many boxes, though, as it could hurt your points in the end.

The interesting part with the solo variant is the “AI” grid. As you play, you need to cross off grids in the AI’s spot based on what you did. It could hurt quite a bit if your rolls aren’t going your way. If the AI grid fills, that automatically triggers the end of game scenario. I can assure you, it’s not easy to win (I haven’t yet).

Though the box shows a “space” feel to this game, there’s really no theme. You could put the Wild Wild West on the box and it would likely play the same way, with different art. Still, it’s a fun little game that makes you think some and makes you want to go back for more to try and win.

This game isn’t easy to win, as I’ve noted.

It’s small and compact and is easy to travel with. It’s a light game overall — both in physical form and game play. But it’s fun and it challenges you a little. It’s also cheap, which is nice. On Amazon right now, it’s less than $15. My only concern is if you play it a lot — what happens with scorecards. Can one buy more? Of course if you are spending 8-10 bucks on a big pad, why not just buy a new game. So many beautiful dice!

Overall, the game is enjoyable. The speed you can play it in makes it better and that there’s some thinking involved helps as well. Though I don’t think this is a game I could play every single day, it’s one I don’t mind busting out and challenging myself for 15-20 minutes.

I would like to see how this is as a multi-player game, though, as I think it could be rather interesting.

In the end, it’s worth the small investment and is something I’ll definitely keep around for a quick solo game when needed.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

One Meeple: Hostage Negotiator

Multi-player games with solo variants are a lot of fun. But they often can be anti-climactic for the ending.

Not so with Hostage Negotiator, a game specifically made for playing solo. The idea of the game is simple – you are a hostage negotiator, trying to get somebody to release hostages. There are three scenarios that you can use to start, but no game is ever the same with all the different aspects of the game.

I’ve had this game in my collection for a while as I have been tending to do a bit more solo gaming lately. With that in mind, I will usually only add to my collection if there’s a solo variant, but I really love games specifically for solo play.

For whatever reason, I took a while to play this one. I finally got around to setting it up, reading the rules, and watching a play-through video. At that point, I felt I was ready to go.

Things I have read about the game made it sound quite difficult. Early in the first game, I didn’t think I stood a chance. Surely the bad guy was going to wipe me out.

Still, I loved how the game unfolded. And I didn’t even utilize one thing I should have – turning in cards for conversation points, as I forgot all about it.

I really thought I was done for. I had some dice come back bad a few times in key spots and one of my terror cards added two more hostages. Not good. Still, I was enjoying the game and trying to figure when to and when not to use cards. I thought things out the best I could.

And as the game dwindled, I was done for. Alas, one of the terror cards I had drawn earlier was going to allow me to take any card I wanted. Knowing I needed to go for it, I grabbed the final card that would allow me to save four hostages and eliminate the abductor – if all went well.

Then I came to the ending. After the final turn, it was time to go all in or go home. I had built my hand for this final conversation, figuring it was going to be the time to do it. As I set things up, I had the two re-roll cards ready to use. I used the “You need to trust me card,” which would hopefully make it so a four would be a success. I got one hit on it, thus meaning only the roll would give me a chance to win with 4, 5, or 6. But I needed two hits.

On the first roll – one hit and one “4,” which gave me the improbable win! I had the two re-roll cards still left that I was ready to use, but I didn’t end up needed to play them!

Such a fun game. I am definitely looking forward to many more plays. I look forward to all the expansions to come from the Kickstarter campaign. Great fun for sure!

Overall thoughts

This game is a lot of fun. It plays pretty quick and there are some good decisions. There’s definitely the luck factor with dice rolls and such, but it’s all part of the game. I love that you either win or lose. It’s not beating your previous score — it’s you won or you lost. End of story.

The graphics are nice and the game play is pretty smooth. This is definitely a keeper for me.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

2017: Looking ahead

New Year’s resolutions are something many people do. They say it on New Year’s and a week or two later, they are done

I don’t believe in resolutions. I believe in setting goals and doing your best to achieve them. Though I will set/fix/change goals throughout the year as needed, setting them at the beginning of the year is more symbolic as it’s easier to keep track of.

