Stuff I'm Looking Forward To...

1. the results of the Springtime Math Trade

You may well ask yourself, "What's a math trade?" The short answer is that it's a type of trading that maximizes your chances of making a trade. Everyone submits 1 (or more) items they're willing to trade... and when the submission period is over, each trader has a few days to submit want lists - what items they're willing to accept in trade. All this info is fed into a computer which spits out a series of trades to make it happen.

Here's a (simple) example: I send Candyland to Bob, who sends Sorry! to Eldon, who sends Trivial Pursuit to Joe, who sends Risk to me. (Yes, it's a board/card game math trade... only with much cooler games.)

I've got pretty high hopes for this trade... I've got 6 lots in the trade & a lot of possible "wants". I'm guessing I'll make 4 out of the 6 trades. (We'll know Sunday night!)

2. the release of Race for the Galaxy: The Gathering Storm

Race for the Galaxy is my most played game this year - it's a science fiction card game where you're developing your empire & technology through a series of complex interactions... and yet it only takes 30 or so minutes to play. It's got a pretty hefty learning curve - I'd suggest you commit to playing 2 games in a row the first time you play so you can get the hang of it - but it's a blast once you get past that point.

The first of two promised expansions releases in May/June... adding new types of cards & rules to flesh out some strategies & create new paths to victory. I can't wait!

3. opening night for Iron Man & Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Both of these movies look like they're RIGHT in my sweet spot... and both look like they'll be "don't miss these on a big screen" kind of films.

4. the arrival of my pre-ordered copy of Agricola

This was THE buzz game from Essen 2007 (Essen, for the uninitiated, is the biggest board game event in the Western world)... only it had 300 cards in German. Z-Man Games is reprinting it in English & the pre-order I made back in late December (thanks to Doug Garrett) is going to ship here in the next few weeks. Yippee!

5. vacationing with the family

Braeden has been saying he "wants to go live in a hotel again"... I'm with him. The current plans to tie Gulf Games & vacation may fall through (primarily due to airfare costs) but we'll find somewhere to go & enjoy. Other possibilities: San Diego (Legoland & Aunt Nancy and Uncle Richard), Portland (OMSI, my folks), the Bay area (all sorts of stuff).

6. my fifth anniversary as pastor of NewLife Community Church

July 25th will be five years here in Easton... which will be the longest I've served a single church. (We'll actually pass that mark in late May, if you don't count the unpaid prep time for tc@hh.) It's fun to realize how much God has allowed me to do & how much fun I've had... and, as well, how good these folks have been to me & my family.

As well, the 5 year anniversary is where I go from 3 weeks to 4 weeks of vacation - yowsa.

7. my summer job

This summer, I'll be the camp pastor for our association's Children's/Middle School camp. I'm excited & scared, all at the same time - this is the first time I've done something like this. (You can be praying, both for me & for the kids.) BTW, Southern Baptist churches are organized (voluntarily) into local associations... and each individual church also chooses whether or not to affiliate with the state convention & the Southern Baptist Convention. (For those of you used to hierarchical church structure, this probably feels pretty loosey-goosey.) There - now you've had your church polity lesson for the day.