I know there are things I need to do personally and professionally to keep moving forward, but these goals are all personal. Some are a little more serious than others, but they will be good for me to kind of see what I can do in 2017.

I went a little different with some of these this year. Some are kind of open-ended because I feel it’s easier and better to do that, rather than put a set result. You’ll see when you get to those.

Anyway, here’s looking at 2017.

Health

This is an important one for me

About a year ago, I had really taken hold of diabetes. I had gotten my blood sugars down, I was eating better, my weight was down … and then I fell off the wagon.

My A1C has gone up too much, I’ve gained weight and I started eating too many things I shouldn’t.

Being healthy isn’t a fad diet or doing anything with some of the things people see on TV (pills etc.) It’s eating better and exercising. Simple as that. Though clipping carbs out might help you drop weight, it’ll come back.

Being healthy is a life commitment, not a few weeks or months.

But with this, I’m not putting any numbers. I’m not saying where I want my A1C to be, or my normal blood checks, or my weight.

I know I need to be healthier as a whole. Take a few more walks. Get out more. Ride my bike (when it’s warmer). Maybe invest in an elliptical machine (I always liked them when I went to the gym… and I hate the gym, so that’s out).

But I also need to eat healthier. And make sure I drink enough water. And though I don’t drink a ton of it — keep pushing soda out of the diet. And try new things. In recent years, I’ve started to like several things I never used to like … so hopefully that can continue.

So this goal is simple … be much more healthy at the end of the year than I am now.

Photography

I took a lot of photos in 2016, but I want to keep that up. This might not be a trackable goal, per say, but basically, I want to continue taking photos and thinking outside the box.

That means continuing the Photo Blogging Challenge for throughout 2017, as well as just going out and taking photos. I’d love to try and aim for doing a few of the videos (like my year-end one) of photos maybe every few months, but we’ll see about that. Basically, I want to challenge myself to get better and more creative with my photography. I’d also like to learn Photoshop more in-depth than I know it now.

Blogging

Blogging in 2016 was rather interesting, obviously.

I set out on a bit of a mission and ended up going a little stir crazy by posting every single day. I’m not going to say I won’t do the same, but the odds are I don’t. Once I get past January, it’ll slow up a little as I won’t want to go every single day.

That being said, I do want to have more posts this year that are solid posts and not filler. I like challenges. I enjoy the photo aspect. I want to make sure I am putting quality (at least in my mind), and not just a post to post something.

I also truly want to visit more blogs this year. I got away from that this year because I was posting all the time and I miss it.

I am going to aim for 200 posts this year and visiting as many blogs as I can. I’d also still like to revamp my about page as much as possible!

I also might have a couple of other writing challenges in mind that I am trying to shape up and plan out.

Baseball

Ahh, the Summer of Baseball. I can’t wait to be back in the parks watching games. I will not be doing 75 games again — at least I don’t think. But I think a goal of 50 games is good and would be fun. I want to continue visiting new parks and just watching games.

 

It’s very relaxing and a lot of fun.

That being said, I also want to have a few weekends this summer that aren’t baseball dominated. As much fun as I had last year — and I did — there are times I just wanted to relax on a weekend and kick back and I was at a game. Now, I love the games. But sometimes .. it’s nice to be away, too.

So, my goal is 50 games. I’d like to see a few new stadiums. I’d like to do one — maybe two — big baseball trips during the summer where I spend a week or so pretty much all baseball. I’ll keep scorebook at every game, stamp my passport in every place where I can and I’ll enjoy it as much as I always do.

It’s a great game and I look forward to the 2017 Summer of Baseball!

Board games

I didn’t play as many games as I would have liked last year. With all the baseball traveling I did in 2016, weekends from spring until fall were pretty crowded. That meant not going to the game group too often, thus meaning I was playing far fewer games.

And that stinks as I really enjoy playing games.

One of my goals is to start playing many more solo variants or solo games. This allows me time on my own to play some fun and competitive games. I own a lot of games that have solo variants and I also have games that are solo only — so there’s no reason I can’t do this. It allows me time to relax and refresh and challenge myself. It also helps me just be able to play a hobby I truly enjoy, even when there isn’t a group of people around to play.

I’ll put down a few goals to reach, though.

  • Learn and play each game in my collection that has a solo variant
  • Unwrap/punch every game I have that I haven’t done this to yet
  • Go through collection and if there are games I will never play … sell or trade.

Geocaching

Every year, geocaching is in my goals. Last year was a very lax year for geocaching. I didn’t find many, I didn’t place many, and I kind of got away from the game.

There are a few reasons for that, such as because the game has blown up so much it’s hard to find good caches without driving for a bit. See, most of my area is cleared out and those that aren’t I like to keep around for a time that me and a couple of others might want to go find a few.

But these days, with the advent of the smartphone apps and such, hides are becoming a little tougher to deal with. I can only find so many lamp post and guardrail hides.

I do miss caching with others, going on fun hikes, and making memories with caching, though So this year I am aiming to find 200 caches. That should be highly doable. Heck, if done right, I could get half that done in a weekend.

Geowoodstock is in May this year, in North Carolina. I’m not ruling it out by any means, but it’s a longshot. I’d like to hit several other events this year, though, so we’ll see what happens.

I’m going to stick to just the 200 finds as a goal this year. I’m not going to tier it as I want to make it a little easier in hopes that I can get back into the game.

Organization

I think I am pretty organized at work. I utilize my work calendar quite well and usually have everything line up.

Personally, not as much.

I want to get more organized in 2017. That includes utilizing my personal Google calendar, as well as a life organizer I purchased. There might be a little more to this thing than I need, but I am going to give it a whirl. It will probably take me a few weeks to “set it up,” but that gives me time to think things over more — both about this year and long-term things. So, that will be cool. In the end, I want to be able to look back at 2017 and realize I followed something a bit better and didn’t feel like I was always disorganized.

Personal

Again, this isn’t measurable. But, I want 2017 to be a year of “happy.” I want to feel happy. I want to be happy. I want to improve as many things in my world that I can. It can be anything from being more active within the family to making sure my finances keep improving, both short-term and long-term.

This isn’t really something I can do anything other than at the end of the year, look back, and say “Yes, I am in a better place personally than I was at the beginning of the year.”

Hopefully I will keep improving and pushing forward. That’s all I can try and do.

I hope you all have a wonderful 2017!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

2016 in Review: Looking back (Part 1)

And like a flash, 2016 will soon be in the books.

It’s been a strange year, it seems. I can’t complain personally as, for the most part, it was pretty good. I had the opportunity to do a lot of different things, which is always nice. I saw many different things, and traveled a bit. I took photos and met people.

I’m breaking up the posts a little differently this year as I haven’t received the blogging report from Jetpack yet. Hopefully that isn’t discontinued as I always like that. So today will be the first part of looking back at 2016.

There was a lot of baseball and travel in 2016, that’s for sure!

Just like it’s been in recent years, though, the year seemed to fly by. I can almost remember the calendar turning to 2016, and here we are knocking on the door of 2017. I try more than ever to not wish for things to come faster as it’s nice to see things come slower and build up. If you wish too hard for things to come fast, then they do and everything passes you by.

Personally, it was a pretty good year. I find myself in better financial shape than I was at the beginning and I’ve paid off a few smaller credit cards and bills. I had the ability to travel some and got to visit places I’ve never been. I traded in my car for a new one and it’s been nice to have switched to automatic. I haven’t been sick (knock on wood) for a prolonged period and, for the most part, I feel fulfilled professionally.

There was, of course, baseball and a lot of it. I tried to maintain other hobbies as well, though some took a backseat to others. I’ve seen Cameron as much as I can, and family remains near and dear to me. Hopefully we can all get closer and closer.

My 2016 wasn’t bad. And in this post and the next one, I will talk about the different parts of it. First, though, it’s time to look back at the goals I set and see how I did. The goals were from a post (https://hoohaa.com/?p=9869) from January 2016.

Let’s see how I did. Were there successes? Failures? A push? Let’s take a look.

Geocaching (pretty much a push)

Remember, when I say fail — it’s not necessarily a fail, rather I didn’t reach the level I was aiming for. I think as long as you do something toward a goal, it’s a work in progress. My goals, too, are pretty open-ended, so it allows me some wiggle room.

I have not had many caching adventures this year.

Such as with geocaching.

This goal had several tiers, so let’s see if I got to any of the levels. Part of this was an epic fail, but there were good things, too.

  • Average a cache per day — Not even close. I’ve found 138 caches this year, which is by far the fewest in a year since I started in 2008.
  • Add another state (or more) to my list — I added North Carolina, Kentucky, and California to my totals.
  • Place 10 new caches (not including events) — Close. I have six caches in my name, and I placed three others for a geocaching challenge. So I’ll count that as nine. I definitely would like to place more and I think once the spring comes, I’ll work on fixing some of my current ones and placing a few new ones.
  • Host at least 5 events — Though I had plans of doing one each month in my head, that didn’t happen. Still, I hosted eight events, including a CITO event. It was an overall good year for events!

In the end, it means I should find more caches. But I am not a fan of caching solo as it takes away some of the social aspect. So we’ll see how 2016 goes.

Home brewing (fail)

It seems each year this is a goal and each year, it’s a fail.

I just don’t dedicate enough time to this hobby and I really do have fun with it.

My goal was at least three beers. I didn’t get there. I need to sit down and do a few smaller batches, test, and see what happens.

I still have several ideas — I just need to follow through on them.

Blogging (success)

This has to be a success. There’s no way around it, even if it was a struggle at times.

Like geocaching, this was a tiered goal. Let’s take a look.

  • Write a new “about” page — I tweaked it a little, but didn’t write or design a new one.
  • Post at least 250 times — I’ll have done every day by the end of the year, so yes.
  • Have a minimum of 12 posts every month — Done.
  • Take part in a few other challenges, to keep things fresh: I might have, but honestly… I don’t recall. I know there were some I was looking to take part in.

Blogging is a lot of fun and I’ll dial it back a bit in 2017 as the everyday aspect was tough, but I will continue blogging and enjoy it. It’s been a part of my life for a long time and I don’t see any reason to stop!

Board games (fail)

This is a hobby I’ve done for a few years and I will be setting goals with it again for 2017, but this year was a little up and down. I didn’t go to my regular game group as much (baseball played a major part in this) and didn’t go to the local game store as much

I haven’t played as many games as I’d like, so hopefully that will change in 2017!

Hopefully, that can change in 2017.

The board game hobby, especially the more “Euro” or strategy style games are booming. My personal collection is quite large and there’s a lot there I need to and want to play. Again, this was a tiered goal, so let’s look:

  • Play 225 times — I was at about 120 this year, so not so much the goal.
  • Play 100 different games — I played a lot of different games, but not near the 100.
  • Go to a game convention — I went to ConnCon in March.

I will continue to play games and I have a lot of games that have a solo variant. That’s a hint of how the goal for 2017 will be somewhat shaped. I will go to at least ConnCon again this year and I have my eye on maybe another convention to add to it in the summer. Games really are a lot of fun — especially when you get away from the mass produced ones like Monopoly.

We’ll see how the goals for next year go, but this one I would call a fail for 2016.

Day Zero Project (fail)

This is a fail as I know I didn’t cross off 25 other things this year, even though it should have been easy to do so.

I have a ton of the options that are blog-based that I could have posted this year, but I just never sat down to do it. It’s a shame, too, as it likely would have made the blog post a day thing a lot easier.

This version of my Day Zero ends in 2017, so it will soon enough be a thing of the past.

Travel (success)

This is definitely a success. I had the chance to see many places. Mainly this was during baseball trips, but there were a lot of side things. I visited ballparks and places I’ve never been. I traveled solo and with friends. I saw the Pacific Ocean for the first time

That being said, I didn’t get to the minimum of five New York State parks, I didn’t get to Montreal this year, but I’m looking at it in 2017. I think the travel parts of my year went very well and something I am grateful to have been able to do.

Overall

I guess with my goals, I did some and didn’t get to others. The beauty of goals like this are ones I set for myself with the idea of knowing I’d probably do parts and maybe not others. I like to do a lot of things, that’s for sure, and a lot of times I will be in a situation where I don’t remember full goals — just some.

Part 2 of my looking back post will follow and I’ll go a little more in-depth with the year.

How did your goals/resolutions for 2016 go?

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!